The Crown: Welsh actor believes the Netflix series will 'provide comfort' following Queen’s death

Welsh actor Sir Jonathan Pryce has revealed how he thinks that the new series of Netflix's The Crown will provide people "comfort" following Queen Elizabeth's death. The late monarch died on September 8.

Talking ahead of the series, which returned on November 9, the 75-year-old actor, who is from Flintshire, said: “I think people will gain a bit of comfort from seeing her embodied again." In The Crown, Sir Jonathan plays Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh opposite Imelda Staunton, who has taken over from Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth II. Dominic West and Elizabeth Debicki play Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales, respectively.

Viewing figures for the series increased by 500% in the wake of the Queen’s death, according to Sir Jonathan. He added that he believes the public now appreciate the Royal Family more following the period of political unrest that saw Liz Truss as Prime Minister for just 44 days.

Read more: The Crown's Welsh star Jonathan Pryce says the show isn't disrespectful to the royals

“It was a reflection of where our society is at the moment – where there is a lack of trust or believability in our politician," he said, according to The Mirror. "This is the kind of person we want to be following and leading our country, not… well, she’s gone now. I can’t remember her name, she was there for a week."

Imelda Staunton and Sir Jonathan Pryce in the series (Netflix)

Discussing his role in the popular Netflix series, Sir Jonathan adds that, for research, he visited Windsor Castle and was left unimpressed, thanks to the impressive sets on The Crown, which reportedly cost £10million per episode. “I had a bit of a look around, and I think fake Windsor Castle is better,” he laughed. The Windsor scenes are filmed at Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire.

The Crown season 1-5 is now available to watch on Netflix. For more showbiz and television stories get our newsletter here.

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