'My granny kind of likes it.' What the royal family really thinks of The Crown.

Since The Crown premiered on Netflix in 2016, serial watchers have been curious to know what exactly the British royal family think about the fictionalised drama.

And after two years of waiting for a new stack of episodes, season five of The Crown debuted in November. 

Over the years, stories have leaked to the media about how the real-life British royal family think about the events of their lives being played out on TV.

Watch the trailer for The Crown season five. Story continues after video. 

Here's exactly what the royal family think of The Crown.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. 

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Matt Smith admitted he'd heard what the royal really thought of the show. 

Smith portrayed Prince Philip in the first two seasons of The Crown.

"I met the now-King Charles [III], I told him that he had fabulous shoes... and then I met [Prince] Harry once at the Polo," he said on the Today Show. "[Harry] walked up to me and he went, 'Granddad,' because he watched the show."

Matt Smith as Prince Philip in The Crown. Image: Netflix.

He added: "I heard the Queen had watched [The Crown], and she used to watch it on a projector on a Sunday night, apparently."

Actress Vanessa Kirby also claimed she was told Queen Elizabeth had watched the Netflix program. Kirby played Queen Elizabeth's sister, Princess Margaret, in the first seasons of The Crown. 

"A friend of mine was at a party where he didn’t know anyone, so [he] sidled up to a group who were discussing the show," she described on The Graham Norton Show. "One of the women said, 'My granny kind of likes it.'"

"Granny" of course, was Queen Elizabeth and the woman who was talking was either Princess Eugenie or Beatrice.

"It turns out, it was one of the princesses. The queen’s granddaughter," Kirby said. "It’s quite a reliable source-ish, so I’m sure she’s a fan."

King Charles III.

Dominic West as Prince Charles and Elizabeth Debicki as Diana in The Crown. Image: Netflix.

Dominic West, who plays King Charles III in season five of the series admitted he actually got into touch with the royal after it was revealed he would be in the show.

"I just thought I would inform the Prince's trust that I was playing the part. And I felt they had a right to know that. So, that's as far as it went," the actor told Entertainment Tonight.

Prince William.

Olivia Colemen, who played the Queen on The Crown, admitted to having an awkward encounter with Prince William. Image: Netflix.

Olivia Coleman starred in The Crown's earlier seasons as Queen Elizabeth and in 2019, she sat down for an interview on The Graham Norton Show. 

During the show, she admitted to having an awkward encounter with Prince William.

"It didn't go very well. I met Prince William at a dinner, and he asked what I was doing at the moment before he quickly added, 'Actually, I know what you're doing'," she said. 

"I was so excited and asked, 'Have you watched it?' His answer was a firm, 'No.' But he was very charming and very lovely."

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

Earlier this year, Prince Harry told The Late Late Show With James Corden, he admitted that he was "more comfortable" with The Crown than tabloid news.

"They don't pretend to be news, it's fictional. But it's loosely based on the truth. Of course, it's not strictly accurate, but loosely," he said. "It gives you a rough idea about what the lifestyle, what the pressures of putting duty and service above family and everything else, what can come from that."

He added: "I'm way more comfortable with The Crown than I am seeing the stories written about my family, or my wife, or myself," he told Corden. "Because it's the difference between, [The Crown] is obviously fiction, take it how you will, but [tabloid stories] are being reported on as fact, because you're supposedly news. I have a real issue with that."

The Duke of Sussex felt Billions and Homeland star Damian Lewis could portray him in later seasons.

Meghan and Harry at the Queen's Jubilee. Image: Getty.

While his comments were not negative, he had a different opinion of The Crown in 2018, according to Harry: Conversations With the Prince, by biographer Angela Levin.

"Harry, when I went to interview him in the Palace, the first thing he said to me when he shook my hand was, 'Are you watching The Crown?'" Levin revealed on BBC Breakfast in January 2020. "And I hadn't been at the time, I felt very embarrassed and I got it and he said, 'I'm going to make sure I stop it before they get to me.'"

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Dominic West told Entertainment Tonight that although he was friendly with Prince Harry, he didn't reach out to the royal.

"I didn't think it was appropriate to call him up and ask him for tips," West admitted. "I haven't spoken to him for many years."

Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson.

Sarah Ferguson offered to advise on her own portrayal in The Crown. Image: Netflix.

Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, told Town & Country Magazine that she offered to advise on her portrayal in The Crown. Following her brief appearance in the fictionalised drama, it was clear the royal was turned down. 

"Hello? Where is Fergie?" she said she asked the producers of the show. 

The royal went on to say she emailed the executive producer Andy Harries. "I said to him, 'Why can't I help my character?'" she shared with the magazine. 

She told US Magazine that The Crown "was filmed beautifully. The cinematography was excellent."

Princess Anne.

Princess Anne only watched the first few episodes of The Crown. Image: Netflix.

In the 2020 ITV documentary Anne: The Princess Royal at 70, Princess Anne admitted that she found some episodes of The Crown "quite interesting."

Unfortunately, the royal said she hasn't tuned into any of the newer seasons since.

Season 5 of The Crown is now streaming on Netflix.

Feaure Image: Netflix/Getty.