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Well, that's how it seems to us but certainly not to the reality. Poor buggers. Not only did we get a birds-eye view of the royal texture but also a heart-felt view of their onerous existence which was not particularly pretty. And what a perfectly apt title, because this was not primarily about the Windors, but about the authority, duplicity and propriety of the Crown and how a courageous "little" girl came to terms with it and mostly stood her tenacious ground, whilst also, having to agonise deeply in her relationship with her despondent partner and jilted sibling. And as an institutionally, ill-skilled woman who only had perception and considerable integrity to guide her, it was disheartening to see this being constantly undermined by the Crown.

This portrayal was so realistic you would think it was recorded "live" by the camera that Lizzie's dad gave her as a wedding gift, saying, "I don't want you to miss a single thing". And to our great fortuity, it doesn't look like she did! Now we can sit back and watch what really happened in those days as we grew up along with them (I'm the same age as peddle car Charlie).

It's a bit like watching the Beatles anthology long after the romance has died down except that this was nothing we ever saw in the news. Brilliant, fly-on-the-wall view of a very private and much adored family, with 16 mm vintage cameras hidden, it would seem, in every corner of the palace and beyond! The casting wasn't perfect (you'd be pushing shit uphill to get it much closer) but the way the actor's played out their roles put paid to any doubts about appearance. Notably, Churchill's pretender, who was the least look-alike of them, almost imbued his ghost so well, that if the real Winston turned up you'd think he was the phony. But the star for me was Queen Elizabeth who's pretender nailed it. And I was gobsmacked at how naturally Foy conveyed the nuances of the queen, especially in her canny facial expressions and verbalisation, particularly in close up. Seeing our Queen in those early days was really delightful. "After you darling", says Philip as they make their way through the animal gathered grassland in Kenya. I'm chuffed. The whole, albeit short, Africa bit was stunning. I have come to greatly respect this queen, having now become aware of what she had to endure with so much more hindrance than help from those she "trusted". Everyone determined that they knew what was best for Britain, in terms of their own egos, whilst she, on the other hand, learned to know what it was, more from how she experienced it than from what her ego dictated.

Dispersed throughout are some interesting reflections into royalty, such as the comments by Philip as they prepare for take off on his first flight, and Mary's conviction about, "the Monarchy is a calling from God", to mention just a couple. Oh yes, and Edward's comment during the coronation, about the monarch being uplifted to Godlike stature in the eyes of the people. Fascinating insights.

"Eddie the abdicator" came across as quite an arsehole under the self-seeking mandate of his Yoko Ono. Not being able to separate his own mind from hers, how on earth could he have handled the domination of the Crown? Britain dodged a bullet with his abdication. And Winston came across as an egotistical tyrant, who couldn't get out of his own notorious shadow. The scene of him being dressed down by a queen, young enough to be his granddaughter (almost), was absolutely awesome. He was never the same again and neither was I.

A couple of misgivings. The reality was a bit overshadowed by the heavily melodramatic nature and I had a bit of trouble believing that Churchill could be such a sniveller. I just had to mention something!

The Crown. So much bigger than all of them but it needed them just as much as they coveted it. A wonderfully told, tragic story, with a truly remarkable insight into one of the oldest offices in the world.

One of the reviewers mentioned there was little drama or excitement in the series. I don't know what they were comparing it to. "Game Of Thrones" maybe. For me, it had an abundance of everything. Brilliant script, brilliant atmosphere, brilliantly acted human characterisation and an enchantingly accessible history lesson. All the brilliants in one series which is really more than enough for anyone. And if you can get so much satisfaction without a whiff of sex or violence, there is hope in spades for the British movie industry. Thank you.

Wow! What a riveting piece of absolute vacuity. I was spellbound. And being a big fan of Raccoon who was marvelous in "The Nut Job", it was a real treat. For me he just stole the movie, especially with him and Cranston in the same scene – double wow! He really put everything into perspective. I hope he gets nominated for something.

Others have complained about the weak ending. Woe is me. Just be be thankful for small mercies, you can't have everything. At least we got the sorry beginning and the nothing middle. You should ask God for forgiveness.

And there is no denying the mesmerising dialogue, such as, "Forgive me if I don't stand and watch as another man lays claim to your affections." Or, "Aha, a city fella, eh?" And the standout brilliance of, "My, my, coffee and dessert in the living room. This is a special evening."

Talk about a fly on the wall! I was absolutely spellbound, and to just think that I was privy to the inner meetings that led up to this great disaster. The acting was superb, and although, I couldn't say whether the parts were played with accuracy, they were certainly played with an intelligence and real life perfection that would have put German high command to shame.

And this is why I was transformed into a fly. The script, the accessible truth of this fascinating situation, the acting – cor blimey. I'll be watching it again tomorrow.

I don't know what it was, but my heart, was not in it anymore by S6 Ep3. There seemed to be something wrong with the dialogue and, to a lessor extent, the plots. But the thing that mostly bent my enthusiasm was Ellingham himself.

His grumpiness was inspirational to an old grump like myself and there was much to like about this attitude of his from the perspective of his role amongst the rest of the village idiots. And best of all, this grumpiness was equally balanced with a comforting sense of warmth.

BUT - from the opening scene of the wedding, the grumpiness was turned up several notches and the warmth was turned down to near freezing. From then on things just became downright stuffy. As if they had lost their initial enthusiasm for the show and just pushed the absurdities a little too far out, not least in the performance of PC Joe Clouseau Jnr.

The idea is fantastic but there is very little depth in the screenplay. The icing is sparkling and the cake looks delicious but after a mouthful or two it seems a bit dry and is not as digestible or juicy as one would've hoped.

It's just good enough, but it could have been great. An idea like this is rare. It's as if they dream't up a hit tune but couldn't find the words to make it into a kick-ass anthem.

I find the development of the males is somewhat corny and the development of the girls is more solid but shallow. It does come together quite well when the extended family is involved.

I read an earlier review on this movie saying that Seymour-Hoffman was up there with all the great actors like Brando and Pacino but this is untrue because Hoffman is not really an actor - he's a genius. You know Brando and Pacino are acting, albeit, remarkably, but I never saw Hoffman even look like he was acting in this movie. Makes me wonder whether even Mahowny was as natural as Hoffman.

A lot of actors seem to sleepwalk around a screenplay and they look like it. But somehow Hoffman always gets a part that suits him to a t so the more sleep-like-walking he does the more realistic his presence seems to be. This was especially true for me in this movie and, also, in "Charlie Wilson's War".

I gave this 9, although, in a different story probably an 8, but this is my kinda story and that, with Hoffman, is what I loved about it. I didn't even notice any of the other nuances of the movie.

So far having watched the first four episodes, this show is wonderful. I haven't enjoyed a British thriller so much since "Who Pays The Ferryman" which, to me, has quite a lot in common with it. The way the characters keep getting drawn in and the way the music is used to great effect.

And Agatha Christie would surely be approving and maybe even a bit miffed because nearly everyone is under suspicion, INCLUDING the detective's spouse.

But what really makes it a winner for me, is the casting which causes me to wonder whether they got the cast together first and then thought, "Hey, there's a great story in the blending of these actors" and wrote it. In other words, the cast almost pushes the screenplay. But that assumption would be unfair to the writers (Chris and Louise) who have used their imagination in a most erudite and museful way.

I'm sixty-eight so am quite sceptical and put off about suspending one's belief, and this show does require some, but it works, or should I say, it fits in so well that it's almost unnoticeable even when there's quite a leap. You feel you want it there which is very rarely the case for me.