‘ MARGARET WOULD HAVE MADE A MORE NATURAL QUEEN!’
HELENA BONHAM CARTER
She plays the Queen’s sister Princess Margaret in season three of The Crown, and Helena Bonham Carter reveals the role was an absolute gift.
This season focuses on the Countess of Snowdon, and her life from 1964 to 1976, when she suffered a marriage breakdown amid rumours of a tumultuous feud with Her Majesty.
What made you want to sign on the dotted line for
The Crown?
The quality – and also it’s a hit! For us, it’s good to be on hits… I mean, it might not be a hit when we’re in it, the only way is down. But it was the gift of a job. And it’s not just because it’s royalty, it’s also about family, and family in an impossible situation. It has such resonance.
What did you discover about royal etiquette?
We had Major Dane on set, who is an expert and an can answer any question. One of the things that distinguish this job are the amount of resources. You have a whole department researching and you ask, “Who am I having an affair with now?” and you get a dossier on people having affairs between 1960 or 1965 or whenever – it’s extraordinary.
What would Margaret have liked as a job if she had a choice?
I think she’d have been a more natural Queen. She was a bit of a talent, so she was very musical and sang a lot, so she could have been a performer. I saw an astrologer who said she would have been brilliant at heading a big charity.
Did she meet The Beatles?
Yes! There was a protocol no one could eat until she left and at a dinner party [George] said, “You know we’re not allowed to eat until you go,” and she said, “Oh, I’ll go then!” If you spoke directly to her, then she had no problem.