"The Prince is sure to be put through his paces by their gruelling physical regime..."
As ever, this is a thought-provoking and stimulatng piece of drama, and about more than it may seem at first. The gruelling experiences of the sensitive young Prince Charles at Gordonston are paralleled with flashbacks to the childhood of the young Philip- and we see that both father and son are damaged, both of them in large part because of their own fathers. The cycle continues. And it is hard to escape the conclusion that Charles will be a worse king for his experiences.
Charles is put through five long years of what he describes as "a prison sentence" and "Hell" by Philip, who passionately believes in Gordonstoun and its ethos and will stop at nothing to send his son there. Yet he struggled there himself at first, until the death of his favourite sister- which his absentee monocled failure of a father, Prince Andrew of Greece, cruelly blames on him. Dickie Mountbatten has the right of it in his little monologue to young Charles about parents falling short. The whole theme is masterfully developed, with the use of planes being particularly clever throughout. And Matt Smith is sublime in portraying his disappointment at Charles at the end.
There's more, of course- it's a shock to see the young Philip in Nazi Germany, speaking German and surrounded by the casual presence of Nazi iconography. His sister, Princess Cecile, casually and apptovingly refers to "Herr Hitler". And it's a shock to see Philip insist to Elizabeth that Charles must continue to attend Gordonstoun on pain of divorce- he is deeply attached to Gordonstoun. And the flashbacks tell us why: despite the physical exertions, cold showers and gruelling runs, the this of the school is not cruel and its headmaster, Jewish refugee Dr Hahn, is as progressive as he is harsh.
And yet, in spite of the nuanced portrayal here, one cannot but reflect on the words Elizabeth is made to say here, about the terrible childhood damage caused by bullying, and be horrified at how the man who will soon be our King was brought up. Poor Charles.
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