- The final series of Peter Morgan’s royal drama debuts on Netflix today
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The Crown fans were brought to tears as they watched Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed’s final moments.
The Netflix show recreated the fatal car crash in Paris that killed the couple in 1997 – right up until the point where their car entered the Pont de l’Alma tunnel.
The harrowing scene is played out at the end of episode three of the sixth and final season of the royal drama which landed on the streaming service this morning.
Diana ( Elizabeth Debicki ) and Dodi (Khalid Abdalla) get into a car outside the Ritz Hotel in Paris to return to the Egyptian film producer’s apartment. The car then accelerates through the streets of the French capital before entering the tunnel at high speed.
Viewers were sobbing watching the emotional scene unfold, with one penning: ‘I’ll never forget the day Diana died for as long as I live. The saddest day.’
Another said: ‘Currently sobbing, in tears, screaming at the first part of The Crown’
A third added: ‘The first scene of The Crown season 6 episode 1 is literally Diana’s accident – I can’t do this rn I swear, I’m crying within the first 4 minutes of the episode.’
One fan wrote: ‘The last phone call between Harry, William and Diana broke my heart’
It comes after Netflix stressed throughout production of series six that viewers will not see the crash which killed Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed. But the episode does play an audio of the fatal incident.
The depiction of events leading up to the very moment the crash happened will likely cause fresh anguish for the royal family in covering such a sensitive subject.
Speaking in a corridor ahead of their ill-fated final journey, Dodi asks Henri Paul – the deputy head of security at the Ritz – if the pair are safe to travel. Speaking in French, Henri explains that two staffers have taken a decoy vehicle, so the coast is clear for Diana and Dodi.
‘No one will see us leave, trust me,’ he tells Dodi.
But as the couple walk out to the Mercedes-Benz W140 they are flanked by paparazzi.
Ominous music then plays as the driver asks Diana if she’s okay, before Dodi tell Henri – driving the vehicle – ‘allez’.
After the pair get into the car, very few words are spoken, but Diana and Dodi hold and squeeze each other’s hands.
The car begins to speed through the streets and passes a pedestrian who is walking his dog – who looks a little taken aback by the speed of the vehicle.
Netflix has always insisted viewers will not see the crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel which killed Dodi and Henri Paul on impact and took Diana’s life a few hours later – however, the crash can be heard right at the end of episode three.
The series goes as far as to show the car entering the Pont de l’Alma tunnel as it speeds past the dog walker, in a clip that may shock some viewers.
The final series also depicts the aftermath of Princess Diana’s death as the royal family are told the news while at Balmoral.
In a moving scene, an aide breaks the news to the Queen (Imelda Staunton), Prince Philip (Jonathan Pryce) and Prince Charles (Dominic West) who are huddled around the television watching the coverage of the crash.
No words can be heard while the aide delivers the news – however Charles, visibly devastated, breaks down in tears on the sofa.
The Queen while stoic, can be seen holding back tears with a solemn look on her face.
Elsewhere in the first episodes of the final season, Princess Diana is depicted as anxious and frustrated on the last day she’s alive as she spends the day in Pris with Dodi. In one scene, she expresses her frustration as she tries to call her sons at Balmoral and is told she has ‘missed them’.
The clip begins with Diana walking out of a car into the Ritz hotel with boyfriend Dodi Fayed by her side. She is swarmed by paparazzi.
She then steps inside the hotel, where she calls Balmoral to speak to William and Harry.
‘Balmoral Castle ,’ the operator says.
‘Oh, it’s Diana calling for the boys,’ the Princess replies.
‘You’ve just missed them,’ the aide adds. ‘The princes waited for your call but have gone back out again. Maybe try again at dinner time’.
Diana then looks extremely anguished, silently mouths ‘f**k’ and scrunches up her face in anger. However, she does get to speak to the boys later on.
Other newly released clips include Charles’ despair over telling William and Harry their mother has died and Diana telling Dodi she’s a ‘persona non-grata’ at Balmoral.
The show will also depict the last time Prince William and Prince Harry spoke to their mother – but it will not be a true reflection of the conversation.
