'The Crown' effect: Princess Diana supporters come out in force after her story is depicted on Netflix drama

The fourth season of The Crown has renewed interest in the late Princess Diana — not that it ever went away.

The depiction of the royal as she makes a rocky transition into public life in the early ’80s — and the impressive performance of actress Emma Corrin — has earned both praise from Diana biographers and pointed criticism from the royal family. While the Netflix drama’s take on the narrative of the young Diana is entertainment and not a documentary, it’s bringing her story to a whole new generation and refreshing the memories of those who witnessed it in real time.

Over the weekend, a tweet from the official account of Prince Charles and his second wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, was flooded with references to the late Diana and The Crown. This was despite the fact that it hadn’t even mentioned Diana, but was a straightforward statement from the duchess about a the entries received for an essay contest to encourage literacy in young people.

The new installments of the Emmy-winning drama debuted on Nov. 15. They show Diana in despair as she makes (usually futile) attempts to please the royal family, especially her husband, who’s all the while deeply in love with Camilla, who has been deemed an unsuitable wife.

The real Diana and Charles announced their separation in 1992, officially divorcing in 1996. But it had been a long time coming.

Diana famously revealed in a 1995 interview that she felt her union had never really stood a chance, because Charles and Camilla had an ongoing bond by the time Diana and Charles wed in that elaborate 1981 spectacle.

When Diana sat down with journalist Martin Bashir in 1995 for an interview that had not been sanctioned by the crown, she called out the other woman. Asked if Camilla had been a factor in the divorce, Diana said, “Well, there were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.”

Charles and Camilla eventually married in April 2005. That was more than seven years after Diana tragically died in a car crash in Paris, after the paparazzi chased the vehicle she was traveling in on Aug. 31, 1997.

Just as The Crown has thrust the “People’s Princess” back into the spotlight, Diana’s interview, too, is coming under new scrutiny. The BBC announced on Nov. 11 that it would open an investigation into allegations that surfaced earlier this month that Bashir used dishonest methods to entice Diana to give the interview.

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