Imelda Marcos Got a Not-So-Flattering Shoutout in the Latest Season of Netflix’s The Crown

Season four of Netflix’s The Crown, a historical drama about the British royal family, just dropped, and fans are absolutely thrilled. While binge-watching, one moment, in particular, caught the attention of Filipino fans: a scene in which Princess Margaret (Helena Bonham Carter) starts telling a story about Imelda Marcos, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ wife. 

Imelda Marcos started trending online as soon as viewers binging the new season got to that moment in the third episode. Most reactions were that of amusement at the shade the show threw at the former First Lady. 

The scene opens with Princess Margaret holding the attention of fellow royals and aristocrats as she narrates her encounter with the former first lady. 

“There we are, in Manila, in the middle of a state banquet, when who barges into the room? None other than Imelda Marcos,” Princess Margaret started her story. She then recalled how the first lady made a beeline for her, saying she wanted to show Princess Margaret her “shell collection.”

Prince Philip (Tobias Menzies) then suggested that Princess Margaret must have misheard. “She was probably trying to say shoe [collection] and you misunderstood her.” Afterward, the royals started taking turns imitating Imelda Marcos’ fake English accent. 

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Princess Margaret picked up the story after the interruption of Princess Diana’s (Emma Corrin) arrival, describing how the whole dinner party was rushed in a convoy of limousines through Manila and into the first lady’s “private aquarium where she keeps a vast portrait of herself wearing….” The scene cuts into a different one before Princess Margaret could finish her story. 

Many pointed that out even though it was amusing, there were bigger things to criticize about Imelda Marcos than the way she spoke. Others countered that it made sense for a group of equally out-of-touch aristocrats to focus on something as petty as accents and to not realize that they were guilty of excess too. One thing’s for sure though, the scene certainly painted a picture of Imelda Marcos’ reputation of extravagance and grandeur even among international diplomats at the time.

You can now watch season four of The Crown on Netflix.

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