Camilla Parker Bowles is royally perturbed by her portrayal in Netflix’s hit series “The Crown” — which paints her as the “wicked woman” in King Charles’ marriage to Princess Diana — according to a new book.
The Queen Consort, 75, is so dismayed by her depiction in the royal family drama that she can’t stand to watch — despite previous reports she was “quite happy to laugh at the series,” an insider told author Angela Levin in “Camilla: From Outcast to Queen Consort.”
The 319-page biography chronicles Camilla’s uneven rise from royal outcast to one of Queen Elizabeth II’s closest companions, as well as her struggle dealing with the public breakdown of Charles’ marriage to his late ex-wife, Diana.
“When a certain timeline story is revisited by the press, television or film, it causes the [Queen Consort] a lot of stress and she gets very upset,” one source said. “That is the truth but neither she nor [King] Charles will talk about it. The narrative is that she is the wicked woman, where Diana is presented as the victim and Camilla as evil.”
The insider insists Camilla was widely “vilified as a ‘marriage wrecker” following 2020’s Season 4 of “The Crown,” which detailed the 1980s love triangle of Princess Diana, Prince Charles and Bowles, Levin writes.
Incensed viewers reacted so negatively to Camilla being shown as Charles’ other woman in the series that the couple’s Clarence House Twitter account saw a “significant” rise in hate comments, prompting its comment section to be turned off following Season 4, Levin writes.
A former aide to Charles, who is set to be crowned at Westminster Abbey in May alongside Camilla, said the entire scandal still stings decades later.
“I think that what was very difficult for her along the way, and must still be difficult for her, are reminders of the bad times in the ’80s and ’90s,” former aide Mark Bolland said. “Of course, it comes back from time to time — in books and dramas and documentaries on television. Much of that history is based on untruths at worst or, at best, another version of history.”
Another insider, meanwhile, said she believes Camilla has never actually seen “The Crown” — unlike Charles, who watched previous seasons, according to royal biographer Katie Nicholl.
“It’s the way she protects herself,” Camilla’s former aide of 20-plus years, Amanda MacManus, told Levin.
Camilla “rarely” spoke of the abusive comments lobbed her way, she continued.
“It must have hurt, but I think she has not used to it and thinks the people who do it are trolls and possibly look like trolls as well,” MacManus said.
Another well-placed royal source echoed that sentiment, saying Camilla was distressed by how she was characterized on “The Crown,” which debuts Season 5 on Nov. 9.
“The real truth is that the depiction of herself and the exaggeration of Diana’s plight hurt her badly,” the unnamed source told Levin.
Last week it was announced that Netflix, after much outcry from figures including Dame Judi Dench and former Prime Minister John Major, will add a disclaimer for the show — making clear it is a “fictional dramatization” of historical events.