There's no doubt about it, Queen Elizabeth II is the star of The Crown. Whether it is Claire Foy or Olivia Colman, both women provide stunning portrayals of her, bringing the right level of class and personality to make it as accurate as possible throughout the series.
Queen Elizabeth II is around to provide authority at times within her role, but she is also a mother, and a wife, which are elements that get showcased as well. Throughout the series, she comes out with a range of great quotes, from powerful speeches to funny one-liners, highlighting a real range of her personality.
Updated on July 3rd, 2021 by Matthew Wilkinson: Of course, during her Royal appearances, Queen Elizabeth II often has to give great speeches, which do lead to some inspiring quotes that fans love. But something that The Crown does so well at is highlighting all sides of her life.
Audiences get to see her funny side, as well as great emotional moments that people may not have expected either. While the show has got a lot of big characters who come out with some great quotes at different points, few are able to match Queen Elizabeth II for memorable lines within the series.
"All you have to do is wait. It's all right. I was a mechanic during the war."
The Crown begins when Elizabeth is still a princess training for her royal duties. Part of this training involves going on a tour of Africa in her father's place. When the entourage is struggling with a broken car engine, Elizabeth jumps out and quickly shows them how to fix it.
In these early episodes, Elizabeth's experience as a mechanic and her service during World War II establish her character as a practical, hard-working woman who is powerfully persuasive even if she isn't the loudest voice in the room. To date, the real Queen Elizabeth is the only female member of the British royal family to have served in the military.
"My name is Elizabeth."
Soon after Elizabeth becomes the new Queen, her private secretary asks for her regal name. He explains that her father took the name George when his given name was Albert, and her uncle took the name Edward when his given name was David. Elizabeth decides not to overcomplicate matters and keep her birth name as her regal name.
This shows Elizabeth's unfussy and unpretentious nature but also a naivete about her future role. As the show makes clear later on, she can never allow the public to see her true self. She is no longer Elizabeth Mountbatten but Elizabeth Regina.
"That's not a question. Still not a question."
When Prince Charles is given a posting to head to the Caribbean, he decides he s unhappy with it and takes to complaining to his mother. However, when it comes to following duty and protocol, Elizabeth always looks to uphold the standard.
Because of that, his complaints fall short of the mark. He wants to ask to not go, but he beats around the bush and as he is babbling his words, Elizabeth makes her stance clear, pointing out he isn't even asking a question on multiple occasions. It showcases her strength and duty, even to her closest family members.
"The trouble is, I have the sort of face that if I'm not smiling, then everyone says, 'Oh, isn't she cross?'"
In "Pride and Joy," Elizabeth and Philip go on a tour of the Commonwealth, following an arduous schedule that pushes them to their limits. At one point, Elizabeth's facial muscles begin to spasm from smiling so much, and she calls in a doctor for an injection of muscle relaxant.
The Queen's sense of humor really shines when she explains why she needs this. (Philip, for his part, thinks the injections are ridiculous—but he wouldn't be under as much pressure to smile.) This is another scene based on a true story: the real Queen was very preoccupied with her "cross" resting face and went to great lengths to hide it.
"History was not made by those who did nothing."
Elizabeth offers this as a consolation to former Prime Minister Anthony Eden when he resigns for bungling the Suez Crisis. In calling for war, Eden wanted to be known as a legend like his predecessor. Elizabeth understands the sentiment, having lived in Winston Churchill's shadow in the earliest years of her reign.
She admits that "to do nothing is often the best course of action, but I know from personal experience how frustrating it can be." She empathizes with Eden even as she admonishes him for making the wrong choice in a diplomatic crisis. Because the war turned out to be a disaster, Eden was no longer welcome as Prime Minister.
"I don't often get into a fight, but when I do, I want to win."
The relationship between Elizabeth and Margaret Thatcher is certainly a frosty one, with the two women often not seeing eye to eye. It's something that dominates the third and fourth seasons from the show's political standpoint, with the two having some fierce arguments.
At one point, they end up in a war over the wording of a letter regarding economics and the word that followed it. Everything Elizabeth sent kept getting rejected, which led to her bringing in a writer as she showcased her competitive side.
"One doesn't want to feel second best."
Elizabeth's fear of being overshadowed is a recurring theme in The Crown, despite having no real competition for her station in life. Most of the time, she feels threatened by Margaret's bolder personality. However, in "Dear Mrs. Kennedy," Elizabeth's foil is none other than the glamorous Jackie Kennedy, who is visiting London on state business with her husband.
Feeling conscious of her middle age, Elizabeth resents that Jackie can charm Philip and even the French with her beauty and intelligence. She is surprised when Jackie confesses to being a shy person who hates living in the spotlight, much like Elizabeth herself.
"There is no possibility of my forgiving you. The question is: how on earth can you forgive yourself?"
In "Vergangenheit," Elizabeth must decide whether to allow her uncle, Prince Edward, to re-enter public life. Edward had abdicated the throne in 1936 and put Elizabeth directly in the line of succession. While Elizabeth is personally inclined to grant his wish for a glamorous but not overly demanding job, a visit with Tommy Lascelles reveals some damning information about Edward's activities during World War II.
He essentially committed treason in exchange for being reinstated as King. In one of her most decisive moments, Elizabeth decides that she can't forgive her uncle for his misdeeds and revokes his permission to enter the country.
"I would ask you to consider your response in light of the respect that my rank and office deserve, not that which my age and gender might suggest."
For most of the first season, Elizabeth is unsure of herself and her power. This changes in "Scientia Potentia Est," which explores Elizabeth's relationship with education. Elizabeth is disturbed to hear that the two most powerful men in the country were suffering from health problems during a tense international conflict—and furthermore that she had been kept in the dark about it.
She stands up to Churchill for the first time, telling him that he had broken her trust and endangered the country in withholding information about his health. She explains that "the monarch is the dignified and the government, the efficient. These two institutions only work when they support each other when they trust one another."
"Where would Great Britain be without its... greatest Briton? God bless you, Winston."
While Elizabeth has a rocky relationship with many of the Prime Ministers during the show, one man she grows to have great respect for is Winston Churchill. Elizabeth praises him and honors him many times, including attending a dinner at Downing Street, which was unheard of at the time.
However, her true feelings for Winston were made clearest during her final ever encounter with him. With Winston coming to the end of his life, Elizabeth visits him and pays great respect to her friend, with her final words being of true love and admiration.
"A confederacy of elected quitters."
Anthony Eden isn't the only Prime Minister to resign in Season 2. Harold MacMillan cites ill health in his parting conversation with Queen Elizabeth II, who promptly reminds him of his predecessors and how they also let her down.
"Do you know, I've been queen barely ten years? And in that time I've had three prime ministers, all of them ambitious men, clever men, brilliant men. Not one has lasted the course. They've either been too old, too ill, or too weak." A key point is that, unlike these men, Elizabeth feels her job is for life and she doesn't have the option of quitting.
"To everyone's regret and frustration, the only person I have ever loved is you."
The first decade of Queen Elizabeth's marriage to Prince Philip is one of the major storylines of The Crown's first two seasons. When Elizabeth ascends the throne decades earlier than expected, Philip has difficulty adjusting to his new life as consort, preferring that his wife and Queen defer to him instead of the other way around.
As tensions with Philip increase, Elizabeth spends more time with her childhood friend and fellow horse enthusiast, Porchey. Philip grows jealous of their relationship—but Elizabeth sets him straight, declaring that she and Porchey are just friends and asking Philip point-blank if he could honestly look her in the eye and say the same about his alleged paramours.
"Because, if memory serves, you had your own ballerinas for that."
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip certainly have their issues in marriage, which is something the show doesn't shy away from exploring. One situation that crops up in the show is the closeness Prince Philip gains for a famous ballerina, and it is something that Elizabeth has no problem questioning him about.
It takes place while they're younger, but when Prince Philip tries to joke about Elizabeth never dancing for him in the way Diana does for Charles, his wife quickly fires back with this excellent one-liner. It showcases the fact that she doesn't forget, quickly putting Philip back in his place, while also highlighting her sharp tongue.
"Old bat."
Another great example of Elizabeth's witty responses comes when she is being presented with the new stamps. This is the scene used to showcase the change in actors for the role, with stamps being changed to reflect the fact that Elizabeth has gotten older.
This is something that her staff tries to tiptoe around when they show her the stamps, as they aim to be as polite as possible. But as they're trying to explain it is showing her changing, Elizabeth just points out that it's the change to her being an "old bat." It relieves all the tension in the room and it's a great one-liner that shows her funny side once again.
"For better or worse, the crown has landed on my head. And I say we go."
While on tour, Elizabeth and Philip get into an argument about whether to stop at Gibraltar. Philip wants to skip it for safety reasons, but Elizabeth insists on making the stop and fulfilling her royal duties. Finally, Elizabeth puts her foot down.
In a powerful scene, she acknowledges that there are others who could probably do her job better -- "strong people with powerful characters, more natural leaders, perhaps better suited to leading from the front, leaving a mark." However, the crown and the authority that comes with it have ultimately fallen to her, and she has no intention of letting her husband or anyone else override her.