No Woman's Land
- Episode aired Nov 9, 2022
- TV-MA
- 51m
As BBC's Martin Bashir goes to great lengths to secure an interview with Diana, the lonely princess finds purpose and warmth in a London hospital.As BBC's Martin Bashir goes to great lengths to secure an interview with Diana, the lonely princess finds purpose and warmth in a London hospital.As BBC's Martin Bashir goes to great lengths to secure an interview with Diana, the lonely princess finds purpose and warmth in a London hospital.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAs depicted in this episode, Princess Diana and Dr. Hasnat Khan really did go on a date to see Apollo 13 (1995). Thereafter, they were in a committed relationship for three years 1995-97 and separated shortly before Diana started seeing Dodi Fayed.
- GoofsWhen Dr Khan is discussing performing open heart surgery he says, "you cut 10-12 inches" yet in England they use metric measurements, rather than imperial. Which is primarily used in the United States.
Correction: Many Brits, especially in informal conversation, still use the imperial system even in 2022. In official standards, there's a mixture: For example, while fuel prices are given in litres, road distances are measured in miles.
- Quotes
Princess Diana: I remember visiting the Badshee Mosque.
Hasnat Khan: Badshahi.
Princess Diana: Badshahi. And sitting primly on my little cushion. And my gorgeous, chic headscarf which they gave me to wear.
Hasnat Khan: Dupatta.
Princess Diana: Dupatta. And listening to all the imams talking about interfaith harmony, thinking how happy I could be there if I found myself a nice, handsome Pakistani husband.
Hasnat Khan: It's a nice idea in theory. In practice, you might find traditional Pakistani values a little challenging.
Princess Diana: You think the family I married into is any different? I was instructed to dress modestly, speak in a low voice, and walk one pace behind my husband and address him always as "sir." I was discouraged from expressing opinions or having an education. I had to make a vow that I was a virgin before being considered fit to marry him.
Hasnat Khan: I'm sorry.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Javo & Temoc: Top 10 Series: Lo 'mejor' del año (2022)
- SoundtracksA Girl Like You
By Edwyn Collins
This is meant to be a review of the show, not of the monarchy, or whether Princess Diana was saint or sinner *spoiler: as with every human, it's likely she was neither, and The Crown does well to traverse the balance.
'No Woman's Land' is really pt 1/2, with 'Gunpowder' pt 2/2. These are strong episodes, especially when viewed together. The focus is on Princess Diana, her paranoia, and how the infamous BBC interview was nefariously obtained by Martin Bashir. Elizabeth Debicki gives a fantastic performance as Diana, absolutely inhabiting the character. It's way more than doing an impersonation or adopting singular expressions.
Debicki conveys Diana's loneliness, her vulnerability, her hope to love again, and her strength in continuing to fight "the system." Debicki makes it credible that from the inside Diana believed she wasn't being vindictive by spilling the royal tea (earl grey?) to the world. She wanted her side of the story to be told, and was largely conned into doing so.
S5 definitely has pace-and-flow issues overall but these two episodes didn't. The following episode 'Couple 31' is even better, exploring the complexity of marriage and divorce. That episode would receive Oscar nominations if it was a film.
- toniponey
- Nov 18, 2022
Details
- Runtime51 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.00 : 1