As expected, the moment Netflix dropped part one of The Crown Season 6 on November 16, it leapt into the streamer’s Top 10, despite getting fairly scathing reviews from certain outlets. The first three episodes of the series center on Diana, Princess of Wales’s final summer, shadowing her as she reluctantly dispatches Princes William and Harry to Balmoral before decamping to the Al-Fayed yacht in the South of France and, ultimately, making her way to the Ritz in Paris and into the Pont de l’Alma tunnel. Meanwhile, episode four—titled “Aftermath”—homes in on the public’s reaction to her death, and the way in which it transformed the Windsors’ position in British society forever, closing with William and Harry somberly escorting Diana’s coffin down The Mall.
Fans (and critics) will have to wait almost another month for part two, which takes us into the new millennium—dramatizing both the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, and Prince William’s matriculation at St. Andrews, where he meets fellow art history student Kate Middleton. Given that Netflix has already released photographs of actors Ed McVey and Meg Bellamy strolling hand in hand around the picturesque Scottish campus, it’s safe to say that their romance will be the focus of multiple episodes. In particular, the charity fashion show where William began to seriously consider Kate as a romantic prospect is due for the Peter Morgan treatment.
Below, a recap of everything else that’s been revealed about part two of The Crown Season 6 so far.
When will Part 2 of The Crown Season 6 drop?
Part two is due for release on December 14.
Is there a trailer for Part 2 of The Crown Season 6?
Not yet, although it’s expected imminently.
How many episodes will there be in Part 2 of The Crown Season 6?
While part one was only comprised of four hour-long episodes, part two will consist of six.
Who will play Prince William in Part 2 of The Crown Season 6?
While Rufus Kampa embodied Prince William as a 15-year-old in part one, part two will see Ed McVey, a Drama Centre London graduate, star as the future king as he grieves the loss of his mother and heads north to Scotland to attend university. Although McVey has served as an understudy at the Old Vic, this is the 24-year-old’s only screen credit to date.
And Kate Middleton?
Newcomer Meg Bellamy will play the future Princess of Wales during her years as an undergraduate student. Bellamy was raised in Berkshire, 20 miles from where the Duchess of Cambridge grew up in Buckleberry, and landed the career-making role after spotting a casting call on Twitter. Like Emma Corrin before her, the 20-year-old has already become something of a fashion darling, collaborating with Felicity Kay, the stylist behind the directional wardrobes of Paul Mescal, Ncuti Gatwa, and Kit Connor, on her red carpet looks, as well as attending Dior shows and Cartier events in recent months.
What about Prince Harry?
Luther Ford, an actor currently studying film in Bournemouth, will play Prince Harry as a teenager. While little is known about which elements of Harry’s life in this period will be covered in The Crown, the early 2000s saw him grapple with the tragic loss of his mother at Eton, spend a gap year in Australia, and finally enroll at Sandhurst, effectively beginning his military career.
What years will Part 2 of The Crown Season 6 cover?
Netflix hasn’t confirmed the exact dates, but based on various cast interviews—and the fact that Charles and Camilla’s wedding was the last scene the cast shot together—it seems safe to say that the series will begin in the late ’90s and finish around 2005. In terms of milestones, this period encompassed the Queen Mother’s 100th birthday, the 9/11 attacks, the death of both Princess Margaret and the Queen Mother, and the Queen’s Golden Jubilee.
Who else will star in Part 2 of The Crown Season 6?
Imelda Staunton’s Queen Elizabeth II, Lesley Manville’s Princess Margaret, and Jonathan Pryce’s Prince Philip will all return, as will Dominic West’s Prince Charles and Olivia Williams’s Camilla Parker Bowles. Outside the royal family, Bertie Carvel will also return as Prime Minister Tony Blair, implying there may well be a weapons of mass destruction-related plotline.
Is Season 6 of The Crown accurate?
While Morgan has taken some creative liberties in Season 6 (and Netflix has repeatedly stressed that the series is a fictional dramatization), it’s worth noting that The Crown is researched extensively by a team of five. Their library at Left Bank Pictures’ offices contains more than a 1,000 volumes, with head of research Annie Sulzberger providing thousands of pages of source material to Morgan over the course of the series.
How should I entertain myself until Part 2 of The Crown Season 6 drops?
Get a head start on fact-checking the series by reading some of the best books ever written about the royal family, and rewatch the best episode from every season of The Crown so far.
This article was originally published on Vogue.com