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‘The Crown’ Season 4 tackles Princess Diana’s bulimia, Princess Margaret’s depression

By MARISSE PANALIGAN,GMA News

Princess Diana’s arrival to the royal family is a source of great excitement for Season 4 of “The Crown.”

But while Emma Corrin delivers a superb performance as a young Lady Diana Spencer, everyone knows the Princess of Wales’s life was not all rainbows and unicorns.

In fact, the popular Netflix series does not shy away from portraying one of Diana’s lowest moments — the time when she struggled with her mental health and battled bulimia.

“I thought that to do justice to her story, they sort of had to be included,” Emma said in a roundtable interview with international media on Thursday. “I’m glad that we did.”

The actress said it is important to depict those issues on screen, provided that they are done sensitively and include appropriate trigger warnings.

“The Crown” gave such a warning at the beginning of three episodes: Episode 3 (“Fairy Tale”), Episode 6 (“Terra Nullius”), and Episode 10 (“War”).

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It read: “The following episode includes scenes of an eating disorder which some viewers may find troubling. Viewer discretion is advised.”

The series also provided a website where viewers can find information and resources on abuse, mental health, and self-harm.

Aside from Diana’s bulimia, “The Crown” also showed the depression of Princess Margaret, the Queen’s younger sister.

In Episode 7 (“Hereditary Principle”), Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor) convinces his aunt to get therapy as she struggles to deal with her diminished role within the monarchy.

Margaret (Helena Bonham Carter) reluctantly agrees and visits a therapist, but she ends up discovering what the royal family had done to protect itself from the stigma of mental illness. – RC/LA, GMA News