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First look at Lady Diana and Margaret Thatcher in 'The Crown' S4

Composite image showing Emma Corrin (Diana Spencer) and Gillian Anderson (Margaret Thatcher) in the fourth series of The Crown. (Netflix)
Composite image showing Emma Corrin (Diana Spencer) and Gillian Anderson (Margaret Thatcher) in the fourth series of The Crown. (Netflix)

Netflix has shared the first images from the upcoming fourth series of The Crown, revealing Emma Corrin as Lady Diana Spencer and Gillian Anderson as Margaret Thatcher.

Peter Morgan’s royal drama returns to the streaming platform on 15 November, with the new season covering the events of the British Royal Family from the end of the 1970s right through the 1980s including conflict in the Falklands, the marriage of Prince Charles to Diana, and the reign of Thatcher as Prime Minister.

This is the first time we’ve seen X-Files star Gillian Anderson as the Conservative PM who was in office from 1979 to 1990. Doctors star Stephen Boxer plays her husband Dennis Thatcher.

Picture shows: Dennis Thatcher (STEPHEN BOXER) and Margaret Thatcher (GILLIAN ANDERSON)
Picture shows: Dennis Thatcher (STEPHEN BOXER) and Margaret Thatcher (GILLIAN ANDERSON)

Emma Corrin, star of Pennyworth and Grantchester, will make her debut as Lady Diana Spencer in the new season, which – as you can see in the pictures below – features a close encounter between Diana and Emerald Fennell’s Camilla Parker Bowles, Charles’ love interest in the previous season, and his future wife.

Read more: The Crown will have sixth and final series, Netflix confirms

In a bombshell interview about the breakdown of their marriage in 1995, Diana told Martin Bashir: “there were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded."

The Crown S4. Picture shows: Camilla Parker Bowles (EMERALD FENNELL). Filming Location: Australia House, Aldwych
The Crown S4. Picture shows: Camilla Parker Bowles (EMERALD FENNELL). Filming Location: Australia House, Aldwych
Picture shows: Princess Diana (EMMA CORRIN)
Picture shows: Princess Diana (EMMA CORRIN)

Josh O’Connor returns as Prince Charles, alongside Erin Doherty as Princess Anne, Olivia Colman as the Queen and Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip. The new season will cover the events of Charles and Diana’s wedding in 1981, and the costume designer created an exact replica of Diana’s dress for the show.

“The Emanuels, who designed the original, gave us the patterns, and then it was made for me,” Corrin, 24, told the October edition of British Vogue.

The formal wedding portrait of Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales, taken at Buckingham Palace on July 29, 1981, after their marriage at St. Paul's Cathedral, London. (AP Photo)
The formal wedding portrait of Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales, taken at Buckingham Palace on July 29, 1981, after their marriage at St. Paul's Cathedral, London. (AP Photo)

“We were filming the scene when you first see her in the wedding dress — I think it was Lancaster House in London — and I had a team of about 10 people helping me put it on, because it’s massive.

“I walked out and everyone went completely silent. More than anything else I wear in the series, it’s so … It’s her.”

Tenet star Elizabeth Debicki has been confirmed to play Princess Diana in the next season of the hit show, with Imelda Staunton as the Queen and Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip.

Picture shows: Priness Diana (EMMA CORRIN) and Prince Charles (JOSH O CONNOR)
Picture shows: Priness Diana (EMMA CORRIN) and Prince Charles (JOSH O CONNOR)
Picture shows: Princess Anne (ERIN DOHERTY). Shooting Location: Wrotham Park
Picture shows: Princess Anne (ERIN DOHERTY). Shooting Location: Wrotham Park

Here’s the synopsis: As the 1970s are drawing to a close, Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman) and her family find themselves preoccupied with safeguarding the line of succession by securing an appropriate bride for Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor), who is still unmarried at 30.

Picture shows: Queen Elizabeth II (OLIVIA COLMAN) and Prince Charles (JOSH O CONNOR)
Picture shows: Queen Elizabeth II (OLIVIA COLMAN) and Prince Charles (JOSH O CONNOR)
Picture shows: Prince Philip (TOBIAS MENZIES) and Queen Elizabth II (OLIVIA COLMAN)
Picture shows: Prince Philip (TOBIAS MENZIES) and Queen Elizabth II (OLIVIA COLMAN)

As the nation begins to feel the impact of divisive policies introduced by Britain's first female Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (Gillian Anderson), tensions arise between her and the Queen which only grow worse as Thatcher leads the country into the Falklands War, generating conflict within the Commonwealth.

While Charles’ romance with a young Lady Diana Spencer (Emma Corrin) provides a much-needed fairytale to unite the British people, behind closed doors, the Royal family is becoming increasingly divided.

Picture shows: Princess Margaret (HELENA BONHAM CARTER)
Picture shows: Princess Margaret (HELENA BONHAM CARTER)
Picture shows: Queen Mother (MARION BAILEY)
Picture shows: Queen Mother (MARION BAILEY)

The season also promises to be another tumultuous one for Helena Bonham Carter’s Princess Margaret who suffered serious health issues in the 1980s.

The Crown S4 launches globally on Netflix from 15 November.