Peter Morgan

“Crown” found deep humanity amid royal chaos

Wrapping up its six-season run, “The Crown” (shown here) showed how good long-form TV can be.
Writer-producr Peter Morgan had already mastered the short take: His Oscar-nominated “The Queen” (2006) was a brilliant visit to a brief, befuddling time after Diana’s death.
Then he took the big sweep: In seven years, six seasons and 60 episodes, he viewed the first 54 years of Elizabeth II’s reign.
The story ended with Charles’ wedding in 2005, with his mom ready for 17 more years. Getting to that point was fascinating, in the six episodes that arrived Thursday (Dec. 14). Read more…

“The Crown”: warm portrait of humans in crisis

Peter Morgan is back on familiar turf now. He’s even edited himself a tad.
His latest “The Crown” (shown here) splurge – four episodes, ending with Diana’s funeral – is sort of “The Queen”-plus. In Morgan’s style, it has deep, fascinating human insights that may or may not be true.
Morgan has done this with others. His screenplays portrayed Idi Amin, Henry VIII, David Frost, Tony Blair and Anne Boleyn’s sister. But the 2006 “Queen” movie captured new attention. Read more…