One episode re-enacts one of the Prince’s most humiliating moments: his intimate phone conversation with Camilla in 1989.
It was all there King Charles III I don’t want to. from The crown Premiered in 2016, his biggest concern about the series, which dramatizes the royal family’s background, was how his extramarital affair with Camilla Parker Bowles would be portrayed. The time has come.
In this fifth season, which started a few days ago on Netflix, Lady D’s infidelity will not only be highlighted in the course of the plot, but an entire episode will be dedicated to one of the couple’s most embarrassing moments: an awkward conversation between Prince Charles and his lover Camilla. , were later leaked and called “Camillagate” or “Dumpongate”.
In the episode “The Way Ahead”, an intimate phone call between both Dominic West and Olivia Williams, illegally recorded in 1989, was transcribed and parodied around the world years later. In the six-minute conversation, the then-prince said he wanted to live “inside Camilla’s trousers” and reincarnated as Dumbox (a tampon brand).
It might be one of the greatest memes of all time, but in the pre-internet era the press took care to poke fun at the situation. In January 1993, British newspapers the Sunday Mirror and the People published the full transcript of the call – and as if that wasn’t enough, a phone line was set up so interested parties could listen to the actual audio.
There were also cartoon parodies and television appearances – on Saturday Night Live, Dana Garvey ended her career playing Charles in a tampon suit.
For Charles’ biographer Sally Smith, “Dumpongate” was a disaster of incalculable proportions for the prince’s popularity. “People started questioning his fitness to be king,” he says.
The story lay dormant, almost forgotten, until Netflix decided to dig it up, much to the consternation of now King Charles III. According to Vanity Fair, the royal family watched a few episodes from past seasons of “The Crown” — which Camilla found “hilarious.”
But what’s to come is a little too much for the royal family and especially the king. “No one in the royal family is going to see this, it would be torture,” says Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of the UK monthly magazine Majesty.
Henry Blackwell is a contributor at Mediarunsearch.co.uk, covering a wide range of topics including news, politics, business, technology, sport, entertainment, and lifestyle. He focuses on delivering clear, balanced reporting and useful information that helps readers stay informed about current events and emerging developments. His work highlights stories that matter to everyday audiences, with an emphasis on accuracy, relevance, and accessible journalism.