In season three of The Crown , Margaret exchanges vulgar limericks with President Lyndon B. Johnson during a night of drinking during a visit to the United States. When Queen Elizabeth heard about her sister's antics, she was (unsurprisingly) mortified. However, Margaret's behavior seems to be the same whether on screen or in real life.
Aside from a few key episodes, "The Crown" focuses primarily on the events that shaped the reign of the late Queen Elizabeth II and doesn't devote much screen time to Margaret and her lavish, scandal-ridden life.
As the Queen's family grew, the Princess's line of succession declined, but Margaret remained a popular figure in the media. In 1960, she and Antony Armstrong-Jones became the first to have a televised royal wedding, but they divorced 18 years later amid rumors of infidelity (unheard of in the royal family) ).
Her reputation doesn't stop there. As a member of the royal family, Margaret lived a life of luxury and privilege. She gets her hair done every Friday and spends a fortune on shopping. Her morning routine included eating breakfast in bed, lounging around listening to the radio, and reading the newspaper - all while chain-smoking. When writing checks, she simply signed "Margaret."
The final season's "Lizzie" episode provided Margaret with a fitting send-off, chronicling her declining health while flashing back to V-E Day in 1945, when Elizabeth gave a rare display of her sister's A devil-may-care attitude.
Despite living in the Queen's shadow, Margaret's story is so wonderful that she deserves her own show. Here are seven moments in Margaret's life, including her relationship with Mick Jagger, that made the case for a spin-off of The Crown.
Pablo Picasso was fascinated by her
According to Pablo Picasso biographer John Richardson, the artist allegedly had a crush on Princess Margaret and wanted to marry her, although they never crossed paths.
Picasso's obsession dates back to the 1950s, and the two were due to meet at his Tate Gallery exhibition in 1960. They never did, maybe for the better. The artist reportedly had erotic dreams about her and if he were to mention them, "They would take [him] to the Tower of London and chop [his] head off!"
Richardson said that many years later, when he told Margaret that Picasso planned to marry her, "she said she thought it was the most disgusting thing she had ever heard."
Delicious royal outlet
In 1964, Margaret met the Beatles at the premiere of the film A Hard Day's Night . However, according to royal protocol, the band could not eat until Margaret left.
George Harrison was so hungry that he simply asked the princess to leave so they could eat. "Your Highness, we are really hungry. We have to wait for you two to leave before we can eat." She agreed and said, "In that case, let's escape."
Hollywood Royalty VS. Princess
In 1965, Elizabeth Taylor and her then-husband Richard Burton arrived in Beverly Hills early for a party attended by the princess. Movie stars were reportedly furious at not sitting down with Margaret and Armstrong-Jones.
"Wherever Taylor and Burton went, they were the most important people in the room," Margaret's friend said of the seating arrangement in the PBS documentary . "Here, they're not the most important people in the room. So they get up and leave ... and they don't come back."
The Hollywood couple's alleged disgust doesn't stop there. In his 1969 diary, Burton recorded his and Taylor's engagement to the princess. He didn't think royalty was that exciting. "We got to see Princess Margaret again on the opening night of The Staircase , and she was so boring and uncomfortable to be around," he wrote.
However, that same year, Burton flirted seriously with Margaret in front of Taylor. So, how "infinitely boring and uncomfortable" is she?
diamond envy
Two years later, Taylor and Margaret had a tricky exchange at the London premiere of The Taming of the Shrew . The actor wore a giant 33.19 carat Krupp diamond ring.
When the princess noticed it, she reportedly said: "Is this the famous diamond? It's so big! It's so vulgar!" After a while, she retracted her words and asked Taylor if she could try it on.
As Hollywood lore goes, Taylor responded: "It's less vulgar now, isn't it?"
Elton John's 'extremely embarrassing' night
Elton John was a famous friend of Princess Diana, but he also had an unusual interaction with Margaret. In his memoir Me , he said he had a falling out with her and Armstrong-Jones in 1972.
After they met at a concert, the couple invited John and his band to Kensington Palace for dinner after the show, which the musician recalled was "very awkward." "Not because of Princess Margaret - she was so kind and friendly to everyone - but because of her husband, Lord Snowdon."
As John writes, “Everyone knew the marriage was in trouble—there were always rumors in the media that one of the partners was having an affair—but even so, nothing could prepare us for his arrival.” On one occasion. , Armstrong-Jones "snarled: 'Where's my fucking dinner?'" which left Margaret in tears.
He and the band remained in their seats throughout the event. "You know how weird life is in Elton John's band?" the singer wrote. "We end up seeing Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon screaming at each other."
Mick Jagger's McGinn
Margaret and the Rolling Stones frontman reportedly met sometime in the 1960s. They get along well and even call each other often.
“She found him sexy and exciting,” one courtier told Jagger’s biographer Christopher Anderson. "If you saw them laughing and dancing together and you saw her putting her hands on his knees and giggling like a schoolgirl to his stories, you would think something was going on."
In the early seventies, she even convinced him to build her a house on the Caribbean island of Mustique.
Whether they were ever more than friends remains the stuff of British folklore. One thing's for sure, though: The Queen never liked Jagger. When he was finally knighted in 2003, Prince Charles performed the ceremony and the Queen allegedly arranged to go elsewhere. (This would be a great episode for The Crown because it does involve the Sovereign.)
Mick, Margaret and Lesley Manville
Margaret's story could take a big turn if The Crown's writers room can allow it . Lesley Manville (who played the princess in the final two seasons) said she almost met her real-life counterpart, and the interaction may have involved Jagger.
While on holiday in Mustique in the 1980s, David Bowie invited Manville and her then-husband Gary Oldman to his home. Manville declined Bowie's invitation and eventually left the island early because she wasn't feeling well. She then learned through Bowie that Jagger had asked Margaret to come to his house that night while she played drums.
Now, imagine the Rolling Stones' needle drop would grace this scene perfectly.
