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The Windsors

Skewering the Royals with grotesque characters, this is irreverent nonsense and loving it.

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Whatever you make of The Windsors, there’s nothing else like it on television.

It’s completely bonkers.

If the Royal Family were tossed into a mixmaster with Spitting Image, Dynasty, a good Carry-On movie and OK! Magazine then they would be something like this.

Camilla wants a new baby to become bump Williams as second in line to the throne; Pippa Middleton has her sights set on Prince Harry; Eugenie and Beatrice become radicalised by Islam and Prince Edward still longs for a career in showbiz.

Creators George Jeffrie and Bert Tyler-Moore (Star Stories) have no shame in skewering the Royals in this grotesque soap opera. Few in the cast bear any resemblance to their actuals (William for instance has a better head of hair here) but they mostly carry-off the persona we have come to know through the media.

Harry Enfield as Prince Charles is arguably the closest to the mark, distracting himself with pointless royal duties whilst waiting for the throne. Haydn Gwynne as Camilla is almost the villain of the piece were it not for the ambitious Pippa (Morgana Robinson) happily bedding an illiterate Harry (Richard Goulding).

The perpetually-hatted spoiled brats Beatrice (Ellie White) and Eugenie (Celeste Dring), who struggle to find an occupation, are wicked supporting players -only surpassed by a merciless Katy Wix as Fergie. “Somebody thought I was Mick Hucknall, but you know, close enough,” Fergie admits.

The Queen and Prince Phillip are essentially absent from the ensemble, but are referenced in the plot (Phillip is regularly berating the Chinese).

The performances are fittingly over the top as the absurd scripting ramps up the comedy. I had a few laugh out loud moments with a series that will either wear out its joke very soon, or become a guilty pleasure.

The Windsors is irreverent nonsense and loving it.

The Windsors airs 9:45pm Tuesday on Seven.

One Response

  1. Suspect that this will be a bit hit and miss like Star Stories but will give it a go. Interested to see how it does on Seven’s main channel. It’d prob be on ABC2 if ABC had it.

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