After five series, The Crown’s corgis Lily and Prince (owned by a Boomtown Rat) are set take their final bow-wow

By Henry On Dec 9, 2023

Claire Foy called them the real stars of the show, and Imelda Staunton was so captivated that she insisted on a meet and greet at Elstree Studios before taking on the role of Queen Elizabeth.

Now that the sixth series of The Crown is coming to an end, corgis Lily and Prince, who have been on the show for five of those series, have been stepping away from royal duties longer than most of its human actors.

The two Pembroke Corgis portrayed all of Queen Elizabeth’s favorite dogs, from the beginning of the second series, set in 1956, to the sixth and final series, which culminates in 2005.

Claire Foy, Olivia Colman and Imelda Staunton played the Queen. And like the other “executives,” Lily and Prince had their own Winnebago on set, complete with dressing room riders (cheesy treats and a comfy bed) and a hair and makeup routine that involved washing the tips of their paws.

However, unlike other chiefs, they are known to frolic with royal props such as couch cushions, and when they are caught on camera gazing lovingly at the monarch, it’s because their owner, former Boomtown Rats guitarist Jerry Cott, stands out among the others. shot while swinging your favorite ball.

As the sixth series of The Crown comes to an end, corgis Lily and the Prince, who have been on the show for five of those series, have been stepping away from royal duties longer than most of its human actors.

The two Pembroke Corgis portrayed all of Queen Elizabeth’s favorite dogs, from the beginning of the second series, set in 1956, to the sixth and final series, which culminates in 2005.

Their influence is so great that after the second series of the Netflix blockbuster was shown in 2017, interest in corgis soared by 22 percent.

Owners Jerry and his wife Katie, both 71, from Surrey, have been training animals for Hollywood films and British TV shows such as Killing Eve and Gangs of London for 40 years.

But Lily, named after Queen Elizabeth’s nickname Lilibet, and the Prince were their pets, born six months apart and distantly related. Prince, now seven, arrived as an eight-week-old puppy from his Welsh breeders as a companion for the couple’s older dog, a West Highland terrier named Raz.

Lily followed him six months later. By then, the makers of The Crown had approached the couple, and the Prince and Lily became a huge success. Jerry trained them not by taking them to a stately home, but to a shopping mall: the bustle of shoppers and staff perfectly imitated the bustle of a busy film set.

The dogs were meant to be a symbol of the Queen’s private life. Gerry, who co-founded The Boomtown Rats with Bob Geldof and played with the group until 1981, says: “You often see them when the monarch is having a melancholic moment. She has a glass of scotch in her hand and one of the corgis comes and sits next to her.

“One scene that stuck out to me was when she was mourning the loss of the royal yacht Britannia. The Prince and Lily saw that the Queen, played by Imelda Staunton, was thoughtful, almost sullen, and approached her to comfort her. It was touching because it was a natural reaction to her brilliant performance.”

After filming ended, Prince returned to live with the Cotts and Lily went to live with a family friend who is also a dog trainer as she pursues a second career in agility.

Gerry says: “I don’t think they miss royal life. They’re not wannabes, they’re just happy healthy dogs enjoying corgi land.”

The final six episodes of The Crown are available on Netflix from Thursday.

Pictured from left to right: Bob Geldof, Harry Roberts, Johnny Fingers, Gerry Cott and Pete Brickett.