Costumes and Props From ‘The Crown’ Head to Auction
3 minFans of The Crown will soon have the opportunity to own a piece of the royal drama as Bonhams is auctioning off a range of items from the Netflix series, which ended its six-season run in December.
More than 300 lots are currently available for online bidding through Feb. 8, and an additional 160 will go under the hammer during a live sale at Bonhams’ London headquarters on Feb. 7.
Since its debut in late 2016, The Crown has captivated viewers around the world with its visually stunning approach and dramatic portrayal of the British royal family’s tales of heartbreak. Throughout the show’s 60 episodes, viewers followed the twists and turns of the royals.
“The iconic costumes, props, and set pieces from The Crown are extensively researched and made with truly impressive attention to detail by master craftspeople,” Charlie Thomas, Bonhams U.K. group director for house sales and private and iconic collections, said in a statement. “Not only is this an incredible opportunity to own pieces from the landmark show, it is also the closest anyone can come to owning the real thing—be it the facade of 10 Downing Street or Princess Diana’s engagement ring.”
Composite: Courtesy of Bonhams / Netflix
Highlights of the auction include recreations of Princess Diana’s iconic items, such as the sapphire engagement ring that actress Emma Corrin debuted as Diana in season 4 (presale estimate: £2,000 (US$2,537) to £3,000); the revenge dress actress Elizabeth Debicki wore as Diana during her split from then-Prince Charles in season 5 (estimate: £8,000 to £12,000); and the leopard swimsuit Debicki sported in season 6 while on vacation during Charles’ 50th birthday party for then-Camilla Parker Bowles (estimate: £800 to £1,000).
Composite: Courtesy of Bonhams / Netflix
Expected to fetch the highest prices are a pair of life-size replicas from the set: the Gold State Coach, which is estimated to sell for between £30,000 and £50,000, and a facade of 10 Downing Street, the British prime minister’s office and residence (estimate: £20,000 to £30,000).
Described by Bonhams as a “rococo masterpiece,” the actual royal coach was built in 1762 for King George III and has been used at every coronation since 1831, when King William IV succeeded to the throne.
“We wanted to make something special, and Netflix had the money, ambition, and ability to go the whole hog. The Gold State Coach is fabulous,” said Andy Harries, CEO Left Bank Pictures and executive producer of The Crown, in the auction notes.
Gene D’Cruze, the series’ head of construction, said the items for sale are among the most impressive and accurate recreations ever committed to film.
Composite: Courtesy of Bonhams / Netflix
“I’ve built every single set on every series—more than 1,000 of them—and employed 140 people. It’s all done old-school. I’ve done 80 TV series, but The Crown is the best—best production, best art department, best locations, best series, best people,” said D’Cruze in the auction notes. “I especially love the 10 Downing Street facade. Most sets only last six months, but this stood for seven years.”
Proceeds from the live auction will go toward establishing a new scholarship for students at the National Film and Television School (NTFS). According to the auction house, the program will support students at the globally renowned school over the next 20 years.
“The Crown’s huge global success has much to do with working with the best creative and production talent in this country and we want to invest the proceeds of this magnificent auction into the next generation of film and TV talent,” said Harries in a statement.
A special exhibition of items from the auction has been on a global tour—having already appeared in New York, Los Angeles, and Paris—and will remain on display at Bonhams London through Feb 5.
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The lunar flyby would be the deepest humans have traveled in space in decades.
4 min
It’s go time for the highest-stakes mission at NASA in more than 50 years.
On April 1, the agency is set to launch four astronauts around the moon, the deepest human spaceflight since the final Apollo lunar landing in 1972.
The launch window for Artemis II , as the mission is called, opens at 6:24 p.m. ET.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration teams have been preparing the vehicles to depart from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center on the planned roughly 10-day trip. Crew members have trained for years for this moment.
Reid Wiseman, the NASA astronaut serving as mission commander, said he doesn’t fear taking the voyage. A widower, he does worry at times about what he is putting his daughters through.
“I could have a very comfortable life for them,” Wiseman said in an interview last September.
“But I’m also a human, and I see the spirit in their eyes that is burning in my soul too. And so we’ve just got to never stop going.”
Wiseman’s crewmates on Artemis II are NASA’s Victor Glover and Christina Koch, as well as Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
What are the goals for Artemis II?
The biggest one: Safely fly the crew on vehicles that have never carried astronauts before.
The towering Space Launch System rocket has the job of lofting a vehicle called Orion into space and on its way to the moon.
Orion is designed to carry the crew around the moon and back. Myriad systems on the ship—life support, communications, navigation—will be tested with the astronauts on board.
SLS and Orion don’t have much flight experience. The vehicles last flew in 2022, when the agency completed its uncrewed Artemis I mission .
How is the mission expected to unfold?
Artemis II will begin when SLS takes off from a launchpad in Florida with Orion stacked on top of it.
The so-called upper stage of SLS will later separate from the main part of the rocket with Orion attached, and use its engine to set up the latter vehicle for a push to the moon.
After Orion separates from the upper stage, it will conduct what is called a translunar injection—the engine firing that commits Orion to soaring out to the moon. It will fly to the moon over the course of a few days and travel around its far side.
Orion will face a tough return home after speeding through space. As it hits Earth’s atmosphere, Orion will be flying at 25,000 miles an hour and face temperatures of 5,000 degrees as it slows down. The capsule is designed to land under parachutes in the Pacific Ocean, not far from San Diego.
Is it possible Artemis II will be delayed?
Yes.
For safety reasons, the agency won’t launch if certain tough weather conditions roll through the Cape Canaveral, Fla., area. Delays caused by technical problems are possible, too. NASA has other dates identified for the mission if it doesn’t begin April 1.
Who are the astronauts flying on Artemis II?
The crew will be led by Wiseman, a retired Navy pilot who completed military deployments before joining NASA’s astronaut corps. He traveled to the International Space Station in 2014.
Two other astronauts will represent NASA during the mission: Glover, an experienced Navy pilot, and Koch, who began her career as an electrical engineer for the agency and once spent a year at a research station in the South Pole. Both have traveled to the space station before.
Hansen is a military pilot who joined Canada’s astronaut corps in 2009. He will be making his first trip to space.
Koch’s participation in Artemis II will mark the first time a woman has flown beyond orbits near Earth. Glover and Hansen will be the first African-American and non-American astronauts, respectively, to do the same.
What will the astronauts do during the flight?
The astronauts will evaluate how Orion flies, practice emergency procedures and capture images of the far side of the moon for scientific and exploration purposes (they may become the first humans to see parts of the far side of the lunar surface). Health-tracking projects of the astronauts are designed to inform future missions.
Those efforts will play out in Orion’s crew module, which has about two minivans worth of living area.
On board, the astronauts will spend about 30 minutes a day exercising, using a device that allows them to do dead lifts, rowing and more. Sleep will come in eight-hour stretches in hammocks.
There is a custom-made warmer for meals, with beef brisket and veggie quiche on the menu.
Each astronaut is permitted two flavored beverages a day, including coffee. The crew will hold one hourlong shared meal each day.
The Universal Waste Management System—that’s the toilet—uses air flow to pull fluid and solid waste away into containers.
What happens after Artemis II?
Assuming it goes well, NASA will march on to Artemis III, scheduled for next year. During that operation, NASA plans to launch Orion with crew members on board and have the ship practice docking with lunar-lander vehicles that Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin have been developing. The rendezvous operations will occur relatively close to Earth.
NASA hopes that its contractors and the agency itself are ready to attempt one or more lunar landing missions in 2028. Many current and former spaceflight officials are skeptical that timeline is feasible.
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