In The Crown Season 5 Episode 3, British soldiers play soccer with local Egyptians in 1946, throwing more elbows than Karl Malone. It’s a mismatched fight that the locals cannot win and, in many respects, a microcosm of Egypt under British imperial authority.
Mou Mou (Amir El-Masry), the episode’s namesake, is a local Egyptian whom the British ignore when he shouts for a foul after he’s knocked to the ground. Mou Mou brushes off the rebuff and, as he does, overlooks the fundamental credo for the episode. The British Empire will never see him as an equal deserving of a voice, and he will spend this lifetime chasing their favour at enormous financial and personal cost.
Mou Mou sells Coca-Cola outside an affluent Egyptian enclave afterwards. He temporarily pauses selling soda to pitch himself to a wealthy girl through the gates but is distracted as everyone gathers for King Edward (Alex Jennings) and Wallis Simpson’s entrance (Lia Williams). The girl’s brother arrives, puffing out his chest and demanding Mou Mou to go, but Mou Mou’s salesmanship intrigues him and he offers to fund his bottle-selling operation.
Mou Mou, whose full name is Mohamed Al-Fayed, talks to his father about the gates and King Edward over supper that night. Mou Mou’s father warns him about the British. He hates them for what they did to Egypt, especially the original Egyptians who sold out to Imperial control.
Another lesson missed, more Egyptians burned after seeking British clearance. Mou Mou privately envies the British’s position and criticises his father’s laziness. ʼ King Edward tells Wallis he likes Sydney, his new Bahamian valet, somewhere in the city. Sydney reminds him of their exile in the Bahamas during World War II after Edward’s abdication, so he wasn’t sure. Sydney happily accepts his permanent valet post.
Mou Mou climbs socially and marries the girl through the gates. Mou Mou celebrates the birth of their baby, assuring him they will rule the world. He calls him Dodi. He holds Dodi Al-Fayed, Princess Diana’s (Elizabeth Debicki) prospective lover and reputed fiancé, who will perish in the Pont D’Alma vehicle crash in Paris.
It is strong storytelling and one of the best episodes in this series – a throwback to The Crown as period drama, taking us from young Mohamed’s humble beginnings in Alexandria to his status as a tycoon and his first, portentous meeting with Diana….https://t.co/UGpiTiwXfI
— Daniel Greenway (@editordg) November 9, 2022
After a brief jump to 1979, an older Mohamed “Mou Mou” Al-Fayed (Salim Daw) and an adult Dodi (Khalid Abdalla) meet several snobbish French hoteliers. Since his Coca-Cola days, Fayed has transformed and offered $18 million for the hotel.
The Ritz owners are reluctant. They doubt Fayed’s validity and business practises despite the hefty offer. Fayed complains about his treatment, saying he merely wants to save the hotel and make it the world’s best. The French hesitantly accepts his offer after threatening to walk away.
Fayed sees a black waiter serving guests at The Ritz’s re-opening gala. He tells Dodi to get rid of him, saying he could ruin The Ritz’s opening night. It’s a bigoted mentality that’s much worse for Fayed because it embodies the same racism and gatekeeping he’s fighting. Dodi regretfully complies. Dodi discloses that the fired waiter, Sydney Johnson, was King Edward’s valet for 30 years.
Saw episode 3 of The Crown season 5 yesterday with Sirji.
It featured how Edward VIII educated and empowered a Jamaican guy in the 1940s.
Sirji had flashbacks of himself empowering Abbas in his youth. Brought tears to his eyes 😭😭
Also, beautiful cinematography ❤ pic.twitter.com/t93bb9v3sv
— Cameraman Raju (@CameramanRaju) November 12, 2022
He encourages Sydney to learn more about his service to King Edward, finding that Sydney managed every aspect of his life as his valet. Fayed again asks Sydney how someone of his origin could serve a King. Sydney proudly says Edward taught him everything. Fayed asks Sydney to grant him his greatest wish. Fayed might become a British nobleman with Sydney as his servant.
Sydney advises Fayed on literature, tea, socks, and gentlemanly activities like golf, hunting, and polo. Sydney convinces Fayed that British society revolves around the royal family. Closeness elevates status.
Fayed applies the lesson by insisting he and Sydney visit a horse competition in Britain, hoping to meet the Royals. Despite being members and ticketholders, local security discriminates against Fayed and Sydney at the gate.
For the hundredth time, actual gatekeepers ignore Fayed, but his wealth and willpower allow him to enter upper society (Fayed FTW). Fayed and Sydney reach their seats and find another social rung to climb. Sydney says her companion is Harrods’ owner. The event sponsor, Harrods, gets a front-row seat adjacent to her majesty.
Fayed comically concludes that buying Harrods is the key to seeing the Queen after some fast back-of-the-envelope calculations. He tells his family and friends that this acquisition will give them access, power, legitimacy, and British citizenship. Dodi mocks the $600 million price tag and confronts his father privately about the investment.
Dodi claims that such large spending will prevent him from starting his filmmaking firm. Fayed argues that’s silly because Dodi’s fortune is his to utilise as he pleases. Dodi lashes out, saying his father wants the impossible: how can he survive on his own without his father’s autonomy or support?
Episode 3 Season 5 of The Crown was one of the best. Ironically it had little to do with Royal Family which helped. A mini-movie of Mohammed El Fayed born poor in Egypt, a street vendor who worships the Royals, becomes massively rich and tries to become an English gentleman. pic.twitter.com/TNWt3zJ843
— Dan Therriault (@dantherriault) November 12, 2022
Dodi tells his father that Chariots of Fire is about a Jew who wins the Olympics despite discrimination. Dodi explains to his father that it’s a film about an outsider becoming an insider, which Fayed doesn’t understand because Egyptians historically dislike Jews. Fayed, who seeks influence, understands this. Fayed cheers when the director mentions him and Dodi. He’s moved up a rung but only has Sydney to celebrate.
He mourns Wallis Simpson, who died alone from a heart attack after years of tube feeding due to arthritis and mental illness (woof!). Sydney tells Fayed that Edward and Wallis’ French house is abandoned after the Duke’s death.
Sydney regrets the former Duke’s home’s destitution, saying “there was so much happiness here.” Fayed, an Anglophile, doesn’t understand why the Crown isn’t getting the home’s valuables. Sydney explains that the house and its contents belong to the French government and are being auctioned.
Sydney proudly wears his valet uniform as he restores and renovates the house. In an interview, Fayed said the home is a historical relic he wants to preserve and offer to the Royal family.
An assistant informs the Queen (Imelda Staunton), Phillip (Jonathan Pryce), Margaret (Lesley Manville), and Queen Mother (Marcia Warren) in Buckingham that Fayed has invited the Queen to visit. Phillip scowls and tells Elizabeth, “Don’t you dare.” Elizabeth agrees: seeing her uncle in life and death was contentious.
The attendant points off the house’s many royal possessions, including precious jewellery and paintings. The residence holds Edward’s writings, papers, and diaries.
Thus, the party visits Fayed’s new residence to retrieve these items. The Queen’s arrival delights Fayed. He gathers Dodi and Sydney to greet the Queen, but Elizabeth is absent when the Palace entourage arrives. Fayed willingly turns up everything, including Edward’s diaries, to the Crown’s aide.
@netflix I want a show just about Sidney Johnson played by @JudeAkuwudike
Catch him on episode 3 season 5 of @TheCrownNetflix pic.twitter.com/TOjuamIYyX— Binge TV (@BingeThisTV) November 11, 2022
Sydney knows this is a slight to Fayed and that the Crown took advantage of them after years of observing Edward’s abuse. Fayed blindly celebrates making the Queen pleased, like a spouse in an unhealthy relationship. Sydney becomes critically unwell from the ordeal. In a beautiful turnaround, Fayed cares for Sydney in his final days. Fayed buys Sydney a “valet to the king” monument.
As Harrods’ owner and event sponsor, Fayed returns to the horse competition without Sydney (sad!). The Queen sees Fayed waiting for her and big leagues him to sit with Margaret instead, although knowing it’s protocol. They bond over their dislike of horses and the Queen’s dismissal. Fayed introduces Dodi to Diana, pausing their joking. He’s thrilled to make this contribution, the kind of chance he spent years positioning and millions of dollars to create.
It also kills Diana and Dodi inadvertently. This episode’s tragic irony is that Fayed’s kid died in a car with Diana in 1997 because of his status as a royal. The Queen watches Diana and Fayed, glad she didn’t offend him. “Out of the acorn of a little kindness, an oak tree of happiness will grow,” Margaret says at the end.
Conclusion
In the third episode of Season 5 of The Crown, British soldiers play soccer with Egyptians from the area in 1946, and they throw more elbows than Karl Malone. It’s an unfair fight that the locals can’t win, and in many ways, it’s a small version of Egypt when the British ruled it. Stay connected with us on Venturejolt.com for more recent updates and news.