Does the British Royal Family Drive Jaguars?

As a devoted follower of the Netflix series, The Crown, I have learned way more about the British Royal Family than I ever needed to know. But never once have I been lulled into believing that the lines of spoken dialogue are in any way authentic, as no one involved with the show has ever borne witness or had access to private conversations that took place inside the palace walls. While the story lines are accurate, the scripts are an educated guess.

Still, while there’s been no end to criticism about the dialogue’s authenticity, the filmmakers have received near unanimous praise for the accuracy with which they visually depict each period covered in the series, including what the characters wore and what cars they drove. Indeed, the automotive casting for The Crown is amazingly accurate, with cars often used as plot devices to advance the narrative.

A good example is shown in Season Four, which largely chronicles the rise and fall of two of the leading British figures of their day—Lady Diana Spencer and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

When we first meet the 18-year-old Diana, she is working at a London nursery school, sharing a flat with three girlfriends and driving a simple blue Renault 5. By the time she turns 19, however, Diana is being seriously courted by Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, who is being pressured by his family to settle down and produce an heir.

Suddenly on track to marry the future king, who is also the official promoter of all things British, Diana couldn’t very well be seen driving a cheap French car. Once the couple is officially headed for the altar, Charles buys Diana a red Austin Mini Metro, a British-built car that was launched in 1981 using the ridiculous slogan “a British car to beat the world.” (Somehow it couldn’t). Apparently, Diana absolutely loved her engagement gift; and in its day, her Mini Metro was undoubtedly the most photographed car in the world, with the paparazzi always in relentless pursuit wherever she drove it.

By the end of Season Four, with her marriage irretrievably broken and the pressures of palace life chipping away at her mental health, Diana does exactly what any sensible princess in the throes of a serious midlife crisis would do: She ditches the Mini Metro for a Jaguar convertible.

Not just any Jaguar convertible, but a V12 XJ-SC Cabriolet with a Targa-top. Typically, a two-seater, Diana had her XJ-SC retro-fitted with rear seats to accommodate her two young sons, Prince William and Prince Harry.

Henceforth on The Crown, the only time we ever see Diana completely happy, in control, and at peace with the world is when she is at the wheel of her Jag speeding away from the palace, her two young sons belted in their seats with all three singing along with the radio. Apparently, once the boys grew too large to fit in the back, Diana donated the car to the Jaguar Heritage Trust in exchange for a contribution to one of her charities.

Princess Diana was by no means the first modern member of the British Royal Family to find joy in owning a Jaguar. The relationship between Jaguar and the royals dates back to the 1950’s, when Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother purchased a 1955 Jaguar Mark VII M Saloon. Since then, practically every member of the family, including the Queen, has owned a Jaguar at one time or another.

The Queen Mother—who passed away in 2002 at age 101—was driven in grand style in her 1973 Jaguar XJ-12 Vanden Plas, which she acquired from Jaguar in exchange for her 1955 Jaguar Mark VIIM Saloon. According to the Jaguar Heritage Trust, the XJ-12 “was specially finished in the Royal colour of Claret…and fitted with the special Vanden Plas interior.”

Recently the Queen, who is famously partial to Land Rovers, was nevertheless spotted behind the wheel of her Jaguar X-Type Estate Car driving away from Windsor Castle looking happy and healthy.

Meanwhile Prince Charles, well-known for his environmental activism, was the first in the family go all-electric in his new chauffeur-driven Jaguar I-PACE fully electric car. No doubt daughter-in-law Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, further endeared herself to him by purchasing a similar model.

Oh and by the way, the last official car allocated to the late Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Britain’s legendary “Iron Lady” (aka Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher) was a Jaguar XJ8 Armoured Saloon.

The car, which has been up for auction on two separate occasions since 2016, was also loaned to David Cameron during the 2010 General Election and used by him enroute to Downing Street after his first meeting with the Queen. It sold most recently for £ 27,083 (US$ 35,554), quite a bargain for some lucky collector since it cost five times as much to build.