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Jonathan Pryce cast as Prince Philip in The Crown

Jonathan Pryce will play Prince Philip in the final seasons of ‘The Crown’.

The 73-year-old actor will take over from fellow former ‘Game of Thrones’ star Tobias Menzies as Queen Elizabeth’s husband in series five and six of Netflix’s regal drama.

As was previously announced, Imelda Staunton will be playing the monarch in her later years, while Lesley Manville will star as her sister, Princess Margaret.

Season four of ‘The Crown’ is expected to premiere later this year, and will be the second and final to feature Tobias as Philip, Olivia Colman’s as the queen, Helena Bonham Carter’s last as Princess Margaret, and Josh O’Connor as Prince Charles. The upcoming episodes will also star Gillian Anderson as Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and Emma Corin as the late Princess Diana.

It was previously announced season five would be the last outing for the show but creator Peter Morgan confirmed last month that the decision had been made to continue the story of the current British royal family further and it would run for an additional sixth series.

He said: "As we started to discuss the storylines for series five, it soon became clear that in order to do justice to the richness and complexity of the story we should go back to the original plan and do six seasons."

Despite another series being added, Peter admitted it will not bring the story "any closer to the present day".

He said: "Series six will not bring us any closer to present day – it will simply enable us to cover the same period in greater detail."

Series five and six are expected to explore the royal goings-on in the 1990s, which could cover the likes of Charles and Diana’s marriage break up, the princess’ tragic death, and the end of Prince Andrew’s marriage to Sarah Ferguson.

The first two seasons of the show saw Claire Foy and Matt Smith play the queen and her husband, while Vanessa Kirby starred as Princess Margaret.