australia trip charles and diana

The Crown has put Prince Charles and Princess Diana's Royal visit to Australia in 1983 in the spotlight. So what happened?

News ticker.

Police are giving an update after counterterrorism raids in Sydney

It was, as Princess Diana's "long-time confidant" would later recall , a "baptism of fire" for the fledgling royal.

Stepping onto the tarmac at Alice Springs airport, into the throes of eager dignitaries and the voracious media pack, the then-21-year-old was "uneasy, even glum" , staring at the ground "with downcast eyes throughout much of the brief airport picture session".

Fast forward a month, and the woman once described by reporters as having to "work mightily to produce ... the smile of a proud and happy young mother" would have the heart of the nation in her hands, cementing her status as "the people's princess".

Prince Charles, Princess Diana and baby William's debut visit to Australia as a family in March 1983 is now the subject of the fourth season of Netflix's blockbuster royal drama, The Crown, which explores simmering jealousies and growing fractures within the monarchy.

"While Charles' romance with a young Lady Diana Spencer (Emma Corrin) provides a much-needed fairytale to unite the British people," the series bills, "behind closed doors, the Royal family is becoming increasingly divided."

So what actually happened during the Royal visit? We've taken a look back through the archives.

'The toughest test Diana has faced'

Few, least of all Princess Diana, were unaware of the visit's significance.

Just two years into her marriage with Prince Charles, it would be the new royal's first-ever overseas tour — and at a time of political delicacies.

The dismissal of the Whitlam Government in 1975 had damaged public perceptions of the monarchy , while Bob Hawke — an avowed republican — had been elected prime minister just two weeks prior to their arrival.

"The tour Down Under is likely to provide the toughest test Diana has faced since she became a Royal," reporter James Whitaker wrote for UK newspaper the Daily Mirror, ahead of the 1983 visit.

"One of her first priorities will be to 'chat up' Australia's new Labor prime minister, Bob Hawke, a man committed to republicanism."

Though British media were confident the "new Royal combination" would "melt any republican heart", Princess Diana — who the nation only knew from afar — was "petrified of facing the crowds, meeting the countless dignitaries as well as the fabled royal 'rat pack'," her biographer Andrew Morton would later write of the visit .

Reports from the time suggest that upon her arrival in Alice Springs, the princess appeared upset and "stood holding Prince William with something less than a smile on her face".

"A clucky English woman journalist suggested the reason might have been that nine-months-old Prince William was about to be taken from her for the best part of three days, and cared for by the two Royal nannies at Woomargama, near Albury, while the Royal couple completed the Central Australian leg of their four-week Australian tour," journalist Geoffery Barker wrote for The Age .

"Whatever the reason, Princess Diana had to work mightily to produce for the photographers the smile of a proud and happy young mother."

A shaky start

For the Royal couple, the trip was off to a shaky start — in more ways than one.

In the days leading up to their visit, the typically dry Todd River had burst its banks, flooding the power station and leaving Alice Springs without power.

Unable to reach their luxury accommodation, the pair were instead handballed to the Gap Motel.

"It's not the Palace, true," read the front page of the Daily Mirror, which had been sold exclusive photos from inside the suite, taken just hours before the royals' arrival.

"But there's a bath in the corner, a telly you can watch in bed, a plastic wastepaper bin — and it's only 70 quid a night."

The tour, which would span thousands of kilometres through Australia and New Zealand and include up to eight public appearances per day , was always going to be gruelling, and a few hiccups were to be expected.

But Princess Diana's "youth and apparent shyness" had reportedly prompted concerns from the Queen, and — in the early days of the arrival, at least — it would seem the cracks were beginning to show.

"The 21-year-old princess, looking sunburnt after her three-hour sunbath in the blistering heat yesterday, was clearly nervous before the microphone as she gave her first radio interview," the Evening Chronicle reported on March 21, 1983.

"She giggled rather nervously and let Prince Charles do most of the talking."

A 'once in a lifetime' welcome

Despite the shaky start, the "people's princess" — a moniker that has stood the test of time — was hardly an unknown quantity.

As British media pointed out ahead of the trip, "the Aussies and Kiwis have had all the pre-tour publicity".

"They've been hearing for more than two years how wonderful Diana is," wrote the Daily Mirror. "Now they will be able to judge for themselves."

And judge they did.

Princess Diana's apparent "lack of pretension" struck a chord with the Australian public, even "mesmerizing" the avowedly-republican Hawke and his then-wife Hazel.

"She is very charming. She is also lovely. But those eyes of hers — they are so beautiful," Mrs Hawke told the Daily Mirror on March 23, 1983, shortly after meeting the Royal couple.

"Likewise. I would like to say the same," added the PM.

From city to city, the headlines painted a familiar story.

Residents of " flood-ravaged Alice Springs were won over by Princess Diana - even before she arrived ", declared the Evening Mirror, while frenzied crowds of more than 100,000 "mobbed" Princess Diana during a Royal walkabout in Brisbane.

The "normally cynical people" of Sydney, meanwhile, put on a " ticker-tape welcome only seen once in a lifetime ".

"The people of this most sophisticated of Australian cities went wild for the delicate 21-year-old English rose and mobbed her from one side of town to the other," wrote the Newcastle Evening Chronicle on March 28, 1983.

Prince Charles 'jealous' of Diana's popularity

While Peter Morgan, the man behind The Crown, concedes "When I write ... there are the things that I want to be the case and there are the things that are the case" , there is some truth to the narrative that Diana's intense popularity only exacerbated simmering jealousies within her marriage.

Prince Charles, who had been largely reduced to a "walk-on" role throughout the tour, was reportedly upset at being overshadowed.

"Victor Chapman, the press secretary on the tour, got used to late-night phone calls from Charles complaining about the scant coverage of himself in the press compared to the hagiographic acres accorded of his wife," Tina Brown wrote in her 2007 biography, The Diana Chronicles .

Princess Diana herself would later remark that she was taken back by the response from the public: "[Charles] wasn't used to that and nor was I".

"He took it out me," she told Morton . "He was jealous; I understood the jealousy but I couldn't explain that I didn't ask for it."

As Morton, her "long-time confidant" tells it, the tour was "utterly traumatic" for the Princess of Wales. In the privacy of her hotel room, he wrote, she "cried her eyes out, unable to handle the constant attention".

Her separation from Prince William, who was just nine-months-old at the time, only made their Australian debut more difficult.

Princess Diana's reluctance to leave his side (an experience she described as "like torture" ) was largely incongruous with royal protocol and, during a visit to Canberra, she spoke of the life "she would really like to lead — that of a humble housewife, raising her son".

"I wish I didn't have to leave William with his Nanny," she told the wife of an army training officer in Canberra . "I'd much rather be doing what you are doing."

A lasting legacy

While Princess Diana may have been " overwhelmed by the size of the crowds in a nation gripped by Di-mania ", it would seem the tour had served its purpose.

The Royal family had been catapulted "even more into the public eye", newspaper reports noted in the days and weeks following, paving the way for what the Liverpool Echo described as a "massive exodus to Australia by British holidaymakers".

In one particularly tounge-in-cheek op-ed for the Sydney Morning Herald, satirist Alan Fitzgerald went as far to suggest that, given the public reception, Australia should establish "our own home-grown monarchy", led by the Royal couple.

"The Royal boys would naturally be enrolled at The Kings School, Parramatta, and be brought up to open fetes, cut ribbons, visit Ayers Rock, make good after-dinner speeches and ultimately, become State Governors," he quipped.

While The Crown stretches its artistic licence when it comes to Diana's influence on national opinions of the monarchy (perhaps none more so than when Hawke is purported to have remarked, "That superstar may have just set back the cause of republicanism in Australia for the foreseeable future"), the Princess of Wales emerged from the royal tour as "seasoned, media sophisticate with the stamina and charm of a big-time star", according to Brown.

"By the end of Charles and Diana's tour a poll in Australia found that monarchists outnumbered republicans two to one, and that was the point, wasn't it?" she wrote .

"The young Princess of Wales had proved she was a dazzling new PR weapon for the British Crown."

• X (formerly Twitter)
• Arts, Culture and Entertainment
• Film (Arts and Entertainment)
• Human Interest
• United Kingdom

Photos show the true story behind Princess Diana's famous Australia tour featured on 'The Crown'

• In March 1983, Princess Diana flew to Australia with Prince Charles and her son, Prince William, for her first-ever overseas tour. 
• The four weeks Diana spent in Australia solidified her reputation as the "people's princess," but created a rift between her and Charles.
• The 1983 tour has come back into focus because it's one of the key storylines in season four of Netflix's " The Crown ."
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories .

"Uneasy, even glum" is how a news report described Princess Diana when she arrived in Alice Springs, Australia, for her first-ever overseas tour with Prince Charles.

For Diana, only 21 years old and just two years into her marriage with Prince Charles, the highly public tour was a "terrifying baptism of fire," Diana's confidant and biographer Andrew Morton wrote for the New York Post in 2017.

But by the end of the tour four weeks later, Diana had solidified her reputation as the "people's princess," charming her way into the hearts of Australians at a time when the monarchy was looking to repair public opinion in the Commonwealth.

The tour is a central focus of season four of Netflix's " The Crown ." Released on November 15, the newest season depicts the lives of the British monarchy from 1979 through 1990.  Episode six, "Terra Nullius," shows how young Diana, played by actress Emma Corrin, eclipsed Prince Charles, played by actor Josh O'Connor, in fame as they traveled around Australia, causing a rift between the royal pair. 

Here's how the real-life tour happened and a look back in photos.

On March 20, 1983, 21-year-old Princess Diana arrived with her husband Prince Charles in Alice Springs, Australia, for her first-ever overseas royal tour.

Source: Beneath the Crown

The royal couple would spend four weeks touring Australia in order to repair public opinion of the monarchy.

In a break with royal tradition, Diana insisted that her 9-month-old son, Prince William, travel with them. Previously, children of heirs had remained in England during overseas tours.

While his parents toured the country, Prince William stayed with his nanny at the family's home base, a sheep ranch in central Australia called Woomargama.

Source: The Age , PM Transcripts

The royal couple's first official stop was at Uluru, a sacred site to indigenous Australians also know as Ayers Rock.

During the visit, Diana expressed her discomfort with the heat and asked for a glass of water. This endeared Diana to the public, Anita Rani explains in an episode of Netflix's "Beneath the Crown," since "royals were not supposed to show such emotions in public."

Newly inducted Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke, who had publicly expressed his desire to lessen Australia's ties to the British crown on TV, met with the young couple three days later.

Source:  Beneath the Crown

Hawke was skeptical that the royal couple could charm Australians and rebuild public faith in the monarchy, according to BBC's HistoryExtra. What he didn't count on was Diana's likability.

Source: HistoryExtra

Australians quickly fell in love with Diana's easygoing manner and showed up in droves to see her.

"Diana...was accessible to the public, physically and emotionally," Netflix's Rani said. "She's estimated to have shaken hands at least 6,000 times with members of the public on this tour and offered down-to-earth comments to her admirers."

"Mothers, in particular, gravitated towards her, impressed by her refusal to leave William back in the UK," Rani said.

A photo taken one week after their arrival in Australia shows Diana outside of the Sydney Opera House surrounded by throngs of spectators.

Source: Getty

In April, The Times ran an article saying that Diana "won the heart of Australia" and that the tour was "an unqualified success, due in large part to the Princess."

Source: The Times

While Diana's star appeal helped the reputation of the monarchy, it served to "drive a wedge" between her and Charles, who was used to the limelight, Andrew Morton wrote in his 1992 biography "Diana: Her True Story."

Source: Diana: Her True Story

"The crowds complained when Prince Charles went over to their side of the street during a walkabout ... In public, Charles accepted the revised status quo with good grace; in private he blamed Diana," Morton wrote.

The couple did have good moments during the trip. One was during a charity ball in Sydney on March 28 where they shared their first dance together on tour. "They gave the impression that they were very much in love," Rani said of the dance.

But tension grew between them as Diana's fame blossomed. "With the media attention came a lot of jealousy," Diana told the BBC in a 1995 broadcast. "A great deal of complicated situations arose because of that."

Source: BBC

On April 17, Diana and Charles concluded their tour in Australia and flew to New Zealand for two weeks before returning home to London.

While Diana had worked her way into the hearts of Australians, the trip highlighted fissures in her marriage with Charles that would ultimately deepen over time.

• Photos show the true story behind Princess Diana's famous New York City visit featured on 'The Crown'
• Inside the famously discreet New York City hotel known as the 'Palace of Secrets' that Princess Diana frequented
• The true story behind the fatal avalanche on 'The Crown' that was a turning point for Charles and Diana's marriage
• Inside the rugged Swiss ski resort where Prince Charles survived an avalanche that killed one of his close friends
• Photos show how 'The Crown' re-created Princess Diana's outfits, from her wedding dress to glamorous gowns

Disclosure: Mathias Döpfner, CEO of Business Insider's parent company, Axel Springer, is a Netflix board member.

Our Royal Insider Facebook group is the best place for up-to-date news and announcements about the British royal family, direct from Insider's royal reporters. Join here.

• Main content

What Princess Diana and Prince Charles's 1983 Tour of Australia Looked Like in Real Life

Yes, little Prince William was there too.

Though the trip proved to be a diplomatic success, The Crown 's interpretation of the tour highlighted personal road bumps for Charles and Diana. He resented the public's adoration for her, while she was jealous of his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles. Diana also had to go through lengths to be able to bring a nine-month-old William with her and Charles abroad, rather than be apart from him for the six-week trip. Her decision, which raised the queen's eyebrows on the Netflix series, ultimately established a new precedent in the family. As we've seen with modern royals, Duchess Kate and Prince William went on tour with Prince George and Princess Charlotte, while Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry have taken their young son, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, abroad as well.

Flip through the photos here to see how The Crown 's depiction of the events compare to the real thing. And see how well the show did re-creating some of Diana's most memorable looks from the voyage.

March 20, 1983

Princess Diana carries a baby Prince William as she and Prince Charles arrive at Alice Springs, Australia.

March 21, 1983

The couple visit Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock, in Uluru National Park in Australia's Northwestern Territory.

Charles and Diana walk together at Uluru.

Charles and Diana meet schoolchildren in Alice Springs.

March 22, 1983

Diana boards a plane in a white blouse and blue skirt as she leaves Alice Springs.

March 25, 1983

Diana waves while she and Charles visit victims of bushfires.

Diana sports a baby-pink number with a matching feathered hat in Canberra, Australia.

March 30, 1983

Charles and Diana attend a reception in Hobart, Tasmania. She wears a red Bruce Oldfield dress with the Spencer family tiara.

Diana wears a blue, ruffled Bruce Oldfield dress while dancing with the Prince of Wales in Sydney.

While visiting Newcastle, Australia, with Charles, Diana wears a light pink dress by Catherine Walker and a hat by John Boyd.

Charles and Diana arrive in Hobart, Tasmania. The princess wears a Bellville Sassoon suit and John Boyd hat.

April 6, 1983

While driving through Memorial Oval in Port Pirie, Australia, Diana wears a Jan Van Velden suit and a John Boyd hat. Charles smiles at the crowd in a gray suit.

April 7, 1983

In one of her most iconic looks, a pink polka-dot ensemble by Donald Campbell and hat by John Boyd, the Princess of Wales greets fans in Perth, Australia.

Diana smiles at the crowds gathered in Perth.

April 8, 1983

The princess greets a well-wisher during a ride at the Hands Oval sportsground in Bunbury, Australia.

April 14, 1983

Diana wears a red polka-dot ensemble at the opening of the Bourke Street Mall in Melbourne.

April 17, 1983

Dressed in a blue hat and red printed dress, Diana waves goodbye as she and Charles board the plane to leave Melbourne.

April 18, 1983

The Princess of Wales greets a Maori woman at the Eden Park stadium in Auckland, New Zealand.

April 20, 1983

Diana wears a dress designed by the Emanuels, who made her wedding gown, to a state banquet in New Zealand. She's joined by the prime minister of New Zealand, Robert Muldoon, and Charles.

Diana and Charles play with William on the gardens of the Government House.

Erica Gonzales is the Senior Culture Editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage on TV, movies, music, books, and more. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. There is a 75 percent chance she's listening to Lorde right now. 

All About The Crown: News, Spoilers, and Episode Recaps

What to Know About “The Crown” Season 6 Part 2

What Elizabeth Debicki Learned From Diana

Who Is Mohamed Al-Fayed, Dodi's Father?

How Did the Queen React to Diana’s Death?

How The Crown Swallowed the Royal Family

Meet Your New Kate Middleton

Comparing The Crown Actors to Will & Kate

The Crown ’s S6 Trailer Is All About Diana

Why Prince Philip's Title Wasn't King

Elizabeth Debicki on Making Princess Diana Her Own

Yes, The Crown's Tampongate Really Happened

Wed 24 Apr 2024

2024 newspaper of the year

@ Contact us

Your newsletters

Prince Charles and Princess Diana in Australia: True story of the tumultuous tour depicted in The Crown

Princess diana's stardom as the 'fairytale princess' dwarfed prince charles during the infamous tour, two years into their short-lived marriage.

The tour of Australia by Princess Diana and Prince Charles was a defining moment for their marriage and the monarchy, as it is in The Crown . 

It was clear to the tens of thousands of spectators – and the wider world who were watching on through paparazzi cameras – that the princess’s stardom had far eclipsed that of the future king’s.

No surprise, then, that The Crown writer Peter Morgan goes to town in episode six by depicting this royal engagement as a tipping point in Diana’s inexorable rise into the hearts of the public.

Here’s the true story behind that spring 1983 tour. 

Was there tension between Charles and Diana during their tour of Australia?

In the Netflix show, the tour gets off to a clumsy start as Charles (Josh O’Connor) and Diana (Emma Corrin) are both awkward in front of the cameras and torn in private. 

This does reflect the couple’s rocky start in real life, with Charles making a number of gaffes that did not wash well with the crowds down under. 

It is also true that Diana was caught on film making an awkward facial expression when Charles talks about marrying her, something which led him to remark, “It’s amazing what ladies do when your back is turned”. Charles also embarrassingly fell off his horse playing polo as he tried to impress onlookers – a stark contrast to Diana’s seemingly effortless charm. 

The Queen’s ‘hidden’ cousins: True story of Nerissa and Katherine Bowes-Lyon, depicted in The Crown

Behind closed doors, Peter Morgan employs artistic licence to dramatise the tension between Charles and Diana that many could sense would turn into an explosive showdown – but this is not thought to be an accurate representation of events.

It is clear that Diana was unhappy and uncomfortable in real life. “It was hot, I was jet-lagged, being sick,” she recalls of the Alice Springs trip in the famous Andrew Morton biography Diana: Her True Story – In Her Own Words . 

She added, “I was too thin,” a reference to her bulimia which was well known to The Firm at that time and visible when she danced with Charles at the Sheraton Wentworth, Sydney, in March 1983. 

Diana was also pictured weeping on the tour during a public appearance outside the Sydney Opera House. Ken Lennox, the photographer who captured the striking image, told Vanity Fair : “I’m about four feet from the princess and I’m trying to get a bit of the Opera House in the background and some of the crowd, and Diana burst into tears and wept for a couple of minutes. 

“Charles I don’t think had noticed [Diana crying] at that stage. If he has, typical of Prince Charles to look the other way.”

Where is The Crown season 4 filmed? Filming locations for Buckingham Palace and Balmoral in the Netflix series

In his 1992 biography, which Diana reportedly supplied much of the material for, Morton located jealousy as the source of the couple’s tension, two years into their marriage. While Diana looked to her husband for a lead and guidance, the way the press and public reacted to the royal couple merely served to drive a wedge between them,” he wrote. 

“The crowds complained when Prince Charles went over to their side of the street during a walkabout… In public, Charles accepted the revised status quo with good grace; in private he blamed Diana.”

Was there a row about Charles and Diana bringing Prince William to Australia?

The Crown escalates the issue of bringing a very young Prince William on the tour into a row that did not really exist. 

In the show, Diana refuses to leave behind her nine-month-old son, in defiance of royal protocol which says two heirs should not travel together on the same trip to secure the line of succession. As now, Charles was first in line to the throne, and William second. 

Morton says in his biography that in fact Diana was “all ready to leave William. I accepted that as part of duty, albeit it wasn’t going to be easy”.

And contrary to Diana bolting to see William and berating courtiers in the episode, the biography recalls a more consensual set of affairs. “We didn’t see very much of him [William], but at least we were under the same sky, so to speak”. 

Did Charles and Diana’s visit stop Australia from abolishing the monarchy?

The Crown also depicts Charles and Diana’s visit as having major political implications, with then prime minister Bob Hawke forced to scrap his plan to campaign to remove Australia’s Commonwealth rule. 

The “Dianamania” of the fairytale princess has simply bedazzled too many Australians for such a move, which would have proved politically disastrous, the show suggests.

“She’s made us both look like chumps,” newly-elected Hawke tells Charles in the show. “No offence, but if it’d just been you, I’d have got my wishes. But then she comes along!”

There is no evidence of this conversation taking place, but Diana’s visit did seem to boost the previously declining Australian public support for the monarchy. Ultimately, 37 years later, Queen Elizabeth II is still queen of Australia.

Most Read By Subscribers

Your GRAZIA newsletter is on its way. Join our VIP Club for exclusive giveaways and members only events. (DW, it's free!)

• Privacy Policy
• About GRAZIA

Fashion Shoots

• Entertainment

A Look Back At Princess Diana’s First Royal Tour Of Australia

Thirty-five years ago, prince harry’s mother, diana, made her first overseas trip down under to visit ayres rock and bondi beach.

Amid the news Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are expecting their first child together, we imagine how Princess Diana would have reacted; overjoyed, overwhelmed, emotional. The statement would have read Harry’s mother was “delighted”, an adjective used by the Palace to describe every piece of good news.

Like every Royal story, there seems to be some sort of coincidental anniversary or some hidden milestone that gives it a whole new meaning. And Kensington Palace’s announcement that Markle is pregnant is not exempt: Thirty-five years ago, when Prince William was just a baby, Princess Diana and Prince Charles travelled to Australia for their first tour. The Royal couple – and William – spent 41 days travelling to Alice Springs and even dropped by Bondi Beach. It was Diana’s first overseas trip and she was just 22-years-old. It seems almost fitting then for a Royal baby announcement to happen, in our country, on this special anniversary.

On the other hand, it’s quite surreal to look back at this moment in time where Harry didn’t exist yet and Diana had no clue her life would be cut so short. While your timeline is filled with Royal Baby news, here’s a look back at Princess Diana’s time in Australia – her beautiful outfits, her grace and poise and the origins of those familial, caring values she passed onto her son, the Duke of Sussex.

topics: celebrity , Princess Diana , Meghan Markle , prince harry , royal tour , royal baby , Australia

Princess Diana and Prince Charles's 1983 Tour of Australia Will Appear in The Crown Season 4

Last year, the cast was spotted filming a scene which recreated the royal couple's famous visit to Ayers Rock.

Although they were actually shooting in Almería, Spain, the duo were sporting costumes designed to mimic the white dress and beige outfit that Charles and Diana were photographed in during their tour.

On that day in 1983, the royal couple were visiting Australia's Ayers Rock (now called Uluru). It was a part of a month-and-a-half tour of the Commonwealth country—famously, the first time that Princess Diana, then 22 years old, had traveled overseas.

It was also the first tour Prince William, then just nine months old, was taken on. Diana had allegedly refused to leave him behind , even though it had been standard practice for royals to leave their children in others' care while embarking on such trips.

William's presence would establish a new normal, one that Prince William and Kate Middleton would later follow, bringing Prince George on their 2014 tour of New Zealand and Australia when he was less than a year old. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle recently followed suit, bringing months-old baby Archie on their royal tour of southern Africa.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana's 1983 trip certainly has plenty of material to mine for an episode of The Crown . And recently, preview photos for season four have offered a first look at what the show's depiction of the tour might look like, as they feature actress Emma Corrin wearing recreations of some of Diana's well-known looks from the tour. Check those out below.

Chloe is a News Writer for Townandcountrymag.com , where she covers royal news, from the latest additions to Meghan Markle’s staff to Queen Elizabeth’s monochrome fashions ; she also writes about culture, often dissecting TV shows like The Marvelous Mrs Maisel and Killing Eve .

@media(min-width: 40.625rem){.css-1jdielu:before{margin:0.625rem 0.625rem 0;width:3.5rem;-webkit-filter:invert(17%) sepia(72%) saturate(710%) hue-rotate(181deg) brightness(97%) contrast(97%);filter:invert(17%) sepia(72%) saturate(710%) hue-rotate(181deg) brightness(97%) contrast(97%);height:1.5rem;content:'';display:inline-block;-webkit-transform:scale(-1, 1);-moz-transform:scale(-1, 1);-ms-transform:scale(-1, 1);transform:scale(-1, 1);background-repeat:no-repeat;}.loaded .css-1jdielu:before{background-image:url(/_assets/design-tokens/townandcountrymag/static/images/diamond-header-design-element.80fb60e.svg);}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-1jdielu:before{margin:0 0.625rem 0.25rem;}} The Crown @media(min-width: 40.625rem){.css-128xfoy:before{margin:0.625rem 0.625rem 0;width:3.5rem;-webkit-filter:invert(17%) sepia(72%) saturate(710%) hue-rotate(181deg) brightness(97%) contrast(97%);filter:invert(17%) sepia(72%) saturate(710%) hue-rotate(181deg) brightness(97%) contrast(97%);height:1.5rem;content:'';display:inline-block;background-repeat:no-repeat;}.loaded .css-128xfoy:before{background-image:url(/_assets/design-tokens/townandcountrymag/static/images/diamond-header-design-element.80fb60e.svg);}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-128xfoy:before{margin:0 0.625rem 0.25rem;}}

Elizabeth Debicki Wins SAG Award

Dominic West Stayed in Bed After 'The Crown'

The Crown's Costumes, Props, and More at Auction

Elizabeth Debicki Stuns in Dior

Elizabeth Debicki's Best Red Carpet Looks

Elizabeth Debicki Wins Golden Globe

Jonathan Pryce Apologized to Princess Anne

All About The Queen Mother's Pearl Ring

Why Is King William II's Death in 'The Crown'?

A Look at Prince William's Early 2000s Style

The Queen's Toast at Charles & Camilla's Wedding

Prince Charles and Princess Diana's 1983 Australia Tour Marked the Fracturing Of Their Relationship

The Crown accurately depicts the jealousy lurking beneath the surface of the royal couple.

The Crown launches into Dianamania with the sixth episode of Season Four, as it follows Prince Charles and Diana on their 1983 royal tour of Australia and New Zealand. They embarked on their first overseas tour as a couple with young Prince William in March, and as the Netflix series shows, the tour launched Diana into superstardom and solidified Charles’ resentment of her. Here's how the actual tour compares to Peter Morgan’s adaptation in the episode entitled “Terra Nullius.”

However, the 21-year-old new mother was having a difficult time, as shown in the show—she was "jet-lagged, anxious and sick with bulimia," wrote Andrew Morton of the tour. We see Diana turn back mid-hike at Ayers Rock in Episode Six to Charles’ dismay, which did really happen. However, this was likely because of her impractical front-buttoned white dress and heels, per the Sydney Morning Herald . “When Charles coaxed her to climb part of the way up the rock, she hesitated, not through fear of slipping, but because she knew that coming down would expose her knees and petticoat to the world’s press,” they wrote of the incident.

Still, the tour was likely as rocky for Charles and Diana’s relationship as The Crown depicts. There are accounts of Diana crying at a public appearance outside the Sydney Opera House, which a photographer who was present, Ken Lennox, described in the documentary Inside the Crown: Secrets of the Royals , per Vanity Fair :

I’m about four feet from the princess and I’m trying to get a bit of the opera house in the background and some of the crowd, and Diana burst into tears and wept for a couple of minutes. Charles I don’t think has noticed [Diana crying] at that stage. If he has, typical of Prince Charles to look the other way.

While the show accurately depicts some moments that the couple seemed to be genuinely in love, such as their dance at a charity ball in Sydney, Charles’s jealousy of the mad adoring crowds over Diana did in fact amplify the wedge between the couple.

“The prince was embarrassed the crowds so clearly favored her over him,” wrote Sally Bedell Smith . “For her part, Diana was upset by the disproportionate interest in her, especially when she realized that it was disturbing Charles. She collapsed under the strain, weeping to her lady-in-waiting and secretly succumbing to bulimia. In letters to friends, Charles described his anguish over the impact ‘all this obsessed and crazed attention was having on his wife.’”

Get Expert Style Advice, Every Day

In a 1995 interview with the BBC after their separation, Diana affirmed this herself. “We'd be going round Australia, for instance, and all you could hear was, ‘oh, she's on the other side.’ Now, if you're a man—like my husband—a proud man, you mind about that if you hear it every day for four weeks. You feel low about it, instead of feeling happy and sharing it,” she recalled. “With the media attention came a lot of jealousy. A great deal of complicated situations arose because of that.”

Charles and Diana’s royal tour did, however, have a powerful impact on the public opinion of the monarchy in Australia, as depicted in the episode. The popularity of the monarchy had been in decline in Australia in the '70s, and Republican Prime Minister Bob Hawke did not hide his stance that the country would be better off as an independent nation. While he may not have directly expressed this to Charles as he did in the episode, after the royal tour The Evening Standard stated that the public’s extreme fawning over Diana “ha[d] set Republicanism back 10 years.” And when, in 1999, the country held a referendum to vote on the possibility of becoming a republic, the people voted against it.

And the most crucial factual detail that The Crown snuck into the episode—Charles really did fall off that horse in the polo match.

@media(max-width: 73.75rem){.css-1ktbcds:before{margin-right:0.4375rem;color:#FF3A30;content:'_';display:inline-block;}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-1ktbcds:before{margin-right:0.5625rem;color:#FF3A30;content:'_';display:inline-block;}} TV

Everything We Know About ‘Shōgun’ Season 2

‘Shōgun’ Episode 10 Is a Bittersweet Finale

‘The Sympathizer’ Episode 2 Adds Another Downey

‘Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show’ Episode 4 Recap

I Have Questions After ‘Under the Bridge’ E2

‘Shōgun’ Fans Have Wild Predictions for the Finale

The Twisted True Story Behind ‘Under the Bridge’

A Guide to the Hiroyuki Sanada Extended Universe

‘Under the Bridge‘ Already Has Me Hooked

‘Shōgun’ Is the Best TV Series of the Year

The Unforgettable Power of Anna Sawai

What Charles and Diana's 1983 Tour of Australia Looked Like In Real Life

As depicted on the show, Charles and Diana vow to make their turbulent marriage work during the tour, though things between them crumble soon after. According to The Telegraph , the royal trip did cement global “Dianamania” as she wowed the crowds with stunning fashion and her endearing presence. But it's not totally clear whether things were just as bumpy between the Prince and Princess of Wales behind the scenes as The Crown suggests .

Ahead, a look at the couple's real-life Australian tour, from the couple's famous dance to their photo-op with William.

March 20, 1983

The couple lands at Alice Springs Airport for the first stop on the six-week tour.

The Prince and Princess of Wales are joined by their 10-month-old son Prince William.

March 21, 1983

The couple poses in Uluru, otherwise known as Ayers Park, in Alice Springs, Australia.

Prince Charles leads Princess Diana around Ayers Rock during a royal photo-op.

Diana and Charles attend an official welcome ceremony at a school in Alice Springs.

Diana looks on as Charles delivers remarks to the crowd in Alice Springs.

Diana and Charles are greeted by schoolchildren during their visit.

March 24, 1983

The Prince and Princess of Wales meet Prime Minister Bob Hawke and his wife Hazel in Canberra, Australia.

March 25, 1983

The couple waves to a crowd in Cockatoo at an event honoring victims of bushfires in the area.

Diana walks alongside Prime Minister Hawke during a stop in Canberra, Australia.

March 26, 1983

A young girl offers Diana a flower during an event in Adelaide.

March 28, 1983

Charles and Diana ride through a crowd of Australians outside the Sydney Opera House.

Diana bursts into tears during the ride through Sydney.

Charles and Diana attend a charity ball in Sydney.

The couple dances during the ball, a rare romantic moment depicted in The Crown 's fourth season.

The pair continues their dance, which is set to Frankie Valli's "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" on The Crown .

March 29, 1983

Charles and Diana wave to a crowd in Newcastle, Australia.

The couple stands inside a vehicle moving through Newcastle.

Princess Diana gazes down at a floral arrangement while wearing a pink Catherine Walker dress with John Boyd hat.

Charles and Diana appear to hold hands during a public event in Australia.

The Very New Life of Meg Bellamy

How Did William and Kate Actually Meet?

When Do New Episodes of 'The Crown' Come Out?

Did Prince William Run Away After Diana’s Death?

Royal Outfits That Were Recreated on 'The Crown'

Elizabeth Debicki on Filming Princess Diana Scenes

Inside Princess Diana’s and Dodi’s Vacation

Did Dodi Propose to Diana? 'The Crown' Thinks So.

A Timeline of Dodi and Diana's Romance

Who Was Dodi Fayed's Ex-Girlfriend, Kelly Fisher?

Who Is the Real Mohamed Al-Fayed?

Screen Rant

The crown: charles & diana's australia tour true story & all changes.

The Crown season 4's 6th episode depicts the highs and lows of Charles and Diana's 1983 Australia tour. But here's what The Crown changed and omitted.

Warning: SPOILERS for The Crown Season 4, Episode 6 - "Terra Nullius"

The Crown season 4, season 6, "Terra Nullius" dramatizes Prince Charles (Josh O'Connor) and Princess Diana's (Emma Corrin) 1983 tour of Australia and New Zealand. While Netflix's award-winning historical series hits the main beats, key elements were changed or excluded to serve the dramatic needs of the episode. The real-life tour was indeed a huge success but impacted the Prince and Princess of Wales' already shaky two-year-old marriage.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana's anything-but-a-fairytale relationship began when the couple met in 1977. The future King of England was in the market for a suitable wife and under intense pressure from the royal family to find one, although his true heart's desire was (and remains) Camilla Parker-Bowles (Emerald Fennell), who was then married. Despite being 13 years younger than Charles, the beautiful and properly aristocratic Lady Diana Spencer checked all the boxes as an ideal future princess, and she won over the royal family during a 1980 visit to Balmoral Castle in Scotland. Despite only seeing each other 13 times by Diana's count, Charles did his "duty" and proposed to Diana at Windsor Castle in February 1981; the couple then made their engagement public later that month.

Related: The Crown: How Old Were Charles & Diana When They First Met

In the weeks leading up to their lavish July 29, 1981 wedding at St. Paul's Cathedral, Diana was hounded by the press and she moved into Clarence House to begin "princess training" at Buckingham Palace. The Crown depicts her isolation and lack of support from the royal family, especially Prince Charles who vanished on a tour for five weeks, and this began Diana's habitual self-harm and bulimia. Diana also began to learn the true scope of Charles and Camilla's secret relationship, but regardless, nothing could stop the fairytale wedding . Charles and Diana tied the knot and she became Her Royal Highness, the Princess of Wales.

The Crown season 4's first three episodes detail the first few years of Charles and Diana's relationship, but their intense troubles — and also their greatest moments together — truly began in episode 6, "Terra Nullius," when the couple embarked on their triumphant 6-week tour of Australia and New Zealand. "Terra Nullius" is arguably the best episode of The Crown, season 4, but here are the missing details and real-life events behind the Netflix series lush drama.

Diana Brought Prince William But The Crown Made It Controversial

In The Crown , Diana insists on bringing Prince William along because she can't bear to be apart from her baby son for six weeks and she argues that his mother's love is what will instill humanity in the heir that the royal nannies and courtiers can't give him. This is considered a breach of protocol and Queen Elizabeth II (Olivia Colman) herself argues that when she and Prince Philip (Tobias Menzies ) went to Australia in 1954, they left young Prince Charles and Princess Anne (Erin Doherty) behind for five months. "And you think that might have had consequences?" Princess Margaret (Helena Bonham Carter) countered, arguing Diana's point.

Diana got her wish in The Crown and Prince William went to Australia with them; the episode shows they were separated in the first leg of the tour but Diana insisted on the itinerary being changed so she and Charles could visit William at the sheep's farm he was staying at. However, in real life, Diana was prepared to leave William behind on the tour and not breach royal protocol. The change happened when former Australia prime minister Malcolm Fraser suggested that Charles and Diana bring Prince William along. The tour schedule was also not disrupted so that Diana could see William in real life, but she did tell the Australian press that Prince William loved his stuffed koala. Charles also enjoyed playing with William during the tour.

Related: The Crown's Heartbreaking Ending For Charles, Diana, And Thatcher Explained

The Hardships Of The Australian Tour The Crown Didn't Show

As in The Crown , when Prince Philip called Charles and Diana "the B-team" and said that Australia was too important to send "the understudy" instead of the Queen herself, the royal family did worry about how Diana would fare on the tour. As The Crown partly depicted, Prince Charles and Princess Diana arrived in Alice Springs, Australia on March 20, 1983, but, because of the torrential rains, the luxury accommodations they expected weren't available. Charles and Diana had to resort to staying at the only suites available at a motor hotel.

The early part of the tour had rough patches; sick and not being able to cope with the heat (an admittance that broke royal protocol), Diana wasn't able to climb Ayer's Rock (now called Uluru), while, in real life, Charles also made gaffes like joking that William was being fed "warm milk and minced kangaroo."  There were also other down points that The Crown didn't show, such as Diana publicly breaking down and crying in Sydney because of the overwhelming crowds. In the episode, the moment at the Sydney Opera House in front of a gigantic crowd was part of a montage of triumphant moments for Charles and Diana after their (fictional) conversation that temporarily patched up their relationship problems.

In real life, Charles did fall off his horse during a polo match and Diana did make a public appearance with a team of lifeguards at Terrigal Beach. The Crown didn't show Charles body surfing at Bondi Beach and how the powerful waves almost depantsed the Prince of Wales. However , The Crown did also accurately portray how Charles and Diana dazzled the crowds, such as when they danced together at a glamorous ball in Sydney. There were genuine moments when the Prince and Princess of Wales were in synergy that the Australian press and people adored, and it's estimated that Charles and Diana shook 2,000 hands a day.

Charles Became Jealous Of Diana

Diana's growing popularity and all of the attention lavished upon the Princess of Wales, who the Australian crowds saw as "down to earth" and "relatable," did affect Prince Charles. After all, Charles was supposed to be the focus of the tour and it was meant to be his first major outing as the future King of England. Instead, the crowds wherever they traveled went mad for Diana, and there were points when Charles was indeed booed and they insisted on seeing Diana instead, which hurt the Prince's feelings.

Related: The Crown Season 4 True Story: What Really Happened & What Changed

In real life, as in The Crown , Prince Charles was angered when he was giving a speech and the audience laughed at Diana, who Charles thought was "pulling faces" behind him. Charles did say "that's the thing with women, you never know what they're doing behind your back." However, while Charles was soured by Diana's reception compared to his own, the Prince of Wales also later recalled that the times he, Diana, and William were together in Australia were moments of "great joy."

Diana's Popularity Affected Australian Politics

The biggest change that underwent Diana was that by the conclusion of the Australia tour, Diana had become an international star. The Princess of Wales did ultimately affect the plans of new Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke (Richard Roxborough), who wanted to lead his country in breaking away from the Commonwealth. Hawke was a staunch Republican who was part of the growing anti-monarchy movement in Australia that had been building since the 1970s.

In The Crown , Hawke tells Prince Charles, "She's made us both look like chumps... No offense, but if it'd just been you, I'd have got my wishes. But then she comes along!"  While that conversation was fictionalized, in real life, Princess Diana was so beloved by Australia that it set the Republican cause back two decades. In 1999, when a referendum was held on Australia becoming a republic, the country voted "no," and this can be traced back to how Princess Diana won the hearts of Australia.

Next: The Crown: The Real Timeline Of Prince Charles And Princess Diana's Relationship

The Crown Season 4 is available to stream on Netflix.

Don't miss a thing!

Our top headlines in style, culture, and more, in your inbox, daily, we respect your privacy. all data captured will be used in accordance with our privacy policy, inside king charles and princess diana’s trips to australia.

Rare photos from their tours Down Under. By Ella Sangster

WE’VE ALL SEEN THE PHOTOS: A then 22-year-old Princess Diana standing among a sea of children waving tiny, plastic Australian flags; Her and Prince Charles side-by-side in the shadow of Uluru; and holding an infant Prince William at Alice Springs airport. It’s safe to say a then-Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s royal tour of Australia was one for the history books — the 1983 trip even received a dedicated episode in the fourth season of The Crown .

Of course, this was not the only time the new King has made a trip Down Under. All up, the King has visited Australia 16 times since his first visit in 1966, and myriad snaps from each tour have circulated in the decades since. But, ahead of Charle’s coronation this weekend, Getty Images has released a brand new collection of the most rare and famous images from the Royal tours in Australia, from the Getty Images Archives. Among the 10 photographs are snaps of Charles swimming at Sydney’s famous Bondi Beach, the young Prince surfing in Perth, and exploring Uluru with Diana. Ahead, discover the photos from Charles’ royal trips Down Under that you probably haven’t seen before.

See the trailer for the film that brought Zoë Kravitz & Channing Tatum together

Kate Middleton captures cute birthday picture of Prince Louis

The Weeknd has cancelled his Australian tour

This is how Taylor Swift ranks against the richest celebrities

Catherine Zeta-Jones’ daughter wears her mum’s vintage dress for 21st

Jennifer Lopez’s channels “Maid In Manhattan” with corset gown

• Today's news
• Reviews and deals
• Climate change
• 2024 election
• Fall allergies
• Health news
• Mental health
• Sexual health
• Family health
• So mini ways
• Unapologetically
• Buying guides

Entertainment

• How to Watch
• My watchlist
• Stock market
• Biden economy
• Personal finance
• Stocks: most active
• Stocks: gainers
• Stocks: losers
• Trending tickers
• World indices
• US Treasury bonds
• Top mutual funds
• Highest open interest
• Highest implied volatility
• Currency converter
• Basic materials
• Communication services
• Consumer cyclical
• Consumer defensive
• Financial services
• Industrials
• Real estate
• Mutual funds
• Credit cards
• Credit card rates
• Balance transfer credit cards
• Business credit cards
• Cash back credit cards
• Rewards credit cards
• Travel credit cards
• Checking accounts
• Online checking accounts
• High-yield savings accounts
• Money market accounts
• Personal loans
• Student loans
• Car insurance
• Home buying
• Options pit
• Investment ideas
• Research reports
• Fantasy football
• Pro Pick 'Em
• College Pick 'Em
• Fantasy baseball
• Fantasy hockey
• Fantasy basketball
• Download the app
• Daily fantasy
• Scores and schedules
• GameChannel
• World Baseball Classic
• Premier League
• CONCACAF League
• Champions League
• Motorsports
• Horse racing
• Newsletters

New on Yahoo

• Privacy Dashboard

Relive Prince Charles and Princess Diana's 1983 Royal Tour of Australia and New Zealand, in Photos

In 1983, the Princess of Wales undertook her first overseas tour—and her first-ever trip abroad—at just 22 years of age. Diana , Prince Charles , and a baby Prince William spent more than 40 days in Australia and New Zealand, seeing the sights and meeting with dignitaries and locals alike. Now that the unforgettable visit has been recreated on The Crown 's fourth season , it's high time we look back at the real thing. Below, photos from the royal couple's iconic tour.

The couple's iconic trip is featured in season four of The Crown .

From Prevention

Recommended Stories

Jamie dimon is worried the us economy is headed back to the 1970s.

JPMorgan's CEO is concerned the US economy could be in for a repeat of the stagflation that hampered the country during the 1970s.

Based on the odds, here's what the top 10 picks of the NFL Draft will be

What would a mock draft look like using just betting odds?

WNBA Draft winners and losers: As you may have guessed, the Fever did pretty well. The Liberty? Perhaps not

Here are five franchises who stood out, for better or for worse.

Everyone's still talking about the 'SNL' Beavis and Butt-Head sketch. Cast members and experts explain why it's an instant classic.

Ryan Gosling, who starred in the skit, couldn't keep a straight face — and neither could some of the "Saturday Night Live" cast.

Jets trade QB Zach Wilson to Broncos

Wilson's starting over in Denver.

Dave McCarty, player on 2004 Red Sox championship team, dies 1 week after team's reunion

The Red Sox were already mourning the loss of Tim Wakefield from that 2004 team.

Ryan Garcia drops Devin Haney 3 times en route to stunning upset

The 25-year-old labeled "mentally fragile" by many delivered the upset for the ages.

Chiefs make Andy Reid NFL's highest-paid coach, sign president Mark Donovan, GM Brett Veach to extensions

Reid's deal reportedly runs through 2029 and makes him the highest-paid coach in the NFL.

NFL mock draft 2024: With one major trade-up, it's a QB party in the top 5

Our final 2024 mock draft projects four quarterbacks in the first five picks, but the Cardinals at No. 4 might represent the key pivot point of the entire board.

Yankees' Nestor Cortés told by MLB his pump-fake pitch is illegal

Cortés' attempt didn't fool Andrés Giménez, who fouled off the pitch.

• Search Please fill out this field.
• Manage Your Subscription
• Give a Gift Subscription
• Newsletters
• Sweepstakes

'The Crown' : How Princess Diana and Prince Charles' Australia Tour Predicted Their Doomed Marriage

Princess Diana and Prince Charles first overseas trip help launch the new princess into international stardom — and prompted Prince Charles' jealousy

Stephanie Petit is a Royals Editor, Writer and Reporter at PEOPLE.

Princess Diana and Prince Charles ' first overseas trip help launch the new princess into international stardom — and prompted Prince Charles' jealousy over his wife's popularity.

Season four of The Crown , now streaming on Netflix, tackles the couple's 1983 tour of Australia in the episode "Terra Nullius" — and the importance of keeping the country in the Commonwealth.

Tensions between Diana (played by Emma Corrin) and Charles (Josh O'Connor) began before the plane even touched down, according to the royal drama. Prince William , then just 9 months old, became the first royal baby to accompany his parents on a royal tour (a tradition since followed by William and Kate Middleton as well as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle with their own children .) In the show, it was Princess Diana who insisted they bring their son along — "no baby, no me."

The move to travel with their son warmed the hearts of Australians. "Bringing William was what made it really different. There was a huge amount made of Diana being a breath of fresh air and [so] modern. It was enormous," said Jane Connors, author of Royal Visits to Australia .

Early in the arduous six-week tour, Princess Diana — already battling bulimia — was portrayed in The Crown as weak from the Australian heat and jet lag. During a scene at Uluru, she leaves Charles to climb Ayers Rock without her after saying she felt "dizzy." However, she bounces back as the tour continues, dazzling all who see and meet her.

At first, the Prince of Wales is pleased by his wife's efforts and approval by the large crowds who came to see them — but it's not long before he begins to feel like second fiddle.

During a speech, Prince Charles talks about how "lucky" he is to have Diana as a wife, only for Princess Diana to make a face and draw laughs from the crowd. "That's the thing about ladies: you never quite know what they get up to when your back's turned," he remarks.

The Crown shows the couple getting into a fight over Charles' embarrassment.

"This was supposed to be my tour! My tour as Prince of Wales to shore up a key country in the Commonwealth at a very delicate moment politically," O'Connor’s Charles erupts at Corrin's Diana. "Thanks to you, people are laughing in my face."

Can't get enough of PEOPLE 's Royals coverage? Sign up for our free Royals newsletter to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton , Meghan Markle and more!

The real-life Princess Diana spoke about upstaging her husband and his jealousy during her famous 1995 interview with BBC1's Panorama.

"We'd be going 'round Australia, for instance, and all you could hear was, 'Oh, she's on the other side.' Now, if you're a man — like my husband — a proud man, you mind about that if you hear it every day for four weeks. You feel low about it, instead of feeling happy and sharing it," she said.

Host Martin Bashir clarified that the public was expressing a "preference" for Diana over her husband.

"Yes, which I felt very uncomfortable with, and I felt it was unfair because I wanted to share," she said.

Diana added, "With the media attention came a lot of jealousy. A great deal of complicated situations arose because of that."

Related Articles

5 customer-loved finds for spring, including a fashion hack — starting at $7

• TODAY Plaza
• Share this —

• Watch Full Episodes
• Read With Jenna
• Inspirational
• Relationships
• TODAY Table
• Newsletters
• Start TODAY
• Shop TODAY Awards
• Citi Concert Series
• Listen All Day

Follow today

More Brands

• On The Show

'The Crown' stars re-create Prince Charles and Princess Diana's tour of Australia

Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana were a smash hit on their 1983 tour of Australia — and now the Netflix series "The Crown" is re-creating the magic.

Actors Josh O'Connor and Emma Corrin look exactly like the former royal couple in a new photo from the show's upcoming fourth season that finds them re-enacting the historic trip.

The actors were photographed in Almeria, Spain over the weekend wearing replicas of the clothes the Prince and Princess of Wales wore during their stop at the Australian landmark of Uluru at Ayers Rock.

O'Connor was decked out in a khaki suit and wore his hair in the prince's signature side part. Corrin sported a white dress with three-quarter sleeves and a white purse, both similar to the outfit the late princess traveled in. Her hair was styled in the same fresh bob that Diana made famous.

The royal couple delighted fans in 1983 by bringing their 9-month-old baby, Prince William, on the tour with them. Everywhere they went, the couple was cheered by mobs of adoring onlookers.

Prince William evoked memories of his parents' tour more than three decades later in 2014 when he and his wife, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, paused for similar photos at Ayers Rock, which is considered a sacred spot to indigenous Australians.

"The Crown" has won raves for re-creating visuals from royal family history with startling accuracy.

Though viewers are familiar with 29-year-old O'Connor's portrayal of Charles, this is the first time fans will see 23-year-old Corrin play Diana, who was 21 at the time of the tour.

Playing the late princess, who died in a tragic car accident in 1997, is an honor, the actress revealed after being cast in the Emmy-winning series.

"Princess Diana was an icon and her effect on the world remains profound and inspiring," Corrin said in a statement on Instagram .

"To explore her through ("The Crown" creator) Peter Morgan’s writing is the most exceptional opportunity and I will strive to do her justice," she added.

Corrin isn't the only new actress to join the "The Crown" cast in season 4. "The X-Files" alum Gillian Anderson has also signed on to play former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher.

Of course, it will be a while before we see Corrin and Anderson on the series. First, fans have to enjoy season 3 of "The Crown," which premieres Nov. 17.

Gina Vivinetto is a writer for TODAY.com.