The Crown star Erin Doherty admits her ‘mental health dipped’ as she said goodbye to Princess Anne

‘I glimpsed red carpet life, and then it was gone again’: The Crown star Erin Doherty admits her ‘mental health dipped’ as she said goodbye to Princess Anne role amid the pandemic

She’s one of the break-out young stars of The Crown.

But Erin Doherty didn’t have quite the send off she hoped for from her critically acclaimed portrayal of Princess Anne.

The actress wrapped her second series as the young royal in the Netflix drama earlier this year, and in a new interview she has admitted her mental health took a dip at the sudden end to the life-changing job, which was made even more immediate thanks to the global pandemic.

Goodbye: She’s one of the break out young stars of The Crown. But Erin Doherty didn’t have quite the send off from her critically acclaimed performance of Princess Anne as she hoped 

Erin plays a young Anne in series three and the recently released series four of The Crown, but as the timeline moves forward for the fifth and final sixth season, she’ll hand the baton onto a new actor. 

Speaking to Grazia Magazine about the role, Erin admitted it’s been ‘a shock’ to say goodbye to the character.  

‘It’s the biggest shock. I said it out loud for the first time only a few weeks ago. I had the breakthrough of my body and brain connecting that I’m not going to play this woman any longer. I realised I had to let go of her. It’s a sad thing,’ she explained.

The shock was only exacerbated by the global pandemic, which hit just after Erin had enjoyed a small taste of red carpet life during the 2020 awards season, where she flew to LA to accept the Best Ensemble prize at the SAG Awards.  

Thankful: The actress wrapped her second series as the young royal in the Netflix drama earlier this year, and in a new interview she has admitted her mental health took a dip at the sudden end to the life-changing job (Pictured: Princess Anne at Balmoral, Scotland in 1983)

Learning from her character: Erin Doherty pictured as Princess Anne in The Crown Season 3 in 2019

Thankful: The actress wrapped her second series as the young royal in the Netflix drama earlier this year, and has admitted her mental health took a dip at the sudden end to the job  (Pictured left: Princess Anne at Balmoral in 1983; Pictured right: Erin as Princess Anne in The Crown)

‘We’d just finished filming the fourth season the week before everything shut down,’ she explained. ‘The brakes got put on everything, and my mental health did dip. As an actor, I didn’t have a purpose. I’d gone from zero to 200 miles per hour and then back to zero. I glimpsed red carpet life, and then it was gone again.’

She added that it was a shock to go from filming the ensemble show and promoting it at glitzy awards dos to the UK lockdown. ‘To sit in my own thoughts was a difficult process at first, because you tune in with where your body and your mind and your soul and your spirit are,’ she said. 

‘Part of that process is going, “Right, I really need to look at this, because I don’t feel very happy about that,” or, “I really haven’t addressed these issues that may have been there since childhood.”’  

Erin added that despite The Crown’s huge global success, she doesn’t feel like life has changed much for her, pointing out she still lives in a house share with six others. 

Win:  The shock was exacerbated by the pandemic, which hit just after Erin had enjoyed a taste of red carpet life at the SAG Awards in January with co-stars Oliva Colman and Josh O'Connor

Win:  The shock was exacerbated by the pandemic, which hit just after Erin had enjoyed a taste of red carpet life at the SAG Awards in January with co-stars Oliva Colman and Josh O’Connor

She admitted that she is grateful to not have had the level of soaring fame her co-star Emma Corrin, who plays Princess Diana in series four, has had in recent months. 

‘I can’t even imagine what Emma’s going through right now,’ she said. ‘It is one of the hardest things to just step into, regardless of your previous experience. It’s just such a mammoth show to find yourself in. It’s quite discombobulating.’  

Next up for Erin is a very different role –  the female lead in thriller Rebel Ridge opposite Star Wars’ John Boyega. Filming is due to begin in March in Louisiana.

The Netflix thriller explores systemic American injustice in the context of bone-breaking action, ever-coiling suspense, and pitch-black humor and will also star Don Johnson and James Cromwell.

Royal role: Speaking to Grazia Magazine about the role, Erin admitted it's been 'a shock' to say goodbye to the character 'It’s a sad thing,' she said

Royal role: Speaking to Grazia Magazine about the role, Erin admitted it’s been ‘a shock’ to say goodbye to the character ‘It’s a sad thing,’ she said

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