If the Crown Fits

If the Crown Fits was a short‑lived 1961 ATV sitcom built around the comic presence of Robert Morley, who played the rather mundane sounding King Rupert, monarch of the tiny Mediterranean country of Grabnia. Rupert has not fought his way to the throne so much as bought it, largely so he can indulge himself in the pleasures of monarchy: ceremonial robes, major events, public festivities, and the general enjoyment of being treated as someone important. Morley played the role with his familiar mix of pomp, indulgence and self‑mockery.

Grabnia is described as being much the same shape as its monarch—decidedly pear‑like—but, unlike the king, it spreads itself over roughly 870 square miles. It promotes itself as a tourist paradise yet offers none of the usual attractions: no museums, no art galleries, no ancient buildings and not a single historical ruin to its name. All matters of real importance, particularly the business of relieving visitors of their money, are carried out in English.

Comic tension came from Rupert’s daughter, Princess Amelia, the Heir Presumptive, played by Tracy Reed. Although heir to the purchased throne, she rejects royal formality entirely. Instead of behaving like a princess, she embraces a beatnik lifestyle, wearing a sloppy shirt, paint-splattered jeans and riding around the kingdom after college on the back of her boyfriend George’s (David Cole - Orlando) motor‑scooter. Their generational clash provided much of the humour, with Rupert desperately trying to maintain regal dignity while Amelia insists on living like any other modern teenager.

This was Tracy Reed’s first star role for television although viewers had recently seen her as radiographer Primrose Ainley in an episode of the medical soap, Emergency-Ward 10. Her grandmother was the actress Fay Compton, her mother actress Penelope Dudley Ward, her father was producer-director Anthony Pelissier and her step-father was Sir Carol Reed. That was quite a showbiz dynasty. Reed went on to appear in Man of the World, Dr Strangelove, A Shot in the Dark and Dr. Finlay’s Casebook. Her last screen appearance was an uncredited part in Phantom Halo in 2014.

If the Crown Fits was filmed in Spain, giving it a brighter and more expansive look than many studio‑bound ITV comedies of the period. It also featured a number of notable guest players. Morley’s real‑life mother‑in‑law, Gladys Cooper, appeared in two roles. Erik Chitty, later known as school teacher Mr Smith in Please Sir!, played Stevens the Footman. There were also parts for Ivor Dean of The Saint, Crackerjack’s Peter Glaze, and early appearances from Robert Hardy and Peter Gilmore. Comic stalwarts Miles Malleson, Doris Hare (On the Buses) and Henry McGee also starred as did Charles Lloyd Pack, the father of Roger who played Trigger in Only Fools and Horses. The Producer of the series was Alan Tarrant.  

Only six episodes were produced, and like many early ITV programmes, its archival status is ‘missing.’ The series sits within a small tradition of British comedies set in fictional European monarchies, allowing writers to poke fun at aristocratic rituals and national vanity without offending any real government, which kicked off with the 1959 film The Mouse That Roared. Morley’s performance remains the main reason the series is notable: a comic actor perfectly matched to a role that let him revel in theatrical grandeur while gently sending it up. This was one of the very few series in which he was the main star.