The first part of The Crown season 6 is now available to stream on Netflix, and it introduces viewers to a new actor playing Prince William, Rufus Kampa.

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Kampa plays William in 1997, but the role will also soon be taken on by Ed McVey, who will star as William when he is at St Andrews University and starting a relationship with Kate Middleton, who is played by Meg Bellamy.

Creator Peter Morgan has claimed that scenes with William, Kate and Prince Harry in the back half of season 6 will "blow the doors off" and be "riveting". But who is McVey?

Read on for everything you need to know about The Crown's Prince William star, Ed McVey.

Who is Ed McVey?

Ed McVey wearing a white shirt and black trousers
Ed McVey. Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic

Ed McVey is a British actor who will first be seen on screen playing Prince William in The Crown season 6 part 2.

McVey has previously performed on stage at The Old Vic and Hammersmith Riverside Studios, but playing Prince William will be the first role that many viewers see him in.

How old is Ed McVey?

Ed McVey is 24 years old.

What nationality is Ed McVey?

McVey is British.

He grew up in Devon and studied acting at the Drama Centre London, from which he graduated in 2021.

What has Ed McVey previously starred in?

While McVey has previously performed in theatre productions, playing Prince William in The Crown is his first on-screen credit.

What has Ed McVey said about his role in The Crown?

Ed McVey as Prince William and Meg Bellamy as Kate Middleton in The Crown, walking together and holding hands
Ed McVey as Prince William and Meg Bellamy as Kate Middleton in The Crown. Netflix/Twitter

Ed McVey has spoken with Cosmopolitan about his role as Prince William, saying it was easy to find footage to study of the royal as he is one of the only member of the family who has "basically been documented since birth".

"I was really able to watch him grow up," McVey explained, "and I really, really studied him.

"I was given lots of research by our incredible research team that are the best in the business, and they read and cross reference everything, and they send you this massive pack, which basically covers everything to do with the scripts that can be cross referenced in articles and books.

"I only read up to where my timeline finishes. So only when he leaves uni, or the bit that I knew in the script was my part to do. Because I didn't want to get murky with later information that didn't affect what Peter Morgan had written."

McVey also said that he felt William had been misconstrued, finding that "people consider him to be quite serious, or like the sort of 'straight one' [while] Harry's the 'fun one'".

He continued: "But no, he's incredibly fun and has a massive sense of humour. He's not like this sort of serious, straight guy; he's really fun and playful and has a lot of banter."

Is Ed McVey on Instagram?

He is - you can find his profile at @ed_mcvey_.

Is Ed McVey on Twitter?

No, Ed McVey does not appear to currently have an account on Twitter/X.

The Crown season 6 part 1 is streaming on Netflix now. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.

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