"Monarchy: The Royal Family at Work" (2007) - BBC Documentary on the Windsors


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If ABC acquired it and it just aired, then it will probably be happening soon in the US...I certainly think it will be an interesting thing to watch...
 
zembla said:
If ABC acquired it and it just aired, then it will probably be happening soon in the US...I certainly think it will be an interesting thing to watch...
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I agree, it would be very exciting and Americans have quite an interest in the royal family.:flowers:
 
does anyone know where i can find videos of the episode? im really looking forwad to the next episode but i wont be able to watch it. I wonder if anyone can record it and put it on the internet :D
 
I thought the whole Annie thing was blown out of all proportion. In the documentary, HM came across as a right old moo - practically ignored Leibovitz's crew, brushed aside her daughter and the flowers she offered and then proceeded to put on this old lady smile in the photographs after we'd just seen her in full crabby glory. Truly surreal. A BBC chap resigned over that?
 
BeatrixFan said:
I thought the whole Annie thing was blown out of all proportion. In the documentary, HM came across as a right old moo - practically ignored Leibovitz's crew, brushed aside her daughter and the flowers she offered and then proceeded to put on this old lady smile in the photographs after we'd just seen her in full crabby glory. Truly surreal. A BBC chap resigned over that?
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The Annie thing was not only blown out of porportion but also had for me clearly the intention to mislead and make the series more interesting (what a failure!). I am sure some BBC chap has resigned in the meantime but why would he worry - he probably got the usual pay off £££

Regarding Annie herself I saw it the other way around - I thought she was not only badly prepared (knew nothing about tradition and all this stiff stuff that surrounds HM - how embarrassing to ask her to remove the tiara), turned up in trainers, her small daughter and 22 assistants and made some odd suggestions. I thought she was very snobbish and arrogant and I had perfectly understood if HM had stormed out indeed as Annie would have deserved exactly this szenario. Hollywood stars might line up and do even more to be photographed by Annie but HM is a different league, something Annie did not appreciate at all. The result are some nice pics though.
 
The point I was making was that the row was that the Beeb had painted the Queen in a negative light by altering the running order of the footage. Well, the real running order still made the Queen look like a miserable old boot without any interference from Aunty. So what was the fuss about? I think we've all been had in a clever attempt to cover up a darker side of Betty.
 
It's possible the Queen has become just a grumpy old lady...she can't always be sweet. If she came off negatively...it's probably reality. LOL
 
Exactly. But it just annoys me that Annie L came off as the villain of the piece. I mean, all that "I've had enough of dressing like this" was just ridiculous - it's your job Liz!!
 
BeatrixFan said:
Well, the real running order still made the Queen look like a miserable old boot without any interference from Aunty.
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Hmmm ... I did not see her at all as a miserable old boot, I thought she came across as usual and I did not expect something else since she always remains authentic. I actually appreciate that she sticks with all this stiff stuff that came along with her long reign, handbags, gloves, protocol etc. I thought the series presented her as a clever old woman who believes in who she is and what she stands for. She does have wit and humour but does not make a fool of herself. I think the series shows perfectly well why QE II enjoys worldwide respect since there is always substance to what she does.
 
BeatrixFan said:
But it just annoys me that Annie L came off as the villain of the piece. I mean, all that "I've had enough of dressing like this" was just ridiculous - it's your job Liz!!
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She deserved it. I mean 22 assistants and nobody told her the difference between a tiara an a crown and that her daughter could have curtsied. She came across respectless and like a know-it-all. All these VIPs Annie has worked with will do anything she suggests because they want the shoot that makes them even more famous but that does not work with a monarch since the attitude is totally different. She could have been better prepared and would have avoided this embarrassment. I wish the Queen had stormed out but as we could see she never loses it :cool:
 
The tiara/crown thing is just silly - the Queen knew what she meant and if she can't be bothered to take it off and re-style her hair for pictures that are meant to show her as a dedicated Head of State then she needs to remember that some of us have real work to do whilst 'dressing up' is the most taxing part of her day.
 
BeatrixFan said:
The tiara/crown thing is just silly - the Queen knew what she meant and if she can't be bothered to take it off and re-style her hair for pictures that are meant to show her as a dedicated Head of State then she needs to remember that some of us have real work to do whilst 'dressing up' is the most taxing part of her day.
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I'd call it bad preparation and unprofessional if such a high profile photographer thinks a "crown" can just be removed like that, because it might look better, and if not, will you just put it back on? There are hairdressers and stylists involved and it will take time to fix it. I fully understand the Queen's annoyance since I could not believe to be asked a question like that if I was a monarch for 50 years or more (thank god I am not :lol:)
 
You miss my point. If the biggest trial of the Queen's day is putting a bit of jewellery on and off, doesn't that say more about the Queen than Annie?
 
BeatrixFan said:
You miss my point. If the biggest trial of the Queen's day is putting a bit of jewellery on and off, doesn't that say more about the Queen than Annie?
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Give her a break she's in her 80s and I don't think it's putting a bit jewellery on and off and back on and maybe off again. It's not that easy. Come on she's the Queen and not used to such treatment and for a reason. This whole tiara thing was not appropriate, that's all I am saying.
 
Duke of Marmalade said:
Give her a break she's in her 80s and I don't think it's putting a bit jewellery on and off and back on and maybe off again. It's not that easy. Come on she's the Queen and not used to such treatment and for a reason. This whole tiara thing was not appropriate, that's all I am saying.
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Well if she's finding it a strain, then she should abdicate. If she can't hack it because of her age, then she shouldn't do it anymore. Danny La Rue does more dressing up than the Queen and he's the same age as her. As to not being used to it, she's perfectly used to it. She's done it for years. The fact remains that the photographs show one side of the Queen, the photoshoot footage shows a completely different side.
 
If she can't hack it because of her age, then she shouldn't do it anymore.
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BeatrixFan, you're such a stirrer. Enfant terrible. :)​
 
Whether HM can 'hack' her job any longer isn't really moot. She's the Queen until she dies and that's that! I think her terrific in her efforts to keep on keeping on. She'll never abdicate (doesn't believe in it, quite properly) and there's no sign that she has any diminution of her intellect so won't be replaced by her son as Regent.

I can readily overlook her occasional grumpiness or impatience, if that indeed is what it was. And which of us knows how grumpy Danny la Rue is when he's out of the public purview? I'd suggest that he does what he does from choice; HM does what she does from a sense of duty.

As for Annie's daughter not curtsying.....why should she have? I wouldn't curtsy to the King and Queen of Spain, or Denmark, or wherever. It would be inappropriate.
 
Well, the Queen was in public view wasn't she? She knew there was a camera there for a documentary and she chose to throw a queeny strop. Danny La Rue does what he does for the money, the Queen should remember she has to do the same.
 
Well, regardless of how rude Annie was HM is never wrong.

My book to accompany the series arrived the other day and is excellent, lots of behind the scenes details and photos of state invitations etc.
 
BeatrixFan said:
The point I was making was that the row was that the Beeb had painted the Queen in a negative light by altering the running order of the footage. Well, the real running order still made the Queen look like a miserable old boot without any interference from Aunty. So what was the fuss about? I think we've all been had in a clever attempt to cover up a darker side of Betty.
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:lol: I wonder if anyone calls her Betty...I totally would...
 
Impressions of Episode 3;

1) The Queen's Press Officer is a bit of a moody cow.
2) The British Ambassador in Estonia seems to be married to Su Pollard.

The redeeming part was a full 5 minutes focusing on Vaira Vike-Freiberga who spoke about monarchy, the Queen and Latvia. Faaaaaaaabulous!
 
Wasn't she just ghastly? "How dare you?!" and all that guff. The only thing she didn't bark was "Don't you know who I am?". Typical Palace flunkie - seems to think she's more Royal than her boss.

I agree with you, seeing Mrs Bush was a real treat. Such a wonderful First Lady.
 
BeatrixFan said:
I agree with you, seeing Mrs Bush was a real treat. Such a wonderful First Lady.
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I liked the part where she was showing the private apartments, and preparing for the private lunch by choosing appropriate crockery etc. Also, she seemed really family orientated when she said her first priority when moving to The White House was getting her girls settled by decorating their rooms first.:wub:

Although I have enjoyed the series, I thought it would show more members of the royal family out and about. I hoped to see more of Camilla and Sophie doing their daily duties. Oh well, maybe next week...:rolleyes:
 
I agree, the First Lady came across as very friendly, very thoughtful and very considerate. I've always said she was a credit to the USA, the programme just confirmed it - just as it did tonight with Vaira.

I agree with you about the other members of the family not getting a look in - it sort of misses an opportunity to show what they do in supporting the monarch.
 
I really thought that The Ambassador's wife was great, so down to earth, though she could have done with getting her hair sorted out for the state occasions.
 
Whenever HM talks or her gestures remind me so much of Prince Charles. He is very much like his Mommy! Again, I admire HM's stamina and discipline a lot. I hope she can live up to her own high standard for many more years to come.
 
I agree the ambassadors wife needed her hair done and it was so funny when she knocked over her chair:ROFLMAO:

Love the family scenes the best. When the were waiting for the plypast and when the lift had broken and Prince Phillip and the Queen were trying to find a way to get the first lady of Ghana up the stairs.
 
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