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Opinion

Review: Our Queen at 90

I never watch royal documentaries, ever! In fact, the last documentary I watched which focused on The Royal Family was on the occasion of The Duke of Edinburgh’s 90th birthday back in 2011, so it seems fitting my next watch would celebrate Her Majesty’s 90th birthday.

The build up to the programme was immense. All major news publications, both national and international, talked about the upcoming documentary and showed sneak previews of what it would feature. Royal Central is included in this and have published many previews which have proved popular with you, our readers.

I have to say that I am very pleased I watched this programme as it was an extremely enjoyable watch. Unlike other royal documentaries which just features interviews with experts and maybe a very distant relative, this two-hour special was up close and personal – featuring contributions from senior royals.

In her 63 year reign, Her Majesty has never conducted a television interview (a wise decision). ‘Our Queen at 90’ is probably the closest we will ever get to an interview with the Queen, as she makes candid remarks to the camera crew who follow her about her everyday duties.

In the first five minutes of the programme, The Queen expressed concern over a member of staff, after their windows were damaged after treacherous weather; showing a side of her the public never usually see. This different side was also shown as a camera crew followed her as she fed the horses carrots in her stables.

The Duchess of Cambridge also contributed to the programme in what was her first solo TV interview. She pays tribute to the Queen talking about how Her Majesty helped her fit in to the royal family as well as sharing comforting advice. She also revealed that Prince George calls his great-grandmother ‘gan gan’.

Getting to see the Queen off duty is a rare treat, and this documentary captured the moment perfectly. Behind the scenes, the Queen has a great sense of humour and this was shown candidly throughout.

Her Majesty is famous for her love of horses, being a constant part in her life for the past 87 years. One of my favourite moments throughout the programme was when we discovered that the Queen’s horses enjoy a can of beer after a hard days work! I can imagine the British tabloid’s next big exclusive ‘Horse drunk at Trooping the Colour’!

We also heard from people such as Lenny Henry and David Beckham who have all received honours and awards from Her Majesty. Sir Lenny Henry described how proud he was to meet the Queen, especially being from a working class background and the son of immigrants.

I mentioned at the start of my review that the last royal documentary I watched was five years ago when Prince Philip turned 90. But I am so glad I tuned in to watch this piece of work which proved the highlight of Easter broadcasting season.

Unlike the Prince Philip documentary, ‘Our Queen at 90’ was much more intimate and offered much more to the audience. If you haven’t watched it yet then do!

What impressed me most was the Queen’s work ethic. Even though I have covered the royal family for some time now and see all of the engagements she conducts, it is often forgotten HM works five days a week, every week for the past 63 years. I don’t know any other 90 year old who works as hard as she does. If I ever make it to 90 I hope to never even mutter the word ‘work’ again, never mind actually doing it in such a seamless way!

I’m not sure whether or not the documentary will be aired outside of the UK yet, but it most certainly should be!

What did you think of the programme? Leave a comment below

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