QEII: A Life
The extraordinary life of Elizabeth II - mother, wife and Queen
U.S. premiere documentary features footage from the Queen's private archive, broadcast for the very first time
One of the most famous women in the world, Her Majesty The Queen was born in April 1926, and we've been watching her ever since. In celebration of her 80th birthday, this two-hour documentary takes a look at Elizabeth's most extraordinary life, including personal and poignant scenes from the Queen's private archive - now broadcast for the very first time. Behind-the-scenes footage includes a blissful bride on her wedding day, a young queen relieved and smiling after her coronation and home movies of Prince Charles as a toddler laughing and playing with his mother. The Queen at 80 premieres November 11, 7 p.m. ET/ 10:00 p.m. PT.
Bound by duty and a relentless worker, the Queen keeps a calendar that would exhaust a 20-year old. Last year alone she attended 378 public engagements in the UK and 48 overseas. The Queen at 80 follows the Queen to some of these meetings and events, giving viewers a sense of her daily life. But the documentary also brings us back to Elizabeth's life as a young princess - her wedding to Prince Philip and her years as a newlywed in Malta, where she loved making home movies of her husband playing polo.
The documentary also explores her life as Queen and sovereign of the four nations that comprise the United Kingdom - England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. In addition, she's Head of the Commonwealth, which includes 53 countries - more than a third of the world's population. During her reign she has met with 10 British Prime Ministers, 11 Canadian Prime Ministers, 10 Australian Prime Ministers and 11 Presidents of the United States. In over a half-century the world has changed, and she has changed with it. Having once denounced divorce as producing some of the darkest evils in society, she would attend a religious blessing for the wedding of her divorced son to his divorced former mistress. The Queen at 80 also takes a look at her relationship with Princess Diana and her response to the 7/7 bombings.
Written and narrated by Andrew Marr, the BBC's Political Editor, The Queen at 80 features commentary from a wide spectrum of leaders and celebrities including Nelson Mandela, Tony Blair, Brian May and Ozzy Osbourne.
