Lord knows how old this thread is now, but I just saw this, finally. I loved it. I watched it twice–there is so much going on, just underneath the surface. I wonder what the queen thought of it (or Charles or the boys or Tony Blair).
I came to admire both the PM and the Q at the end of this. It was such a strange time–I wonder if such an outpouring would happen today.
I never did like the Queen Mum and I still don’t–ditto for Phillip.
Also-what about what’s his name–the one who abdicated for Wallis Simpson? Surely his funeral was of an ex-HRH? (but I think he died in relative obscurity, no?). I love the line of Blair’s: someone save these people from themselves!
Oh, good, someone revived this thread so I can talk about it now, too.
We saw it last week on DVD. Then, this week, news programs were playing some old tapes of the Queen from about a decade ago or so, and I was astonished how much Helen Mirren was able to capture her personality and mannerisms. In fact, unless I saw similar clips side by side, I might mistake the actress for the royal. I always love James Cromwell, too, and thought he was very convincing as Prince Philip.
I like the stag symbolism - it’s the monarchy, hunted down and hounded by the press and ultimately executed. It helps her to decide to bend a bit and modernize.
Interesting…
I thought the point of the stag was to show that after this beautiful creature was killed, the Queen needed to go see it one more time, sort of to say goodbye. Then she realized that this was similar to what the public felt about Diana, that they also wanted an opportunity to say goodbye. Thus, the queen then agreed to the big-time funeral.
But I see your interpretation, too.
Edward VIII, later the Duke of Windsor, and known to his family as David. He reverted to being an HRH and Prince of the UK after his abdication, but Wallis was denied the style HRH by letters patent (supposedly at Mary of Teck’s insistence). Edward did get a state funeral with Wallis in attendance. Wallis herself was given a private funeral with the Royal Familiy (including the Queen and Queen Mother).
Well, not being a Brit and all…if anyone deserved a state funeral it was Diana, not Mr Weaselly, I love this woman guy. Do you suppose they were happy? I wonder what Victoria would have said about David. And Wallis!
What better way to honour a woman who was hounded by media and paparazzi until the day she died than to turn her funeral into one of the biggest media frenzies of the century. :rolleyes: