Real life basis for movie "Her Majesty"?

Gary_T · December 27, 2008, 6:44am

I just saw this film, which centers on a girl’s reaction to the Queen’s 1953-54 visit to New Zealand and her relationship with a Maori woman. The package said “inspired by a true story.” Anyone know what that story is?

TWDuke · December 27, 2008, 7:09am

Well, there really is a New Zealand, Maoris live there, and the queen visited. Not sure there’s much to it beyond that.

press kit:

When a dream vacation to New Zealand was unexpectedly cut short, Gordon vowed that he would one day “write himself back” to New Zealand, and do so by creating a story purely for the joy it, much like the independent films he admired.
While searching for the story that would finally take him back, Gordon came across a newspaper clipping which stated that following her 1953 coronation, Queen Elizabeth II had made a Royal Tour of New Zealand. Gordon quickly sketched out the story of a young Kiwi girl infatuated with the newly crowned Queen, and her small hometown which suddenly finds itself on the itinerary of the Royal Tour.
Using the Queen’s first ever visit to New Zealand as the spine, Gordon proceeded to weave a fictional story around this momentous historical occasion, and HER MAJESTY was born.
As he further delved into New Zealand’s history, Gordon discovered a country with a colorful and controversial past. He soon found another layer of depth and substance to enrich his story in the history of New Zealand’s indigenous Maori people, their struggle against the Colonial settlers in the late 19th Century and their battle back from the brink of extinction. Their proud heritage and determination to survive against all odds became a major theme of the story.

Gary_T · December 28, 2008, 3:10pm

Thanks for finding that. In retrospect, it appears that my Googling was hampered by my assumption that more of the story was factual than the state visit and the existence of Maoris. More “inspiration” and less “true story” than I was thinking of.