Charles III: The Coronation Year | |
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Genre | Documentary film |
Written by | Robert Hardman |
Directed by | Ashley Gething |
Narrated by | Helena Bonham Carter |
Composers |
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Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Executive producer | Nicolas Kent |
Producer | Faye Hamilton |
Editors |
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Running time | 90 minutes |
Production company | BBC Studios |
Original release | |
Network | BBC One |
Release | 26 December 2023 |
Charles III: The Coronation Year is a 2023 television documentary film following Charles III and Camilla in the aftermath of the death and state funeral of Elizabeth II and the events around their subsequent coronation. [1] The film was broadcast on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on 26 December 2023. [1] [2]
It was written by the historian Robert Hardman and narrated by Helena Bonham Carter. [3] [1]
Princess Anne speaks in the film of her "sense of relief" as the crown was taken off her mother's coffin during her funeral, symbolising the culmination of her years of royal duty. [3] She also spoke of her mother's fears of difficulty if she was to die at Balmoral Castle, with Anne saying that "We did try and persuade her that that shouldn't be part of the decision-making process ... I hope she felt that that was right in the end, because I think we did". [3]
Cameras captured the nervous rehearsals and the emotion of friends and family as they followed the King and Queen as they prepared for Coronation Day. The King and Queen are also seen joking and laughing during rehearsals, with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, forgetting the wording of a prayer and Prince William joking with Charles about his "sausage fingers" as he struggles to tie a ceremonial robe. [4] [3]
Reviewing the film for BBC News ahead of its broadcast, Sean Coughlan wrote that "It is a warm and sympathetic account of the new reign, with no glimpses of any difficult headlines from the year, whether about Prince Harry, Prince Andrew, a palace race row or protesters arrested at the Coronation. But it shows the King and Queen as a couple strengthened by each other, starting a busy new stage in their lives when most people of their age would be ready to put up their feet". [3]
Awarding it four stars out of five, James Jackson wrote in The Times : "What emerged overall was a private view of the Firm, but one that felt like the greatest plug a royal could ask for. No one could say the King hasn't earned it." [5] In The Daily Telegraph , Anita Singh gave the programme three stars out of five, writing: "The King and Queen, to their credit, try to put everyone at ease. The documentary is an extension of this: every scene is PR-approved and stuffed with people telling us that the royal couple are marvellous. Think of it as a glossy corporate film." [6]
However, the BBC received almost 900 complaints about the programme. This represented over a third of the "stage one" complaints received by the BBC from 18 to 31 December. In summary, the BBC said: "We received complaints from some viewers who felt the tone of the programme was overly positive." [7] Another reason cited for the complaints was "bias in favour of the monarchy"; the documentary was written by royal author Robert Hardman. [8] Graham Smith of Republic wrote of the programme in The National that "this wasn't a documentary at all, but a PR film that had no journalistic integrity and little entertainment value." [9]
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The British royal family comprises King Charles III and his close relations. There is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member, although the Royal Household has issued different lists outlining who is a part of the royal family. Members often support the monarch in undertaking public engagements, and pursue charitable work and interests. Members of the royal family are regarded as British and world cultural icons.
Charles III is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms since 8 September 2022.
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The King's Christmas message, formally as His Majesty's Most Gracious Speech, and informally as the Royal Christmas message) is a broadcast made by the sovereign of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms to the Commonwealth of Nations each year at Christmas. The tradition began in 1932 with a radio broadcast by King George V via the British Broadcasting Corporation's Empire Service. The message is broadcast on television, radio, and the Internet via various providers. It is usually broadcast at 15:00 GMT on Christmas Day. Unlike some other speeches, such as the King's Speech at the State Opening of Parliament which is written by the government, the Christmas speech is a personal message written by the monarch with input from spouses and direct advisors.
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Elizabeth II was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She had been queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during her lifetime and was the monarch of 15 realms at her death. Her reign of 70 years and 214 days is the longest of any British monarch, the second-longest of any sovereign state, and the longest of any queen regnant in history.
The monarchy of Papua New Guinea is a system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of Papua New Guinea. The current Papua New Guinean monarch and head of state, since 8 September 2022, is King Charles III. As sovereign, he is the personal embodiment of the Papua New Guinean Crown. Although the person of the sovereign is equally shared with 14 other independent countries within the Commonwealth of Nations, each country's monarchy is separate and legally distinct. As a result, the current monarch is officially titled King of Papua New Guinea and, in this capacity, he and other members of the royal family undertake public and private functions domestically and abroad as representatives of Papua New Guinea. However, the King is the only member of the royal family with any constitutional role.
The coronation of Elizabeth II as queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. Elizabeth acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, being proclaimed queen by her privy and executive councils shortly afterwards. The coronation was held more than one year later because of the tradition of allowing an appropriate length of time to pass after a monarch dies. It also gave the planning committees adequate time to make preparations for the ceremony. During the service, Elizabeth took an oath, was anointed with holy oil, was invested with robes and regalia, and was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon.
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