A new documentary on the Queen casts light on the pain and the grief she felt following Princess Diana's death. In the BBC report, which airs on Sunday, a senior aide goes on television to shed light on the dark days after the tragic accident when the royal family was accused of being out of step with public sentiment.
Rather than worrying about the national mood, an assistant private secretary explains, Queen Elizabeth was too busy caring for Princes William and Harry as they mourned their mother.
"What comes across from the interview is that she is a grandmother and her first concern was to help her grandsons cope with their grieving," said a BBC spokeswomen.
The royal adviser admits that the family learnt "harsh lessons" about public expectations that led to changes in the monarchy.
A year went into making the programme with the Queen filmed at public engagements in Britain and overseas. It also gives insights into the monarch's private moments.
Apart from horse riding and walking the corgis, the documentary reveals that one of her favourite pastimes is making home movies. Narrator Andrew Marr, the BBC's former political editor, described the footage as "wonderful movies taken by the Queen and for her".
He likens them to any ordinary family's video memories, commenting: "It's just that the worried-looking toddler might be Prince Charles and the exhausted young woman on the sofa has just yanked off a crown."
Photo: © Alphapress.com
