Elizabeth & Philip: Love and Duty
a look back at the Queen and Prince Philip’s marriage…
MONDAY 20 November, 9.00pm BBC1 Factual
On the day that the Queen and Prince Philip celebrate their platinum wedding anniversary – that’s 70 years of wedded bliss – Kirsty Young looks back at their enduring relationship, from the moment the 13-year-old Elizabeth first met Philip, then a naval cadet.
Theirs has been the longest royal marriage in British history and it all started in July 1939 when the young Princess Elizabeth was just 13!
She was visiting Dartmouth Naval College with her parents and an 18-year-old cadet, Philip Mountbatten, was tasked with entertaining Elizabeth and her sister, Margaret.
‘Philip was told he had to look after these little girls,’ says Gyles Brandreth, author of Philip and Elizabeth: Portrait of a Marriage
and who features in this new documentary about the couple.
‘I once asked him about their courtship and he said it evolved over a period of time. There wasn’t a sudden moment.’
After a secret betrothal in 1946, the news of their engagement broke in 1947, and the idea of the future Queen marrying a Greek prince with German links was controversial.
Celebration
Millions watched their wedding on 20 November 1947, yet their marriage was tested when King George VI died in 1952 and Elizabeth became Queen.
‘Everything changed,’ says Gyles. ‘It’s inevitable that it must have taken a toll.’
Despite the glare of publicity, the couple’s marriage has remained strong. ‘Philip once said the media were turning the Royals into a soap opera,’ says Gyles. ‘But they’ve survived.’