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> HELLO, EVERYONE.
WELCOME TO 'AMANPOUR & COMPANY.'
HERE'S WHAT IS COMING UP.
> I DECLARE BEFORE YOU ALL MY LIFE, WHETHER IT'S SHORT OR LONG, MY SERVICE BUT I SHALL NOT HAVE STRENGTH TO CARRY OUT THIS RESOLUTION ALONE UNLESS YOU JOIN IN IT WITH ME AS I NOW INVITE YOU TO DO.
I KNOW WITH YOUR SUPPORT WE CAN DO IT.
GOD HELP ME TO MAKE GOOD MY VOW AND MAY GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU WHO ARE WILLING TO SHARE IN IT.
QUEEN ELIZABETH II, BRITTAIN'S LONGEST REINING MONARCH, HAS DIED.
HER NAME SYNONYMOUS WITH STABILITY AND DUTY.
A LIFETIME OF SERVICE TO HER PEOPLE IN BRITTAIN AND BEYOND IN THIS SPECIAL HOUR.
WE LOOK AT THE MONARCH'S INCREDIBLE REIN.
> AMANPOUR & COMPANY IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE ANDERSON FAMILY FUND.
SUE AND EDGAR WACHENHEIM III, CANDACE KING WEIR, THE STRAUSS FAMILY FOUNDATION.
MARK J.BLESHNER.
BERNARD AND DENISE SCHWARTZ.
KU AND PATRICIA EWAN COMMITTED TO BRIDGING CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IN OUR COMMUNITIES.
WE TRY TO LIVE IN THE MOMENT, TO NOT MISS WHAT'S RIGHT IN FRONT OF US.
AT MUTUAL OF AMERICA WE BELIEVE TAKING CARE OF TOMORROW CAN HELP YOU MAKE THE MOST OF TODAY.
MUTUAL OF AMERICA FINANCIAL GROUP.
RETIREMENT SERVICES AND INVESTMENTS.
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY THESE FUNDERS AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU.
THANK YOU.
> WELCOME TO THE PROGRAM, EVERYONE.
I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE WITH US.
I'M POPPY HARLOW IN NEW YORK.
QUEEN ELIZABETH II HAS DIED.
THE QUEEN DIED PEACEFULLY AT BALMORAL THIS AFTERNOON.
THAT IS HER ESTATE IN SCOTLAND.
HER FAMILY CAME TO HER SIDE INCLUDING HEIR TO THE THRONE.
PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD WILL BE MOURNING AN EXTRAORDINARY FIGURE.
THE QUEEN, A SYMBOL OF STABILITY AND SOVEREIGN TO 15 COUNTRIES AND HAVING LIVED THROUGH 14 U.S.
PRESIDENTS RECENTLY MARKING 70 YEARS OF SERVICE TO HER PEOPLE WITH HER PLATINUM JUBILEE.
WE NOW LOOK BACK AT HER LIFE AND A REMARKABLE SEVEN DECADES ON THE THRONE.
♪♪ ♪♪
BRITTAIN'S QUEEN ELIZABETH II CROWNED AT WESTMINSTER ABBY ON JUNE 2nd, 1953.
THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME THE PUBLIC WAS ABLE TO WITNESS THIS SACROSANCT MOMENT.
ELIZABETH HAD ALLOWED LIVE TELEVISION CAMERAS IN TO CAPTURE IT IN A POWERFUL SIGNAL THIS WAS A NEW, OPEN AND RELEVANT.
SHE WAS BORN ON APRIL 1926.
IT WAS ONLY A DECADE LATER SHE KNEW SHE WAS TRULY TO BE A SER VABT.
A FEW HOURS AGO I DISCHARGED MY LAST DUTY.
HER UNCLE ABDICATED TO MARRY THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE, AN AMERICAN DIVORCEE AND SPOILER TO THE THRONE.
ELIZABETH'S FATHER BECAME KING.
SHE WAS THE ACCIDENTAL HEIR WHICH ENTRENCHED IN HER A SENSE OF DUTY.
SHE WAS DEVOUT, ALMOST SPIRITUAL ABOUT HER RESPONSIBILITIES AS A ROYAL EVEN BEFORE BEING CROWNED.
I DECLARE BEFORE YOU ALL THAT MY WHOLE LIFE, WHETHER IT BE LONG OR SHORT, SHALL BE DEVOTED TO YOUR SERVICE AND TO THE SERVICE OF OUR GREAT IMPERIAL FAMILY TO WHICH WE ALL BELONG.
I SEEM TO REMEMBER HAVING LISTENED TO THAT SPEECH AND I REMEMBER VERY WELL, CERTAINLY REMEMBER READING NOT SO MANY YEARS LATER, THE WAY SHE DEDICATED HER LIFE TO THE COUNTRY.
THAT WAS AN EXAMPLE THAT I VERY MUCH FELT WHEN I GREW OLDER THAT THAT WAS WHAT IT WAS ABOUT.
DEDICATE YOUR LIFE TO YOUR COUNTRY.
ON NOVEMBER 20th, 1947, SHE WED HER CHILDHOOD SWEETHEART, THE TALL AND DASHING PRINCE.
THE FOLLOWING YEAR THEIR MARRIAGE BORE ELIZABETH'S HEIR, PRINCE CHARLES.
FOR MORE THAN A HALF CENTURY THE QUEEN LED HER EMPIRE BEFORE OVERSEEING THE MANAGED DECLINE AS IT BECAME KNOWN AS THE COMMONWEALTH.
AN ASSOCIATION OF NOW INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES.
CHURCHILL CAME TO RECEIVE HER MAJESTY.
HER FIRST PRIME MINISTER WAS WINSTON CHURCHILL.
DURING HER RULE SHE MET EVERY ACTING PRESIDENT BAR ONE.
MEETINGS THAT SHE ALWAYS PRIORITIZED.
SHE REMEMBERS LEARNING FROM HER PARENTS HOW IMPORTANT IT WAS KEEPING AMERICA ON SIDE AND THEN AMERICA CAME INTO THE WAR.
SHE REMEMBERS THAT.
SHE REMEMBERS THE AMERICAN TROOPS, D DAY, ALL OF THAT.
TO HER, IT WAS A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF GROWING UP.
WHILST THE BRITISH MONARCH HAS INTO POLITICAL POWER, ELIZABETH WIELDED POWER AS A FIGURE HEAD.
SHE VISITED NEIGHBORING IRELAND SINCE ITS SEPARATION FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM.
WE ALL SEE THINGS WHICH WE WOULD WISH --
THEN PRIME MINISTER CAMERON DESCRIBED IT AS A GAME CHANGER.
A YEAR LATER THE QUEEN TRAVELED TO BELL FAST IN ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT MOMENT OF HER REIN.
AN HISTORIC HANDSHAKE WITH THE FORMER IRA COMMANDER, MARTIN McGUINNESS.
THERE WAS, NONETHELESS, A VERY PRIVATE SIDE TO THIS WIFE, MOTHER AND GRANDMOTHER.
STIFF UPPER LIPPED IN PUBLIC AND SO GUARDED THAT LITTLE FOOTAGE TO SHOW THE SENSE OF HUMOR SHE'S REPUTED TO HAVE DISPLAYED BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.
ON OCCASION SHE DID OPEN UP WITH UNCHARACTERISTIC CANDOR AND EMOTION, THE QUEEN HERSELF MARKED 1992 AS A VERY BAD YEAR.
IT HAS TURNED OUT TO BE A HORRIBLE YEAR.
PUNCTUATED BY SEVERAL FAMILY SPLITS AND A FIRE AT THE BELOVED WINDSOR CASTLE.
THREE OF FOUR CHILDREN WOULD DIVORCE, CHARLES MOST FAMOUSLY, AND THEN THAT CRASH.
WE ARE GETTING WORD THAT THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT HAS INFORMED ALL OF US THAT PRINCESS DIANA HAS DIED.
THE ROYAL FAMILY'S RESTRAINED RESPONSE COLLIDED WITH A BRITISH PUBLIC CONVULSING IN HEART ACHE.
ELIZABETH LEARNED A TOUGH LESSON THROUGH ALL OF THE GRIEF.
SHE WASN'T NEARLY A MOTHER OR A GRANDMOTHER, RATHER A QUEEN TO A PEOPLE NO MATTER WHAT.
AN ENDURING IMAGE, THE QUEEN BOWING HER HEAD TO PRINCESS DIANA'S COFFIN, MARKING A SAD PERIOD TO THE ROYAL FAMILY, BRITTAIN AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE MONARCHY.
OVER MORE THAN A DECADE, HOWEVER, PUBLIC FAITH IN THE ROYAL FAMILY DID REBUILD.
THE QUEEN WAS VISIBLY THRILLED BY THE SHOW OF SUPPORT FOR THE ROYAL WEDDING BETWEEN HER GRANDSON WILLIAM AND PARTNER KATE IN 2011.
THEN THE FOLLOWING YEAR POLLS SHOWED THE BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY AT THE HEIGHT OF THEIR POPULARITY AS THE QUEEN CELEBRATED 60 YEARS ON THE THRONE.
SHE USED HER DIAMOND JUBILEE TO PRESENT A SLIMMED DOWN MONARCHY.
ONLY THE KEY ROYALS PARADED AND WAIVED.
A SIGN OF A MORE ECONOMIC FAMILY TO THE 21st SEN BE TRY.
IN LATER YEARS SHE WELCOMED SEVERAL NEW FAMILY MEMBERS.
PRINCE GEORGE AND BORN IN 2013 TO THE THEN DUKE AND DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE.
REFLECTING THE MODERN AGE, PRINCE HARRY LATER MARRIED MEGHAN MARKLE.
THE ROYAL FAMILY EXTENDING AGAIN TO EMBRACE AN ACTRESS WITH AFRICAN AMERICAN ANCESTRY IN TIME WELCOMING BABY ARCHIE.
PRINCE PHILIP RETIRED FROM PUBLIC DUTIES IN 2017.
MEANWHILE, THE QUEEN CONTINUED INDEFACTICABLE.
SHE QUIETED HER SCHEDULE.
WITHOUT CEREMONY OR COMMEMORATIVE FIREWORKS, QUEEN ELIZABETH II PASSED HER REVERED PREDECESSOR, VICTORIA, TO BECOME BRITTAIN'S LONGEST REINING MONARCH.
CONTROVERSY ONCE AGAIN PLAGUED THE FAMILY.
ANY HOPES FOR A QUIETER YEAR AHEAD WERE DASHED WHEN HARRY AND MEAGAN, THE DUKE AND DUCHESS OF SUSSEX, MADE AN ANNOUNCEMENT.
THIS IS THE LAST TIME THEY'LL BE WALKING IN.
GIVING UP THEIR PUBLIC DUTIES, THEY MOVED TO NORTH AMERICA WITH A MISSION TO BECOME FINANCIALLY PUBLIC.
CRISIS TALKS AND ANOTHER CONTENTIOUS INTERVIEW SOON FOLLOWED.
IN 2021 AT THE AGE OF 99, PRINCE PHILIP, THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH, PASSED AWAY.
SENIOR ROYALS ATTENDED THE FUNERAL, SCALED BACK BECAUSE OF CORONAVIRUS.
MORE ON THE PASSING OF A DEVOTED HUSBAND, FATHER, GREAT-GRANDFATHER.
ELIZABETH STOOD ALONE AS SHE WATCHED HIS COFFIN LOWER INTO THE ROYAL VAULT IN WINDSOR.
BIDDING FAREWELL TO HER HUSBAND OF 73 YEARS.
THE MAN SHE DESCRIBED AS HER STRENGTH AND STAY.
SHE WILL BE REMEMBERED AS ONE OF THE GREAT MONARCHS, ABLE TO HAND A STRENGTHENED CROWN TO HER AIR DESPITE A PERIOD OF TUMULTUOUS CHANGE.
THE QUEEN RECENTLY CELEBRATED HER PLATINUM JUBILEE MARKING 70 YEARS OF SERVICE TO HER PEOPLE.
NOW TO HEAR MUCH MORE ABOUT AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE, EXTRAORDINARY MONARCH, EXTRAORDINARY WOMAN I'M DELIGHTED TO BE JOINED BY SIMON CHALMERS.
IT'S A MOMENT THAT FITS VERY AWKWARDLY WITH TELEVISION, ACTUALLY.
TELEVISION, COOL MEDIUM.
I'M QUITE SURE I SPEAK FOR MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY WHO ARE FEELING ORPHANED, BEREFT.
THE QUEEN WAS 96.
IT WAS ALWAYS GOING TO HAPPEN.
THERE WAS SOMETHING ABOUT HER DURABILITY THAT PUT US ALL IN DENIAL, I THINK.
NOW THAT IT HAS, I THINK WE'RE A BIT DISORIENTED.
IN A PECULIAR WAY THE MEASURE OF HER SUCCESS, OF ACTUALLY SUCCEEDING IN THIS STRANGE FICTION MONARCHY.
THE EFFECT IS THAT, THAT YOU FEEL THE MOST IMPORTANT MEMBER OF THIS ENORMOUS FAMILY HAS NOW GONE.
SO EVERYBODY -- NEARLY EVERYBODY, I THINK, IS GRIEVING, DISMAYED.
JUST A BIT AWASH IN SORROW.
IT'S SUDDENLY VERY CHILLY OUT THERE.
WHEN SHE WAS BORN SHE CERTAINLY NEVER EXPECTED TO BE CORONATED AT 27 YEARS OLD.
AND SHE DEDICATED HER LIFE THEN TO BRITTAIN.
SHE WAS A ROCK.
SHE WAS STABLE ALWAYS.
AND I'M SO STRUCK BY THE WORDS OF ONE OF HER FORMER SECRETARIES, SIMON LEWIS, WHO SAID SHE'S AS CONSTANT AS THE NORTH STAR.
THINK ABOUT HOW MUCH SHETHE ASSASSINATIONS OF PRESIDENT KENNEDY, MARTIN LUTHER KING, THE BERLIN WALL, SHE WAS A CONSTANT.
IT IS REMARKABLE.
YOU PUT IT VERY WELL.
I THINK YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT HER SENSE OF PUBLIC SERVICE WAS FORMED IN THE 1930s, WHICH IS A TERRIFYING PERIOD.
NOT CLEAR WHETHER BRITTAIN WOULD EMERGE AS A VICTOR.
SHE WAS DEEPLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE ABDICATION WITH HER UNCLE.
IN A WAY THERE WERE TWO MEMBERS OF THE IMMEDIATE FAMILY.
HER FATHER WAS EXCEPTIONALLY SHY.
HE SUFFERED, AS PROBABLY MANY OF YOU KNOW, FROM THIS BRUTAL STAMMER.
NONETHELESS, HE TOOKD ON THE ROLE OF KING.
HE LEFT THIS YOUNG DAUGHTER WITH A BIG JOB.
SHE COULD PROVIDE A CENTER OF GRAVITY TO A COUNTRY WHICH WENT THROUGH ALL KINDS OF TRIALS AND TRAUMAS IS IMPORTANT TO HER.
HERE'S A PROFESSORIAL NOTE.
SHE IS THE LONGEST REINING MONARCH.
QUEEN ELIZABETH I, HER NAMESAKE, QUEEN VICTORIA, GEORGE III WHO LOST THE LUST OF AMERICA, A VERY LONG REIN.
IN EACH CASE, WHEN THOSE MONARCHS DIED, DESPITE THE LOSS OF THE AMERICAN COLONIES, ESSENTIALLY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BRITTAIN AS A RISING POWER.
WHEN THEY DIED BRITTAIN WAS MORE OUTGOING, MORE PROSPEROUS, MORE OUTGOING THAN THEY HAD BEEN WHEN THEY WENT TO THE THRONE.
IN QUEEN ELIZABETH'S TURN, IT WAS NOT THE COLD WAR AND NUCLEAR ANNIHILATION.
SHE PRESIDED OVER A CONTRACTING REALM, HOWEVER YOU PUT IT.
BRITTAIN INSERTS AN IDENTITY INTO EUROPE, OUT OF EUROPE.
NO MORE ROOM TO KNOW.
IT BECAME DISPROPORTIONALLY SIMPLE.
SHE WAS A NON-POLITICAL EMBODIMENT OF WHAT A NATIONAL COMMUNITY COULD BE.
IT IS STRIKING IN SUCH A DIVIDED WORLD AT THE MOMENT THAT SHE WAS NOT A DIVISIVE CHARACTER AT ALL, RIGHT?
RIGHT.
THAT WAS IMPORTANT TO KNOW AT A MOMENT LIKE THIS.
SHE WAS SO BELOVED, HER APPROVAL RATING, 81%.
YES.
YES.
IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT SHE KEPT VERY CLOSELY TO THE OBLIGATION, NOT TO EXPRESS POLITICAL OPINIONS.
ONE OF THE CHRISTMAS MESSAGES, NOT ABSOLUTELY AN NONDINED.
ONE OF THE GREAT PROMISES IN THE WORLD WAS THOSE COUNTRIES AND THE WORLD, WHICH WERE LESS FORTUNATE AND THOSE WHO WERE SO BRIEF.
GOING BEYOND THE BRIEF OF BEING ABSOLUTELY ALMOST RELIGIOUSLY NEUTRAL.
BUT THAT'S -- YOU KNOW, I THINK PARTICULARLY NOW WHEN SO MUCH OF THE CURRENCY OF POLITICS IS ABOUT ABUSE AND DEMONIZATION AND SCREAMING AND SHOUTING AND CALLING PEOPLE WITH WHOM YOU DON'T AGREE ENEMIES IN SOME WAY, THE NOTION THAT THEY COULD BE AN EMBODIMENT OF THE COUNTRY WITHOUT AN EGO ADVENTURE.
IT'S NOT TO SAY THERE AREN'T REPUBLICANS IN BRITTAIN, THERE CERTAINLY ARE, BUT THEY RESPOND AND GO UP TO THE END ABOUT SOMEONE WHO'S FUNDAMENTALLY IN IT AT ALL FOR THE PROJECTION OF THEIR OWN VANITY AT ALL.
I MEAN, I SAW HER.
MY WIFE AND I WERE LUCKY ENOUGH TO BE ON THE ROYAL BARGE AT THE DIAMOND JUBILEE.
IT WAS A CLASSIC DAY IN WHICH IT WAS NOT ONLY POURING WITH RAIN, IT WAS BLOODY FREEZING COLD.
THE RAIN WAS COMING.
THERE WERE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE.
THERE WERE EVERY KIND OF SMALL AND BIG BOAT ON THIS KIND OF PARADE DOWN THE THAMES AND THE QUEEN AND PRINCE PHILIP JUST STOOD THERE.
THEY HAD IT ALL CANOPIED SO, YOU KNOW RIVER, RIVER BOAT THRONES.
THEY WERE JUST PUDDLES.
I LOOKED AROUND.
I THOUGHT, WHY WOULD ANYONE IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WANT TO DO THIS?
THE ANSWER IS, SHE SAID SHE WOULD AND SHE KEPT TO THAT.
I'D LOVE TO READ TO EVERYONE ABOUT THE STATEMENT WE GOT.
CHARLES IS THE KING ALREADY.
LET ME READ TO YOU WHAT HE SAID JUST A FEW LINES HERE FROM HIM.
THE DEATH OF MY BELOVED MOTHER, HER MAJESTY, THE QUEEN, IS THE MOMENT OF A CHECK.
I KNOW HER LOSS WILL BE DEEPLY FELT THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY.
DURING THIS PERIOD OF MOURNING AND CHANGE MY FAMILY WILL BE COMFORTED AND SUSTAINED THAT YOU KNOW.
MY QUESTION TO YOU, SIMON, HOW DO THEY KNOW, THE ENTIRE FAMILY, HOW DO THEY CARRY THAT LEGACY OVER FOR SEVEN DECADES.
THEY WILL DO THEIR BEST, YOU KNOW?
I MEAN, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT ABOUT THE BRITISH MONARCHY, I SUPPOSE ALL MONARCHIES, IT IS APART FROM BEING A CONSTITUTIONAL INSTITUTION.
IT ALSO HAS TO BE SOMETHING INVENTED.
IT'S DIFFICULT TO DO AS WE'VE SEEN FROM THE QUEENS AND FAMILY.
S NOT A YEAR GOES BY WITHOUT SOME TROUBLE ON THE FAMILY SIDE.
SOMETIMES CATASTROPHIC.
THE COLLAPSED MARRIAGE OF CHARLES AND DIANA AND DIANA'S HIDEOUSLY TRAGIC DEATH.
THIS IS A TIME WHEN YOU EXPECT THE FAMILY ITSELF TO COME TOGETHER AND FOR THE COUNTRY TO RESPOND TO THAT.
I THINK INTERESTINGLY, YOU KNOW, KING CHARLES, AS HE NOW IS, HAS HAD ONE GREAT CAUSE FOR AT LEAST 30 IF NOT MORE YEARS.
THAT'S THE ENVIRONMENT.
THE PHYSICAL STATE OF THE EARTH.
CLIMATE CHANGE.
I THINK, YOU KNOW, KING CHARLES WOULD BE VERY TEMPTED TO DO.
NOT TO BE RESTRAINED BY HAVING PUBLIC COMMENTS.
NOT TO DO WITH ELECTIONS OR POLITICAL PARTIES.
IT'S BEEN A PASSION OF HIS.
THERE WILL BE A NICE, TRICKY CALCULATION AS TO WHETHER OR NOT IT'S IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE SURVIVAL OF THE MONARCHY TO BE AS RIGIDLY IMPARTIAL AS THE QUEEN WAS OR TO OCCASIONALLY SAY HIS PEACE.
THAT'S A VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION AND HE WILL ULTIMATELY DECIDE.
WE WILL SOON SEE.
SIMON, WALK US THROUGH, OUR VIEWERS THROUGH NOW WHAT?
THE TRADITION OF FUNERAL.
WHAT HAPPENS NOW?
WELL, THERE WILL BE A LYING IN STATE, OF COURSE.
AND, YOU KNOW, THERE WILL BE A STATE FUNERAL.
SO THERE WILL BE A PROCESSION THROUGH LONDON.
MILLIONS OF PEOPLE ARE GOING TO PAY THEIR RESPECTS.
IT WILL BE DONE WITH A KIND OF SIMPLE GRAVITY REALLY.
AND, YOU KNOW, THAT WILL -- THERE IS SOMETHING SIMPLY ABOUT THE MAJESTY OF THE CEREMONY ITSELF WHICH WILL ENABLE THE COUNTRY TO BE ABLE TO DEAL WITH THIS.
I THINK ACTUALLY THE EMOTIONAL LOSS, THE SENSE OF PSYCHOLOGICAL UPHEAVAL, THE SENSE OF BEING ORPHANED INTO A WORLD WITHOUT THE GREEN, IT WILL TASK THE ABILITY OF CEREMONIES, SYMBOLS, THE CONTINUITY OF ENGLISH HISTORY.
IN THE WAY THE VERY LONG REIN OF ELIZABETH II WAS A REASSURING ECHO, IF YOU LIKE, OF THE EXTRAORDINARY LONG HISTORY OF THIS COUNTRY.
IT MAKES THE SENSE OF WHERE DO WE GO AS NOW MORE ACUTE.
IF THE GOVERNMENT OF SCOTLAND IS COMMITTED TO A REFERENDUM, WHETHER IT'S OKAY TO DO SO.
TRYING TO DECIDE WHETHER OR NOT SCOTLAND WANTS TO LEAVE THE UNION.
AFTER A PERIOD OF GRIEF, ALWAYS SORT OF ISSUES, YOU KNOW, ABOUT WHETHER BRITTAIN WILL BE ON -- PEOPLE MAY KNOW, BUT I CAN'T HELP THINKING THERE WILL BE SOMETHING ABOUT HAVING A WOMAN PRIME MINISTER WHICH WILL BE IN A WAY QUITE FITTING.
MOURNING, A WOMAN WHO HAS BEEN CARRIED OFF THIS EXTRAORDINARY FETE OF EMBODYING THE MEMORY.
SIMON, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING WITH US TONIGHT AND WALKING US THROUGH THAT AND HELPING US REMEMBER JUST A REMARKABLE MONARCH AND UNPARALLELED LEGACY, THAT IS FOR SURE.
WE APPRECIATE IT VERY MUCH.
THANK YOU FOR ASKING ME.
> ONE MEASURE OF THE LENGTH OF THE QUEEN'S REIN, SHE MET A DOZEN U.S. PRESIDENT THROUGH LAST YEAR.
THIS SHOWS THE TRANS ATLANTIC RELATIONSHIP.
Reporter: THE SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP OR A DOZEN SPECIAL RELATIONSHIPS.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, TO HER MAJESTY, THE QUEEN.
QUEEN ELIZABETH MET EVERY SINGLE AMERICAN PRESIDENT EXCEPT LYNDON B JOHNSON.
JOE BIDEN WAS THE 12th AND THE LAST PRESIDENT TO HAVE THE HONOR DURING HER REIN AND THE FIRST SHE WOULD MEET WITHOUT HAVING PRINCE PHILIP.
WELCOMED AT THE HOUSE BY THE FIRST LADY.
STARTING WITH DWIGHT EISENHOWER IN 1957, SHE SAW HER FAIR SHARE OF MEANING.
THIS IS A GENUINELY PRIVATE, OFF THE RECORD DECISION.
THEY REALLY CAN TALK ABOUT THINGS AND GET TO THE HEART OF THINGS IN A VERY GENUINE FASHION BECAUSE THEY ALL KNOW IT'S GOING TO COME OUT.
DOES THIS --
OF COURSE NOT.
OF COURSE NOT.
WELL KNOWN FOR SHARE SHED OF IT IN 1982.
HIS SUCCESSOR, PRESIDENT GEORGE H.W. BUSH BROUGHT THE QUEEN TO THE FIRST STATE VISIT IN 1991.
BOTH RAGAN AND BUSH WERE GIVEN HONORARY KNIGHTHOODS, THE STATE'S HIGHEST LEVEL OF RECOGNITION.
PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH WAS THE FIRST U.S. PRESIDENT TO PAY AN OFFICIAL STATE VISIT IN 2003 AND BUSH WAS ALSO THE LAST TO HOST THE QUEEN AT THE WHITE HOUSE IN 2007.
POMP AND PAGEANTRY DID AT TIMES PROVIDE AWKWARD MOMENTS.
HE ALSO REVEALED THE TOPIC OF THEIR CONVERSATION, BREKS IT, WHICH RAISED EYEBROWS, TOO.
HIS PREDECESSOR DID A FAUX PAUX OF TALKING OVER THE ANTHEM.
HERE THESE MEETINGS HAVE BEEN A LONG SIGN OF THE DIPLOMATIC FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN THE U.S. AND THE U.K.
THE WORLD'S LONGEST PROPERTIES --
TO THE HEALTH AND PROSPERITY AND HAPPINESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES.
MAX, THANK YOU.
THE WHITE HOUSE HAS SENT ITS CONDOLENCES SAYING OUR HEARTS AND OUR THOUGHTS IF TO THE QUEEN.
THE QUEEN WAS BRITTAIN'S TOP DIPLOMAT.
SHE REPRESENTED 14 OTHER NATIONS AS HEAD OF STATE AND FEW HAVE HAD THE RESPONSIBILITY TO SAFEGUARD THESE.
SIR KIM DEREK IS THE AMBASSADOR.
THANK YOU, AMBASSADOR.
QUITE A SAD MOMENT THAT NO ONE WANTED TO EVER SEE COME, BUT IT IS HERE.
I WOULD JUST LIKE FOR YOU AS SOMEONE WHO MET THE QUEEN YOURSELF WHEN YOU WERE AMBASSADOR TO REFLECT ON HER LIFE.
POPPY, IT'S REALLY STRANGE AND PROFOUNDLY SAD FEELING TODAY BECAUSE SHE WAS A MONARCH AS LONG AS I HAVE BEEN ALIVE AND IT FEELS LIKE ONE OF LIFE'S ANCHORAGES, ONE OF THE INFORMATICS TIRES IN THE LANDSCAPE AND IT COMES AS AN EXTRAORDINARY SHOCK WHEN THIS NEWS COMES THROUGH.
IT IS BEING EXTRAORDINARY.
THE MORE YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THE MORE YOU THINK HOW REMARKABLE HER CONTRIBUTION WAS.
BUT, FWOSH, ALSO SHE REALLY LIVED.
YOU, UNLIKE MANY OF OUR VIEWERS, MOST OF OUR VIEWERS, MOST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD WHO DIDN'T GET TO SPEND TIME WITH HER, YOU DID.
YOU SPENT TIME WITH HER DURING YOUR SERVICE.
AND I WONDER WHAT YOU CAN SHARE WITH US ABOUT THE WOMAN PERHAPS MANY OF US DID NOT SEE.
I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH.
WHEN YOU BECOME AMBASSADOR YOU SEE HER.
WHEN I WAS ADVISER I SAW HER A COUPLE OF TIMES.
AND TWO THINGS STAND OUT, POPPY.
ONE WAS HER EXTRAORDINARY DEPTH OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS.
I MEAN, SHE WAS ABSOLUTELY RAZOR SHARP, UP TO THE MINUTE WHAT WAS GOING ON AND HAD REALLY SHARP COMMENTS IN PART BECAUSE SHE HAD EXTRAORDINARY SHARP AND SHE WOULD READ A BATCH OF TELEGRAMS EVERY MORNING.
YOU BETTER HAVE READ YOUR TELEGRAMS BEFORE YOU SAW HER.
SHE WOULD CERTAINLY HAVE DONE SO.
THE OTHER THING IS HER WRY SENSE OF HUMOR.
IN PRIVATE, ABSOLUTE LACK OF LET'S HAVE A CONVERSATION AND LAUGH ABOUT THINGS.
I COULDN'T POSSIBLY REPEAT SOME OF THE THINGS SHE WOULD TELL BUT BENEATH THAT EXTERIOR FOR A MONARCH THERE WAS A REALLY SHARP SENSE OF HUMOR.
THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT WITH US HERE IN THE UNITED STATES.
SPEAKER PELOSI HAS ORDERED FLAGS AT THE U.S. CAPITOL TO BE FLOWN AT HALF STAFF DUE TO HER PASSING.
I WONDER IF YOU COULD SPEAK TO THE SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND THE UNITED KINGDOM AND HOW CRITICAL THAT HAS BEEN IN AN INCREASINGLY TUMULTUOUS AND DIVIDED WORLD.
SHE WAS A DEEP BELIEVER IN SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP AND VERY, VERY FOND OF AMERICA.
VERY COMFORTABLE WHEN SHE WAS IN AMERICA.
AND I THINK PART OF THAT WAS IN THAT LONG, EXTRAORDINARY, RICH LIFE SHE BECAME -- IN HER LATE TEENS AND 20s SHE LIVED THROUGH THE SECOND WORLD WAR.
SHE SPENT A LOT OF THAT TIME IN A LONDON THAT WAS BEING BOMBED BY NAZIS AND SHE KNEW, ABSOLUTELY KNEW JUST HOW IMPORTANT AMERICA WAS TO BRITTAIN'S SURVIVAL IN THAT PERIOD.
I THINK THAT AREA, THAT KNOWLEDGE, THAT APPRECIATION STAYED WITH HER.
SHE CAME TO AMERICA AS SOVEREIGN MANY TIMES.
I THINK SHE MADE FOUR STATE VISITS, FIVE STATE DINNERS.
I THINK SHE MET EVERY AMERICAN PRESIDENT FROM TRUMAN TO BIDEN WITH THE EXCEPTION OF LBJ AND SHE, I KNOW FROM SPEAKING TO HER, THAT SHE FOLLOWED AMERICAN POLITICS VERY CLOSELY.
SO AMERICA WAS A BIG PART OF HER INTERESTS.
YOU KNOW WHAT IS STRIKING TO ME ON A DAY LIKE TODAY AND A MOMENT LIKE THIS IS THAT WE HEAR SO MUCH FROM POLITICIANS, SHE WAS NOT A POLITICAL FIGURE BUT A HEAD OF STATE, AND EVERY WORD OF HERS, AMBASSADOR, SEEMED TO HAVE BEEN CHOSEN WITH SUCH CARE.
ISN'T THAT RIGHT?
THAT EVERYTHING SHE SAID WAS SO DELIBERATE AND, THEREFORE, IT HELD SO MUCH MEANING.
THE CONDUCT, THERE ARE INSTANCES TRAVELING OVERSEAS REPRESENTING UNITED KINGDOM AND HER MEETINGS, MANY OF THEM WITH VISITING HEADS OF STATE AND HEADS OF GOVERNMENT, HER CONDUCT DURING THEM, HER HANDLING OF THEM WAS CONSUMMATE.
IT WAS FLAWLESS.
THAT'S NOT EASY.
I TELL YOU, THAT'S NOT EASY.
SHE ALSO HAD HUGE EXPERIENCE, BUT RIGHT FROM DAY ONE SHE HAD THIS COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT WAS APPROPRIATE FOR A CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCH TO DO AND SAY AND WHAT WAS NOT AND THAT'S HOW WHILE SOMETIMES CONTROVERSY SURGED DURING THE ROYAL FAMILY, SHE WAS ALWAYS, AS I SAID, FLAWLESS IN THE WAY SHE CONDUCTED HER ROLE.
AS WE THINK ABOUT THE SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TWO NATIONS, I MEAN, I REMEMBER, WOW, 2001 I WAS HERE IN NEW YORK.
I RECALL WHAT SHE DID FOR THE UNITED STATES.
SHE ESSENTIALLY BROKE ROYAL TRADITION AND REQUESTED THAT THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER BE PLAYED AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE AFTER 9/11.
ABSOLUTELY.
POPPY, IF YOU LIVED THROUGH IT IN LONDON AS SHE DID, YOU WOULD KNOW HOW AMERICA CONTRIBUTED AT THAT TIME AND SHE WOULD HAVE LOOKED FOR WAYS DEMONSTRATING HOW MUCH THAT RELATIONSHIP, THE SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP MEANT TO US IN BRITTAIN.
IT WAS AN EXTRAORDINARY WAY OF DOING IT, BUT ABSOLUTELY FITTED WITH HER VISION OF WHERE UNITED KINGDOM AND UNITED STATES STOOD TOGETHER.
THE QUESTION NOW IS DOES THE MONARCHY CHANGE?
OBVIOUSLY SHE WILL NO LONGER BE THE MONARCH.
THE KING IS CHARLES.
THE QUESTION IS HOW DO YOU FOR SEE IT CHANGING, EVOLVING?
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT?
I'VE BEEN FORTUNATE TO MEET THE PRINCE OF WALES, NOW CHARLES III.
I DON'T THINK ANY MONARCH IN BRITISH HISTORY HAS BEEN BETTER PREPARED FOR WHAT HE'S ABOUT TO TAKE ON THAN HE IS.
I MEAN, HE'S HAD A LONG TIME AS -- NOW HAS THE DUTY.
I AM VERY CONFIDENT.
THIS IS CHANGING.
IF YOU LOOK AT HOW THEY BEHAVED AND WHAT THEY SAID WAS PUBLIC.
IF YOU LOOK BACK, YOU'LL SEE HOW MUCH HAS CHANGED OVER THE YEARS.
THAT WILL CONTINUE.
PARTICULARLY WITH HIS CHAMPIONING OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES, CHARLES IS BRINGING THE NAME CHANGES IN AND NOT CROSSING THE LINE AND INTERFERING IN POLITICS.
THEN THE NEXT GENERATION BEYOND THAT THERE ARE CHANGES.
TEN YEARS DOWN THE LINE, YOU BETTER LOOK AT WHAT THE CHANGES ARE.
THE MONARCHY WILL CONTINUE TO ROLL AND BE IN THE BRITISH LIFE.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR REFLECTIONS, THE MEMORIES, SHARING THE TIME YOU SHARED WITH HER WITH ALL OF US THIS EVENING.
THANK YOU.
THANK YOU.
> AS THE AMBASSADOR JUST SAID, WE ARE NOW LEARNING THAT THE NEW KING WILL BE CALLED KING CHARLES III.
PRINCE WILLIAM AND KATE HAVE TAKEN THE TITLE OF DUKE AND DUCHESS OF CORNWALL.
THE TITLES PREVIOUSLY HELD BY CHARLES AND CAMILA.
LIZ TRUSS HAS GIVEN US HER THOUGHTS.
WE'RE ALL DEVASTATED BY THE NEWS WE HAVE JUST HEARD FROM BALMORAL.
THE DEATH OF HER MAJESTY, THE QUEEN, IS A HUGE SHOCK TO THE NATION AND THE WORLD.
QUEEN ELIZABETH II WAS THE ROCK ON WHICH MODERN BRITTAIN WAS BUILT.
OUR COUNTRY HAS GROWN AND FLOURISHED UNDER HER REIN.
TODAY THE CROWN PASSES AS IT HAS DONE FOR MORE THAN A THOUSAND YEARS TO OUR NEW MONARCH, OUR NEW HEAD OF STATE, HIS MAJESTY QUEEN CHARLES III.
WITH THE PASSING OF THE SECOND EE LIZ BEET THEN AGE, WE DO THIS WITH EXACTLY AS HER MAJESTY WOULD HAVE WISHED, BY SAYING THE WORDS, GOD SAVE THE KING.
SHE WAS A STEADY, RELIABLY FACED IT.
THE DIGNIFIED AND THE EFFICIENT.
QUEEN ELIZABETH WAS ARGUABLY BOTH.
ONLY TWO DAYS AGO APPOINTING LIZ TRUSS AS PRIME MINISTER.
MY NEXT GUEST IS ALASTAIR BURT.
HE IS A FORMER CONSERVATIVE MP.
HE IS JOINING ME FROM SUSSEX.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
LET'S START WITH YOUR REFLECTIONS ON THE LIFE, THE LEGACY ON THE WOMAN WHO SERVED AS MONARCH 7 O YEARS.
YOUR PREVIOUS GUESTS HAVE PUT IT EXTREMELY WELL.
SHE WAS A REMARKABLE FIGURE.
I WAS A GOVERNMENT MINISTER FOR 11 YEARS, WE RECOGNIZED THAT WE OWED OUR OATH OF ALLEGIANCE TO HER.
NOT TO A POLITICAL FIGURE.
WE DIDN'T SWEAR ALLEGIANCE.
WE SWORE AN OATH OF ALLEGIANCE IN THE COMMENTS, TOO.
THIS WAS OF IMMENSE IMPORTANCE TO THE COUNTRY.
IT'S ALMOST UNRECOGNIZABLE FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM OF 1952 WHEN HER MAJESTY BECAME QUEEN AND SHE HAS SEEN IT THROUGH A VARIETY OF CHANGES IN OUR SOCIETY THAT WERE UNPRECEDENTED AND THROUGH IT ALL HER ONE CONSTANT FIGURE, THAT ABILITY OF BEING ABLE TO BRING EVERYONE TOGETHER, REPRESENT THE WHOLE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM HAS MADE HER A UNIQUE FIGURE.
AND WE MOURN HER LOSS VERY DEEPLY, AND WE WISH HIS MAJESTY, THE KING, AND WHAT A STRANGE PHRASE THAT IS FOR ALL OF US NOW TO SAY, WE WISH HIS MAJESTY, THE KING, GOD BLESS.
BECAUSE YOU HAVE NEVER SAID THAT PHRASE FOR YOUR ENTIRE LIFE, ALLISTER.
SHE HAS BEEN THE QUEEN, AS IS THE CASE FOR 80% OF THE BRITISH POPULATION.
CORRECT, POPPY.
NONE OF US HAVE EVER SUNG 'GOD SAVE THE KING.'
WE'VE NEVER SUNG THAT AS A NATIONAL ANTHEM.
ALL SORTS OF CHANGES.
OUR POST BOXES WILL CHANGE, OUR STAMPS WILL CHANGE.
ALL SORTS OF THINGS LIKE THAT, WHICH OF COURSE ARE PART OF THE FABRIC OF THE UNITED KINGDOM.
SO WE WILL SEE CHANGES.
THERE WILL BE CONSTITUTIONAL PRESSURES.
HIS MAJESTY WILL BE GIVEN A CROWN AND IT HAS WEATHERED PRESSURES BECAUSE OF HER AND THE UNITED KINGDOM THAT IS UNDER PRESSURE, THEY MAY WANT TO CHANGE TO MAKE SURE THE UNITED KINGDOM, ALL SORTS OF THINGS, BUT I THINK TONIGHT PEOPLE WILL HAVE THEIR PERSONAL MEMORIES OF HER.
MUST BE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE MET HER MAJESTY, THE QUEEN, OVER THE YEARS.
WE ALSO HAVE WATCHED HER AND THERE'S 14 EVENTS, THE OLYMPICS.
ALL OF THE JUBILEE EVENTS WE ALL FEEL WE KNOW HER.
THAT'S SUCH A GOOD POINT.
WE ALL FEEL WE KNOW HER.
I DRESSED UP LIKE HER FOR HALLOWEEN.
YOU HAVE SAID ONLY HISTORY WILL REVEAL TO WHAT WAY SHE VISITED GERMANY IN 1965 OR WELCOMING EMPEROR HIROSHITO IN 1971.
WELCOMING NELSON MANDELA.
HER TRIP TO NORTHERN IRELAND IN 2012.
SO MANY SIGNIFICANT MOMENTS.
THIS IS ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.
HER MAJESTY RECOGNIZED THAT SHE WAS A SERVANT OF THE STATE, A SER VABT OF THE PEOPLE AND AT TIMES OF RECKON CEILING IT, HER RECOGNITION OF SO MANY PEOPLE IN CONTEMPORARY HISTORY.
SHE KNEW THEM ALL.
THEY HAD ALL AT SOME STAGE THAT BUILDING.
FOR MY GENERATION IT'S A LONG TIME.
SO RELATIVELY SOON.
LESS THAN TEN YEARS AFTER THE END OF THE WAR MUST HAVE BEEN NOT THE EASIEST OF VISITS FOR HER.
PARTICULARLY IN DOMESTIC BRITISH HISTORY, THE RELATIONSHIP WITH IRELAND HAVE BEEN VERY IMPORTANT.
TO MAKE THE VISITS TO IRELAND WHEN THE HISTORY OF BRITTAIN AND IRON LAND HAVE BEEN DIFFICULT.
BEAR IN MIND SHE HAD LOST MEMBERS OF HER OWN TERRORISM.
THIS IS ABSOLUTELY EXTRAORDINARY.
MADE THE MODERN RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE UNITED KINGDOM AND IRELAND.
IRELAND HAS THE ABILITY TO RECONCILE.
SHE KNEW WHAT SHE COULD DO FOR THE STATE.
I DO KNOW HAVING BEEN ON VISITS WITH HIS MAJESTY, KING CHARLES, I DO KNOW HE SHARES THE SAME SENSE.
HE'S WELL BRIEFED.
HE KNOWS THE INTERNATIONAL SCENE AS WELL.
I'M ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN THAT WILL BE A VERY SPECIAL NATURE.
PRESIDENT BIDEN AND THE FIRST LADY HAVE ISSUED A LONG STATEMENT REMEMBERING HER AND HONORING HER.
I'M STRUCK.
IN PART THEY WRITE, SHE WAS MORE THAN A MONARCH, SHE DEFINED AN ERA.
THAT'S SO TRUE, ISN'T IT?
SHE DEFINED AN ERA.
HOW DO YOU THINK SHE DEFINED IT.
SHE DEFINED IT, IF YOU THINK OF HOW I GOT THAT DONE.
THE WORLD MOVED MORE SLOWLY.
HER EE LIZ ZSA BEET THAN TIME MOVED FAST.
MODERN COMMUNICATIONS, THE NATURE OF RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN STATES.
RECONCILIATION AT THE END OF THE SECOND WAR.
THE COLD WAR ISSUES.
THE ROAD IS VERY DIFFERENT.
THE COMMONWEALTH THAT OUR PRIME MINISTER SPOKE SO MOVINGLY ABOUT A FEW MOMENTS AGO WHICH GREW FROM THE END OF EMPIRE, THE CHANGE OF RELATIONSHIP WITH MANY STATES IN THE WORLD PAST ITS -- HAS NOW SHADOWS BECAUSE OF ITS NATURE.
TRANSFORMED INTO THE COMMONWEALTH WHICH HER MAJESTY WAS ABLE TO PLAY SUCH A SIGNIFICANT PART IN.
I THINK HER ABILITY TO BE PART OF CHANGE AND YET EXUDE AN HEIR OF CONTINUITY BECAUSE OF WHAT SHE REPRESENTED AND WHO SHE WAS, THAT WAS A UNIQUE COMBINATION IN HISTORY.
I THINK IT IS THAT PARTICULAR ABILITY TO SHAPE THE TIME IN WHICH SHE LIVED WHICH WILL BE ONE OF HER MOST ENDURING LEGACIES.
HER DEATH COMES AT A VERY UNCERTAIN TIME IN THE UNITED KINGDOM.
A VERY UNCERTAIN WINTER AHEAD.
REAL CONCERN FOR SO MANY BRITISH PEOPLE ABOUT AFFORDABILITY, ENERGY COSTS, ON AND ON.
AND A BRAND-NEW PRIME MINISTER.
IT WAS JUST DAYS AGO THAT SHE ASKED -- OFFICIALLY ASKED HER TO FORM A GOVERNMENT.
HOW ARE YOU FEELING, THIS NEWS RECEIVED BY 9 -- THE BRITISH PEOPLE.
THE DEATH IS ALWAYS SAD AND SHOCKING WHENEVER IT COMES.
THE UNITED KINGDOM HAS PREPARED.
HER MAJESTY HAS LIVED A LONG LIFE.
THE SYMMETRY, AS YOU SAY, WITH A CHANGE IN BRITISH POLITICS.
IT MAKES HER MAJESTY'S PASSING MORE POWERFUL.
IT WAS LESS THAN 48 HOURS AGO SHE WAS UNABLE TO PERFORM HER CONSTITUTIONAL DUTY TO ACCEPT THE NEW PRIME MINISTER AND GIVE HER THE INVITATION TO FORM A GOVERNMENT.
THE VERY FIRST ACT WHEN SHE HAD IT.
HER LAST CONSTITUTIONAL ACT WAS TO GREET THE 15th.
THAT REALLY IS EXTRAORDINARY.
BUT IT MARKS A SEA CHANGE FOR THE UNITED KINGDOM.
YES, WE HAVE A NEW POLITICS.
I THOUGHT THE SPOKESPERSON FROM THESE WORKED.
I THINK THAT'S A GOOD PHRASE BECAUSE THAT EMBODIES ALL OF THE CHANGES WE HAVE SEEN THAT HER MAJESTY HAS LIVED THROUGH.
IT WAS ALSO SAID TODAY SHE WAS AHEAD OF US ALL AND ALSO PART OF US.
THOSE TWO GOOD STATEMENTS FROM OUR POLITICAL LEADER SUGGEST IN A TIME OF CRISIS, WE HAVE ELEMENTS OF COMING TOGETHER.
WITH POLITICS BEING AS DIVIDED AS THEY ARE.
IT WILL BE A MOMENT WHERE WE WILL SEE WHAT WE COULD ACHIEVE TOGETHER.
I HOPE THAT HELPS US DO AS MUCH AS WE CAN TO SUPPORT THE COUNTRY IN VARIOUS WAYS OVER WHAT WILL BE A TOUGH WINTER AND HER MAJESTY EMBODY THE SPIRIT OF BRITTAIN THAT HAD OVERCOME SO MUCH MORE FROM HER OWN LIFE.
AS KIM SAID, FROM SERVING IN THE WAR ITSELF TO SERVING IN IT AFTER THAT.
SO THE COUNTRY WILL DO SO AGAIN REMEMBERING THE RESPONSIBILITY HER MAJESTY SAID.
SO BEAUTIFUL.
REMINDER WHAT CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED WHEN EVERYONE COMES TOGETHER FOR A COMMON CAUSE.
ALLISTER, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR COMMENTS TONIGHT.
> ON THE THRONE, QUEEN ELIZABETH II BECAME THE MOST PHOTOGRAPHED QUEEN.
IT IS ON THE BRITISH CURRENCY, STAMPS, T TOWELS, ON AND ON.
Reporter: ONCE UPON A TIME IN A STORY WE HAD FORGOTTEN OR SOME NEVER KNEW, THERE WAS A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG PRINCESS.
AT THE AGE OF JUST 27 SHE WAS CROWNED A QUEEN IN A FAIRY TALE CEREMONY.
LONG BEFORE THERE WAS ELIZABETH.
A REGAL UNFLAGGING PRESENCE IN OUR LIVES EVER SINCE.
LOOKING AT THE VISUALS OF THE QUEEN IS STUNNING.
I CANNOT THINK WHO THE RIVAL IS.
EXTRAORDINARY.
ALONGSIDE ALL OF THAT PAGEANTRY AND SOLEMNITY AND THE NAVIGATION IT'S RAINING OUTSIDE.
HOW SURPRISING.
I THINK HER HUMAN THINK THE AT THIS COMES THROUGH IN A LOT OF THESE PHOTOGRAPHS.
ALSO, HER AMAZING ABILITY TO ENGAUJ IN PEOPLE.
THE FORMAL IMAGE OF THAT, FAIRY TALE QUEENS AND PRINCESSES.
HE USES THE MATTING OF COCO PAINTING.
'TIME MAGAZINE' PUT HER ON THE COVERAGE.
THEY SIMPLY COULDN'T GET ENOUGH OF HER.
HER FACE AND THEIR STORIES SOLD MAGAZINES AND BOOKS.
THERE WAS AN AWFUL LOT OF ATTENTION ON HER.
WE'LL ASSOCIATE THIS WITH THAT.
OUR THANKS TO NICK.
THOSE ARE STUNNING IMAGES.
CHRISTIAN MET THE QUEEN FACE TO FACE, A RATHER HONOR.
HERE SHE DESCRIBES THAT EXPERIENCE.
IT IS, OF COURSE, EVERY JOURNALIST'S DREAM TO INTERVIEW THE QUEEN OF ENGLAND.
IT NEVER HAPPENED.
THE CLOSEST I EVER GOT TO THE REPORTER WAS 2007.
THIS IS THE COMMANDER OF THE MOST EXCELLENT ORDER OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE.
THIS WAR IS AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE FOR ME.
YOU CAN SEE FROM THE PICTURES, I LOOK BACK, I RECALL NOW.
HOW NERVOUS I WAS.
HOW MUCH ANTICIPATION THERE WAS.
I HAD A HAT ON WHICH I THOUGHT WAS REALLY COOL.
I HAD TO WEAR A HAT.
IT LOOKED LIKE THE LEANING TOWER OF PITTS ZSA.
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, JOURNALISM.
I WAS TOLD, YOU KNOW, TO ENGAGE HER QUICKLY, ANIMATEDLY AND GET OUT OF THERE.
SHE DECIDES WHEN SHE TALKS TO YOU AND WHEN SHE DISMISSES YOU.
I QUICKLY TALKED TO HER ABOUT HORSES KNOWING THAT I HAD THAT PASSION, SHE HAD THAT PATCHING IT.
CNN IN LONDON IN NOVEMBER 2001.
THE GLOBAL ERUPTION CAUSED BY 9/11.
THAT WAS INCREDIBLE THING FOR THAT.
I WOULD HAVE BEEN IN KABUL WHEN SHE WAS IN THE BUREAU.
YOU KNOW, I HAD ALWAYS BEEN TOLD NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES YOU SEE THE QUEEN ON TELEVISION AND PICTURES, NOTHING QUITE PREPARES YOU FOR THE REAL THING.
AND YOU'VE GOT IT RIGHT THERE AND THEN.
HER CONNECTION AND THE POWER OF THE PRESENT AND THAT TRANSLUCENT GLOWING COMPLEXION THAT SHE WAS SO FAMOUS FOR --
WHAT A MOMENT TO SEE.
IN THIS SOMBER MOMENT AS WE REFLECT ON THE PUBLIC MOMENT OF QUEEN ELIZABETH, WE WANT TO REFLECT ON THE PUBLIC MOMENT.
IN 2013 CHRISTIAN SAT DOWN WITH MARGARET RHODES.
HERE IS A MOMENT FROM THAT CONVERSATION.
Reporter: DO YOU SEE HER REGULARLY?
HERE IN THIS HOUSE, WHICH I'VE BEEN IN NOW FOR 32 YEARS, BECAUSE SHE COMES TO THE CHAPEL IN THE PARK THAT I GO TO.
LIKE YESTERDAY, SHE WAS HERE HAVING A DRINK.
YESTERDAY, RIGHT WHERE WE ARE?
YES.
HERE HAVING A DRINK WITH YOU?
YES.
QUITE OFTEN DOES, COMES IN AFTER CHURCH FOR HALF AN HOUR, 3/4 OF A DRINK.
THAT'S IT FOR A SPECIAL EDITION OF THE PROGRAM.
THANK YOU FOR WATCHING US ON PBS.
JOIN US AGAIN TOMORROW NIGHT.