The 2006 Broadcast

 

Location:  Southwark Cathedral

Produced by:  ITN

Theme:  In the year in which she had celebrated her eightieth birthday, Elizabeth II speaks of how the older generation can help bridge the generation gap with the young.  The Queen emphasizes the success of the various faith communities in harmonizing the different generations, based on the teachings of scripture and centuries of tradition.  While acknowledging the 'very generous response' to her eightieth birthday, Her Majesty speaks of her admiration of the 'energy and vitality' of young people, and how the wisdom and experience of the older generation can add a 'sense of context' to help them realize their ambitions.

Commentary:  While there is much to admire about the 2006 broadcast, ITN do not make the most of the unprecedented setting.  Never before had the Queen delivered her annual message from one of England's great religious buildings;  however we see very little of Southwark Cathedral.  Most of the Queen's narration takes place in front of a window (with the obligatory Christmas tree in view) which, while presumably within the precincts of Southwark Cathedral could, frankly, be anywhere.  Only in the closing moments of the broadcast, where the Queen speaks in front of the High Altar, does the viewer get a glimpse of this glorious building.  The broadcast would have been far more impressive visually if the bulk of the narration had been done from here.

The footage of the Queen mingling with adults and children involved in a community project is handled much better.  We see Her Majesty asking questions and making observations in an informal setting, then looking at the camera and narrating a few words of her address.

For the first time, the Christmas message was made available as a podcast.

Trivia:  In an embarrassing coincidence, in the period between the filming of the 2006 Message and its broadcast on Christmas Day, there were press reports that the Bishop of Southwark, the Rt Rev Tom Butler, was witnessed leaving a party considerably the worse for wear.  The bishop (who did not appear in the broadcast) maintained that he had no recollection of the incident, and said that to have been drunk would have been 'entirely out of character.' 

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