The 2009 Broadcast

Location:  Buckingham Palace

Produced by:  ITN

Theme:  In what she describes as 'a difficult year for many', the Queen acknowledges the work, dedication and risks encountered by the Armed Forces, especially those serving in Afghanistan, stating, 'the debt of gratitude owed to these young men and women, and to their predecessors, is indeed profound'. Her Majesty also stresses the importance of the Commonwealth, having recently attended a Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting.

Commentary:  After another difficult year for Britain and the Commonwealth, the Queen recalls the continuing recession and the growing number of casualties in Afghanistan.  The importance of the Commonwealth is a recurring theme in the Christmas broadcasts, as Elizabeth II has always taken her role as its Head very seriously.  Similarly, Her Majesty is acutely aware of her role as head of the Armed Forces and regularly remembers servicemen and women who endanger their lives in the call of duty, especially at times of combat;  this year footage from the Cenotaph in London is shown for the second year running as well as from other Remembrance commemorations.

For the second year running the Queen makes a brief reference to the economic difficulties being encountered by many.

Two versions of God Save the Queen are played in this Broadcast, blending the traditional with the innovative.  At the beginning, we hear the conventional arrangement, accompanied by images of Buckingham Palace appearing through nearly-bare trees in the winter subject; at the end of the Broadcast the same tune is played on steel drums by the Codringtons, a family from Trinidad. 

Production reverted to ITN, who built on the BBC's 'classic' look of the previous two years and created an aesthetically attractive feel to the 'set' with subtle use of lighting and long camera angles which took advantage of the grand surroundings of the White Drawing Room.

Notes:  One of the saddest sequences of footage ever used in a Christmas Broadcast is seen here, of the procession of coffins arriving in the United Kingdom after eight servicemen were killed in an unprecedented twenty-four hours of bloodshed in Afghanistan in July. The procession brought the town of Wootton Bassett to a standstill as hundreds of local people lined the streets as a mark of respect.

Trivia:  In the first decade of the twenty-first century, Buckingham Palace was firmly re-established as the 'default' location of the broadcast.  This was the eighth of the decade to be filmed here.

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