The 1972 Broadcast

Location:  Buckingham Palace

Produced by:  BBC

Theme:  In the year of her Silver Wedding celebrations, Elizabeth II thanks members of the public for their good wishes and speaks of the importance of the Christian ideal of an enduring marriage between a man and a woman.  At a time of escalating sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, Her Majesty extends her sympathy and support to the people of the Province.  The Queen also looks ahead to Britain's accession to the European Economic Community (Common Market) and ponders the new relationship Britain will have with both the EEC and the existing Commonwealth.

Commentary:  If it can be said that any one of Elizabeth II's many Christmas messages has not aged particularly well, it would probably be this one - at least in part. For a constitutional monarch to comment on Britain's securing membership to the European Economic Community (Common Market) was always going to be potentially hazardous given the controversies regarding application, but one can only assume, in view of the momentous historical implications of accession, as well as concerns in Britain and the Commonwealth, that Her Majesty thought it important that she should.  In the Message, the Queen's attitude towards membership can perhaps best be described as gently positive, but with the benefit of hindsight some biographers have been critical of her approach.  Andrew Marr describes Elizabeth II's hopes for a wider 'family of nations' as 'pious but, given the rivalries, implausible' (The Diamond Queen, 2012);  Ben Pimlott put it more harshly: 'political and economic nonsense, a desperate bid to evade the reality' (The Queen, 1996).  The fact was that the EEC and the Commonwealth were, where  Britain was concerned, in competition with each other.

One would have thought that British prime minister Edward Heath would have been pleased that Elizabeth II was prepared to give what he would come to see as his great achievement a cautious welcome.  Instead, Heath began what became something of a habit and upon seeing the transcript tried to interfere in the content of the Message.  According to documents released from the National Archives, Heath told the Queen that she could only mention Britain's forthcoming accession to the EEC if she mentioned her (predominantly German) 'continental relations'.  The Queen's advisers objected, stating that such references would make the broadcast unnecessarily long and could lead to 'snide remarks' from some sections of the public, given the two world wars which were still very much within living memory and lingering anti-German sentiment in Britain.  In the event, Her Majesty did not mention her European relations and spoke about the EEC anyway.

 

On a brighter note, the Queen talks about her Silver Wedding celebrations and her happy marriage to Prince Philip.  Back in November this had been the first of Elizabeth II's personal milestone anniversaries to be publicly celebrated during her reign.  Footage from the public events is shown during the Broadcast

The Regency Room 'set' looks near-identical to the previous year;  the basic arrangement would remain in place until the middle of the decade.  The Queen is filmed at desk level, periodically moving in to close-up.  Her Majesty's outfit was perhaps the most imaginative since she switched to 'daywear' for her Christmas Broadcasts in the early 1960s;  contemporary publicity describes the Queen as wearing 'a dress of fine lemon yellow wool, with embroidery around the neck, sleeves and down the front of the dress'.

Notes:  

In 2016 the United Kingdom voted in a referendum to leave the European Union, a process which has become commonly known as 'Brexit'.  In that year, unlike 1972, Elizabeth II made no reference to the potential impact of the decision on Britain's future.  This is perhaps representative of a shift away from reflecting on political matters in her Christmas messages in recent decades and a more noticeable emphasis on faith, family and community work.

Trivia: 

Elizabeth II and her father George VI had been the first British monarchs since William III (reigned 1689-1702) to reign with a predecessor still living.  This situation ended in the spring of 1972 when the Duke of Windsor, who had abdicated as King Edward VIII in December 1936, died in France on 28th May at the age of 77.  The Queen does not mention her uncle's death in her Message.

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The 2016 Broadcast

Location:  Buckingham Palace

Produced by:  ITN

Theme:  Elizabeth II talks on the subject of 'inspiration', whether it comes from the sportsmen and women who performed so well for Britain and Commonwealth countries in the 2016 Olympics, or the 'unsung heroes' , who Her Majesty describes as 'ordinary people doing extraordinary things'.  The Queen recalls that she herself drew inspiration from the charity volunteers who attended the 'Patrons' Lunch' to mark her ninetieth birthday earlier in the year.  The Queen remarks that 'the cumulative impact of thousands of small acts of goodness can be bigger than we imagine'.  Elizabeth II closes by describing the inspiration that she herself and others draw from being followers of Jesus Christ: 'I am one of them because Christ’s example helps me see the value of doing small things with great love, whoever does them and whatever they themselves believe.'

Commentary:  For the first time in twenty-five years, the Broadcast returned 'home' to the Regency Room of Buckingham Palace.  Between 1971 and 1991, this cosy sitting room was its 'default' location; but when production returned to Buckingham Palace in 1998 after a seven-year break the room, which forms part of the Queen's 'semi private' apartments, was neglected in favour of the grander state rooms.  Much as earlier producers Richard Cawston and David Attenborough had done during television's 'golden age', ITN are at pains to make the Regency Room look homely and cosy.  It does, however, look a considerably different 'set' from the days of the 1970s and 1980s;  the layout closely resembles the previous year's production, which had taken place in the 18th Century Room.  The photographs of Prince Philip and Prince Charles are referenced in Her Majesty's speech, with regard to their work with the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme and The Prince's Trust respectively.  The Regency Room fireplace, rarely (if ever) seen during the long years of filming here, is well showcased as a centrepiece of the 'set'.

The production is 'bookended' by the Massed Bands of the Foot Guards.  God Save The Queen is played at the beginning;  in a pleasing flourish, musical director Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Roberts salutes towards the camera as the music ends.  At the close of the broadcast, part of A Christmas Intrada by American composer Alfred Reed is played.

The Queen's Christmas message topped the UK Christmas Day television ratings for the third consecutive year, with a combined audience of 7.7 million.

Notes:

When the United Kingdom joined the European Economic Community in 1972, Elizabeth II discussed in her end of year message the implications of how Britain could successfully manage membership of both the EEC and the Commonwealth.  In 2016, the people of the UK voted to leave what had since become the European Union, but Her Majesty makes no mention of 'Brexit'.  It is interesting to note how, over the years, the Queen's Christmas speeches have moved away from political themes and towards placing a stronger emphasis on human goodwill at an essential level, such as the 'unsung heroes' theme of this Broadcast.

The faith and optimism which, year after year, are hallmarks of the Queen's annual message may have been a comfort to her as Christmas 2016 was tinged with sadness for Elizabeth II.  In late November her cousin and lifelong friend Margaret Rhodes, a familiar face to viewers of royal documentaries, died aged 91 following a short illness.  The Queen attended her funeral in December.  Then, on Christmas Eve, news broke that the Queen's granddaughter Zara Tindall and husband Mike had lost their baby;  the couple had only recently announced the pregnancy.  Also, the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh had been forced to delay their departure to Sandringham for their Christmas break due to heavy colds, ultimately arriving a day later than planned by helicopter.  The Queen was not sufficiently recovered to attend church on Christmas Day, missing the service for the first time since 1988.

Trivia:

Whenever a clock is present in vision in a production, it is always carefully set to 3 o'clock for the moment the Queen starts speaking, the time the Message is broadcast on Christmas Day.

The photograph at the side of Elizabeth II which shows her with the Prince of Wales had been taken the previous May by society photographer Nick Knight to mark Her Majesty's 90th birthday but had only been released a few days earlier.

The Queen's outfit in this Broadcast caused a small amount of amusement on social media as some likened it to the uniforms of the officers of the USS Enterprise from the original Star Trek series.

A few days prior to the Broadcast being aired, a study of questionable purpose was published by mathematicians at University College, London.  The report claimed that the Queen's annual message was 'one of the most predictable and repetitive television programmes of Christmas', with Her Majesty using only 3,991 'distinct' words (i.e. words used only once) out of a total of 42,000, thus putting her vocabulary on a level with rappers such as Snoop Dog and Jay Z.  The findings seem to tell us more about the difficulties of reconciling the timeless and unchanging message of Christmas with the dryness of academia than they do about Queen Elizabeth II.

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The 1973 Broadcast

Location:  Buckingham Palace

Produced by:  BBC

Theme:  In the year that Princess Anne became the first of her children to marry, Elizabeth II speaks of the importance of family and friends.  The Queen recalls the public enthusiasm for the wedding as well as the gathering of the Commonwealth 'family' at the Heads of Government meeting.  Her Majesty also remembers those who are not fortunate enough to have a network of support and those who seek to help them: 'there are many people of all ages who go out to help the old and the lonely, the sick and the handicapped. I am sure that, in so doing, they find the real happiness that comes from serving and thinking of others.'  Recalling Christ's example, the Queen concludes that the qualities of the human spirit 'are more important than material gain'.

Commentary:  This is the third of four consecutive Broadcasts in which essentially the same 'set' is used:  a slight re-arrangement of the usual appearance of the Regency Room.  Elizabeth II glows in bright pink while, as with the previous two years, there is a large bunch of fresh flowers behind Her Majesty adding to the carefully choreographed cheerfulness.  The Queen certainly appears relaxed and happy as she talks about her daughter's wedding while exclusive behind-the-scenes images from the occasion earlier in the year are shown.

However, Elizabeth II's focus on family and Commonwealth may not have been the whole story of the 1973 Message.  Beneath the festive cheeriness, the United Kingdom was enduring what history tends to characterise as an era of power cuts, 'three-day weeks' and public sector strikes.  It is claimed that British prime minister Edward Heath (who is also accused of interfering in the content of the 1972 Message) 'censored' the Queen's attempts to express in her speech her 'deep concern' at the 'special difficulties Britain is now facing', considering the proposed comments 'alarmist' and 'bad for morale'.  On the other hand, Robert Armstrong, a senior civil servant who served as Principle Private Secretary under Heath, denies rumours of 'terse notes' being passed between Downing Street and Buckingham Palace officials over the speech, stating that Heath 'considered the Queen's Christmas message to be her own affair about which he did not need to be formally consulted and on which he would never have done more than offer a tentative suggestion if he had been' (Ziegler, Edward Heath, 2010).  Two months after the 1973 Message was broadcast, Edward Heath would lose power in the 'snap' general election which he called in February 1974.  The following Christmas, Elizabeth II was finally at liberty to address Britain's economic difficulties in her annual message.

Notes:

There are two versions of the postscript that Elizabeth II wanted to add to her 1973 Message, both of which were vetoed by Downing Street for being too 'political':

1. "Because my Christmas broadcast goes to all the Commonwealth, it had to be recorded some time ago, before the special difficulties which Britain is now facing came upon us. I cannot let Christmas pass without speaking to you directly of these difficulties because they are of deep concern to all of us as individuals and as a nation.
 "Different people have different views, deeply and sincerely felt, about our problems and how they should be solved. Let us remember, however, that what we have in common is more important than what divides us."

2.  "I cannot let Christmas pass without speaking to you directly of the hardship and difficulties with which so many are faced because of deep concern to all of us as individuals and as a nation.
"But I have felt that Christmas is so much a family occasion that you would not wish me to harp on these difficulties, but to let you hear and see something which was recorded some time ago about events in the Commonwealth family and in my own family."

Trivia:

Elizabeth II does not appear to be wearing her familiar pearls on this occasion, which makes 1973 unique among her Christmas Broadcasts.

 

 

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The 1974 Broadcast

Location:  Buckingham Palace

Produced by:  BBC

Theme:  The Queen concentrates on problems; in Britain, the Commonwealth and the wider world.  Citing Britain's economic difficulties and alluding to the famine during the year in Bangladesh and floods in Brisbane, Australia, Elizabeth II observes that 'in the last year everything seems to have happened at once'.  However, the Queen cautions against pessimism, stating that 'the trouble with gloom is that it feeds upon itself and depression causes more depression.'  Her Majesty urges people to unite and come together to confront the current problems and praises the system of Parliamentary Government, a 'product of British genius' which had been successfully exported by Britain, as a means of ensuring rights and peacefully resolving conflict.  Despite the world's problems, the Queen wishes to offer 'encouragement and hope', reminding her audience that 'the first Christmas came at a time that was dark and threatening, but from it came the light of the world.'

Commentary:  For some time Elizabeth II had wanted to address Britain's economic difficulties in her Christmas speeches but had been prevented from doing so.  The previous year, Conservative prime minister Edward Heath had reportedly censored references to the problems in the Queen's annual message.  In 1974 Heath had lost power and Labour's Harold Wilson, who himself had objected to planned references to the economy in the 1968 Message, was back for his second stint as prime minister.  Ever the canny political operator, Wilson probably calculated that by Christmas the previous Conservative government would still be held responsible for the state of the economy;  consequently Elizabeth II was at last free to talk about the struggles being encountered by many of her subjects.

Some may describe this as one of Elizabeth II's 'sombre' speeches, but as always when her Christmas messages tackle serious matters, the Queen takes a positive standpoint, encouraging a spirit of hope.  There is an echo of the wartime spirit the young Elizabeth grew up with when the Queen says ' we are an inventive and tenacious people and the comradeship of adversity brings out the best in us'.  This is certainly not a message of festering gloom.

The production itself sticks to the essentials, so the emphasis is on Elizabeth II's words.  The Broadcast begins with a specially filmed rendition of God Save the Queen played by a band of guardsmen in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace.  Towards the end, the camera pans upwards to the flagpole where the Royal Standard flies, before cutting to the Queen.  This is the fourth and final time the arrangement of the Regency Room first seen in 1971 is used as the 'set'.

Trivia:

Prime ministers come and go (and in Wilson's case, come back again), but Elizabeth II never mentions any of them in her annual Christmas message.  The only exception was Britain's great wartime leader, Elizabeth II's first prime minister Winston Churchill, who Her Majesty referred to once - in 1999, almost thirty-five years after his death.  It is possible that the Queen took an early decision not to mention the comings and goings of particular British (or other Commonwealth) prime ministers to avoid arguments, bidding wars and accusations of bias regarding what is said, or not said, about who.


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The 1975 Broadcast

Location:  Buckingham Palace

Produced by:  BBC

Theme:  Speaking from the gardens of Buckingham Palace, Elizabeth II addresses the harsh economic climate of the time, including the problem of record inflation, but reassures her audience that Christmas reminds us of Christ's example and shows that small acts of goodness can have a combined effect:  'He showed that what people are and what they do, does matter and does make all the difference'.  Whether it is kindness and sympathy or courage and self-sacrifice, the Queen says everyone has their best to offer, which matters: 'If you throw a stone into a pool, the ripples go on spreading outwards...our daily actions are like those ripples, each one makes a difference, even the smallest.'  The Queen encourages viewers to 'take heart from the Christmas message and be happy'.

Commentary:  By the mid 1970s the view that the Message was merely a televised radio broadcast had gone;  this was now a television production with television production values.  Why, exactly, the decision was taken to film outdoors for the first time remains something of a mystery;  it has little if anything to do with the subject matter of the Queen's speech, unless one takes the view that the bleakness of Her Majesty's surroundings is an allusion to the economic climate she describes.  Clearly, however, someone thought it was a good idea.  Elizabeth II stands in a bleak midwinter scene, her bottle-green outfit adding a small splash of colour amidst the shades of grey.  A few ducks swim past on the Buckingham Palace lake, oblivious to their impending brief moment of fame.  The Palace itself is visible, just about, through the December haze.  Her Majesty delivers an admirably 'chipper' performance, seemingly unaffected by the wintriness.  If the temperatures in London on that December day in 1975 matched the backdrop, one wonders whether Her Majesty was encouraged to perform the old filming trick of sucking ice cubes to combat the cold weather problem of visible, condensed breath.  It was a change, however, and the by now familiar surroundings of the Regency Room would return the following year.

Perhaps it could be said that Elizabeth II balances the bleakness of the backdrop with the warmth of her words.  Time and again over the years the Queen has returned to her deeply held view that  small, positive acts combine to make a greater whole;  as she eloquently puts it in this Broadcast, 'If enough grains of sand are dropped into one side of a pair of scales they will, in the end, tip it against a lump of lead'.  You don't have to be a hero, Elizabeth II seems to be saying, just try to do something good each day.  The Queen wants every positive contribution, however apparently small, to feel valued.

Trivia:

In addition to being the first to be filmed outdoors, this was the first Broadcast in which Elizabeth II delivered her entire speech standing up.  She would do so again on occasions in the 1980s, and between 2003 and 2012 the Queen would deliver ten consecutive Messages from an entirely standing position.


Elizabeth II's second, and (to date) only other outdoors Broadcast would be six years later, in 1981.

For the first time the Queen is without her emergency script in case of autocue failure.  By 1975 it appeared that Her Majesty had fully embraced the television age.

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The 1976 Broadcast

Location:  Buckingham Palace

Produced by:  BBC

Theme:  Recalling her visit to the United States in the year it had celebrated two hundred years since independence, Elizabeth II talks about the importance of reconciliation, which she describes as 'the product of reason, tolerance and love'.  Highlighting those who strive for reconciliation in cases of racial, religious and sectarian division, the Queen describes the efforts of such people as 'encouraging'.  Remembering that 'good spreads outwards and every little does help', Elizabeth II likens the search for reconciliation to the recovery of the earth following the famous drought which had occurred in Britain during the summer:  'who in Britain who saw the parched earth and empty reservoirs last summer would have believed that the grass would grow so strong, so green and so soon when the drought ended? When the conflict stops, peace can blossom just as quickly.'

Commentary:  In 1976 Queen Elizabeth II had turned fifty and at Christmas was about to embark on her Silver Jubilee year.  She had reigned through seven British prime ministers and several changes of government and was already seen as a fixed point of stability in a turbulent world.  It was this uncertain world which Her Majesty sought to address with her theme of reconciliation, using her highly successful tour of the United States during the year of its Bicentennial celebrations as an example of how bitter enemies can become good friends in a relatively short space of time.  When Elizabeth II states (as the camera moves to close-up for added emphasis) that the gift she would most appreciate in her Jubilee year 'is that reconciliation should be found wherever it is needed', that may sound impossibly pious and naive to some; but the following year the Queen recalled her words and indicated that she considered that it was a wish which, in many ways, had been granted.

Normal service resumed following the outdoors Broadcast of the previous year.  The Regency Room is given a cosy, 'sitting room' makeover with the Queen delivering her entire speech from a sofa  rather than from behind a desk.  This pleasing, homely look would set the standard for the next few years.  Footage from the royal tour of the United States, including the Queen meeting residents in Harlem, New York City, is played during the Broadcast.

The Queen herself makes an unusually bold concession to the styles of the era.  Wearing a bright yellow dress with over-sized collar, there is no escaping the fact that this was the 'high' 1970s.  The fashions of the decade would subsequently be ridiculed for a generation before, inevitably, coming round again.

Trivia:

If the sofa seen in this production is the same one that was used for part of the 1971 Broadcast, it had been re-upholstered in the intervening years. It was used again in 1979 in the same setting and in 2000 when it was evidently temporarily moved to the Spanish Room.  Thirty years later the same sofa (or at least an identical replacement) could be seen in the background in photographs taken in the Regency Room to mark Elizabeth II's eightieth birthday in 2006.

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The 1977 Broadcast

Location:  Buckingham Palace

Produced by:  BBC

Theme:  Elizabeth II recalls the Silver Jubilee celebrations of 1977, reflecting on the many events of the year which she and countless others had taken part in, as well as the large-scale tour of Britain and Commonwealth countries which she and the Duke of Edinburgh had undertaken during the year.  Recalling her hopes of reconciliation the previous year, Her Majesty thanks her people for their response, commenting that it had not been an 'impossible dream', and expresses her desire for reconciliation in Northern Ireland, which she had visited during her Jubilee tour.  The Queen observes of the Jubilee year that 'the great resurgence of community spirit which has marked the celebrations has shown the value of the Christian ideal of loving our neighbours. If we can keep this spirit alive, life will become better for all of us.'

Commentary:  The Silver Jubilee year of 1977 was a happy, successful and extremely busy one for Elizabeth II.  British Prime Minister James Callaghan had decided that a national celebration was needed to detract from the economic woes of the time and the result was the biggest royal event since the Queen's Coronation in 1953 and the first royal jubilee since the Silver Jubilee of King George V in 1935.  The centrepiece of the events had been a long weekend in June when the Queen had lit the first of a chain of beacons across the United Kingdom the evening before a a service of thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral on 7th June preceded by a spectacular procession through the crowd-lined streets of London where the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh were driven in the Gold State Coach, the first time it had been used since the Coronation.  During the year, the Queen and Duke also embarked on an extensive tour of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, the like of which has not been seen in a single year before or since.  However, it is the images of thousands of street parties which took place up and down the United Kingdom during the Bank Holiday weekend, where millions of ordinary Britons (including this blogger, then a pre-school child!) took part in the national jamboree, which endure in the popular memory.

Elizabeth II greets crowds on Jubilee Day, 1977

In the speech, in what would become a familiar tone for her Christmas messages in jubilee and major birthday years, Elizabeth II places the emphasis on how such celebrations bring out the best in others, rather than concentrating on herself, referring to the 'community spirit' which was evident during the year.

Building on the new look to the Regency Room 'set' which was introduced the previous year, the Queen, dressed in pale blue, sits alongside a small table in a setting which would essentially remain the same for the next few years.  In a new festive touch, Her Majesty is surrounded by a number of Christmas cards; the first time that cards had been seen in vision since the earliest live television broadcasts from Sandringham.  Photography follows the tested format of slowly zooming in on the Queen as she speaks before the camera pans out again to the long shot at the close.

Trivia:  

The 'icing on the cake' for the Queen in her Silver Jubilee year was that she became a grandmother for the first time.  Princess Anne gave birth to a son, Peter Phillips, in November;  young Peter would feature in the next year's Broadcast.

In addition to the Christmas broadcast, the Queen, along with the Duke of Edinburgh, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and Prince Charles, took part in the major BBC documentary Royal Heritage, broadcast to coincide with the Jubilee year.  The series was an exploration of the history of the monarchy presented by Sir Huw Wheldon.  Senior members of the royal family were interviewed or did presentations concerning their particular experiences or interests.  Particularly noteworthy was a presentation by Elizabeth II about the history of the Imperial State Crown. 

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