Bertie and Elizabeth: The Reluctant Royals - The Story of King George VI & Queen Elizabeth (2002)

James Wilby (Gosford Park) and Juliet Aubrey (Middlemarch) portray the reluctant royals who became king and queen of England when Edward VIII gave up the throne for the woman he loved, on Bertie & Elizabeth. Albert, Duke of York, called Bertie, married Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in 1923 after a storybook courtship. Expecting a life of genteel obscurity, they were thrust into the limelight in 1936 when Bertie's older brother, Edward VIII, abdicated to marry the twice-divorced American socialite Wallis Simpson. Shy, modest, and a habitual stutterer, Bertie was crowned King George VI just as his country faced the onslaught of World War II. With the help of his devoted Elizabeth, he rose magnificently to the challenge. Bertie & Elizabeth also stars Alan Bates (Love in a Cold Climate) as Bertie's father, King George V; Eileen Atkins (currently starring with Bates and Wilby in Gosford Park) as his mother, Queen Mary; Charles Edwards as Edward VIII; Amber Rose Sealey as Wallis Simpson; David Ryall as Winston Churchill; Robert Hardy (Lucky Jim) as President Franklin Roosevelt; and Corin Redgrave (Persuasion) as General Bernard Montgomery.

Likeable and informative

This is a tremendously likeable story of the courtship and lives of HRH Albert, Duke of York, the second son of King George V, and his wife and love of his life, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyons, youngest daughter of the Scottish, Earl of Strathmore. Vivacious Elizabeth caught the eye of Bertie soon after she "came out" into Society and he persued her until she agreed to become his wife. As only the second son, and never in a million years, expecting to be thrust into the spotlight, nervous stammerer Bertie and his gentle wife had foreseen a quiet future as Duke and Duchess of York, living a genteel life with their two daughters, Elizabeth and Margaret Rose, but, upon the abdication of Bertie's elder brother David who renounced his title of King Edward V111, in order to marry Wallis Simpson, the family's position was changed irrevocably to that of a major position on the world stage. The family remained in London for the duration of WW2, refusing to be separated, even if it meant that they were in real danger of bombing, and were loved by the people for facing the same dangers and hardship that they did. The strain of his position for which he had never been prepared or trained, almost certainly contributed to the King's early death in 1952, leaving Queen Elizabeth now the Queen Mother and a widow for around 50 years. The costuming in this video was well done and great use was made of actual footage throughout the show... a most enjoyable 120 minutes. October 6, 2007

Outstanding!

Makes one understand the things that the royal family went through during the abdication crisis. April 10, 2007

The Spare Heir...George VI... Takes The Reins....Excellent DVD

This review refers to "Bertie & Elizabeth" (DVD/WGBH Boston Video)

This production of "Bertie & Elizabeth" was originally broadcast as part of the "Masterpiece Theatre" series(seen on Public Television). James Wilby and Juliet Aubrey, do a wonderful job of portraying the younger brother and sister-in-law to Edward VIII, who would abdicate his throne to brother Bertie(becoming George VI), in favor of his love for the divorced American, Wallis Simpson.It is probably a good idea to view "Edward and Mrs. Simpson" before this one, as Edward and his love get a pretty harsh going over in this story.

Bertie & Elizabeth are portrayed as "the reluctant" King and Queen of England, both being unprepared to fill their roles. But they rise to the occasion, becoming both capable and adored by the people. Bertie even overcoming his fear of speaking because of a stutter.Adhering to his strict upbringing, he lived the more structured and traditional life of the Royals then his older brother, who even before Mrs. Simpson, was a bit of a Randy prince. Throughout the story we see in them the strengths that they have within them to lead a country through their loyalty and inspiration. Even refusing to leave the palace as it comes under attack during WWII. Then going on to pass on those strengths to their daughter Elizabeth, who has now sat on the throne for over 50 years, since her father's death.

I have to agree with the last reviewer who said, this production(at 1 hour and 45 min.) is just too short. All the other films on Royalty(Henry VIII, Edward The King, etc..) I have viewed so far, go into much more depth of the family, and the events of the times, and take several discs to tell the story of each.I usually got to spend at least a week with each Royal, viewing an episode a night. I would have liked to have had more time with this King and his Queen to get to know them and the events surrounding them, a little better.

The quality of the DVD is excellent. A sharp, clear picture with bright colors. I loved the period costumes, and the adding of some actual footage from some of the Royal parades, etc. The DVD also has some very nice features. First it is presented in the letterbox format, and I thought the sound was very good as well. You can access described video for the visually impaired. This is found on the third feature down on the main menu, access availability, which will take you to an on/off button for that. There is also Closed Captions. To get to this you must go through your TV(not DVD player) remote. So your TV must have the closed caption option available in the menu. Most TVs these days have that. There is also scene selection and access to the Masterpiece Theatre Web Site.

Not quite as enthralling or as in depth as it predecessors, but very much worth the view, and a good addition to your Royal collection.

Enjoy....Laurie
August 9, 2006

Wonderful movie, but it was too short.

This is a wonderful movie, and the main actors did a terrific job in portraying King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. The only thing I have against this movie is that it was too short. The director and writers should have added Princess Margaret's birth at Glamis, more of the trip to America and Canada, etc. Also, Queen Wilimmena was not the only royal that King George VI and Queen Elizabeth had to welcome and offer refuge...the rest of Queen Wilimmna's family as well as the King Hanakon of Norway and his family. August 3, 2006

Excellent Historical Drama

I highly recommend this movie to anyone interested in English history and monarchy. March 3, 2006

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