Brit Book Review: The Real Elizabeth – An Intimate Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Andrew Marr

This being the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year, there’s a whole host of books coming out about her that purport to tell her life story. The first of them is The Real Elizabeth – An Intimate Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Andrew Marr (in the UK the book is titled The Diamond Queen: Elizabeth II and Her People – which is much more accurate representation of what the book is about). It’s a pretty good read and I’ll go into it in more depth.

For those that aren’t familiar with him, Andrew Marr is a broadcast journalist in the UK best known for his documentaries on the history of modern Britain as well as a media personality who hosts a Sunday Current Affairs talk show called The Andrew Marr Show. He’s generally a good reporter and reliable storyteller, so I was looking forward to reading his take on the Queen.

The basic synopsis of the book is that it covers the history of modern Britain framed through her life and her reign. We get lots of back story related to her parents and grandparents and how a little known princess ended up becoming heir to the throne after the Abdication crisis. Many words are spent on this period of history but it’s important to get this back story so you understand the Queen’s worldview, which Marr insists is very different from the rest of modern Britain.

The book covers the main events in the Queen’s life, from her childhood, her time during the War, her Coronation and her reign through the volatility of 60′s, 70′s and 80′s Britain. It does not shy away from the disasters and the controversies. Many Royal watchers will be familiar with most of them but Marr provides some interesting tidbits and has sources that provide different perspectives on well known events (such as the Death of Diana).

All throughout Marr attempts to portray the personality of the Queen. But I think he rather fails because the Queen is supposed to be absent of personality. That’s her duty. Thus reading the book sometimes she’s comes off rather like a robot.

There are many interesting asides as Marr guides us through her day-to-day activities and all the arcane little traditions and conventions that have to be followed for the smooth operating of the British state (of which she is the head). There’s a whole chapter dedicated to the Royal Yacht Britannia how it defined her reign only to be scrapped in 1997. One amusing insight was that there was a secret plan, in the event of a nuclear war, to turn the yacht into a floating palace where the Queen could continue to run her kingdom by hiding in Scottish lochs.

While the book is an interesting read – sometimes it feels a bit like an obituary. The Queen is far from dead and will likely be with us for another 20 years more by going on the longevity of her family. So, it’s a little strange to be writing about her in this fashion. There are no explosive revelations in the book, no controversies, which is fine as that’s rather symbolic of the Queen’s modus operandi.

Her Majesty has had a profound affect on British society – yet most of that is simply due to just existing and being there. She’s a living symbol, not just of the British state but of Britain’s long history and heritage in these matters. She fulfills her duties admirably even in the face of controversy (usually created by her wayward children).

Really, reading the book made me rather jealous that we don’t have a monarchy. With the shambolic state of our political system, it would be rather nice and comforting to have an apolitical head of state who represents us a nation. Our head of state will always be a political person who only represents us for 4 years (or if we’re unlucky, 8). Perhaps that’s why British royalty is still so popular here. The Queen endures, she’s survived countless hostile governments, swings to the left and right. It’s rather amazing to think that her first Prime Minister was Winston Churchill.

The book ends in 2011 which saw the success of the Royal Wedding and looks at the optimistic future the Royal Family can expect. As someone who experienced the Royal Wedding first hand – it’s interesting to already read about it in a historical context.

If you’re at all interested in the Queen and in modern British history, I highly recommend this book. It’s a masterful read and any Anglophile will enjoy picking it up.