Review of Queen`s Castle, The

Introduction

Originally shown on BBC1, The Queen`s Castle was touted as one of the biggest Royal behind-the-scenes shows of recent years. Words like "unprecedented" were bandied about during the show`s original transmission and I would say they were not overstated when one finds the camera crew being shown around the estate by HRH Prince Philip.

This two-disc set is released by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment rather than BBC Video, and sadly one of the consequences of this is that the BBC`s pride in accessibility does not extend to this prestigious release - there are no Hard Of Hearing subtitles.

The four episodes shown on BBC1 are presented on the first disc, with the second given over to over two hours of additional material.

The programme is all about Windsor Castle and its vast estate, and follows the lives and jobs of the hundreds of people who make the Castle tick. Remarkably the people who inhabit the place seem to be straightforward folk. Nobody comes across as full-of-themselves, which you might expect from Royal hangers-on, courtiers and the like.

Whoops. Showing my Bolshie side.

The programme has that wonderful intimate air that this kind of BBC documentary does so well. If one thing has improved out of all recognition on television in recent years it has been the rise of the accessible documentary, and this is a prime example of the genre.

Video

Presented in its original 16:9 aspect ratio, the visual quality of the programme is a distinct improvement on its transmission. I saw the programme via cable, and the bitrate allocated was easily half that of the disc. That means details are sharp, colours are vivid and there`s not a single case of digital artefacting in sight. I think I`m right in stating that the series was shot on digital video and then filmised rather than being shot on 16mm.

Audio

The original Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround track is included as standard. There are no multilingual alternatives.

Features

The second disc consists of over two hours of additional material not included or extended from material included in the finished programme. Central to the material is extended footage detailing the preparations for the Royal Wedding of Charles and Camilla. Second is an extended version of Prince Philip`s guided tour around the Castle and its estate. More material from the exclusive interview with Prince Philip is included, as well as other interviews and interesting vignettes of behind-the-scenes life. The programme ends with a lengthy 3 minute beauty shot of a roaring fire in one of the Castle grates.

Conclusion

I thoroughly enjoyed this series when it was originally shown on BBC1. It is the sort of thing that the BBC does very well, but seems calculated to get up the backs of Republicans and Licence Fee Avoiders. Visually exquisite, voyeuristically fascinating, Royal-watchers will lap this one up. My only reservation is the lack of subtitling for the Hard of Hearing and wondering why the BBC let this series be licenced out rather than making their own prestigious release.