A major two-part documentary series offers a unique and personal insight into the life and work of The Duke of Edinburgh.
Over the past six decades as consort to the Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh has been a constant figure in the lives of the British people, a fixed point in a changing landscape. But he still remains something of an enigma.
Bombastic and autocratic say his critics. Colourful and stimulating say his admirers. Famous for his so-called gaffes, while some of his initiatives have shown him to be a man ahead of his time, such as The Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme, which has been an outstanding success and imitated around the world.
Granted unparalleled access over recent months, ITV has followed the Duke, producing a fascinating chronicle of the solo portfolio HRH has carved out for himself. The films include an exclusive conversation between the Duke and Sir Trevor McDonald at the Duke’s Sandringham private estate and never-before-seen cine footage of his travels around the world, taken from private film archive which he shot himself.
For the past 50 years the Duke has been a keen conservationist, with International President of the World Wide Fund for Nature amongst his roles. Soon after being released from hospital having been treated for a chest infection, the Duke invited Sir Trevor McDonald for a tour of the Sandringham private estate and the conservation projects he has initiated there, plus to talk on camera about his life’s work.
During his conversation with Sir Trevor, the Duke spoke passionately about this conservation work, which he has championed around the world – as well as in his own back garden at Sandringham.
“Conservation is not a romantic business, it’s a very practical business - trying to ensure as many different species of wildlife can exist, which means in some cases controlling some so the others can have a better chance,” he said.
The Duke of Edinburgh also puts into practice his conservation beliefs. For example, he was one of the first to drive an electric car, and he installed solar panels at Sandringham as far back as the 1970s, before it was fashionable to do so. Many of the fields on the estate have big margins at the edges which remain uncultivated in order to encourage wildlife, and the Duke implemented a programme of hedge-planting some 20 years ago to encourage birds and other wildlife.
At 86-years-old, the Duke shows no signs of slowing his commitment to public life. Cameras follow HRH on a range of royal visits and appointments including one for the Commonwealth Heads of Government in Uganda last November, where the Duke squeezed a flying visit by light aircraft to the Queen Elizabeth National Park, which he first visited with the Queen back in 1954. Cameras also film HRH at the recent state visit of French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his new bride Carla Bruni. Throughout the programmes several eminent individuals including Sir David Attenborough, journalist and broadcaster Andrew Neil, and Charles Clarke MP offer their assessment on the contribution the Duke has made to widely differing areas of public life.
Charles Clarke said: “The Duke of Edinburgh is an example of commitment to public service who has kept up to date in a very fast changing world. He’s a very important model.”
Andrew Neil said: “The world’s not fair. And if the press concentrates more on the Duke’s gaffes than on his good charitable works then I guess that’s just the way the world is.”
He adds: “Prince Philip is not a man who forgets grudges and I think he bears them pretty well. It is something rather endearing. Given that so much of the British upper class put on a false image, if he’s got a grudge against you he let’s you know. Not necessarily in a rude way, he just snubs you.”
Monday 12 May 2008 9:00pm - 10:00pm on ITV1.
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