It is 1997, in London, England. Tony Blair’s New Labour Party wins the election in a landslide, Diana, Princess of Wales is killed in a car crash in France, the world is in shock and mourning and the British Royal Family is faced with an unprecendented situation. Within days the new, young and inexperienced Prime Minister must hold the country together. In the midst of it all, the media becomes both fiend and friend. Source: NDLA
Learning outcomes (students will be able to)
Language and communication
- Discuss a complex social/historical event in English using precise vocabulary for institutions, ideology, and media.
- Write an analytical response that integrates film evidence (scene choices, cinematography, dialogue) with contextual reasoning.
Culture, society, and critical literacy
- Explain how the film stages a tension between tradition and stability versus modern public expectations in a national crisis.
- Analyze the media’s role as both “friend and foe” during political legitimacy crises.
- Evaluate the effect of original television footage in a docudrama and what that does to viewer trust.
Materials and preparation
- Access to the film (The Queen, 2006) and NDLA resource page with guiding questions.
Key vocabulary (pre-teach and reuse)
Institutions & politics: constitutional monarchy, head of state, head of government, legitimacy, protocol, public mandate, civil service, advisory role
Ideologies & identities: traditionalist, anti-monarchist, moderniser, populist sentiment, national unity
Media literacy: tabloidization, framing, agenda-setting, public relations, soundbite, mediated emotion, spectacle, narrative control
Film language: docudrama, archival footage, mise-en-scène, diegetic/non-diegetic sound, close-up, cross-cutting, tonal shift
Before viewing:
Essential question
When a nation grieves publicly, what does it demand from its leaders—and who gets to define what is “appropriate”?
Students respond to statements (Agree/Disagree)
- “Public figures owe the public access to their emotions in a crisis.”
- “Tradition is a form of stability, not resistance.”
- “Media pressure is a legitimate democratic force.”
- “National unity requires symbolic leadership more than policy leadership.”
Quick comprehension check prompts:
- What is the difference between a monarch’s role and a PM’s role?
- Why might a royal family prefer privacy?
- Why might the public interpret privacy as indifference?
Part 2 — During viewing: evidence collection and interpretive discipline
Students often watch films “for plot.” This unit is stronger when they watch “for claims.” Frame the viewing as data collection.
Answer the questions found here. Films – Engelsk (SF) – NDLA
A. NDLA-guided questions (structured small groups)
Use NDLA’s question sets as the backbone for discussion and written thinking:
Short analytic writing
Instead of assigning a generic essay, frame this as a choice of high-quality essay questions (students pick one). This aligns well with exam-style writing and encourages ownership.
Reading a professional film review (The Guardian)
Text: “The Queen review – Helen Mirren’s eerie transformation in hugely enjoyable film” by Peter Bradshaw (The Queen review published 15 September 2006).
Purpose (for students working independently)
This reading helps you:
- see how a professional critic summarises a film without retelling the entire plot,
- identify the critic’s main argument about leadership, media, and tradition,
- collect quotable ideas you can agree or disagree with in your own analysis.
Instructions for students
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Read the article once for the overall message (don’t stop for unknown words).
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Read it a second time and underline:
- one sentence about the Queen as a leader,
- one sentence about Blair/New Labour,
- one sentence about the public or the media,
- one sentence where the critic uses a metaphor/symbol (hint: the stag).
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Answer the questions below in complete sentences. When possible, quote or paraphrase the article.
Questions for understanding (independent, comprehension-focused)
A. Main idea and overview
- What does the critic say the film is “revisiting,” and why does he describe that period as such a major media-political moment?
- According to the critic, what is the film’s overall tone (for example: humorous, sad, moving)? Find one phrase that shows this.
- What is the critic’s central judgement of Helen Mirren’s performance as the Queen? List two details he uses to explain why the transformation feels convincing.
B. Characters and power relationships
- How does the critic describe the Queen’s relationship to the public mood after Diana’s death? What words suggest the Queen feels pressured or threatened?
- How does the critic portray Tony Blair (and/or New Labour) in the crisis? Identify one phrase that shows Blair’s role in shaping events or public feeling.
- The critic points out moments he considers “best” in the film. Which moments does he highlight, and what seems to make them effective?
C. Plot element vs interpretation (critical reading)
- The critic says the film shows the government’s skill at shaping events “for its own ends.” What does that suggest about political communication in a crisis?
- The critic mentions that the Queen becomes more “opaque” at Balmoral and that we can’t hear everything she is thinking. How does that affect the viewer’s understanding of the Queen—does it increase sympathy, distance, or something else?
D. Symbolism and film meaning
- Describe the “stag” episode the critic discusses. What does he say it represents, and why does he call it “unsubtle” but still “unsentimental”?
- At the end, the critic claims the film leaves a feeling of sadness at “how little has changed.” What do you think he means has not changed: the monarchy, the media, politics, public emotion—or the relationship between them? Support your answer with one idea from the article.
Essay question (choose 1):
- Tradition and modernity: To what extent does The Queen portray tradition as a strength rather than a weakness in a modern society? Use film evidence and at least one technique (sound/camera/editing).
- The media as actor: NDLA suggests the media becomes both “friend and foe.” Argue whether the media functions more as a democratic corrective or as a destabilising force in the film’s crisis narrative.
- Character and institution: Analyze how the film develops Blair’s character in relation to the monarchy. What does the film suggest he learns—and what does he fail to understand?
- Docudrama credibility: Evaluate how archival footage shapes your trust in the film. Does it increase authenticity, manipulate emotion, or both?
- Public grief as performance: Is the film critical of the public’s emotional demands, or critical of the monarchy’s restraint? Make a nuanced argument that acknowledges both readings.
