A girl becomes a Queen...
This illuminating serial charts the transformation of the young Victoria from spirited teenager to shy young bride to celebrated ruler of Britain and 'Mother of Europe'. But while her roles changed, her essential nature remained the same: vibrant, passionate, principled and fiercely independent.
Through extracts from Victoria's own diaries and letters, and dramatised episodes featuring the characters closest to her, we are given a thrilling insight into the thoughts and feelings of the woman behind the crown - and the secrets of her mind and heart. The key events of her life are revealed in a new perspective - from her coronation, which captured the heart of a nation; to her blissful wedding and honeymoon; the birth of her nine children and the death of her beloved Albert.
Adapted by acclaimed scriptwriter Juliet Ace and featuring a star cast including Adrian Lukis, Anna Massey and Christopher Cazenove, this magical drama paints a detailed portrait of Victoria's younger life, revealing some of the remarkable and long-lasting achievements of this extraordinary queen.
Cast
Victoria...Imogen Stubbs
Duchess of Kent...Anna Massey
Prince Albert...Adrian Lukis
Baroness Lehzen...Selina Cadell
Sir John Conroy/MP/Lord Aberdeen...John Rowe
Lord Melbourne...Christopher Cazenove
WAG/Prince Ernest/Page/Anson/Cubitt...Andrew Wincott
William IV/Stockmar/Peel...Terence Edmond
Prince of Wales Bertie/Paxton...Thomas Arnold
Princess Vicky/Helena...Clare Corbett
Prince of Wales Bertie (as a child)...George Allonby
Produced and directed by Cherry Cookson
Patricia Hodge stars as Mattie in Juliet Ace’s four linked dramas, written especially for Patricia’s voice, in which Mattie reflects on her life as a naval wife, an actress and as a mother and daughter. In these funny and beautifully observed performances we come to meet Mattie as she shares her hard-earned understanding of her life, in all its intimacy.Episodes are: 'The Captain’s Wife', broadcast 8 May 1998; 'Small Parts', first broadcast 21 August 2000; 'Skin', 15 March 2004 and the not previously broadcast episode: 'Upside Down in the Roasting Tin', in which memories of Christmas dinners past and present give the listener a poignant and entertaining sweep through Mattie’s mixed experiences of the festive season.
