Future historians may be bemused that the last words Queen Elizabeth II’s subjects heard her speak on TV were “Thank you very much” to platinum jubilee greetings from Paddington Bear in a spoof appearance during BBC coverage of the monarch’s 70 years.
Her valedictory TV speaking role, though, feels fitting for the first UK head of state of the mass television age, who learned to turn the medium to a variety of purposes, solemn and jocular. Surely aware that she would rank as one of the three great queens in British history – with Victoria and the first Elizabeth – she seems to have distinguished herself from predecessors by demonstrating a sense of fun, of which co-starring with the Peruvian bear can be seen as the glorious conclusion.
