Elizabeth R: A Year in the Life of the Queen

The film was made by BBC to mark the Queen's Ruby Jubilee.[4] It was directed and produced by Edward Mirzoeff.[5] Mirzoeff co-wrote the script with Antony Jay, who had also written the script for the Royal Family (1969).[3][6] The programme was narrated by Ian Holm, and Rachel Portman composed the music.[7]

Filming took place over 18 months.[8] The Royal family watched and approved of the documentary before it was broadcast on television.[9] A VHS video was released in 1992.[8]

The script of the programme was later published as a book with the same title.[3][10]

The film aired on 6 February 1992, the 40th Accession Day of the Queen, and it was also broadcast in more than 25 countries around the world.[11] It aired on PBS in the United States on 16 November 1992.[9]

It contains a wide range of royal activities by the Queen in 1991 and provides various firsts such as voiceover commentary by the Queen.[12] It shows royal family gatherings, her state visit to the United States, a pony ride with her grandchildren at Balmoral Castle and the preparations for a banquet at Windsor Castle among the others. It also displays meetings of the Queen with a number of significant political figures, including Francesco Cossiga, Edward Heath, Ronald Reagan and Lech Walesa.[9][12] The Queen is also shown with her mother, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, at the Epsom Derby.[9]

The film mostly received positive reviews, including those from the Queen herself.[9] The Queen organized a party for the crew at Buckingham Palace after watching the film before its public broadcast.[9] It gained the largest audience for a documentary in the history of British television and was watched by more than half of the British population in 1992.[8][9] The film won an award.[13] Robert Hardman of the Spectator argued that Antony Jay, the script writer, redefined the function of the British Monarch through this documentary.[13] However, Jeff Silverman of Variety said that the film did not refer to any familial troubles and added "God save the queen; the BBC couldn't."[4]

Its VHS copy became one of the fastest selling videos in the United Kingdom.[8]