The Queen and Her Prime Ministers

The Balance of Power in the UK

No other head of state has been in power for as long as Queen Elizabeth, no other ruler has had such a lasting impact on our epoch.

The story of Her Majesty is unique. She shook hands with Eisenhower and Obama, discussed state secrets with Churchill and Blair, marvelled at the first flickering black and white television images, and saw the arrival of the iPad.

As head of state of the United Kingdom, the sovereign symbolises a power structure nearly a thousand years old. Every Wednesday, nervously sweating Prime Ministers must report to Buckingham Palace for an audience with the Queen about the planned political events of the week - despite the fact that she has no direct political influence. Is this a meaningless ritual or the manifestation of a close relationship between representative and political power?

The Queen has accompanied twelve Prime Ministers through their terms of office, sometimes with sympathy, sometimes with distinct distance. Much has changed during her 60 years on the throne, apart from one thing: The Prime Ministers come and go, the Queen stays.

This is the first major documentary investigating the fine balance of power between Queen Elizabeth II and her Prime Ministers. An exciting tale of power and representation - and a nosy glance into the inner sanctum of Buckingham Palace...