For the previous 70 years, wedged in someplace between that first leftover-turkey sandwich and the Boxing Day Check, the Queen’s Christmas speech shaped an intrinsic a part of many Australians’ festive celebrations.
Now, for the primary time in most of our lifetimes, our longest-serving monarch is gone, and we have now been left to marvel in regards to the observations King Charles would have of this turbulent yr.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Christmas Broadcast typically introduced stability to a Commonwealth rocked by battle, pure catastrophe and political upheaval, to say nothing of the ructions within the monarchy itself.
It was one of many uncommon events when The Queen didn’t communicate on authorities recommendation. As a substitute, she gave her personal views on occasions and developments of concern each to her personally and to the broader basic public and Commonwealth.
For The Queen, the Broadcast was not merely an obligation to be fulfilled, however a chance to talk on to the general public, to react to their issues and to thank and reassure them.
Historical past of the Christmas Broadcast
The primary Christmas Broadcast was delivered by George V in 1932.
The comparatively untried medium of radio relayed The King’s message to the Empire from a small workplace at Sandringham to an viewers of 20 million at 3.05 pm on Christmas Day 1932, a practice carried on by his youngest son King George VI till his loss of life and subsequently by his grand-daughter Queen Elizabeth II.
In her first Christmas message in 1952, The Queen spoke of carrying on the custom handed on to her by the late King. This prolonged to utilizing the identical desk and chair as her father and grandfather had completed earlier than her.
The primary televised message was broadcast stay in 1957. The arrival of tv throughout The Queen’s reign gave an added dimension, permitting viewers to see the monarch in her personal residence, embellished for Christmas like many houses internationally.
The placement was normally Buckingham Palace, though recordings have been additionally made at Windsor and Sandringham. Footage from the yr’s royal occasions is usually proven, enabling the general public to see the highlights of the yr.
From 1960, Broadcasts have been recorded prematurely in order that the tapes might be despatched around the globe to Commonwealth nations, to be broadcast at a handy native time.
Right here in Australia, we see the Christmas message on Boxing Day at about 3pm, relying on the time zone.
Notable Broadcasts
The Queen was at all times acutely aware of her function as Head of the Armed Forces in her Christmas Broadcasts, and sometimes spoke of British and Commonwealth troops serving abroad over the Christmas interval and their households.
In 1990, The Queen spoke of the specter of battle within the Center East, and once more as battle continued in 2003, a particular Broadcast from the Family Cavalry Barracks in Windsor was organized at her request:
I need to draw consideration to the numerous servicemen and ladies who’re stationed removed from dwelling this Christmas. I am enthusiastic about their wives and youngsters and about their mother and father and mates.
The Queen’s Christmas Broadcast, 2003
Because the Christmas Broadcast was her personal private message to the nation, The Queen often shared private household particulars together with her listeners.
In her 1990 Christmas broadcast, she spoke of the glad household occasions which had taken place that yr, together with the celebration of her mom’s 90th birthday and the christening of Princess Eugenie.
In 2002, additionally a Jubilee yr, she spoke of her grief on the loss of life of The Queen Mom and Princess Margaret, thanking the general public for his or her messages of assist.
In every of her Jubilee years – 1977, 2002 and 2012 The Queen used the Christmas Broadcast to thank the general public for his or her half within the festivities. In 2012 she mentioned:
This previous yr has been one among nice celebration for a lot of. The passion which greeted the Diamond Jubilee was, in fact, particularly memorable for me and my household. It was humbling that so many selected to mark the anniversary of an obligation which handed to me sixty years in the past.
The Queen’s Christmas Broadcast, 2012
The monarch’s last handle to her public was on Christmas Day in 2021. Forward of her Platinum Jubilee in 2022, The Queen spoke of her grief on the lack of her “beloved” Prince Philip and her unhappiness for individuals who had additionally misplaced family members, her anticipation for the Commonwealth Video games, and her gratitude for 70 years on the throne.
She was nonetheless stuffed with hope for the long run.
Technological advances imply that viewers have a selection to observe on tv, through radio or web. Whereas it is now extra accessible than ever, the timing of the Christmas Broadcast stays at 3.00pm as a set level within the schedule yearly.
Transcripts from all of the earlier Christmas Broadcasts can be found here.
