The Times Queen Elizabeth II: Commemorating her life and reign 1926 – 2022

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An unauthorised book published in 2012 for the Diamond Jubilee by an American journalist who has also written lives of Princess Diana, the Kennedys, the Clintons, and Prince Charles, Elizabeth the Queen looks at both the public and personal side of her life. It reveals, for example, the tension provoked by her decision not to take her husband’s surname (Mountbatten) and her feelings about the collapse of Charles and Diana’s relationship. Brown is not an intellectual journalist, still less a historian, but she is a captivating storyteller,” wrote Peter Craven when he reviewed the former New Yorker editor’s take on today’s royals, “and she can be wonderful with the telling quote even though the upshot in this hugely overwritten book is far more scintillating about Diana and Charles and Camilla than it is about William and Kate, Harry and Meghan.” Reference Col 1 Times Books A-Z Astronomy Gardening National Parks National Trust Books Road Maps & Atlases World Atlases He has written several other biographies and histories, including acclaimed two accounts of Saudi Arabia, The Kingdom and Inside the Kingdom. Most recently he has published Battle of Brothers: William, Harry and the Inside Story of a Family in Tumult.

The Times Queen Elizabeth II by James Owen and Times Books The Times Queen Elizabeth II by James Owen and Times Books

The long years that the late Queen Elizabeth II reigned – the longest in British history – and the varied and various events of her family and public life have ensured that she is probably the most written about monarch ever. This biography by Ben Pimlott is generally considered the best political life of Elizabeth II. A former chairman of the Fabian Society — and biographer of Harold Wilson and Labour MP Hugh Dalton — Pimlott’s account of the Queen’s life is unsentimental. Updated in 2012 by Pimlott’s friend and colleague Peter Hennessy, it focuses on the Queen’s career as a constitutional monarch, her interventions in politics and the impact her leadership had on monarchy, government and diplomacy.The question is where to start now? Here is a selection of the many books about the life of the late Queen Elizabeth II. Some are more recent, including a couple from this year, while others were first published years ago. Pimlott was a political scientist and historian who had dabbled with a political career, written lives of British Labour figures, and in 1996 this whopper, to which he added five chapters for the Golden Jubilee in 2002. It was immediately acclaimed on publication and in his foreword to a 2012 Diamond Jubilee edition, historian Peter Hennessy said it was the “product of what happened when a leading political biographer and a top-flight historian of the 20th century ... took a long and serious look at the formation, the functions, the style and the adaptability of the lady whom we Brits of the post-war era were, and are, so fortunate to have as our Head of State”.

Queen Elizabeth ‘helped steer Boris Johnson towards Brexit deal’ Queen Elizabeth ‘helped steer Boris Johnson towards Brexit deal’

And now that her reign is over, you would be right to assume there will be more books to come. People may well open up more about her life and personality, but there are bound to be more assessments of her remarkable reign. He is a frequent lecturer on the monarchy and commentator on royal matters for American broadcasters. When Majesty was published, former New Statesman editor Anthony Howard wrote in The New York Times: “Lacey is historian and biographer in his own right as well as being a highly professional journalist – and though authentic source material on the Royal Family is scanty (no one is allowed to know even the names of the Queen’s dogs) he has methodically been through virtually everything that exists.”Published to mark Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee, this is really a collection of observational writings from an array of people such as Margaret Thatcher, Sebastian Coe, Cecil Beaton, Eleanor Roosevelt, Cliff Richard, Nicola Sturgeon and Margaret Whitlam about their personal encounters with or views of the Queen. Margaret had to find some sort of meaning to her life - read Craig Brown’s 99 Glimpses of Princess Margaret for an original take on her life – but her sister, despite perhaps being exasperated by her partying, drinking, and divorce, never really deserted her during her many difficulties. Poor, sad Margaret died only a few weeks before the Queen Mother, a double blow for the Queen. But according to Irving, former managing editor of Britain’s Sunday Times and inaugural editor of Conde Naste Traveller, to know the Queen is impossible. As he told Vanity Fair: “If you’re a biographer of the Queen, when you come to the end of the work of the biography, you ask yourself seriously and honestly, how much more do you understand of this person now than you did when you started the book? I had to say to myself, well, she’s still amazingly unknowable.”

The Times Queen Elizabeth II: A portrait of her 70-year reign

The late Queen played a key role in helping to solve the “Brexit impasse”, which allowed the UK to leave the European Union with a deal in 2019, a new book reveals. Bedell Smith, a former contribtuing editor to Vanity Fair, told the magazine that “one thing I tried to do was to show how isolated she was in her position as Queen and wife and mother. Even though she’s surrounded by people all the time, she’s always been alone in many ways.” Of course, he can’t ignore the massive changes she has weathered during her reign, and brings it bang up to date with discussion about the rift between the Sussexes and the rest of the royal family.Towards the end, in his consideration of the future he cites the Harvard political scientist Joseph Nye, who first identified the concept of soft power, calling her one of Britain’s core soft-power assets. “I think Brexit reduced British soft power in much of the world, in terms of influence, but it did not affect the cultural attraction of the Queen.” Elizabeth is said to have fallen in love with Philip when she met him at the age of 13. After Philip’s death, Philip and Elizabeth was revised to include more material about him, his influence and his legacy. Brandreth certainly interviewed Philip on occasions and noted that while the Duke of Edinburgh showed him friendliness, he did not offer friendship. Revision Col 3 Collins at Home | Support for schools Home tutors Letts Revision Collins4Parents Collins Book Sale Revision for students This account of the 70-year marriage that ended only with Philip’s death in 2021 is written by British broadcaster and former Conservative politician Gyles Brandreth, whose writings include a life of John Gielgud, books about words, and an account of Prince Charles’ relationship with Camilla Parker-Bowles. Following Philip’s death, the book was revised and updated as Philip: The Final Portrait (Coronet).