The Queen

Samantha Bond takes on the role of the Queen in this second epiosde.

Britain came as close to becoming a republic in the early 1970s as it has ever done in modern times. The polls recorded the highest figures ever for those who were opposed to the monarchy. For the first time, the royal family was under pressure to be accountable to the people, in terms of how they lived their lives and spent their money.

The country was beset with industrial action, rising unemployment, inflation and - on 14 November 1973, the day of Princess Anne's marriage to Captain Mark Philips - a state of emergency was declared. There was even talk of putting troops on to the streets to calm the situation: the first time this would have happened since the General Strike, nearly half a century earlier.

This episode examines how the Queen, two decades into her reign, faced her greatest challenges yet, and was at her most vulnerable. Governments came and went, and the Queen had to make friends of her enemies across the political divide.

Meanwhile there was an ongoing terrorist threat from the IRA carrying out murderous bomb attacks on the British mainland; the civil list was running out; the Queen was desperately short of money, and there was a dangerous kidnap attempt on Princess Anne, which resulted in two people being shot.

Examining a little-known period of the Queen's reign, this film reveals just how much danger she and her family were in and how - ultimately - the Queen, with her quiet diplomacy, triumphed.