Margaret: The Rebel Princess

MAY I PRESENT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, MY IMPERSONATION, IN 11 SECONDS FLAT, BEFORE YOUR VERY EYES, OF HER ROYAL HIGHNESS, PRINCESS MARGARET!

WOMAN: SHE WAS THE QUEEN'S SISTER, BUT SHE DID THINGS WHICH NOBODY ELSE IN THE ROYAL FAMILY HAD DONE.

WOMAN 2: WHAT PEOPLE OBJECT TO IS ONE MINUTE, SHE'S BEING VERY GRAND AND EXPECTING PEOPLE TO CURTSEY, AND THE NEXT, SHE'S IN BLACK LEATHER ON A MOTORBIKE.

PRINCESS MARGARET: SINCE THE AGE OF 17, I'VE BEEN MISREPORTED AND MISREPRESENTED.

WOMAN 3: SHE BLAZED A TRAIL BY MARRYING A PHOTOGRAPHER.

EVERYONE SAID, "THIS IS EXTRAORDINARY.

IT'S SO UNSUITABLE."

MAN: SHE WAS VERY MODERN, AND SHE WANTED TO BE OUT THERE AND KNOW WHAT LIFE WAS ABOUT.

MAN 2: THE COUNTRY AROUND THE ROYAL FAMILY WAS BEGINNING TO CHANGE, BUT THEY'RE NOT CHANGING, AND AT SOME POINT, SHE DECIDES, "I WANT OUT, I WANT TO GET OUT OF THE CAGE."

MAN 3: PRINCESS MARGARET SAID IF THERE'S A GOOD PRINCESS, THERE HAS TO BE A BAD ONE, AND THAT WAS HER ROLE IN LIFE, TO BE THE BAD ONE.

MAN 4: WELL, SHE WAS A TRAILBLAZER AND SHE WAS A LITTLE BIT OF A REBEL.

HA HA!

SHE WANTED TO HAVE THE LIFE, BUT SHE ALSO WANTED TO HAVE A NORMAL LIFE.

MAN 5: ON THE ONE HAND, SHE LIVED A LIFE OF EXTRAORDINARY PRIVILEGE, BUT IN THE END, MARGARET BECAME A CASUALTY OF THE SYSTEM.

MAN: THIS WAS MY FIRST BIOGRAPHY, AND I SAID, "IF WE START, OBVIOUSLY, LET'S DO IT CHRONOLOGICALLY," AND SHE SAID, "NO, LOOK, DON'T GO INTO ALL THAT BUSINESS "OF CHILDHOOD, AND DON'T BOTHER SAYING THERE WAS A STORM ON THE NIGHT OF MY BIRTH."

[THUNDERCLAP] HMM.

MAKE A NOTE: "NOTE TO SELF.

HMM, GOING TO BE DIFFICULT, THIS ONE."

MAN: WHEN SHE DID APPEAR, THE QUEEN MOTHER WROTE, "THE DAUGHTER NUMBER TWO "HAS GOT LARGE, BLUE EYES AND A WILL "OF IRON, WHICH IS ALL THE "EQUIPMENT THAT A LADY NEEDS, "AND AS LONG AS SHE CAN DISGUISE HER WILL AND USE HER EYES, THEN ALL WILL BE WELL."

THE BIG CHANGING POINT IN ALL THEIR LIVES CAME IN 1936, WHEN EDWARD VIII ABDICATED TO MARRY MRS. SIMPSON.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: THE BRITISH EMPIRE FACES AN EXTRAORDINARY CRISIS AMID IDEAS OF A KING SACRIFICING HIS THRONE FOR ROMANCE.

EDWARD SAYS SHE MAKES HIM HAPPY.

VICKERS: ABSOLUTELY NOBODY THOUGHT HE WAS GOING TO DO THAT, AND INDEED, THE DUKE OF YORK-- FATHER OF PRINCESS ELIZABETH AND PRINCESS MARGARET-- HAD NO IDEA THAT HE WAS LIKELY TO BE PROPELLED ONTO THE THRONE UNTIL, REALLY, ABOUT 3 WEEKS BEFORE IT HAPPENED.

MAN: ALBERT FREDERICK ARTHUR GEORGE IS NOW BECOME GEORGE VI."

VICKERS: THEY THEN MOVED VERY SWIFTLY OUT OF 145 PICCADILLY INTO BUCKINGHAM PALACE, AND THEY HAD TO SORT OF TAKE OVER VERY FAST.

MAN: AT HER BIRTH, SHE WAS FOURTH IN LINE TO THE THRONE.

THEN, WHEN HER FATHER TOOK OVER, SHE WENT FROM FOURTH TO SECOND IN LINE TO THE THRONE VERY, VERY QUICKLY, SO HER LIFE, IN THAT WAY, PEAKED AGED 6, WHICH IS KIND OF RARE FOR A HUMAN BEING.

ROY PLOMLEY: WHEN YOUR FATHER ASCENDED THE THRONE-- HIS MAJESTY, KING GEORGE VI-- THERE MUST HAVE BEEN A CERTAIN AND CONFUSING CHANGE IN LIFESTYLE FOR A LITTLE GIRL OF 6.

PRINCESS MARGARET: YES, IT WAS VERY SURPRISING.

MY FIRST IMPRESSION WAS OF HAVING TO LEAVE HOME AND GO TO BUCKINGHAM PALACE, WHICH WE DIDN'T KNOW VERY WELL, AND BATTLING THROUGH THESE ENORMOUS, LOVING CROWDS THAT WERE SURROUNDING MY FATHER AND MOTHER.

I THINK THEY WERE GREATLY RELIEVED TO HAVE SOMEBODY WHO THEY COULD DEPEND ON AGAIN.

PLOMLEY: YES, AND BUCKINGHAM PALACE ITSELF MUST BE A VERY DAUNTING PLACE FROM ITS SHEER SIZE.

PRINCESS MARGARET: WELL, NO, BUCKINGHAM PALACE IS A VERY COZY HOUSE.

WOMAN: WHEN PRINCESS MARGARET AND THE QUEEN WERE CHILDREN, THEIR FATHER WAS A KING EMPEROR OF HALF THE WORLD.

I MEAN, HALF THE WORLD WAS PINK, AND THEY WERE VERY, VERY GRAND.

WOMAN: I THINK SHE LOVED BEING ROYAL, AND I THINK SHE WANTED PEOPLE TO BE REMINDED OF THAT AND NOT TO TREAT HER LIKE AN ORDINARY PERSON.

ONCE, SHE PUT ME IN MY PLACE.

I SAID TO HER, "OH, HOW IS YOUR FATHER?"

AND THERE WAS A PAUSE AND SHE SAID, "ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT THE KING?"

I SAID "YES.

OH, SORRY, MA'AM."

[LAUGHS] "HOW IS THE KING, HIS MAJESTY?"

OR SOMETHING.

LADY ANNE: WELL, I KNEW PRINCESS MARGARET WHEN I WAS VERY, VERY SMALL BECAUSE MY FATHER WAS A GREAT FRIEND OF THE KING.

I GREW UP AT HOLKHAM, AND BECAUSE HOLKHAM IS SO NEAR SANDRINGHAM-- IT'S ONLY 8 MILES AWAY-- WE USED TO MEET ON THE BEACH AND GO SWIMMING TOGETHER.

WELL, SHE WAS GREAT FUN, PRINCESS MARGARET.

SHE WAS QUITE NAUGHTY, AND THE QUEEN WAS ALWAYS SAYING, "MARGARET, DON'T DO THAT" OR "YOU SHOULDN'T DO THAT" AND "ANNE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

OR-- AND THEN WE USED TO SCURRY OFF IN SORT OF SCREAMS OF LAUGHTER AND GO AND HIDE SOMEWHERE.

PLOMLEY: YOU JOINED YOUR SISTER IN LESSONS BY A GOVERNESS.

DID YOU MISS THE COMPANY OF OTHER CHILDREN?

DID YOU FEEL THAT YOU WERE BEING LEFT OUT OF A GREAT DEAL OF COMPANIONSHIP?

PRINCESS MARGARET: WELL, NO, BECAUSE MY SISTER AND I WERE VERY CLOSE, ALTHOUGH SHE IS NEARLY 5 YEARS OLDER THAN ME.

WE NEVER DID LESSONS TOGETHER.

WE ALWAYS DID LESSONS SEPARATELY.

PLOMLEY: AND LATER, DID YOU STUDY CONSTITUTIONAL HISTORY?

PRINCESS MARGARET: NO, I DIDN'T; MY SISTER DID.

WOMAN: SHE SAID TO ME, "THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME I REMEMBER "OR THOUGHT OR REALIZED "THAT MY SISTER WAS GOING TO BE QUEEN, "AND I--I WOULDN'T REALLY BE PART OF... OF WHAT SHE WAS GOING TO DO."

IT HIT HER QUITE HARD THAT THEIR LIVES WERE GOING TO BE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT.

PRINCESS ELIZABETH: THOUSANDS OF YOU IN THIS COUNTRY HAVE HAD TO LEAVE YOUR HOMES.

MY SISTER, MARGARET ROSE, AND I FEEL SO MUCH FOR YOU, AND WE ARE BOTH GOING TO SAY GOOD NIGHT TO YOU.

COME ON, MARGARET.

PRINCESS MARGARET: GOOD NIGHT, CHILDREN.

PRINCESS ELIZABETH: GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL.

ADULT PRINCESS MARGARET: SUDDENLY WE WERE ASKED TO PACK AND MOVE TO WINDSOR.

PLOMLEY: TO THE CASTLE.

TO THE CASTLE, WHEN THE NAZIS INVADED BELGIUM AND HOLLAND BECAUSE THEY WERE GETTING RATHER CLOSE.

AND WE PACKED FOR THE WEEKEND AND STAYED FOR 5 YEARS.

[CHILDREN LAUGHING] DURING THE BOMBING, OF COURSE, WE WEREN'T ALLOWED TO GO VERY FAR FROM THE HOUSE, IN CASE THERE WAS AN AIR RAID.

AND THE USUAL SORT OF PATHETIC ATTEMPT TO DEFEND THE CASTLE-- THEY DUG TRENCHES AND PUT UP SOME RATHER FEEBLE BARBED WIRE.

AND THE FEEBLE BARBED WIRE, OF COURSE, WOULDN'T HAVE KEPT ANYBODY OUT, BUT IT KEPT US IN.

[CROWD CHEERING] MAN: COMING OUT OF THE WAR, MARGARET'S ESSENTIALLY STILL TRAPPED IN THIS CAGE WITH THE WHOLE MONARCHY SYSTEM... [ALL CHANTING "WE WANT THE KING"] IRVING: WITH GEORGE VI A MUCH-LOVED FIGURE AND THESE TWO YOUNG GIRLS, WHILE THE ELDEST ONE UNEXPECTEDLY ALREADY BEING GROOMED TO BE QUEEN, AND MARGARET THE YOUNGER SISTER WONDERING WHAT'S HER ROLE, WHAT'S IN IT FOR HER.

IRVING: PETER TOWNSEND WAS A VERY COURAGEOUS PILOT IN THE WAR IN THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN.

HE'D BEEN IN AND SURVIVED ONE OF THE GREATEST BATTLES IN THE HISTORY OF THE COUNTRY.

AT THE END OF THE WAR, THIS DREAMBOAT OF A GUY TURNS UP AS AN EQUERRY TO THE KING.

FIRST THING ABOUT EQUERRY TO THE KING IS YOU HAVE TO BE WITH HIM ALL THE TIME.

HE MAKES SURE THAT ALL THE ARRANGEMENTS FOR WHAT THE KING DOES DURING THE DAY ARE WORKED OUT PROPERLY.

I DON'T THINK HIS MARRIAGE WAS IN TROUBLE UNTIL HE TOOK ON HIS JOB AT THE PALACE.

I THINK THE JOB WAS SO ALL-CONSUMING THAT HIS WIFE BECAME ALMOST LIKE A WIDOW, THAT HE WAS NEVER PRESENT, NEVER THERE.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: LONDON WAS STILL UNDER SNOW, AND THE WEATHER WAS STILL EXTREMELY COLD WHEN THE ROYAL FAMILY LEFT BUCKINGHAM PALACE ON THEIR WAY TO WATERLOO.

LADY ANNE: THEY WENT ON THESE AMAZING TRIPS TO SOUTH AFRICA... AND THEY TOOK THEIR HORSES WITH THEM SO THAT EVERY MORNING AND EVENING, THEY WOULD STOP AND GO RIDING.

IT WAS QUITE ROMANTIC, AND OF COURSE, PETER TOWNSEND WENT RIDING WITH THEM, AND THEN THAT, I THINK, IS WHEN SHE SORT OF FELL IN LOVE.

LADY ANNE: WELL, SHE MUST HAVE BEEN...

I DON'T KNOW.

WAS SHE 16?

HE WAS--I MEAN, HE WAS SO MUCH OLDER THAN HER.

I DON'T THINK THE KING WOULD HAVE APPROVED AT ALL BECAUSE, IN THOSE DAYS, I MEAN, PETER WAS WHAT WAS CALLED "STAFF."

HE WAS MARRIED WITH CHILDREN.

OF COURSE, THE KING WOULDN'T HAVE APPROVED.

HE'D HAVE BEEN HORRIFIED.

BROWN: AFTER THE QUEEN GOT MARRIED, PRINCESS MARGARET LIVED WITH HER MOTHER, WHICH WAS SOMETIMES A KIND OF TRICKY RELATIONSHIP, AND I THINK ONE OF THE POINTS OF FRICTION WAS SHE LED THIS RATHER LOUCHE LIFE-- PARTYING, GOING OUT LATE, GETTING HANGOVERS, YOU KNOW, MISSING THINGS.

I THINK THAT MANY YOUNG PEOPLE WOULD AGREE WITH ME THAT IT IS DIFFICULT TO GET THE RIGHT BALANCE BETWEEN WORK AND LEISURE.

VICKERS: THE QUEEN MOTHER HAD ALWAYS PUT DUTY FIRST.

I MEAN, DUTY WITH ENJOYMENT; I MEAN, BUT DUTY FIRST AND THEN MAKE THE DUTY ENJOYABLE... NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: AND THE QUEEN, WEARING POWDER BLUE, LOOKED FIRST AT A STALL OF GIANT STRAWBERRIES.

VICKERS: AND I'M AFRAID PRINCESS MARGARET WASN'T AS ROBUST.

[CROWD CHEERING] VICKERS: I IMAGINE SHE PROBABLY WAS BORED BY QUITE A NUMBER OF THE THINGS SHE WAS BEING ASKED TO DO.

PRINCESS MARGARET: I AM DELIGHTED TO BE BACK IN CAMBERWELL AGAIN, ESPECIALLY SO BECAUSE I AM HERE TO OPEN THIS SPLENDID BLOCK OF FLATS.

VICKERS: BUT I KNOW THAT SHE FELT THAT SHE COULD HAVE DONE SO MUCH MORE WITH HER LIFE HAD SHE HAD A BETTER EDUCATION.

LADY JANE: AS A GIRL, SHE AND THE QUEEN WERE VERY CLOSE, BUT, OF COURSE, THEIR LIVES CHANGED BECAUSE EVERYBODY KNEW THAT PRINCESS ELIZABETH WOULD BE QUEEN, AND THE QUEEN HAD ENORMOUS RESPONSIBILITIES.

SHE WOULD DO VERY IMPORTANT THINGS.

PRINCESS MARGARET DIDN'T REALLY HAVE A PROPER ROLE, YOU SEE.

I THINK SHE WAS AFRAID OF BEING BELITTLED, YOU KNOW.

BUT WHAT ROLE CAN YOU HAVE NEXT TO THE QUEEN?

I DON'T KNOW.

I MEAN, SHE LOVED THE BALLET AND WAS VERY ARTISTICALLY INCLINED, AND SHE WAS INTELLIGENT, BUT IT WAS NEVER SORT OF PUT TO ANY GOOD USE.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: THIS IS THE COUNTESS OF DERBY SCHOOL AT BOOTLE--VERY SPACIOUS, VERY UP-TO-DATE, WITH ACCENT ON DOMESTIC SCIENCE AND DRESSMAKING.

VERY USEFUL WHEN THEY GET MARRIED.

LADY JANE: I THINK THAT'S ALL THAT WAS EXPECTED OF HER-- DO GOOD WORK AND MARRY SOMEBODY AND HAVE LOTS OF LITTLE PRINCESSES.

WOMAN: UNLIKE WHAT OFTEN IS SAID OF THE QUEEN, WHO WAS APPARENTLY--IS NOT THAT INTERESTED IN FASHION, PRINCESS MARGARET DEFINITELY WAS.

WHEN SHE WAS 18, SHE DID A TRIP THAT PROBABLY A LOT OF GIRLS DREAMT OF.

SHE WENT TO PARIS, BUT SHE HAD THE SORT OF WELL-PUBLICIZED VISIT TO DIOR, WHO INTRODUCED THE SO-CALLED NEW LOOK.

CHRISTIAN DIOR WAS ABSOLUTELY FASCINATED BY PRINCESS MARGARET.

LADY ANNE: WELL, THE NEW LOOK JUST SUITED SOMEBODY LIKE PRINCESS MARGARET ABSOLUTELY TO A TEE BECAUSE OF THIS TINY WAIST, AND SHE HAD QUITE A NICE BOSOM.

I REMEMBER BEING VERY ENVIOUS.

BEHLEN: AND THAT WAS PRINCESS MARGARET'S ACTUAL DRESS.

THE WAIST IS 21 1/2 INCHES.

I MEAN, IT'S ABSOLUTELY TINY AND SHE LOOKED SUPER GLAMOROUS, AND I THINK THAT'S THE SORT OF LOOK YOU HADN'T ASSOCIATED FOR A WHILE WITH THE BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY.

BEHLEN: SHE WAS REALLY, REALLY PHOTOGRAPHED A LOT, AND SHE BECAME AN ICON.

SHE WENT TO ITALY, AND PEOPLE WERE JUST TOTALLY HOUNDING HER.

THEY ACTUALLY BROKE INTO HER HOTEL ROOM TO FIND OUT WHAT NAIL VARNISH SHE WAS WEARING, AND THAT WAS REPORTED IN THE PRESS.

THAT WASN'T EXPECTED.

IN ENGLAND, THE PRESS WAS ALWAYS MUCH MORE REVERENT, AND I THINK IT WAS A BIT OF A SHOCK.

WARWICK: CECIL BEATON, WHO WAS PREPARING TO PHOTOGRAPH PRINCESS MARGARET WHEN SHE WAS 19, SAID, "PRINCESS MARGARET IS GREAT NEWS VALUE.

"SHE'S GROWN UP, AN INDEPENDENT CHARACTER, "SHOWING MORE SIGNS OF INTEREST IN UNCONVENTIONAL LIFE "THAN ANY MEMBER OF THE ROYAL FAMILY SINCE EDWARD, PRINCE OF WALES."

SHE LIKES DRESSING UP, FLIRTATIONS, GOING TO NIGHTCLUBS UNTIL ALL HOURS.

HER PRESS IS RATHER SCANDALOUS.

SHE WAS THIS KIND OF LIBERATING FIGURE FOR YOUNG WOMEN.

PLOMLEY: NOW LET'S GET BACK TO MUSIC.

PRINCESS MARGARET: WELL, THIS IS A RECORD-- QUITE AN OLD RECORD, I THINK, ABOUT 1948-- WHEN I WAS A YOUNG THING AND QUITE ENJOYING LIFE, CALLED "ROCK, ROCK, ROCK."

MAN: THEY CALLED IT ROCK, ROCK, ROCK AND IT STARTED IN KANSAS CITY LADY JANE: SHE WAS A REAL NIGHT BIRD.

WE WOULD END UP IN GROUPS, GOING OUT TO-- MAYBE TO THE 400 IF YOU WERE GOING TO DANCE, AND THAT'S WHEN I REALLY GOT TO KNOW HER WELL.

SHE LOVED BEING THE CENTER OF ATTENTION, AND WE'D ALL STAND ROUND THE PIANO AND SHE WOULD PLAY.

SHE KNEW ALL THE MUSIC FROM ALL THE LATEST MUSICALS.

SHE'D GET--USED TO GET RECORDS SENT FROM AMERICA.

LADY ANNE: MY COMING-OUT DANCE WAS ONE OF THE FIRST AFTER THE WAR, AND THE KING AND QUEEN AND PRINCESS MARGARET, I MEAN, THEY ALL CAME OVER TO MY DANCE AT HOLKHAM.

IT WAS WHITE TIE AND TAILS, YOU KNOW.

WE WERE EXPECTED TO MARRY THE RIGHT TYPE OF PERSON, YOU KNOW.

WOMAN: I GUESS, FROM THE ARISTOCRACY?

YES, ABSOLUTELY, YEAH.

LADY ANNE: THERE WERE WEEKEND PARTIES, THERE WERE DANCES IN LONDON.

WE HAD DIFFERENT BOYFRIENDS.

I MEAN, SHE LOVED MEN, AND THERE WAS A BIT OF SNOGGING, A BIT OF HEAVY PETTING, SHALL WE SAY, BUT, I MEAN, WE DIDN'T SLEEP WITH THEM.

FAR TOO FRIGHTENED.

HEH HEH!

WOMAN: I THINK LOTS OF THESE YOUNG MEN WERE MADLY IN LOVE WITH HER.

THERE WAS ALWAYS A CROWD OF THEM AROUND HER, EGGING HER ON TO SAY OUTRAGEOUS THINGS.

SHE COULD BE IMPERIOUS, AND SHE WOULD SWITCH FROM A KIND OF MAGNETIC CHARM TO A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT MODE, AND THERE WAS ONE FAMOUS OCCASION WHEN SHE WAS AT SOME GATHERING OR OTHER, AND I THINK IT WAS THE HOST-- WHO SHE DIDN'T PROBABLY PARTICULARLY FANCY-- SAID, "MA'AM, SHALL WE OPEN THE DANCING?"

AND SHE SAID, "YES, BUT NOT WITH YOU."

LADY JANE: THE SORT OF PEOPLE SHE WOULD HAVE BEEN EXPECTED TO MARRY WOULD HAVE BEEN MANY OF THESE YOUNG MEN WITH TITLES-- LORD THIS AND THE DUKE OF THIS.

BUT I JUST FELT THAT THEY WEREN'T INTERESTING TO HER BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T INTERESTED IN THE SORT OF THINGS SHE WAS INTERESTED IN; I.E., ARTISTIC THINGS.

THEY WERE ALL KIND OF-- HAD THEIR BIG COUNTRY HOUSES, HUNTING, SHOOTING, FISHING, ALL THAT SORT OF THING, AND PROBABLY NEVER WENT TO A PLAY OR THE BALLET.

MAYBE SHE WANTED MORE OF A KINDRED TYPE, THOUGH, GOODNESS KNOWS, TOWNSEND WASN'T REALLY HER TYPE; I NEVER THOUGHT, ANYWAY.

LADY JANE: PRINCESS MARGARET NEVER, EVER LIKED EARLY MORNINGS.

SHE WAS NOT A MORNING PERSON.

CERTAINLY, AT BALMORAL SHE NEVER GOT UP.

I MEAN, THAT'S WHY, ON THESE TRIPS TO THE MOORS, PRINCESS MARGARET, MYSELF, AND TOWNSEND, WE WERE ALWAYS THE LAST BY A LONG, LONG SHOT TO GO AND JOIN THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SHOOTING.

THEY WOULD SIT IN THE LAND ROVER, HE'D DRIVE, HER NEXT TO HIM, ME ON THE BACK SEAT, AND I COULD HEAR THEM MURMURING AND TALKING TO EACH OTHER.

OBVIOUSLY, SHE FOUND WHAT HE WAS SAYING FASCINATING.

SHE NEVER DREW BREATH.

I FELT DEFINITELY SORT OF THE GOOSEBERRY, SO WHEN I WENT BACK TO LONDON AFTERWARD, I SAID TO MY MOTHER, "I'M SURE PRINCESS MARGARET AND TOWNSEND ARE IN LOVE" BECAUSE THEY--I JUST FELT IT.

AND MY MOTHER LOOKED AT ME IN AMAZEMENT, SHE SAID, "BUT OF COURSE HE'S NOT.

HE WORKS FOR HER FATHER.

"HOW COULD HE, POSSIBLY?

SHE COULDN'T FALL IN LOVE WITH SOMEBODY LIKE THAT."

WARWICK: THE REST OF THE WORLD-- AMERICA, EUROPE--KNEW ALL ABOUT MARGARET AND TOWNSEND BEFORE IT EVER BROKE HERE.

AND THERE ARE SOME PARALLELS WITH 1936, THE ABDICATION, IN AS MUCH AS THERE WAS A GENTLEMEN'S AGREEMENT WITH THE PRESS BACK IN 1936 THAT NOT ONE OF THEM WOULD SAY ANYTHING ABOUT EDWARD AND WALLIS.

AND FOR A LONG TIME, THERE WAS THE SAME SORT OF SILENCE IN FLEET STREET WHERE MARGARET AND TOWNSEND WERE CONCERNED.

IRVING: I WAS ON THE "DAILY EXPRESS" AT THAT TIME.

I WAS THE FEATURES EDITOR, AND THE "DAILY EXPRESS" IN THE 1950S WAS DEFERENTIAL TO THE WHOLE CONCEPT OF THE ROYAL FAMILY SO THAT, AS A JOURNALIST THEN, THERE WERE LIMITS TO WHAT YOU COULD SAY IN REPORTING THE ROYAL FAMILY.

ANY WHIFF OF SCANDAL WOULD HAVE BEEN RESISTED.

IN FACT, LORD BEAVERBROOK, WHO OWNED THE "DAILY EXPRESS" AND LORD ROTHERMERE, WHO OWNED THE "DAILY MAIL" AND ALL THE OTHER LORDS THAT OWNED OTHER NEWSPAPERS ALL FELT THAT THEY HAD AN OBLIGATION TO KEEP THE SHIP STEADY.

THEY WANTED TO SUSTAIN THE FAIRY TALE.

IRVING: INSIDE THE PALACE, REMOTENESS WAS A VERY DELIBERATE PART OF THE POLICY.

YOU MADE THE FAMILY REMOTE BECAUSE YOU HAD TO KNOW AS LITTLE ABOUT THEM AS POSSIBLE, AND YET BELIEVE IN THE WHOLE IDEA OF THEIR LEGITIMACY.

THE SORT OF ALOOFNESS IS A CALCULATED ALOOFNESS.

IT'S PART, IF YOU LIKE, OF THE TEMPLATE OF SUSTAINING THE INSTITUTION.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: THE PASSING OF KING GEORGE VI CAME AS A SUDDEN AND MOST GRIEVOUS SHOCK TO HIS PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD AND TO ALL FRIENDS OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE AND COMMONWEALTH.

WARWICK: WHEN THE KING DIED, THE QUEEN MOTHER WAS ENVELOPED IN THESE DARK CLOUDS OF GRIEF.

YOU'VE GOT ELIZABETH SUDDENLY QUEEN AND DEALING WITH EVERYTHING THAT BECOMING QUEEN INVOLVED.

BUT IT DID LEAVE THIS NOT QUITE 22-YEAR-OLD PRINCESS MARGARET PRETTY MUCH ON A LIMB.

WHO DID SHE HAVE TO TURN TO?

VICKERS: TO BE ABLE TO RELY ON A TRUSTED FRIEND OF YOUR FATHER'S, A SORT OF GROUP CAPTAIN TOWNSEND, WHO'S A VERY, VERY NICE MAN, YOU KNOW--I MEAN, I KNEW HIM QUITE WELL, AND HE WOULD BE A VERY REASSURING FIGURE, BUT WAS A TERRIBLE SITUATION BECAUSE, AFTER ALL, HE-- YOU KNOW, HE WAS MARRIED AND HE DID HAVE TWO SONS AND HE'D BEEN PUT IN A POSITION OF TRUST.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: WHILE CROWDS PACK THE ROUTE, COUNTLESS MILLIONS OF PEOPLE, BOTH AT HOME AND ABROAD, WILL BE SITTING DOWN TO WATCH THE HISTORIC EVENT ON TELEVISION.

IRVING: THE TELEVISING OF THE CORONATION, I THINK, WAS THE FIRST CRACK IN THE DOOR.

IT WAS A BRILLIANT IDEA BECAUSE YOU'VE GOT A NEW MEDIUM, ACCESSIBLE FOR THE FIRST TIME BY MILLIONS OF PEOPLE, ENABLING THEM TO LIVE THROUGH LIVE.

I WAS IN THE OFFICE, ACTUALLY, AND WATCHING IT MINUTE BY MINUTE.

THIS ENORMOUS, MEDIEVAL RITUAL.

IT'S A WONDERFUL PIECE OF SHOWBIZ, INTERNATIONAL SHOW BUSINESS.

LADY ANNE: I WAS CHOSEN, WHICH WAS A GREAT HONOR, TO BE ONE OF THE MAIDS OF HONOR.

WE HAD TO BE DAUGHTERS OF EARLS, MARQUISES, OR DUKES, SO WE WERE ALL LADY ANNE, LADY JANE.

LADY JANE: PRINCESS MARGARET I NEVER SAW AT ALL AT THE CORONATION; I SAW HER AFTERWARDS, WHEN WE ALL WENT BACK TO BUCKINGHAM PALACE AND I HAD--DIDN'T TALK TO HER FOR VERY LONG BECAUSE EVERYONE WAS MILLING AROUND, AND EVERY FEW MINUTES, WE HAD TO GO OUT AGAIN TO-- ON THE BALCONY AND LOOK AT THE FLYPAST AND WAVE TO THE CROWDS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.

WARWICK: PRINCESS MARGARET HAD SEEN PETER TOWNSEND AND, IN HER EXCITEMENT, WENT UP TO HIM, AND NOBODY KNOWS REALLY WHAT IT WAS--A PIECE OF FLUFF, A BIT OF DIRT, WHATEVER IT WAS-- BUT SHE PUT HER HAND ON HIS TUNIC AND BRUSHED WHATEVER IT WAS AWAY.

LADY JANE: I SUPPOSE IT WAS A SIGN OF INTIMACY, AND THAT WAS A GIVEAWAY.

WARWICK: RATHER LIKE WHEN WALLIS SIMPSON HAD BEEN PHOTOGRAPHED PUTTING HER HAND ON THE ARM OF EDWARD VIII, IT WAS THAT--JUST A SMALL ACT, BUT AN INTIMATE ACT--THAT TOLD THE JOURNALISTS OF 1936 AND TOLD THE JOURNALISTS OF 1953 THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON HERE.

WARWICK: BUT THIS TIME, "THE PEOPLE" OUTED THE STORY BY DENYING IT, IF YOU LIKE.

I MEAN, IT WAS DUPLICITOUS AND CLEVER.

[CAMERA SHUTTERS CLICKING] VICKERS: TOMMY LASCELLES, THE QUEEN'S PRIVATE SECRETARY, WAS A VERY TOUGH MAN AND, FRANKLY, YOU WOULDN'T WANT HIM COMING AGAINST YOU.

I DON'T THINK THAT HE WOULD HAVE MINDED AT ALL ABOUT PEOPLE'S PERSONAL HAPPINESS.

HE WOULD ONLY HAVE BEEN INTERESTED IN PROTECTING THE QUEEN'S POSITION.

HE WOULD PROBABLY BE THINKING THE QUEEN IS HEAD OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND, WHICH DID NOT ACCEPT THE MARRIAGE OF DIVORCED PEOPLE, AND THE ROYAL MARRIAGES ACT HAD BEEN PUT IN PLACE BY GEORGE III IN 1772 BECAUSE HE HAD GOT ANNOYED BY MEMBERS OF HIS FAMILY MARRYING COMMONERS.

LASCELLES WOULD BE WONDERING, "HOW IS THIS GOING TO PLAY OUT?"

OTHER MONARCHIES WERE PROVING LESS STABLE AFTER THE WAR.

THINK ABOUT IT; AT THE END OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR, ALL THE GERMAN ONES HAD SORT OF, YOU KNOW, COLLAPSED, AND QUITE A LOT MORE COLLAPSED IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

IRVING: TOMMY LASCELLES IS PROBABLY THINKING, "WHAT ARE THE CHANCES OF THE BRITISH MONARCHY SURVIVING INTO THE 21ST CENTURY?"

MAYBE THEY DON'T LOOK GOOD TO TOMMY, SO "WE MUST DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO PRESERVE THIS SITUATION."

VICKERS: IT WAS DEFINITELY LASCELLES WHO CAME UP WITH THE IDEA THAT TOWNSEND SHOULD BE FORTHWITH SENT OFF TO BRUSSELS AS THE HEIR ATTACE TO GET HIM OUT OF THE WAY AND, YOU KNOW, THIS HAPPENED VERY, VERY QUICKLY.

ON ONE HAND, YOU'VE GOT PRINCESS MARGARET BEING THREATENED WITH EXCOMMUNICATION FROM THE CHURCH.

ON THE OTHER HAND, YOU'VE GOT TOWNSEND BEING EXILED.

IT WAS A FORM OF TERROR THAT WAS UNLOADED ON HER.

I MEAN, JUST THINK, THE WHOLE CONSTITUTIONAL APPARATUS WAS BROUGHT INTO PLAY.

THIS IS WHEN MARGARET FIRST BECOMES A CASUALTY OF THE SYSTEM.

BUT THE COUNTRY AROUND THEM IN THE LATE 1950S IS BEGINNING TO CHANGE.

QUITE FRANKLY, DIVORCE TODAY ISN'T WHAT IT WAS A FEW YEARS AGO.

WELL, I MARRIED THE MAN OF MY CHOICE, AND I'D LIKE TO THINK SHE COULD DO THE SAME.

WELL, THE MORAL OF IT IS THAT IF SHE REALLY LIKES THE FELLOW, LET HER MARRY HIM.

WELL, I DON'T SEE AS IT MAKES ANY DIFFERENCE, PROVIDING THE COUPLE ARE HAPPY.

WARWICK: THE PUBLIC VERY LARGELY WERE BEHIND THE IDEA THAT PRINCESS MARGARET SHOULD MARRY PETER TOWNSEND, EVEN AT A TIME WHEN DIVORCE WAS STILL A TABOO, IT WAS STILL PRETTY SCANDALOUS.

WHAT IT ALSO DID WAS TO SHAKE THIS IDEA THAT PRINCESS MARGARET SHOULD HAVE ONLY CONSIDERED MARRYING ONE OF THE TOFFS, ONE OF THE ARISTOS THAT WERE PART OF HER SOCIETY.

IT WAS AN INDICATION THAT TIMES WERE CHANGING.

IRVING: THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT THE PRESS INVESTED IN A NEW PHENOMENON, WHICH WAS A KIND OF POPULAR REBELLION.

I THINK THE SENTIMENT TOOK THE PALACE COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE, AND IT WAS LIKE A VOICE THAT THE PALACE HAD NEVER HEARD BEFORE ABOUT ANYTHING THAT WAS GOING ON IN THEIR FAMILY.

VICKERS: THERE WAS QUITE A LOT OF DISCUSSION AT A MINISTERIAL LEVEL ABOUT CHANGING THE ROYAL MARRIAGES ACT OR MAKING HER RENOUNCE HER TITLES OR NOT GETTING MONEY FROM THE CIVIL LIST.

THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT WHERE WOULD THEY LIVE AND THINGS, AND PRINCE PHILIP SAID, "YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT IMPOSSIBLE TO BUY A HOUSE, YOU KNOW."

I THINK THIS HAD QUITE A BIG EFFECT.

LADY ANNE: I THINK THE QUEEN WAS IN A VERY, VERY DIFFICULT POSITION, AND I THINK SHE WAS SO, UM...

WISE AND VERY BRILLIANT ABOUT THE WHOLE THING BECAUSE SHE DIDN'T SAY PRINCESS MARGARET COULDN'T MARRY HIM.

ALL SHE SAID WAS, "I WOULD LIKE YOU TO WAIT."

MAN: THIS IS THE BBC.

WE'RE INTERRUPTING PROGRAMS WITH A SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT.

THE FOLLOWING PERSONAL MESSAGE WAS ISSUED FROM CLARENCE HOUSE BY PRINCESS MARGARET ABOUT AN HOUR AGO: "I WOULD LIKE IT TO BE KNOWN THAT I HAVE DECIDED "NOT TO MARRY GROUP CAPTAIN PETER TOWNSEND.

"MINDFUL OF THE CHURCH'S TEACHING "THAT CHRISTIAN MARRIAGE IS INDISSOLUBLE, "AND CONSCIOUS OF MY DUTY TO THE COMMONWEALTH, "I HAVE RESOLVED TO PUT THESE CONSIDERATIONS BEFORE ANY OTHERS."

LADY JANE: ALTHOUGH SHE LOOKED VERY SAD ON THAT DAY WHEN SHE DROVE AWAY FROM THE PALACE, HAVING MADE THE BROADCAST, SHE LOOKED AS IF SHE WAS ABSOLUTELY HEARTBROKEN.

BUT I DON'T THINK SHE WAS.

I THINK SHE THOUGHT, "I'LL GO BACK TO MY OLD BACHELOR DAYS."

SHE WEIGHED EVERYTHING UP AND REALIZED QUITE WHAT HER LIFE WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE.

SHE WOULD HAVE BEEN NOT A NOBODY, SHE'D NEVER BE A NOBODY, BUT SHE WOULD HAVE LOST PART OF HER GLAMOUR, AND I THINK, IF SHE'D MARRIED HIM, SHE WOULD HAVE BEEN RATHER AN ORDINARY HOUSEWIFE, AND SHE JUST DIDN'T WANT THAT AT ALL.

LADY ANNE: PRINCESS MARGARET NEVER LIKED ANY OF HER SET MARRYING.

SHE LIKED THEM ALL TO BE WITH HER, YOU KNOW.

SHE WANTED TO KEEP-- SHE LOVED THIS SET, AND SHE LIKED BEING THE CENTER OF IT, SO SHE WAS ABSOLUTELY FURIOUS WHEN COLIN GOT ENGAGED TO ME.

BUT OF COURSE, SHE SORT OF HAD TO COME TO OUR WEDDING.

SHE AND THE QUEEN MOTHER CAME TO OUR WEDDING AT HOLKHAM.

PRINCESS MARGARET ACTUALLY WAS WHAT I CALL DRESSED DOWN.

SHE WASN'T VERY JOLLY.

QUEEN ELIZABETH WAS LOVELY, YOU KNOW, SORT OF THE WAY SHE WAS SMILING AT EVERYBODY, WAVING, AND PRINCESS MARGARET STANDING THERE BESIDE HER, LOOKING ABSOLUTELY LIVID.

TONY WAS TAKING THE PHOTOGRAPHS... AND MY FATHER HAD A SORT OF NICKNAME.

HE USED TO CALL HIM TONY SNAPSHOT.

ANYWAY, THERE HE WAS, TAKING THE PHOTOGRAPHS, TELLING US WHERE TO SIT, SO THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME, BUT, I MEAN, SHE WASN'T INTRODUCED.

WHY, SHE MIGHT HAVE BEEN INTRODUCED TO HIM, BUT, YOU KNOW, HE WAS JUST THE PHOTOGRAPHER.

DE COURCY: HE HAD BECOME A VERY WELL-KNOWN PHOTOGRAPHER LONG BEFORE HE MET PRINCESS MARGARET.

HE WAS VERY AMBITIOUS, BUT THEN, IT WAS LOOKED ON REALLY ALMOST LIKE A TRADESMAN.

IRVING: I'D WORKED WITH TONY FIRST WHEN HE WAS RELATIVELY UNKNOWN, WHEN HE WAS TRYING JOURNALISM FOR THE FIRST TIME AND HE WAS HIRED AS A PHOTOGRAPHER BY THE "DAILY EXPRESS" AND I WAS THE FEATURES EDITOR OF THE PAPER.

HE'D BEEN HIRED BY THE PAPER TO TAKE PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE WINNER OF A CONTEST THAT THE PAPER RAN FOR YOUNG WOMEN TO BECOME MODELS.

IT SEEMED AN OUTRAGEOUS IDEA, BUT THESE YOUNG WOMEN HAD TO SEND IN THEIR PHOTOGRAPHS, AND THE EDITORS OF THE "DAILY EXPRESS" SELECTED ONE TO BE PHOTOGRAPHED BY TONY FOR CAREER MODELING.

IT WAS AFTER THIS PHOTO SHOOT WHEN I SAID TO TONY, "YOU HAD HER, DIDN'T YOU?"

AND HE GRINNED IN HIS USUAL, LASCIVIOUS WAY.

HE WAS A FAMOUS WOMANIZER AND SWORDSMAN, AS WE USED TO SAY.

HE WAS VERY WELL-EQUIPPED FOR THE ROLE.

THAT'S WHAT EVERYBODY SAID.

A VERY ENGAGING PERSONALITY.

IN THE BACK OF HIS EYES ALL THE TIME WAS A SENSE OF MISCHIEF.

DE COURCY: THE PRINCESS WAS VERY AMUSED BY TONY.

SHE THOUGHT HE WAS FULL OF CHAT AND FUN.

AT FIRST, SHE THOUGHT HE WAS GAY AND SO THAT HE--YOU KNOW, SHE SORT OF DISMISSED HIM AS THE IDEA OF A BOYFRIEND.

BUT THEN ONE OF HER ADMIRERS WANTED A PHOTOGRAPH OF HER AND SAID, "WOULD YOU LET THIS NEW MAN PHOTOGRAPH YOU?"

AND SHE SAID YES, AND SO ALONG COMES TONY, WHO SHE'D MET BEFORE, AND HE WAS VERY GOOD AT GETTING PEOPLE TO DO WHAT HE WANTED.

IT WAS A MIXTURE OF CHARM, IT WAS A MIXTURE OF DETERMINATION, AND HE GOSSIPED AWAY TO THE PRINCESS AND HE GOT HER TO CHANGE HER CLOTHES.

SHE'D NEVER HAD SOMEBODY TELLING HER WHAT TO DO LIKE THAT, BUT HE DID IT SO WELL THAT SHE WAS SORT OF LAUGHING.

TONY, BECAUSE OF THE WORK HE DID, HE WAS ABSOLUTELY AT THE CUTTING EDGE OF EVERYTHING.

I MEAN, HE WAS VERY SORT OF AVANT-GARDE.

WHEN TIGHT TROUSERS FOR MEN CAME IN, HIS ASSISTANTS USED TO HAVE TO TIGHTEN THEM FOR HIM, AND HE WAS LIKE THAT SEXUALLY AS WELL.

THE SIXTIES WAS THE AGE OF LIBERATION, AND TONY WAS THERE, AT THE CREST OF THE WAVE.

IRVING: LONDON WAS A MAKEOVER CITY WHICH HAD, UNTIL THAT TIME, HAD NOT BEEN VERY SWINGING, WAS NOT--WAS PRETTY UPTIGHT BECAUSE WHAT LONDON WAS SUDDENLY FAMOUS FOR WAS PEOPLE HAVING A REALLY GOOD TIME.

TONY WAS JUGGLING SEVERAL DIFFERENT LIVES AT THE SAME TIME WITH EXTREME SKILL.

HE WAS BISEXUAL, FOR A START.

UNTIL THE LEGISLATION WAS CHANGED IN THE MID-SIXTIES-- BUT IT WAS STILL A VERY UPTIGHT SITUATION ABOUT STUFF LIKE THAT.

THIS WAS A VERY BOHEMIAN LIFE THAT YOU EXPECTED A PHOTOGRAPHER TO LIVE, SO THE LAST THING YOU EXPECTED TO HAPPEN WAS FOR SOMEONE LIKE PRINCESS MARGARET TO LAND INTO THAT BOHEMIAN WORLD, AND WHAM, SHE DID.

ONCE THEY STARTED GETTING INTERESTED IN EACH OTHER, THEY WANTED TO KEEP IT SECRET.

THEY DID NOT WANT TO BE DOGGED BY THE PRESS THE ENTIRE TIME.

[WATER SLOSHING] HE'D GOT THIS ROOM IN ROTHERHITHE.

IT WAS A ROOM IN AN OLD WAREHOUSE, AND HE PAINTED IT AND HE HAD A LITTLE, TINY STOVE AND LITTLE SINK, AND IT HAD A BIG WINDOW AND YOU WOULD SEE SWANS FLOATING PAST.

IT WAS VERY--A ROMANTIC HIDEAWAY, REALLY.

AND HE WOULD TAKE HER DOWN THERE AND, YOU SEE, IF YOU GOT A HELMET ON, IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO SEE-- YOU SEE A PAIR OF BLUE EYES, BUT IT-- THAT DOESN'T SAY "PRINCESS" TO YOU, NECESSARILY.

IT WAS JUST A GIRL ON THE BACK OF A MAN'S MOTORBIKE.

[OVERLAPPING CHATTER] IRVING: THE EDITOR WHO HAD HIRED TONY FOR THE "DAILY EXPRESS" SAID TO ME, "THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON WITH TONY.

"HE'S DROPPED ALL HIS OLD FRIENDS AND HE'S DROPPED JACQUI, HIS GIRLFRIEND OF A LONG TIME," THIS VERY GLAMOROUS DANCER.

AND SO I WAS TOLD, "SEE WHAT YOU CAN FIND OUT."

SO I TALKED TO TONY AND I-- I COULD FIND OUT NOTHING.

[BEEP] NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: ROYAL LODGE WINDSOR WAS THE MOST APPROPRIATE SETTING OF A ROYAL ROMANCE.

HOW DRAMATICALLY HAD THE WELCOME NEWS BEEN ANNOUNCED TO THE WORLD.

PRINCESS MARGARET WAS ENGAGED TO MR. ANTONY ARMSTRONG-JONES, AND SUDDENLY IT WAS SPRING.

NATURE HERSELF SEEMED TO BE GLAD.

DE COURCY: UNTIL THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE ENGAGEMENT, NOBODY HAD AN INKLING.

IT CAME AS A HUGE SHOCK TO EVERYBODY, FROM THE ROYAL HOUSEHOLD TO THE PUBLIC.

AND IN QUEEN ELIZABETH, THE QUEEN MOTHER'S HOUSEHOLD, THEY WERE RATHER DISAPPOINTED; ALL THE STAFF, THEY'D ALL EXPECTED HER TO MARRY SOME...WONDERFUL, RICH DUKE.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: TO THE PRINCESS AND MANY OF THE ROYAL FAMILY, MR. ARMSTRONG-JONES HAS BEEN KNOWN FOR SOME TIME.

HIS TALENT AS A PHOTOGRAPHER EARNED HIM THE PRIVILEGE OF TAKING INFORMAL PICTURES OF THE QUEEN, THE DUKE, AND THE ROYAL CHILDREN.

DE COURCY: WHAT THE QUEEN AND QUEEN ELIZABETH WANTED WAS FOR THEIR SISTER AND DAUGHTER, RESPECTIVELY, TO BE HAPPY, AND IF THIS WAS THE MAN SHE LOVED, YES.

LADY ANNE: I MEAN, WE WERE QUITE PLEASED BECAUSE HE-- I MEAN, HE WAS VERY CLEVER AND HE WAS VERY CHARMING, TONY.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: AND HE BORE HIMSELF ADMIRABLY, GREETING A FELLOW PHOTOGRAPHER AS HE LEFT THE FOYER.

[APPLAUSE AND WHISTLING] VICKERS: BEFORE CECIL BEATON CAME ALONG, PHOTOGRAPHERS CAME IN THROUGH THE TRADESMEN'S ENTRANCE, PUT THEIR HEAD UNDER A BLACK CLOTH, TOOK A FEW FRAMES, AND THEN LEFT.

CECIL BEATON WAS PRETTY GOOD AT STAYING FOR LUNCH AND BECOMING PART OF PEOPLE'S WORLDS.

AND, OF COURSE, SNOWDON TOOK IT ONE STEP FURTHER.

IN FACT, CECIL BEATON, OF COURSE, WAS TERRIBLY JEALOUS OF SNOWDON HAVING PULLED OFF THIS GREAT COUP OF MARRYING THE QUEEN'S SISTER.

IRVING: HE WAS VERY SUCCESSFUL AT INGRATIATING HIMSELF WITH THE ROYAL FAMILY; THE QUEEN MUM LOVED HIM, I THINK.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: THE BADMINTON HORSE TRIALS ARE, FOR THE QUEEN AND HER FAMILY, A SPECIAL KIND OF HOLIDAY.

THERE, TOO, THIS YEAR WAS TONY ARMSTRONG-JONES WITH PRINCESS MARGARET, AND THEIR WEDDING DAY LESS THAN TWO WEEKS AHEAD.

IRVING: HE MADE HIMSELF VERY ADAPTABLE TO THE WEEKEND HABITS OF THE ROYAL FAMILY AND GOING ON SHOOTING WITH THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH AND STUFF.

HE KNEW THE ROPES OF THE ARISTOCRATIC LIFE AND HOW YOU SPOKE AND HOW YOU TALKED AND HOW YOU MINGLED.

VICKERS: I MEAN, HE WASN'T VERY WELL-OFF AND HE DIDN'T HAVE MUCH BY WAY OF CLOTHES.

I THINK THAT THE VALETS HAD A PROBLEM SORT OF, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO KEEP HIM WELL-DRESSED AT PLACES LIKE BALMORAL WHEN HE TURNED UP.

DE COURCY: LOTS OF PEOPLE ADVISED TONY AGAINST IT.

LOTS OF PEOPLE SAID, "YOU KNOW, IT'S TOO MUCH FOR YOU," "YOU'RE GOING INTO QUITE A DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENT THAT YOU'RE NOT USED TO," BUT HE LOVED HER.

THEY LOVED EACH OTHER.

LADY JANE: I DON'T THINK SHE THOUGHT ABOUT WHETHER HE WAS OF DIFFERENT BACKGROUND OR NOT GRAND ENOUGH BECAUSE I THINK SHE FELL MADLY IN LOVE WITH HIM WHEN SHE FIRST MET HIM, AND THAT WAS IT.

I MEAN, SHE WAS GOING TO MARRY HIM WHETHER HE WAS UNSUITABLE OR NOT.

NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: A PRINCESS OF UNIQUE PERSONALITY, GAY, INTELLIGENT, COMPELLINGLY HUMAN, WAS MARRYING THE MAN OF HER OWN CHOICE.

IRVING: THE GREAT THING ABOUT THE PUBLIC'S REACTION TO IT WAS THAT HERE WAS A GUY WHO HAD TO WORK FOR A LIVING.

THAT MADE A HUGE DIFFERENCE, SO THAT MADE HIM A GOOD CHOICE.

VICKERS: WELL, THE QUEEN MOTHER WAS CERTAINLY DISAPPOINTED AT THE WEDDING THAT MEMBERS OF FOREIGN ROYAL HOUSES DIDN'T COME OUT IN FORCE.

THINK ONLY QUEEN INGRID OF DENMARK CAME OVER, AND SO THERE DEFINITELY WAS A DISAPPOINTMENT BECAUSE DO NOT FORGET THAT FOREIGN ROYALTY ARE EVEN STUFFIER ABOUT PEOPLE LIKE TONY ARMSTRONG-JONES THAN YOU'D IMAGINE OUR ROYAL FAMILY TO BE.

SO THEY PROBABLY JUST THOUGHT, WELL, IT WASN'T A GRAND ENOUGH WEDDING AND THEY COULDN'T BE BOTHERED.

DE COURCY: WHAT THE PRINCESS, I THINK, DIDN'T KNOW WAS, AT THE SAME TIME THAT TONY WAS COURTING HER, HE WAS ALSO CARRYING ON HIS BUSY PRIVATE LIFE.

HE WAS STILL SEEING JACQUI CHAN.

HE HAD THIS YOUNG ACTRESS-- GINA WARD WAS IN LOVE WITH HIM.

HE WAS CONDUCTING AN AFFAIR WITH HER, AND HE USED TO GO DOWN AND SEE HIS GREAT FRIENDS, JEREMY AND CAMILLA FRY, AN AWFUL LOT.

AND THEY, TOO, WERE VERY SIXTIES-MINDED AND, YOU KNOW, THEY ALL TOOK POPPERS AND THAT SORT OF THING.

AND IT WAS, AS ONE OF THEIR FRIENDS SAID, A BIT OF A FREE-FOR-ALL DOWN THERE, SO I DON'T THINK SHE KNEW QUITE HOW BOHEMIAN HE WAS.

VICKERS: LET'S FACE IT.

I MEAN, HE DIDN'T EXACTLY FIT THE MOLD, AND HAD HE BOTHERED TO THINK ABOUT IT, HE WOULD HAVE REALIZED THAT WHEN HE TOOK THE QUEEN'S SISTER TO THE ALTAR, HE MAY HAVE--AS IT LATER PROVED TO BE, HE HAD-- JUST, INDEED, BEGAT A CHILD ON HIS BEST FRIEND'S WIFE.

WELL, THAT SHOWS A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF CHUTZPAH, I THINK, AND SOMEWHAT BREAKING THE SYSTEM.

PRINCESS MARGARET NEVER KNEW THAT, ACTUALLY, BUT THAT WAS THE CASE, AND IT WAS PROVED MANY YEARS LATER BY DNA.

BROWN: HE WAS AMAZINGLY LOUCHE FOR HER TO MARRY.

IN RETROSPECT, YOU CAN SEE HIM AS AN EXTREME EXAMPLE OF THE SIXTIES.

IN A WAY, YOU COULD SAY THERE WAS-- THERE'D BE FEW PEOPLE LESS SUITABLE FOR HER TO MARRY.

IRVING: TO BE A JOURNALIST AT THAT TIME WAS AN ASTONISHING EXPERIENCE BECAUSE OF THE SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CHANGE THAT WAS GOING ON IN THE COUNTRY.

THERE WAS CULTURAL INSURRECTION, A REVOLUTION IN TELEVISION, IN TELEVISION DRAMA, MOVING THE KITCHEN SINK PLAY... YOU'RE GONNA JABBER, AIN'T YOU?

WELL, DO IT THEN.

IRVING: INSURRECTION IN LITERATURE, WHERE "LADY CHATTERLEY'S LOVER" IS ALLOWED TO BE PUBLISHED FOR THE FIRST TIME.

FILTHY WORDS CAN BE READ BY THE COMMON PEOPLE FOR THE FIRST TIME.

THERE'S TONY, WHO'S IN THE SET AND LIVING THE SWINGING LONDON LIFE, BUT WHAT SURPRISED ME WAS HOW SWIFTLY MARGARET BECAME LIKE THAT, TOO.

LADY ANNE: PHYSICALLY, THEY WERE VERY ATTRACTED TO EACH OTHER.

THEY COULDN'T KEEP THEIR HANDS OFF EACH OTHER.

TONY WAS UNCONVENTIONAL, SLIGHTLY ECCENTRIC, AND A FREE SPIRIT, AND HE BLENDED IN WITH THE SIXTIES SEAMLESSLY.

AND I THINK PRINCESS MARGARET WAS FASCINATED.

WOMAN: IT WAS IN THE SIXTIES THAT I GOT TO KNOW PRINCESS MARGARET.

STEVENS: WELL, I MET HER THROUGH TONY BECAUSE HE WAS A GREAT FRIEND OF MY HUSBAND, WHO WAS IN THE PUBLISHING WORLD.

HE TOOK THE PHOTOGRAPHS AT OUR WEDDING, BUT I CERTAINLY DIDN'T KNOW HER THAT WELL WHEN I BECAME A LADY IN WAITING.

WE WERE GOING TO DO AN OFFICIAL VISIT, AND AT THE LAST MINUTE, THE CHAUFFEUR WAS ILL AND COULDN'T DRIVE HER.

AND SHE JUST TURNED TO ME AND SAID, "JANEY, YOU CAN DRIVE."

AND I SAID, "YES, BUT I'VE NEVER, NEVER DRIVEN A ROLLS-ROYCE."

SO I HADN'T EVEN PRACTICED.

I LITERALLY DROVE HER SITTING IN THE BACK, AND WE DROVE OUT OF THE GATES AND UNDER THE ARCH AND DOWN THE DRIVE.

AND WE ALWAYS HAD OUTRIDERS, AND TWO OF THE OUTRIDERS DROVE OUT TO THE GATE TO STOP THE TRAFFIC.

A MOTORCYCLIST DIDN'T SEE THE OUTRIDERS AND CAME STRAIGHT INTO-- AS WE DROVE OUT, STRAIGHT INTO THE SIDE OF THE CAR.

AND SHE SAID, "DRIVE, DRIVE ON, JANEY.

DRIVE ON.

THEY'RE WAVING YOU ON.

DON'T WORRY."

HA!

IT WAS ALL VERY FREE AND EASY FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.

WE USED TO GO AND WATER-SKI ON THE LAKE AT WINDSOR.

SHE LOVED IT.

SHE JUST DID A LOT OF THINGS THAT THE REST OF THE FAMILY DIDN'T DO.

YOU KNOW, THE QUEEN WAS DOING A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT JOB... AND PRINCESS MARGARET, WHO WAS FRIENDS WITH A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT THE ROYAL FAMILY HADN'T BEEN FRIENDS WITH.

THEY WEREN'T FRIENDS OF ACTORS, ARTISTS, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE SHE GOT ALL THAT THROUGH TONY, AND IT WAS QUITE AN EYE-OPENER, THAT, FOR THE ROYAL FAMILY.

PETER SELLERS BECAME A GREAT FRIEND AND WE USED TO SEE A LOT OF HIM, AND HE WAS MARRIED TO BRITT EKLAND.

ONE WEEKEND, WHEN THEY CAME TO STAY, WE MADE THIS FILM FOR FUN, AND PETER DIRECTED IT ALL AND WE ALL PLAYED A RIDICULOUS PART.

MY IMPERSONATION, IN 11 SECONDS FLAT, BEFORE YOUR VERY EYES, OF HER ROYAL HIGHNESS, PRINCESS MARGARET!

STEVENS: PRINCESS MARGARET LOVED IT, AND SHE DID WHATEVER SHE WAS TOLD BY PETER.

[CANNED APPLAUSE] STEVENS: IT WAS JUST SOMETHING FUN TO DO AT A WEEKEND.

IRVING: SHE WAS A FAN OF PETER SELLERS AND HARRY SECOMBE, AND NOW, WITH TONY, SHE GETS TO BE MORE THAN A FAN.

SHE COHABITS WITH THESE PEOPLE, SHE MINGLES WITH THEM FOR THE FIRST TIME, SO THE SHOW BUSINESS OF SHOW BUSINESS AND THE SHOW BUSINESS OF THE ROYAL FAMILY ARE SUDDENLY COMBINED IN THE ONE PERSON.

PLOMLEY: LET'S HAVE YOUR THIRD RECORD.

WHAT'S THAT TO BE?

PRINCESS MARGARET: WELL, THIS WAS A RECORD THAT I REMEMBER CHEERING ME UP VERY MUCH IN A TRAFFIC JAM.

AND EVERYBODY WAS IN THE TRAFFIC JAM AND WE WERE ALL LISTENING TO THE WIRELESS, AND IT HAD THIS WONDERFUL TUNE CALLED "SIXTEEN TONS" BY TENNESSEE ERNIE FORD.

AND INSTEAD OF EVERYBODY LOOKING ABSOLUTE DAGGERS AT EACH OTHER LIKE EVERYBODY DOES, EVERYBODY WAS BANGING IN RHYTHM ON THEIR STEERING WHEELS.

WE ALL CAUGHT EACH OTHER'S EYE AND LAUGHED.

TENNESSEE ERNIE FORD: OUT OF MUSCLE AND BLOOD MUSCLE AND BLOOD AND SKIN AND BONES A MIND THAT'S WEAK AND A BACK THAT'S STRONG YOU LOAD 16 TONS... IRVING: ONE OF MARGARET'S THINGS WHICH SHE DIDN'T EASILY SHAKE OFF WAS ROYAL PROTOCOL, AND TONY WAS IN A VERY AWKWARD POSITION THERE BECAUSE HE HAD TO BE ONE PACE BEHIND, PARALYZED RIGIDLY BY THE FORMALITIES.

[CHUCKLES] AND THE INTERESTING THING-- WHENEVER HE TALKED ABOUT IT, HE ALWAYS CALLED HER PRINCESS MARGARET.

IT WAS VERY FORMAL.

I'D ASK HIM QUESTIONS, AND HE'D ALWAYS REFER TO HER AS "PRINCESS MARGARET SAID THIS" OR "PRINCESS MARGARET LOVES THAT."

IT WAS VERY KIND OF WEIRDLY STIFF.

I MEAN, SHE'S NOT YOUR ORDINARY FRIEND.

I MEAN, YOU KNOW, ONE ALWAYS--I MEAN, I ALWAYS CALLED HER MA'AM.

YOU CALLED HER MA'AM AND YOU CURTSEYED, AND YOU WERE MEANT TO WAIT TILL SHE SAID SOMETHING OR--AND SHE'D ASK A QUESTION OR TALK ABOUT WHATEVER THE SUBJECT WAS.

IF SHE CAME IN NOW, YOU KNOW, I'D OBVIOUSLY GET UP.

YOU KNOW, WE'D ALL GET UP AND--UNTIL SHE'D SAT DOWN AND THEN WE'D SIT; YOU KNOW, THOSE LITTLE THINGS.

I CALLED HER MA'AM, YEAH.

I THINK EVERYONE WANTED TO CALL HER MARGARET.

BROWN: HALF OF HER WANTED TO BE A BOHEMIAN, THE OTHER HALF WANTED TO BE ROYAL.

STEVENS: WE WENT TO THE BEATLES.

IT WAS SHOUTING CROWDS AND MASSES OF TEENAGERS.

BROWN: THE BEATLES WERE BEATING THE ROYAL FAMILY IN TERMS OF CELEBRITY.

IT WAS A MOMENT IN THE SIXTIES WHERE SUDDENLY, YOU KNOW, THESE LADS FROM LIVERPOOL HAD GREATER ADULATION THAN THE QUEEN AND HER FAMILY.

STEVENS: WE WENT BEHIND THE STAGE AFTERWARDS, JUST SPOKE TO THEM FOR A FEW MINUTES, AND THEN IT WAS PAUL MCCARTNEY-- AND JOHN LENNON WAS VERY ENTERTAINING BECAUSE HE WAS SORT OF BRIGHT AND DIFFERENT AND FUNNY.

THERE WAS ALWAYS THIS PROTOCOL THAT YOU WEREN'T ALLOWED TO EAT BEFORE THE ROYAL FAMILY.

GEORGE HARRISON, NOT KNOWING ABOUT THE PROTOCOL, OR NOT CARING ABOUT IT AND ONLY 21, WENT UP TO HER AND SAID, "SORRY, BUT I'M HUNGRY, AND WE'RE NOT ALLOWED TO START EATING UNTIL YOU'VE LEFT."

AND PRINCESS MARGARET, ALMOST THE ONLY TIME IN HER LIFE, BENT TO HIS WILL AND SAID, "OH, WELL, IN THAT CASE, WE'D BETTER BE GOING," AND THEY DID ACTUALLY LEAVE, SO, YOU KNOW, IT WAS A GREAT VICTORY FOR GEORGE-- GEORGE HARRISON AND DEMOCRACY.

SO THIS IS A BUST OF PRINCESS MARGARET.

IT WAS MADE BY JACOB EPSTEIN, ONE OF THE GREAT SCULPTORS OF THE 20TH CENTURY.

WELL, IT WAS MADE FOR PRINCESS MARGARET, AS CHANCELLOR OF THE UNIVERSITY.

IT'S DESCRIBED AS ONE OF EPSTEIN'S LAST WORKS AND ONE OF HIS WORST.

AND I THINK MARGARET DIDN'T PARTICULARLY LIKE IT.

IN 1956, SHE WAS INSTALLED AND THEN RETIRED IN 1986, SO 30 YEARS OF COMING TO KEELE EVERY YEAR TO CONFER DEGREES AND PARTAKE IN BALLS AND OTHER CEREMONIALS.

MAN: SHE ALWAYS CAME TO THE ROYAL BALL, WHICH WAS HELD IN THIS VERY ROOM, AND PART OF THE TRADITION WAS THAT THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNION HAD THE FIRST DANCE.

SHE WAS WITH ANTONY ARMSTRONG-JONES, AND MY RECOLLECTION IS THAT ONCE THEY WERE INSIDE THE BUILDING, THAT THEY TENDED TO GO THEIR SEPARATE WAYS.

AND SHE QUITE LIKED DOING HER OWN THING, AND I THINK SHE PROBABLY SAW IT AS ONE OF THE RARE OPPORTUNITIES SHE HAD TO REALLY LET HER HAIR DOWN AND ENJOY A GOOD EVENING.

WELL, WE PROBABLY WALKED INTO ABOUT HERE.

I WAS EXPECTING TO DO THE NORMAL SORT OF DANCE, BUT THEN SUDDENLY HER ARMS WERE ROUND MY NECK, HER HEAD WAS ABOUT THERE, AND WE STARTED TO DO A MORE INTIMATE DANCE.

IT WAS TOTALLY UNEXPECTED.

YOU DON'T EXPECT THE SISTER OF THE QUEEN TO ADOPT A RELATIVELY INTIMATE POSE BY PUTTING THEIR ARMS ROUND YOU LIKE THAT.

BY THE END OF THE SIXTIES, THERE WAS A LOT OF STUDENT PROTEST AND STUDENT POLITICAL ACTIVISM, AND HER PERIOD AS CHANCELLOR STRADDLED THIS.

AND, INDEED, THE END OF MY OWN TERM OF OFFICE AS PRESIDENT OF THE UNION, THERE WAS THE FIRST SIT-IN OF UNIVERSITY PREMISES.

TV REPORTER: THE STUDENTS TOOK OVER, FOLLOWING AN EMERGENCY MEETING OF THE KEELE UNIVERSITY STUDENT'S UNION LAST NIGHT.

AT THE MEETING, ABOUT 300 STUDENTS VOTED OVERWHELMINGLY TO BEGIN THE OCCUPATION.

WOMAN: WHAT WERE THEY PROTESTING?

CLARKE: THE HOUR'S RULE, WHICH MEANT THAT YOU COULDN'T HAVE A MEMBER OF THE OPPOSITE SEX IN YOUR BLOCK AFTER 10 P.M. AT NIGHT.

SO, I MEAN, WE THOUGHT WE COULD REFORM THE UNIVERSITY, AND WHEN WE'D DONE THAT, WHICH WOULD BE RELATIVELY EASY, WE'D REFORM THE REST OF THE WORLD.

I THINK THAT ONE OF THE REASONS MARGARET WAS LIKED AND TOLERATED AT KEELE WAS THAT SHE SORT OF DEMONSTRATED THAT PERHAPS SHE WASN'T QUITE LIKE OTHER ROYALS AND GAVE THE IMPRESSION THAT SHE WAS FAIRLY SYMPATHETIC TO THE MORE LIBERAL APPROACH THAT STUDENTS WANTED.

[PEOPLE SHOUTING] IRVING: WHAT WAS HAPPENING POLITICALLY IN THE SIXTIES WAS THAT WE THOUGHT THE TIME HAD COME FOR THE WHOLE OLD BOY NETWORK TO BE DISMANTLED.

GAINING POSITIONS BY PRIVILEGE, RATHER THAN TALENT, WAS BEING SCRUBBED.

I WAS THE MANAGING EDITOR OF THE "SUNDAY TIMES" BY NOW.

THE "SUNDAY TIMES" WAS THE FIRST, AS THEY CALLED IT, POSH PAPER TO BREAK RANKS AND SAY, "WE'D BETTER LOOK AT THIS SYSTEM BECAUSE IT'S NOT WORKING."

AND THEN WE DID THE SAME THING WITH THE ROYAL FAMILY.

WE STARTED ASKING QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT IT COST TO MAINTAIN THEM, WAS IT REALLY WORTH IT?

IRVING: I THINK TONY AND MARGARET AND THE MARRIAGE WERE FLOATED OUT, UNWISELY, AS THE NEW, MORE ACCESSIBLE, MORE POPULAR FACE OF THE ROYAL FAMILY.

IT WAS A BURDEN THEY WERE NEVER REALLY UP TO OR--OR COULD CARRY.

LADY JANE: I THINK SHE AND TONY, WHEN THEY MET, THAT EVERYONE SAID, "THIS IS EXTRAORDINARY.

IT'S SO, SO UNSUITABLE."

BUT THEY HAD A LOT IN COMMON AND WERE VERY, VERY HAPPY FOR A LONG TIME.

WHEN IT WENT WRONG, IT WENT BADLY WRONG, VERY BADLY WRONG.

MAN: WHEN SHE STARTED TO COME AND STAY, NOBODY BOTHERED HER.

IT WAS HER SAFE HAVEN.

WOMAN: THE PRESS, DO YOU REMEMBER, THE ONLY WAY THEY CAME WAS BY BOAT, BUT LUCKILY IT WAS QUITE ROUGH.

THE CAMERAS WERE TRYING TO TAKE A SHOT.

MAN: SHE WAS DOING LESS AND LESS IN THE WAY OF PUBLIC DUTIES, AND AT ONE STAGE, IT LOOKED AS IF SHE WAS DOING NEXT TO NOTHING, AND YET SPENDING AN INCREASING AMOUNT OF TIME ON THE ESTATE WITH THE TOY BOY.

IRVING: MARGARET BECAME A LIGHTNING CONDUCTOR FOR THE FEELING THAT THE TIME HAD COME TO DO AWAY WITH THE WHOLE GANG.

ANNOUNCER: TO ORDER "MARGARET: THE REBEL PRINCESS" ON DVD, VISIT SHOPPBS OR CALL 1-800-PLAY-PBS.

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