Prunella Scales - The Queen Part 1

From the BBC play "A Question Of Attribution" in 1991 with James Fox. The play, by Alan Bennett, is about Sir Antony Blunt, who was in charge of the Queen's paintings and also a confessed Soviet spy undergoing periodic interrogation by MI6. The play combines the issues of fakes in art and fakes in people. Sir Antony did not know if the Queen had been told about him, so when she talked about fakes and suspicions he thought she might be referring to him.

Someone who was present at Prunella's CBE presentation said that the Queen whispered to her "I suppose you think you should be doing this!"

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Prunella Scales
• The Queen

[burtha3]

Wow! She's fantastic as the Queen. Such a shame the sour faced Helem Mirren got there first.

[IsherwoodWilliams1]

@burtha3 Actually Prunella was first, by several years.

[reelsarency]

This is one of the better and fairer portrayals of the Queen that I've seen. Leaves Mirren for dead.

[IsherwoodWilliams1]

@reelsarency I agree absolutely. Prunella should have got the film part - and the Damehood, except that she was not as well known to the Americans.

[tnakai1971jp]

@reelsarency

I think Helen Mirren was chosen for her facial likeness. However, her impersonation of the way the Queen walks was rather exaggerated, I thought. Her legs were thrown outwards too much.

[IsherwoodWilliams1]

@tnakai1971jp And because her TV series Prime Suspect had been so popular in America.

[IsherwoodWilliams1]

@324wilson If you mean the series of five episodes with different actresses, Prunella wasn't one of them, although she should have been!

[arlichar11]

appropriate and well done  shes the queen of bbc....

[Reama1974]

One finds her accent quite a amusing!

[ghughesarch]

Well, Prunella Scales in 1991, when this was made, looked like The Queen did in the later 1970s, when it's set, whereas in 2005 or thereabouts she didn't look much like the Queen did in 1997. I think they're both fine performances, and for different purposes - this her only appearance in A Question of Attribution, in a not entirely serious short scene in the play and this characterisation and performance would have seemed wrong as the long central part of a more serious drama

[GayGeisha]

Well this beats Helen Mirren into a cocked hat...

[burtha3]

Of course. I meant for the role of the Queen in the most recent film. I think they should have cast Scales for that one. I don't know what all the fuss is about Mirren. She walked like the Queen had a penis!

[Thegreenroomgroup]

wow this is lush

[ZodiacBubblegum]

Both Prunella and Helen portrayed The Queen magnificently. Can't we be glad to have two such outstanding yet different actresses from this country, in our time? I love both their works playing HM, and indeed others.

[324wilson]

Alan Bennett is a genius. You should also read "The Uncommon Reader," where Her Majesty has newly dicovered her love of books.