User Reviews

The Queen's Garden (2014) is a documentary about the garden at Buckingham Palace. The movie was written and directed by Martin Williams.

This large garden is indeed beautiful. Everything is cared for meticulously, organically, and professionally.

The problem is that very few people--other than royalty--get to see the garden. It's only open a few days each year, and on those days it's an invitation-only event.

Director Williams keeps a low profile on this, just letting us know that you don't have to have a title to be invited to the garden party. However, I don't think that the Queen's staff issues too many invitation to the person on the street. You have to be considered someone important to get in.

In this sense it's like the Queen's art collection. The collection is immense, but the public only gets to see a tiny percentage of the art at any given time.

Because I don't live in the UK, I won't comment on the use of taxpayer money to fund a garden that the taxpayer can't see. The good news is that you can see the garden on your TV screen for a modest cost. I recommend this film is you love beautiful gardens. If beautiful gardens don't mean much to you, let this one pass.

The Queen's Garden has a solid IMDb rating of 8.0. That's also how I rated it.

This beautiful presentation about the grounds surrounding Buckingham Palace (the Queen's Garden), gives the viewer a tour of a vast urban oasis. An amazing space, it could also be called the Queen's backyard since it is mainly located behind the palace. It is where the Queen's summer garden parties take place and we are told, it is about 30 acres in size and dates back before the reign of Queen Victoria.

What I found most interesting is how it is managed year round. It is the home to many species of birds, plants and trees. All the dead plant material is recycled and combined with manure from the Royal Mews to produce a rich compost that every year enriches the gardens. One of the interesting by products are some very rare mushrooms. A pond on the property is home to to small birds and larger ducks and herons. The pond also was the scene for skating parties in the colder winters of the 1800's. The magnificent spring blossoms occur a month before other parts of Britain with the help of the urban heat environment of London. The Queen herself and her sister Princess Margaret used the outdoor property as a playground. Their nanny Marion Crawford recounted how the two children looked beyond the trees through the fence to imagine life beyond their "gilded cage".

This enclosed area provides employment for a staff of gardeners, grounds keepers, and even a highly valued beekeeper. The garden is superbly maintained and honed to perfection before the annual garden parties. The Queen herself is shown thanking some of the staff personally for their work. The Queen's Garden is an excellent show. Thanks to PBS for offering it to their North American audience.