Britain's Nazi King (16 Jul. 2009)

According to research, mainly from FBI files, British king Edward's abdication was not exactly the price for marriage to twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson, an outrage, especially for ... See full summary »

Director:

Clive Maltby

Stars:

Jack Davenport, Tom Carter, Hannah Young

Cast

Episode credited cast:
Jack Davenport	...	Himself - Narrator (voice)
Tom Carter	...	Edward VIII
Hannah Young	...	Wallis Simpson
Tom Bonington	...	Fulton Oursler
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Sarah Bradford	...	Herself - Author of 'George VI & Elizabeth'
Duchess of Windsor	...	Herself (archive footage)
Duke of Windsor	...	Himself (archive footage)
Frank Giles	...	Himself - Former Editor of the Sunday Times
Adolf Hitler	...	Himself (archive footage)
King George V	...	Himself (archive footage)
John Julius Norwich	...	Himself
Jonathan Petropoulos	...	Himself - Author of 'Royals and the Reich' (as Professor Jonathan Petropoulos)
Andrew Roberts	...	Himself - Historian
Franklin D. Roosevelt	...	Himself (archive footage) (as Franklin Delano Roosevelt)
Toby Spearpoint	...	Count Zech

Storyline

According to research, mainly from FBI files, British king Edward's abdication was not exactly the price for marriage to twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson, an outrage, especially for the royal head of the Anglican church. It was a convenient excuse for the British government to remove a royal prince who, from before his ascension to the throne end even during the Second World War, let his Nazi sympathies prevail on patriotism, making him a spy for Berlin, mainly trough Von Ribbentrop. Hitler hoped to restore Edward as a satellite pawn after militarily conquering Britain.

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Plot Keywords:

party | bare chested male | reenactment | swimwear | dancing | 

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Genres:

Documentary

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Details

Release Date:

16 July 2009 (UK)

Company Credits

Production Co:

History Channel, Oxford Film and Television Production

User Reviews

Whose majesty?

It's long been speculated that Edward was both Nazi sympathizer and anti-Semite. What we have here is little more than what's been offered in the past - gossip, innuendo and speculation. This applies especially to FBI files that form so much "proof" in this weak case. It's not hard to believe much of this material was produced by lackey agents, relying on hearsay keyed to please the agency's director, noted Anglophobe Herbert Hoover.

Being a sympathizer of any kind is not the same as being a traitor and spy; this documentary wildly oversteps its bounds with implied allegation the ex-king and his wife were Quislings nesting in one resort after another while stabbing their countrymen in the back. The key link would be alleged correspondence between Wallis Simpson and Nazi foreign minister von Ribbentrop. Where is it? Where is any REAL evidence? So much of the show's assertions are framed as "many believe" and "there is speculation...". This is hogwash approach to proving any charge, standard method for all specious conspiracy theories. Many believe chupacabras leap onto goats by night to suck their blood! Do you? National Geographic channel should be ashamed of itself.