The Lost Prince (2003)

The true story of the British royal prince locked away because of having epilepsy.

Director:

Stephen Poliakoff

Writer:

Stephen Poliakoff

Stars:

Daniel Williams, Matthew James Thomas, Brock Everitt-Elwick

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 8 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel Williams	...	Prince John (younger)
Matthew James Thomas	...	Prince John (older) (as Matthew Thomas)
Brock Everitt-Elwick	...	Prince George (younger)
Rollo Weeks	...	Prince George (older)
Gina McKee	...	Lalla
Tom Hollander	...	George V
Miranda Richardson	...	Queen Mary
Bill Nighy	...	Stamfordham
Bibi Andersson	...	Queen Alexandra
Ron Cook	...	Lloyd George
Frank Finlay	...	Asquith
David Westhead	...	Fred
John Sessions	...	Mr. Hansell
Michael Gambon	...	Edward VII
David Barrass	...	Kaiser Wilhelm

Storyline

British empire monarch George V and his wife Queen Mary decide to hide their last-born son, Johnnie, from the public, being embarrassingly affected by epilepsy. While his protective elder brother is ruthlessly groomed for court life, Johnnie gets packed off to a country cottage on the royal estate Sandringham. With his full-time governess Lalla, a substitute-mother, he's abandoned to playfulness and virtual social neglect. The Great War and the Russian Revolution change life in Britain, also at court, even at Sandringham, where royal refugees are expected.

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Plot Keywords:

shooting party | brother brother relationship | 1900s | tv mini series | queen | 

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Taglines:

The heartbreaking story of the prince that history forgot

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Official Sites:

BBc [UK] PBS

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 October 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

El príncipe perdido

Filming Locations:

Black Park, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), TalkBack Productions, WGBH

Technical Specs

Runtime:

180 min (2 parts)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ingeborga Dapkunaite would later reprise her role as Tsarina Alexandra Fyodorovna in the Russian miniseries, Grigori R.

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Goofs

When Prince George mentions after the war ends that the exiled Kaiser and Austrian emperor can visit Prince John, two old men who are supposed to be Wilhelm II and Franz Josef are shown in their imagination. Franz Josef had died in 1916 and the exiled Austrian emperor was Charles who would have been aged 30 at the time.

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Quotes

Prince George: [Speaking about Prince John] He was the only one of us who was able to be himself.

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Connections

Featured in The 62nd Annual Golden Globe Awards (2005)

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Soundtracks

Concerto for Oboe D'Amore and Strings in A Major, 3rd movement, Largo
(uncredited)
Written by Georg Philipp Telemann
Arranged by Adrian Johnston
Performed by Adrian Johnston (piano) and Colin Rae (trumpet)

User Reviews

Brilliant Diorama of Turn of the Century Royal Life

This lavish production, uses the vehicle of the short life "The Lost (from history) Prince" to portray what Royal Life was like at the turn of century. The sumptuous production illustrates the splendour, luxury, misery and ultimately the futility of the Royals. There are wonderful images of the beautiful daughters of the tsar. Epileptic Prince John is however seen as the only one as being allowed to be himself. Wonderful performances of the roles of the ice queen Queen Mary, Lalla the nursemaid, Prince John young and old.Has been criticised for being too long, but you must try and get to see this when it comes to your country.

Historical facts, Prince John died aged 14 isolated from his family in a farmhouse at Sandringham? cared for by Lalla Bill. Only one historical reference to him still existed. The height of George V is still a secret.