In celebration of Queen Elizabeth II’s 70th anniversary on the throne, the British Royal Family has released videos of the Queen as a young woman that have remained private until now.

 

On the night from Thursday to Friday, the first clips showed Elizabeth with her younger sister Princess Margaret on the royal estate Balmoral in Scotland, with her father King George VI and with her mother Queen Elizabeth on a warship in 1947.

On Sunday, the BBC will broadcast a 75-minute documentary titled Elizabeth: The Unseen Queen. The footage shows the Queen in her early years, from the pram to her coronation in 1953.

In a personal message recorded at Windsor Castle, the Queen talks about the joy she gets from private videos. “I’ve always enjoyed capturing family moments,” the monarch says. It’s different when you know those who are filming. “It contributes to the feeling of intimacy.”

Her parents, like many others, loved to record precious moments on film. Elizabeth II continued this tradition. “Private images often show the fun behind all the formalities,” she said. “You always hope that future generations will find it interesting and maybe be surprised that you were young too.”

For the documentary, the BBC looked at over 400 rolls of film shot by the Queen, her late husband Prince Philip or her parents, which are privately owned by the Royal Collection.