William Shawcross

The Queen’s dedication to service was learnt at her father’s knee

She first addressed the nation aged 14 – making her lifetime of devotion no exaggeration, says Robert Hardman

Princess Elizabeth, with Princess Margaret, broadcasting in 1940. [Getty Images]

If you have ever thought that there cannot be anything new to say or to learn about the Queen, you have not yet read Robert Hardman’s revelatory new biography of her in this, her astonishing Platinum Jubilee year.

Hardman has spent the past 30 years researching and understanding the British monarchy, and he writes with an extraordinary fount of knowledge but, even more important, with a heartfelt appreciation of what has been called ‘the genius of constitutional monarchy’ and for the members of the family who implement it.

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