Secrets Of The Queen’s Coronation

Channel 4, 9pm

Next week will be full of pomp, circumstance and good old-fashioned merriment as the nation helps the Queen (right) celebrate 70 years at the head of the nation and the Commonwealth.

This documentary gets viewers in the mood by taking us back in time to the Queen’s coronation, which took place on June 2, 1953, 16 months after the death of her father, King George VI.

It features rarely seen colour footage captured on the day itself, accompanied by testimony from leading historians and former Buckingham Palace staff.

But of most interest are the tales of those who had a part to play during the lavish ceremony at Westminster Abbey, including maid of honour Baroness Willoughby de Eresby and page boy Andrew Parker Bowles, whose first wife, Camilla, is now married to Prince Charles. ★★★★