The Queen's Garden

A lively documentary about the royal gardens at Buckingham Palace in London, filmmaker Martin Williams's PBS-aired The Queen's Garden offers a detailed look at a year in the life of a natural wonderland. Sitting on 39 acres (an area that remains from a larger tract seized and transformed by Henry VIII), the garden is actually comprised of several mutually beneficial ecosystems. With forest, lawns, mews, an island, and a relatively wild area, Queen Elizabeth II's outdoor paradise is not only home to hundreds of species of plants and wildlife, but is also a living monument to history where rare flowers and other flora were created. Time-lapse photography reveals many beautiful flowers blossoming to full glory, while small cameras distributed around the grounds capture various critters in motion, and microphotography shows us the predatory world of garden insects. The human life in the garden is also covered, including summer parties and charity soccer games. A delightful tour full of wonderful sights, this is highly recommended. Aud: P. (T. Keogh)