Traditions Vs Modernity

       All along the movie, we can see a real conflict between the traditional face of the U.K. and its modern side. There is an effective confrontation that opposes the Queen, conservative and attached to the customs, and the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, described as the modernizer of the country. A few examples illustrate this conflict: 

     The Prime Minister advices to let the flag fly at half mast above Buckingham Palace, whereas the Queen wants to respect the tradition which is that the flag should only be flying in presence of the monarch in the Palace. 

Also, the Royal Family wants private funeral, in a more traditional and discreet way, when the Prime Minister assures the requirement of a public funeral to help the population to be in mourning.

The activities of the Royal Family are also very different of the Prime Minister ones:  when the royal family goes fishing, hunting and other ancient conserved activities of the British monarchy, the Prime Minister likes to go golfing.

       Finally, the traditional/modern conflict is reflected by the cloth and behaviors on both sides.

 The Queen has a very strict dress code to respect. We could quote the length of her dresses: never above the knees. The tradition demands as well to never show your back to the Queen. 

We can obviously feel the tension in the insolent and provocative attitude of the Prime Minister’s wife during the first meeting at Buckingham Palace, which shows her disagreement about this tradition and the traditional style of the monarchy in general.