At the turn of the millennium, the break-up of her children's marriages and the deaths of Diana, Margaret and the Queen Mother took their toll on Elizabeth. But she emerged from the tragedies as a more relaxed and accessible monarch.

Elizabeth's early years are explored, from the day she learned she would eventually be Queen, to the tour of Kenya during which she learned her father George VI had died. Then how she faced many tough decisions, including how to modernise the British Empire, manage a critically ill prime minister and balance her royal duties with her family.