On V.E. Day in 1945, as peace is declared across Europe and London is celebrating, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret are allowed to join the celebrations, against the Queen's wishes. The King, impressed by Elizabeth's pleading, asks her to report back on the people's feelings towards him and his midnight speech on the radio.
Each girl, incognito, is given a chaperone of an army officer, and an itinerary to be back at Buckingham Palace by 1am. Soon realising the planned itinerary by the Queen does not live up to their expectations of fun and meeting the ordinary people, Margaret is the first to slip away from her escort followed by Elizabeth.
The Princesses are separated on two different buses, and Margaret is befriended by a Naval Officer seeking to take advantage of what he believes is just an ordinary girl, and Elizabeth by an airman who is absent without leave.
Margaret is led by her Naval Officer into a world of nightclubs, gambling, spiked drinks and brothels. Elizabeth and her airman have their own adventures trying to catch up with Margaret, which take them far beyond the 1am deadline into the early hours of the following morning.
A Royal Night Out was released in the United Kingdom on 8 May 2015 [1] and on DVD on 7 September 2015. The film will be released in the United States on 4 December 2015.
Critical reception
The film received mixed to positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 78% rating, based on 37 reviews, with an average rating of 5.8/10. The site's consensus states: "Undeniably slight yet thoroughly charming, A Royal Night Out uses a fascinating historical footnote as a springboard into a fun dramedy diversion."[2]Metacritic reports a 59 out of 100 rating, based on 10 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[3]
Real events
In reality, Elizabeth and Margaret went out in a group of 16 including their nanny, several friends their own age and military protection including Group Captain Peter Townsend. The two officer escorts and the airman in the screenplay were fictional creations. The group returned to Buckingham palace at 1am.
