Celebrating our Queen’s platinum jubilee, (70 years on the thrown this year,) and how the royals have helped in educating in the arena of disability awareness.
Hi folks! Welcome back! As you’re reading this blog, you can have a nice glass of bubbly for this is a blog for celebration because it is bubbling with royal facts and bubbling with our wit and interesting writing style! The title of this royal blog says it all! We’re delighted at ERS to be celebrating with you the queen’s jubilee on the 5th of June 2022!
You may remember a film called the king’s speech. This was a film based on the true-life story of our current queen's father, King George the 5th. All his life he battled with a stammer, and because of his massive role, that of being king, he had many important speaking engagements. He also had early speech therapy, which helped to control his stammer to an extent. According to a letter which was to be auctioned, (George VI King's Speech therapist letter to be auctioned - BBC News March 2020,) it states,
A "previously undiscovered" letter, written by King George VI to his speech therapist just five days after his coronation, is to be auctioned off.
George VI was helped to overcome his stammer by Lionel Logue. The story inspired the film The King's Speech.
In the letter, he reveals how anxious he was "to get my responses right in the abbey" and his gratitude and relief that the "great day" had gone smoothly.
The lot is to be sold in Salisbury next month, with a starting bid of £4,000.
Queen Elizabeth II's father was thrust into the role when his elder brother, Edward VIII, abdicated to marry American divorcee Mrs. Wallis Simpson.
The then Duke of York dreaded public speaking and turned to maverick Australian Mr. Logue to help him conquer his debilitating stammer.
King George VI made the Christmas Day broadcast in 1944
In the letter sent from Windsor Castle on 17 May 1937, he wrote about the "poor rehearsal" at his coronation "adding greatly" to his anxiety but his "mind was finally set at ease".
"Not a moment's hesitation or mistake," he wrote.
"The same cannot be said of the bishops, of course, nor the pen I used to sign the oath; the ink got all over my fingers.
"The success was due to your expert supervision and unfailing patience with me over recent months, and I truly don't know how I could have done it without you."
The queen herself felt deep emotional pain along with her sister Margaret, and particularly the girl’s mother. According to her, he was humiliated as a child and tormented as an adult, how a fellow stammerer shared George VI's pain in The King's Speech | Daily Mail Online, 2011), Collin Firth who played George the 6th and who also in real life had a stammer, the article reads, “Some years ago, the late Queen Mother was asked whether she would be happy for a film to be made about her husband’s struggle with his stammer. She replied: ‘Not in my lifetime.’ Even as an old lady, and 50 years after his death, the memory of the distress that a speech impediment brought King George VI was still too raw.
He, a brave man, was, by accident of birth, fated to become King and the head of a vast Empire. The world wanted to hear the King speak.
But he did so only with the greatest difficulty, as cinemagoers can witness in the film, The King’s Speech, about George VI’s relationship with the Australian speech therapist who prepared him for radio broadcasts.
So what is it like to be someone who can’t get his or her words out; whose explosive consonants repeat themselves unstoppably; whose face goes into rictus contortions at the struggle to speak; whose eyes sometimes close involuntarily; who gulps for air and whose whole body strains?
What is it like to be terrified of having to pick up a telephone or buy something in a shop, or ask for a fare on the bus? What is it like to have a really bad stammer?”
The main thing appears to indicate that the queen and the rest of her family felt that the film helped to educate others on how hard a stammer can be to battle through and to have such a role placed on his shoulders must have been an additional struggle. However, the queen's father sounded stoic, and he appeared to have a loving family who helped him through.
Because of this, how have the royal family helped to support the need for more disability awareness within the last 70 years of our current queen’s reign?
To answer this question, the countess of Wessex is very much at the heart of this. According to www.royal.uk, (2022), a well-written document demonstrates the hard work that the countess along with the rest of the royals do to endeavour with charities that support people with unique abilities is given.
It states,
The Countess of Wessex has a strong personal interest in the provisions for people with disabilities and embracing opportunities for young people, championing both local initiatives such as Disability Initiative in Surrey as well as national charities such as the NSPCC. of her own charities and organisations. She has a wide range of interests which include supporting people with disabilities, the prevention of blindness in developing countries, agriculture, and fashion.
The Earl and Countess of Wessex established their foundation The Wessex Youth Trust in 1999 with a focus to help, support and advising registered charities that provide opportunities specifically for children and young people.
In 2019, the Wessex Youth Trust was renamed The Earl and Countess of Wessex Trust. Having met the charity’s original objective – supporting and advancing organisations that provided opportunities for children and young people - the Trust will now broaden its charitable endeavours beyond youth-focused initiatives and will focus on developing strong relationships with a selected group of charities.
The Earl and Countess of Wessex founded The Wessex Youth Trust Shortly before their marriage in 1999. It offered grants and support to charities helping young people. The Trust benefited a broad cross-section of youth-oriented causes, including hospitals and hospices, child protection and drug-prevention schemes, inner-city drop-in centres, sex education initiatives, special educational needs libraries, sports facilities, and arts groups.
The Wessex Youth Trust distributed over £2.5 million to over 180 causes during its two successful decades.” In our minds, we feel that there is a passion and a drive, good for the royals!
Similarly, Prince Charles, the queen's eldest son, feels impassioned about our armed forces. We have a belting man, (See blog 16), about our ex-serviceman who knows only too well how being in the army can be both a strength and can also take a terrible mental toll on your mental well-being. Prince Charles in 2019, set up a fund. "Charles launched the Combat Stress at Ease appeal at a reception at St James's Palace attended by veterans treated by the charity.
Combat Stress, a charity of which Charles is a patron, hopes to raise the £10million over three years. New referrals have almost doubled to 2,000 a year in the last decade. It aims to use the money to launch an intensive treatment program for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). (Prince Charles to raise £10m for heroes with PTSD | Royal | News | Express.co.uk 2019). Furthermore, from the same article it says,
Launching the appeal, Prince Charles said: "The challenge we face is greater than ever before. As a nation, we have a collective duty to support these veterans.
"The awful stigma our society previously attached to mental health issues has given way to a more positive attitude. The Armed Forces have made a concerted effort in this regard, and so, I am proud to say, have both my sons."
The charity's president General Sir Peter Wall said the campaign would transform the lives of veterans who have paid a "high price" for their nation.
The charity, which is in its centenary year, helps former servicemen and women deal with trauma-related mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and PTSD.
The rate of PTSD is nearly twice as high among veterans as the general public, research by King's College London found.
It predicted that one in five veterans who served on the frontline in Iraq and Afghanistan will get PTSD.
Meanwhile, the Duke of Cambridge joined stars in a radio broadcast yesterday, urging listeners to stay "mentally fit and healthy".
In the minute-long message, Prince William asked the nation to stop and listen to a person in need.” These are very poignant words, and it certainly demonstrates to us at least that within the last 70 years of the majesty’s reign, the royal family is trying their best to pave the way for attitudinal and a physical change to a better world, though like with any change, there are many rocky roads to walk before a smoother path can be reached.
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading what we hope is an interesting and joyous blog for you, and let's raise our glasses to the queen's long reign, and to her family's constant support to those with unique abilities who as we all know are driven bye motivation, humour and might!
We love to change lives and feel the vibes!
If you have a unique ability or know of anybody who wants to work, please don’t hesitate to get in touch on our website, or freephone 08008048625.
See you next week!
By Sophia McKie - Head of Blind and DisABLED Development