Elizabeth's early years are explored, from the day she learns she will eventually be Queen, to her studies with the Provost of Eton and the tour of Kenya during which she learns her father George VI has died.

The 1950s and '60s bring plenty of challenges as Elizabeth tries to bring the royal family's image into the modern age by using technology to get closer to the people via her first televised Christmas message.

Through the 1970s and '80s, Elizabeth is thrilled to see her sons marry, but she also faces a strained relationship with her first female prime minister, Margaret Thatcher.

In the 1990s, Elizabeth faces the most challenging decade of her reign, including the famous "annus horribilis," during which three of her children's marriages fail and fire destroys much of Windsor Castle.