Photos
Quotes
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Queen Elizabeth II : You were my guardian angel. The roof over my head. The spine in my back. The iron in my heart. You were the compass that steered and directed me. Not just me, all of us. Where would Great Britain be without its... greatest Briton? God bless you, Winston.
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Queen Elizabeth II : We stand here tonight, surrounded by some of the Royal Collection's greatest treasures, to admire the genius of Rubens, Titian, Rembrandt, and Holbein, but that we are able to make sense of it all, appreciate it, understand it... speaks to the genius of another man, whose exceptional scholarship and vision have brought us together today. Sir Anthony Blunt. Thank you. It is he who has curated this exhibition, and given meaning to mystery, and revealed what really does lie beneath the surface. I, for one, had never thought of art history in that way, as the art of investigation, solving riddles, finding clues, unlocking secrets. It's been quite an education. I particularly enjoyed the portrait which turned out to have another person lurking beneath the surface. Have I described that correctly, Sir Anthony? Or am I stumbling around in the dark, as usual?
Anthony Blunt : Not another person, ma'am. The same person. It was not uncommon in the early modern period for an artist to finish a portrait, and the patron would take a look and ask for a more flattering version of themselves. And the artist would paint another version over it.
Queen Elizabeth II : So, not two different people?
Anthony Blunt : Two different versions of the same person.
Queen Elizabeth II : Which might as well be two different people. The idealized version of themselves they want to be seen, and the less desirable person they really are, hidden away. There's even a word for it: "palimpsest."
Anthony Blunt : That generally applies to manuscripts, ma'am. "Pentimento" for paintings.
Queen Elizabeth II : Pentimento. Well, I think I speak for everyone here when I say none of us will be able to trust or look at anything in the same way ever again.
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Queen Elizabeth II : I'm not sure what I was expecting. Each of his predecessors, Churchill, Eden, Macmillan, even Alec, each in their own way was formidable. Statesmanlike. But Wilson is neither old nor young, tall nor short, loud nor quiet, warm nor cold. He seems to have come from nowhere and is entirely unremarkable.
[chuckles]
Duchess of Gloucester : Best qualities in a spy.
Queen Elizabeth II : What did you say?
Duchess of Gloucester : Aren't those the best qualities in a spy? Well, to be forgettable, unremarkable. Not stand out in a crowd. We used to say that about Henry, didn't we, dear?
Duke of Gloucester : What?
Duchess of Gloucester : That you would have made the perfect spy, because no one could remember having met you.
[guests laugh]
Duke of Gloucester : I-I-'d say that was marginally better than everyone having nightmares having met you!
[laughter]
