Uploaded September 2022 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Did you know Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s first Australian visit in 1954 led to the first ever feature-length colour documentary made in Australia? Republished in 4K after the Queen Elizabeth II’s passing in the Film Australia Collection, viewers can watch this landmark film here in full.
Shot by a total of 16 cameramen, ‘The Queen In Australia’ was commissioned by The National Film Board to capture the Queen’s visits to each state capital and many regional areas over her two-month official tour. It was the very first visit of a reigning monarch to our shores. Assisted by a chorus of narrators, director Colin Dean showcases the atmosphere of national excitement. Huge crowds, families camped by radios and momentous ceremonies in vivid colour.
This historic program provides nationwide coverage of the Queen and HRH the Duke of Edinburgh’s journey across every facet of Australian life: dancers at the Tivoli, racing at Randwick, tennis at Kooyong with Rosewall and Hoad, cricket with the Don, and even a meeting with Papua New Guinean tribal chiefs. Notable sequences include the arrival of the Royal Navy ship SS Gothic in Sydney Harbour and the Queen opening the 20th Australian Parliament in Canberra.
Queen Elizabeth II’s reign of 70 years and 214 days is the longest of any British monarch, and the longest of any queen regnant in history. This film captures the Queen in the earliest days of her long reign, only a year after her coronation, and provides a remarkable and revealing insight into our nation in the 1950s.
👑 The Queen returned to Australia another 15 times since that tour. At the NFSA we have a wealth of material documenting the monarch's official tours - follow the link to explore more highlights: https://www.nfsa.gov.au/collection/curated/queen-australia
From the Film Australia Collection, National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
Title: The Queen in Australia
NFSA ID: BGD9P0PW
Year: 1954
Credits:
Production company
Australian National Film Board - Australia. Dept of the Interior
Director: Colin Dean
Producer: Stanley Hawes
Director of Photography: George Lowe & Frank Nelson Bagnall
Commentator: Wilfrid Coad Thomas & Peter Finch
#thequeeninaustralia #queenelizabethii #royaltour #australianhistory #nfsa #filmaustraliacollection #1950saustralia #royalfamily #britishmonarchy #historicaldocumentary #archivalfilm #4krestoration #queenelizabeth #australia1954 #royalvisit #documentaryfilm #historyinaustralia
Did you know Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s first Australian visit in 1954 led to the first ever feature-length colour documentary made in Australia? Republished in 4K after the Queen Elizabeth II’s passing in the Film Australia Collection, viewers can watch this landmark film here in full.
Shot by a total of 16 cameramen, ‘The Queen In Australia’ was commissioned by The National Film Board to capture the Queen’s visits to each state capital and many regional areas over her two-month official tour. It was the very first visit of a reigning monarch to our shores. Assisted by a chorus of narrators, director Colin Dean showcases the atmosphere of national excitement. Huge crowds, families camped by radios and momentous ceremonies in vivid colour.
This historic program provides nationwide coverage of the Queen and HRH the Duke of Edinburgh’s journey across every facet of Australian life: dancers at the Tivoli, racing at Randwick, tennis at Kooyong with Rosewall and Hoad, cricket with the Don, and even a meeting with Papua New Guinean tribal chiefs. Notable sequences include the arrival of the Royal Navy ship SS Gothic in Sydney Harbour and the Queen opening the 20th Australian Parliament in Canberra.
Queen Elizabeth II’s reign of 70 years and 214 days is the longest of any British monarch, and the longest of any queen regnant in history. This film captures the Queen in the earliest days of her long reign, only a year after her coronation, and provides a remarkable and revealing insight into our nation in the 1950s.
👑 The Queen returned to Australia another 15 times since that tour. At the NFSA we have a wealth of material documenting the monarch's official tours - follow the link to explore more highlights: https://www.nfsa.gov.au/collection/curated/queen-australia
From the Film Australia Collection, National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
Title: The Queen in Australia
NFSA ID: BGD9P0PW
Year: 1954
Credits:
Production company
Australian National Film Board - Australia. Dept of the Interior
Director: Colin Dean
Producer: Stanley Hawes
Director of Photography: George Lowe & Frank Nelson Bagnall
Commentator: Wilfrid Coad Thomas & Peter Finch
#thequeeninaustralia #queenelizabethii #royaltour #australianhistory #nfsa #filmaustraliacollection #1950saustralia #royalfamily #britishmonarchy #historicaldocumentary #archivalfilm #4krestoration #queenelizabeth #australia1954 #royalvisit #documentaryfilm #historyinaustralia
