The Lost Prince follows the life and times of Prince John, the youngest son of George V and Queen Mary whose short life spanned one of the most momentous periods in British history.
The story starts in the late Edwardian period when the British king is at one with all the major dynasties in Europe. Within just a handful of years, George V is at war with his German cousin, prepared to refuse sanctuary to another, and under pressure to give up his 'Germanic' family name. His son Johnnie is diagnosed as epileptic and hidden away, along with Lalla, a devoted nanny, to protect the family from public embarrassment.
The screenplay of Poliakoff's award-winning BBC drama about the forgotten son of King George V and Queen Mary
The Lost Prince follows the life and times of Prince John, the forgotten youngest son of King George V and Queen Mary, who was born in 1905. Although remembered as a charming boy, he was diagnosed as epileptic and suffering from learning difficulties similar to autism and shut away at the age of twelve at the in Wood Farm near Sandringham to prevent the family from public embarrassment. He died there when he was just thirteen. Dramatising the historical facts, Poliakoff portrays with extraordinary sensitivity, a child's experience of the Royal Family in the late Edwardian period and during the First World War. Set against a backdrop of unprecedented upheaval in Britain, The Lost Prince tells the very human story of a unique family and an extraordinary boy.
Published to tie in with the BBC's production, broadcast in two feature-length instalments in January 2003, The Lost Prince stars Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson, Gina McKee, Tom Hollander, John Sessions, Billy Nighy and Bibi Andersson.
A sensitive screenplay portrayal of the extraordinary story of Prince John, epileptic youngest son of King George V. Born in 1905, John was institutionalised at the age of twelve to save the Royal Family from public embarrassment, and died a year later. With a seventy-page factual introduction, this is the tale of a unique family at a time of historic upheaval.
Stephen Poliakoff lives in London. The Lost Prince was made into a major BBC drama.
Screenplay dramatisation of compelling historical tale.
