NT Live: The Audience

The Audience offers a rare and irresistible invitation: a glimpse behind the closed doors of Buckingham Palace, where Queen Elizabeth II meets her prime ministers in weekly private audiences. Written by Peter Morgan and starring Helen Mirren in a career-defining stage performance, this National Theatre Live production blends history, wit and human insight into a richly entertaining theatrical experience.

The structure is both elegant and immediately engaging. Each scene pairs the Queen with a different prime minister, spanning decades of British political life. From Winston Churchill through to more contemporary leaders, these meetings become windows into changing times, shifting values and evolving power dynamics. While the audience is famously confidential, the play imagines what might have been said — not to sensationalise, but to illuminate character, responsibility and the burden of leadership.

What makes the show so compelling is its balance of tone. It is often sharply funny, filled with dry humour, political irony and moments of unexpected warmth. At the same time, it carries emotional weight, touching on national crises, personal loss and the quiet loneliness of a life lived largely in service. The writing never lectures; instead, it allows contrasting personalities to spark off one another, revealing tensions between tradition and progress, formality and humanity.

Helen Mirren’s performance is the cornerstone of the production. Having previously portrayed the Queen on screen, Mirren brings extraordinary nuance to the stage version. Her transformation — voice, posture, stillness — is subtle yet commanding. Rather than presenting a remote figure, she offers a portrait of a woman navigating duty, restraint and private reflection, all while remaining the constant presence as the world around her changes. It is a performance that holds attention through quiet authority as much as through wit.

The production design enhances this intimacy. The audience chamber is elegant but restrained, allowing focus to remain on dialogue and performance. Clever staging and costume shifts mark the passage of time fluidly, giving the sense of history unfolding without disrupting the play’s momentum. Captured live for cinema, NT Live’s filming brings viewers close to expressions, pauses and reactions that make the conversations feel immediate and personal.

For audiences, The Audience has broad appeal. History lovers will enjoy seeing decades of British politics refracted through a single, unchanging role. Theatre-goers will relish the craftsmanship of a dialogue-driven play performed at the highest level. And anyone intrigued by leadership, power and the human beings behind public roles will find it absorbing.

Ultimately, The Audience is not about secrets revealed, but about perspective gained. It is witty, thoughtful and deeply engaging — a theatrical experience that entertains while quietly inviting reflection on responsibility, continuity and the cost of public life.