Queen speaks to domestic abuse survivors in ’emotional’ ITV film

Queen Camilla says she will keep on raising awareness about domestic violence until she is “able to no more” in a new documentary for ITV, as ITV News’ Royal Editor Chris Ship reports
Every so often, in a media landscape cluttered with royal documentaries, one comes along which really stands out.
Seeing Queen Camilla sitting at a small kitchen table in a women’s refuge talking one-to-one with a survivor of domestic abuse, is one of many must-see interactions in Monday night’s ITV programme – Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors.
It is a powerful and emotional watch on a subject which we simply don’t talk enough about.
The figures are truly shocking: 75,000 people in the UK are at high and imminent risk of being murdered or seriously injured as a result of domestic abuse; a woman is killed by a current or former partner every five days on average; three women every week take their own life as a result of being in a violent relationship.
If you talk to survivors, or those who work to support them, their clear shared view is that silence makes the problem worse.
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So, having someone as high profile as Queen Camilla, who was crowned alongside her husband King Charles, makes a huge difference.
And the voices of those who have survived domestic abuse do sing loudly and clearly from the screens of your TV or mobile device when you watch this new documentary.
In the documentary, which follows the Queen over the course of a year, Camilla meets a survivor whose identity has been hidden and who uses the name Natalie.
“I’m surprised she’s brave enough to do this,” says Queen Camilla before meeting domestic abuse survivor ‘Natalie”
Camilla listens intently as Natalie says her partner was, at the start, “funny and charming, witty and romantic”.
The Queen replies: “Like they usually are…”
Natalie continues: “The abuse started gradually: the odd slap turned into a punch and then beating.”
Camilla asks: “Did the violence get worse?”
Natalie: “Yes, and longer as well. Sometimes for days.”
Queen Camilla says she will “keep trying” to fight against domestic abuse
Watching this moving exchange you begin to understand how, for Queen Camilla, there is both a professional connection to this issue – as a queen consort using her platform to help victims and survivors – but a personal commitment too.
“She really feels it,” said Emma Armstrong, an abuse survivor who now runs a charity called I Choose Freedom.
We meet Ms Armstrong at one of her refuges in Surrey, the location of which we are not sharing to protect the women who are staying there.
Ms Armstrong told ITV News the Queen has “given a voice to survivors like me.”
“She is saying, ‘we can’t silence it anymore, we won’t live in a world where domestic abuse is not spoken about.’
“When you’ve got someone as high profile as the Queen saying ‘this is not ok, we need to do something to tackle this’, the message is so powerful.”
Camilla has been campaigning on this issue for more than a decade but the moment she fully committed herself to the cause came in 2016 following a meeting with a mother whose daughter was killed by her husband.
Diana Parkes has since struck up a close relationship with Camilla. They are of a similar age and the Queen was so moved by her story when they met at a charity event eight years ago, she openly cried.
Camilla describes how the police protection officers and other journalists in the room at that time were also moved to tears.
Ms Parkes had just described how her daughter, Joanna Simpson, had been killed by her partner within earshot of their two children. He buried her in a pre-dug grave in Windsor Great Park.
“I’m never going to forget that meeting, it is engraved on my heart,” says Queen Camilla on meeting her friend Diana Parkes
If you are experiencing domestic abuse, or worried somebody else is, contact Women’s Aid anonymously on its instant messaging service, email [email protected].
If you want to access support over the phone, you can call:National Domestic Abuse Helpline – 0808 2000 247 (run by Refuge)The Men’s Advice Line, for male domestic abuse survivors – 0808 801 0327 (run by Respect)The Mix, free information and support for under 25s in the UK – 0808 808 4994National LGBT+ Domestic Abuse Helpline – 0800 999 5428 (run by Galop)Samaritans (24/7 service) – 116 123Rights of Women advice lines, there are a range of services available
Since that moment, Queen Camilla has been working with domestic abuse charities, bringing together campaigners and politicians at the palace, making public speeches and private visits to women’s refuges.
On every overseas tour, there is a visit by the Queen to a centre or charity which helps those fleeing an abusive partner.
And she says she is committed to this cause for as long as she can.
The Queen said: “If you look at the steps we have since the bad old days, we have made a huge amount of progress and I shall keep on trying until I am able to, no more”.
Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors is on tonight from 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
This is the Talking Royals – our weekly podcast about the royal family, with ITV News Royal Editor Chris Ship and Producer Lizzie Robinson