Edward & Mrs. Simpson - Season 1 (1978)

As Wallis proceeds with her divorce, away from London, there is increasing concern in official circles as to what the future may hold. The American press are having a field day with the affair but the British press has remained silent. Of greater concern to the Prime Minister is the possibility of a constitutional crisis should the King persist with his intention to marry Wallis. The British media, led by the influential press baron Lord Beaverbrook, agree to cover the divorce in as low key a way as possible. The Prime Minister, who very much likes and supports the ...

With Wallis Simpson's interim divorce decree issued, the King makes his intentions known. He advises his friend Walter Monkton and Prime Minister Baldwin that he has every intention of marrying Wallis and that he will not be crowned unless she can stand by his side. He also advises him that should he be prevented from proceeding with his intentions, he will abdicate in favor of his younger brother Bertie. The King has a few supporters - Lord Beaverbrook and Winston Churchill among them - but for the most part, few believe that the people would accept the union. The ...

With the chances of getting the government's support for his marriage to Wallis ever diminishing, the King attempts to get their support for a morganatic marriage. Used in some countries when royalty marries a commoner, a morganatic marriage results in the sovereign's wife not becoming Queen and does not allow the children to inherit the throne. There is no provision in British law for this type of marriage and there is no support, either from the government or the Opposition, to enact the necessary legislation. Wallis for her part simply can't understand why the King...

With all avenues now exhausted, King Edward VIII accepts his situation and proceeds with the abdication. In his broadcast to the nation, he appeals for understanding and tells his people that he cannot continue without the woman he loves. His brother, Prince Albert, feels that he is completely unprepared to take on the duties of the monarch but he accepts his duty and becomes King George VI. The new King decides that his brother, now Prince Edward, will be known as HRH the Duke of Windsor. The Duke however is dismayed when told that his future wife, while becoming a ...