The Kings Speech As Therapy

Seeing the amazing film, the King’s Speech recently pointed up some very interesting issues for me as a practitioner.  It is the story of the man who, due to his brother’s abdication, was reluctantly to become King George VI, the father of the current Queen, Elizabeth II.  Here was a person, who regardless of all the amazing wealth and abundance of his Royal position, had still managed to endure many harsh injustices whilst growing up.

• It is common in the British aristocracy for children to be almost totally brought up by a nanny, having very little to do with the parents, apart from the most formal of requirements – therefore the child would have had to be very lucky with his parents’ choice of nanny
• Unfortunately for him his very first nanny, whilst doting on his older brother, did not it seem warm to him from the beginning
• When they were presented to their mother the Queen, before bedtime the nanny would present his older brother first, and just prior to presenting him, she would pinch him hard so that he would cry when handed over; because of his crying and distress, his mother would soon hand him back to the nanny.  Her intent was that his older brother would have all of the motherly attention that was on offer
• She also fed him irregularly, which resulted in digestive problems
• When he would speak and stammer as a child, his father would shout at him, which then encouraged his brother to do the same, and tease him mercifully about his speech defect
• He eventually ended up with a full-blown severe nervous stammer, a stammer that was to cause him tremendous pain well into his adulthood

This film has turned out to be a huge success in the cinemas around the UK and across the world.  On the day I was to see it, I mentioned to someone that I was going to see it, and he said ‘have you booked? My son tried to see it on wednesday and it was solidly booked!’  I booked online and on entering there was a massive queue to see it.  As I was getting my tickets out of the machine, I heard an employee say that the feature was now totally booked up.

I believe part of its amazing success has been the moral of the story which has turned out to be such a lesson to all of us. Whether we believe it or not, we are all of us flawed in someway – whether it is nature, nurture – whatever! It’s almost as if, under every stressor, there is a very specific invitation to grow.  It is just part of our Soul’s journey of learning on Earth.  The trick is in the overcoming of the obstacles and injustices that we encounter along the way.

In the case of the choice of nanny, I was one of the lucky ones.  My mother was a career woman, and I remember being responsible at a very young age for being the one who suggested the hiring of the woman who was to take my mother’s place in the home.  I say woman, but at the time, she was herself a mere teenager; a woman of such love, kindness and a myriad of creativity that she is still with us, now in her late 70′s, a vital part of three generations of my family.

Having seen many specialists in the hope that He could overcome his problem, the adult Prince had become frustrated and totally given up on ever speaking normally again; comfortable in the knowledge that he would not be King.  However fate had other plans for him! On the abdication of his brother, Prince Edward, he was forced to assume the throne.  With the mantle of Kingship, as well as the upcoming war, he had no choice now but to face up to his responsibilities, and this wonderful film is of him actually going through therapy, with a lovable but unorthodox character called Lionel Logue.  And through a set of very funny and unexpected consequences, he is able to find his voice and boldly lead his country into war.

Deepak Chopra’s, in his excellent little book called, The Soul of Leadership writes that, ’At the Soul level, all Souls are equal.  It’s the roles we play that enforce the illusion of inequality’.  To witness a King go through therapy on the big screen, gives each of us hope, in the sure knowledge that King or commoner, we all have our trials and tribulations to bear.  At the end of the day,  it is not really who we are, or what we are, or even what we have endured that is important, but who we can ultimately become in this particular life.

Till later  .  .  .

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