QUEEN ELIZABETH II would have turned 100 on 21 April, and, to mark that centenary, BBC1 showed Queen Elizabeth II: Her story, our century (19 April) (Comment, 24 April). At just one hour long, I was not expecting much in-depth analysis of her long reign — indeed, the storytelling felt a little cursory, skipping over long periods of time, particularly when we arrived in the 21st century.

The brevity of the documentary made me worry that it would shy away from discussing the more problematic aspects of her reign, specifically the conduct of the former Prince Andrew, but it does go there, albeit briefly. Overall, though, this delivers more of a panegyric on the late Queen, devoid of detailed or nuanced discussion.

Then again, perhaps a short, celebratory documentary was not a suitable place for harsh examination, particularly one that includes dewy-eyed recollections from celebrities such as Lulu and Sir Tom Jones. There is commentary from an impressive host of public figures, including Barack Obama, Sir Tony Blair, Sir David Attenborough, Dame Helen Mirren, Dame Sheila Hancock, and Queen Camilla. Historical insight is provided by a BBC favourite, Professor David Olusoga, blended with fascinating archival footage.

The documentary does well to tell a story that is sweeping but concise, beginning with a happy childhood rocked by a constitutional crisis, which thrust the young Princess Elizabeth from relative unimportance into being heir apparent. “Bad luck, Lilibet,” her long-time friend Lady Glenconner (then Anne Coke) said to her at the time.

Nevertheless, guided by an impeccable sense of duty, Elizabeth rose consistently to the task presented to her. Queen at just 25, overseeing a rapidly declining empire and a swiftly changing society, she reigned longer than any other British monarch. This is a brief snippet of that reign, but it shows ably how, despite the many challenges that she faced, she remained scrupulously regal throughout. As the broadcaster Kirsty Young said during BBC coverage of the late Queen’s funeral in 2022: “She made history; she was history.”

To mark Earth Day on 22 April, I felt moved to watch Orangutan (Disney+, Wednesday), a feature-length documentary about our closest ancestor. Narrated by Josh Gad, this is a charming and fun exploration of these fluffy red apes, filmed in their rainforest home in Borneo.

This is light-hearted enough to watch with children, since, unlike an Attenborough documentary, the cuddly apes are only ever mildly imperilled by the presence of the occasional hungry tiger; but that’s all. In fact, I heartily recommend that you watch this with a child: it has all the drama and beauty of a real-life Jungle Book, and it will renew an appreciation of these thoughtful, gentle “kings of the swingers”. It is the perfect programme to imbue children with a lifelong love for the care of God’s creatures.