With the new season of The Crown out today (hello, season 5), there is no better time to chat about this book. The Queen Mother does not play a prominent role in the series, but she certainly was an anchor of the British Royal Family for more than half a century. Gareth Russell is a talented historian, and this is not his first royal biography. (Young and Damned and Fair, covering Catherine Howard’s life, is one of the best bios I’ve read.) If you are at all interested in the modern British Royal Family or The Crown, Do Let’s Have Another Drink by Gareth Russell is a must-read!
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review. (I purchased the audiobook myself.)
Do Let’s Have Another Drink!: The Dry Wit and Fizzy Life of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, Gareth Russell
During her lifetime, the Queen Mother was as famous for her clever quips, pointed observations, and dry-as-a-martini delivery style as she was for being a beloved royal. Now, Do Let’s Have Another Drink recounts 101 (one for each year of her remarkable life) amusing and astonishing vignettes from across her long life, including her coming of age during World War I, the abdication of her brother-in-law and her unexpected ascendance to the throne, and her half century of widowhood as her daughter reigned over the United Kingdom. Featuring new revelations and colorful anecdotes about the woman Cecil Beaton, the high society photographer, once summarized as “a marshmallow made on a welding machine,” Do Let’s Have Another Drink is a delightful celebration of one of the most consistently popular members of the royal family.
Why You Should Read This…
The Queen Mother’s life spanned over a century and thus can be an overwhelming topic. (William Shawcross’ biography is a time investment for sure…) However, Russell chose 101 different anecdotes from Elizabeth’s life to highlight her wit and levity. She was known by those around her to be charming and lively, but many of her most-defining moments are from the most serious points in her life.
Russell’s wide variety of anecdotes, especially from people that have not been interviewed before, set this biography apart. This is not a chronological retelling of Elizabeth’s life, but rather many different windows into different times in her life. I appreciate that he did go out of his way to find new materials, because reading royal biographies gets repetitive very quickly and DLHAD is a breath of fresh air.
Fiona Hampton’s narration on the audiobook is spot on. I found that she picked up on the accents and cadences of the royals without feeling like an actor, and captured a lot of emotion without distracting.
Is Do Let’s Have Another Drink by Gareth Russell on your to-read list?
Cheers,
The Historian
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