Plot
The film is set in London in June, 1911. George V will be crowned king on 22 June and in the preceding days many of the most important dignitaries arrive. Among those arriving are King Nicholas of Carpathia and the regent, Prince Charles.
The British government realises the succession in Carpathia is critical to the rising tension in Europe and to gain favour with them would be wise. They find it necessary to pamper the royals during their stay in London, and thus civil servant Northbrook is detached to their service. Northbrook decides to take the Prince Regent out to the musical performance The Coconut Girl. During the interval the Prince Regent is taken backstage to meet the cast. He is particularly uninterested in engaging with the male actors and extremely interested only in the physical charms of Elsie Marina, one of the performers, and sends a formal written invitation for her to meet him at the embassy for supper.
Elsie arrives at the embassy and is soon joined by the Prince Regent, a stiff, pompous but powerful fool. She expects a party but quickly realises the Prince's true intentions -- to seduce her. She was previously persuaded not to leave early by Northbrook, who promised to provide an excuse for her to escape. While Elsie is there for love, the Prince has other ideas. He is inept at romance, however, and turns his back on her to take a phone call. He then makes a clumsy pass at her, to which she's accustomed from men and immediately rebuffs. She pointedly explains how inept he is at romance and the Prince then changes his tactics. The two eventually kiss and Elsie admits she may be falling in love, but she passes out from the many drinks he has encouraged her to consume. The Prince places her in an adjoining bedroom to stay the night.
The following day, Elsie overhears a conversation concerning the young Nicolas' plotting with the German embassy to overthrow his father. Promising not to tell, Elsie then meets the Dowager Queen, the prince's mother-in-law, who decides she should join them for the coronation in place of her lady-in-waiting. The ceremony passes and Elsie refuses to tell the Prince Regent details of the treasonous plot. During the Coronation Ball (to which she was invited by Nicholas,) she persuades Nicholas to draw up a contract in which he confesses his and the Germans' intent, but only if the Prince agrees to a general election. The Prince Regent is impressed and realizes that he has fallen in love with Elsie. The morning after the Coronation Ball, Elsie irons out the differences between father and son. Her honesty and sincerity have inspired the prince finally to show love to his son in private, rather than only affecting it in public.
The next day, the Carpathians must leave to return home. The Prince Regent had planned to have Elsie join them; in eighteen months' time, his regency will be over and he will be a free citizen. She reminds him that that is also the length of her music-hall contract. They both realize that much can happen in eighteen months and say goodbye. The ending is ambiguous, left up to the viewer to decide if they will meet again in 18 months time.
Read more about this topic: The Prince And The Showgirl
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