Helen Mirren played 'The Queen'.In the film,she appears in a dressing gown with a 'Harrods' insignia.Irony?

Question

Helen Mirren played 'The Queen'.In the film,she appears in a dressing gown with a 'Harrods' insignia.Irony?

Answer 1

Yes (re first respondent) - Harrods dropped its Royal Warrants in December 2000.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1089612.st...

Answer 2

Harrods was the holder of royal warrants from:

- Queen Elizabeth II for Provisions and Household Goods

- The Duke of Edinburgh as Outfitters

- The Prince of Wales as Outfitters and Saddlers

- The Queen Mother, now deceased, for China and Glass

Harrods had held The Duke of Edinburgh's warrant since 1956, but it was rescinded by Prince Philip on 21 December 2001 because of a "significant decline in the trading relationship" between the duke and the store.

Al-Fayed then pre-emptively removed all the royal coats of arms that had been prominently displayed by the business, even though other warrants were yet to expire or be withdrawn. None of the royal grantors of warrants had spent any money at Harrods since 1997, the year Diana, Princess of Wales, died.

Answer 3

I understand that Harrod's used to carry a 'Royal Warrant'.  Since they held this at the time the events being portrayed in the film, it was not irony but actual fact.

Answer 4

Apart from the correct info from the other answerers, I wonder whether you are familiar with the modern publicity technique of product placement. This is more and more used in the film industry. It consists in placing products in their original packaging in prominent places, well in focus in seemingly innocent scenes: for example: Steve Martin has breakfast with his six kids: on the table in the foreground we see : a Heinz ketchup bottle, a Kellogs cereal box, and a Hershey bar;   Danny Glover is stalking a murderer in a parking lot, he is leaning against a Pepsi Cola vending machine with the logo in close up. See what I mean?