The BBC's celebrity-studded tribute forgot to invite the Queen to her own party

As Queen Elizabeth II marked 70 years on the throne, the BBC was digging deep into its contacts book for a celeb-filled salute to her reign. Paul McCartney, the artist formerly known as Geri Halliwell and David Attenborough were among the talking heads popping up on The Queen: 70 Glorious Years (BBC One). With a Beatle, a Spice Girl and the voice of Planet Earth among the contributors, the broadcaster couldn’t be accused of stinting on the stardust.

And yet Her Majesty felt slightly like a neglected guest at her own soirée. Narrated by Julie Walters, this was billed as a tribute to the Queen in the context of the enormous social upheavals that have taken place since her Coronation in June 1953. And it soon became clear that the social upheavals would be taking centre stage, with the Queen off to one side.

With so many A-listers lining up to give their tuppence-worth, 70 Glorious Years made for engaging viewing. When next will there be an opportunity to hear Twiggy, Lenny Henry, Sara Cox and John Barrowman chime in on the same topic? Unless they’re unveiled as the new Dancing on Ice judging panel, which can never be ruled out.

But if creaking with celebrities, 70 Glorious Years could have down with some extra Elizabeth (and perhaps more than a passing mention of the Duke of Edinburgh). Instead, this was Social History for Dummies with the odd nod towards the monarchy. The deprivations of the postwar years were conjured by McCartney, who recalled playing in old bombing sites. And by Twiggy, who remembered her dad digging a hole in the back garden in order to store the milk (this being the days before fridges).

The ghost of Monty Python’s Four Yorkshireman sketch was eventually banished as the Sixties came riding through. The abolition of national service played a crucial part in the evolution of The Beatles said Macca: without it they may never have conquered the world. And then it was on to the Seventies and Boy George talking about the magic of David Bowie.

It was all a bit Friday-night-on-BBC-Four. And then, every so often, the Queen would pop up. We saw her place the first ever operator-free phone in the 1950s, celebrate her Silver Jubilee in 1977 and send a Tweet.

Only in the final five minutes were the interviewees given license to gush wholeheartedly about the absent guest of honour. “She really is serving this country,” said McCartney. “The Queen centres us… she has been there throughout all our lifetimes,” added Britain’s Got Talent judge Alesha Dixon.

Sixty minutes of reality show judges and pop stars saying nice things about the Queen might have been a bit of an endurance test. And yet what the BBC ended up making instead was a mishmash – part whistle-stop tour of Britain since the Second World War, part valentine to its longest serving monarch. Neither element fully succeeded. And, as celebrations go, The Queen: 70 Glorious Years never quite let its hair down.