Rolf Harris paints portrait of the late Queen in new Prime documentary but what happened to it?
The convicted paedophile was later stripped of his CBERolf Harris is seen painting his famous portrait of the Queen in the new documentary Rolf Harris: Primetime Predator – but what happened to it?
The BBC commissioned the Australian entertainer to paint the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II in 2005.
Rolf was invited to Buckingham Palace to create the artwork to mark the now-late monarch’s 80th birthday.
Rolf was later jailed after being convicted of a string of sex offences.
So where has the painting gone?
Rolf Harris paints Queen portrait in new documentary
Rolf Harris travels to Buckingham Palace to meet Queen Elizabeth in Rolf Harris: Primetime Predator, which dropped on Prime Video this week. The clip comes from the 2006 documentary The Queen by Rolf Harris.
“I can hardly believe it,” Rolf says, as he sits in the back of a black cab. “Up there, in the palace, the Queen of England is expecting me.”
Once at the Palace, Queen Elizabeth, dressed in a turquoise frock, enters the room and says: “Oh, good afternoon.” Rolf bows as he shakes her hand.
He then begins painting her portrait as the Queen sits in a chair. He tells her: “I was forever saying to my father, ‘Don’t move, don’t move, I’m going to catch you just like that’.”
Rolf even makes her laugh by telling her about a prank his father would play. He says he would pretend to bite his finger as he traced light around his head: “I would jump every time!” he told her.
Investigative journalist Meirion Jones explains: “Rolf Harris is treating the Queen in the same way he would an eight-year-old child.”
Rolf completed the portrait back home in his art studio in Bray, Berkshire.
The following year, the Queen awarded him Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE).
What happened to Rolf’s portrait of the Queen
Rolf’s portrait of the Queen was publicly displayed in the Queen’s Gallery in Buckingham Palace. It was hung between 2005 and 2006.
It was then reportedly handed to Whitewall Galleries after popping up at an exhibition in Liverpool. The chain had a commercial deal with Rolf.
In 2014, Rolf Harris was convicted of multiple sexual assaults against young girls and sentenced to five years in prison. Authorities later stripped him of his CBE, and his portrait of the Queen has since disappeared.
At the time of his conviction, the BBC – its original commissioner – confirmed it was not in possession of the painting.
A spokesperson said: “We’ve been asked about this before and the position hasn’t changed. The BBC does not have this painting in its collection.”
Rolf’s publicist, who he hired during his trial, was unable to confirm at the time if it was still the paedophile’s possession.
In May 2023, four years after his release from jail, Rolf died from neck cancer. His wife, Alwen, died 15 months later following a stroke.
The portrait of the Queen is most likely to have ended up in the hands of Rolf’s daughter Bindi. Now called Ava Reeves, the artist was the main benificary of their estate.
