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The central theme of the movie is the difficulties faced by George VI because of his stutter and how Logue was able to help him overcome his speech defect. This depiction is historically accurate, and the future George VI had a serious speech impediment. In the movie the character played by Firth is shown as having a terrible stammer and that when he became nervous or anxious, he was almost unable to communicate. His stammer made public speaking almost impossible for the monarch.
The movie shows that his speech impediment was a result of his insecurity and shyness. <ref> Logue, p 134</ref> This was very much the case and George VI did have a very bad stutter from childhood. The King’s Speech does show accurately the real problems caused by the future George VI and the entire Royal Family. In one scene at the opening of an exhibition celebrating the British Empire George is shown struggling with a speech and becoming visibly upset. The movie shows many senior officials and members of the Royal Family becoming gravely concerned about this. In the 1930a, when the movie is set, for the first-time members of Royalty were expected to speak in public and to be effective communicators because of the growing importance of the mass media .<ref>Thorpe, p. 289</ref>.
The inability of George VI to publicly speak clearly was a real problem and it was feared that it could damage the Royal Family and even undermine confidence in the government of the British Empire. The movie does somewhat exaggerate the importance of the king’s stutter, but it was nonetheless a very important issue for the Royal Family.