Prince Philip: the world's most experienced plaque unveiler

At the age of 95 he has continued working 30 years beyond the retirement age, but finally the Duke of Edinburgh has decided to go '˜on the beach'.*
By The Newsroom
Published 5th May 2017, 06:00 BST
Updated 9th May 2017, 20:20 BST
Prince Philip on board the Portsmouth-based Type 42 destroyer HMS Sheffield, sunk during the Falklands war in 1982.Prince Philip on board the Portsmouth-based Type 42 destroyer HMS Sheffield, sunk during the Falklands war in 1982.
Prince Philip on board the Portsmouth-based Type 42 destroyer HMS Sheffield, sunk during the Falklands war in 1982.

Shortly after the news was announced yesterday, Prince Philip was on duty, and on customary form, joining the Queen at St James’s Palace for a service and lunch for the Order of Merit.

When the mathematician Sir Michael Atiyah told him: ‘I’m sorry to hear you’re standing down,’ Philip shot back: ‘Well I can’t stand up much longer.’

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His famed quick-wittedness was honed in the Royal Navy and it was his links to the Senior Service which brought him back to the Portsmouth area time and again as the longest-serving royal consort in British history.

The Duke of Edinburgh toured the Royal Marines School of Music in Portsmouth today (October 28) to mark the 20th anniversary of the move to its current home. Prince Philip, Captain General of the Royal Marines, spoke to some of the trainee musicians and instructors and viewed the Royal Marines Band Service Memorial Room.The Duke of Edinburgh toured the Royal Marines School of Music in Portsmouth today (October 28) to mark the 20th anniversary of the move to its current home. Prince Philip, Captain General of the Royal Marines, spoke to some of the trainee musicians and instructors and viewed the Royal Marines Band Service Memorial Room.
The Duke of Edinburgh toured the Royal Marines School of Music in Portsmouth today (October 28) to mark the 20th anniversary of the move to its current home. Prince Philip, Captain General of the Royal Marines, spoke to some of the trainee musicians and instructors and viewed the Royal Marines Band Service Memorial Room.

Philip, who famously describes himself as ‘the world’s most experienced plaque unveiler’ has undertaken 22,191 solo engagements and given 5,493 speeches in almost seven decades as the Queen’s ‘strength and stay’.

*On the beach: naval slang expression normally, and originally, meaning retired from the service, but of recent years sometimes used to describe an appointment to a shore establishment.

Related topics:EdinburghQueenRoyal NavyPortsmouth