The Duke of Edinburgh celebrated his 93rd birthday with a garden party at Buckingham Palace attended by some 8,000 guests, where attendees were instructed not to wish the Duke a happy birthday.
Taina Teegan, from the children’s charity Variety, told Express UK, “As the Duke is a patron of Variety, we held a 90th birthday party for him. But today we were told not to wish him happy birthday.
“Maybe it just gets a bit boring or annoying for him if everyone says it. It was great to meet him though, he has a very good sense of humour.”
The motivation for Prince Philip not wanting guests to wish him a happy birthday is not clear, however he is notorious for avoiding fuss, especially over himself.
It seems characteristic for a man who was one of the youngest First Lieutenants in the Royal Navy and has steadfastly supported Queen Elizabeth II throughout her reign.
Duchess Birgitte, Princess Anne, Duchess Catherine and Princess Eugenie make their way to the garden party.
To the crowd’s delight, the garden party was attended by Duchess Catherine, Prince Andrew, Princess Eugenie and Princess Anne. Earlier, a 41-gun salute was fired at noon by the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery in London’s Hyde Park in celebration of Philip’s birthday.
