Cheeky Prince Philip reportedly trained royal staff to refill his beer the moment the Queen was looking the other way. The Duke of Edinburgh was famous for his sense of humour and according to Dame Mary Berry he also developed a cunning plan to keep the booze flowing at functions.
Dame Mary, 88, recalled how she was seated next to Prince Philip at a lunch of just 12 people. Her Majesty the Queen was sat opposite her husband in the middle of the table so she and the Duke could speak to all their guests.
Speaking at an event in Bath for her new book, Mary Makes It Easy, Dame Mary said during the lunch she began to notice Prince Philip had a plan.
The Sun reports she said: “I sat next to the Duke of Edinburgh and he had his own beer. And the Queen was opposite him. And every time the Queen was looking the other way, I noticed his beer was filled up.”
Prince Philip was a huge fan of real ale after getting a taste for it in the Royal Navy and often had a small bottle from his private cellar as a night cap.
The Mirror reported The Duke of Edinburgh’s favourite pint was from the now-defunct Boddingtons Brewery in Manchester and he was known to have turned down the finest Italian wines in favour of whatever beer was available.
Paying tribute to his grandfather after his death in 2021, Prince Harry said at the time he imagined he would have a “beer in hand” telling his grieving family to “get on with it”.
On being offered wine by Italian Prime Minister Giuliano Amato at a dinner in Rome in 2000, Philip is reported to have said: “Get me a beer. I don’t care what kind it is, just get me a beer.”
And years later during a Windsor Rugby Club lunch in 2013, on being offered wine, he told club president Ian Potter: “Not that rubbish, can that barmaid get me a pint of Brakspears.”
According to The Sun the Queen was said to have enjoyed a “Dubonnet with a twist of lemon” as a nightcap but her husband preferred a bottle of real ale from his private cellar.
