Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, is 90 today. Seeing the occasional television coverage of events which he attends, it's hard to believe that he's now quite so ancient; both he and the Queen toddle around without support and many ordinary elderly folk must wonder how they do it. No walking sticks, zimmer frames or mobility scooters for them.
Whatever the secret, and one suspects it's down to receiving the finest medical monitoring and care available anywhere on the earth, the Prince has certainly became a bit of a national treasure. His tendency to make inappropriate remarks comes across as a rather endearing quality that marks him out as both an ordinary man and someone who shares the views of other ordinary folk. Remarks about 'slanty-eyed Chinese' may have caused a stir amongst the intelligensia but went down well with the public; asking Scottish Tory leader, Annabel Goldie whether she was wearing tartan knickers showed a devilish side of his nature that must have drawn many a titter down the local pub, while his apparent 'chatting-up' of Pippa Middleton at the recent royal wedding must have made many young men intensely jealous. He's also shown himself to be a no-nonsense man who doesn't believe in beating about the bush and has little time for the namby-pamby side of life.
The Prince has supported his wife, the Queen, for decades and despite his occasional impolitic moments hasn't done a bad job. Given a choice between him and his tree-hugging son, I know which one I'd choose.
