Prince Philip has said that he favours discrimination against older people because “you go downhill” later in life.
In an interview recorded ahead of his 90th birthday today, the notoriously outspoken prince says he is reducing his own workload before he reaches his “sell-by date”.
The Duke of Edinburgh, who has been the Queen’s constant public companion for more than 60 years and is involved with around 800 charities and organisations, says he is looking forward to “winding down” and enjoying himself.
He even claimed he was losing his memory and struggled to remember the names of people he was due to meet.
“There is an ageism in this country, as everywhere, and quite rightly so, because I think you go downhill Ð physically, mentally and everything,” he said.
In a wide-ranging interview to mark his birthday, broadcast on BBC1 last night, Philip discusses his life, work and interests over the past nine decades.
He was typically intransigent, refusing to apologise for one of his most famous gaffes - describing the Chinese as “slitty-eyed”. The quip was made during a 1986 visit to China where he met a group of Edinburgh University exchange students.
One of them said the prince had told them “that Peking was ghastly and that if you stayed here too long you would get slitty-eyed”.
Questioned about whether his off-the-cuff comment could be considered not particularly politically correct, the duke was unrepentant. “It had no effect in China, if that’s what you’re worried about,” he told interviewer Fiona Bruce.
The long-term conservationist, who was also international president of the World Wildlife Fund, railed against those overly concerned about animal welfare, describing them as “bunny huggers”.
Philip was particularly reluctant to give his views when questioned about his early years, which saw him brought up by his grandmother in England after his parents split up, or comment on how he had made a “success” of himself. But he made clear he felt he deserved to enjoy a belated retirement.
Interviewed in Buckingham Palace, he said: “I reckon I’ve done my bit, I want to enjoy myself for a bit now. With less responsibility, less rushing about, less preparation, less trying to think of something to say.
“On top of that your memory’s going, I can’t remember names. Yes, I’m just sort of winding down.”
Last autumn it was announced how the duke was lightening his obligations by relinquishing his attachment to a number of organisations and his involvement with a number of high-profile universities.
But Prince Edward, also interviewed for the documentary, believed his father remained just as busy. “He keeps on saying he’s trying to slow down and take on less but I haven’t seen much evidence of that, he seems to fill the gaps with lots of other things, which is fantastic,” he said. Indeed, on the eve of his birthday last night Philip, in uniform as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards, took the salute as 300 bandsmen of the Household Division took part in the annual beating retreat on Horseguards Parade.
In the interview he stressed that it was time for him to take a back seat. “You don’t really want nonagenarians as heads of organisations which are trying to do something useful,” he said.
“There is an ageism in this country, as everywhere, and quite rightly so, because I think you go downhill - physically, mentally and everything.
“It’s better to get out before you reach the sell-by date.”
Talking about his role as consort to the Queen, the prince revealed how in the early days he struggled to find a position for himself.
“The problem was of course to recognise what the niche was and to try and grow into it and that was by trial and error,” he said.
“There was no precedent. If I asked somebody, ÒWhat do you expect me to do?Ó they all looked blank. They had no idea, nobody had much idea.”
TAILS HE WINS... HIS OWN £5 COIN
THE Royal Mint has produced a £5 coin to commemorate the Duke’s 90th birthday.
The souvenir piece, pictured above, features the Queen on one side and a portrait of Philip on the reverse - the first time a reigning monarch and consort have appeared on opposite sides of a UK coin. Prices start at £9.99 for the cupro-nickel version, rising to £5,450 for the platinum edition.
Designer Mark Richards said he tried to “show the Prince as a person, rather than in his formal role”. - Daily Mail