On the 9th of April 2021, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh and the husband of Queen
Elizabeth II died. He was 99 years of age.
Yeah, so for this week’s podcast on English.com, we’re talking about Prince Philip. He was
often called, Richard, Philip the Greek. Was he Greek?
Well, it was a bit complicated. He was certainly born in Greece and his father was a Prince
of Greece and Denmark.
And his uncle was actually the King of Greece.
Yes, but not for very long. He had to give up the throne in 1922.
And the whole family left Greece.
When Philip was only 18 months old.
Yeah, so he went to school in France, Germany and the Netherlands.
And the UK. And of course, that’s where he met Princess Elizabeth.
Yes, a long time ago. I think he actually first met her in 1934 when he was only 13.
And she was eight. And they say that she fell in love with him five years later and they
started writing to each other.
And then they got married shortly after the Second World War in 1946.
Actually, right.
So, Richard, don’t forget that he asked to marry her in 1946, asked her father, George
VI, to marry her. He agreed, but they didn’t get married until the next year because the
King wanted her to wait until she was 21. So, still very young.
And when they got married at Westminster Abbey, it was recorded and broadcast by the BBC,
by BBC Radio.
So, they were married to two hundred million people around the world.
Yeah. And now, this is funny, they received 2,500 wedding gifts from around the world.
What did they do with all those wedding gifts?
I wonder how many toasters they got.
So they were married, Richard, for over 73 years. It’s the longest marriage for any
British king or queen.
Yes.
Now, Elizabeth, she actually became queen.
Yes.
She became Queen in 1952, when her father died, and she was only 25.
Yeah. She became Queen, but Prince Philip has always stayed Prince Philip. He never
became King. And that’s because he didn’t rule. And he had no power.
Yes. She was the boss. The King was her father, so she was the Queen.
Yeah. He was never in line for the throne. His only job was to support the Queen.
the Queen and I think everyone thinks he did a good job. What do you think he is most remembered
for, Richard? Well, the biggest thing is the Duke of Edinburgh Award. Right. It’s for young people
aged between 14 and 25 and they get various awards for doing volunteer work, learning physical
activities and skills and going on expeditions like mountain treks or sailing trips. It’s become
exceedingly popular, hasn’t it? I think worldwide there are well over a million young people who
take part in the scheme in more than 130 countries. Yes, a lot of people actually did it at my school.
All right. Was he popular, Richard? I think mixed but I think most people would certainly say
he was popular. I think he was popular, Richard. I think mixed but I think most people would certainly say
that he was honest, down-to-earth and funny.
