The Queen called a staff meeting for everyone in Buckingham Palace this morning, leading many to speculate about the Duke of Edinburgh's health.
The announcement which followed was that he was stepping down from his royal duties. Since 1952, The Duke of Edinburgh has carried out a whopping 22,191 solo engagements.
But over the years, Prince Philip has made a few comments which left mouths wide open. One of the best came in July 2015 when the DoE was involved in a picture marking the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.
As the RAF photographer was trying to organise everyone in the shot, the Prince lost his patience and told him: "Just take the fucking picture."
Advert
Credit: BBC
Prince Philip is known to have some interesting ideas about the role of women. In 1966 he claimed: "British women can't cook." He also creepily said, 'I would get arrested if I unzipped that dress' in 2012 when he was talking to Hannah Jackson in Kent, as she was wearing a dress with a zipper running from top to bottom on the front.
Some of his more facepalm-inducing comments have come when visiting Commonwealth countries. In 2002, he asked an Australian Aborigine: "Do you still throw spears at each other?" Ten years earlier he wasn't too impressed about the local wildlife. When he was asked if he wanted to stroke a koala bear he said: "Oh no, I might catch some ghastly disease."
Credit: PA
He asked locals in the Cayman Islands: "Aren't most of you descended from pirates?" and posed the following question to a British trekker in Papua New Guinea: "You managed not to get eaten then?" Memorably and lamentably, he also told a group of British students in China: "If you stay here much longer you'll all be slitty-eyed."
It's not the first time he's been pulled up on his comments about Asia. In 1986, he said: "If it has four legs and it's not a chair, if it's got two wings and it flies but is not an aeroplane and if it swims and it's not a submarine, the Cantonese will eat it."
But despite his less savoury comments, he has been known to be quite sassy at other times. In 2012, he asked a person riding a mobility scooter: "How many people have you knocked over this morning on that thing?" And when he found out that Madonna would be singing the track for the James Bond film Die Another Day, he quipped: "Are we going to need earplugs?"
Advert
He was much harsher on British legend Sir Tom Jones in 1969: "It's difficult to see how it's possible to become immensely valuable by singing what are the most hideous songs."
The 95-year-old is used to the Royal treatment after his many years of service and official engagements. The DoE told an Aircraft Research Association in 2002: "If you travel as much as we do, you appreciate the improvements in aircraft design of less noise and more comfort - provided you don't travel in something called economy class, which sounds ghastly."
Credit: PA
The Duke of Edinburgh will officially step down in autumn and his duties will be passed on and shared between son Charles, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
Does this mark an end to his long succession of Royal gaffes? Perhaps one of his children or grandchildren will pick up the mantle.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Royal Family