Royals

Prince Philip’s surprisingly Australian talent revealed as royals honour the Duke of Edinburgh’s amazing life

“He turned that into an interesting art form.”
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Members of the royal family have revealed one of Prince Philip’s little known talents, and it’s a surprisingly Australian skill.

Opening up about the late Duke of Edinburgh in a new tribute documentary, Prince Philip: The Royal Family Remembers, Prince William and Prince Charles detailed the duke’s love of barbecuing.

And according to the royals, he was pretty darn good at it too.

“He adored barbecuing and he turned that into an interesting art form,” Charles said of his late father.

“And if I ever tried to do it […] I could never get the fire to light or something ghastly so [he’d say]: ‘Go away!'”

Prince Philip meets with chefs gathered in Perth for a ‘Great Aussie Barbecue’ event in 2011.

(Image: Getty)

It sounds like an interaction just about every Australian has witnessed around the barbecue at Christmas or another family occasion.

Prince William also praised his late grandfather’s barbecue skills, saying: “Every barbecue that I’ve ever been on, the Duke of Edinburgh has been there cooking […] he’s definitely a dab hand at the barbecue.

“I can safely say there’s never been a case of food poisoning in the family that’s attributed to the Duke of Edinburgh.”

It’s a sweet insight into the late duke, who was widely regarded as the royal family’s guiding force and patriarch alongside his wife, the Queen.

The new documentary honouring him was originally intended as a celebratory piece for his 100th birthday, which would have fallen in June this year.

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However, the duke died just two months shy of 100 and the film has since been edited to pay tribute to his life.

Other key royals including Prince Harry are set to appear in the documentary, as is Sophie, Countess of Wessex.

She shared the details of one of Philip’s other beloved pastimes in a teaser clip, revealing: “Cooking is something that I love talking to him about.

“And he loves watching cookery programmes. Hairy Bikers I think is one of his favourites.”

Some of the footage was captured before the duke’s death on April 9 this year, which sent shockwaves around the world.

The Duke of Edinburgh watches Bunnings workers fry up a barbecue during an Australian visit.

(Image: Getty)

The last time a royal of Philip’s stature died was in 2002, when both Princess Margaret and Elizabeth The Queen Mother passed.

The duke’s passing was a blow to his wife of more than 70 years, Queen Elizabeth II, who has continued her royal duties without him at her side.

Photos of her sitting alone at his funeral made headlines and she recently returned to Balmoral for her first summer holiday since his death.

BBC One documentary, Prince Philip: The Royal Family Remembers, airs on Wednesday September 22 in the UK.

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