Princess Anne and Prince Edward paid tribute to the late father, Prince Philip, in interviews broadcast after his death on Friday – with Princess Anne declaring ‘life will be completely different’ without him.
“To have someone you trust and smile about things you might not be able to do in public – to be able to share extremely importantly,” Prince Edward, 57, of their father added in conversations with ITV.
In the pre-recorded segments that would be broadcast according to the death of the royal patriarch, Princess Anne (70) reflected on her father’s life as a young man and his legacy.
“Without him, life would be completely different,” she said. “But from society’s perspective, he was able to keep up with the kind of technological changes that have such an impact … but above all that it’s not about the technology, but about the people.”
Edward praised his father’s undeniable commitment to their mother, Queen Elizabeth II, 94.
“My parents have supported each other so well over the years and all the opportunities and all the tours and opportunities overseas,” he said.
Prince Philip, known as the Duke of Edinburgh, died ‘peacefully’ on Friday morning at the age of 99, the royal family said. He was married to the queen for 73 years.
Princess Anne also spoke about his ‘nomadic’ upbringing, along with a struggle he grew up with with parents who had mental health issues.
“He was virtually a refugee at this point because he had nowhere else to go literally,” she said of her father.
He eventually attended Gordonstoun School in Moray, Scotland, which had a positive impact on him as a youth, the princess said.
But Prince Philip believed the most important learning came outside the classroom, she said.
‘He believed there were things out there [of school] what was needed to help you develop as an individual, what played your strengths, and if it were not academically, there were other things that would be your strength, ”she said.
Prince Edward also praised his father for launching The Duke of Edinburgh Award, a youth program he founded in 1956.
“My dad hired Lord Hunt to help shape how it would roll out, and it was obviously one of his geniuses, to be able to get the right people to tackle and shape things,” he said.
Prince Philip will reportedly be laid to rest in Windsor Castle ahead of his funeral in St George’s Chapel later this month.