The death of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in April 2021 marked a milestone in modern British royal history: he had been by her side as the support of Queen Elizabeth for her entire reign of nearly 70 years.
So much has since been written or recorded in every form of media, with hours of broadcast material about his achievements, character, public service and humour: the sometimes politically incorrect royal. The eulogies flowed, whether from family members or far-flung parts of the Commonwealth, heads of state and everything in between. Little point in adding more.
His funeral was widely described as a “sombre” event, simple but powerful and moving it was still grand by ordinary standards. Perhaps it is a pity that, rather than epitomising typical royal funereal pageantry with total sobriety and solemnity, the ceremony did not generate an air of thanksgiving for and celebration of his well-lived 99 years, as well as respecting the mourning, with even some applause: a few cheers as well as tears might have been appropriate for a man who could make people laugh.
