Nonagenarian birthday weekend for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip

This weekend, 11-12 June 2016, marks two days of birthday celebrations for the nonagenerian British Monarchy – Queen Elizabeth II (aged 90) and her husband Prince Philip (aged 95). Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her official 90th birthday (always held in June, although her actual birth date is 21 April 1926). Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, was born on 10 June 1921.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip married 68 years ago in 1947 – engaged on 9 July and married on 20 November.

On Saturday 11 June the annual Trooping the Colour parade and pageant is expected to be the largest ever to honour the longest serving British monarch in history (64 years) and the oldest serving monarch. Prince Philip also sets an age record as the longest lived consort of a living monarch.

On Sunday the royals will join 10,000 representatives of charities that has a member of the royal family as a patron for a Patron’s Lunch.

During the weekend, other nonagenerians will contribute to the celebrations – specifically those turning 90 this year. These include Hilda Price who was born on the exact birth date of the Queen – 21 April 1926. Naturalist Sir David Attenborough (8 May) will read a passage from the children’s book, Paddington Bear, by Michael Bond who also turned 90 this year (13 January).

Other living 90 years olds, although not participating in the Queen’s official celebrations, include Jerry Lewis (16 March), Hugh Hefner (9 April), Cloris Leachman (30 April), Tony Bennett (3 August), Fidel Castro (13 August), and Chuck Berry (18 October). Marilyn Monroe (5 August) was also born in the same year as the Queen (1926-1962), as was author Harper Lee (28 April), author of To Kill a Mocking Bird, who died on 19 February this year.

As part of the celebrations, Annie Leibovitz took the official photographs during the Easter weekend this year (one is shown above). The photograph below was taken at the Epsom Derby Festival in Surrey, England, on 4 June 2016 (Glynn Kirk).

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2016/06/09/annie-leibovitz-captures-loving-couple-queen-elizabeth-and-prince-philip/85653326/

MARTINA NICOLLS is the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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