Growing up with the future queen

As children, Countess Mountbatten and Queen Elizabeth played together along with their sisters, Princess Margaret and Lady Pamela Hicks. Prince Philip would also join them in the holidays.

Speaking to the KM Group in 2012, Countess Mountbatten said: “Prince Philip was always full of fun and mischief, in a nice way. He was tall and handsome, rather dashing. He was three years older than me. My sister and I did not have a brother, so he was the nearest thing.

“We all loved him but the Queen was, from the age of about 13, really smitten with him. It is truly amazing that these two young people met. I cannot think of another couple who would have endured.”

Even in later life the Queen and Prince Philip often stayed at Countess Mountbatten’s home in Mersham.

She said: “They had more time before the Coronation and would come down and stay in a cottage in the grounds.

“They loved the peace and privacy here. They could relax and be themselves. We all love outdoor life and often enjoyed shooting in the grounds.

“Other times they might stay in the house, just the four of us. We would also go to church and sometimes watch my late husband Lord Brabourne, and Prince Philip, play cricket.

“She was totally relaxed, sitting in a deckchair supporting her husband just like any other wife.”

She and the Queen regularly exchanged presents and, showing her sense of humour, Countess Mountbatten bought the Queen a particularly suitable present for Christmas in 2011.

She said: “I gave her a little cushion. I saw this one in a catalogue, it said ‘It ain’t easy being the Queen’.

“I thought that was rather fun. The Queen was delighted and said ‘it’s exactly right for my back’.”

In return, Countess Mountbatten received something useful for the home. She said: “The Queen is very, very thoughtful. She gave me a pair of lampshades, which I badly needed. She must have noticed! Another time she gave me a pair of cushions. She is very observant. “I gave her a rather nice present for the last Jubilee, a silver gilt ruler with the kings and queens of England all the way down the side.

“She wrote and thanked me and said it was very nice, so I thought it had gone down all right. I heard later from one of the pages that it was a great success because she immediately picked up the plastic ruler and threw it in the basket.”