Philip is unlikely to retire to potting shed
WHEN the Duke of Edinburgh steps back from public life in August, he will be keen to enjoy a little more leisure time than he has been used to.
Not for him the pensioner’s potting shed, though. His hobbies over the years have not been for the fainthearted, including sailing, flying and carriage driving.
Neighbours in Windsor, where he will spend the majority of his time, will expect to see him in the Great Park in his carriage, where he has been photographed numerous times in recent years, determined to keep up the strenuous sport well into his 90s.
He once wrote: “I am getting old, my reactions are getting slower, and my memory is unreliable, but I have never lost the sheer pleasure of driving a team through the British countryside.”
Other hobbies of years gone by include polo and aviation – he is a qualified pilot – and he has been photographed fishing at Balmoral. Once called “England’s greatest uncapped cricketer”, he spent the day before the announcement opening a new £25 million stand at Lord’s.
The author of 14 books, he has maintained a keen interest in a wide variety of subjects including science, engineering, design, the environment and conservation. He is also known to be a talented oil painter.
It is understood retirement will see him spend more time at Windsor.