Immediately after the death of the 99-year-old spouse of the ruling Queen of Great Britain, the network circled the photograph of the guardsman in traditional form and the smiling Elizabeth nearby. As follows from the description of the photograph, it was a disguised prince, who thus decided to play the queen. We checked whether it really was.

The photograph, which became a viral in the first hours and days after the sad news, testified that even in a very old age the prince did not change the sense of humor. Signature I read it: “The prince Philip played the queen, changing around the guards and standing into guard in one of the galleries of the palace. The camera caught the queen’s reaction when she realized that the guards greeting her, Prince Philip. Of course, she recognized him, but did not give him a look, trying to hide a smile behind the hat! ”

The photo scattered not only social networksbut also by news sites In Russia and abroad.

In fact, this photo is quite many years old. It was shot in April 2003 by Chris Young from the Associated Press agency in the Windsor Castle at the Grenadier Guard regiment, which has been the commander of the Philip since 1975. Before us is the standard form of the guards for many centuries, and Philip put it more than once:

Grenadiers in red uniforms and high black hats made of bear fur are indeed among the five regiments guarding the Buckingham Palace. The form of compounds differs only with insignificant details like buttons or badges.

What then made the queen laugh, you ask? The occasion to burst with laughter at Elizabeth II really was. When Philip was already preparing to escort his wife to a review, the bee came from from where the bees came from. They caused a commotion among guests and guards, and one retired military man even stung on his forehead. To restore order, I had to call the royal beekeeper. It was one of those rare moments when simple emotions defeat formal etiquette. “I was lucky,” speaks Young, recalling the event of 18 years ago. - I realized that this is a manifestation of human feelings. She giggled like a little girl, and he also laughed. "

Thus, although a photograph of the British royal couple and genuine, it is accompanied by a wrong description - there was no draw there. Moreover, this is not the first A wave of popularity this "draw".