Marie Claire Marie Claire
  • Celebrity
  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Culture
  • Power
  • Nice Talk
  • Fashion Month
  • More
    • Politics
    • Career Money
    • Health Fitness
    • Power Play
    • Travel
    • Promo Codes
    • Food Cocktails
    • About Us
    • Subscribe
    • Sex Love
  • Newsletter SIGN UP TO OUR NEWSLETTER
  • Marie Claire
    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!


    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    You are now subscribed

    Your newsletter sign-up was successful


    Want to add more newsletters?

    Marie Claire Daily

    Delivered daily

    Marie Claire Daily

    Get exclusive access to fashion and beauty trends, hot-off-the-press celebrity news, and more.

    Marie Claire Self Checkout

    Sent weekly on Saturday

    Marie Claire Self Checkout

    Exclusive access to expert shopping and styling advice from Nikki Ogunnaike, Marie Claire's editor-in-chief.

    Maire Claire Face Forward

    Once a week

    Maire Claire Face Forward

    Insider tips and recommendations for skin, hair, makeup, nails and more from Hannah Baxter, Marie Claire's beauty director.

    Livingetc

    Once a week

    Livingetc

    Your shortcut to the now and the next in contemporary home decoration, from designing a fashion-forward kitchen to decoding color schemes, and the latest interiors trends.

    Homes amp; Gardens

    Delivered Daily

    Homes Gardens

    The ultimate interior design resource from the world's leading experts - discover inspiring decorating ideas, color scheming know-how, garden inspiration and shopping expertise.


    An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
    Trending
    • NYFW
    • Life In Plastic
    • Cari Champion
    • New Books
    • Postpartum Psychosis
    1. Celebrity
    2. Royals

    Prince Philip Started a Very Niche, Mustard-Based Prank With His Grandchildren

    He was incorrigible.

    Iris Goldsztajn#039;s avatar
    By Iris Goldsztajn
    Published 23 September 2024 In News

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    Prince Philip and Prince William
    (Image credit: Getty Images)
    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    Share this article
    Join the conversation
    Follow us
    Add us as a preferred source on Google
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    Prince Philip, in his lifetime, loved nothing more than a good prank.

    Speaking on the documentary Prince Philip: The Royal Family Remembers several months after the late Duke of Edinburgh's death in April 2021, some of the royal's grandchildren recalled hilarious anecdotes about Philip—including a very niche, mustard-based prank he would play during family lunches.

    "Instead of like a mustard pot we'd have a mustard tube, a squeezy mustard tube," Prince William explained in the doc (via the Mirror).

    Latest Videos FromMarie Claire
    Watch full video here:

    "And then he'd squish your hands together to fire the mustard onto the ceiling. He used to get in a lot of trouble from my grandmother [the late Queen Elizabeth II] for covering most of the places we had lunch and things with mustard on the ceiling."

    Queen Elizabeth Prince Philip

    Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip pose for a photo.

    (Image credit: Getty Images)

    Zara Tindall added about the prank, "I can’t remember exactly what he says but he ends up slamming your hands together.... It goes all over the ceiling." Her brother Peter Phillips added, "I actually think the marks are still there." LOL, ew.

    You may like
    • Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip attend the launch of The Queen#039;s Baton Relay for the XXI Commonwealth Games at Buckingham Palace on March 13, 2017 Queen Elizabeth Greeted Prince Philip "Wearing a False Beard"
    • Prince Philip grimacing in a suit Prince Philip Found This Part of Royal Life "Hurtful and Infuriating"
    • Prince Philip walking past smiling people in a three-piece suit Prince Philip Was So Angry About One Rumor the Palace Issued a Rare Denial

    Philip was far from the only elder royal with a keen sense of humor.

    The Queen herself once famously trolled some American tourists in Balmoral. They didn't recognize her and struck up a conversation with her, asking if she had ever met the Queen, and she told them of the royal protection officer who was with her at the time, "Well, I haven't, but Dick here meets her regularly."

    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    Queen Elizabeth at the North of Scotland Gun Dog Association Open Stake Retriever Trials at Balmoral Castle on October 6, 1967.

    Queen Elizabeth pictured at Balmoral in 1967.

    (Image credit: Central Press/Getty Images)

    Meanwhile, the Queen Mother was also quite the fun-loving woman. After her death in 2002, Prince William recalled his great-grandmother's farewell to him as he was leaving for university. He recounted, "As she said goodbye, she said: 'Any good parties, invite me down.' But there was no way. I knew full well that if I invited her down, she would dance me under the table."

    And nobody wants to be out-danced by their great-grandmother.

    royal beauty - queen mother

    A portrait of the Queen Mother as a young woman.

    (Image credit: Getty Images)
    Explore More
    Prince Philip
    Iris Goldsztajn
    Iris Goldsztajn
    Social Links Navigation
    Morning Editor

    Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.

    Read more
    Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip attend the launch of The Queen#039;s Baton Relay for the XXI Commonwealth Games at Buckingham Palace on March 13, 2017
    Royals Queen Elizabeth Greeted Prince Philip "Wearing a False Beard"
    By Amy Mackelden
    Prince Philip walking past smiling people in a three-piece suit
    Royals Prince Philip Was So Angry About One Rumor the Palace Issued a Rare Denial
    By Kristin Contino
     
     
    Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret posing in dress coats as children
    Royals Queen Elizabeth Laughs at Princess Margaret’s Behavior in Family Movie
    By Kristin Contino
    Duchess Sophie wearing a blue jacket standing next to Prince Philip
    Royals Duchess Sophie Shares Why She Once Escaped the Balmoral Dinner Table
    By Kristin Contino
     
     
    Latest in Royals
    Grace Kelly wearing a white dress
    Royals Grace Kelly "Understood Quiet Luxury" Before the Term Was Invented
    Princess Lilibet, Prince Archie and Prince Harry walking through grass at Althorp
    Royals Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet Are Changing Schools After Just 2 Days
     
     
    Princess Anne wearing a coat and paisley scarf
    Royals Princess Anne Gets a "Round of A-Paws" from Sheep Dogs in Timeless Paisley Look
    Meghan Markle wearing a blue striped shirt
    Royals Meghan Markle Transforms Her Wardrobe from California to Cotswolds
     
     
    Latest in News
    Ayo Edebiri 2026 Emmys red carpet
    Celebrity Style Ayo Edebiri Sticks to Her Winning Red Carpet Formula at the Emmys
    a white woman in a gold dress with dark brown hair
    Nails Selena Gomez's 2026 Emmys Manicure Is All About a "Frosted Sunset" Finish
     
     
    US actress Zendaya presents the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series award to US actress Jean Smart onstage during the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Peacock Theatre at LA Live in Los Angeles on September 14, 2026.
    Culture We're Tracking Every Can't-Miss Moment From the 2026 Emmys
    Grace Gummer and Louisa Jacobson red carpet looks at the 2026 Emmy Awards
    Celebrity Style Meryl Streep's Daughters Make Their Mom Proud on the 2026 Emmys Red Carpet
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Marie Claire
    RSS
    • About us
    • Contact Future's experts
    • Contact us
    • Advertise Online
    • Newsletter
    • Terms and conditions
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookies policy
    • Careers
    Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google

    Marie Claire is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

    © Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.