Life on Planet WWF by Life on planet WWF from archbishops to belly dancers -- my time at WWF

Author:Life on planet WWF from archbishops to belly dancers -- my time at WWF
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: urn:ean:9781783065776
Publisher: Matador
Published: 2015-09-24T16:00:00+00:00

43 Royal President’s Remarks

London, England

During my years at WWF, I met HRH Prince Philip quite a number of times. This could be at meetings that he presided over or it could be during fundraising functions. Having seen him in action running various meetings, I have much respect for him. Many a time I observed how he remained patient, even when handling those meeting participants who had decided to behave in a tiresome manner – by no means a rare event. During meetings, HRH was meticulous with timekeeping, constantly ensuring that participants kept to the point. Often he had interesting and pertinent comments to make said at the right time and with the precise and appropriate choice of words. Some examples of relevant remarks by HRH Prince Philip follow:

London, England – Ghost Door

I was in a small conference room in Buckingham Palace, together with Prince Philip and five others. We were having discussions. The door leading into the room was closed. Then, slowly, the door moved slightly ajar. The door stopped moving. I looked at it. No one came in. The door closed. A second later the door moved again. It opened ever so slightly. Again it stopped moving. No one came in. The door closed.

Two seconds later, the door moved again. It opened slowly.

‘Either you come in or you don’t. Why don’t you make up your mind,’ Prince Philip said.

The door closed and that was the last I heard of it…

Montreux, Switzerland – Long-Winded

Someone was making a presentation and he kept on talking, repeating what he had already said. Together with colleagues, I endured the speaker’s long-windedness.

‘Why don’t you stop farting all over the place and get to the point?’ Prince Philip said.

The presentation ended soon after…

London, England – No Fun To Be A Royal

We were in an office in Buckingham Palace. Prince Philip was looking at some newspapers that laid flat on his desk – this was just before our meeting was to commence. He was reading some negative press comments about some trees in Windsor that had been cut down.

‘I can’t even chop down a few trees in my own garden,’ he said.

London, England – Chinese Veggies

As we were finishing lunch in Buckingham Palace, Prince Philip related to us an incident. It happened when he was travelling in China.

‘During my trip, I was taken to visit many interesting places. I followed my hosts everywhere. They were courteous and attentive. One morning, after a few visits, we arrived at a vegetable market. By this time, I needed to relieve myself. I told my hosts I needed a pee.’

‘“Yes, sir. Of course, sir,” they replied. I waited but nothing happened. No one told me where I was to go – but what puzzled me was the agitation. My hosts then engaged in animated discussions. I couldn’t figure out what all the fuss was about. Surely people in China need to pee too. After what seemed an eternity, an apologetic official came up to me. “Sorry, sir, so sorry sir, out of season, sir…” he said.

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