CLAIM: A photo shows Queen Elizabeth II laughing at her husband, Prince Philip, who pranked her by dressing up as a palace guard.
AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. Though the photo is a real image from 2003 , the queen was actually reacting to a swarm of bees that had interrupted a review of a British Army regiment , according to the original caption and the photographer. Philip, who was the colonel of that regiment, was dressed in its uniform, as he had done before on multiple occasions.
THE FACTS: Following the death of the queen on Thursday, a well-known photo in which she can be seen laughing alongside Philip at a 2003 review of the Queen’s Company of the Grenadier Guards spread widely on social media.
Philip, who was the colonel of the Grenadier Guards, an infantry regiment of the British Army known for its role guarding the country’s royal palaces , for more than 40 years, is pictured dressed in his guardsman uniform, which includes a bearskin hat. Many sharing the photo falsely claimed that Elizabeth was laughing at her husband’s attire.
“The image shows Queen Elizabeth giggling next to Prince Philip, who is dressed in his military uniform complete with a tall bearskin hat,” an Instagram post featuring the image, which received more than 4 3 ,000 likes, claimed. “He ‘pranked’ the Queen by dressing up as a palace guard, causing her to laugh when she noticed it was actually her husband under the hat.”
A similar tweet read, “Prince Phillip trying to prank Queen Elizabeth by dressing as a guard on her way to Buckingham Palace. We could see a smile on the Queen’s face.” It received nearly 4,000 likes and more than 400 shares.
However, there was nothing unusual about Philip appearing in a Grenadier Guards uniform given that he was the regiment’s colonel. He was photographed wearing the uniform on many occasions over the years.
The original caption on the photo, and others taken that day, shows the queen was actually amused by the chaos that ensued after a swarm of bees interrupted the event’s proceedings. The photo was taken on April 15, 2003 , at Windsor Castle by Chris Young, who was the only press photographer at the event, on behalf of the Press Association news agency.
“Her Majesty The Queen and Prince Philip enjoy the spectacle, as a swarm of bees cause concern prior to The [Queen’s] Company Review at Windsor Castle,” reads the Press Association caption.
An Associated Press caption for the image has similar language, and also states: “A beekeeper removed the swarm, which had gathered on one of the [dignitaries’] chairs, prior to the ceremony.”
Other Press Association photos in the series clearly show the bees, as well as additional reactions from the queen, Philip, the guardsmen, and guests at the event.
Young confirmed to the AP in a phone interview on Friday that it did not appear to him that the queen was laughing at her husband.
“I remember her , like, bursting out laughing, so I start ed shooting it and then I looked over to my right and saw absolute carnage — people running around, bees flying around — she was laughing her ass off and he was smiling,” Young said of the queen and Philip’s reactions to the scene.
“There’s pictures of her going towards people after they’d moved and after the royal beekeeper had come and removed all the bees. And they’re looking over and laughing at the scene ,” Young added.
The Press Association caption of one such photo states, “Queen Elizabeth II shares a joke with Lt. Col. Lesinski, Grenadier Guards, regarding a swarm of bees, on the lawn of Windsor Castle.”
Elizabeth died at Balmoral Castle on Thursday at age 96, automatically making her eldest son, Charles, king. Philip died at age 99 on April 9, 2021, at Windsor Castle.
This is part of AP’s effort to address widely shared misinformation, including work with outside companies and organizations to add factual context to misleading content that is circulating online. Learn more about fact-checking at AP.