Prince Philip funeral: Duke's final request scuppered by Harry, Andrew crises

OPINION:

As the clock ticks down towards Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh's funeral tomorrow more details are emerging, including the unveiling overnight of the bespoke Land Rover which will carry his coffin and which he spent 18 years designing.

(Imagine being the Rover executive regularly summoned, I'm guessing, to Buckingham Palace over the decades every time the Duke had indulged in another round of tinkering with the blueprints.)

The very fact that a central focus of tomorrow's service will be the exact brand of car that played such a key role in Philip's final ignominious controversy – his 2019 car crash which saw him forced to hand over his beloved licence – seems fitting for a grand royal moment which is already teetering on the edge of becoming a total PR debacle.

In recent days, the palace media machine has been humming along, releasing a lengthy roster of pre-prepared tributes to the 99-year-old royal, only for the seemingly bottomless well of family melodrama to continually threaten to overtake the whole supposedly dignified endeavour.

There will be no greater symbol of how broken the house of Windsor might be, how consumed they have been by what feels like an endless tide of crises, than what the Duke's children and grandchildren will be wearing, or rather not wearing.

See, rather than some donning military dress, it has now been announced that all of those attending will do so in civilian clothing.

This move seems designed to try and prevent public and media focus zeroing in on Prince Andrew and Prince Harry, who despite both having served on front lines were potentially going to be denied the chance to wear their full ceremonial regalia, given they are no longer working members of the royal family.

Faced with the prospect of images of Andrew and Harry in sombre grey or black while Philip's other children along with Prince William proudly appearing in full ceremonial attire, a glaring reminder of the royal family's recent cavalcade of blunders and scandals, the palace has clearly tried to come up with a workaround and deemed that no one will wear a uniform.

Problem solved? I don't think so. Rather, problem multiplied by many many factors.

Let's pause here and talk about those comprehensive plans that Philip was beavering away on for all those years.

As the husband of the sovereign, he was entitled to a full State Funeral at Westminster Abbey with all the pomp and circumstance that entailed. It wasn't for him and instead he opted for a pared-back service to be held at St George's Chapel at Windsor and what amounted to a military send-off.

Prince Andrew, Duke of York, attends a commemoration service at Manchester Cathedral marking the 100th anniversary since the start of the Battle of the Somme. Photo / Getty Images

The armed services played a fundamental role in Philip's life. In 1939, at age 17, he joined the British Navy, saw action during World War II and is reported to have had ambitions to one day follow in his uncle Lord Louis Mountbatten's footsteps and become First Sea Lord. (Quite the snazzy Bond villain-esque title, no?)

That dream came to a crashing halt in 1952 when King George VI died suddenly, putting the then-Princess Elizabeth on the throne at only 25 years old, forcing Philip to immediately resign from the Navy. In the decades that followed, he maintained his ties to the military and was appointed to a slew of honorary roles including Admiral of the Fleet, Field Marshal, and Marshal of the Royal Air Force.

The ceremony he planned keenly reflects that.

During the funeral, musicians from the Royal Marines, of which Philip was the Captain General for 64 years – a role he passed along to Harry in 2017 – will play the Last Post. (Harry obviously only managed to hang onto that honour for just over three years, having to relinquish the prestigious role when he and wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex exited royal life.)

Later, military buglers will sound the naval call Action Stations which is traditionally used to call sailors to their battle stations during war. Similarly, 700 military personnel from units with links to the Duke will also take part in the event.

My point here is that the military trimmings for Philip's send off aren't just a bit of gilded frippery but represent his unswerving dedication to his adopted homeland and life of service in the face of his own thwarted ambition.

Prince Philip in uniform. Photo / Getty Images

Which is why the fact that Princes Charles, Andrew, Edward and William along with Princess Anne and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence won't be allowed to pay their respects suitably attired is just bloody tragic.

By contrast, at the last funeral of a royal consort, that of the Queen Mother in 2002, the Duke, Princes Charles and Andrew, and Princess Anne all proudly wore uniforms. (Poor Edward could only wear a nice black suit having only managed to last for four months of marine training in 1987. In recent years he has stepped out on state occasion in military dress thanks to a smattering of honorary roles.)

What makes this whole Philip schmozzle even more frustrating is that the Duke's family all turning up in their Sunday best won't miraculously douse the controversy or embarrassment but just make the whole screwed up family situation that much more blatantly conspicuous.

In the just over 500 days since Andrew's eye-wateringly car crash BBC interview which ultimately forced him out of public life and onto the golf course in disgrace, the royal house has proven spectacularly inept at getting a firm grip on this situation.

Likewise the unfortunate chapter known as Megxit.

Both of these sagas are still simmering away and showing no signs of disappearing from destructive public view.

Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh talks to guests during a garden party at Buckingham Palace on May 16, 2017 in London, England. Photo / Getty Images

Tomorrow when those members of the Duke's family who will form the procession which will walk follow the Land Rover as it bears his coffin to the chapel appear, all those suits won't fix the house of Windsor's image problem here but will only exacerbate it.

Rather, the Savile Row numbers the Windsors will wear will symbolise how badly Buckingham Palace has failed to outmanoeuvre and escape the long shadow of the Andrew and Harry PR catastrophes.

In fact, the decision to trade military garb for a nice blazer and trousers combo won't avert a public relations disaster, it will just make the current ones the palace can't quite get a handle on all the more painfully blatant and apparent.

This won't save face but just remind the world how spectacularly they have managed to end with Eggs Drumkilbo all over their well-bred gobs of late.

It is a touch heartbreaking that the week that Queen lost her husband, her "strength and stay" as she famously called him during their golden wedding anniversary, even at such a time, the palace can't escape the quagmire of scandal and drama.

There is something very sadly ironic that the Duke chose Action Stations to be sounded tomorrow. If only the palace's Men in Grey had done exactly that and come up with a more successful plan of attack because right now, the monarchy is losing this particular PR battle. Badly.

• Daniela Elser is a royal expert and writer with more than 15 years' experience working with a number of Australia's leading media titles.