The endearing nickname Philip gave Princess Anne, who turns 75 today

Today Princess Anne celebrates her 75th birthday – but one royal who sadly will not be able to attend is her beloved father Prince Philip.

Anne and Philip were known to share a very close bond, with many friends of the family going as far as to claim the Princess Royal was the late Duke of Edinburgh’s favourite child.

This close bond between the two royals was endearingly exemplified in season three of the hit Netflix series The Crown when an adorable nickname Philip had for Anne was revealed. 

In the scene, from the fourth episode of the season, Philip is seen sitting at his desk speaking into a tannoy asking for a member of the Royal Family.

Philip, played by Tobias Menzies, can be heard calling out ‘sweetie’ into the intercom.

One of Queen Elizabeth II’s advisors assumes it is her he is trying to reach and so goes into her office to let her know.

‘I’m not sweetie, I’m darling or cabbage. Someone else is sweetie,’ Elizabeth replies.

It is then revealed that it is in fact Anne that the doting father is trying to reach as Erin Doherty makes her debut in the show as the Princess Royal. 

‘Sweetie’ was reportedly a real nickname that Prince Philip had for Anne and an unsurprising one considering their special father-daughter relationship. 

Mike Parker told the Daily Mail in 2017 that their close bond was because ‘Anne is very much like Philip’ while ‘Charles is more like Elizabeth’.

Indeed, the pair were remarkably similar, with both sharing a love of sport and being among the hardest-working members of the family.  

Anne is also known to have leaned on her father for support during the breakdown of her marriage to Mark Phillips.

Writing in his biography of the late prince – titled Philip: The Final Portrait – broadcaster Gyles Brandreth said: ‘When Princess Anne’s first marriage foundered, the Queen and Prince Philip were saddened, of course, but as the Duke put it to me, “What can you do? It isn’t easy. She tried to make it work. She really did.”‘

Anne then married her second husband, Tim Laurence, in 1992 but then went on to confide in her father about a ‘rocky patch’ the couple were enduring.

Brandreth wrote: ‘A few years later, when Anne had remarried, the Duke told me that she and her new husband were having a “Rocky patch – you’re married, you know how it is?” “I do,” I said.

‘”I don’t know what to do to help,” he said. He shook his head.’ 

The surprisingly candid admissions came while Philip was attending a meal at the Cabinet War Rooms.    

‘He made no attempt to hide his distress and concern. It clearly weighed on him quite heavily. It must have done because this conversation was taking place in public: at a charity fundraising lunch in the Cabinet War Rooms,’ Brandreth recalled. 

‘We had only just taken our places: food was being served. I was seated one place away from the Duke. He turned to the middle-aged woman who was seated between us.

‘”As a rule, I try to keep out of these things,” he explained,’ Brandreth continued.

‘”But you want to help,” said the woman, who had married children of her own.

‘”Yes,” said the Duke, contemplating his starters, “but I don’t know what to say except, keep it going, it will work out. With good will on both side, it usually does.”

‘He sighed: “Children.”‘

Following Philip’s death in April 2021, the Princess Royal paid tribute to her father describing him as her ‘teacher, supporter and critic’. 

The statement read: ‘You know it’s going to happen but you are never really ready.

‘My father has been my teacher, my supporter and my critic, but mostly it is his example of a life well lived and service freely given that I most wanted to emulate.

‘His ability to treat every person as an individual in their own right with their own skills comes through all the organisations with which he was involved.

‘I regard it as an honour and a privilege to have been asked to follow in his footsteps and it has been a pleasure to have kept him in touch with their activities.

‘I know how much he meant to them, in the UK, across the Commonwealth and in the wider world.

‘I would like to emphasise how much the family appreciate the messages and memories of so many people whose lives he also touched. We will miss him but he leaves a legacy which can inspire us all.’

The notoriously private Anne is known for her rather unconventional approach to royal life, having decided when her children were born they would not receive titles.

That attitude also extends into other aspects of Anne’s life. 

On the Royals with Roya and Kate podcast, expert Roya Nikkhah revealed Anne follows a strict policy when it comes to birthday celebrations.

Roya claims that the Princess Royal has a ‘no-frills’ approach to her birthdays which means she only celebrates major milestones.

‘Anne’s policy is: “I will do things for my birthdays that have a zero, but I won’t do things for my birthdays that have a five,”‘ Roya said.

She added Anne has reportedly cancelled meetings in the run up to the big day to avoid discussions about how she might mark her 75th.

So for Anne’s next big birthday celebration, partygoers will have to wait till her 80th.