Secret way Buckingham Palace staff celebrated Prince George’s birth finally revealed
The former communications secretary to the late Queen has finally revealed details of how Buckingham Palace staff celebrated the happy occasion of Prince George’s birth on July 22, 2013.
Speaking on Hello! Magazine’s ‘A Right Royal Podcast’, explains all staff were on “tenterhooks” waiting for the call of the arrival of Prince William and Princess Kate’s first baby.
Speaking about the moments leading up to the announcement and the staff celebration, Ailsa Anderson said: “My lovely colleague Ed Perkins was press secretary to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as they were. I got the call in the morning to say things were happening, we were in the office on tenterhooks waiting for the call!
“Excited, maybe a glass of champagne was drunk after the announcement was made—I couldn’t possibly comment
Ailsa was also at the centre of all the action as she had to walk across the forecourt at Buckingham Palace to post the announcement of the birth at the railings, where crowds of spectators were waiting.
Ailsa explained: “As a communications person, you’re always behind the scenes, you’re never in front of the camera, but for once in my life, I was! I was honoured to walk across that iconic forecourt at Buckingham Palace and post the announcement of Prince George’s birth at the railings.”
She describes she was “terribly nervous”, and her son had spotted her “on the telly” as she carefully placed the notice for the crowds to see.
She added: “The crowds witnessing it were up to Green Park, people queuing to take a look at the notice. It’s history! It was the monarchy at its best, and this time now, the pomp and ceremony, it’s what we do best.
George’s was celebrated across the globe, but one person was lucky enough to find out that the future King had been welcomed safely into the world before anybody else.
Due to royal protocol, the late Queen Elizabeth II was the first one to know that Prince George had arrived. It stands under a royal rule that the reigning monarch is always notified first.
The late monarch found out the happy news via a specially encrypted phone, and would have been the very first call that Prince William made.
To mark Prince George’s 11th birthday last month, the Prince and Princess of Wales proudly shared a new image of their eldest son. The black and white shot of George showed the future King looking smart and grown up in an open-necked white shirt and dark blazer as he smiled happily at the camera.
