Queen Elizabeth Turns Down Oldie Of The Year Award, Stating That ‘You Are As Old As You Feel’

By Staff Reporter
Posted on 10/20/21 | News Source: Vosizneias.com

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, who turned 95 last April, turned down an award for “Oldie of the Year” from a British magazine with a polite but delicately sarcastic response.

“Her Majesty believes you are as old as you feel, as such the Queen does not believe she meets the relevant criteria to be able to accept and hopes you find a more worthy recipient,” Tom Laing-Baker, the Queen’s assistant private secretary, said in a letter shared by the magazine on Tuesday.

Unruffled by the royal refusal, the magazine, a British monthly named The Oldie, cheekily decided to run a youthful picture of Her Majesty on its front cover and quoted her adage: “You are as old as you feel.”

The Oldie is aimed at senior citizens “as a light-hearted alternative to a press obsessed with youth and celebrity,” its website trumpets. Every year an Oldie of the Year is awarded in a light-hearted ceremony; previous winners have included Eileen Atkins, Glenda Jackson, Peter Blake, and David Hockney.

This year’s Oldie of the Year was 90-year-old actress Leslie Caron, nominated for an Oscar for her part in the 1951 movie An American in Paris.

Another member of the royal family was more sympathetic towards the magazine. The queen’s daughter-in-law, Camilla,  Dutchess of Cornwall, graced the award ceremony with her presence and presided over the presentation of honors like Champion Knitter of the Year and Truly Scrumptious Oldie of the Year.

The 74-year-old dutchess acknowledged the advantages of aging in her speech:

“Watching one’s children growing up; enjoying one’s grandchildren — knowing that they’ll be going home after the visit; finding more time to read; finding time to read The Oldie — and coming to jolly lunches like this one,” Prince Charles’s wife said, according to People.

The Oldie magazine clearly has a soft spot for the Royal Family. The Queen’s husband, Prince Phillip, who passed away in April at age 99, was named Consort of the Year at the awards in 2012.

He accepted the award warmly, writing: “There is nothing like it for morale to be reminded that the years are passing — ever more quickly,” and adding, “but it is nice to be remembered at all.”