The Royal Mint declined to produce a set of coins celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s grandchildren because it believed some of them didn’t have ‘an entirely positive public profile’.
The snub to the royal grandchildren, who include Princes William and Harry, is in documents obtained by The Mail on Sunday via freedom of information laws.
The documents show that the Royal Mint’s Advisory Committee on the Design of Coins, Medals, Seals and Decorations rejected the series of coins at a meeting on March 5, 2012.
The idea did not progress as committee members felt ‘not all the grandchildren have an entirely positive public profile’. It’s likely the committee’s reluctance was due to a series of high-profile public controversies.
In 2002, it emerged that Prince Harry attended a drug rehab clinic after he admitted smoking cannabis and drinking underage. Three years later he apologised after attending a costume party wearing a German Second World War uniform. A photograph of the prince wearing the uniform appeared in newspapers around the world. In 2012 he was photographed naked at a pool party in Las Vegas.
But Prince Harry was not the only grandchild ridiculed publicly. In 2008, Peter Phillips was criticised for giving Hello magazine exclusive rights to his wedding for a reported £500,000.
The documents reveal that committee members also feared the coins could be seen as ‘contrived’ and a ‘PR stunt’.
The minutes stated that the series ‘could be open to ridicule’ as the children were not ‘associated with an interest in art and design’.
The Royal Mint declined to produce a set of coins celebrating Queen Elizabeth II ’s grandchildren because it believed some of them didn’t have ‘an entirely positive public profile’
The snub to the royal grandchildren, who include Prince William (left) and Prince Harry (right), is in documents obtained by The Mail on Sunday via freedom of information laws
The Royal Mint ‘collates and shares’ proposals for commemorative themes with The Royal Mint Advisory Committee, which then decides which ones to accept. It is unknown if this proposal came from the Royal Mint or a third party.
Queen Elizabeth II had eight living grandchildren in 2012. They are Princes William and Harry, Princess Anne’s children Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall, Prince Andrew’s daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie and Prince Edward’s children Lady Louise Windsor and James, Earl of Wessex. A spokeswoman for the Royal Mint said she was ‘not able to confirm’ which of the Queen’s grandchildren were referred to in the statement ‘as it is not present in the committee minutes’.
Royal biographer Andrew Lownie suspected the committee’s concerns centred on Prince Harry, who by 2012 had earned himself the reputation of a hell-raiser.
He said: ‘Prince Harry was certainly having a bad press at the time. Having said that, I think producing a coin to commemorate the grandchildren of the Queen is ridiculous. This should all be about the monarchy.
‘I don’t think people would have rushed out and bought the coins.
The Royal Mint subsequently produced coins to celebrate the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018 and Prince William’s 40th birthday in 2022.
