Away from making the headlines for his often wicked sense of fun (and his infamous gaffes), Prince Philip has been back on more serious duty today, hailing the achievements of youngsters who've successfully completed his Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme.

The 85-year-old Prince has been in Edinburgh for a ceremony at Holyroodhouse where he joined the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, to congratulate more than one hundred teenagers and young adults. The Prince and the President then went on to jointly present the young achievers with their Duke of Edinburgh Gold awards and their Irish equivalent, the Gaisce Awards.

Today's ceremony was just the latest marking the 50th anniversary of the Duke of Edinburgh Awards, one which sadly today tends to be a little overshadowed by the work of similar projects, not least his son's equally worthy Prince's Trust.

On Monday night the Duke's youngest son, Prince Edward — now a major player in promoting the Awards worldwide — attended a concert celebrating the achievements of his father's landmark organisation, one which has seen over 3.6 million young people embark on the scheme of self-improvement.

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Name: Trudie	Comment: Prince Philip has a lot to be proud of. For fifty years his Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme has given young people the self confidence and belief in their abilities that enable them to be responsible adults.