Queen Elizabeth last night paid a warm and heartfelt tribute to her son, Prince Charles, on the eve of his 50th birthday. At a glittering party in Buckingham Palace, she praised his "vision, compassion and leadership".
The prince, referring to the queen as "Mummy", said he did not know how either of his parents had put up with him. In a toast the queen said: "Charles, tonight's party is a tribute to all that you have achieved. I can think of no better recognition of your first half century than this remarkable gathering."
It was a party with a difference: rock music mixed with classical; jugglers and "aliens" mingled with the great and the good; street theatre collided with harpists, a military band and the Welsh National Opera; media stars rubbed shoulders with Tony Blair and royalty.
The queen said: "Our guests represent the rich diversity of national life - from science to architecture, from farming to inner cities, from young people to the elderly, from politics to poetry. Everyone here has benefited from the breadth of your interests and from your vision, compassion and leadership."
The prince spent the day in Sheffield, where he was the guest of honour at a Full Monty party, before flying back to London.