No, Prince Philip didn’t “prank” the Queen…

A sweet photo of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip went viral following Philip’s death at age 99 on April 9, 2021 — but there’s some misinformation regarding the story behind the snap.

The image showed the Queen giggling next to Philip, dressed in his military uniform, complete with a tall bearskin hat. The photo circulated on social media with a caption that said Philip had “pranked” the Queen by dressing up as a palace guard, causing her to laugh when she noticed it was actually her husband under the hat.

However, that wasn’t the case.

Snopes dug up newspaper articles that gave the real reason for the monarch’s giant grin. The picture was taken by Chris Young of The Associated Press in 2003 at a ceremonial review of the Grenadier Guards at Windsor Castle, and the Queen was laughing not at Philip but at an unexpected swarm of bees interrupting the ceremony.

The Windsor Star reported that a former sergeant major was stung in the forehead, marking the only injury from the commotion. The Edmonton Journal added that a beekeeper was brought in to remove the insects, then the ceremony went on as planned.