Greek food festival draws hungry crowd

Greek food festival draws hungry crowd Press Herald PORTLAND — Charles Antonacos sat at one end of a table filled with a dozen family and friends, back for the second day in a row to sample the fare at the annual Greek Food Festival at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church. Tucking into the lamb shish ...

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Plans For Mosque Ires Greek Nationalists

Muslims in Athens pray at a makeshift mosque while awaiting the government to finish a 1 million euro ($1.3 million) renovation of an old building to create Greece's first official house of worship for them, angering critics who don't want it built. ATHENS (Reuters) - Pakistani taxi driver Muhammad Zafeer says he has to look over his shoulder when he goes to pray in Athens, where racist ...

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Greeks Shun Strawberry Fields Forever

Not a single Greek has applied for work in strawberry fields in Manolada, the region where immigrants said they were attacked by their bosses after demanding back pay. A total of 116 farmers said they needed 4,648 workers and would pay 25 euros a day ($32.54) for six hours work, or about$5.42 per hour before taxes. That is 20 cents an hour above the minimum wage, but despite a crushing economic ...

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More Austerity On Tap for Greece

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras may yet have to break his promise not to impose more pay cuts, tax hikes and slashed pensions on beleaguered Greeks because of a billion-euro hole in the country’s budget in the wake of privatization failures and an overwhelmed health care system. The newspaper Kathimerini said it had seen a revised memorandum between Greece and the Troika of the ...

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REGULATORY ALERTS ? Noble in Cyprus & Gazprom Withdraws from Greece

REGULATORY ALERTS – Noble in Cyprus & Gazprom Withdraws from Greece OilPrice.com Russian Gazprom appears to have withdrawn from bidding for Greece's Public Gas Corporation (DEPA). Bids were due on 10 June, but Gazprom's didn't make it, with the company later saying that the Greek government failed to offer enough incentives for the ...

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Greece moves to two

Greece moves to two - party coalition government The alliance of political ... Southeast European Times Greece has also promised to shed 15,000 public-sector jobs by the end of next year to meet demands of the EU-IMF-ECB Troika, a condition that led Samaras to close national broadcaster ERT and fire all 2,656 workers. That precipitated a crisis that ...

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Syrian refugees find little help in Greece

Syrian refugees find little help in Greece Ammon News ATHENS (Washington Post) — Thousands of Syrians fleeing war and misery are making their way to Europe, and many are coming through Greece, whose Mediterranean islands stretch within tantalizing reach of home. Once they get here, many wish they'd ...

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Facts about upcoming EU member Croatia

Croatia formally becomes the 28th member of the European Union on Monday, the bloc's first addition since Bulgaria and Romania joined in 2007.

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EU hails Shah Deniz II choice for TAP

The European Union welcomed the selection of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) to ship Azerbaijani gas through the Southern Gas Corridor on 28 June.

EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said TAP would boost the bloc’s security of supply. “We have a definite commitment from Azerbaijan that gas will be directly delivered to Europe through a new dedicated gas pipeline system. Whether the system consists of two gas pipelines - TANAP and TAP - or one single pipeline as earlier projects had foreseen - does not make any difference in terms of energy security. We now have a new partner for gas, and I am confident that we will receive more gas in the future,” Oettinger said.

The consortium developing Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz gas field announced on 28 June it had chosen TAP, which links to the TANAP route across Turkey, to ship natural gas to the EU.

European Commission President José Manuel Barroso also welcomed the decision by the Shah Deniz II Consortium selecting TAP as the European route of the Southern Gas Corridor. “This is a shared success for Europe and a milestone in strengthening the energy security of our Union. I am confident that today’s decision, which builds on the strategic Joint Declaration I signed with President Aliyev of Azerbaijan in January 2011, will provide further momentum to the full and rapid realization of the entire Southern Gas Corridor as a direct and dedicated link from the Caspian Sea to the European Union, which should be expanded over time,” Barroso said.

TANAP is another gas infrastructure aiming to directly link the Caspian Sea to Europe.

The Shaz Deniz II Consortium, includes the energy companies BP, Total and Azerbaijani state-owned SOCAR. The Shah Deniz II field in the Caspian Sea is set to provide an estimated 16 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year when it comes online around 2017 or 2018.

In addition, TAP will bring the gas from the Turkish border via Greece and Albania to Italy.

The EU has been looking at Azerbaijan as a way to reduce Europe’s reliance on Russian gas supplies. Azerbaijan plays an essential role as an oil supplier and the country is expected to play a similar leading role in gas supplies to Europe, Oettinger said earlier in a message sent to the participants of the Caspian Oil and Gas 2013 conference in Baku.

The Shah Deniz field, which is one of the world’s largest gas-condensate fields, was discovered in 1999. Its reserves are estimated at 1.2 trillion cubic metres of gas. Overall, the field has proved to be a secure and reliable supplier of gas to Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey as well as Europe.

“We see the Southern Gas Corridor as a multistage project,” Oettinger’s message said. “The EU expects more gas from other sources like Turkmenistan to be transported through this corridor. In this regard, we will continue the negotiations with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan on the Trans-Caspian pipeline. We expect agreement to be reached in the nearest future.”

The Trans-Caspian Gas Pipeline running around 300 kilometres will be laid from the Turkmen coast of the Caspian Sea to Azerbaijan, where it will be linked to the Southern Gas Corridor. The pipeline’s capacity is 30-40 billion cubic metres of gas per year. But the disputed status of the Caspian makes the project uncertain.

The message also emphasized that Azerbaijan is a partner of the EU not only in the energy sector but also is one of its key partners in the Eastern Partnership programme.

Two weeks ago, Barroso met with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev. “Azerbaijan is a very important partner for us – we have achieved a reliable partnership in the energy field. We want to build on this, moving to a long-term association grounded in democracy and shared values, in particular human rights and fundamental freedoms. I stressed today my personal commitment to supporting Azerbaijan in this path.

A word on our strategic energy cooperation: We did of course discuss the way ahead on the Southern Gas Corridor in detail,” Barroso said.

“We are both extremely pleased with the progress achieved on the Southern Gas Corridor since our Joint Declaration of 2011. We have both worked hard for the realisation of this strategic project for both Azerbaijan and for Europe. I wish to thank President Aliyev for his strong and continued commitment. I remember well our discussions when we met in Baku and, in fact, Azerbaijan has been delivering all the commitments that were taken at that time. And I’m proud that this declaration that I signed together with President Aliyev was at the basis of all these developments,” he added.

“The most important message today is the following: the Southern Gas Corridor is not a theoretical project on the drawing board. It is about to be realised, to the benefit of all involved. It will bring initially 10 billion cubic meters to Europe by 2019, but we will not stop here. The Corridor could in the medium term cover more than 10% of our annual needs in Europe and thus contribute to our energy security, price stability, growth and jobs,” Barroso said. “This is our common vision as President Aliyev and I agreed in 2011. This is what we will keep working for, to enhance our mutual security of supply. We believe this is in the best interest of Europe and Azerbaijan.”

 

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TAP and COSCO give Greek government a boost

On 26 June, Greece’s Prime Minister and New Democracy Conservative leader Antonis Samaras had good news for his new coalition government with the signing of a deal that sees Greece as a transit country for EU gas, and the Chinese company COSCO inaugurating a new container terminal at Piraeus.

On 26 June, Greece and the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) consortium officially signed the Host Government Agreement initialled two weeks ago, at an official ceremony held in Athens.

In statements after the ceremony, Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras emphasised the investments and jobs that the construction of the pipeline will create, as well as Greece’s future position as an energy hub for the region. “I believe this will bring jobs to Greece … it will help Greece become an energy hub in the wider area,” Stournaras said.

TAP starts on the Greek-Turkish border and goes to Italy via Albania and an underwater section in the Adriatic Sea. Greece’s Deputy Environment, Energy and Climate Change Minister Assimakis Papageorgiou said the construction of the pipeline will place Greece on the international energy map and bring benefits on a geopolitical level, creating a positive investment climate and boosting competition for the benefit of consumers.

TAP Managing Director Kjetil Tungland thanked the government for its co-operation and the support given by Samaras, the Parliament and the ministries involved. He said the agreement was a firm basis for carrying out the €1.5-billion investment for the construction of the Greek portion of the pipeline, noting that he looked forward to long-term co-operation with Greek authorities.

TAP’s Country Director for Greece Rikard Scoufias said the agreement was an important component for securing Greece’s and TAP’s bid for the Southern Gas Corridor, but also constitutes an international benchmark for expediency in terms of establishing a positive investment climate. In Piraeus, Samaras said Greece could be a hub for trade between Europe and China as he joined Captain Wei Jiafu of COSCO to cut the red ribbon on the new container terminal at the port. Samaras called on the Chinese group to deepen its involvement in Greece.

“We invite you to more successful co-operation in transport, trains, ports and ship repair,” said Samaras, adding that further development of the port by COSCO would create 500 new jobs, ultimately making Piraeus one of the five biggest cargo ports in Europe, and employ about 3,000 people.

 

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Man charged for using apartment as illegal brothel

A 57-year-old is to face a Thessaloniki prosecutor on charges of allegedly using his apartment in the city center as an illegal brothel.According to reports, the apartment was being used by three Greek women, aged 33, 37 and 40, as well as a 39-year-old foreign national, who worked as prostitutes.The four women were expected to face minor charges for not undergoing the regular health checks ...

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Court hands life sentences to three drug traffickers

A Thessaloniki court has handed life sentences to a 50-year-old Bulgarian, a 43-year-old Spaniard and a 40-year-old Portuguese after finding them guilty of smuggling 168 kilos of cocaine from different Latin American countries into Greece, it emerged on the weekend. A fourth defendant, a 58-year-old Bulgarian, received a 10-year term behind bars.The drugs were found and subsequently seized by ...

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Bulgarian Farmers Trash Produce Block Road to Greece

Some 300 fruit and vegetable producers from Bulgaria's south-west have come out in protest Saturday against low wholesale prices of their produce. The farmers, predominantly from the region of Petrich and Sandanski in Bulgaria's Blagoevgrad region, demonstratively littered the main E-79 road with their produce. They also blocked traffic symbolically for 10 minutes. Farmers requested ...

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FinMin asks Luxembourg for list of wealthy creditors

Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras has asked his counterpart in Luxembourg, Luc Frieden, to provide him with details of Greek individuals and companies with bank accounts in the country, which has a long tradition of bank secrecy, as part of an ongoing effort to crack down on widespread tax evasion by wealthy Greeks, media reports revealed over the weekend.Bank officials estimate that Greek ...

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Clouds on the European horizon

By Alexis Papachelas Greece has not been alone in terms of the economic crisis in the past three years, and things do not bode well for the future of Europe as a whole. What can we expect in the months to come on a European level?First of all, France is about to be hit by a major storm come autumn as society and the political system struggle with their aversion to reform. President Francois ...

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Profit By Betting Against The Crowd

There's a traders saying that warns against trying to "catch a falling knife". That is, you shouldn't buy assets which have sharply declined as they're likely to go down further before there's any recovery. I'm not sure when this saying gained popularity but I suspect it speaks a lot to the short-term mentality of most investors today. Because history suggests that you should do the opposite - buying assets down 60% or more has delivered fantastic results on 1, 3 and 5 year timeframes. And intuitively this makes sense. If almost everyone has sold out of an asset and there are only buyers left, there's usually only one way for prices to go. Given this, I thought it'd be worth taking a look at the assets which have been pummelled and may be due for a comeback. Globally, the most obvious standouts are Greece and junior gold miners. There are others though, particularly in agriculture, where sugar and coffee are still down 75% and 65% respectively from their all-time highs in the 1970s. In my backyard of Asia, stocks in China and Japan qualify, down two-thirds from their all-time highs. Vietnam is also a contender, having fallen 60% from its 2007 high. And among currencies, the Indian rupee is worth considering, given that it hit all-time lows versus the U.S. dollar in recent weeks. Of the above, gold miners, coffee, Vietnam and the rupee look the most interesting. What happens when you buy assets down 80%? Over the past week, global fund manager Mebane Faber wrote a brief article with the aforementioned title. Specifically, he looked at the performance of sectors, industries and the total stock market in the U.S. after they've been hammered. And here's what he found: Average 3 year nominal returns when buying a sector down since the 1920s: 60% = 57% 70% = 87% 80% = 172% 90% = 240% Average 3 year nominal returns when buying an industry down since 1920s: 60% = 71% 70% = 96% 80% = 136% 90% = 115% Average 3 year nominal returns when buying a country down since the 1970s: 60% = 107% 70% = 116% 80% = 118% 90% = 156% Faber went on to conclude: "It's hard to buy something down 80%, especially when you owned it when it was down 30%, 50%, then 80%. But usually that is a great time to be wading in ... Some recent examples of assets that have got clobbered include tech in 2002, homebuilders in 2009, and Greece and (Junior) Gold Miners now." Other supportive evidence Faber isn't the first to notice this phenomenon. Some years ago, two U.S. professors, Werner DeBondt and Richard Thaler examined the investment performance of U.S. stocks with the worst and best prior investment results. In each year from 1932-1977, the professors selected the 35 best and worst performing stocks over the preceding five year period. And the results were compared to a market index, namely all of the stocks on the New York Stock Exchange. They found that the worst performing stocks over the preceding five-year period produced cumulative returns 18% better than the market index some 17 months after formation. Meanwhile, the best performing stocks in the five years prior produced returns 6% below the market index over the subsequent 17 month period. Similar results have been found in other studies. Two U.K professors, D.K. Power and A.A. Loonie, examined the worst and best performing stocks in their home country between 1973-1982. They then looked at the subsequent performance of those stocks from 1983-1987. The professors found the 30 worst performing stocks in the prior decade outperformed the market index by more than 10% annually in the five years after. Source: Tweedy Browne Finally, U.S. professors James Poterba and Laurence Summers studied the investment results of the best and worst performing stocks in the U.S. from 1926-1985 and in 17 other markets from 1957-1986. They concluded that investment returns tend to revert to the mean over a period of more than one year. That is, current high investment returns tend to be associated with lower future investment returns and vice versa. The cons to this approach Before blindly going out and buying assets that have been crushed though, you should at least consider the following: - The above studies have limitations. Most are focused on U.S. stocks, which have performed well over the past century. The obvious counterpoint to the findings in these studies is Japan, whose stock market has languished +65% below 1989 highs for much of the past decade. Perhaps the recent uptick in Japan may start to confirm the findings, albeit with a significant lag. - Buying beaten down assets without regard to value doesn't make sense. Yes, things that are down 90% are normally cheap but not in every case. Historical research indicates that buying stocks with cheap price-to-earnings, price-to-book and price-to-cash flow ratios produces far superior returns to market indices (and beats 95% of fund managers too). - Beware of buying assets where structural changes may make their products redundant. We've all heard about the tales of Kodak and Xerox, where technology crushed their key products. Today, I'd suggest that parts of the retail industry (and related industries such as retail real estate) may be in the same boat with the internet taking a greater share of consumer pockets. This is a tricky one though as this trend should at least be partially reflected in the prices of retail stocks already. - It's nice to have a potential catalyst for a beaten down industry or country to turn around. Again, this is tricky as you must be able to detect the catalyst before other investors, otherwise it'll already be reflected in prices. Assets that qualify That said, buying unloved assets does have merit. In my view, there are four such assets which provide potential opportunities today: 1) Junior gold miners. Smaller gold companies have been annihilated after the gold price peaked in September 2011. The GDXJ junior gold miners ETF in the U.S. is down around 80% since that time. I am long-term bullish on gold (though did foresee the latest correction, which probably has a little more to go) as few of the fundamental reasons for owning the metal have changed. Principally, that it acts as a hedge against central bank profligacy and currency debasement. But you don't have to be bullish on gold to see upside for the junior gold miners, many of whom are now priced for oblivion. 2) Coffee. I must admit being a sucker for almost any asset that's down 65% from all-time highs reached 36 years ago. And the good part is that supply/demand fundamentals for coffee look reasonable. Inventories remain relatively low, while demand growth looks very solid given the increasing attraction of coffee to the developing world, particularly in Asia. The ICE coffee price is below, courtesy of tradingeconomics.com

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Greece Makes U-20 Soccer Knockout

Greece’s rising young soccer stars have made it in the knockout round of the last 16 teams participating in the FIFA U-20 World Cup , held in Turkey that runs through 13, after tying Paraguay, 1-1. That came after a 0-0 tie with Mali and a 2-0 win over Mexico. The young players and their coach Kostas Tsanas, who was named Head Coach of Greece National under-21 football team in August 2012, ...

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Jersey Shore Greek Festival returns to Ocean Township after long hiatus

Jersey Shore Greek Festival returns to Ocean Township after long hiatus NJ.com OCEAN TOWNSHIP – Homer was wrong – you don't have to beware of all Greeks bearing gifts. Hundreds of parishioners at Ocean Township's St. George Greek Orthodox Church welcomed the public to the Jersey Shore Greek Festival Friday evening.

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Croatia's president: No doubts on joining EU

Croatia's president: No doubts on joining EU

Associated Press


Copyright 2013 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Updated 3:52 am, Saturday, June 29, 2013

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — Croatia has no second thoughts about joining the European Union despite the continent's economic crisis, and it supports enlarging the bloc even further to help bring about reconciliation in the once-warring Balkans, the country's president said Friday.

Ivo Josipovic told The Associated Press in an interview that after 10 years of painful membership negotiations, Croatia "did not have the opportunity to choose the time" of its formal EU entry, which is set for Monday.

The Serb-led Yugoslav army came to their rescue by relentlessly shelling and destroying many Croatian towns and villages.

Serbia is likely to start EU membership negotiations in January; Montenegro is probably the next in line after Croatia to join; Macedonia's bid has been blocked by Greece over a name dispute; and Bosnia is far from joining because of bickering among its Muslim, Croat and Serb leaders.

The pro-EU voices in Croatia note that joining the bloc means Croatians could find jobs in more prosperous EU countries, that their country could attract more foreign investment, and that the EU's leadership in Brussels could help keep widespread corruption and economic mismanagement in check.

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ND-PASOK Alliance Takes The Reins

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras (L) with Deputy PM Evangelos Venizelos: can their political marriage last? Moving forward after the withdrawal of one of his coalition members, Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras formulated a new alliance with the other coalition partner, the PASOK Socialists, in a new cabinet that gives his partner key ministerial positions. Samaras, the New Democracy ...

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No Time To Lose For ND-PASOK Alliance

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras (L) and new Deputy Prime Minister Evangelos Venizelos are putting their heads together trying to solve a myriad of problems. ATHENS - Moving forward after the withdrawal of one of his coalition members, Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras formulated a new alliance with the other coalition partner, the PASOK Socialists, in a new cabinet that gives his partner ...

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Greek utility shelves plans for price increases

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece's state-controlled utility PPC said on Saturday it had no immediate plans to raise electricity prices for households after their liberalization on July 1. Under the terms of its international bailout, Greece was supposed to raise low-voltage electricity prices in two stages this year, on May 1 and then before their liberalization on July 1, to bring them closer to ...

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Poor Crete, poor Greece

Poor Crete, poor Greece Kathimerini The Vikelaia Municipal Library in Iraklio is the biggest public library on the island of Crete. A mention of its size does little credit to its real significance, however, as it is one of the most important existing arks of memory, a repository of ...

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The Latest Greek Tragedy

The Latest Greek Tragedy Barron's For instance, Greek stocks have dropped 75% during the past four years, and they're so beaten down that only one meets the size requirement ($4 billion in market value) to be included in the MSCI Greece Index, though more are included so that the index ... and more »

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Two Days: Waterloo Canal Day, fiber art and Greek culture

Two Days: Waterloo Canal Day, fiber art and Greek culture The Star-Ledger - NJ.com Rotisserie lamb, gyros, grilled octopus, lemon chicken, moussaka and Greek salads are among the food choices, and there will be rides, games, raffles and dance group performances. The festival runs from noon to 11 p.m. today and 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday.

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Prince Philip ? the consummate royal wife and a great role model for Kate

The Duchess of Cambridge could do worse than look to the Queen's long-suffering consort to learn how to play the support role

There is something primitive yet metaphysical about the moment a royal heir is minted. The Duchess of Cambridge, due to give birth in the next couple of weeks, will not suffer the indignities of, say, Mary of Modena in 1688, forced to give birth in front of an audience of 200 and still accused of a bit of business with bedpan and changeling. Indeed, there will be barriers to ensure that photographers do not so much as capture a grimace upon hospital arrival. Still, not only a nation, but a world will be watching, a private moment that is intrinsically public.

It will bring the focus on Kate the Commoner's new role into still more acute relief. How will she shape up as a parent and monarch-maker? How will it change her as a prospective princess? Who not merely is she, but whom does she intend to be? A woman forever on the make? "A jointed doll on which certain rags are hung … her only point and purpose being to give birth"? – the latter quotation from Hilary Mantel's not unsympathetic article for the London Review of Books in February.

There is one very obvious potential role model, and it is emphatically not that of her histrionic late mother-in-law – rather the Windsors' stalwart, long-serving and self-effacing patriarch. Attention has naturally fallen on the Queen during these last two plushly ceremonial years. The spotlight, as ever, has been less on the increasingly gaunt figure metaphorically at her side, but typically the regulation one step behind.

Prince Philip, recently turned 92, is currently convalescing after a hospital stay. In his capacity as the backbone of the House of Windsor, the Duke may yet outlast us all. However, as South Africa is being forced to consider a post-Mandela nation, so our thoughts are turning to the contribution made by the Queen's long-suffering consort – and it is an extremely different reaction to the one that many might have predicted in the 1970s and 80s.

The stereotype that grew up around this athletic young parvenu was a lusty one; albeit this was a parvenu who – like the cousin he was to marry – was great-great-grandoffspring of Queen Victoria. Philip of Greece may formally have issued from the Danish-German House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, but we knew him in his Spitting Image and Private Eye incarnations as Phil the Greek and/or Keith.

And what fun it all was with his dodgy Nazi relatives, "slitty-eyed" racism, shooting tigers while saving pandas and conspiracy theories about his offing the Princess of Wales. Believe the hype and he was a cross between a mafioso overlord and "HRH Victor Meldrew" (the epithet is David Starkey's).

The picture today is fundamentally altered. And, if one is not at the zenith of adulation of the Pacific islanders who believe the Prince to be the penis-gourd-sporting Melanesian Messiah, then, at the very least, the example of Britain's longest-serving monarchal consort is deserving of our – and, more specifically, the Duchess of Cambridge's – interest.

The Queen's husband grew up in relative normality for a royal. Much has been made of Diana, Princess of Wales's disruptive upbringing. Not only was her father-in-law's similarly a broken home, he had no home from the age of one, when he was bundled into an orange box in Corfu and set sail into a quarter-century of statelessness.

This was no starvation-type deprivation (although into adulthood friends remarked upon his frequent need of a good meal), but it was impoverished enough to mean saving for a raincoat and having school fees paid by a gambling uncle. Later, he found himself at Windsor Castle for Christmas 1943 because he had "nowhere particular to go". Such straits were, of course, by no means unusual during these years. Still, they meant the Queen's partner had an affinity with her subjects that the ducal stuffed-shirt favoured by her courtiers might not have enjoyed.

Like Diana, Prince Philip has tended to be self-deprecating on the subject of his education ("I am one of those ignorant bastards who never went to a university"). Nevertheless, again, unusually "normally" for a royal, he attended school, even if it was the notoriously spartan Gordonstoun. The army gave him a home and a wage – an unroyal accoutrement that was very much needed.

And then came the fairytale transformation. Like Kate, the 26-year-old Philip was accused of being an upstart, with Louis Mountbatten as his Carole Middleton. His lieutenant's £11 a week was supplemented with a home in the form of Clarence House, the weekend retreat of Sunninghill Park, £10,000 a year, and a chunk of Welsh gold from which to sculpt a wedding ring.

The Prince has often been criticised for his stiff upper lip, not least in contrast with Diana's tremulously pouting one. He is blamed for Prince Charles's perceived weaknesses (sensitivity, reticence, tree-hugging), which many now consider strengths. In this, Prince Philip has been no different to many of his generation. Moreover, he has been prepared to take on "feminised" aspects of what is – for all his evident testosterone – ultimately a wifely role.

A hands-on father, he taught his children to swim, sail, ride and paint, and introduced them to the painful realisation that "they're not anonymous". He styled himself as an adviser, rather than a tyrant, and was happy to take on such wifely activities as interior design and coronation planning. He has watched his figure as scrupulously, if not as neurotically, as Diana. Why, he even appears as beset by cystitis as so many of his sisters.

Without any constitutional basis, the role he has fashioned has been his own creation. He may have read up on his great great-grandfather early in his wife's reign, but Prince Albert was a (hotly resented) co-ruler, Philip's own role fundamentally passive. And so he replicated Albert's less controversial interests: rectitude, the management of royal finances, science and technology, with a hunter's respect for ecology – and the infinite charities and biscuit factories of which today's royal living is made.

Had something happened to his spouse, Prince Philip would have served as Regent until his son came of age. He is the Commonwealth realms' longest-serving consort, the oldest-ever spouse of a reigning British monarch, and the oldest-ever male member of the British royal family.

As a youth he was described as "undefeatable", and so he has proved. Service is an unfashionable concept, but service he has given, at the sacrifice of his personal freedoms and ambitions. From the giving up of smoking on the eve of his wedding, via the renunciation of his nominal religion and dropping of his name, to the abandonment of his career, Philip has proved himself the consummate royal wife.

Tirelessly active while constitutionally passive, engaged, protective, strategically reactive, (largely) uncomplaining, he has achieved the one thing that, in the end, royals are there for – leaving the monarchy on a surer footing than he found it.

Prince Philip's death – whenever it comes – will leave a void in which there will only be questions. Would the Queen continue to rule without him? Will his son succeed to her role? Still, as the Duchess of Cambridge builds castles in the air ahead of the next generation of Windsor heirs, she could do a lot worse than set her sights on emulating this most macho female role model.

• Prince Philip
• Monarchy
• The Queen
• Marriage
• Family
• Parents and parenting
• The Duchess of Cambridge

Hannah Betts

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Anxious? Depressed? Try Greek philosophy

Telegraph.co.uk

Anxious? Depressed? Try Greek philosophy Telegraph.co.uk Growing up in the Nineties, my friends and I were amateur neuroscientists. Every weekend, we conducted experiments on our brains with various chemicals, to see what happened: marijuana, LSD, MDMA, amphetamine, mushrooms, all tossed into our ...

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Paraguay, Greece reach final 16

Paraguay, Greece reach final 16 FOXSports.com Striker Dimitrios Diamantakos gave tournament newcomer Greece the lead in the 68th minute before Brian Montenegro leveled five minutes later. Paraguay was reduced to 10 men after 24 minutes when defender Gustavo Gomez received a second yellow ...

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