The truth about Prince Philip’s UFO obsession
Picture Prince Philip as a tin-foil-hat type? Not so much. His curiosity about UFOs is quintessentially British… Think quiet, understated and conducted at an arm’s length. Quite the opposite of some of the UFO aficionados we encounter at BLAZE!
Philip might have been subtle about his interest in UFOs but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t a genuine enthusiast. Multiple accounts describe the Duke of Edinburgh subscribing to UFO publications, building a library of books and tasking trusted staff to sift through stories that sounded… less like pub hearsay, more 'hang on, what was that?'
The 'UFO magazine' on the royal reading pile
Philip’s favourite reading material? Flying Saucer Review, a long-running British UFO journal founded in the 1950s. It’s not a bunch of nonsense, either. The international journal counts overseas governments and air force libraries around the world as subscribers, with contributions from distinguished PhDs, doctors of medicine, physicists, astronomers and other scientific experts. It’s no secret that Philip was a long-time subscriber.
The man sent to do the awkward asking
The most solid 'behind the palace curtains' detail involves Sir Peter Horsley, an RAF officer who served as Philip’s equerry in the early 1950s. Philip supposedly gave Horsley the green-light to collect stories from within RAF circles (essentially, to ask the questions that the Duke couldn’t be seen asking in public).
And then it gets even more peculiar… Witnesses were invited to Buckingham Palace to share their UFO experiences.
Rendlesham and the 'serious' UFO bookshelf
The Duke’s interest also seems to have extended into Britain’s most famous modern UFO flap: the 1980 Rendlesham Forest incident. It’s often nicknamed 'Britain’s Roswell' and involved a series of reported sightings of unexplained lights in the Suffolk countryside.
This particular incident didn’t just fascinate Prince Philip. Former CID detective and UFO enthusiast John Hanson recalls Queen Elizabeth II corresponding with him about the incident.
Speaking of John Hanson… He went on to co-author The Halt Perspective with retired United States Air Force colonel (and fellow UFO enthusiast) Charles Irwin Halt. The book later made its way into the private collection of Prince Philip.
UFOs weren’t the only mystery on the royal couple’s radar. Queen Elizabeth reportedly had a decades-long infatuation with crop circles and once sent senior advisors out in the middle of the night to investigate a formation.
The 'alien meeting' that never happened
Now for the bit everyone repeats at parties…
Back in the 1950s there was a rumour flying that Sir Peter Horsley was introduced to a mysterious figure called Janus in a Chelsea flat. He wasn’t a 'little green man' so to speak but he did claim to be an extraterrestrial who wanted an audience with Prince Philip. The order of the day? Saving the planet. The idea was floated with Philip but ultimately shut down. Not only was Janus a suspected Russian spy but the palace was all-too-aware of how catastrophic the optics would be if any of it leaked.
An era of UFO mania
Putting Prince Philip’s interest in UFOs into context is important. The timeframe is interesting given the postwar decades were the golden age of 'flying saucer' rumours. The nation was swept up in Cold War paranoia, new aircraft technology and a lot of buzz about radar, rockets and nuclear tests. In that context, a technically minded royal (Philip was a high-ranking naval officer and definitely had a good head on his shoulders) reading up on the phenomenon isn’t necessarily as outlandish as it sounds.
So what’s the truth here?
Strip away the UFO mania that defined the era, and what remains is surprisingly grounded. Philip appears to have treated UFOs the way a serious person treats an unsolved problem: collect sources, assess credibility, keep it private and avoid looking like you’ve joined a wacky club.
His subscription to UFO periodicals and his use of intermediaries (like Horsley and Hanson) point to a genuine and sustained interest over decades. And really, are his views that unusual? According to YouGov data a whopping 50% of Brits believe aliens exist. Of these, 22% believe they’ve been to Earth. Just 29% of people feel certain they’re not real. Here at BLAZE we even conducted our own survey and found 11% of Brits believe they’ve seen a UFO.
When you look at these stats Prince Philip is surprisingly relatable, even if he was devouring content like Flying Saucer Review and The Halt Perspective from the comfort of Buckingham Palace.
Can’t get enough of UFO chatter? Don’t miss UFO Week on BLAZE, running from Monday 9th March to Sunday 15th March. Join us every night to enjoy a full week of UFO-themed programming.