Prince Philip Designers Prize

Quentin Blake, one of Britain's best loved illustrators, won the 2011 Prince Philip Designers Prize.

This is the final year that HRH The Duke of Edinburgh will deliver the Prize. Having headed up the judging panel and presented the Prize since its inception in 1959, he will be stepping down from the Prize as he reduces his work-load and royal responsibilities in his 90th year.

To mark the occasion, Quentin Blake illustrated this special certificate of thanks.

Special commendations were also awarded to Saeed Zahedi and David Chipperfield. Find out more about the winners and who else made the 2011 shortlist

To mark HRH The Duke of Edinburgh’s contribution to the promotion of UK design, the Design Council commissioned a one-off book of original artworks drawn by over forty of the Prizes’ previous winners, nominees and judges including Sir Terence Conran, Vivienne Westwood, Jeff Banks, Lord Norman Foster, Kenneth Grange and Sir Paul Smith.

In its half-century, the Prince Philip Designers Prize has rewarded the best in design. Find out why the prize was established, how its focus has changed and how the winners are selected.

Watch an animated timeline of Prince Philip Designers Prize winners from 1959-2009. 

Designer Adrian Westaway celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Prince Philip Designers Prize by taking a closer look at five decades of award winning British design.

50 years of innovation in design from Design Council on Vimeo.

Bill Moggridge has been awarded the 2010 Prince Philip Designers Prize for his lifetime contribution to design.

Since he couldn't be in London on 9 November 2010 to accept the award in person, Bill recorded this short message where he congratulates the other nominees and talks about his current work at the Smithsonian’s Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum.

Watch a film from Bill Moggridge: 2010 Prince Philip Designers Prize winner on Vimeo.

Find out more about the rest of the contenders and the special commendations for the 2010 Prince Philip Designers Prize

2009 was a big year for the Prince Philip Designers Prize – the UK’s longest running design award celebrated its 50th anniversary.

To mark this special occasion, design commentator Kevin McCloud spoke to H.R.H. about his longstanding passion for good design.Watch this video interview and find out about the Prize's 2009 winner, Andrew Ritchie, designer of the Brompton folding bicycle. 

Read a transcript of the interview

Millennial optimism soared, but terrorism and war jolted confidence before the economy rolled right into a sub-prime brick wall.

Excess was hounded into hiding by negative equity as recession returned, but boom was back by the middle of the decade.

Greed was good, consumption was conspicuous and Champagne flowed almost constantly for some in a decade of contrasts.

Unrest typified the 1970s. Governments wobbled, industrial relations collapsed, punk snarled and the establishment quaked.

Rationing was still fresh in the memory and contemporary design was mostly a niche commodity as Britain slowly shook off post-war austerity.