Crown's secret charm SOPHIE TURNS 60

From her service overseas to shopping at the supermarket, the duchess is the real deal

- Judy Kean

She has a day job that keeps her pretty busy. But should Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, ever need part-time work, her local supermarket would have her in a shot.

A friend has revealed that when she accompanied the duchess to supermarket Waitrose, near Sophie's Windsor home, the checkout operator was so impressed with the way the senior royal deftly packed her groceries that she mentioned the store had vacancies and she'd happily pass Sophie's details on to the manager if she was interested.

"The lady clearly had no idea who Sophie was," says her pal Mary Montagu-Scott. "And that's just the way she likes it."

Mary says Sophie thanked the woman politely and “giggled all the way home”.

That one of The Firm would respond so graciously is typical of Sophie. That she is a whiz at packing her own groceries also shows that despite her status, she has no airs and graces.

Sophie turned 60 on January 20, and a theme of the tributes paid to her in recognition of her milestone birthday was what an asset she is to the royal family.

"Like the late Queen, she puts duty and responsibility before herself, and is never one to seek the limelight," says Ailsa Anderson, a former communications secretary to Elizabeth II. "But she is great fun.