Prince Philip once left Queen Elizabeth II blushing in front of staff in dressing room

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip have been married for more than seven decades, and while they seldom show affection for each other in public, sources close to them say the couple is quite romantic in their own way.

Fashion designer Ian Thomas, who worked for the queen for more than 20 years, was witness to one such interaction between the couple which left the Queen "flushed scarlet." Thomas told the story to royal expert Ingrid Seward, who shared it with the public in Channel 5's documentary "Secrets of Royal Dressmakers," reports The Mirror.

Ingrid says: "When he was doing the hem, Prince Philip walked through the Queen's dressing room and said 'hmh, nice dress."

Ingrid added that the sweet compliment by the Duke of Edinburgh left the queen blushing and thrilled. She said: "The Queen flushed scarlett. I always remember him telling me that story. She was just so thrilled to get the compliment from her husband who's normally so brusque and offhand."

Ian Thomas opened his own couture business in Lowndes Street, Belgravia, in 1969 and made many of the Queen's outfits under his own label. He also made pieces for other royal women, and was awarded a Royal Warrant as a dressmaker in 1973. He worked as the queen's dress designer for over 20 years until his death in 1992.

During the episode, Ingrid also discussed the fashion moments of other British royals and said that the queen's former daughter-in-law, Sarah Ferguson, is the "worst dresser of all time" when it comes to royal style.

She said about the Duchess of York: "She looked great in her own clothes, in jeans and t-shirts but she was just a disaster in the fashion of the 80s because it was just too much for her."

"It was too frilly, there were too many bows. She said so herself," he said. To this, Emily Andrews replied that the mother-of-two has gotten much better with her style as she got older.

"As an older woman now she has got her style absolutely on point. She's got really good legs, she always wears dresses or pleated skirts, a top and a blazer and she's got that lovely red hair," Andrews said.