Royal pranksters

Princely pranksters Wills and Harry have been accused of recording a bogus message on the Queen's answerphone. The pair were asked for help by their regal gran when she was baffled by the technology.

But she was reported to be mortified when she heard the end result.

Their message said: "Hey wassup! This is Liz. Sorry I'm away from the throne." The recording continued: "For a hotline to Philip, press one. For Charles, press two. And for the corgis, press three."

According to The Daily Star, the Queen saw the funny side later when she thought about which VIPs might have heard the message.

But her private secretary was not so amused. The paper says he almost fell off his chair the first time one of his calls was put through to the voicemail.

The Queen, who is 80, has been taught by Prince William and Prince Harry how to send text messages on her mobile phone. She was given her first mobile phone in 2001 by the Duke of York.

But she banned servants at the royal palaces from carrying phones on duty, after becoming annoyed at their ring tones. The ban was reportedly prompted by several mobile phones ringing during a major banquet held for foreign dignitaries.