Turkmenistan president 'sings own birthday song' (AFP)

ASHGABAT (AFP) – The president of isolated Turkmenistan marked his birthday by singing on national television a love song whose music and words he had penned himself.

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov serenaded Turkmen viewers with the love song "For You, My White Flowers" on a special television show late Saturday celebrating his 54th birthday.

Berdymukhamedov was shown in casual clothes, wearing grey slacks, a shirt and green pullover, singing the song to the accompaniment of a guitar which he also played.

The song was also shown on a giant screen to a concert attended by 3,500 people in Ashgabat, with the audience standing and applauding the head of state during the song.

Berdymukhamedov was himself not present at the concert but the anchor confirmed that the president had written "the words and music himself".

State television said his guitar and accordion have now been placed in the national museum as a "national asset and great treasure".

Berdymukhamedov is fond of showing off his skills away from politics and in April staged an impressive display of his horsemanship on the back of a rare Akhal-Teke horse.

Berdymukhamedov is seeking to very cautiously ease the country out of the isolation of his eccentric predecessor Saparmurat Niyazov who died in 2006.

He has cut back on some of the excesses of Niyazov, known as the Turkmenbashi, and last year removed a golden statue of his predecessor in Ashgabat which rotated to face the sun.

But observers have noted a budding cult of personality with giant banners of Berdymukhamedov's face hanging on government buildings while critics have complained that stabs at reform have amounted to little more than window dressing.

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Prince Philip marks 90th birthday with new title (AFP)

LONDON (AFP) – Britain's Prince Philip received a new royal title from his wife Queen Elizabeth II as a gift on his 90th birthday Friday, as the outspoken consort said he would finally scale back his workload.

The queen made him Lord High Admiral -- the titular head of the British Royal Navy and an office until now held by her -- partly in recognition of the promising seafaring career Philip gave up to spend a lifetime at her side.

The gruff patriarch, the longest-serving consort in British history, opted to spend his birthday with a typical lack of fuss, as he hosted a charity reception and chaired a conference for military colonels.

Despite remaining sprightly for his age, if not the dashing blond naval officer of more than five decades ago, Philip admitted he would now take a step back from official duties.

"I reckon I've done my bit. I want to enjoy myself a bit now, with less responsibility, less frantic rushing about, less preparation, less trying to think of something to say," he told the BBC.

"On top of that my memory's going, I can't remember names. I'm just sort of winding down."

There has been speculation he could hand over some of his duties to his grandson Prince William's new wife, Catherine.

Since marrying the then princess Elizabeth in 1947, Philip has carved out his own role supporting the monarch, accompanying her on visits around the world and jollying people up with his off-the-cuff remarks.

Some have been near the knuckle.

On a visit to China in 1986, he warned a group of British students: "If you stay here much longer, you'll all be slitty-eyed." And he told a British student who had trekked in Papua New Guinea in 1998: "You managed not to get eaten, then?".

But in a sign of the public affection for him, the palace revealed that almost 2,000 birthday cards had been sent to the duke from across the globe, including New Zealand and Australia, Italy, Poland, France and Germany.

Known officially as the Duke of Edinburgh, he is patron of some 800 organisations, covering fields including conservation, design and developing life skills among youngsters.

Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark, a nephew of Greek king Constantine I, was born on a kitchen table on Corfu on June 10, 1921.

After a turbulent childhood, Lieutenant Mountbatten, as he became, married Elizabeth but his stellar progress in the Royal Navy, including service in World War II, was halted when his wife became queen in 1952.

He told ITV it was "disappointing", but "being married to the queen, it seemed to me that my first duty was to serve her in the best way I could".

Buckingham Palace said in a statement that the award of the title of Lord High Admiral was a "gift to The Duke of Edinburgh on the occasion of his 90th birthday", and that an official ceremony would take place at a later date.

The queen has held the title, which dates back to the 14th century, since 1964.

Canada also named Prince Philip an admiral and general in the Canadian Armed Forces for his birthday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said, praising his "significant contribution to our national life".

The queen is Canada's head of state.

On Friday Philip was also honoured with a 62-gun salute and the striking of a Royal Mint coin with his image on one side and the queen's on the other.

At the event he attended for the Royal National Institute for Deaf People he was given a pair of ear defenders.

But the official celebration of his birthday will be on Sunday when there will be a service at Saint George's Chapel in Windsor Castle, attended by the royal family, with a reception to follow.

"There is no ceremony or anything today. The main event will be on Sunday," a Buckingham Palace spokesman told AFP.

The duke showed the accolades were unlikely to go to his head, as he showed when he was asked by the BBC if he thought he had been successful.

"I couldn't care less. Who cares what I think about it? I mean it's ridiculous," he said, adding that he had figured out how to perform his role by "trial and error".

Paying tribute this week, Prime Minister David Cameron said Philip had been "a constant companion and a source of rock-solid strength" to the queen, adding that Britons found the duke's down-to-earth style "endearing".

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Queen gives Philip new title for 90th birthday (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain's Queen Elizabeth awarded her husband Prince Philip a new title as a 90th birthday present on Friday as he announced he would be winding down his activities after decades of official engagements.

Philip, renowned for his blunt talk and unguarded off-the-cuff remarks, spent his birthday as he has much of life performing duties in his role as the queen's consort following their marriage in 1947.

"It's a normal working day for him. There's no celebration as such," his spokeswoman said, although a military band played Happy Birthday outside Buckingham Palace and there was a 62-gun salute at the Tower of London.

To mark the occasion, his wife conferred the office of Lord High Admiral, the titular head of the Royal Navy, to Philip who served in the navy during World War Two, took part in the Allied landings in Sicily and was in Tokyo Bay when the Japanese surrendered in 1945.

Despite being a near constant companion at the queen's side during her long reign, the still sprightly prince has rarely sought the limelight himself.

His birthday will be in keeping with that low-key style; he held a reception to mark the centenary of a charity for the deaf and in the evening he will chair a conference for senior British military figures followed by a dinner.

Philip is now the longest-serving consort and oldest-serving spouse of any British monarch and during those years he has supported hundreds of charities and causes.

However, in an interview with the BBC to mark his birthday, he said he would be stepping back from his official duties.

"I reckon I've done my bit so I want to enjoy myself a bit now, with less responsibility, less frantic rushing about, less preparation, less trying to think of something to say," he said.

"On top of that, your memory's going -- I can't remember names and things."

It is for such direct comments and gaffes that Philip is best-known.

He once told British students in China: "If you stay here much longer, you'll be slitty-eyed" and asked Aborigines in Australia if they still threw spears at each other.

Prime Minister David Cameron said Philip had always done things "in his own inimitable way, with a down-to-earth, no-nonsense approach that the British people I believe find endearing".

While Philip has spent his life in the shadow of the queen, there is one place where he outshines his wife -- on the south Pacific island of Tanna in the Vanuatu group, where the locals worship him as a god.

(Editing by Paul Casciato)

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