- Eddie Spence, of Bournemouth, iced cakes for many members of the royal family
- He piped opulent designs on cakes for the Golden and Silver Jubilees
- He also beat the eggs as a young apprentice for the Queen's wedding cake
A cake decorator who made celebration bakes for the royal family's most special occasions - including the Queen's golden wedding anniversary and Prince Charles' wedding to Diana - has finally retired at the age of 85.
Master icing expert Eddie Spence, from Bournemouth, Dorset, created opulent designs for some of the most memorable royal occasions over the course of his 71-year career, including the Queen's Golden and Silver Jubilees.
The baker, who is known as the 'the king of royal icing,' is now finally hanging up his piping bag 71 years after he helped make one of the cakes for the Queen and Prince Philip's wedding in 1947 as an apprentice.
Royal cake maker Eddie Spence has finally had to retire after an amazing 71 year career
Eddie was awarded the MBE by the Queen in 2000 for services to sugar craft
Eddie's favourite bake was a stunning golden carriage cake, replicating the Queen's own Gold State Coach, which he made for the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977.
The veteran decorator has finally decided to stop icing cakes at the age of 85 as he says his hands shake too much to do the ultra-detailed piping work that he was renowned for.
Eddie, who was awarded an MBE for services to sugar craft in 2000, recalled how he began as an apprentice cake maker aged 14 at world-renowned Mackie's bakery in his home town of Edinburgh.
'I started there at 14 because my parents couldn't afford to keep me in school and straight away I loved it.
'Most people started their apprenticeships at 16 but I got a two-year head start which put me at an advantage.
Eddie helped to beat the eggs for the Queen and Prince Philip's wedding cake in 1947
Eddie Spence's renowned icing skills earned him the chance to decorate numerous cakes for major royal occasions
What was retired royal cake decorator Eddie Spence's favourite bake?
Eddie's created the piping work on this incredible confection created for the Queens Silver Jubilee which looks just like the Gold State Coach
Royal baker Eddie Spence was making 50 wedding cakes a week at the height of his 71-year career - but his favourite bake was a stunning golden carriage cake for the Queen's Silver Jubilee that looked just like the Queen's own Gold State Coach.
The exquisite cake weighed a whopping 56lb and measured 21in tall. It featured lashings of gold icing and was created in stunning detail.
The carriage featured a number of golden angels as well as a staggeringly accurate red interior. The exterior of the coach also carries a number of portraits as well as a beautiful purple roof.
Eddie was also behind the iconic Charles and Diana wedding cake, a piece of which sold for £920 in 2015.
'The apprentices worked downstairs in those days and not long after I started I went upstairs to deliver some ingredients and the man in charge asked what I was doing.
'It turned out they were working on a cake for the Queen's wedding and I was given the job of hand-beating eggs for the job. It took all day but it was definitely worth it.'
His apprenticeship lasted more than six years, until Eddie was promoted and by the age of 22 when he began teaching baking at some of the most prestigious colleges in the country.
Eddie, who only decorates the cakes, continued to work at Mackie's and at one point was making 50 wedding cakes a week.
Helping to beat the eggs for the Queen's wedding cake was the first experience he had of making bakes for the royal family but he went on to make cakes for Princess Margaret, Prince Andrew, Prince Charles for his wedding to Diana, and again for the Queen and Prince Philip.
Eddie created this cake for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in 2013 (left) which features intricate sugar work. In 1997, he also decorated a cake for the Queen's golden wedding anniversary (right)
Eddie created this elaborate crest entirely out of sugar and icing on the cake for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in 2013 (left). He also made a cake for the Queen's golden wedding anniversary in 1997 (right)
Eddie's piping is considered to be among the finest in the world
Recalling the cake he made for Princess Margaret, Eddie said: 'I remember receiving a letter telling me she wanted it to be traditional, so that's what we did. The detail on that cake was amazing and it took a lot of hard work.'
In March 2010, he released a book 'The Art Of Royal Icing' and he has even made a number of TV appearances including on Loose Women.
His proudest moment however came in the year 2000 when he was awarded an MBE in the Queen's New Year's Honours list. It was an emotional time for Eddie, as the letter offering him the accolade arrived just a day after the passing of his first wife.
He said: 'When the letter offering me an MBE first arrived in 1999 I wasn't going to accept it because I was obviously feeling very down after my wife had sadly passed away just the day before.
'Eventually though my son talked me round and we went up to accept it in the year 2000. It was really amazing because the Queen knew all about me and we actually had quite a long chat. She was aware I'd done her sister's wedding cake but I had to let her down when she thought I'd made hers.
'Sadly in recent years royal icing has become something of a dying art but hopefully I've taught enough for it to carry on now I've retired.'
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