Beaming Queen poses for birthday photo – and makes subtle tribute to Philip
A brand new official photo has been released to mark the Queen’s 96th birthday – and it pays a subtle tribute to her late beloved husband Prince Philip.
The glorious picture shows the monarch proudly standing in between two of her fell ponies holding their reins as the build-up begins for the Royal Windsor Horse Show, which commissioned the image.
The new photograph of the Queen was taken in March in the grounds of Windsor Castle by Henry Dallal, who was commissioned to take an official portrait of her to mark her 90th birthday.
On the Queen’s left is the pony Bybeck Nightingale and on her right is Bybeck Katie, and both animals will feature in A Gallop through History – a spectacular equestrian display showcasing horses from across the globe.
In the image, the Queen can also be seen wearing her trademark black shoes and a long dark green coat, which is a sweet nod to the Duke of Edinburgh.
At last month’s memorial service for Philip at Westminster Abbey, Her Majesty along with several other royal women wore the same shade of dark green as her coat in this new picture.
It later emerged that the shade was the Duke of Edinburgh’s official livery colour, also was known as Edinburgh Green.
It was used for his staff liveries – the duke’s page at the coronation wore dark green and silver – and private cars.
