A new photograph celebrates the Queen’s 79th birthday

A new photograph of Queen Camilla has been released to mark her 79th birthday.

The portrait, which shows the Queen in a long blue dress, was taken last month in the state drawing room at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland.

Buckingham Palace has announced that the Queen will be celebrating her birthday with a new pledge to support children’s literacy, which will be given to Year 6 and P6 children across the UK this Christmas with a book called Impossible Creatures by Catherine Rundell.

Much of the Queen’s public work has been in support of reading and literacy, including the creation of The Reading Room, a charity designed to promote the benefits of reading.

Rundell’s book is distributed to children in schools and libraries.

Each copy will contain a personal message from the Queen, which she describes as “a magical fantasy that introduces you to wonderful friends and terrifying enemies.”

The new UK book grant and reading program has been launched in partnership with the National Literacy Trust, which has become a patron of the Queen.

The program is part of the 2026 National Year of Reading, which aims to inspire the joy of reading and embed it in everyday life.

Last month, the Queen met Harry Potter author JK Rowling to mark the start of Royal Week in Edinburgh.

The couple discussed their “shared love of books” and the importance of reading to children during the meeting at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

She also supported the BBC’s 500 Words creative writing competition for children.