A new photograph of the Queen has been released to celebrate her 79th birthday.
The picture was published on Friday as Camilla marked her birthday by unveiling a new literacy initiative for children across the United Kingdom.
The image – which shows Camilla smiling as she stands in a blue dress and sporting a diamond and sapphire butterfly brooch – was taken in the State Drawing Room of Hillsborough Castle, Northern Ireland, last month, Buckingham Palace said on Friday.
The brooch was presented to the late Queen Elizabeth II at the Birmingham Spring Fair in February 1977.
The Queen marked her birthday with the announcement that all children in the final year of primary school will receive a special edition of the bestselling book Impossible Creatures, by the award-winning author Katherine Rundell, this Christmas.
The Queen’s Christmas Present initiative is being delivered in partnership with the National Literacy Trust (NLT), the Palace said.
Camilla is patron of the trust, and the programme aims to celebrate the National Year of Reading 2026.
Each book will contain a personal message inside from the Queen.
Part of this will say: “Impossible Creatures, by one of my favourite writers, is a brilliant fantasy that will introduce you to a host of mythical friends and terrifying enemies… and I hope that you will love it as much as I do.”
The book will be distributed through schools and libraries, alongside a collection of free resources, the Palace said.
It said the NLT will also target hospitals, care settings, refuges and food banks in disadvantaged communities to ensure all eligible children will have access to the book.
NLT research has shown that children’s enjoyment of reading declines most steeply as they move from primary to secondary school, which is the age-group targeted by the initiative, in Year 6 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and in P6 in Scotland.
Katherine Rundell said: “I’m so immensely honoured that Her Majesty The Queen has chosen Impossible Creatures as her Christmas Gift to every child in Year 6.
“Her gift is given at the best possible time.
“This is the National Year of Reading, a celebration and reminder that the things that reading gives us – creative imagination, intellectual freedom, critical thinking, ethical compassion, good jokes, delight in great ideas – must be at the heart of our future and our democracy.
“This generation of brilliant kids face extraordinary challenges ahead. And books, if we ensure they have access to them, will be their strongest and sharpest tools with which to build a future.
“I’m thrilled to be part of a project which has at its heart the power of shared stories and shared ideas.”
NLT chief exec Jonathan Douglas said: “Reading unlocks children’s imagination, sparks their curiosity and brings unrivalled benefits for their futures.
“With the invaluable support of our Patron, Her Majesty The Queen, and Katherine Rundell, we are incredibly proud to be celebrating the National Year of Reading by bringing the gift of reading to every year 6 and P6 child in the UK this Christmas – and beyond.”
The Queen’s Birthday Present is the latest of a series of literary initiative by the Queen, who founded the charity The Queen’s Reading Room to celebrate the benefits of reading.
