Over the years we’ve come to expect and look forward to a new photo being released to mark the senior royals’ birthdays and we weren’t disappointed as Queen Camilla turned 78 on 17th July. Taken by Chris Jackson and released the day before, it shows her leaning against a gate in the sunshine, looking relaxed in a patterned dress.
It’s a portrait full of poise and elegance, though what always piques my interest when a birthday picture is shared are the smaller details. There’s so much hidden beneath the surface that speaks volumes and the location of Queen Camilla’s new snap struck me most.
As revealed by the caption, her 78th birthday photo was shot - not at Clarence House where she lives with King Charles - but at her own private home in Wiltshire, Raymill.
Raymill is just fifteen minutes away from His Majesty’s beloved Highgrove House and the Queen bought it after her divorce from her first husband Andrew Parker Bowles. She’s kept it ever since and it’s very interesting to me that this was the location she chose for such a high-profile photo.
Whilst Clarence House is also her and King Charles’s home, it is ultimately a royal residence. Raymill is entirely separate from the Royal Family and the scrutiny that follows them, and it’s incredibly personal to her.
It was also in the gardens here that the Princess of Wales captured Queen Camilla’s cover photo for her guest-edited issue of Country Life in 2022. All of this suggests to me that Her Majesty is most relaxed taking special pictures when she’s at Raymill.
She could view it as a sanctuary and it’s likely far easier to achieve a great picture when you’re completely private in familiar surroundings. Speaking previously to OK!, the BBC’s former Royal Correspondent Jennie Bond expressed admiration for Her Majesty keeping Raymill and suggested it acts as her "sanity valve".
"Camilla has maintained a small part of her life which is hers and and almost hers alone and I rather admire that," Jennie declared. "She has her own house where she can put her muddy Wellington boots on and a pair of old jeans and and romp around the garden with her grandchildren or just on her own, and just have some peace and calm and quiet."
She said it was important to remember that the Queen "has a history, she has a family, she has an independent life and has kept some of that, albeit a very small part, to herself". In her view, it’s "almost like a sanity valve".
The royal expert continued, "Life as a royal is so intense, so strange, so scrutinised that just to be able to unscrew your lid once or twice a month and let all that steam out and just be yourself without the prying eyes of the world on you must keep her very balanced."
All of this makes Queen Camilla’s choice to have her birthday photo taken there more significant - and understandable - to me. It’s a haven for her where she can be independent and just "Camilla" and this confidence and happiness comes across so well in Chris Getty’s picture.
This is a pattern she’s established for high profile snaps and she seems to be sticking with it. Aside from this picture and her Country Life cover, Chris also took Queen Camilla’s 75th birthday picture there and another with her beloved late dog Beth.
