New photos mark Queen’s 90th Birthday
The Queen with her great-grandchildren and two youngest grandchildren, from left to right: James, Viscount Severn and Lady Louise, Mia Tindall, Princess Charlotte sat on the Queen’s lap, Savannah Phillips, Prince George and Isla Phillips. Photograph: Annie Leibovitz/Getty Images
(CNS): Alongside stamps and other memorabilia released to mark Queen Elizabeth II 90th birthday, officials have released three new portrait photographs of the Queen at Windsor Castle taken by photographer Annie Leibovitz. Today marks the monarch’s actual birthday, as opposed to her official one in June. Elizabeth II has now become the UK’s first ever serving nonagenarian. Thousands of people filled the streets of Windsor during the royal walkabout this morning.
The Queen was quoted in the British press as remarking that it was a “lovely day”, as she unveiled a plaque at the foot of Castle Hill in Windsor during her walkabout before cutting her orange drizzle birthday cake baked by TV reality show winner Nadiya Hussain.
Category: UK, World News
I was born in the winter. Does this mean I can have another birthday when the weather bucks up as well? What a glorious prospect!
Chagos!
Bingo.
Hear all these haters. God, the world is full of them init!
hahaha…..glad i’m not british……
So are we.
90 years and never one interview……role model for alden….
Em she is unelected he is elected. Big difference.
The Palace must have a new PR team, trying give the Royals a more relaxed image. They also recognized that Annie Liebovitz, who is a brand in herself, would attract attention internationally from people who don’t normally pay attention to royal life.
Little Mia Tindall stole the show clutching great-grandmas handbag. This, of course, is staged, but charmingly breaks the stodgy image and subtly draws the eye to the queen.
A similar ruse is employed in another Liebovitz portrait, where Prince William is standing on a stack of books.
It reminds me of “Las Meninas”. As did Velazquez in 1656, Liebovitz mapped out the entire perspective. Every figure and colour has been positioned within the architectural element in a way to guide our eye from one highlight to the next. The message is also, given the surroundings, “Make no mistake, this is no ordinary family. And yeah, we do hold the purse-strings of the nation.”
Kudos for going for the best, who happens to be American, and not being constrained to employing a UK photographer.
Excellent post, with the exception of the crude ‘purse strings’ comment. The monarch has absolutely no control over the nations ‘purse strings’ unlike the ‘paid for’ US President and his hordes of advisors who spend billions to get into power and further billions ensuring nothing gets done.
The riches that come with monarchy are the nations riches, not the personal property of the monarch. They can never be sold and are held by the monarch on behalf of the people and as a symbol of a soveriegn nation.
Please be so gracious as to acknowledge the life’s work that our Queen has given to her people, our nation and the world for the past 90 years instead of making crass republican comments which only serve to reinforce your own failings since independence. She isn’t a politician whose climb up the social ladder is paid for by multi nationals or the self interest of the super rich, she is a constant symbol of nationhood, continuity and history.
And by the way, the monarchy costs the nation less per person than keeping fat, self serving politicians and their flunkies cosseted in the EU.
I know which one I’d choose.
You must admit that the sumptuous setting with multiple mirror images, and the inclusion of priceless Georgian furniture proclaims privilege.
As for “crass republican comments” this is my queen too, but I sound American? I will consider your suggestion that the handbag has no other symbolism, but knowing Annie Liebovitz I wouldn’t be so sure.
If she’s your Queen too then you should understand the trappings of monarchy and national treasures. You should be able to see beyond the historical furniture and national monuments and see a person who is the epitome of a strong women, a loving parent and doting grandmother.
Personally I couldn’t give a crap about the women who took the picture, she’ll be lost to the ravages of time, I care more about the subject matter and the history behind it.
And you don’t need to be American to be a republican, the UK has enough anti establishment and historical philistines of their own. One being the leader of the Labour Party and his pathetic shadow cabinet.
Oh please do me a favor. Doting parents do not ship their children off to boarding school and produce emotionall challenged children.
Who cares what Liebovitz thinks or her symbolism. She takes photographs, albeit good ones, but this isn’t about her.
This picture is about history, continuity and family, the furniture is just a part of that history as it represents the passing of time, personal gifts, national treasure and collections.
If there is any symbol is to be noted it should be of a strong woman leading her country and her family through good times and bad.
When can I realise these riches as one of the people?
Gloriously pretentious.
Thanks! That’s what I was going for.
#SirKennethClark
How in God’s name can anyone have two birthdays? It’s bonkers, as are those who think this is all completely normal.
If you took the trouble to Google your question, assuming you know how, you would quickly find the answer. Loath as I am to make life easy for you, it is because HM QEII’s birthday always has a large public outdoor celebration. English weather being what it is, April is very unpredictable. In fact they are suggesting it may snow in the next few days. Therefore, an “official” birthday in June for the formal celebration, was chosen, in the hope that the weather would be better. Do try to catch up with what happens outside Cayman, so as to avoid making puerile statements.
makes perfect sense…..zzzzzzzzzzzz
maybe move christmas to july????
Christmas being based on a pagan festival, it doesn’t really matter when in the year it falls. It’s all hocus pocus.
12:18 Please think, before typing. Try catching up outside Cayman, could be the thoughts of anyone/ nationality.
Your opening sentence tells me all I need to know about your intellectual standing, containing, as it does, “the lowest form of wit” (look it up). The rest of your post is the usual twaddle typical of the mental state of a certifiable bonkers individual. You are a full blown twit, and God bless you! You gave us all that is gloriously and wonderfully insane about the British Empire. (Alongside Basil Fawlty, of course!) PS Interesting the “loath as I am” bit. It has a certain, and quite enticing, promise about it. Please continue as your thoughts evolve.
Annie Leibovitz, the world famous photographer hired by the Palace to take that photograph and others is a lesbian. Clearly there is Satanic Confusion going on here and I hope the Cayman Islands’ moral saviour, Anthony Eden, asks for and succeeds in having these photos banned within these hallowed Christian shores.
The sooner the CIG establishes a proper Mental Health facility for people like you, so much the better.
Clearly, 12:04, you have no idea what irony is.
Irony is not something to be anticipated in this forum, in which case this was a very cleverly written comment.
That’s satire not irony.
If you do some googling, 11:44, you will find quite a lot about the part played in satire by irony. So, you’re not wrong, it’s just that in the case of my comment at 8:13, I used irony as a literary device to make a satirical point about Anthony Eden’s original outburst about Satanic Confusion. (I know, I need to get out more).
and pretentiously calling it irony—is ironic
I’m not the original poster but your remark @9:44 is silly…..and wrong.