Prince Philip celebrates

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Buckingham Palace has released a photograph of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh to mark his 99th birthday.

The duke, who celebrates his birthday today, has been shielding from the coronavirus with the Queen at Windsor Castle during the lockdown. The photo was taken in the grounds of the castle last week.

It is the first public photo of Prince Philip since he was seen leaving hospital in London on 24 December last year.

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In the picture, which was taken by a Press Association photographer, he is wearing a Household Division tie, the BBC reports. The Queen, meanwhile, wears a “heart-shaped 18.8 carat diamond brooch called Cullinan V”.

Philip, who has been married to the Queen for 72 years, retired from regular royal duties in 2017. He is the longest-serving consort in British history and the oldest serving partner of a reigning monarch.

Managing editor of Majesty magazine, Joe Little, said the pair’s time in lockdown was “an opportunity for them in their later years to reconnect.

“They will make a fuss of him on Wednesday as much as you can make a fuss of the Duke of Edinburgh,” Little added.