Queen Elizabeth.Photo: Terry Harris/Shutterstock
Queen Elizabethwas out and about on her 96th birthday.
While the palace told PEOPLE that the monarch would be celebrating her birthday privately, she was spotted going for a drive around her Sandringham estate on Thursday. Sitting in the passenger seat, the Queen gave a glimpse of her off-duty look, including bright pink lipstick, sunglasses and stud earrings.
On Wednesday, the monarchtraveled from Windsor Castle to her Sandringham estatein Norfolk, about 110 miles north of London. The residence is full of reminders of her late husband, Prince Philip, who died in April 2021 at age 99. The Duke of Edinburgh spent much of his time at the cozy five-bedroom Wood Farm home on the Sandringham estate, which was modified in recent years to make it easier for him to get around, after he retired from public life in Aug. 2017. While the Queen remained largely at Buckingham Palace in London continuing her royal duties, her husband enjoyed life in the country with activities like carriage driving and painting.
Sandringham is where the Queen and the royal family traditionally celebrate Christmas.
“She doesn’t have to be monarch there,” a former staffer previously told PEOPLE of Sandringham. “She can be Elizabeth rather than the Queen.”
Queen Elizabeth.Terry Harris/Shutterstock
On Wednesday, the Royal Windsor Horse Show released anew photoofQueen Elizabethto celebrate her birthday.
The majestic shot, which was taken last month on the grounds of Windsor Castle, shows the animal-loving Queen standing proudly between her fell ponies, Bybeck Katie and Bybeck Nightingale. She wears a dark green cape-style coat as she holds the reins of two of her favorite ponies in front of a magnolia tree.
Queen Elizabeth.henry dallal photography
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The public celebration ofQueen Elizabeth’s birthday, known as Trooping the Colour, takes place in June. This year, Trooping the Colour — including the royal family gathering on the Buckingham Palace balcony to watch a flypast — will coincide with a weekend of festivities to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, celebrating her historic 70 years on the throne.
source: people.com
