The Queen will spend her 89th birthday today celebrating quietly with members of the royal family at Windsor Castle as she takes a rare week off from official engagements.
Royal fans are hoping the Duchess of Cambridge's second child - the Queen's fifth great-grandchild - will make an appearance to coincide with the monarch's birthday.
Otherwise it will be business as usual as the world's oldest reigning monarch goes through her daily quota of government red boxes.
The Prince of Wales, the Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex have also kept their diaries free, suggesting they may join her for a birthday celebration at some point during the day.
