Queen Camilla launches literacy program on 79th birthday

Queen Camilla marked her 79th birthday on July 17, 2026, with the release of a new official portrait and the announcement of a major national literacy initiative to gift a book to hundreds of thousands of children. The portrait was taken last month in the State Drawing Room at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland by royal photographer Chris Jackson. In the photograph, the Queen wore a blue Fiona Clare dress and a diamond and sapphire butterfly brooch that was originally presented to the late Queen Elizabeth II in February 1977.

The central announcement accompanying the birthday commemorations is a program called The Queen’s Christmas Present. In partnership with the National Literacy Trust, of which Camilla is Patron, every Year 6 pupil in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland and every P6 pupil in Scotland will receive a special edition of the bestselling fantasy novel Impossible Creatures by award-winning author Katherine Rundell this December. The initiative is a cornerstone of the National Year of Reading 2026.

Each book will feature a distinctive royal stamp on the cover and contain a handwritten message from the Queen inside. In her note, she writes that the book is by...