Queen's birthday: Public's messages about Philip 'a comfort', she says

The Queen has thanked the public for their tributes to her husband, the late Duke of Edinburgh, as she marked her 95th birthday.

On the Royal Family Twitter account, she said: "My family and I would like to thank you for all the support and kindness shown to us in recent days."

She said the tributes had been a comfort in a "period of deep sadness".

The Queen's birthday, which comes four days after the duke's funeral, is being marked in a low-key, private way.

There will be no public celebrations as the monarch continues to observe two weeks of mourning until Friday.

No photograph celebrating the day is expected to be released this year, as would be customary.

In the tweet, the Queen said: "We have been deeply touched, and continue to be reminded that Philip had such an extraordinary impact on countless people throughout his life."

She added that she had "very much" appreciated the "many" birthday messages she had received.

Some of the Queen's family are thought to be with her in Windsor, as well as around 20 staff, dubbed HMS Bubble.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a tweet he would like to send the Queen "warm wishes" on her birthday, adding he has "always had the highest admiration" for her and her service.

The Queen's birthday falls less then two weeks after Prince Philip, her husband of 73 years, died on 9 April.

The duke was nine weeks away from his 100th birthday, which was due to be the focus of royal celebrations this year - with the Queen's 95th a more pared-back affair.

The Queen became the world's oldest monarch in 2015.

Her official birthday in June is marked by the Trooping the Colour parade, which has been cancelled for a second consecutive year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Buckingham Palace said options for a parade in the quadrangle at Windsor Castle are being considered instead.

The tradition goes back more than 100 years to the reign of the Queen's great-grandfather, Edward VII, who was king from 1901 to 1910.

Edward was born in November and decided that the English weather in November was not ideal for royal parades.

This was especially so because the London fog a century ago was so thick at times that people could barely see where they were going, let alone watch the troops march by.

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Last year, Buckingham Palace posted archive footage of the Queen as a child to mark her 94th birthday, which she spent in lockdown.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's youngest son Prince Louis, will also be celebrating his birthday this week as he turns three on Friday.

Prince William and Catherine will also be celebrating a decade of marriage the week after, on 29 April.