George's eighth birthday marked with picture that remembers Philip

21 July 2021, 22:37 | Updated: 21 July 2021, 22:39

Prince George's eighth birthday has been marked with a new photograph showing him with an off-road vehicle synonymous with his great-grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh.

The future king is perched on the bonnet of a Land Rover Defender in the image taken by his mother the Duchess of Cambridge.

Philip, who died in April a few months short of his 100th birthday, regularly drove Land Rovers and during his funeral the duke's coffin was carried by a specially adapted defender which he helped design.

Read more: 'A bitter blow': Nurses criticise Government's 'shambolic' 3 per cent pay rise offer

Read more: Paying France £54m to stop dangerous illegal migrant crossings 'a mockery' - Tory MP

George, who celebrates his birthday on Thursday, is pictured beaming at Kate behind the camera in the new photograph, and is casually dressed in a polo-style striped top and shorts.

The duchess is a keen photographer and regularly produces images of George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis to mark milestones in her children's lives.

The image was taken earlier this month in Norfolk, where the Cambridges have their family home, Anmer Hall, which is close to the Queen's Sandringham residence.

Kate may have a passion for photography, but she has revealed her children sometimes wish their mother would put her camera down.

Speaking to a finalist of her Hold Still photography contest, the duchess said about George, Charlotte and Louis: "Everyone's like, 'Mummy, please stop taking photographs'."

Read more: Weather causes chaos as extreme heat and hailstones the size of golf balls hit UK

Read more: 'We cannot go on as we are': EU to 'find new path' over Northern Ireland

Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge was born in the private Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital, Paddington, at 4.24pm on July 22 2013, weighing 8lb 6oz.

He made his public debut in front of the world's media on the hospital steps one day later, wrapped in a white merino wool shawl, cradled in his proud parents' arms.

A great-grandchild to the Queen, he will be the 43rd monarch since William the Conqueror obtained the crown of England if, as expected, he follows the reigns of his grandfather, the Prince of Wales, and then his father, William.