It is the first time a photographer has been allowed to photograph the British Royal Family at an event normally shrouded in secrecy, for reasons that no-one in the royal household can quite remember.
But now, in the Queen’s 90th birthday year, officials have decided to release an image of the family group as they prepare to welcome more than a 1,000 guests for the annual Diplomatic Reception at Buckingham Palace, one of the highlights of the royal calendar and one of the main social event of the year.
Each of the three women is wearing evening gowns and tiaras from the Queen’s collection.
The Queen and the Duchess of Cornwall are also wearing The Royal Family Order of Queen Elizabeth II, an honour bestowed on female members of the British Royal Family by the monarch and worn on formal occasions.
According to tradition, the Order is worn pinned to the dress of the recipient on the left shoulder with a watered silk ribbon in chartreuse yellow, formed into a bow.