Prince George Looks All Grown Up in New Portrait Released Ahead of His 8th Birthday


Prince George Looks All Grown Up in New Portrait Released Ahead of His 8th Birthday

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Prince George Looks All Grown Up in New Portrait Released Ahead of His 8th Birthday The photo, snapped by his mom Kate Middleton, includes a sweet tribute to Prince Philip

By Lanford


Beard Lanford Beard


Lanford Beard is the former Senior TV Editor at PEOPLE. She worked at the brand from 2015 through 2024.

People Editorial Guidelinesand Stephanie Petit Stephanie Petit


Stephanie Petit is a Royals Editor, Writer and Reporter at PEOPLE.


People Editorial GuidelinesPublished on July 21, 2021 05:37PM EDT Prince George.Credit : The Duchess of Cambridge/Getty Images An annual — and adorable — royal tradition continues!


Ahead of Prince George's 8th birthday on Thursday, his parents Prince William and Kate Middleton shared a new portrait of the future king. Released via the couple's social media pages, the


photo shows George sitting on the hood of a car, grinning for the camera in a blue polo shirt with orange stripes.


"Turning eight(!) tomorrow 🥳🎂" the photo was captioned on Instagram and Twitter.


There appears to be a subtle tribute to the birthday boy's great-grandfather Prince Philip, who died in April at age 99. Prince George seems to be sitting on a Land Rover, a favorite car of


Queen Elizabeth's husband — he even had his casket carried on a custom version of the vehicle for his funeral.


As in recent years, mom Kate acted as photographer to capture the perfect birthday photo, taken earlier this month in Norfolk where the Cambridge family has a country home. The royal mom is


also known to get behind the camera for the birthdays of Prince George's younger siblings, 6-year-old Princess Charlotte and 3-year-old Prince Louis.


See Prince George's Official Birthday Portraits Through the Years Can't get enough of PEOPLE's Royals coverage? Sign up for our free Royals newsletter to get the latest updates on Kate


Middleton, Meghan Markle and more!


George's 8th birthday appears to be marking a sartorial shift for the young prince. Many etiquette experts say boys in aristocratic circles usually swap formal shorts with knee socks for


pants at this age, and indeed George has been seen in more grown-up clothing lately, even twinning with his father on occasion.


"He is growing up fast and more of a young man than a little boy now," Sophie Mirman, founder and creative director at Trotters, recently told PEOPLE of George's maturing style.


She noted of William and Kate, both 39: "I think his parents are fantastic at judging what to wear and when."


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