London, Jan 9 (PTI) Britain's future Queen, Kate Middleton, is celebrating her 40th birthday on Sunday with the release of a special set of three photographs which will go on display across the country this year.

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, who will become Queen when husband Prince William ascends the throne as second in line after his father Prince Charles, is celebrating her big birthday privately at home in Norfolk with her children – Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

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The special birthday portraits have been shot by fashion photographer Paolo Roversi and show her wearing different dresses by British luxury fashion house Alexander McQueen.

She is wearing a pair of pearl and diamond earrings that belonged to her late mother-in-law Princess Diana in two of the photographs and a pair of earrings loaned by Queen Elizabeth II in the third.

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“Taking the portrait of Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge was a true honour for me and a moment of pure joy. I was moved by her warmth and friendly welcome and enchanted by her shining eyes that reflected the loveliness of her soul and her smile showing the generosity of her heart,” said Roversi.

“It was a profound and rich experience for me, an unforgettable moment. I have met a wonderful person, a person who, with her positive energy, can bring hope to the whole world,” he said.

The three portraits will go on display this year in Berkshire, St. Andrews and Anglesey, three places where Kate has lived, before being housed in the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery in London, where she is patron.

Berkshire is the county of her childhood and where she was brought up. St. Andrews is where she went to university and began her relationship with Prince William. Anglesey is where the couple lived together just before and in the early part of their marriage.

“These new portraits which have been released to mark the 40th will be shown in the community in three meaningful places: Berkshire, St. Andrews, and Anglesey, as part of the National Portrait Gallery, London, nationwide ‘Coming Home' exhibition, ahead of the Gallery reopening in 2023,” Kensington Palace said.

The images were taken at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, west London, back in November 2021.

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