THE QUEEN will deliver her annual Christmas address at 3pm today and there are several notable royal absentees from her picture collection.
Recorded from Buckingham Palace’s 1844 room, the Queen has four pictures sitting on the desk from which she will speak to the nation, but some notable members of the royal family are missing.
A homage is paid to the Queen’s long-lasting marriage with Prince Philip as a picture from their wedding day in 1947 sits next to a photo taken to mark their 70th wedding anniversary in November.
Framed portraits of the monarch’s great grandchildren Prince George and Princess Charlotte are also present, however, a slew of notable royal figures are missing.
The Queen’s son, Prince Charles, and wife Camilla are noticeably absent from the speech - the heir to the throne has been the Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay since 1952.
The Prince of Wales is the longest serving heir in British history.
Prince Charles married his second wife, the Duchess of Cornwall, in 2005.
The parents of Prince George and Princess Charlotte are also missing with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge lacking a framed reference in the 10-minute speech.
The royal couple married in 2011 and are expecting their third child next year.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle celebrated the end of the year by announcing their engagement - the couple are also missing from the speech.
The ginger royal and the Suits star will marry on May 19, 2018, in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.
The pair recently released engagement photos that saw Prince Harry’s fiancee decorated in a £56,000 Ralph and Russo dress.
British monarchs have delivered a Christmas message ever since 1932, when King George V gave a message to inaugurate the BBC World Service.
Then, in 1957, his granddaughter Elizabeth II modernised the tradition when she was broadcast on live television across the entire nation.
Gathering to watch the Queen’s speech is now a staple of Christmas for many Britons, with an estimated seven million people expected to tune in today.
This year, the Queen’s Christmas message will air on BBC One, ITV, and Sky One.
Traditionalists can tune in to BBC Radio 4 to hear the speech if they prefer.
It will also be available to stream live on computers, game consoles and mobile devices via, BBC iPlayer, the ITV Hub and Sky Go.
Anyone who unable to watch the message live can catch up online using BBC iPlayer shortly after broadcast.
Those not interested in what the monarch has to say can watch Channel 4’s ‘alternative Christmas message’, which will air at the same time.
In the speech, the Queen will the praises of husband Prince Philip’s “support and unique sense of humour”.
The monarch’s speech will also focus on the theme of “home” as she evaluates the year of 2017.
She will say: "We think of our homes as places of warmth, familiarity and love…there is a timeless simplicity to the pull of home."