PRINCE Edward has been appointed to a new role by King Charles – as four new pictures have been released to mark his 60th birthday.
The king appointed Edward to the Order of the Thistle, Scotland’s highest honour.
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Prince Edward in new birthday picture Credit: PA
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Prince will celebrate his 60th birthday this weekendCredit: PA
Edward is seen wearing a red sweater under a dark buttoned vest.
Other pictures show him smiling with his three dogs, Teal the labrador, Mole the cocker spaniel and Teasel the labrador puppy.
It comes after Edward revealed in a rare interview that his wife Princess Sophie is his “rock”.
Edward told ITV’s gardening expert Alan Titchmarsh: “I’m incredibly happy that I found Sophie and that she found me.”
He and Sophie, 59, have been married since 1999 and met on a promotional shoot for the Prince Edward Summer Challenge two years earlier.
During the interview, Edward also praised his father, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, for being “brilliant with people” even if it sometimes “didn’t necessarily seem like it”.
“He always, always encouraged everyone,” he said. “You should have met him somehow.
“He was simply an extraordinary man. He was the Prince Albert of our age.
“He had an extraordinary mind. He loved design, he loved innovation.”
Edward revealed some of his lasting memories of his father, including teaching his daughter Lady Louise to drive a carriage.
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He said: “It was her own bat… he took her out with the team.
“I think it was only the second time, he drove up and said, ‘Do you want to try it?’
“She didn’t even have time to answer the question, he just let go.”
“We are very lucky, we have two, who we would think are particularly brilliant children.
“They forge such different paths for themselves. I think that’s just as fascinating,” he added.
Asked about adjusting to his new title, Edward said it was a “great privilege” but also brought “a fair amount of expectation”.
“I mean, there’s a lot of legacy that comes with that title and everything that my father has done,” he continued.
“Especially when you don’t inherit it, this is a choice … that comes with all the expectations that people have.
“It’s just the weirdest and weirdest feeling. You enter the room and, especially today.
“There’s name space on the card and I’m still looking around saying ‘Yeah, but where am I sitting?'”
In a newspaper interview, Edward said the monarchy was “as important as ever” in “trying to bring people together”.
He told the Daily Mail: “Our role – being part of the monarchy – in trying to bring people together is as important as ever, if not more so today.
The Duke completed a series of engagements with Princess Sophie earlier this week, ahead of his milestone birthday this weekend.
He was handed a Leeds Rhinos rugby shirt with “HRH 60” emblazoned on the back during Friday’s visit to Headingley Stadium.
Edward noticed the detail on the back and said to his wife, “Yours is more subtle than mine.”
He told the young players: “Thank you very much. I really need to be reminded.”
Sophie then tearfully paid tribute to Edward at the end of the Community Sport and Recreation Awards.
She said: “Edward is the best father, the most loving husband and still my best friend.
– I am so proud of the man he is.
King Charles made Edward Duke of Edinburgh to mark his 59th birthday.
Queen Elizabeth II also granted Edward the additional title of Earl of Forfar to mark his 55th birthday.
It turns out that Charles (75) is undergoing cancer treatment, and Princess Kate is recovering from abdominal surgery.
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Prince Edward revealed Sophie was his “rock” in an interview to mark his 60th birthdayCredit: Getty
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