Queen Mary and King Frederik’s bittersweet balcony appearance

King Frederick and Queen Mary made a special appearance on the balcony of Frederick VIII’s palace in Amalienborg, Copenhagen, to mark the monarch’s 58th birthday.

But Tuesday’s appearance was bittersweet for the family, just a day after His Majesty’s mother, Queen Margrethe II, was readmitted to hospital following her heart attack.

It was also a change for the Danish and Australian couple, as only two of their four children were present for the occasion.

Twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine, 15, who recently celebrated their confirmation, celebrated their father’s birthday with waves to the huge crowd outside the palace.

Older siblings Crown Prince Christian, 20, and Princess Isabella, 19, were not present.

It is believed this is because the King’s birthday is not a public holiday in Denmark and Prince Christian is currently undergoing intensive military training, while Princess Isabelle is still weeks away from graduating from high school.

For his birthday, King Frederik wore a blue pinstripe suit with a pink tie and sported a beard.

Queen Mary wore a chic gray rosette blouse with white trousers and coral earrings.

A new portrait of the king in uniform in the throne room of Christiansborg Castle was released by the Danish royal family on social media to celebrate his birthday.

The palace also shared a video of the festivities on social media, showing many people filling the Amalienborg grounds, with a few Australian flags among the Danish flags.

Australian-born Mary became queen 20 years after marrying into one of the world’s oldest monarchies, after meeting then-Crown Prince Frederick at the Sydney Olympics.

But the Tasmanian beauty has been warmly accepted into the hearts of the Danes, who like to fly the Australian flag in honor of their queen on such occasions.

Queen Margrethe abdicated from the throne in January 2024, after a reign of 52 years, following a number of health problems the year before and undergoing major back surgery.

The 86-year-old suffered a heart attack earlier this month and spent five days in hospital before being discharged to continue her recovery at home.

However, on Monday the monarch was readmitted to Rigshospitalet after a large blood clot was found on her hip, a result of her fall last September.

She will remain in hospital for a number of days, the Danish Royal House said.