Trooping the Colour 2023 live: King Charles on Buckingham ...

The Royal Family stand on Buckingham Palace balcony for Trooping the Colour flypast

Senior members of the Royal Family have now left the Buckingham Palace balcony after a military flypast to mark the King’s official birthday.

King Charles was joined by the Prince and Princess of Wales, their children and other family members as he acknowledged the spectators with a wave.

A few seconds later the first element of the extended fly-past - a contingent of helicopters - thundered overhead.

Thousands filled The Mall after the Trooping the Colour ceremony ended and greeted the King with cheers and applause as he led members of the royal family onto the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

During the ceremony, 18 aircraft flew overhead forming the initials CR - for Charles Rex, in a surprise for the King.

Aircraft are flying over Buckingham Palace now to mark the King’s official birthday as Charles appears on the balcony with other members of the Royal Family.

The Royal Horse Artillery have started to fire a 41 Gun Salute in nearby Green Park.

21 of the gun salutes will mark the monarch’s birthday, with another 20 signifying it is taking place in a Royal Park.

It is expected to take six minutes, with the commanding officer giving the order to fire every ten seconds.

A further 62 volleys will be fired from the Tower of London by the Honourable Artillery Company.

Members of the Royal Family including the Duchess of Edinburgh have begun gathering on the Buckingham Palace balcony for the military flypast.

The Prince of Wales was joined by the Princess Royal and the Duke of Edinburgh as they followed the King in the Trooping the Colour procession.

Around 70 aircraft from the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force will take part in the six-minute military flypast today as part of the Trooping the Colour ceremony.

The aircraft will take off from 15 locations across the UK before meeting in the south-east of England to fly across London.

The event will end in the traditional show of red, white and blue from the pilots of the Red Arrows.

The King will appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony with members of the Royal Family for the event.

It comes after a flypast scheduled to take place on Coronation day had to be scaled back due to bad weather.

Prime minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty were among the guests at the Trooping the Colour ceremony today.

The Duchess of Edinburgh, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence and senior military figures were also in attendance.

The King has became the first monarch in more than 30 years to take part in Trooping the Colour on horseback during the ceremony today.

Charles and the rest of the Royal family are now heading back to Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour procession.

Soon after the King arrived on the parade ground the national anthem was played as a mark of respect and Charles had to steady his horse but it would not settle and a groom stepped forward to help.

The King began the ceremony by inspecting the lines of guardsmen on the parade ground, casting a critical eye over the soldiers, formed in two lines, as he rode past.

William, Anne, and Edward rode behind Charles while Camilla and Kate were in a carriage - a symbolic image of the royal family supporting their King as another milestone was reached.

The Queen and the princess wore contrasting outfits, with Camilla in a red silk dress that took inspiration from her regiment, the Grenadier Guards, while Kate was in a striking green dress by Andrew Gn and matching hat by Philip Treacy in honour of her Irish Guards.

The pair later took their seats on a dais with the Duke of Kent, Colonel, Scots Guards, to watch the march past of the troops - a first for the royal women - while the King and the other royal colonels remained on horseback alongside.