Rarely seen picture of young Queen Elizabeth shared as Royal Family mark first Christmas without her

PRINCESS Kate last night revealed a rare picture of a young Queen Elizabeth.

The Royal Family are preparing to celebrate their first Christmas following the death of the Queen in September.

And last night, the Princess of Wales fondly shared a photo of the late monarch during the Royal Carols: Together At Christmas.

In one clip, Kate sat with three members of the public who went "above and beyond" to help their communities this year.

Midwife Carys Hammond, 39, volunteer Akbar Khan, 50, and Ex-Veteran Lionel Digby, 87, all shared some special pictures from Christmas time.

Kate then went on to reveal a black and white image of a young Queen Elizabeth participating in a Christmas performance.

She said: "It really resonated with me seeing her majesty here doing the production on Christmas Day during the second World War, which I thought was really special."

Carys said: "She looks really happy doesn't she?"

Kate continued: "I can remember doing this sort of thing as a little girl too.

"When I saw this photograph, it's wonderful now, I see my children's love for doing this sort of thing, putting on little shows for us."

Kate joked she gets invited to join in and they end up dancing around the table.

The archive picture is believed to show the Queen alongside Princess Margaret and two others.

The group were rehearsing for a performance of Aladdin.

A young Prince Philip is thought to be in the crowd at the show.

The Queen's Governess Marion 'Crawfie' Crawford wrote of the picture in her memoir: "The pantomime went off very well. I have never known Lilibet more animated.

"There was a sparkle about her none of us had ever seen before."

During Princess Kate's programme last night, the three other guests also shared meaningful images as they reflected on the year that's been.

Carys works at Whiston Hospital on Merseyside and has been a midwife for 20 years and often works on Christmas Day.

Akbar runs Bradford PHAB Club, a children’s disability club in Bradford. He has volunteered for 38 years helping to deliver food parcels, including on Christmas Day. 

Ex-Veteran Lionel often volunteers with the Salvation Army to provide a Christmas lunch for the lonely or those struggling during the winter period.

He shared that he sadly lost his wife Yvonne this year after 64 years of marriage, to which Kate offered her sincerest sympathies.