CUMBRIANS will raise a glass to The Prince of Wales today as he marks his 70th birthday.

While the future king prepares to celebrate at a glitzy party hosted by the Queen, locals at one of his favourite county pubs will be quietly toasting his landmark year.

Julian Ross has met Prince Charles a handful of times, the first being back in 2004, soon after The Old Crown at Hesket Newmarket was opened as the country’s first co-operative-run pub.

“I think people are more likely to quietly raise a glass to him. That is more the style of The Old Crown,” said Mr Ross, chairman of The Old Crown Co-operative. “It’s very low key and very Cumbrian.”

The prince, who is no stranger to Cumbria, has since revisited the pub, which will mark its 15 anniversary next month.

“He was a great friend to us,” Mr Ross continued. “We were absolutely delighted when he came. He has been about three times.

“People like Prince Charles don’t have to do it. They could live a life of ease but he doesn’t, he goes and sees people and visits communities and that’s a great sport.”

“I hope he enjoys it for the same reasons we do. It’s a proper pub and it is about people, not about profit.

“It’s about community and people doing stuff to help themselves. It’s just part of English tradition.”

Cumbria’s latest visit by Prince Charles was in March when he unveiled a specially-inscribed plinth in celebration of the Lake District National Park becoming a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Prior to that though, the popular Royal has made the journey up north on many occasions, including times when he has shown is support to Cumbria in some of its darkest times.

He visited the county after it was hit by flooding in 2005, 2009 and 2015 and also following the Foot and Mouth crisis. Back in 1988 he saw first hand the devastation of the Lockerbie bombing, which scattered debris across north Cumbria and southern Scotland.