Duke and Duchess of Cambridge join the Queen for family outing to church

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have joined the Queen for a Royal Family outing to church, as they spend the weekend at Balmoral.

The Duke and Duchess, who travelled in the chauffeur-driven car without their three young children, accompanied the Queen for her weekly visit to Crathie church, appearing all smiles.

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall also attended, along with with Earl and Countess of Wessex and their daughter Lady Louise.

The Princess Royal and Sir Timothy Laurence drove with Peter and Autumn Phillips in what appeared to be a jovial family outing.

The Queen, dressed in vivid pink, smiled and waved to wellwishers, choosing the Duchess of Cambridge to sit with her in the rear seat of the car while the Duke sat as the front passenger.

Both the Queen and Duchess wore formal hats for the occasion.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were missing from the party, as was the Duke of York.

The Sunday outing follows a difficult few weeks for the Royal Family, among ongoing controversy.

The Duke of York, who has already enjoyed a summer visit to Balmoral before privately flying to Spain on holiday, yesterday issued a statement distancing himself from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, insisting he never had any suspicions about the disgraced financier's behaviour or saw him do anything illegal.

The Duke, through a signed statement issued by Buckingham Palace, stated "at no stage during the limited time I spent with [Epstein] did I see, witness or suspect any behaviour of the sort that subsequently led to his arrest and conviction".

The Sussexes have not yet been photographed visiting the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh at Balmoral this summer, despite other members of the Royal Family coming and going as per their annual tradition of spending time in the Scottish Highlands together.

The Duke and Duchess have endured criticism for their own holiday plans, using a private jet for four flights in 11 days to Ibiza and Nice, where they stayed with Sir Elton John, despite Prince Harry's recent passionate words on climate change.