Prince Andrew
Britain's Prince Andrew attends ceremonies marking the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Belgium from German occupation in Brugge, Belgium, September 7, 2019. (Photo: REUTERS/Johanna Geron)

A rare photo of Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, with his mother, Queen Elizabeth, has been unearthed and shared on social media recently. It's of him as a five-year-old boy sitting beside his mother on her bed, while he playfully checked out his teeth in the mirror.

The image, taken around the early '70s, showed Prince Andrew wearing a long-sleeved white top and baby blue shorts with a pair of long white socks. As he seemed to be innocently checking out his teeth in a mirror, his mother looked on with that loving look on her face.

Royal watchers have been saying that of her four children, it is Prince Andrew that is especially close to Queen Elizabeth. Born a decade younger than Princess Anne and 12 years after Prince Charles, Prince Andrew experienced more doting and attention from his mom, who was then better prepared to be hands-on towards her younger kids at that time.

   

According to reports, Queen Elizabeth saw Prince Andrew as the child who saved her marriage to Prince Philip because he was born at a time when their relationship had been going through some challenges. This was also a period in Queen Elizabeth's life when she has become a more established monarch and thus could properly manage her time between her family and her duty to the crown.

Meanwhile, royal followers couldn't believe that Prince Andrew is the Queen's favorite given the many problems he's been involved in. In recent months, the Duke of York has been implicated in the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal that The Guardian said his reputation has been damaged.

According to the report, it's not the first time that Prince Andrew has been accused of behaving inappropriately towards women. Over the decades, Buckingham Palace has apparently issued statements to deny these speculations and defend the Queen's favorite son.

Amid the controversy, Prince Andrew was recently seen with his mother on their way to a church service in Balmoral. According to The Sun, he seemed upbeat and happy while sitting next to his mother in the car and it mirrors that tender moment he has shared with Queen Elizabeth as a young boy.