SNP politicians have sent their best wishes to Winnie Ewing as she celebrated her 90th birthday.

Madame Ecosse had a "wee party with family" to celebrate the big day, according to her son and SNP MSP Fergus Ewing.

He wrote on Twitter: "Today my Mother, Winnie Ewing, is having a wee party with family to mark her 90th Birthday. She sends her warm regards to all her friends throughout Scotland and Europe and her thanks for their well wishes today. Stop the world, Scotland wants to get on more than ever!"

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon sent her good wishes, too: "Happy 90th Birthday to Winnie Ewing. Victor of the 1967 Hamilton by-election, known simply as Madame Ecosse in the European Parliament, mother of the 1999 @ScotParl and much loved by all of us in @theSNP. As she famously said - ‘stop the world, Scotland wants to get on’."

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford marked Ewing's birthday at Prime Minister's Questions.

He said: "Can I also pay tribute to Winnie Ewing who has her 90th birthday today – the only parliamentarian to sit in this house, the Scottish parliament and the European parliament. We remember the words of Winnie, 'stop the world Scotland wants to get on'."

Blackford joined the rest of the party's MPs to record a happy birthday video message, posted on Twitter.

Ewing's victory in the Hamilton by-election in 1967 is considered to be the start of rise of the modern SNP. 

The 38-year-old lawyer beat the Labour candidate in the constituency against all the odds – in her first ever campaign.

READ MORE: Back In The Day: Winnie Ewing ... the SNP's wonder of Westminster

A number of other SNP figures sent their congratulations to Ewing.