CBE: Services to Both Drama and Charity
by Michael Holden | Reuters | May 31, 2022
LONDON, May 31 (Reuters) – Actor Damian Lewis, author Ian Rankin and former Northern Ireland first minister Arlene Foster were among more than 1,100 people recognised by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth in her annual birthday honours. The list, which is issued to mark the 96-year-old monarch’s official birthday, honours recipients for their “outstanding” contributions; most awards recognise public service or community work.
This year’s honours come ahead of four days of national celebration, beginning on Thursday, to mark Elizabeth’s 70 years on the throne. “This historic Platinum Jubilee is not only a celebration of the monarch but of the qualities she possesses,” Prime Minister Boris Johnson said. “The honours she confers this week reflect many of those qualities that have been invaluable from all different walks of life and to communities across the UK.”
Lewis, who won a Golden Globe for his role in TV drama “Homeland”, was made a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for services both to drama and to charity for initiating a campaign with his late wife Helen McCrory to raise 1 million pounds to provide food for health service workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.