Order of the British Empire
British order of chivalry established in 1917
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| 2025 | Jacqueline Wilson was awarded Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. |
| 2025 | Women such as Emily Thornberry, Patricia Hewitt, and Carmen Munroe were honored as Dames Commander, highlighting ongoing recognition of women's contributions to British society. |
| 2024 | Katherine Hamnet, a fashion designer, tossed her CBE insignia into a trash bin in front of cameras, expressing disgust at Britain's role in the Gaza genocide. |
| 2024 | Mark Gatiss, actor, writer, director, and producer, declined an OBE. |
| 2024 | Alan Bates, former subpostmaster and campaigner, initially declined an honour but later accepted a knighthood. |
| 2024 | Felicity Dahl was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE). |
| 2024 | Margaret Beckett was awarded Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. |
| 2024 | Jenny Abramsky was awarded Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. |
| 2024 | Queen Camilla became the Grand Master of the Order of the British Empire. |
| 2024 | Carol Black was awarded Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. |
| 2024 | Distinguished women including Imelda Staunton, Tracey Crouch, Jilly Cooper, and Sonia Boyce were awarded Dame Commander status, continuing the tradition of recognizing women's achievements. |
| January 9 2024 | Paula Vennells, former CEO of Post Office Limited, announced she would return her CBE in light of the Post Office scandal, which was subsequently officially revoked by King Charles III. |
| 2023 | Alan Cumming, an actor, returned his OBE insignia, citing the 'toxicity of empire'. |
| 2023 | Hermione Lee was awarded Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire, honoring her distinguished achievements. |
| 2023 | Prominent women like Priti Patel, Virginia McKenna, Shirley Conran, and Tracey Emin were among those named Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire. |
| 2022 | Gareth Bale accepted appointment as a Member of the Order of the British Empire, causing controversy among some Welsh football supporters who criticized his decision. |
| 2022 | Sue Ion was awarded Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire, recognizing her significant contributions. |
| 2022 | Notable dames appointed included Joanna Lumley, Vanessa Redgrave, Laura Kenny, and Fionnuala Jay-O'Boyle, representing diverse fields such as entertainment, sports, and public service. |
| 2021 | A petition was launched to the Senedd proposing the 'Cymru Knighthood Award', seeking to establish a national Welsh honours system. The Welsh Government stated they had no plans to introduce such a system. |
| 2021 | Nikesh Shukla declined an offer of MBE for services to literature. |
| 2021 | Another significant group of women, including Sarah Gilbert (notable for her COVID-19 vaccine work), Prue Leith, and Arlene Phillips, were honored with Dame Commander status. |
| 2020 | Michael Sheen returned his OBE after researching the relationship between Wales and the British state, stating he would be a hypocrite to keep it. |
| 2020 | Beti George declined an honour, stating it was a symbol of oppression, slavery, and suffering. |
| 2020 | The Guardian reported, based on a Freedom of Information request, that 68 out of 2,504 people offered a British honour declined the recognition, representing 2.7% of total offers. |
| 2020 | Large group of women, including notable figures like Mary Berry, Olivia Newton-John, and Rose Tremain, were appointed as Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire. |
| November 2020 | Tony Woodley ultimately accepted a peerage in November. |
| August 2020 | Tony Woodley turned down a second peerage offer in August. |
| 2019 | Saiful Islam, chemistry professor, declined an OBE. |
| 2019 | John Oliver, comic and TV host, declined an OBE, questioning the purpose of such an honour. |
| 2019 | The Lady Higgins was awarded the Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. |
| 2019 | Notable Dames Commander included Cressida Dick, Carolyn Fairbairn, Jayne-Anne Gadhia, Sara Thornton, and Rachel Whiteread. |
| 2018 | Tony Woodley initially turned down a peerage offer. |
| 2018 | Recipients included Mary Beard, Darcey Bussell, Emma Thompson, Cheryl Gillan, and Stella Manzie. |
| 2017 | J.K. Rowling declined promotion as Dame Commander (DBE) and elevation to the peerage, but accepted appointment as Companion of Honour (CH). |
| 2017 | Damehoods were awarded to Jessica Ennis-Hill, Julie Walters, Katherine Grainger, Sarah Connolly, and Anna Wintour. |
| 2016 | Narindar Saroop, a soldier and Tory politician, returned his CBE in disgust at David Cameron's 'Dishonours List' of rewarding friends and party backers. |
| 2016 | Lynn Faulds Wood, TV presenter, declined an honour because it contained the word 'empire'. |
| 2016 | Howard Gayle, first black footballer to play for Liverpool FC, declined an MBE, saying it would be 'a betrayal' of Africans who suffered under the British Empire. |
| 2016 | Jez Butterworth, playwright, declined an OBE. |
| 2016 | Phil Scraton, professor of criminology, declined an OBE due to lack of justice for bereaved families and survivors. |
| 2016 | Notable recipients included Louise Casey, Carolyn McCall, Julia Peyton-Jones, Siân Phillips, Barbara Windsor, and Caroline Spelman. |
| 2015 | Gordon Brown declined a peerage on principle, being an advocate for an elected upper house. |
| 2015 | Dames Commander included Frances Ashcroft, Joan Collins, Carol Ann Duffy, Mary Quant, Esther Rantzen, and Marina Warner. |
| 2014 | Notable recipients included Angela Lansbury, Hilary Mantel, Gillian Lynne, Penelope Keith, and Zandra Rhodes. |
| 2013 | The St David Awards were launched as a complementary honours system, recognizing Welsh people for inspiring and exceptional work alongside the existing British honours system. |
| 2013 | Danny Boyle declined a knighthood, and Peter Higgs accepted an appointment to the Order of the Companions of Honour. |
| 2013 | Significant damehoods were awarded to Margaret Beckett, Hermione Lee, Sarah Storey, and other accomplished women across various fields. |
| 2012 | David Jones (Jonzi D), writer, choreographer, and rap artist, declined an MBE for services to the arts, stating he was 'diametrically opposed to the idea of empire'. |
| 2012 | The Baroness Hayman was awarded the Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. |
| 2012 | Dames Commander included notable figures such as Mary Archer, Zaha Hadid, Tessa Jowell, Penelope Lively, and Theresa Sackler. |
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This contents of the box above is based on material from the Wikipedia articles List of dames grand cross of the Order of the British Empire, List of people who have declined a British honour & List of dames commander of the Order of the British Empire, which are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.