King’s Birthday Honours recognises arts leaders

Scores of arts professionals have been celebrated in the King’s Birthday Honours.

More than 80 names from across the arts and culture sector are included in the first Birthday Honours list made by King Charles III, who is a known enthusiast of the arts.

Professionals from across the music industry feature heavily, with the highest accolades going to Managing Director of London Symphony Orchestra Kathryn McDowell, who has become a Dame, and Opera North General Director Richard Mantle, who becomes a Knight.

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Author Martin Amis, who passed away last month, Director and Producer Stephen Frears, Actor Rupert Gavin, and Poet and Novelist Ben Okri also received knighthoods.

Among the recipients of a CBE are Royal Society of Arts Chief Executive Andrew Haldane, Historic England Chief Executive Duncan Henry Wilson, and Scottish Ballet Chief Executive Officer and Artistic Director Christopher Hampston.

Scottish Opera Chair Peter Lawson and Märit Rausing Director at Courtauld Insitute of Art Deborah Swallow have also received CBEs.

Swallow said the award was “a great honour, not only for me but also for the Courtauld”. 

“Importantly, it serves as a reminder of the role that art and its histories continue to play, providing invaluable insights into culture, society, and humanity across time and space, whatever the medium or form of visual expression.”

Team efforts

Many recipients have taken the opportunity to thank the people and institutions they work with.

CEO and Artistic Director of Theatre Peckham, Suzann McLean, received an MBE for services to the arts and marginalised young people.

“This award is recognition of the hard work of the entire team who are dedicated to creating opportunities for participation in the arts,” McLean said.

“I am proud to be part of a community that celebrates diversity and empowers young people.”   

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra’s Chief Executive Dougie Scarfe, who received an OBE, commented: “Never has it been more important to bring joy to people, and, at a time when our sector faces such huge challenges, this incredible honour gives such a boost for the battles ahead. 

“Throughout my career I have been lucky to work with the most extraordinary people, and this honour is really also for them.”

Co-founding Artistic Directors of Belarus Free Theatre, Natalia Kaliada and Nicolai Khalezin, have both received MBEs.

The refugee-led theatre company, which moved its entire ensemble to London in December 2021, is the only theatre in Europe banned by its government on political grounds.

Kaliada, who alongside Khalezin was granted political asylum by the UK more than a decade ago, said the recognition from King Charles was “incredibly humbling”. 

“We fight tirelessly for art and expression because it shapes who we are as humans and as nations, and yet we live in a time when it often feels like the arts and theatre don’t matter anymore,” Khalezin added.

“An honour such as this re-emphasises the essence of why we do what we do, and we share it with everyone who has ever been part of our creative process – both on stage and off stage”.

Full list

See below for a full list of award winners cited for their service in the arts. The full list of 2023 honours can be found here.

Dames and Knighthoods 

Kathryn Alexandra McDowell – Managing Director, London Symphony Orchestra. For services to Music  
Martin Louis Amis – Author. For services to Literature (to be dated 18 May 2023) 
Stephen Arthur Frears – Director and Producer. For services to Film and Television 
Rupert Alexander Gavin – For services to Drama, the Arts, to Heritage and to the Economy 
​​​​​​Richard John Mantle – General Director, Opera North. For services to Opera 
Ben Golden Emuobowho Okri – Poet and Novelist. For services to Literature 

CBE

Ivor Bolton – Conductor. For services to Music 
Kenneth Cranham – Actor. For services to Drama 
Andrew Haldane – Chief Executive, Royal Society of Arts. For services to the Economy and to Public Policy 
William Benedict Hamilton-Dalrymple – Historian, Author and Art Curator. For services to Literature and to the Arts 
Christopher Hampston – Chief Executive Officer and Artistic Director, Scottish Ballet. For services to Dance 
Celia Imrie – Actress. For services to Drama 
Peter John Lawson – Chair, Scottish Opera. For services to the Arts in Scotland 
Charles Adam Laurie Sebag-Montefiore – Trustee, National Gallery. For services to the Arts and to Culture 
David John Lewis – Co-Founder and Co-Chair, Commission for Looted Art in Europe. For services to the Return of Looted Art 
Tamsin Elizabeth Little – Violinist. For services to Music
Deborah Swallow – Märit Rausing Director, Courtauld Insitute of Art. For services to Art and to Education 
Anne Rachel Webber – Co-Founder and Co-Chair, Commission for Looted Art in Europe. For services to the Return of Looted Art 
Duncan Wilson – Chief Executive, Historic England. For services to Heritage 

OBE

John Nigel Barnes – Chief Executive Officer, Historic Royal Palaces. For services to Heritage 
Richard Devereux Burcombe Cooper – Lately Chair of Trustees, Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance. For services to Dance 
Lucy Crowe – Soprano. For services to Music 
Oluwafemi Elufowoju Jr – Director and Actor. For services to Drama 
Anthony John Plowden Eyton – Artist. For services to Painting and to the Art Community
Susan Rosemary Foister – Director of Public Programmes and Partnerships, The National Gallery. For services to Art 
Michael Hulls – Lighting Designer. For services to Dance and to the Arts 
Jacqueline Leigh Hunt – Member, Culture Recovery Board and Trustee, British Film Institute. For services to the Arts
Sarah James – Director, Craft Festival. For services to Craft
Janet Lewis – Founder and Director, English Youth Ballet. For services to Dance  
Hew Donald Joseph Locke – Artist. For services to Art
Russell Scott Maliphant – Artist. For services to Art 
Michael Rose – Joint Managing Director, Magic Light Pictures. For services to Animation
Douglas William Scarfe – Chief Executive Officer, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. For services to the Arts 
Nicky Spence – Operatic Tenor. For services to Music
Phillip Spence – Chief Operating Officer, The British Library. For services to Libraries

MBE

Paul Boyd – Founder and Director, Morningside School of Music, Edinburgh. For services to Entrepreneurship and to the Music Industry 
Malcolm Burnell – Founder, It’s My Shout Productions. For services to the Creative Industries in Bridgend, Mid Galmorgan 
Philip Julian Castang – Chair, UK Music Education Council. For services to Music Education 
Rosalyn Carol Chalmers – For services to the Arts and to People with Sensory Impairments
Teresa Chaytor – Artistic Director, TIN Arts. For services to the Performing Arts for People with Learning Disabilities 
Margaret Jean Christensen – Commercial Adviser, Department for Culture, Media and Sport. For Public Service 
Susan Margaret Copeland – Regional Chair and Trustee, East of England National Garden Scheme. For services to Heritage and to Charity 
Peter Andrew Corry – For services to Music and to the Arts in Northern Ireland 
Catherine Diana Courtney – Project Director, Artists' Lives, British Library. For services to Oral History 
Delyth Eirian Done – Head of School, School of Materials and Design, Hereford College of Arts. For services to Blacksmithing and to Heritage Crafts 
Sandeep Dwesar – Chief Operating and Financial Officer, Barbican Centre. For Public Service in the City of London
William Eric – Brown Lately Museums National Security Adviser. For services to Museums and to the Arts 
Diana Gerald – Chief Executive Officer, Book Trust. For services to Reading and Children’s Literature 
Sarah Greenhalgh – Chair, Tobacco Factory Theatres. For services to Theatre and to the community of Bristol and Cornwall 
Tanya Harrod – Art Historian. For services to the Crafts
Natalia Kaliada and Nicolai Khalezin – Co-Founding Artistic Director, Belarus Free Theatre. For services to Theatre 
Helen Lloyd – For services to Cultural Heritage Conservation
Vicky Lee Mcclure – Actor. For services to Drama and to Charity 
Jennie Muskett – Composer. For services to Music 
Christine Elizabeth Myhill – Libraries and Heritage Manager, Gateshead and Chair, Association of Senior Children's and Education Librarians. For services to Public Libraries during Covid-19 
Aftabur Rahman – Chief Executive Officer, Legacy West Midlands. For services to Heritage and to the community in Birmingham 
Prodaman Kumar Sarwal – Lately Trustee, Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust and Chair, Master Ropemakers Ltd. For services to Heritage and to the Charitable Sector 
Joe Scotland – Director, Studio Voltaire. For services to Art 
Jyotsna Srikanth – Violinist. For services to Music
Nicola Jane Chance Thompson – Chief Executive, Piece Hall Trust. For services to Culture and to Heritage 
Robert Woodland Wood – Grainer and Decorative Artist. For services to Art and to Heritage Crafts 
Janet Sally Zmroczek – Lately Head, European and Americas Collections, British Library. For services to Literature and to Heritage

BEM

Jennifer Blackwell – Dancer. For services to disabled people
Nigel Thomas Bowers – Chair, Chatterley Whitfield Friends. For services to Heritage 
David Euan Campbell – Founder, Strathearn Artspace. For services to Culture in Perthshire 
Rekesh Chauhan – Pianist and Composer. For services to Music, to Charity and to Mental Health in the British Asian Community 
Jessica Davey – Youth Participant and Volunteer, Second Wave Centre for Youth Arts. For services to Young People in Deptford, London Borough of Lewisham 
Kathleen Margaret Evans – Chair, Leeds Lieder. For services to the Arts 
Colin Garrett – For services to Violin Making 
Emma Garrett – Head of Visitor Experience, Tate. For services to the State Funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 
Susan Giles – Senior Curator, World Cultures Collection, Bristol Museum and Art Gallery. For services to UK Heritage and Museums
Carol Godby – Drama Workshop Leader and Agent. For services to Drama and to the community in North West England 
Karolynne Anne Hart – Cultural and Arts Programme Manager, Gateshead Libraries. For services to Public Libraries and to the Arts 
Simon Kenneth Hylands – Founder, Building Bridges Community Arts Theatre, Lurgan. For services to the Arts and to the community in County Armagh 
Andrew Chisholm Melvin – Lately Pipe Major, Williamwood Pipe Band and Founder, Piping Servies Scotland. For services to Traditional Music and to the community in Glasgow. 
Aruna Mene – Artist. For services to Fabric Art, to Charity and to Sustainability 
Andrew Paul Padmore – Artistic Director and Conductor, Yorkshire Philharmonic Choir. For services to Music 
Anthony Robert – Ellis Co-Founder, Kings Lynn Literature Festivals. For services to Literature 
Yasmin Sidhwa – Founder and Director, Mandala Theatre Company. For services to Drama. 
Jeanette Anita Sloan – For services to Knitwear Design and to Diversity in the Fine Arts 
John Desmond Smith – For services to Music and to Charity 
Gordon Brodie Stewart – Organist, Teacher and Conductor. For services to Music 
Cliver Waterman – For services to Reading Male Voice Choir and to Charity 
Ernest Watson – Chair, Saffron Walden Museum Society. For services to Heritage and to the community in Saffron Walden. 
Salma Bano Zulfiqar – For services to Art and to Education 

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