Archive June 13, 2025

Strictly hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman have MBEs but it was Strictly last minute for one of them

TV presenter Tess Daly burst into tears when she opened the letter telling her she was to be made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to broadcasting.

The 56-year-old has been recognised, with her Strictly Come Dancing co-host Claudia Winkleman also becoming an MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours.

But it could have all gone horribly wrong for Tess as the letter almost didn’t get to her in time to accept. Tess said: “This genuinely came as the greatest surprise of my life. I don’t think I’ve come back down to earth yet, I didn’t see it coming, and it almost didn’t happen, because the letter went to the wrong address.

“And thank goodness, someone very kind found me. And so by the time I got it, I only had, I think it was two or three days left to accept it. There’s a deadline of acceptance. I can’t imagine not ever wanting to accept such a wonderful award. But of course I did.

“But yes, it was cutting it fine, because it went to the wrong address first of all, but it ended well.”

She added: “I cried when I opened the letter, because I just I couldn’t believe it. I genuinely couldn’t, and the first thing I wanted to do was tell my dad, because I lost my dad many years ago, and I know how proud my dad would have been, and I would love to have shared that news with him more than anything.

“He would been incredibly proud in a very Northern, humble fashion. Because you’re under strict instructions, of course, not to share the news before it’s made public. But I must admit, I did tell immediate members of my family and swore them to secrecy.”

Daly, who has co-presented the BBC One dancing competition since 2004, first appeared on screens in 1999 when she hosted The Big Breakfast’s Find Me A Model competition on Channel 4.

Daly, a model herself, has taken to the catwalk for the likes of Vivienne Westwood and Red Or Dead, and even appeared in music videos for English pop rock band Duran Duran.

In 2002 she presented coverage of the stars arriving and celebrating backstage at the National Television Awards (NTAs) for ITV2 and in 2003 she replaced Ulrika Jonsson as presenter of ITV makeover show Home On Their Own.

A year later she was hired as co-host of Channel 5’s Back To Reality, with Richard Bacon, which saw 12 reality TV stars live together in a west London mansion.

She reached new levels of fame as co-host of Strictly Come Dancing, which she presented alongside the late Sir Bruce Forsyth up until 2014, three years before his death at the age of 89.

Since then Daly has co-hosted the Saturday show with Traitors presenter Winkleman, and the pair helmed coverage of its 20th anniversary series late last year.

In 2024 they picked up the entertainment programme gong at the Bafta TV Awards. On her MBE she said: “It feels like the most wonderful honour, because when you work as a broadcaster, you’re part of people’s viewing habits.

“It feels like a genuine privilege for people to invite you into their living room. For example, being part of Strictly and part of people’s Saturday nights for the past 20 years is something that you don’t ever take that for granted, and it’s just something that I’ve genuinely enjoyed being a part of all these years.

“And as a career, it’s been something really special to share people’s lives in that way it feels like a wonderful honour.

“Broadcasting is without a doubt a collective effort. I’ve been really fortunate to work with some of the very best production teams that there are in the business. And so my biggest thanks is to them, because you’re only as good as your team.”

Daly appeared alongside Sir Terry Wogan when they co-hosted coverage of annual charity appeal show BBC Children In Need, which she has presented numerous times.

Across her career she has interviewed stars including Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette, rock band No Doubt and US musician Lenny Kravitz.

She fronted a BBC Two documentary in 2011 titled TV Greats: Our Favourites From The North where she took a look at Manchester’s broadcasting past as BBC North bid farewell to its studios in the city to move to Salford.

Daly, along with her husband Vernon Kay, whom she married in 2003, have been patrons for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity since 2007.

In March 2023 the presenter released a food and fitness guide featuring recipes and wellness tips, titled 4 Steps: To A Happier, Healthier You.

She said of Strictly: “I love that for the last 20 years our only agenda has been joy. It’s been just feel-good entertainment, and being a part of that has felt like a gift.”

Daly added: “I’ve got so many wonderful memories from working with Sir Bruce Forsyth back in the beginning, 2004, to working with Claudia and being the first all-female presenting duo on Primetime Telly, and that meant a lot as a mother of girls, to sort of pave the way, that felt quite important at the time, because it hadn’t been done before.

“So to be a part of that and to stand by Claude, Claudia is absolutely brilliant fun, and to do that with her at that time felt quite groundbreaking.”

Strictly co-host Claudia said she was “incredibly grateful” to receive the honour, adding: “I will buy a hat and am taking my mum. I am ridiculously lucky and will celebrate with Tess by doing a paso doble.” The pair are close friends as well as being co-hosts now of Strictly for a decade.

He is now Sir David Beckham and feels “humbled” by new honour but sadly his life is not completely perfect

Emotional former England football captain David Beckham said it was a “humbling honour” after being knighted in the King’s Birthday Honours.

Sir David, who was made an OBE in 2003 and has been in the running for a knighthood for more than a decade, said in a statement to the Mirror: “Growing up in East London with parents and grandparents who were so patriotic and proud to be British I never could have imagined I would receive such a truly humbling honour. To have played for and captained my country was the greatest privilege of my career and literally a boyhood dream come true. Off the pitch I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to represent Britain around the world and work with incredible organisations that are supporting communities in need and inspiring the next generation.

“I’m so lucky to be able to do the work that I do and I’m grateful to be recognised for work that gives me so much fulfilment. It will take a little while for the news to sink in but I’m immensely proud and it’s such an emotional moment for me to share with my family.”

The mention of his family is a particularly poignant one at the moment. Beckham’s son Brooklyn has not been speaking to him or wife Victoria for some months. Messages of congratulations will follow from family and friends for Beckham, but it remains to be seen if there will be one from the son he calls ‘Buster’.

Beckham had been on the verge of receiving a knighthood in the 2014 New Year’s Honours list but HM Revenue and Customs placed a red flag on his nomination due to his involvement in an alleged tax avoidance scheme, according to previous reports.

In 2021 it was reported that his finances had been cleared and he was eligible for a knighthood. The day before Sir David was given the honour, he was seen chatting with the King at a St James’s Palace ceremony for the monarch’s foundation, of which the retired footballer is an ambassador.

He has always be a huge supporter of the royal family and there was no finer example of this as when in September 2022 he queued for 12 hours to see Elizabeth II lying in state and described it as “special to be here”.

He has been made a knight for his services to sport and to charity, having partnered with Unicef and campaigned with Malaria No More, a charity working to eradicate the disease. Sir David, who recently celebrated his 50th birthday, was presented with an OBE by the Queen in 2003 for his services to football.

In 2022 he recalled: “To receive my OBE, I took my grandparents with me – who were the ones that really brought me up to be a huge royalist and a fan of the Royal Family – and obviously I had my wife there as well.

“To step up, to get my honour – but then also Her Majesty, to ask questions, to talk. I was so lucky that I was able to have a few moments like that in my life, to be around Her Majesty.

“Because we can all see with the love that has been shown how special she is and how special she was and the legacy that she leaves behind. It’s a sad day, but it’s a day for us to remember the incredible legacy that she’s left.

“Every time that we stood there when we wore those Three Lion shirts and I had my armband and we sang God Save The Queen, that was something that meant so much to us.

“Every time that we did it, it was something special.” Beckham will not have much time to celebrate this weekend as sources close to the star confirmed he would be watching his team Inter Miami play the opening game of the Club World Cup. But at some point he will presumably allow himself a moment to think how far he has come.

Born in Leytonstone, east London, Beckham had a trial at local team Leyton Orient and also attended Tottenham’s school of excellence – but his father Ted, a staunch Manchester United fan, remained determined he would go on to play at Old Trafford.

After coming through the club’s academy as part of the famed ‘Class of 92’, Beckham announced himself to the Premier League on the opening day of the 1996-97 season with a memorable goal from the halfway line against Wimbledon.

While there were plenty of doubters as to what he could go on to achieve, Beckham answered them and more – claiming six Premier League titles and two FA Cups with Sir Alex Ferguson’s all-conquering side as well as a dramatic 1999 Champions League final victory over Bayern Munich at the Nou Camp.

International success, however, proved elusive for Beckham as England’s so-called ‘golden generation’ repeatedly came up short. In a Netflix documentary series, released during October 2023, Beckham revealed he still cannot forgive himself for the abuse his family suffered amid the fallout from his red card at the 1998 World Cup for kicking the back of Diego Simeone’s leg during the last-16 clash against Argentina in Saint-Etienne – which left him a “mess”.

By the time Beckham retired at 38, he was already thinking about life after football, and he became a co-owner of the Inter Miami franchise. The club entered Major League Soccer for the 2020 campaign and now boasts Lionel Messi on the team sheet.

A multi-million-pound lifetime deal with Adidas, signed in 2003, had secured his financial future away from the game. Other lucrative, high-profile endorsements down the years have ranged from fashion designers Calvin Klein, Armani and Hugo Boss to tech giants Samsung, Haig Club whisky and Stella Artois as well as kitchen appliance manufacturer Ninja. Beckham, who was made an OBE for services to football in 2003, has long been involved with children’s charity UNICEF, and is a co-owner of film production company Studio 99.

In 2024, Beckham was appointed Ambassador for The King’s Foundation which works globally to create sustainable communities through placemaking projects and also transform lives through practical education programmes. Following the news, Philip Goodwin, UNICEF UK’s Chief Executive, said of their Goodwill Ambassador: “We’re so thrilled that our UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, David Beckham, has been awarded a knighthood in the King’s Birthday Honours.

“David Beckham has done an incredible amount to advocate for children’s rights over the last 20 years. He became a Goodwill Ambassador in 2005 and launched 7: The David Beckham UNICEF Fund in 2015 – with the goal of helping children around the world, especially girls, break down barriers including bullying, violence, child marriage and missed education. He’s travelled extensively to see UNICEF’s work and used his profile to raise awareness, as well as support our flagship fundraising campaign Soccer Aid for UNICEF and launch global fundraising appeals. We are grateful for all of his support that has done a huge amount to amplify the voices of children around the world.”

EXCLUSIVE: David Beckham has become a Sir, as it has been announced in the King’s Birthday Honours List that he is set to receive a knighthood, which marks a string of changes for his family

All rise for Sir David Beckham! After days of excited speculation around David, 50, being awarded a knighthood, the news has finally been announced following the official release of the King’s Birthday Honours List.

Sir David has been recognised on the King’s Birthday Honours List, released this evening, which means a number of big changes for Goldenballs and his clan, including his former pop star turned fashion designer wife. Gone are the days Victoria will be nicknamed Posh, and she really has lived up to the moniker as Victoria, who received an OBE in 2017, also receives a new title with David’s honour, and she will now be known as Lady Victoria Beckham.

But, that’s not the only change the Beckhams – who are currently facing a turbulent time amid their fallout with eldest son Brooklyn and wife Nicola – are set to undergo as Royal commentator and former editor of The International Who’s Who, Richard Fitzwilliams, exclusively explains to the Mirror what Sir David’s new knighthood will mean for himself and his family– and if he can use the titles right away, or if he has to wait until he kneels in front of the King who will knight him with a sword…

David Beckham’s knighthood – his and Victoria’s new titles

Richard explains: “Just after his 50th birthday, David Beckham can celebrate his knighthood, which he can use as soon as the King’s Birthday Honours list is officially announced later tonight.

“This means his wife Victoria, who already has an OBE in her own right, becomes Lady Beckham. She was a member of the Spice Girls, one of the most successful girl bands ever and is a talented designer.”

Will David and Victoria’s children receive new titles, too?

Each of the Beckham children are also famous, having grown up in front of the gaze of millions of fans. Although they have earned their own status’ within the world of showbiz, Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper Beckham won’t get any royal recognition due to their dad’s new title.

Richard tells us: “A knighthood is not hereditary, so there will be no direct benefit for his children, but they will or should be proud of him nonetheless.”

What does David’s knighthood mean for his career?

David Beckham’s football career, dashing good looks and celebrity marriage to Spice Girl Victoria Beckham, sorry Lady Beckham, has earned him worldwide celebrity status which has stood the test of time.

But, his knighthood will bring a whole new era in his career as Richard explains: “It is not just that he joins a unique band of fifteen knights who have been honoured for their services to football plus the footballing legend Pele, who has received an honorary knighthood. These include Sir Alex Ferguson, his mentor at Manchester United before they fell out, this will give David particular satisfaction, although they have since reportedly made up.

“We live in an egalitarian age but David Beckham is a phenomenon with a profile that is unique. Owing to the saga of the leaked emails in 2017, we know how keen he was to have a knighthood. However, this is not the point.

“He is a phenomenon who has also used his fame for charitable purposes, this especially involves his invaluable and high profile work for UNICEF. Beckham has backed Britain whenever he can and his role in bringing the Olympics to London was invaluable.

“Usually, a knighthood can mean increased respect and trust and also assist in expanding an individuals profile and opening new doors to show off their talent. Beckham defies categorisation, it would be impossible to be better known.”

As well as catapulting David’s career, it also puts to bed any past scandals – including those sweary leaked emails and the claims he had legally avoided tax.

Royal expert Richard continues: “This also, beginning with the knighthood for Sir Gareth Southgate, who was also allegedly involved in a tax avoidance scheme , closes the door on this issue. It was probably the main reason why it took so long for him to be honoured. The length of time reflected badly on the system as it is, on occasion, too slow to honour deserving individuals. In this case it was far too slow.

“However it will not be forgotten that David is ardently patriotic. He queued for about twelve hours to pass Queen Elizabeth’s coffin during the lying in state. He is also an ambassador for the King’s Foundation.

“The media circus around the Beckhams is beside the point. At last he has the recognition he, as a former England captain with 115 caps for England and a global profile, deserves.

“When he and Victoria celebrate they will have the satisfaction of knowing that the vast majority of Britons will be pleased that, finally, he is receiving the knighthood he so richly deserves.”

What privileges will Sir David get as a knight?

With the prestigious title comes a string of VIP privileges only afforded to those who receive a knighthood.

Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams tells us: “The Chapel of Knights Bachelor is in St Paul’s Cathedral and he would be entitled to request the use of the Chapel for weddings, baptisms and memorial services.

“As a knight he is also entitled to apply for a coat of arms – perhaps golden balls will feature!”

Meanwhile, like every person who has received a knighthood, Sir David will be treated to an official ceremony. The ceremony, which often happens at Buckingham Palace, will see David kneel in front of a monarch – which can be either the King or another member of the Royal Family such as Princess Anne or Prince William – who will then touch the recipient’s shoulder with a sword.