That will do Knightley! Gong for Keira
Honours…Bentinck holds up his MBE, left, and Knightley at the palace with husband and mother and father ACTRESS Keira Knightley was dazzling in yellow yesterday as she picked up her OBE for services to drama and charity at Buckingham Palace.
The star of films such as Love Actually, Pirates Of The Caribbean and Atonement, is the face of Chanel perfume and wore a pale yellow suit and matching hat by the French fashion house, complete with a thick belt and black velvet tie.
She was joined by her husband, musician James Righton, and her parents Sharman Macdonald and Will Knightley who looked on proudly as Prince Charles gave her the gong.
Breakthrough
Knightley, 33, a two-times Oscar nominee and the quintessential English rose, was named in this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours list as a recipient of the honour, more than 15 years after her breakthrough role in Bend It Like Beckham.
She was joined at the palace by rapper and singer Ms Dynamite, real name Niomi McLean-Daley, who received an MBE for her services to music.
Film director Peter Greenaway, artist Lubaina Himid and publisher Liz Calder also received honours at the investiture.
Timothy Bentinck, the 12th Earl of Portland, was also there to receive an MBE for his services to drama after playing David Archer in Radio 4’s series The Archers since 1982. Prince Charles told the actor that wife Camilla would be “chuffed” because she is such an Archers fan.
Bentinck, 65, said later: “She came up to Birmingham and was in an episode with The Archers. She sent me a very nice card when I got the honour, saying congratulations.”
Bentinck inherited the earldom of Portland after his father’s death in 1997.
Asked about receiving the honour, he said: “From the day that I heard about this, I kept thinking, ‘why me?’, because all I’ve ever done is try and make a living.
“To have something serious where someone has actually said ‘well done’, it’s nice.
“I still feel completely undeserving of it, I feel a fraud, but it’s very nice.”