Knighthood ceremony for ‘JVT’ stalled by Covid

Prof Sir Jonathan Van-tam missed his knighthood ceremony because he caught Covid, officials have confirmed.

Sir Jonathan received the award in the New Year Honours list for his services to public health. The former deputy chief medical officer for England, nicknamed “JVT”, gained public affection for delivering health messages with humour and colourful analogies during the pandemic.

He was meant to get his knighthood from the Duke of Cambridge at Windsor Castle on Tuesday, but will collect it at a later date. A University of Nottingham spokesman said Sir Jonathan was isolating at home and is “almost completely recovered”.