Dancers Who Were Knighted

DanceMentor

DanceMentor

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What do you think about the idea of Knighting dancers? I believe the usually receive what is called the MBE. On the BBC website, I found an article that describes the various awards. Apparently an MBE is something that is given to civialians. "M" stands for "Member", but I am not sure what the "BE" stands for.

Dancers who have received the distinguished MBE include Marcus and Karen Hilton, Bill and Bobby Irvine, Josephine Bradley, Frank and Peggy Spencer, and Alex Moore.
 
CBEs, OBEs and MBEs (Commander/Officer/Member of the British Empire) are often awarded to sports and show-biz personalities for their achievement (e.g., winning an olympic gold), so there's no reason why distinguished dancers shouldn't receive them too. I believe some top names in ballet have also been honoured in the past.

The Order of the British Empire honours are not knighthoods; they are considered lower-rank honours. There have been people who received a MBE/OBE/CBE early in their career then went on to be knighted later for their "lifetime achievement/contribution".
 
So what about people like Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Elton John, Dame Agatha Christie, etc? Are those knighthoods?
 
Some people say the English couples look wooden, but in reality, their training just reflects the fact that the plate armor they aspire to only bends in certain places.

On the continent, they use chain mail, which is more fluid, but doesn't quite have the class of the old ways.
 
pygmalion said:
So what about people like Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Elton John, Dame Agatha Christie, etc? Are those knighthoods?
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Yes, people with the title Sir/Dame are those who have been knighted. People with lower-rank honours are simply called "Mr. Donnie Burns MBE" etc.
Paul McCartney got his MBE way back in 1965 and was knighted in 1997.
 
Then we'll have to lobby for a dancer (or two, or three) to get the higher honor. :wink:

I wouldn't think of it as being just a member, though. The British are very careful about conveying their honors, and being "just a member" is a very big deal. I don't know about MBE honors, but I do know that getting into technical societies, e.g. the Royal Society of Chemistry, is a HUGE undertaking. Getting the MBE is a big deal.
 
I've always seen him listed as an MBE, so unless that's a relatively new development, I don't think so. Hopefully one of our English members can confirm....
 
Am I one of the last people to remember that Anton Dolin was KNIGHTED by Queen Elizabeth II in 1981? As far as I am aware he was the first member of the ballet world to ever be so honored.

His long-time dance partner, Dame Alicia Markova, with whom he had formed the Festival Ballet (later the English National Ballet company) had received a CBE in 1958 and a DBE in 1963. They had met decades earlier when they were both members of Diaghilev's Ballets Russe.

For more info see Wikipedia.
 
MacMoto said:
CBEs, OBEs and MBEs (Commander/Officer/Member of the British Empire) are often awarded to sports and show-biz personalities for their achievement (e.g., winning an olympic gold), so there's no reason why distinguished dancers shouldn't receive them too. I believe some top names in ballet have also been honoured in the past.

The Order of the British Empire honours are not knighthoods; they are considered lower-rank honours. There have been people who received a MBE/OBE/CBE early in their career then went on to be knighted later for their "lifetime achievement/contribution".
Click to expand...
Women cannot be knighted, but they CAN be given a DBE, i.e., Dame of the British Empire. Both Alicia Markova and Margot Fonteyn were so honored many years ago. The DBE is considered to be the equivalent of a knighthood for women. There is no equivalent to the DBE for men.
 
In the January 2026 honours list, Torvill and Dean were the first figure skaters to be thus honoured, now Dame Jayne Torvill and Sir Christopher Dean.
 
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