Queen’s Birthday Honours List Delayed Until Autumn Due To COVID-19

The Queen’s Birthday Honours List, which recognizes the achievements of a wide-range of UK figures, has been postponed from its traditional June date this year due to the coronavirus.

The awards, ranging from knighthoods to MBEs, were scheduled to be handed out on the 94-year-old royal’s birthday on the second Saturday in June (her ‘official’ birthday, not her actual birthday which she recently celebrated on April 21), which this year falls on June 12.

Instead, they will now be pushed back until the autumn, according to BBC journo Lizo Mzimba who took to twitter to state that PM Boris Johnson had confirmed the news in a statement to Parliament. “The list and future lists will include individuals being recognized for efforts related to Covid-19,” he wrote. UK paper The Mirror also confirmed the PM’s statement, reporting that he said the list must be published “at the appropriate time”.

In last year’s Birthday Honours, notable entertainment figures awarded included actor Simon Russell Beale (knighthood), actor Olivia Coleman (CBE), Blue Planet producer Alistair Fothergill (OBE), and actor Cush Jumbo (OBE).

Recent bookies favorites to receive future knighthoods include soccer star and now MLS franchise owner David Beckham, Bond actor Daniel Craig and Oscar-winning The Favourite star Olivia Colman, though they will have to wait a little longer to see if they will benefit from a ceremonial sword tap from Her Maj this year.

Today did, however, see one knighthood given out, with a special award being granted to Tom Moore, the 100-year-old war veteran who has made headlines by raising close to $40M for the UK’s National Health Service during the COVI-19 crisis by completing laps of his garden.