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Dame of the British Empire

HONOR

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Female analogue of Knight of the British Empire.

NameOccupationBirthDeathKnown for
Judith Anderson
Actor
10-Feb-1897 3-Jan-1992 Rebecca
Julie Andrews
Singer
1-Oct-1935   Mary Poppins
Peggy Ashcroft
Actor
22-Dec-1907 14-Jun-1991 A Passage to India
Eileen Atkins
Actor
16-Jun-1934   Co-Creator of Upstairs, Downstairs
Beryl Bainbridge
Novelist
21-Nov-1934 2-Jul-2010 Master Georgie
Janet Baker
Singer
21-Aug-1933   English mezzo-soprano, active 1957-82
Shirley Bassey
Singer
8-Jan-1937   Goldfinger
A. S. Byatt
Critic
24-Aug-1936   Possession
Barbara Cartland
Author
9-Jul-1901 21-May-2000 Wrote way too many romance novels
Agatha Christie
Novelist
15-Sep-1890 12-Jan-1976 Mystery novelist
Ivy Compton-Burnett
Novelist
5-Jun-1884 27-Aug-1969 Pastors and Masters
Gladys Cooper
Actor
18-Dec-1888 17-Nov-1971 My Fair Lady
Cicely Courtneidge
Actor
1-Apr-1893 26-Apr-1980 The Ghost Train
Judi Dench
Actor
9-Dec-1934   Mrs. Brown
Daphne Du Maurier
Author
13-May-1907 19-May-1989 Rebecca
Edith Evans
Actor
8-Feb-1888 14-Oct-1976 The Whisperers
Gracie Fields
Singer
9-Jan-1898 27-Sep-1979 Sally in Our Alley
Margot Fonteyn
Dancer
18-May-1919 21-Feb-1991 Exceptional British ballerina
Jane Goodall
Naturalist
3-Apr-1934   Primate researcher
Joan Hammond
Singer
24-May-1912 26-Nov-1996 Operatic soprano
Barbara Hepworth
Sculptor
10-Jan-1903 20-May-1975 British abstract sculptor
Myra Hess
Pianist
25-Feb-1890 26-Nov-1965 Held lunchtime concerts during WWII
Wendy Hiller
Actor
15-Aug-1912 14-May-2003 Separate Tables
Thora Hird
Actor
28-May-1911 15-Mar-2003 Talking Heads
Celia Johnson
Actor
18-Dec-1908 26-Apr-1982 Brief Encounter
Judith Mayhew Jonas
Educator
18-Oct-1948   Provost of King's College, 2003-06
Kiri Te Kanawa
Singer
6-Mar-1944   Operatic soprano
Cleo Laine
Singer
28-Oct-1927   Show Boat
Vera Lynn
Singer
20-Mar-1917   We'll Meet Again
Ngaio Marsh
Novelist
23-Apr-1895 18-Feb-1982 New Zealand detective novelist
Nellie Melba
Singer
19-May-1861 23-Feb-1931 Operatic soprano
Helen Mirren
Actor
26-Jul-1945   Prime Suspect
Iris Murdoch
Novelist
15-Jul-1919 8-Feb-1999 The Sea, the Sea
Anna Neagle
Singer
20-Oct-1904 3-Jun-1986 Victoria the Great
Joan Plowright
Actor
28-Oct-1929   Enchanted April
Diana Rigg
Actor
20-Jul-1938   Mrs. Peel
Margaret Rutherford
Actor
11-May-1892 22-May-1972 The V.I.P.s
Marjorie Scardino
Business
25-Jan-1947   CEO of Pearson
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf
Singer
9-Sep-1915 3-Aug-2006 Operatic soprano
Edith Sitwell
Poet
7-Sep-1887 9-Dec-1964 Façade
Maggie Smith
Actor
28-Dec-1934   Prof. McGonagall in Harry Potter
Muriel Spark
Novelist
1-Feb-1918 13-Apr-2006 The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
Joan Sutherland
Singer
7-Nov-1926 10-Oct-2010 "La Stupenda" opera soprano
Elizabeth Taylor
Actor
27-Feb-1932 23-Mar-2011 Cleopatra
Sybil Thorndike
Actor
24-Oct-1882 9-Jun-1976 English stage actress
Dorothy Tutin
Actor
8-Apr-1930 6-Aug-2001 Savage Messiah
Rebecca West
Author
21-Dec-1892 15-Mar-1983 Reporter on the Nuremburg Trials
May Whitty
Actor
19-Jun-1865 29-May-1948 Night Must Fall
Frances Yates
Historian
28-Nov-1899 29-Sep-1981 The Art of Memory




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