One of the Queen’s final wishes before she passed away has been carried out by King Charles, as six new people are appointed to the UK's distinguished Order of Merit.
The late Queen Elizabeth chose the select six in early September, before she died, Buckingham Palace insisted.
And in his first such duty as Sovereign of the order, King Charles has now ratified his mother's decision.
TV presenter and author Baroness Floella Benjamin is among six people chosen to become members of the Order of Merit.
Among the distinguished group, who are appointed by the King, are a molecular biologist and a geneticist who have received the Noble Prize, an award-winning architect, a former nurse who led sickle cell treatment and a leading historian.
The Order of Merit was created in 1902 by Edward VII to honour leaders in areas of arts, sciences, culture and military.
Appointments are in the Sovereign's personal gift and the six were chosen by the late Queen in early September.
Members, limited 24 individuals, include conservationist and television presenter Sir David Attenborough, artist David Hockney, former Commons Speaker Betty Boothroyd, entrepreneur Sir James Dyson and ex-prime minister of Australia John Howard.
Trinidad-born Baroness Benjamin rose to prominence as a presenter on BBC children's programme Play School.
She has gone on to write more than 30 books with her memoir 'Coming To England' now studied in schools.
The baroness has also served as Chancellor of the University of Exeter for 10 years and as Chair of the Windrush Commemoration Committee and helped organise the National Windrush Monument unveiled at Waterloo Station.
She joined the House of Lords in 2010 where she speaks on diversity, equality, and children's issues.
Dame Elizabeth Anionwu, was the UK's first sickle-cell and thalassaemia nurse specialist and created the Mary Seacole Centre for Nursing Practice at the University of West London.
She was given a damehood in 2017 for services to nursing and the Mary Seacole Statue Appeal which erected a memorial to the 19th century nursing pioneer in the gardens of St Thomas's Hospital in London.
Geneticist and cell biologist Sir Paul Nurse who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine and now chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute was also added to the order.
Molecular Biologist Dr Venki Ramakrishnan, who shared the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, is another new member and a former president of the Royal Society.
Architect Sir David Adjaye is known for designing many notable buildings around the world, including the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington.
In October 2020 he was announced as the RIBA Royal Gold Medal Winner for 2021, one of the highest honours in British architecture for his international contributions to the field.
Also recognised is Margaret MacMillan, a Canadian Professor of History at the University of Toronto and Emeritus Professor of International History at the University of Oxford.
Her books include Women Of The Raj, Peacemakers: The Paris Conference Of 1919 And Its Attempt To End War, Six Months That Changed The World, and History's People.
