KEY POINTS:
Sir Les Patterson and Dame Edna Everage have long treasured their royal titles, and now their creator Barry Humphries has collected his Commander of the British Empire honour from the Queen.
While Humphries might have missed out on a knighthood and the chance to add "sir" to his
name like his badly behaved alter ego, he described the honour as "extraordinary".
"This is the highlight - the first of many," the Australian comedian, dressed in top hat and tails, said after the ceremony at Buckingham Palace.
"It felt extraordinary. I had my back to the audience. It felt very unnatural. It was a little disconcerting.
"Someone else who was getting a CBE said, 'I suppose this is the end of the road'. I thought perhaps I should ask the Queen if she had any future plans for me, but I forgot."
Humphries, who is celebrating 50 years on the stage, picked up his honour for services to entertainment after being named in the Queen's Birthday Honours list in June.
Also receiving honours yesterday were English cricket star Ian Botham, who was knighted, and author Barbara Taylor Bradford, who picked up an OBE.
Humphries refrained from mentioning to the Queen anything about either Sir Les or Dame Edna, who famously dubbed her majesty the "jubilee girl" when introducing her at celebrations marking her Golden Jubilee in 2002.
Instead, Humphries chatted to the Queen about renowned horseman, Monty Roberts, whom he was due to meet later in the day.
Born in Melbourne, 73-year-old Humphries moved to Britain in 1959 and launched his showbiz career in musicals including Sweeney Todd on stages in London's famous West End.
Seventeen years later, he introduced Dame Edna to the world in her own show Housewife Superstar!, which later led to her hosting her own TV shows.
Humphries has also enjoyed success in the US, with his Dame Edna shows appearing twice on Broadway - Dame Edna: The Royal Tour in 1999 and 2005's Dame Edna: Back With a Vengeance.
After receiving his knighthood from the Queen, Sir Ian described his day at the palace as "mind-blowing" and one he would never forget.
The sports star finished his career as England's leading test wicket-taker with 383 victims and over 5000 test runs.
He played his first test in Nottingham in July 1977, bowling Australian Greg Chappell for his first wicket and taking five in the innings.
Sir Ian has also raised millions for leukaemia research through several long-distance charity walks. But as far as career highlights go, Sir Ian said beating Australia at cricket was nearly as good as being knighted.
AAP
