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Birthday Honours
KING CHARLES ’ birthday honours list was released on Friday June 16, and of course honours unsung heroes alongside those in the public eye.
Charles has honoured some incredible people this year who have achieved through bravery, perseverance and sheer belief in a cause.
Amongst the unsung heroes, Charles has included a woman who lost her son, her father and her brother in the 2015 Tunisia beach massacre.
Suzanne Richards’ holiday had only just begun when the brutal tragedy took place at Port El Kantaoui, near Sousse.
She has since, with her surviving younger son Owen, set up the Smile for Joel charity, which has raised more than £500,000 for families bereaved by murder. Suzanne will receive an MBE.
During the pandemic, centenarian Joan Willett raised over £60,000 for the British Heart Foundation by walking up and down a hill near her house. The heart attack sufferer was 104 years old at the time of her feat and will be 106 as she receives her BEM.
Razvan Constantinescu will be awarded an OBE for making sure over 4,000 aid parcels found their way to Odesa, as the conflict in Ukraine continues.
Of course, there are many more unsung heroes who contribute so much to the daily life of UK citizens, but there are also those known celebrities and politicians who symbolise or enact our aspirations.
Arsenal footballing legend and current football pundit, Ian Wright, 59,
Flying Scotsman
HIS Majesty The King celebrated 100 years of Flying Scotsman and 50 years of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway.
On Monday June 12, Flying Scotsman, the world’s most famous locomotive, hauled the Royal Train into Pickering Heritage Railway Station as part of its centenary tour of the UK and to mark 50 years of North Yorkshire Moors Railway.
Flying Scotsman, which turned 100 on February 24,2023, had been specially prepared for the occasion: its roof painted white and new lamps fitted to the cab, in line with the tra dition of hauling the Royal Train.
Judith McNicol, Director of the National Railway Museum, said: “To have Flying Scotsman haul the Royal Train in its centenary year and in the first year of His Majesty’s reign is a huge honour.
“It takes a dedicated team of people, with important heritage skills, to keep this engine running as it is the oldest steam locomotive on the main line.”
She added: “We are deeply appreciative of His Majesty’s interest in and support for our historic railways and the skills needed to maintain them.” will be recognised with an OBE for his work with the Football Association (FA) and his services to charity.
Davina McCall, 55, is set to receive an MBE for her TV work, with her 10year run on Big Brother. Ms McCall is an advocate for women’s health and also has taken on charity work for Sport Relief.
Legendary Radio DJ Ken Bruce is known best for his long running BBC Radio 2 show as well as his standout feature, Pop Master. Bruce will receive an MBE.
You can read the full list on the UK government website.
Looking up
THE Royal Institutions for Chartered Surveyors UK (RICS) have expressed a more positive outlook for house prices, despite rising interest rates that are expected to impact buyers’ affordability. RICS’s reported that new buyer inquiries, prices, and expectations for the market were all less negative in May compared to previous months.
Despite their positive outlook for the property market, RICS warned that an increase in mortgage rates could constrain the market in the future.
While new buyer inquiries registered at minus 18 per cent in May, the least negative reading in a year, the measure of house prices rose to minus 30 per cent, marking the third consecutive increase.
