There are many awards and honors you can receive as a celebrity. Of course, there are the big awards like an Oscar, a Grammy, or a Golden Globe. However, in Great Britain, there's an even bigger honor you can receive, and that's to be knighted by the Queen. Over the years, a number of celebrities have been knighted and have been given the honor of becoming an honorary knight.
Although the list is mainly celebrities from Great Britain, the Queen has also been known to knight quite a few American celebrities as well. From rockstars like Mick Jagger to directors like Steven Spielberg and even former presidents like Ronald Reagan, these celebrities are pretty much honorary royalty at this point.
10 Mick Jagger
When Mick Jagger was put up for a knighthood back in 2003, there was a lot of talk surrounding it. A lot of people, including the Queen, didn't think he was exactly worthy of it, considering his behavior, as well as his political views. When it came to his knighting ceremony, however, Queen Elizabeth II steered clear from it, not wanting to get involved at all, considering that she didn't think he was a suitable choice for knighthood, whether it was honorary or not.
9 Ian McKellen
Sir Ian McKellen was knighted quite a long time ago. Back in 1991, the actor was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. Ian McKellen is a talented man, so it only makes sense that the Queen recognized his outstanding contributions to the performing arts. When Ian McKellen was first given the opportunity, he actually thought about turning knighthood down. Ian McKellan publically came out as gay in 1988.
Had he been asked prior to that, he definitely thinks he would've turned it down, however, with the possibility of being an openly gay man as a knight, he couldn't pass up the opportunity to be a role model, as he's a huge supporter of the LGBTQ community. Therefore, there was no way he could pass it up in 1991.
8 Bono
Bono is yet another famous face who was knighted. Back in 2007, he was given the great honor due to the fact that not only is he an incredible musician, but he's also a global humanitarian. Unfortunately, because Bono is an Irish citizen, he won't be able to be called by the formal title of "sir" before his name, as only citizens of the United Kingdom would be able to use the title. Regardless, Bono is still honored by the ceremony and the fact that he was asked to become a knight.
7 Steven Spielberg
Back in early 2001, Steven Spielberg was given the honor of becoming a Knight, despite the fact that he wasn't a citizen of the United Kingdom. He was completely shocked by the honor, but quite frankly deserved it, as he was awarded the knighthood due to his contribution to international film.
Since he's not a British citizen, he cannot use the title of sir, but instead can use the letters KBE after his name, standing for Knight of the British Empire. Steven explained that becoming a knight was pretty much a huge childhood dream for him, as every child fantasizes about becoming a member of royalty, whether it's honorary or not.
6 Elton John
Elton John has done a lot for society. Of course, he has created a lot of music and other forms of entertainment, so much so that he's made a huge impact on the music industry, allowing him to have a very long and successful career. He's also been known to be extremely charitable, and even has his own charity, in which he tries to fight AIDS by raising money and teaching others about the disease. Because of this, he was officially knighted in 1998 for all he's done as a contribution to society.
5 Daniel Day-Lewis
Back in 2014, actor Daniel Day-Lewis was given the esteemed honor to become an honorary knight. Over the years, Daniel Day-Lewis has been a huge impact on the entertainment world. He's won three Oscars, among a slew of other awards. Because of this, he was given the esteemed honor of knighthood because of his extraordinary acting abilities and the impact he has made on the acting world. Instead of Queen Elizabeth II doing the knighting ceremony, Prince William started to take over some of her duties, and as a result, performed Daniel Day-Lewis' ceremony.
4 Alfred Hitchcock
We all know Alfred Hitchcock to be one of the best filmmakers of all time, so it's really no surprise that he was given the esteemed honor of becoming an honorary knight. He was first knighted back in 1979, where he was officially knighted by the Queen. With such a successful career, it's hard to believe that he never won an Oscar for Best Director but instead became a knight. Sadly, he passed away the following year in 1980 but thankfully was able to pass away by being able to become a knight first.
3 Paul McCartney
Of course, out of all of the celebrities, it comes as no surprise that Paul McCartney was given the title of honorary knight by Queen Elizabeth II. Back in 1997, the Queen officially knighted him for his "services to music." It was a big deal that one of the members of The Beatles was being knighted, and fans crowded Buckingham Palace where the ceremony took place. From then on out, we would always refer to him as Sir Paul McCartney, and when it comes to contribution to music, Paul McCartney definitely deserves this honor.
2 Sean Connery
The late and great actor Sean Connery was given the honor of being knighted back in 2000. Sean Connery made his career by playing the roles of James Bond for many years and achieved international fame because of it. As a result, the Queen decided to knight him as a reward for his accomplishments. Sean honored his Scottish roots as he attended his ceremony in a kilt, and marked the day as one of his biggest accomplishments and one of the proudest days of his life.
1 Ronald Reagan
Not many presidents have been given the honor of becoming an honorary knight by the Royal Family. One president who did make the cut was actually Ronald Reagan. Back in 1989, Queen Elizabeth II bestowed the honorary knighthood upon the former president. There aren't many presidents who have had this honor over the years, so the fact that it was given to him was a very big deal. The Queen knighted the former president herself, as he was joined by his wife, former First Lady Nancy Reagan.