As part of the British honours system, Special Honours are issued at the Monarch's pleasure at any given time. The Special Honours refer to the awards made within royal prerogative, operational honours, political honours and other honours awarded outside the New Year Honours and Birthday Honours.
Highness
Prince Rahim, Aga Khan V – 10 February 2025
Life peerage
Amanda Spielman – Former HM Chief Inspector of Education, Children's Services and Skills; to be Baroness Spielman, of Durlston in the County of Dorset – 9 May 2025 Dame Katherine Grainger, – Chair of the British Olympic Association, former Chair of UK Sport and former Olympian. Former Chancellor of Oxford Brookes University, currently Chancellor of the University of Glasgow; to be Baroness Grainger, of Garelochhead in the County of Dunbartonshire – 20 April 2026 Dr Simon Case, – lately Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service. Former Private Secretary to HRH Prince William, Duke of Cambridge. Former Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister; to be Baron Case, of Fairford in the County of Gloucestershire – 17 July 2025 Dame Sharon White, Lady Chote, – former Chair of the John Lewis Partnership, former Chief Executive of the Ofcom and former Second Permanent Secretary at HM Treasury; to be Baroness White of Tufnell Park, of Tufnell Park in the London Borough of Islington – 17 July 2025 Sir Tim Barrow, – lately National Security Adviser. Former Second Permanent Under-Secretary and Political Director at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO); to be Baron Barrow, of Penrith in the County of Cumbria – 18 July 2025 Jason Stockwood – Appointed Minister of State for Investment; to be Baron Stockwood, of Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes in the County of Lincolnshire – 9 October 2025 Liz Lloyd, – Appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and the Department for Business and Trade, and Baroness in Waiting (Government Whip); to be Baroness Lloyd of Effra, of Tulse Hill in the London Borough of Lambeth – 13 October 2025 Dr Alan Whitehead, – Appointed Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero; to be Baron Whitehead, of St Mary's in the City of Southampton – 19 November 2025 Professor Dame Clare Gerada, – former President of the Royal College of General Practitioners; to be Baroness Gerada, of Kennington in the London Borough of Lambeth – 24 November 2025 Polly Neate, – former Chief Executive of Shelter and former Chief Executive of Women's Aid to be Baroness Neate, of Hammersmith in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham – 24 November 2025
Lord Lieutenant
Sarah Barron, – to be Lord-Lieutenant of Midlothian – 21 February 2025 Air Commodore Alistair Monkman, – to be Lord-Lieutenant of Moray – 21 February 2025 Colonel Charles Wallace, – to be Lord-Lieutenant of Stirling and Falkirk – 24 February 2025 Professor Elizabeth Barnes, – to be Lord-Lieutenant of the County of Staffordshire – 15 April 2025 John Jeffrey, – to be Lord-Lieutenant for Roxburgh, Ettrick and Lauderdale – 30 June 2025 Brigadier Michael Butterwick, – to be Lord-Lieutenant of County Durham – 3 November 2025 Peter Daniel Oliver, – to be Lord-Lieutenant for Merseyside – 16 December 2025 Professor Adeeba Malik, – to be Lord-Lieutenant of West Yorkshire – 23 December 2025
Privy Counsellor
The Honourable Sir Anthony Smellie – 5 February 2025 Ellie Reeves – 2 April 2025 The Right Honourable The Baroness Chapman of Darlington – 6 May 2025 The Honourable Lord Ericht – 11 June 2025 The Honourable Lady Carmichael – 11 June 2025 James Murray – 10 September 2025 Emma Reynolds – 10 September 2025 Anna Turley – 10 September 2025 The Honourable Sir Stephen Cobb – 12 November 2025 The Honourable Sir Adrian Colton – 10 December 2025 The Honourable Sir Ian Dove – 10 December 2025 The Honourable Dame Juliet May – 10 December 2025
Most Honourable Order of the Bath
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) Honorary His Excellency Sergio Mattarella, – President of Italy – 8 April 2025 His Holiness Pope Leo XIV – Sovereign of Vatican City – 23 October 2025
Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG)
His Excellency Stanley John – On his appointment as Governor-General of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – 30 December 2025
Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG)
His Excellency Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher – Secretary for Relations with States, Holy See – 22 October 2025
Honorary John Forbes Kerry – Former US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate. For services to Tackling Climate Change – 17 April 2025
Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG)
His Eminence Cardinal Michael Felix Czerny – Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Holy See – 22 October 2025
Royal Victorian Order
Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) Sir Michael John Stevens, – upon relinquishing his appointment as Keeper of the Privy Purse and Treasurer to The King – 3 June 2025 Vice Admiral Sir Timothy James Hamilton Laurence, – 21 August 2025
Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (KCVO) Lieutenant Colonel Michael James Michael Vernon – upon relinquishing his appointment as Comptroller, Lord Chamberlain's Office – 1 July 2025 Colonel William Toby Browne, – on relinquishment of the appointment as Crown Equerry, Lord Chamberlain’s Office – 18 December 2025
Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) Keith Anthony Harrison, – on his retirement as Director of Finance, Royal Collection Trust – 29 January 2025 Tosanbanmi Efua Eva Omaghomi, – on relinquishment of the appointment as Director of Community Engagement to The King and The Queen – 20 February 2025 The Right Honourable The Lord Llewellyn of Steep, – Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Italy – 10 April 2025 Richard Robert Gledson, – upon relinquishing his appointment as Resident Factor, Balmoral Estate – 17 July 2025 Christopher Trott – Ambassador to the Holy See – 23 October 2025 Charlette Helen Robinson, – on relinquishment of the appointment as Administrator, Privy Purse and Treasurer’s Office – 19 November 2025
Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order (LVO) Christopher Michael Fitzgerald – on relinquishing his appointment as Deputy Private Secretary to the King – 29 January 2025 Scott Furssedonn-Wood, – on relinquishing his appointment as High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Barbados – 21 May 2025 Stephen Henry Ronald Marshall, – on relinquishment of the appointment as Yeoman of the Glass and China Pantry, Royal Household – 18 November 2025 Peter George Kaye, – National Chief Executive Officer, The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, Australia – 30 November 2025
Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO) Alison Kerr – Political Counsellor, British Embassy Rome – 10 April 2025 Kassim Ramji – British Consul-General Milan and Director of the Department for Business and Trade in Italy – 10 April 2025 Mirella Vertecchi – British Embassy Rome – 10 April 2025 Captain Tarjan Gurung, The Royal Gurkha Rifles – on relinquishment of the role of The King's Gurkha Orderly Officer – 16 July 2025 Captain Jagatram Rai, Queen's Gurkha Engineers – on relinquishment of the role of The King's Gurkha Orderly Officer – 16 July 2025 Commander William Thornton, Royal Navy – on relinquishment of the appointment as Equerry to The King – 6 August 2025 Dr Anabel Inge – Deputy Head of Mission, British Embassy to the Holy See – 23 October 2025 Major Oliver Plunket – on relinquishing his appointment as Equerry to The Queen – 30 November 2025
Honorary Silvia Marinoni – Political Analyst, British Embassy Rome – 10 April 2025
Royal Victorian Medal (RVM)
Silver Pipe Major Paul Burns – on relinquishment of the appointment as His Majesty's Piper – 22 September 2025
Most Excellent Order of the British Empire
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) Civil Division The Honourable Ms. Justice Ruth Henke, – 21 January 2025 The Honourable Ms. Justice Sonia Harris, – 21 January 2025
Honorary Sarina Wiegman – England Women’s National Football Head Coach. For services to Association Football.
Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) Honorary Joshua Bell – Music Director, Academy of St Martin in the Fields. For services to Music – 16 October 2025 Thomas Joseph Cahill – Former Chief Executive, Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust. For services to Mental Health – 17 April 2025 Professor Bart De Strooper – Professor in Dementia Research at the University College London and Francis Crick Institute; Founding Director of the UK Dementia Research Institute. For services to Dementia research in the UK and internationally – 16 October 2025 Jürgen Klopp – Former Manager of Liverpool Football Club. For services to Football and the Community in Liverpool Dr Sunshik Min – Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of YBM. For services to UK/South Korea relations and UK Higher Education – 17 April 2025 Christine Schwarzman – Founder and President of No Guarantees Productions. For services to UK Arts – 16 October 2025
Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) Honorary Dr Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli – Vice President, BP Caspian Region. For services to UK/Azerbaijan relations Apurv Bagri – Chairman Emeritus, London Business School. For services to education Mark Peter Beddy – Former Trustee and Chair of Finance Committee, British Council; Former Chair, English Touring Opera; Director and Chair of Finance Committee, London Symphony Orchestra. For services to Arts and Culture in the UK Michael Hadjiconstantas – Senior Crown Counsel, Sovereign Base Areas, Cyprus. For services to Defence and to law enforcement Professor Sabine Hauert – Professor, University of Bristol, Bristol Robotics Laboratory & Co-Founder, Robohub. For services to Robotics Maria Gertrude Hinfelaar – Former Vice Chancellor, Wrexham University. For services to Higher Education Atsushi Horiba – Chairman & Group CEO, HORIBA Ltd. For services to the UK automotive sector Karl John – Offshore Wind Specialist, Department for Business and Trade. For services to Offshore Wind Investment and Supply Chain Development in the UK Derek Kilmer – Former US Congressman, US House of Representatives. For services to UK/US relations – 17 April 2025 Masayoshi Matsumoto – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd. For services to UK/Japan trade and investment Darragh McCarthy – Founder and Chief Executive Officer, FinTrU Ltd. For services to the Economy in Northern Ireland Santiago Oñate Laborde – Former Lead of Investigation and Attribution Team, Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. For services to International Diplomacy and the Rule of Law – 17 April 2025 Professor Dimitra Simeonidou, – Director, Smart Internet Lab, University of Bristol. For services to Communications Technologies research and scientific policy – 17 April 2025 Ana Paula Dente Vitelli – Former President, British Chamber of Commerce, Brazil. For services to British business in Brazil – 17 April 2025 Dr Zoé Whitley – Art historian and Curator. For services to Art
Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) Honorary Geert Prosper Paul Bekaert – Area Director Central and Southern Europe, Commonwealth War Graves Commission. For services to UK and Commonwealth First and Second World War commemorations Carla Bradshaw-Van Den Akker – SRMA for the Department for Education, Chair of the Federation of the Church Schools of Shalfleet and Freshwater & Yarmouth, and Chair of Ed-WISE Isle of Wight. For services to Education – 17 April 2025 Miriam Patricia Brown – Honorary Secretary and Vice President, London Irish Amateur Rugby Football Club. For services to Grassroots Sport