Maggie Smith lands top honour from Queen Elizabeth II
DAME MAGGIE SMITH received one of the nation's highest honours from QUEEN ELIZABETH II during a ceremony at Windsor Castle on Friday (17Oct14).
The Downton Abbey actress was handed the gold medal by the monarch to officially become a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour in recognition of her six-decade career on stage and screen.
Smith enjoyed a brief chat with the Queen before shaking her hand and curtsying.
She follows in the footsteps of previous recipients including Sir Ian McKellen and Dame Judi Dench, physicist Stephen Hawking and artist David Hockney.
Smith was made a dame by the in 1990 for services to the performing arts.