What a dame! Veteran actress Angela Lansbury awarded DBE by the Queen at Windsor Castle, while presenter Nicholas Parsons, sculptor Antony Gormley and war hero Michael Swain also receive honours

Proud: British actress Angela Lansbury poses with her Dame Commander (DBE) medal given to her by The Queen earlier today

By royal appointment: Angela Lansbury receives her DBE at Windsor Castle, Berkshire, today

Lansbury said: 'It is a very proud day for me to be recognised by the country of my birth, and to meet the Queen under these circumstances is a rare and lovely occasion.'

Hats off to you! Actor and presenter Nicholas Parsons with his Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)

What an honour: The Queen gives Nicholas Parsons his CBE at Windsor Castle, Berkshire

Royal hand: Entertainer Nicholas Parsons is made a Commander of the Order by the British Empire (CBE) by Queen Elizabeth II

Veteran entertainer Nicholas Parsons was honoured with a CBE for his lifelong work for children’s charities. It comes 10 years after he was awarded an OBE for services to broadcasting.

The 90-year-old Just A Minute host said: 'It is very nice to be honoured for all the things you do because you enjoy and love them.'

He said the Queen had told him his hard work was 'greatly admired'.

He added: 'If you get something out of the work you are doing, it seems only right that you put something back into society, because if you have achieved some recognition for your achievements, what a pleasure to have that opportunity to put something back in and help others less fortunate.'

A British soldier who lost both his legs to a Taliban bomb blast walked unaided on 'bionic legs' to receive his MBE from the Queen today.

Rifleman Michael Swain, 24, had both his legs amputated above the knee following the explosion in Afghanistan in November 2009. He has since undergone revolutionary surgery in Australia.

The soldier with Edinburgh-based 3 Rifles had titanium rods fused to his thigh bones in a procedure called osseointegration, which allow him to click on special prosthetic legs in a matter of seconds.

Rifleman Michael Swain proudly holds up the British Empire (MBE) medal given to him by Queen Elizabeth today at Windsor Castle

He said the new legs were 'amazing' and more comfortable that the usual ones.

But he said he had been worried about falling over in front of the Queen when he went to pick up an MBE for the extensive charity work he has done since the explosion.

He said: 'She said something to me about my work helping other people. Obviously it is a bit of a blur now, standing in front of her.

'I was just thinking "don't fall over, don't fall over on those legs, don't fall over".'

He also joked that after wearing his uniform shoes he could not wait to put his trainers back on.

Rifleman Swain has a son, Max, three, with partner Jade Hardiman, 24, who is also expecting the couple's second child, a girl.

They live in Luton, Bedfordshire.

Miss Hardiman, who was at the castle today, said: 'Now he is up on his legs it is the best he has been, it is so overwhelming.

'He has been an amazing dad, he had been in a wheelchair for three years while Max was little and he managed to do it.'

Angel of the North creator Sir Antony Gormley accepted a knighthood 'in the name of sculpture' today, hailing the art form's impact on British culture.

The Royal Touch: Sculptor Antony Gormley receives his knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II

The 60-year-old artist's monumental piece in Gateshead was an immediate success when it was erected in 1998.

Another Place, his haunting array of humanesque figures at Crosby Beach in Merseyside, is also among the best known pieces in the UK.

Sir Antony, who was knighted in the New Year Honours for services to the arts, said: 'It is just wonderful to have sculpture recognised. I think Britain has been fortunate in having lots of great makers of things that have captured the public imagination.'

He added: 'I think Britain has a relationship with sculpture as a kind of art that carries the collective imagination in a way that perhaps painting doesn't.

'I take the award in the name of sculpture because I think of it as being an art form that is of and for the public.'

The Angel of the North is a contemporary sculpture, designed by Antony Gormley, which is located in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England

He also paid tribute to another artistic knight, his 'dear and inspiring friend' the sculptor Sir Anthony Caro, who died last year.

It was the second time in a week Sir Antony had met the Queen, he said, after receiving his knighthood from her at Windsor Castle today.

Sir Antony, whose father was Irish, attended a banquet at the castle last week during the state visit of the republic's president Michael D Higgins.

He said that on that night the Queen introduced him to someone by saying 'this is the sculptor, he makes enormous things'.

He also praised the role she had played in improving Britain's relationship with Ireland, especially during her 2011 visit to the country.