Queen Elizabeth made the Hollywood star Elizabeth Taylor a Dame yesterday, the day the 68-year-old actress said was the most exciting of her life. She added that she wished Richard Burton had been there to savour her crowning moment.
"I miss him so much. I wish he was here," she said. "I came to Buckingham Palace once before, years ago, with Richard," when he received the OBE.
"It is the most exciting - and I do not exaggerate - day of my life. It totally came as a surprise. I had no inkling. It was just like, `Whaaat? I can't believe it! Me! Getting a dameship!' " she said.
The other celebrity of the investiture ceremony was the Sound of Music star Julie Andrews (64), who was also made a Dame of the Order of the British Empire.
Both actresses were born in Britain but have spent most of their working lives in the US.