Actress And Writer Janet Ellis On Her MBE

Pays tribute to the staff and volunteers in the charities she supports

Janet Ellis, the mother of singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor, has expressed her delight at being awarded an MBE for services to charities and Theatre.

And she paid tribute to the behind-the-scenes staff and volunteers at the charities she supports, and said she was honoured to be a small part of what they represent.

Janet Ellis pictured after a recent BBC interview

"When you hear of someone being honoured, often your first thought is: what for? And given the huge numbers of staff and volunteers in the charities I support who get no larger recognition, that was my first thought, too. Why should I be singled out? But of course it's because of their work that the charities survive and thrive and that, in turn, enables me to shout on their behalf.

"The letters after my name are amplification, a megaphone and a platform. I'm honoured - literally!- to be a small part of what they represent,", she told chiswickw4.com

A patron of the Maggie's Cancer Charity, which is based in Charing Cross Hospital, and which offers practical, emotional, and psychological support to anyone affected by cancer, she appeared in a Tabard Theatre production of the Alan Bennett play 'Green Forms' four years ago to raise money for the charity.

She has also achieved success this year with her first novel, The Butcher's Hook'.

Janet has wanted to be an actress since she was a little girl. She got her big break in the early 1980s on BBC Children’s television show, Jigsaw, and became a household name as presenter on Blue Peter for four years from 1983-87.

Her television career has been varied and she is not afraid of a challenge. In recent years, she has been seen in Hotel Babylon (2009), Come Dine With Me Celebrity Christmas Special (2010), the Wright Stuff, Loose Ends, presenter of The Great Garden Challenge (Channel 4), and even a singing contest, The Two of Us, partnered with Alexander O Neal. Recently it was reported that she may take part in an online drama series on the theme of lesbian housewives in Chiswick.

June 17, 2016