Former EastEnders star Anita Dobson ‘utterly thrilled' after being made OBE
The 76-year old London-born actress, best known for playing Queen Vic landlady Angie Watts on the BBC soap, was recognised for services to charitable fundraising and philanthropy.
Dobson is a patron for several charities including Thames Hospice and Focus Foundation, which provides support for grassroots charities and local organisations.
Speaking about the OBE, she told the PA news agency: 'I'm utterly thrilled and completely honoured and a bit bowled over and very excited. And all my friends have been texting and sending support. It's just been wonderful. It's very moving and I'm thrilled.
'It's not like a little one, where a few of people in the world know – everybody knows. And so it feels like you you're having a big hug.
'My face is so stretched you can't believe it. This is a very happy day and I just feel very lucky and people have just been texting in and being so supportive and so lovely.
'I hope everybody that's got an honour from the honours list has the same thing happening to them, that lots of people are making them feel special. Because I sure am.'
The actress is an ambassador for the Sick Children's Trust and a former president of Phab, a charity that helps children and adults with and without disabilities to feel independent and confident.
Speaking about her motivation to get involved with charities, she said: 'I think it's really important to, particularly in my industry, to pass things on. To pass anything that you've learned along the way, or little hints you can give on to the next generation.
'I've always felt like that you should help people. And there's a lot of people with nothing now, with no hope, no homes to live in, not much food, not much clothing. So if you've got a lot, then it doesn't hurt, does it, to give a bit of it away and share it and make people's lives a little bit better, really?
'I sort of work on a very kind of basic level. I just think, if someone's in trouble, you help them.
'I had nothing when I was younger, and it's been the hard slog getting to anywheresville, and look where I am now. It's a good feeling to pass things on.
'I do lots of phoners where people ring in and they're in trouble and maybe you can't solve their problems, but you can sure as hell help them feel heard and that they matter, and that there is somebody in the world who has got the time to listen to them and maybe give them some advice that might point them in the right direction, or introduce them to somebody else who can help them in a better way than you can.'
Dobson recently reprised her role as Angie for EastEnders' 40th anniversary, appearing in the Queen Vic as a ghost while her adopted daughter, Sharon Watts, played by Letitia Dean, was seen fighting for her life after an explosion in the pub.
The shock return won the series the scene of the year gong at the 2025 British Soap Awards.
She also played mysterious character Mrs Flood in the long-running BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who, having joined the series on Christmas Day 2023.
During Ncuti Gatwa's second season as the Time Lord, it was revealed that Mrs Flood was a disguised incarnation of the Rani, a renegade Time Lady and villain.
She added: 'I had a lovely message from Russell T Davis (Doctor Who Showrunner) this morning saying congratulations, which is lovely. We'll see what happens in the future, or whenever.
'I just have had a lovely time working for them. It's been a real blast. Russell said to me, come and have some fun. And I did. I just had fun. It was a real gift of a job.'
The actress is also known for her stage performances and in 2003 was nominated for the best actress Olivier Award for her role in Bryony Lavery's Frozen at the National Theatre Cottesloe.
Dobson was a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing with professional Robin Windsor in 2011, but was voted off after nine weeks.
Born in 1949 in the east end of London, the actress has been married to Queen guitarist Sir Brian May since 2000.
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