Dr Hilary Jones, celebrity guest editor of Live to 100, has been awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours.
The TV health expert has been a familiar face on ITV’s morning show Good Morning Britain as well as in the pages of Live to 100 throughout the coronavirus pandemic, keeping the public informed and dispelling myths and rumours.
Dr Hilary Jones said: “I feel humbled and delighted in equal measure to be afforded this honour.
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“I can only hope that my work in public health broadcasting and in medical practice over the last 40 years is truly worthy of it, in the full awareness that others from many different walks of life are even more deserving than myself.
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“I shall continue this work for which I have an enduring passion and will continue to support the various amazing charities in which I am involved.”
TV career
Dr Hilary qualified as a doctor in 1976 at The Royal Free Hospital in London. He worked in the medical profession until 1986, when he began his career in television, first at Sky then from 1989 on ITV where he has appeared on TV-am, GMTV and now Good Morning Britain.
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Aged 67, the father-of-five lives in Kent and is married to GMB’s fitness trainer Dee Thresher. Speaking of the coronavirus pandemic, last month he said he has tried to “put a sensible perspective on the whole thing and tell people what they need to do and how to go about their lives sensibly and safely”.
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Dr Hilary Jones is a patron and ambassador for charities including the Meningitis Research Foundation, London Air Ambulance, Stroke Association, British Heart Foundation, Breakthrough Breast Cancer and Diabetes Research.
Fellow Good Morning Britain presenter Kate Garraway said in June that she had sought Dr Hilary’s advice after her husband Derek Draper fell ill with coronavirus.
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Kate told the programme that after her husband said he was struggling to breathe, she “did whatever anyone who works at GMB does, I rang Dr Hilary”.
Dr Hilary told her she should call an ambulance and Draper has been in hospital ever since.
National treasure
Good Morning Britain‘s official Twitter account shared the good news of Dr Hilary’s award with the message ‘We’re delighted to share the news that @DrHilaryJones is being awarded an MBE in The Queen’s Birthday Honours alongside @reallorraine who is being awarded a CBE.’
Other celebrities given awards in the Queen’s birthday honours included fitness and diet guru Joe Wicks, awarded an MBE, cook Mary Berry who received a Damehood and national treasure David Attenborough who was given the order of the Knight Grand Cross.
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