The curator of one of Aberdeenshire’s best-loved museums met the Prince of Wales yesterday as he received a royal honour.
Mike Ward also rubbed shoulders with boxing supremo Keith Walters and best-selling author and playwright Kate Mosse when he attended the ceremony at Buckingham Palace.
The 57-year-old has been made an MBE for services to tourism and cultural heritage, in recognition of his work at Grampian Transport Museum in Alford.
The father-of-two arrived in the village just as the museum was starting out 30 years ago, and decided it was the ideal place for him to combine his love of history with his interest in motorbikes and steam engines.
Over the years, Mr Ward, of Craigievar, has proudly watched the museum grow into one of the north-east’s most popular visitor attractions.
Speaking earlier this year, he said: “This honour is a great thing, and it is really an acknowledgment of what the museum itself has done over the years.
“There has been a collective pool of people who have run the museum over the last 30 years and this is an acknowledgment that the museum is doing something good.”
During yesterday’s proceedings, the man responsible for helping to launch the careers of some of Britain’s best-known fighters was also honoured.
Keith Walters has been involved in boxing for nearly 60 years and has worked with the likes of Olympic champions Nicola Adams and Audley Harrison as well as two-time world champion Amir Khan.
Mr Walters was made an OBE for services to amateur boxing, and chatted with Prince Charles about his own experiences of the sport.
And after shaking the prince’s hand, Mr Walters tipped him as having the potential to be a good light-middleweight boxer.
He said: “Boxing is not everybody’s cup of tea, but Prince Charles was very pleased to talk.
“He had a good handshake – he could make a good light-middleweight boxer.”
Sir Nicholas Serota, director of the Tate, said it was a special experience to return to the palace to become a Companion of Honour for services to art, having been knighted by Prince Charles at the same venue previously.
Best-selling author Kate Mosse was also made an OBE for services to literature during yesterday’s proceedings.