This Day in ’95: Cliff Richard Gets Knighted

22 years ago today, Cliff Richard added a “sir” to his name when he was officially invested as a Knight Bachelor of the British Empire.

Richard, who sits behind only The Beatles and Elvis Presley when it comes to the top-selling artists in UK Singles Chart history, was actually appointed a Knight Bachelor on June 17, 1995, but the investment ceremony took place on October 25 at Buckingham Palace. With his three sisters at his side, Sir Cliff accepted his knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II, with his contributions to charity cited as the predominant reason for having been awarded the title rather than his contributions to popular music.

“It’s no great shakes, really, being a rock and roll singer,” Richard said at the time. “I love it, mind you, but I don’t know that there’s any… Maybe they’ll give me another one for that later on, but I prefer the charitable status to have been brought into it, because it means it does elevate it beyond what I do for a living, beyond politics, and everything else. It’s just something special for me.”