Patrick Moore has been England's premier Amateur Astronomer for many decades - in fact, more that 40 years at last count. At the end of last month, it was announced by Buckingham Palace that he will receive the country's highest royal recognition when Queen Elizabeth II bestows a knighthood upon him for "services to the popularisation of science and to broadcasting."

The 77 year old Moore, who has written and starred in the BBC television series "The Sky at Night" for some 44 years, which has placed him ( and the show of course ) into the record books. He has written in excess of 90 books and is a regular contributor to many Science and Astronomy magazines and periodicals, and has been active in Astronomy long before reaching his teens. He has also been a long time member of the British Astronomical Society.