The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two of which make the recipient either a knight if male or a dame if female. There is also the related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are affiliated with, but not members of, the order.
An unofficial order of precedence in Northern Ireland, according to Burke's Peerage, 106th Edition, this is not officially authorised by or published with authority from either Buckingham Palace or the College of Arms, or the Home Office, the Ministry of Justice or the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) of His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, or the Northern Ireland Assembly, or the Northern Ireland Executive.
Dame Denise Rosemarie Lewis is a British sports administrator and former sports presenter and athletics athlete, who specialised in the heptathlon.
Portadown Football Club is a semi-professional Northern Irish football club who play in the NIFL Premiership.
Mary Denise Rand, MBE is a British former track and field athlete. She won the long jump at the 1964 Summer Olympics by breaking the world record, the first British female to win an Olympic gold medal in track and field. Until Emma Finucane in 2024, she was the only British female athlete to win three medals in a single Games.
The Lord Lieutenant of Belfast is the official representative of The King for the 'County Borough of Belfast', Northern Ireland. The current Lord Lieutenant is Dame Fionnuala Mary Jay-O'Boyle, who was appointed in July 2014. The position was first created in 1900 and was held by The 6th Marquess of Londonderry. The role is largely honorary with the few formal duties relating to liaising with the King's private office in the lead up to visits to the City regarding issues of local concern and the presentation of awards on behalf of the King. The High Sheriff of Belfast is theoretically the King's judicial representative in the city, while the Lord Lieutenant is the Sovereign's personal representative.
Dame Yvette Winifred Corlett was a New Zealand track-and-field athlete who was the first woman from her country to win an Olympic gold medal and to hold the world record in the women's long jump. Williams was named "Athlete of the Century" on the 100th anniversary of Athletics New Zealand, in 1987.
Sir Conrad Marshall John Fisher Swan was a Canadian-British herald who was a long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Having been first appointed to work at the College in 1962, he rose to the office of Garter Principal King of Arms in 1992, a position he held until 1995. He was the first Canadian ever to be appointed to the College of Arms.
Thelma Elizabeth Hopkins was a Northern Irish athlete who competed in the high jump and the long jump. She won the high jump silver medal at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics and was European champion in 1954. On 5 May 1956, Hopkins set a new world high jump record with a leap of 1.74 metres in Belfast, erasing the mark of 1.73 metres set by Aleksandra Chudina of the USSR on 22 May 1954. Her record was broken on 14 July 1956 in Bucharest by Iolanda Balaș of Romania. Olympic gold medallist Mary Peters called Hopkins her "inspiration".
Portadown College is an academically selective, co-educational post-14 grammar school in Portadown, County Armagh, Northern Ireland.
George O'Boyle is a Northern Irish former professional footballer and now manager.
Events during the year 1972 in Northern Ireland.
Our Lady and St Patrick's College, Knock, known locally as Knock or OLSPCK, is a Catholic diocesan grammar school in Knock in the east of Belfast in Northern Ireland. The school, with an expanding enrolment, announced in late 2019 it anticipated future enrolment of 1,330.
Peter Kennedy is a Northern Irish former professional footballer who played as a defender or midfielder.
Lady Florence Mary Fagan, is a former Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire, who served from 1994 until her retirement on 11 September 2014.
Bethany Charlotte Firth is a Northern Irish Paralympic swimmer. Since 2014 she has competed for Great Britain; previously, Firth had represented Ireland. A six time Paralympic gold medalist, she has won gold in her specialist event - the 100 metres backstroke - for both Ireland at the 2012 Summer Paralympics and Great Britain at the 2016 and 2020 Summer Paralympics. These were in addition to the Mixed 4 x 100 metres freestyle relay S14 at the 2020 Games, and 200 metres medley and 200 metres freestyle for Great Britain at the 2016 Games, where she was the nation's most successful Paralympian with three golds and a silver medal. She competes in the S14 classification for athletes with an intellectual impairment.
Barbara Mary Cameron is a Northern Irish international lawn bowler and bowls coach.
Dame Fionnuala Mary Jay-O'Boyle, is a British lobbyist, charity trustee, and public official. She is the Lord-Lieutenant for the County Borough of Belfast since 2014, and a member of the House of Lords Appointments Commission since 2019.
Barbara Ann Gray is a senior police officer in the United Kingdom. Serving with the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) from 1989 onwards, she transferred to the Metropolitan Police in April 2021 as a Deputy Assistant Commissioner to fill a post left vacant by Lucy D'Orsi's appointment as Chief Constable of the British Transport Police, with her promotion to Assistant Commissioner (Professionalism) announced in September 2022.
