Queen honours Madhur Jaffrey

Queen Elizabeth II has honoured actress and food expert Madhur Jaffrey, the British government said on Thursday.

Jaffrey, 70, has been named an honorary Commander of the Order of the British Empire, the foreign office said.

Jaffrey, who was born in Delhi and moved to Britain in the 1950s, was being recognised for services to drama and Indian culture and cuisine.

Jaffrey studied drama in London and has appeared in more than 20 films, as well as in the British soap opera EastEnders.

She is currently in New York rehearsing for the Broadway production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's stage hit Bombay Dreams.