Cross-dressing artist Grayson Perry has been made a CBE by the Prince of Wales, accepting his award in a midnight blue dress and matching fitted jacket with a wide brimmed black-hat decorated with what looked like ostrich feathers.
The flamboyant transvestite potter said the award was recognition for "30 years of hard graft".
The Turner Prize-winning artist regularly appears dressed as his female alter-ego Claire and did not disappoint his fans at Buckingham Palace for the investiture ceremony.
Mr Perry once described Claire as "a cross between Katie Boyle and Camilla Parker-Bowles".
But when reminded of this after the ceremony he laughed and said: "This is my Italian mother of the bride outfit.
"When I got the call (about the CBE) my first thought was what am I going to wear, it's a serious thing I'm not going to compromise my identity as Britain's pre-eminent transvestite.
"I googled to see what people wore and went for the sexier end. I always do like the older woman who makes an effort."
A Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said that Mr Perry's "attire was entirely appropriate".
Mr Perry is a married family man who spends hours meticulously making ceramic pots and is also a self-styled transvestite.
The vases are beautifully crafted and at a distance look like ornaments most people would love to own.
But they are covered in words - including crudely-incised graffiti - and sometimes graphic images depicting his own past or railing against society.
The pots are covered with subject matter such as child abuse, autobiographical images of himself, Claire and his family, as well as examinations of cultural stereotypes.
