NIHR Researchers Recognised in 2026 King’s Honours
Several NIHR researchers have received awards in the 2026 King’s Birthday Honours, recognising their significant contributions to health and social care.
The King’s Honours List celebrates individuals across the UK who have made a profound impact on their communities.
Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Executive Officer of the NIHR and Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department of Health and Social Care said: “We take immense pride in our scientists, researchers and colleagues honoured in this year’s list. Their dedication spans numerous fields, and this well-deserved recognition highlights the groundbreaking, NIHR-supported research and innovation that transforms and improves lives every day.”
Professor Melanie Davies
Professor Melanie Davies CBE has become a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE), owing to her services to global diabetes, research, policy and care management, nationally and internationally.
Professor Davies was awarded a CBE for her work in diabetes research in 2016. Since then she has become one of a few women to ever direct an NIHR Biomedical Research Centre (BRC), and 1 of only 2 who has ever been appointed to lead 2 BRCs and a Biomedical Research Unit. She is the Director of the Commercial Research Delivery Centre UK Network.
Professor Gareth Evans
Pioneering Manchester cancer researcher Professor Gareth Evans has been awarded an MBE, in recognition of more than 35 years of outstanding contributions to cancer genetics.
Professor Evans is an Emeritus Professor of Medical Genetics at The University of Manchester and Consultant in Medical Genetics at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT).
He led the Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Theme at the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre: Manchester from its inception in 2017 to when he retired in 2025.
With a national and international reputation in clinical and research aspects of cancer genetics, his work has made a significant contribution to advancing understanding, diagnosis and care in inherited cancer, benefiting patients and families in the UK and beyond.
Professor Andre Ng
Professor Andre Ng is Professor of Cardiac Electrophysiology and former head of the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences at the University of Leicester, and also a Consultant Cardiologist at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust. He is a leading cardiologist from the NIHR BRC: Leicester and has been awarded an MBE for his services to medical research and healthcare as part of the King’s Birthday Honours.
Professor Ng’s research spans clinical research, engineering and AI, to clinical trials focusing on important areas in heart rhythm management.
Professor Ng was also named an NIHR Senior Investigator earlier this year. Senior Investigators are among the most outstanding and influential researchers funded by NIHR. They help mentor the next generation, strengthen research culture and embed inclusion.
Professor Tim Orchard
Professor Tim Orchard, Chief Executive of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust since 2018 and now Group Chief Executive for the whole of the North West London Acute Provider Group, has been awarded a CBE for services to the NHS and healthcare research and innovation.
Under his leadership, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust has extended its long-standing reputation for excellence in research, safety and outcomes.
Alongside this work, Professor Orchard continues to practise as a consultant gastroenterologist and as Professor of Gastroenterology in Imperial’s Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction. As well as progressing research and teaching in his specialist field of inflammatory bowel disease, he has further developed the relationship between Imperial and the Trust, which includes hosting the largest NIHR BRC in the UK.
Professor Sarah Tabrizi
Professor Sarah Tabrizi, Director of the UCL Huntington’s Disease Centre, has been appointed CBE for services to people with Huntington’s disease.
Professor Tabrizi’s multidisciplinary research provided transformational insights into the biology of Huntington’s disease, a neurodegenerative disorder.
Her work balances the investigation of fundamental mechanistic science combined with human clinical research in patients, and she has redefined the lifelong trajectory of this fatal disease, making it one that is now therapeutically tractable.
