The creator of drag queen Dolly Bellefleur is among the 3,633 people to be awarded an honour in the annual lintjesregen to mark king Willem-Alexander’s birthday.
The king turns 59 on Monday and the honours are officially announced on the last working day before Koningsdag.
Dolly Bellefleur is the alter ego of cabaret artist Ruud Douma who has become a knight in the order of Oranje-Nassau for his work boosting inclusivity, human rights and performance art.
Among the famous Dutch people to be recognised this year are actress Willeke van Ammelrooy, writer Esther Verhoef, soul singer Shirma Rouse and keyboard player Ton Scherpenzeel from the band Kayak.
The recipients also include Piet Ploeg, chairman of the foundation Stichting Vliegramp MH17, who represents the 298 victims of the air disaster, including 200 Dutch nationals.
By far the most of the honours are in recognition of volunteers. The youngest recipient this year is 27-year-old Jeroen van Haalen from Winssen in Gelderland. He has been an active volunteer since he was 13. The oldest is Janine Marseille from The Hague, who is 98. She still volunteers every week, reading to people with dementia in a nursing home.
