Frank Skinner has been awarded an MBE in the New Year Honour's list.

He told the press: "Getting anything, any kind of award is great, but this does feel special. When I was a kid, I remember The Beatles getting MBEs and to be in any group that includes the Beatles is good enough for me."

The stand-up was awarded the Member of the Order of the British Empire title for his services to entertainment. He is listed under his real name, Christopher Collins.

He told the PA news wire he held off telling anyone about the award until today. "Well, to be honest, I haven't told anyone at all, even those closest to me, because I still thought there might be some sort of administrative error.

"But I think it's brilliant. I deal mainly in laughs and applause and they disappear into the air quite quickly. So getting a proper medal that you can hold on to and polish regularly feels [it] has given my career a sense of permanence that I like."

He added that his late parents would have been thrilled at the news. "You can't help thinking of that thing of, you know, I grew up in a council house and all that, and my mum and dad who are no longer with us would have been absolutely over the moon about this whole thing."