Strictly Come Dancing judge Arlene Phillips 'emotional' as she officially becomes a dame

Strictly Come Dancing's Arlene Phillips is officially a dame.

The 78-year-old, who is best known for previously being a judge on the hit BBC1 series, said she was "overcome with emotion" while collecting her damehood.

Dame Arlene received the honour for her services to dance and charity from the Princess Royal at a ceremony at Windsor Castle on Tuesday afternoon.

Arlene, who is an icon in the world of dance, theatre and television, told PA news agency: "I'm feeling very emotional, walking into that glorious room and then speaking to the Princess Royal was just so beautiful.

"I was really overcome with emotion, I was chatting away and thinking, 'Please don't cry'.

Arlene Phillips was previously a judge on Strictly (ITV)

"It means so much, my children, my partner and my siblings, the whole family can’t believe it.

"Coming from nowhere with little hope in my life to arriving at this moment and becoming a Dame feels like some big grand club I don’t belong in, but here I am belonging."

Dame Arlene was a judge on Strictly Come Dancing from the show’s first season in 2004 until 2008 and was then replaced by Alesha Dixon in 2009.

Speaking about her time on the show, she said: “I loved it. I absolutely loved it. I had the best time glammed up to the eyeballs.

She was given her damehood on Tuesday (ITV)

“I love judging and I realised how much I love judging that night sitting on the panel.

“Instinctively I actually want to help everybody, and I love seeing people grow and improve.”

Also collecting a CBE was Sue Barker, best known as the lead presenter of the BBC ’s Wimbledon coverage.

Professor Sir Keith Willett, NHS England’s national director of emergency planning and incident response, collected his knighthood, while former Olympic swimmer Melanie Marshall was given her MBE.

Dame Arlene proved herself to be a great addition to the Dancing On Ice judging panel on Sunday night - and people have called for her to be on the panel full time.

Within minutes of the show starting, viewers took to social media to discuss how great it was to see the choreographer's return to TV.

"Please can we keep Arlene? #DOI #DancingOnIce," one fan asked as the show aired on Sunday night, with another in agreement, tweeting: "So nice to see Arlene back on the TV!"

"Get Arlene back on #Strictly! #DancingOnIce #DOI," a third demanded, referencing the star's previous gig on the BBC ballroom dancing series.