TONIGHT: The remarkable nominees of the British Empire Medal

If you’re looking for some heart-warming TV viewing later on – then make sure you tune into ITV at 9pm for a programme that takes a look behind-the-scenes at the selection process for the Royal British Empire Medal. Called  ‘The People's Medal’, the programme will see Natasha Kaplinsky touring around the country to meet some of the remarkable nominees and their amazing achievements. The British Empire Medal (BEM) is a British medal awarded for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown. It was established in 1922 to replace the Medal of the Order of the British Empire. It was first introduced by the Queen’s Grandfather, George V, in 1922 and became known as the ‘working class medal’ — scrapped in the 1990s because it went against the Government’s vision for a classless society. But, the award was recently reintroduced for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, celebrating ordinary people who have done remarkable things for their community. Recipients are entitled to use the post-nominal letters ‘BEM’ and it is divided into civil and military medals in a similar way to the Order of the British Empire. While recipients are not technically counted as members of the Order, these medals are still associated with it. Read more about tonight’s programme here: ITV.com
 
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