Scottish writer and satirist Armando Iannucci has said it is a "delight, an honour, a thrill" to be awarded an honorary degree by one of the UK's oldest universities.
The Thick of It creator has been given the honour by the University of St Andrews in Fife in recognition of the impact his work has had on stage and screen, and in public discourse, across four decades.
Iannucci, originally from Glasgow, has won numerous awards for his television work, which has also included The Day Today and Veep, while he co-created the character Alan Partridge with actor Steve Coogan.
He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Letters (DLitt) by university principal Professor Dame Sally Mapstone in a ceremony at the Younger Hall in St Andrews on Thursday.
Addressing students who had graduated earlier in the ceremony, he said it was an honour to be part of their day, ending with Partridge’s "ah ha!" catchphrase.
He said: "It’s a delight, an honour, a thrill to be given this award. My real honour, really, is to be a tiny, tiny part of this kind of concluding day, of what I hope has been a fantastic experience of your time in university that will affect you for the rest of your lives, thank you very much and ah ha!"
Speaking after the ceremony, he told the PA news agency: "I’m always surprised that you can get an honour for writing jokes, but I’m happy to take it.
"I’ve gone through my career with imposter syndrome thinking 'I’m not really working, am I?’, so it’s nice to be acknowledged that I have been."
Source: Press Association
Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.
