Dame Jane Goodall died at the age of 91 last year

The Duchess of Edinburgh made a surprise appearance at inaugural Jane Goodall Hope Awards this evening at the Peninsula London, as the Prince of Wales sent in a pre-recorded message.

Ricky Gervais, Peter Egan and Dr Jill Robinson received the inaugural honours at a glittering gala ceremony.

The awards commemorate Dame Jane Goodall, the pioneering chimpanzee researcher who passed away in October at 91 years old.

Recipients are chosen for demonstrating passion, courage and commitment to creating positive change for animals, people and the environment.

The Duchess of Edinburgh attended the inaugural gala

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Dame Jane’s groundbreaking work studying chimpanzees in Tanzania, which began in 1960, represented the longest field study of any wild animal group ever conducted.

Mr Gervais, 64, has built his reputation through stand-up comedy and creating hit BBC sitcoms including The Office, Extras and Life’s Too Short alongside Stephen Merchant.

Beyond entertainment, the comedian has become a prominent voice for environmental and animal welfare causes.

His philanthropic efforts recently saw him donate nearly £2.5million to various animal charities, with the funds coming from proceeds of his Mortality stand-up tour.

The award recognises his ongoing work raising awareness about animal rights issues and his substantial financial contributions to organisations working to protect wildlife and domestic animals alike.

Mr Egan, best known for his role in Downton Abbey, earned recognition for his extensive animal rights campaigning work.

Prince William sent in a pre-recorded message to the event

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The actor serves as ambassador and patron for numerous welfare organisations, including Animals Asia, All Dogs Matter and Change For Animals, while also championing veganism.

Dr Robinson, who established and leads Animals Asia, has devoted three decades to ending bear bile farming, a practice involving the extraction of bile from living bears for traditional medicine.

She described herself as “deeply honoured” to receive an award honouring her “dear friend and mentor”.

“Jane changed the world by showing us that animals think and feel and that understanding them changes everything about how we protect them,” Dr Robinson said.

“Jane changed the world by showing us that animals think and feel and that understanding them changes everything about how we protect them,” Dr Robinson said.

She added that despite Dame Jane’s “enormous influence and legacy”, she “remained generous with her time, endlessly kind and had this rare gift of making you feel as though you had made a friend for life”.

“Jane always carried the banner of hope and reminded us that if we want to heal this suffering world, we must never stop believing that change is possible,” Dr Robinson said.

Dame Jane Goodall undertook groundbreaking work throughout her career

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James Nesbitt served as the evening’s host, Leonardo DiCaprio also contributed pre-recorded video appearance.

Singer Jess Glynne delivered a live performance, with the evening also featuring both live and silent auctions.

Proceeds support the Jane Goodall Institute UK and Roots & Shoots UK, the youth programme Dame Jane established in 1977.