Kate Winslet has said she talked with the Queen about the joys of being a mother as she collected her CBE.

The Oscar-winning actress, 37, who achieved worldwide fame for her role in the 1997 blockbuster 'Titanic', was honoured at Buckingham Palace for services to drama, 100 years after the sinking of the "unsinkable" ship.

The actress who won a Best Actress Oscar for post-war romantic drama The Reader, was dressed in an outfit by Alexander McQueen for the ceremony, with a hat by Natalie Ellner for Ellsewhere.

Kate said the Queen congratulated her and asked how much she enjoyed acting.

"I said yes I liked it but not as much as being a mother. She said, 'it is the best job'."

Kate has a daughter, Mia, 12, with first husband Jim Threapleton and a son, Joe, with 'American Beauty' and 'Skyfall' director Sam Mendes.

The actress said the ceremony and honour were not comparable to the "terrifying spectacle" of events like the Oscars.

"It is a completely different kind of honour," she added. "The sense of gravity is enormous and you very much feel you are being acknowledged by the whole country in a way.

"There is something incomparably overwhelming about that."

'X Factor' judge, Take That singer and all round good guy Gary Barlow also collected his OBE from the Queen at the ceremony.

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• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Actress Kate Winslet holds her CBE, for services to drama, which was awarded to her by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Gary Barlow holds his OBE, for services to the entertainment industry and to charity, which was awarded to him by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Actress Kate Winslet holds her CBE, for services to drama, which was awarded to her by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Actress Kate Winslet holds her CBE, for services to drama, which was awarded to her by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Golfer Darren Clarke holds his OBE, for services to golf, which was awarded to him by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Actress Kate Winslet is awarded a CBE, for services to drama by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Actress Kate Winslet is awarded a CBE, for services to drama, by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Actress Kate Winslet is awarded a CBE, for services to drama by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Actress Kate Winslet is awarded a CBE, for services to drama by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Gary Barlow is awarded an OBE, for services to the entertainment industry and to charity by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Gary Barlow is awarded an OBE, for services to the entertainment industry and to charity by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Golfer Darren Clarke is awarded an OBE, for services to golf by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Golfer Darren Clarke is awarded an OBE, for services to golf by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Golfer Darren Clarke is awarded an OBE, for services to golf by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Dr Piers Sellers is awarded an OBE, for services to science by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  Dr Piers Sellers is awarded an OBE, for services to science by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  The Right Honourable Sir Malcolm Bruce from Banchory is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.

• Investitures at Buckingham Palace

  The Right Honourable Sir Malcolm Bruce from Banchory is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London.