The Queen is meeting hundreds of leading cultural figures at one of the most glittering gatherings of actors, writers and artists the UK has seen.
Sir Derek Jacobi, Dame Judi Dench, Sir Paul McCartney and David Hockney are among the 850 luminaries due at the reception to mark the Diamond Jubilee.
Bono and Alan Bennett are also due at London's Royal Academy, as are rapper Tinie Tempah and comedian Harry Hill.
The Queen will have her photograph taken with 30 artistic dames.
They will include soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, artist Dame Paula Rego and, from the acting world, Dames Joan Plowright, Janet Suzman, Diana Rigg and Harriet Walter.
Apple designer Sir Jonathan Ive is expected, just hours after receiving his knighthood.
Fashion luminaries, including Dame Vivienne Westwood, Paul Smith, Jasper Conran and Zandra Rhodes, were invited to bring a model or muse dressed in their creations.
The event will see The Queen present five special Diamond Jubilee Awards to young "artists of the future".
The citations are being delivered by Hockney, Sir Jonathan, Sir Derek, Dame Kiri and choreographer Matthew Bourne.
Grayson Perry, David Bailey and Sam Taylor-Wood are among the representatives of the art world.
Pop artist Sir Peter Blake, who designed the Beatles' Sergeant Pepper album cover, said it had been "a good 60 years" for British culture, adding: "It's been an exciting 60 years."
Speaking on the red carpet, Dame Diana Rigg said the occasion was "absolutely wonderful".
Asked whether there had been a golden age for British culture, she said: "I think Britain continually improves itself and redefines itself.
"This year happens to be particularly special, with the Queen's Jubilee and the Olympics at the same time, and I think an entirely new, brilliant Britain is going to emerge."
Stars of stage and screen on the guest list include Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Maureen Lipman, Joanna Lumley, Tom Courtenay, Joan Collins, Richard Briers and Martin Clunes.
Playwrights including Sir Tom Stoppard, Mike Leigh and Sir Ronald Harwood will rub shoulders with the theatre directors Sir Trevor Nunn, Sir Peter Hall, Sir Nicholas Hytner and Sir Richard Eyre.
They join novelists including Julian Barnes, Michael Morpurgo and Philip Pullman.
Chefs Richard Corrigan, Atul Kochhar and Yotam Ottolenghi have also been invited and will offer tastes of their dishes.
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