Nicole Kidman receives Australia's top honour

CANBERRA (Reuters) - Hollywood actress Nicole Kidman, at home in Australia to make a new movie, was awarded Australia's top civil honour on Friday at a ceremony at Government House.

Kidman was awarded the Companion of the Order of Australia by Governor-General Michael Jeffery for her contribution to cinema, and for her work promoting women and children's health, and cancer research.

"It's a pat on the back, which as a little girl is something you dream of," Kidman told reporters after receiving her award.

The Companion of the Order of Australia is the nation's highest honour, equivalent to an English knighthood, and is awarded for "eminent achievement and merit of the highest degree in service to Australia or humanity at large".

Kidman was presented with her award alongside other recipients, Australian medical researchers and Nobel prize winners Barry Marhsall and Robin Warren, and Australia's top economic adviser, Treasury Secretary Ken Henry.

Kidman, a UNICEF goodwill ambassador, won a best actress Oscar in 2003 for her role in the movie "The Hours".

Since returning to Sydney, Kidman has delighted Sydney residents by visiting the city's annual fair, the Royal Easter Show, with her husband, country singer Keith Urban.

She also surprised horse riders in the city's Centennial Park by going for a morning ride in a full equestrian outfit as she prepares for her role in the Baz Luhrmann directed epic romance film, "Australia", to be filmed over the coming months.

Kidman will play an aristocratic Englishwoman who is pushed to the limits of her physical and emotional endurance in the movie, set in Australia's outback about 60 years ago, the Australian newspaper has reported.

Rehearsals have been underway for the past week at Sydney's Fox Studios, next to the city's Centennial Park, where fellow Australian co-star Hugh Jackman has also been spotted practising his horse-riding skills.

Kidman, who last worked with Luhrmann on the movie "Moulin Rouge", thanked the director on Friday for giving her a day off from rehearsals to receive her award.