2. Installation Court & Dinner

In a break with tradition, the Installation event was moved from a lunch to a dinner, the ceremony of installation was witnessed by members and their guests, the venue was moved out of the City to The Painted Hall in Greenwich and it was a “black tie” event.

The Court Meeting was held in the Admiral’s House in Greenwich and at the end of formal business, Peter Hall adjourned the meeting to enable us to process to The Undercroft, beneath the Painted Hall.

Members and guests awaited the arrival of the procession and the ceremony of installation took place, ably led by our Clerk (Ralph Riley) and the Beadle (Tony Parker).

Pre-dinner drinks in the Colonnade followed, before we processed into the magnificent Painted Hall for dinner. The Hall was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and Nicholas Hawksmoor and has been described as “the finest dining hall in Europe”. The ceiling and walls were painted by James Thornhill who spent over 18 years completing them!

After an excellent dinner (accompanied by a harpist from the Guildhall School of Music), and the Loving Cup ceremony, another break in tradition was the toast to the guests which was proposed by the Mistress, Fiona Tozzi. A very amusing response from the principle guest Richard Goddard followed and after a further response from the Master, we partook of a stirrup cup.

The collection for the event was in aid of the Children’s Magical Taxi Tour to Disneyland Paris and a magnificent £1,000 was raised.

A great occasion.