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On Monday 25^th November I attended the Ruthin Town Council meeting to explain about our celebration of Hugh Myddleton’s work and my position as Master of the Water Conservators; this led up to me asking that the silver chalice which Hugh presented to the town in 1613 could be brought to London for the Myddleton lunch.  I am pleased to report that I will be bringing the chalice with me under the protection of my Bailiff.  The chalice will be placed in the centre of the top table.  It is a rather fine piece of silver.  The Myddleton lunch promises to be quite an event with some very interesting guests being brought along by liverymen, and of course all taking place with the Lord Mayor Alderman Fiona Woolf CBE as our principal guest.

I attended the Past Master’s meeting at the Guildhall on 27th November and presented my report on the first half of my year.  I became very enthused about Perspectives which everyone will hear about very shortly after the Xmas Court.  One perspective has already been written and two more are underway.  My hope is that these will become a unique feature of the Water Conservators Company so watch this space.  Lunch with the Past Masters and their wives was very pleasant indeed.

I do hope that we will have a good attendance at the carol service on Dec 17^th.

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I attended the Marketor’s Annual City Lecture on 21^st November which was held at St Mary-at-Hill which is the church of our chaplain canon Flora Winfield.  The lecture entitled “Loyalty beyond reason” was given by Kevin Roberts who is the Chief executive of Saatchi & Saatchi.  The delivery was brilliantly informative and amusing, we were held very securely in the grasp of Mr Roberts for an hour.  The theme of ‘Loyalty beyond reason’ was that as Marketors one has to win the loyalty of customers or clients by being ambitious, creative and emotional.  As a Water Conservator this message hit home to me in respect of the Company’s relationship with its main client, the membership.  None of what I heard was new but well worth hearing again (and again).  There were a large number of Masters in attendance at what was clearly a very successful event.  It is so valuable to meet Masters of other Companies too, I came away feeling very pleased that I had made the effort to attend.

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I was one of a good number of Water Conservators who attended the memorial service for Nick Reeves in St Pauls on November 19^th.  The chapel was full of many people from all walks of life and the water and environmental worlds.

I was able to present Mrs Reeves with a leather-bound copy of ‘Reflections on water’ as a tribute to Nick and this was well received by all of the family.

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The visit to Sidney Sussex with Gwilym was memorable.  I was a guest at the 1596 Foundation Dinner which also celebrated the completion of the new Chamber Organ which was made by Taylor and Boody, their Opus 66.  The organ is a historic mean-tone organ, which in my simple analysis if comparing it with great organs, would be like comparing a harpsichord with a piano.  I may be doing Taylor and Boody a great disservice but how do you describe something that you have never heard the like of before.  We heard a new work by Eric Whitacre the resident composer and Fantasia by William Byrd  (d.1623)  which was played by the Musician in residence, Stephen Farr  Oh and there was the college choir too who sang ‘If King Manasses’ by Thomas Weekes (d,1623) and ‘Rejoice in the Lord’ by Henry Purcell (d.1695).  The choir was accompanied by organ scholars.  It was all a unique musical treat.

In discussion after supper Gwilym and I moved along our plans for links with Sidney Sussex.

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An FM&GP meeting was held at 154 Buckingham Palace Road on 13th November, thank you ESA, which I was pleased to chair; it turned out to be a lively meeting with lots of discussion about what I mean by ‘Leading and learning from the future’.  Despite me claiming to have explained on number of occasions that futures emerge my Learned Clerk has helped me by suggesting that I extend the objective of my proposal to ‘Leading and learning from the future as it emerges’.  I trust that this longer wording will ease a few furrowed brows.  The concept of the ‘future’ actually emerging in front of you is a vital element and makes conventional planning redundant.  I think that all the members of the committee were pleased that we were airing a difficult concept.  We agreed to take the next steps in the Company becoming better informed about ourselves; a ‘stock-taking’ of skills as it was described by Mark Lane.

It was gratifying to learn from the clerk that nobody had fallen off their perch in the last quarter, or resigned and that the results of recruitment of new members were encouraging.  Our efforts to attract commercial members is on-going too.

In the evening I attended the Actuaries Lecture at Staple Hall which was on the subject of the London Paraplegic Olympics and was delivered by Sir Philip Craven MBE who is an amazing man full of passion and the will to do things whilst wheelchair bound; and obviously a leader who inspires the most amazing efforts and results from countless athletes, not just medal winners.  I was on my feet once again so people are hearing about the Water Conservators.  I made the comment that I had experience of living with a severely disabled family member who was a great success in his career and that whilst many people say the ‘disabled people have something extra’, I disagree with this sentiment, me being me I would wouldn’t I, since I say that the ‘ordinary’ people have lost things like determination and spirit that is still very evident in disabled people in many walks of life’.  All in all it was a most inspiring event attended by about 80 people, many Masters amongst them.

On Wednesday 14^th along with our Clerk I was a guest at the Court Luncheon of the Environmental Cleaners at Armourers Hall.  I have been to 3 or 4 events at Armourers this year all very successful and enjoyable.

Today is a catching-up day.  I am off to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, tomorrow with liveryman Gwilym Roberts to attend their celebration of the founding of the college in 1596.  I believe that Oliver Cromwell’s head is stored there.  We are intent on developing links between Sidney Sussex and the Company.

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Some time ago the Water Conservation Trust was asked for help because the pond at Hillside Primary School in Orpington was to be put out of bounds or filled in because it represented a risk to the pupils. Through Trustee Rob Casey, the Trust recommended and paid for a safety grid, and encouraged the school to extend its science teaching. I have received news that, through its Charities Programme, Thames Water has agreed to fund half the cost of the grid. This is thanks to the great work done by Rob in developing our links with Thames Water. I will say that this is just a simple but significant example of how starting off in Ruislip High School with a pond has led on to greater things. This is an example of where ‘Leading from the future’ can take us and I do hope that the message gets home that ‘Leading from the future’ will happen if we use our heads to identify an opportunity and get involved: that means taking the project to heart, and then taking some immediate action that is using the emotion to develop some momentum.

I know from experience of long ago that this approach works and we have heard about Hugh Myddelton and John Snow. In the same vein, I would like Company members to support the work of the Trustees in the knowledge that with your involvement we can go to places unimaginable at the moment. That this means becoming Globally Useful can be our Future Possibility and not just a pipedream.

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Last week broke into life with the Banquet on 05 November and a Trust meeting on the following day.  Friday saw me back in London with David in readiness for the Lord Mayor’s Show.

I was told by everyone that the banquet in Vintners Hall was most enjoyable, well I enjoyed it and from where I was sitting the whole atmosphere seemed relaxed.  Our principal guests were Alderman and Mrs Andrew Parmley and Andrew provided one of his masterly and witty performances.  I had decided not to match Andrew’s ready wit so my contribution was personal and heartfelt.

I was thrilled and surprised that Mr Beadle introduced the Master in Welsh.

The entertainment was provided by friends from Ruthin, the ap Owen family.  The twin girls Manon and Lleuwen stole everyone’s hearts with their beautiful playing of the harp and then singing to their father’s accompaniment on the piano.  The performance was quite exceptional and especially praised by Andrew.  I was delighted when Hedd their father told me a day or two later that they had had no idea what to expect at a Livery function and were overwhelmed by the friendly and family-like reception.

The Vintners Company looked after us very well indeed.

The Lord Mayor’s Show was marked by a morning of steady and heavy rain from the moment that we set off.  I was delighted that David and I were joined by Thames Warden Roger North who, along with Christine had spent Friday making a new signboard for us; many thanks to you both.  The excitement of the crowds dispelled any discomfort caused by the rain.  I found the last half mile on the return journey tough going.  I ‘completed the course’ and a few minutes later in London Wall I met familiar faces in the form of the Renter Warden of the Glass Sellers and then our Chaplain.  When you take part in the parade you see little of what is going on except at the start in the marshalling area when there is plenty to see and friends from other Companies to talk to.

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I attended the Founder Members’ lunch at Butchers Hall on 16^th October which was a most pleasant affair arranged by Past Master Colin Bland.  It was good to renew acquaintances with people I had not seen for some years, it would not be appropriate to say ‘old faces’ which would easily slip off the tongue.

On 17^th we held a Master’s Committee in Atkins office at Euston, thank you Roger, in the discussions which were ‘wide ranging’ we did make progress with developing Global Usefulness.  David Lloyd Owen joined us and made a welcome contribution to what I hope will be seen as an emerging future for the Company.

In the evening I attended the dinner celebrating the installation of Master Dennis Woods of the Fuellers Company.

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As Master I was a guest of the Worshipful Livery Company of Wales on Saturday, attending the Installation Service in St John’s in the centre of Cardiff and then the Installation banquet at the City Hall.  I am a liveryman of the Livery Company of Wales.  It was a fine event in an ancient church and a magnificent City Hall.  Marj and I used to go dancing there on Saturdays so it was a trip down memory lane as well.  I was very well received.  The Welsh Livery has developed a style of its own, which is to be expected and for which they should be congratulated.  A number of London Masters were present.

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On Monday I was down in the Central Criminal Courts as a guest of Sheriff Sir Paul Judge for lunch with the judges.  Having never been inside the Old Bailey for any reason, innocently or otherwise, I was intrigued by the invitation and had a most interesting day, including a couple of hours in Court No. 4 listening to the prosecuting counsel making his opening address in a murder trial.  I was most impressed with the care and clarity, to my mind, with the way in which the counsel presented his opening description of the case against the defendant.  The counsel made it clear that the the case would be gone through in great detail in the subsequent stages of the trial.  I was equally impressed with the amount of information that we all scatter world-wide when we use our mobile phones.  I was sitting on a bench in the well of the court, which is very small, with the judge sitting on high and the defendant directly opposite him, I never saw the defendant since I was so low down on my bench and could not see into the dock.  Not a day to be missed.

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Along with my bailiff I visited Ysgol y Gogarth today, Friday, to meet the head master and the Willmott-Dixon contract manager to discuss progress on the construction of Hafan Marj which is the outdoor activities room that will be dedicated to Marjorie.  The base slab has been laid as part of the school’s total redevelopment and the details of the building have been finalised so progress is being made.  The head and staff at Gogarth are very excited about Hafan Marj even though the whole school is being re-built under a £multi-million project.  The building is located in a well landscaped area, a short distance from the main building but will be fully equipped with data and power.  More later.

An appeal has gone out under my name for contributions to the publication fund for ‘Reflections on water’, please respond positively.

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Monday found me and the Fleet Warden involved in the election of the Lord Mayor for the ‘ensuing year’.  This year we have elected Fiona Woolf, only the second woman to be elected as Lord Mayor.  Our day began in Carpenters’ Hall for breakfast courtesy of Mark Grove and the Cook and Butler.  This was a great start to the day; as well as having an excellent breakfast it was good to be able to meet Masters, Wardens and Clerks of many Companies.  After gowning up in the Guildhall crypt, which was an event in itself, all hustle and bustle, the Masters processed in order of seniority, juniors first, to attend a service in St Lawrence Jury (in which the singing of the choir was magnificent) and then back to the Guildhall for the election.  The whole ceremony is managed in the greatest detail and was all over by 1.00pm.

Tuesday I was back in London with my bailiff to attend the Autumn Dinner of the Plaisterers’ company as the guests of the Master, De Bradshaw; this was another magnificent Livery evening.  Gosh it’s hard.

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September 25^th found us at the Armourers’ Hall for the Michaelmas Court and lunch.  The business of the Court was completed in good time and included discussions about my proposal that the Company looks for initiatives that will create opportunities for change.  I have re-established the Masters Committee which I trust will be a productive think tank in the years ahead.  We have got off to a flying start, see my full address at the lunch, which will be on the web site soon.  Our principal guest was Dr Rosalind Smith who just fascinated us with her review of John Snow’s life; it would be very good to have the chance to listen to her on another occasion.  I was very pleased that we raised £750 towards our Chaplain’s work on improving sanitation in Africa under www.toiletttwinning.org 

I will be writing to you all soon about our decision to publish ‘Reflections on water’ in hard copy as a recognition of the contribution that Nick Reeves made to the Company so I am taking this opportunity as well to tell to you that this book will ‘say’ a great deal about our Company too.  We will need several £000s so I do hope that I will get a willing and generous response.

In the evening I was pleased to attend the Plumbers’ Autumn Festival in Clothworkers’ Hall.  The event was a dinner to celebrate the contributions made by the lady partners of company members; it was a delightful evening which followed the general pattern of Livery celebrations, good food, good wine along with excellent company and entertainment.  We must be well prepared to render Laudi Spirituali at our banquet when we will be encouraged to sing in 4-part harmony so please have a look at the music.

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The days and weeks fly by.  On Thursday last week I was in London for the Modern Companies dinner along with Walbrook Warden Keith Tozzi.  It was a very pleasant and interesting evening in Armourers’ Hall where we will be for the Michaelmas Lunch on the 25th.  The evening was comprised of good company, good food and wine.  Alderman Fiona Woolf called for more support from the Livery companies in seeking business abroad.

Yesterday saw Company members and guests assemble at the Globe to see ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’.  The performance was just wonderful, full of words, action and a confusing plot that all ends happily.  It tipped down with rain the entire afternoon but did not deter the actors one bit or spoil our enjoyment whilst sitting in the ‘Gentlemen’s Boxes’.

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The weekend in North Wales is over but there are still a few things that amaze me.  We ordered a hog for roasting that should have been enough for 100 people.  38 Water Conservators and some friends saw the whole thing off.  There was no cold pork left for me to enjoy on Sunday.  So be warned, Conservators can eat a lot.

An advanced party comprised of the Clerk, the Beadle and 2 Court Assistants along with their partners arrived on Thursday afternoon.  We had an excellent supper that evening which was prepared and served by my bailiff; I think that the Court should consider this ability as being a fundamental one for future bailiffs.

On Friday we were under the direction of the beadle and processed from the Town Hall to St Peter’s church by way of the old market square.  Everything went very well except that the church organist did not play the Welsh National Anthem as was programmed, before God Save the Queen.  All was clearly shown on the service.  Owain Glyndwr burnt Ruthin down in Sept. 1400 for a lot less, history was close to being repeated on Friday.

It rained on Friday afternoon but our procession was met by the Bishop of St Asaph, the Chairman of the County Council and the Mayor of Ruthin just before the heavens opened.  The service, which was led by Bishop Gregory, was thought provoking, memorable and enjoyable.  About 140 of us retired to Rossignol for tea where we were joined by the secretary of State for Wales.  In the meantime I had recorded an interview with BBC Wales for television and then a live radio interview for BBC Radio Wales.  The BBC television piece went world-wide, an excited friend telephone from Abu Dhabi.  I understand that a great many of the ladies wore hats and there were a great many, as tribute to Marj who most certainly would have had one on, so that was nice.

Friday evening saw us travel to Llanelidan which is a very small village at the head of the Vale of Clwyd.  There was a settlement here long before the Celts arrived and the site of the present church was the centre of a Celtic settlement which predated the Roman invasion, and was then an early monastic centre of the Celtic Church.  Most of the churches in the area are named after Celtic saints who were very active, many were Irish.  My colleague at RML, Andrew Sumner, is a member of the parochial church council and gave us a fascinating review of the history of the area and the church.  Andrew is a great grand-nephew of Archbishop Sumner of Canterbury so we were in good hands.  The present church has a great many historic features but what impressed both the Water Conservators and our guest lady harpist was the acoustics; she said she had never experienced better in a long career of public performance, one of the reasons that I wanted us to visit the church.  We then adjourned to the tiny pub which stands next door, the Leyland Arms, where we enjoyed a lamb hotpot and fine beers, another reason for the visit to Llanelidan.  Strangely enough the weather seemed to have improved a little when we left Llanelidan at about 10.30.

On Saturday morning we travelled over the Horseshoe pass through magnificent scenery and down into the Dee valley to arrive at Pontcysyllte, the world heritage site which is comprised of Telford’s aqueduct over the Dee valley.  We were met by a reconstituted Thomas Telford, a long standing associate of mine who is a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers Historic Structures Group or something similar and an acknowledged expert on the construction of the aqueduct.  Looking up from ground level at the piers which support the cast iron trough was an impressive sight in itself.  The walk across the bridge is not for the faint-hearted.

After an afternoon of relaxation in the area the party re-assembled at Rossignol for a hog-roast supper which went down well, see above.  I think that everyone enjoyed the visit, the landscape the special events the food and our environment.

I will be back at Pontcysyllte for a visit by the President of the Institution of Civil Engineers on Tuesday.  I will be wearing my badge of office.

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August is supposed to be a quiet month for the livery.  Well it is not a quiet time for the Master or the Clerk.  We have to be looking ahead as far as the Myddelton lunch next year as well as dates for events in September through to December.  Arrangements for the visit to the Globe and the Annual banquet have been finalised.  Detailed arrangements for the visit to Ruthin are complete, this has meant liaison with the Bishop’s office in St Asaph, the Welsh Secretary of State’s office, the town clerk’s office in Ruthin and other people in the London Guildhall, the Welsh Assembly and Denbighshire CC.  The order of service in St Peters is ready for printing; our own ceremonial for getting Court members from the Town Hall to the church has been agreed with the clerk.  Entertainment has been organised.  In the meantime there will be an FM&GP meeting and one of the Trustees on 04 September.  The new committee will need to be ‘settled in’.  The Trustees will have plenty to think about.

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August 1^st and my first month has flown but sadly overshadowed by the passing of Liveryman Nick Reeves.  

I have been to several Livery events as I have reported already; and beset by a constant stream of emails from the Clerk, Wardens and Past Masters about recent and future events, for example the visit to Ruthin, the visit to the Globe, the Michaelmas Court and lunch on the 24^th and the Annual Festival Dinner of the Plumber’s Company that same evening.  The Modern Companies hold their dinner on September 12^th.  Plans are already well advanced for the banquet, as they have to be.  The wardens and I had an excellent working meeting on July 22^nd.  Oh and there is my first FM&GP meeting as Master coming up on September 4^th followed by a meeting of the Water Conservation Trust.  

I thought it would be wise to refresh my memory on what is in both Standing Orders and Ordinances so I have re-read them both; we should all do this, though they are hardly bedtime reading.  They should be kept away from children too.  Ask the Clerk for copies by email!

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Visit to the Mansion House

On Friday 19^th July I attended on the Lord Mayor along with Thames Warden, Alderman Andrew Parmley and the clerk to present a jug of Thames water to the Lord Mayor.  This annual event celebrates the sale of the Thames Conservancy to the Corporation of London by King Richard 1 on 14 July 1197.  We had a very pleasant half an hour with the Lord Mayor, all the more so because he is a Gifford and I am a half-Gifford.  The Lord Mayor was truly delighted with the water jug and we did agree that it would look well if filled with a foaming type liquid too.

Master's blog, stardate 2013.194, review of the week

Back to Ruthin after 3 days in London; at the Company of Engineers’ Dinner on Tuesday night in Merchant Taylors’ Hall.  The Engineers have a great many contacts with the armed forces and some 24 awards were made during the dinner. Most impressed by what ‘goes on’ that the general public hear very little about.  We finished at well past 11 0’clock.  

Wednesday was spent on a most interesting visit to RAF Northolt along with representatives from 3 other Livery companies.  Northolt is a very important centre for the operation of some many varied services carried out by the RAF.  After lunch we visited the Battle of Britain Bunker at Uxbridge which is set up as it was on a September day in 1940.  As a company we will be made very welcome to Northolt and Uxbridge on another occasion.  

Thursday night saw me attending the Paviours Court Dinner at Charterhouse.  Charterhouse itself is an amazing building being one of only 3 in the city which would have been recognizable in Elizabethan times.  Faces and names are becoming familiar at a fast rate. 

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Immediately after the Installation lunch we all headed off for the offices of Pinsent Mason, courtesy of Mark Lane, where about 90 people assembled to listen to 5 of our bursary recipients describe their work and how the bursary had benefitted them.  The audience contained a wide mix of liverymen, members of academic departments for around the UK as well as many students.  I did the introductions, Lord Macdonald chaired the meeting and Colin Bland provided a short summary of the aims of the Trust as a conclusion.  The whole evening was a great success.

Master's blog, stardate 2013.184, Installation Lunch

Peter handed over to me at about 11.30  on 3^rd July.  First of all let me say that it was a day of mixed emotions.  Losing Marj last year was a hard blow to take and she was so excited at the prospect of me being Master and her playing her part.  So Marj was in my thoughts on Wednesday.  Nevertheless the last year has been one of building excitement and anticipation.  The support that I had from members on Wednesday was palpable and for that I thank them all most sincerely.

The whole event of Installation and greeting guests for lunch was spectacular.  Almost my first action as Master was to install my son David as a liveryman by way of Patrimonial Redemption; if you want to learn more about this process then contact the Clerk.  I then welcomed two new Court Assistants, Robert Casey and David Lloyd Owen along with a new Journeyman Rose Norman and then our new chaplain the rev. Canon Flora Winfield.  So the Court got me off to a flying start.

Reception and lunch aboard the HQS Wellington was just fine with the reception and drinks on the quarter deck on what turned out to be a kind morning weather-wise.

There were about 115 at the lunch including four Masters and an immediate Past Master.  My principal guest was Lord Dafydd Elis Thomas, an old friend, who is Chairman of the Welsh Assembly’s committee on the Environment and Sustainability and is therefore in frequent contact with our new Deputy Master Peter Mathews.  Dafydd was up to his usual tricks in bating the English very gently about ‘Welsh Lions’ and talking about the new approach to our management of the environment in Wales.  It all went down extremely well and as expected he occupied more than his allotted time, not that anyone was bothered in the slightest.

For my part I felt that I had to provide a short portrait of what makes me ‘tick’ and where this leads me in plotting my year ahead.  I have a most supportive team of wardens, Roger North, Peter Hall and Keith Tozzi, and an excellent pair in my ‘backroom support’ in our Learned Clerk and Mr Beadle; I am looking forward to an enjoyable and productive year.

There will be a ‘Message from the Master’ issued in hard copy very shortly and there will be more ‘words’ from me in the Conservator later in the year.  You will find a few points of commonality between all of these items; they have all been written in the last couple of months.

Arrangements for the ‘Master’s Weekend’ in Ruthin are virtually complete and a programme and instructions notice will be issued very soon.

My address at the installation Lunch has been placed on the web site.