The Wells Cathedral Chorister Trust was honoured to welcome our Royal Patron, HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh GCVO to Wells yesterday. Her Royal Highness visited the new WCCT office and attended a special lunch to celebrate the Trust’s latest special fundraising initiative, the Coronation Fund.
Her Royal Highness and the Lord-Lieutenant, Mohammed Saddiq, were met by Arnold Wills, Chairman, at the door to Polydor House where the new WCCT office is now located. Mr Wills escorted Her Highness into the office to meet Ms Hannah Candlin, Clerk to the Trustees, and Ms Hannah Unwin, Administration Assistant, as well as the Cathedral School’s Bursar, Mr Robert McCartney, and Director of Music, Mr Alex Laing. The Duchess was shown around the new office which includes posters for past WCCT fundraising events as well as a lovely sequence of photographs of choristers from across the years.
The party then moved on to the Drawing Room of Cedars House where Mr Wills presented many of the Coronation Fund Donors, Friends and Ambassadors of the WCCT, before moving on to Cedars Hall where Mr Wills presented civic guests and Wells Cathedral staff, including the Precentor, The Reverend Canon Mary Bide, and the Acting Director of Music, Mr Alexander Hamilton.
A Somerset Ploughman’s was served at lunch, consisting entirely of locally-sourced produce and drinks, and Her Highness sat with former choristers, Gregory Wills and Maddie Perring, both now studying at music college, and recent leavers and current choristers, Oliver Jenkins, Aleksei Lichter, Rosie Bennett and Estella Fawden. Following lunch, Mr Wills addressed the attendees and Her Highness signed the Visitor’s Book before departing.
