A week in the life of a Master Founder (17 - 22 Nov)
As I promised when I became Master Founder on 27 October, I am keeping members up-to-date with what the Master actually does throughout their year.
It is estimated that, including meetings, the Master is involved in about 200 different events during the year.
To give a good example both of a ‘week in the life of…’ and how the Diary in the Directory does not show everything, I thought I’d write about the week commencing 17 November 2025. If one looks at the diary, there were two events, one on Monday and one on Tuesday. I actually undertook seven and had the organisers contacted us, it would have been eight.
On Monday 17 October the Historical Group has the most recent Livery Sheriff, David Chalk, talk about both the role and his year in office. It was an excellent talk and put my number of Company commitments into perspective!
I was unable to stay for supper and the question and answer session as I was one of eight current Masters who had been invited for dinner by our very close neighbours, the WC of Information Technologies. It is the tradition that the reply to the guests is given by the most numerically senior company’s Master so Master Draper (No 3) spoke again. The Master Draper’s first speech during their year in office is the Founders July Court Dinner for Masters and Clerks. We have had a relationship with the Drapers since about 1770 when two brothers were Master Draper and Master Founder in the same year.
On Tuesday we had the fortnightly Master, Wardens and Clerk zoom meeting. This was instituted during Covid but has been retained as it is a very useful way of being able to aware of what is happening between the quarterly Court meetings. This was followed by the Whitechapel Lecture, given by Company Freeman Dr Sarah Harrold on glass. She almost persuaded a group of brass and metal founders that glass was the greatest material in existence!
Again, the Whitechapel Lecture series started during Covid and are named after the Immediate Past Master’s foundry. It is hoped that in the coming year, Alan Hughes will reprise the first ever lecture (on bells).
Wednesday saw a visit to the Mansion House for the Lady Mayor’s Address to the Livery. The Master and Clerks of all the companies attended, as do others. Many of those attending had been to Westminster Abbey for the annual service to mark St Cecelia’s Day. She is the patron saint of music. The service (actually called a festival) combines the choirs of St Paul’s, Westminster Catholic Cathedral and Westminster Abbey. The event rotates between the three churches. The organisers are perhaps not as experienced as others in inviting people as a number of companies, including the Founders were unaware of it until a few days before.
Thursday saw the second outing of the week for the dinner jacket and the fourth for the badge. The occasion was the Barber-Surgeons master and clerks dinner. As it is a big hall, there were very many ‘regular’ Masters who see one another at least weekly! I took the opportunity of sitting next to a retired orthopaedic surgeon for some advice about my knee! As he had been the Royal orthopaedic surgeon for some time we talked about various members of the Royal Family who had had hips and knees replaced. A fascinating evening!
However, on Friday it was the highlight of my week. This was our visit to the Incorporation of Weavers, Tuckers and Fullers of Exeter for a dinner held in their magnificent Tuckers Hall which was completed in 1479.
Our Clerk, Keith Stephenson, and I were two of 24 attendees at the dinner to honour the Lord Mayor of Exeter.
As I read law at Exeter University and spent three very happy years living there, I was hugely honoured to be asked to propose the toast to the Incorporation. The city has developed much in the 45 years since I graduated but the Incorporation has remained a stable organisation whose members have always been at the heart of the city’s commerce and have led the way in charitable endeavours.
The Incorporation opens its hall to the public and I was able to take a few photographs of the way they made the history of their Company, the city and their trade accessible for all ages.
My speech gave me the opportunity to reminisce about the traffic jams in Exeter before the M5 and bypass were built, the awful weather and my parents’ wedding night. (That’s a story for another occasion!)
There were two happy coincidences. First, last year’s Master of the Incorporation’s family used to own the house where I spent my first year at university and, particularly wonderful (and unintentional), the dessert wine came from one of Past Master Sichel’s family vineyards.
The coming week is a little quieter then we head towards Christmas with a Christmas related event every week!
Simon
HHJ Simon Oliver
Master Founder 2025 - 2026