Latest News
The People's Book Prize 2013
We are pleased that the Hall will once again be the venue for the People's Book Prize awards ceremony. This event recognises writing talent as voted for by the public and winners will be recognized on Wednesday, 29 May at 7.00 pm at a reception and dinner (black tie) in the presence of Frederick Forsyth CBE. Previous winners can be seen at http://www.peoplesbookprize.com/. Liveryman Tatiana von Saxe Wilson tells us that there are still a few tickets left for the evening. Please note that the Stationers' Company office is not involved in organising this event and if you would like to attend please book your ticket direct on thepeoplesbkpr@aol.com.
Advance notice - A superb concert in aid of the Lord Mayor's Appeal and the Stationers' Foundation - Monday, 9 September 2013
Past Master Osborne writes: This concert, in aid of The Lord Mayor's Appeal and The Stationers' Foundation, enables members to demonstrate support for the Mayoralty and to contribute to The Stationers' Academy. It is being given by the Hanover Band, one of the finest baroque orchestras in the world, and the programme of three of Mozart's most inspiring works will sound magnificent in the acclaimed acoustic of Stationers' Hall. The Concert will be followed by Candlelit Dinner in the Court Room (optional) in the presence of HRH The Duke of Kent, The Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress, and The Master and his lady.(See flyer for booking details.)
Just in - A report on the Members' Annual Dinner on Friday, 26 April 2013
On Friday, 26 April members of the Company gathered for their "flapper" themed Annual Dinner. Robert Sanger writes that Stationers’ Hall became a "Juice joint, the guests were spiffy, the orchestra was the cat’s meow, everyone had a swell time, and it was so hotsy totsy!" He went on to offer a translation! Stationers’ Hall became a venue freely supplying alcohol, the guests were elegant, the orchestra was the best, everyone had a wonderful time, and it was so enjoyable! We shall all be keen to see the photographs when they are uploaded!
Charter conserved and boxed - Wednesday, 8 May 2013
Charter Dinner Wednesday, 1 May 2013
As is always the case for set-piece Company events, the Hall looked magnificent last Wednesday for the Charter Dinner. Some 194 Stationers and their guests attended and enoyed celebrating the awarding of the Company's Charter. Lord Black of Brentwood spoke, Court Assistant Nick Steidl received the Paper Industry Gold Medal 2013 and the Loving Cup was enjoyed by all. Do have a look at the photos which have been uploaded to the gallery on the Photographs From Events page.
Young Stationers - latest activity
On Tuesday, 16 April, the Young Stationers burst forth on the Oxford scene, marking links between the Company and Oxford—as well as celebrating the Clerk's past year as High Sheriff of Oxfordshire! Click here for full details of the evening and forthcoming events.
Digital Media Group Roundtable - Monday, 22 April 2013
The Court Room was full last evening for a Digital Media Group Roundtable with Josiah Fisk, Founder and President of More Carrot LLC, of Boston and Luxembourg. Past Master John Waterlow introduced Mr Fisk and expressed the sympathy of all the attendees for the people of Boston following the dreadful events at that city's marathon last week. Mr Fisk took the stage and over the course of an hour spoke about plain language, information design and why good communication requires both. Using a series of slides he showed how impenetrable documents issued by such bodies as finance companies, the government and many others, can be made so much more accessible using good design and simple images. It was a very interesting evening made all the more enjoyable by Mr Fisk's humorous delivery. I think all of those present will remember for a long time his explanation, accompanied by images, of how the US presidential election in 2000 descended into chaos in Florida! He also showed how he would have dealt with the offending ballot paper - a bit more thought would have avoided all the mayhem! I think we will all be looking at our documents with extra care from now on!
London to Brighton Bike Ride - Sunday, 21 April 2013
As previously mentioned Paddy Belton and Co rode to Brighton on Sunday in aid of St Bride's Spire. The photo, deftly taken by the Hon. Chaplain just after he blessed the Young Stationers' and their bicycles for their 65-mile jaunt to raise pennies and publicity for the campaign to save St Bride's famous spire. Churchwarden (and Liveryman) Peter Silver's bacon butties put them on the right track and the rashers, sunny weather, the good cheer and pluck saw all straight through the hills of Sussex to the finish line!
For those of you minded to support them, they have a fundraising page at http://www.justgiving.com/teams/Brides-to-Brighton, and there also is a Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/events/639391976075876.
From left: Liveryman Paddy Belton, Stephen Wilkinson, Liveryman Peter Silver, Melissa Ford Holloway, Jessie Wilkinson (aged 12, and granddaughter of Under Warden Ian Locks), and Katharine Wilkinson (the Under Warden's daughter).
A New Arrival
On Thursday, 11th April Clara Tiegan Elliott was born weighing in at a healthy 8lb 5oz. We do not usually announce births but Clara's Father is Liveryman Simon Elliott and her Grandfather is Liveryman Ivan Elliott so she is rather special in the context of the Company - a possible future member by Patrimony? We all send Simon and Martine our heartiest congratulations and all possible good wishes to Clara for health and happiness in life.
Young Stationers go Brides to Brighton for the St Bride's Spire
Pádraig Belton reports that a group of Young Stationers and other friends of St Bride's, taking advantage of the splendid weather, will be cycling 'Bride's to Brighton' on Sunday the 21st April, to help raise funds and publicity for the church's Inspire appeal and badly needed restoration work to Wren's spire.
They are very keen for your support! Cyclists of all abilities (and none!) are incredibly welcome to have a go. For those of you minded to support them, they have a fundraising page at http://www.justgiving.com/teams/Brides-to-Brighton, and there also is a Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/events/639391976075876.
They will meet in their spandex in the Churchyard at 8 am for bacon butties served up by Churchwarden (and Stationers' Liveryman) Peter Silver. A great number of family members - some as young as 12 years old - of Churchwarden (and Stationers' Under Warden) Ian Locks will be pedalling along, too! Once in Brighton, they will partake of a splendid pub lunch, and return back either by pedalling or by train.
Do please support them - and the St Bride's spire - with a few pennies if you can!
The Funeral of Baroness Thatcher - Wednesday, 17 April 2013
After the crowds which surrounded the Hall celebrating the Olympics and the Jubilee, it was hard to imagine that we should ever see such a gathering of people close by again but they certainly flooded into the area around Stationers' Hall this morning to see the cortège of Lady Thatcher pass along Ludgate Hill and on to St Paul's Cathedral for her funeral. Obviously, the emotion was not as exuberant as that which we experienced last summer. Despite the threats, there were only a couple of hecklers who quickly stopped as they sensed they were, at that moment, in a very small minority, and as the coffin, draped in the union flag, passed it was loudly applauded.
Stationers and staff returned to Stationers' Hall to watch a live stream of the service on a large screen in the Livery Hall.
London Book Fair - Tuesday, 16 April 2013
Deborah Rea visited the London Book Fair today and was, as ever, amazed at the range and number of publishers exhibiting. This year the market focus is Turkey but it was also interesting to note the number of Chinese exhibitors who have returned after being the market focus last year. Even more importantly it was great to see so many Stationers including Jessica Kingsley of Jessica Kingsley Publishers Ltd, Paul Kidson of Ludlow Bookbinders Limited, Peter Lake of J S Group, Ella Kahn of Diamond Kahn & Woods Literary Agency Ltd, Nick Canty and Sam Rayner of University College London and Martin Woodhead of Woodhead Publishing. There is one more day of the London Book Fair left so do go along to Earl's Court if you are free tomorrow - click here for details.
Archive Evening - Monday, 15 April 2013
After weeks of anticipation and hard work the Archive Evening took place last night and enthralled well over 150 attendees. The speakers, Jamie Owen, Photography Library Manager of The Royal Geographical Society David McClay, Senior Curator of the John Murray Archive, Ian Maine, Curator of the Royal Marines Museum regaled us with tales of exploits covered in their archives and showed us examples of the artefacts they hold. Liveryman Chris Wood chaired the evening.
The Support-a Book scheme used the Ante-Room to display items from the Stationers' Archives which require conservation and others which had been repaired over the past year. In the photo above, taken by Andrea Lestrange, you can see Tina Randall inspecting a repaired charter in a custom built box. Andrea Cameron, Honorary Librarian is explaining the process in detail and by Andrea’s left had you can see a very uninspiring grey rectangular shape. That is another charter which requires professional "easing" to allow it to open without damage. It will then be assessed to see if it requires more conservation work and then it too will have its own box built. If you are interested in helping in this work please click here to go through to the Support-a-Book page where you can find details of how to donate. You will find several projects to consider including the charter conservation.
Freedom Ceremony - Monday 15 April 2013
The start of another full-on day at Stationers' Hall saw the Master and Wardens overseeing a Freedom Ceremony for three new members. The Master welcomed (from L to R in the photo above) Dr Leah Tether, Senior Lecturer in Publishing at Anglia Ruskin University, Nicholas Canty, Lecturer at University College London (both these establishments have courses which take Stationers' bursary recipients) and Brian McGee, MD of Newsprinters.
Great News from one of our Bursary Recipients - Friday 12 April 2013
Maya Ninel Robert, a bursary recipient in 2009 and made free of the Company in 2010 will be starting a new job on 8 May when she takes up a social media managing role for digital communications at Pan Macmillan. This was brought to our attention by Paddy Belton who was quick to congratulate Maya on this splendid career move and it is lovely to be able to feed back to the Company that Maya said "As always, thank you to the Stationers who have been a tremendous help in my career. I sincerely hope that they may continue to extend these opportunities for many years to come." Maya has attended many events at the Hall and with the Young Stationers but is seen here with a guest at the New Members' Evening at which she was made free.
Cloathing Ceremony- Tuesday, 9 April 2013
Tuesday, 9 April was a day crammed with meetings. From dawn (almost) to dusk various committee members came and went. It ended with a Court meeting and a Cloathing ceremony at which the following were admitted to the Livery:- Tony Clark, Commercial Sales Director, DST Group; Barbara Megson,retired; Mike Holme, National Account Manager, The Robert Horne Group and Paul Pinder, Director, Boards Direct. A Cloathing ceremony is always cause for celebration. We congratulate these four and look forward to them joining in the life of the Company as Liverymen.
The Clerk meets the Queen - Maundy Thursday
As many of you will know, the Clerk has been High Sheriff of Oxfordshire this year. His term of office comes to an end next week but last week was surely one of the high points of his year! The Maundy Thursday service at which the Queen distributes Maundy Money was held at Oxford's Cathedral at Christ Church and the Clerk was there in his shrieval capacity. It's a great photo!
The City and the Commmon Good - What kind of City do we want?
Members will be interested in this series of talks which are free (although you do have to register for tickets) and which will feature three great keynote speakers: Archibishop Vincent Nichols on 11 April, Robert Skidelsky on 7 May and Archbishop Justin Welby on 12 June all at 6.30 pm. Click here to go to the Notice Board pages within the Members Only area of the website and from there you will find a click though to full details.
Quiz Night
The Younger Inter-Livery are having a Quiz Night on 23 April 2013 at Pewterers' Hall. Click here to go through to our Inter-Livery competition page for full details -especially if you would be interested in taking part.
Archive Evening Preparations
200 Plus Club Winners - March 2013
1st Prize to Stuart Behn
2nd Prize to Mike Clark
3rd Prize to Nicola Fisher
4th Prize to Jennifer Jones
5th Prize to Tim J Thornton
2013 Paper Industry Gold Medal awarded to Nick Steidl
Stationers' will be delighted to know that the 2013 Paper Industry Gold Medal has been awarded to Nick Steidl, a Court Assistant of the Company and Chairman of the Stationers' Foundation. The medal will be presented to Nick at the Charter Dinner on Wednesday 1 May 2013. In the meantime do read the Paper Industry Gold Medal Association's press release about Nick's contribution to the paper industry here.
Annual Lecture - Monday, 18 March 2013
After a weekend of twists and turns on the Government's front as far as press regulation was concerned, the office team at Stationers’ Hall spent Monday trying to make sure that all our press contacts had remembered that at 6.00 pm the 2013 Annual Lecture at Stationers' Hall would see Sir David Bell, an Assessor on the Leveson Inquiry, deliver the Annual Lecture…….and that it would be even more important than we had realised when we first alerted them to the event. We liaised with Sir David as to whether his text should be despatched under embargo or not (not!) and dealt with additional requests for tickets plus the inevitable apologies from those who were suddenly unable to attend. The Master, who had had a very busy day with a Master & Wardens meeting in the morning opened the Lecture welcoming both Peter Day as moderator, and Sir David. Sir David spoke for about half an hour and pulled in references from a wide variety of sources from W B Yeats’s poem The Second Coming, to newspaper editor Hugh Cudlip, one time Chairman of Mirror Group Newspapers via Roy Jenkins and his Dimbleby Lecture entitled Home Thoughts From Abroad. At the end of the Lecture there were several questions from the floor – always a good sign – and while some people felt that Sir David had neatly skirted around controversy the overwhelming view was that the Lecture was interesting, informative and delivered engagingly. The full text of it, as delivered by Sir David, can be read here. In the photo taken by Andrea Lestrange you can see from left to right Sir David, the Master and Peter Day.
Memorandum of Understanding with Leigh Academies Trust – Monday 18 March 2013
On 18 March 2013, the Master, Frank Green, CEO of Leigh Academies Trust, and Court Assistant Nick Steidl, Chairman of the Trustees of the Stationers’ Foundation, signed a Memorandum of Understanding to the effect that the Company, through the Foundation, will sponsor a new Academy within the Leigh Academies Trust. Sir Geoffrey Leigh, who founded the Trust, and Bob Findlay, Chairman of the Trust and recently made free of the Company, witnessed the signing. This is a historic event for the Company and brings us now much closer to our goal of resurrecting the old Stationers’ Company’s School, which closed in the 1980s. There is still a long way to go and the signing marks the start of a campaign to raise the necessary funds for the new school and to find Stationers who are prepared to step forward to serve as governors, mentors, and providers of work experience. Please watch out for further news and respond to the call when it comes. In the photo you can see from left to right Nick Steidl, Frank Green, the Master and Sir Geoffrey Leigh.
Freeman's Association's Last AGM - Monday, 18 March 2013
Mike Kerlogue writes - On Monday, 18 March the Freemen’s Association held their last event – the final AGM – which concluded a life of over 40 years. A record number of attendees – some 75 Freemen and guests formally “closed” the FA and enjoyed a splendid lunch.
When the Freemen of the Stationer’s Company first approached the Company they asked to set up an organisation which could represent apprentices and the like who had completed their indentures in the trades and businesses within the printing, publishing, stationery and paper industries. From this the Freemen’s Association was born.
Originally the Freemen had very few rights of attending functions at the Hall – with the exception of the Cakes and Ale Ash Wednesday event in February and in June the Richard Johnson Service at St. Bride's Church. Over the years the number of events that Freemen could attend had grown, and as the FA grew so it was able to run events on behalf of the Freemen (and Liverymen ) – notably the Christmas Lunch and the Annual Dinner in April. Along the way the Freemen’s Association has managed industry related forum meetings, which have now been taken over by the Industry Group Committee and arranged visits to other Livery Companies in the City.
With the changes in our industries, the decline in apprentices, the active membership of the Freemen’s Association now relies on Liveryman.
So clearly change was needed, the Freemen’s Association had achieved status for Freemen within the Company and now merging the FA within the Livery Committee, and the assurances that Freemen will still enjoy all the benefits they have earned over the years makes the Livery Committee a more robust organisation for Freemen and Liverymen alike.
The new entrants to our industries will I believe be far better suited to the Young Stationers who have been formed in the past twelve months, who are going to be more in line with today’s communication technology – which the Freemen’s Association recognised. Where will we be in another 40 years time ?
Opera Holland Park coming to Stationers' Hall on Monday, 29 April 2013
As part of the Sheriffs' role in supporting the Lord Mayor, Sheriff Nigel Pullman has arranged a fund raising evening in aid of Alderman Roger Gifford's Lord Mayor's Appeal. It will be a splendid evening of popular opera arias, performed by Opera Holland Park at Stationers' Hall, on Monday 29th April . 100% of all ticket sale revenue (£80 per ticket) will go straight to the Lord Mayor's Appeal in aid of the new City Music Foundation. After the performance a substantial buffet reception will be provided. It promises to be a memorable evening which Stationers' will enjoy all the more for it being in their own Hall! If you would like a ticket please click here and follow the instructions.
Precepts for 2013 City of London Common Halls for 2013
The Company has received a notice from the Chief Executive of the City of London Corporation about the Common Halls for the Election of Sheriffs and the Election of the Lord Mayor in 2013. Liverymen are requested to visit the Notice Board page by clicking here and take note of the dates and times of these elections.
Kenny Ball - cancellation of Lord's Taverners Concert on 25 April 2013
Many members will already have heard that Kenny Ball, the Jazz Trumpeter, sadly died on 7 March 2013 and therefore the Lord's Taverners Concert which was due to take place at Stationers' Hall on 25 April 2013 has now been cancelled.
200 Plus Club Winners - February 2013
Elaine Pooke reports that the winners for the February 200 Plus Club draw which was made by a process of "shout" instantaneous personal response by attendees at the Kipling evening on 19 February were:
IPG Conference 6-8 March 2013
Deborah Rea attended the first two days of this conference in Oxfordshire and enjoyed bumping into several members. Oliver Gadsby spoke on Thriving in Challenging Times based on his experience of starting Rowman & Littlefield International and Jill Jones was due to speak on ways to maximize opportunities and stay relevant to readers in the context of E-textbooks but sadly this was due to happen after Deborah's departure. Also attending were Tej Sood, Martin Woodhead, Piers Russell-Cobb and David Hicks. It was an excellent and very well-attended conference and even though we are not a publishing Company a lot of what was coming up in the break-out sessions could be useful to the Stationers' Company.
First Annual Friends of St Paul’s Lecture - Wednesday 6 March 2013
Stationers' Hall was delighted to welcome the Friends of St Paul’s for their first Annual Lecture this week. It was given by Dr Jonathan Foyle who is Chief Executive of World Monuments Fund Britain. He is an architect and art historian, and holds a PhD in Archaeology. He developed a practical knowledge of major and minor historical monuments over fifteen years, first as an assistant surveyor of Canterbury Cathedral, and then as Buildings Curator at Hampton Court Palace and Kew Palace. He has written for The Financial Times but he is perhaps best known for presenting broadcasts on architectural topics in the UK and US and the lecture was based on BBC2's 15-part series Climbing Great Buildings. The lecture was a great success and judging by the photo of Dr Foyle above, benefitted from a hugely animated delivery!
Royal Marine Cadet Awards - Monday, 4 March 2013
The New Members' Event on Monday 4 March was extremely busy as we not only welcomed six new freemen but also made the annual awards to high-performing Royal Marine Cadets from the London area. This year the Stationers' Cup went to Cadet Lance Corporal Jake McKenzie who during 2012 displayed the values of the Royal Marine Cadets and took part in activities from detachment to national levels including being part of the National Physical Training Display at the 2012 Trafalgar Day Parade in London.
The Stationers' Shield winners this year were the members of the Kingston Royal Marines Detachment which under the leadership of Acting Sergeant Charles Greaves has grown from eight to 25 cadets. They have taken part in high profile events such as the Lord Mayor's Parade, Carpet Guards and the Graspan Remembrance parade.
The Royal Marine Cadets are seen here with the Master in the Court Room.
Freedom Ceremonies - Monday, 4 March 2013
Such was the demand for Freedom ceremonies on Monday, 4 March 2013 that we had two ceremonies. One in the morning at which Gillian Abbotts (left insert in the image above) and John Stuchfield (right insert in the image above) were made free, and one in the evening at which (from left to right in the main image) Meagen Smith,Robert McClements, Anita Glithero,Julian Francis, Robert Findlay and John Buffoni were made free. Congratulations and welcome to them all.
The Inter-Livery Swimathon - Monday 4 March 2013
The Stationers' Swimmers comprising (from L-R in the photo above) Simon Elliott, Alex McFadyen, Katharine Schopflin, Peter Allen, Deborah Rea, Gillie Abbotts, Paddy Belton (supporting not swimming!) and Alanna Fitzgerald gathered at the RAC Country Club in Epsom last night for the Inter-Livery Swimathon organised by the Chartered Surveyors' Company. The aim was for the team to cover 5k in two hours. Assisted greatly by cracking stints of 1k each from Alex and Peter the rest of the team shared out the remaining distance to be covered. They were not last to finish and were proud that they were one of only a tiny number of teams to have achieved this without having more than one swimmer in the pool at a time. Some members of the team were joined by their supporters for the Dinner after the event while others sadly had to race back to London but all in all it was a fun and successful evening. As at 5 March it is not too late to sponsor the team and the relevant forms can be found here. All proceeds will be divided equally between the Lord Mayor's appeal which this year is in aid of the City Music Foundation which you can read about here and the Stationers' Foundation which you can read about here.
History of Printing in Watford - seeking members to contribute to an exhibition
We have heard from Dr Caroline Archer of Birmingham City University that to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the official opening of the School of Printing in Watford there will be an exhibition at Watford Museum in November 2013. Dr Archer is keen to hear from members of Stationers' Company who may have had links with the School of Printing between 1953 and 1999 and who could contribute memories, material and photographs for that exhibition. For more information and Dr Archer's contact details click here. The image above is a drawing of Watford College.
Publishing and Media Expo - 26 and 27 February 2013
Deborah Rea attended this exhibition on Wednesday, 27 February and was delighted to see Ian Bennett and Andy Jones of Media Systems - both Members of the Company - exhibiting at the show. It was good also to hear our Sector Champion for magazines, Colin Morrison, talking about the world of magazines - its errors of the past and his hopes and tips for the future. Colin has his own blog and those who are keen on keeping up with that sector of the Content and Communications Industries might like to sign up to it via this link here. Obviously these were highlights of the day but there were so many seminars to choose from ranging from interviews with personalities to topics such as how to choose an app. This latter featured Hans Janssen, the CEO of Woodwing, who many will remember as a speaker at a DMG session in 2010. Also there was Rupert Knowles of Adobe who was our most recent DMG speaker. One of the most enjoyable seminars was about the future of print - certainly it has one was the verdict which was good to hear!
Do look out for this exhibition next year.
Types for the New Century Exhibition
The Types for the New Century Exhibition is off to Germany this week to open at the Museum of the Printing Arts Leipzig on the 9th March. http://www.druckkunst-museum.de It will be there until May after which it will go to the Bauhaus (dates to be confirmed). We are expecting it back in London at the end of the summer so those of you who missed it first time around will get a second chnce to see this amazing exhibition then and we will keep you posted as to the precise dates. The exhibition has been up and down the UK already and been viewed at several universities. Thus far it has travelled very snugly in car boots, etc, but it was felt that a stronger travelling box was required for foreign travel. I think you'll agree that the box commissioned by Deborah Akers and pictured above certainly seems to fit the bill.
Rudyard Kipling Celebration Banquet - Tuesday, 19 February 2013
Imperial bigot or patriot? Versifier or the Nation’s favourite poet? Journalist or scribbler? Stationers and their guests at this gala event were left to draw their own conclusions about him as they absorbed all that was set out before them in celebration of Rudyard Kipling, an Honorary Freeman and Liveryman of the Company. There were exhibits of Kipling memorabilia kindly provided by the Kipling Society, recitations from Kipling's works by Jonathan Jones and, adding to the atmosphere, music from sitar player Jonathan Mayer. Matthew Morley, the assistant director of music at St. Bride’s, directed the singing and Mike Gee and Dorothy Pooley won prizes for the best costumes. Thanks to Ian Locks for his report of the event, which by all accounts was a splendid affair and the result of a huge amount of hard work on the part of the Livery Committe,e and to Andrea Lestrange for the photograph.
Giles Deacon's Show - Monday, 18 February 2013
The Hall was filled with fashionistas last night for a catwalk show from Giles Deacon. This is third time which Giles has held his London Fashion week show at Stationers' Hall and we all enjoy the razzmatazz that accompanies it. Last night lots of big woolly hats were in evidence ...... sometimes atop glamorous gowns! Many of the fabrics appeared to have a glitter to them and pink featured quite strongly!
Cakes and Ale - Ash Wednesday 2013
Liverymen, Freemen and guests enjoyed the traditional Ash Wednesday Cakes and Ale buffet in the Hall today. They saw the Master present the usual thirteenth bun of the dozen to the Clerk who also received, on behalf of the Company Chaplain, the Venerable David Meara a framed 10 shilling note which was the fee that John Norton stipulated should be paid to the preacher at the Ash Wednesday Service. At 14.00 precisely the Beadle set out for St Faith's Chapel at St Paul's Cathedral with the Court and the rest of the Company following in procession. The service was very uplifting with fantastic music from the Reed's School choir. The Company Chaplain, who dashed from another engagement to the cathedral with seconds to spare, preached, rather encouragingly, on chocolate!
Digital Media Group - Monday 11 February 2013
The Digital Media Group usually meets in the Court Room in very intimate groups but last night the Hall was required for what proved to be an extremely popular roundtable with Adobe. Rupert Knowles, Adobe's Business Development Manager- Media & Publishing, spoke at length about the whole range of Adobe products but here's one set of facts and figures to absorb:- the Adobe turnover is 5 billion dollars of which 1 billion is generated from the new digital publishing suite (DPS) and it is this area which they expect to grow the fastest! Rupert, on the right of the picture above, can be seen in the picture above taking a snap. He was as impressed with Stationers as the Company was with him!
Court - Tuesday, 5 February 2013
There was a busy meeting of the Court yesterday at which two new Liverymen were cloathed - Mark Cropper, of James Cropper Plc and Brian Hibbitt of The International Printers Network Limited. We look forward to seeing them at forthcoming Company events. There was also another important piece of Company ceremonial; Paul Wilson of De La Rue was welcomed into Court as a new Court Assistant. As tradition has it, the most junior Court Assistant present, who happened yesterday to be Stephen Platten, Bishop of Wakefield (only last week heard addressing the House of Lords on Europe!) was required to introduce Paul to all the other Court Assistants, one by one!
The Court meeting was held, unusually, in the Stock Room because the Court Room was being prepared to hold another major Company event - a dinner given by the Stationers' Company for the Masters and Clerks of those Livery Companies who entertain our own Master and Clerk throughout the year. However, the Stock Room looked very splendid with the Court gowns standing out against the dark panelling - see the photo above.
Coming Soon - Jazz Evening with Kenny Ball, Thursday 25 April
Jazz loving Stationers will want to make a note of this Lord's Taverners event coming up at Stationers' Hall. Click here for more details about the evening's programme and for information about how to book tickets.
Stationers triumph on the slopes - Ian Locks reports
The Stationers' ski team returned to London at the weekend after a trophy fest in the national inter-livery ski championships at Morzine.
Competing with 22 companies, including the Mercers, Ironmongers, Vintners and Shipwrights, fielding 120 competitors, the Stationers' 11 strong team picked up three of the trophies. Freeman Will Brewster won the prized young skier trophy in a strong field. Fran Georgel, a ski instructor guesting for The Stationers as sister of Liveryman Dorothy Pooley, won the prize for fastest woman guest. In addition to his award, Will gained a silver medal for the time he achieved in the Grand Slalom and Jessie Woodhead won a bronze medal.
The Veterans' prize, the Stationers' teddy bear awarded to the fastest team of three with an aggregate age of more than 200 years, was won by the Stationers' team headed by captain and organiser Martin Woodhead supported by Rodney Mountford (Liveryman since 1974) and Under Warden Ian Locks. They narrowly avoided challenge from the Vintners with a team of 199 years and the Actuaries with 198.
Said Martin: "This was a great result for our team and for Will and Fran in particular. This event grows every year and it is great to see such interest from the Stationers."
Other members of the Stationers' team were Court Assistant Trevor Fenwick and Liverymen Oliver Gadsby, Mike Gee, Graham Griffiths, Chris Heyer - who designed the Stationers' ski helmet branding - and Jessica Woodhead.
You can see the team photo above with smaller insets of (from L-R) Fran Georgel receiving her prize, the Award of the Stationers' Teddy and Will Brewster with his trophy.
200 Plus Club Winners - January 2013
Elaine Pooke reports that the first winners for 2013 inthe 200 Plus club draw which was s made by a process of "shout" instantaneous personal response by attendees at the joint Stationers' and St Bride's Event on Monday, 21 January were
Angelic Arias and Soulful Songs - Monday 21 January 2013
The Hall was filled with glorious music last Monday as the choir of St Bride's church , familiar to all those who attend the Richard Johnson Memorial Service each year, sang a programme ranging from If Ye Love Me by Thomas Tallis to Nobody Does It Better whcih was originally sung by Carly Simon. It was all in aid of the St Bride's Spire Appeal and the Stationers' Foundation. After the singing the music turned more percussive as the autioneer's gavel came down on some 15 lots which, together with the proceeds of the raffle, raised £8150 for both good causes. It was a lovely evening - look out for the photos which will be on the website soon. This photo was taken by Andrea Lestrange.
Sheriff Wendy Mead's appeal for the British Red Cross
Photographic evidence has just come to light of Pádraig Belton's efforts on behalf of the Young Stationers to assist with Sheriff Wendy Mead's appeal in September 2012 for the British Red Cross. He says "I sheepishly agreed to take a sheep across London Bridge. There I am in the picture, attempting to make a stuffed ruminant look interesting" He goes on to claim that he didn't get three sheeps to the wind". Hmmmm!
Inter-Livery Skiing Competition - Tuesday 22 - Sunday 27 January 2013
Members will want to be rooting for our skiers who have just left for the Inter-Livery Skiing competition in Morzine. The actual competition will take place on 25 and 26 January but our contingent of Martin Woodhead, Dorothy Pooley, Graham Griffiths, Ian Locks, Jessica Woodhead, Mike Gee, Rodney Mountford, Oliver Gadsby Richard Brewster, Trevor Fenwick, William Brewster and Chris Heyer, are travelling by various modes of transport from 22 January and we wish them safe journeys both there and back. This year the Stationers hope to improve on their previous performances (last year they were 5th out of 10 and the B team won the 200+ prize, for a team of three clocking 200+ years between them!) and they will be helped in this ambition by sporting very smart ski helmet covers as shown in the photo. Keep watching this space for news of the results!
Trade Association Winter Event - Monday 21 January 2013
It was with some trepidation that we waited to see how many of our expected 36 guests were able to attend this event as over the previous weekend the country had just about shut down thanks to snow. In fact we were 28 round the lunch table which was pretty good going and especial mention should be made of Michael Gardner of BOSS who had managed to dig himself out of Leeds and still get to the Hall on time! Representatives of some 18 Trade Associations gathered to hear Ed Quilty, Director of Copyright and IP Enforcement at the Intellectual Property Office, talk about his work in the light of the Hargreaves report. The new format to this event, whereby the speaker addressed delegates in the Stock Room before an informal buffet-style lunch, allowed plenty of time for debate of the issues raised by Mr Quilty and for him to respond to questions before, at and after lunch.
National Calendar Awards - Thursday 17 January 2013
For the fourth year running Stationers’ Hall was the venue for the National Calendar Awards. Representatives from the corporate and retail calendar industry first had the chance to browse, with a drink in hand, the exhibition of nominated calendars in the Hall ....and to vote for the People's Choice. Then they moved through to the Court Room for the formalities. The Clerk welcomed them before the distribution of prizes began. You can read a full list of the industry winners here. Sharron Davies MBE, the British Swimmer, who took part in the Olympic Torch Relay last summer, was the guest speaker ........... and brought her torch! As well as the recognising excellence in the industry, further awards, sponsored by the Wynkyn de Worde Society, were made to students of Graphic Design for their innovative calendars. Receiving certificates were students from Blackpool and The Fylde College and York College and the overall winner was Donna Hall from York College. As well as designing a brilliant calendar Donna also made the paper on which it was printed! The students are pictured here with Sharron. Photo by Andrea Lestrange.
Announcing the first recipient of a new bursary
The Under Warden, Ian Locks, Trevor Fenwick and Professor Iain Stevenson, with the help of a panel, have over the course of the second half of 2012, undertaken an extensive search for a suitable student to take up the Stationers’ Company bursary for a post-graduate research studentship at University College London (UCL) to study the research-based commercial and economic case for copyright. They have awarded it to Aislinn O'Connell and we send her our congratulations and best wishes for her work in this important area. You can read more about the award and about Aislinn by clicking here.
Wednesday, 16 January 2013 - Plough Wednesday
Strange noises and aromas were experienced around St Paul's Cathedral today. Don't Panic! They were nothing to do with a resurgence of Occupy the City but rather they came from an exhibition linked to the start of the farming year. Brian Pocknall, our Registrar reckoned the exhibits had to be linked to Plough Sunday which was last Sunday and the Cathedral website here shows that it had moved things on to midweek and was in fact celebrating Plough Wednesday! It was certainly spectacular to see huge agricultural machines in front of St Paul's and sheep, ducks, etc to the side!
Monday, 14 January 2013 - SYP AGM
The Company was delighted to welcome the SYP's AGM back for the second year in a row last evening. After a quick drink, the nitty gritty of the AGM, thanking the old committee, which included Freeman Ella Kahn, and welcoming the new Committee, was soon dealt with thus enabling a return to the drinks and buffet! A turn of speed from which many august bodies could learn! It should not be thought, however, that all was frivolity. The gathering ended with a debate on censorship and banning books which was chaired by Lottie Chase the new SYP Chairman. It was scheduled to last an hour but could easily have gone on well into the night. There was a panel of three, each with an interesting take on the subject to stimulate discussion and take questions:-
Anna Holmwood - an agent for Chinese writing and a sub-agent in the Chinese Langauge markets at The Greyhawk Agency - she surprised many of us as she has not found China as prone to banning books as many of us had imagined.
Robert Sharp, Head of Campaigns and Communications with English PEN spoke forcefully about not banning books and very humorously about having to defend the rights of authors who actually wrote badly and unpleasantly.
Dr Kris Naudts who founded www.theculturetrip.com. This website showcases the best of art and culture for every country in the world but it does make decisions about what to include and what not to include and whilst that is not the same as banning it was nevertheless interesting to hear about the decisions they had to make about what was acceptable and what was not. A fascinating and enjoyable evening.
National Stationery Week
This is advance notice of National Stationery Week, 22-28 April 2013.
"One of the aims of this event is to encourage more people, and especially children to put pen to paper. Handwriting is enjoying a revival and is far from being the lost art some would have us believe” says organiser Liveryman Chris Leonard-Morgan.
“It still matters, and is more important than ever in today’s digital age. It’s why ‘Get Britain Writing’ has been adopted as the theme for National Stationery Week."
National Stationery Week is organised under the auspices of, and coincides with, the London Stationery Show which takes place at the Business Design Centre from 23-24 April 2013. The website for National Stationery week can be found here and more information can be obtained by emailing nationalstationeryweek@firstevents.com.
200 Plus Club Winners - December 2012
Elaine Pooke reports that these are the winners from the December draw which was made by a process of "shout" instantaneous personal response by attendees at the Christmas Luncheon on 5th December.
Friday, 14 December 2012, Conrad Swailes presents a cheque to the Clerk for the Foundation
On Friday, 14 December 2012 Conrad Swailes, CEO of Weboptimiser Group Ltd came to the Hall to present a cheque to the Clerk for the Foundation. The cheque represented an initial contribution from one of Conrad's other businesses, a shirt and blouse sales website, IVcuff. Click here to read about it and about how the business supports charity.
A final piece of Olympic News from two Stationers who worked as Amabassadors
Deputy Chairman of the Livery Committee, Elaine Pooke, and Past Master, Richard Brewster both worked as Ambassadors at London Stations during the Olympics. Elaine was a full time Manager at Paddington whilst Past Master Brewster worked for a Manager at Liverpool Street station. Elaine and Richard both said that they had tremendous fun although Richard admitted that it was hard work directing our foreign friends to places he had never heard of and they couldn’t pronounce. One such incident was when two Argentinian women speaking in broken English arrived at Liverpool Street station and wanted to be shown the Beatles. We thought they might want Abbey Road but it transpired they thought they were in Liverpool!!
Both Elaine and Richard were very impressed by how well their respective Station staff worked with the Ambassadors to provide visitors with a comprehensive and efficient service. Bravo to Team GB and Team Stationers. Elaine has written about her experiences and you can read more by clicking here.
Thursday, 6 December 2012 - Archive News
Liveryman Matthew Payne has written of an opportunity for anyone interested in Bookbindng to acquire British Bookbindings presented by Kenneth H Oldaker to the Chapter Library of Westminster Abbey. Click here for more details in the Archive News section of the website.
Wednesday, 5 December 2012 - Members' Christmas Lunch
The Hall's third Christmas lunch this week took place today! This event, formerly the Freemen's Christmas Lunch and now known as the Members' Christmas Lunch, was, as ever, well attended by Members and their guests. It was especially good to welcome Mandi Moore back to receive a token of the Company's appreciation for her service in the Office and to wish her well in her new role with the Information Technologists. We were also delighted to welcome Lady Roberts who is the Royal Librarian and who came to collect a gift from the Company to her Majesty to mark her Diamond Jubilee (see the photo above). Paul Kidson of Ludlow Bookbinders and a Liveryman had crafted a special presentation copy of The Stationers'Registers Reunited which, coincidentally, contains a photo of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee procession in London in 1887!
Tuesday, 4 December 2012 - British Journalism Awards
The Stationers' Company was delighted that the team from the Press Gazette chose to hold the inaugural British Journalism Awards at Stationers' Hall on Tuesday 4 December. Ian Locks a former CEO of the PPA, and Under Warden of the Company, welcomed Dominic Ponsford Editor of the Press Gazette who hosted the Awards and Lord Black of Brentwood, Executive Director of the Telegraph Group who came to report on the day's Leveson news. There were some 200 journalists present representing all forms of journalism from print to broadcast and online media. You can read about all the winners by clicking here. In the photo above (Press Gazette: JB Young Photography) you can see Ian Locks presenting the award for the Business Journalist of the Year to Chris Giles of the Financial Times. The awards ceremony ended poignantly with a special award being made posthumously to Marie Colvin who died earlier this year while reporting from Syria. The award was made for inspiring a generation of journalists.
Tuesday, 4 December 2012 - Cloathing
At the Court meeting held at the Hall today four new Livery men were cloathed. They are (from left to right in the photo above) Will Fordham, a Freelance Editor and Publisher; Tej Sood, Managing Director and Publisher, Anthem Press; John Peacock, Publishing Production Manager (retired) and Brian O'Connor, Managing Director, Worldwide Media Solutions Limited.
Monday, 3 December 2012 - Trade Christmas Lunch
Monday, 3 December 2012 saw over 200 arrive at the Hall for the Trade Christmas Lunch. Many of the great companies in the Communications and Content Industries took tables and whilst having a generally very jolly time they raised money for the Stationers' Foundation and for Children in Need .... which is why you can see a large Pudsey Bear on the table of Raffle Prizes in the back ground of the photo above!
Wednesday 21 November 2012 - Civic Dinner
The Company held its annual Civic Dinner on November 21, 2012. The Master, welcomed the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor of London, Alderman Roger Gifford (see the photo above) and the Lady Mayoress, Dr Clare Gifford. Alderman Sheriff Jeffrey Evans and Sheriff Nigel Pullman also attended, along with many other guests from the Company and the Communications and Content industries. You can read the Lord Mayor's speech by clicking here and we shall shortly be uploading the photos taken at the event to a gallery on the Events page of this website.
200 Plus Club Winners November 2012
Elaine Pooke reports that these are the winners from the November draw which was made by a process of "shout" instantaneous personal response from the Lord Mayor's Show Luncheon Raffle winners.
Next month's draw prizes will be:
Friday, 23 November- Land's End to John o'Groats and then to the House of Lords
Pádraig Belton reports that there was a very full House, as it were, in the Lords on Friday, at the dinner Lord Laird hosted to celebrate the fact that the lorries all missed Paddy during his Land's End to John o' Groats cycle ride for the Trauma Unit at the Royal London.
You can see photos from the evening by clicking here and read Paddy's reply to the toast in which he gives glimpses of his time on the bike by clicking here.
For news of a return visit to the House of Lords for the Young Stationers in 18th October 2013 click here.
Tuesday, 20 November 2012 - BTBS 175th Anniversary party at Stationers' Hall
The Book Trade Charity held a party last week at the Hall to celebrate its 175th Anniversary. David Hicks, their CEO and a Liveryman (see photo), welcomed members of the book industry and presented a short film about the work of the Charity. Many of those gathered already knew about The Retreat which can provide accommodation when someone with Industry connections has fallen on hard times but they also help out with smaller welfare requirements and with counselling and guidance in situations such as redundancy You can find out more about their work here. Photo by Mark Sims of Mark Sims Photography
An innovative Tour - Ghosts of Fleet Street
A new immersive guided tour, which traces the story of Fleet Street from its inky medieval beginnings to its 20th-century heyday and demise has been brought to our attention. Based on original research and led by London historian Dr Matthew Green with a troupe of actors and musicians, it visualises England's brutal struggle for press freedom in the 17th century, its spectacular birth in the era of Daniel Defoe and Dr Johnson, and its commercial exploitation at the hands of media tycoons in the 20th century. Click here for more detailsand here for their website.
AJS Labels wins PrintWeek award
For the second year running, AJS Labels has won the PrintWeek Label Printer of the Year award. AJS Labels, owned by Liveryman Andrew Scrimgeour, scooped the prize at this year’s event held at Grosvenor House Hotel on Monday, 22 October 2012. According to their website, the AJS labels which most impressed the judges were those from The Body Shop Nutriganics range, as well as those for Unilever and Asda. Both Managing Director Andrew Scrimgeour and his wife, Director Jayne Scrimgeour, were present to receive the award from host Jimmy Carr.
Monday 12 November- Moral Fibre 3: How Sustainable is your Supply Chain?
There was a good turn out last night of members and non-memers alike for the first event organised under the aegis of the Environment Group. It was especially good to see so many students, bursary recipients and young people there as the matters discussed by the panel were of huge relevance to all our futures but especially theirs! Mike Hancock, chair of the Environment Group, introduced the evening with an overview of the Group's aims. Then the Chairman of the panel, Francis Sullivan, introduced the speakers and aollocated them twelve minutes each!
Mark Thompson of PwC spoke about auditing sustainability. Fiona Wheatley of M&S spoke about that company's sustainability policy and the view that it wasn't just a case of caring for the environment but that it made good business sense. Jamie Overland of Banner Managed Communication showed us how they were tracking their supply chain, assessing its sustainability and preparing for future broadening of the requirements to do so. Finally Jane Bickerstaffe of INCPEN presented the case for packaging, of all sorts aimed at reducing wastage whether that be of perishable/fragile products, energy or packaging materials themselves. At the end of these four very interesting presentations questions flowed - in itself a sign of an engaged audience. In the photo above you can see fom left to right: Francis Sullivan Deputy Head of Group Corporate Sustainability and Advisor on the Environment, HSBC (Chairman of the Panel); Mark Thompson, Director Sustainability, PwC; Fiona Wheatley, Sustainable Development Manager, M&S; Jamie Overland, Category Director - Print Banner Managed Communication and Jane Bickerstaffe, Director, INCPEN.
New Freemen - Monday, 12 November 2012
One of the first highlights of what will prove to be one of the busiest days in a long time at the Hall was the Freedom Ceremony held at the start of the Master & Wardens' meeting this morning. The Company was delighted to welcome three new freemen, from left to right in the photo above, they are: Derek Hardy, Company Adviser, Hardy Services; Susan Lenssen, Export Manager, Jalema BV and William Fordham, Freelance Editor and Publisher and Communications Manager for Ormiston.
New Members' Evening, New Bursary Recipients receive their Certificates - 22 October 2012
We were delighted to welcome to the Hall ten students who have just started their Masters degrees in subjects related to the content and communications industries and who are being helped in that by bursaries from the Stationers' Foundation. Once they finish their courses they will be invited to become Freemen of the Company at next October's New Members' Evening just as those from 2011 were made free at this one (see item below). In the photo above you can see from left to right Kelly Arnstein, Emily Robertson, Fiona Watson, Zara Markland, the Master, Shelley Hale, Ella Dickinson, Unity Blott, Sarah Beattie and Nia Beynon. The tenth student, Fay Humphreys, can be seen below collecting her certificate from the Master.
New Members' Evening, Freedom Ceremony - 22 October 2012
On what was a very busy New Members' Evening last Monday we witnessed 12 people including nine bursary winners from 2011 become Freemen of the Company. They are: Robert Baldrey, Paul Collins, Madeleine Cuff, Torah Dee, Laura Evans, Emma Griffin, Annie Johnson, Andrea Lestrange, Alexandra McGuire, Clive Rozario, Emma Smith and James Vaughan. In the Photo above (taken by Sophia Panteli) you can see them lined up to make their declaration. It only happens like this in the Livery Hall twice a year (usually Freedom Ceremonies take place in the Court Room) and it makes a splendid sight.
200 Plus Club Winners October 2012
£100 - Robert.J. Russell
£ 50 - Richard Harrison
£ 50 - Bill Brindle
£ 25 - K.W. Johnson
£ 25 - Sarah C. Blair-Oliphant
Congratulations to all winners. This month the draw was made by a process of "shout" instantaneous personal response from the Master and Wardens after their meeting at Stationers' Hall!
Pádraig Belton's Mission Accomplished - Monday 22 October 2012
Radio 4 In Our Time - Thursday, 18 October 2012
Members may be interested to find the In Our Time programme from Thursday, 18 October 2012 on BBC i-Player. It was about Caxton and the influence of his activities on publishing and literature. Click here to access the site. As well as Melvyn Bragg it features three distinguished scholars: Richard Gameson Professor of the History of the Book at the University of Durham; Julia Boffey, Professor of Medieval Studies in the English Department at Queen Mary, University of London and David Rundle, Member of the History Faculty at the University of Oxford.
Print Efficiently Event - Wednesday, 17 October 2012
Deborah Rea visited the Print Efficiently event held at the showrooms of Intelligent Finishing Systems Ltd (Joint MD, Liveryman Tony Hards) in Perivale and met up with Liveryman Annie Hotton who undertakes PR for Kodak. Annie also sits on the Shine 2013 School Media Awards Committee and had arranged for Shine to be featured at the exhibition. It was good to see the Shine banners getting an airing and to note the Shine brochures available for visitors and exhibitors alike to peruse. Hopefully this will have raised the profile of this competition which encourages school children to produce their own school publication. Click here to visit the Shine website.
Wine Tasting - Monday 15 October 2012
Some 46 Stationers and their guests gathered on Monday evening for a tutored evening of wine-tasting. The wines were selected and introduced by David Allen MW, of Coe Vintners, who is an acknowledged authority on Bordeaux. They were offered in pairs chosen to emphasise and highlight the differing terroirs and the contrast in tastes between reds based on Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and the white wines based on Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc. A good time was had by all - especially those who were averse to spitting!
New Freemen - Monday, 15 October 2012
We were delighted to make to have an unusal Freedom Ceremony this week. the Master and Wardens convened just before the Livery Lunch to make eight people free. They are (from left to right in the photo)Andrew Hubbard, Director, Closer Partners LLP;
Michael Stuchfield, Recent Graduate; Ella Kahn, Assistant Literary Agent,Andrew Nurnberg Associates;Stephen Crouden, Superintendent Construction Engineer and Project Manager, Bechtel International;Nicola Moran, Sales Manager, Metsa Board; Scott McKechnie, National Accounts Manager, Esselte; Alexandra Hardy, Solicitor, Harbottle and Lewis LLP and Paul Pinder, Director, Boards Direct.
Thursday, 4 October 2012 - Bookstart reception at Lancaster House
Last Thursday Deborah Rea was lucky enough to attend a reception hosted by Miriam González Durántez at Lancaster House to celebrate 20 years of Bookstart. Miriam spoke movingly about how she and her husband, Nick Clegg, treasure the time spent reading to their children. Jaqueline Wilson, creator of Tracey Beaker, reiterated how important it is to get children hooked on books and reading as soon as possible which is exactly what the work of Bookstart tries to do by delivering free books to babies and children. You can find out more about this important work by visiting the Booktrust website here. As the Livery Company for the Content and Communication Industries it is absolutely in the Stationers' interest that all members of the population can read well so, as well as checking out the Booktrust site, why not also visit the pages on this website devoted to the support the Company gives to the Saturday schools in Kings Cross and Kilburn (click here).
Wednesday, 3 October 2012 - The Master has his badge assayed
Members may remember from their Clerk's briefing that one of the functions of a Livery Company was to ensure that standards within the industry it represented were maintained. Only a relative few Livery Companies are still active in maintaining standards but the Goldsmiths is one of them and the Master took advantage of his recent visit to ensure that his travelling badge (the one he wears when he is outside the Hall) is the real deal! It is! Do read his blog (here) about his visit.
South Asian Literature Festival - Thursday, 4 October 2012
The Company was delighted yesterday to welcome to the Hall the South Asian Literature Festival. Their speaker, the eminent journalist, Sir Mark Tully, discussed with TV and radio personality Nikki Bedi what the future holds for India's development, and his experience of working, living and travelling in that country. Sir Mark has an extremely deep knowledge of India having many years' experience to draw on and that resulted in a most enjoyable and interesting evening for all those who attended.
Cloathing Ceremony - Tuesday, 2 October 2012
It was good to see four people being cloathed as Liverymen at yesterday's Court Meeting. They were, from left to right in the photo above, David Hicks, Chief Executive, BTBS (the Book Trade Charity); Alison Strachan, Bindery Director, Shepherds Book Binders Limited; Stephen Harrop, MD, Office Friendly Dealer Association Limted; and Sarah Morgan, Group Portfolio Manager, Office of Communications. We congratulate them all and hope that they continue to enjoy and be active in the Company.
200 Plus Club Winners September 2012
September 2012
£100 - Sandra Hull
£ 50 - Gerald Hill
£ 50 - Melissa Connell
£ 25 - Ian Locks
£ 25 - Barbara Hempenstall
Congratulations to all winners. Elaine Pooke has now taken over the administration of the 200 Plus Club and reports that this month the draw was made by a process of "shout" instantaneous personal response from office staff!
British Armorial Bindings Database
This is an image of the Stationers' Company stamp. Matthew Payne, Keeper of the Muniments at Westminster Abbey and on the Library and Archives Committee of the Stationers' Company, writes that members of the Company may be interested to hear of the launch of an important new online reference work for book history. The British Armorial Bindings Database, begun by the late John Morris and continued by Philip Oldfield of the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library at the University of Toronto, is now available on the web. to find out more please visit the Archives News page by clicking here.
Society of Young Publishers - Friday 21 September 2012
It was a pleasure to welcome the Society of Young Publishers to the Hall again last Friday. The SYP meet regularly to have fun, to learn more about their sector of the industry and to develop their career strategies. On Friday the discussion was wide-ranging but broadly speaking focused on how to make the break into a salaried job within publishing and the value of work experience both paid and unpaid! The panel was made up of three nominees for the Kim Scott Walwyn prize, Bethan Jones, Head of Yellow Jersey Press/crime fiction and Senior Publicity Manager at Chatto and Windus, Harvill Secker and Square Peg; Donna Condon, Senior Commissioning Editor at Piatkus, Little, Brown; Eleanor Crawforth, Editor and Sales and Marketing Manager at Carcanet Press; plus this Year's winner, Rukhsana Yasmin, Commissioning Editor at Westbourne Press and Telegram Books at Saqi Books. Charles Haynes, a Stationer, chaired the panel. Nearly 40 people arrived to listen, discuss and enjoy the buffet spread afterwards. The fact that this took place on a (wet!) Friday evening when one might expect partying and relaxation rather than career development to be uppermost in the mind of this particular group is a measure of how difficult it is to get into and on in Publishing and it was inspirational to hear the stories and advice given by such a successful quartet. In the picture you can see, from left to right, Rukhsana Yasmin, Donna Condon, Charles Haynes, and Eleanor Crawforth.
Lord Black of Brentwood speaks to the Young Stationers - Tuesday, 18 September 2012
The Young Stationers met at Bucks on Tuesday night to hear Lord Black of Brentwood speak on life after Leveson. The evening was a great success and by all accounts Lord Black was questioned keenly! For fuller accounts of the evening please click here to vist the Young Stationers page and click here for the Masters' Blog Stardate 2012.09.12.
Things to do in the City and London - September 2012
Members may be interested to know that this coming weekend, 22-23 September, is Open House Weekend in London. There are dozens of buildings opening and allowing the public to glimpse behind the scenes. Find out more by clicking here. Also, The City of London Department of Culture, Heritage and Libraries have put together a great programme of events for the Autumn ranging from walks to talks and from art to family history. Of particular interest might be the Printing and Publishing in Clerkenwell morning on Friday, 21 September but booking is essential (call 020 7332 3851). Click here for the full programme. The image above (Germs, 2003, John Bartlett) is from the John Bartlett: London Sublime Exhibition which will run from 12 October to 20 January at Guildhall Art Gallery and which captures contemporary London.
Giles Deacon Fashion Show - Monday, 17 September 2012
We were delighted that Giles Deacon wanted to come back to Stationers' Hall for a second fashion show (he first came in February) and all day yesterday the Hall throbbed to the sounds of loud music as preparations were made for last night's main event. Thanks to Iqraa Hassan, who is currently undertaking work experience with the Company, for the photo above which clearly shows the Hall crammed with fashionistas and a perfect foil for Deacon's gorgeous creations. We shall be keeping an eye open for reports in the press to see how the collection has been received.
Freedom Ceremony - Monday, 17 September 2012
Congratulations to the following (from left to right in the photo above) Mr Tej Sood, Managing Director & Publisher of Anthem Press, Mr Mike Holme, National Account Manager of The Robert Horne Group, Mr Nicholas Alexander, Group Chief Executive of Garnett Dickinson Holdings Ltd, Mr Brian Hibbitt, Treasurer and Company Secretary of The International Printers Network Ltd and Mr Brian O'Connor, MD of Worldwide Media Solutions Limited who were made free of the Company today in a ceremony which, if not unique, was certainly unusual. Stationers' Hall was booked for an event so the freedom ceremony and the Master and Wardens' meeting were held a couple of hundred yards away at Cutlers' Hall in Warwick Lane where we were very grateful for the warm welcome we received.
Launch of the British Journalism Awards - 14 September 2012
The Press Gazette has just launched its British Journalism Awards. The idea is to celebrate and promote good journalism which is, as the press release says (click here to read it in full) both interesting to the public and in the public interest. The Stationers' Company is a partner in the event in that the winners will be announced at Stationers' Hall on 4 December and one of our Liverymen, George Brock, is to be one of the judges. There are ten categories for entries including for photojournalism, for sports, and for science and technology (see the press release for the full list) and it is hoped that they will come from national, regional, consumer, and business titles and from broadcasting. Watch this space for news of the winners in due course.
MA Conservation 2012, Camberwell College of Arts
Richard Gilpin who volunteers in the Company Library writes - The Company enjoys a good working relationship with Camberwell College of Arts, and in recent months one of its MA Conservation students, Meagen Smith, has been a regular visitor to the Stationers' Library and Archive in connection with her assessed coursework. Her project here focussed on the preservation management of the Company’s Library and Archives, and she ran a ‘hands on’ workshop in the Library in order to encourage staff to handle the volumes and documents in accordance with best practice. The photo shows part of her presentation on handling techniques. She also created a draft emergency response plan; helped with some practical conservation; and was involved in issues relating to the cataloguing of the archive.
The results of Meagen’s work formed part of an exhibition at Camberwell College for a week in early September, which acted as a showcase for the fascinating projects completed by its MA Conservation students. We are happy that Meagen’s work here has proved beneficial both for her and the Company, and we wish her well in her future career as a conservator.
DMG Roundtable - Monday, 10 September 2012
Giles Fagan writes - The Digital Media Group celebrated its fifth anniversary with a fantastic Roundtable meeting in the Court Room at Stationers’ Hall. After welcoming everyone, Chairman Ian Bennett introduced Liveryman George Walkley, who began the discussion with a very accessible presentation on the benefits and pitfalls of HTML5. With both technically minded and non-technically minded members present, there followed a fascinating discussion on the pros and cons of HTML5, any alternatives to HTML5, and where the future of app and web development lies and how best to harness it. Much was learnt and the discussion was very well received by all present, who went on to enjoy some convivial networking accompanied by good food and wine!
The next DMG event, in conjunction with the Wine Committee, is a tutored Wine Tasting at the Hall on 30 October. Tickets are available to buy on the website by clicking here
Olympic Victory Parade - Monday, 10 September 2012
It was a busy day at the Hall yesterday with both the Hall and Heritage and Membership Development Committees sitting. Committee Members struggled nobly into the Hall past huge crowds waiting to see the Olympic Victory Parade the route for which passed down Ludgate Hill. Just over an hour into the meetings it became obvious that the show was on the road! The noise was amazing. Some members of the office team managed to get out and get a good spot to see the floats go past and Susana de Souza caught the atmosphere in the photo above showing the float with Lewis Smith, the gymnast just visible at the front, the crowds and people hanging out of windows. The reason why so many of the people on the float are pointing upwards is that there were even people on the rooftops of the buildings around Paternoster Square. Now that the Olympics and Paralympics are over people are wondering what on earth they are going to do - well there is plenty coming up at Stationers' Hall so get your diaries and your bulk mail together and start booking!
Young Stationers at the SYP Quiz Night - Tuesday,4 Septemer 2012
Pádraig Belton reports that last night, 4 September, at Proud (a very "cool" venue in Camden) the Young Stationers took second place in a field of twelve at the Society of Young Publishers' magnificent quiz evening. This is a considerably better Stationers' performance than was achieved last year when the Clerk and Communications Manager also took part! Congratulations to the participants (from left in the photo: Miss Alyson Denza, Justin Chilton, Miss Samantha Chappell, Robin Fellerman, Oliver Flory, Liveryman Pádraig Belton, Miss Katie Hanson Pettengell, Miss Emma Hartley and Christopher Priebe) and to the SYP for organising such a fun event.
Stationers' Company visit to the Fitzwilliam Museum - 29 June 2012
Liveryman Thelma Rolfe has kindly supplied a report on the visit by a group of Stationers to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge on Friday, 29 June. Accompanied by a guide the group became thoroughly engrossed in the exhibition of the The Tomb Treasures of Han China which is entitled “The Search for Immortality.” The treasures as you will be able to tell from reading Thelma's report (click here) and from the photo above were pretty amazing. The details of the photo are as follows:
There is still time for those who were unable to join this trip to go to see the treasures as the exhibition, admission to which is free, will last until 11 November 2012. Full details can be see by clicking here.
Stationers'Foundation Bursary Recipient Starts Work
We have received from Madeleine Cuff (pictured above) an article about how a bursary from the Stationers' Foundation helped her to achieve her dream of becoming a journalist. The award was made for City University’s 2011-2012 Magazine Journalism MA course. Madeleine passed with a distinction, and is now beginning work as a staff writer for the trend forecasting agency, Stylus. You can read her article by clicking here and in doing you will soon see how important these awards are to their recipients. Madeleine's article reinforces similar messages given by Owen Dods and Beulah Devaney in the Foundation's Film which was recently launched and which you can still view on YouTube by clicking here.
Young Stationers' Olympic Party - Tuesday, 21 August 2012
Improvements to the Livery Hall Doors - Monday, 13 August 2012
There isn't a huge programme of works scheduled for this summer as the Hall has been kept available for hire in case the Olympics generate a market for such a venue above and beyond that which already exists. The work which is being done is therefore small compared with the huge redecorating jobs or bathroom improvements of previous years which certainly could not have been undertaken without the Hall being completely closed. One task currently being tackled is the refurbishment of the Hall Doors to include new black-outs behind the glazed parts. These will tone in with the refurbished chiffoniers. In the photo you can see the doors in their stripped state.
200 Plus Club Winners July and August 2012
July 2012
£100 - Paul Kidson
£50 - Roy Hodgson
£50 - Clive McKeogh
£25 - Ian Colverd
£25 - Alan Brooker
August 2012
£100 - Geoffrey Baker
£50 - Gillian Allan
£50 - Maureen Hodgson
£25 - Sandra Hull
£25 - Michael Barnard
Congratulations to all our winners.
Olympic Torch goes through The City - Thursday, 26 July 2012
Huge excitement in the City of London this morning - and this is probably as close to 'Breaking News' as our web page is likely to get - the Olympic torch is passing through the City and here is a photo of the Olympic torch kiss on the steps of St Paul's Cathedral taken not twenty minutes ago! The torch was preceded by a lot of commercial "floats" but the torch and the runners themselves did make quite a stirring sight!
Euromonitor celebrates! - Thursday 19 July 2012
Details of Euromonitor's celebratory evening on 19 July have just reached us. On that evening Stationers'Hall saw Euromonitor International celebrate its 40th Anniversary with a party for over 200 London-based employees and industry guests. In the photo above you can see Robert Senior (Chairman) and Trevor Fenwick (Managing Director) cutting the anniversary cake.
Trevor, one of our Court Assistants, spoke of the enduring relevance of the Stationers' Company which embraced new technology in the 15th century and continues to do so in the 21st Century as the industry transitions to digital media. Euromonitor was established in 1972 as a publisher of reference books and market reports. The company is now a digital publisher of market analysis with 850 employees working from 12 global offices. 2012 is a landmark year for Euromonitor as it has also been recognised by the Sunday Times Fast Track survey as being one of the UK’s fastest growing companies and major foreign currency earners with 90% of sales from overseas. In the photo below you can see Robert Senior and Trevor Fenwick receive the Sunday Times Fast Track “One to recognise” Award 2012 from PWC partner, Suzi Woolfson. Trevor praised the hall staff and caterers for making the event such a success. He commented “We have a young workforce and this was the first time they had visited Stationers' Hall. It was a great place for them to be as they enjoyed a bbq in the garden and dancing in the hall”
Cloathings and the binding of an apprentice at Court - Tuesday, 24 July
The second July Court took place yesterday at which there were 12 cloathings and, unusually, an apprentice was bound. Dr Douglas East presented James Male, one of his students of bookbinding at Westminster School, to the Master. James was given the traditional gifts of a bible and a prayer book at a ceremony at which his parents were present. In the photo you can see from l-r, Mr Male with James, Dr East and Mrs Male.
At the end of the Court meeting the cloathings took place and the new liverymen then attended a Court lunch for their welcome to the livery. In the picture you can see from l-r: Michael Gardner, Simon Graham, Douglas Wills, Andrew Fletcher, Anthony Hards, Martin Turnbull, Janet Bell, Andrea Davis, Bert Abel, Chris Downham, Robert Vale, and Charlotte Gooch.
Trade Association Summer Event - 23 July 2012
The Stationers' Company was delighted to welcome representatives from just under twenty Trade Associations from the industries which make up the the trades of our guild to its TA summer lunch. The speaker, Brian Greenwood from the Department of Business, Innovations and Skills, addresssed the gathering and then the floor was opened to questions. It was a useful session in that Mr Greenwood cannot have done other than return to government with the message that the content and communications industries understand perfectly how much they are contributing to the UK economy and feel that the government needs to recognise better that they bridge the divide between the Business,Innovations and Skills and Culture, Media and Sport departments (as opposed to falling between the two stools!). In the photo you can see l-r Sidney Bobb (BAPC) Chris Buxton (PPMA) Brian Greenwood (BIS) and Tony Mash who is the TA liaison for the Company.
Young Stationers Dinner with Lord Inglewood - Wednesday 18 July 2012
Pádraig Belton reports that some 50 people enjoyed the Young Stationers’ dinner at the Savile Club and the talk from Lord Inglewood on Investigative Journalism. Click here for the Clerk’s blog on the event. Apparently the question and answer session went on until 11.30 pm and there was much energetic debate. Many attendees continued the debate …… and fun until dawn at a watering hole in Soho! In the picture you can see from left to right: Maya Robert a freeman and bursary winner, Pádraig Belton, Lord Inglewood, Elena Georgantzis from Agence France Press, the Clerk, and Emma Hartley, City University journalism lecturer and former associate editor of the Telegraph.
PrintWeek Power 100 - Wednesday 18 July 2012
Regardless of the fact that the evening was grey and damp (again!) representatives from all across the printing industry gathered at the Hall on Wednesday to learn who had gone up and who had gone down in the printing charts! After a welcome from Publishing Director, Beth Pedersen, seen in the photo above, the top ten were announced in reverse order by Darryl Danielli, Print Week's Editor. The full listing was then shown on screens and will be published in full in Friday's edition of Print Week but you can see it and read lots more about the event by clicking here.
Launch of copyrightandschools.org - Tuesday, 10 July 2012
The Copyright Licensing Agency invited Deborah Rea, representing the Shine School Media Awards, to the launch of a new one-stop-website for schools. The aim of the site is to enable schools to access all the information they need to make sure that they don't infringe copyright requirements. This new site is the work of a consortium of licensing organisations all of whom were congratulated by Kevin Fitzgerald, CEO of the CLA (and a liveryman) on their achievement. Baroness Wilcox, Parliamentary Under Secretary for Business, Innovation & Skills, spoke and stressed how important copyright is to the UK economy and then Richard Hooper CBE (appointed in November 2011 by Vince Cable to lead a feasibility study on developing a Digital Copyright Exchange (DCE) in the UK) said that he hoped further simplification could be achieved eventually by reducing the number of agencies involved. Students from Derrick Wood School, Bromley, demonstrated how easy it is to use the new site which you can view by clicking here. In the photo you can see (L-R) Kevin Fitzgerald, Baroness Wilcox and Richard Hooper CBE.
Stationers' Foundation Garden Party - Monday, 9 July 2012
The weather was not kind, although some hardy souls did venture into the garden, but the atmosphere at the Stationers'Foundation Garden Party was wonderful and everyone enjoyed food, wine and chat. More importantly, members and their guests were delighted, having watched the Foundation's new film, to understand so much more about the work that the Foundation does. Watch it now on YouTube by clicking here! Do also consider whether you might, if you have not already done so, sign up for a regular donation. Click here for the Foundation's 'How To Donate' page.
Sir Christopher Meyer's new TV series starting Tuesday 10 July 2012
Starting on 10 July, Sir Christopher Meyer will present Networks of Power, a landmark documentary series exploring how subtle relationships of power operate in key cities across the globe. There will be six programmes covering New York, Rome, Los Angeles, Moscow, Mumbai and London. The latest information from Sky Atlantic, who made the series, is that the programme on London, which will "probably" feature the sequences shot at Stationers' Hall, will be shown in mid-August. Click here for more detail.
Change of Master- Tuesday, 3 July 2012
Tuesday, 3 July 2012 saw one of the big (if not the biggest!) ceremonies of the Company year here at Stationers' Hall. Master, Upper and Under Wardens of 2011-2012, Nigel Stapleton, Kevin Dewey and Tom Hempenstall were metamorphosed into their new roles of Immediate Past Master, Master and Upper Warden with Ian Locks becoming Under Warden for the year 2012-2013. After all the formalities there was a delightful gathering for the Master's Installation Party. Look out for the photographs which should be coming soon, meanwhile here is one of the new Master.
Queen's Birthday Honours
Congratulations to Liveryman Tony Baldry, the Member of Parliament for Banbury since 1983, who was made a knight in the Queen's Birthday Honours List this year "for public and political service". Congratulations too to Lady Meyer, Sir Christopher Meyer's wife, who was awarded a CBE for her work with PACT - Parents and Children together, the charity she founded and of which she is Chief Executive.
Shine 2012 School Media Awards - Monday, 25 June 2012
Stationers' Hall was absolutely buzzing yesterday as some 25 schools received their Shine 2012 School Media Awards at a ceremony presented by Daily Mail columnist and Online Editor Simon Heffer (who is also a Liveryman) and children’s author Keren David. After 170 expressions of interest in the competition 70 schools entered and a rigorous judging process ensued to arrive at the finalists. Simon Heffer praised the standard of entries, suggesting that several were worthy of professional status, and that the enthusiasm of those taking part came through in their work. The Master, speaking at the end of the ceremony, said the Company’s passion for words went back over 600 years and the Shine School Media Awards were an investment in passing on that passion to a new generation of young people.
This is the second year of this competition in England and Wales. It is managed and promoted by the Stationers’ Foundation under the aegis of Ian Locks and recognises young, creative talent, helps develop literacy and business skills and encourages the students to consider the publishing industry as a career choice. Prior to the ceremony the students were able to visit an exhibition provided by many of the sponsors some of whom also provided seminars of real benefit to the students at which they could ask questions about the products on show and career options open to them. In the photo you can see some of the students and teachers looking at the entries while some of the seminars are taking place in the background.
Summer Forum - Monday, 18 June 2012
Stationers' Hall was filled with members from three livery companies last night - Stationers, Marketors and Information Technologists - for the Stationers' Annual Summer Forum on the theme 'London Games 2012 - Pure Marketing Gold?'. Andrew Hubbard of the Information Technologists was the moderator. The distinguished panel comprised Simon Hill, Managing Partner - McCann Worldgroup – 2012 Official Marketing Service Provider; Nikki Crumpton, Strategy Director McCann - McCann Worldgroup; Chris Daniels, Head of London 2012 Activation - Lloyds TSB; David Atkinson, Founder & Managing Partner - Space - Award-winning marketing agency and Dr Sarah Wood, Co-founder & COO - Unruly Media - Global platform for social video advertising. The audience listened attentively to some detailed presentations (Stationers can click through to David's slides and presentation here) and posed some tricky but pertinent questions about the rigidity with which some sponsors were insisting on the protection of their rights. You can view photos of the event by clicking here.
St Bride's Fleet Street Olympic Festival
Pádraig Belton and fellow Liveryman Peter Silver are both very involved with the organisation of St Bride's Fleet Street Olympic Festival which will take place between 23 and 27 July. Celebrating the start of the Olympics, the festival will feature a mix of music, worship and partying! You can read all the details of the event and how to book, etc, by clicking here.
Celebrating 20 years of Bookstart - Wednesday, 13 June 2012
HRH the Duchess of Cornwall visited Booktrust and its friends on Wednesday, to cut a birthday cake to celebrate 20 years of Bookstart (A scheme which gives books to babies and pre-schoolers to encourage the enjoyment of books from an early age.) and to wish the scheme long life as it seeks to weather a 50% cut in its funding last year, and a further 20% cut in 2012. Representing the Stationers, Deborah Rea and Pádraig Belton went along to the Kensington Roof Gardens, to pass along all of the Company's warmest wishes to Booktrust's Chief Executive Viv Bird, and have cake with Camilla — who read a story-book to a group of London children beforehand. Do have a look at the website by clicking here and pledge to share (encourage someone to enjoy) twenty of your favorite books this year. As well as Viv Bird and the Duchess of Cornwall you can see Julia Donaldson, the Children's Laureate, author of The Gruffalo, in this picture.
Richard Johnson Service and Lunch - 12 June 2012
Freemen and Liverymen gathered, according to their annual tradition, in St Bride's Church Fleet Street to remember Richard Johnson, to enjoy the magnificent singing of the choir and to hear the sermon preached on the theme "vita humana bulla est". This year the preacher was the Reverend Ian Wheatley RN, Chaplain of 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines. In a very moving and poignant account Reverend Wheatley told how Royal Marines in Afghanistan undertook patrols and protected themselves as best they could against Improvised Explosive Devices by means of Electronic Counter Measures. These create an "ECM Bubble" around the soldiers to block the transmissions of devices used by insurgents to detonate the IEDs. The soldiers support each other whilst on patrol thus maximising the efficacy of the "bubble", putting others first and themselves after. That Royal Marines’ bubble, Reverend Wheatley suggested, is matched by the bubble a livery company such as the Stationers' Company puts around its members, those in its industries and those whose education and welfare it supports. To read the Reverend Wheatley's full sermon click here. For more photos of the day click here.
Freemen's Association Dinner Spectacular
Photographs and a report of the Freemen’s Assocation Dinner Spectacular on 27 April have just reached the office. The Freemen’s Association under the Chairmanship of Mike Kerlogue took the Master and his wife Johanna, together with some 120 Liverymen, Freemen and their guests back to 1897 for a Music Hall entertainment. There was singing, dancing, escapology (!) and generally much fun was had by all and you can view the photographic evidence by clicking here.
History of the Livery Companies - Tuesday, 10 July 2012
On Tuesday, 10 July at 1.00 pm in the Basinghall Suite at Guildhall (access via the Guildhall Art Gallery) one of our Court Assistants, Professor Tim Connell, will give a lecture as part of the City of London Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker event. The subject of the lecture will be the history of the livery companies and Tim says that The Stationers, of course, will get star billing! Click here for more details. Tim, who writes and broadcasts regularly on a wide range of themes is a graduate of Oxford, Liverpool and London universities, was Director of Language Studies at City University London and became an emeritus professor in 2009. He is also an honorary life fellow of Gresham College.
Diamond Jubilee Lunch, Tuesday, 5 June 2012
On Tuesday the weekend's Jubilee events continued and after a Service in St Paul's Cathedral the Queen and members of the Royal Family attended a Diamond Jubilee lunch in Westminster Hall. Along with some 700 guests representing charities, the armed forces, etc, were representatives from the livery companies of the City of London including the Stationers whose allocation of ten tickets was taken up by the Master, Past Master Sir Clive Martin and Giselle Mandl. Also present were Ms Sigrid Rausing, whose father Professor Hans Rausing was recently made an Honorary Freeman and Liveryman of the Company; bursary recipient Andrea Lestrange; David Luard who restored the fire damaged screen in the Hall; Eleanor Rogerson from Civitas with whom the Company works on the Saturday School project; Ella Kahn, past chair of the Society of Young Publishers and currently going through the process to become a member of the Company; Lt Col Steve Crouden of the Royal Marines and L/Cpl John Chalmers who was injured whilst serving in Afghanistan. Andrea took the photo.
Diamond Jubilee River Pageant - Sunday, 3 June 2012
Most of the nation will have watched the River Pageant on television. Hundreds of thousands of people lined the banks of the Thames and 48 lucky Stationers set out early from Canary Wharf and boarded the Thistle which was moored close to the end point of the pageant in order to be even closer to the proceedings! They were in plenty of time to soak up the atmosphere - perhaps a little too literally as it turned out - of this historic event. Upper lips were stiffened against the cold and wet but spirits were high as was the Company flag which the Master and the event organiser, Georgine Thorburn, raised and which fluttered at the mast through out the day. Coffee, pastries, champagne, and a leisurely lunch all contributed to the festivities and then the spectacle began. Ian Locks, who took this photo as the tender first approached Thistle, reports that some stayed on deck right to the end while others repaired below to watch on the television .....and in the dry! A great day was had by all. Click here for a montage of images of the day taken by Ian Locks
Jubilee Weekend 2-5 June 2012
The Corporation of London recently requested that as many buildings in the City as possible should try to fly the union flag over the course of this very special weekend. As the Hall is so close to St Paul's Cathedral, where the Queen will attend a special service on Tuesday, 5 June and indeed to the Thames which will be the stage for the Jubilee Flotilla on Sunday 3 June, it was felt that we should comply. As you can see from the photograph the flag looks splendid flying from the Company flagpole. We wish all those Stationers embarking on the Thistle a very happy day as they watch the pageant from her decks and indeed send good wishes to all, however they may be celebrating this historic event. You can find out much more about the events from the official Diamond Jubilee website by clicking here.
The People's Book Prize - Wednesday, 30 May 2012
Last night Stationers' Hall was the venue for the awards ceremony for the People's Book Prize. Tatiana Von Saxe Wilson, a Liveryman and Prize Administrator, runs this annual event at which prizes are awarded according to votes cast by members of the public. You can read more about the prize and previous winners, etc, at http://www.peoplesbookprize.com. The photo above shows in the front row from left to right: Tatiana Von Saxe Wilson, David Cohen (winner of the special achievement award for “London Calling”), Daphne Fong (winner of the Beryl Bainbridge Award for First Time Author for “Revenge Of The Thirteen”), Frederick Forsyth CBE (patron of The People's Book Prize), Valerie Thornhill (winner in the Fiction Category for “In Restoration”), Helen Donlon representing author Johan Bakker winner of the Non Fiction Category for “Behind The Rainbow”). In the back row we can see from left to right: Andrew Eborn and Tony Humphreys both of The People’s Book Prize Limited, and Giles Paley-Phillips (winner in the Children’s category for “The Fearsome Beastie” ). Our congratulations to all the winners.
Royal River: Power, Pageantry and the Thames 27 April to 9 September 2012
This exhibition which was highly acclaimed by The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph, The Times and The Observer runs throughout course of the summer. Several Livery companies have sent interesting items for display - The Stationers' Company has lent a Barge Master’s Badge. In recognition of theseLivery contributions the organisers are offering a 20% discount on tickets to members of Livery Companies - use LIVERY 1 as the promotional code when booking online (click here to book and for more details) and take proof of membership along when you go. A group of six or more will attract a 30% discount but bookings have to be made by calling 020 8312 6608 and using the promotional code LIVERY 2. The guest curator is David Starkey who was, of course, the speaker at the recent Charter Dinner. (Image: London: The Thames on Lord Mayor’s Day, Looking Towards the City and St Paul’s Cathedral, before 1752, by Canaletto; The Lobkowicz Collections, Czech Republic)
Stationers' Hall Garden
Members will be pleased to know that the garden is surviving the hosepipe ban and will be even more better able to do so following the installation of an irrigation system. Pipes which will allow water to drip into the ground just where it is needed have been laid around the beds. This is permitted within the rules of the the hosepipe ban. As you will see from the photograph taken on Friday, 25 May, the garden is looking quite well despite the work involved which included lifting some of the paving stones in order to hide the pipes.
Shine 2012 School Media Awards - Final Judging - Tuesday, 22 May 2012
The Stock Room was full of eminent people from the world of print and online magazines and newspapers today as the final judging took place for the Shine School Media Awards. Registrations and entries were well up this year and required an extra two judging panels to complete the task but after a morning's concentration and debate the work was done. In the photo above Lord Black of the Telegraph Group is seen conferring with Simon Heffer of The Daily Mail who is Chairman of the Judges. Preparations are now in hand for the awards day on 25 June. Watch this space for details of the winners.
Digital Media Group Roundtable - Monday, 21 May 2012
There were some forty gathered in the Court Room on Monday night for the roundtable on Realising Shareholder Value through Company Mergers, Acquisitions and Equity Offerings.
The Panel, Jason Cromack of Lateral Group, Raymond McKeeve, Head of Private Equity /M&A, BLP and Llewellyn John of FF&P Private Equity was chaired by Nick Mockett of Moorgate Capital. They covered a vast amount of ground as far as their own personal experiences and their advice were concerned. It was obviously a subject which sparked great interest and there was much note-taking and several questions from the floor at the end of the presentations. As ever the evening was rounded-off with the chance to network and discuss the topic further over a buffet supper and a glas of wine. In the photo above you can seen from left to right, Nick Mockett, Raymond McKeeve, Jason Cromack and Llewellyn John.
Visit to SS Great Britain - Friday, 18 May 2012 - report by Pádraig Belton
On Friday, 18 May forty Stationers visited Bristol and specifically the Victorian steamship SS Great Britain. That day, following a children's vote, she was sailing on 55,000 litres of neon lime-green jelly sea!
Stationer Andrew Walker recollected a day some 42 years ago when, gazing from his flat in Bristol, he saw 'something like a rusting beached whale' sailing under the Clifton Suspension Bridge, with the Duke of Edinburgh on board.
Since then she has been restored and redeployed as a museum which in 2006 won the Gulbenkian Prize for Museum of the Year. The Stationers' day afloat was captained by Chairman of the Livery Committee, Deborah Akers, and stemmed from a suggestion made by Liveryman Brian Attwood.
Ship's Steward Bob Evans lead the group round Brunel's revolutionary 1845 iron steamship. In twenty years aboard the vessel he has heard ghostly piano music issuing from the Promenade Deck, and garnered a national award for tour-guiding.
After a pleasant brunch and coffee, the boarding party went ashore to view the Brunel Institute. Their 6,000 maritime books and 7,300 ship plans are presently being digitised—a jack-tar version of our own Stationers' Register.
Types for the New Century Exhibition - Monday, 14 May 2012
The Hall saw a fantastic amount of activity on Monday 14 May when work started early on to set up the Types for the New Century exhibition organised by Deborah Akers and the Livery Committee. Typeface designs from the last ten years and from both internationally established and upcoming typeface designers were featured. In the afternoon the exhibition was visited by c 100 students and c 180 attended the gala event in the evening. The exhibition will be travelling in the UK and overseas so there will be opportunities for those of you who were not able to view it last Monday to catch it at a later date. Watch the website at http://www.types4newcentury.com/ for details. Photo by Andrea Lestrange.
Kim Scott Walwyn Prize - Wednesday, 9 May 2012
On Wednesday, 9 May Deborah Rea joined many of the Young Stationers at the Free Word Centre for the announcement of the winner of the Kim Scott Walwyn Prize. This award recognises promise among women who have worked in book publishing in the UK for up to seven years. It is sponsored by the Society of Young Publishers and administered by Booktrust. The Young Stationers were delighted to see their good friend Rukhsana Yasmin of Saqi Books receive the prize. Click here for more details about the award. In the photo you will see from left: Applicant Stationer Tej Sood, Dr Roger Prentis, Bobby Nayyar (head of Limehouse Books), Harmeet Marwaha, Applicant Stationer Ella Kahn (2011 chair of the Society of Young Publishers), Sophie Edmonds, Rukhsana Yasmin (winner of the 2012 Kim Scott Walwyn Prize), William Hall, Viviane Pekelman, Christopher Priebe, Victoria Yorke-Edwards, and Liveryman Pádraig Belton.
200 Plus Club Winners May and June 2012
May 2012
£100 - Stephen Somerville
£50 - Jean Behn
£50 - Albert Morgan
£25 - Martin White
£25 - Terry Shapland
June 2012
£500 - Jeanne Heyer
£100 - Toby Jakes
£50 - Lewis Green
£50 - Les Lane
£25 - Stephen Hilleard
£25 - Charles Cruden
Congratulations to all our winners.
Charter Dinner - Wednesday, 2 May 2012
The Charter Dinner took place on Wednesday, 2 May and the Hall saw a fine turn out to hear Dr David Starkey speak. Stationers were delighted also to welcome Sigrid Rausing who received on behalf of her father, Professor Hans Rausing, a certificate commemorating the award made by the Company to him of the status of Honorary Freeman and Liveryman. Another very welcome guest was Dr Wolfgang Palm who received the Paper Industry Gold Medal. Dr Palm is Chief Executive of the family run Papierfabrik Palm GmbH & Co KG in Germany has been awarded the medal in recognition of his contribution to UK papermaking by devoting significant resources to establishing a major new Newsprint mill at Kings Lynn, Norfolk. The Photos taken at the event are available here.
CLA IRRO Dinner at Stationers' Hall
We were delighted that Kevin Fitzgerald (Liveryman) Chief Executive of the CLA chose Stationers' Hall as the highly appropriate venue to celebrate, with a dinner, an historic agreement that is expected to benefit UK and Indian writers and publishers. This agreement, recently signed in Delhi by The Indian Reprographic Rights Organisation (IRRO) and the UK Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) will consolidate the copyright system in India and ensure better protection for international publishers and writers. You can read the full Press Release here. The Government Minister for Intellectual Property, Baroness Wilcox (see photo) was a guest of honour at the dinner on 18 April.
Young Stationers
Padraig Belton reports lots of activity on the Young Stationers front. On 18 April they were at the Inter-Livery Quiz Evening (pictured above (top row) Klementyna Klocek, Suraya Jina, Liveryman Pádraig Belton, Gitau Githinji, Christopher Priebe, and (lower row) Sarah Maria Carter, Mohammad Aslam, Lori Heiss, Sarah Morgan (Applicant Stationer), and David Saer. ), on 21 April they attended an event at Westminster Cathedral Hall in aid of the Amar Jyoti trust which works with blind children in Indiaet, and on 25 April they went to meet Anna Rafferty, the managing director of Penguin Digital(pictured below,Emma Smith (Stationers Bursary Recipient), Diane Le Douaron, Lidia Szopinska, Ernesto Priego, Jibunnessa Abdullah, Penguin Digital Managing Director Anna Rafferty, Emma Hartley, Katharine Schöpflin, Liveryman Pádraig Belton, and Sarah Morgan (Applicant Stationer).
Archive Evening - Monday, 23 April 2012
Stationers' Hall was packed with people and exciting exhibits on Monday night as the National Archives joined with the Stationers' Archives to show, side-by-side for the first time in 100 years, treasures from both collections including Stationers’ Company records relating to William Shakespeare, and, from the National Archives, rare photographs from the Victorian and Edwardian eras, including work by some of the most accomplished photographers of the day, such as Peter Henry Emerson, Felice Beato and Eadward Muybridge, plus early examples of commercial art. In addition, items from the archives and library, which have benefitted from conservation and repair work as a result of the Support a Book Scheme launched at last year's Archive Evening, were on display in their full glory, together with a new selection which it is hoped to tackle this year.
Annual Lecture - Good Coverage in the Press
We were delighted with the turnout for Sir Christopher Meyer as he delivered his lecture on Monday 16 April. It was also pleasing to see coverage on 17 April in the Standard, The Daily Mail, and The Mail Online and in The Times on 23 April.
Deborah Rea's visit to the London Book Fair - Tuesday, 17 April 2012
This week Earls Court has seen publishers from all over the world coming together for the London Book Fair. The country chosen to be the 2012 Market Focus was China and as well as a large number of Chinese publishing companies with stands (some of which were displaying the most beautiful books) there was a full programme of seminars accessible to all through instant English/Chinese translation. I attended the seminar on how Chinese Language teaching and English Language teaching might learn from each other and work together. Our Court Assistant, Stephen Bourne of CUP was one of the contributors. He made the point that the two languages were so different, that while no doubt there were aspects of publishing and teaching which were valid for both languages there were also huge differences to which serious attention had to be given. One major difference is that the western phonetic alphabet of 26 characters requires less time to learn than the characters of Mandarin which number some 68000!
Other Stationers were very much in evidence and it was good to catch up at some length with David Button of 4Edge and David Hicks of the Book Trade Charity and to see stands from TSO, CUP, (both Corporate Members) Jessica Kingsley, Martin Woodhead and Ludlow Bookbinders. I know that there will have been many other Stationers at the Fair representing their companies and I hope that their impressions matched mine which was that things felt somewhat more confident and optimistic than in recent years.
Edwin Boorman - a report of his memorial service held on Wednesday, 4 April 2012
Ian Locks, along with many other members of the Company attended Edwin Boorman's memorial service on 4 April. Click here for his report including the full text of Sir Ray Tindle's tribute to Edwin.
The People's Book Prize 2012
Tatiana von Saxe Wilson is once again organising The People's Book Prize with a gala evening here at Stationers' Hall on 30 May 2012. Click here for more details and for the booking form for tickets and click here to take you through to the People's Book Prize website.
A great new CD to buy to support the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity
The band of HM Royal Marines Portsmouth (The Royal Band) have recorded a musical celebration of the 60 year reign of HM Queen Elizabeth II featuring the World Premiere of "Diamond Jubilee Tribute" and also including such favourites as Post Horn Galop which of course is played at the Civic Dinner each November in Stationers' Hall.
Click here to download an order form or order on line at royalmarinesbands.co.uk or rnrmc.org.uk
Beauty in the Making. A unique five-day event which will expose and explore the art in creative processes - 23-27 April 2012
Guests will be invited to investigate the craft within the creative industry, through live demonstrations, workshops, installations and talks by the artisans and exponents.
John says 'To many people, we are simply a paper merchant. Normally, they'll never see the skill and craft that happens behind the scenes in our factory, both human and mechanical. But the same is true for so many parts of the creative industry. There's real beauty to be found in the everyday processes that provide the creative community with the products and service they take for granted. This event is about opening people's eyes to that fact and celebrating it as art in its own right'.
To broaden the scope of the event, G F Smith has collaborated with key creative institutions, including It's Nice That, Monotype and the British Council’s Architecture, Design and Fashion department.
The event will be held in Victoria House Basement, a 22,000 sq.ft venue in Bloomsbury. Its raw ceilings and exposed brick walls will give the proceedings an appropriate industrial feel.
Beauty in the Making will run for five days from Monday 23 to Friday 27 April 2012 (10:30 - 19:30) at:
Index on Censorship Awards - Wednesday, 29 March 2012
Pádraig Belton reports that the Index on Censorship invited a dozen Young Stationers to attend their press awards on Wednesday, 29 March 2012 in the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel. Index's Freedom of Expression Awards honour those who, often at great personal risk, have given voice to issues and stories from around the globe that would otherwise have passed unnoticed. The 2012 Index on Censorship Arts award winner was Syrian political cartoonist, Ali Ferzat. Click here for more details. Jonathan Dimbleby who is chair of Index on Censorship's board, took great interest in hearing about the Young Stationers and some thought is going into a joint project between the two groups later in the year. In the photo you can see some of the young Stationers with Ali Ferzat; from left to right, Dr Eileen Walsh, Mohammad Aslam, Ali Ferzat, Pádraig Belton and Dr Caroline Kendrick.
St Bride's Inspire Appeal
Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker - 850 years of London Livery Company Treasures 22 June - 23 September 2012
Celebrate the City - 21,22,23,24 June 2012
Inter-Livery Bridge Tournament - 5 March 2012
For a full report click here
Inter-Livery Swimathon - 12 March 2012
For a full report on this cracking event click here
Woodhead Publishing wins The International Achievement Award at the IPG Independent Publishing Awards 2012
At the Independent Publishers Guild (IPG) Independent Publishing Awards on the 8th March, Woodhead Publishing was awarded The 2012 London Book Fair International Achievement Award. The Judges noted that "Woodhead Publishing scooped this award for international achievements including sharp export sales growth, especially in China and Germany, and the opening of a new sales and marketing office in the US." Martin Woodhead, Liveryman, said that he was delighted to receive the award on behalf of his staff. You can read the full press release by clicking here and in the meantime we all send Martin and his team our hearty congratulations and every possible good wish for continued success in the future. In the photo, you can see Martin and his Sales Manager, Jenny Wheeler, with the award.
IPG Conference 2012 - 7 to 9 March 2012
The Independent Publishers Guild has been holding its annual conference (celebrating 50 years since its inception) at Heythrop Park in Chipping Norton and Deborah Rea attended on 7 and 8 March. There were some extremely useful sessions including the keynote speech from James Daunt, MD of Waterstones, who has put all hands to the pump to turn the bookselling chain around. The aspect of his reorganisation which seemed to worry most delegates was the change from each bookshop undertaking its own buying to a more regional buying policy whereby one buyer looks after 5-6 shops. By adopting this strategy they have reduced stock by 20% yet increased the number of titles on the shelves by 21% and although there were still some worries many delegates seemed reassured that their titles would get a fair share of the action! Daunt is hoping to see massive improvements in the commercial health of Waterstones by Christmas 2012 thanks to investment in new and better systems, better staff training and a better online presence. Other fascinating sessions on building a community for your business - think of Faber with their publishing, their Academy, Faber Factory and a recent addition, Faber Social - were matched with others focussing on really good tips from successful small publishers on themes such as cash-flow management, building a list, on demand print, etc. Several Stationers were at the conference including Martin Woodhead who contributed considerably to the session on coping with the increase in free content available to readers. He reminded everyone that the publishing teams actually add value to the data by means, for example, of good editing and design. Congratulations to IPG on their fiftieth birthday and another excellent conference.
200 Plus Club Winners March and April 2012
March 2012
£100 - Michael Barnard
£50 - James Thornton
£50 - Mary Rice-Oxley
£25 - Terry Shapland
£25 - Colin Smythe
April 2012
£100 - Sally Whittaker
£50 - Finley Spence
£50 - Donald Trelford
£25 - Nigel Wade
£25 - Robert Williams
Congratulations to all our winners.
Publishing Expo - 28 and 29 February 2012
This event took place over 28 and 29 February at Earls Court and Deborah Rea went along on the first day to see for herself what the Publishing Industry is up to. The first thing to note is that in this context the word Publishing covered mostly magazines, B2B publishing and online publishing but not much in the way of books. There were many exhibitors there showing how to publish content in a huge variety of ways from print through to apps, etc, and throughout both days there was a fantastic programme of seminars across four areas: Content Agility, Audience & Data, Production & Design and Digital & Multi-Publishing. It was great to see so many Stationers visiting, exhibiting and, in fact, presenting. In the photos you will see Andy Scott (far left) who chaired 'Three Cheers for Print' the panel for which included Elaine Pooke (at the microphone) and Martyn Eustace (second from left) all of whom provided great evidence to support the idea that print is actually thriving alongside newer forms of publishing. Thanks to Annie Hotton for the photo.
Upholders - Flocke & Feather - 5 March 2012
The Worshipful Company of Upholders have alerted us to their forthcoming exhibition of the skills of upholstery, soft furnishings and related crafts to be held at Butchers’ Hall on Monday 5 March. You will find full details on the Notice Board Page here.
Ash Wednesday - 22 February 2012
The Hall was full today of Members and their guests for the traditional Cakes & Ale lunch. The caterers laid on a fine array of soup, bread, cheese, quiche, salad, fruit and hot cross buns to accompany the ale - although there was wine, soft drinks and coffee too! The Master spoke a few words of explanation as to how the tradition started with the legacy left by John Norton in 1612 and noted that this was exactly 400 years ago! He presented The Reverend Canon Timothy Sedgley (the preacher at the service which subsequently took place in St Faith's Chapel in St Paul's Cathedral) with a framed ten shilling note which was the provision made by Norton to pay for a preacher on Ash Wednesdays. The Master pointed out that in 1612 that was a considerable sum of money!
At 2.00 pm the Beadle led the Court, Court Emeritus and the Livery, across to St Paul's and in so processing the Company ran the gauntlet of the Occupy the City protesters who had just found out that their appeal against eviction had failed. The choir of Reed's School delighted the congregation with their singing and Canon Sedgley preached on the transience of paper, etc, but the eternal treasure of the words it conveyed. The chapel was full and the congregational hymns were sung with gusto.
All in all it was another very uplifting Stationers' Ash Wednesday.
Giles Deacon's Fashion Show, Monday , 20 February 2012
Last night the Hall provided a magnificent setting for a show from Giles Deacon put on as part of London Fashion Week. As a result this morning there are photos of Stationers' Hall in the Vogue site, the Elle site and on style.com. Of course there are lovely girsl and gorgeous clothes in the pictures but the Hall stars too! The fashion commentators said that that, after two hugely successful seasons, Giles Deacon has moved away from the dark, Gothic-inspired fetishistic mood that has served him so well, and gone for late 19th Century true romance.
We hope to have some photos sent from Mr Deacon later this week but in the meantime here are the links to the various sites mentioned.
Click here for Vogue
Click here for Elle
Click here for style.com
National Stationery Day - 24 April 2012
As the date for this event gets steadily closer the excitement mounts and there's a competiton! You can get details of how to enter by clicking here.
Inter-Livery Swimathon
Click here for full details of the Stationers' Company commitment to this event, for full details about the Lord Mayor's Appeal and for access to the Sonsorship form
Digital Media Group Roundtable - 12 February 2012
Last night in the Court Room at Stationers' Hall, Steven Wilson Beales chaired an extremely interesting and useful roundtable the title of which was 'Piracy in the Entertainment Industry and What is Being Done About It'. Shireen Peermohamed, an intellectual properties lawyer from Harbottle & Lewis, opened with a really good overview of the law as it pertains to copyright and of the proposals in the Hargreaves report. From that the discussion really took off with lively contributions from Richard Mollet of the Publishers' Association, Ian Moss of the BPI (representing the world of music) and Liz Bales of the Industry Trust (talking about the film industry). They covered vast amounts of ground from how their particular sectors suffered from copyright infringement and piracy to how they were working to educate the public, especially the young, to see that the creative content of books, recordings and films was something to be valued and therefore worth paying for. Yet another very valuable evening from the DGM.
Charles Dickens Bi-centenary Banquet at Stationers' Hall, Tuesday 7 February 2012
It was a full-house last Tuesday for the Charles Dickens event as members, plus their guests, turned out, despite the bitter cold, in evening splendour. Although he was unable to stay for the whole evening the Lord Mayor and his wife came for the drinks reception and were then whisked away to another Dickens event. He was delighted to see that many of those who attended the Stationers' banquet had dressed in keeping with the Dickens theme. Stuart Behn and Mrs P Mullender won the prizes for the best costumes (see photo). The evening's entertainment came in the form of victorian parlour songs provided by musicians from the Guildhall School of Music, readings given by Jean Garbutt, Keith Hutton and Richard Morley of Shopfield Productions and David Abel who worked his magic Each guest left the event with a superb souvenir pamphlet which was very kindly provided by Cambridge University Press and which contained three versions of the concluding chapter of Great Expectations.
200 Plus Club Winners January and February 2012
January 2012
£100 - MarK Allen
£50 - Alexander Boden
£50 - Peter Wynn
£25 - Robert Bourne
£25 - Duncan Spence
February 2012
£100 - Alexander Jakes
£50 - Noel Osborne
£50 - Mandi Moore
£25 - Dave Metcalf
£25 - Pauline Smith
Congratulations to all our winners!
Cloathing - Tuesday 31 January 2012
Getty Images's Hulton Archive Tour
An 'Aladdin's Cave in a back street of West London' and 'Mecca in an innocent looking warehouse' was how Upper Warden Kevin Dewey and Court Assistant Ian Bennett described Getty Images's Hulton Archive, which an expeditionary party organised by the Digital Media Group visited on 17th January.
Founded by Sir Edward Hulton in 1937, the archive has accumulated 40 million images and is the both the largest working commercial photographic library in the world, and its greatest repository of photojournalism.
Hosting, Getty Vice President Matthew Butson called it a 'pleasure and privilege' to receive such an enthusiastic and engaged audience to their cavernous archive, the second of hopefully many collaborations to come.
The photo above shows Sarah McDonald talking to a group of Stationers including Pádraig Belton, Richard Brewster and Beverley Levy. Thanks to Robert Sanger and to Pádraig for writing the trip up.
Inter-Livery Ski Report - 20-21 January 2012
The skiers from the Stationers' Company report that they had a brilliant time in Morzine,and were able to enter 2 teams of 3 apiece in the Inter-Livery Competition. The A team comprised Trevor Fenwick, Oliver Gadsby and Jessie Woodhead and the B team comprised Ian Locks, Rod Mountford and Martin Woodhead. The official placings have not been published yet but it appears that our A team came 5th out of 10 which is very satisfying and an improvement on last year. Jessie was our fastest skier and came either 3rd or 4th amongst the ladies. Martin Woodhead is to be congratulated on organising the teams and the skiers themselves are to be thanked for representing the Company. Members who ski are encouraged to consider taking part next year. We need fast skiers if we are to beat the Leathersellers, Vintners and Ironmongers but the ability to stay upright is also very welcome! Please let the office know if you would like to take part next year.
The Stationers' B team did win one prize - the 200+ prize,for a team of three clocking 200+ years between them!
In the photo above the skiers from left to right are: Trevor Fenwick, Jessie Woodhead, Olivery Gadsby, Rodney Mountford, Martin Woodhead and Ian Locks.
Inter-Livery Ski Team
You will all want to wish the ski team well in the Inter-Livery Competition which is due to be held in Morzine on Friday, 20 and Saturday, 21 January. We have seven skiers taking part (injury permitting as one is on the recovery list!) Martin Woodhead, Jessie Woodhead, Trevor Fenwick, Oliver Gadsby, Ian Locks, Chris Heyer (if fit) and Rodney Mountford. There will be slalom and giant slalom races and the team will be gathering over the next 24 hours or so ...no doubt to get in some practice!
Monday, 16 January 2012 - SYP AGM and Publishers' Question Time
The Hall was pleased to welcome members of the Society of Young Publishers along with several members of the Company for the SYP AGM which was followed by a Publishers' Question Time on the theme of Keep your eye on the Prize: Are book prizes and promotions a help or a hindrance to authors?’ The Clerk chaired the panel ensuring the smooth flow of the debate. The panellists were Gail Pirkis who is co-founder of Slightly Foxed: The Real Reader's Quarterly, Tim Godfray who is the CEO of The Booksellers Association, Keren David who is a writer and journalist (and who has herself won prizes for her chidlren's titles) and Claire Shanahan who is the Prizes and Awards Manager at Booktrust. There was general agreement that book prizes were a good thing and on the whole, even titles on the longlists, as well as those on the shortlists and the eventual prize winners experienced spikes in sales. There were also moments when there was disagreement with the subject of Amazon giving rise to some strong views both for and against! The evening, as is the usual practice, ended with drinks and a buffet supper which was much enjoyed.
Monday, 16 January 2012 - 11 people made free of the Company
At today's Master & Wardens' meeting 11 people were made free of the Company.
In the photograph you can see Back L-R: Alan Ball, Mark Broadbent, Philip Ellaway, Sir Bruce McIntosh, Andrew Riddoch, Dr Alun Harris, Andrew Fletcher, Jessica Woodhead; Front L-R: Kate Banks, Elizabeth Davis (Bursary) and the Reverend Gregory Platten. We send them our congratulations and look forward to welcoming them to lots of events at the Hall over the coming months and years.
