Common Hall and Installation Dinner at Stationers Hall

The GLASS SELLERNewsletter of The Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers of London

Issue Twenty Six Winter 2010/11

Despite that, well over 100 Glass Sellers

and friends, attended Common Hall to

welcome the new Master, Prime Warden,

Renter Warden and a new Assistant to the

Court and a Lay Assistant to the Court.

The Installation is one of our distinctive

ceremonies and is always well attended

since Glass Sellers use it to catch up with

old friends and meet newcomers.

An added incentive is that, to celebrate

the installations, an excellent dinner

always follows.

The Installation Dinner is an excellent

opportunity for the Company to entertain

other Masters and our new Renter Warden,

Guy Harrison, in his toast to ‘Our Guests’,

welcomed the Masters of the Constructors,

Glaziers, Barbers, Hackney Carriage

Drivers and Actuaries Companies as well

as a range of other guests.

The Master’s own principal guest, who

replied to the toast, was Mister Duncan

Brand who trained as a Chartered

Accountant but who spent his life, as has our

new Master, in the Construction Industry.

Since they have been good friends for

so many years, this was an opportunity

to hear about our new Master in a

non-glass context.

We knew about his sailing, but perhaps not

that he was still competing at world class

level where, it was suggested, he heads up

the list of those competitors with bus passes!

Most importantly, he is clearly a people-

oriented person, which is a fine

qualification for any Master.

Tradition then indicated that last year’s

Master, Richard Lawman, offered his

thoughts on his year as he gave his toast to

the ‘Glass Sellers Company’.

Clearly he and Mistress Tricia had

done an excellent job of representing us

within the City. It was obvious they had

been struck by the work of a number of

charitable institutions they had visited

to see the consequences of our

Company’s assistance.

This is an area where the “leverage”

offered by our often modest funds can

be seen to yield great benefits to

individual people.

One instance was the drive to fund a

wheelchair for a disabled young cadet in

the Rifles where the benefits will be not

only to the user himself but also to the

team of able bodied cadets who work with

him. £5,000 has been collected so far.

During his speech, the Immediate Past

Master paid high tribute to the work of our

Honorary Clerk, Colonel Audrey Smith.

She had advised, the court, earlier in the

year, that she wished to relinquish the

Clerkship as soon as a suitable

replacement was found and a period of

induction completed.

Her successor is to be Dr Trevor

Robinson, following our Company’s

tradition of drawing on its own membership

for this post whenever possible.

Finally, the new Master, Martin Scarth,

within the toast ‘To Glass’, introduced us all

to his plans for the Company over the next

year and required those most involved in

these plans to stand in turn to be recognised.

After reviewing our Company’s aims

and objectives, he also paid tribute to the

manner in which Colonel Audrey Smith

had worked to achieve them over the last

eight years.

Looking forward, he intends to make au

Prime Warden Vivian Bendall, The Master Martin Scarth, Renter Warden Guy Harrison, Honorary Clerk Audrey Smith

Liveryman Barbara Beadman

A warm welcome to the Master…

The evening of 9th December 2010 was very cold and traffic was dis ruptedby student demonstrations in the streets of the City and the West End.

The Glass Seller Page 2

significant event of the March Common

Hall as part of his aim to increase the total

membership of the Glass Sellers and

ensure its continued financial health.

Details of his intended Jolly had been

announced earlier but he now gave the

first announcement about a Glass Sellers

visit to Sheffield to meet with members of

the British Glass Manufacturers

Confederation and have dinner with them

in Cutlers Hall on May 6th.

A sad feature of the evening was the

absence of the usual party of officers and

men from our affiliated submarine, HMS

Sceptre. The reason was simple – she was

to be decommissioned on the following day

and a representative group of Glass Sellers

led by the Master were to travel overnight

to Plymouth to witness the Ceremony.

Given the range of activities and

speeches, it was not surprising that matters

drew to a very late close when the Plymouth

bound party made a swift exit. Bill Cook.

We have been linked continuously

with the ‘Silent Service’ since 1982

when the submarine HMS Conqueror was

affiliated to our Company.

We were fortunate to continue the

affiliation with HMS Spartan, when

Conqueror was decommissioned, and

most recently with HMS Sceptre.

Sceptre was launched in 1976 and

commissioned in February 1978. She is

the last of the Swiftsure Class and, after 32

years service, the oldest nuclear powered

submarine in the world!

Annually since 1982, a member of the

crew, chosen for his outstanding

contribution to the crew’s morale and well

being (above and beyond his normal

duties) has been presented with a ‘Glass

Sellers’ Tankard’.

This year, that presentation did not take

place at the Installation Dinner but at Her

Majesty’s Naval Base, Devonport, at HMS

Sceptre’s Decommissioning Ceremony on

Friday 10 December 2010.

The Master Martin Scarth led a

representative group of Glass Sellers to

Devonport to witness the De commissioning

Ceremony. It was his first activity as Master,

following immediately after his installation

Dinner, with a dash to catch the 11.45 pm

sleeper train from Paddington!

Our party included The Master and the

Mistress, Immediate Past Master Richard

Lawman and Mrs Tricia Lawman, Past

Master Robin Arculus, the Honorary Clerk,

Colonel Audrey Smith, Liveryman John

Spencer and Mrs Maureen Spencer. First

success – we all caught the train! Some of us

did sleep overnight and arrived in Plymouth

at 5.00 am in reasonable condition.

The organisation worked like clockwork

and we arrived at the Devonport base as

scheduled.

Breakfast was followed by a tour of

Sceptre – and what an eye opener that was

– especially seeing the crew’s cramped

sleeping quarters and trying to envisage

living and working underwater for weeks

at a time.

Our guide, Lt Alex Miller, gave very

graphic descriptions of the work and

leisure routines adopted by the 160 or so

members of the crew. Envisaging that

number of men in a space which felt

cramped with our small party in it was

almost impossible. We covered almost

every nook and cranny (if they have those

in submarines) and we were extremely

grateful to Lt Miller for his care, attention

and detailed explanations during our tour.

Time moved on and we prepared for the

Decommissioning Ceremony.

Relatives and friends, affiliates, and

VIPs took their seats in the stand.

The band of the Scots Guards marched

on to the Parade Ground followed by

Sceptre’s crew.

The Mayor of Wigan inspected the

Officers and Crew escorted by

Commander Steve Waller, Sceptre’s

Commanding Officer.

A Service of Thanksgiving, led by the

Reverend Bernard Clarke, then followed

— the last words of each verse of the final

hymn were sung fortissimo and

reverberated around the Parade Ground.

Oh hear us when we cry to thee,

for those in peril on the sea.

There followed an address by the Guest

of Honour, the Mayor of Wigan.

The Commissioning Pennant was

lowered aboard HMS Sceptre.

The parade was dismissed and that was

our fond farewell to a gallant old lady.

After a buffet lunch in the Senior Rates

Mess, The Master was welcomed to the

stage by Commander Waller to present

the Glass Sellers’ Tankard to Petty

Officer Iain Sanderson. The citation was

peppered with phrases of praise and

respect and ends – ‘an outstanding Petty

Officer he is an exceptional role model

for more junior ratings on board and

thoroughly deserves the recommendation

for the Glass Sellers Award’.

The Master presented the award for the

last time to a member of Sceptre’s crew.

But we all hope that somewhere ‘in the

pipeline’ there is another affiliation to

follow in Sceptre’s wake. We are very

proud of our history since 1982 with the

‘Silent Service’. John Spencer.

HMS Sceptre

Commander Steve Waller with members ofSceptre’s crew

...a fond farewell to Sceptre

Liveryman Jenny Nathan The Master and Mistress Elisabeth Scarth

u

The Glass Seller Page 3

This year there was an additional, surprise

event at Common Hall.

After the new office bearers had been

sworn in, Master Martin Scarth announced

that Liveryman Edgar Mobbs had been

much taken with the process by which the

Company, after a pause of 346 years, had at

last acquired an authentic Coat of Arms.

Initiated by Past Master John Hitch during

Dr Bill Cook’s Mastership the process was

completed in past Master Robin Arculus’s

year of office.

As a result of his interest, Edgar had

commissioned a commemorative bone

china plate, illustrating the Company’s

new crest, and now gave to the Master

copies for all those involved in the task,

including the members of the project’s

Advisory Committee.

This was a most generous gesture by

Edgar who has taken a deep interest in the

written historical records of our Company

since he joined us and is now an excellent

source of factual information about the

history of the Glass Sellers Company.

Typically the choice of material for the

memento was made by Edgar knowing

...and a pleasant surprisethat our Company, in its early days, in

addition to Glass Sellers also included

“Chinamen”. Bill Cook.

The Master’s “term” started surprisingly

on 8 December 2009 two days before

my installation, when I attended lunch as a

guest of the Spectacle Makers. Since my

installation I have attended about 70 events

during the year, excluding committee

meetings and the like. I have attended

functions in a wide range of Livery Halls

all of which have been superb, it is lovely

to go to so many that are not on our circuit.

In addition, Tricia and I have particularly

enjoyed our visits to support our Charity

Fund, in particular two of our Glass in

Society Projects of which further news is in

this edition of the Glass Seller. We found it

thrilling to see the enthusiasm, not only of the

students at the schools but also the teachers,

it really makes it feel worthwhile being a

Glass Seller to see how you can help these

young people to see a more practical part of

the curriculum and all in their spare time.

Sticking to the schools element, the

Master and Mistress along with the Clerk

visited four schools at or around Speech

Day; we were entertained by music and

theatrical events, speeches and yes lunches.

These are schools where we provide

bursaries and student prizes, again greatly

appreciated by the schools concerned.

On the glass front, besides the

Ravenscroft Lecture we were privileged to

judge the Glass Sellers prize at the Guild of

Glass Engraving at the Fitzwilliam Museum

in Cambridge. We saw some beautiful

pieces of engraved glass from amongst the

greatest living artists in this country.

I have not mentioned the trip to

Liverpool which was also well reported in

the last edition, all we can say is that we

were privileged to have such a superb

turnout from the Livery and blessed not

only by brilliant weather, but also the

presence of our Chaplain.

Besides trips to Pilkington,

Kingswinford School and the

Fitzwilliam Museum, we awarded the

prizes on the Isle of Wight and at the

Biennial. It was marvellous to have prize

winner Shelley Doolan along for the

Mansion House Dinner. We also visited

Nazeing Glass Factory to meet Assistant

to the Court Stephen Pollock-Hill who

provided the glass gift given to the ladies

at the Banquet.

The Livery clearly has strong ties with

the City and it was a privilege to be

involved with the election of the Sheriffs

and the Lord Mayor. We also went to the

Silent Ceremony where the new Lord

Mayor is installed. After the ceremony in

Guildhall during which it poured with

rain, we had a little cameo event, on our

way to the station we met the immediate

past Lord Mayor and his wife walking

back to Mansion House under an

umbrella, gone was the Rolls Royce! The

following day we were joined by our

children and grandchildren at the Lord

Mayor’s Parade which ended with a

superb firework display.

It is not possible to list every event we

took part in; however, we finished with the

fantastic trip to Devonport to de-

commission Sceptre, also reported on in

this issue. It was a fitting end to our year.

It was a great privilege to serve as Master

and Mistress, and we hope that there is a

small “gene” of Lawman carried forward

into the future of the Glass Sellers. Tricia

and I would, therefore, thank you all for

your terrific support during our year.

Richard Lawman

A report from Immediate Past Master

Richard Lawman

Master Richard Lawman and Mistress Tricia Lawman during their year of office

Liveryman Edgar Mobbs presenting the Crest Platesto The Master

TO PURCHASE A PLATEThis excellent commemorative plate may be purchased for £50, of which Edgar

will donate £20 to the Glass Sellers Charity. The price includes packing and delivery.

Cheques should be made payable to E R Mobbs and sent to Newnham Fields,

Newnham, Northants NN11 3ET. Please include your delivery address. Buy a

plate, get a very artistic memento and benefit our charity. You couldn’t do better!

The Glass Seller Page 4

The United Kingdom’s majorexhibition of contemporary glass

The opening night of the fourth British

Glass Biennial played host to the

elite of the glass world from the UK

and overseas, who came to see the

UK’s premier exhibition of glass.

The glittering Private View and

Awards Ceremony evening saw six

prizes totalling £11,500 being

announced in front of an estimated

audience of 600.

The Glass Sellers’ Company was

delighted to be involved with this

prestigious event once again. On

this occasion we were very proud

to be one of the main sponsors of

the exhibition. By joining forces

with the Biennial we have been

able to reach a much wider

audience and a greater pool of

talent from which to draw the

winners of our Art and Craft

Awards.

The Art and Crafts Awards

were initiated by the Glass

Sellers’ Company over 25 years ago as an

annual event. However, since 2008 the

company has worked in association with

the British Glass Biennial and combined

our award with this prestigious,

international event.

There are two Arts and Crafts awards

which are now given biennially for an art

piece made essentially from glass: a main

award of £5,000 and a student award of

£1,000. Two runners-up prizes of £1000

and £500 respectively are also awarded.

The main award is open to graduate and

professional studio glass Artists resident in

the UK. The student award is open only

to glass art students presently at

college or within three years of

graduating

This year 82 artists were

selected from the 202 who

entered the competition. The pieces

were all of a very high standard with

the finest in glassmaking talent

being represented in the

exhibition.

The prizes were awarded at

the opening night of the

Biennial on 26 August, held at

the Ruskin Glass Centre in

Stourbridge. The private view

was a memorable occasion

and well attended by Glass

Sellers. The Company also

had a stand at the exhibition to

raise awareness of the Livery

and the work of our Charity.

The Glass Sellers

prizes were awarded

to four extremely talented artists:

The Glass Sellers Award of

£5000 – Shelley Doolan for

‘Iteration 456’

Runner up prize of £1000 –

Jeffrey Sarmiento for

‘Ossify’.

Student Award of £1000 –

Lisa Sheppy for

‘Charlotte’s Dress’

Runner up prize

of £500 –

Margareth Troli for

‘007 Walter P99’.

Chair of the Glass Sellers jury and

Chairman of the Charity Fund, Professor

John Whiteman said; “There is a warmth

and undulating calm in Shelley Doolan’s

work. Despite its serenity however, it is a

dynamic piece - constantly changing with

the light and its different surfaces.”

He continues… “Lisa Sheppy’s winning

piece is of an incredibly high standard for

the student award; it is well thought out

and technically very strong whilst telling a

great story with humour and personality.”

Other prize winners at the Biennial were:

Gaea Todd won the British Glass

Biennial Award for ‘Best in Show’ with

‘Reverberations’.

Tim Boswell received the Art in Action

Award for Contemporary Glass £1,000 for

‘Afrika 1 Timbukone’. This award was

introduced for the first time in 2010 and is

a collaboration between the International

Festival of Glass and Art in Action.

The Biennial was open to the public

from 27 August to 11 September giving

the artists an excellent opportunity to

raise awareness of their work. It is a

selling show with 115 pieces of

work ranging from small scale to

large installations and prices from

£85 – £11,000 on sale to collectors

and buyers.

The Charity Trustees are very

pleased to be able to report that the

event was a great success. It is

clear that our prizes have a

significant impact on the artists

who win. We very much

hope to be able to continue

our association with the

Biennial in years to come.

Maria Chanmugam

The British Glass Biennial and the Glass Sellers Art and Craft Awards 2010

The Master with Shelley Doolan and Margareth Troli

Shelley Doolan with her winning entry Iteration 456

Photograph by Simon Bruntnell

Margareth Troli – 007 Walter P99

Lisa Sheppy –Charlotte’s Dress

Photograph by Simon Bruntnell

The Glass Seller Page 5

The following are interviews with the

winner and runner up of the main

award. It is clear that they value the support

of the Glass Sellers’ Company and believe

that our award will have a positive impact

on their careers. Their enthusiasm and

commitment to their work was evident and

as Trustees it is wonderful to be able support

such talented and enthusiastic people.

Shelley Doolan – Winner, GlassSellers Award for ‘Iteration 456’What is the impact of having your

work selected for the 2010 Biennial? Do

you believe that it makes your work more

saleable?

Being selected for the British Glass

Biennial 2010 and winning the Glass Sellers

Prize has certainly raised my profile. I sold

a piece of glass in a gallery in the States

during the Biennial period, which may have

been a coincidence, but may have been

helped by my ‘award winning’ status!

Do you think that winning the Glass

Sellers Prize will have an impact on your

career? If so how?

Yes it has. I have been invited to teach

a master class in July 2011 in the States.

Has the prize money been useful?

What will you use it for? Is it allocated

to a specific project or use?

I have had a few enquiries for larger-

scale projects, and if these proceed, I

will find the Glass Sellers Prize money

an invaluable way to fund the early

stages of any commission. The prize

money will otherwise be spent on

developing a new body of work and

helping with my living costs in the

meantime.

Anything else you think is relevant?

After the seemingly endless work

involved in designing and making the

work, it is gratifying and encouraging to

get such positive feedback.

To see more examples of Shelley’s

work go to:

www.shelleydoolanglass.com

Jeffrey Sarmiento – Runner up,Glass Sellers Award for

‘Ossify’What is the impact of having

your work selected for the 2010

Biennial? Do you believe that it

makes your work more saleable?

It’s been an honour to be selected

for the British Glass Biennial. I have

been living in Northeast England for

about four years now, but have

rarely had the chance to show in

the UK. Much of the work I’ve

made is made and finished in the

National Glass Centre in

Sunderland, but gets crated almost

immediately and sent off to shows

elsewhere.

As a research fellow at the University of

Sunderland, I am looking more to

experiment, and less toward making

editions or large amounts of work. In

some ways, the Biennial might help make

my work more saleable, though the works

on show at this venue are technically

tricky and time consuming. They might

become more saleable, but not

necessarily profitable.

Do you think that being selected

runner-up for the Glass Sellers Prize

will have an impact on your career? If

so how?

I’ve definitely gained more visibility in

the UK and Europe as a result of winning

the prize, and it is definitely great to get

recognized for the effort I’ve put into

developing my work for the past few years.

I’m hoping to stay in the UK in the long

term, so it is important to have interested

collectors and institutions that can support

my career. My most recent projects have

been with museums in Sunderland and

Liverpool, so it would be great to keep

moving in this direction.

Has the prize money been useful?

What will you use it for? Is it allocated

to a specific project or use?

Some of the prize money has gone

toward the next crate of ‘Bullseye’

Glass and the rest will be used to

fund research for my next exhibition.

I’m gearing up for a major solo show

in 2012 that I plan to show in the UK

and elsewhere in Europe.

To see more examples

of Jeffrey’s work go to

jeffreysarmiento.co.uk

Maria Chanmugam

Shelley Doolan – Iteration 456

Jeffrey SarmientoOssify

Winning the Glass Sellers Award does it make a difference?

Following the successful launch of the

Glass in Society Scheme in the West

Midlands in 2010, the Charity Fund has

been keen to extend the scheme to a larger

number of schools. There is no doubt that

Glass in Society Schemes and the projects

in them provide immense benefits to the

young people involved.

In the summer 2010 issue of the Glass

Seller we advised that the Trustees proposed

Glass in Society Scheme 2011 an update on progress

to approach third party sources for support.

We are delighted to inform you all that we

have had an initial success in being awarded

a grant of £5000 for 2011 from the 29th May

1961 Charitable Trust, with the expectation

of similar grants for the two subsequent

years, and thus providing 100% leveraging

and doubling the number of schools that we

can support in 2011. We shall continue to

approach other third party sources.

Do Liverymen have any contacts

with companies who may be interested

in supporting our initiative? Do you

know of any Trusts or grant schemes

that we could approach to support us?

Please contact: Professor John Whiteman

whitemanwaneys@btinternet.com or:

Leigh Baildham:

leigh@leighbaildham2001.orangehome.co.uk

Maria Chanmugam

The Glass Seller Page 6

Colonel Audrey Smith is leaving the

post of Honorary Clerk in March of

this year after eight most successful years.

Audrey joined the Livery of the

Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers in

September 1999. She had had a wonderful

and successful military career working at

the highest levels internationally including

in NATO Head Quarters in Brussels, where

she was Colonel on the international staff

and the first woman to be selected for this

post. On leaving the Army, she worked in

Human Resources, was a Chartered fellow

of the Chartered Institute of Personnel

Development, and was council

representative in the Institute and Chairman

of the London branch of the CIPD. At the

same time she became the charity

administrator for the Pottery and Glass

Trades Benevolent Fund. This established

charity brought her into contact with the

ceramics and glass industries. We were

pleased that through these contacts she

chose to join our Livery. She brought with

her the many skills she had honed during

those military years and when the Clerkship

became vacant she was approached to take

on the role.

The tasks of the Clerk are many and

various and her qualities of integrity,

loyalty, enthusiasm and professionalism

mixed with a terrific sense of humour have

stood her and this Company in good stead.

There is no doubt that her leadership has

raised the profile of the Glass Sellers right

across the City. It is probably not possible

to adequately pay tribute to all she has

achieved and indeed only she will know the

full picture. I do know that because of her

liaison skills she has built excellent

relationships with many other Livery

Companies, Clerks, Hall managers and

caterers. She knows how to drive a hard

bargain and time and time again achieves

really good value for the Company and its

Livery. She has introduced the Company to

direct debit. She has pioneered a new table

planning programme for dinners and the

banquet which is the envy of many other

Clerks. She has sourced a new and very

efficient mailing service. Through her

military connections she has been able to

keep contact with our submarine whilst on

exercise when it was otherwise impossible.

She has forged and strengthened the

Company’s ties with the Army Cadet force

in North East London and the Rifles. She

has seen 63 new members join the Livery

and has arranged their Freedom ceremonies

at Guildhall. All this is on top of the daily

running of the Company, its membership,

finances and events.

The members of the Livery have always

come first and she has done much to look

after us all both as a group or individually

whether Master or newest Freeman. She

has been quick to pick up on our personal

needs or problems and has been there to

help on an almost “twenty four, seven

basis”. Because she has always put the

Company and its functions first, many will

be unaware that during her time in office

she has had to cope with her own close

bereavements and health issues.

As for me – well being Master was a

very great privilege and pleasure and with

Audrey beside me it was also hugely

enjoyable. She guided me through City

events with great professionalism and

humour. As we journeyed to Glasgow or

Cornwall or Sunderland she was a really

good travelling companion and raconteur

with a fund of stories from her military

past and her wider personal interests. I

might have found myself stuffing

envelopes on a train, or kneeling on a floor

to sign certificates, but it was always fun.

Audrey, thank you for all you have done

for this Livery Company – you will be

more missed than many people yet realise.

Jo Thomas

A Change of Leadership at the Top

Colonel Audrey Smith, Honorary Clerk

At the Court Meeting on 9th

December 2010 the Selection

Committee of the Court proposed that

Liveryman Dr Trevor Robinson should be

appointed the Clerk Elect.

The Committee had been through a formal

selection process involving two rounds of

interviews; and this process had been opened

to people suggested by the Fellowship of

Clerks as well as to internal members of our

Livery. The Court approved its Committee’s

proposal and Trevor is currently under -

studying our Honorary Clerk Colonel Audrey

Smith. It is planned that on 14th March,

subject to the approval of the Court, Trevor

should become our Clerk as an employee of

the Company.

Since 1995 Trevor has directed his own

consultancy business, advising over 20

governments worldwide on governance and

public sector development. Before that he

worked for a large City consulting firm and

for the British Administrative Civil Service.

He was educated as a scientist with an MA

from Cambridge, and a PhD from Imperial

College London in plant pathology.

Since then he has acquired professional

qualifications in management and personnel.

He retains an academic link as an honorary

research associate at London University’s

School of Oriental and African Studies.

He has been a very keen Liveryman since

2002. He has acted as Secretary to the Finance

and General Purposes Committee since 2007;

and he was Principal Master’s Steward from

2004 – 09. He is keenly interested in the City,

where he first worked in 1981 and he has

lived within the City in the Barbican since

1987. He is now enthusiastic to develop the

Glass Sellers Livery Company as directed by

the Master, Wardens and Court. He would be

interested to hear ideas from anybody in the

Company: TJR@TrevorJRobinson.co.uk;

or 212 Gilbert House, Barbican, London,

EC2Y 8BD; or 020 7638 4333.

Trevor was born in 1948, is young at heart,

and will serve the Company efficiently and

with enthusiasm. We wish him well.

Martin Scarth

Clerk Elect Dr Trevor Robinson

Dr Trevor Robinson

The Glass Seller Page 7

Our Annual Banquet at the Mansion House

As over 170 Glass Sellers and their

guests assembled in the Salon of the

Mansion House they could look up and

reflect with some satisfaction that the

occasion was lit by a row of the finest

lead crystal glass chandeliers in the

country. Yet this was but one of many

enjoyable aspects of the Glass Sellers

Annual Banquet presided over by The

Master Richard Lawman and in the

presence of the Representative Lord

Mayor, Alderman Sir Robert Finch.

Arriving at the head of the stairs guests

were suitably impressed by the guard of

honour formed by The Rifles, City of

London North East Sector, Army Cadet

Force. The Company actively supports

this Cadet Unit and this year The Master

launched a special appeal for an

advanced type of wheelchair needed by a

disabled cadet to enable him to

participate fully in cadet force activities.

The reception and the banquet were

accompanied by the music of The Brass

Quintet of the Band of the Honourable

Artillery Company, and before the

banquet Glass Sellers and their guests

could mingle in the Salon and also in the

Drawing Rooms which contain one of

London’s more compelling conversation

pieces – the 84 paintings of Dutch

Masters in the Harold Samuel Collection.

The centrepiece of the collection is the

Merry Lute Player by Frans Hals.

Appropriately for the Glass Sellers, the

lute player holds aloft a fine glass goblet.

Following a superb dinner of Guinea

Fowl and a 2005 Château Deville, Sir

Robert Finch presented The Glass Sellers

Award (Art and Craft) 2010 to Shelley

Doolan for her glass sculptures

conceived with the help of mathematical

modelling. The Glass Sellers Student

Award (Art and Craft) 2010 went to Lisa

Sheppy for her piece ‘Charlotte’s Dress’

based on the story of Charlotte Brontë’s

wedding dress which is reputed to have

been destroyed by her husband after her

premature death.

Past Master Professor John Whiteman

proposed a toast to The Guests and the

Master’s principal guest Michael St John

Parker replied with our traditional toast

to The Glass Sellers Company.

Michael St John Parker is a former

headmaster of Abingdon School, was

active within AGBIS – the Association

of Governing Bodies of Independent

Schools, and is now a governor of

several new Academies. In his speech he

made a powerful plea for increased

professionalism in independent school

governing bodies and pointed to the

disturbing fact that currently a quarter of

all boys in English schools require some

form of remedial teaching.

The evening concluded with an

entertaining speech by The Master who

proposed the toast to our eternally

useful and aesthetically pleasing

material, ‘To Glass’.

William Parker

Michael St John Parker proposing the toast toThe Glass Sellers Company

Shelley Doonan received The Glass Sellers Awardfrom Alderman Sir Robert Finch and The Master

Alderman Sir Robert Finch and The Masterpresented Lisa Sheppy with the Student Award

The Rifles Guard of Honour

A musical welcome

Awaiting the guests, The Master, the Mistress and the Beadle Anthony Parker

The Glass Seller Page 8

Glass SellersProgramme 2011

Friday 1 AprilUnited Guilds Service – St Paul’s Cathedral

Tuesday 17 MayCorporation of the Sons of the Clergy

St Paul’s Cathedral

Wednesday 18 May to Sunday 22 MayThe Master’s Visit to the Midlands

Thursday 16 JuneSummer Service – St James Garlickhythe

Court & Livery DinnerPainter-Stainer’s Hall

Friday 24 JuneElection of Sheriffs – Guildhall

Tuesday 5 JulyVisit to St Paul’s Cathedral 2pm

a Livery Committee Event

Thursday 22 SeptemberCourt & Livery Dinner – Stationers’ Hall

Monday 3 OctoberElection of the Lord Mayor – Guildhall

Tuesday 25 OctoberAnnual Banquet – Mansion House

Friday 11 NovemberSilent Ceremony – Guildhall

Saturday 12 NovemberLord Mayor’s Show

Sunday 27 NovemberWinter Service

St James Garlickhythe

Thursday 8 DecemberCourt & Installation Dinner

Stationers’ Hall

The Glass Seller is published by The Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers of London. www.glass-sellers.co.uk © The Glass Sellers Company 2011.

Acknowledgements: March 2011. The Glass Seller would like to thank those who have contributed articles to this issue. Photographs supplied by: GeraldSharp Photography, Past Master Bill Cook, Liveryman Trevor Robinson, Liveryman John Spencer. Our thanks to the Honorary Clerk whose active supportmakes possible the production and distribution of this newsletter. Newsletter design and artwork is by Andrew Jones. Printed by Crossprint on the Isle of Wight.

The Ravenscroft Lecture 2011

Approximately 60 Liverymen and their

guests gathered at Glaziers’ Hall on

22nd February, to hear Dr. Bob King,

deliver his talk “The Magic of Glass”.

He was introduced by the Master, Martin

Scarth who asked – “why Ravenscroft?”

and “why Bob King?”

Those assembled learnt that George

Ravenscroft (1618-1681) had been a

pioneer in developing a new form of glass

at his glass-house at the Savoy, London.

Beginning in 1673, he encountered serious

faults including “crizzling” or clouding of

the transparency of the glass.

He joined forces with the Glass Sellers’

Company in 1674 working at Henley on

Thames. This was an association which

lasted until 1679, and which led the

Company to grant Ravenscroft the raven’s

head to use as his mark or seal. His method

of adding lead oxide in the manufacture

became used in all the glassmaking centres

of England producing lead crystal and

making us a world leader.

Why Bob King – well it soon became

apparent that Dr. King also has, during his

career, helped this country to become a

world leader. Working at first in Atomic

Energy Research at Harwell he later, after

answering an advertisement in the New

Scientist, moved to Triplex Safety Glass

Company Limited (later acquired by

Pilkington).

Here he found full reign for his passion

by contributing to the development of the

windscreen for Concorde. The challenges

were to meet the demand of high

temperature – 127C; expansion of up to 12”

with an outside air temperature of -57C.

This was done using a new technique of

applying to the glass a highly transparent

electrically conducting coating. This was

later used for civilian aircraft manufactured

by Boeing with perhaps the most graphic

example of its success shown when the ill

fated Pan Am Clipper, Maid of the Seas,

crashed at Lockerbie. As was seen in

photographs flashed around the world, the

screen remained intact.

Bob subsequently went on to work on

bullet and bomb proof glass for use in a

number of situations. He was also involved

with the design of the night vision

equipment which was so successfully used

during the Falklands War.

More recently, the early research on

Concorde has led to his managing a Flat

Screen television project in the Engineering

Department at Cambridge University.

To further justify the title of his talk – “The

Magic of Glass” Bob concluded by showing

us another talent; that of being a member of

the Magic Circle. With the use of a glass

goblet and a copy of the Sunday Telegraph

all were amazed to see the goblet emptied of

water into the newspaper, which remained

dry. The newspaper was then tipped back

towards the goblet delivering a glass of red

wine for Bob to drink! A fitting end to a

fascinating presentation. Clive Dellow.

It was a pleasure to be asked to write an

article for the Magazine on the work of

the Finance and General Purpose

Committee. The Committee meets

normally bi-monthly and is responsible for

the day to day running of the Company, in

close co-operation with the current Master

of the day and the Clerk.

The Committee consists of the

Chairman (my role), Dr Bill Cook, John

Poulten, Gwen Rhys, Caroline

Whiteman and Secretary Dr Trevor

Robinson. Treasurer Philip Willoughby,

Renter Warden Guy Harrison and the

Prime Warden of the day are ex-officio

members of the Committee. Professor

John Whiteman is a co-opted member

and Master Martin Scarth and The

Clerk, Colonel Audrey Smith, are

invited members.

One of the prime duties is for the

Committee to set the budget for the

forthcoming year and have bi-monthly

reports from the Treasurer on the financial

position, the quarterage and the livery

dinners that are held quarterly, together

with any other functions. It also has to

approve the end of year accounts before

they are presented to the Court and is

responsible for the execution and

investment of the company funds, on the

approval of the Court.

The F and G P has reports from other

Committees such as the Communications

Committee, the Membership Committee

and the Charity Fund Committee. Further

reports are received on the corporate

association position and events organised

by the Livery Committee, all of which are

for onward report to the Court.

Although the Committee meets as

aforementioned there is often weekly or

even daily contact between the Officers

and members of the Committee to enable

the smooth running of the Company.

Vivian Bendall

Introducing the F and GP Committee