Marilyn Stowe Blog

Stowe Family Law goes to Buckingham Palace

As you will note from the photo, I spent yesterday out of the office! Stowe Family Law’s chief executive, Andrew Williams, had been invited to tea with the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, in recognition of his excellent civic performance as the youngest ever Mayor of Ripon. As a “thank you” for helping to arrange flexible working patterns so that he could fulfil his public duties, Andrew asked me to accompany him. I took all of two seconds to accept…

It was a strange day. We travelled down the M1 dressed in jeans and shirts, stopping off for a quick snack of coffee and inedible motorway sandwiches. Once in London and dressed for the occasion, we were driven down the Mall to Buckingham Palace, where the Royal Standard was flying.

Tourists were gathered at the railings, where this picture was taken. We passed through the gates, across the courtyard and up the red carpeted stairs into the Palace, passing several Beefeaters. We came out onto the magnificent terrace and looked out onto the crowd of people in the gardens. Beyond them, ducks swimming in a lake, oblivious to all the fuss. It was as far from the bustle of Central London as you could imagine.

There were two bands playing and the afternoon tea was gorgeous. I had to try a cucumber sandwich, of course. I don’t normally eat them, but this was Buckingham Palace… There was an array of sandwiches and dainty slices of Victoria sponge, fruit tarts, lemon tarts, fruit loaf and chocolate cake, each with a gilded crown on top. Yes, you could spoil yourself and get used to this lifestyle…

At 4 pm, to the strains of the National Anthem, the Royal Family came out onto the terrace and then down into the gardens. The Queen was a tiny figure dressed in yellow, the Duke by her side. They were followed by other members of the Royal Family, sadly minus the newlywed Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

As I turned to watch this spectacle, who walked past me? Sir Peter Singer, the subject of my post last week! I burst out laughing when I saw him and so did he.

After the tea, we were plunged back into the real world: the tourists, the black cabs and the noise and bustle of London. A thoroughly enjoyable day was at an end.

Many thanks to Andrew Williams for his very kind invitation, which I treasure.