Raising fun and funds for our Children's Future
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A busy June for the Pearlies celebrating Queen Elizabeth 11 Platinum Jubilee year.
On the 8th of June we were invited to James Terry Court in Croydon for a chat, singalong and great Pie and mash from our friends Arments.
June 13th Welcoming the annual London Taxi Charity run Hastings for disabled children and their families.
Terry in his Pearly Prince of St Pancras suit
BBC One’s the Repair Shop is where a team of some of Britain’s most skilled craftspeople bring much-loved pieces of family history and the memories they hold back to life.
We were delighted to be invited for a special Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebratory show, restoring treasured items in connection to the Queen as well as celebrating traditional British heritage and culture.
Book about Alf Dole The Pearly Prince of St Pancras
So things started with me having a bit of a rabbit with Charlie, the assistant producer of The Repair Shop, telling him about the History of the Pearlies and how my wonderful Dad, Alf Dole, had managed to share this and his real life struggles living through the war years to Jeff Hudson in the last few months of his life. I also mentioned to Charlie that at the same time Dad started sewing a ‘Pearly Prince of St Pancras’ suit. Whilst his brilliant ‘Pearly Prince of St Pancras’ book, with Jeff’s assistance, was finished and successfully published in 2014, the suit has remained sitting in the wardrobe in its forlorn unfinished state. So, it seemed obvious to us both that the Repair Shop team could now potentially assist with helping see this final chapter in Alf’s life completed and my son, Terry, being able to proudly wear the suit and keep the tradition alive.
Back of jacket - RAF emblem for Terry & Navy emblem in memory of Alf
Front of the jacket - A spoon (Terry will be sewing the other spoon)….Pearly King Alf was also known as Alfie Spoons due to his flair for playing spoons), the pearly cab, a sun & the repair shop barn
We handed the suit over to Amanda & Julie to Amanda and Julie to weave their magic, with symbols on the jacket that were meaningful for Terry and the Repair Shop.
Repair shop barn
Sleeve - Teddy bear for Amanda & Julie & a heart (traditional pearly symbol)
Trousers - Furnace Brook logo
On the trousers they cleverly wove in the image from our social enterprise, which conveys community health and vitality. Being a Pearly is much more than raising fun and funds for charity, important though that is. For me, being a Pearly is about keeping alive the examples of true community values and human generosity, whilst often living in times of hardship. That’s how it all started with my Great Granddad, George and his best mate, Henry Croft.
Finally, being a ‘Coster’ at heart, as well as a Pearly, means I am always on the look out for a chance to sell my wares alongside spreading some friendly cheer. I do that through my craft brewery - a natural link to the days when all our family went Hopping down in Kent and Sussex in the 60s and 70s. Whilst we can’t bring the old times back, but we can recognise all that remains best from those times which is, of course, where the Repair Shop does such a great job in helping bring back to life the things that shouldn’t be forgotten.
Di’s family hopping in Kent
Our beer at Furnace Brook
The opening of “A Space For Us. People’s Museum, Somers Town”. There have been a lot of famous people to inhabit Somers Town, it’s an extraordinary patch of land in the centre of London compressed between the fast flows of Euston Road, Pancras Road, Eversholt Street and Crowndale Road - it has been the place of much history, transformation, jubilation and tragedy.
Its inhabitants include many familiar names: William Godwin, Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Shelly, William Wordsworth, Charles Dickens, Andres Bello, George Padmore, Doris Lessing, Mike Leigh, Aidan Andrew Dun, Fred Titmus, Jeremy Hardy and the founder of our Pearly tradition, Henry Croft.
12th May is St Pancras Day, celebrating all things St Pancras, and this year it was also the preview event for the opening of “A Space For Us. People’s Museum, Somers Town”. We went along for the festivities and to see the Queen of St Pancras, Queen Mary’s suit, donated to the museum, instilled into it’s rightful place alongside curiosities and curios from this unique, special, dimorphic, vibrant place of social reform, of community, of connection, of artists, writers, political thinkers, of anarchist and royalist and everything in between, a place for us …………….aka home
To find out more visit their website at aspaceforus.club
The proprietor, Diana is also going to be our distributor for our Beer in and around the St Pancras area
We were invited to the 35th year of The Egham Beer Festival.
This would be the first time we have put our beer into Firkins so naturally we were a little nervous of how it would take to kegging up rather than being in bottles.
The organiser wanted 3 Firkins one of Pearly pale, Alfie’s Amber and Furnace Ale.
The festival ran from Thursday to Saturday and I had arranged with the organiser that I would attend on the Saturday in my pearly suit and sing a few songs.
My good friend Nick Breeze a fabulous musician accompanied me on his electric keyboard, we had a lovely time and were greeted warmly.
The 3 Ale’s went down a treat and I had a good chat with many of the festival attendees and gained some valuable feed back.
I would say for our first beer festival the beer was enjoyed and it was a great experience. Thanks to all the organisers and of course the beer drinkers.
We were delighted to join the cavelcade to welcome home the inspiring, fantastic amazing Paralympian GB team.
It was a Pearly privilege to be there and we felt very humbled to be in the Athletes presence.
Princess Trinity and mum Queen Sheri enjoying the show
We are pleased to have the lovely Kelly join us to help raise fun and funds and to help keep the Pearly tradition alive.
Kelly has all the fabulous attributes needed to wear a Pearly suit and she is also my son Pearly King Simon’s partner.
Kelly and Simon
Diane and Kelly
I was contacted by Call the Midwife Costume department asking if I could loan them a Pearly King and Queen suit.
I had a lovely chat with the head of wardrobe for the series called Claire and said to her you could put people in a Pearly suit but it would not actually look as authentic as having a original Pearly in their own suit.
I said to Claire that original Pearlies are raised in the tradition over generations and if she wanted the real deal I offered that Myself and my King would gladly appear, Claire loved the idea and we had a wonderful day on set, meeting some of the show stars and being very well looked after. I particularly enjoyed having hair and makeup done what a treat.
We were series 10 episode 7 A big thank you to all the team from Call the Midwife for treating us like royalty.
On our Royal Thrones celebrating Harvest Festival.
I was asked to attend a charity Golf day to help raise fun and funds for the children’s respite trust. https://www.crtcharity.org/a-swinging-success/
The day went swinginly well and raised in excess of £8000.
My son Pearly King Lee was in one of the teams not in his Pearls as you can imagine not fitting to play golf in.
Photographs by Mr Chris Underhill, Thank you Chris.
I have had some interesting requests over the years and I received an email from a chap called Charlie who was born in St Pancras enquiring if I had a Pearly suit for his Museum at his headquarters. Anyway cut a long story short I liased with Charlie’s PA Mario about a Pearly suit for their Museum and we arrived at Pimlico Plumbers headquarters to present the Pearly suit. Charlie made a very kind donation to one of our charities
We were given a guided tour by Charlie himself around his amazing space. We met some of his workforce and had a lovely singalong and dance with them. I must say what a lovely happy vibrant team Charlie has and they all clearly love him.
We went to the canteen where we sat down with Charlie for Pie and Mash and Jellied Eels what a treat.
All in all we were treated like royalty and I feel grateful that Charlie’s museum has one of our Pearly suits in pride of place. Charlie has a real passion for London traditions and his kindness, empathy and warmth shone through. Here’s to our Pearly King of Plumbing Mr Charlie Mullins OBE.
A big thank you for our Goody bags and we hope you enjoy dad’s book and my Pearly Pigs Ear.
https://www.pimlicoplumbers.com/blog/a-right-old-cockney-knees-up-as-we-meet-the-pearly-king-of-st-pancras-and-the-pearly-queen-of-kings-cross
I was asked by Steve to do a Podcast, as we could not meet up we did it via Zoom. Here is the result.
https://player.captivate.fm/episode/bec9a9b9-9974-4093-be46-820e54ca5df3
In celebration and heartfelt respect for all those who gave up so much for our freedom, we organised a community VE Day celebration. As you know Covid 19 arrived so our live event could not take place.
We decided to improvise and make a You tube video of music, chat and comedy to air on the 8th May.
We had the wonderful musical talent of our dear friend Nick Breeze on the piano while I sang a couple of old songs. Nick also shared some of his jokes and then played us out with his Trumpet.
I would like to give a mention to the passing of a wonderful lady Dame Vera Lynn. We had the pleasure of meeting Dame Vera on a couple of occasions and her love and compassion shone through.
Dad was Dame Vera escort at a War and Peace show one year.
There have been many words written and spoken about Dame Vera but I would like to add that she was The Pearly Queen of the people. Lifting their spirits in many ways through very dark and extremely challenging times.
We love you Dame Vera may you rest in peace until we meet again.
We were very excited to attend The London Football awards at The Roundhouse in support of The Willow Foundation.
A fabulous event for helping to raise funds for an amazing charity.
Our good friend Jimmy O’Gara helped with fundraising.
My son Simon The Pearly King of Kings Cross, Jimmy and me.
The Pearlies always enjoy our outings with Madness, true Camden Boys who have not changed a bit. You can take the Boy out of Camden but you can’t take Camden out the Boy.
We were with them in August on Clapham Common and then in November for their House of Fun in Minehead.
The fab Paul Weller, he asked me if I was a real Pearly so I gave him one of dad’s books to read. Such a nice person.
Oh dear I am too shy :) :).
Willow is the only national charity working with seriously ill young adults aged 16 to 40 to fulfill uplifting and unforgettable Special Days.
Since 1999 Willow has fulfilled more than 17,000 Special Days for young adults living with life-threatening conditions such as cancer, motor neurone disease, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy and Huntington’s disease.
We felt very touched and honoured to be asked to attend The Willow Foundation Charity Ball. The Pearlies helped the wonderful volunteers to sell raffle tickets for the charity and we met truly lovely people.
Bob Wilson and his wife Megg
David Seaman a really nice chap.
Frankie, David Seaman’s wife a talented Ice skater and dress maker.
The beautiful Linda Lusardi and her hubby.
A proper London Girl, the amazing Mica Paris.
The Pearlies were back on their manor to support the wonderful community festival in Chalton St. The British Library had a wonderful banner honouring local community history.
It was with great pleasure I was asked to unveil the plaque for our founder Henry Croft. When I was born I lived in the same road (Phoenix Road) as Henry where I unveiled the plaque.
I was asked to attend a staff fun day at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, wonderful to meet the people which keep this beautiful iconic place running. Pie and mash went down a treat and we had a great singalong, thank you for a lovely day.
The above picture is of my Husbands Grandfather and Nan getting married at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel in 1923 when it was called The London Midland Hotel
When I arrived on Waterloo Bridge over the Easter Weekend to provide support to the
important Extinction Rebellion cause I had an immediate sense of deja vu. It took me a few
moments to make the connection. Then I realised I was being transported back to my times
as a ‘saucepan lid’ (kid) on the London street markets. The vibrancy, spontaneity and
community values were all there just like I remember (and I remember Dad talking about
reflecting on his childhood memories).
Just like the old street markets there was also some disruption caused to traffic, and rightly
so given our responsibility to the next generation in getting a momentum going to change
our course at this crucial time in history. Whilst on the bridge I had some great banter with
young and old, including the lovely Coppers. When I was interviewed for a film crew I took
the opportunity to refer to some immortal words of Winston Churchill (from a 1936 speech
in Parliament) which seem to fit with where we are with the current biodiversity and climate
crises -
“The era of procrastination, of half-measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays
is coming to its close. In its place we are entering a period of consequences.”
I was also given the mic on the bridge for a short while. I had enough time to explain to the
crowd how the traditional Costermongers’ values matched theirs. However sadly I wasn’t
allowed enough time to lead a chorus of some traditional old time songs.
We were invited to meet the consultant and all the staff involved with the running of the wonderful air ambulance service based at The Royal London Hospital. It was an honour and a pleasure meeting the crew from the girls in the charity shop and the boys who pilot the air ambulance. Thank you so much once again for inviting and showing us around. Celebrating 30 years of saving thousands of lives (Pearl Anniversary) it was a truly humbling experience and showcased what is wonderful in our World.
We look forward to helping raise more fun and funds in the future.
Recently we did an article for an in flight magazine called Wizz Air a smaller Airline company who have a section called Tribes which showcase local groups of interest from varied cultures.
It is always a pleasure for us to be part of keeping our History and tradition alive and reaching a Global audience.
is all about charity and community”
Meet the Pearly Kings and Queens of King’s Cross and St Pancras: the shining icons of a unique London tradition
Tribes London
One might feel uneasy in the presence of royalty, but when the Queen is serving you cheese sandwiches and endless cups of tea, it’s hard to feel intimidated. Ok, it’s not Her Majesty the Queen – not the one on the banknotes – but a queen nonetheless. Our generous host is Diane Gould, also known as the Pearly Queen of St Pancras. But what exactly is a Pearly Queen (or King)? Pearlies, dressed in elaborate costumes covered in hundreds of hand-sewn pearl buttons, are an iconic image of old workingclass London. But the Pearly tradition is about much more than fancy dress. “It’s all about charity and community,” explains Diane. “It dates back to the 11th century when street traders – known as costermongers – would elect a coster king and queen, paying them money each week to create a fund to help anyone in their area who fell on hard times.” By the 19th century coster men had taken to wearing rows of mother-of-pearl buttons – which shared the shine, but none of the expense, of real pearls – on their trousers, while women would mimic the gentry with elaborate feathered hats. Their evolution into the dazzling Pearly costumes
you see today is all down to a boy who admired the costers’ attitude and style: Henry Croft. “Croft was born in the St Pancras workhouse [an institution where the poor received board and lodging in return for work] in 1861,” says Diane. “At 13 he became a street sweeper in the area. He loved the costers’ approach to helping one another, so, having learned to sew in the workhouse, he made himself a smother suit – an outfit covered from head-to-toe in pearl buttons. Then he’d go to charity events and raise money for the cause.” The costers loved Henry’s idea, and in turn copied him, using their increasingly elaborate dress to raise money for the poor despite not being wealthy themselves. The Pearly Kings and Queens were born, becoming trustworthy symbols of charity and community. At one time there was a different Pearly family in 28 of London’s 32 boroughs. Today, many of the original Pearly families live outside London, but their hearts are still very much in the city – Diane’s home is filled with London memorabilia and images of her dad Alf Dole’s famous pearly black cab. And you can still see Pearlies in London, attending charity events, in schools teaching children about the city’s
THE PEARLIES OF KING’S Cross and St Pancras (right) represent a unique part of London’s social history
history, or at their annual Harvest Festival or New Year’s Day parade. But wherever and whenever you find a Pearly King, Queen, Prince or Princess, they’ll be raising funds and awareness. They’ll also be using Cockney rhyming slang – another famous London tradition where rhyming phrases replace the usual words. For example, as Diane explains her pearly outfit she points out her tit for tat (hat), barefoot blues (shoes) and almond rock (sock). Pearly culture is still a family affair. Diane’s royal entourage includes “my husband, Alistair, who’s the Pearly King of St Pancras, and my son Simon Dole, who is Pearly King of King’s Cross. Sheri Mears is Pearly Queen of King’s Cross, and her children, Cain and Trinity, are Pearly Prince and Princess of King’s Cross.” Like real royal families, many Pearlies are born into the tradition. Diane’s great grandfather, George Dole, was one of the three original Pearly Kings, alongside Bert Matthews, Pearly King of Hampstead, and Henry Croft himself. Her son, Simon, is only just taking on the role of a King, because he knows it’s not something you take lightly.
