Papal Visit Dinner...

The parishioners at Chislehurst had the great idea of marking the Holy Father's visit to the UK with a black tie event at Chislehurst Golf Club. It was also considered to be a great opportunity to raise some funds for the parish church. I believe that the organisers did consider inviting the Holy Father himself, but apparently he was otherwise engaged...

The Golf Club is at Camden Place, once the residence of the Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress Eugenie, and the Emperor was initially buried at the church of St. Mary's before being moved to Farnborough. The Parish Priest of Chislehurst is therefore always a member of the Golf Club... I've been privileged to be a guest at the Club for Sunday lunch on a few occasions, courtesy of Fr. Charles Briggs, and so I was determined to get a few photos of the event, which, I felt sure, would compliment the ambience of the interior...

I had the great good fortune to be sitting next to the very entertaining barrister Adrian Davies and his mother, Maria. I discovered, during our conversation on how wonderful our Holy Father is, that Adrian Davies' father was a great friend of the (then) Joseph Ratzinger, and how the family had received a card of condolence from him when Adrian's father died... and it suddenly dawned on me that his father was none other than Michael Davies, the man who had done so much to fight for the usus antiquior in this country... I promptly persuaded them to pose for a photo with Fr. Tim when he came over to chat and take photos of his own...

Fr. Tim Finigan, having been held up in Central London by the late running of the Holy Father's schedule, hadn't managed to change into his cassock and ferru...ferrai... furru... erm, that black cape thingy (ahhh, found it... ferraiuolo!)

Fr. Charles Briggs doesn't have a ferraiuolo, but he was suitably attired in his cassock, and consented to pose with the underdressed Fr. Finigan... fortunately, black clerical garb is pretty smart anyway! The photo came out slightly blurred. I think the room must have moved...

I can't quite understand how people can bear to have their photos taken... however (fortunately for me) most people seem quite happy to pose, especially when they've pushed the boat out a bit for an event like this. Andrew Bosi, who sings at both Blackfen and Chislehurst (when he's not at Maiden Lane), James Barton (MC and Sacristan at Chislehurst) and Jonathan Hague (MC at Blackfen) were in fine form, while behind them, an auction and a raffle were starting up...

James and Jonathan both consented to pose earlier in the evening as well, and I thought it rather amusing to see the post-62 and pre-62 rubrical preferences reflected in the drinks chosen...

At the end of the evening, Delia Gaze (who came along to the Lourdes pilgrimage this year) was press-ganged into posing with Fr. Charles, Fr. Tim (sporting his Papal Visit Press Pass and rucksack) and James. Delia gave a perfect lesson in how to make a simple scarf look stunningly elegant... something I never manage, no matter how hard I try. She later went off to Cofton Park to see the Holy Father beatify Cardinal Newman.

I managed to get this rather good photo early on of Councillor David Hurley, who was kind enough to relieve me of my coat, when I arrived, and carried my glass of champagne over to the table. Personally, I had been planning to grab a bottle, with the excuse that it was the only way I could carry a drink while on crutches, but the best-laid plans can be thwarted by the kindnesses of others... *sigh*

At the end of the evening, Fr. Tim showed off the Papal Flag before we returned to Blackfen to wave off the pilgrims to Cofton Park.

It was an absolutely brilliant evening, and I'd like to thank the organisers at Chislehurst for making it possible. I hope that there's another one quite soon...