Boris Johnson and Gary Rhodes at Leadenhall Market

Mayor of London Boris Johnson was at Leadenhall Market with chef Gary Rhodes today to celebrate St George’s Day and arrived, slightly late it has to be said, on a red Routemaster bus and gave a speech in the Market expressing his pride in England and London and about drawing on St Georges Day as an opportunity to celebrate the great things about London and England:
“What better time than St George’s Day to bring us all together to express the pride we have in our country”

Moving to a theme of absorbing foreign culture he did also point out that Saint George was a Cappadocian merchant who sold bacon to the Roman army, so there’s my useless fact for the day!

The folk musicians were playing and a fair crowd of assorted folks were there with the inevitably high proportion of suits and I never thought I’d be even slightly moved by the sight of Morris Dancers but they were there doing their thing as a reminder of bygone, simpler times and a crowd of passing foreign schoolchildren stood watching them for a while with a certain amount of bemusement. Now they know how we feel watching men in lederhosen slapping themselves or each other!

Town Crier Peter Moore, who shares the unique distinction amongst town criers of being a Freeman and a liveryman, was there giving the proceedings a more properly formal air and I also bumped into Dave Jones, who’s one of the organisers of this Saturday’s Saint George’s Day concert in Trafalgar Square.

A great celebration to be sure though even Boris can’t get a bus to run on time apparently…

Greater London Authority Press Release
http://www.london.gov.uk/view_press_release.jsp?releaseid=21797

St George’s Day concert on the square
http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/culture/st-georges-day/concert.jsp

Peter Moore – Town Crier
www.londontowncrier.com