What our Members Say
" I think you do a fantastic job and have loved those events I have managed to attend and cannot thank you enough."
CF July 2021
CF July 2021
"Events organised by City Consorts have played a big part in the Mistress Baker's year, and I thank them for ensuring the Mistress Baker was fully and indeed very filly engages with Livery related activities" Past Mistress Baker
My first introduction to City Consorts was a pre Covid trip on the River. I am so grateful for this introduction as it has made a huge difference to my preparation for my year as Consort to my husband. His year has been postponed due to Covid, lucky me, as I have another year to learn and explore all the fascinating history and current life of the City with C2- this means I will most likely end up knowing more about it than he does!
I have been accompanying my husband to Livery functions for 27 years and to be honest, as much as I enjoyed the events, I felt it was very much ‘his thing’ and i thought my role was to look lovely and be an entertaining hostess with his guests. Whilst the role of Consort is simply to support The Master, one of the greatest privileges of joining C2 has been to learn how much more being a support can be, rather than simply than looking good and making sociable conversation.
It has been a real gift to have the opportunity to learn about the City, how it is structured, and how the old traditions have been carefully woven into today’s business world. C2 have really brought the City alive for me and I look forward to being able to share this with others, as well as being more confident in my own role as Consort, now that I have a deeper understanding of what we are part of.
For those of us yet to have our year as Consort, the Jigsaw Coffee mornings were so enjoyable. They and gave us a wealth of information that has been an immeasurable gift of preparation, which will only enhance the overall experience and enjoyment of being a Consort. I know we are all so appreciative of the time and preparation that went into these sessions. I really enjoyed soaking up the wide variety of topics that we covered, as well as having a giggle with people I have never met during the dark days of winter. It is a real privilege to be a C2 member and I would like to offer a huge thank you to Von and her wonderful support team that have made all this possible – long may it last!" VG
I have been accompanying my husband to Livery functions for 27 years and to be honest, as much as I enjoyed the events, I felt it was very much ‘his thing’ and i thought my role was to look lovely and be an entertaining hostess with his guests. Whilst the role of Consort is simply to support The Master, one of the greatest privileges of joining C2 has been to learn how much more being a support can be, rather than simply than looking good and making sociable conversation.
It has been a real gift to have the opportunity to learn about the City, how it is structured, and how the old traditions have been carefully woven into today’s business world. C2 have really brought the City alive for me and I look forward to being able to share this with others, as well as being more confident in my own role as Consort, now that I have a deeper understanding of what we are part of.
For those of us yet to have our year as Consort, the Jigsaw Coffee mornings were so enjoyable. They and gave us a wealth of information that has been an immeasurable gift of preparation, which will only enhance the overall experience and enjoyment of being a Consort. I know we are all so appreciative of the time and preparation that went into these sessions. I really enjoyed soaking up the wide variety of topics that we covered, as well as having a giggle with people I have never met during the dark days of winter. It is a real privilege to be a C2 member and I would like to offer a huge thank you to Von and her wonderful support team that have made all this possible – long may it last!" VG
"You would think joining City Consorts in the ‘lockdown’ was a strange decision. However as a future consort it has proved an excellent source of preparation for my future role. Not only has a wealth of information about The City of London’s history, traditions, and member’s experiences been discussed over friendly ‘Zoom’ cups of coffee but I have attended a whole series of ‘Zoom events’ notably a Masterchef cookery demonstration and virtual tours of specific areas of London. If my lockdown experience is anything to go by future ‘in person events’ will be a very enjoyable source of knowledge and friendship." YJ
"Joining the City Consorts has been a great move. I will be consort to my husband being Master of The Barbers Livery Company, later in the year.
The invitation to meet with other future consorts at the Zoom Jigsaw Coffee Mornings has really helped me to prepare for the busy year ahead. Not only was it a chance to meet other consorts past and present, but to learn about the many aspects of the City of London. We learnt about its history and traditions, as well as useful tips on functions we may attend. There has also been a full and diverse programme of talks and events to attend online. I feel much better prepared for the year ahead, as well as meeting some very friendly, helpful and supportive members ." EF
The invitation to meet with other future consorts at the Zoom Jigsaw Coffee Mornings has really helped me to prepare for the busy year ahead. Not only was it a chance to meet other consorts past and present, but to learn about the many aspects of the City of London. We learnt about its history and traditions, as well as useful tips on functions we may attend. There has also been a full and diverse programme of talks and events to attend online. I feel much better prepared for the year ahead, as well as meeting some very friendly, helpful and supportive members ." EF
I heard about, and joined, the City Consorts only a couple of weeks ago, and was looking forward to my first solo event as Consort of a future Master (Management Consultants, 21/22). The programme - a talk by Peter Cave on the history of London and the Livery Companies (a lot of ground to cover in just 90 minutes!), and a presentation by Adrian Palfreyman and Emma Brownsea from Walters of Oxford (which dresses Oxford dons and students alike, as well as a good proportion of Livery officials and the Lord Mayor himself) - sounded fascinating. It promised much, and delivered more.
Always interested in history, I was intrigued to find out just how much of the Roman city remains accessible ... if you know where to look! I shall be planning future trips into town with this in mind. And, whilst I understood that Livery companies went back quite a way, I was surprised at how deeply they were embedded in the heart of the City. All that, plus repeated encouragements to take part in the many Livery and City events open to us lucky few left me feeling positively enthused about the next few years.
The presentation by Walters was also very interesting: I hadn’t realised that the traditional Oxford gowns are modelled on those of the original scholars - monks. (So thats why their hoods are such a strange shape...) Livery robes are ultimately descended from the same source ... although I do hope the religious monks didn’t invent that handy little purse for bribes!!!
Lunch was a nice selection of sandwiches with wine, and bite-sized desserts to follow (oh those delightful little cheesecakes! Yum!).
What I was most grateful for was the very warm welcome I received from everyone I spoke to. It’s always difficult to walk into a room full of strangers, but I quickly forgot all that and simply enjoyed the day. Thank you to Claire Chitty and the valiant team of organisers! And special thanks to Brian Easteal for encouraging me to join in the first place.
CC
Always interested in history, I was intrigued to find out just how much of the Roman city remains accessible ... if you know where to look! I shall be planning future trips into town with this in mind. And, whilst I understood that Livery companies went back quite a way, I was surprised at how deeply they were embedded in the heart of the City. All that, plus repeated encouragements to take part in the many Livery and City events open to us lucky few left me feeling positively enthused about the next few years.
The presentation by Walters was also very interesting: I hadn’t realised that the traditional Oxford gowns are modelled on those of the original scholars - monks. (So thats why their hoods are such a strange shape...) Livery robes are ultimately descended from the same source ... although I do hope the religious monks didn’t invent that handy little purse for bribes!!!
Lunch was a nice selection of sandwiches with wine, and bite-sized desserts to follow (oh those delightful little cheesecakes! Yum!).
What I was most grateful for was the very warm welcome I received from everyone I spoke to. It’s always difficult to walk into a room full of strangers, but I quickly forgot all that and simply enjoyed the day. Thank you to Claire Chitty and the valiant team of organisers! And special thanks to Brian Easteal for encouraging me to join in the first place.
CC
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