Thrilled to have been able to support the Lady Mayor Dame Susan Langley in the Lady Mayor's Ride Out, supporting the The Lord Mayor's Appeal. Not your average Friday, well over 100 motorbikes outside St Paul's Cathedral, London certainly caught the eye of tourists and other passers by. Liverymen Simon Cole and Richard Lovell were representing us on the ride out. Super to see so many Livery Companies represented and not a black tie in sight!

Liverymen Gail Sharp, Tim Davies and Assistant Carole Plant spent the morning volunteering at The Soup Kitchen near Tottenham Court Road. The old cabin, in which drinks, breakfast and snacks were served has recently had an impressive makeover; it is shortly to open. We served hot and cold drinks, fruit salad, soup and lunch to about 180 visitors, all of whom must be finding the current hot weather very trying. The Soup Kitchen offers more than just free meals, clothing and to

May 2026 Beautiful sunshine greeted us at Highgrove as we welcomed the participants to our third fan making workshop at The King’s Foundation Workshops at Barley Court where we were allocated a workshop with an outdoor space under a marquee making a very pleasant working environment. After an introduction to the company and fans, Sophia Mace introduced the day then Helen Marr talked through her display of fans and books to introduce the different types and to give an idea o

The Master, Dinesh Naidu, and Senior Warden and Military Liaison, Gary Blaker, visited No 2 Squadron Royal Flying Corps at the Battle Honours Update and the re-dedication of the Shiny Two Memorial and the unveiling of later Battle Honours to the plinth. These were for Afghanistan 2001 - 2014, Iraq 2003 - 2011 and Libya 2011. The squadron, known as Shiny Two, is one of the oldest squadrons in the world and has a rich history; their mottos are "Hereward" and "Second to None". T

Photography by - Niki Gorick Photography The Worshipful Company of Fan Makers has a long tradition of marking important Royal occasions with the presentation of a commemorative fan. The tradition began in 1897, when Queen Victoria received a fan for her Diamond Jubilee, followed by Queen Alexandra at her Coronation in 1902. More recently, Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Gloucester accepted a fan to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. Following the Coronation in

We all must be looking forward to some warm summer months, and this fan painted with a woodland party might bring them nearer. The fan is a French one dating to the early 18th Century and is of the type known as a brise fan. It is composed of a carefully placed group of identically shaped ivory sticks: each stick is painted to be part of an overall scene which becomes visible when all of them are linked together. The linking ribbon at the outer edge of the fan is of green

The Worshipful Company of Fan Makers hosted an online presentation and discussion given by Mr Andrew Kent, OBE, Consultant Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgeon at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness. He is also vice-chair of the Faculty of Remote, Rural & Humanitarian Healthcare at the Royal College of Surgeons - Edinburgh and a Trustee of Life and Limb / the Primary Trauma Care Foundation. As a retired Lt. Colonel, RAMC, his vast experience in the field of trauma care has taken him to ma

The Master Dinesh Naidu, Free Warden Christopher Turner, Foreign Warden Richard Jeffery, their Consorts and the Clerk were joined by other members of the Worshipful Company of Fan Makers at the 2026 United Guilds Service at St Paul's Cathedral. The service is known for its immense colour and pageantry with Masters, Wardens and Clerks of various companies wearing their traditional, distinctive robes and badges of office. It highlights the continued relevance and charitable com

The Company was invited to take part in “The Twelve Days of Craftsmas” at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Knightsbridge in December. Fan Making was one of twelve sessions that the hotel ran to raise money for charity. The hotel looked really Christmassy with a giant fan on the front and drinks and nibbles were provided. Assistant Helen Marr led a simple session making two cockade fans using Christmas wrapping paper and also a paper specially designed by Chloe Campbell, a pa

The Master Dinesh Naidu and Assistant Carole Plant Grant Secretary with Liverymen Carolyn Hutchings and Sally Wyllie visited Headway East London on Thursday 26th February. welcomed by Grace Bailey who introduced us to one of the members Matt, who took us on a tour. Matt visits every Tuesday and Thursday following a head injury he sustained in 2018 - about which he knows nothing at all. He spent 6 months in hospital and it took 2 years from him to come off the huge waiting l

A 2-day fan making course will be held at the RAC Club, Pall Mall on 16th & 17th March. Club members will be given the chance to make their own fan under the supervision of expert Caroline Adlington on behalf of the Worshipful Company. This has been arranged by The Immediate past Master, Antony Robson who has been a member since 1973. The Company is striving to raise the interest in fans and develop new fan makers.

The Worshipful Company of Fan Makers celebrated the election of their new Master, Dinesh Naidu, Free warden Christopher Turner and the new Foreign warden Richard Jeffery at a dinner held at Saddlers' Hall with over 140 Liverymen, freemen and their guests. The celebrated French fan maker M. Frederick Gay attended, and brought a fabulous collection of his fans which were on display during the evening. The Master's Principal Guest was Richard Clifford, a Trustee of the Charity

On January 29th, The Master, Wardens, Clerk, and members of the Court joined a number of new joiners to the Company for a social evening to get know other members of the Fan Makers. The evening was held in Martha's Bar in the basement of Williamson's Tavern in Bow Lane. This building was originally the home of the Lord Mayors and the original pub dates to the 17th Century. There is a portrait in there of a previous Master of The Worshipful Company of Fan Makers, Sir James Whi

Congratulations to all involved with 101 (City of London) Engineer Regiment EOD&S who took part in the Section Competition at the weekend. The Master Select Dinesh Naidu joined by the Clerk cheered on 217 Field Squadron, affiliated with the Worshipful Company of Fan Makers since 1997.

The Master Antony Robson, the Free Warden Dinesh Naidu, the Foreign Warden Christopher Turner and members of The Worshipful Company of Fan Makers joined the Master, Wardens and members of the Worshipful Company of Fuellers for their annual Christmas Carol Service on Monday December 1st; this was led by the Revered Nick Mottershead, Fuellers' Chaplain, at The Church of St Vedast-alias-Foster, London EC2V 6HH. Christmas victuals were enjoyed after the service!

A fan was presented to the Mayoral Consort Mr Gary Langley at Saddlers' Hall on Thursday 20th November by the Master, Antony Robson. Mr Langley was accompanied by the Sheriffs' Consorts Elspeth Hughes-Penney and Kevin Bradford, who received copies of the Fans of the Livery book. A fan was also presented to Mr Langley for the Lady Mayor, The Rt Hon Dame Susan Langley DBE, to honour her being the first to be styled Lady Mayor.

On a wet and windy morning last week Liverymen Jon Boot, Paula Lent, Sally Wylie and Assistant Carole Plant joined the amazing Rosa - Chef at The Soup Kitchen; she cooked, and we served 185 meals to the homeless, elderly, lonely and vulnerable individuals in central London. The Soup Kitchen mission is to offer more than just free meals, clothing, and toiletries; they strive to create a sense of belonging for nearly 200 friends every day. Sally and Carole have been a few times

The Master, Antony Robson, Free Warden Dinesh Naidu, Foreign Warden Christopher Turner and Mr Assistant Ian Block were proud to take part in the Lady Mayor's Show today to celebrate the start of the mayoral year for Dame Susan Langley. She is the First Lady Mayor in more than 800 years, although the third female mayor of the City of London. The first Lord Mayor's Show, the world's oldest civic procession, was held after King John allowed The City of London to appoint its own

On Halloween, Liveryman Lin McGarry and her husband Mark, organised a group of Liverymen from the Worshipful Company of Fan Makers to volunteer at the amazing charity City Harvest. Liverymen Lisa Andrews, Gail Sharp and Assistant Carole Plant spent a hugely enjoyable day packing butternut squash, potatoes and apples in crates. We then packed crates full of various items designed to be given to families in need and crates of snacks for different venues. Established in 2014, Ci

The Master, Antony Robson and the Clerk, Claire Chitty, attended the annual commemorative wreath laying ceremony on Sunday October 12th in memory of Nurse Edith Cavell at her memorial statue in Trafalgar Square. The Cavell Trust, supporting nurses, midwives and healthcare assistants in need, is one of the charities supported by the Fan Makers Charity. The Master is pictured with Hilary Andrews from the Worshipful Company of Nurses.