The United Wards Club of the City of London

Founders Day Dinner
2025-10-31 18:45 - 22:30 UTC | Butchers Hall, 87 Bartholomew Close,, London, EC1A 7EB, United Kingdom
Our annual dinner to remember our Founders on 31st October 1877, will, this year, be held in Butchers Hall, 87 Bartholomew Close, London EC1A 7EB
The Worshipful Company of Butchers, has had more than its fair share of ill fortune, with five of their seven Halls burned down, including one that perished during the Great Fire of London in 1666. Their current Hall was originally opened by the Bishop of London in 1960. It underwent a major multi-million pound refurbishment, reopening in September 2019. It retains many of its features, finely balancing the traditions of a Livery Hall with first-class, modern facilities.
Please book by 21 October 2025
Dress Code: Black tie
We are honoured to have Sir David Wootton, past Lord Mayor in the City of London, as our guest speaker.
Also in attendance will be the:

Chairman of the Royal Society of St George, Andrew Marsden
President of the City Livery Club Alderman Professor Emma Edhem
Master of the City of London Guild of Freemen Adrian Waddingham, CBE FIA

Dress Code: Black tie

Lord Mayor’s Show
2025-11-08 10:00 - 15:00
The United Wards Club has again been invited to take part in this year’s Lord Mayor’s Show, along with Rotary in London, which is sponsoring the entry. United Ward Club members will be wearing tabards with our logo.

The float will be highlighting Rotary in Great Britain and Ireland’s “Purple4Polio” Campaign and will be joined a 100-year-old steam traction engine. We will be joined this year by a Pearly King and Queen along with Chelsea pensioner Philip Carr.

If you do not wish to take part, you can watch the parade at the roadside. You can also get a hot buffet lunch which will be served between 12.45pm and 2.30pm at Ironmongers Hall

If you wish to take part in the Lord Mayors Show

22.10.2025 update: Our allocation of spaces to take part in the Lord Mayors Show is now full.

For those who have signed up, Mike Wren will be in touch with you directly regarding your position in the parade.

If you do not wish to take part but would like to watch the proceedings

If you do not wish to take part, you can watch the parade at the roadside. You can also get a hot buffet lunch which will be served between 12.45pm and 2.30pm at Ironmongers Hall, the Ironmongers’ Company, Shaftesbury Place, off Aldersgate Street, Barbican, London EC2Y 8AA

Lunch will cost £39.00 per adult and tea and coffee is included with the meal. There will also be a bar serving beer, wine and soft drinks on a pay as you go basis.

Please book using the ticket below by 27th October (This is a deadline set by the Hall so that we can confirm our numbers).

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THE LORD MAYOR’S SHOW

The Lord Mayor’s Show is an ancient statement of the indomitable spirit of London and a modern celebration of her vigour and diversity.

The Show dates back to the early 13th century, when a desperate King John allowed the City of London to appoint its own Mayor. The King insisted that each newly-elected Mayor should come to Westminster and swear loyalty to the Crown, and the Mayor of London has been making that journey for over 800 years. Around him (and her) grew up the noisy, colourful, joyous procession that over the centuries became known as the Lord Mayor’s Show.

THE LORD MAYOR

The 698th Lord Mayor of London, is Alderman, Dame Susan Langley DBE

GETTING HERE

Sorry: cars and buses are no help on Show day. Tubes, boats and bicycles are much better, the new Elizabeth Line station at Farringdon is ideally placed and there are many nice ways to walk into the City when it is free of traffic.

WHERE TO GO

Some suggestions for different ways to watch the Show depending on how much you like a crowd and what else you might like to do that day.

HISTORY OF THE LORD MAYOR’S SHOW

The Mayor of London is an ancient office originally created by King John in a doomed attempt to get the city on his side.

It was 1215, and John’s disastrous reign was falling apart. His armies were retreating in France, his treasury was empty and his Barons were on the edge of open revolt. Soon they would force him to sign the Magna Carta, which would be largely ignored until civil war finally broke out. John died of dysentery a year later while marching his dwindling armies from one besieged city to another.

London was right in the middle of the growing conflict. It was a cosmopolitan, international place even then: rich but vulnerable, easy to take but hard to govern. The King’s taxes were high and the City was frequently held hostage by one or other group of warring Barons. The whole situation was very bad for business.

The King’s Charter for London of May 9th 1215, now in the London Metropolitan Archive

For years London had been trying to become a ‘commune’: a sort of early city state that would be able to declare its borders, make treaties and defend itself. King Richard had been an ally and King John may have thought it a smart move to go along with this. In 1215 he issued a Royal Charter that established the commune and allowed the City to choose its own Mayor every year instead of having a sheriff appointed by the King.

Know ye that we have granted … to our barons of our city of London, that they may choose to themselves every year a mayor, who to us may be faithful, discreet and fit for government of the city, so as, when he shall be chosen, to be presented unto us, or our Justice if we shall not be present… and he shall swear to be faithful to us…

At the end there you can see a careful condition: every year the newly elected Mayor must leave the safety of the City, travel upriver to Westminster and swear loyalty to the King.

London in around 1300: a walled town separated by open country from distant Westminster, where the King had his base.

In fact the loyalty of 13th century London was quite flexible and its gratitude brief. The city became a base for the rebellious barons. When they tried to get out of trouble later that year by offering the English crown to Prince Louis of France, Londoners are said to have lined the streets to welcome the invading French army.*

Later that year the King was brought to heel and the Magna Carta was signed. It was never meant to be a constitutional milestone, but just another attempt to make peace. John never put his name to it, since he could not read or write, but among its 25 signatories we can see the second elected Mayor of London, William Hardel. He probably gave us this part:

13: The city of London shall enjoy all its ancient liberties and free customs, both by land and by water. We also will and grant that all other cities, boroughs, towns, and ports shall enjoy all their liberties and free customs.

The Mayor became known as the “Lord Mayor” about 200 years later but it has been an elected office ever since it was created, and for the next few centuries Lord Mayor of London was by far the grandest position to which a commoner could aspire. The Lord Mayor’s Journey was the celebrity spectacle of its day and over the centuries it grew so splendid and so popular that it became known everywhere as the Lord Mayor’s Show.

The Show features in the plays of Shakespeare, the diaries of Pepys and the adventures of James Bond and of course in the pantomime story of Dick Whittington, who really was Mayor of London in three separate years. In the 20th century the Lord Mayor’s Show was the first outside event ever to be broadcast live and it still attracts a TV audience of millions.

The modern Lord Mayor’s procession is a direct descendant of that first journey to Westminster. The route and date have changed over the years but the pageantry of Hogarth and Canaletto can still be seen in its lively mixture of London’s past, present and future.

The State Coach is over 250 years old, and the pikemen who guard it are almost as old as the Show. Today you will see the City’s businesses, Livery Companies, charities, Her Majesty’s Forces, the City Police and Londoners from all walks of life come together to enjoy a splendid celebration of the City’s ancient power and prosperity, just as they did in the middle ages.

* It’s worth mentioning that England was essentially a Norman colony at the time. The real Angevin capital was in Anjou and the war was between the northern and southern Kings of France. John did very badly, lost almost all of his French kingdom and ended up, briefly, something much more like the King of England. This and the concessions that he made on the way, turned out to be some of the most important building blocks of Britain (and London).

Visit to Bevis Marks Synagogue followed by an optional supper afterwards
2025-11-11 18:00 - 19:30 | Bevis Marks Synagogue, between Houndsditch and Leadenhall Streets, London, EC3A 7LH
The Grade I listed Bevis Marks Synagogue, on the borders of the City and the Borough of Tower Hamlets in London, is the Cathedral Synagogue of the Spanish and Portuguese Sephardic Jews. Finished in 1701 it was the first synagogue to be built following the re-settlement of Jews in England in the second half of the 17th Century.
It is the oldest synagogue still in use in the United Kingdom and has witnessed the daily worship, festivals, the celebration of births, marriages and funerals of generations of Sephardic Jews; it has survived the threat of demolition, the shock waves of Luftwaffe and IRA bombs and the upheaval of mass construction, to stand as a symbol of resilience and tradition in a changing world.
The Bevis Marks Synagogue collection contains a thousand beautiful, ornate works of art and craftsmanship, including Torah scrolls, ritual silver items, vestments, books and furniture. It is the oldest and most complete collection of any Jewish establishment in the UK and one of the most complete in Europe.

We are very pleased that Sir Michael and Lady Barbara Bear ill be joining us. Sir Michael was the 10th Jewish Lord Mayor in 1000 or so years.
Afterwards we will go for a Turkish mealround the corner for a fixed price menu, including a glass of wine, beer or soft drink, as follows:
C H O I C E O F C O L D S TA R T E R S
HUMMUS S-VG
Puréed chickpeas w/ tahini, lemon juice, garlic and oil dressing.
TABBOULEH VG-G
Crushed wheat w/ chopped tomatoes, onion, mint and parsley salad.
PATLICAN SOSLU VG
Cooked and chopped aubergine, peppers, tomatoes and garlic.
FALAFEL VG-S
Broad beans, chickpeas and vegetable fritters served w/ hummus.
C H O I C E O F M A I N C O U R S E S
LAMB GUVECH D-DFO
Diced lamb cooked w/ tomatoes, onions, mushrooms and peppers, served w/ rice.
SPICY CHICKEN KOFTE G-D-DFO
Seasoned and grilled spicy minced chicken patties, served w/ bulgur, salad and garlic sauce.
ADANA KOFTE D-DFO-G
Marinated fine cuts of minced lamb, mixed w/ fresh herbs and grilled
on skewer, slightly spicy, served w/ bulgur and salad.
VEGGIE OR MEAT MOUSSAKA D-G
Baked layers of aubergine, potatoes, onions, carrots, peppers and minced
lamb, topped w/ béchamel sauce and cheese, served w/ rice.
INCIK (LAMB SHANK) D
Lamb shank slow cooked in the oven w/ rich tomato sauce and vegetables,
served w/ mashed potato.
CHICKEN ON SKEWER D
Marinated cubes of chicken grilled on skewer, served w/ rice and salad.
HALLOUMI KEBAB V-D
Grilled halloumi cheese skewered w/ onions and peppers, served w/ salad and rice.
Fixed menu incudes one drink, glass of wine, beer or soft drink. Other drinks at your own cost.

Carol Service followed by Christmas Lunch
2025-12-03 11:15 - 16:00 | St Margaret Lothbury, Lothbury, London, EC2R 7HH
*** Bookings now open ***
This year our Carol Service will be back at St Margaret’s Lothbury, at 11:15 am on Wednesday 3rd December.

Afterwards luncheon will be served in Grocerss’ Hall, dress code is Morning coats with black waistcoats preferably United Ward Club’ tie for gentlemen [dark lounge suit acceptable] and day wear and hats for ladies.

Tour of Regent Park Mosque & optional lunch
2026-01-07 12:00 - 13:30 | Regents Park Mosque, London Central Mosque & Islamic Cultural Centre, 146 Park Road, London, NW8 7RG
As part of the President’s theme of religious tollerance we have arranged for the last of our religious visits. This one is to Regents Park Mosque, or more formally called the London Central Mosque & Islamic Cultural Centre, 146 Park Road, London, NW8 7RG at 12:00 noon on Wednesday 7th Janaury 2026
There is a cafeteria on site, but depending on the numbers we may opt for lunch at the Pizza Express diagonally opposite from Baker Street Tube. Payment will be pay your own on the day if you wish to join. We will email everyone nearer the date to see whihc option everyone prefers.
Please, be advised:

Be aware of the strict modest dress code for adults, as we will be visiting the main prayer hall.
Skirts, tights, leggings, tight trousers, ripped jeans, shorts; do not comply.
A head scarf is required for the females (few scarves might be provided upon Arrival, if requested).
The dress code does not apply to children of the primary schools’ age; however, tights would be appreciated.
When you arrive, please, notify the security/enquiries office at the main gate entrance driveway. They will call us to come and greet you.

City of London Ward Clubs' Members reception
2026-02-03 17:00 - 19:00 | Aon, Cheesegrater building, 122 Leadenhall Street, London, EC3V 4AN, United Kingdom
The Club will be holding a reception in Aon’s Client Suite in the Cheesegrater building, 122 Leadenhall Street EC3V 4AN. The aim is to have a fun evening and encourage members’ of ALL City of London Ward Clubs to mix.
Date & Time: Tuesday 3rd February 2026, 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM
Location: Aon’s Client Suite, Cheesegrater Building, 122 Leadenhall Street, EC3V 4AN
Event Description: The United Wards Club is excited to announce a special evening aimed at welcoming members’ of ALL the City of London Ward Clubs’ to our vibrant community. Set in the iconic Cheesegrater building, this event offers a fantastic opportunity for members to bring friends and contacts to experience the spirit of the Club and potentially join us on the night.
Event Highlights:

Fun and Networking: Engage with fellow members of all the City of London Ward Clubs in a relaxed and informal setting.
Address from a senior City member

Catering: Complementary drinks red wine, white wine, beer, and soft drinks and a selection of nibbles.
The event will wrap up at 7:00 PM, leaving attendees free to make their own dinner arrangements afterward.

2026 AGM & Installation Dinner
2026-03-16 17:00 - 22:30 | Guildhall, Gresham Street, London, EC2V 7HH
*** Bookings not yet open ***

The installation dinner will be held, after the AGM, at Guildhall in the splendid Livery Hall to celebrate Mary Hardy’s election as our new President.

6:45 pm for 7:30 pm on Monday 16th March 2026 following the earlier Annual General Meeting (for which notice has been sent to Members separately).
This is the incoming President’s first event of her year and we are sure that as many Members as possible will want to support Mary Hardy and welcome her to office.
