A Rotherhithe man has recalled the time he worked as a pipe-fitter in Buckingham Palace for two years in the late 1980s.
Steve Cornish, 70, said he never got to meet the Queen during his stint at the palace, but made friends with a lot of the staff who worked there.
Steve, who describes himself as “an absolutely staunch royalist”, recalls seeing the huge Canaletto paintings that are part of the royal collection at Buckingham Palace, as well as the famous Faberge collection, originally acquired by Queen Victoria in the late nineteenth century.
Steve and his colleagues also used to watch investitures – when people are given honours like a knighthood – through a keyhole.
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About five years ago, Steve went back because he was invited to a garden party at Buckingham Palace in recognition of his work in the Rotherhithe community. He brought his daughter and tried to tell her about his pipe work, but she wasn’t interested, he said.
Steve’s passion for the Queen remained undimmed and this June he organised a big party for her Platinum Jubilee in Rotherhithe, with thousands of people showing up. He said: “We were so determined because we knew what might be around the corner.”
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