Anchor’s Terry Burton shares his memories of meeting the King

As the country prepares for the Coronation Weekend, Terry Burton, Location Manager at Anchor’s Hanover Gardens in Frome, shares his memories of meeting the King when he was the Prince of Wales.

Terry met Charles while working as a teacher before joining Anchor. Remembering the day as a busy one managing the group of excited school children keen to ask questions about, amongst other things, where his ceremonial sword was, Terry said of the King:

I think he is very good at making people feel at ease. He certainly was engaging and made the children feel special, explaining to them he doesn’t use his sword, only on ceremonial occasions. 

We both smiled at each other, and he gave me a knowing look as the children watched, that said, 'You’ve got your hands full here.'   

Terry is looking forward to watching the coronation and the “pageantry” of Saturday. 

He said:

I wish him well in his role as King. It’s a different world to June 1953 and the Queen’s coronation. He will have many challenges. Some people question why we should give such patronage to one man, one family, but I believe the royal family are an asset to the country. He certainly has waited a long time to take the reins.

When asked what advice he would give the King, Terry replied: 

There will be plenty of people who will want to trip him up, but I say don’t rise to the bait. His mother was a terrific example, but he must now put his own marker on things.

Across Anchor we will be celebrating the Coronation of The King and The Queen Consort with an array of local events and sharing pictures and videos across Facebook and Twitter.