Recalling queen of florists

A leading florist whose skills graced the grandest of royal occasions is set to be remembered at Octavia Hill’s Birthplace House in Wisbech.

Constance Spry, the leading flower arranger of her generation, who created displays for the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor in 1937 and the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Abbey – as well as helping to create coronation chicken – is the subject of a talk at the museum on Friday, October 18.

The talk by horticultural auctioneer and flower arrangement demonstrator Nick Grounds, entitled ‘The story of Constance Spry in flowers’, will be followed by the unveiling of a plaque in Heroes’ Arcade in the garden at the museum, and local representatives of the Royal Horticultural Society will be invited to help with the ceremony.

Heroes’ Arcade, at the first home of Wisbech’s most famous daughter, Octavia Hill, the celebrated social reformer who co-founded the National Trust, is based on a memorial at Postman’s Park, near St Paul’s Cathedral in London, dedicated to ordinary people who have performed acts of extraordinary heroism.

The event at the museum at 7 South Brink is set to run from 2pm to 3.30pm and the usual admission charges apply.