Lunchtime Speaker – George – Pearly King of Peckham

George has been a Pearly
King since 1958, when he was 20. He is now 86. His maternal grandfather, from whom he inherited the title,
was the Pearly King of Mile End, but when George was a year old, the family moved to Peckham. His suit,
which he wore to the meeting, has 22,000 buttons, that he sewed on himself. He has appeared as a Pearly
King on Eastenders. It is also said that the character “Del Boy” in Only Fools and Horses was partly based on
him. Pearly Kings and Queens are part of London’s Cockney tradition. Cockneys are traditionally those born
within the sound of Bow Church bells, which are in Cheapside in the City of London. The word “cockney”
dates back to 1362, but was first used in its modern sense, as an inhabitant of London, in the 16th and 17th
centuries. The first Pearly King was Henry Croft (1861-1930). He was an orphan street sweeper, who
collected money for charity. At the time London street traders often wore trousers decorated with mother of
pearl. Croft adapted this costume to create a sequin suit to help his fundraising activities. There are Pearly
Kings and Queens in different parts of inner London, but sadly there are only 12 left now as opposed to 400
when George first became a Pearly King. The title is usually inherited from their parents or grandparents. A
parade of Pearly Kings and Queens was held at the opening ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games
at Stratford. Henry Croft's founding Pearly organisation was called the Original London Pearly Kings and
Queens Association. It still exists, although it was reformed in 1975, and it holds the majority of Pearly
titles. Other organisations were set up later, such as the Pearly Guild in 1902 and the London Pearly Kings &
Queens Society in 2001. These organisations mainly raise money for charity, but they also help preserve
Pearly traditions. In 2020, George set up the Cockney Museum. It is based in Stoneleigh near Epsom in
Surrey, rather than inner London because property is much cheaper there. The museum has a many
examples of Pearly costumes and information about Cockney and Pearly traditions and culture, which George
hopes to preserve. Tony Usher gave the vote of thanks. He thanked George for his most interesting talk.