On 16 January, the Mistress and I travelled up to Hereford to participate in the zoom Craft event at Andy Rowlands roofing.

We were welcomed by Andy Rowlands and his staff and had a very interesting tour of his CORE training facility, the Centre of Roofing Excellence.

At 6pm, we went live on zoom, and I was put through my paces on guessing the country of origin of various roof slates (not as easy as it sounds), nailing battens, and placing and nailing various roof slates and tiles. It brought home to me how skilled roof tilers need to be, and that good tuition and good tools are vital. I am very grateful to Andy Rowlands and his team for their hospitality, and to our cameraman Bob Preston. A one hour video of the event is available on request!

I also want to thank Court Assistant David White, Chairman of the Craft Committee for setting up this event and for championing our new bursary scheme for young craftsmen.

The day after the zoom Craft event, Helen and I took the opportunity to slip away to Venice for a few days. The highlight of our trip was a private visit to St Mark’s Basilica by night, which was quite spellbinding, and we were also able to have a behind-the-scenes visit to the Doge’s palace.  Venice is largely built of brick, so there is something of interest wherever you look.

Some outstanding brickwork was on show, including this curved external staircase, known locally as the “snail stairs”.

Remarkable geometric floors are a common feature in Venice, such as this one in Santa Maria de la Salute.

Venice is clearly a popular destination at this time of year, and on Sunday 21 January the Mistress and I had dinner with the Master and Mistress Apothecary, Dr Jonathan Holliday and Dr Gwen Lewis (centre), the Master Barber, Dr Mary Heber and her consort Dr Tom Taylor (on the adjacent table just out of view) and several other livery friends. Note the peach Bellini cocktails!