Wednesday March 4, 1981

 _. Ash Wednesday

Almost Spring-like. My cousin Jill and Tim have found a house on Valley Road, Pudsey, and so now might be marrying this summer too. All the best people are. 

The Prince of Wales and Lady Diana were at Covent Garden last night, her first experience in the royal box. She is to carry out her first official public duty on Monday, with the prince, at a charity performance somewhere. I spent the afternoon in the archives looking at the Annual Register for 1863, and all the material relating to the marriage of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales and Alexandra of Denmark. The last occasion when a Prince of Wales married as such. They wed on March 10 that year. The bride wore a diamond bracelet, a gift from the ladies of Leeds, and the bridegroom was attended throughout the marriage ceremony by his 'groom of the stole' Earl Spencer, the elder half-brother of Diana's great-grandfather. I wonder whether Lady Diana will appoint a similar retinue to her household as Alexandra, who, in 1863, appointed Lord Harris as her [Lord] Chamberlain, the Marchioness of Carmarthen, the Countess of Macclesfield and the Countess of Morton as her ladies of the bedchamber? I'm guessing that Diana's weekend visit to Eaton Hall was to fix Natalia Westminster with a job. Another possible candidate is the Duchess of Abercorn, Natalia's sister, and both are distantly related to Charles. I'm gathering all this for an article for the YP.

Home at 6. Mum and Dad visited the Stonehouse Inn again today. The old man [George Deakin/Deacon] is in no hurry to quit. They remain hopeful. Mum and Dad went over to see Hilda and Tony at 7:30. I phoned Ally twice. The first time I was cold and snappy, and so I phoned back to apologise. I also phoned Jack Simon and booked him to do our wedding photos. Watched TV until midnight. Part 1 of a dramatisation of the life of David Lloyd George. Seems promising.

Nothing in the news other than Ronald Reagan singing the praises of Mrs Thatcher.

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Tuesday March 3, 1981

 _. My day off caused no misery or heartache at the YP. Eileen Burnip was very keen to relate various tales of my escapades on Sunday afternoon. I winced hideously. 

Kathleen's papa died on Sunday night, but she will not resume her duties until the end of the month. She put in a very brief appearance this morning. 

Royal news: the wedding of the Prince of Wales and Lady Diana is to take place at St Paul's Cathedral on July 29. The last royal wedding at St Paul's [the old pre 1666 St Paul's] was Arthur, Prince of Wales, elder son of King Henry VII, who married Katherine of Aragon there. It's a bigger venue and can hold 2,000 more guests than Westminster Abbey. I think that the prince prefers St Paul's. He spoke from the pulpit here at Lord Mountbatten's funeral in Sept '79, and of course last year it was where the service for the Queen Mother's 80th birthday was held. The prince and Lady Diana spent the weekend at Cholmondeley Castle, home of the Lord Great Chamberlain, and they also visited Eaton Hall, home of the Duke of Westminster and his 21 year-old Duchess. Will she be Diana's Mistress of the Robes? One of the Sunday papers reported that Diana is a seventh cousin once removed of Humphrey Bogart and the same re Rudolph Valentino. This line can be traced via her great-grandmother, Lady Fermoy, formerly Frances Work, of New York. 

Ally came at 6 for pancakes. I have sorted out most of my books destined for Club St, and she drove off at 9:45 like a mobile library. To bed at 10. Mum and Dad have another appointment at the Stonehouse Inn tomorrow. Fingers crossed.

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Monday March 2, 1981

_. Stayed in bed until 12. We both phoned our work places pleading sickness and diarrhoea. I went out at 1pm in the drizzle to the Co-op to buy a few provisions for our naughty day off. [Our first illicit day off since Oct '80 when we spent the day in Knaresborough]. For lunch we had scrambled eggs on toast with tomatoes, and for tea it was crumpets and Heinz Sandwich spread sandwiches. Luxury. We remained in the comfortable surroundings of Club Street until 9pm and then returned to Guiseley to make a serious attempt in selecting wedding invitations and place settings from several large volumes. Snow now gone, making way for drizzle and mist. To bed at 11.

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Sunday March 1, 1981

 _. Quinquagesima ~ St David's Day

Rain melts the snow. Catherine Brook phoned to ask if Ally and I would like to join them for a drink at Bingley at 12:30. We made a hurried visit to Club Street where we erected the bunk beds, and then went to join Catherine and David, who got engaged yesterday. I can never remember the name of the pub in Bingley, near the parish church. Is it the White Horse? Felt quite pissed by 2pm. We don't do much drinking in the afternoon these days.

Onward at 2pm to Meanwood and Anne Goodyear's  so-called Eisteddfod party in celebration of St David's Day. Got hopelessly plastered on red wine and made the usual spectacle of myself. Leeks poking provacatively from the fly of my trousers, &c. My last recollection was cuddling Anne's large stuffed gorilla, a fine piece of taxidermy. We left at about 7:30 and after some disagreement in the car I got out on the Headrow, only to be found some time later down on Kirkstall Rd near YTV. Ally spotted me in a phone box and swerved across the road to collect me. I have absolutely no idea what happened. Instead of going home we drove to the Hermit at Burley Woodhead. Back at Club Street for 10:30.

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