Congratulations

Not about trains, but belated congratulations to Phil Kelly who recently became Mayor of Islington (in London). you aint gonna have too much time for trains now Buddy!!



mikey

Well done, Phil. It's going to be difficult to get down on your hands and knees to clean track in that uniform!

All the best for the coming year

Blimey...That's a bit of a shock but a nice one!

I didn't even know that the boroughs had their own mayors. I just thought there was one for the whole of London.

Amazing achievement.

Well done Phil, have a good year. Do you get a cat to go with the job (well your nearly Dick Whittington)

Thanks to you all;

First of all, reports of an enforced absence from modelling have been greatly exaggerated - see the One axle trailer thread!

We do have Mayors in London Boroughs - since about the 1890s when London local Government started. Unlike Boris, I am not an Executive Mayor - my role is to represent the Borough outside and the Council inside the Borough - more Speaker than Minister. It is a great job. I met Tony Benn on Saturday - he unveiled a plaque commemomorating Islington's role in the Peasants' Revolt (1381). I get to greet my first Royal visitor - Sophie Countess of Wessex - next week. Dorothy and I have an invitation to a Buckingham Palace garden party in July (one big garden but no railway - what a waste.)

And yes, I get Dick Whittington's cat. The point where he traditionally "turned again" and went back to London to be Lord Mayor is marked by a statue of his cat on Highgate Hill, in Islington, and in November, the London Borough Mayors (in full fig as seen above) start from there on a charity walk to the Mansion House where the Lord Mayor (of the City of London also not to be confused with Boris) gives us tea and cakes...

In an endless and interesting succession of community fetes, school children visiting the Town and fundraising for my charity, there appears to be a lull in August - so the railway will not be totally neglected this year and I hope we will host another open weekend!

Congratulations, Phil. You'll have to work on getting Her Majesty's garden up to snuff.

BTW, you look smashing in a dress.