A Family History of the Illustrious, Notorious and Eccentric Lloyds of Birmingham, Brigstock and Pipewell Hall - Flipbook - Page 107
another cloud of dust, the jackaroo jumped out of the jeep again, and said, "Weddings on! Cook has
apologised, and we've found the grog ".
In the years after Pierre became a Catholic convert, I often accompanied her to mass when on holiday in
Ireland, and on business trips to the USA. On one occasion staying with Sally's family at Knocklofty.
She had known the Donoughmore's since before the war, when she and Billy used to go to join a huge
house party at Chelwood in Sussex, where Sally's paternal grandfather invited a strong tennis playing line
up of guests to stay at his home, mostly competitors at Wimbledon who would almost certainly win all
the trophies at the nearby East Grinstead Grass Tennis Tournament.
On this Irish visit I took Pierre in to one of the two main Clonmel Catholic Churches for early
morning mass, the domain of Canon Welsh, who launched into a violent diatribe from the pulpit against
the organisers of an SPCA New Years Eve dance (Sally's mother Jeanie was the chairwoman of the
SPCA Committee organising the dance. Another committee member was the Catholic Canon from the
main rival church). Canon Welsh denounced from the pulpit,"the lascivious jiving that would, no doubt
take place at the dance", and announced that he would ensure that the Garda (police) looked in
frequently to monitor the behaviour. Pierre warned Jeanie about the Garda surveillance, so that the
moment the Garda appeared at the entrance, the pop music was switched to children's games.
As Billy and Pierre became more and more deeply immersed in the publishing world, more and more of
their personal friends who came to stay at Stoke Albany House, and at Hayle Farm House from 1955 till
Billy died in 1976 were authors, artists etc whom they got to know as publishers. My earliest recollection
of this was the party from dawn to dusk on all three main floors of 48 Pall Mall to watch the 1937
Coronation Procession which passed below. Similarly, in 1953, the firm rented the Map House
Bookshop building on St James's Street to view the Coronation Procession.
In the late 1930s Pierre used to take me along with her to big country house sales in Northamptonshire
where she picked up wonderful bargains of antique furniture at a fraction of their sale room price. Like
most of the Lloyd siblings she had excellent taste, and furnished all her houses handsomely on a modest
budget. The Chelsea Flower Show was a must for her every year as a keen gardener, and one year, just
before the war she took me along with her and taught me the names of her favourite roses.
Uncle Mike, who was a brilliant architect and interior designer, did an exquisite job of converting the St
James's Place flat, overlooking Green Park for her after Billy died. He took down a dividing wall to make
a splendid long drawing room which did full justice to the fine furniture and pictures that she and Billy
had collected over the years.
