15 April 2010
June Spencer, matriarch of The Archers, receives Freedom of the
City of London
June Spencer, who is best known for playing Peggy Woolley in BBC
Radio 4’s The Archers, will receive the Freedom of the City of
London at Guildhall on Friday 4 June.
June, who is 90 years old, is the only remaining member of the
original cast of the popular, long-running show, following the
death in October last year of Norman Painting, who played Phil
Archer.
Her ceremony, which will be held in the Chamberlain’s Court at
Guildhall in the City of London, will begin with an oath of
allegiance and end by her being greeted as a ‘Citizen of London’
and the presentation of her framed Freedom certificate. After the
ceremony, June and her guests will attend a private lunch at
Guildhall.
June first appeared in The Archers as Peggy in the trial shows
in 1950. She was married to Jack Archer and they had two daughters.
In February 1951, Peggy gave birth to the first Archer baby,
Anthony William Daniel Archer, who was better known as Tony. June
left the show in 1953 to raise her own family, handing the part of
Peggy to Thelma Rogers. She returned to The Archers a year later,
but didn’t play Peggy again until 1962.
Over the years, her major storylines have included coping with
her husband’s drinking and financial problems, her daughter’s
pregnancy and illegitimate son in 1967 and, after Peggy’s marriage
to Jack Woolley, his decline into senile dementia.
Speaking before her Freedom ceremony, June said:
“To receive the Freedom of the City of London is an honour that
I would never have dreamed of. It is wonderful to feel that,
in some small way, I have become part of the history of this great
city of London.”
Nick Anstee, Lord Mayor of the City of London, said:
"I’ve often thought that The Archers, of which I’m an avid
listener, is a very good representation of society, so I am
delighted to sponsor June’s Freedom. The show is a national
institution with a staunchly loyal following, and it is remarkable
that June has been a key part of it for six decades.”
The Freedom of the City of London is believed to have begun in 1237
and enabled recipients to carry out their trade and today, people
are nominated for, or apply for, the Freedom, because it offers
them a link to the historic City of London and one of its ancient
traditions. Many of the so-called traditional privileges associated
with the Freedom, including driving sheep over London Bridge and
being hanged with a silken rope, no longer exist.
Ends
NOTES TO EDITORS
Press photographers and journalists wishing to attend the
post-ceremony photo call with June Spencer at Guildhall, EC2, from
12.25pm to 12.45pm are asked to contact Andrew Buckingham (see
below) at the City of London’s Press Office.
Press enquiries
Andrew Buckingham, Press Officer (Features), City of London
Corporation
Tel: 020 7332 1452 / Mobile: 07795 333 060
Email:
andrew.buckingham@cityoflondon.gov.uk
BBC The Archers Press Office, telephone 0121 567 6274
About the City of London Corporation
The City of London Corporation is a uniquely diverse organisation.
It supports and promotes the City as the world leader in
international finance and business services and provides local
services and policing for those working in, living in and visiting
the Square Mile. It also provides valued services to London and the
nation. These include the Barbican Centre and the Guildhall School
of Music & Drama; the Guildhall Library and Art Gallery and
London Metropolitan Archive; a range of education provision
(including three City Academies); five Thames bridges (including
Tower Bridge and the Millennium Bridge); the Central Criminal Court
at Old Bailey; over 10,000 acres of open spaces (including
Hampstead Heath and Epping Forest), and three wholesale food
markets. It is also London’s Port Health Authority and runs the
Animal Reception Centre at Heathrow. It works in partnership with
neighbouring boroughs on the regeneration of surrounding areas and
the City Bridge Trust, which it oversees, donates more than £15m to
charity annually.