A Royal Celebration - Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust

4
The 1938 By
Royal Visit
Thrilling! That is how
Vincent France described
King George VI and
Queen Elizabeth’s visit to
Leigh on May 18 1938.
Only seven years old
at the time, Vincent
can remember the
excitement of seeing the
royal couple.
Vincent attended XII Apostles
Primary School and on the day
of the visit he and his
classmates were given time off
from lessons to see the King.
They were organised into
groups and each given a small
Union Jack. They left XII
Apostles and walked to Leigh
Road. Allotted places close to
Duva Bakery, the children were
told to wave the flags when
the Royal Party passed by.
Overexcitement may have
caused the children to give a
premature royal welcome to a
black cat who had strayed
into Leigh Road. The King,
with the Queen dressed in
blue, drove slowly down Leigh
Road to allow the children
time to see them.
The King and Queen had
arrived at Leigh Station at
King George VI and Elizabeth during their visit to Leigh.
10.30am that morning from
their resting place at Lowton
Sidings. Hundreds of people
waited at Lowton in the hope
of seeing the King and Queen.
Lowton Junction is a popular
place for the Royal Train to
spend the night. In 1957 the
Royal Train pulled into Lowton
Junction at least five times!
Lord Derby and the smell of
fresh paint greeted them as
they stepped onto the
platform (the station had just
received a fresh coat of
paint). Covered in red, white
and blue bunting, the royal
route from the station to
Leigh Town Hall had been
decorated with flags,
streamers, gilt crowns and
royal monograms. Heavy rain
Hannah Turner
had actually prevented more
decorations from going up!
A large stand had been built
especially for the King and
Queen’s visit. Seating had
been provided for members of
the Council and Corporation
officials. Local people started
to gather on Market Square
from 7am that morning. One
lady armed only with a
camping chair had camped
out overnight on the square
to make sure she had a good
view of the royal visitors. No
easy feat considering heavy
rain had fallen throughout the
night and the morning.
As the royal car bearing the
Royal Standard approached
the town hall, a ‘deep-