Updated: Jun 28, 2023
Residents of the Formosa Garden were among hundreds of mourners who crowded into the central London church of St Clement Dane’s on May 25th for the funeral of Flight Sergeant Peter Brown, one of the last black “Pilots of the Caribbean”. He came over from Jamaica aged 17 in 1943 & went on to fly five operations in Lancaster bombers.
Peter was a familiar figure in the Maida Vale area, always smartly dressed & up for a chat with passers-by as he went to collect his paper from Dhigs Newsagents in Formosa Street every morning. Sadly he died alone at his home in Warrington Crescent last December at the age of 96 & with no known family appeared destined for a low-key funeral at a crematorium in South-West London. That was until an appeal by Westminster Council to trace his relatives went viral, sparking such an interest in his story that the decision was taken to switch the funeral to the RAF’s Central London Church with its seating for 600 people.
Military top brass & other representatives of the Armed Forces rubbed shoulders with members of the public, including six of Peter’s distant relatives who’d been traced back in Jamaica. Among the many friends & neighbours on Formosa Garden who attended were Hiten Patel & Jassi Taylor from Dhigs, who gave Peter much support in his declining years & even took him on occasion to medical appointments. Also present was Eleanor Abu-Sakr from Warrington Crescent who took this pictures from inside the Church.
She said: “It was an incredible ceremony but I did wonder what Peter would have made of it all. I imagine he would absolutely have hated the fuss but rather enjoyed it a bit, from afar!”
Another friend & neighbour, Paul Newman, described the funeral as “a lovely occasion” & added: “Peter is and will continue to be missed in our neighbourhood, but we could not have asked for a better send-off!!” Paul took this picture of Peter on his favourite bench at the top of Sutherland Avenue, and now there are plans afoot to dedicate it to him as a permanent memorial.
Updated: Oct 14, 2023
In glorious sunshine over 152 Formosa residents gathered to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III. The central tables were filled to capacity, with late registrants bringing their own tables and picnics to join in the fun. Everyone brought dishes to share – with a frequent appearance of Coronation Chicken and the controversial quiche/tart and Jubilee trifle much in evidence. Irina Miklavchich and Cheryl Prax organised games for the younger guests with crown-decorating, bubble-blowing, biscuit-decorating and space hopper races.
In keeping with the occasion Formosa took the opportunity to have a formal dedication ceremony for the oak sapling which was originally envisioned to be part of the Queen's Green Canopy, launched during the Jubilee, but as events evolved dedicated to her memory. A brass plaque was planted at the foot of the tree by the actor, TV presenter and garden resident Sir Tony Robinson, who spoke warmly of his meetings with the Queen and asked the audience to give thanks for her many years of service to us all. The tree can be seen in the centre of the garden not far from the Med bed.
The organisers would like to thank Sir Tony for taking part and a big thanks above all to everyone who participated in both the setting up of the lunch and the clearing up afterwards and for the wonderful food and good company. It created a special national day for all.
Good news - -tickets for Shakespeare in the Squares' production of Twelfth Night in the Crescent Garden on Tuesday July 4th are now on sale! And as we've come to expect from this innovative company it will be a performance with a difference, set in the 1920s.
Their version last year of The Tempest was a well-deserved sell-out so it's best not to delay. The tickets are £30.50 for adults & £15.76 for children aged 12 & under & can be obtained by going to Shakespeare in the Squares or Eventbrite.
The performance will begin promptly at 7pm and will be over by approximately 9.30pm. The Garden will be open for picnics from 5.30pm & check here nearer the time for details of bar & catering facilities on site.
