OS Yorkshire Lunch
21 October 2018
Old Stoics living in the North of England gathered for a lunch party at the Coniston Hotel, kindly hosted by the Bannister family, who have sent three generations of their Children to Stowe. Happily, the date coincided with our host, Michael Bannister’s (Walpole 51) 85th birthday, so we were able to pass on our happy returns during the course of the day.
The Coniston Hotel is set within a 1400-acre estate, and has been home to the Bannister family for over 5 decades. The hotel and estate originally started life as a farm shop selling produce from the estate and, some 50 years later, has grown to become one of North Yorkshire’s premium landmark destination hotels. They have wonderful spa facilities, clay shooting, fishing and off road driving experiences available for guests to enjoy, along with beautiful walks around the Estate and the Yorkshire Dales.
The hotel itself has wonderful panoramic views of the Estate and was the perfect location for our lunch gathering. Our guests were welcomed with drinks in MacLeod’s Gallery before being seated at a large table for our 24 guests. We enjoyed a delicious Sunday lunch, after which, I delivered a speech updating our guests on news from Stowe and the Old Stoic Society. The lunch concluded with a birthday cake for Michael Bannister, followed by drinks in the bar.
I would like to thank our guests who travelled from the far reaches of the North of England for this event. We hope to hold a northern lunch regularly, in different locations to attract different Old Stoics from this region.
I would like to end with a word of thanks to the Bannister family for welcoming us to their hotel. It was a pleasure to spend the afternoon in such beautiful surroundings with such excellent company.
Anna Semler (Nugent 05)