Pictured: (l-r) Nette Reynolds, director of Sorven Holdings,
Victoria Trevelyan, niece of Henry Maudslay, Mark
Philip-Sørensen, managing director of Cotswold Conference
Centre
Military heroes past and present were honoured in a moving
ceremony at Cotswold Conference Centre, Broadway, on Thursday 6th
October.
Maudslay Court, a new £3.5m Cotswold-stone building
constructed at Farncombe Estate, was officially opened by Victoria
Trevelyan, niece of the Dam Busters' hero Henry Maudslay. The
Maudslay family lived on the Estate during WW2 when Henry was
tragically killed in raids on six German hydroelectric dams.
To commemorate the connection with 617 Squadron, the Dam
Busters' unit of which Henry Maudslay was B Flight Commander, a
plaque was also unveiled by Wing Commander Keith Taylor, currently
Officer Commanding 617 Squadron.
"This beautiful building has given us a fantastic opportunity to
honour an earlier resident of the Estate," said Cotswold Conference
Centre's managing director Mark Philip-Sørensen. "We would
like to thank the Maudslay family and Wing Commander Taylor for
making our opening ceremony so special."
The large new wing of 32 en-suite bedrooms, constructed by
skilled local tradesmen, boasts a number of ecological features,
including a ground-source heat pump and solar panels. The
Cotswold stone building even has its own tower.
One deluxe room - Number 617 - is themed with prints that tell
the Dam Busters story, including a picture of the Lancaster Bombers
in action in May 1943.
Emotional tribute
The Grand Ceremony began with the Celebration Reed and Brass
Band of Hampton playing stirring renditions of the Dam Busters
theme and the RAF March Past, while 80 guests and staff assembled
in Maudslay Court.
The historic afternoon was completed with traditional afternoon
tea - in the Estate's dining room decorated with gingham and
bunting, to the strains of Vera Lynn.
Keith Taylor spoke about 617 Squadron's heroic history,
including recent tours of Afghanistan and Libya, while Victoria
Trevelyan gave an emotional tribute to Henry Maudslay, the uncle
she never knew. She presented Farncombe Estate with a
rarely-seen portrait of her uncle - Henry had been just 21 when he
died on his return from the Dam Busters' raid.
In the 1954 film The Dam Busters, Henry Maudslay's role was
played by actor Richard Thorp, later known as Alan Turner in
"Emmerdale". A remake of the film, with a script by Stephen
Fry, is expected to premiere soon.