Cygnet 2002 EOS Dinner

Cygnet 2002 EOS Dinner, Friday 20th September - Initial Information

Every year Cygnet RC holds a formal dinner for its members and their guests.

This year the dinner is to take place on Friday September 20 at the Lansdowne Club which is a posh private members' club in Mayfair, run on traditional lines and with a thriving membership. The Cygnet dinner is to take place in the Lansdowne's Ballroom, which is normally hired out to members of the public at a cost of Ł1000 per night. However, due to the generosity of the Lansdowne, the keen interest of Cygnet/Lansdowne member Tony Chapman, and the outstanding grace, talent and wit of the Cygnet social secretary, the venue has been made available to Cygnet RC for just Ł200. This bargain may not be repeatable so, if you do not normally attend the Cygnet dinner but were toying with the idea, you may want to make this your year.

The dinner will consist of five courses of traditional English gourmet food. It will probably comprise:

starter: smoked duck confit salad with onion marmalade;

soup: cream of woodland mushroom;

main dish: beef Wellington in a truffle and madeira sauce (ah, yes!);

pudding (this is a poem): a white chocolate cardamon mousse served with a dark plum sauce and teardrop pistachio tuilles;

cheese.

Vegetarians will be catered for with, say, a warm tomato and shallot tartlet with roquet for a starter, and mushroom, mozzarella and asparagus parcels, with a tomato and red pepper salsa, as a main course.

For the benefit, primarily, of Dave Gava (since he's the only Cygnet of any cultural background and/or knowledge whatsoever [balls - ed.]):
The Lansdowne building is located in the heart of Mayfair (the Ritz, Claridges, Fortnum and Mason, the Royal Academy of Arts and Buckingham Palace are all a short walk [drunken stagger - ed.] away). It has beautiful and traditional interiors of major historical interest; built by Robert Adam for the Marquess of Bute (who became Prime Minister under George III), it was intended to rival the great town houses of the day. The ballroom in which the dinner is to take place formerly housed the world-famous Lansdowne Collection of classical statuary, with an elegant vaulted ceiling and minstrel galleries. It was remodelled in 1934, when the Lansdowne Club came into being. The decorative scheme was carried out by White Allom, the firm responsible for the fitting out of the great Cunard liners Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth.

The rest of you can start reading again now:
Plans are being made to invite a guest speaker to the dinner to provide after-dinner entertainment.

A high table will be in place, but those elevated to sit at it may be required to make speeches for the further amusement of the other diners.

Dress will be black tie.

Cabs home may be ordered from the club.

The exact ticket cost has yet to be be confirmed, but they are likely to be about Ł45 including a five-course dinner, a half-bottle of wine and coffee. The social sec is still negotiating to make these tickets as cheap as possible and, once a price is settled, further info will appear on how to obtain them. If you are a spendthrift fool who cares not about a piffling few pounds either way, but is keen to make a cast-iron reservation, you may reserve tickets by leaving a cheque (let's call it Ł45 for now) made out to Cygnet RC in an envelope marked "FAO Kate" in the O-Z boathouse pigeonhole.

Hoorah!