Peter Moore: England's Pre-Eminent Town Crier. A Personal Tribute By Uncle Monty.

Peter Moore:

England's Pre-Eminent Town Crier.

A Personal Tribute By Uncle Monty.

Story Caption Photo By Alex Albion.
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Not once did he name drop or brag about the many important

and famous people he had met and known during his more

than 30 years as London's top and foremost Town Crier,

did the 70 year-old Peter Moore.

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I first met Peter five years ago at a formal function by the

Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of London's City of West-

minster, who are shown at the above story caption photo

that I shot of him and the mayoral couple back in 2oo5.

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Peter Moore also had a marvellous sense of photo-op by

his imbued instinct to highlight not only himself, but those

who he served so well as the capital's official Town Crier.

He was following in the historic footsteps of English Town

Criers or Bellmen was Peter Moore. He was a credit and a

perfect symbol of the history and character of town crying.

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The Timeline of Criers.

Timeline results for history of english town criers

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Town Crier or Bellman.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Town_crier
(Which includes a classic photo of Peter Moore)
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History of Town Crying.
http://www.thetowncrier.ca/freeform_1.html
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We just hit it off right on the spot did Peter and me. We

regularly had chats together whenever we bumped into

each other at Covent Garden (one of his favourite spots)

or at official events around the city like the New Year’s

Day Parade, Carnival del Pueblo, formal city gatherings,

and what have you. And, his beloved red scooter saw him

'scootering' off with all his flair and with all his happiness

that he could and did muster for us all to share.

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He revelled, did Peter Moore, in his passion and love for

town crying. Never without his brass bell, he proudly de-

clared online: "Have Bell, Will Travel." And travel he did

to America, all over Europe, and even to far off India. But,

his first and everlasting love was always for England!!

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To be a great Town Crier requires the person to also

be, I think, somekind of happy showman. So was Peter

Moore such an English showman? You bet, absolutely!
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His background was that of a little boy first placed in care

of the Dr. Barnardo's Home for Boys at the West Midland

town of Walsall, that is situated in the heart of the British

Black Country, at where both he and me were reared as

English lads at the latter part of the Second World War.

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Peter Moore first aspired to be a stage actor and so off to

London he went. He first appeared on the London stage in

1960 at where he joined the original cast of Lionel Bart's

"Oliver." At some point during his acting career, he was

asked to go to Leicester Square, or somewhere like that,

to advertise the show by shouting out loud!! Peter soon

found his real life's niche right then and there as a

would-be Town Crier. "The rest," as our

Yankee folks like to say, "is history."

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An ardent friend of the homeless and of way and stray

dogs, Peter Moore was a private Catholic and was so

rightly honoured by his Requiem Mass at St. George's

Roman Catholic Cathedral last Monday. Even more of an

honour for him was the gathering of other Town Criers that

saw Peter given a friendly send-off with their choruses and

shouts of crying shame at Peter's sudden death of a massive

heart attack that took his life so unexpectedly. Such was

such of a pity for him in that he also missed by two days the

Lifetime Achievement Award that was to be bestowed on him

at the 2010 London New Year's Day Parade of which Peter

had participated in every year since it first began some 23

years ago. His son James, I believe, collected the deserving

honour on behalf of his good dad. Bravo!!!

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Except for local politics, Peter Moore had little time for national

politics of any kind even though he had known many a national

politican in his time. So when the British National Party (BNP)

used his image as the quintessential English Town Crier to pro-

mote its political goal of British Heritage, Peter was confused

and dismayed at being portrayed by any political party be it

the BNP or not. When I asked him about it a few weeks later,

he didn’t want to talk about politics or the BNP. Peter also

realised that publicly he must always appear as non-political

and non-partisan as London’s top Town Crier and also to

be sure he kept his secure job which he loved so dearly.

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Crier Peter Moore & BNP Shock on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stRpuxzR6Zw

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He also loved so dearly his flowing Bellman outfit that

saw him brightly dressed in his white tunic, crimson suit,

and his white-feathered black hat along with, of course,

his brass handbell that was de jure. In fact, I never saw

Peter Moore not dressed in his Town Crier uniform, and

with his ubiquitous brass bell either in his hand or under

his arm, in the whole five years I knew him or on the 15

or so personally occasions that we bumped into each

other all around London!

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When I attended the 2008 Hay Literary Festival at

Hay-on-Wye in Wales, I also bumped into the local Town

Crier there who is shown above with me. He said he had heard

of Peter Moore regularly, but had never had the pleasure of

meeting him personally. When I then suggested to him that

Peter was perhaps England's pre-eminent Town Crier, the

Hay Town Crier said he had not thought of him like that but

on thinking about it he said I'd hit the nail right on the head.

"You're right, mate!," he then acknowledged to me. And along,

I suspect, with others criers who also perhaps felt the same

way about Peter Moore's town crying pre-eminence.

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Such then, I think, is now a rather befitting epithet for

Peter Moore's life as "England's Pre-Eminent Town Crier"

and for his love of what he did so well for over 30 years at

Olde London Towne. For me, I shall always fondly recall

Peter whenever I see another Town Crier or Bellman in the

future at wherever I encounter one at home or abroad.

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And so, I am so saddened by his sudden passing, I am.

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With much respect, Uncle Monty.

+St. Vincent, 2010.

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:: Winter Deaths ::

He, Mr. Peter Moore, was sadly among the almost 20,000

other old age pensioners over the age of 65 to suddenly die

during the recent severe cold snap of the past four weeks

or so that hit the whole of the British Isles. Such deaths

were a staggering 38% increase over normal winter

death rates inside the UK.
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At St. George's Roman Catholic Cathedral.

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The Peter Moore Obit.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article6974553.ece
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You May Sign Your Condolences Here.

http://www.londontowncrier.com/Guestbook/gbook.php?a=sign
http://www.londontowncrier.com/Guestbook/gbook.php?page=1
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