AV News 175 - February 2009
Peter Coles and the Fenton Medal
Colin Balls FRPS
'The taxi's here - Peter's arrived.' It is the morning of Thursday the 2nd of
October 2008 and my wife Rhona and myself are taking Peter Sephton Coles
FRPS etc. to London, to receive the Royal Photographic Society's Fenton Medal.
This medal is awarded to members or non-members of the Society who have
made an outstanding contribution to the work of the Society.
Peter is unable to drive these days, so he has come by taxi from Hebden
Bridge to our home at Wrightington. We travel by car down the M6 and M40 to
Banbury, where we catch the half-hourly train service to London Marylebone.
There we take a leisurely - very leisurely - walk through Regents Park to
Portland Place and the Royal Institute of British Architects, where the 2008 RPS
Awards ceremony will take place.
The awards evening is the highlight of the RPS's calendar. Recognising
achievements and contributions to the art and science of photography, this year
it is hosted by RPS President Barry Senoir HonFRPS and Adam Hart-Davis
HonFRPS (he of the TV programme 'What the Victorians did for us!' etc.).
Along with 300 others and including some of
Peter's family, we take our seats and the awards
ceremony commences. Each recipient of an
award is introduced with a short eulogy, a number
of his or her images are projected onto the large
screen and the award is presented. Peter wanted
to have an AV projected, but the organisers insist
it must be no longer than one minute and, being
Peter, he complies with their request. It still
manages to mystify most of the audience!
At the end of the ceremony a group photograph of the award winners is
organised and the glittering array of talent assembled includes Sir David
Attenborough, who has
received
the
Society's
Progress
medal.
Peter
manages to get himself close
enough to the great man to
be able to dine out on the
occasion for years to come!
We return by taxi to
Marylebone Station, where
there are still regular late
evening trains to Banbury
and from where we can return to Lancashire in the car. By this strategy we have
saved an overnight stay in London, avoided parking in central London and
reduced our car travel by 2-3 hours! The RPS AV Group took the initiative to
recommend Peter for the Fenton Medal award and Ron Davies and myself were
asked to write eulogies to support thei