King Charles III is a man we’ve watched, listened to and formulated an opinion on for as long as we can remember, but there are very few people who can claim to truly know the new reigning monarch.
Reading letters which King Charles sent to the late Lord Gordon Parry – fondly known as Lord Gord to the Neyland community – their friendship and genuine fondness was all too apparent.
“My father was the sort of man who treated everybody in exactly the same way,” says Lord Parry’s daughter, the Honorable Cathy Parry Sherry from her home in Hazel Beach. “And that included King Charles.”
In 1983 the former Prince spent what he called ‘a splendid evening’ with Lord Gord in Caerffili Castle as the nation celebrated the Year of the Castles. And joining them was Diana, the Princess of Wales.
“My father was a great extrovert and a fantastic speaker, but whenever he spoke, he’d gesticulate and flail his arms all over the place,” says Cathy.
“And on that particular evening he struck out and walloped the Princess over her head.”
The same night, the mischievous King urged Lord Gord to eat the daffodils which they all wore as buttonholes as a means of remedying his hoarse larynx.
Lord Parry and Prince Charles wearing their infamous daffodils
“Because my father had spoken for such a long time, he’d started to lose his voice and Prince Charles seemed to think that eating daffodils would cure him,” laughs Cathy.
And this prompted yet another missive from the Prince to Lord Parry, who was then the serving chairman of the Wales Tourist Board (1978-1984).
“I do hope that by now you have swallowed enough daffodils to ensure the return of your voice…My wife has since recovered from the bruises she received during the speech-making!”.
Born in Neyland, the son of Baptist minister Thomas Lewis Parry and his wife Anne, Lord Gord trained at Trinity College, Carmarthen before being appointed teacher at the New Secondary Modern School at Prendergast which later became Sir Thomas Picton.
Because of their strong friendship, Gordon Parry persauded Prince Charles to visit Neyland for the offocial unveiling of the Brunel statue in 1999.
Gordon Parry and Prince Charles unveiling the Brunel Statue
But from a very young age Lord Parry remained a staunch socialist, befriending key Labour stalwarts including James Callaghan and Harold Wilson who made him a life Peer in 1975.
“My father always used to say that he was made a Lord because he was the most distinguished failure in the field of politics having stood three times for parliament and failed each time,” said Cathy.
“And this again was probably one of the reasons King Charles took to him. There was never any pretence with my father – he treated everyone in exactly the same way.”
King Charles encapsulated his great fondness for Lord Parry in a letter of condolence he sent to Cathy following her father’s death in 2004.
“Gordon was a remarkable man whose enthusiasm for life and his passionate commitment to Wales were boundless,” wrote the future King.
“He was always a source of great fun, wit and wisdom and will long be remembered for his pride in his country and his tireless work to promote it….Wales has lost one of her great characters and she will be much the poorer for it.
“I am aware that there are no words from me which can make your sense of loss any easier to bear, particularly as you so recently lost your mother too, but I just wanted you to know that you are my much in your thoughts and prayers at such a time of anguish”.
King Charles’ signature
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