Queen says thanks for meat and greet

THE Queen of England has thanked Cork’s best-known butcher for welcoming her to the city’s historic English Market.

Tom Durcan, chairman of the market’s trader’s association, who presented the Queen and her husband with a hamper of famous market delicacies, including the city’s famous spiced beef and local cheeses, said he was delighted to receive the reply. “I plan to frame it and put it on display in my stall,” he said.

The Queen wrote to former Lord Mayor Michael O’Connell some weeks ago saying she and the Duke of Edinburgh were deeply moved by the warmth of the welcome to Cork on the last day of their historic state visit to Ireland last May.

Mr Durcan wrote to Buckingham Palace and said: “Your visit to the market was short, but its legacy will last forever.”

Now the Queen has for the first time directly thanked him for the welcome she received during her 20-minute stroll through the market.

Images of the Queen laughing and chatting with traders and then her impromptu walkabout outside were beamed around the world. It is widely regarded as one of the highlights of her state visit.

“The Queen was delighted to be able to go to the Republic for the first time, and Her Majesty was very touched by the sentiments which you expressed,” the letter to Mr Durcan said. “Letters such as yours are a source of great pleasure and encouragement to the Queen, and both she and the Duke of Edinburgh are most grateful for your thoughtfulness in writing as you did.”

The letter is signed by “Susan Hussey, Lady-in-Waiting”.

There was a steady flow of tourists through the aisles yesterday.

Among them was Australian broadcaster Genevieve Jacobs, who works with ABC Local Radio in Canberra.

She is tracing her Irish roots and recording clips for her show along the way.

“I knew about the English Market from the Lonely Planet guidebook but the Queen’s visit made me want to come and visit,” she said.

She plans to broadcast a section on the market, focusing on its traders and their tradition for selling locally produced food, to an estimated audience of some 500,000 people across south eastern Australia and New South Wales within the next few days.