Royal couple return to say thanks to Borough Market

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall visited Borough Market and Southwark Cathedral last week to witness the work the locals have done to overcome the fallout from June’s terrorist attack.

The Borough Market choir performed for the royal couple, who also met members of Bankside Residents’ Forum, Waterloo Foodbank, the Manna Centre and the Robes Project.

They met people involved in the trader support fund, set up in the wake of the attack, including Richard Heaton, chairman of the United St Saviour’s Charity.

Pupils from John Ruskin Primary School had set up a stall to demonstrate the skills they have learned as young marketeers, growing and selling their own produce with the charity School Food Matters.

Charles and Camilla also met some of those who had been working in the area when terrorists struck on the night of Saturday, June 3, including Borough Market security guard Ganja Garbuja, who protected bystanders from the onslaught by helping barricade them in a pub. Monika Linton, the founder of tapas chain restaurant Brindisa, described the trauma her staff had faced. She said: “The shootings happened straight outside so it was difficult to know, for our team, whether bullets were going to come through the window.

“It was terrifying for the staff, they didn’t know what was going on, if they were going to set bombs off, we didn’t know they were fake until afterwards.”

The royal couple dropped into the Bread Ahead bakery to escape the rain and watched mince pies being made.

The Prince and the Duchess met representatives of the Harper Road mosque at Southwark Cathedral, as well as members of the Street Pastors, before talking to the Bishop of Southwark, the cathedral clergy and the Deputy Mayor of Southwark Cllr Jamille Mohammed.

The gospel choir of St Saviour’s & St Olave’s School at the Bricklayers Arms also performed for them in a Service of Light.

Prayers, led by pupils from Cathedral School, remembered the eight people killed by terrorists around London Bridge, Borough Market and the cathedral – 48 people were also injured.

This was the third royal visit to the area since the terrorist attack: Prince Harry toured the market and the Countess of Wessex attended the national Service of Hope held at the cathedral in the days after the attack.

The Prince and the Duchess have been long-term supporters of the market, making visits in 2013 and 2005.

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, said afterwards: “I think the courage of people – I was just talking to one of the security guards and someone at the pub – the courage of people of just picking themselves up, pressing on and keeping going just says so much about this country and this city.

“What makes it so good is that it looks as though nothing has happened – everyone is just getting on with life, which is how you should deal with these sorts of circumstances.”