Baby born in Coronation of George VI shares memories

Enid Laws, maiden name Ridley, shared her story of being Prudhoe's only Coronation baby in 1937 when George VI was crowned King.

Born to parents Joe and Edith Ridley, Enid is now 86 and was told by her family the story of how her birth was celebrated.

"I was born at 12.10am on May 12 1937, (although the clipping in the Hexham Courant says 12.20am) – the first baby born in Northumberland and Prudhoe’s only Coronation baby. 

Enid as a very young baby and her mother Edith Ridley (Image: Caroline Laws)

"A Newcastle pram shop donated a pram. It was coach built with a navy blue hood, off-white body and red piping around the inside like the red, white and blue of the Union Jack.

"My mother told me Lady Victoria of the Percy family presented her with a layette of baby clothes and I still have the handkerchief with the Union Jack embroidered on it.

The 86-year-old handkerchief that was part of the layette presented to Enid’s mother by Lady Victoria Percy (Image: Caroline Laws)

"Apparently, Lady Victoria suggested that I should be called Mary but my parents chose Enid."

She said the Prudhoe Coronation Celebration Committee donated the remainder of the fund set up to pay for the celebrations, so Enid had £2, three shillings and sixpence paid into an account set up for her.

The clipping in the Hexham Courant of Enid's birth (Image: Newsquest)

"My dad kept a clipping of the presentation in his wallet all his life. For many years I was referred to as the ‘Coronation baby’ by people in Prudhoe.

"I lived in Castle Dene, Prudhoe with my parents Joe and Edith Ridley and brother John, who was born at the end of the war.

"Before getting married, I worked in Lloyds Bank in Newcastle and met my husband David Laws, at a dance at the Assembly Rooms in 1958.

A clipping from The Journal announcing the payment of £2, three shillings and eight pence into an account for Enid (Image: Caroline Laws)

"We moved to Redcar in 1961 two months after we got married, where I have lived ever since," she said.

David set up his own drapery business in 1965 and the pair had two daughters, Caroline in 1964 and Kathryn in 1967. Enid now has five grandchildren, aged 18 to 25.

"I worked for Imperial Chemical Industries as a senior secretary from the 1970s until my retirement in 1995. David sadly died in 2004. My brother John still lives in Prudhoe with his family, so I still retain strong connections with the area," she said.

ICI, a petrochemical and pharmaceutical company, was a major Northeast employer during the 20th century.

The pharmaceutical division, Astra Zeneca, was split off in the 1990s and ICI no longer exists.

Enid's father Joe worked in ICI's Prudhoe factory in the 1940s. 

"I can remember the Queen’s Coronation in 1953 when I was 16. My great-aunt had a television and as many relatives as possible gathered into the living room to watch it, although I spent part of the day cycling with a friend.

"I wish the new King all the very best. His mother will be a hard act to follow but he seems a kind and caring man and we should support him," she said.