The King’s gratitude
George VI’s note to therapist who cured stammer on sale for £4k
A PREVIOUSLY unseen letter from King George VI to the speech coach who helped him prepare for his coronation is up for auction after 83 years – and is expected to fetch up to £4,000.
The newly installed monarch, who had a stammer from childhood, wrote to Lionel Logue to thank him for his ‘expert supervision and unfailing patience’.
George told the Australian therapist of his ‘anxiety’ in the lead up to his 1937 coronation, which had been exacerbated by a ‘poor rehearsal’, and relayed his relief after the speech went smoothly.
The grateful monarch added that he ‘truly didn’t know how I could have done’ it without Mr Logue, with whom he had worked for 11 years.
Their friendship was the subject of the 2010 film The King’s Speech, in which Colin Firth won an Oscar for his portrayal of George VI, starking ring opposite Geoffrey Rush as Mr Logue. After watching footage of his momentous speech, George wrote the letter using Windsor Castle stationery on May 17, 1937 – five days after his coronation.
It was enclosed in a silver cigarette case bearing the royal cipher as a gift to ‘my dear Logue’. The signed off fondly: ‘I want you to know how grateful I am, not only for your invaluable help with my speech, but for your devoted friendship and encouragement, and I hope you will accept this small gift as a token of my appreciation.’
The speech therapist kept the 5in tall case and letter until his death in April 1953, at which point it passed into the hands of his brother Herbert, who then gave them to Australian jeweller Charles McGowan in lieu of money he owed for a pearl necklace.
The case and letter remained in the McGowan family’s possession and are now being auctioned by a descendent of the jeweller – and are expected to fetch around £4,000 at Woolley & Wallis, of Salisbury, Wiltshire, on April 29.
The anonymous seller, who lives in Australia, chose to sell the items, which have ‘sat in a drawer for decades’, in the UK as that is where Mr Logue worked.
They said: ‘It is only in recent years that Lionel Logue’s extraordinary relationship with George VI has been explored, and the sale gives an opportunity for the story of their association to be better understood and appreciated.’
The seller added: ‘The case is a testament to their friendship and really brings history alive.’
The pair also worked together on the king’s 1939 radio speech declaring war with Germany.