Mayor to pay Christmas visit to the House of the Tailor of Gloucester

The Mayor of Gloucester will be paying a special pre-Christmas visit to the House of the Tailor of Gloucester in College Court next Tuesday.

Councillor Howard Hyman will meet directors, staff and volunteers at the museum and shop, which is based in the building sketched by Beatrix Potter in her ‘Tailor of Gloucester’ book.  The book is based on a real-world incident where the Tailor had been tasked with making a waistcoat for the Mayor of Gloucester to wear at his wedding on Christmas Day.  The Tailor returned to his shop on a Monday morning to find the suit completed except for one buttonhole, with a note attached saying, “No more twist”. His assistants had finished the coat in the night and the Tailor encouraged locals to believe it was finished by fairies.  In the book the waistcoat is finished by the grateful mice the Tailor rescues from his cat.

The attraction was saved for the city when local people clubbed together to buy the building after it was closed by its previous owners in 2005.  It reopened in 2006 and ever since has been largely run by volunteers.

One of the Directors of the Tailor of Gloucester, former City Council Leader Paul James, said, “We are delighted the Mayor is joining us to learn more about the shop and museum and how it operates.  It is one of the gems of Gloucester’s heritage.  The Tailor of Gloucester is the city’s most famous Christmas story and we should all be very proud of this connection.”

Gloucester News Centre – http://gloucesternewscentre.co.uk