22 Apr 2025
It is somewhat surprising, given St Albans is Hertfordshire’s cathedral city, that so few of the district’s residents are listed on the roll call of more than 450 named High Sheriffs since 1567.
Of the 20 or so who are mentioned, names such as Roger Pemberton (famous for endowing the St Peter’s Street almshouses) and John Gape (who built St Michael’s Manor in 1585) have become part of the city’s fabric.
In the late Queen Elizabeth II’s reign, there were only four High Sheriffs from the district, Douglas Cory-Wright CBE in 1963, the Countess of Verulam CVO in 2002, Gerald Corbett in 2010 and Lionel Wallace in 2021.
Annie Brewster JP took up the Shrieval reins – a role in which she represents HM King Charles III in Hertfordshire – last April and has just come to the end of her busy year attending more than 630 engagements in all corners of the county.
Apparently, she did not travel to all of them on a horse.
Now her diary is somewhat less full than it has been for the past 12 months, Annie has time to reflect on her year in office.
“I have only recently read the marvellous private diaries of previous Hertfordshire High Sheriffs going back over many decades.
“There are vast similarities between their reports, detailing Royal visits to the county, declaring a General Election result, the judges they entertained, overseeing citizenship ceremonies, church services and garden parties they had given and the role of the police, probation and prisons they had encountered, not to mention their support to the county’s various Mayors and Chairs at civic events. I have had the pleasure to experience all of these fascinating activities over the past 12 months.
“However, there is more to it now. In 2001 the Lord Chamberlain reviewed the role of High Sheriff and, despite being completely self-funded and no cost to the common purse, he declared it must become more relevant in our modern world in order that its 1,000-year existence would continue.
“Most High Sheriffs now select a theme before they begin their term of office and, as an ex-athlete, I decided mine was to be ‘Sport for Good’.
“I had no idea what I was about to discover within our county. It has been both astonishing and an enormous pleasure to visit so many incredible initiatives that use sport or physical activity to assist in crime reduction, educational attainment, community cohesion, skills development, greater productivity, a fitter workforce, not to mention boosting mental health, wellbeing and, most importantly, making us happy.
“The majority of which are run by volunteers embedded in local communities and are so often hidden from general sight.
As an existing board member of the Herts Sports & Physical Activity Partnership, Annie was able to join with one of Sport England’s leading county Active Partnerships to present High Sheriff Awards throughout the year to shine a light on the many individuals, charities and organisations who are doing incredible work.
The High Sheriff Awards at the University of Hertfordshire’s Weston Auditorium two weeks ago was an opportunity to thank everyone in person, including the St Albans Highfield Park Health Walk volunteer leaders, South West Hertfordshire Countryside Management Volunteers, St Albans and Jersey Farm parkrun ambassadors Katrina Dell and Richard Underwood, Ian Woods the founder of St Albans City Youth FC, Mary Whiteley, who set up St Albans Artistic Roller Skating Club, HAWA Multicultural Services, 948 Sports Foundation, St Albans Rotary Swimathon, HACRO and Oaklands College, alongside other winners countywide.
“Away from my sports initiatives, my time in St Albans district has produced some of my most cherished memories. HHJ Lana Wood, Resident Judge of St Albans Crown Court and the Honorary Recorder for St Albans City and District has invited me to sit on the Bench with her in the Crown Court on several occasions which has been fascinating and Chief Inspector Martin Turpin has kept me busy with St Albans police.
“I have been incredibly well supported by our Dean, The Very Reverend Jo Kelly-Moore, our Bishop, The Right Revd Dr Alan and everyone at the Cathedral who hosted my most traditional events, my Declaration Service last April and Justice Service in November.
Joe Silvester and St Albans School provided a superb venue for lunch for the Judges following the most beautiful service led by the Cathedral’s new director of music, Will Fox and a superb sport inspired sermon by my High Sheriff Chaplain, Revd Canon Richard Banham.
“Recently the university hosted my annual High Sheriff lecture at which Murray Rosen KC, a distinguished barrister, arbitrator, and a leading authority in the field of sports law shared fascinating aspects of his work with a lecture entitled ‘Is Sport Worth Regulating?’. Murray left the audience seeing sport and, who controls it, in a whole new light.
“I have loved contributing to the city’s big events such as hosting Patricia Seabright’s splendid TEDx St Albans, welcoming St Albans legends The Zombies on stage at the Eric Morecambe Centre in Harpenden and being a moving (and very cold) clue in Youth Talk’s Great St Albans Challenge where teams had to find me somewhere in the city centre and ask me questions.
“Oaklands College have shown remarkable support to the Shrievalty. They were the perfect host for my garden party where hundreds of guests had the opportunity to explore one of the country’s leading sports colleges where Oaklands Wolves Sports Academy students were on hand to talk to guests about their experiences in St Albans. The college also launched Hertfordshire’s newest parkrun, routed around their extensive grounds. I am so grateful to principal Andrew Slade and his team.”
What advice can she offer her successor, Wareside resident Nicholas Buxton, and those who follow him?
“Make the role relevant to the modern day. The power of saying ‘thank you’ to people who are giving their time to important causes is enormous. Use your county knowledge to connect organisations and individuals, don’t drink before a speech, have a cheaper hat for when it rains and keep plenty of spare tights in the car!”
A staggering 637 engagements over her term of office must surely have challenged the number she attended when Mayor of St Albans?
“That is actually fewer than the 800 as Mayor of St Albans in 2013 but, back then, I did serve an additional six weeks due to the European Parliament Elections in 2014. Obviously, the High Sheriff role covers the entire county and is not only restricted to our district. I was warmly welcomed into every town in Hertfordshire
on many occasions and either visited, or drove through, every beautiful village. I learned, as well as having world class expertise in high-tech knowledge sectors, and swiftly becoming Europe’s TV and film Hollywood, what a truly stunning and rural county we live in. Having navigated different routes around the county daily, I think I might now be able to qualify as a ‘cabbie’.”
Her iconic outfit has made her stand out from the crowd at all of these occasions, so what’s she going to do with it now?
“It has worked very hard so it would be rather churlish to sell it. Many High Sheriffs sell theirs on to future incumbents, but the joy I have from my mother’s WWII Army Captain’s uniform suggests it is worth keeping in the family. What’s more, it tells a story. Its 35 antique cut steel buttons came from an Ede, Son & Ravenscroft tailored uniform I managed to purchase that was first worn by Sir Louis Kershaw in 1898, then by Sir Herbert Pearson in 1920. They might have been some of the very first High Sheriff buttons ever used as Queen Victoria only insisted upon a standard velvet Court Dress in 1869.”
Having previously served as a parish, district and county councillor before taking on the role of High Sheriff, Annie really isn’t the sort of person to put her feet up, so what does she have planned now?
“I cannot imagine a better role exists …. but I said that when I was Mayor. I’m going to take a little breather and then see how, what and where the things I have been privileged to see and learn might be useful. Ummm… what else has a uniform?”
And a final word on her tenure?
“I would like to thank everyone who has supported me. The greatest delight in my year has been to meet thousands of inspirational people, explain my bonkers but brilliant role, usefully convene, enable and connect those who need support be it with volunteering, grant funding or simply to help profile their heroic efforts.
“It has been the greatest privilege to represent HM King Charles III and an honour to serve the community I love with a sword around my waist and a giant feather in my hat.”
