The Annual Dinner of the Institute of Arts and Letters (London) was held at the Civil Service Club in London on the evening of 3 November. The Fellows and their guests numbered fourteen. A decision had been taken to change the format this year to a less formal event than had previously been the case, and as a result the focus was on enjoying the company of a very diverse and interesting group of people and on some excellent food and wine.

In the course of proceedings, a presentation was made to Mr John Balsdon, Registrar of the Institute, who was presented with the honorary degree of Master of Business Administration awarded by the Western Orthodox University (Commonwealth of Dominica). This award was made in recognition of John’s considerable work as proprietor of a successful record label that has established itself as a distinctive contribution to classical music.