Linda of London, as many readers will know, wrote a column originally titled The Anglophile for the Queen Anne/Magnolia News for many years.
Linda passed away April 27. She was 85. She had amassed hundreds of columns and made a name for herself in the community. Her final column was about Easter in England.
Every week she would regale her readers with tales of history, humor and the cultural peculiarities of the people that make up the British Isles, and then somehow made them fit into the everyday lives of those of us who read the column.
In fact, she became such an expert on all things British, she earned the moniker,The Tea Lady.
Linda Greenwald, nee Fisher was born in London, England, March 4, 1925. Her father was a career military/diplomat for the British government. When she was 11, she lived in Germany and Austria returning to the UK two years later in 1938.
World War II arrived, and Linda drove an ambulance and was a Red Cross volunteer for the Women's Voluntary Service. While burning toast at the Red Cross canteen in Cheltenham, she got better acquainted with a nice young officer from Seattle whom she had met at the American Embassy in London. Lo and behold, he was working with Linda's father, Maurice, on top secret D-Day plans.
In 1945, Linda became Mrs. Hal Greenwald at the first peacetime wedding in the Cheltenham Town Hall. All of the silver that had been hidden during the war came out and every flower garden in town made a contribution to the festivities. It was truly a great occasion with many British and American military and diplomats present.
In 1951, son, Andrew, arrived after kicking his way through several Shakespeare productions at Stratford-upon-Avon. He was quite expected to be born quoting Shakespeare. Linda always said she could think of several appropriate quotes.
In 1952, she started with the Royal Shakespeare Theatre at Stratford doing jewelry and costume design and worked with many great actors including Sir John Gielguld, Sir Lawrence Olivier, Richard Burton, Vivian Leigh and Dame Judy Dench, to name a few.
In 1963, GI bridegroom and a very vintage GI bride arrived in Seattle. Hal had retired from the military and was now in radio at KXA classical music station doing advertising and public relations. He and Linda worked closely with BBC, British Tourist Authority, British Information Services and local British and Canadian consuls.
They created The British Hour Radio USA, a one-hour radio program featuring news, nostalgia, history, humor, words and music of the British Isles. They interviewed visiting VIPs and worked closely with British Airways, Seattle Opera and visiting English entertainers. Thus was Linda of London born, hostess and co-producer of The British Hour, also the "Antique Lady," a radio program on antiques and jewelry, and other programs on stately homes and gardens of England.
In 1970, Hal and Linda were proposed for membership in the English Speaking Union. Over the years, they worked harmoniously with 22 Seattle ESU branch presidents, 10 British consuls and consul generals, five Canadian consuls and three executive assistants. Linda's favorite project was the Shakespeare Committee which promotes teaching Shakespeare through student competitions, scholarships for students and teachers and workshops on Shakespeare performance.
In 1970, Linda and Hal became involved with the Society for Creative Anachronism, a medieval history and costuming group. Linda was delighted to discover a group of people who were interested in the history and lore of her native land and enjoyed many entertaining events.
By 1977, Linda had organized a ball to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, and organized a visit of British ambassador Sir Oliver Wright.
In 1980, Hal and Linda discovered Somewhere In Time, Unlimited, another costuming group celebrating the history and customs of England and Europe and thus began many more opportunities for Linda to express her creativity in the world of costuming.
In 1983, Hal and Linda were presented to Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Seattle.
Hal died in 1988, and Linda continued with The British Hour. She was appointed to the ESU board organizing many functions and meeting many interesting and important visitors.
Linda began writing The Anglophile column for the Queen Anne/Magnolia News in 1990. She was also an avid opera goer and supported the Seattle Opera Guild. Another group that she enjoyed was the Richard III Society, a group whose purpose is to rehabilitate the reputation of King Richard III.
Linda touched the lives of hundreds of people through her radio program, her column and her own indomitable, generous and endlessly uplifting spirit. She had friends in all walks of life and of all ages from the Seattle Pacific University students whom she had working for her to her friends in the ESU and her costuming friends. She leaves a legacy of kindness, caring and generosity that will provide warm and comforting memories to sustain her son and many friends.
Linda had suffered a stroke in the spring of 2009 that slowed her down but couldn't stop her. She had an indomitable spirit and insisted on going to every Seattle Opera opening night, ESU function, and cultural and costuming event.
She is survived by her son, Andrew, her daughter-in-law Michele, and her granddaughter Giovanna.
A celebration of her life was held Saturday May 8, at Seattle Unity Church, 200 Eighth Ave. N. Since Linda was cremated, the family asks that in lieu of flowers a donation be made in her name to the Shakespeare Committee of the ESU for a memorial scholarship.
Linda used to end all of her columns with TTFN, which means "ta ta for now," a Cockney expression for "till we meet again."
TTFN Linda You will be remembered.[[In-content Ad]]
