
10/04/2025
In 1981, a dinner was held in honour of the Queen Mother at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto. VVC played a key role in supporting her visit to Ontario.
At the time, the Royal Family was enjoying a wave of renewed popularity in Canada, sparked by the engagement of Prince Charles and Lady Diana. Several Royals passed through Ontario during that decade.
Burke Jr., who was 16 at the time, recalls attending a reception during this visit, where Princess Margaret (the Queen Mother’s youngest daughter) and her daughter Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones were present. Burke Jr. was invited as the official “young person” so Lady Sarah would have someone her age to speak with. He remembers they didn’t have much in common: she was passionate about horseback riding, while he preferred dirt bikes.