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Sue Begg and Emma Graham with covid masks display Sue's retirement gifts

Sue and Emma with a selection of Sue's retirement gifts in April.

After more than 20 years in the department, Head Secretary Sue Begg retired at the end of March. When she thanked everyone for her many retirement gifts she noted one in particular that stood out: “I wanted to thank you all for your extremely kind words and generous retirement gifts, as well as the particular favourite of my husband, a meal at Midsummer House! He will get a meal he did not have to cook himself! Honestly, I can cook but for some reason he prefers HIS cooking! Seriously, we both enjoy fine wine and good food so this will be a lovely treat!

On the 2nd of September, Sue and Tam (who also worked here for many years) finally got to enjoy that special meal. She says: “It was unlike anything else I have done. The food was amazing and the wines and champagne really top class.” They decided to ‘push the boat out’ and ordered a wine tasting flight, in which wines were paired with each course of the meal – “it was expensive but not regretted, as we would never have tasted these wines otherwise, and they were a real treat.”

In addition to the fabulous flavours, the presentation of each dish on the taster menu was a work of art. Sue felt compelled to take photos, although she says: “I did not want to appear too much of a country bumpkin so they are rather clandestine!"

You can enjoy below a gallery of these works of art. Sue says, "It was a truly amazing meal, something we would not have done without having the voucher." Thank you for sharing them with us Sue - it sounds like you are enjoying your retirement!