UK pottery produces 'well suited' Harry and Meghan wedding mugs
A worker prints a design onto a souvenir mug to commemorate the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl Recine.
LONDON (Reuters) - A British pottery is producing royal wedding mugs emblazoned with the description of Prince Harry and U.S. actress Meghan Markle as "game changers, free spirits, big hearts and well-suited".
Harry, Queen Elizabeth's grandson, and Markle, who stars in the U.S. legal drama "Suits", tie the knot in Windsor, west of London on May 19.
Souvenir mugs to commemorate the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are stacked at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl Recine
At the Emma Bridgewater ceramics factory in Stoke-on-Trent, central England, a city famed for its pottery, workers are busy hand-making and decorating thousands of the commemorative mugs.
Sitting under rows of bunting made out of Union Jack flags hanging from the ceiling, around 60 workers use traditional techniques to hand-decorate the clay moulds.
Behind them, fresh out of the kiln, a sea of red and blue Harry and Meghan mugs fill the shelves below a portrait of Queen Elizabeth.
Souvenir mugs to commemorate the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are stacked at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl Recine
The brand has been operating for over 30 years and has been making commemorative ware since it opened in 1985. It produced mugs for Queen Elizabeth’s diamond jubilee and the wedding of Harry's older brother Prince William and his wife Kate, as well other big dates on the royal calendar.
"In Staffordshire we've got a long tradition of celebrating national events, and what better than a royal wedding," Emma Bridgewater, brand founder and designer of the mugs, told Reuters.
"Royal themed pottery made in Staffordshire can be traced back to the time of Charles II, and we are thrilled to see celebration through pottery continuing in 2018 with Harry and Meghan," she said.
Plugs are placed on moulds for mugs being made to commemorate the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl Recine
(Editing by Stephen Addison)
A worker adds transfers to mugs commemorating the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl RecineClay is injected into moulds to make mugs commemorating the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl RecineThe factory stamp and decorator's initials are seen on the bottom of a mug produced to commemorate the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are being made at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl RecineA worker uses stamps and paint to add part of the design to mugs commemorating the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl RecineMugs commemorating the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle wait to be glazed at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl RecineA worker adds transfers to mugs commemorating the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl RecineFreshly cast mugs commemorating the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle wait to be fired at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl RecineA worker adds transfers to mugs commemorating the wedding of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the Emma Bridgewater Factory, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Carl Recine
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