Royal seat has a cross to bear

The Royal Bottom graced this chair last week in an event which may not have occurred since the Reformation – that of a UK monarch attending a Catholic church service.

The brief for freelance designer Nick Allen was to design an “important chair for an important person, but not a throne”. It’s carved in rosewood, and integrates the crosses of St George and St Andrew. “The Palace said they didn’t want us to take too much trouble,” says Allen.

The Queen attended Westminster Cathedral last Wednesday.