Last night, a reception was held for Ambassadors of the Holocaust Educational Trust, at the Speaker’s State Rooms in the Houses of Parliament in Westminster. Having been involved with H.E.T for a little while now, photographing their truly inspirational ‘Lessons from Auschwitz’ trips to Poland, it was a pleasure to be involved in documenting their activities closer to home. We’re planning a full blog about LFA, which will be posted online soon.

The event was effectively hosted by Speaker of the House of Commons and Member of Parliament for Buckingham, John Bercow MP. It’s always great to photograph events in such an iconic location and yesterday was no exception, with such an impressive roll call of influential supporters for the crucial work of H.E.T, from Holocaust Survivors to Lords and many Members of Parliament. In attendance were, amongst many other distinguished guests:

• Danny Cohen, Controller of BBC One.
• David Bernstein, Chairman of the Football Association.
• Ed Balls MP, Shadow Chancellor and Member of Parliament for Morley and Outwood.
• Eric Pickles MP, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and Member of Parliament for Brentwood and Ongar.
• Fabian Hamilton MP, Member of Parliament for Leeds North East.
• Freddie Knoller, Holocaust Survivor and activist for Holocaust education.
• Gena Turgel, Holocaust Survivor and activist for Holocaust education.
• Harley Ryley, Regional Ambassador for H.E.T.
• John Bercow MP, Member of Parliament for Buckingham and Speaker of the House of Commons.
• Karen Pollock MBE, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust.
• Lord Greville Janner of Braunstone QC.
• Lord John Browne, former Chief Executive of BP.
• Nick Robinson, BBC Political Editor.
• Paul Phillips, Chairman of the Holocaust Educational Trust.
• Rabbi Barry Marcus, Rabbi for Central Synagogue and pioneer of Lessons From Auschwitz.
• Robert Halfon MP, Member of Parliament for Harlow.
• Sir Mervyn King, recently departed Governor of the Bank of England.
• Sir Victor Blank, Philanthropist and former Chairman of Lloyds TSB.

In terms of photography, we were working alongside The PR Office to cover the event, and try to ensure it receives the acclaim it deserves. A mix of shots was required, from line-ups before speeches commenced and the speeches themselves, to natural shots of supporters mingling during the reception, and some more posed ones of groups throughout the evening too. The images were all individually edited, and delivered last night immediately after the event. Below is a small selection of our personal favourites.

On a side note, I highly recommend reading Freddie Knoller’s book about his experiences during the Holocaust, Living With The Enemy. He is without doubt one of the most engaging, passionate, inspirational and humorous people I’ve ever had the pleasure of photographing.