The founder and CEO of The Hollie Gazzard Trust, Nick Gazzard, has been announced as the new Mock Mayor of Barton for 2024-25. Well known in Gloucester and the wider county, Nick has shown devotion to helping victims of domestic abuse and violence after the murder of daughter Hollie ten years ago, and has remained positive by keeping her legacy alive.
Marking the tenth anniversary of the Trust, the dedication of Nick’s work has come to the attention of The Court Leet of Barton St Mary, which means he has been invited to become the new Mock Mayor, succeeding historian Jon Eeles.
The role of the Mock Mayor is strictly non-political and very much a ‘fun’ position but its origins lie in the restoration of the monarchy in 1660. King Charles II was not too pleased with Gloucester because the city stood against his father King Charles I during the English Civil War, and as a punishment the new king reduced the city’s boundaries to leave the area known today as Barton and Tredworth.
Nick said: “I feel honoured to have been chosen for the position of Mock Mayor. I will do my best to play my part in keeping this unique tradition going. The appointment came out of the blue which was a great surprise but I will certainly do everything I can to repay the Court Leet’s faith in me.”
At a time-honoured ceremony in the City Centre, Nick will be formally installed as Mock Mayor of Barton and meet the Mayor of Gloucester after leading a parade through the ‘Gate Streets’. The parade will take place at 11am on Saturday September 7, which is also Gloucester Day celebrating the lifting of the Siege of Gloucester in 1643.
Gloucester’s Town Crier, Alan Myatt, is full of praise for the way Nick has turned something so tragic into a positive force for good. Alan said: “Nick is exactly the type of person we need as an ambassador for the tradition of Mock Mayor and for Gloucester as a whole. I’m sure he will make an outstanding Mock Mayor.”