Vernon Corea first visited the iconic Ceylon Tea Centre in Lower Regent Street London when he was sent by the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation to the United Kingdom for 6 months to follow a Nuffield Trust Broadcasting Course with the BBC. While he was in London he represented the Director-General of the CBC and Ceylon at a Commonwealth Broadcasting Conference. Vernon used to frequent the Ceylon Tea Centre with his uncle J.C.A.Corea who used to be the Education Officer at the Sri Lanka High Commission in Sri Lanka.
Vernon Corea has also met Sri Lankan Heads of State at the Ceylon Tea Centre at 22 Lower Regent Street. Members of the Sri Lankan Community and the British used to frequent the Centre for a wonderful ‘cuppa’ of Ceylon Tea and patties, chinese rolls and other Sri Lankan delicacies. In the 1980s beautiful Senaka Senanayake paintings adorned the walls of the Ceylon Tea Centre.
In 1972 the Ceylon Tea Centre even exhibited a ‘dalek’ as part of the UK wide ‘Win-A-Dalek’ competition and people saw the unusual sight of a Dalek in the window of the Ceylon Tea Centre. Sadly the Tea Centre is no more – let’s hope it will be resurrected in some form in the heart of London.
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