The Official Poole Pottery Collectors Club

We have received the following press release from the Poole Pottery Collectors Club:


Offering a great deal of benefits for the collector and Poole Pottery enthusiast, members will receive a club badge modelled on the new club emblem “The Galleon”, club magazines and membership card which entitles the holder to a 10% discount off limited edition pieces at the Poole shop on the Quay.

A brand new feature for the very first time is a member’s only website containing a huge online reference library of information just waiting to be discovered, and member’s only forum to chat with other members.

We have various membership options to include single, joint & international, we have also included a special rate for Poole Dorset residents, along with a special rate for current and former Poole Pottery artists/designers.

To join the Poole Pottery Collectors Club online please visit www.poolepotterycollectorsclub.co.uk or you may call in at the Poole shop on the quay for an application form, we would be very pleased to see you. Alternatively you may call Steve on 01285 659674 (daytime) or Ed on 0114 2530054 (evenings) to request an application form.

Since March 2008 Ed and Steve have worked tirelessly to launch the new and official Poole Pottery Collectors Club and are delighted to announce that in conjunction with Peter Bello, Chief Executive, Poole Pottery 2007 Limited, the club is now open with members already joining and the club is growing day by day, Ed and Steve are looking forward to welcoming new members during the coming months.

I am delighted to welcome you to the new Poole Pottery Collectors Club to which Poole Pottery is giving its full support.

Lifestyle Group purchased the assets of Poole Pottery from administration in 2007. Since then, we have been actively re-building the infrastructure and the Poole brand. We established a Studio Pottery in the Poole Store on the Quay. Design, Limited Editions and production of certain lines sold in the store are manufactured by the Studio Pottery.

The team on the quay consists of Alan White, the Master Potter and artists - Jane Brewer, Nicola Massarella, and sprayer, Graham Moss. The latest creation from the team is African Sky which was recently launched and proving to be a best-seller.

The Poole production facilities were recreated at the Royal Stafford site in Stoke on Trent under the guidance of Norman Tempest, Managing Director of Poole 2007 and Royal Stafford. Alan and his team relocated to Stoke for 15 weeks to assist in training the artists and production team. This was a mammoth task – involving the removal of kilns, production machinery and people. Glazes had to be re-formulated and in some cases – from scratch, the first Poole Pottery production in Stoke commenced in September 2007. Capacity has increased ever since and we are delighted with the results achieved by the Stoke Team led by the factory’s manager, John Nixon.

Our initial focus was to restore the production of the best selling lines such as Volcano and Gemstones. In the Spring of 2008, we launched African Sky and Himalayan Poppy. We have just released initial quantities of the Imagination Design – which is a new departure in Duck Egg Blue, Cream and Metallic hues. The design is contemporary and in keeping with current colour trends.

We are keen to work closely with the Collectors Club. We recognise that member’s feedback can be a tremendous asset. We are keen to preserve the heritage of the brand we have inherited. We are acutely aware of the troubled waters that Poole has navigated through over recent years. Our focus is to develop the brand and manufacture the Collectables of tomorrow.

I do hope to hear from and meet members in the near future.





Peter Bello
Chief Executive
Poole Pottery 2007 Limited
Lifestyle Group Limited

Poole Museum

Poole Museum has recently re-opened after refurbishment. On display is an extensive collection of Poole Pottery, mainly sourced from the Poole Pottery Museum archive auction at Christies in March 2004. Many of these pieces are pictured in the Hayward and Atterbury Poole Pottery book.

The earliest items are examples of Owen Carter’s lustre ware dating from just after the turn of the century, displayed together with James Radley Young lustre, unqlazed and early tin glazed pieces from c. 1915. A particularly striking piece is the green lustre-glazed vase with a moulded Lizard decoration applied by Lily Graham.


There are some interesting and rarely seen Harold and Phoebe Stabler and Joseph Roelants figures dating from 1915-1920, including the iconic Buster Boy figure and an elaborate bull figure group. This apparently retailed at £6 6s at top department stores Heals and Liberty’s when issued. There is a selection of bookends from the mid to late 1920’s, including elephant and mounted knight models by Harold Brownsword and a Harold Stabler small galleon.

Moving onto more familiar territory there are quite a few 1930’s Truda Carter designed traditional pieces, including two good art deco patterns (GPA and YE), and also a number of Arthur Bradbury designed ship plates. One of these depicts an Empire Flying Boat from 1940 in Poole Harbour; only 6 of these were made.

The 1950’s is represented by a small number of items from the Alfred Read period, including a 12” Freya plate and Poole Pottery plaque designed by his daughter Ann Read. There is also a collection of coronation pieces.


Delphis and Studio fans may be a little disappointed as there is nothing particularly spectacular from this period, although there is a small collection of 1960’s pieces and some 1970’s Aegean and Atlantis. Unusual is a carved vase by Tony Morris and Guy Sydenham, which is a copy of a vase presented to HRH Princess Margaret in 1966, and an early Robert Jefferson owl dish.


One curiosity is the red stoneware miniature bottle kiln made by Guy Sydenham in 1973 to commemorate the centenary of Poole Pottery. This is pictured in H&A on p168 but is quite fun to look at for real as the interior of the kiln contains miniature examples of pots in all the different Poole Pottery styles from Owen Carter lustre ware to 1970’s Delphis.

Away from the display cabinets is an extensive collection of Carter Tiles, including the famous Edward Bawden designed tile panel depicting a map of Poole and the words “Here in 1873 at Poole Pottery were Carter tiles first made”. There are also various architectural sculptures, faience plaques and a video film of the factory in c. 1970. This includes some footage of Guy Sydenham throwing.


The entire third floor is dedicated to Pottery and ceramics of various kinds and other interesting exhibits include 16th & 17th century Bellarmines, known to have influenced Guy Sydenham, and a collection of Broadstone Joyous pottery (often mis-sold as Poole).

At the time of writing the museum is open from Monday to Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and on Sundays from 12 p.m. until 5 p.m. Admission is free. However, please check details with the museum before visiting.

Return of The Blogger!

Apologies, but I have been neglecting this blog recently due to other commitments. So what's been happening in the last few months?

Poole Pottery is still at the quay shop, but still looking for new premises I understand. No change there then. Giftware is being produced and painted in Staffordshire and I have heard that retailers are now receiving supplies. I was on holiday in Devon this summer and it was quite a shock on visiting the Dartington Glass factory to see the Poole section in the shop stocked only with Lifestyle branded products of a most un-Poole like nature.

The studio section within the quay shop is now operational after some initial delays and the limited edition Sunface plates are reaching their owners. There has been quite a turnover of store managers in the last few months, Michael Collins being the latest and, I am assured, best so far! A new initiative seems to be the selling of one-offs and special editions through Poole Pottery Online, an eBay shop.

For the last few months the Poole Pottery website has just displayed a holding page saying "Under New Management". However, at the time of writing the website seems to have disappeared altogether so I am not sure what is happening in that department.

An interesting development is that Roger Hartley of Poole Zone has acquired some retail space upstairs within the quay shop, together with a small workshop, and is selling the current work of ex-Poole paintresses such as Carol Cutler, Janet Laird, Sue Pottinger and Lynn Gregory under the Poole Zone brand. This is said to be in collaboration with Poole Pottery, rather than in competition. One obvious possibility is that this will form the basis of an enlarged Poole Studio operation, featuring familiar names from the past as an attraction to collectors. Something to keep an eye on. I hope to be able to visit in the next few weeks.

Over the summer I had the pleasure of meeting with, and interviewing, Nikki Massarella, for an article that will appear in the forthcoming issue of the "All About Poole Pottery" collectors journal (which will probably be published in Spring 2008). Nikki is a delightful lady with a wonderful career at Poole Pottery spanning 28 years. I would love to tell you more but I had better wait until the magazine is published!

Talking of publications, I see that this months edition of Antiques Info magazine has an article on Poole Pottery written by Roland Head, together with three pages of illustrated auction results. The article is a well informed piece with some accurate observations on the secondary Poole marketplace, with the one quibble that the Alfred Read period is completely overlooked! I would argue that without the diversification of the product range and adoption of contemporary design philosophy that Read began in the 1950's there would have been no Delphis. He should not be underestimated! And, of course, there is a distinct market for 1950's pieces.

I believe Roland is the man behind the excellent Perfect Pieces blog (rather more frequently updated than my own!) He has been kind enough to link to this blog in the past so now I have an opportunity to return the favour.

Finally, we are just a couple of weeks away from the autumn Poole Pottery auction at Cottees. The catalogue has just been released and, as always, there is much to interest the Poole collector. More on this in due course.

Open Day at The Quay

On the Sunday after the Cottees auction, the new owners of Poole Pottery held an open day at the Quay shop. This was organised for them by Roger Hartley of animallblues, and a very good job he did too in a short space of time.

If you have not heard the latest, the Poole Pottery brand has been bought by the Lifestyle Group and the quay shop re-opened, but the factory remains closed. At the moment the shop is mainly selling old stock, although I believe some items are being made at Lifestyle’s other factory in Staffordshire. A small studio section has also been established in the quay shop where Alan White is working.

John Robinson of Lifestyle gave a speech affirming their commitment to the brand, but also confirming that they will not be re-opening the factory. It is simply too expensive to run. However, they are looking for new premises in the quay area as there is only a short lease on the current shop. The pottery is a big tourist draw in Poole and the local council were said to be co-operating in the search. I had wondered whether the old Purbeck Pottery building might be the target but others had heard it was too small and too expensive. John commented that the Lifestyle Group are not asset strippers, and in any case there are hardly any assets to strip.

Alan White gave some throwing demonstrations, making it look deceptively easy to create perfectly shaped and sized bowls, without any apparent reference to a measure. The first limited edition from the new studio was launched at the open day and was on public display for the first time. It will be based on the Tony Morris sunface design, thrown and carved by Alan and decorated by Nicki Massarella. There will be two sizes, 30cm and 41cm, limited to 50 of each.


Roger had arranged for several ex-Poole paintresses to attend, including Carol Cutler, Janet Laird, Lynn Gregory and Debbie Farrance. I couldn’t resist the opportunity to ask Carol whether there was any story behind the early shape 81 dish of hers that I have, which is signed with the 1969 Y dot mark. It appears to have CND style roundels as part of the design and I had fondly imagined Carol, fresh out of art school, bringing protest into pottery. Sadly, Carol was unable to recall any particular interest in CND, or its logo, so we just had to put it down to a general influence of the period. Still, Carol was charming to talk to and did reveal that when she first started marks were simply allocated to paintresses, which is how she came to use the Y dot mark and others used their various symbols.


Amidst the Poole Pottery Roger had arranged a fine display of Poole Zone artists work, including Janet Laird, Carol Cutler, Anita Harris and Mark Baker. Mark, who runs the Tradpots pottery in Poole, is a really nice guy and was also at the open day. He produces some excellent pieces that clearly have a Poole heritage whilst still carrying a unique style of their own. I am particularly fond of the carved vases and have recently started to offer some of Mark’s items for sale through The Poole Room.

Another nice guy is Eddie Goodall, who has been throwing pots for many years and regularly gave demonstrations at Poole Pottery open days. Eddie actually taught both Alan and Mark to throw. Unfortunately, Eddie told us that he is still redundant following the factory closure. He spotted a massive Forest Flame vase he had made in the studio and agreed to pose with it (revealing it was made in four separate pieces). This vase is on the back of the 2006 catalogue, standing on the beach at Sandbanks.


All in all the open day set the tone for a positive future, which was enhanced by the involvement of the Poole Zone artists. Our best wishes to all involved. All open day pictures in this post were taken by fellow AAPP group member Paul Prince, and are used with his kind permission.

Sun Shines at Cottees Shock!

Last Saturday saw the spring Poole Pottery auction at Cottees come round again. Unusually, the weather was glorious and, rather than freezing in the “shed” whilst trying to get near the solitary gas heater, everyone was roasted and the snack bar ran out of bottled water!

The event was a notable success this year, with more people attending than I have ever seen before. This can be attributed, I think, to the publicity surrounding the factory closure and also the activities of the All About Poole Pottery group. This group, founded by Dave Goddard, has recently published a Collector’s Journal, and is filling the space vacated by the official collectors club. Quite a few members attended the auction, some for the first time, and an enjoyable pre-auction dinner was held the night before at The Duke of Wellington in Wareham.

The catalogue estimates may have helped the turn-out as well, being set at a rather tempting level on the whole. Cottees also mailed a copy of the catalogue to everybody who had bought at the last auction, thus keeping interest up.


Unfortunately the number of people attending, along with an apparently healthy set of commission and telephone bids, meant that there were few bargains to be had. I was pleased to pick up a mixed bag of collectors club magazines and an old Christies catalogue for £10 hammer price on a maiden bid, but otherwise pickings were slim.

A lot I was particularly interested in was a Freya plate, designed by Ann Read in 1958, and featuring a hand-painted picture of Poole harbour with the bow of the vessel Freya in the foreground. This was estimated at £40-£60, although I had expected it to sell for around £120. In fact after fierce bidding it went for an astonishing £230 hammer!

In the end I had to make do with a Beardsley vase, replacing one I had sold a few months ago, a 1950’s contemporary cucumber dish and an early 8” Delphis “blue mark” studio plate. I paid slightly over what I had intended for all of them, so let’s hope the buoyant market continues!


Cottees must have been pleased with the auction results, there were very few unsold lots, the majority seemed to reach estimate and a good proportion far exceeded the top estimate. Despite the lack of bargain buys it was an enjoyable event and, as always, the opportunity to have a good look at rare items close up is a treat. There was a range of Tony Morris chargers, two Guy Sydenham Atlantis helmet lamps, a Harold Stabler galleon “door-stop” and some Phoebe Stabler figures that fetched good money. It was also a pleasure to meet fellow members of the AAPP group face-to-face. Roll on October.