Peter Mullen was the epitome of the archetypal English gentleman- urbane, amusing, intelligent, and self-deprecating with exquisite taste and manners. The irony was that he was actually Irish and the polished image Peter so effortlessly projected belied an even more nuanced persona, for he was blessed with a core of shrewdness and a determined drive for success. After a brief stint at Savills, Peter and his two brothers were rallied by their father to rescue the ailing family textile business. Thus in 1984 was born the Thomas Pink brand: from a small shop in London SW10, bold and colourful upmarket shirts made in Ireland were sold to a hitherto untapped market, somewhere between off the peg and bespoke. With Peter’s eye for detail and innate elegance, the company flourished, eventually being sold to LVMH at the turn of the century. Peter’s acumen for branding did not stop there, and in 2006, in partnership with others, he rescued the Hunterwellington boot company from administration, swiftly making it Glastonbury fashionable and turning a loss-making business into a very profitable one.
However, this drive and entrepreneurial success was not apparent in ‘our’ Peter, the Cresta Peter. He was far too modest and self-effacing to boast of his achievements. Our Peter was the gentle gentleman. Invariably impeccably dressed, with a quizzical lift of an eyebrow and a chuff of explosive laughter, he was always on the verge of being amused, and had the invaluable gift of making other people feel comfortable and happy in his presence. Nevermore so was this true than when serving traditional Irish stew to the straw-ridden throng of “Recalcitrant Rustics” as Shuttlecock President, 2003.
Peter became an excellent Top Cresta rider having joined our Club in 1989.Maybe not in the Five-0 league, he was a highly competitive and skilled 52 man, a regular in the Brabazon Twelve and winner of the 1996 Stagni Cup when, off a handicap of 3.0 seconds with three solid 54s, and sporting an indecent new black and yellow skinsuit, Peter comfortably beat the second placed rider who had a handicap of 3.7 seconds, one young Tower Boy, Clifton Wrottesley! A dramatic fall over the top of Stream curtailed a lengthy Cresta riding career to only 719 courses (and 19 falls),but it allowed Peter to enjoy the comforts of Suvretta House and bask with pride in his sons’ membership of our Club which he loved so dearly. Fortunately, it didn’t stop his passion for the finest wines or fastest cars, as he continued to race his iconic ex-Graham Hill 1964 BRM P261 at Goodwood, Silverstone, Monaco, and other historic circuits.
Unsurprisingly, in the 1990s Peter was inveigled by Lord Bledisloe onto the Committee and into resuscitating the Cresta Shop where he designed our distinctive Club tweed and set the high sartorial standards that subsequent Shop Keepers have aspired to emulate.
In short, “style” was Peter’s byword; he was the kindest, most lovely and generous family man, and our hearts go out to Mary, Theo, Ana and Oliver.
