When photographer W. Jones died in 2011, his family discovered something remarkable in his attic — a hidden collection of unseen British royal family photographs. They reached out to royal photographer Ian Pelham-Turner, who took charge of the images and recognized their historical value immediately.
Pelham-Turner included the photos in an exhibition held in June 2012 at the Debenhams department store restaurant in Harrow, timed to coincide with Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. The display spanned royal history from 1933 to 2012, with W. Jones’s own shots focusing on a young Princess Elizabeth during the 1930s and 1940s.
The 1947 photographs are among the most striking in the collection. That year alone captured the Queen touring South Africa with King George VI aboard HMS Vanguard and announcing her engagement to Prince Philip.
The collection also documents the Queen’s 1953 coronation in vivid detail, including her iconic gown designed by Sir Norman Hartnell and a joyful royal family portrait taken on the same day.
In 2023, 24 of W. Jones’s photographs were exhibited at the Red Eight Gallery in London, curated by Lady Victoria Hervey. Pelham-Turner attended to provide historical context. Ten images were auctioned to raise money for charitable causes. Adding to the mystery of it all, Pelham-Turner has stated that W. Jones used photography as a cover — and that he was a spy.
