THE MASTER OF ROYAL ICING
Born on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, Eddie was christened in St Giles’ Cathedral.
His father was a delivery driver and his mother worked at Mackie’s bakery in Princes Street.
Eddie was tiny. Even as a full-grown man he was only five feet tall. Consequently, he was always known as ‘Wee Eddie’.
Both his siblings were awarded scholarships to go to grammar school. Eddie did not – he went to secondary school where he was adept at technical drawing.
Sean Connery was in the same school as Eddie – but two years older.
However, Eddie’s parents couldn’t afford to keep him in school and he was taken out the day before his fourteenth birthday. He started his apprenticeship at Mackie’s, the following dat. “Straight away, I loved it.”
Eddie actually considered he had an advantage on other trainees. Most started their apprenticeship aged sixteen. He felt he had a two-year head start.
Mackie’s used to make cakes for the Royal family when they were in residence at Holyrood Palace. They provided scones, bread and petit fours for afternoon tea. There was a ‘By Royal Appointment’ sign above the shop door.
Eddie moved between different departments, learning his trade. The bakery was his least favourite because there was lots of heavy lifting (sacks of flour) but he loved the cake making area.
Eddie’s biggest problem was reaching the higher shelves where ingredients were stored. He had to have a set of steps made especially for him.
In 1947, 21-year old Princess Elizabeth was to marry Prince Philip. Mackie’s were commissioned to provide the wedding cake.
Eddie was sixteen at the time. He carried some ingredients upstairs. There, the chief baker was in a panic – he was short-handed. Eddie was roped in to beat eggs. He did it for the whole of the day. His hands were covered with blisters. “It took all day, but it was definitely worth it.”
Princess Elizabeth came to pick up the cake in person. It had four tiers and was six-feet high and was displayed in the Blue Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace.
Eddie had made such a positive impression that he was promoted to the cake department. He was also allowed to make some of the window dressings. His favourite creation was a cake that was a copy of Edinburgh’s floral clock.
By the time Eddie was 22, he was a Master Baker making over fifty cakes a week for Mackie’s.
The following year, he married Betty. They had three children.
He was also seconded to teach bakery at Napier Technical College (now known as Edinburgh Napier University).
By now, he was also Head of the Wedding Cake Department.
He studied the history of cake making in great detail, being particularly inspired by Victorian creations.
In 1960, Eddie was commissioned to make the cake for Princess Margaret’s wedding to Antony Armstrong-Jones.
The princess sent Eddie a letter asking for something ‘traditional’. He managed in the icing to intertwine the letters M and A (their initials). “The detail on that cake was amazing and it took a lot of hard work.”
Out of all his cakes he made throughout his lengthy career, this one remained Eddie’s favourite.
It also earned him the title ‘The Master of Royal Icing’. He was noted for his ‘intricate artistry with icing’.
Royal Icing is a mixture of egg whites and icing sugar. It was created in the Nineteenth Century for Queen Victoria – hence the name. It is difficult to work with – very temperamental and hard to pipe into shape, unlike the more regularly used fondant.
Eddie had a very elaborate style and everything was hand done. He drew the designs first and spent hours in preparation for each cake. His speciality was creating royal crests out of icing.
Mackie’s closed in the late 1960s, and the family moved to Derby where Eddie taught in a technical college.
In 1977, they moved to Bournemouth where he started teaching at Mary Ford’s Sugarcraft School.
That same year, he was commissioned to make a cake for Queen Elizabeth’s Silver Jubilee. He designed it in the shape of the gold state coach. It weighed 56 pounds, was 21 inches high and had gold, red and purple icing on it.
In 1981, Eddie was asked to make the wedding cake for Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer.
He worked with a local baker. The cake used 180 eggs, twelve pounds of butter and two bottles of rum.
Eddie delivered the cake personally, being driven from Bournemouth to London in a Rolls Royce.
He also made the cake for Prince Andrew’s wedding to Sarah Ferguson in 1986.
Eddie ruefully reflected that all his royal weddings had ended in divorce bar one – that of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip (and that was the only cake he wasn’t in charge of).
Outside of work, Eddie’s one big passion was dancing.
In 1997, Eddie designed the cake for the Queen’s golden wedding. It was based on Westminster Abbey and took him seven weeks to complete.
In 1999, Eddie’s wife Betty died. The very next day he received a letter from Buckingham Palace inviting him to become an MBE.
He was so upset that he was inclined to reject the offer, but his son talked him out of it.
The following year he was presented his MBE at the palace by the Queen. They talked for ages. “It was really amazing because the Queen knew all about me and we actually had quite a long chat.”
Elizabeth greeted him by saying, “It’s lovely to meet you, Edward.” She thanked him for everything he had done for her family.
As she handed over the medal, Eddie said to the Queen, “Thanks, pet!” Elizabeth laughed. He hadn’t been thinking – he always called everybody ‘pet’.
In 2010, Eddie appeared on the television programme ‘Loose Women’. He demonstrated icing piping and said, “There’s nothing to beat royal icing.”
The presenter asked him about his career. “If you love what you do, you never have to work.” He claimed to have never had a bad moment.
He also believed it was important to always put in maximum effort, be it creating a cake for a neighbour’s child or the Royal Family. “You’ve got to make sure that the cake that you do, you’re proud of.”
By now, Eddie was something of a celebrity in the ‘foodie’ world. He appeared on ‘The Great British Bake Off’ and was given a lifetime achievement award by the Baking Industry Awards.
Eddie also wrote a book entitled ‘The Art of Royal Icing’.
Eddie also made a cake for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012 – another state coach design.
His final cake was in 2017, for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip’s 70th wedding anniversary. He made sugar flowers mimicking the myrtle in her wedding bouquet.
That same year, Eddie married Tracy.
He finally realised that he had to retire. His hands were far too shaky to ice properly.
Eddie was absolutely delighted to hear that a single slice of Charles and Diana’s wedding cake was sold at auction in 2021 for £2,000. It had been kept in a tin by a member of the Queen Mother’s household.
Strangely enough, he never enjoyed cake himself – but he did have a sweet tooth. “I always have four teaspoons of sugar in my tea.”
When Eddie died, it was said he had royal icing in his veins.
At his funeral, his wife Tracy said, “It is wonderful to be loved by the one you love. I have been very lucky. We were like two teenagers, madly in love with each other. I will miss him every second for the rest of my life.”
“My Eddie, my (and our) hero, will be sorely missed so much by his whole family, his grandchildren and his two little dogs.”
In the Chapel of Rest, a piping bag was put in his hand – so he could teach the angels how to decorate cakes!
RIP – Royal Icing Piper
