In conversation with Michael Hockney, Founder of the Lord Mayor’s Big Curry Lunch
At Guildhall, the City of London’s most historic ceremonial building, there is one day each year when protocol quietly dissolves. No seating plan. No hierarchy. No place cards. Instead, 1,650 guests queue for curry, serve themselves, and strike up conversations with whoever happens to be next in line and sitting next to them at tables.
Behind this unlikely ritual is Michael Hockney – a former management consultant, former trustee and committee chairman of the Army Benevolent Fund, and the founder of what has become one of the City’s most quietly powerful philanthropic institutions: the Lord Mayor’s Big Curry Lunch.
The Origin Story
The first Lunch took place in 2008 – not even inside Guildhall itself, but in two large marquees in Guildhall Yard while the kitchens were out of action.
“It was like playing sardines,” Hockney recalls. “But in spite of that, it raised £120,000 net and everyone enjoyed it. It felt like a good idea to do another one the following year – and the incoming Lord Mayor was keen to host it.”
From that improvised beginning, attendance grew rapidly. Today, all the principal rooms of Guildhall are used to accommodate 1,650 guests, and the Lunch has raised more than £4.2 million since its launch.
Why Curry?
The choice of curry was not accidental.
“There’s a big tradition in the Army of a curry in the mess once a week,” says Hockney. “And of course, curry is Britain’s favourite food.”
More importantly, curry is egalitarian. It doesn’t signal status. It doesn’t demand ceremony. It invites conversation.
Which, Hockney realised early on, was exactly the point.
An Un-City Idea in the Heart of the City
Convincing the Lord Mayor and the Corporation to back something so deliberately informal might sound challenging – but Hockney says it was the opposite.
“It was exactly what the Lord Mayor in 2008 wanted to add to his year.”
The lack of a seating plan, now one of the Lunch’s defining features, was intentional from the start. No top tables. No hierarchy. Everyone queues. Everyone mixes.
In any given year, you might find yourself standing in line next to the Bishop of London, senior clergy, the Secretary of State for Defence, a General, a CEO, or a graduate on their first week in the City.
It is one of the only days in the City calendar when rank disappears entirely.
What Has Stayed the Same
While the scale has grown, Hockney insists the purpose has not changed.
“The money raised is important because it helps individuals effectively. But equally important is reminding City folk what the Armed Forces are called upon to do – and explaining the reality for some veterans who have difficulty adjusting to civilian life.”
Since 2019, the focus has been firmly on employment and transition, funding programmes such as Lifeworks and Warrior Programme, helping veterans rebuild confidence, skills and long-term careers.
The Evolution
Today, the Big Curry Lunch now takes over all the principal rooms of Guildhall, thanks to the generosity of the Corporation, transforming the entire building into a single flowing social space. Champagne and cocktail bars sit alongside book signings, Livery Company stalls, a large 70-Lot silent auction, raffles and prize draws for diamond earrings and a British-made watch – all layered onto what remains, at heart, a delicious but simple shared lunch.
Beyond the Lunch: The Spin-Offs
What many people don’t realise is that the Big Curry Lunch is now just one part of a wider, year-round world of fundraising under the LMBCL banner.
“We’ve started spin-offs all year round,” says Hockney. “From the Big Curry Masala spice blend created by Chef Cyrus Todiwala, to an auction that launches online each January and concludes at the Lunch itself.”
The auction typically brings together around 70 lots, with prizes that read more like a wish list than a catalogue: club memberships and luxury stays, fabulous wines and money-can’t buy prizes.
Alongside this sits the annual headline raffle: a single, unique British-made watch by leading watchmaker Pinchbeck, inscribed The Battle of Britain complete with a fragment of a plane that flew in The Battle of Britain housed within the presentation box.
There is also a standalone fundraising dinner this year – a gourmet evening hosted by Cyrus Todiwala at his restaurant, Café Spice Namaste, on 24 February 2026.
Several committee members also host affiliated events in the UK and further afield, including in Finland and Estonia.
But for all the expansion, Hockney is clear that the Lunch itself remains deliberately singular.
What the Lunch Has Funded
Over seventeen years, the Lord Mayor’s Big Curry Lunch has raised more than £4.2 million. This year’s net fundraising target is £440,000, with all event costs underwritten by sponsors and in-kind donors, ensuring that funds raised go directly to veteran programmes.
Some of the initiatives supported include:
Lifeworks – Veteran Employment
Funding career coaching, CV development and interview training for veterans across the UK.
In 2026 alone, proceeds from the Lunch will fund 65 veterans to attend Lifeworks programmes, helping them identify new career paths and transition into sustainable civilian roles.
Warrior Programme – Mental Resilience
An intensive year-long programme focused on emotional wellbeing, resilience and confidence, designed for veterans and their families.
Backed by research from King’s College London, the programme has shown significant improvements in mental health and employment outcomes. In its first year of support, the Big Curry Lunch will fund up to 40 veterans and their partners through the programme.
Why This Matters
What distinguishes the Big Curry Lunch is not just the scale of funds raised, but how precisely they are used.
Rather than symbolic gestures or one-off grants, the Lunch focuses on long-term outcomes:
• sustained employment
• improved mental health
• and practical reintegration into civilian society
In other words, not just support — but transformation.
One Line
If Hockney had to define it in a single sentence?
“Great cause, great fun, great generosity, amazing impact.”
And perhaps that is the real achievement of the Lord Mayor’s Big Curry Lunch. Not that it feels charitable — but that it feels human. A room full of people who would rarely sit side by side, doing so without protocol, without posturing, and without quite realising that this, in its own understated way, is what the City at its best actually looks like.
Michael Hockney was in conversation with Tessa Shreeve, Founder of Luxury Restaurant Guide.
Discover more remarkable places to dine and experience with luxuryrestaurantguide.com
