08/09/2026
We are delighted to announce R.W.Bro. Richard Gan, JP., P.Prov.G.M. (Middlesex), as the next Canon Portal Memorial Lecturer.
Richard will explore the remarkable life and legacy of Frederick Binckes, whose vision and service had a profound influence on Mark Masonry.
Binckes played a pivotal role in the development of the Mark Degree, the Mark Benevolent Fund and the establishment of Mark Masons’ Hall.
His wider contribution to Freemasonry and its charitable institutions was equally significant.
We look forward to welcoming Richard and to another engaging and enlightening occasion of Masonic history and fellowship.
Synopsis of the 2026 Canon Portal Memorial Lecture:
Frederick Binckes: A Remarkable Freemason - Frederick Binckes was an outstanding Victorian Freemason who had a profound and lasting effect on many different aspects of Freemasonry, and was instrumental in putting Mark Masonry on the Map. He was appointed Grand Secretary of Mark Grand Lodge in 1861, and served concurrently as Secretary of the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys for over twenty-eight years. Binckes had a considerable influence on the expansion of the Mark Degree and its acceptance into mainstream Masonry, both at home and overseas, the creation of the Mark Benevolent Fund and the establishment of Mark Masons’ Hall in Great Queen Street. He also played a key role in the Royal Ark Mariner being brought under the protection of Mark Grand Lodge, as well as the formation and early development of the Royal and Select Masters, and the Allied Masonic Degrees.
We also extend our sincere thanks and appreciation to W.Bro. Dr John Walter Hawkins for his dedication, service and scholarly contribution in delivering the previous lecture.