Jewish girl from Manchester presented at Queen Charlotte’s Ball

A girl in a white dress walks down the aisle with her father. Ladies in elegant gowns and men in black suits enjoy a drinks reception, a sit-down dinner, a live band, speeches and a cake. Sounds like a Jewish wedding. Except it isn’t – it’s Queen Charlotte’s Ball, the highlight of the London season, where debutantes are presented, and this year a Jewish girl was among them.

Dahlia Marks, 16, by all accounts a regular Jewish teenager from Manchester, last weekend wore a £25,000 diamond Bulgari necklace and a magnificent white satin Josephine Scott dress as one of 17 debutantes at a spectacular ‘coming out’ ball at One Whitehall Place.

Queen Charlotte’s Ball, founded in 1780 by George III as a birthday celebration in honour of his wife, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, achieved latter day notoriety as a focal point of Netflix’s Bridgerton. The annual event continued after her death in 1818 but eventually folded in 1976 after the late Prince Philip declared that it was “bloody daft”. It was revived in 2009 by former debutante Jennie Hallam-Peel, who gave it a 21st century overhaul with a focus not on entering high society and finding a husband, but on networking, etiquette and fundraising for charities. Debutantes being presented curtsey to a large birthday cake in honour of Queen Charlotte.

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A maximum of 150 guests, including the girls, their parents, their escorts and other family members, pay £500 per head to be part of the event. Debutantes have to be invited to apply and they do so from all over the world. Other countries host their own debutante balls – notably there is one in Washington DC – but the London ball is regarded as the most prestigious.

It was an exciting week for Dahlia. She visited the House of Lords where she took part in the Berkeley Dress Show, modelling garments by royal couturier Stuart Parvin. She also went with mum Debbie to Harrods to be fitted with the necklace, which was on loan for the evening. “I said to her, ‘don’t lose it!’” says Debbie. She also had etiquette lessons, dancing classes and a dinner where she met all the other the debutantes and escorts.

Debbie is founder and CEO of Qube Events, an event planning and styling company and The London Season has been her client for nine years. “They are very much keeping up the traditions and the etiquette,” she says, “but they also see the ball as an opportunity to raise money for charity, while the girls gain confidence and learn how to conduct themselves. Dahlia achieved a lot from the experience.”

There is no doubt that this is a ball for the elite. As well as the ticket price (with some people taking an entire table for their family and friends) there is a cost for each of the pre-ball events, which this year included a dinner at Syon House, the ancestral home of the Duke of Somerset and the present home of the Duke of Northumberland, and a cocktail party in the former Chairman’s suites at Harrods. At the ball Harrods and Bulgari had a table each, and there were some minor royals in attendance including The Duke and Duchess of St Albans.

Girls must apply on The London Season website with a CV and a photograph and if successful are then invited for an interview. There is a long waiting list and lots of celebrities want their daughters to attend but Debbie says “they turn them all down because it’s not about the publicity. They’re looking for girls who are doing good things in society such as charity work.”

Debbie is always invited to attend herself and last year her husband Michael couldn’t go with her so she took Dahlia, who clearly made an impression. “I got an email afterwards saying Dahlia has got really good deportment and we’d love to invite her to apply.”

Dahlia had a lot to put on her CV. She was a leader on the Chabad Whitefield bat mitzvah course, she runs the children’s services at Whitefield Synagogue and she did a leadership course at the shul. She also won a Women of Whitefield Young Person’s award. She has been a leader at her local Jewish guides and was honoured to be one of nine guides across the north west chosen to attend the World Scout Jamboree in Korea.

“Being a debutante was a really good experience,” says Dahlia. “I didn’t keep it hidden at all that I am Jewish. I spoke to the girls about it and they were all very respectful. I’ve made a connection with girls all over the world, been invited to stay in a castle in Bruges, and to Washington to meet some of the other debutantes. Coincidentally one of the boys on my table found out two weeks ago that his mum is Jewish.”

Debbie, who used to be events manager for UJIA, has been running Qube Events for 18 years. She is responsible for all the styling at the ball, including the flowers, the linens, the chairs and the décor surrounding the all-important cake. This year the ball had a poppy theme to commemorate 80 years of VE Day, so Debbie went with red and gold décor. Chelsea pensioners in their red uniforms wheeled in the cake and all the girls wore a poppy brooch. In keeping with the lavish style there was a gold mirrored table plan and matching gold mirrored place names with tassels. “Sir David Roche said the décor surpassed that of Buckingham Palace!” says Debbie, proudly.

Although the girls come from diverse backgrounds, Debbie says “it’s not the type of thing Jewish girls would usually apply for, although ironically we are used to going to lavish events like this. It’s really nice for me to give people a taste of what we can create and it’s an honour to be involved.”

At the etiquette classes Dahlia learnt about the Texas dip, a special curtsey which involves lowering yourself all the way down and touching your head to the floor. “I asked my rabbi if it’s okay to curtsey to a cake because Jews can’t bow to idols. He gave me his blessing as long I didn’t bow to the floor.”

So no Texas dip for our Jewish debutante.