This is the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr George Carey taken on Christmas Day in 1992 for The Times. He was getting ready for his Christmas day sermon in Canterbury Cathedral and was talking to his staff in his office. I had been concentrating on getting a shot as he dressed by putting on his mitre ( hat) but this angle appeared as a member of staff disappeared behind him.

One of those shots – in pre-digital days – that you are not sure you have got until the film slowly wound out of the processor back at Wapping (The Times HQ in East London).

It pleased the back bench who described him as “looking like an angel” and was published in the paper the next day. In my eight years at The Times I always worked on Christmas day – often going down to Canterbury in the morning – and after all, it was the only day in the year they paid you a double shift!

After university and The London College of Printing, Martin worked on the freelance rota at The Times between 1991-1999.

Since then he has worked for a variety of editorial and corporate clients and is determined not to become a plumber!

Photographer since 1991, EPUK member since 2001.

See more work by Martin Beddall