In Loving Memory of Our Founder

Clifford Newton “The Flag Man”
1933 – 2018

Clifford Newton, affectionately known as “The Flag Man,” sadly passed away in November 2018 at the age of 85.

He founded Newton Newton Flag & Banner Makers in Radcliffe-on-Trent in August 1975. From humble beginnings and with no prior experience — only a “real fire in the belly,” as Cliff fondly recalled — he built a business grounded in passion, craftsmanship, strong family values, dedication to excellence, honesty and pride

“It’s never been a job for me, it’s a passion.” — Cliff Newton

Nearly five decades later, Newton Newton continues to uphold the same values of quality, trust, and integrity that Cliff instilled from the very start.

After Cliff and his wife Georgina retired, the family business passed to their daughters, Tracy and Selina, who continue his legacy with pride and dedication.

Cliff Newton’s Early Interest in Flags

Dad’s fascination with flags started when he was just a boy. At the end of World War II, his father brought home a German flag—a small, yet powerful spark that would ignite a lifelong passion.

In 1948, the spark grew a little brighter. Before heading to the London Olympics, Grandad took Dad with him on an errand that would shape his future. They went to buy a new clarinet to replace one lost in Norway eight years earlier. But that wasn’t all—Grandad also took him to purchase his very first new flag from Turtle & Pearce Ltd, a venerable flag company that, sadly, no longer trades. That single flag set Dad on a journey he could scarcely have imagined at the time.

Over the next 25 years, despite a modest education (he held only a Class 3 Army Certificate), Dad immersed himself in the world of vexillology—the study of flags, their history, their uses, and the rules and rituals that surround them. Each flag he encountered told a story, and Dad learned to listen.

In August 1975, that passion turned into a business. A hotel in Nottingham called, asking if they could borrow some flags for an event. Dad, ever practical, said, “You can’t borrow them, but you can hire them.” It turned out the hotel was hosting athletes for the 1975 World Rowing Championships at Holme Pierrepoint, just down the road. Newton Newton Flag & Banner Makers supplied every national flag for the event, and so the family business was born. In the early days, it ran alongside Mum and Dad’s day jobs, operating purely as a flag hire service.

In 1984, Dad’s dedication and ingenuity were recognised when he was awarded a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellowship, under the category of The Creation of a Small Business. He travelled across the United States, visiting 23 flag makers in 19 states, learning techniques, materials, and methods that would shape the future of Newton Newton.

When he returned, the business evolved from hiring flags to manufacturing them, producing flags and ceremonial standards with care and precision. And the journey continues to this day—a testament to a boyish fascination that grew into a life’s work, and a family legacy woven from fabric, history, and passion.

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The early years of Newton Newton was purely as a company which hired National flags and was run in tandem with Mum & Dad’s respective ‘day’ jobs.

Under the Category of ‘The Creation of a Small Business’ he studied methods, materials and techniques at 23 flag makers across 19 states of the USA.

In 1984 Dad successfully applied for a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fund Fellowship.