reading. He informed The Ousel that his favourite books are The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones; so if you are in one of Mr Midwinter’s maths lessons, you better behave before he tells you which character is going to die next (thankfully, he did not reveal it in our conversation). We hope he continues to lead the Colts rugby team into more successful battles and wish him all the best for his time here at Bedford! Calvin Fang
KATIE NICHOLSON
Mrs Nicholson is a new sculpture teacher in the Art department. She has a masters’ degree in fine art sculpture from the Slade School of Art, UCL, and a BA in fine art painting from the University of Brighton. She completed an art foundation course at Central Saint Martin’s College, University of the Arts, London. She was inspired to teach after university when she had an opportunity to tutor A-level and GCSE students. She found that teaching was a wonderful chance to talk, discuss and enthuse a new generation of creative thinkers. This led to her training as a teacher. As an artist she worked with UCL to design two separate installation prints, one for the UCL Roberts Building stairwell and the other resides in the biochemical engineering department. She has worked with a variety of different museums and galleries, curating and exhibiting her own art work. She has taught in two secondary schools in the St Albans and Harpenden area. Prior to this she worked at an independent girls’ school in Potters Bar. Outside the classroom she is involved with swimming and water polo, and is looking forward to the Art department’s trip to Venice to see the Bienalle. She is really happy to work at Bedford School, and is particularly enjoying the effort the dinner staff make at lunch every day. We wish her every success. Enoch Mukungu
ERIC SQUIRES
Eric joins us as the new Director of BSSC (the Bedford School Study Centre). He has come directly from Bishopstrow College where he was Interim Principal for eight months. Prior to that he spent three years in Abu Dhabi training teachers and senior leadership teams in government schools. He has also worked in international schools in the UK and Egypt and was Director of Studies at Sherborne International. What he has enjoyed most so far (with the BSSC term being old two days old at the time of writing!) is meeting the new students and their families and talking to them about their plans for the future (since most BSSC students stay at the Study Centre for only a year before moving on to Bedford School or to other schools). Outside work he has three children and one grandson. His home is Shaftesbury in Dorset – anyone who remembers the famous Hovis advertisement will know Gold Hill which is half a mile from their house! We wish Eric success and happiness as he embarks upon his crucial role in this thriving institution. E.E. Murray
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THE OUSEL 2014–2015
JESSICA STARKEY
Miss Starkey joined Bedford School in September 2015 as a German teacher. Her passion for languages began when her parents bought a house in France and the only way for her to socialise was by learning the language. She then decided to take up German and subsequently Chinese. Miss Starkey decided to use her outstanding linguistic ability to her advantage and completed a degree in French and German at Southampton University. At university, Miss Starkey played a variety of sports: she enjoyed handball, netball and hockey. She has also completed the 2012 London Marathon (what an achievement). Miss Starkey will be coaching fives, a sport that she has never played before. During her time at university, she taught at a primary school in France for a year. After graduating, she decided to get a sense of the business world and worked as a trainee auditor, but teaching was always in the back of her mind. She decided to pursue her passion for teaching and completed her PGCE at Cambridge, subsequently taking up her first teaching job at All Saints Academy, Dunstable. Miss Starkey has told The Ousel that she enjoys teaching as she finds it inspiring to work with young people. In her leisure time, she enjoys cross-stitching as she says that, much like in languages, she likes to follow patterns. She also plays the piano and is a fan of Toploader (a band that is way before my time!). Miss Starkey currently has a tutor group with Mr Bolton and she looks forward to seeing St Cuthbert’s winning many house competitions this year. She will also be involved in the German Society. We wish her a very pleasant time at Bedford School! Calvin Fang
RACHEL WAINWRIGHT
Ms Wainwright joined the school as the newest member of the English department in September 2015. Educated at King’s College, Cambridge, where she read English literature, she swiftly followed this with a master of arts in literature, culture and modernity at Queen Mary College, University of London. With this springboard she propelled herself into teaching, beginning at Sharnbrook Upper in 2002. After completing two years there from 2002–04, Biddenham Upper was next, from where she joined us. Rachel will be teaching boys from the fourth, remove and sixth forms, stating ‘the energy and enthusiasm’ of her groups and ‘their willingness to discuss, debate and engage’ with all manner of texts has been the main enjoyment of her time at Bedford thus far. Aside from the English department, she is greatly looking forward to the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme, and is thoroughly looking forward to house singing and its ‘legendary’ lore (a choice that won’t disappoint!). We hope she enjoys the English, the singing and the many other experiences during her time at Bedford school. Ben Slawinski
PHILLIP WATERHOUSE
Raised in Bedfordshire, Mr Waterhouse has joined the school as the new Head of Economics and Business Studies. After studying economics and business economics at the University of Hull and completing his PGCE in Nottingham, he has been