Floreat 2013

FLOREAT

T H E C H E LT O N I A N A S S O C I AT I O N M A G A Z I N E

CHELTONIA

13 ISSUE NUMBER SIX - JANUARY 2013

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F L O R E AT

INTRODUCTION

ISSUE SIX

13 J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

Welcome to the 6th edition of Floreat Cheltonia.

I am sure you are all as proud as I am with the success of College again over the last year with another set of fantastic exam results, increase in applications to College and the improvements to the estate. College is really going from strength to strength and you will see this highlighted in these pages.

In the last edition, I reported that the Association were introducing some new events, namely the ‘Dinner With’ evening, a Summer Charity Ball, The Christmas Fair and the Champagne & Mistletoe Dance, these were all highly successful occasions and you can read reviews in the events section. We are constantly endeavouring to introduce events that appeal to all sections of our membership and hope that we are moving towards an all inclusive event programme. Please let us know of any ideas that you may have to improve our offering.

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T H E C H E LT O N I A N A S S O C I A T I O N M A G A Z I N E ISSUE SIX - JANUARY 2013

We will once again be holding House Reunions on 2nd May 2013, save the date in your diaries and get in touch with your peers, let’s make this the biggest one yet! Another date to note is the ‘Dinner With’ Sir Alan Haselhurst, Conservative MP for Saffron Walden, former Deputy Speaker for the House of Commons, Chairperson of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Committee and author of cricket fiction novels.

Sir Alan will be spending the day at College and speaking after Dinner on 26th April 2013.

CONTENTS

Finally, as you will see in the Headmaster’s page and Cheltonian Society pages; I am delighted that The Cheltonian Society and the Association continue to work closely together. I am further delighted that whilst remaining autonomous, they will now be jointly called ‘The Cheltonian Association and Society’. You will see this coming into effect throughout the coming year.

I would like to extend my thanks to Rebecca Creed for her immensely hard work on behalf of us all in the Association and to wish you all a very successful 2013 and I hope to meet some of you at the Association events.

Floreat Cheltonia!

CHELTENHAM NEWS

3 - 19

EVENTS

20 - 32

FEATURE ARTICLES

33 - 56

OC SPORTS

57 - 58

CHELTONIAN SOCIETY

59 - 60

ANNOUNCEMENTS

61

MERCHANDISE

62

CHELTONIAN ASSOCIATION STEERING GROUP COMMITTEE Honorary President Peter Brettell (BH ’71) – OC & Past Parent

Peter Brettell (BH ’71) Honorary President

received Graham Wilson (BH ’63) – I have I very y. issue 5 of ‘Floreat Cheltonia’ toda news lege much enjoy reading the latest Col and reflect on times past.

Executive Members Andrew Harris Development Director Rebecca Creed Association Manager (Junior School Parent)

Non-Executive Co-opted Members Cheltonian Association Steering Group Committee Debbie Anderes - Current Junior School Staff Lawrence Anderson - (Th ’59) – OC Peter Badham - (Th ’65) – OC & President of the Cheltonian Society Darren Brown - (L ’84) – OC & Cheltonian Society Executive Committee Ben Bruce - Current Pupil Nick Byrd - (BH ’71) – OC & Past College Parent Bean Chapman - (BH ’93) – OC Simon Collyer-Bristow - (BH ’77) – OC & Past College Parent Rob Mace - (NH ’04) - OC James McWilliam - (S ’09) – OC

Helen McEvoy - Current Parent Olivia Schofield - Current Pupil Malcolm Sloan - Hon OC & OC Administrator Trish Smart - Current & Past College Parent Julian Snell - (L ’76) – OC & Past College Parent Kyle Stovold - (S ’06) - OC & Current Staff Member Helen Stubbs - Current Junior School & College Parent Please see the Association Website www.cheltonianassociation.com for Committee member contact information.

Printed on recycled paper stocks.

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CHELTENHAM NEWS... on establishing a better balance in our timetable, means our pupils are better prepared for the challenges they face at GCSE, A level and beyond. Last summer saw the students once again achieve over 80% A*- B at A level, the second consecutive year that College has hit this strategic target. Students are also celebrating a strong set of GCSE results, with our second best year ever for those receiving the top three grades.

It has been a great year for College and very many thanks go to our dedicated staff, students, parents and those Old Cheltonians that have also played their part.

I made it clear on my appointment in 2010, that College must be committed to improving academic standards without sacrificing the tremendous breadth of opportunity and extra-curricular balance, for which College has long been renowned. Those of you who follow the national press will know that we have made massive strides in a short space of time and over the last two years have moved into the top 130 schools in the national rankings from a position of 270.

People are now talking very positively about College. Enquiries and applications for places have doubled in the last 12 months alone, and tripled for entry into the 6th form.

Our renewed focus on good teaching, on inculcating a strong work ethos, on supporting study and revision skills, and

But schools are not just about how many students get top grades; of more interest is how well pupils are performing relative to their ability and I am really proud of the fact that College is now performing just outside the top 10% of all independent schools in the country when it comes to ‘value-added’, i.e. how pupils perform relative to their baseline ability on entry.

That’s an exceptional achievement, but there is more still to do!

This academic progress has not been achieved at the expense of extracurricular commitments. The students have also excelled on the sports field, on the stage, in music concerts and in their leadership, all of which stands them in excellent stead for their future lives.

What has been most encouraging is that over the last year about 80% of students have represented or played for College in some capacity.

The CCF celebrated their 150th Anniversary in September with a visit from His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex KG GCVO, an inspection of the College Colours and Honour Guard before a Service in the College Chapel presided over by the Bishop of Rochester, Rev James Langstaff (L ’73).

During the Service, the Bishop dedicated a Memorial to all Cheltonians that had served their country. This Memorial was taken to the National Memorial Arboretum in October where College was delighted to be the first school to recognise their former students in this way. I would encourage you to visit the Staffordshire countryside and see this Memorial.

Following on from the £1.4m refurbishments to the Library and Big Classical in 2011, I can report that College has embarked on the next major project, the build of a new boarding house for 72 girls. Work is already underway on the Sports Hall site and the house is due to be ready for September 2013. When the House is full, it will take the percentage of girls to 40% at College without reducing the number of boys. If you are interested to find out more please visit http://www.cheltenhamcollegeplanningahead.co.uk/New-BoardingHouse.

Finally, I am delighted to inform you that the Cheltonian Association and the Cheltonian Society, whilst remaining autonomous, will continue to work closely together and will now be jointly called The Cheltonian Association and Society.

This will mean greater harmony in our relationships with OCs and cause less confusion.

We’ve all got a lot to celebrate in the School, and we can all feel proud of our association with College.

All good wishes.

Dr Alex Peterken Headmaster

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Academic life 2011-12 For the second consecutive year, the Upper Sixth excelled themselves academically, achieving the College’s best ever A Level results, with 81% of exams graded A*, A or B. This was set against the national picture of lower results; the fact that 20% of exams were graded A*, against an average of 7% across the country, shows how Cheltonians have risen to the challenge of gaining places at Russell Group universities.

Although we are justifiably delighted for those achieving the top grades, College is perhaps most proud of those who have overcome adversity and disappointment in order to reach their desired university destination. For many years, College has excelled in ‘adding value’ by helping students with average GCSE performance achieve outstanding results in the Sixth Form. College is now out performing 87% of independent schools in terms of this added value. Teaching staff have been working incredibly hard, offering extra lessons and one-on-one tutorials, but the real reasons for such excellent performance come in the mature and constructive relationships that Staff and Sixth Formers manage to create throughout the two years of Upper College.

Naturally, one of College’s key academic aims is that students leave with a place at their first choice university. We have, however, long understood that there are many skills and characteristics that cannot be quantified, but which nevertheless are essential in the world of work. College students display incredibly strong interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence, making them excellent colleagues. In the last two years, the academic management of the school has been seeking to promote independent study skills to ensure that students know how to thrive without their teachers’ input: an essential attribute for university study where there is relatively little direct teaching.

Autumn Term 2011 saw the culmination of the first Lower Sixth independent project, and the launch of the Headmaster’s Prize for the Third Form. The independent project, masterminded by Director of Learning, Dr Mary Plint, is built around a one-to-one tutorial relationship between a student and an expert subject mentor.

Ultimately, however, it is up to the student to complete research and to write an extended essay over the summer holiday. The first prize was won in 2011 by Madeleine Parsley (W) for an essay on English literature, and an attractive booklet featuring the best fifteen entries was published. As I write, the 2012 (joint) winners have just been announced: Phoebe Hunt (A) for a Theology essay, and Cecilia Caffrey (Cha) for an essay on Nuclear Fusion. We are grateful for the support of Global Philanthropic, which has funded the independent project prizes in recognition of the work of OC Malcolm Hutton (Ch ’59), who will present the prizes in the New Year.

The Third Form Headmaster’s Prize was a triumph of creativity and hard work. Pupils were given a title of ‘The Elements’ to interpret as they wished. Responses included essays, paintings, websites, multimedia presentations, songs, sculpture and even a board game!

The judging was a tough task undertaken by the Headmaster and the Head Boy, supported by two prefects, but the variety and quality of the submissions were testament to the ambition of an impressive year group. Harry Ferris (NH) was the overall winner.

Academically, College is performing as it wishes to. We continue to be an all-round school, where the entire community understands that pupils can contribute in a wide range of ways to our common goals. Indeed, the sincere respect that pupils have for one another’s varied talents is one of the defining characteristics of College.

Nevertheless, exam results offer the key to university entry, and it is extremely heartening to see the vast majority of Cheltonians leaving us to attend their university of choice: this will continue to be our academic priority.

Duncan Byrne Deputy Head (Academic)

Five productions in one year It has been another busy and highly successful year for extracurricular Drama with hundreds of pupils from all year groups involved in five very different productions in our beautiful, newly renovated, Big Classical.

First up was Hazelwell’s hilarious romp through the Old and New Testament, performing the complete Bible in under an hour. An already impressive feat, it was made even more challenging by difficult weather conditions, with friends and family trekking through snowstorms in order to see the show! Those who made it were not disappointed, however, and the boys of Hazelwell proved the old adage “the show must go on”.

This was swiftly followed by another comic offering with Leconfield’s highly amusing performance of not one, but two plays; “Sleuth” and “Trapped”. The boys showed how even inexperienced performers, with encouragement, can give highly impressive and polished performances. Both productions highlighted what is so important about House plays; the fact that all pupils, of all ages and abilities, work together to produce something that both the House and College can be proud of.

In May, over 20 performers in the 3rd and 4th Form rose to the challenges presented by an adaptation of George Orwell’s political masterpiece “Animal Farm”. Not only were they very convincing pigs, horses and sheep, but they also successfully communicated some very difficult political ideas in a thought provoking but entertaining way.

The new academic year saw the 8th annual College Variety Show, which was performed to packed audiences and raised thousands of pounds for our chosen charities; the Gogar Primary School,

Kenya and the Bradet Orphanage, Romania. A diverse range of acts included Broadway inspired dance routines, a Rock and Roll medley and comic skits. The Variety Show really highlights our pupils’ willingness to get involved not only as performers, but backstage and front of house.

Finally, the year ended with Upper College students performing the darkly gothic tale of “Jane Eyre”. This exciting new production combined physical theatre, ensemble work, music, puppetry and multi-roling to breathe new life into the haunting and often chilling classic. It also saw Big Classical effectively converted into a Studio Theatre, incorporating a thrust stage and demonstrating the versatility of the space.

Sian McBride Head of Extra-Curricular Drama 4

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A successful year of sport Rugby: We put out 16 teams across the year groups with 294 boys (from a maximum of 400) representing College - an impressive statistic! Oli Thorley (BH) and Will Goodrick-Clarke (L) have been involved with England U17s and Tom Lushington (L) has been involved in Scotland U18s. Currently there are 10 College boys training with the various Gloucester Rugby Club Academy squads.

Hockey: Boys’ hockey had a great season.

Both the U18 and U16s went through to the West Finals, with the U18s also reaching the indoor finals.

In addition the XI lost only one game in their season and were only bettered by the 2nd XI who managed to remain unbeaten.

Not to be outdone, the girls so far this term have mirrored the boys with both the U18s and U16s also going through to their respective West Finals. On an individual front, Jack Smart (NH) has represented the Wessex Leopards at the Futures Cup and Laura Bevan (A) played a number of games for England U18s throughout the summer.

Netball: Netball has gone from strength to strength. Our link with Hucclecote netball, one of the best set ups in the country, has delivered a real improvement from the 1st team right down to the Yearlings C team. All girls have had a chance to train with Hucclecote, as well as the opportunity of watching some of the finest netball in the UK. Around 14 of our girls now train regularly with Hucclecote and many players have been selected for the Gloucestershire county and satellite programme. This inspiration has been evident in the 2012 season where we had notable wins over schools such as Clifton, CLC and Marlborough. We will be sad to say goodbye to our leavers and in particular to Meghan Suddaby (Cha ’12) who has been an excellent ambassador of netball throughout her time here.

Cricket: The 2012 XI enjoyed an extremely successful season, winning 12 games and drawing two. The side was superbly led by Guy Brothwood (L ’12), who also reached a personal milestone of scoring in excess of 2000 runs during his 1st XI career.

Other notable contributors were Ben Ringrose (L), who scored 655 runs and took 25 wickets, and Barnaby Morton (S ’12) who averaged 45 with the bat whilst scoring 451 runs. Alex DuncliffeVines (NH) was the pick of the bowlers taking 29 wickets at an average of 17.4; including 7 for 28 against a strong OC side!

College continues to be well represented at County academy and age group levels and the 1st XI squad is currently preparing for a pre-season trip to Dubai at Easter 2013.

Tennis & Squash: A season of mixed results for the Tennis Club, with 17 teams fielded. The girls’ 5th VI and mixed senior team recorded unbeaten seasons. At the ISTA Championships at Eton two junior boys’ teams progressed to the second day of the competition but, unfortunately, suffered early defeats in both the Glanvill and Aberdare Cups. In Squash, the U15 boys disappointingly lost, in the quarter finals of the National Schools Trophy tournament, having won the event for the previous 3 years. The U19s however, reached the finals and after losing by a whisker in the semi-finals to the eventual winners, comfortably beat King’s Canterbury to finish 3rd.

Rowing: The past season has seen a number of staff changes at the Boat Club, including a new Head of Rowing, Professional Rowing Coach and Boathouse Manager. Foundations were laid for the rejuvenation of the club and membership has increased from 70 to over 120 pupils. We have a record number of girls in the club and were able to send six crews to the National Schools’ Regatta.

The VIII, including a number of novice oarsmen, attended Henley qualifying races but unfortunately were not able to qualify.

Swimming: The College 2012 competitive swim season began with a very encouraging visit to Cheltenham Ladies’ College for the annual Cheltenham Schools’ District Relay events. The Senior Boys, Senior Girls and Junior Boys all won their medley relay events; a fantastic result given the level of competition. A busy programme this year included trips to Bromsgrove and CLC and visits from Clifton and Stowe. Our Captains Tom Lowde (S) and Pippa Hughes (Q) set an excellent example, rallying the troops and even getting good numbers to attend the 6.30am Tuesday session!

Athletics: Athletics experienced a transformation this year with a College Sports Day at the Prince of Wales Stadium (POWS) for the first time. The athletics squad have competed at Stowe, RGS Worcester, at Oxford’s famous “Iffley Road” stadium (where Roger Bannister broke the 4 minute mile) for the Achilles’ relays and at Radley, not to mention the individual District and County Championships at POWS as part of the National Schools’ Athletics competition.

Rackets: The highlight of 2012 was undoubtedly our victory at the National Public Schools Doubles at Queen’s Club in March. Chris Stout (H ’12) and Alex Duncliffe-Vines (NH) beat Eton 4-2. It is the fourth time College has won this prestigious title in the past 10 years and complemented Stout’s singles victory in the Foster Cup in December - the premier Singles event. Just as pleasing was Lily Owen’s (Q) victory in the National Girls’ Singles. This means that College is the first School ever to hold both boys and girls Senior Singles titles.

Golf: While we didn’t have much success in the main tournaments this year, House Pots has been a great success, also doubling up as the College Golf Championships. Winners this year were Hazelwell with Leconfield in second place. Ollie Braithwaite-Exley (L ’12) was the Senior Champion, with Alex Braithwaite–Exley (H) winning the Junior event. Golf at College is very much in a rebuilding phase and one of the avenues being explored is the installation of a synthetic putting and short game green on our grounds. Hopefully we can raise the funds and make this happen.

Polo: A hugely successful season once again with the College polo team winning the new HPA/SUPA Four Chukka League. The boys are also SUPA Arena Champions and the girls won two divisions at the SUPA Girls’ Arena Tournament, including retaining the Championship.

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A superb year of music It has been a great year musically, with our top musicians setting high standards in both performance and academic music. Richard Bond (H ’12), Alexander Vass (S ’12) and Eunice Chen (Cha ’12) all achieved A* Grades at A level and three of our six A Level musicians go on to read Music at university.

Highlights this year included the Chamber Choir’s wonderful concert of Early Baroque music by Gabrieli and Peter Philips, an inspirational masterclass by international cellist Julian Lloyd Webber and an equally inspiring singing masterclass by Margaret Humphrey Clark, Professor of Singing at the Guildhall School of Music.

JIG has been as popular as ever, they gave a great performance to hundreds of people outside College on the Olympic Torch day in May as well as hosted a super concert with Big Band in March.

The Orchestra were superbly led by Alexander Vass, and at the concert in the Pittville Pump Room in June, Alex was soloist in Mozart’s G major Violin Concerto, followed by Haydn’s Symphony No.104 ‘London’, and the Overture to ‘Don Giovanni’ by Mozart.

The Chapel Choir sang a marvellous service of Choral Evensong at Salisbury Cathedral in April and in July went on tour to Venice and Padua, singing in unforgettable surroundings supported by large audiences including many parents. Singing in the famous Gothic church of Santa Maria Gloriosa del Frari beneath Titian’s huge Assumption of the Virgin was truly inspiring, and the choir’s singing of Palestrina’s “Sicut Cervus”, Stravinsky’s “Ave Maria” and Byrd’s “Haec Dies” was one of the highlights of the entire year.

Finally, in September we held the first ever OC Music Day in Chapel and this was a hugely successful event, with a superb choir coming together to sing some classic choral music. It was lovely to welcome so many of our top musicians back, as well as their parents who came to the concluding concert. Definitely a ‘first’ of many to come! Present on the day was Mark Wilderspin (NH ’95), who is to be congratulated on his terrific achievement in being appointed Director of Music at St.Paul’s School in London.

Mr Gordon Busbridge Director of Music

ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

Congratulations to Jamie Chadwick (4th Form, Chandos) who has won the Ginetta Junior Motorsports Scholarship, giving her a fully funded racing season worth over £40,000. Despite being the only girl and one of the youngest in the competition, Jamie beat over 60 young drivers from all over Europe; a marvellous achievement. Jamie made her first public appearance on behalf of Ginetta in November 2012 at the Silverstone Motorsport UK show. Next year she will be racing at all the major race circuits in front of crowds in excess of 30,000 and live on ITV4. We wish her the very best of luck.

A new outlook in Art The Art Department has undergone some major changes this year with the retirement of Mark Ward back in the summer. Interesting and vibrant new spaces have now been created within the splendour of Thirlestaine House. Along with extensive building work, all studios are now equipped with new tables, their own materials and paper stores. Each year group has a designated studio, and each pupil their own equipped Art Box so that they can continue to develop their projects outside of their timetabled sessions.

The biggest change was the creation of an interactive Art Gallery which will host short exhibitions and open workshops.

The Autumn term saw staff from both the Junior and Senior schools collaborating in their first annual ‘Open Staff Exhibition’.

Celebrating the diversity and creativity of our whole staff, works were offered in a huge range of media by Housekeeping, Estates, Senior Management, Teachers, Heads of Departments, school nurses etc.

The gallery was then transformed into a white box as College took part in ‘The Big Draw’, a national incentive by galleries and community centres to get the local community drawing. After lining the floors and walls with paper, the department simply opened its doors to the whole school and stood back to see what would be produced! This proved to be a real success, with loads of classes (including the Junior School) coming in to draw all over the space provided. The results were quite fantastic.

I very much hope that this space will become the heart of the department and open up Art for the whole College to enjoy and be involved in.

Juliet Wallace-Mason Head of Art

Open Mornings Saturday 16 March 2013 at 09.30 Saturday 12 October 2013 at 09.30 Contact: Admissions Office on T: 01242 265 662 or email: admissions@cheltenhamcollege.org

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Cheltenham College Junior School The last twelve months have seen significant advances in The Junior’s desire to continue to build on the quality of its teaching and learning, whilst retaining the breadth of opportunity that is an inherent part of life at the school.

With an exciting new programme of Modern Foreign Languages and subject specialists now teaching across the curriculum from Year 5 upwards, pupils are suitably stretched and challenged.

Sport is now overseen by Heads of Boys’ and Girls’ Games to foster and monitor pupils’ development across all sports

Academic life The past year has been punctuated with academic success for our 11+ and 13+ candidates. At 11+ Charlie MeechamJones gained an Academic Scholarship and Oliver Frisby an Exhibition. Several Year 8 pupils were rewarded for their achievement in the College scholarship papers. William Hardy was awarded The Lord James of Hereford Scholarship for the best overall results and Harry Byrne gained the Prain Scholarship for excellence in Science and Mathematics. Alexander Thorpe was also awarded an Academic Scholarship while Edward Courtman, Fergus McNeile and Isabelle Stannett were all rewarded with Academic Exhibitions. Allrounder Scholarships were given to Edward Johnston and Lucy Kirkpatrick and Oliver Cook received an All-rounder Exhibition.

Common Entrance in June also brought some tremendous results. Several CCJS pupils scored the top marks in the papers which are also sat by many children from other prep schools. Emily Campbell gained the top English mark, Leo Shen was first in Maths, Lucy Hall came top in Chemistry

and extra-curricular options range from biathlon to needlework.

From the pages that follow, you will see the sheer diversity of experience that makes The Junior so special and it is the enjoyment and confidence that our pupils glean from all these areas that helps them to make the most of their talents, both within the classroom and beyond.

Noll Jenkins Acting Headmaster

and George Symes-Thompson gained the best mark in Physics. The best overall performance of a pupil from the Junior in the Common Entrance candidates was Elle Sawamphakdi.

Many exciting changes have taken place during the past year at the Junior allowing us to ensure that we can effectively track the progress of individual pupils very closely and ensure that all children are achieving their best across the curriculum.

Academic Support Plans have been introduced to facilitate this. The ‘stretch and challenge’ of all pupils is a key aim for the year, with opportunities sought to enrich and extend pupils within curriculum time and beyond. Events are planned to stimulate young minds and House events will increasingly take on a cerebral dimension in addition to the traditional sporting and musical offerings.

We are also delighted with the success of our new Modern Languages programme - Lower School echoes to the sounds of Mandarin and Italian, Year 5 are enthused

by German and Latin and Year 6 started learning Spanish with French to come later

in the academic year. This will help them make their choice for their final two years at The Junior. In Kingfishers, language and culture is also an important element woven into the Creative Curriculum. During their topic work, Year 1 pupils have visited Spain, France, China, Mexico, Germany, Italy and India while also investigating food in our supermarkets, Year 2 have discovered more about the United Kingdom by designing their own tartan and dancing the highland fling in Scotland and learning Welsh words through writing a folktale about the Giant’s Causeway in Ireland.

They have also ventured further abroad to families and friends in countries such as Spain, Italy, Germany, Kazakhstan, Russia, Fiji, Bermuda, Hong Kong, America, Greenland and Australia.

Staff have received training on “Challenging Thinking” which explored ways in which teachers can help children in adopting open, growth mindsets rather than retaining fixed perceptions of their ability. ‘Open Door’ days have encouraged colleagues to see what is happening in other areas of the school and a peer observation programme has been started. Learning Lunches allow staff to cascade new ideas and teaching philosophies to interested colleagues who in turn pass on information to their departments with lively debate ensuing.

Continuing Professional Development is a key feature in keeping best practice at the top of the agenda for teaching and learning.

Vicky Jenkins Deputy Head (Academic)

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ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

A stunning Trip-tich A picture really does convey a thousand words.

This selection shows the Trip-tich situated outside Middle School – an original design of 90 tiles celebrating the Jubilee and Olympics. The tiles were made and glazed by Years 7 and 8 with a colour scheme designed by Kirsten Parry, Emily Campbell and Lucy Meecham-Jones. The picture of the Hyacinth is part of Alex Cove’s successful Art Scholarship portfolio. The Julian Opie inspired selfportrait is by Laurie Davies and was exhibited at the SATIPS National School Art Exhibition. And finally, tiles created by Year 5 and inspired by the Upper School Trip-tich. All in all, a wonderful piece of art.

Alayne Parsley Head of Art

A busy boarding life

Boys’ Sport

Girls’ Sport

What a fantastic start to the new academic year. We were delighted to welcome 12 new boarders to the Junior Boarding House and they have settled into the routines and excitements of boarding life very quickly indeed. Although we pride ourselves on the academic rigor within The Junior, many of the children who live with us may have a slightly different set of priorities…

Boys’ sport at the Junior has had an impressive year, representing the school with determination, pride and great success. 17 hockey teams were fielded from U8 through to U13, playing 90 fixtures. The U13s made the National IAPS Hockey Finals and the 4th XI showed great character with just one loss in the season.

We have had an extremely successful year of sport with teams and individuals performing to a very high standard. It was a dramatic Netball season with the 1st VII winning the majority of their games by narrow margins and five girls in years 7 and 8 being selected to represent the Gloucestershire Netball Academy. The U11 Rounders team performed exceptionally well and qualified for the Regional finals of the IAPS competition, losing to Millfield in a nail biting final by only half a rounder! In Athletics, two girls qualified for the National IAPS Finals in Birmingham in the 100m and shot putt, finishing in 3rd and 8th place respectively. In Hockey the U9 and U8s enjoyed taking part in local festivals and in their first hockey matches, showing great promise for the future. Middle School Hockey remains strong with the U10A team unbeaten and a solid season from the U11s. Upper School pupils continue to improve. Finally, we took part in the ESSKIA National Finals. The U12 girls ski team finished in 6th position and the U14 girls came 3rd with Olivia Mitchell recording the fastest time for her age group.

On a weekly basis the highlights are the Dragon swim, tuck night, table tennis, dodge ball, movie night and of course an extra hour in bed before Frankie’s full English breakfast on a Sunday morning.

Sundays provide an opportunity for pupils to catch up with any prep that has to be completed for Monday but also a chance to pursue activities and interests in greater depth. Many of the new boarders have already found their way into Mr Baker’s CDT room and take up residence for the weekends. Others have enjoyed Sunday outings to mountain boarding (1 broken finger), rock climbing, horse riding and a whole House trip to Drayton Manor Park......

Did somebody mention school work?

Jim and Mel Walton Boarding Houseparents

The cricket season was affected by appalling weather with only one of the first 38 fixtures played. The 2nd, 3rd and Gipsies XIs all secured unbeaten seasons.

The Junior had a combined record of 41 wins, 6 draws and 23 losses.

In Rugby, the 1st XV were unbeaten and the 2nd and 3rd XVs have each only lost once. The U11s have had impressive wins, the U9s finished the St John’s Tournament unbeaten and the U8s have shown athleticism and talent in their tag tournaments. We hope to build on our reputation as a sporting powerhouse in this area of the country.

Duncan Simpson Head of Boys’ Sport

Hannah Thorpe Head of Girls’ Sport

ions on producing another marvellous Derek Sisson (Th ’59) - congratulat unt interested in reading John Webb’s acco edition of ‘Floreat’. I was particularly / Nov in t Drif ’s itive Fug I stayed at of the amazing story of Lieut T. Melvill. and Coghill nearby. It would be vill Mel of e grav the Dec 2010 and visited lege was so brief. fascinating to know why his stay at Col 8

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Kingfishers

Music

Forest School has continued to be a favourite part of the week for many of the children aged 3-7 and all the children have become more confident in their independent learning. Year 2 have especially enjoyed having Science lessons in Forest School and using the environment to learn about living and non-living.

The last year has seen many changes to the Music Department at The Junior.

The flagship groups in school, Chapel Choir and Orchestra, continue while several new ones have been started Jazz Band, Percussion Group, CloseHarmony Choir and Guitar Group. Our aim is to provide ‘music for all’, whilst also providing opportunities to stretch and challenge the most able children.

We have added several new performing events, ranging from Chamber Music concerts, through to large-scale end of term concerts. Professional musicians have performed in assembly and we have started to involve the children from different year groups in various genres of music workshop - Samba, Junk-Percussion and Beat-Boxing.

We continue with instrumental tuition, class music, informal concerts, Chapel services and music exams. There is most definitely a tangible ‘buzz’ about music at The Junior!

The Nursery has seen another extension this year. In April 2012 we were delighted to knock through a central area to link The Cottage and The Cabin and create The Rainbow Room. The three distinct areas have allowed us to cater for a high demand for places, whilst retaining our ratios and individual care. The extended all weather garden has also delighted the children.

During the Summer Term, Kingfishers enjoyed a very successful sports day, a Foundation Stage Summer production based on the Olympics and a Year 1 and 2 production called The Selfish Ladybird.

Kit Perona-Wright Director of Music

Vicky Plenderleith Head of Kingfishers

Lower School

Middle School

Upper School

Year 3 had their first night camping at The Junior during the Summer Term. The children enjoyed climbing, rafting and kayaking, before putting up their own tents.

This caused considerable amusement with some laughter and also some tears - where were the parents when needed? After a swim and a singsong around the campfire, many tired and happy children retired to bed. The next day fun was had building dens and fossil hunting during a seven-mile walk on Cleeve Hill.

Middle School continues to ‘buzz’ with activity as the Year 5 and 6 children work towards achieving their best performance, both in and out of the classroom. Year 5 children have recently risen to the challenge of becoming History Detectives in order to find out about the past at The Junior. We have explored and analysed every corner of the school, from the hot cupboard in the Boarding House to the foundation stone at the front of the school.

As 2012 draws to a close, we reflect on a period of progress and change in Years 7 and 8. New pupils and staff have united with old-timers to form a fresh community and the seamlessness of this evolution is perhaps, collectively, our greatest achievement to date. New systems supplement the old in eliciting maximum academic output from every pupil and splendid, wide-ranging achievements beyond the classroom point to the enthusiasm, energy and versatility of all those who make up Upper School at The Junior.

Pupils have also examined artifacts from home, Zac’s grandpa’s WWII Fireman’s helmet proved to be a particular success; we were all amazed at how heavy it was and could not believe how Zac’s grandpa managed to keep it on.

Importantly, we retain targets and must pull together in the pursuit of our common goals, notably academic success and pastoral stability. To sustain us in this mission however, the shine beacons of recreation and events such as the Reels Night, Tinsel Party and Roller Disco surely provide a motley incentive for all Upper School pupils to make the very most of their time with us.

For Year 4 a few days and nights at Bushcraft became a memory of surviving torrential rain and flowing mud!

Determination and teamwork kept the children going and helped them enjoy all that was on offer. Groups of 15 slept in wigwams, erected shelters, made and lit fires, and played camouflage games – they even jumped in the freezing lake when the rain stopped! Everyone returned tired, filthy and wet; but with smiles and happy memories.

Debbie Isaachsen Head of Lower School

The new playground equipment has also made a positive impression on Middle School. Here several of our girls are trying it out, or are they trying to escape?

Deborah Bond Director of Middle School

Ted Lougher Director of Upper School

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Refreshing Our Visual Identity Rachel Vicary (Marketing Manager)

To say that College has changed in the last few years of our 170 year plus history is something of an understatement. We are ‘on the up’ and to ensure we keep moving in the right direction, it is vital that we remember where we have come from, what we stand for, what we want to achieve and what, importantly, makes us different from other great public schools.

The final touch was to take the unique shape of the bottom of the shield and use it as a bracket throughout our literature to add a sense of modernity. The shape itself can be seen to represent inclusivity, an open book, a supporting pair of hands and even a pair of wings.

The bigger picture

To help define this, we embarked on a rebranding project which, since September, has been coming alive in all aspects of College life. The project was not simply about painting us a different colour or drawing a new logo; it was about discovering what is at the heart of College and encapsulating this into our identity, our new prospectus, our website and importantly, into everything that our community says and does.

We worked with Factor 3, a Cheltenham based agency, to achieve this, with many people, from staff and students to parents, Council and OCs generously contributing their time and ideas. The result is, I hope, something that our whole community can be proud to be a part of.

Our brand One of the questions we started out with was ‘What is Cheltenham College like?’, followed closely by ‘So why should I send my child there?’ What we wanted was an answer that everyone associated with College believed in and could communicate - a brand hymn sheet so to speak. After much researching and collaboration, we came up with a pyramid of values, character, core strengths and our essence.

At the top of the pyramid sits our essence; ‘esprit de corps’. By this, we mean the commitment and loyalty of individuals to the whole. A unique sense of belonging, kinship and a shared sense of care and compassion for each other. And in this respect, College truly is like no other; it is our outstanding characteristic.

Underneath this essence sit our core strengths; Heritage, Community, Excellence and Heart. By these we mean an inspiring

pedigree with traditions not just to be proud of but to build upon. A caring, nurturing community which inspires confidence not arrogance. The drive to excel beyond expectations and above all, a palpable sense of devotion, fulfilment and happiness.

Our character is defined in six words: Devoted, Ambitious, Spirited, Discipline, Caring and Open. Our values we equally defined as Leadership, Morality, Humility, Heritage, Inclusiveness and Success. When you put all this together, a picture of how we act, what we believe and who we are emerges really rather clearly. And this is a picture unique to College – it is our DNA.

As Houses sit at the heart of College, they also sat at the heart of the project.

All House emblems were finessed and a range of House stationery created that encouraged individual identities whilst remaining part of the larger whole. A range of agreed College colours (heraldic wherever possible) was also introduced and templates created. Pupils were encouraged to take note of specifically designed word clouds in their planners; a positive way of reinforcing the values and characteristics we want them to develop during their time at College. A new suite of prospectus materials was also carefully crafted, with wording and imagery that echoed and underpinned our branding pyramid. The project did not leave any stone unturned and above all, it has paved the way for the continuation of this identity into the Junior School – to be launched September 2013.

Of course, defining us in words and creating a new logo can only go so far. It is now down to the whole College community to live, breathe and represent these characteristics. The most encouraging part of the project was, however, the overriding sense that we already are; we just don’t quite realise it. In the words of one of the focus groups: “Be confident; College is better than you think it is”.

Our logo Once we had the answers to the above questions we were able to pour them into our logo and create a visual identity to be proud of. We are one of only a handful of schools in the country to be granted a full crest and supporters by the Kings of Arms.

In recent years however we had moved away from using the full Armorial Bearings to using only the shield, supplemented by a separate logo. As heritage had come through so strongly in our branding, we decided to go back to our roots and make the heraldic crest the centrepiece of our logo. We outlined the crest in gold to add a touch of pedigree and combined it with the wording of Cheltenham College to reinforce the messaging.

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FLOREAT

VALETES Mick Brunt Teacher of Mathematics 1969-2009 Examinations Officer 2009 - 2012

At the end of 2012, College said goodbye to one of its institutions after an extraordinary 130 terms working in a variety of roles. Mick Brunt began teaching Mathematics in 1969 and one wonders whether anyone in the future will approach his length of service. A tutor in Southwood, Mick was in charge of squash and tennis for many years and has been Examinations Officer for as long as his colleagues care to remember. This began as a relatively self-contained role, but grew hugely as AS Levels, modular exams, re-sits and remarks were introduced. As a consequence, Mick retired from Maths teaching in 2009 to concentrate on his exams work, and generations of Cheltonians have benefitted from his amazing attention to detail as they approach the most stressful time of their lives in College.

Mick has always been conscious of our Christian foundations, and has striven for years to place Christian values at the heart of College life. He was involved in the Christian Union (latterly TCP) throughout his career, and intends to remain a regular visitor to weekly meetings in the future. Mick will also be returning to College to give his anti-smoking PSHE talks.

A number of long-serving colleagues cannot quite believe that Mick is retiring: returning in 2013 without his presence in Quad will be a peculiar experience. His selfless dedication and sincerity will be sorely missed.

Gill Deadman Administration Assistant 1991-2012 Gill Deadman has been at Mick Brunt’s right hand for the past ten years as Examinations Secretary.

However, Gill’s relationship with College goes back much further; indeed, to 1979, when she was asked to become Secretary to the Bursar, Captain Bill Hemsted, and to Council. Gill has never actually applied for a job at College; each time, she was asked if she was interested in taking on a role, because she was well known to the community through her husband, Alan.

Gill left us for the first time in 1985, when she had her family. She returned in 1991, firstly to the Accounts Office, and then finally becoming Examinations Secretary in 2002, a role in which she has been invaluable to College due to her reliability and infallible knowledge of exam regulations. Gill has become hugely respected by both teaching and support staff, who all understand her

commitment and expertise. She will be a very hard act to follow. Gill is looking forward to an active retirement, and the opportunity to fulfil some long-held ambitions: she is hoping to go inter-railing around Europe in the New Year, and is planning a solo assault on the Offa’s Dyke long-distance path once the weather becomes a little more favourable.

Alan Deadman Sports Centre Manager 1978 - 2012 Having served 10 years in The Royal Engineers, Alan followed his father’s footsteps into tennis coaching. In the Spring of 1978, he became a fully qualified tennis professional and whilst attaining the comparable squash qualification met with Major Ted Millman, College’s squash professional. After an informal interview with the Bursar and a very youthful M.C. Brunt, Alan was appointed. With the hope his new post would open doors to future careers and opportunities Alan underestimated just how much College could actually offer him – a wife! Gill was the Bursar’s secretary and they married in 1980 and have between them over 60 years of service to College – a commendable achievement in itself.

During his career, Alan has taken on a variety of roles including Squash and Tennis Professional, M i/c of Squash and Tennis, and Sports Complex Manager. In addition to these roles, Alan also established a thriving Tennis Club with about a hundred members from the local community, including past staff, pupils, and parents.

Regardless of his role, Alan has always set high standards for himself and the pupils.

He has an excellent work ethic, is loyal, honest and reliable and his dedication to the pupils has never been questioned. They always came first and were at the centre of every decision he made. He cared about the pupils and desperately wanted them to achieve their full potential, be it a place in a National Squash team, or simply being able to serve and play a leisurely game. The pupils respected Alan and looked up to him admiringly. Despite giving up coaching due to injury in 2005, he could still be seen out there on games afternoons and at the end of each day offering advice and coaching tips to the boys and girls on court. It was this dedication and commitment that summed up Alan and his belief that all pupils could achieve their goals. Unable to fulfill his own dream of playing first class sport due to injury Alan has, instead, dedicated himself to giving others this opportunity. Although it will not be him with the Olympic medal round his neck, or the Wimbledon shirt on his back, it is Alan who will be remembered by so many for allowing them to have the opportunity to excel.

As Chris Evert-Lloyd once said, “If you can react the same way to winning and losing,

that’s a big accomplishment...quality is important because it stays with you the rest of your life, and there’s going to be a life after tennis that’s a lot longer than your tennis life.”

There is indeed life after tennis and Cheltenham College, so after serving under six headmasters and eight Bursars we bid Alan a special farewell and an enjoyable retirement. Perhaps Billie Jean King was referring to Alan when she made this comment, “A perfect combination of violent action taking place in an atmosphere of total tranquility”.

Nicky Fortune Curriculum Director 1994-2012 Nicky Fortune has done so much for the Junior over the last 18 fantastic years. From her Kingfisher foundations to her Curriculum Director role, she has made a massive contribution to the success of CCJS. Her ability to make learning fun across the whole pre-Prep and Prep School age range is a rare gift and the Junior has been fortunate indeed in having enjoyed her unstinting professionalism for so long. In addition, she had a great enthusiasm for a rapidly developing and changing ICT world and her interest in achieving the highest outcomes on the ski slopes was another enormous benefit.

How fitting it is that she has gone on to a thoroughly deserved Deputy Headship at Geneva English School where she can continue to enthuse all ages with her excellent teaching, to lead their emerging ICT strategy and to be a brilliant senior leader of the school (while also having time to go skiing, almost whenever she wants to!).

Eleanor Kirby Class Tutor, French Teacher & Sparta Housemistress 1997-2012 Eleanor Kirby began her time at The Junior in 1997 as a part-time teacher of French. A genuine francophile, her enthusiasm for all things français was infectious and before long she was brought into the Modern Languages Department on a full-time basis. She has been a stalwart ever since, inspiring a generation of pupils with a truly multifaceted approach to language teaching, incorporating interactive projects, activity days and a great number of memorable trips. In September 2008, Eleanor took the reins as Head of Sparta, a position she has relished and counts as the highlight of her time with us. Over the course of her four year tenure, Eleanor’s exceptional qualities have been diffused to the pupils of her house, who are known to conduct themselves with respect and great humility.

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Eleanor has been a wonderful colleague.

Her care, kindness and unfailing optimism have been much appreciated in the College community and will be missed as she leaves us to begin a new chapter in her career. From September, Eleanor will be assuming the role of Resident Housemistress at Westonbirt School, a wonderful environment which will be all the richer for her involvement.

We wish her all the very best in this new endeavour and thank her for her hard work and friendship over the past 14 years.

Anne-Katrin Mühlberg Library Assistant 2002-2012 Anne arrived in the UK from her native Germany for a Gap Year in 1995 and is still here. Having tried a variety of jobs, she joined Ces Cawley in the Library in January 2002 as Assistant Librarian. During her time with Ces, she supervised the main library in Big Modern and started a distance-learning course in librarianship through Aberystwyth University.

When Ces decided to leave in 2006, Anne contemplated applying for the post and also thought about leaving. Luckily for us all she decided to stay and was a huge help to Ginette Doyle when she started as College Librarian in January 2007. With the arrival of the Dewey Abridged, she quickly became as adept at classification as she is at cataloguing and her skills as a librarian increased, culminating in her receiving a Diploma in Librarianship.

During the recent refurbishment, she was invaluable with ideas and suggestions and her wonderful displays have continued to give colour and interest to the Library.

In her time here, she has helped with shooting and gym and also run a puzzle club in the Library. She has ruled the Library with a rod of iron when needed, foiled impromptu ball games, army manoeuvres, and mass paper aeroplane fights from breaking out.

We will miss her humour, the Thursday morning perusal of Country Life, the good sense and the moments of madness and hilarity. St James Senior Boys’ School are very fortunate indeed to have her joining them as their librarian, and we wish her all the luck possible.

Mark Ward Head of Art 1979-2012

By Reynaud de la Bat Smit (Past Staff Member) I had the great privilege of working with Mark for fifteen years, and of being taught, enthused and inspired by this wonderfully cultured and gifted man, who became a good, close and loyal friend.

One of my earliest memories of Mark was listening to a lecture by him in HLT on conceptual art, and being delighted by his erudition and command of his subject; I was also impressed by his very evident enthusiasm, and his love of his subject, which I know he communicated to generations of Cheltonians.

I learnt a great deal from him, not least overcoming my suspicion of much modern art. When I was in that suspicious frame of mind, where I saw some (but not all) abstract or conceptual art as a product of the untalented, sold by the unprincipled to the bewildered, following Marshall McCluhan’s remark that art was anything you get away with, Mark would gently urge me, often with humour, to see it from a different perspective. Open-mindedness is one of Mark’s many fine qualities, and one which he advocates to all whom he teaches. Mark not only encourages open-mindedness, but he is encouraging in general: of ideas, of creativity, of those who are uncertain or unconfident. Like all great teachers, he not only loves his subject, but cares deeply for those whom he teaches. With regard to discerning good or bad art, his advice is to see and experience as much art as possible, which will develop a critical ability to make the distinction between what is of lasting value and what is not.

Like all great teachers, he is able to communicate with his students, and others, in such a way that he goes far beyond the mere transmission of knowledge, and fills them with a desire to immerse themselves in art – to develop their creative expression, to engage their aesthetic sensibilities, and to see beneath the surface into the depth of things. I have always believed that art and the contemplation of its many forms give us a deep insight into the human condition, and have the capacity to enlarge the soul: Mark is a pre-eminent example of a great soul thus formed, a truly magnanimous person in the Latin sense of the word. I have also always admired Mark’s deep spirituality, which is a product of his faith and his artistic spirit, informed by a lifetime of exposure to the transforming power of great art.

Mark is also a fine musician, with a penchant for jazz, about which he is particularly knowledgeable. Although he is very modest about his abilities, and would not agree - I should add that humility is another laudable quality in Mark’s character - he is an accomplished jazz pianist: at the end of a teaching day, Mark would often steal into TLG, remove the cover from the Bösendorfer, and fly away in a reverie of improvisation. We spent many wonderful nights over the years listening to high-quality jazz as members of Cheltenham Jazz; again, I am unendingly grateful to Mark for his musical tuition and sophisticated jazz taste, because he encouraged me to explore and enjoy more progressive jazz forms. Mark was the moving force behind the Staff Rock Band, and recruited a number of us to open for the College Rock Band night with a

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combination of high-energy rock n’ roll and cool jazz standards.

The final tribute which I want to pay to Mark is something which I do on behalf of us all, if I may: we owe Mark a huge debt of gratitude for all the dedication, faithfulness, and love, which he has put into his work over the thirty three years of service to the Art Department and the College: of inspiring, and nurturing the artistic abilities of thousands of pupils in that time; and also for caring for them pastorally as a tutor, and as a teacher.

During all this time, he has supported, and has been supported by, a lovely family, and we should pay a special tribute to his wife Suzanne, and to his children Sarah, Hannah and Marcus.

In paying this tribute, saying goodbye and wishing him a well-deserved retirement, we acknowledge Mark’s lasting legacy as a great teacher, artist and musician, but most of all as a great soul and a great man.

Chris Wykes Payroll Manager 1995-2012 Approaching his 68th birthday, perhaps one of the most critical members of staff, Chris Wykes, retired from his role of Payroll Manager at the College after 17 years of both loyal and dependable service. Chris was respected by all 561 of the College’s employees for paying them accurately, on time, every time. Chris took his responsibilities so seriously that he never took sick leave, even when perhaps he should have, and whether this was despite his passion for playing golf in all weathers, or because of, we are not entirely sure.

Such was the respect Chris was held in by the College that the Cheltonian Society announced that they were making him an Honorary OC at his farewell reception. The entire College wishes him a happy and well earned retirement.

Farewell Southwood

By Chris James (S ’12)

With the prospect of a New Academic Year in full swing, we must say farewell to Barry and Sue Lambert, who have stepped down from Housemaster and Matron of Southwood respectively. They have contributed so much to the House over the 11 years, overseeing us with unwavering patience and understanding. We thank them for their support and wish them the very best of luck for the future.

Jonathan Williams (L ’60) es in the I enjoy reading Floreat when it arriv by how zed ama be to e ceas r post, and neve ged much Cheltenham College has chan an uncanny since my days there, having now resemblance to Club Med. 12

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CHELTENHAM NEWS...

“It’s like painting the Forth Bridge!”

By John Champion (Bursar & Secretary to Council) demand for places soon meant that the pressure was on to provide a purposebuilt school. Following an architectural competion involving no fewer than nineteen candidates, James Wilson of Bath was appointed and work began on the current College buildings in 1842.

B

efore you read any further just pause for a moment… and think of Cheltenham College.

Chances are, the mental picture you just conjured up wasn’t an image of teachers and pupils in lessons, of the Headmaster in his study or of our chefs in the College kitchens.

More likely by far, a picture of our iconic Victorian buildings will have just crossed your mind, or perhaps you ‘saw’ that famous view across College Lawn from the Pavilion towards the Chapel. The simple fact is, that although as a school what we do is largely about people, our heritage and identity have as much to do with our buildings and grounds as with the individuals who occupy them. In short, our stunning buildings and grounds are a major part of who and what we are.

Of course the Cheltenham College of today is very different to that of 1841 when the first Cheltonians occupied nothing more than two rented townhouses. The town’s rapidly increasing prosperity and a rising

A hundred and seventy years later we occupy around 70 acres of prime central Cheltenham real estate and are accommodated in more than 30 separate buildings, the majority of which are ‘listed’ as being of special architectural or historical interest. Any reader with even a modest home and garden to maintain will know what a headache property ownership can be. Now imagine that responsibility multiplied many, many times over and you’ll have some idea of the never ending challenge facing the 30 strong College Estates, Grounds and Gardens teams led

by Estates Bursar, Kirk Steel.

Kirk, a widely experienced ex-army

logistics and infantry officer, is supported by specialists covering a range of disciplines – from groundsmen and gardeners to plumbers and electricians, and from Health & Safety Officers to the College Porters, Kirk’s team is responsible for all aspects of the physical presentation of both the Junior and Senior schools.

And keeping all of these buildings, as well as these beautiful grounds in tiptop condition is a massive, and costly undertaking.

Looking firstly at the grounds, College routinely prepares 12 rugby pitches in the first term of the year and 10 cricket squares in the summer term. In addition we host the famous Cheltenham Cricket Festival in partnership with Gloucestershire County Cricket Club. The College Ground began hosting first-class cricket in 1872 when Gloucestershire played Surrey, a match that saw Gloucestershire win by an innings and 37 runs thanks largely to W. G. Grace’s match haul of 12 wickets for just 63 runs. In August 1876, Grace became

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CHELTENHAM NEWS... the first man to score a triple century in a county match when he hit 318 not out against Yorkshire on the College pitch.

The ‘firsts’ continue to this day and in 2013 we welcome T20 cricket to College for the first time when crowds of over 7000 are expected (which produces it’s own carparking headache to be managed!).

The upkeep of the grounds costs many thousands of pounds each year, for example, we spent over £15,000 in 2012 on fertilizers and loams just to keep the pitches lush, green and in their usual superb condition.

In the Spring Term, and throughout the year, we run two Astro Turf pitches familiar to many of you as ‘Cotswold’ and ‘Linton’.

These pitches are used by College and the Junior School as well as by a number of external clubs and organisations. Naturally we also cater for College tennis players, running four permanent courts as well as being able to offer 12 courts on ‘Linton’ during the summer.

Turning now to those magnificent College buildings. Thirlestaine House, home for our Music, Modern Languages and Art Departments, is one of just five Grade I Listed buildings in the Cheltenham area.

It’s a fantastic venue for hosting art and music events but as you might imagine it also provides Kirk and his team with a few dramas too! Built in 1823, and acquired in 1947, ‘Thirlestaine is the oldest of our main teaching buildings and is in constant need of maintenance & repair.

For example last year we spent £50,000 on stonework repairs alone and if you’ll excuse the pun, that barely scratched the

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surface. What’s more, virtually all works on such an important historic building have to be preapproved by English Heritage as well as by the Council’s Conservation Office; this can be a slow and challenging process as we seek to balance preservation of the ‘old’ with meeting the challenges of 21st Century teaching & learning.

At the other end of the age scale we’re busy building our newest boarding house in the green space between the two Astro Turf pitches. The new Westal will house up to 74 girls in largely ensuite accommodation and will open its doors to its first intake in September. In spite of our notoriously changeable and unpredictable weather we’re currently on track to hit our completion target and Kirk’s team is already working closely with our contractors to ensure we can assume the maintenance and servicing of the house as soon as the builders have departed.

Everything in between, including all those Grade II* and Grade II buildings, need constant care and attention. With 3 full time painters and decorators, College consumed over 5,000 litres of paint in 2012. Painting the famous Forth Bridge may be finished for now, but the redecoration of College never will be!

Our seven builders, plumbers and carpenters are kept constantly busy with repairs and a number of new-build projects. In 2012 we spent around £35,000 at the trade equivalent of the local DIY store just to ensure that our brickwork, tarmac, WCs, doors etc. are all functioning properly. In addition the team are working on a range of health and safety and environmental improvements as the estate is refurbished for the 21st Century. When James Wilson produced his first plans in the 1840s he couldn’t have foreseen the scale of the changes that would be required to produce a boarding school fit to comply with the regulated world of 2013.

What he would no doubt have recognised however, is the sheer amount of hard work and pride that goes into maintaining the buildings and grounds he put such care into designing all those years ago.

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Development Office – Science

By Andrew Harris (Director of Development)

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ollege has a long tradition of strength in the Sciences and has fostered Old Cheltonians (OCs) that have gone on to make an impact in their scientific areas on the world stage.

On the opposite page you will see an article on two such OCs – David Marsden and John Brown. Their time at College was a golden age of the Sciences under the guidance of Dr H R Stevens (College Staff, 1928 - 1962) where OCs like Chris Adams (BH ’57, Senior Consultant Neurosurgeon) and Prof. Michael de Swiet (JS ’55 & NH ’60, Emeritus Professor of Obstetric Medicine) author of the article, also thrived.

College is committed to building on this tradition and in addition to some outstanding recent academic appointments, has embarked on a programme over the last couple of years of modernising the facilities.

Sciences are taught in the teaching block

by Thirlestaine Cottages and comprise 14 laboratories - 4 Biology, 5 Chemistry and 5 Physics. The Biology Laboratories

were opened in 1973 by Sir Ronald L. Prain O.B.E., President of the College Council; Physics in 1982

by Sir Henry Chilver M.A., D.Sc, F.R.S. Vice Chancellor, Cranfield Institute of Technology and member of College Council; and Chemistry by Sir Ronald in 1983. The facilities have changed little since then, but over the last couple of years, ably assisted by OC support and the support of the Cheltonian Endowment Trust, College has been able to start a rolling refurbishment programme where 3 of the laboratories have now been finished. Each of the disciplines now has a new laboratory, and this was only made possible through charitable giving and great generosity.

Isabella Mech, the new Head of Science says “One of my aims is to increase the profile of Science at College and highlight it’s importance in the everchanging world our students are growing up in. Cheltenham College is committed to a programme of refurbishing all the existing laboratories so that they reflect the importance and value of Science as a teaching subject. The new laboratories

are modern, light and airy and are a delight to teach in. The staff and students tremendously enjoy the new facilities; they are more comfortable to teach in and be taught in and mirror the up to date facilities found in many under-graduate University laboratories.”

The Development Office continues to actively fundraise to complete all laboratories and if you have any advice, please do get in touch.

We hope that many more students will be inspired by their time at College to undertake a career in the Sciences.

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John Brown and David Marsden Outstanding Men of Science

By Michael de Swiet (JS ’55 & NH ’60)

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wo Old Cheltonians, John Brown (JS ’55 & NH ’60) and David Marsden (BH ’52), who were contemporaries in the 1960s, were both made Fellows of the Royal Society, a very great honour in the field of Science. Only 44 scientists are made Fellows each year and the 1500 current Fellows include 80 Nobel Laureates.

John Brown has been the subject of a recent ‘Floreat Cheltonia’ article. He was an outstanding chemist, Professor of Chemistry at Oxford and a brilliant athlete. He died in 2009 and a commemorative plaque was placed in Chapel in his honour in 2011.

David Marsden was also a superb athlete, captaining the College and England Schoolboys at rugby and representing the College at cricket. At College his intellectual abilities were not conspicuous. However, even as a medical student at St Thomas’ Hospital Medical School, David published two world class research articles on the brain that were subsequently quoted in Gray’s Anatomy, something that most Doctors would be proud to have achieved by the end of their careers.

David rapidly rose to senior posts in medicine, becoming professor of Neurology at the Institute of Psychiatry and Kings College Hospital Medical School in 1972, only nine years after qualifying as a doctor. Neurology is the study of disease of the brain and also of the peripheral nervous system. David’s unique contribution was to specialise in diseases of movement, an area which had formerly been considered too difficult to classify, let alone study in a constructive way. Not only did David himself specialise in these problems, he stimulated a group of others to join him, thus setting up the basis of modern research into and treatment of conditions such as Parkinson’s disease. This is David’s long lasting contribution to medicine. Because of David Marsden (BH ’52)

his 1100 publications, David was the most frequently cited Neuroscientist and among the 10 most commonly cited Biomedical Scientists in the world.

In addition to David Marsden’s ability to attract others to work with him, the secrets of his success were his intellect (some would have called him a genius) and his way of focusing on the problem in hand. Thus colleagues have described how David could work all day at an experiment, take a few hours off for socialising and dinner, then return to work with undiminished vigour and application for hours late into the night. David had huge charisma and socialising came easily to him. When attending conferences he would party all night, smoking and drinking, and still be able to deliver an outstanding talk the next morning. He expected his juniors and students to be able to do the same. But he would have been a difficult man to live with. Despite his social skills, David was also quixotic, introverted and reticent. He did not favour the medical establishment and shunned the very important posts in administration which he was offered. Smoking must have been one of the reasons why David died suddenly and unexpectedly, aged 60, while on sabbatical study leave in the USA in 1998.

John Brown and David Marsden were both taught chemistry

by Dr H.R. Stevens, an outstanding Head of Science and a school teacher, who only lived for his pupils.

All his ambitions were expressed through their successes. He would have been so proud had he known that two of them had been elected Fellows of The Royal Society, but he died before their appointments. It is entirely appropriate that new College prizes for academic achievement are being named after such eminent Scientists.

John Brown (JS ’55 & NH ’60)

Gerry Smith (Past Staff Member) - Congratulations to all involved in producing the latest edition of Floreat. Issue 5 is a thoroughly good read from cover to cover and certainly the best to-date. The Feature Articles were particularly varied and interesting. It is good to catch up on all the news and to see CC flourishing under Dr Peterken’s leadership.

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NEW APPOINTMENTS Simon Brian Director of Studies Simon graduated from Edinburgh University with a MA(Hons) in French and German with a Distinction in Oral French. He moved to France where he taught English at the University of Rouen and worked as a freelance literary translator. He moved to the Austrian Alps for six months, teaching English in two schools near Salzburg before beginning a PGCE at the Institute of Education in London in 2002. His first UK teaching post was at Dulwich College in 2003, where he went on to become 2 i/c French. In 2007 he was appointed Head of French at Highgate School, and was later appointed Deputy Head (Academic) Lower School.

With his wife, Véronique, and sons Theo (3) and Lucas (1), they moved out of London to Cheltenham in July 2011 to take up the post of Head of Modern Languages at College and he was appointed Director of Studies in 2012. Simon is a 6th Form Tutor and a Tutor in Leconfield.

Deborah Bond Director of Middle School, Junior School Deborah Bond began her teaching career in Wiltshire, having studied at Birmingham and Bath University, where she gained a Masters in Education. During the early nineties, Deborah moved to New Delhi, India, and took this opportunity to begin a family. She now has 2 children, Georgina and Charles, who are both pupils at College.

Having taught across the Primary age-range in a variety of schools, she joined The Junior in 2006. In 2012, Deborah was appointed Director of Middle School and is keen to build upon good practice within this department.

Deborah, and the Middle School team of teachers, regard teaching as a privilege as well as a responsibility and aim to inspire, as well as educate Years 5 and 6.

Sarah Checketts Head of Modern Languages Sarah joined College in 2011 as 2nd in Department and has taken on the leadership this year. She graduated from Cardiff University in 2001 and spent time living and working in Chambéry and Barcelona. Following her PGCE, she worked at Thomas Alleyne’s High School in Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, and then at Repton School in Derbyshire for six years, firstly as Head of Spanish and then as Head of Languages.

Sarah was appointed to Head of Modern Languages in 2012, teaches Spanish and French, coaches netball and also leads the Eco Initiative activities as well as being a tutor in Newick House.

Sarah is married to Nick, and they have a fouryear-old son, Harry, who is in Kingfishers at CCJS. She enjoys playing netball, gardening, travelling and family.

Ian Chick Head of Economics/ Business Studies For the last seven years Ian has been working as Head of Department at Blundell’s School in Tiverton, Devon. Prior to this he taught at Millfield School where he was also an Assistant Houseparent. Ian came to teaching later in his career after working for Lloyds bank as a Business Consultant. He was also in the Royal Air Force, joining as a 16 year old and training as an aircraft engineer.

Department, which has proved to be a true asset for College.

Ian likes to run and has completed several marathons and half marathons for charity. He is also a black belt in Tae-Kwon-Do! Ian is learning to play the piano and enjoys singing in the school choir for relaxation.

Andrew has been married to Karen for 19 years and they have two children, Joseph (15) and Benjamin (12).

Charlotte de la Peña Head of RS Charlotte was educated at Colston’s Girls School in Bristol, attended Manchester University as an undergraduate, and completed her PGCE and MA in Philosophy and Religion at the University of London. After a career in journalism, which included a stint at the Sunday Mirror and a few years as a speech writer for an environmental campaigner, she retrained as a teacher in 2002. Her first post was at selective grammar school, Nonsuch High School for Girls in Cheam in Surrey, followed by six years at Wimbledon High School for Girls, an Independent day school where she taught Theology, Philosophy and Ethics, ran the Philosophy Society, and Coordinated student fundraising.

Rebecca Faulkner Head of Sports Science After reading a degree in Sport and Exercise Science and completing a PGCE at Exeter University, Rebecca joined the PE Department here at College in 2002. In the five years that followed she became Games and Activities Administrator, Head of Netball and Resident Tutor in Westal House. In September 2012 she took the helm as Head of Department.

Rebecca has taught GCSE and A level PE for 8 years and has played Sport herself to National level. Rebecca is married to Dom (Director of Extracurricular) and they have a two-year old daughter, Emily.

Andrew Hailes Domestic Bursar Educated at Wolverhampton Grammar School, Andrew joined College in 1995 as Catering Manager following a successful career in Hotel Management. In 1999, Andrew agreed to College parting company with it’s Catering Management Company, Gardner Merchant and undertook the “in house” role of Director of Catering. In 2009, Andrew took over the responsibility for the Commercial income generation of College and set up the Lettings

In February of 2012, Andrew was appointed to the role of Domestic Bursar with cross-site responsibility for Catering, Housekeeping, College Sports Centre, Lettings and the Medical Centre.

Andrew is a keen sportsman when time allows, with a passion for golf, cricket, rugby and running, more recently completing both the Great North Run and the Forest of Dean half marathons. Unsurprisingly, Andrew also has a passion for good food and fine wine.

Ella Harvey Head of Netball Ella has played in the netball premiership division at both University and Club level. She has a strong interest in both playing and coaching netball. She has been instrumental in implementing a link between Cheltenham College and Hucclecote and many girls are now regularly training with the club. Ella has coached the 1st team for two years, last season they had one of the most successful seasons that the College netball club have ever had. Ella takes an active role in player development and coaches from the 1st team to the Yearlings C to ensure that every player has the opportunity to reach their full potential.

Rosamund Humphrey Head of English, Junior School After qualifying as an English teacher, Rosamund taught in the state sector in Cambridgeshire. Under a Head of Department who was keen as mustard, Rosamund learnt the joys of teaching Shakespeare (as opposed to standing in the Globe’s courtyard) and how to encourage the critical questioning of literature and poetry.

Rosamund then moved to London with her fiancé and took up a post at Thomas’s London Day School. It was here that she was introduced to the private sector and fell in love with the possibilities that come with small classes and pupils who are eager to learn and ambitious. After three happy years in the role of Head of Department, Rosamund took up the post of Head of English at the Junior School.

Ted Lougher Head of Upper School, Junior School Born and raised in the Cotswolds, Ted Lougher studied Modern Foreign Languages at the University of Exeter before completing a PGCE at Wadham College, Oxford. He arrived in Cheltenham in 2010, teaching French to pupils of all ages at The Junior School and coaching a variety of sports. Last year, he became a Resident Tutor

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As part of the new language initiative at The Junior, he is now teaching Mandarin to Year 3 and German to Year 5, as well as French on either side of the road. Having taught and tutored Years 7 and 8 throughout his career to date, he is delighted to assume the Directorship of Upper School, seeking to develop an environment in which all pupils are proud to further and exhibit their wide-ranging talents.

Isabella Mech Head of Science Isabella was born in South Africa and went to University in Johannesburg, where she completed a BSc Honours degree in Zoology and Advanced Biology. On discovering that teaching had become her passion, Isabella returned to University and completed a Masters in Education, focusing on Curriculum Development and Evaluation.

Isabella moved to the UK with her family in 1999 and took up a Biology position at The Cheltenham Ladies’ College in 2001. In her nine years there, she spent two years as a Housemistress of a Day Girls’ House and was Head of Biology for three years.

Isabella joined Cheltenham College in 2012 as Head of Science and she hopes to be able to inspire and enthuse students as well as encourage them to consider furthering their studies in the sciences.

Sian McBride Director of Drama After completing both her degree and MA at Warwick University, Sian went on to train to become a teacher at Bristol. After a years teaching she gained the position of Head of Drama at a very large comprehensive school in the Forest Of Dean. Following four successful years running the department, Sian stood down from this position in order to focus on raising her family. Whilst teaching part time, Sian began to work as an A level Theatre Studies examiner and was quickly promoted to the role of Team Leader, training and monitoring the work of teams of other examiners. During this time Sian also helped run a number of local youth Theatre groups.

In 2010 Sian accepted the post of Teacher in Charge of Drama at College, running curricular drama as part of the highly successful English Department. In her new role of Director of Drama, Sian is now looking forward to establishing Drama as a department in it’s own right and working on producing extracurricular Drama of the very highest standard.

Stephen McQuitty Head of HE & Careers Stephen was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution and went on to the University of Nottingham, where he completed a degree in Production and Operations Management. He then attended the Royal Military Academy

Sandhurst and was commissioned into the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, spending five years in the Army and serving in Northern Ireland and Iraq.

Stephen then moved into teaching and spent seven years at Monmouth School, where he was Housemaster, Contingent Commander of the CCF and Master i/c Tennis. He joined Cheltenham College in September 2012, is Head of Higher Education and Careers and will be teaching Mathematics. Stephen will also be Head of Tennis and a member of the CCF. He is married to Jane and they have two boys, Ted and Henry.

Christopher Murray Head of Mathematics, Junior School Christopher went to school at Pangbourne College, and then on to the University of Wales, Cardiff, to study Financial Management and Sport, during which time he represented Welsh Students at Rugby League and won 3 BUSA gold medals. Christopher graduated and then did his PGCE at the University of Buckingham.

His first teaching role was at Moulsford Preparatory School where he was a senior Maths Teacher, Boarding Housemaster and 1st XV rugby coach. After 5 years at Moulsford, Christopher moved to St John’s on the Hill, Chepstow, as Head of Maths and Head of Boarding for 4 years. Christopher is a writer for the ISEB 13+ Common Entrance Maths Papers.

Christopher has been married for 4 years to Charlotte and they have a son, Felix, and a chocolate Labrador called Toby.

Tricia Norman Head of Psychology Dr Tricia Norman joined the College in September to set up the new Psychology department.

Academically, Dr Norman was one of the ‘first ladies’ admitted into University College Durham when it became co-educational in the late 1980s and upon completion of her degree in Psychology at Durham, she went on to complete a PhD in ‘Memory Development In Children’ at Reading University. During this time she taught undergraduate students and began teaching for the Open University on the subject of Child Development.

In the late 1990s she moved to Gloucestershire and set up a successful and ever-expanding Psychology department that encompassed two neighbouring grammar schools in Stroud. She also wrote and delivered a learn-to-learn programme to students and tutors. Additionally, she was given responsibility for drawing up the school timetable. Alongside 20 years teaching experience, Dr Norman has over 10 years experience as an examiner and is currently a senior examiner for AQA both at AS and A2 level.

When not teaching Tricia can be seen roaming the wonderful Gloucestershire countryside with a dog or two in tow!

F L O R E AT ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

Sarah Reid Head of Classics, Junior School Sarah studied Classics at Newcastle University, specialising in Latin Language and Linguistics, Greek and Latin literature.

After completing her PGCE at Cambridge, she took up her first post in Liverpool before moving to The Cheltenham Ladies’ College, where she was Deputy Head of Department.

She was then appointed Director of Learning of KS3, and Head of Classics, at St Mary’s School in Worcester, before moving to Cheltenham College, when her husband Chris took on the role of Housemaster of Leconfield.

Sarah taught Classics at College, and was in charge of Classical Civilisation.

In her new post as Head of Classics at the Junior, Sarah is particularly relishing the challenge of introducing Latin to Years 5 and 6, as well as maintaining her Senior School teaching in both Fifth and Sixth Form. Sarah and Chris, have two children Izzy and Jamie, who both attend CCJS. Sarah enjoys all types of sport, particularly running, netball and football, and is hoping to enter some competitive events during the year.

Tom Richardson Head of Rugby Tom (Xt ’98) was appointed as Head/ Director of Rugby at Cheltenham College in September 2012. Tom left College as a pupil in 1998 and embarked on a year coaching and playing rugby in South Africa. On his return to the UK, he pursued a successful professional rugby career as a scrum half at Worcester RFC, Birmingham & Solihull RFC, Nottingham RFC and finally Stourbridge RFC. During this time he represented England Students XV (2000 to 2002) and England Counties (2008 to 2009) in the 5 Nations as well as touring to Japan and South Korea with England Counties in 2010. Throughout a twelve year playing career Tom has developed a passion and talent for coaching; in addition to preparing rugby, hockey and cricket sides at College, he has coached representative rugby with Berkshire RFU and Gloucestershire RFU. In May of this year, Tom hung up his rugby boots in order to focus on his new role. In addition to his involvement in sporting life at College, Tom is a resident tutor in Hazelwell as well as an academic tutor to a number of boys in the third form.

Michael Rooke Executive Head Chef Michael Rooke left his hometown of St Helens after completing his city & guilds qualifications to experience and enhance his career in the food and catering industry. Michael started as a chef at a hotel in Sherbourne, Dorset, in the late 80’s. Over the years, Michael worked his way through and up the ranks in the kitchens of various hotels across the country, including The Queens Hotel at Chester, The Royal Hotel at Ross-on-Wye and Stratford Upon Avon for Forte Hotels.

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Michael’s First Head Chef position with Forte brought him over to the Cotswolds’ Bear of Rodborough Hotel, in the early 90’s where he achieved his first Rosette. During this time the Hotel was taken over by Granada, then as time went on by Cotswold Inns and Hotels; this meant several changeovers of business from which Michael gained valuable experiences.

Michael moved over to the Queen’s Hotel in Cheltenham to achieve another Rosette.

He then moved to Cheltenham Park Hotel Charlton Kings, during his time there he trained and supported the winner of the South West Chef of the Year 2011. Michael is looking forward to working and sharing his knowledge and experiences here at the College.

David Ruffell Sports Centre Manager After graduating with a PGCE from Cambridge University, David spent the next 6 years teaching Physical Education in West London along, with balancing a semi professional rugby career, playing for London Irish and London Welsh.

David moved back to Gloucestershire in 2003 where he spent a brief spell at College, teaching Physical Education along with working with the Youth Sports Trust.

David’s transition from teacher to a commercial operator began in the summer of 2003, with the responsibility of commercial manager for all South West O2 Rugby Class residential camps. He worked closely with a number of Independent Enterprise departments, including Millfield. In 2005, he was offered Director of Commercial Enterprise at an Independent school in the South West and gained valuable experience in increasing revenue from sports facilities.

Recently, David has worked closely with Sports Development programmes within Gloucestershire and Sport England nationally; he is a full member of CIMSPA (Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity) and a former Director of Merging Sports Ltd. Duncan Simpson Head of Boys’ Sport, Junior School After graduating from the University of Liverpool with a degree in Ancient History and Archaeology, Duncan spent the next few years playing rugby league in New Zealand and Australia. He returned to England where he gained a PGCE and took up the post of Head of Sport at King’s House School in West London. After ten years at King’s House, Duncan was keen to move away from London and Cheltenham College Junior School ticked every box in what he wanted from a school both as a teacher and as a parent.

Duncan has two sons, Craig in Reception and Rory due to start in the Cottage next year. Outside school, Duncan has been coaching academy rugby for a number of years, firstly at the London Broncos, then at London Wasps and he has recently taken up a position with the Gloucester Academy.

Kirk Steele Estates Bursar Kirk joined College in April 2012 as the Estates Bursar, a new post. Kirk was commissioned into the Royal Irish Rangers in 1989 and served in the Army for 20 years, latterly with the Royal Logistic Corps.

He has served throughout the world and has commanded in Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan. He retired from the Army in 2009 and joined Nuffield Health as Logistics Director. He subsequently entered into school management at Kingham Hill School before assuming his post here. Kirk attended the Joint Services Command and Staff College and has a MA from Cranfield University.

Kirk is married to Sarah, who runs her own childrens’ nursery business, and has two children, Harry and Jess. He is a keen sportsman with a passion for cricket and he keeps a watchful eye on Chelsea’s progress at Stamford Bridge whenever he can.

Hannah Thorpe Head of Girls’ Sport, Junior School After graduating from the University of Bath, with a first class honours degree in Coach Education and Sports Development and a PGCE in Physical Education, Hannah accepted her first teaching post at The Royal Alexandra and Albert School in Surrey. As well as teaching, Hannah was also a resident Housemistress and thoroughly enjoyed her time there.

After two years Hannah returned to her hometown of Eastbourne and took on the role of Head of Games at St Bede’s Prep School.

This was an age group that she really enjoyed teaching and when the opportunity arose to work at the Harrodian, a London day school, she assumed the role as Head of Prep Sport.

Hannah’s long-term plan was always to return to the West Country and so was delighted to accept the position as Head of Girls’ Games at Cheltenham College Junior School.

Juliet Wallace-Mason Head of Art Juliet spent time at the University of Brighton, studying Fine Art/ Printmaking, before going on to study Advanced Printmaking and taking a PGCE, working as an Artist and Teacher in Brighton and Dorset before moving to Somerset. Juliet joins the College to become Head of Art, after 11 years at Millfield School, Somerset, where she was i/c GCSE Art, and taught Fine Art Painting on the Triple BTEC. She also loved the 7 years spent as live-in Assistant House Parent. Juliet loves distance x-country running, open water swimming and shooting.

Throughout her time at Millfield, she coached the Modern Pentathlon Team, recently with the ‘Combined Event’ (shooting and running).

Outside this, she works with the Modern Pentathlon Association of Great Britain, judging the Combined Event nationally, leading to being the ‘Chief Run Course Judge’ for the Modern Pentathlon at this year’s Olympic’s in Greenwich Park; an experience that will be cherished & remembered for a lifetime.

Philip Williams Director of Studies, Junior School Philip joined CCJS in September 2008 as Head of Mathematics and has been pleased with the way the department has developed. Since being here he has also thoroughly enjoyed the highs and lows of taking the 2nd XI cricket and 3rd XV rugby teams. For the last three years Philip has also been Housemaster of Troy.

Prior to joining CCJS Philip spent 12 happy years at a local primary school in Cheltenham where he taught, at various times, all year groups up to year 6. He was Head of Maths and Head of PE and was responsible for the extra-curricular programme for the children.

Philip was also involved in the Cheltenham Sports Partnership, which helped develop links for primary school sport through contacts with secondary school specialists and also with local sports clubs.

Philip’s wife, Laura, is also a teacher in a Cheltenham Primary school and they have three children - Ben, Harriet and Amelia.

Philip enjoys getting out on the bike when he can and also playing any sport but he is particularly keen to play a little more golf!

Matt Coley Housemaster of Southwood Educated at King’s College, Taunton, followed by a degree at Leeds University and a PGCE at Cambridge University, Matt taught at Rugby School for four years where he was Head of Boys’ Games and an Assistant Housemaster. He joined the College in January 2002 and became Head of Physical Education and Mi/c of Rugby. Over the past ten years he has overseen the introduction of GCSE PE and the growth of A level Sports Science. Under his leadership and coaching, the College XV has enjoyed many successes on the Rugby field, most notably winning the National Schools 7s in 2003 and 2004 and the unbeaten XV season of 2008. He has also stepped in for spells as Master in charge of both Rackets and Cricket in recent years.

Matt is married to Abi, who teaches at Cheltenham College Junior School. They have two young children, Joseph and Tilly.

Matt says “I am very proud to have been given the opportunity to take over as Housemaster of Southwood. Barry Lambert has led the House fantastically over the past 12 years and Abi and I hope to continue to build on the good work that he has done. We want to see the day pupils continue to play a full and active part in all aspects of College life, whether it be in the classroom, in the choir, on stage or on the games field. Our key aim is to provide the day pupils with a ‘home from home’ and to foster a warm and welcoming family atmosphere where they feel comfortable and, most importantly, happy”.

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Cheltenham Races

By Sarah Burt (Current Parent)

The day this year started with a full English breakfast in Montpellier with a brisk walk down to the course, not forgetting the quick and rather decadent mid morning drink in one of the pubs en route.

knowing another person there you would soon leave knowing many. If you are associated with Cheltenham in any way a trip to the Races must be undertaken without a doubt at least once; it really does show the wonderful variety of life and I am sure with all this Olympic Spirit still continuing the unity and great sportsmanship shown throughout will make for an extra special day.

Photography by Andy Banks.

Yet another year on, where do they go to?

Surely it was last year that we were the ones in the school uniforms and not these near adults that really are our children; just don’t look in the mirror I tell myself.

The annual pilgrimage to the Cheltenham Races comes but once a year and what fun it is. As always with life these days, diary dates are hard to arrange; however, it has now become a definite date to set aside for a large group of us ageing OCs and OC Parents (and possibly the odd pupil, shhhh)!

On a final note, if you are up for the walk to the course then the obligatory ride back into town on the double decker bus for a mere two pounds is a must … all of those Abba and Queen songs come flooding back and who knows who or what you’ll meet on the ride home! (no names mentioned!) Enjoy.

Once you have negotiated the anti racing contingency, and the lucky heather sellers, you can move straight to the College marquee which is well sited amongst the shopping aisles. A tip for shopping is to do it before lunch and not afterwards, otherwise that extra glass of champagne may just bring out the rose coloured spectacles. I found myself not looking quite as good as I had thought the next day at home, shocking in all honesty! Needless to say my 2012 purchase remains one to look at and not wear…

The OC marquee makes it all so easy and I am sure if you were to come not

DEVON LUNCHEON Ian Moody (Ch ’46) once again kindly invited OCs and friends to his annual Devon Luncheon at his home in Lympstone. This is now a firm early Summer fixture in many OC calendars. Over 30 OCs came to share memories, enjoy the afternoon and hear from Andrew Harris, Director of Development who gave an update on College matters and progress. Many thanks go to Ian once again.

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Cheltenham College Polo Day Photography by Andy Banks.

Saturday 9th June

By Jo Beim (Current Junior School Parent)

With the sun trying to dry up the latest downpour of rain, sandals and summer skirt were discarded in favour of jeans, woolly poncho and boots! Cirencester Park, one of the country’s oldest clubs, was the venue for the annual Cheltenham College invitational polo fixture sponsored by Savills and Charles Russell. I had a great interest in all 3 games going on that day. Firstly, my son Zac Beim (Y4, CCJS) was representing the Junior School team in their 2 chukka opening match against Beaudesert Park. Secondly, the Senior team train at Longdole Polo Club, where I work and thirdly because my husband, Tom Beim (S ’94) was part of the Old Cheltonian team, whose clash against the Old Marlburians would conclude the trio of games that day.

An uncharacteristically subdued Zac admitted to being nervous about playing against his mates who formed a tough and efficient Beaudesert team, led by the very capable and experienced for his 13 years, Tommy Severn.

In the end the CCJS team composed themselves brilliantly and although they did not win, the final score of 3-1 was a just representation of all their hard work and effort that they had put in over the winter months to get to competition level. This exciting game was followed by team presentations and Tommy Severn’s “My Coco” was awarded the Best Playing Pony prize.

So, on to the eagerly anticipated main game of the day.

A young, but experienced College team took to the field against a confident looking Marlborough College team.

JJ de Alba (Xt), Ollie Severn (H) and George White (NH), captained by Jack Severn (H), took Cheltenham College to an early lead and they managed to hold on to this lead all the way through the game. Supported by their long time instructor and side-line coach, Daniel Banks, the team maintained a strong attacking campaign throughout the 4 chukka match. The Marlburians answered the CC assault with their own dynamic attempts to reclaim the game as their own. Special mention from CC captain Jack, who commends the goal scored by his brother Ollie, who after skilfully circumnavigating the whole Marlborough team with stick to ball, took it from the halfway line and ran it in to score. The final score was a 6-4 victory for CC. Best Playing Pony of the match was awarded to “Tina”, owned and played by Ollie Severn.

The Old Boys brought a wonderful day to a close, with a classy exhibition match, where The Old Marlburians ran out the eventual winners 5.5 goals to 3.

Well, despite the weather surrounding the event being very poor, the Polo Day was an oasis of summer sunshine!

Due to all the hard work and dedication from CC Staff, supporters and students, and the Cirencester Park team, a fabulous day was had by all!

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Melbourne OC Lunch 22nd March 2012

By Henry Gordon-Clark (OJ & Xt ’54) On the 22nd March, 7 OCs who left College between 1946 and 1991, a range of almost 50 years, foregathered at the Melbourne Savage Club for a lunch to commemorate the centenary of the death of Dr E A Wilson who is one of the most distinguished OCs. As a child, I was thrilled by the stories of the heroic endeavours of the Antarctic explorers of a hundred years ago, Scott, Wilson, Shackelton and many others; my interest in this period was further fired by hearing a lecture, while at the Junior, by Shackelton’s captain with pictures of the sinking of the Endeavour and the crossing of South Georgia. The realisation that 2012 was the centenary of the death of Scott, Wilson and the others of his party on their way back from the South Pole, that we in Melbourne are the closest OCs to the South Pole and that Scott’s ship, the Terra Nova, called at Melbourne en route to New Zealand and then to Antarctica led me to arrange this lunch in commemoration of these events.

Wilson as scientist, ornithologist, geologist, doctor, mystic, and water colourist has long fascinated me. I remain amazed at his courage, his humanity as attested by the survivors of the voyage, especially Cherry-Garrard whose account of the voyage in ‘The Worst Journey on the Earth’ must be one of the most moving accounts written, and his skill as a painter, a fact confirmed by CherryGarrard’s description of Wilson destroying paintings which failed, in his and Wilson’s opinion, to reproduce what he saw and which enables us to be certain that what we see today is what Wilson himself saw at the time. Wilson’s journey, in the middle of an Antarctic winter, of 160 miles over the ice to a penguin rookery to discover if the Emperor Penguin actually laid its eggs in the middle of an Antarctic winter, would alone rank as one of the most astonishing trips ever undertaken in the interest of science. Add to this Wilson’s determination to extend scientific knowledge, confirmed

by his hauling back from the Pole many fossil rocks he had collected, which were found with his body the following year.

Try to imagine hauling rocks on a heavily laden sledge over the ice when one was near to death from exposure, malnutrition, frost bite and other causes. Yet Wilson and his comrades did precisely this and thus contributed to the knowledge of the geological history of Antarctica. These aspects of Wilson as a man formed the basis of my address to those who attended, after which a toast to Wilson’s memory was drunk.

Other memories of a number of Cheltonian experiences and personalities were recalled. Not least a CCF field day held at Cribbetts, Wilson’s family home and farm, near Leckhampton in 1952.

50th Anniversary Reunion for 1962 Junior School & College Yeargroup

By Lynn Rowland (Xt ’62 & Member of Council) This took place on Sunday 27th May and, although an excellent day had been organised by the Cheltonian Association, unfortunately only nine OCs, accompanied in some cases by wives, made the effort to attend. Of these nine, three were former inmates of Christowe, three of Leconfield and one each from Hazelwell, Newick House and Boyne House; just two were former pupils of the Junior School.

The day began with coffee and registration in the recently refurbished and imposing Chatfeild-Roberts Library, followed at 10am by a Confirmation Service in College Chapel. At 11.15am there was the opportunity to join one of the tours around College and the Houses, when one couldn’t help but be impressed by all the new developments, both completed and pending. The tours were followed by drinks and then a delicious lunch in a marquee, close to the cricket pavilion. Because there were so few of us, we ‘joined forces’ with a significant number of legators and enjoyed our meal with them. The weather was glorious and in the afternoon we were able to relax, chat and enjoy the cricket match between College and the OCs, which featured the first use of the Martin Stovold Memorial Score Board; by about 6pm, we had all gone our separate ways.

It was a pity that so few ’62 leavers were able to attend. The occasion represented a great opportunity to ‘catch-up’ with old friends, we were all that much older, balder and greyer but our personalities and sense of fun were the same as they always were. I do hope there is a better ‘turn-out’ next year for the class of ’63; those who do manage to attend are sure to enjoy a memorable event.

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ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

Jack Davenport

From Big C to Big Screen

By Oli Shea (H ’12)

F

The afternoon was spent at the Senior school were he met with some aspiring students of the dramatic arts. He gave them an honest appraisal of the industry and answered all questions posed to him.

Harry Taylor (BH ’12) asked ‘How do you get an agent when you start this career’ and ‘Do you need to go to university or can you go straight into acting? Which is best?’

Jack began the morning at the Junior with a short excerpt from ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ and then gave the eager pupils a small insight into how some of the scenes were filmed. The most captivating for many of the Junoir School pupils being how he filmed the fighting scene on the mill wheel.

Beth Jenkins (CCJS) says “My favourite part was when he told us that a tractor was used to pull the mill wheel when Jack Davenport, Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom had a sword-fight on the wheel.

They used computers to make it look real.”

During a break in Jack’s day, he took a tour of Boyne in which he remarked on the huge changes which had taken place since he had left. He then had a quick chat with the whole house during their sign-in, in which he gave them a quick break down of what his main activities at College were, the most remembered by the boys being drama and the pub.

To end the day Jack addressed an eagerly awaiting group of current parents, OCs and staff during the Davenport Dinner with a short speech on his College career and some anecdotes of his school days. During this, Jack was awarded his long over-due Drama full colours which was of great surprise to him. The evening ended with all attendants of the dinner being able to interact with Jack and get to know the ‘real’ Jack Davenport.

Overall this was a fantastic day for all who encountered Jack around College, the Junior and at the Dinner. He was a down to earth and very easy going person who had time for all; he was fantastic company and provided great entertainment during the evening.

Photography by Andy Banks.

rom the ‘This Life’ to ‘Smash’, Jack Davenport (BH ’91) has had a variety of experiences in the world of acting from TV to film, all of which he has excelled in. Both the Junior School and College had the privilege to meet him and learn about his experiences. This was received with great enthusiasm from both the Junior School and College.

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Leavers’ Day...

By Philippa Coull (A ’12) Leavers’ Day came around so quickly and it hadn’t quite sunk in that we were saying goodbye to five years at College. It was a lovely sunny day and Dr. Peterken presented us with our OC scarves and ties, which we all put on straight away for our last Chapel Service.

Dr. Dunning led an emotional service, in which the highlight was the tremendous singing. ‘Come My Way’, ‘Abide With Me’ and ‘Jerusalem’ were a great opportunity to sing out our favourite hymns one last time and many happy tears were shed remembering all the great times we have spent together. After Chapel there were drinks in the quad and a chance to thank our teachers for all their help in the lead up to our exams.

We returned excitedly to College for the Leavers’ Ball in the evening and were greeted by glasses of champagne in the Chapel Quad. The Marquee was amazing and we were met at the entrance by a professional photographer capturing what really was the end of an era. The meal was perfect and the magician David Willmott baffled all of us, pulling off some incredible magic tricks. ‘Affinity’ took to the stage and there was plenty of dancing. The entertainment for the evening was planned brilliantly with a delicious chocolate fountain, a Black Jack and Roulette table, and to the leavers’, parents’ and many of the teachers’ great delight, the dodgems. These provided a really fun evening, which seemed to end too quickly. The leavers were ushered outside at midnight for our last photos; thank you very much to the Adjutant for taking these.

Photography by Stephen Clark & Bentley Photographic.

From the ball, many people moved into town for the rest of the night with the aim of being back at College at 6am for the ‘last man standing’ photo. There was a huge turn out and even Miss Davies was there! Thank you to Mrs Creed and her team who made this such a memorable and wonderful evening, which will stay with us forever.

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...Ball

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The Diamond Jubilee Ball

By David Hall (Past Parent) At the end of June, The Association arranged the Diamond Jubilee Ball the night before the Leavers’ Ball in the marquee for almost 400 guests. The joint aims were to raise as much money as possible for two selected charities and at the same time offer a ‘great party’ to old and new friends of College. Tickets sold out rapidly. On the night the rain stayed away and it was great to see so many OCs, past and current parents of both the Junior and the Senior and even a hefty number of recent OCs supporting the cause. There were ‘silly games’ to raise more money for the charities, a Casino, a Vodka Luge (only those who have been there know what it is!), a silent auction, a ‘Very Lucky Dip’ and a great live band called ‘Affinity’, who got everyone up and dancing for hours. A Live Auction raised some more big numbers for the charities and the high-light of the evening were The dodgems which came alive when the sun went down. Real fairground dodgems were attached to the end of the marquee and visible through the transparent side-pieces of the marquee they looked wonderful and by all accounts were immense fun.

On the night, The Association raised over £30,000 for Maggies Cancer Relief and for the College Bursaries’ Fund. This was no small effort but very big thanks go to all the donors of lots for the auctions and also to the sponsors who contributed to the running costs or offered their goods or services for nothing, in particular Marcus Freer and Karen Salter of SHS group (Current Junior School Parents), Marcus and Alison Goff of Goffs Brewery (Current JS & SS Parents), and Charles Arkell (Past Parent) of Taylor and Fletcher for being the MC and running the Live Auction.

After a couple of years of very successful Balls which have raised large sums for charity, The Association now intends

to make this Ball an annual event with the very specific aim of raising as much money as possible for charities selected by the pupils of College. Hopefully it will be well supported by OCs, past and present parents and other friends of Cheltenham College. The Ball in 2013 will be very different so keep an eye out for the announcement and we look forward to getting your support for another year.’

CHELTENHAM CRICKET FESTIVAL – SUNDAY 22nd JULY 2012

By Nick Byrd (BH ’71) I have not been to the Cheltenham Cricket Festival for many years so was thoroughly looking forward to it. Given what a terrible summer we have had, we were all dreading the weather! However, much to everybody’s surprise we were blessed with one of the best days of the summer, the sun was out and there was a pleasant breeze to go with it.

Peter Mason (H ’71) who arrived at College on the same day as me (sadly 10th September 1966!) and whose birthday it was, had organized a party of 10 of us and we settled down to an excellent lunch. It is always good to have some banter with Dr Sloan and drink a few glasses of wine with him. The catering was excellent as always.

We then went back into the marquee and were treated to a magnificent tea. All in all it was a great day and very sociable. It was nice to see so many old friends and it was good to see an old pal Charlie Zorab (BH ’70) who I had not seen since he left College in July 1970.

For all you OCs out there who have not been to an event like this, why not come to one?

How about a day at the Races at the Cheltenham Festival on 14th March? Thanks to Rebecca Creed and everyone else who organised a fantastic day.

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Photography by Andy Banks.

Unfortunately for Gloucestershire, the game was one sided and Chris Rogers, for Middlesex, smashed a magnificent 100 and shared in a match winning opening stand of 218 with Dowid Malan. So poor Gloucestershire lost by 10 wickets with 9 overs spare.

Photography by Andy Banks.

We then sat down outside in the sunshine to watch some cricket, Gloucestershire v Middlesex. Gloucestershire had won the toss and were batting. Dan Housego had spent four years at Middlesex without playing a single one day game for them so clearly he had a point to prove. He entertained us with a sparkling innings of 68 from 67 balls. Housego’s innings included a stand of 67 in 14 overs with Benny Howell and 60 in 7 overs with Alex Gidman. Gidman got the 4,000 plus crowd on their feet with big 6s over mid-wicket but unfortunately then skied a catch to square leg and was out for 27, when the score was 153. Gloucestershire were eventually all out for 215.

THE ASSOCIATION CHRISTMAS FAIR

By Heidi Bridges (Current Staff Member) From the initial warm welcome in Reception, to the bustling ambience in the Library, it was an excellent first impression of the College Christmas Fair, held on 25th November.

With over 70 quality Exhibitors displaying and selling, a range of gifts & goodies in a fabulous setting, there was something for everyone’s taste and pocket, from luxurious leather handbags, cashmere sweaters, fine jewellery to chocolates, cheeses and chutneys.

When you were in need of refreshment a coffee, cake, mulled wine or baguette could be enjoyed in the lively CafĂŠ before embarking on further shopping to look for that perfect Christmas present or personal treat.

Judging from the joviality of visitors and the number of bags and packages being carried it seemed that the whole event was a total success.

Photography by Andy Banks.

Already looking forward to its return next year.

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1987 REUNION – 25th ANNIVERSARY

By James Michel (BH ’87) In 1982, I arrived at Cheltenham College with my parents in nervous anticipation of starting at a new school with new classmates. Thirty years later I found myself returning with the anticipation of meeting them again.

Only a few weeks previously, a late invite to the 1987 leavers’ reunion arrived in my inbox. Should I stay or should I go? Hmm… I love parties, but I’ve probably got nothing particularly interesting to talk about. I’m not famous. I’m not particularly successful. I don’t own a large multi-national company and I’m certainly not a millionaire. I doubt that I could even afford to send any one of my three kids to a boarding school in Britain, let alone to The College. I’m living in Germany these days, so it’s a hell of a long way to travel for a party. Perhaps it would be easier just to say no and forget about it... I wonder who will be going. It would be nice to see them. I could always pretend that I’m the President of the Seychelles.

At least he’s got the same name as me if anyone tried to “google” me. No, I should go as myself without any pretense. Besides I’m happy – that’s contented, and not demented, I’ve got a loving family and I’ve had quite a remarkable and varied life since leaving College. Not all success stories, but then again success stories never made people split their sides with laughter. I’m going! Quick, book the flights!

On Saturday 13th October, at about 6 o’clock, I arrived at Cheltenham in the pouring rain. It had been a long time since I was last here. Within the next hour, I was checked into my hotel, teamed up with my old friend Richard Trevithick (BH) and suited in my dinner jacket. Richard had agreed to meet up with some of the Newick crowd, so we marched up to The Beehive – a pub much loved for the fact that probably every boy who was ever at The College had sneaked in (underage) and ordered a pint of beer. Astonishingly, word had got out and there was already quite a sizeable crowd of OCs gathered there. And what a delight.

After half an hour of whetting the whistle and trying my hardest to remember everyone’s name, we left the pub in a large group and made our way diagonally across the College Lawn towards the College Library where the champagne reception awaited us.

The library interior had changed considerably. Gone were the shelves of dusty journals that nobody ever seemed to read. Gone was that depressing green decor, which always gave that impression of an old gentlemen’s smoking club in London.

In its place now was a more inviting blend of white, grey and beige.

Welcoming us through the door was none other than Malcolm Sloan (a.k.a. “Paddy” and former Housemaster of Christowe) with his wife Cathy. And what a warm welcome it was. So many faces that had faded over time, suddenly re-ignited in my memory. We were no longer the gallant young princes who had left the College back in 1987, but now the stately dukes, slightly stockier and portlier. Those 80’s quiffs had receded back, which made some of us – dare I say it – “slapheads”, but in most cases projected an air of prestige and worldliness. However, there were a few people who really appeared not to have aged at all and had somehow preserved their youthful looks, but I’m delighted to say they were a small minority.

I should point out that I was referring to the gentlemen OCs and not the ladies. It has to be said that the Chandos crowd looked stunning! It was hard to believe that any of them could have been in the same year. In total there were 46 OCs present and quite a few came with wives and husbands.

There was also a good turn-out of our former masters and their wives. Present were Richard and Margaret Morgan, David and Jenny Levin, Robin and Angela BadhamThornhill, Charles and Julie Wright, Robin and Gillian Proctor, Trevor Davies, Malcolm Mennie, Gerry Smith and Tim Pearce. While sipping our champagne, we listened to the words of the present headmaster, Dr Alex Peterken, as he took us down memory lane by reminding us of several humorous and thought-provoking facts, which he had dug out from the College Archives. His welldelivered speech was then followed by “our” Headmaster’s speech.

When it came to giving speeches, Richard Morgan was without any doubt the master: without raising or straining his voice he could address a crowd of 600 rowdy individuals and hold their complete attention for well over 5 minutes. I was pleased to see that nothing had changed since 1987. While he told us some wonderful anecdotes, I was momentarily transported back in time to 1984 when I remember him addressing us with his wonderful dulcet tones during a College assembly in Big Classical. I snapped out of it in time to raise my glass for a toast to the wives, who had braved to come along with their OC husbands.

Then it was time to make our way to the College Dining Room. It hadn’t changed much, except for the food.

A delicious three-course-meal (did school dinners really ever taste that good?) was followed by a second round of speeches, wonderfully compèred by Malcolm Sloan, and we took a moment of silence while we

remembered three individuals from our year who had passed away.

Daniel Bingham (L), in his speech as former Head Boy, made a toast to the masters to show appreciation to them for their valuable contribution in our lives that was above and beyond school education.

Finally we were blessed with a hilarious speech from Malcolm Sloan. There was no research required here. I am adamant that Malcolm could remember everyone in the room that evening that he had at some time “busted” for smoking, drinking or doing some lewd act. And tonight of all nights, he wasn’t going to let any of them forget. This was a highly amusing speech with a number of innuendos aimed at several notorious individuals who were present amongst us.

After coffee, some of us smokers slipped out discretely into the Quad to break College rules (again), shortly before being ushered into the Staff Common Room. In fact the name bears no relation to what was revealed to us. One could describe it more accurately as a “Luxury Staff Club House” with its fireplaces and its upholstered antique furniture. On the left of the door on entering was a table full of freshly uncorked wine bottles. These were emptied remarkably quickly and by the time the clock hands had reached midnight, the discussions had turned to the next topic: where’s the party?

Little did the poor unsuspecting manager and his barman of The Queen’s Hotel know that a troop of over 40 OCs would be suddenly descending upon their bar, demanding a large number of drink orders that would span until 4:30 am.

For me this was a moment of reminiscing with my old Boyne contemporaries (a.k.a.

Brooke-Smithites). We lived very closely together for 5 years. We were like brothers.

And while we chatted about events long passed, the years began to melt away and for a moment it was almost as if we had never parted. We were perhaps more cynical, but we were all there to recapture something from our youth that had meant something important to us during our time at College.

I certainly did.

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THE ‘CHAMPAGNE & MISTLETOE’ DINNER DANCE

By Jan & David Evans (CCJS Parents) As new CCJS parents the Champagne & Mistletoe Dinner Dance on Saturday 15th December was a excellent opportunity for us to link up socially with other parents (from the Junior and Senior) and also feel that we were supporting a great local charity.

A champagne reception in the newly refurbished Theatre (Big Classical) started the evening off and gave us a great chance to catch up with just a few familiar faces amongst the 230 or so other guests (some of whom we hadn’t realised were fellow school parents!).

Seeing the College’s striking Dinning Hall for the first time was quite poignant – a stunning hall which really highlighted the history and grandeur of the school.

Games and a raffle broke the ice and started off a really fun and entertaining evening. The roving magician was just the highlight of the night. He was extraordinary and we are still puzzling over how the hell he got a £5 note into a kiwi fruit! The food and catering staff were both excellent and proved to be just another tick in the box for a superb event.

We had expected The Chip Shop Boys to be great and indeed they were, getting everyone onto the dance floor and getting us in the festive spirit prior to the Christmas period. They certainly rounded off what had already been a wonderful evening and I will definitely be booking again next year!

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2012 Carol Service

By David Kearney (BH ’75)

This is the second time I’ve been to the Carol Concert as an OC and this year I came with my extended family as a not-quite-step-parent. There was no frosty wind making moan, the earth was not hard as iron and nor was water like a stone.

December wasn’t very seasonal and the trunk in the boot of the car the only hint that Christmas was on its way.

As we walked into Chapel, Christmas enveloped us. We were slightly on the late side and Grace Knudsen (U6, Q) was just starting her solo first verse of Once in Royal David’s City.

Her voice, clear and pure, rather stopped us in our tracks as we rustled and excuse me’d into our seats. The College Choir was outstanding. Their singing lifted our hearts and also covered up some of our less than perfect joining in.

The tall and sparkly Christmas tree, the red and white of the choir, the lamps and the smartly coated congregation all brought us closer to Christmas. It was warm, it was cosy and wonderfully festive. There was nothing poor, or mean or particularly lowly.

College had given us popular old favourites to sing, rather than some obscure and difficult carol that we’d stumble through - these had been left to the more than competent choristers. The service concluded with O Come All Ye Faithful – with the chapel organ accompanying us as the volume increased line by line.

2013 Events Calendar OC Rackets Weekend Date: 9th–10th March 2013 Venue: Cheltenham College Contact: Charlie Liverton, Charlie.liverton@neptune-im.co.uk or Karl Cook, k.cook@cheltenhamcollege.org Cheltenham At The Races Date: 14th March 2013 Venue: Cheltenham Racecourse Price: £105 (£35 & £70 members Badge) All Association Members welcome Warwickshire Reunion Date: 25th April 2013 Venue: The Leamington Tennis Court Club Contact: Ian McFarlane, mcfarir@btinternet.com or Bryan Harrison, bbh@bryanbharrison.co.uk All those living in the Warwickshire area welcome, invitations to follow Dinner with Sir Alan Haselhurst Date: 26th April 2013 Price: £40pp Venue: Big Classical All Association Members welcome, invitations to follow House Reunions Date: 2nd May 2013 Venue: The HAC, Armoury House, City Road, London, EC1Y 2BQ Contact: r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org All OCs & OJs welcome, invitations to follow

Southwest Luncheon Host: Ian Moody (Ch ’46) Date: 11th May 2013 Venue: Queen Anne House, Lympstone, Devon Contact: Ian Moody, 01395 263189 or ian@moody2.eclipse.co.uk Polo Day Date: 1st June 2013 Venue: Cirencester Park Polo Club Price: £10 pp (under 12 years free) All Association Members welcome, invitations to follow The Rose Ball Date: 28th June 2013 Time: 7.15pm Venue: Cheltenham College Price: £75 pp Contact: Heather Eggelton, h.eggelton@cheltenhamcollege.org

The Association Christmas Fair Date: 24th November 2013 Venue: Cheltenham College Time: 10.00am to 5.00pm Price: £5 (Under 16 years free) All Association Members welcome, invitations to follow Association Carol Service Date: 14th December 2013 Time: 2.30pm Venue: Cheltenham College All Association members welcome, invitations to follow Christmas Dinner Dance Date: 14th December 2013 Time: 7.15pm Venue: Cheltenham College All Association members welcome, invitations to follow

All Association Members welcome, invitations to follow Gloucestershire Cricket Festival Date: 21st July 2013 Match: Gloucestershire County Cricket Club v Glamorgan County Cricket Club Venue: Cheltenham College Price: £45 or £35 for under 16s 25th Anniversary Reunion Date: 28th September 2013 Venue: Cheltenham College All those who left the Junior School or College in 1988, invitations to follow

For further information on all Association events, please contact: Rebecca Creed Association Manager Cheltenham College Bath Road Cheltenham Gloucestershire GL53 7LD Tel: 01242 265694 Email: r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org

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ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

OC HOUSE REUNIONS We plan to hold the next House Reunion event on Thursday 2nd May 2013 at The HAC, Armoury House, City Road, London, EC1Y 2BQ. College will be taking over The Prince Consort Rooms, The Queen’s Room and Ante Room. As per the usual format individual Houses will have their own area from 6pm to 8pm and from 8pm onwards, all Houses will convene in the Prince Consort suite of rooms.

Invitations will be sent out in February this year.

We hope to make this the largest, most ambitious OC gathering so far so please save the date in your diaries and do all you can to get as many of your contemporaries as possible to attend.

The Association Office will do all they can to reach as many of you as possible and assist those keen to be year-group representatives. You can all help by creating a ‘buzz’ about this event, whether it be by contacting each other by email, phone, Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter etc.

If you would like to help make this gathering bigger than the last one please contact Rebecca Creed on 01242 265694 or email r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org

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He Dreamed A Dream

By Felix Clarke (S ’10)

Walking into the central London offices of Working Title Films feels something like what you might expect when walking into MI6 HQ; British and proud of it.

Decorated with simple furniture and lighting with original promotional posters of some of the biggest British films of the last two decades hung on the walls. ‘Four Weddings and a Funeral’, ‘Bridget Jones’ Diary’, ‘Love Actually’, ‘Billy Elliot’ and ‘Atonement’ to name but a few.

I had gone there to meet Tim Bevan (H '76), the co-founder and the coChairman along with Eric Fellner of Working Title Films, someone who has

shaped British and global cinemas since the company’s birth in 1983. Working with writers and directors like Richard Curtis and the Coen brothers, with multiple Oscars and BAFTAS and Golden Globes to their name; Working Title Films is an exciting place to be at the moment with massive productions on their way to the big screen such as ‘Les Miserables’, ‘About Time’, ‘Rush’ and ‘Mary Queen of Scots’.

Stepping into Tim’s tall and spacious office overlooking one of central London’s urban parks, I was expecting to see a large trophy cabinet proudly on display. But I was wrong. Instead, there were just a few modest family photos, a massive filing cabinet, a large photo of Marilyn Monroe and some, deep, comfortable sofas where I sat to find out more about the modest man behind some of Britain’s cinematic masterpieces.

What do you remember from your time at College - the good and the bad?

There were a very nice bunch of people at Cheltenham, but I haven’t on the whole kept in contact with them... ‘IF’ was shot at College which is probably the most interesting thing about it from my point of view. I had that thing that I think every person in Sixth Form does really, which is that you enjoy it greatly for the first year and then you just want to get out all through the second year because you’re ready to go, so that was really my experience of the place. It was fun.

In 1976, the year that I did my A Levels, we had a great summer. It was the great British summer so it was a disastrous year to be doing your A Levels. The open-air swimming pool at Sanford Park and the

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Was a career in front of the camera ever an option?

No. The thing that I shone at was Economics but my interest or leaning had always been towards the Arts. So actually ending up doing what I’ve done, the academic side of school delivered, because you really need to know quite a lot about business in order to produce movies but you also have to be interested in Art and the creative side of it.

Cheltenham Ladies’ College girls featured largely there.

In many ways my school years were unremarkable and there’s a lot of dialogue going on in our family at the moment about where our kids should go to school. A lot of people who have done very well in life were unremarkable school students.

Very, very few have done both; David Cameron probably being one of them, and interestingly Richard Curtis who I work with was Head of Harrow and went on to have a very good Oxford career as well. But on the whole, good at school doesn’t equal big success in life. So, happy years, but I wouldn’t describe my school years as being the greatest years of my life.

Are there any particular teachers that you vividly remember?

I remember Bowes, who was a History teacher who was fantastic. He was a good thinker and he taught me Economics as well. He was the Second Master at the time and there’s one thing I remember about what he taught me - he used a metaphor in History saying that basically a scantily dressed woman is much more erotic than a fully naked one, which is something that I’ve used in script meetings as well.

He was a very interesting man. I think having one or two of those teachers is a critical thing and again now, looking at one’s own children you’re looking for that teacher where they come back and say, “oh, so and so said this or did this” and you realise how important it is.

F L O R E AT ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

What do you think are the key factors behind the success of Working Title?

I think it’s luck and tenacity. We’ve been at it a pretty long time, everyone is still really keen, which I think is really important. It takes a lot of sticking with it in order to get a picture done with enthusiasm. When we really got going, there was a turning point in the 90’s with ‘Four Weddings and a Funeral’.

Do you spend much time ‘on set’?

What is life like out of the office?

The amount of time I spend depends on quite a lot to be honest. I think if you’ve done your job right - so that you’ve got the right script, the right director, the right cast, the right amount of money being spent on the right talent; then it’s actually important to keep an eye on what they’re shooting as that’s what is going to make the film.

Work does immerse you when you’re here but I’m pretty good at switching off. I have a family, and we have a house down near Cheltenham towards Oxfordshire; it’s good to go there when you’re on the road a lot.

Do you have continuing relationships with writers, directors and actors and who is the best to work with?

Yes, we do with the obvious ones, Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Kiera Knightley and Cate Blanchett. The thing about making a movie is that it’s a very intense and complete experience. You live very intensely through these people’s lives in a very limited period of time and then you’ve sort of all had enough of each other when it comes to the end of that cycle. It’s more the writers and directors who come back and back and back.

Which film are you most proud of?

I think that divides into categories. Of Richard’s movies I love ‘Four Weddings and a Funeral’ and the latest one ‘About Time’, which I think is going to be great. Of Joe Wright’s films, ‘Atonement’ is a great film. Of Working Title Films generally I think ‘Fargo’ was a great picture, ‘United 93’ was a fantastic film, way ahead of its time. Eric and I have done a hundred movies together and we’re probably extremely proud of half of them and über proud of ten or fifteen of them. ‘Love Actually’ is definitely up there too.

Do you have a phrase or aphorism that you live by?

No, it’s really what Richard Curtis’ films are about. You want to live for the moment wherever you possibly can. Live it while it’s here. You’re always thinking ahead or behind. What I always say to people coming into this industry is enjoy the process because you don’t know what the result will be; if it’s great, it’s great. If you don’t enjoy the journey, then go and do something else; and that’s true of life isn’t it?

Is there ever an average working day here?

First thing in the morning, I usually read a script of whatever. Not really an average day because it really depends on what’s going on. It also depends on where you are in the production cycle. The one thing I guess that is always true is that Eric and I are constantly thinking ahead, so we’re thinking about what is going to go into production next. The heavy lift is undoubtedly getting something from being an average screen play, to a good screen play, to packaged and then into production.

And the future?

It is going to be an interesting six months for Working Title, with first ‘Les Mis’ and then ‘About Time’ coming out.

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A different side of London in 2012

By Alexandra Carey (Cha ’05)

In December 2009 you may remember the ‘big freeze’; temperatures fell suddenly and snow plumed from the sky for more than two days. You probably remember the white Christmas some of us had. I remember when it began to snow - it was about four in the afternoon and I was standing on a street near Kings Cross, London, outside an old Baptist church now converted into a special kind of theatre and club, flanked by six tall men huddled deep into coats and hoodies smoking cigarettes (you had to go further down the street for a joint). They were speaking fast, twitching nervously, bouncing around as the snow came down. A mixed bunch with two things in common: first - they had all served prison time, second - they were about to suit up for the first performance of a specially commissioned Dick Whittington.

Meanwhile, other plans were brewing.

During my time at Durham I was introduced to The Orpheus Centre - a performing arts college for disabled young people in Surrey (originally started by Sir Richard Stilgoe) - and began volunteering with them on a regular basis. It was there that I met some of the most extraordinary performers I have ever encountered, and I began to realise that the arts could, and perhaps should, wield more transformative power than we often allow it to; both for the creators and for the audiences. Stories teach us to empathise with others; and are built on the foundation of both listening and telling. In London I was surrounded by people much wiser than me, many pushing the boundaries of what we have come to accept as ‘arts’. As my training and career developed, I followed the trail of these people, working on plays and films in schools, pupil referral units, youth clubs, drama clubs, churches, and on housing estates. I met young people of all sorts, full of imagination and energy, refugees, exoffenders and a myriad of charity workers.

that cold night in December 2009. There were many things that came after, but by that point I knew there was a story to be told. ‘The Greater Thief’ is the result. It is an attempt to be honest about London, from the only perspective I have, but drawing on the things I have seen, the people I have met, the stories I have heard. It is also an attempt to step into the emotionally charged complexity of crime and the criminal justice system, and to look around from a human perspective. It is a story about faith, justice, hope and the mysterious thing that changes our life when we least expect it.

It was the web these many experiences created that captured me, culminating in

For more info go to http://www.roundfirebooks.com/books/the-greater-thief

The day the man at the end of the road got shot was a fairy tale day . . .

Yes, you read that right. That Christmas a cast of twenty ex-offenders performed two (mostly) family-friendly shows, completely unpaid, for the joy of it at Only Connect’s theatre. I had the privilege to be asked to direct the show. The night of the snow was the end of a tense, unpredictable, and hilarious journey for all of us involved in the pantomime, and there are many stories I haven’t space to tell here. It was also the culmination of a long personal journey for me; and the start of another that would lead to this month and the publication of my debut novel ‘The Greater Thief’.

That journey began at College, where I began writing and directing and developed a fascination with the storytelling of plays, novels and narrative poetry. While studying English and History at Durham University, I was heavily involved with student theatre and I went on to study Theatre Directing at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts in London. After graduating I embarked on a career as a professional director.

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F L O R E AT ISSUE SIX

CONFESSIONS J A N U A RY OF A LATE BLOOMER

2013

Nick Gracie’s Adventures To The Top (and bottom) Of The World.

By Jeremy Wiggett (H ’91) OCs who represent their sport at the highest international level usually leave a lasting legacy on the College playing fields as well. Talent is most often discovered early.

The same cannot be said for Nick Gracie Jeremy Wiggett.

(H ‘91). Nick was not what one might call an “active participant” in student sport. In fact I recall vividly that for a few years his primary sporting interest was more equine in nature than human, much to the delight of local bookmakers.

Fast forward 20 years and I find myself following Nick as he crosses the finish line of the famous Patagonian Expedition Race, considered one of the world’s most gruelling competitions in undoubtedly the most remote corner of the sporting world.

It’s an extraordinary feat just to finish this race, but there was Nick winning it – for the second consecutive year.

In the past 15 years, Nick has evolved from casual jogger to a British and World champion in the punishing sport of adventure racing, taking him to all four corners of the globe. I caught up with him as he prepared for the 2012 Adventure Racing World Championships in France to learn more about his journey.

When did you get interested in endurance sports and what prompted you to start?

After University, I started jogging a few miles a week just to stay fit. A friend of mine suggested, as a joke, that I run the London Marathon with him. I photocopied his race number and ran. By the finish line I was hurting but I was hooked. A few months later I ran the New York Marathon and a year later I was running six marathons in six days in the Marathon des Sables in Morocco.

What led you to adventure racing?

I began mountain bike racing and also started competing in running events that required navigation skills, which made it a lot more interesting. One day I saw an event called ECO-Challenge on TV, a six-day, non-stop race in the Swiss Alps.

I immediately went online and found an adventure race in the UK and signed up with a few friends from University. We finished dead last in our first race but it was the start of a seven-year journey that ended with us becoming World Champions.

What does it take to achieve this?

What is your training schedule?

Adventure racing is both physical and technical - you need to be good at running, mountain biking, kayaking and reading a map. You have to deal with limited sleep (sometimes as little as an hour per day over 5-6 days) and you need to adjust to different climates and terrains, from glaciers to deserts.

I used to train more but, after getting married, having 3 children and running my own business, I squeeze in 10 hours a week and put in some bigger training weeks close to the major races. Experience counts for a lot – I now train smarter not harder.

There must be moments when your body just wants to give up.

What do you do to keep going?

There are amazing highs and some incredible lows; times when you are tired, hungry, cold and lost! But it‘s how you deal with the low moments that make you a good adventure racer. We work well as a team and always look after each other and we have a lot of trust and respect for each other. I’m always thinking of my family and friends and want to do well for them. I also think of the millions of people living in poverty, famine and war zones and whatever hardship I am going through pales in significance compared to them.

Finally, what do you think schools could do to ensure all children find a sport they can enjoy?

I think the core sports in schools are excellent – they teach you teamwork and they are a lot of fun to play. But there are so many sports out there and I think the more opportunities you give to children the better. I‘m convinced there is a sport for everyone and the earlier you can find it the better.

In addition to his two Patagonian Expedition Race titles, Nick won the World Adventure Racing Championship in 2009, along with three other top 10 finishes. He has been the British champion since 2005.

Nick lives in Bristol with his wife Anna, and three children, George, Ben and Olivia. He manages his own business, Power The Machine (www.powerthemachine.com) a distributor and retailer of sports nutrition.

He also organises sporting events and corporate team-building activities.

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Ruminations of an Old Cheltonian, Sixty Five Years On, A Mini-Ice Age, Penicillin, Royalty, Successes, Grand Jubilee Pageantry And An Amazing Re-Union

By Rodney Pell (OJ & Ch ’52) 1947 produced the coldest winter freeze for a hundred years and Cheltenham froze to a standstill while snow storms swept the country. On January 28th temperatures plummeted to minus 20º C and were to remain below 0º for several weeks. Aged eleven years I was a new boy at the smart red-brick Cheltenham College Junior School.

Clement Atlee was Prime Minister and Hugh Clutton-Brock was my Headmaster. The country was deep in recession following the War. Fathers, brothers and cousins had been killed in thousands, families dispersed and businesses decimated. Everything was rationed especially food, fuel and clothing.

and more able to appreciate and indeed to treasure life itself.

Chewing gum was forbidden but imagine our surprise when for some weeks in 1948 we were issued with gum once a day. It was laced with penicillin and we were apparently part of an experiment to see if there might be an effect in reducing infections! How many penicillin resistant bacteria were mutated and how many of us became sensitised to penicillin is anyone’s guess!

There was slow post-war improvement and with it happier times. Parents still had to save petrol coupons so as to have sufficient petrol to make the allowed visits and to take us kids on family holiday. In those days it was always ‘staycation’. I was lucky in having some dear friends, amongst them Sebastian, son of F.E.Halliday a well known authority on William Shakespeare and master at the Senior School.

Here is the writer in the College orchestra with his flute on Open Day 1950.

1948 - The writer is on the left and Sebastian Halliday on the right, when we were both aged 12 years and at The Junior School.

After taking the Common Entrance examination I entered the Senior School in 1949, the Rev. Guy Godolphin Pentreath was then the Headmaster.

I found myself boarded in a long dormitory on the second floor. There were fifteen beds arranged down each side, separated by wooden divisions into ‘horse boxes’ with a curtain across the open end. Each ‘horse box’ had its own sliding sash window and there were three sash windows at the far end of the dormitory. ‘Fresh air is good for you’ was the mantra. At that time, as I would later discover, tuberculosis patients were being ‘treated’ by exposure to fresh cold air and cold salt bathing. And so at post-war Cheltenham College the rule was that every window had to be open at night.

I found myself in a dormitory in Thirlestaine House. A great improvement on the dormitories at the Junior School! We lads had a happy time. The Housemaster, nicknamed ‘Misery Marshall’ was in fact very kind. After one term at Thirlestaine, I was boarded at Cheltondale which came as a bit of a let-down after the Thirlestaine House experience for Cheltondale, as most of the other Houses in College Road, was built in the same style as the Junior School and so it was back to the regimented environment of the long cold dormitory and big Common Room.

This Old Cheltonian remembers waking up with snow on his bedside chair, ice on the pillow from his frozen breath and the coverlet, the two (army pattern) blankets on the bed and the coarse bed sheet frozen into a cardboard like tunnel out from which he could wriggle leaving it standing like a little igloo! Fortunately all pipes were frozen so the de-riguer cold showers (toshings) had been abandoned. Following the big thaw there was massive country-wide flooding, Gloucester and Tewkesbury, two amongst hundreds of towns and villages were underwater and emergency food was distributed by Australian and Canadian aidworkers.

Having to wear a blue boiler suit came as quite a ‘shock’ but it was a time of extreme severe rationing; everything including clothing was in short supply and so boiler suits were what we wore as ‘uniform’. I quite liked it for an old boiler suit was loose, comfy and dressing was just a matter of pulling it on. How very easy and affluent in comparison is the current 2012 period of so called austerity!

It was a tough time. Tough for parents, tough for workers, tough for schools and tough, very tough for us young boarders but it truly can be said that not only did we survive those times, we grew all the stronger, became more tolerant, more understanding

into the afternoon uniform which was a green worsted jacket and clean collar. We now also had mortar boards to wear with the reefer jacket on appropriate occasions and in the Summer ‘Boaters’ to wear with our white flannels and summer blazers.

Back then in the 1950s economics and times slowly improved, a new College Uniform was introduced and parents yet again went without and delving deep into well-worn pockets came up with the required funding.

We were kitted out in white shirts with starched stiff collars and studs, college tie, dark reefer jacket and grey flannel trousers with grey socks and black Oxford shoes.

This photo of Cheltondale circa 1952 would have been taken in the afternoon for we are all kitted out in our worsted jackets. Looking back much effort was spent changing our apparel, perhaps something that would later imbue the public schoolboy of the time with a certain confidence and je ne sais quoi!

Sports Days and Open Days were always grand occasions.

Of course we had to change into our sports kits on Saturdays, into overalls when doing woodwork and engineering and into uniform on Wednesday afternoons for the then legally required Combined Cadet Force exercises and training, under command of Colonel H. Vignoles.

On Cadet Field Days the whole College, would march uniformed, in platoons out of Cheltenham, behind the trumpeting, booming and clanging band and head for Leckhampton Hill where we terrified the locals, both fauna and populus with our marching, shouting and firing of blank rounds – although some of us managed to bag the odd rabbit and pigeon! Presaging the satirical film of its time - ‘IF’ Directed by Old Cheltonian film director and actor Lindsay Anderson (Ch ’41). Truly a film that every Cheltonian should see.

Cheltenham College Cadet Rodney Pell with Lee Enfield .303 rifle.

After lunch we all had to return to our Houses for a half hour rest and then change

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Cheltenham College Combined Cadet Force Band 1951.

In the Summer of 1951, College was honoured by the visit of Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth and I was one of the lucky pupils selected to show her around.

Academic success achievement for me was off the College radar ‘He’s a slow developer’.

Housemaster Dr Harry Johnston recommended a change of school, perhaps to Millfield; he was right and I owe Harry J my sincere thanks. It was sad leaving College and the most poignant memory is of the beautiful Leaver’s Service held in the magnificent College Chapel where I had been a chorister.

And so, sixty one years after my first meeting Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth at College, and thirty five years after being at her Majesty’s Thames Silver Jubilee Pageant, I had the honour to be present at the Diamond Jubilee Thames Pageant of Queen Elizabeth II as skipper of my yacht ‘Sheemaun’.

In 1986 the ‘Debrett’ was replaced by ‘Sheemaun’ a 1935 Gentleman’s Classic Vintage Motor Yacht.

After much restoration, in 2010 ‘Sheemaun’ was awarded the accolade of Flagship of the United Kingdom Historic Fleet, her skipper (me) by then elected an Associate of the Royal Institution

Thames. In the 16th Century serving under Queen Elizabeth I the Pell family had been Yeomen of the Guard and Beefeaters at the Tower of London. In April 1635 Thomas Pell and his wife had set sail from Deptford in East London on the ship ‘Plantar’ bound for the New World to what later became the USA where there are now many Pells. There is a Pell City, a Pell Bridge, a Pell College of Oceanography and a Pell National Student Grant. In the late 1950s, medical student Pell doing his midwifery – on a midwifery pedal bike – in the East End of London had cycled down the very Dickensian and foreboding Pell Street, London E1 – now long demolished and re-developed. A lovely surprise and reunion.

While in London for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Pageant, a great pleasure and surprise came when I met again with fellow Old Cheltonian Sebastian Halliday, now Professor Halliday. Sebastian had called into London’s St Katherine’s Dock where ‘Sheemaun’ was berthed prior to the Jubilee Pageant. Sebastian and I had not seen each other or been in contact for the previous sixty years!

On the North side of Mt Blanc the writer is in the middle.

This painting by artist MacKenzie Moulton depicts the front cover of the Port of London magazine August 1977. I am helming my white motor-cruiser alongside the Royal Yacht Britannia.

J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

of Naval Architects.

As a celebrated historic vessel ‘Sheemaun’, is often invited to partake in various maritime festivals in the UK and France. It was a very great honour indeed when the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Pageant Committee selected ‘Sheemaun’ to take part in the Thames Pageant on 3rd June 2012.

Life, as it does, forged ahead. University life in London was challenging and fun, I was invited to take part in the 1954 Acton Scientific Expedition to Mt Blanc and lucky then to survive both being struck by lightning and falling down a crevasse!

Qualifying in medicine in 1962 from the London Hospital I went on to be later appointed Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon & Traumatologist to the City & East London Area Health Authority and so came with my family to live in London’s Docklands at Crown Wharf London E14.

ISSUE SIX

Old Cheltonian and now professor Sebastian Halliday aged 75 years.

No, Sebastian did not fish this ’gator out of the Thames. My camera failed and so Sebastian kindly sent this recent photo of himself with ‘friend’ in the Everglades!

Despite the initially disappointing weather this was a truly magnificent and historic occasion. Naturally there was excellent partying both on deck and below.

The Skipper was busy keeping things tidy and Bristol Fashion!

The iconic Tower Bridge dominated our position in the Pool of London Tower.

It so happens that my Great Grandfather, Iron Shipbuilder William Mather Swanson, had built the casions for the foundations of Tower Bridge.

I have a lot to be grateful for in life, to my parents Godfrey and Joyce, for valued friendships, for early character-forming experiences and for those my foundation years all that long, long time ago in the severe hardship post-war years at College.

Those years at College set me and no doubt many, many other OCs from previous and subsequent decades, on their diverse courses for a happy and successful future.

Labor Omnia Vincit et tempus fugit!

Old Cheltonian and now Skipper Dr Rodney Pell aged 75 years.

And so, this now ancient Old Cheltonian has cause to reflect on long past connections with Royalty, the City of London and the 38

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Orry Gibbens

By Alexander Orr (L ’04) My name is Alexander Orr but since leaving I use my stage name Orry Gibbens as I am a stand-up comic and an actor. When I was asked to write this, I was flattered as I believe my love of performing was nurtured in College. I was not an A* student and I believe that I still hold the record for being thrown out of the school library several times in one day. College has given me great friends, great opportunities, encouragement and a well rounded approach to life. During my time at College I loved drama and performed whenever I could. My year was the first to take Drama at A’ Level. Acting is and always has been my passion, but like most of us I had no idea what I was going to do on leaving school. I was lucky enough to delay the decision as I embarked on a Gap Year. Returning safely, I went to Bristol UWE and left after one week, which is another record of which I am not proud.

For two years I worked in various jobs, including telesales, letting agency and bar work. I knew that I had to get back into drama because I felt I was good at it. I was scared as I was fully aware that it was not going to be easy. I decided to get some kind of qualification to fall back on and I was accepted at The Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester to do a degree in Property much to my parent’s delight.

During my time at RAC my father passed away which made me determined to get my qualification. I then pursued my dream and I managed to win a place at Drama school in London. I thrived during the course as I was doing something I loved. Whilst I was there I met Tom Magnus, a film-maker and we completed some comic videos on YouTube which I enjoyed and thought this might be the way to go. I finished my year at drama school and that summer began

talking to Tom about a rugby idea that I wanted to do on YouTube. I then won a place at another drama school but decided to take the plunge and learn about stand-up comedy so I enrolled on a course. I met Dan Jones through Tom and we began writing the rugby concept. Six months later the stand-up was going fairly well with me opening for Patrick Monaghan who won the TV Competition “Show me the Funny”. I was racking up gigs in London and enjoying a small following but, most importantly, the script that we three had written was taking shape and it was at this point I decided to take a huge risk and leave Drama School to pursue stand-up and the rugby project which now had a name, “Don’t Drop The Egg”. Six months later we premiered and unleashed it onto YouTube. What happened was phenomenal as the hits kept coming and as I write this we have over 300,000 uploads and still rising.

The success on YouTube is amazing and incredibly we are now in development with a production company to hopefully put it on TV. We are signed with United Agents who are one of the best agencies in London. There is interest in our comedy writing but this is a precarious industry so we have to work hard to create opportunities.

Nothing can be taken for granted and it is a long process.

I was honoured when Mr Reid asked me to perform at College which I thoroughly enjoyed, although I am not sure whether Mr Reid is regretting it now! However, it was probably one of the highlights of my stand-up career so far. I have had so much support from my Cheltenham friends and their parents; the Abendanons, Brooksbanks, Halls, Johnsons and Thorntons have been amazing to me during some very tough times. Of course my biggest fan is my Mum who has been unbelievably supportive even though I am partly to blame for her grey hair!

Cheltenham College will always remain important to me as it not only gave me an academic education, it gave me long enduring friendships, people skills and the confidence to prepare me for the real world and without these I wouldn’t be self assured enough to take the risk of doing the job I love.

Even Younger Enterprise!

Debbie Anderes (Current Junior School Staff Member)

Some ideas start off small and stay small and others grow beyond compare. So it was with a small idea for fundraising that became its very own Everest.

in Afghanistan. Each of the four – George Hardy, Immy Creed, Rebecca Todd and Charlie Anton-Smith – were interviewed and many a take was done before they called cut!

The Junior’s Charity of the Year was the Afghan Appeal Fund, a charity that enables Afghan children to go back to school with a small supply of equipment. As part of their ICT Enrichment programme, Year 4 were asked to come up with fundraising ideas suitable for children that would not cost a fortune to do.

They decided that they would aim to collect enough money to buy pencil cases for a set amount of children – 6,000 to be exact.

Bath Road Market had agreed to donate a stall on a Saturday morning for us to hold a cake sale. Promises came in from far and wide that cakes would be forthcoming, but on the eve of the event we were faced with a single tray load of cakes. Not even we could eke that out for 5 hours. Saturday morning arrived and with it cakes! And more cakes! And even more cakes. The market holders were amazed and gave us tips on how to make more money by cutting up whole cakes and selling off slices. The Y4 children worked behind the stall and became used to handling money as well as talking about the charity to passers by. By the end of the afternoon we had raised a staggering £613.20.

In lessons, the children researched the cost of buying equipment in bulk and realised that they could provide a full pencil case for £1. The next task was to write to specific companies to either provide or sponsor the required items.

Official letters were composed, envelopes decorated – for high vis affect – and replies were awaited for.

To encourage the rest of the school to become as interested, Mrs Melanie Bradley, MBE, chief Executive of the charity and Major Simon Bradley and Sgt John Stephenson, who both served in Afghanistan visited CCJS. They showed a film of life in Afghanistan and the type of schools. Lower School had a private meeting with the couple and four members of Y4 were asked to take part in a short video, to be used to explain the connections between schools in the UK and those

By the end of the year, what with wrist bands and top trumps, collections after Chapel and a myriad of other fundraising events, the final total was added up. What had seemed like an impossible dream had become a reality. The children had raised an amazing £6,782.39. The Afghan Appeal Fund were so grateful, they requested a change of direction for the money.

Rather than supplying 6,000 children with a pencil case, which would eventually run out, they asked if we would allow the money to be used for a more permanent bequest – the building of a school for generations of children to come.

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F L O R E AT ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

Mont Blanc Summit Attempt Summer 2012

By John Jamieson-Black (Current Parent) “To those who have struggled with them, the mountains reveal beauties that they will not disclose to those who make no effort. That is the reward the mountains give to effort. And it is because they have so much to give and give it so lavishly to those who will wrestle with them that men love the mountains and go back to them again and again. The mountains reserve their choice gifts for those who stand upon their summits.” Sir Francis Younghusband.

At dawn on 5th August, my son Jock (U6th Hazelwell) and I quietly slipped the Island that was all wrapped up in the Olympic razzmatazz. Mo had yet to choke the nation and Bolt was in the throes of moving the world, both had their wild dreams. The van eased its way through France drawn to the Mountain valley town of Chamonix, the bridgehead for our comparatively modest dream of scaling Europe’s highest peak. Freezing rain lashed the vehicle as we eased our way into the Alps. Our aim was to climb Mont Blanc (4,810m) via the Traverse route, a big ask as both of us were novices at all forms of climbing. It would entail ascending an ice face 70m high on Mt Maudit, scene of some 9 deaths weeks before.

Day one was spent on the Mer de Glace (2,000m) getting familiar with heights, spinning about on our spikes, and hanging onto ice walls with our ice axes. All great fun marred only by the freezing rain. A steep learning curve but seeing the odd punter upended while belaying always restores some morale though, as long as its not you.

Shocking start for the teenager on day 2, muster at 6.00 am but the clear deep blue sky soon restored his mood. We were soon hurtling to the top of the Auguile de Midi (1,035m-3,842m in 20 mins) in a lift to start the real climbing tuition in the basin around the Cosmiques Hut. We needed to be high to acclimatise for the ascent in two days’ time. We spent all day on the rock and ice faces, our comfort zones being pushed ever further. The freezing environment had a staggering serene beauty which disguised the danger that lurked everywhere in the form of cravasses. As the sun pushed higher the wind increased, slicing through us. It was a stark reminder to the fine dividing line in the death zone between comfort and pain. One’s kit had to be right.

Day 3 saw us summit the Aguile de Mont Blanc Petit Vert (3,512m) a small peak at

the top lift station of the Grandes Montets in Argentiere. Again this was climbing at altitude and was mandatory for the acclimatisation.

The British Army define Adventurous training as: ‘Challenging outdoor training for Service personnel in specified adventurous activities that incorporates controlled exposure to risk, in order to develop: leadership; teamwork; physical fitness; moral and physical courage; as well as other personal attributes and skills that are vital to the delivery of Operational Capability’. In these three days we had covered all the above. As a father to work with one’s son in this environment, as an equal, hour after hour, was priceless.

Sadly our guide felt that the challenge of the Traverse route was too much for our level of experience. She had been greatly unnerved by the deaths and a seventeen year old still had much to do in this world she thought! We were switched to the Gouter route. It started with an arduous 7 hour trek/climb from Les Houches, up the ridge line, helped by a series of fixed ropes when one neared the Gouter refuge/hut where we would stay the night.

Day 4 – after the long slow trek we arrived at the Refuge at 16.00 hrs (3,817m) In time to recheck kit, eat, sleep and prepare for the 02.00 hrs muster. The day closed with a sunset of fiery reds, greens and blues. We were definitely in that special place where the Gods reward those that dare to do.

When that moment comes there is nothing like it. Stomach is screwed. Toes and fingers fizz. Mouth is dry. Head buzzes.

Safety check drills drum in the head.

Fingers check, re-check and re-check again.

Eyes are wide and pupils dilate in the torchlight. Voices whisper, the gentle wind teases, asking you whether you are ready, ready in your heart because you are about to tread where most choose not to, and for good reason. It is hard.

The final look deep into each others eyes, you search for something......... you both smile at each other and nod, it’s okay. You are ready for the moment now. As soon as that first step is taken, survival mode takes a grip. It’s a round trip. Getting to the summit is optional, getting down is mandatory. Focus. Tread every step with care. Crampons catch. Check the rope.

Look. Concentrate. Focus. Rope. Breathe.

Focus. Rope. Breathe.

Trudging away for hours saw us over the Dome de Gouter (4,304m). The wind increased and started to cut into us as the light brightened with the false dawn beckoning. All still in good shape, it was to be a beautiful day again. After a rapid stop for liquid and a snack we moved on. Soon though the altitude started to grind into the Lad’s head. A stop for the loo (family height PB) was not in the plan and being sick with a splitting headache set the alarm klaxons going. Only 300m from the summit after discussion with the guide we turned back for the refuge. Rescue on the ridge was impossible and the lad is a big one. We had to get him down and quickly.

“Climb if you will, but remember that courage and strength are naught without prudence, and that a momentary negligence may destroy the happiness of a lifetime. Do nothing in haste, look well to each step, and from the beginning think what may be the end” Edward Whymper.

Unlike Msrs Mo and Bolt we did not achieve a dream but somehow our little journey seemed as priceless as a gold medal. Go on I say … run the rivers, climb the mountains, breathe deep of that yet sweet and lucid air, sit quietly for a while and contemplate the precious stillness…. of that lovely, mysterious and awesome space. We will return…

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Living in Northern Canada

By Paddy Gardiner (Ch ’52) arctic. I was installing and monitoring some experimental communications around 1,500km due north of Winnipeg, Manitoba.

PG in his “library” at home in Kuujjuaq 2011

M

y days at College were unremarkable in spite of the exhortations and cajoling of my tutors. When I was at Cheltondale (1948 - 1952) the world was a very different and rather conservative place. If I did well at anything, it was in the curiously paradoxical relationship of engineering and art. Armed with these rather tenuous skills, I ventured out into the world and undertook a craft apprenticeship at the Dowty Company. I had always been interested in airplanes and how they were built, so this was a natural fit. Shortly after completing my apprenticeship, I decided to emigrate.

I ended up on an ancient ship bound for Canada and some ten days later (the 1914-vintage ship broke down en route) I was inducted as a landed immigrant in the ancient port of Quebec City.

Because this work involved active participation of the local Inuit population, I was able to get to know them and learn something of their lifestyle. It was likely as a result of such exposure, as well as boyhood reading of adventures such as those by RM Ballantyne, that prompted my desire to get away from the urban rat race. Fortunately, the experiment was deemed successful, so I was asked to implement similar systems for the Inuit people of Northern Quebec. This is an area the size of France, formerly known as Ungava and today known as Nunavik, with a total population of only 15,000. My work was done more than 30 years ago before the availability of satellite communications such as we have today. Mobile phones, the internet and similar technologies were uncommon back then.

Bay and southern Baffin Island, including a spell with a northern “bush flying” service, I settled in Kuujjuaq (pronounced KOO-JEW-ACK), the main community of Nunavik which is located 1,600km due north of Montreal. Three years ago I designed and built a house expressly for living in a harsh environment. No roads connect Kuujjuaq (population about 1,500) with anywhere else in Canada. It is one of 14 isolated communities along both coasts of Nunavik. As a result, we are served by air all year round and, in the ice-free summer season, we also get bulk supplies, such as fuel, by ship. Because of this, it meant that getting the house built was not simple, as all material had to be brought in from Montreal by ship.

After several years of traveling and working around the coasts of Hudson

Living in a remote place such as this essentially limits one’s buying choices.

Supplies of meat, dairy products, fresh fruit and vegetables, etc., are brought in each week by air. We have daily flights to Montreal and thrice weekly flights to Quebec City. A Boeing 737 jet serves the daily flights with mixed passengers

View to the south

Ungava Coastal Village in Nunavik, Québec

Without belaboring the reader with the details of my earlier life on this continent, suffice it to say that largely as a result of serendipity, after some years in the aircraft industry, I found myself working in the

Modern Inuit legend depicts the first sighting of an airplane (with Sedna under the ice)

College Engineering Society visit to the Bristol Aeroplane Company (now British Aerospace) facilities at Filton, 17th November 1949. Joseph Murray, Head of College Engineering is sixth from left; Paddy Gardiner is fifth from right in the front row

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View to the south in wintertime equipped hospital although complex cases are flown to Montreal. The town is also furnished with facilities for effecting most repairs. Each house has water and sewage handled by pumper trucks as with the presence of permafrost it is not practical to run underground piping.

Interior view of living room area

Winters are cold and long, with wind being the governing factor (typically 30 to 70km per hour). At the coldest times, the temperature may dip to more than minus 40 Celsius while in summer we can get days as warm as 25 degrees. Our airport was originally built during the Second World War to ferry warplanes from the U.S. and Canada to the U.K. Even today, smaller airplanes often stop in here on their way to and from Europe, crossing the Atlantic via Greenland and Iceland.

and cargo. A much larger Boeing 767 brings cargo twice each week—almost 45,000kg per trip. Of course, passenger airfares are much more expensive—as are most commodities—than in the rest of “mainstream” Canada. However, we generally enjoy many similar amenities while we can supplement our diet by hunting and fishing. We have vehicles,

cars and trucks as well as ATVs (all-terrain vehicles) and of course snowmobiles and boats. One can drive on roads only to a maximum of 18km either to the north or south. All communications now are handled by satellite, including telephone, banking (including a cash machine), internet service, telephone and multi channel television. We have a well-

View to the south in summer as seen from the living room windows; the tidal Kuujjuaq river is in the distance

PG during CCF flying training at Central Flying School, RAF Little Rissington 1951

Ottawa’s Byward Market area

Ice patrol Fokker airplane on sea ice at Wakeham Bay on Ungava coast late 1920s

Now that my working days are over, I am happy with my choice and feel very fortunate to have enjoyed a full and varied life. Some may find living in a remote place such as this lonely, as we lack the intellectual feedback often enjoyed in a city. However, in many ways it is a much simpler and more self-sufficient life than is found in a more urban environment. We do enjoy a vast and beautiful land although we are more conscious of the changing climate. Yet winter here is seen as an advantage as it enables transportation to places unreachable when the snow and ice is gone. I still continue my old hobby of sketching and painting and maintain my interest in a quickly changing culture. All in all quite fulfilling, but certainly a far cry from Cheltenham—although a worthwhile one!

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REFLECTIONS O N

By Ed Beamish (H ’96)

I

t’s not often in your life that you get to do a job that brings people together, the opportunity to be part of something that the world watches and truly brings a tear to your eye, but this year, I had the privilege to be part of London 2012.

I’ve worked in catering at big events for many years and I was actually on the banks of the Thames at Henley in July 2005 when I heard that London had won the games. I knew that I would be involved in some way but to have seen what I have seen I will be eternally grateful.

The Olympic Games was the equivalent of 26 world championships in 32 venues held concurrently. My venue was the All England Lawn Tennis Club at Wimbledon. I was in charge of catering, cleaning and waste for the site. We all love numbers and to give you a few; we served over 60,000 meals for workforce alone; 250,000 spectators over 9 days and my workforce was in excess of 1,100 staff. I needed them!

It was a privilege to work at Wimbledon, it is a beautiful and iconic venue, but it wasn’t without its challenges! At most of the venues The London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) took ownership several months before (we started building the structure in Greenwich Park in March) and this gave us plenty of time to build and prepare all of the facilities that we required specifically for the games. However Wimbledon had a small event of their own on at the beginning of July, the Championships, and this meant that LOCOG couldn’t take over the venue until 16 days before the opening ceremony.

We had a lot to do. The Championships is a huge global event and although we were using many of the permanent facilities for the same purposes, LOCOG had their own technology and infrastructure that needed installing.

It was always our aim that because we were using such an iconic venue we didn’t want the Olympic Tennis to appear too similar to the Championships. This required a huge effort to give the site a different look and feel. Where the All England Lawn Tennis Club favours traditional and understated we went for funky and bright and after two weeks of very long days (and an awful lot of coffee) we were ready.

Our first day was the 28th July and with apprehension my team and I did a final check to ensure that everything was ready.

I’d been on site until the early hours the night before and had the wonderful opening ceremony showing on one of the televisions.

It was a very strange sensation to have spent a year planning one event and to know every detail inside out but to now know that the planning was over. Thousands of people were due to arrive and the expectations were huge. Despite knowing the vast amount of planning that went in to the Olympics and Paralympics, I had my doubts. Across the 32 venues we had capable people and

some brilliant leaders but we were untested. The test events had shown that we could hold the sports but so much of the work was planning on paper, now would come the true test. Could the transport systems cope?

Would the extensive security systems cause extensive delays? Would we be able to get the deliveries in through one of the most secure delivery networks ever instituted? I was about to find out.

Due to its location in South West London Wimbledon was an island site. I was in constant communication with other venues and the Olympic Park itself but we didn’t have the support of other teams and venues nearby. The calls started coming through on the radio that areas were ready and at 9.30am the message came through from the event control room that gates were open.

I have worked at some of the biggest events held in the UK and have learned an important lesson. There is a limit to the amount that one person can control. I had a brilliant deputy and some great contractors but even so there were 42 acres of the site to manage and we couldn’t be everywhere at once. Fortunately I had a wonderful team of volunteers working with me. There has been an awful lot of praise for the Games Makers and I can only say that it was all deserved. They were brilliant. Over a quarter of a million people applied to volunteer at the games and 70,000 were chosen. They came from all over the country and all they were given was their uniform and a meal. Many of them were doing roles they had never done before in a workplace they had never been in. Working on events requires a certain mentality. You need to be flexible, decisive and enthusiastic. It is difficult to recruit people with these skills. Again I had my doubts but I am glad to say that they were discarded as soon as I met my team. They ranged in backgrounds and ages from 19 to 66 but they were all enthusiastic. They were overjoyed just to be a part of London 2012!

After I had explained what we were going to do they took to it with gusto. They couldn’t help enough and it is no understatement to say that we could not have delivered the Olympics and Paralympics without them.

For any of you that were fortunate enough to visit one of the venues during the games you would have seen a lot of games makers along the routes from the tube stations to the venues. These guys were working in the ‘last mile’ and were in my opinion some of the best. These volunteers were outside in all weather and many didn’t even get in to any of the venues, let alone see any of the sports.

However their enthusiasm never wavered.

They were singing, dancing and welcoming to all of the guests. To have volunteered your time and to be given a role that wasn’t glamorous, alluring or sensational and to still be enthusiastic deserves high praise.

I was particularly pleased and delighted when I found out that one of my volunteers was Steven Rosenberg (Th ’66). Many thanks Bokkie!

Well the gates opened, thousands flooded in and for me, the Olympics started. Team GB won medal after medal, Andy Murray’s was particularly special for all of us at the venue. The tubes and transport systems worked. The military and G4S did a brilliant job of keeping us secure but feeling welcome. And all of the doubters in the press were swept aside as London and Britain put on a show that impressed the world.

The 12th of July came round surprisingly quickly and there were very few dry eyes as we saw the flame extinguished at the closing ceremony. Two short weeks later we started again for the Paralympics.

The Paralympic Games are without doubt the most successful ever held. I was fortunate enough to meet some of the athletes and they were without exception stunned. For the first time in Olympic history the Paralympics were the equal to and at times greater than the Olympics. Venues were full, crowds were roaring and once again Paralympic Team GB delivered.

As 2012 drew to an end there were the obligatory compilation programmes on television and I still can’t watch them without a lump in the throat and an immense feeling of pride in what we as a country can deliver when we put our minds to it.

Legacy was a huge part of LOCOG’s planning but it will be several years before we see the full impact of the games. Sports Associations have been inundated with calls, new handball clubs are starting across the country and a new generation has been inspired to get involved but it is vital to keep the impetus. We will not see a true legacy unless we all encourage the next generation and ensure we have the facilities available.

London 2012 has shown us what we can do but it was only through the hard work and dedication of thousands.

So what is my favourite story of the games?

Although I have many from the preparation and planning as well as the event (the excellent BBC sitcom Twenty Twelve was eerily accurate at times) my favourite story actually occurred at one of the test events.

Horse Guards Parade was host to beach volleyball, an inspired yet bizarre choice, and during the test event a message came down to us asking if we could turn the music down as it was disturbing David Cameron in a (COBRA) meeting!

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O N LONDON 2012

By Alastair Ruxton (S ’87)

L

ike all good journeys, my London 2012 journey began outside a pub in West London, a javelin’s throw from the 1908 Olympic Stadium. It was November 2003. I didn’t know it at the time but that chance encounter with a friend and his “once in a lifetime” offer of a job working on the legal aspects of London’s bid changed my life. Fate? Luck? Whatever it was, it set me on my way to the events of this summer.

When I joined there were 20 people. No one gave us a chance. A history of failed bids, badly managed public projects, and the competition of Paris, Madrid, Moscow and New York meant the climate was pessimistic. But, led by the energy of Barbara Cassani, Sir Keith Mills and Seb Coe, on the inside we always believed winning the bid and delivering a memorable Games was achievable.

Our success this summer was born with the work we did in those early days. A master plan for the Olympic Park was drawn up.

The land was acquired. We matched historic venues to sports - Lord’s for archery, Horse Guards for beach volleyball, Greenwich Park for equestrian. We secured funding for improved transport infrastructure (the Jubilee line upgrade, the East London line and DLR extensions). Peace broke out among the politicians. They agreed to “back the bid” and provide the necessary guarantees to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Legislation went through Parliament.

I could go on. But importantly, underlying this technical work, we put together a narrative focused on sport and its power

Getty Image - ‘London 2012’

to inspire young people. With our vibrancy, passionate spectators and exceptional venues, we argued that a London Games could bring about lasting change like no other city. The IOC believed us.

I was in Singapore as part of the bid team when we won. The years since have been about turning those ideas into reality.

Milestones have come and gone - 5 years (“we’ve got ages”), 4 years and Beijing 2008 (“us next”), 1,000 days (“ah”), the start of the torch relay (“wow”), the Opening Ceremony (“here we go”!).

In 2006, Sandy Holloway, the Sydney 2000 CEO, came to speak to us. He said it would be like this. There are six stages to putting on the Games, he explained. First, “euphoria”; next, “disenchantment”; then, “the search for the guilty”; “persecution of the innocent”, “successful completion”; and finally, “glorification of the uninvolved”.

It would be indelicate to say how many of those stages I have witnessed. Suffice to say, putting on the Games is the biggest peacetime operation in the world. By July 2012, we had 5,000 employees, 70,000 volunteers and 100,000 contractors. We were almost as big as the British army and fortunately some of those were working for us too. There were 20,000 accredited media, 8,000 torch bearers and 1 million pieces of sports equipment. The Games are a statistician’s dream.

Looking back on what already seems a blur, I’m proud to say we made our mark - the Olympic rings of molten steel at the Opening Ceremony, the tsunami roar in the Stadium, Chris Hoy’s dad crying into his Union Jack, people talking to each other on the tube!

I hope we have truly “inspired a generation” to take up sport. That was the plan. Time will ultimately tell. We certainly put some self-belief back into Britain. We can do big projects. We can embrace success. We can be proud of who we are.

2012 has been quite a year.

(Alastair was LOCOG’s Head of Legal from 2003 and Sport Group Manager from 2011 responsible for delivering the Archery, Canoe, Cycling, Rowing, Sailing and Shooting competitions.)

Getty Image - ‘London 2012’

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A Day at the Paralympics

By Alison Edwards (Current Junior School Parent)

On 3rd September, Tim and I went to experience London’s Paralympic Fever with our son Harvey (JS Yr7) and his friend Tom Creed (JS Yr7). We emerged from Stratford park tube station with hundreds of others into the bright sunshine of a September morning. Once inside the enormity of the Olympic park became apparent. The TV coverage really did not do the scale of the venue justice.

won 7 goals to 3. Harvey and Tom were allowed to hold the match ball, it was a lot heavier than they expected.

It was the first week of the Paralympic games and we were fortunate enough to have tickets to watch the Goal Ball event held in the Copper Box. Goal ball is a game for the visually impaired although everyone playing is blindfolded, to ensure a level playing field. The court is about the size of Tennis Court. At each end of the court there is a goal which spans the full length of the baseline, the goal is about the same height as a 5 a-side goal. Each team comprises 3 players. The aim of the game is to throw a ball into the opponents net. Inside the ball is a bell.

Reflecting back on the day you can have nothing but admiration for the teams and individuals that have strived, overcome their individual disabilities and achieved national recognition by representing their countries at the Paralympic games.

With the Goal Ball session over, we then headed to Eaton Manor where the ladies wheelchair doubles tennis was played. The rules are similar to regular tennis but the ball can be returned after multiple bounces, provided the first bounce is inside the court. The match on court was Thailand V Australia. We were fortunate enough to be sitting just underneath the Thai coaching bench.

A few minutes before the match started, China V Denmark, we took our seats, music reverberating around the auditorium. Just before the start, new music, Bjork’s, ‘Oh so quiet’. The crowd falls silent, the whistle blows, China threw the first ball. It was so quiet the bell inside the ball could be heard throughout the hall. The opposition team dove towards the sound of the bell, deflecting the ball around the goal.

The silence was broken by the applauding crowd, the ball was given to the Denmark thrower, Bjork played again, the crowd fell silent, you could hear a pin drop. The match continued, China

London 2012

E

ven childhood dreams of competing at the Olympics are a distant memory. Never were they a realistic one, but even further away with my everdwindling sporting capabilities. But then the opportunity came along to be a part of the London Olympics, not as an athlete and not even representing my own country – as the Team Vet for the New Zealand three-day eventing team. I hear you ask how a boy from the West Country ends up working for the New Zealand team? I work in a large equine veterinary practice in Newmarket and the New Zealand job is one I have been doing for the last four years, since one of my colleagues stepped down from the role after the Beijing Games. Many of the New Zealand riders and horses are based in this country and hence a British based vet.

So the Event team, consisting of five riders, farrier, coach, team manager and myself arrive in the Olympic Village to find our accommodation for the following eight days. A brand new expanse of apartments, each nation with its own, adorned with flags and banners. There was also “The Globe” bar (serving only the produce of the leading soft drinks sponsor), huge gyms, a full medical facility and a 5000-seater dining room, serving just about every imaginable food 24 hours a day. We were greeted at the

By Ollie Pynn (Xt ’96)

New Zealand apartment by the ‘haka’ from the football team. We were then each presented with a hand carved pounamu, which is a sacred greenstone from New Zealand, meant to bring energy to its wearer; the back of it left rough, representing the untrained athlete, the front of it highly polished representing the finely tuned athlete and then the hand-woven necklace that represents the support team behind the athletes, and that is where I come in. In simple terms my job as the Team Vet is about making sure that the horses are fit and well to compete and then remain so through the competition.

The equestrian events were held at Greenwich Park, the oldest Royal Park dating back to 1433 and part of the Greenwich World Heritage Site. The finished result was incredible with fantastic views from the stadium and cross-country course over the National Maritime Museum and on to the city of London. However, being part of the World Heritage Site also brought some issues; everything was temporary, and had to be built on stilts, including the stables, a fully equipped veterinary clinic and even the stadium. The eventing competition took place over four days and featured a team and individual competition. Dressage

filled the first two days, where each horse and rider performed a dressage test in front of a panel of judges. The third day was cross-country, held over a spectacular 5.7 km course twisting up and down the surprisingly undulating terrain of Greenwich Park. The 50,000 strong crowds made for an incredible atmosphere. The grandstand finale on the final day was the show jumping, where the team and individual medals were decided. The New Zealand won Team Bronze medal; not quite as shiny a medal as they may have liked, but they were still delighted. Celebrations went on long into the Greenwich night.

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The Old Cheltonian Lodge, No. 3223 Freemasonry is an organisation included in the range and variety of clubs and societies that are available to OCs and those associated with College. It has a long history, we celebrated the Centenary of the Consecration of the Old Cheltonian Lodge (7th May 1907) at the Royal Overseas League in St. James’s, London, in May, 2007.

The consecration of the Lodge was widely published in the local and national press, and prior to the veil of secrecy descending in the mid-20th Century, all meetings of the Lodge were reported in full in “The Cheltonian”.

Upon the death of one of our Founders, the Lodge’s first secretary, C. C. W. Troughton (Teighmore & Boyne BH 1887), a fund was established to dedicate a permanent memorial in the form of a stained glass window in his commemoration. You may have walked past the memorial on numerous occasions without ever registering its significance, but next time, as you enter the College Chapel, pause in the anti-chapel and take a moment of time to view the window with the coats of arms of the schools which donated and with the inscription “which pays a debt of honour to one of the most loyal and devoted Old Cheltonians who ever lived”.

Today we meet three times a year in London. During our meetings we have certain ceremonies, which include the initiation and development of new members and the Installation of the new Master and these are, in essence, allegorical plays based on the building of King Solomon’s Temple.

It is the tradition that the ritual of the ceremonies is committed to memory, however Freemasonry is not all about ritual and learning - it is also about socialising and expanding your network of friends.

The variety and differing backgrounds of those present become very apparent.

Following the last meeting of the Lodge on the evening of the 15th September 2012, a dinner was held at College. In addition to groups of masonic friends, there were non-masons present, including wives and partners, some OCs who were not members of a Lodge, together with Andrew Harris, representing College, Malcolm Sloan, Hon OC and Secretary of the OC Society and Ben Bruce and

By Henry Peters (BH ’80)

Olivia Schofield, Prefects, with Cheltonian Association remit.

As part of the Lodge’s on-going support of the College and our ethos of supporting the students in particular, the Worshipful Master, Charlie Sanger-Davies (W ’86), presented a cheque for £500 to Sebastian Cheli, the Head Boy, and Annie Townley, the Head Girl.

Worshipful Master, Charlie Sanger-

Davies, presenting a cheque to the What many will not be aware of Head Girl and Head Boy, Annie is the extent of the charitable Townley and Seb Cheli. support freemasonry provides to a wide range of charities. In total, the Freemasons’ Grand Charity has donated grants in excess of £100 million since 1980 and is recognised as one of largest donors to charitable causes in the UK, second only to the National Lottery.

The Lodge recognises the need to support local charities and in particular College and their fundraising activities. The next time you wander around the grounds of College you may come across one of eight benches that the Lodge donated to College to celebrate the Lodge’s Centenary in 2007.

As with most institutions where their lifeblood and future rests on the ability to recruit and retain members, the Old Cheltonian Lodge is no different. In the last few years the Lodge has been fortunate to have been able to increase the numbers of younger and enthusiastic members. If you are currently a freemason and would be interested in joining the OC Lodge, or you are interested in finding out more about the Lodge or freemasonry in general, then please contact Henry Peters, Assistant Secretary, at henry.peters@hotmail.co.uk, or via www.old-cheltonian-lodge-3223.masonic-lodge.org.uk The 2013 combined Gloucestershire Schools Lodge meeting will be at College on Saturday, 14th September.

College 5th Former Achieves Flight World Record

By Ollie Chadwick (H ’12) I have always been interested in aviation, especially helicopters.

When I was 10, I flew in a helicopter over the Alps; it was brilliant. I could see everything and felt like I was really flying. But, best of all, on my 12th birthday, I had a flying lesson in a helicopter.

We made some investigations and discovered that, whilst several people had achieved their helicopter ‘first solo’ at 16, no one had done so in two different types of helicopter – a Turbine and a Piston, so this became my goal.

We went to Gloucester Airport and met Ray Jones, one of the top instructors and examiners. He took me around the hangars and showed me different helicopters, explaining how they fly and why they are so clever and so important.

After lots of training, my big day arrived on 26 January 2012. The weather wasn’t great – breezy with showers – so my flights were confined to the Airport’s heli-training areas. First I flew the jet turbine, which I love. Then, after a break, I flew a smaller piston trainer, which is slightly trickier, but a lot of fun. Both helicopters were much lighter without my instructor and, at first, it was most odd to be up there alone. But, everything felt just fine and went exactly to plan – a World Record! Celebrations and lots of congratulations followed, and I felt very happy and privileged. Obviously I still need to complete the training to get my full Licence at 17.

We then set off for a flight, and Ray let me handle the controls, which was fantastic. At the time Gloucestershire had been badly flooded and we flew low over some of the flooded fields, saw lots of interesting sights, including the College.

I was completely hooked and, whenever possible, I had some more lessons with Ray, which were carefully recorded in my Pilot’s Log Book. Officially, from age 14, these entries counted towards my Licence qualifications. However, the minimum legal age to fly solo is 16.

I had flown in various helicopters, but did most of my early training on a Sikorsky 300C. This is an excellent small piston engine utility/ training helicopter. Later, I switched to the Enstrom 480B, a bigger, more sophisticated helicopter, powered by a Rolls Royce jet turbine engine. This I really enjoyed.

People ask me if I intend to follow a career as a pilot. At the moment it competes with my interests in motorsport. I started in karting and currently race cars in the Ginetta Junior Championship and plan to study Motorsport Engineering, so I’m not yet decided.

Being dyslexic means I feel much more comfortable with ‘hands on’ activities. Of course, I’m incredibly grateful to have had these opportunities.

Note: Ollie’s first solo flights can be seen on You Tube – just ‘Google’ Ollie Chadwick 46

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Cheltonian Connections

By Jonathan Varcoe (Assistant Director of Music, 1965-1968) Everybody has stories to tell about coincidences they have experienced. For me Cheltenham College has loomed curiously large in this respect with many varied connections over the years.

Seeing the excellent photograph of the estimable Sam Salter in a recent edition of ‘Floreat Cheltonia’ triggered me into writing this brief account.

My Cornish father and his four brothers were all members, at different times, of Boyne House in the early decades of last century. I, and my brother, might have followed suit (as did two of my cousins) were it not for the fact that my father was determined that we should go to school in Canterbury after the choristers there had been evacuated to our village in Cornwall during the Second World War. At Canterbury, more or less contemporary with me, were three Vignoles brothers whose father taught modern languages at the College. After university and a year off in West Africa, I took a PGCE at Bristol University, and spent the middle term on teaching practice at Cheltenham Grammar School staying with Phyllis and Keith Vignoles (then Head of Modern Languages) at Chandos Lodge. At this point the post of Assistant Director of Music at the College became vacant, I applied and was delighted to be appointed by David Ashcroft. I spent a very happy three and a half years at Cheltenham, getting married, owning our first dog, and enjoying the very friendly atmosphere of both the common room and the pupils, not least Sam Salter. The filming of ‘IF’ was fascinating; my contribution was playing the organ for the ‘school song’ the tape of which was found to be faulty. Late one evening I answered the phone and was asked to come and play the organ for a second recording – a task as difficult as any in my career since the organist normally leads the congregation and there was I listening to the singing on the headphones and having to dub my playing a split second before the singing all the way through, particularly difficult at the beginning of each verse! (The singing part of the recording was apparently fine but the organ track ‘had holes in it’ – not I hasten to add through any fault of mine or the College organ!)

Before we got married, Anne often came up from Bath and stayed the weekend with David and Mabyn Ellis. David was Head of

Cheltenham College Cycle Ride – John O’Groats to Lands End: A Parents’ Perspective Andrew Gossage (H ’81 & Current Parent) It was always going to be a challenge from the outset, as I realised at the first meeting in Zizzi’s in December 2011. John O’Groats to Lands End is a long way. But it was achievable and a good personal and team challenge for the boys to make, with the reward of raising money for Help for Heroes. The project really looked possible when Stephen Clark and College came on board with the offer of him driving a College minibus at no charge. The boys’ thorough preparation and planning meant the team got off to a good start in drizzle and cold wind at John O’Groats. Amazing scenery and people flowed past the whole crew heading ever Southward, generosity and support being ever present. The feeling of elation was simply overwhelming as I watched the team cycle into the Lands End complex; the whole crew had done it and the boys had triumphed, and were safe! So many friends and parents to thank but we, the parents, are all very grateful to College for the invaluable support, but especially to the College Adjutant, Major Stephen Clark without whom it would simply have been impossible to start.

Classics at College, and his wife was brought up for part of her childhood in Cornwall where my parents and her parents, the Craces, were good friends. I remember vividly, as a child, visiting the Crace household in St Austell on numerous occasions.

Will Pritchard, the Director of Music, spent one term away on sabbatical and I was given charge of the department for which I shall always be grateful as this enabled me to flex my musical/ directorial muscles and propel me to my next job as Director of Music at Merchant Taylors. Here two of my musician pupils were John Wright (Past Staff Member) and Nicholas Lowton (Past Staff Member). The one a fine organist and clarinet player, the other a tyro tuba player and a surprisingly inventive composer (he wouldn’t thank me for mentioning this such is his musical modesty). Moving to St Paul’s School seven years later, one of the houses we owned in Barnes was just a few doors away from Liz Morse, daughter of the Housemaster of Christowe, John Morse, in my time. Our family attended, All Saint’s Church, East Sheen, for a time where we regularly met Diana and Paul Lampluch. Paul’s father Eric was Second Master at the College when we were there.

Our daughter Katie always wanted to do ‘what daddy did’; accordingly she won an organ scholarship to Cambridge and took a PGCE, but we never reckoned on her being appointed to my first teaching post some 30 years later when she moved to Cheltenham College from Bryanston. I think father and daughter in the same post might be unique. She met Richard Salmon, a historian on the staff, and after a two year stint teaching in Thailand they married and are now both happy at Canford School.

The last coincidence occurred when I was a member of an ISI team inspecting Culford School whose lead inspector was Paul Chamberlain, then Headmaster of St Bees. The Headmaster of Culford was John Richardson. On one of my earlier inspections members of the team included Peter Wilkes – three-fifths of a right royal flush of Cheltenham Headmasters! So although our time at Cheltenham in the 60s was short, it has pleasantly haunted me all my life and our feelings about the College have always been very positive.

My last post on the Facebook site captures best my concluding thoughts on a great project: “Great day yesterday in brilliant summer sunshine. 1032 miles is a long way in 14 days travelling but I was impressed by the energy and enthusiasm remaining. Into the groove, I guess! It is a memorable personal and team achievement. They also broke the 50 mph barrier on Saturday (gulp!). A public thank you to Stephen Clark and supporting parents for safe escort throughout. Another public thank you to sponsors for their faith and generosity in believing in the team and supporting so willingly. There will be physically and mentally disabled Servicemen who will gratefully benefit from the team effort and sponsorship. It may mean the difference, for some only a few years older than the team, between having a fulfilling life or a life in an armchair in front of daytime TV. What a difference we can make together. Thank you.”

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F L O R E AT ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

Shooting VIII 1963, Winners of the Aggregate Trophy at the Schools meeting, National Rifle Association, Bisley.

Pokey Drill

By Charles Aikenhead (BH ’63) “If you want to be in the Shooting Team, you will come to the square at morning break for Pokey Drill”. Such were the clear instructions from RSM Cockhead to us weedy 14 and 15 year olds who didn’t want to play cricket in the summer term. So our morning of diligent studies was split by the dash to the CCF armoury, drawing of a rifle and then exercising with it. Certainly not to aerobic music, but to the encouragement of Mr Cockhead, we would hold the rifle out at arm’s length first with both arms, then with one arm and hold it there until it weighed at least as much as a small car. Our coach was a veteran of WW2 and the Korean War where the ‘Glo’sters’ had distinguished themselves, but his right arm had been shattered by mortar shrapnel and was a strange and crooked shape. His encouragement was generally that ‘if I can hold the rifle with my arm then you can hold it with yours, my son’. Fifteen minutes of this and a dash back to hand the rifles in and then find in the following lesson that the writing hand had seized up!

Such was one of the building blocks for our shooting team, all benevolently organised by Major Peter Sparks who was never separated from his dog Rifleman. Under his capable management and Mr Cockhead’s coaching we spent our summer games afternoons up on the 200 yard range at Seven Springs squinting through aperture sights at the distant target, holding the rifle still and trying not to ‘snatch’ or ‘flinch’ when pulling the trigger. Snap shooting was part of our discipline and taking turns in the Butts was easier for this since the small snap target had to be held aloft for four seconds and then brought down and no marking in between.

The main targets were on metal rails that were hauled up and down after each shot, they were marked for the spotter to see with his telescope and advise the shooter of where his shots were going.

We all became skilled in hauling targets and expert in patching with paper and glue; such is the backroom grind of glory!

To shoot at 500yds we had to go to the ranges at Gloucester which was off in a hired coach with a picnic for the balmy summer afternoons. Here we could also practice the “Marling” which involved the shooting at 500, 400, 300, 200 and 100 yards; having to run against the clock and then shoot at each firing point.

During the winter we shot small bore in the miniature range, with similar disciplines and with some considerable success, winning the Country Life Inter-Schools competition in 1962. As the full-bore season for 1963 opened the College Team looked quite strong and most of us had shot at Bisley before. Expectations were high for the coveted Ashburton Trophy which had last been won by College in 1902, just at the end of the South African War. The annual trip at the end of the Summer Term found us all piled into the College ‘Brake’, driven by Maj. Sparks with Rifleman beside him; along the A40 with a stop at Didcott to purchase cherries, and arrival at the Honourable Artillery Company Hut at Bisley Camp in the afternoon for the four day stay. The team of eleven consisted of the VII, the 9th man and the Cadet Pair; we now had a new status as Competitors, and someone else was to pull our targets up and down, and to patch them.

Between our matches there were other shooting diversions of clay pigeons with the shotgun, the .38 revolver run by the Navy which made us realise the virtual impossibility of hitting anything much smaller than a door with a handgun, and the running deer for those that fancied a moving target. Together with the buzz that is Bisley Camp during a major meeting, it all made an exciting change from the schoolroom and our recent exams, and memories of some thousand schoolboys wandering about Bisley Camp with rifles over their shoulders seems a bit unreal from the modern era.

Our opening match was the Snap Shooting, shot in the rain. For these conditions the rounds had to be either totally dry or totally wet, and nothing in between or irregular performance of the bullet would result. Somehow we coped with the conditions and to the crackle of shots along the Century Range with 100 firing points, the little targets fell down at the end of each volley, only to pop up again at an irregular interval for the regulation four seconds. We scored a creditable 362 (max possible 400) and ended up in third place. The Headmaster even sent us a telegram, addressed to John Stoney which was very flattering for him as Vice Captain, since the Team Captain was Mark West. Excitement spawning confusion in the Common Room?

The following day we gathered ourselves for the Ashburton Shield, the oldest and the headline competition. This was an application shoot of seven shots each at 200 and 500 yards and with two sighting shots at each range. This was the profile match and it took all day with visitors and coaches moving along the firing points where each team proudly displayed its scores on a magnificent crested blackboard. A palpable tension was apparent, testing the real shooting skill which, as in most competition, is the control of nerves. Our performance was not so great with a score of 509 (max possible 560) in 12th place, just 13 points behind the winners, Allhallows. After our Snap success this seemed a bit tame and we were not very excited about it.

The third discipline was the Marling. Two shots each at each range from 500 to 100 yards and our rather less than athletic team did their bit but with all the exertion and excitement it was very difficult to compare which teams were doing better than others. The competition takes place on Century Range, which has 100 targets.

The sight in the hot haze of 800 cadets running and stumbling in full uniform across the scrub and heather to each firing point, followed by the noise of two rounds fired by each in the space of a few seconds is unforgettable.

It was at the end of that day that the prize-giving took place and we all lined up and received our bronze medals and Bisley Centenary Tankards for the third place in the Snap; got nothing for the Ashbuton Shield, but were near the money for the Marling with a fifth place which we were pretty pleased about.

We had not really registered that the big prize was the combination of the three disciplines and the performance of our Cadet Pair, but we had been made to pay attention up to the ‘end’ of the prizegiving, and it was with great excitement that we were called up to receive the Aggregate Trophy for the best overall score. Major Sparks and Mr Cockhead had certainly worked it out but they seemed content to keep it from the Team and we were all highly surprised to carry off the biggest piece of silverware on the dais! Our return journey in the ‘Brake’ was in high spirits and one team member recalls the rear door coming open and nearly falling out. The comment from Major Sparks in the driving seat was “Is the trophy all right?”

An Aggregate supper was organised to commemorate the event and a team photo.

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Images supplied by Archives.

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NEWICK HO 1851-1870 C Watson-Smyth

1870-1898 J Mugliston

1898-1910 E Scot Skirving

1910-1915 A S Page

1915-1928 C E Wright

later in WWI by the French resistance movement, representing brotherly love united by a common cause. There is still a sense of that spirit in the House today.

NEWICK HOUSE opened in 1846 in a house in the Bath Road opposite Thirlestaine House, formerly the residence of Major General Swiney and now demolished to make way for the office block called Corinth House. By the 1860s the fees were 50 guineas per annum including everything except Medical Attention, Tradesmen’s Bills and £1 a year for a seat in Chapel.

In 1916 Newick House moved to its present location in Sandford Road. The building was originally the Junior Boarding House, Teighmore. On changing name, the House was allowed to keep its suffix “House”, one of only two Houses to be allowed to do so, the other being Boyne House. Members of Newick House are called Muglistonites after the Reverend Joseph Mugliston, Housemaster from 1870 to 1898.

The House has of course gone through many changes, and it has always been a delight to welcome OMs back through the doors, and have them reminisce as to how life has changed. The number of dormitories has reduced, as more single rooms have been created. The old trunk attic, from which 3rd form boys were suspended and asked to haul up the luggage, was opened up by my predecessor to create a wonderful space for the 6th form. It has been a great pleasure recently to have 3 old boys from the 1950s, who told wonderful stories of House Boxing taking place in what is now the Kit Room. There were no posts to hold up the ropes, so 3rd form boys had the dubious privilege of keeping the pugilists within bounds, and there were frequent occasions where a stray punch landed on an innocent rope holder.

1928-1934 C J Macpherson

1934-1939 H B L Wake

1939-1949 D Ritchie Williams

respected, if diminutive, Welshman had a huge impact on the House, as did Martin Stovold (1992-2010) who as Master in Charge of Cricket maintained the House’s firm grip on House Pots. In between these came Commander Richard Kent, who sailed his HMS Newick through waters both calm and stormy. One of the great anecdotes from more recent old boys, were the tales of Bonfire Night, when HMS Newick and HMS Christowe went

There have been many great characters who have Housemastered in Newick House. During the last half century, sport has been a consistent theme. RitchieWilliams (1939-49) a feared but much

The House symbol is that of a Conflower.

Records alas do not reveal the precise reason why the cornflower was adopted as a symbol. Perhaps the flowers simply adorned the gardens of the original house. Or perhaps it was for a more figurative reason. As a flower it has been used to treat tired eyes; it was also traditionally worn by young men in love: these are slight possibilities. However the cornflower was also adopted as the symbol of German Romanticism, and 49

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HOUSE

ams

F L O R E AT

1949-1957 M A McCanis

1957-1969 K G White

1969-1981 P M H P Gale

broadsides. Fireworks were purchased, radios purloined from the CCF stores, and as respective Housemaster movements were observed and communicated from the opposing ship, fireworks were launched across the gardens in the hope of landing one inside a boy’s room. What would the modern obsession with Health and Safety have to say about that?

Newick House has continued to foster a strong sense of community. As other Houses drift to nearby pubs and restaurants for their House meals, Newick House remains firmly squashed into their common room, raising both the temperature and the likelihood of a risk of infection. The highlight of these events is often the awarding of a Cornflower tie.

The Cornflower tie was introduced in the 1970s, and is awarded to those making an outstanding contribution to the House.

It is rarely bestowed, and two years ago, Angela Barnett became the first Matron to be awarded the honour, after 25 years of service.

Earlier this year, the House had to bid a very sad farewell to one of its great

1981-1992 R W Kent

1992-2010 M Stovoid

ISSUE FIVE J A N U A RY 2 0 1 2

By Fergus Llewellyn (Housemaster)

2010 To Date F Llewellyn

custodians, Martin Stovold, who very sadly died in May. “Stovs” was much loved and respected by all his charges, revered for his dry sense of humour and his skills as a riotous raconteur. He ran the House with old fashioned values of respect, decency, consistency and strength, knowing his boys, and his horses, with great insight and shrewdness. The sheer volume of people that attended both his farewell parties, and his memorial service, is a fitting tribute to the huge esteem he was held in by colleagues, parents and Muglistonites alike.

Newick House is always open to its old boys, and would dearly welcome them should they wish to visit.

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HOUSE EMBLEMS Christine Leighton (College Archivist)

Requests to Archives are many and varied.

Recently I was asked “when and why was the Boyne House owl introduced as the House emblem?” Before I could answer I had similar requests from some of the other Houses. It was clearly time to do some serious research on all House emblems from Ashmead to Westal.

If only they were as easy as Ashmead and Westal!

In the late 1990s a new girls’ boarding house was being built and the then Senior Teacher, Heather Lawrence (1995-2010), asked Archives for any historical links which might inspire a name for the new house. As it had been built on land which had once been an orchard, the Archivist suggested calling it after an apple and suggested the famous Gloucestershire apple - Ashmead’s Kernal.

That apple was first introduced by William Ashmead, attorney at law, freeman of the city of Gloucester, and later town clerk. He raised the first tree near Clarence Street in Gloucester in the early 18th century and the tree was still there over 100 years later before it fell prey to the developers. Furthering the link, two Ashmead Kernel trees were planted in the grounds of the new boarding house. The apple itself was described in the book Pyrus Malus Brentfordiensis of 1831 as “a very nice crisp fruit, in perfection from December till February.” Thus, with the approval of College Council, Ashmead was born - and the emblem, obviously, was an apple.

Having successfully named Ashmead, Archives were again asked for ideas for the name of the new day girls’ house which would open in Thirlestaine cottages in September 2005. Suggestions at the time were to revive an old name like Cheltondale or Wilson - or create a new name linking College’s heritage with Edward Wilson and the Antarctic. We were not keen to use an old name in a new context - it is hard enough working out house histories, when they moved buildings but retained the name. Of the many Wilsonthemed suggestions, Westal was chosen.

That had been the name of the Wilson family home (demolished to make way for Eagle Tower car park!). Again, with the Wilson and

Antarctic link, a penguin was the obvious choice for an emblem.

Queen’s is another relatively easy one as it is well documented. Linden House was purchased in 1991 as part of College’s 150th Anniversary Appeal. Just before the Queen visited in November that year, she gave permission for the new boarding house, when refurbished, to be renamed “The Queen’s House” to commemorate her visit.

As far as I know, there is nothing in writing confirming the decision to adopt a crown as the emblem - but it seems an obvious one for the name of the House.

Emblems for the other Houses are not so easy as nothing in writing has yet been found. It is all hearsay, tradition and conjecture. Many people think the emblems only go back to the 1970s when House emblem ties were introduced. That may be true for Newick House and Southwood as no evidence for earlier usage of emblems has yet been found. However other House emblems are a lot older. In my experience with research, as soon as you commit to print, either some further relevant information is unearthed or someone will tell you that you have got it all wrong. So, without further ado, I will commit to print and await the elusive evidence or correction so that we can put the record straight for the future.

In the Archives there is a copy of the second issue of the Boyne House magazine, The Owl (Autumn 1979), which contains an article by Hugh Wright (1964-1979) in which he said that the owl tie for performance in the arts was ‘invented’ c.1973 to balance the older striped tie for games, but that the owl went back a long way: ‘there used to be solos and sketches performed in the Rec. room each year, and an owl made of wood was put about the curtains. These were stretched from wall to wall for the occasion. I have seen many programmes sent in response to an appeal for them in the Cheltonian a few years ago.’ That appeal was in the Summer 1973 edition, as the ‘owl is likely to be the motif of a new house tie for creative achievement.’ Subsequent Cheltonians refer to various Owls Dramatic Society productions and Owls Concert

Party programmes dating back to the 1920s and 1930s. I don’t know what happened to those programmes but Archives would be most grateful to receive any such, plus any copies of the first and subsequent issues of The Owl? Chandos opened in 1981 as the first girls’ House. Again, there is no evidence as to why a ladybird was chosen for their emblem - presumably because it was the first House for ladies?

The oldest emblem seems to be Christowe’s skull and crossbones, reputed to have been in existence from the time the House was at The Priory (1847-1866). The traditional (unconfirmed) story is that, after a particularly hard-fought House match, the father of one of the boys was so pleased with what he had seen that he presented the captain of the Priory team with one of his regimental cap badges. His regiment was the 17th Lancers. [In 1759, Colonel Hale of the 47th Foot was sent back to Britain with the news of General Wolfe’s death at the Battle of Quebec. As a reward, he was commissioned to raise the 17th Light Dragoons and, in memory of Wolfe’s death, their cap badge was a skull and crossed bones and their motto ‘Death or Glory’. After further tours of overseas’ service, they returned to Britain in 1823 and found out en route that the Army List had converted them into a Lancers regiment. In 1854 they were sent to the Crimea, where they took part in the Charge of the Light Brigade; and three years later they were sent to India as reinforcements during the Mutiny.] Fact or fiction, the skull and crossbones can be seen emblazoned on shirts in House sport photographs from 1877.

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Indeed when identifying faces and adding players’ names to the digital versions of such photographs, the program also asks for all skull and crossbones to be named! On printed material, it was used (with the motto nil desperandum) on the early covers of The Christowe Record, the House magazine that began in 1900. When and why was the motto changed from that used by the 17th Lancers?

Why does Hazelwell have a dragon? The story that a dragon was chosen because Trevor Davies (Housemaster when emblem ties were introduced) was Welsh is unlikely to be correct. Although he had joined the staff in 1962, he did not become Housemaster until 1971 and the earliest documentary evidence of a Hazelwell dragon is on the cover of a 1963 House magazine, The Greenite.

It may be, however, that he influenced the design for the tie as the dragon depicted on it is like the Welsh dragon, ie passant (three feet on the ground and one in the air), whereas the one on the 1963 cover appears to be salient (two feet on the ground and two in the air) or possibly rampant (one foot on the ground and three in the air). Certainly when Nicholas Lowton was Housemaster (1984-2008) he used the dragon rampant.

The dragon clearly likes to move around and I’m still trying to determine how many feet are on the ground in the latest rebranded 2012 version!.

Although the earliest Leconfield magazine is 1898, the 1918 issue of Chronicles of Leconfield was the first to have an anchor on the cover. Why an anchor?

The first documentary evidence I can find for the Newick House cornflower is on a House newsletter of Autumn 1987, well after emblem ties had been introduced. Did Newick House have no emblem before the 1970s? And why was a cornflower chosen?

Was it simply because the House colours were cornflower blue and black?

There had been a boarding house called Southwood House (1852-1915) and Southwood (1923-1939) but no evidence has yet been found that it had an emblem.

The name was revived again as a day house in 1975 and the Southwood bee (or wasp as is sometimes claimed) seems only to date from the 1970s. Despite a relatively recent date, nobody can confirm why a bee/wasp was chosen – other than yellow and black being Southwood colours.

This story would not be complete without mentioning two other houses. I’m told Cheltondale (1869-1981) never had an emblem although Gordon Wallace-Hadrill (Housemaster 1964-1972) apparently toyed with various ideas, notably a Tudor rose.

Certainly the 1971 issue of ‘Henry’ has a Tudor rose at the top of the title page.

Day Boy houses were originally known as Pittville and Lansdowne (from 1889), then East Day Boys and West Day Boys (until 1939). After the war there was just one day boy house which, from 1959-1975, was named Thirlestaine. Then, because of increasing numbers, Thirlestaine was split into two houses which were called Wilson (1975-1995) and Southwood (still flourishing). The Thirlestaine/Wilson emblem was a fleur-de-lis which was clearly the emblem for earlier day boys as it appears on a 1924 issue of The Day Boy Magazine.

If you can correct anything stated here, or provide earlier evidence for any of the symbols, please contact the Archives Department archives@ cheltenhamcollege.org. We would also like to hear from you if you can fill any of the gaps in our collection of House magazines. Maybe none were printed some years but if they were we would like copies of the following: The Owl: all copies (we only have Autumn 1979) The Christowe Record: 1925-27, 1930-31, 1939-57, 1964, 1973, 1976+ The Greenite: pre 1913, 1919-47, 1966, 1968, 1970+ Chronicles of Leconfield: 1920-33, 1935-47, 1949-56, 1958-65, 1967+ The Lewisite: we only have 1993-96

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Thirlestaine House

By Jill Barlow (College Archivist) JR Scott, from Thirlestane in Scotland, started to build Thirlestaine House in 1823. Set in a 300 acre estate in open country on the outskirts of Cheltenham, the house was still unfinished when he died in 1831. By then it was claimed that he had spent nearly £100,000 on the building and the house was so grand that it was advertised as the only abode in Cheltenham ‘worthy of the Repose of His Majesty’ if the town should again be honoured by a royal visit.

Particularly magnificent were the stables with their (now vanished) cupolas, said to be larger in area than the house itself. When Thirlestaine was bought by College the stables were converted first to staff cottages, then to Westal girls’ house.

After Scott’s death the house stood empty for seven years until, in 1838, it was bought by Lord Northwick, a member of the Rushout family from Blockley, near Chipping Campden. Needing a suitably grand setting to display his collection of pictures, Lord Northwick added the north wing in 1840 and the south wing in 1845. The £4,000 he obtained from the sale of land to Cheltenham College for the building of their new school in 1843 must have helped to finance the picture gallery.

Henry Davies, in his 1843 guide to Cheltenham, wrote that the Picture Gallery would be a great attraction ‘to persons of refined taste….few private collections in the kingdom equalling this, either in the number, richness or variety of their contents, and none being so accessible to the public’. The gallery was open every afternoon (except Sundays) except in wet weather when it was closed to protect both the paintings and the carpets. Lord Northwick enjoyed showing visitors round himself and he had much to be proud of.

This description appeared in Art Union in 1846.

‘The interior presents a continuous range of apartments, nearly three hundred feet in length; of which one suite offers a vista of two hundred and ten feet, comprising the Gallery, Ante Room, Drawing Room, Saloon and Dining Room. These apartments are lofty, and of admirable proportions… The walls are hung with a superb crimson colour, which is also continued in the curtains, and the satin cushions of the couches and chairs, constituting the furniture.

The doors, door frames, window dressings, and all the timber work are painted in imitation of a delicate bird’s eye maplewood, to which the varied and gorgeous hues of the crowd of pictures, in their dazzling gilt frames, add a splendour truly palatial to the coup d’oeil.’

Lord Northwick died intestate in 1859 and his 1,500 paintings including Holbeins, Titians, Rembrandts, Vandykes and Hogarths were auctioned in a sale which lasted 22 days and raised £100,000.

In 1867, Thirlestaine House was bought for £12,000 by Sir Thomas Phillipps, an avid collector of books and manuscripts whose vast collection was housed at Middle Hill, near Broadway. The terms of his father’s will required him to leave the Middle Hill house and its contents to a son-in-law he loathed. He could do nothing about the house, but the contents he resolved to remove. This he did, but it took 186 horses and hundreds of men to move the books and manuscripts from Broadway to Cheltenham. By 1868 Thirlestaine contained 100,000 books and thousands of manuscripts.

Phillipps devoted himself to his library, living as something of a recluse, writing curt letters to scholars who sent him enquiries and complaining that he found the house ‘ill arranged and uncomfortable’. The old stables had been converted into kitchens so the food, brought into the house along an underground passage, was always cold when it arrived.

When Phillipps died in 1872, he left his library to one of his daughters but did not leave enough money for her to maintain the collections and she was forced to start selling them. In 1939, the Ministry of Aircraft Production took over Thirlestaine House and the remaining books and manuscripts were moved to the basement. The best were stored in the wine cellar, but every corner of space was filled. Lionel and Philip Robinson bought the collection in 1946 for £100,000 and began to auction it. By the time of the seventh sale in 1972 they had raised £1,617,375 and the sales continued. There are now items from the Phillipps collection in almost every major library in the world. Unfortunately there are none left in College, although the occasional letter still arrives from a hopeful scholar in search of something that was once here.

The house passed down through Phillipps’ family until his great grandson, Alan George Fenwick, leased it in 1945 to Miss Frances Hall, who briefly opened it as a girls’ school. After a dispute with Gloucestershire County Council, who also wanted the property, College bought it in 1947 with money from the residue of the Centenary Fund Appeal. The upper floor and Long Gallery were refurbished as a music centre and, until the opening of Southwood in 1975, Thirlestaine provided accommodation for day boys.

Thirlestaine Long Gallery now provides an imposing setting for concerts, talks and exhibitions and decorative plaster ceilings look down unchanged on the activities of the Music, Art and Modern Language departments.

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F L O R E AT ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

Patrick White, College’s first Nobel Prize Winner

By Tim Pearce (Past Staff Member) Among the many famous men who attended Cheltenham College in its first hundred years, one stands out as the only Nobel Prize winner, and that, surprisingly among the multitude of Cheltonian achievements in military, engineering, legal, medical and colonial skills, was for Literature. His name was Patrick White and he was born a hundred years ago to one of the great grazier families in New South Wales. He was born in London while his parents were visiting and returned to Australia at the age of four months. For the next thirty-five years or so, he was conflicted between the literary and theatrical life of England and his Australian roots. Eventually he decided in favour of Sydney, where he lived for the rest of his life.

Although he attended a prep school in New South Wales, and his family was not one of those which sent their sons to England to complete their education, his parents had a friend called Beaufort Burdekin (OJ), who had attended College from 19041910 and became a barrister in Sydney.

He recommended Cheltenham as likely to be good for the boy’s asthma and in 1925 he set off for England with his parents. In September, he entered Southwood House, which in the twenties was in its second period of existence in a fine villa on the bend of Lypiatt Road as it turns towards Suffolk Road. At College, he largely kept himself to himself and felt some sense of persecution for being an Australian, though his contemporaries had no recollection of Australians in the school being picked on.

Even in a fee-paying school, he was one of the rich boys. The Cheltenham climate was not, in fact, good for his asthma and he spent sometime in the sick room, which he didn’t mind too much as it gave him the opportunity to read and write. His parents stayed in England for around two years, but after they returned to Australia, he was billeted with various Australian connections and was never very happy with that. “I hardly know which is worse – term time or the Hols”. He told this to Reginald Hailing, who ran Darter’s bookshop in Suffolk Road, on the way from Southwood to the College, where White and his friend Ronald Waterall (S ‘27) spent a good deal of their time.

They were stage-struck and wrote away to famous actresses for photographs and autographs.

By his final term, he was a prefect, playing rugby and running in the athletics team, so he ended up something of a traditional product of the school and his asthma cannot have affected him too badly, though he always thought of his time at Cheltenham with some distaste.

From 1929-31, he was in Australia working as a jackeroo on the estate of a friend of his father’s, not as great a change as might have been expected as the owner was recruiting hands from English public schools. This period of his life reappears in his first published novel ‘Happy Valley’, which was published in 1939 and again much later in The ‘Twyborn Affair’ in 1979, but it had soon become clear that he was neither suited nor committed to that way of life and in 1931, his mother arranged for a tutor to prepare him for entrance to Cambridge. Eventually, he felt great relief at leaving Australia for England. Although he had been tutored in Australia in History, when he arrived at King’s in October 1932, he switched to Modern Languages.

After Cambridge, the next period of his life until the outbreak of war was spent in London. He began to rewrite the novel he had composed during his time as a jackeroo before Cambridge, spending time in St. Jean de Luz near Biarritz to do so. This became ‘Happy Valley’. Back in London, he was moving in theatre society, writing skits for revues, and also trying unsuccessfully to find a publisher for the novel. ‘Happy Valley’ appeared in January 1939 and received many admiring reviews and critiques, though some alluded to its occasional obscurity and derivation from Lawrence and Joyce. White later refused to allow the novel to be reprinted for exactly those reasons.

In 1940, he was in London and as his health probably precluded any immediate military service, he was working for the Red Cross. In 1940, he was accepted in the Special Duties Branch (Intelligence) of the RAF Volunteer Reserve and found himself compiling reports on the bombing of Britain. In 1941, he was sent as intelligence officer attached to the No. 1 squadron of the South African Air Force in Kassala in the Sudan. Later in 1941, when he was posted to Alexandria he met Manoly Lascaris, a descendant of the last emperors of Byzantium, who became his friend and companion for the rest of his life.

During this period, White was gestating his eventual return to Australia, and the work which would eventually appear in 1957 as

‘Voss’,, perhaps his most well-known novel, began to germinate. It would be about a megalomaniac explorer, his love affair with an equally strong-willed woman and about Australia. After he was demobbed, he returned to London in 1946 where he bought a painting called the Aunt and began his third novel, ‘The Aunt’s Story’, published in 1948. This is the novel in which his distinctive voice first appears. It is set partly in Australia, partly in Europe and partly in America. He wrote the Australian section at speed as if a release had arrived at last of all the memories of his childhood and youth. Then he visited Manoly in Alexandria, where he wrote the middle section, set in a decayed hotel in the South of France.

They decided to go to Australia and in the meantime, ‘The Aunt’s Story’ was published to considerable acclaim. By April, 1948, they had bought the farm at Castle Hill to the north of Sydney which became their home for many years.

The next few years saw the publication of the novels on which his reputation and his award of the Nobel Prize were founded.

‘The Tree of Man’ (1956) is a sort of epic of ‘The Common Man’, ‘Voss’ (1957), based on the life of the explorer Ludwig Leichhardt, is perhaps his best known work, ‘Riders in the Chariot’ (1961), his grandest, with four intersecting narratives of great power and variety. ‘The Eye of the Storm’ (1973) was the novel for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize, though this was probably for the whole corpus of his work. It is a study of old age. ‘A Fringe of Leaves’ (1976), which is one of his most accessible works, is based on the life of a shipwreck survivor stranded on an island off the coast of Queensland and entirely dependent on local tribesmen for survival. His novels are demanding but rewarding and very memorable. His perceptions of human nature are often harrowingly blunt and honest and his characters, like those of many great novelists remain in the memory long after the details of the novels have faded.

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ROYAL VISIT COMMEMORATES 150 YEARS OF CCF SERVICE

By Major Richard Penny (Contingent Commander)

On Thursday 27 September 2012, College hosted a visit from His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex KG GCVO to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the College Combined Cadet Force (CCF).

The visit was also a fitting reminder of over 6000 Old Cheltonians who have served their country since the school was founded in 1841. Partaking in the anniversary event alongside HRH were VIPs Dame Janet Trotter, HM Lord Lieutenant for Gloucestershire, Mr Duncan Clegg, the High Sheriff of Gloucestershire, Mr Colin Hay, Mayor of Cheltenham and Mr Tony Hicks, Chairman of Gloucestershire County Council accompanied by prominent Old Cheltonians, including General Sir Michael Rose and Sir Edmund Burton.

Landing by helicopter on College Field the day commenced with the inspection of the College Colours and Honour Guard before a service in the College Chapel, with the Bishop of Rochester and Old Cheltonian, The Right Rev James Langstaff (L ’73), dedicating a specially commissioned Memorial. It was down to Head of Corps, Cadet RSM Tom Gossage (U6, BH), to greet the Prince after his helicopter had landed on the school playing field.

“As soon as I started to talk to him it was absolutely fine. He was very approachable and interested to hear about what we have been doing in the CCF and at school generally. I told

him about cycling from John O’Groats to Land’s End over the summer to raise money for Help for Heroes.”

After Chapel, the programme showcased the rich heritage of the College Combined Cadet Force, with pupils participating in stands and activities representing each of the three services; the Navy, the Army and the Air Force. These included gun runs, the College assault course, command tasks and field-craft stands. Student sea kayakists, cyclists and hikers who have successfully completed The Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Gold Award were also on parade as a mark of respect to HRH who is a Trustee of the Award, as were the Junior School Scout Troop. The adventurous theme continued later in the day when he also met the “Spirit of Wilson” group, which included students who have been exploring on travel awards, volunteered at the Bradet Orphanage in Romania, completed their DofE Bronze or cycled the length of the UK. HRH met a huge number and variety of students throughout the day, from the youngest Kingfishers through to the Heads of College. One of the highlights was the entire Junior School lining the drive with the Joint College Wind Band performing stirring patriotic music to mark the occasion.

Harriet Lacey (5th Form, A), who is in the Army Section, also got to speak to HRH about her ongoing application for an Army Sixth Form Scholarship as a helicopter pilot. “It was quite a thrill and he asked about the huge range of activities and courses open to us both in College and through the MoD. I had a brilliant time on Summer Camp and can’t wait to start the Advanced Infantry and leadership courses later this year”.

The day recognised the service evident throughout the College community as well as in the Armed Forces and so Prince Edward also took time out to chat to some of the College’s longest serving staff, including matrons and stalwarts from the Estates team over lunch.

Following lunch with staff, pupils, VIPs and prominent Old Cheltonians, Prince Edward unveiled a plaque and joined the official Contingent Photograph. Throughout the event, HRH, as Royal Colonel, 2nd Batallion, The Rifles, was dressed in Rifles uniform as a link to the founding in 1862 of the Volunteer Rifle Corps. To this day, every pupil joining College at 13+ takes part in CCF, developing the kind of discipline, self-reliance and leadership skills that are of utmost importance in all modern career paths.

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FEATURE ARTICLES...

F L O R E AT ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

Carry On Crewing!

By Minna Peake (A ’10) Working on a super yacht was never something I imagined doing, when I was considering a gap year. Charlie Ross (Xt ’09) mentioned he was applying for a deckhand position on a 75m super yacht with 18 crew. It would be cruising round the Mediterranean for the summer. On top of that, he would be getting a monthly salary plus charter tips. To me this sounded fantastic!

But where to start? Charlie explained that all ‘yachties’ must do the £875 STCW95 safety course before you can even think about getting a job.

I also did a Marine Hospitality course (£3,990) that explained everything about being a stewardess and what to expect. From going out to the yachting hub of the Med, Antibes, finding accommodation, advice on how to get a job, to your duties onboard. The course leader fortunately recommended me for my first job on a 54m charter motor yacht called Maraya. I joined the boat in the South of France in April and stayed until September.

The boat had 15 crew third stewardesses.

The season started with ‘detailing’ the entire boat. Detailing is a very deep clean of every nook and cranny and must be done prior to and after every season. I thought they were joking when I was handed a box of cotton buds and another of tooth-picks, and told to get started! My chief stewardess trained us in how to make the guests’ beds, how to clean their cabins properly, how to do guest and crew laundry, how to iron to standard, cocktail making and how to do the different types of service.

By May we were ready for our first charter. Although we had all the necessary training, charter was nothing like I expected. From the moment the guests stepped on board, all guns were blazing and 24-hour service was provided. We three juniors rotated through laundry, cabins and service. I despised laundry to start with because of the ironing; we were told it should take no less than 20 minutes to iron a man’s shirt. The tiny laundry squeezed in five washers, five dryers, a sheet roller, laundry from 15 crew, 12 guests, 50 towels per day and linen from six cabins. I was shocked to learn that every time a towel was used it must be replaced with a fresh one. I did get the hang of it after a few tears and 3am finishes.

We had one lot of guests who certainly put us through our paces.

They chartered for nine weeks, which meant not one day off for 91 days. They had all the cabins in use most of the time and wanted elaborate three course meals, twice a day. They disliked our crockery so spent tens of thousands on buying more, which to our horror was hand wash only. Furthermore, their pug Luigi would sleep on the guest beds and often have an accident in the night.

So at three, four, five in the morning, the Steward’s call would go and we would have to go and change the sheets and wash the duvet, while apologising for the inconvenience!

You may be wondering why I decided to do it again this summer.

But it is paid well, I had a huge amount of fun and went from Monaco to Istanbul and everywhere in between. I quickly learnt that you ‘work hard and play harder’ at every opportunity; when the cocktails are 35 Euros a piece you don’t care because you’ve just been scrubbing loos with a toothbrush, ironing the boss’ underwear and serving guests the most elaborate meals that they don’t even eat.

I always sneered at the gigantic ‘gin palaces’, pompously lined up in every port along the French Riviera; to passers by they are just glamorous, seven star, floating hotels. To us they are home. The crew become your family, your shoulder to cry on when the boss shouts at you. It takes huge discipline and stamina to serve the rich and famous but I would recommend it to anyone.

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OC SPORTS...

FLOREAT

OC RACKETS

By Karl Cook (Current Staff Member) The 12th OC Rackets Weekend took its place in the National Rackets Calendar in March and attracted once again an impressive field of players, including three players ranked in the World top 10.

40 players competed over the course of the weekend, with a healthy representation from London’s Queen’s Club this year.

Mark Briers, College Professional, and Karl Cook watched over some spectacular contests, especially on the Saturday afternoon, which also happened to coincide with College’s Open Morning, thereby ensuring that the gallery was busy!

The pick of the matches was the College Pair’s victory over the number one seeds, Nick James (BH ’05) and Mike Bailey. Chris Stout (H ’02) and Alex Duncliffe-Vines (U6, NH), who won the Public Schools Championship in March, were superb in the rallies, hitting some enviable doubles widths. In beating Dan Shiner (L ’09) and Tom Stevens in the semi-final, this meant that the Final of the OC Gold Racquet would involve the College Pair for the first time in its brief history. As it turned out, the wily pairing of Alex Coldicott (BH ’02) and Steve Tulley, the St. Paul’s Professional, meant that the OCs outwitted, and at times, out-hit the boys, and in so doing, gave the gallery a fine example of doubles rackets; it also gave Alex Coldicott his third OC title.

The OC Rackets Dinner in the evening was a fine occasion with over 50 present. For his excellent season, including runner-up in the British Open, Nick James (BH ’05) won the OC Racket for contribution to OC Rackets, and Mike Cawdron (W ’93) spoke on behalf of the OCs. This season saw the semi-finals of the British Open, the most prestigious Doubles Rackets Tournament in the world, boast no fewer than 3 OCs: Nick James (BH ’05) partnering World Champion (03-05), Ben Snell (L ’02) partnering World Champion (91-02), and Jamie Stout (H ’02) is World Champion (08-present) ... alas, the OCless pair won the competition.

OCs currently working as Professionals: J Stout (H ’02) - Head Pro at New York Tennis and Rackets Club, USA BEL Snell (L ’05) - Head Pro at Queen’s Club, London JC Rock (NH ’05) - Head Pro at Montreal Rackets Club, Canada MC Cawdron (W ’93) - Head Pro at Haileybury College AP Stout (H ’05) - Haileybury College (Asst) AJ Mason (H ’11) - Chicago Racquets Club, USA (Fellow) RCD Owen (L ’11) - Philadelphia Rackets Club, USA (Fellow) Next season is the 25th Anniversary of the re-opening of the Court.

OC HOCKEY – 17th March 2012

OC GIRLS’ HOCKEY

By Tom Richardson (Xt ’98 & Current Staff)

By Gwyn Williams (Current Staff)

I would like to start by thanking all those OCs who made the effort to come along and play. We had the best part of 25-30 OCs ranging from ’99 -’11 leavers. A big crowd turned out comprising both parents and the College to witness two free flowing and entertaining games played to a high standard.

The vast majority played, but some remained firmly behind the barrier not being able to recover from the night before! The matches were played in great spirit, the College sides definitely had the edge in the fitness department and if it hadn’t been for goal keeping heroics from current Cheltonians Jordan Moshi (NH) and Will Kirk (Xt), the OCs may have found themselves firmly behind in both games. A narrow victory was obtained by the OCs in the first game (2-1) but it took a war of attrition to hold on for the draw in the second (1-1), although the OCs played some fantastic hockey at times, exhaustion was not far away!

On 17th November 2012, the first attempt for the girls to have their hockey day within the College’s Autumn Term fixtures took place. The College XI had played Millfield in the afternoon and then around 20 or so OC Girls hockey leavers from 2003 up to 2012, under the guidance of Pip Mitchell (A ‘09), donned their shin-pads and gum shields once again on Cotswold Astro. The Marquee was brimming with OCs and also many a parent in anticipation of an enthralling game. They were not to be disappointed as the OC XI raced to a 2-0 lead only to be reigned back in by the XI who got the scoreline to 2-2. The game then opened up and both teams went for the win, with both Goalkeepers pulling off a number of great saves to ensure the honours were even and the match remained a 2-2 draw. This was a great start to a now annual event and all 20 or so OCs then proceeded to head out into the dizzy lights of Cheltenham town.

A special mention must go out to Gwyn Williams for all his efforts in organising the weekend; drumming up OC players has its challenges and all Gwyn’s efforts paid off as we had one of our largest turnouts so far. It is hugely important that we build from this success and that we have more OCs coming back next year. Can I also encourage OCs to e-mail me their contact details t.richardson@cheltenhamcollege.org 57

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F L O R E AT

OC SPORTS...

ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

OLD CHELTONIAN CRICKET CLUB 2012 SEASON

By Christopher Griffith-Jones (Th ’63) This has been a difficult season for OC cricket with the very sad and untimely death of Martin Stovold. I do not propose to write further on Martin’s time at Cheltenham in this article as this is very fully covered in the Obituary Supplement of Floreat. The day of his Memorial Service in College Chapel, Saturday the 19th May, saw a huge turnout of OCs as our own tribute to someone who had given such a huge amount to College, particularly to cricket and also to the OC cricket effort as well.

It is very fitting that there is now at College, beside the cricket square that he so loved,

a permanent tribute to him in the shape of the electronic scoreboard. This was financed from donations from OCs and parents and named in his memory. The scoreboard was officially opened before the start of the OC 1st and 2nd XIs games against College in May. Martin had for a long while been running OC cricket virtually single handed by organising fixtures, raising teams and running the games on the day.

He was very aware of the importance of the Cricketer Cup competition to the College and had achieved some excellent results, particularly over the last five years. He built up the present team which is now a very good side with a lot of potential and would have been absolutely delighted with our

OC GOLF SOCIETY

By Simon Collyer-Bristow (BH ’77 & Past Parent) 2012 has been a successful year both on and off the course. We have had over 90 OCs representing the OCGS this season.

The OCGS elite side captained by Peter Richards (Xt ’88) played Birkenhead in a new fixture at Royal Liverpool GC but following a good night’s entertainment succumbed easily the following day in tough weather conditions; the next elite match was against the Old Radleians at Royal St Georges GC and resulted in a complete turnaround in fortunes with a satisfying 5-0 victory followed up later in the month with a 7-4 match victory against Lorreto at Rye GC. At the main Halford Hewitt tournament the OCGS team won convincingly 4-1 in the first round against King Edward’s, Birmingham then beat Stonyhurst 4-1 in the second round before losing narrowly, 3-2, to Bedford in the third round. A promising run.

The elite teams also represented OCGS in the G.L.Mellin Salver, the Peter Burles, the Bunny Millard and the prestigious Alba Trophy and Grafton Morrish events. At Denham GC the OCGS failed to qualify from their Grafton Morrish preliminary round. An elite OCGS team took part later in the summer in the Public School Midlands’ Meeting at Little Aston GC and the Society participated for the first time in the Denham Bowl at Denham GC in September.

In the friendly matches and festivals there were some excellent results and all the days were much enjoyed by all those who partook. We won a close match to the Old Marlburians 3-1 in wet conditions at Woking GC followed by an excellent dinner. OM’s therefore retain the Peter Gale Salver. OCGS convincingly beat the Old Shirburnians 5-3 at Hamptworth GC in July and won back the Peter Currie Cup. Both these long-standing matches

were very well organised by Henry Rees (Xt ’59). The match against The Medical Golfing Society at Denham GC was again a great success. OCGS played another close match against the Old Decanians at The Berkshire GC with excellent golf from both sides. Both matches were halved. At the end of November OCGS lost their annual match versus College 3-1 at Cotswold Hills GC against an improving school team. This was the first victory by College since 2005 and one the Society were therefore easily able to stomach! This left the combined elite/friendly 2012 match record reading : Played 8 - Won 3, Drew 2, Lost 3.

The Summer Meeting again featured the Evergreens v the Braves at Worplesdon GC for the Harry Rees Memorial Trophy. Next year this will become the Evergreens v the Greys. The Autumn Meeting before the AGM was held at Denham GC with the President’s Scratch won by Peter Richards who also won the Lysaght Cup. The Young Cup was retained by Edward Coomber (BH ’65) whilst Julian Snell (L ’76) won the Keene Cup. The Prospect prize for the best College pupil was won by Chris Stanyon (NH ’90).

At the AGM the President, Robert Macleod-Smith (CH ’65), thanked all the Officers and match managers. He particularly thanked retiring Captain, Peter Richards, and welcomed on board incoming Captain, Chris Griffiths-Jones (Th ’63). Special mention went to Secretary, Charlie Elliott (H ’89).

The season finished on a high note with the OCGS team captained by Henry Rees winning the Welsh Public Schools

first round giant killing win this year against the Repton Pilgrims.

The rest of the season was to a large extent rained off, although we did finish the season with good wins against the Gloucestershire Gypsies at Stowell Park and at the Hurlingham Club.

A number of us are currently trying to re-invent the OC Cricket Club, run by a committee, with the purpose of taking a much more active part in running of OC cricket and working closely with the Head of Cricket at College.

There is now a dedicated page to OC cricket on the Association website and it is here that relevant contacts can be found for anyone interested in playing or helping.

Championship for the Edward Harris Cup at Southerndown GC. This was the first time OCGS had won the trophy having been runners-up in the last 2 years. We beat Ruthin second place and will be the host school in 2014.

In late November a special lunch was held at Denham GC to mark the retirement of longstanding OCGS member, past Hon Sec and Hon Treasurer, Mike AndrewsJones (Xt ’46), after many, many years (35 to be exact) of dutiful service. Nearly 30 OCGS members attended and heard a moving speech by OCGS President, Robert Macleod-Smith (Ch ’65), and various presentations to mark the special occasion.

MA-J for many years “was” the OCGS and the Cheltonian Association and Society owe him a massive debt of gratitude for all his time, effort and dedication.

Any OC interested in joining the Golf Society is encouraged to contact one of the Committee below:College Contact: Mike Todd, Tel: 01242 265627 Mob: 07702 420071 Email: m.todd@cheltenhamcollege.org OC Contact: Simon Collyer-Bristow, Tel: 01285 760228 Mob: 07765 025849 Email: scb@crfc.co.uk OCGS Secretary: Charlie Elliott, Tel: 01451 870995, Mob: 07971 818158, Email: CElliott@the-mad-group.com OCGS Captain: Chris Griffiths-Jones, Tel: 020 7736 5229, Mob: 07967 142964, Email: ccgj@dsl.pipex.com 58

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CHELTONIAN SOCIETY...

FLOREAT

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE CHELTONIAN SOCIETY This is my last message before I hand over, and I wish Peter Badham good wishes as President.

I have enjoyed the last five plus years in all sorts of ways, especially meeting so many Old Cheltonians and sharing (and improving!) memories of past events at College.

It is time to take stock and I thank: s The President and Council Members, the Headmasters and their Staff for their interest and support of The Society. s The Development Director with his small Association Team who have worked tirelessly to organise many enjoyable successful events and gatherings. s Executive Committee Members and other Old Cheltonians who not only have made generous donations to, but have given time to support College with career talks, lectures, coaching and on the ‘touch line’!

Cheltonian Society Executive Committee A P Arengo-Jones (BH ’62) P F D Badham (Th ’65) D R Brown (L ’84) F Dessain (A ’07) P S Hammerson (L ’62) J F McWilliam (S ’09) C N Peace (H ’60) F Reece (Cha ’87) E L Rowland (Xt ’62) L Straker-Nesbitt (A ’07) M G P Swiney (NH ’69) A M Wilkinson (L ’62) M Sloan (OC Administrator)

Finally, a word on the future: at The Society’s Annual General Meeting on 15th December 2012 Old Cheltonians approved the proposal that The Association and The Society should be jointly called ’The Cheltonian Association and Society’. This makes it clear that it is a combined support organisation, not in any way removing the independence of The Cheltonian Society, but additionally recognising The Society’s contribution throughout the organisation. The title will be used from the date of the House Reunions in London on the 2nd May 2013.

L J C Anderson (Th ’59)

AWARDS

The Society, in conjunction with the Trustees of the Cheltenham Endowment Trust, were pleased to make Travel Awards (to the L6th) to enable: Phoebe Hunt (A) and Emma Furniss-Roe (A) to travel to India to teach English in a school and to gain an understanding of Buddhist tradition and the institution of the Dalia Lama.

Tom Luksic (Xt) to travel to North Chile to further his knowledge of mining and the economics of the process of copper production.

Ex-officio Members A Harris (Development Director) R Creed (Cheltonian Association Manager)

Andrew Swait (S) to travel to Italy to enhance his Art History study of the Renaissance period.

Hugo Stewart (H) to travel to Greece and visit the key sites of importance in Classical Greek History.

THE CHELTONIAN ENDOWMENT TRUST

Trustees of the CET: Paul Arengo-Jones (BH ’62) Chairman Peter Badham (Th ’65) Helen Burgoyne (Cha ’87) Rob Davidson (BH ’67) Treasurer Patrick McCanlis (BH ’66) Graham Prain (Ch ’59) Lynn Rowland (Xt ’62) Charles Stevens (Ch ’64)

The Cheltonian Endowment Trust (CET), formerly the Cheltonian Trust Endowment Fund, was formed in 1917 for the purpose of acquiring donations, subscriptions and legacies and then applying the income for the benefit of Cheltenham College. This fund was merged in 2005 with the Cheltonian Society Fund and the Sir John Dill Fund to make a larger and more effective charitable fund.

The fund is an independent Trust run by a board of Old Cheltonians. The fund is professionally managed. The income is used primarily to assist families who find themselves in a situation where, without our support, they would otherwise have to withdraw their children from College. In addition the CET funds Travel Awards for L6th pupils and also funds a number of prizes. Furthermore, when sufficient funds are available, the Trust provides other assistance: this last year it has provided funds for the refurbishment of two science laboratories.

We are always looking for support, both for OCs to become trustees and for financial contributions.

If you would like to know more please get in touch with me through Malcolm Sloan, the OC Administrator.

Paul Arengo-Jones, Chairman. (BH ’62)

India

By Phoebe Hunt (U6th, Ashmead) This summer, Emma Furniss-Roe (U6th, Ashmead) and I had the unforgettable opportunity of travelling around Northern India for two weeks. Helped by a travel award from the Cheltonian Endowment Trust, we spent two amazing weeks immersed in this vibrant and unfamiliar culture, changing our attitudes forever.

It’s six o’clock in the morning Indian time, but the first thing you notice as you step off the plane is the overwhelming heat. As we drove out of Delhi International Airport with our guide (who turned out to be called Vineet), no seatbelts, and our suitcases propped on the roof, it was clear we couldn’t be anywhere but India. We wound our way through stray cows, overloaded trucks, bikes and Tuk-Tuks swerving and overtaking in a hurry to be somewhere.

After being dropped in an air-conditioned hotel and told to sleep till

that evening, Emma and I decided to go out and explore Delhi whilst we had the chance; a stupid but very good decision. We got a TukTuk to the Red Fort, a 17th century Mongol monstrosity in the heart of Delhi, which was number one attraction in our guidebook. Even before breakfast time, this incredible fort was swarming with people, unashamedly staring, pointing and asking for photos with us. When we came out, we were chased by rickshaw drivers, promising to take us on a tour of Delhi’s wonderful secret spice and silk markets for 100 rupees (just over a pound!). We eventually agreed, only to be naively led down dodgy back-roads to his relative’s overpriced basement shop. Vineet seemed to be quite surprised that we’d gone out in Delhi alone, and took us to a bizarre Indian-American diner for lunch. That evening, we got an 11-hour bus journey on the bumpy mountain roads to Dharamsala, his Holiness Dalai Lama’s town in the Himalayan foothills, where we would be staying for the next two weeks. Far from being boring, we spent most of the night journey staring out of the window as we passed temples, mosques, shanty towns and villages. As it began to get light, we noticed a bus exactly like ours, smashed in a valley a few hundred metres below!

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F L O R E AT

CHELTONIAN SOCIETY...

ISSUE SIX J A N U A RY 2 0 1 3

We Who Served

By Lawrence Anderson (Th ’59) College has become the first school to honour its former pupils with a Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum at Alrewas in Staffordshire.

Since the College was founded on the 28th July 1841, over six thousand Cheltonians have served with distinction in wars and military campaigns with the award of fourteen Victoria Crosses and many other gallantry awards. Over fifteen hundred have lost their lives in service of their Country, including fifty-five in the Boer War, six-hundred-and-seventy-five in the First World War and three-hundredand-sixty-three in the Second World War. Fourteen flew in action in the Battle of Britain. The walls of the College chapel are girdled with the brass memorial plaques to those who died before and after the Second World War, while the Dining Hall is dominated by the great stone memorial to all who died in, or as a result of, the war in 1939-45. On the 8th May 2004, the Colours were paraded at the Menin Gate at Ypres in Belgium. Subsequently, on the 9th May 2004 the Memorial Plaque to the Cheltonians who gave their lives in the First World War was replaced in St George’s Memorial Church at Ypres. Nowhere in Britain, however, is there a public memorial to former pupils of any school.

On 27th September 2012, the Bishop of Rochester, The Right Reverend James Langstaff (L ’73), dedicated this memorial in the College Chapel as part of 150th Anniversary celebration of the formation,

in 1862, of the Cheltenham College Rifle Corps, the forerunner of the Combined Cadet Force in the presence of HRH The Earl of Wessex. The Memorial was moved to the National Memorial Arboretum, which is a special place honouring those who have served, and continue to serve our nation in many different ways. There are two hundred dedicated memorials across the 150-acre site where more than 50,000 trees are planted.

On Sunday the 7th October 2012, over one hundred and fifty pupils, OCs, staff and parents attended a Service of Blessing at the Arboretum. The Colours were paraded at the Memorial under the command of Cadet Warrant Officer Class One Tom Gossage (U6, BH). The Colour Party included The Queen’s Colour carried by Cadet Colour Serjeant Jack Smart (U6, NH), The College Colour carried by Cadet Colour Serjeant Ben Bruce (U6, L) with the Escort, Cadet Corporal Eisuke Sakaguchi (U6, H) and Cadet Leading Hand Georgie Bond (U6, Q). After a short introduction by the Headmaster, Dr ALR Peterken, the Memorial was installed at a Service of Blessing conducted by the Bishop of Rochester with the College Senior Chaplain, The Reverend Dr Adam Dunning.

Wreaths were laid on behalf of present day pupils by the Head Boy and Head Girl of The Junior School, Tom Stanton & Georgie

When we finally arrived in our volunteer house in Sidpur, a little village outside Dharamsala, we collapsed on our beds until teatime.

At this point, we discovered the delights of Chai; a sweet, milky Indian tea which somehow managed to be refreshing in the tropical heat. The next day, we were taken to our first day care group in a neighbouring village. Here, we were dropped with around 20 children of all ages in a sweltering room for 2 hours. As it turned out, the children were adorable, and we had a lot of fun teaching them English words, playground games and songs. After a delicious lunch of regional specialties and chapatti, we were taken to our afternoon class on someone’s veranda. This was even better than the morning class, as we sat round teaching them about animals, Geography, vehicles and simple sentences. One of my favourite parts was as we drove down the dusty village track and the children came running out of their houses to the lesson. In the evenings, we got to know the other volunteers, and enjoyed the hilarious Indian TV. We also went to Mcleod Ganj and Lower Dharamsala, the local towns, to do some shopping and get Salwa Kamis (Indian dresses) tailored. At

Fowler, and on behalf of former pupils Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Gossage AAC (H ’81) & Captain Laura Holmes RAVC (Cha ’99). The Ode of Remembrance was said by the College Head Boy, Seb Cheli (U6, L), and The Kohima Epitaph by the College Head Girl, Annie Townley (U6, A).

A five piece brass Ensemble made up of Cadet Chief Petty Officer Duncan Payne (U6, S), Cadet Leading Hand Fin Gladman (U6, Xt), Cadet Leading Hand Tommy Smith (U6, S), Cadet Corporal Chris Bowring (L6, S) and Cadet Lance Corporal Will Beresford (U6, L) under the direction of Mrs Sue Mills played the music and sounded The Last Post and The Reveille. It was a glorious afternoon with a buzzard hovering above throughout and a flight of geese ‘flying past’ as the Bishop blessed the Memorial!

After the Service afternoon tea was served with a cutting of a 150th Anniversary celebration cake

by Tom Gossage (U6, BH) for everyone to enjoy.

the weekend, we went on a two-day trek in the Himalayas, which was another highlight of the trip with the most incredible views I’ve ever seen.

After two weeks in Dharamsala, it was time to move on to Agra. This involved an unforgettable 17 hour train journey, where the staring men were impossible to avoid, although quite funny at times as they tried to impress and take photos of us whilst being subtle. In Agra, we ate Malai Kofta, literally the most revolting meal we have ever tasted, and finished our holiday with a trip to the Taj Mahal, which lived up to all our expectations and was truly amazing. If anybody is thinking of getting a travel award or going to Northern India, we cannot recommend the company we used, ISPIICE, highly enough – they were so lovely and responsible and we are friends with them on Facebook!

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ANNOUNCEMENTS...

2012 Marriages Tim Cadbury (S ’00) married Lizzie Naylor on 9th June 2012 in St Endellion Church, North Cornwall. Charles Cadbury (S ’98) was Best Man and Douglas Cadbury (Xt ’03) and Graeme Tyndall (H ’00) were Ushers.

Alastair Dixon (S ’01) married Helen Pearce on 28th May 2010 in the Almeda Gardens, Gibraltar. John Marsden (S ’01) was Best Man and John Brunt (S ’01) and Charles Mitchell (BH ’01) attended.

Oliver Gibbins (L ’00) married Hoai Trinh Truong on 25th September 2010 at St Georg Holy Trinity Church in Hamburg. Tom Eckelmann (L ’01), Patrick Jung (H ’99) and Gregor Wessling (H ’00) attended.

Jonathan Little (S ’96) married Georgina French in St Andrew’s Church in Staffordshire on 5th November 2011. Jonathan Marshall-Lee (L ’96) was Best Man and Algy Brinton (Xt ’97) was an Usher.

Mike Stout (H ’01) married Nicole Ceridwen Pichler in Chapel on 21st April 2012.

Nicholas Lowton officiated and James Stout (H ’02) was Best Man.

Yorke Eaton (Xt ’95) married Fiona Lamont in Ripon Cathedral on 23rd June 2012. Tom Holt-Wilson (Xt ’95) was Best Man.

Simon Cowley (L ’98) married Becky Grote (Cha ’97) in Portugal on 30th June 2012.

Simon Johnston (BH ’98) was Best Man and James Blakeway (S ’98), Luke Durkin (L ’98), Sam Fairbairn (S ’98), Jamie Ashbridge (S ’98) and James Cowley (S ’96) were ushers.

Simon Daniellie (H ’98), Rob Johnston (BH ’96), Ed Froggatt (BH ’95), Guy Smith (NH ’96), Nic Farmer (S ’96) and Sarah Blakeway (Ch ’01) attended.

Matthew Ripley (S ’01) married Leyla Shamchiyeva on 24th August 2012 in Oistins, Barbados. Jonathan Brunt (S ’01) was Best Man.

Oliver Gibbins (L ’00) – thank you for Floreat, I tru ly enjoy every edition.

2012 Births Sean Arrowsmith (NH ’94) and his wife Anna are pleased to announce the birth of their son, Jasper, born on 27th August 2010.

Kate Hickey (nee Douglas Cha ’98) and her husband Ceiran are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Abigail, born on 25th July 2011.

David Barnsdale (Xt ’96) and his partner Inga Boellinghaus are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Orla Anelia, born on 26th January 2012.

Tommy Doyle (L ’96) and his wife Cerina are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Beatrice Allegra, born on 2nd February 2012, a sister to Thomas Constantina.

Omar Al-Dahhan (NH ’97) and his wife Charlotte are pleased to announce the birth of their son, Lucas, born on 10th February 2012.

Toby Greville (Xt ’90) and his wife Susan are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Alexandra, born in April 2012, a younger sister to Constance born in April 2009.

Liam Williams (Staff Member) and his partner Aimee Cole are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Elowen, born on 11th April 2012.

Gareth Jenkins (L ’97) and his wife Poppy (nee Goodrich, Cha ’97) are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Alexa Seren Jennifer, born on 15th June 2012.

Oliver Gibbins (L ’00) and his wife Hoai Trinh are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Lilien Ly, born on 19th June 2012.

Howard Swanwick (W ’88) and his wife Angela are pleased to announce the birth of their son, Jack Alfred Rivers, born on 11th September 2012.

Fergus Llewellyn (Newick House Housemaster) and his wife Tamsyn (Current Junior School Staff) are pleased to announce the birth of their son, Joshua Samuel, born in Newick House on 6th November 2012.

Seb Buckley (S ’00) and his wife Amanda (nee Watts, Cha ’00) are pleased to announce the birth of their son, Miles Austen Richardson, born on 23rd December 2012.

Nick Nelson (Christowe Housemaster) and his wife Katie are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Clara Margot Helena, born on 26th June 2012.

61

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17/01/2013 10:11

MERCHANDISE...

Flip Flops £2.50 CCJS Sizes 3, 5 & 7 SS Sizes, 5, 7 & 10

ES ER SIZ SMALL LE FOR B SUITA EN (8+) R CHILD

Rugby Shirts £20 Ladies S, M & L Mens S, M & L Socks £7 Sizes 4-7 or 8-12 *Ladies’ OC Scarf £10 *OC Tie £10 *OC Woollen Scarf £20

NEW

*Self Tie Silk Bow Tie £15 *Pre Tied Silk Bow Tie £15

NEW

Junior School Crest Cufflinks £30

Cerise/Black & Blue/White PJs £20 Small (28”-30”), Medium (32”-34”), Large (36”-38”) and XL (40”-42”), Blue/White Small (28”-30”)

Lamy Fountain Pen £20 Silver Cufflinks £70

NEW

NEW

House Towels £18 Boys’ House Towels

Ladies’ Boxer Shorts £11 S (26’), M (28’), L (30’)

NEW Ladies’ Umbrella £15 Chrome Keyring £15 Mini Rugby Balls £6

NEW

* OCs Only

Michael Aubery

NEW

Size 19” x 22” mounted.

Price Mounted £95 (inc p&p)

College Cards £1.90 each College Cards pack of 6 £10

Ian Weatherhead

Limited edition prints (300). Choice of: New - Birds Eye View of Cheltenham Cricket Festival Leavers’ Ball Cricket Festival Rugby Match Dining Hall Cheltenham College Junior School Chapel Interior A

Silver

B

Natural Ash

C

Gold

Framed £189 (p+p £15 – UK only) Print Only £120 (p+p £6 – UK only) Ian Weatherhead Notelets Price £10 per pack

Sheaffer Fountain Pen & Pencil Full Set £35 Fountain Pen only £25 Paperweight £8 Then and Now by Tim Pearce £8 Then and Now + Celebr08! £25 Cheltenham College Chapel

by Nicholas Lowton £8 Celebr08! Book by Tim Pearce £20 College Chapel Choir, 2007 CD £2.50 College Chapel Choir, 1999 CD £2.50 Jig 2006 CD £2.50 Coeperunt Loqui Chamber Choir CD 2009 £8 Cheltenham College Barbershop Boys CD £5 Proceeds to Cheltenham College’s Chosen Charity Salve Puerule CD £8 Pewter Trinket-box £8 Pewter Tankard £10

26432 CheltColl Floreat 2013.indd 63

(N.B. Merchandise will also be available at all Association events)

To Order:

By Post: Please download an order form from our website at www. cheltenhamcollege.org and post together with cheque payable to ‘Cheltenham College Services’ to The Cheltonian Association, Bath Road, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL53 7LD.

By Phone: Please call Rebecca Creed in the Association Office on 01242 265694.

Please note there is a one-off charge of £2.95 per order for UK postage and packaging. Overseas postage cost will vary. This excludes College prints which are charged as indicated.

17/01/2013 10:12

Fred Shelley (Ch ’43) – I have rece ntly received your latest edition of Floreat, for which many thanks. It is quite astounding to read of the very wide spread of activities which College now offer compared with my days during the war.

Although it is somewhat morbid, I do find the Obituary Supplement interesting reading. There are so man y boys who I remember very well now passing on. Perhaps five of my friends were mentioned this time.

One fellow who I knew pretty well was CD Car r (NH ’44). Mention is made of his astounding bowling perf ormance of taking eight wickets in nine balls. I was playing in that game, a thirds match against Cheltondale.

Charlie Boutflower, Housemaster of Chr istowe, was the Umpire. Such wer e the cheers that were going up that all the other matches on College field stopped to watch the final over when he took the last two wickets. The cheers were better than the ‘Bar my Arm y’ could raise when England beat Australia in the last test match on the M.C.G. I am so pleased to know that others remember that match.

So many memories your publication brings forth, I therefore thank you for it sincerely.

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Cheltonian Association Cheltenham College Bath Road Cheltenham Gloucestershire GL53 7LD Contact Details: Tel: 01242 265694 Fax: 01242 265630 Email: r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org www.cheltenhamcollege.org Editor: Rebecca Creed, Association Manager

17/01/2013 10:12