Follow Up! 2021

T H E H A R R O W A S S O C I AT I O N M A G A Z I N E 2 0 2 1

Follow Up!

The Big Picture Alex Chamberlin paints a portrait of our time

A global community OHs in Nigeria

Changing Lanes Formula 1 to Formula E with Chris Travers

Founded in 1572 A royal charter

THE EXECUTIVE President His Royal Highness Prince El Hassan bin Talal (The Park 1960 3 ) Chairman Adam Hart (West Acre 1977 1 ) Executive Board Heyrick Bond-Gunning (West Acre 1985 3)

THE TEAM AND HOW TO STAY IN TOUCH

Will Orr-Ewing (Elmfield 19983 )

KEEP IN TOUCH

CONTACT THE TEAM

As we approach the 450th anniversary of the

Director Perena Shryane ha@harrowschool.org.uk

foundation of the School we are planning a rich programme of celebratory events on and off the Hill, and indeed around the world. Please keep us updated with your contact details so that we can keep you informed of these plans.

Email us at oldharrovians@harrowschool.org.uk Connect with us and the global OH community on

James Darley (The Park 1984 3) James de Broë-Ferguson (The Grove 1981 3 ) Pierre Ali-Noor (West Acre 2001 3) Peter Hedley (West Acre 2008 3)

Alumni Officer Shama Alimohamed alimohamedsp@harrowschool.org.uk Communications Officer Jessica Bellringer bellringerjr@harrowschool.org.uk

ohconnect.org.uk

Digital Information Officer Chelsea Caterer catererc@harrowschool.org.uk

Follow us on social media

Database and Research Officer Emma Pinto pintoel@harrowschool.org.uk

harrowassociation @oldharrovians @oldharrovians Harrow Association

Visit harrowschool.org.uk/oldharrovians to: View the regularly updated events calendar and view updates on the Harrow 450 events programme Read the latest issues of The Harrovian, Follow Up! and the Harrow Record

DIGITAL ARCHIVES View The Harrovian archive at theharrovian.org Learn about multi-generational Harrow families at harrowfamilies.org Read digital editions of The Contio dating back to 1770 at harrowcontio.sds.websds.net Access digital material relating to Harrow and WWI at harrowschool-ww1.org.uk

Financial Secretary Debbie Hannaway hannawayd@harrowschool.org.uk Careers Advisor Michael Wright wrightmd@harrowschool.org.uk

Telephone us on +44 (0) 20 8872 8200 Visit us: Harrow Association, 5A High Street, Harrow on the Hill, Middlesex HA1 3HP

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FROM THE DIRECTOR Dear OHs It is my pleasure to send you this copy

Follow Up! this year is a little different.

of your annual membership magazine

While we have no formal introductory

Follow Up! and I do hope you enjoy

message from Adam Hart (West Acre 1977 1),

reading through its many pages over

our Chairman, if you turn to page 8 you will

the coming weeks and months.

find a wide-ranging Q&A giving an insight

It is hard to believe, as I wrote my

into his role with the wider Harrow family.

introductory piece for Follow Up! last year

In place of the usual event reports we have

from my kitchen table, that one year on,

offered more of a focus to our many OH clubs

I would be doing the same once again.

and societies. Our ever-popular OH news

Despite the School being back in action

section is bursting as are the correspondence

several members of the 'non-teaching'

pages. Despite the global pandemic, you have

staff are still working remotely but we do,

been writing books, authoring letters, making

of course, all have the end of lockdown

connections and if you are an OH Player even

firmly in our sights!

acting online!

It would be remiss of me not to mention the global pandemic and recognise that, for many, the past few months have been particularly difficult. With the OH community in mind, we have made strides to share more digital content including some of the School's annual events and we know many of you have enjoyed them enormously. It is our intention to continue to share certain events with you

Learn more about Harrow's archives through our interview with Archivist Tace Fox, read about our royal charter and the history of the Shepherd Churchill Dining Hall plus a sector spotlight on OH engineers. Hear from OHs based in Nigeria about what they are doing and read how the School supported the local community through the pandemic, led by Tim Dalton (Newlands 19923 ) and the Shaftesbury Enterprise.

post-pandemic. We thank you for joining

Finally, as we look to the future, and the 450th

us virtually to hear from the Head Master,

anniversary of the School’s founding in 2022,

for HA Songs, Contio, a virtual cook-along,

Harrow and its wider family are planning

wine tasting, an OH Talk and more.

celebrations with a series of global events.

Sign-ups to OH Connect continue apace and we are delighted to see you continuing to make business and social connections through the platform.

We hope to see many of you at one or more of them. I will be in touch with more information about these global celebrations later in the autumn.

We are always looking to expand our

Stet Fortuna Domus

offering and encourage you to get in

Perena Shryane

touch should you have any suggestions.

DIRECTOR • HARROW ASSOCIATION

Correction: In the 2020 edition of Follow Up! the last paragraph of the Forty Years On Dinner report was printed at the end of the OH Lodge Dinner report, for which we apologise.

Editors: Jessica Bellringer, Catharine Robinson, Perena Shryane Design: thecircus.uk.com UK Print: Optichrome Advertising: Advertising enquiries to: oldharrovians@harrowschool.org.uk or 020 8872 8200.

Contributors: Adam Hart (West Acre 1977¹ ), Field Marshal Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank (Newlands 1952³ ), Tobias Deacon (Newlands 2000³), David Blackburn (The Park 1962³), Charles Farrar Bell (Moretons 1972¹), Tim Dalton (Newlands 19923) Oscar Blustin (Newlands 2001³), Alex Chamberlin (Druries 1986³), Chris Travers (The Head Master’s 2002³ ), Dominic Sutherland (The Park 1986³), Omatsola Otubu (Lyon’s 2011³), Michael Okoigun (Druries 2000³), Chinedu Okeke (Druries 1998³), Folarin AO Kuku (Rendalls 1996³), Rohit Daswani (Rendalls 1986³), Thomas Holtby (The Head Master’s 1976¹ ), Louis Kunzig (Druries 1983³), Paul Jolliffe (Bradbys 1984¹), George Lundy (Moretons 2009³), Richard Cooke (Rendalls 2007³), Diego de Armas (The Knoll 2006³), Michael Wright, Dan Shailer (Rendalls 2013³), Tace Fox, HDT, Peter Hunter, Emma Pinto, Chelsea Caterer, Shama Alimohamed.

Photographers: Chelsea Caterer, Will Cooper, Rachel Marchant (Newlands 1986³), Roddy Paine, Emma Pinto and Perena Shryane.

Due to space constraints we have not listed the OHs who supplied correspondence, event reports, club reports or their own news and images for News in Brief, but we are very grateful to them.

Front cover: Alex Chamberlin (Druries 1986³) Image courtesy of the National Army Museum, London.

Printed on Paper which is sourced from well managed forests and is FSC certified. The printer and the manufacturing mill are both credited with ISO14001 Environmental Management Systems Standard and are both FSC certified. The printer holds EMAS, the EU Eco-label.

FOLLOW UP! • MEET THE NEW OHS

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M E E T T H E N E W OH S > BRADBYS

> DRURIES

> ELMFIELD

> LY O N ’ S

> MORETONS

> NEWLANDS

BRADBYS

DRURIES

ELMFIELD

LYON’S

MORETONS

NEWLANDS

TMAH Ariez A Asokan AJ Clayton AD Doan JEA Goldberg FGT Greaves OJM Kirkland S Luo D Sakthivel OSH Seymour BL Smith JPC Smith AQ Sun LD Sun CG Timlin

A Ait El Caid BST Chauveau J Li OFE Lijadu ADR Ludlam FVDE Matheson MT Ng P Peganov HJB Swanson GMA Webster ZW Yardley CM Yarrow

B Bencharit PGF Breeze TC de la Billiere HW Ferneyhough YZ Gan M Kondo SAA Malde HC Michelin MN Ocampo R Prasad B Rashid SSR Vyas OA Wills LTB Wright PT Zeng

AJJ Auret PC Bertelsen JDH Chisnall HMA Farquhar JAG Gosden EJ Kim WO Llewellen Palmer JI Morgan TN Sheopuri PJA Tallentire GAM White L Yeh LF Yuen

IP Abaroa Puig De La Bellacasa ME Ball AJM Barnham SRM Burt JK Kryca MM Majdalany K Nigam AOZ Odunsi N Platt Z Rana DP Sandell FE Slater NS Sule Q Sun BR Swan GM Tan

JH Brankin-Frisby EB Childs CIM Efemuai LJ Esposito JL Gray AEA Josserand CMJ Lloyd AJM Morrison GJ Rates HJAA Smith FA Strange HE Tack KZ Zheng

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> R E N DA L L S

> THE GROVE

> THE HEAD MASTER’S

> THE KNOLL

> T H E PA R K

> WEST ACRE

RENDALLS

THE GROVE

OWS Bulstrode AL Cheung JM Connell JJS Glynn M Gu JE Hagg Davies LA Haitzmann BE Hope RND Hunter JD McDermid MRE Morgan JR Pound LR Shailer BTR Walsh RY Yin H Zhao

BDE Ahrens PRS Cartwright PYH Chung RF Cullen CJ Cushley GJ Gallagher RA Lai FL Maydon JAR Noble CPH Read MOG Sjostrom CW Swan KC TC-Singh WY To

THE HEAD MASTER’S JDJ Bovell TMYT Cheah GDC Davies NDOT Franklyn K-C Lian ME O’Callaghan IA Ogbonna GHI Phillips RGR Pringle WAC Wallace KK Yeo Y Zhang

THE KNOLL

THE PARK

WEST ACRE

S Aben HPS Arundell EPH De Bray JJE Forster BK Ghani OG Harrison RA Hayward Y Jiang MD Radclliffe GVJ Rogers ZA Salah SWS SebagMontefiore RM White DL Zhang

IA Chatzigiannis AL Farzad JIT George-Oppong HAYK-S Hammad MB Hattersley JX Henson JARM Hill PMA StJ Letman FJY Ni JD Peppiatt FCM Prickett LA Roberts J Wen CMT Yip

JEC Anku S Antipovskiy AA Bethell CA Bird DW Chung BS Harrison MS Harrison AHH Hau FA Jones J Koutalides NA Kumar M Lindgren MJ Williams C StJ Wilson

FOLLOW UP! • CONTENTS

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COMMUNITY

08

TEN QUESTIONS WITH ADAM HART

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OH BOOKS Written by you

Chairman of the HA

34

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CORRESPONDENCE

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SOME STATS FROM OUR DATABASE

54

OH NEWS

56

Records broken, honours received, promotions made, businesses started, mountains climbed, and more

27

ENGAGEMENTS, MARRIAGES, BIRTHS AND DEATHS

LISTINGS: BOOKS Charles Farrar-Bell chooses his five favourite reads

Raiser's Edge and OH Connect

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SOCIETY SPOTLIGHTS OH Players and OH Golf

News and views from our readers

14

HARROW'S COVID-19 CRISIS RESPONSE

R & R: SOMETHING FOR THE WEEKEND Oscar Blustin - The show must go on

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BIG PICTURE: ALEX CHAMBERLIN A portrait for our time

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CAREERS AND E M P LOYA B I L I T Y

H E R I TAG E

64

86

PROFILE: CHRIS TRAVERS

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REFOUNDING OUR FUTURE

104

An update from the Harrow Development Trust

Changing Lanes

108

PROFILE: DOMINIC SUTHERLAND

FOUNDED IN 1572 A royal charter

SECRET HARROW: Something different for 2021

Reel Life

72

OHs WORKING ACROSS THE GLOBE

90

HARROW LIVES Tace Fox, Archivist

A view from Nigeria

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SECTOR SPOTLIGHT:

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A unique donation to the Archive

OHs in Engineering

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1914-1917 SCRAPBOOK

THE GRADUATE GAME A word from Michael Wright

OTHER 111

OH PROMOTIONS Offers especially for you

115

UPCOMING EVENTS And how to stay in touch

84

VIRTUAL VOLUNTEERING

96

FORTY YEARS ON THE HARROVIAN IN 1981

85

UNIVERSITY LIFE

98

450 YEARS OF HARROW

Dan Shailer's perspective from Cambridge

20th century - Shepherd Churchill Dining Hall

FOLLOW UP!

TEN

QUESTIONS WITH

ADAM HART ( West Acre 1977 1 )

CHAIRMAN OF THE HARROW ASSOCIATION

Since leaving Harrow in 1982, Adam Hart has forged a career working with entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial companies. In 1999, he became Chairman of the London Stock Exchange’s AIM Advisory Group, a role that took him around the world and engendered a love of travel. He co-founded the corporate finance firm London Bridge Capital Partners in 2009, where he can be found working today. As well as undertaking duties as Chairman of the Harrow Association, he occupies a dizzying array of roles within the Harrow ecosystem.

Alongside all this, he is a husband, and a father to three adult children, two of whom are OHs. Please tell us about your connections with Harrow

What are your current roles at Harrow?

I was always destined to be an Harrovian. My maternal grandfather was at Harrow in the 1920s, following in the footsteps of his extended family, and that rubbed off on my mother. She was determined that I would have the best education and she saw Harrow as offering that.

In 2016, I was invited to become Chairman of the Harrow Association. It’s been great to work with the executive team and the HA Board to bring the Association into the 21st century: focusing its activities, launching OH Connect and working to deliver an improved experience for Old Harrovians.

While quite junior in the City, I was given some career assistance by Tim Stevenson (Elmfield 1953³), himself a member of the HA Board. In passing, he suggested that I get involved with the HA. I’ve given some 80 Harrovians and OHs work experience over the years and was invited onto the HA Board. Lots of people have hobbies; one of mine is being involved with Harrow. I find it fascinating and rewarding.

At the same time, I was also invited to become a Governor of the School. It’s a group of really interesting men and women: some OHs, some parents and some without any other link to the School. The Clerk sat me down and said, “We have a number of things that we as a governing body do...”. I was presented with a long list of roles in which I could get involved and

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signed up as a director of Harrow School Enterprises Limited (HSEL) and Harrow International Schools Limited (HISL).

Recently, I have also joined the Harrow Development Trust (HDT) as a Trustee. The HA very specifically is not a fundraising organisation: that is left to the HDT, but their work overlaps regularly in their dealings with OHs. Please tell us a little more about the relationship between Harrow and HISL

HISL licenses the Harrow Name and Badge to our international franchise partner, Asia International School Limited, which currently operates nine schools in the Far East. It is HISL’s job to provide oversight and ensure that the schools embody Harrow’s core values while meeting our educational and operational standards.

In more usual times, I would be visiting each school two or three times a year. We hope to create a nexus where International OHs can meet and engage in the same way as OHs meet through the Harrow Association. Income from HISL is gifted to Harrow School and John Lyon School and supports bursaries at both.

Are there likely to be more Harrow International Schools opening in the future?

This year, five new schools have opened in China.

Our partner has plans to open further schools, including one in Japan in 2023. We are open to approaches from potential partners in other parts of the world. Part of my role at HISL is to liaise with these parties to determine whether they would make suitable partners. It is a long and painstaking process but we hope to open Harrow International Schools in other parts of the world in the future.

We have the wonderful 450th celebrations coming up in 2022. There will be something for everybody to get involved with. It won’t even be necessary to come back to the Hill as we will be celebrating throughout the UK and in all corners of the globe.”

Please tell us a little more about your role with HSEL and Harrow School Online

I’m Chairman of HSEL, which manages the School’s commercial activities - everything from film shoots to summer courses. It also licences Harrow School Online, a new kind of school founded on the educational philosophy, practices and traditions of Harrow School, delivered online

by Pearson, the global education business, to pupils all over the world.

What’s your favourite Harrow song?

I love Ducker. I was from the era where we used to tramp down from West Acre across the sports fields (the Ducker pitches) to the old Ducker pool.

I’ve got some happy memories of screamingly hot summers down there.

I also remember my grandfather singing Harrow songs.

Even my mother used to join in. As my boys were at Harrow, we delight in singing Harrow songs together, especially in the car – much to my wife and daughter’s annoyance!

Is there a Giant of Old you particularly admire?

There are just so many. The thing about Harrow is that you are part of something that is so much bigger than you are - so, I can’t pick just one. I would say that today we’re producing some really interesting OHs doing some fascinating things who will, in time, become Giants too.

What advice would you have for this year’s leavers?

Your parents have gifted you entry to one of the most exclusive networks in the world. OHs have the ability to connect easily with so many interesting people, opening up copious opportunities! If a young entrepreneur wants to start a restaurant, he can find lots of OHs from the restaurant world willing to assist. My advice is: keep in touch, get involved.

What would you like to say to the OH community at this time?

We have the wonderful 450th celebrations coming up in 2022. There will be something for everybody to get involved with. It won’t even be necessary to come back to the Hill as we will be celebrating throughout the UK and in all corners of the globe – wherever OHs will gather. We want to create a more engaged community for everyone’s benefit. I would also encourage everyone to come back and have a good look at the School. There is so much that has changed, and it is continually changing.

What excites you about the future of Harrow, both in London and for the wider brand?

I support the Head Master’s aim for Harrow to be the best boys' boarding school in the world.

I would like Harrow to be seen as a premium global education brand with an engaged community where we can all celebrate being part of something with 450 years of history and at least another 450 years ahead of it!

You can’t ask for more than that, can you?

Adam’s Grandfather John Leslie Wyles (West Acre 19223 )

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

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CORRESPONDENCE Thank you again for sending in your letters and emails throughout the year. If you have a story or note you’d like to share with the OH community, send your correspondence for future issues to editor@harrowschool.org.uk. Correspondence may be edited.

DEAR EDITOR

DEAR OHs

With reference to the enquiry from Jun Wha Shin, I suggest ‘Errol’ may be EA Mews, whose first name was Errol, a contemporary of Peter Scaramanga and me.

I forget which House he was in, but it would be easy to trace him.

I think he died within the last few years.

Stet Fortuna Domus.

The Falkland Islands - Forty Years On

Mark Tinsley (Elmfield 19482)

(Ed. Thank you Mark. We have passed this information on to Jun Wha. Errol Mews was Moretons 1948 2)

DEAR EDITOR A great success. Well done!

An outrageous picture of my Grandson at the Rendalls House Dinner and an interesting article about my old friend Noel Bolingbroke-Kent (Moretons 19533) singing 500 Faces. He was the year before me. When I sang it in 1954 it was Churchill’s 80th Birthday. Afterwards, I was summoned to Dr James’ study and the great man puffing his cigar in a big armchair congratulated me. Having just about summoned up the courage to sing the song, I was only selected the day before, I asked Sir Winston if he would sign my song book. He did. I have it still.

A treasured possession.

Keep up the excellent publication.

Yours sincerely David Gurney (The Head Master’s 19543)

2022 will be the 40th anniversary of the Falklands Conflict. Do you have any connection with the Falklands or know of anyone who does? Were you or your regiment there? If so, your support is urgently requested.

Following a recent visit, I have become aware of plans by the Falkland Islands Museum and National Trust to construct a new exhibition hall to house the huge collection of items that, for now, are housed in private garages, sheds or out in the open air. These range in size from documents to a Sea King helicopter!

There is a dire need to bring them together to tell the story of the islands, together with a need to preserve and conserve. As a resource base it will be invaluable, not just for the Falklands but also for researchers and interested parties worldwide. It is hoped that the completion can coincide with the 40th anniversary. They are looking to raise £500,000. More detailed plans can be found here: falklands-museum.com/ fundraising.

Please do take a look; it is a very worthy cause.

All good wishes Tony Escritt (EAE) Retired Geography beak

DEAR EDITOR I'm now a very elderly OH – 40 years on was some time ago.

I enjoyed the article about the Vaughan Library. I loved the tall stacks, the gloom and above all the smell of the books. It was a quiet refuge which inspired my love of books and libraries.

When I was at Harrow there was a book, so the rumour went, bequeathed on condition that it was available on open shelves.

Being Caxton's Chaucer I signed it out one afternoon and took it back to my house. It was a wonderful experience to handle a book with such an amazing history. My House Master got a call from the Librarian to check on me; I returned it the next morning.

I have looked at the OSRG Museum website where the book is not mentioned; I do hope the School still has it. It's one of the most important printed books in the world and I was privileged to have been able to handle it.

Stephen Alexander (The Park 1958 1)

(Ed. The Chaucer is still there safely in the OSRG. It is a copy of the first printed edition and dates from 1532.

It was given to the Vaughan by EHW Meyerstein (Small Houses and Druries 19033). The volume is still safely looked after, though sadly for the wishes of the donor, now in more secure conditions.

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VICTOR LUDORUM HARROW’S SECRET AWARD DEAR EDITOR I was recently reminded by a contemporary in Moretons that I had been Victor Ludorum in 1958. He suggested I should write something about this, and because of lockdown I had plenty of time to do it.

In those days, School athletics took place during the last two or three weeks of the Spring term and there was a system of standards and credits at all events with points counting towards a House aggregate and a cup for the winners. In the same way as the Corps Competition, it was a great way of pressuring boys to take part by scoring points for their House and we were cajoled into entering as many events as possible.

I quite quickly found out what I did not like doing. High jumping was too uncomfortable as the landing was a sand pit. I tried the pole vault but I went off sideways half-way up and I entirely missed the pit.

MC Noakes, the athletics beak and a former Olympic medallist himself, was the judge for the shot put who greeted me with: “What are you doing here, Hedley-Whyte? You didn’t even qualify for the distance”.

David Ewart (Moretons 1949 ), the House Captain, said I had to enter the half-mile to which I strongly objected, knowing the distance was too long. “OK”, I said, “but I won’t finish.” And I didn’t, so that’s why I concentrated on the 100, 220, and 440 yards.

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Cricket was the summer sport and in 1956 I was in the Colts.

However, I realised I was one of the weaker members of the side; my role as lower order slogger and outfield chaser didn’t offer much hope for my later playing at Lord’s – Third XI at Harrow was the best I could expect – so I started to consider other options.

1957 Senior 100 yards, final. Brian Smouha (Newlands 1951 3), Michael Hedley-Whyte (Moretons 19541) and Michael O'Connor (Druries 19622)

I knew I could run fast, as I had done well in sprints in the School Sports and I had been awarded my ‘Lion’ playing on the wing in the rugby XV. So in the Summer term of 1957 I thought I would join The Beetlers, the name for summer-term athletics, which would also give me more time to spend at Ducker.

In 1957 I came third in the senior 100 yards final behind Brian Smouha and Michael O’Connor. Smouha went on to win a silver medal in the World Student Games and to represent Great Britain so I didn’t feel disgraced.

In the 1958 Sports I was in the finals for all three distances.

When the day came, I was approached by the leaders of the betting syndicates to ‘pull’ the 100 yards. The only suggestion I had was to loosen my starting blocks, but it would have meant falling flat on my face and I didn’t fancy that.

Anyhow the money was not enough.

I won the 100, 220, and 440 yards and came third in the hurdles. The Harrovian reported that I was Champion of the Track and Victor Ludorum. But I don’t recollect any ceremony or cup and I think I only found out when a medical colleague of my father’s told him he’d seen it in The Times the following morning!

This was my first real experience of the hurdles. I really enjoyed the rhythm of it and had decided I would take it up in the summer term. My brother used to organise a visiting team to compete against us and I found myself competing against Brian Allfrey (Moretons 19521), who had just left Moretons and was hurdling for the Army. We developed a superb rhythm with my matching him stride for stride.

He won, beating the School record, but John van Schalkwyk (Rendalls 19543), our captain, had not provided a watch to record second place so I never did discover my time. The Harrovian reported, “Hedley-Whyte must have been on the record too” but it didn’t matter as I broke the record later in the term.

I was never beaten in the three track events that summer, although it was very close in the 220 yards against Blackheath Harriers. It was an evening meeting and I had spent the afternoon of a lovely day at Ducker. Coming round the bend of the 220 yards, I realised my legs weren’t operating as they should and I thought, “Now, I’m really going to have to bust a gut to win.” I did win but it was a close-run thing. I understand that the Victor Ludorum is still recognised but that the whereabouts of the original Victor Ludorum Cup is a mystery.

Hurdles. Michael Hedley-Whyte (Moretons 19541) and Brian Allfrey (Moretons 19521)

Michael Hedley-Whyte (Moretons 1954 1 )

DEAR HEAD MASTER I thoroughly enjoyed the Founder’s Day presentation-one never forgets the songs!

Of particular interest, was the section on the Workshop and Technology.

My father, Douglas Cumming (Rendalls 19183), who left in summer 1924, was one of the first Harrovians to build a wireless set. I have, somewhere lurking in my files, a licence from the Post Office issued in 1923 (in my Grandfather's

name) allowing my father to receive experimental broadcasts from 2LO (the BBC's predecessor) whilst still at Harrow.

He does not appear in the 1923 photos but would have been ‘there’.

He, as well as my younger brother Richard were all Rendallians. I think he may hold the record as a long-serving Head of House/monitor as he appears in three House photos, as Head of House, in 1922, 23 and 24!

When I was at Harrow, 1947-52, I was an enthusiastic member of a small bunch of the Radio Society which had a room on the ground floor of New Schools.

I was also a member of the Railway Club and Farmer’s Club and used to deliver milk in the early mornings with Sidney Patterson. Happy days!

Kind regards John Cumming (Rendalls 1947 3)

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

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CORRESPONDENCE

DEAR EDITOR Amongst all the many tributes following the death of the Duke of Edinburgh I saw one from Prince Hassan of Jordan (The Parks 19603).

He, like his brother the former King of Jordan King Hussein, was an old Parkite.

A portrait of Coutts taken at the Horseshoe Ranch

Coutts on his horse Alick

DEAR EDITOR Several Old Harrovians feature in Fortune’s Many Houses, my new biography of John Campbell Gordon, 1st Marquess of Aberdeen, and his wife Ishbel, and one, in particular, caught my eye.

The entry for Coutts Marjoribanks (Small Houses 18752) in the 1894 Harrow School Register chronicles the brief and undistinguished career on the Hill of the third son of the multimillionaire brewer and politician Lord Tweedmouth (The Head Master’s 18333), but it omits one detail that would have made Coutts stand out from his contemporaries. For while they invariably pursued the favoured careers of educated young men of the time – in the army, the diplomatic service, banking, the law, the clergy – Coutts emigrated to North America, where he became a cowboy.

Coutts’s exile, for unspecified misdemeanours that, according to family folklore, threatened his family’s standing in high society, suited everyone. With his brother Edward (The Head Master’s 1862 3) due to inherit his father’s title and fortune, Coutts’s prospects at home were unpromising; Lord Tweedmouth, who had joined the stampede of British aristocrats who were investing in American cattle breeding schemes, needed someone to represent his interests on the range and Coutts, as a well-funded ‘remittance man’, relished the prospects of adventure.

The 24-year-old set himself up on a thousand-acre ranch on the banks of the Mouse River, near Towner in north-central Dakota Territory. He started well, hiring an experienced foreman, registering his “Horseshoe V” brand, planting trees, building haystacks, constructing a log house to live in, and importing prime breeding stock from the family estate in Scotland. Away from the ranch, he helped to found the Mouse River Live Stock Protective Association: its principal aim was to stamp out cattle rustling, although Coutts’s first decision on becoming its chairman was to spend its funds on an “oyster supper” for members and distinguished visitors. He joined the local school board, worked to improve – or, rather, create in those wild parts – a local infrastructure, and earned the respect of his neighbours.

But all too soon whispers of unruly behaviour reached his parents in London: Coutts had fallen into bad company in Towner; he was spending too much time hunting for wolves with his pack of hounds; he was frequently seen at the races – why, he was even on the organising committee!

When, thanks to his poor management and a series of exceptionally bad winters and dry summers, the Horseshoe Ranch failed in 1890, Coutts’s family came to his rescue in the form of his sister Ishbel, whose husband, the 7th Earl of Aberdeen, had invested in a fruit farm and a cattle ranch in British Columbia.

But Coutts’s career there proved equally disastrous. The cowboy skills he had acquired in North Dakota did not serve him well on the fruit farm and one neighbour was amazed that Lord Aberdeen had left his business interests in the hands of “a rum stick who goes about dressed as a cowboy and indulges freely in Scotch whisky.” Another marvelled at the way he used to ride up the steps of a local hotel “at a clattering gallop…where he would dismount for a refresher.”

The businesses duly failed, dealing a near-fatal blow to the fortune of the once fabulously rich Aberdeen, while Coutts seems to have emerged unscathed.

He died at Vernon, British Columbia, in 1924, and although he never quite shook off his hell-raising reputation, he did, albeit posthumously, achieve one distinction worthy of record in the annals of Harrow: induction into the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame. How many other OHs can boast of that?

Best wishes Simon Welfare (The Grove 1960 2)

I only met him once, but it was unforgettable.

I was head of a passage in the summer of 1977.

I was lying on my bed. It was very hot. I was dressed only in a pair of Y-fronts revising hard for my imminent A-levels.

There was a loud knock on the door and in walked a tall man in a suit “Detective Superintendent Thompson, Scotland Yard” he announced (had I not been revising quite hard enough? Had the HM enlisted the police to check up on any boy not working hard enough?)... “Prince Hassan to see you” he continued, at which a small rotund man walked in, with a laugh like a machine gun that had the police reaching for concealed weapons.

The room, my room at that time, had been Prince Hassan’s and he wanted to see it again.

A Harrow education you might say is aimed to turn out men who can “walk with kings—nor loose the common touch”. So here I was being tested—how to greet a Crown Prince, as he was then, standing in only a pair of Y-fronts, and yet be equally charming to his protection officers in what had become a somewhat crowded room.

Yours sincerely Charles Marsden-Smedley (The Park 19723)

DEAR SIRS I was strolling through Facebook just now and came across this post from the Rev Richard Coles, he of Saturday Live fame etc.

"I discover that when the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII, visited Harrow in 1850 he was shown round the Vaughan Library by one of the boys, Viscount Althorp.

The Prince picked at random a volume that minuted the deliberations of the School’s Debating Society, and it opened at a page recording the motion ‘that Regicide is justifiable’. It had been argued by Viscount Althorp (The Head Master's 18482). Awkward.”

I don’t know his source, I can ask him, but as a story, it’s quite fun and I thought you might know where to file it!

You’re probably muttering “the bin” but anyway, “duty is duty” as the song goes.

All the very best Harry Bucknall (West Acre 1979 1 )

Ed. (Courtesy of Peter Hunter) There is one factual error and that is that the Vaughan wasn't opened until 1863. But presumably Althorp took the Prince of Wales to the Monitors' Library then upstairs in the Old Schools. It would have been an easy visit, as he would have just been sitting through prize giving in what is now the OSRG (beside Prince Albert). It did Althorp no harm as he later became a member of the Royal Household.

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A FAMILY AT WAR Ian Liddell (The Head Master's 1933 2)

With 2020 having marked the 75th anniversary of Victory in Europe, it is perhaps apposite to recall, with immense pride, the deeds of two Old Harrovian brothers.

David Liddell (The Head Master’s 19303 ) enlisted with the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) and, after postings to Caithness where he was part of the team that apprehended Rudolf Hess, and then to the Faroe Islands, was posted to Italy. There, (as per the citation), “On the 22nd December 1943, he was commanding the leading company in the attack on Villa Grande. His skilled advance enabled the company to gain a footing in the houses which formed part of the objective but in doing so, platoons became separated by 100 yards of open bullet-swept ground.

The leading platoon had suffered heavy casualties including the platoon commander and Major Liddell decided to take reinforcements to it himself. On the way, his party was pinned down by machine gun fire from a flank and was unable to advance. Regardless of his own safety, this Officer assaulted the post single-handed and liquidated it with grenades thereby enabling his men to proceed.

In doing so he was wounded but insisted on carrying on to the isolated platoon which he reorganised. Not until 12 hours later when his men were in adequate defensive positions and had been fed, did Major Liddell consent to be evacuated. This Officer’s personal bravery, determination and leadership paved the way for further assaults on the village and was an example to all who saw him” and for which he was awarded an immediate Military Cross.

David Liddell (The Head Master's 19303)

His younger brother, Ian (The Head Master’s 1933 2) was initially seconded as part of an elite group, The Coates Mission, personal bodyguard to the King and the Royal Family until, with the threat of invasion diminished, His Majesty felt that these Guards Officers would be of more service to their Regiments. And so it was that “On the 3rd April 1945, Captain Ian Liddell was commanding a company of the Coldstream Guards which was ordered to capture a bridge over the River Ems near Lingen in Germany. The bridge was covered on the far bank by an enemy strong point which was subsequently discovered to consist of 150 entrenched infantry supported by three 88mm and two 20mm guns. The bridge was also prepared for demolition with 250kg aircraft bombs which could plainly be seen.

(Having suggested they might not blow the bridge for one man and having announced his intentions, he had to wait almost two hours whilst covering fire could be arranged – certainly time to ponder on what he was about to do!).

Having directed his two leading platoons onto the near bank, Capt. Liddell ran forward to the bridge and scaled the 3m high road-block guarding it with the intention of neutralising the charges and taking the bridge intact. In order to achieve his object, he had to cross the whole length of the bridge by himself under intense enemy fire which increased as his objective became apparent to the Germans.

Having disconnected the charges on the far side, he recrossed the bridge and cut the wires on the near side. It was necessary for him to kneel, forming an easy target whilst he successfully cut the wires. He then discovered there were charges underneath the bridge. Completely undeterred, he also disconnected these. His task completed, he climbed up onto the road-block in full view of the enemy and signalled for the leading platoon to advance. Thus, alone and unprotected, without cover and under heavy enemy fire, he achieved his object. The bridge was captured intact and the way cleared across the River Ems” for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. Eighteen days later he was shot by a sniper’s bullet (which passed through a brother Officer, killing Ian behind) less than three weeks before VE day.

Such is fate.

Earlier in the war, even the family yacht, the MV Narcissus (816 tons) was involved in heroics. Commissioned into the Royal Navy as HMS Grieve (having been similarly co-opted in the First World War as HMS Narcissus) she rescued upwards of 2,000 troops from Dunkirk over three sorties until, on her fourth, she struck a mine and now lies there as a War Grave.

Brian and Colin Liddell (The Head Master’s 1957 3 and 19612 )

14

SOME OH STATS FROM OUR DATABASE The HA is responsible for maintaining a database with correct, up-to-date contact details and information for all OHs. As we approach the School’s 450th anniversary and plan a programme of events we are asking you to keep us informed of your most up-to-date postal and email addresses.

OHs LIVE IN 85 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES

We also love to hear about any achievements post-Harrow, and you can send all updates to the Database and Research Officer, Emma Pinto at oldharrovians@harrowschool.org.uk.

Here are a few statistics about the OH community that we thought would be of interest:

82% UK

4.6% EUROPE

5.6% ASIA

4.9%

NORTH AMERICA

1%

AFRICA

0.2%

1.7%

SOUTH AMERICA

OCEANIA

CURRENTLY THERE ARE

9201

CONTACTABLE OHs ON OUR DATABASE

THE TOP 5 OH CAREERS: FINANCE AND INSURANCE

14.5%

REAL ESTATE AND PROPERTY

9.6%

(TOTAL)

OHs OVER THE AGE OF 90

OLD

HARROVIENES

MARKETING, ADVERTISING AND PUBLISHING

9.6%

CONTACTABLE

83 13 197

LAW AND LEGAL SERVICES

OH CURRENT PARENTS

4.8%

9

GENERATIONS IN LONGEST LINE OF HARROW FAMILIES

(Please note that these figures were correct at the time of printing and are relevant to the data that we hold on our database currently.)

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES

4.4%

22

LIVING CURRENT AND FORMER OH BEAKS

15

ARE YOU SIGNED UP TO

OH CONNECT?

OUR DEDICATED NETWORKING PLATFORM FOR THE OH COMMUNITY

3772 OHs ARE AT THE TIME OF GOING TO PRINT. 40.5% OF THE

TOTAL NUMBER OF CONTACTABLE OHs OH CONNECT WAS LAUNCHED IN DECEMBER 2018

72% OF ALL OHs ON OH CONNECT ARE WILLING TO HELP OTHERS THE TOP 3 HOUSES REPRESENTED ON OH CONNECT ARE; • 410 OHs FROM THE HEAD MASTER’S • 368 THE GROVE • 351 THE PARK

IN THE LAST YEAR:

1067

NETWORKING CONNECTIONS HAVE BEEN MADE

836

PRIVATE MESSAGES HAVE BEEN SENT

THERE HAVE BEEN

OHs HAVE ADVERTISED THEIR BUSINESS IN THE BUSINESS DIRECTORY

6364

VIEWS OF THE DIRECTORY

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

OH NEWS OHs have been sending us their news throughout the year. If you have news, from 1 April 2021 31 March 2022 to feature in next year’s Follow Up! email oldharrovians@harrowschool.org.uk.

16

1960s RB Packard (The Head Master’s 1960 2 ) was awarded the prestigious Fellowship of the European Board of Ophthalmology in the Specialty of Cataract and Refractive Surgery.

The Revd CSP Douglas Lane (The Park 1960 3 ) is President of his local Rotary Club and trustee of The London Bus Preservation Trust Ltd, having owned his own bus since September 1973, and Chairman of the League of Friends at Teddington Memorial Hospital where they have provided almost £2 million in funding over the last five years to the local NHS Health Authority.

1940s Dr NK Coni (Druries 19483) was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the New Year's Honours List 2021 for services to Education for Older People.

1950s ML Gordon CBE (Druries 1952 2 ) was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the New Year's Honours List 2021 for services to people living with HIV and AIDS in China. Martin is recognised for an exceptional contribution to supporting people living with HIV and AIDS in China and the positive impact that his work has had on UK/China relations.

In 1996, Martin established the Barry & Martin’s Trust in memory of his late partner Barry Chan, with the aim of building co-operation between the UK and China on HIV AIDS education, prevention, treatment and care. Following Barry’s death from AIDS at the Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, Martin wrote to the head of the unit to propose co-operation between the UK and China. This would be the start of over twenty years of dedicated work to improve care, bring about attitudinal change, and have the UK recognised as partner of choice in HIV and AIDS care as China embarked on a new phase of development.

RP Salm (The Head Master’s 1955 2 ) who has lived in Jamaica since 1968 and is President of the Jamaica Ski Federation, was awarded the Order of Distinction by the Governor General in October 2018 for services to tourism, the community and winter sports promotion. Unfortunately, his hotel, Club Caribbean, closed its doors in March of last year due to the pandemic and remains closed until it is safe for tourists. On the other hand, Richard’s resort development at Drax Hall continues apace, and stands ready to take advantage of the inevitable turn around in the world’s economy.

JR Shannon (The Head Master’s 1958 2 ) has been appointed an Honorary Fellow of Oriel College, University of Oxford.

RA Nelson (The Park 1961 3 ) took on the Chairmanship of Brait plc last year, a company quoted on the Luxembourg and Johannesburg Stock Exchanges.

Brait is the holding company for a number of large international consumer goods and services companies. These include Virgin Active, which has over 1.2 million members at 233 gyms in eight countries; New Look, the leading fast-fashion brand with over 800 stores around the world; Premier FMCG which employs 7,000 people in Southern Africa in milling, baking and confectionery products; and Consul, the largest glass container manufacturing company in Africa. The businesses have faced difficult challenges throughout the pandemic, requiring Brait to draw in their sails and batten down the hatches, but they intend to sail out again with fairer winds and brighter times.

Colonel JCD Turner (Rendalls 1964 3) assumed the role of Colonel Commandant on 1 July 2020 having been appointed as the Honorary Colonel—Queensland Region, Royal Australian Army Medical Corps for a period of five years. As well as this, John has been appointed a Life Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians.

Sir Alan Yarrow (Elmfield 1965 1 ) was appointed Prime Warden of the Fishmongers’ Company in 2021.

CH Carr (Moretons 1965 3 ), on 16 December 2020, held a talk at The David Hume Institution with Professor Jeffrey Fear entitled How do global oligopolies matter for business strategy and international political economy? Chris has spent thirty years researching strategic approaches to globalisation and he and Jeffrey discussed his analysis of global business trends and offered guidance for more effective global business strategies.

ES Griswold (Druries 1965 3 ), having enjoyed forty years of work as an estate agent in Connecticut, has finally decided to “hang up his spurs” and retire. 2020 was a busy year with people fleeing New York City for the near countryside in the spring and summer due to the pandemic. Prices rose quickly as buyers bid up properties in desperation to secure safety. He is now turning to land conservation in the lower Connecticut River valley, where his family’s home for nearly 400 years is situated.

HR Dundas (The Head Master’s 1966 3 ) continues as international arbitrator and mediator and legal author, especially as co-author of the definitive text on the arbitration law of Vietnam, revised in January 2021. He continues to be active in the City of London Livery, most recently being appointed as Almoner to the Honourable Company of Master Mariners (he has been Almoner to the Arbitrators since 2015). One of his hobbies is as coeditor of an international chess magazine.

He maintains his long-term connection with motorsport by owning a 1990 BMW M3 Sport Evolution, a road-legal racing saloon, #034 of only 600 built.

17 The Revd HK Symes-Thompson (The Head Master’s 1967 3 ) retired in 2019 after 23 years as the Rector of Cranfield in St Alban’s Diocese and has now received Permission to Officiate in the Diocese of Truro.

Hugh and his wife Liz have a house in St Austell, near the Brewery and just a few miles away from their eldest son Mike (The Head Master’s 1999 3 ) and his active family.

Dr JP Vestey (The Head Master’s 1968 2 ) was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the New Year's Honours List 2018 for services to Dermatology.

JD Collins (Druries 1969 3 ) has recently developed a new theory that challenges the notion of time dilation as predicted by Einstein: A Quantum Mechanical Interpretation of the Consequences of Special Relativity. Time is defined as “that which is measured by clocks” the consequences of Special Relativity do not hold clocks to be special.

Although these observations can be characterised as Time dilation there is no evidence to substantiate the material existence of time and that which does not exist cannot dilate. This alternative interpretation is founded on the same set of observations that substantiate Special Relativity but without invoking the assumed variable of time and instead substituting a relative frequency of quantum events.

Professor HJW Thomas KCVO (West Acre 1971 2 ) was appointed Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (KCVO) in the 2021 New Year's Honours List.

PG Merivale (Newlands, 1971 3 ) and DM Killpack (Newlands 1971 3 ) were already friends before Harrow. Their subsequent lives enjoyed parallel tracks and whilst David played and composed music in his free time, Philip too wrote and gained some success in published works. One evening in the pub, they decided to amalgamate their talents and create a rock opera. Blue on Blue was born. A local Sixth Form college decided to stage it and even introduce it into their Arts curriculum, but events over the last 12 months regrettably meant the spectacle was shelved. Hopefully, once the world has stopped wobbling on its axis, Blue on Blue will be staged.

Dr MS Dryden (Bradbys 1972 2 ) had been thinking of retiring but, as a specialist in microbiology and infectious diseases, it did not seem right to Matthew to retire just as the pandemic kicked off.

It has been a busy year for him working half the time in Porton Down at the Rare and Imported Pathogens department where the team have been doing the validation for all the new Covid testing technology. He spends the rest of the week on the wards in the Hampshire Hospitals Trust. It has been tough on everyone.

Matthew also spent a few weeks in Uganda supporting a surgical infection project and delivering covid testing capacity.

1970s Prince N Obolensky (Druries 1970 1 ) has spent 2020 in Shanghai building his Chinese company, given that his UK company is not doing much due to Covid-19 restrictions. He has also been doing work in the USA, taking his interactive organisational development workshops online. Nick’s book Future Leadership continues to sell well, being the translation of his best-selling book Complex Adaptive Leadership. Any OH passing through Shanghai, get in contact at Nick@Obolensky.com.

ADW Fothergill CBE (Moretons 1973 3 ) was executive producer of the documentary David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet.

SP Pollock (Elmfield 1974 1 ) was reappointed Director of Ceremonies of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem.

ED Wauchope (The Knoll 1976 1 ) started a new Lloyd's underwriting MGA for Political Violence Insurance in December 2020, which was successfully renewed and is now in its second year.

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

18

OHs have been sending us their news throughout the year.

If you have news to feature in next year's FollowUp! email oldharrovians@harrowschool.org.uk

AR Varley (Rendalls 1976 3 ), President and CEO of Vartest has degrees from the Fashion Institute of Technology, where he was awarded Alumni of the Year in 2019, New York University (BA) and North Carolina State University (MT). He worked as a Warp Knit Technologist at Collins & Aikman Corporation, then the fifth largest textile company in the United States, from 1979 until 1983.

Adam co-founded Vartest with his father in a studio apartment in 1986.

As America’s manufacturing base began moving off-shore, Vartest responded to the need for fast turnaround quality assurance testing to control overseas supply chains. Today, Vartest employs 27 people and is located two blocks from the Empire State Building in one of the United States’ biggest apparel sourcing hubs, the Garment District of Manhattan.

Vartest operates 24 hours a day as a New York City Essential Business.

Many important health care products require microbiological certification and FDA clearance along with chemical treatment analysis, and, during the Covid-19 pandemic, Vartest has played an important role in Medical PPE testing, especially surgical gowns, drapes and gloves. They’ve also focused on surgical-implant titanium and on microbial resistance testing using fungi, bacteria and viruses including human coronavirus. vartest.com

JHW Anderson (West Acre 1978 2 ) joined the Board of Fund Eye, a Swiss/EU regulated fintech platform that enables the publication and dissemination of fund data and documents to professional investors across 60 jurisdictions worldwide.

In addition, he joined the Board of UKbased Life In Cache, a tech start-up providing simple and secure online life and legacy planning tools for the professional private client advisory community. He also hosted the 22nd PAM Awards in 2020, the first virtual networking and live broadcast event of its kind in the UK during lockdown to combine all of Zoom’s online meeting technologies.

RP Douglas-Miller OBE (The Park 1978 3 ) was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the New Year's Honours List 2021 for services to Wildlife Conservation in Scotland.

AD Hart (West Acre 1977 ) is Co-Founder and Chairman of a new business, Konscious Earth (konscious.earth), that facilitates offsetting the carbon footprint of businesses and individuals. It is based on an initial idea from PL Hedley (West Acre 2008 3 ), and a number of OHs have been involved in the development of the company’s business plan (ACR Chan (Moretons 2012 3 ), AE Denison-Smith (Elmfield 2013 3 ), LG Palazzo (West Acre 2014 3 ), P Patel (Elmfield 2015 3 ) and A Rahman (The Grove 2013 3 ). If any OHs are interested in the company or would like further information, please contact Adam Hart through OH Connect.

1

JB Neame (Moretons 1977 2 ) has been elected by The Brewers Company as Middle Warden for the ensuing year.

TGS Hinton (Bradbys 1977 3 ), in March 2021, delivered a virtual talk to Upper Sixth boys about his career and his experience working in a senior position in one of the world’s biggest high street banks. The talk was part of a series of Business Lunches organised by the School’s Careers Department.

Major WJ Tower (Elmfield 1977 ) assumed the role of Regional Director (South East) for ABF The Soldiers’ Charity (the Army’s national charity) in April 2019, after serving for 35 years in HM Forces. William is organising a five day trek to follow the WW2 Escape Route, Chemin de la Liberté, from France over the Pyrenees to Spain in summer 2022 and is looking to take 25—30 people. Anyone interested in participating should get in touch with William.

3

MS Landon (Rendalls 1977 3 ), in January 2021, delivered a virtual talk to Upper Sixth boys about careers in the Law sector as part of a series of Business Lunches organised by the School’s Careers Department.

GM Whitmee (Moretons 1978 1 ), owner of Purple Foot Wine Company, hosted the HA's first virtual wine tasting event, alongside DFT Wright (The Park 1972 2 ), importer of In Situ Chilean Wines, and Horacio Vicente, owner and winemaker at the property.

HJ Wickham (The Head Master’s 1979 3 ) has been appointed a Justice of the Peace serving on the Dorset bench.

WS Chong (The Knoll 1979 3 ) recently founded a boutique law firm in Hong Kong after 26 years in international law firms.

He advises on complex corporate and commercial matters as well as family offices in their investments. He is currently reading for an MSc in Taxation at Oxford University and would be keen to meet any Harrovians who have been at Kellogg College.

1980s JG Macpherson (The Grove 1980 3 ), in January 2021, delivered a virtual talk to Upper Sixth boys about FinTech as part of a series of Business Lunches organised by the School’s Careers Department.

The Hon A Butler QC (The Knoll 1981 3 ) was short-listed for the Barrister of the Year Award at the prestigious Lawyer Awards in November 2020.

19 Brigadier SJ Cartwright OBE (West Acre 1981 3 ) is now Programme Director for a pan-UK Government programme in support of the institutional and capability development of the Palestinian Security Forces, based in Ramallah.

On Remembrance Sunday 2020, Stephen returned to the School to give the address.

MO Giffard-Lindsay (The Grove 1982 3 ), in February 2021, delivered a virtual talk to Upper Sixth boys about NGOs and the charity sector as part of a series of Business Lunches organised by the School’s Careers Department.

RD Nelson (Bradbys 1983 3 ), in August 2020, was selected to make his debut for England Over-50s cricket team against India (UK) and went on to earn his first oneday International (ODI) cap v Wales. During the 2021 cricket season, Robert hopes to play various ODIs and trial matches, trying to win selection for the England squad for the Over-50s World Cup, due to be played in Cape Town in March 2022.

Lieutenant Colonel GR Denison-Smith (Elmfield 1983 3 ) After 27 years in the Army, Guy decided to start his own enterprise.

He, along with his US business partner, set about establishing Blue Ice Wine UK in December 2020. The idea is to make Croatian wine and its many indigenous varieties more readily available to the UK market (and, with their sister company, Blue Ice US, to the US market). The company supports two UK military charities, Grenadier Guards Colonel’s Fund and Combat Stress, by donating 20p from each bottle sold. Visit us at blueicewineuk.com.

Major General CRV Walker DSO (The Grove 1983 3 ) will join the Queen’s parade in Trooping the Colour 2021.

VK Hirdaramani (The Park 19843) was appointed as a member of Sampath Bank’s Board of Directors in 2021.

W de la P Beresford (The Park 1985 3 ), in March 2021, gave a virtual talk to Upper Sixth boys about data analysis as part of a series of Business Lunches organised by the School’s Careers Department.

MIE Leaf (The Park 1985 3 ) and SJ Leaf (Elmfield 1975 1 ) have fared well during the pandemic. Simon checks WhatsApp for ‘team news,’ either Chelsea FC or colleagues from Avison Young. He is delighted that golf has started again!

Tig needs a corneal stem cell transplant.

While waiting, she joined a therapeutic arts group, New Beginnings, and consequently a (very) small cottage industry has rooted from the garden shed during the last year (lydialeaf.com), complementing work as a literacy tutor and a trustee for The Level Centre, Matlock. Our parents, Jean Leaf—Harrow Tours and Tony and Shirley Crofts—Physics, have adapted to new methods of communication. Our children are studying, key workers or living abroad and we have yet to meet two new granddaughters. We are enlightened with pictures of gardens, babies and requests for food and return the favour with pictures of our adorable, revolting and wildly optimistic cocker spaniel who joined us in March 2020.

LA Kunzig IV (Druries 1983 3 ), in April 2021, delivered a virtual talk to Upper Sixth boys about his career in Mechanical Engineering as part of a series of Business Lunches organised by the School’s Careers Department.

Dr JM Ross (Newlands 1985 3 ), like other professional musicians, suddenly found all his performances stopped by Covid-19 and was living unexpectedly on a small island near Istanbul after his return flight was also cancelled and lockdown started.

In response, his record label and music consultancy Ulysses Arts rapidly increased production to help musician colleagues, releasing a recording most weeks.

In September 2020, he converted his planned music festival in Istanbul into a live televised concert with musicians from Turkey, Germany and the UK including violinist DCC Jeffares (Newlands 2011 3 ), with whom Ulysses Arts has also released three solo recordings.

AGNC Chamberlin (Druries 1986 3 ) was commissioned by the British Army to produce an oil painting of the 100-yearold Army veteran Captain Sir Thomas Moore who raised over £32 million for NHS charities. Alex unveiled the portrait in August 2020. The painting has been hung in the National Army Museum in London as part of commemorations to the mark the 75th anniversary of VJ Day.

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

20

DP Hopley MBE (The Head Master’s 1986 3 ) was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to rugby union football in the New Year’s Honours List 2021.

MD Pacifico (The Knoll 1986 3 ), Consultant Plastic Surgeon, has been elected as Vice-President, President Elect of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS). Marc is in full-time private practice, based in Tunbridge Wells, and is the Director of Purity Bridge, a leading independent plastic surgery clinic.

He is a regular international speaker at plastic surgery conferences and teaches surgical approaches and techniques widely, with a special interest in aesthetic surgery to the face, breast and body.

PT-A Wong (West Acre 1986 3 ), in January 2021, was granted permission by City of London with his company Tenacity Group to build a 30-storey office building at 55 Gracechurch Street, next to the ‘Walkie Talkie’ building.

JB Krickl (Druries 1989 1 ) had a memorable 2020, with the birth of his first child, Hugo, in February, just weeks before the start of the pandemic. The last twelve months have seen Julian and his wife navigating their yacht brokerage Mercury Yachts, and sister PR company Mercury Communications, through unpredictable times. Based in Mayfair, Mercury Yachts met the increased demand for private yachting holidays by providing professional, discreet and independent advice on yacht buying, selling and chartering to clients. They can’t wait to see everyone enjoying themselves back out on the water again.

QJSG Baker (Moretons 1989 3 ) moved from Head of Mako Financial Markets to Senior Vice President of Fixed Income Derivatives at R.J. O’Brien (UK).

1990s AG Barabas (Newlands 1989 3 ) was redeployed during the pandemic from his normal role as Plastic Surgery Consultant to helping in A&E and later on the wards. Photographer Charlie Surbey took photos of Tony at the end of a shift, one of which ended up on billboards in Milan.

GRA Hindley (Moretons 1989 3 ), after inheriting the Gisburne Park Estate in Lancashire in 2003, has developed the estate into a hugely successful holiday and wedding business. However, when the pandemic hit in 2020, the business came to a halt. Not wanting to close up shop, Guy saw an opportunity to pivot and created the world’s first socially distanced festival. Whilst events came to a standstill, the Gisburne Park Pop-Up was formed: an innovative, socially distanced festival site with hexagonal pitches bookable for bubbles of six people. The pop-up was praised for saving summer, hosting nearly 150 events across the season, welcoming over 40,000 guests, all socially distanced, and creating hundreds of jobs for the events industry in doing so.

The festival returns this May.

21

SN Dadlani (The Knoll 1992 3 ) obtained a MEng degree from Oxford University and after following a Short Service commission in the Royal Engineers, went on to become a global supply chain specialist. He worked for UPS in West Africa, Capgemini in China and DHL in both Hong Kong and the UK. He now runs his own supply chain business, Kinara International, with offices in China, the UK and Germany.

Kinara has built an industry reputation working with organizations to create, manufacture and deliver products from China to the world. Over the past 14 years, their global teams have helped many businesses across a wide range of industries with their end-to-end supply chain solutions.

During the Covid pandemic, Kinara International has supplied PPE equipment to gig economy workers across Europe, including for Uber. To date, they have delivered over 200,000 PPE kits to Uber drivers and Uber Eats couriers, keeping them safe and allowing them to continue to provide contact-free deliveries to those in lockdown or shielding in their homes.

As the roadmap continues and the hospitality industry opens up, Kinara International will continue to supply hygiene products to hotels, restaurants and offices globally.

Dr S Khemka (West Acre 19893) has recently been appointed CEO of Simplyhealth, a 150-year-old Hampshirebased health company that is transforming healthcare in the UK. He adds that to his busy life raising Allegra, 4, and Xander, 3, with his wife, Katarina. Sneh also continues as the resident doctor for London’s LBC 97.3FM with a weekly call-in show.

AH James (Elmfield 1990 3 ) is the Harrow rep in Peru. He founded Lima-based London to Lima Spirits, named after his adventure.

The brand was awarded a Gold Medal in the International Wine and Spirits Competition 2020 for its Mulberry and Coca Gin and features in the World Atlas of Gin. He encourages OHs to apply as interns with his business and coach or play cricket for Cricket Peru, of which he is Vice President. OHs who have worked as interns are LPW Sixsmith (The Knoll 2008 3 ), AFT Cadisch (Elmfield 2006 3 ), A Young (Elmfield 2010 3 ) and AEW Maxwell (Elmfield 2012 3 ).

MEJ Thomas (Newlands 1991 3 ), in February 2021, delivered a virtual talk to Upper Sixth boys about private investment as part of a series of Business Lunches organised by the School’s Careers Department.

GR Schaad-Jackson (The Park 1991 3 ) this year became a qualified barista and officially launched a Neapolitan-style pizza catering service for weddings, called Happizzaly Ever After! As the pandemic and subsequent restrictions came into place, Gregory offered a pop-up service to the Woking area of Surrey and received wonderful reviews. The bestselling pizzas were the 2 Meaters Distance and the Work from Rome. In March 2021, Gregory hosted the HA’s first virtual cooking class for OHs, teaching participants how to make pasta.

MM Stewart (The Head Master’s 1991 3 ) is a film producer based in Los Angeles and, last year, produced Wash Me in the River with Robert De Niro and John Malkovich, Force of Nature with Mel Gibson, and Midnight in the Switchgrass with Bruce Willis and Megan Fox.

HJdeC Prideaux (Bradbys 1992 3 ), who runs Henry Prideaux Interior Design, was delighted to be named in the 50 Finest Interior Designers list 2020 by Country and Townhouse magazine, and to have a dedicated Designer Profile article in House and Garden magazine. Henry has a full house feature appearing in House and Garden later this year to add to a growing portfolio of completed residential projects.

The studio is expanding and recently took on a new junior designer, Sophia, daughter of JW Hart (Moretons 1976 3 ).

SM Cunliffe (Rendalls 1994 1 ) and MJH Rice (Rendalls 1981 1 ) are two of three founders of Conserve Global, established in June 2020 specifically to focus on the critically important but largely neglected niche of African conservation areas outside of national parks. Collectively these wilderness areas encompass a staggering 1.7 million km2, or 66% of Sub-Saharan Africa’s entire protected area estate.

They typically, however, receive very little conservation attention or investment.

Conserve is currently looking to expand its board and would welcome interested OHs, with the relevant skills and experience getting in touch: matt@conserveglobal.org

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

AEC Gray (The Head Master’s 1994 3 ) has changed careers after 15 years in travel and tourism to set up a low-cost psychotherapy clinic called Garden of Eadon, based at the award-winning reCentre Health in Balham in south-west London. Alexander is also undertaking an MA in Transpersonal Child, Adolescent and Family Therapy and has become a Trustee of a new charity, Reiki Healthcare Research Trust, through which he has helped to launch Reiki Medic-Care which gives remote treatments to doctors, nurses and paramedics in response to Covid-19.

Alexander has also become the youngest member to sit on the Main Committee at the Hurlingham Club.

NMN Chandiramani (Newlands 1995 3 ) founded HOSPITALITYEXPERT which continues to go from to strength and has developed Vacation Communities globally, which can be booked on any of the leading vacation rental platforms including Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and more.

The company now offers hospitality services to other properties.

DR Hinckley (West Acre 1995 3 ), with his company W H Management Group, was awarded Gold in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme in July 2020. Joining this alumnus was a very proud moment for WHMG as many of our contemporaries are huge, sometimes multi-national organisations, such as Microsoft Ltd and The Post Office. WHMG are grateful to their hard working and diligent team of military and emergency service personnel.

OH Theobald (The Park 1995 3 ) launched a new website for his business FUZL, making responsible, enduring and craftengineered furniture. All designs in FUZL’s collection are made with 100% sustainably sourced materials and the company has purposefully kept all production within the UK on a ‘made to order’ model to minimise production and transportation costs. fuzl.co

22 CR Reid (The Head Master’s 1997 3 ) and his wife Diane, now living in Hong Kong, had their second son Teddy on 21 January. Harry, now almost 2, seems remarkably happy to have someone who will now play in goal for him!

ADJ Townsend (The Park 1998 3 ) has relocated to Brazil and has a PR and communications agency. He is also involved in supporting the local cricket programme, which combines developing both the elite, professional level and community projects in underprivileged areas. As cricket is not part of the Olympic Games, the sport receives zero funding.

Funding is sourced independently by Cricket Brazil and, with the pandemic draining donations and forcing sponsors to drop out, there is real concern that past 10 years of work will be put in jeopardy. For that reason, Alasdair set up a crowdfunding page to support the project: gogetfunding.com/cricketbrazil.

He also featured on The Final Word podcast, speaking about the project: omny.fm/shows/the-final-word-cricketpodcast/the-final-word-goes-to-brazil.

FRH Brunt (The Head Master’s 1999 3 ) became engaged at the beginning of the year to Yasmim Monteiro. Freddie currently works for the Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office, based at the High Commission in Maputo, Mozambique, where he has lived for the last two years. He and Yasmim intend to get married in 2022, either in Brazil (where Yasmim is from) or in Southern Africa.

WOH Werner (Newlands 1999 3 ) left the world of consulting behind in August 2020 to launch the world’s first rum to be spiced with botanicals from the British Isles.

PenrynSpirits–a carbon-negative distillery just outside Falmouth–distils fine Caribbean rum with Cornish nettle, bay and quince to create a rum that tastes like no other. BORA Botanical Rum is dry, complex, and refined and serves perfectly with tonic.

2000s JM Baucher (The Head Master’s 2000 3 ) has started a B2B platform for the wildlife conservation community, The Ark. The organisation seeks to conserve nature and enable industry stakeholders and individuals to contribute to measurable and sustainable impact.

TD Deacon (Newlands 2000 3 ) directed, and OA Blustin (Newlands 2001 3 ) produced a new audio adaptation of JM Barrie’s beloved classic, Peter Pan in December 2020. The production is in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) and features an all-star cast and an original musical score. Household names like Kenneth Branagh and Olivia Colman perform alongside members of the GOSH Young People’s Forum, including patients undergoing treatment and ex-patients. All money raised from this audio production will go directly to the charity, to enable them to continue to provide life-changing treatments for children and young people across the UK. Please visit listentopeterpan.com to download the production for £3!

AC Short (The Grove 2001 3 ) married Beatrice Chew on 11 September 2020, after having their wedding cancelled three times due to Covid-19. Alex also set up his second business, Planet.Fans.

DDK Haria (West Acre 2001 3) married Vidhi Shah on 19 March 2021 in Malaysia, after going through all odds and ends during the pandemic to continue their lockdown romance, and eventually tied the knot amidst lockdown restrictions and closed borders. Dhruv also set up Mirthy during this time, the fastest growing activities marketplace and online community globally for over 55s. mirthy.co.uk CEG Bailey (The Head Master’s 2002 3 ), was appointed Director of Studies at Harrow School from September 2021.

23 ANR Dent (Rendalls 2002 3 ) and his cofounder set up the on-demand grocery delivery start-up, Weezy in 2020. From humble beginnings, operating their first small warehouse in Fulham, the company has grown rapidly and raised more than $20m in funding. Weezy now offers ultrafast grocery deliveries in 15 minutes across London, Bristol, Brighton and Manchester, with many more cities to launch nationally and internationally this year. In January, fellow OH NGN Green (The Grove 2002 3 ) joined the team as Business Development Director.

RRCK Opoku (West Acre 2004 3 ) worked from home as well as keeping his musical activities going during lockdown. Joining with other musicians at the St Andrew’s Church Clewer community, he put together some recordings for a virtual concert in aid of Victim Support. The virtual concert was broadcast on 3 April 2021 and featured pre-recorded Easter hymns and arias.

CEL Bell (Moretons 2003 3 ) is Account Executive – UK/EMEA and MJK ElliotSquare (West Acre 1985 3 ) is Senior Director of Sales – UK/EMEA of TeraCode, a US tech company. In the last year, both were part of the team who launched the company into the UK and Europe.

TeraCode helps companies to digitally transform by implementing end-to-end IoT solutions, harnessing the powers of data, AI and ML.

HF Nicholson (Elmfield 2004 3 ) and his company Master of None Productions released The Nicky Nack, a horror comedy based on a dubious pub tale from the north-east of England. A man walking home from his local one night is tormented by a terrifying sound: The Nicky Nack stars Alun Armstrong (Braveheart, Krull, Sleepy Hollow). Other highlights this year have included assistantdirecting on All My Friends Hate Me, a feature recently selected for the Oscarqualifying Tribeca Film Festival, a Vimeo Staff Pick for Man Spider (Master of None’s second film), and a stint working in the locations department for The Batman.

EI Nicholson (Elmfield 2007 3 ), OM Spray (Elmfield 2007 3 ), RDC TownsendRose (Moretons 2007 3 ) and CAW Mould (Bradbys 2007 3 ) swam a relay in August 2020, raising over £15,000 for James’ Place charity. They took on the swim after a few year's training, following an idea conceived in the pub.

On 7 August the team set out at 02:13; 12 hours and 51 minutes later they touched land again in Wissant, France. Training was treacherous and inventive considering the restrictions in place thanks to Covid-19, but they powered on and were chuffed with their time. They are eternally grateful to everyone who supported them and donated.

SCM Esses (The Head Master’s 2005 3 ) Sam co-founded an architectural design company called Superficium Studio towards the end of 2020. Based in London, the company specialises in computational design methodologies to achieve progressive and high-quality designs, from the furniture scale to the building scale.

The studio was recently featured in leading design publications and future trends platforms for their award-winning research project into future living, utilising 3D-printed bio-integrated materials, entitled Biohacker’s Residence.

Superficium Studio offer design services for commercial projects, residential and furniture design. Sam is also currently a lecturer at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL, teaching architectural design.

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

AO Adesanya (Newlands 2007 3 ) celebrated the fifth anniversary of Mojo Kojo, a company he launched from his university bedroom. Mojo Kojo is an African inspired streetwear brand, making ethical garments in Lagos, Nigeria. The company takes pride in celebrating African culture and handmade clothing. In the last five years, the company has stocked its garments in global international retailers such as Urban Outfitters, and stores in Japan and Australia have been regular stockists. Mojo Kojo has also collaborated with K Swiss for a limited collection.

24 PL Hedley (West Acre 2008 3 ) recently founded a business in the AI and recycling space, Recycleye, which featured in the first Microsoft Sustainability Report in 2020.

The organisation recognised the huge issue of waste management and the importance of accelerating the transition towards a circular economy. Recycleye uses deep learning and AI advancements with a low cost, rapidly deployable, decentralized, scalable and fully automated sorting solution which can be deployed inside waste management facilities. Peter and his business partner Victor were listed in Forbes 30 Under 30 for Social Impact.

2010s CT Sham (Moretons 2010 3) featured in the December 2020 New York Times article 10 Classical Concerts to Stream in December. Two of his recitals were streamed live on the Young Concert Artists YouTube channel.

EP McBarnet (Bradbys 2009 3 ) passed out from Dartmouth Royal Navy College in 2020.

The Hon GECD Cadogan (Druries 2009 3 ) was commissioned into the Intelligence Corps in January 2021.

HAL Glover (Rendalls 2009 3 ) signed to Stade Francais Paris from Carcassonne in May 2021. Harry has played 148 matches for the England Sevens and will compete for Team GB in the Tokyo Olympics 2021.

MA Brunault (Moretons 2008 3 ) launched a saké-based cocktail company, Shima Drinks in 2020. Whilst living in New York, Matthew became increasingly acquainted with the national drink of Japan, which is growing in popularity in the US. After moving back to London and sensing a lack of appreciation for the beverage, he started Shima, which translates as Island in Japanese. The company explores the shared island mentality of the two nations, marrying Eastern and Western flavours in a refreshing, low-calorie canned cocktail.

Follow us on our journey @shima.drinks on Instagram or shimadrinks.com.

OHs have been sending us their news throughout the year.

If you have news to feature in next year's FollowUp! email oldharrovians@harrowschool.org.uk

DC Jeffares (Newlands 20113) released three solo recordings with Ulysses Arts.

MG Menaged (Druries 2011 3) ran 300km and completed 300 minutes of planking in 30 days in aid of Eden Reforestation Projects, who will plant 3,000 trees in Madagascar with the funds Max raises. Last year, Max ran 300km in 30 days to raise money for the same charity. Only 10% of Madagascar’s rainforest remains; Eden Reforestation Projects have planted over 400 million trees in Madagascar and created over 4 million working days for local communities. edenprojects.org SE Cator (The Park 20123) passed out from Sandhurst and, in September 2020, was part of The Sovereign’s Parade in the Royal Logistics Corps.

AHP Olesen (Rendalls 2008 3 ) founded Babylon Micro-Farms in 2017, a high growth AgTech company deploying their indoor farming service across North America.

Their patented technology allows them to remotely manage vertical farms, enabling businesses and communities to grow their own fresh vegetables two to three times more quickly and using 90% less water than conventional farming, without any pesticides. Babylon has grown to 25 employees, raised nearly $6 million from investors and won over $1.5 milllion in grant funding, including a prestigious SBIR from the National Science Foundation.

ON Alfa (The Knoll 20123) had a successful 2019/20 season, making 12 appearances for the Under-23s and scoring two goals. Ody starts the 2020/21 season in the first team for Queens Park Rangers F.C.

25 OM Itoje (The Grove 20113) campaigned in January 2021 to help tackle the school laptop shortage that left many young people at a disadvantage during the pandemic. Maro is supporting the Saracens foundation in their effort to provide children across North London and Hertfordshire with laptops and devices donated by the public. Post-pandemic, Maro is seeking a review that could enable every child in England to receive a free laptop as part of a standardised state-school kit. Maro was listed in Forbes 30 Under 30 for Sports & Games. In May 2021, Maro presented A History Untold, an art exhibition celebrating the contribution that Africa and its diaspora has made to Britain and the world, held at Signature African Art Gallery, 20 Davies Street, Mayfair.

SIW Trew (The Grove 2012 3), while studying at Imperial College, founded Occam Health with a Junior Doctor from Guy’s and St Thomas’. It is a digital health platform for delivering the correct care to everyone, regardless of their native language or location. It focuses on providing a universal triage service and connecting users with urgent care services throughout their travels. Sam recently presented at Imperial’s National Medical Technology Conference.

NEP Trotter (The Head Master’s 20123) will complete his BSc in Biological Sciences with Management at Imperial College this summer and will continue at Imperial to study for a Masters in Applied Biosciences and Biotechnology starting in October.

LK Pittalis (Rendalls 20133) has been working on a new natural history documentary, Wonders of the Celtic Deep, with the team behind the BBC’s landmark 2011 Human Planet series. The four episodes in the series will air on BBC One (Wales) in November 2021, ahead of the UN’s climate change conference, COP26. The series is BBC Wales’ most ambitious natural history documentary yet, focusing on the remarkable creatures that can be found in Welsh waters and what we need to do to protect these wonders in the face of climate change. Luca has been working as a Junior Researcher on the series whilst in his final year of studying Biomedical Science at Durham but started off as a location runner and camera assistant last summer, having worked on a few short films through the first lockdown that aired on BBC One’s The One Show. He hopes to pursue a career as a series producer of landmark natural history documentaries, like ADW Fothergill (Moretons 19733).

DL Shailer (Rendalls 20133), ACM Wolf Galimberti (The Parks 20003) and two Old Etonians, A Jenn and H Drake, swam the English Channel in September 2020 to raise money for Lighthouse Relief. The swim marked 16 years since three of the team– Alexandre, Alexander and Hector–competed in the Eton v Harrow Cross- Channel Swin Race. Daniel joined as the fourth member of the team and, in August 2020 also completed a solo swim of the Channel, raising over £12,000 for the Marine Conservation Society.

IHS Obatoyinbo (The Knoll 20143) has signed for Toulon, after being promoted to the first team for Ealing Trailfinders in the 2020/21 season.

RRW Miller (The Knoll 20163) held a Grimshaw Exhibition at Lincoln College, Oxford during the 2019–20 academic year.

Join the

Edward Bowen Society and leave a lasting legacy for future generations Bequests have been enormously important to Harrow since its earliest years. As we look ahead to the 450th anniversary of Harrow’s foundation, leaving a gift in your will is your opportunity to help secure Harrow’s future and support the education of future generations.

EDWARD BOWEN SOCIETY

Visit harrowschool.org.uk/leaving-a-legacy to find out how to support the School with a gift in your Will.

Harrow Development Trust is a registered charity, number 296097

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

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ENGAGEMENTS

MARRIAGES

HG Wynn-Williams (The Head Master’s 1997 3) and Miss Letitia Keys: September 2020

MEJ Baddeley (Elmfield 2003 3) and Miss Emma Gutteridge: February 2021

GD Thompson (The Park 1989 3) and Miss Katie Holdgreve-Resendez: 22 May 2020

TEM Squire (Druries 1998 3) and Miss Grace Bovis: January 2021

TGW Jessel (The Grove 2003 3) and Miss Isabel English: September 2020

TA van Straubenzee MRICS (Elmfield 1995 3) and Miss Lucy Lanigan-O’Keefe: 24 July 2020

HTF Woolley (Moretons 1998 3) and Miss Hannah Elcock: December 2020

AJ Fogarty (West Acre 2003 3) and The Honourable Alice Wigram: December 2020

JA Furlonger (Rendalls 1998 3) and Miss Philippa Rodden: September 2020

EGA Chadd (Druries 20043) and Miss Isobel Anderson: October 2020

FRH Brunt (The Head Master’s 1999 3) and Miss Yasmim Monteiro: January 2021

Capt. EM Keith (The Knoll 20043) and Miss Ellen Showalter: December 2020

CRJ Buxton (Elmfield 2000 3) and Miss Alexandra Crawford: January 2021

Capt. HCW Sumption (Moretons 20043) and Miss Lily Oram: May 2020

WH Kostoris (The Grove 2000 3) and Miss Maria Rodrigues Clemente: April 2020

CG Henderson Russell (The Park 20043) and Miss Olivia Anderson: December 2020

FCJ Butcher (Druries 2001 3) and Miss Sophie Dodson: October 2020

EFV Voelker (Druries 20053) and Dr Caitlin Mahoney: March 2020

CA Remington-Hobbs (Rendalls 2001 3) and Miss Georgina Philipps: May 2020

BA Scott (Elmfield 20053) and Miss Catharine Bowen: December 2020

BT Busk (Druries 2002 3) and Miss Lucy Wright: January 2021

HJ Beatson-Hird (The Park 2005 3) and Miss Harriet Burrell: February 2020

RJ Portal (The Park 2002 3) and Miss Alice Vine: September 2020

JEA Gooch (Newlands 2008 3) and Miss Ophelia Bird: January 2021

OJ Phillips (Elmfield 2003 3) and Miss Florence Brooks: 6 September 2020

WH Seligman (Bradbys 2003 3) and Miss Charlotte Freer-Smith: December 2020

OSF Clamp (The Park 2008 3) and Miss Beatrice Quinton: January 2021

CW Hicks (West Acre 2006 3) and Miss Victoria Holland: 24 October 2020

Major CRGD Turner (Rendalls 1996 3) and Miss Miranda Keymer: 10 October 2020 JAB Orr-Ewing (Elmfield 2000 3) and Miss Emma McDowell: 22 September 2018 NH Symes-Thompson (The Head Master’s 2000 3) and Miss Deborah Chapman: 29 February 2020 AC Short (The Grove 2001 3) and Miss Beatrice Chew: 11 September 2020 DDK Haria (West Acre 2001 3) and Miss Vidhi Shah: 19 March 2021 HD Wentworth-Stanley (The Grove 2002 3) and Miss Cressida Bonas: July 2020 DLC Dundas (Newlands 2002 3) and Miss Kelley Foster: 10 October 2020

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BIRTHS TE Lowsley-Williams (The Grove 1982 1) and Tiggy, a son, Digby Peter: on 1 October 2020

CA Barrell (Moretons 1998 3) and Kate, a daughter, Charlotte Sophia: on 12 October 2020

RRR Cook (The Head Master’s 1987 3) and Lizzie, a daughter, Eithne Jenny Gillian: on 5 January 2021

GR Bates (Newlands 1998 3) and Amy, a son, Linus: on 27 October 2020

FIA MacGregor (The Grove 2001 3) and Cornelia, a daughter, Athena Shaunagh Antonia: on 2 November 2020

OPT Hutley (Newlands 1998 3) and Melissa, a daughter, Delfina Maria Ann: on 16 March 2020

AStJW Gilbert (Moretons 20013) and Natalia, a son, Patrick William Rex: on 5 October 2020

HLG Taylor (Druries 1999 3) and Camilla, a daughter, Sienna Grace: on 1 May 2020

AN Dennis (Rendalls 2001 3) and Emma, a daughter, Daisy Victoria Rose: on 16 April 2020

QJSG Baker (Moretons 1989 3) and Rachael, a son, George Henry Elliott: on 19 November 2020 OR Hathaway-Taylor (The Grove 1993 3) and Kirsty, a son, Hedley Alexander: on 13 October 2020 BIA Maclean (Rendalls 1994 3) and Daisy, a son, Arlo Finch Bear: on 6 May 2020 JA Strachan (Elmfield 19953) and Honor, a son, Samuel John: on 14 July 2020 TA van Straubenzee (Elmfield 19953) and Lucy, a daughter, Mary Anna: on 12 October 2020

ECA Brown (The Head Master’s 1999 3) and Cordelia, a daughter, Isla Annie Isabel: on 13 November 2020 JE Stafford Allen (The Head Master’s 1999 3) and Lucy, a daughter, Astrid Felicity: on 24 December 2020 HJ Savory (Moretons 1999 3) and Rosalie, a son, Guy Charles: on 27 November 2020

KA Gray (Moretons 1995 ) and Jana, a son, Nikolas Anthony: on 12 January 2021

BJ Figgures-Wilson (Newlands 1999 3) and Claire, a daughter, Charlotte Grace: on 25 January 2021

EHW Macfarlane (The Park 19953) and Alice, a son, Hugh Charles Edgar: on 24 February 2021

NE Sotiropoulos (Newlands 1999 3) and Victoria, a daughter, Isabella Helen: on 29 August 2020

NJ Strachan (Elmfield 19963) and Lydia, a daughter, Imogen Scarlett: on 22 April 2021

ER Clifton-Brown (The Park 1999 3) and Miss Georgiana, a son, Arthur Robert: on 15 June 2020

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SA Morgan (The Grove 19963) and Laura, a daughter, Iris Emily: on 13 October 2020 GAH Wilkins (The Park 19963) and Sally, a daughter, Isobel Vivienne: on 3 January 2021 WR Littlejohns (Druries 19973) and Joanna, a son, Freddie: on October 2020 TEJ Snowball (Elmfield 19973) and Francesca, a daughter, Cordelia Anita: on 12 October 2020 JGR Dashwood (The Head Master’s 19973) and Rose, a son, Peregrine ‘Reggie’ Christopher Gordon: on 13 October 2020 CR Reid (The Head Master’s 19973) and Diane, a son, Teddy: on 21 January 2021 AM Chopra (Newlands 19973) and Chloe, a daughter, Sienna Elizabeth Sheela: on 31 October 2020 JA Barrington-Wells (Druries 19983) and Lucy, a daughter, Ottilie Blossom: on 2 July 2020

FE Conway (The Park 19993) and Jennifer, a daughter, Eva Eleanor Colette: May 2020

M Firman (The Grove 2001 3) and Alice, a son, Henry Alec: on 16 November 2020

PD Boyle (Druries 20023) and Liz, a daughter, Carmen de Jose: on 6 August 2020 CEG Bailey (The Head Master’s 2002 3) and Lindsay, a daughter, Cecilia Maeve Conner: on 26 January 2021 JC Stephenson (Elmfield 2003 3) and Helena, a daughter, Lara Cecilia Helga: on 2 October 2020 GJ Woodhouse (The Grove 20043) and Celia, a son, Walter George Spencer: on 27 November 2020 SG Hardy (Druries 2008 3) and Sarah, a son, James Gerald William: on 18 November 2020 HFD Wan (Newlands 20131) and Haoran, a son, Nick: on 3 February 2021

OAJ Leeming (Bradbys 20003) and Rosanna, a daughter, Matilda Emmeline Kennedy: on 8 March 2021 JAB Orr-Ewing (Elmfield 20003) and Emma, a daughter, Martha Josephine Mildred: on 10 July 2020 ARMY Herries (The Grove 20003) and Isobel, a son, Walter Robert Archibald: on 15 May 2020 AHE Torstenson (The Grove 2000 3) and Emma, a daughter, Nina Evelien Linnea: on 17 April 2020 OHT Van der Wyck (The Knoll 20003) and Charlotte, a son, Osian Oliver: on 1 September 2020 RJE Cadbury (Rendalls 2000 3) and Antonia, a daughter, Louella Poppy Honora: on 9 July 2020

WR Orr-Ewing (Elmfield 19983) and Isabel, a daughter, Gala: on 31 March 2021

JWN Rundall (Rendalls 2000 3) and Helen, a daughter, Claudia Florence Rose: on 20 September 2020

MS Marks (The Head Master’s 19983) and Jennifer, a daughter, Emmanuelle Marguerite Adina: on 11 January 2021

CGC Kennard (Druries 2001 3) and Kiloran, a daughter, Skye Philippa Rose: on 30 May 2020

Isabella Helen Sotiropoulos daughter of ME Sotiropoulos and Victoria

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

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DEATHS OLD HARROVIANS

CR Buxton (Elmfield 1954 2) 3 January 2021

MSF Hood (The Head Master’s 1930 3) 18 January 2021

JR Hutton-Potts (Moretons 1954 2)

JC Whitley (The Park 1936 3) 15 June 2020

HR Walduck OBE JP DL (West Acre 19552) 6 January 2021

AJ Collier CB (Bradbys & West Acre 1937 3) 25 February 2021

RJD Blois (The Head Master’s 1955 3) 7 January 2021

TD Rootes (Druries 1939 1) 3 July 2020

AT Murly-Gotto (The Knoll 19561) 2 February 2021

BGF Nash (Moretons 19392) 7 December 2020

AM Bullivant (Bradbys 1957 3) 1 September 2020

MJW Levien (Bradbys & The Park 1941 2) 16 August 2020

SJA Webb (Elmfield 1957 3) 2 March 2021

C Wick (Druries 1943 2) 10 April 2020

CPG Arratoon (The Knoll 1957 3) 9 November 2020

TPO’D Bredin (Elmfield 1943 2) 26 May 2020

Dr DL Randles (Moretons 1959 3) 26 October 2020

JA Partridge (The Head Master’s 1943 3) 13 November 2020

CA Creagh Brown (The Knoll 1960 2) 18 February 2021

JRD Hermon (The Knoll 1943 2) 2 December 2020

AS Warman (The Knoll 1960 2) 29 May 2020

AC Purefoy MBE (Moretons 1944 2) 4 February 2021

APJ Wilson (Druries 1962 1) 12 May 2020

The Hon R Pleydell-Bouverie (Elmfield 19443) 19 August 2020

The Hon CJ Guest (Druries 1964 1) 27 December 2020

KK Wynes (The Knoll 19443) 1 January 2021

Dr PRG Anderson PhD (Rendalls 1965 1) 24 July 2020

JF Hartridge (The Park 1945 2) 12 November 2020

RE Murray Willis (West Acre 1966 2) 6 February 2021

TW Miller-Jones JP (The Head Master’s & Small Houses 1945 3) 19 February 2021

JC Lepp (West Acre 1967 1) January 2021

DEK Elliott (The Head Master’s 1946 2) 24 December 2019 Dr AM Hall-Smith (The Knoll 1946 ) 31 May 2020 3

Dr RSO Rees FRCP (The Head Master’s 1947 2) 30 November 2020 Dr C McK Holmes (Rendalls 1948 3) 26 March 2020 NG Wright (Elmfield 1949 )

SCC Barnett (Rendalls 1967 3) 4 November 2020 RB Symes-Thompson (The Head Master’s 1970 2) 29 September 2019 D Johnson (West Acre 1974 2) 13 December 2020 TND Flynn (The Head Master’s 1976 1) 1 January 2021 HP Hellemaa (The Park 1976 3) 8 April 2020

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JF Shaw (The Grove 1978 3) 13 May 2021

RW Hart (Moretons 1949 3) 29 August 2020 JA Cecil-Williams (West Acre 1949 3) 4 November 2020 GLD Gibbens (West Acre 1951 ) 5 May 2020

S Ahmadu-Suka (The Park 1979 1) 15 October 2020 MD Hart (West Acre 1979 3) 15 October 2020

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CL Wade (Rendalls 1951 2) 18 July 2020 RD Maitland (The Head Master’s 1951 ) 24 April 2020

TD McClure (The Grove 1999 3) 21 December 2020 OE Bates (Rendalls 2006 3) 23 February 2021

3

BGA Fisher (Rendalls 2010 3) 1 September 2020

The Rt Revd HV Taylor (Rendalls 1951 3) 17 February 2021 BE Allfrey (Moretons 1952 1) 24 August 2020

HARROW BEAKS AND FORMER STAFF AG Bagnall Master of Physics (1962-1997 ) 20 February 2021 RJE Crosby Rackets Professional (1962-1996) 13 March 2021

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OH BOOKS What have OHs been writing about this year?

JDC VARGAS (Druries 1952³) Puddings, Bullies & Squashes is the story of twenty schools and their versions of football before the nationalisation of the game by the FA from 1863 and the RFU from 1871. The problems began when old boys from different schools met up at university and wanted to play football together: they had all been playing to different rules. This was resolved by the formation of the Football Association in 1863 and the Rugby Football Union in 1871, but some schools continued to play their own games. Some, notably at Eton, Harrow and Winchester, have survived but most have withered away, assimilated into the now highly professional codes of association and rugby football. If you have ever wondered about the reasons for the off-side law, the origins of “in touch” and “a try” you may find the answers in Pudding, Bullies and Squashes.

And if you have wondered why Harrow football, along with the Eton field and wall games and Winchester College football, continues to thrive where other school games have withered, you may find the answer here too.

SP WELFARE (The Grove 1960² ) Fortune Many Houses is a unique and fascinating look at Victorian society through the remarkable lives of an enlightened and philanthropic aristocratic couple, the Marquess and Marchioness of Aberdeen, who tried to change the world for the better but paid a heavy price.

This is a true tale of love and loss, fortune and misfortune.

In the late 19th century, John and Ishbel Gordon, the Marquess and Marchioness of Aberdeen, were the couple who seemed to have it all: a fortune that ran into the tens of millions, a magnificent stately home in Scotland surrounded by one of Europe’s largest estates, a townhouse in London’s most fashionable square, cattle ranches in Texas and British Columbia, and the governorships of Ireland and Canada where they lived like royalty. This fascinating family quest for the reason for their dramatic downfall is also a moving and colourful exploration of society in Victorian Britain and North America and an inspirational feast for history lovers.

CL FOX (The Knoll 1964³ )

On the Brink is a rich and personal insight into the life and times of the Fox family, whose success in Cornwall and beyond spanned three centuries.

Colourful stories from the author’s own experience of working within the business, along with historical reference, portray an intricate account of the contribution the Foxes made to the history of Falmouth. On the Brink is a diverse and winding collection of accounts and tales which brings alive the activities of the Foxes and the character of the 18th-19th century Falmouth.

RB PACKARD (The Head Master’s 1960²)

The History of Refractive Surgery describes how, at the end of the 19th century, the first operations purely to correct significant short sight were carried out in Europe but abandoned 20 years later due to complications. The History of Refractive Surgery starts its story there but takes the reader through the incising of the cornea for myopia in the 1930s and again in the 1970s; the first lens implantations for long-sightedness in the 1980s; the development of the excimer laser for corneal reshaping at the end of that decade; to today and the use of the femtosecond laser for removing precise lenticules from within the cornea to correct vision. The list of distinguished authors represents the history of refractive surgery over the last 40 years.

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MA PEPERA (The Knoll 1972²) Kweku: A Ghanaian at Boarding School in 1960s and 70s Britain is part real life and part fiction.

It is loosely based on selected highlights of his life in newly postcolonial Ghana and a changing Britain, as viewed through the experiences of the principal character, Kweku.

It covers the author’s time at Harrow, where he was the first African student to enter the School in its 400-year history, as well as his experiences in later life up to the present day.

The book aims to enlighten as well as to entertain, and an added feature is that threaded through the plot are some frank perspectives on race that avoid the run-of-the-mill stereotyping that is focused exclusively on ethnic discrimination by whites, while wilfully ignoring ethnic discrimination by all other races.

PJ MARSDEN (The Park 1974³ ) The Summer Isles: A Voyage of the Imagination is the story of a sea voyage to the Summer Isles, an enticing, periodically inhabited archipelago off the Scottish Highlands. To reach them, Marsden must head north, sailing a course along the exposed and exhilarating western coasts of Ireland and Scotland. It is a course that has been followed for centuries by explorers and adventurers, fishermen and monks, all drawn to the western seas and their distant horizons.

But as much as the journey of men, this book is about the journey of ideas: of nostalgia and a very particular kind of geographical yearning; of a culture and language that has been shaped by its dramatic topography; of the local legend and lore that live on to this day.

TR DE LA P BERESFORD (The Park 1987³) Infinite Gamification: How to motivate your team until the end of time tells you how to Level up your leadership skills with infinite gamification. Inside this book you’ll find the key principles of infinite gamification, a step-by-step design guide, key pitfalls to avoid and checklists to make sure you’ve covered every angle.

Written by Toby Beresford, a seasoned gamification practitioner working with organisations across the world, Infinite Gamification distils several years of practical experience into a couple of hours reading.

JH BLOUNT (Elmfield 1987³) How To

Be A Complete and Utter Blunt: Diary of a Reluctant Social Media Sensation realtes how, Once upon a time, James Blunt’s most enduring legacy was a three-minute, thirty-second pop song about a girl he saw on the underground, and a nation’s worth of abuse. But with the invention of Twitter, James found his true voice, and his reply was a simple ‘up yours’. Now the King of Twitter has ascended to the heady heights of occasionally ‘winning the internet’. Selected and introduced by James himself, this is a year in the life of the world’s most reluctant social media sensation. Now learn for yourself how to be a complete and utter Blunt . . .

AJ POLAK (West Acre 1990³ ) Magick Unveiled. As a child, Gavan once pulled a string through a toy with no damage to either item.

Despite being under psychiatric care, Gavan has been certain since then that he has latent magickal abilities trapped within him. Running his magick shop, Dinas Affaraon, has afforded him contact with real magick and the artefacts connected to it.

While the New Age products keep the store in business, he frequently takes commissions to search out artefacts of true magick. One day an appointment appears that neither he nor his employee Summer entered into the schedule. When the mysterious woman arrives and refuses to give her name or the name of her employer, Gavan is intrigued but hesitant. He has refused clients before when the magickal item is too “dark”, and this woman has provided little information. What she asks for is a thing of legend, considered allegory more than object, but the sum she offers is more than enough to send Gavan searching. Doubts rise in his mind as to the wisdom of giving such a powerful object to an unknown group with extensive power and uncertain intentions. Gavan’s moral dilemma takes turns he never expected when he begins the search.

He had no way of knowing that this path was always meant for him, and the artefact may have far more to offer him than money.

32

OH BOOKS

W R I T I N G

M Y

M E M O I R S

A WINDOW

INTO A LIFE Field Marshal Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank, GCB, GCVO, OBE, DL (Newlands 19523 )

WS ROBINSON (Bradbys 1999³)

has recently written his fourth book, Historic Affairs:The Muses of Sir Arthur Bryant.This biography explores the complex love life of the historian Sir Arthur Bryant (The Knoll 1912³) and is published

by Zuleika.

JJF COOKE (The Grove 1999³)

The End of the Road is a wonderfully quixotic, charming and surprisingly uplifting travelogue which sees Jack Cooke, author of the much-loved The Treeclimbers Guide, drive around the British Isles in a clapped-out forty-year-old hearse in search of famous “and not so famous” tombs, graves and burial sites. Along the way, he launches a daredevil trespass into Highgate Cemetery at night, stumbles across the remains of the Welsh Druid who popularised cremation and has time to sit and ponder the imponderables at the graveside of the Lady of Hoy, an 18th-century suicide victim whose body was kept in near condition by the bog in which she was buried. A truly unique, beautifully written and wonderfully imagined book.

George Orwell once said “memoirs are only to be trusted when they reveal something disgraceful. A man who gives a good account of himself is probably lying.” 2020 was a year of few blessings but, like most people during last year’s longueurs, I found I had time to kill. Although I was now in my 82nd year, my thoughts turned to times past and those chapters in my life that counted for more than just the sum of their days.

My time at Harrow was one such chapter. Shortly after I finished my time as chief of the defence staff (CDS), a promising officer who was at the time attending the Advanced Command and Staff Course wrote a widely circulated defence research paper entitled ‘The Shaping of a General’. The officer, in his analysis of seven generals of which I was one, concluded that the first signs of a gladiatorial spark and talent for leadership were seen and nurtured at school. All had been head of school or prefects; all had been prominent academically or on the sports field. Some had shone in an extra-curricular activity whether it was art, theatre or debating.

My memory is the only diary I have kept. My recollections from my days as a schoolboy and my 42 years as a soldier had slipped like sand through my fingers.

The fall on my head as Colonel of The Life Guards in the 2018 Trooping the Colour has given me moments of great lucidity on events long past, mixed with what I can only describe as unnerving “senior moments” about what happened last week. Fortunately I was able to call upon the razor-sharp memory of one of my closest friends from Harrow, Dale Vargas (Druries 1952³), whose distinguished service to the School as a teacher, House Master and Second Master is a source of great joy to all who know him.

My skirmishes with academic class work at Harrow amounted to little. Like many boys, I drew great personal fulfilment through sport, particularly rugby football.

With the arrival in 1950 of AL Warr, an Oxford Blue and England International, Harrow rugby enjoyed a remarkable revival. We were unbeaten in 1954 and we lost just one match in 1955 and 1956 when I captained the team, playing alongside Robin Butler (Druries 1951³) who was later to become Head of the Home Civil Service under three prime ministers. Playing competitive sport at Harrow taught me all the usual attributes of teamwork, resilience and losing with grace. But it also gave me the priceless gift of friendship and a much better understanding of how to instil confidence in others.

On the cusp of 16, I was beaten for some trifling misdemeanour by the Head of House who was 18. He did not amount to much as a leader or Head of House.

He just wanted to establish his authority over me. It is an odd thing to say that I was indebted to this individual.

It awoke in me a belief that I was to carry throughout my military career: that a wise person should use the authority of their rank or position judiciously.

Many of my friends at Harrow had lost their fathers in the Second World War. It was understandable that many embraced the Harrow CCF and the prospect of

33 I overheard Prince Philip remarking to one boy, “used to this at home, are you?” to which the boy responded magnificently, “ Well, not exactly Sir, we live in Belgravia.”

a career in the armed forces as they sought the spirit if not the sacrifice of their lost fathers. The Harrow Rifle Corps, like so many school corps in the 1950s, was unimaginative and unenlightened with a dreary emphasis on drill, cleaning kit and prancing about on the parade ground. It became a great deal more fun and fulfilling under Ross Beckett’s leadership, but that was long after my time. No, learning to manage myself and lead others were attributes I developed on the School’s playing field, not on the parade ground.

The Head Master in my time was Dr James, a double first in Classics, and known as ‘Jankers.’ He was politically astute, a fine delegator, and seemed to know exactly what was going on without, apparently, leaving his study.

Before my final year, Dr James called me in to his study and asked if I would like to be Head of School. I remember his words to me, “Guthrie, as captain of rugby you seem to know what’s going in the bazaar, how do you feel about becoming Head Boy?” I enjoyed my time with Dr James as he liked to beckon me into his study for a chat, which suited me well as it allowed me to miss lessons.

I remember on one occasion the worthy but uninspiring school chaplain knocked on the door, peering round to say, “ Head Master, may I have a word with you about Sunday’s sermon?”

“Not now, Chaplain”, Dr James replied.

“By all means drop in later, but I’m talking to Guthrie about something rather more important.”

Ironically, it was more important.

The Head Master said he’d like me to organise HM The Queen’s visit the following term - the Lent term of 1957. My memory is a little hazy but I do remember arranging for HM The Queen and HRH Prince Philip to watch the boys milking cows in the School’s farm.

It was a demanding task for a 17 year old to organise such a visit, but I was thankful for the ordeal as, exactly twenty years later, it was left to me to organise Her Majesty’s Silver Jubilee celebrations while serving as principal staff officer for the Brigade of Guards.

As with so many other times in my career, my years at Harrow had served me well.

From time to time in my life, I have entered a building or a friend’s house and a sixth sense tells you something of its history, as though the walls over the years had soaked up the joys and sorrows of those who had lived there.

Banners of the 20 Old Harrovian winners of the Victoria Cross hung in the Harrow War Memorial building.

Leadership and courage was in Harrow’s fabric, and I could not help but absorb its weave.

“It is an odd thing to say that I was indebted to this individual.

It awoke in me a belief that I was to carry throughout my military career: that a wise person should use the authority of their rank or position judiciously.”

Many years later, I became President of the Harrow Association and I was invited to introduce the guest speaker at the Churchill Songs at the Royal Albert Hall in 2009. The guest speaker was a star of stage and film, Benedict Cumberbatch (The Park 1990³). I made rather a hash of my introduction and introduced him as Benedict Cumberbitch.

Afterwards I made my apologies to Benedict who said to me with good grace, “But Field Marshal, how clever of you to introduce me as Cumberbitch. My adoring female fan club are known as Cumberbitches.”

The Jesuits are fond of saying, “Give us a boy until the age of seven and we shall show you the man”. Harrow was unquestionably a formative period of my early life but, in my subsequent military career, there were periods of greater consequence: my time as an SAS officer in Aden, Malaya and Kenya; the two years I spent as military assistant to the ferocious but fun Field Marshal Lord Carver; the six months I spent as the grandly titled Commander South Pacific as Britain faced up to one of those colourful hangovers from its retreat from Empire with the spearwielding rebel insurrection in the New Hebrides (Vanuatu today); and the happiest two years of my career commanding my regiment in Berlin and Northern Ireland at the height of The Troubles.

This broad-based experience gave me the confidence to feel that the highest reaches of the Army were within my grasp. But that confidence came from an understanding of human nature and the importance of getting on with people. I have never given much thought to the School motto at the base of our Coat of Arms, ‘Donorum Dei Dispensatio Fidelis’ ( The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God) but, in writing my memoirs, I see now that my time at Harrow was indeed blessed.

This article is an abridged version of Field Marshal Lord Guthrie’s chapter on his time at Harrow in his memoirs,‘Peace,War and Whitehall’, to be published by Bloomsbury/Osprey in autumn 2021.

34 Director of Shaftesbury Enterprise, Tim Dalton (Newlands 1992³) has spent the past year and a half listening to those people in the local community who know whom the Covid-19 pandemic has hit hardest, and how to help them. With the focus of Shaftesbury Enterprise (SE) principally concentrating on supporting young people in this community, Tim describes how SE programmes have sought to provide help to those most in need and those who face the greatest barriers to progress.

HARROW'S CRISIS RESPONSE The School and its wider community has raised and will have given away close to £500,000 by summer 2021.

It will have supported over 10,000 young people through the Covid-19 crisis.

A substantial amount of this money was raised through Long Ducker, the Long Ducker Bike Ride and fundraising by Harrow International Schools.

At the start of lockdown, the most immediate need was for help at a very basic level – providing thousands of young people and their families in Harrow’s neighbouring communities with essential food. A food distribution hub was set up in the Shepherd Churchill Dining Hall and the School’s Catering department and its suppliers provided and distributed food to those who needed it.

When it became evident that many young people lacked the equipment and even the broadband connection necessary for online education, the School stepped in to provide as many laptops as it could to local schools and community groups, as well as negotiating with BT for free broadband access for 50 families. Academic departments, parents and OHs provided or, in the case of the Design & Technology Department, made PPE for local hospitals, GP surgeries and social care organisations.

For the effective distribution of funds, SE partnered with organisations such as Young Harrow Foundation whose knowledge and expertise were crucial to ensure appropriate support reached those who needed it most.

With their help, during the summer of 2020 onwards, SE funded and offered use of the School’s facilities for a range of activities for children and young people made increasingly vulnerable and isolated by the pandemic.

One of the projects funded was the Targeted Peer Leaders training course delivered by the IGNITE Trust.

The project was aimed at young people aged 14–25 who were involved in, or at-risk of involvement in, youth violence and the criminal justice system. Those who took part grew in confidence and self-esteem, developed leadership skills, engaged more in learning and communication, all of which will help them to make positive choices and more able to tackle future challenges. It also improved their future employability skills including teamwork, problem solving and perseverance.

35 SE also donated £115k of Long Ducker funds as part of Harrow’s Build Back Better campaign, which supported many projects to help over 1,300 young people survive the lockdown and thrive over the following eight months.

24 grants were made to Young Harrow Foundation member charities, covering the five issues highlighted as being the main problems currently affecting young people in Harrow: youth violence, mental health issues, employment, inequality and lack of physical activity.

One recipient was Kids Can Achieve (KCA), which provides services for children and young people from 5 to 25 who have learning disabilities, including those with complex and multiple disabilities.

Their core services are holiday playschemes, an after-school club, a Saturday club, an outreach and one-to-one support service, and family support and therapies. Long Ducker money funded a support worker for KCA to help them through the lockdown.

As the pandemic continued, it became clear that many young people would need longer-term support. SE worked with partners with expertise to ensure that the money raised was targeted at the most vulnerable: £225k was made available for projects including: IntoUniversity intouniversity.org Place2Be place2be.org.uk Harrow Carers harrowcarers.org Westside Young Leaders Academy wylauk.com MyYard myyard.org.uk Magic Breakfast magicbreakfast.com Young Brent Foundation youngbrentfoundation.org Alongside new initiatives, SE continued to support our established partners, such as Harrow Spear, whose six-week courses help 16–25-year-olds learn the skills necessary to help them find and remain in employment.

Our Lumina project offering tuition for children in care also continued to grow. Forty regular online lessons (with teachers from five different schools) took place with children in care in the London boroughs of Harrow, Ealing and Barnet.

Harrow Club W10 is our longeststanding partner, established in 1883 by a former Head Master and a group of OHs. It has been anchored in the local community, working with some of the most marginalised young people in West London. We were able to donate over £60,000 to the Harrow Club, which enabled it to expand its operations to six clubs. It also launched several new initiatives, including: Extending its late-night project, which sees youth workers visit local estates at night to work with young people involved with, or in danger of becoming involved with, gang violence and drugs, helping them to look into pathways to education, training and employment; A daytime programme for young people with behavioural issues, to help them remain in mainstream education; and Buying laptops for the youth clubs run by the Harrow Club for immediate use by vulnerable children whose home situation means they are unable to complete online learning at home during lockdown.

Over £50,000 was distributed between our other SE partners.

A significant portion of this money went to foundations and schools to offer online provision for young people who could not otherwise access the curriculum, as well as Harrow Carers and Refuge to help young people whose difficulties have been made almost unbearable by the pandemic.

I have been hugely impressed by how the whole Harrow family has risen to the biggest challenge that has faced society in a century and helped, both with time and money, to ensure that the most vulnerable, and those who are at risk of falling through the gaps, have the support that they need to thrive and fulfil their life’s potential.

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36

SOCIETY SPOTLIGHT

OH PLAYERS On a mid-summer’s eve in 1951, in the garden of “Flambards, 11 High Street”, two friends, perhaps after a few glasses of grape juice, hatched a slightly mad plan for the following summer… and the Old Harrovian Players were born. The idea was simple: to put on an Old Harrovian production of Shakespeare in Speech Room, with limited rehearsal time, and to have a lot of fun doing it.

PRESERVATION AND INNOVATION: THE 21ST CENTURY OH PLAYERS

37 of the extended stage floor open for storms and storming actors. A new stage floor improved the acoustics for actors feet. However, it was always clear that a more permanent solution to staging, with a chance for scenes on an “upper level”, a central entrance or exit and a design that blended with the rest of the building was required.

“ The lack of the traditional set pushed innovation for productions, finding new ways to use this new and empty space...”

The Players in rehearsal for Twelfth Night in 2007

I FIND THAT MOST OF THE BEST (AND WORST) IDEAS START WITH A GLASS OF WINE AND GOOD COMPANY .

More than a few lines of Shakespeare later and in 2021, the OH Players will be putting on their 70th annual Shakespeare production. This remarkable society was formed before the RSC, and long before The Globe sprang up on Bankside. An unbroken annual line stemming from that first production of Richard II. I sometimes wonder what Herbert Harris and Lawrence Verney (The Head Master’s 1938² ) would think if they saw us now…

Today, the OHP provides a welcoming place to strut some Shakespeare with like-minded enthusiasts, share stories and form friendships, while also providing a platform for professional artists to hone the craft of classical theatre. While there are many stories that could be told, the story of the last few years has been particularly eventful…

“Burn it!”: The Tiring House takes its fond farewell After more than 50 years of sturdy service, the Speech Room Tiring House finally met its end. Whether it was indeed cremated (as suggested by JPL at a committee meeting), scrapped or salvaged for parts, we may never know. I like to think it made its way to the “retirement home for old sets”, but I admit to a certain amount of wilful innocence on this front. There was no argument that the Tiring House should retire (the groaning was beginning to drown out even the more sonorous Players), but what could take its place? Planning and money were required. The temporary solution was simple - the show must go on without it.

So while the old Tiring House put its feet up, the OH Players and School continued to mount shows in the now exposed Speech Room. The lack of the traditional set pushed innovation for productions, finding new ways to use this new and empty space - alternative audience arrangements on stage; new lighting rigs for different performing areas; delineating the space with chairs and costume rails; even leaving the vast expanse

The new Director of Drama, Adam Cross, was instrumental in driving the project forward and, by the time we finished the 2018 As You Like It, plans for 2019 were marching onwards with the promise of a younger, more flexible Tiring House to take and hold centre stage. Drawing inspiration from the Globe and Speech Room’s architecture, the new Tiring House was to combine the history and traditions of Shakespeare at Harrow with the modern functionality for performance.Twinned with a shift from the traditional April to a September performance slot, 2019 looked set to be a significant year in the long and eventful OH Players history.

The new Tiring House (expertly designed by Penelope Watson, the School’s Theatre Designer) was first bustled on and about with a slick and daring production of Richard III, directed by Adam Cross.

Jack Firoozan (Rendalls 2012³ ) played the “bottled spider”, scuttling over the stage while the entire cast sat in judgement before him, stepping into the scenes as characters and then returning to face down the murderous Richard as a “chorus of conscience”.

The set effortlessly blended into Speech Room and looked more like a seasoned Player rather than the youngest company member. And with the new September performance slot successfully more sympathetic to young OHs, the Players anticipated 2020 with excitement, looking to build on the new lease offered to the society…

Jack Firoozan as Richard III

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38

COVID ruins everything… almost…

Well, we weren’t the only ones who had our hopes dashed in 2020.

With theatres round the world closed, it seemed as if the unbroken line of productions, almost 70 years of continuous iambic lines tripping across the Speech Room boards, would finally be broken by Covid-19. How could the show go on? Certainly not in a traditional setting. But perhaps there was still a way…

In the early weeks of lockdown #1, Tobias Deacon (Newlands 2000³) approached the OHP Committee with a radical suggestion: to make an audio version of a Shakespeare play in the place of the now impossible Speech Room classic. While this would be new and daunting ground for the OHPs it also provided a host of new opportunities, with geography and time commitment no longer such issues, and a digital release expanding the potential audience.

But could it be done? Perhaps the previous years of innovation played a part, perhaps a desperate defiance to keep the line unbroken, perhaps the boredom of staring at the same four walls, perhaps a misplaced trust in Mr Deacon’s vision…Whatever their reasons, in late March, the Committee boldly green-lit the production and a play was picked - Hamlet.

Without the need for on-site rehearsals (or the need to slip into tights), Hamlet could involve far more OHPs than usual, who could rehearse their scenes with online conference-call technology and record their lines from home during lockdown. A cast of 36 from around the world went to work, assembling all manner of make-shift recording studios with duvets, pillows, pegs and in one case the help of a builder (yes indeed, called “Bob”). The play was then rehearsed and recorded scene by scene and sent to Tobias and his wife Annabelle Brown, who mixed, scored and edited the production together.

Laurence Ubong Williams (Moretons 2003³) shines as Hamlet, an elegant and impassioned young man torn apart by duty and morality.

Supported and antagonised by a host of wonderful OH performances, the production is immersive and atmospheric, taking the traditional strengths of the Players and blending them with modern technology.

Alongside the production, a long-overdue website was commissioned (designed and constructed

by Oscar Blustin (Newlands 2001³ ) to provide a platform for people to listen to the play, and to act as an archive for the long and colourful history of the Players. To listen to Hamlet online, please visit our website (oldharrovianplayers.co.uk)

The Players in rehearsal for Hamlet in 2020.

HARROW SHAKESPEARE has a long-standing relationship with Shakespeare’s Globe. Harrow beak and director Ronnie Watkins was a key advisor in the reconstruction of the Globe alongside founder Sam Wanamaker. In April 1994, three years before the official opening, the School staged The Taming of the Shrew within the scaffold of the ‘wooden O’.

Among the boys on stage that day was perhaps our most famous OH Player, Benedict Cumberbatch (The Park 1990 3 ), playing Petruchio, and Nick Luck

39

If you would like to support or get involved with the Players, you are welcome to get in touch via theatre@harrowschool.org.uk. Or to sign up to our mailing list and keep in touch with future productions, please visit: oldharrovianplayers.co.uk

2021

SHAKESPEARE’S GLOBE Wanamaker Playhouse - The new venue for 2021

(Rendalls 19913 ) as Katherina, directed by beak and long-serving OH Player, Jeremy Lemmon (The Knoll 1949 3).

Twenty-five years on, in March 2019, the School returned to Shakespeare’s Globe with a production of Twelfth Night, directed by Adam Cross.

From the stage at the curtain call, Joanna Lumley (herself previously a notable Desdemona for the Players) announced the launch of the Jeremy Lemmon Project, in which Harrow boys would annually form an acting

company alongside students from maintained schools in the borough, with mentoring from the Globe’s actors, and access to perform on its stage. Start-up funding was raised by proceeds from Twelfth Night’s gala performance, and the project is now in its second year.

In 2021, to mark the 70th anniversary of the Old Harrovian Players, the 80th birthday of Harrow Shakespeare, and as part of the School’s 450 celebrations, the OHPs will be performing in The Sam Wanamaker Playhouse

(the reconstructed indoor theatre at Shakespeare’s Globe).

After the last few years of innovation and calculated risk, such a step seems logical. However, this will be the society’s biggest challenge to date with fund-raising, advertising and Covid protocols to battle. The society is always looking for new members to direct, produce or join the ranks on stage. As a professional actor and director, it has been invaluable in my own development as a theatre practitioner, and provided me with many happy memories.

Credit Pete Le May

FROM HARROW GLOBE TO

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SOCIETY SPOTLIGHT

OH GOLFING SOCIETY

NEARLY

YEARS...

In 2023, the OHGS will be 100 years old. With over 400 members, it is perhaps the largest OH club or society and, looking through the archive, it is clear that it has brought together many Old Harrovians to play golf and have fun.

41 There is a description in the archive of how the society came into being, in a note written at the time by Captain FMM Carlisle MC (Elmfield 19022). On his way to the City one day, Captain Carlisle saw a notice in The Times, that fellow Sunningdale member “Polly” Halford Hewitt had presented a cup, to be played for by the public schools golfing societies, and that Eton and six or seven other schools had agreed to take part.

Captain Carlisle, deciding that it would be a pity if Harrow did not participate, contacted his Harrow friend HLQ Henriques (West Acre 1899 3) to inform him that, if he became Hon Secretary, Henry could be Hon. Treasurer. A meeting of eight OH friends was convened, in December 1923, at the Bath Club and an invitation sent out to around 100 others known to be interested in golf. Almost all joined, and OHGS was formed.

The joining fee was one guinea and no subscription was charged, something that only changed in the 1950s.

The first captain was appointed in 1924, the Rt Hon Sir Stanley Jackson (The Head Master’s 18843 ), a former English cricket captain.

Whilst the main focus was the selection of a team to play in the Halford Hewitt, it is clear that, from the start, there was a programme of matches starting with the Spring Meeting at Sunningdale in 1924. The Rules of the Society are based on the Oxford and Cambridge Society Rules and, in the quest for members, the aim was expressed by Captain Carlisle “to elect Old Harrovians who we knew were jolly good fellows. We did not mind if they were good, bad or indifferent players, as long as they were the right sort who would mix well with their fellow OHs”.

FMM Carlisle at Princes Golf Club, Sandwich 1935

The Halford Hewitt has been a constant feature of these first 100 years of OHGS, and is the largest amateur competition in the world, involving 64 schools with teams of five pairs, totalling 640 competitors, and requiring the team captain to identify and select competition-fit golfers who play to a high standard.

“...to elect Old Harrovians who we knew were jolly good fellows. We did not mind if they were good, bad or indifferent players, as long as they were the right sort who would mix well with their fellow OHs.” Harrow were successful in the Halford Hewitt, particularly in the 1920s, winning three times in eight years, and then four times in the 1950s, though the last time the competition was won was in 1995. Harrow has continued to put out strong sides, in spite of the ongoing challenge of finding good younger players.

Interest in the competition remains strong, as shown by the continued coverage in the sports pages of the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Times. Reference is often made to wild weather, given that the competition is traditionally played on the links courses of Royal St George’s and the Royal Cinque Ports Golf Clubs, in late March or early April.

Top: Tatler Old Harrovian Golf Win at Deal 1933 OHGS meeting at Sunningdale

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Above: 1966 Halford Hewitt team Right: 1973 Halford Hewitt team

Golf at Harrow is a minor sport, which is not the case at some schools. Often, good Harrow sportsmen need to be identified, who come back to the game after leaving school. OHGS helps in this process by seeking to raise an endowment which allows payment of the expenses of those representing the School in the tournament. It is not reasonable to ask younger golfers to take at least a week off work and then to play at their own expense. Any society needs to encourage younger players, so the fundraising and subscription discounts are there to encourage younger members, and to promote OHGS at the School through engagement and additional coaching.

No team can be raised without the hard work of the captains and match managers. Individual members devote much time to these roles and without them the competitions and fixtures could not happen.

Three members of the last full, pre-Covid Halford Hewitt team have been involved for around 40 years.

In 1958, an over-50s public school competition was launched. The Bernard Darwin is now for the over-55s, with the home of the competition being Woking Golf Club. Harrow won in 1978 and 2015. The Senior Darwin was added in 1987 for the over-65s, and the Veteran Darwin for over-75s in 1991. Harrow are the current holders of the Veteran Darwin, having won in 2019. Competition golf is played for all ages.

In 1964, the Grafton Morrish was started by the Public Schools Old Boys Golf Association.

It is an open competition for teams of six, with qualifying rounds. Forty-eight qualify for the finals at Brancaster, where the format is foursomes.

Harrow won in 1979 and 1987. It is a different format from Halford Hewitt and testing to win.

With any historical archive, it is difficult to decide what to include, so it is perhaps best to go back to what Captain Carlisle said about membership:

43

“a full fixture list for like-minded people, well supported, where Old Harrovians could get together”. The first recorded match against Eton was played on 9–10 March 1924 at Woking GC, which Harrow lost by a margin of 10-4, with two matches halved. The course venues varied and, for instance, the 1927 Autumn Meeting was played at Swinley Forest GC, with an entry of 47 members.

It is poignant to see the 1939 fixture card, with the Autumn Meeting played at Sunningdale on 5 October. One wonders how many of the younger OHs photographed in meetings that year did not return from war. OHGS resumed activities following a circular from Hon. Sec. LS Burgoyne (Small Houses & Newlands

19023), asking members to notify any changes of address over the last seven years, a return to some normality.

The first post-war meet took place on 3 October 1946 at The Berkshire GC. At the Spring Meeting in 1950, played at Littlestone GC, the Committee remarked on how many young OHs took part.

Whilst OHGS is close to 100 years old, the Silver Jubilee was celebrated in 1949 with a dinner for 45 members, possibly on the basis that the society only became active in 1924. Close to the 50th anniversary, Captain Carlisle,

who had done so much to set up OHGS, died on 13 August 1973. A fulsome tribute appeared in The Harrovian.

History provides some details that impact all societies –how to maintain membership in changing times, and find the individuals to run the society? Going through old minutes, often handwritten, it is clear that a small number of people, over many years, make the society work. Attracting younger members was an issue mentioned in a Committee meeting of February 1957.

Today, with so many more calls on people’s time, and multiple communication channels, keeping in touch is harder and the use of social media and the website becomes more important.

What is clear, from the annual report and from the fixture list, is that there is a wide range of meetings, and courses where OHs can meet and play golf (with subsidised green fees for the under 30s). The choice is impressive, The Spring Meeting at Royal St George’s GC, Autumn Meeting at The Royal West Norfolk GC, and regional meetings in the Midlands, Scotland and Wales.

Match managers also arrange everything from meetings with other societies, including the Old Etonians, to informal meetings where a group of members can gather.

With such a large membership, and fixture list, the society can look to the future with confidence.

David Blackburn (The Park 1962 3 ) Captain

If you have any questions about the OHGS, visit the website OHGS.org.uk or contact William North Hon. Sec. at honsec@ohgs.org.uk 1975 Halford Hewitt team

2018 Halford Hewitt team: Adrian Gracey (The Head Master’s 1977 3), Henry Howard-Jenkins (Moretons 20083 ), Freddy Bruce (The Knoll 20083), Jan Brugelmann (The Park 2003 3), Rupert Harmsworth (Moretons 1997 3 ), Dan Carver (Rendalls 20043), Jerome Ponniah (The Head Master’s 20013), Hamish Morrison (Druries 1999 3), Olly Spry (The Grove 19903), Jeremy Fricker (Elmfield 19723 ), Jamie Warman (The Grove 19693), Nick Tindall (West Acre 19701)

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CLUBS HARROW

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SOCIETY UPDATES

FOOTBALL

“Raining in torrents again”, they say; The field is a slippery, miry marsh; But duty is duty, though sometimes harsh, And “footer” is “footer”, whatever the day!”

Though the sentiment remains true, I suspect John Farmer didn’t appreciate that Harrow football is one of the least socially-distanced sports known to man! As we collectively look forward to a return to normality, my heart does indeed thrill – both at the thought of the Hill and even the slippery fields and the raining sky (not least due to the advantage conferred on OHs by muddier conditions as Louis notes).

The last year has been an unprecedented and challenging one in many ways. I hope that you all have remained safe and well nevertheless. For the coming season, please do look up the various OH XI captains and book yourself in for a game of footer – depending on your choice of captain, the bribery referred to above could even extend to a decent Cuban cigar and/or champagne as a half-time painkiller!

SEASON ROUND UP

As you are all far too aware, the 2021 Harrow football season has been rather spoilt by Covid-19. For the many captains who had cajoled, bullied, begged, flattered, coaxed and bribed to ensure they had a full team, it is a real loss.

For the boys robbed of another unbeaten season against old men, it is a disappointment. We all live such fastpaced lives that making time to spend with old friends is often neglected. So we all look forward to the opportunity to remember what Giants of Old we tell ourselves we were, in the esteemed company of similarly deluded, rheumatic-of-shoulder old wrecks we have become.

The old boys have learnt over the years that experience and cunning can sometimes triumph over youth and speed.

Please do not hesitate to contact Louis or me if you are interested, or indeed Charles Bailey (West Acre 1961 2 ) (who takes over from Chris Mann at the end of this year).

All that remains is for me to say a heartfelt thanks to CDLM for his many years of supporting footer and promoting it both within the School and the body of OHs. Pierre Ali-Noor (West

Acre 20013 )

We will elect to play downhill in the first half, and it never occurs to the boys they won’t be given the chance to play downhill in the second. If we are lucky, the mud is thick and heavy and favours the heavier player.

It has sometimes been noticed that old boys forget how to count to 11 when the game is in full flow, but always out of eagerness rather than malice. When you find yourself on your back and a polite young man asks “Sir, may I help you up?”, a hand is gratefully received.

For a few brief moments you are 18 again with the ball in front of you and only one to beat. And when all the yards are given and bases counted, you feel heroic removing inches of Harrow clay.

Shepherd Churchill welcomes you for tea, and then a pint or two in the Castle to recount tales of derring do.

“Of course I’ll do it all again next year”, we all say, for we are made of stronger stuff. The aspirins and strapping can wait till tomorrow.

Few joys are purer than 22 men and a large ball in Harrow mud, so please make sure you come and join us when play resumes, and, if we are lucky, the touring side, and end-of-season dinner too, will find their way into next year’s schedule.

Louis Kunzig (Druries

1983³ )

45

HARROW WA N D E R E R S

To general relief and excitement, some fixtures were possible towards the end of summer 2020. In September, Arjun Chopra (Newlands 1997³) took his side on tour to Stamford in Lincolnshire, where it was generously welcomed by Mark Braid and the Howitzers CC. Wins against our hosts and the Decimals topped off a great weekend.

In the same month, the 2020 Goose Match versus the School took on special significance, with both sides in festive mood as cricket returned to the Sixth Form Ground. The match did not disappoint either, with fortunes for both teams ebbing and flowing throughout the day. The School made 161/9 from 45 overs, before the Wanderers played their way to a five-wicket victory.

The club continues to thrive and, having been forced twice to delay celebrations due to the pandemic, members are looking forward to marking its 150th Anniversary with a dinner at Lord’s, now scheduled for Thursday 6 October 2022.

While proud of its long history, the Harrow Wanderers is continually evolving for the 21st century too. In 2020, the club was delighted to welcome 16 new members from among recent school leavers. Some are already part of Lalit Bose’s (The Head Master’s 2008³) Cricketer Cup squad for 2021, as he takes over the captaincy ahead of this year’s tournament. We wish him every success when hostilities commence on 13 June!

We’re eagerly anticipating a fantastic summer of cricket in 2021 and a return to normal (hopefully!).

New members are most welcome, so don’t hesitate to get in touch. Find more information at harrowwanderers.com and follow us on Instagram @harrow.wanderers and OH Connect.

James Gillions (Elmfield

1987 3 )

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

46 DRONES/UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEMS

HARROW AV I A T I O N CLUB

As one can imagine, the Harrow Aviation Club has been grounded for the last year with no events to report on. The club does, however, continue to provide help and services to the hard-hit aviation sector through all the individual projects and roles conducted by our members. Below, some of the members describe where the world of aviation stands today, what we can expect in the future and their own involvement in it.

G E N E R A L AV I AT I O N

Aviation which is not scheduled commercial or military is known as general aviation. This includes both fixed-wing aircraft as well as helicopters, balloons and airships, gliders, hang gliders, paragliders, microlights, gyrocopters, ex-military aircraft and business jets. They are, with the exception of the larger business jets, mainly smaller, private-single and twin-engined aircraft. There are some 21,000 civil aircraft registered in the UK, of which 96% are GA aircraft with over 1.25 million hours flown each year. It also includes sport aircraft as well as aircraft which have been built by amateurs and certified by the Light Aircraft Association. GA contributes some £1.4 billion to the UK economy each year and employs over 12,000 people, including instructors and maintenance engineers.

Almost all pilots learn to fly in a light aircraft within the general aviation fleet before progressing, if for a career, onto larger commercial aircraft and the airlines after obtaining a Commercial or Air Transport Pilot's Licence.

Members of the Harrow Aviation Club own and or fly single and twin-engined aircraft which are part of the general aviation UK fleet although some of them are based abroad including one with a float aircraft in Canada. Their aircraft include modern helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft which have ventured on trips to other parts of the world including, in the past, to South Africa, across the Atlantic to the USA and Canada as well as to India, North Africa, the Arctic and Jordan.

Current Government policy is to make the UK the best country in the world for general aviation and it supports the expansion and redevelopment of general aviation aerodromes and piloting in the UK. This is for both recreational and business use and it is hoped that, as a result, of this there will be revival of private aviation in the future including with electrically propelled aircraft.

The drone sector is expanding rapidly and one of our members plays a prominent part in the growth and development of drone aviation used for surveying aerial photography, and expected to be used for parcel delivery in the near future.

John Steel (Rendalls

1967³ )

Unmanned and remotely controlled aircraft have been used in both the military (called drones) and the civilian (model aircraft) context for many years. In 2010, the legal context for unmanned aerial systems (UAS) flown for leisure or commercial purposes was created. The overriding condition was that they were flown within line of sight of the remote pilot. At around the same time, a number of manufacturers started making small remote-controlled aircraft with cameras attached to them, a sort of self-propelled GoPro if you like! The photography and filming sector were unsurprisingly perhaps the first civilian sector to exploit the potential for easier and less expensive aerial imagery.

They were followed very shortly afterwards by the surveying world, when newly developed software significantly shortened the time it took to stitch still imagery together, enabling the creation and use of 3D measurable data to become cost effective and commonplace.

More recently, a broader variety of sensors that can be carried by UAS has started to be developed for purposes such as capturing the multispectral and hyperspectral frequencies, LiDAR pods, devices to drop seeds for tree planting, cameras that can inspect wind turbine blades and so on. This has helped develop a much broader set of use cases for UAS by industries that have not traditionally associated themselves with aviation, other than in the context of scheduled passenger travel.

The Beyond Visual Line of Sight regulation will be eased in the next couple of years and, when combined with developments in manned aviation, we will shortly see remotely piloted and then autonomous aircraft being adopted for transport. Much emphasis is being put on electric or hydrogen-based propulsion to reduce the sector’s environmental impact.

After the significant and detrimental impact of Covid-19, the potential for the aviation sector to accelerate the development of advanced technology is enormous.

Addressing the problem of the sector’s emissions and embracing the benefits of Electronic Conspicuity (see and avoid), machine learning and many other new technologies will be the drivers of growth across the sector. The UK is well placed on a number of fronts to innovate, but does have the drag of a small domestic market and a general aviation community that is very resistant to change. However, anyone looking to become involved in the aviation sector in the next few years would be well advised to look at the unmanned and autonomous aviation space, if they regard themselves as innovative, enterprising and keen to embrace change!

Rupert Dent (Moretons

1973³ )

47

DIRECTOR, SLOANE HELICOPTERS LTD 2020 marked the launch of our Penzance Helicopters JV (with Tresco Estates) to restart the helicopter link between Penzance and the Scilly Isles–specifically to both Tresco and St Mary's.

This was a reboot of the BIH service that had run from 1964 to 2012 using Sikorsky S-61 helicopters (Sea Kings), which ended after the original operator sold the helipad site in Penzance to Sainsburys for the construction of a supermarket. This was particularly unfortunate for the inhabitants of Tresco who, lacking a runway, now had to take a boat if they wished to reach the mainland.

FREELANCE HELICOPTER PILOT

2020 and early 2021 have seen the helicopter industry divided into two, but not along the historic onshore/ offshore lines. We now have those who have been able to keep going as normal (albeit with extra Covid-19 precautions) and those stopping operations altogether.

For a large number of operators, shutting up shop was the only option. Initially, charter companies offered to help the Government with emergency cargo transport, but this hasn’t come to fruition in any meaningful way and almost all of them have furloughed staff and any flights chartered have been done by one senior pilot.

Flight schools (ATOs) have had to close for long periods and a small number will, sadly, not reopen this summer.

But many of the surviving companies have reported taking on new clients or students in lockdown and are expecting a small surge in demand during the summer, once the country begins to move about again. This is brilliant news and should see pilots and support staff busy again soon.

For those operating over the sea in a search and rescue role, or transferring oil rig workers and wind farm engineers, operation have continued at pace. The demand for oil, whilst taking a dive in 2020, hasn’t fallen away enough to curb the demand for helicopter transport to the rigs. Helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) or air ambulance operations have remained operational but not as busy as usual thanks to the general population staying put. They have, however, seen talk of redundancies as charitable donations dwindle.

So keep donating to your local air ambulance charity!

In general, the utility side of the industry has proven to be a vital asset to the country that has been required to remain operational throughout and helps to support the notion that helicopters have a very important role to play.

Iain Ruggles-Brise (West Acre

2002³ )

Given that the S-61s previously used have high maintenance costs and serviceability issues, we based the service on a modern Leonardo AW139 helicopter which seats up to 15 passengers. Amongst other roles, AW139s are used are to support offshore drilling operations in the North Sea, so the short hop to the Scillies is well within its capabilities. Our machine was due to be shipped out of China at the end of February 2020, but this process was halted by the Chinese coronavirus lockdown. As this helicopter never reached us, we launched the service with an assortment of aircraft including AW109s, AW169s and a S-92, but we still faced difficulties associated with sudden UK lockdowns.

We now have a new AW139 lined up, and the service is due to restart from 12 April. Given that options to leave the UK are set to be limited this summer, I would highly recommend a trip to Tresco to UK-based OHs. George George (Moretons

2000³ )

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

OH GOLFING SOCIETY

Despite Covid-19, the OHGS managed to hold a number of enjoyable events during the periods when golf was allowed and was generally active with many developments throughout lockdown; even if much of the golf was cancelled, there was work to do.

The season opened with planning for the Halford Hewitt and the trial matches. Jeremy Fricker (Elmfield 1972³) put in a lot of effort only to see the tournament cancelled, along with the administrative burden of dealing with postponed accommodation.Vice Captain Stephen Bois (Moretons 1960² ) organised a successful meeting at Hankley Common, before lockdown on 3 March, then everything stopped.

Competitions, such as the Bernard Darwin were not re-scheduled but, thanks to the hard work of match managers, a further five meetings were possible.

These included the Midlands meeting at Blackwell (George Barkes, Elmfield 1973¹), and the OHGS event at Sunningdale (Andrew Alwyn, Moretons 1960³ ), the Welsh meeting (Huw Jenkins, Bradbys 1967³ ), a members invitation event at Brancaster (Thomas Olesen, Rendalls 1967¹ ) and the OH day at New Zealand (Simon Berry).

48 so the structure is there. New members are encouraged through connections to the School, including sponsored coaching and discounted green fees, plus cheaper membership for the under 30s. The needs of different age groups are recognised, including the use of social media, and the society is developing a strategy which will make it easier for those interested in golf to stay in touch.

The website is in the process of being upgraded with the additional aim of linking to OH Connect.

We were able to find an IT company, Rhubarb, where Donovan Hare (Moretons 2011³) has begun to improve our ability to communicate better with members and enhance the functionality of the website.

In order to improve the development, and the continued fielding, of elite teams in famous competitions such as the Halford Hewitt and the Grafton Morrish, an endowment needs to be created so that more training can be funded and the expenses of the younger members taking part reimbursed. Geoffrey Goddard (West Acre 1972³) leads the fundraising efforts.

The appeal of the OHGS ranges through all ages and ability; please get in touch with us so the benefits of membership can be explained. You do not have to play often but when you do it provides a great opportunity to arrange a get together with your contemporaries.

Finally, a word of thanks to the President, Jamie Warman (The Grove 1969³), the Hon. Sec.,William North (The Knoll 1962²), the Hon. Treasurer, Thomas Olesen (Rendalls 1967¹), the Fixture List compiler (Simon Berry) and the rest of the Committee and Match managers, for all the hard work. Members appreciate it a great deal. Joss Pinsent, the Master-in-Charge of golf at the School, has been of great assistance in our development of the links with the boys who play.

Numbers of golfers participating ranged from three to over 30; the important point is that they took place, members had fun and maintained connections.Then everything stopped again. It is hoped that for 2022 Follow Up! there will be much more to report.

ohgs.org.uk

A society only does well if it engages with its members, develops new ones and provides interesting opportunities.

The golf courses visited are among the best in the UK

David Blackburn

Lastly, can I encourage you to listen to the podcast on the society: a link to it is on the OHGS website.

(The Park 1962³) Captain

49

OH LODGE

The last year has been a challenging one for all of Freemasonry, as it was for so many parts of society.

The OH Lodge was not immune to those challenges, sadly losing two members of the Lodge over the last year and being forced to cancel our annual meetings on the Hill last June, and in the City in November and February. Whilst we have ‘met’ on a number of occasions through Zoom, the brotherhood and camaraderie that exists between members of the Lodge has been sorely missed by young and old members alike.

Recent months have given us cause for optimism. It has been heartening to hear all the work that has been done by members of the Lodge to aid their local communities during this difficult time. Collectively, we have supported various masonic and non-masonic charities and volunteered in a wide variety of ways, for example at local food banks and distributing valuable PPE to care homes.

We are all pleased to see our older, more vulnerable members being protected from this devastating virus, and there is particular enthusiasm amongst our members to meet again as soon as possible.

After the period of reflection that we have just gone through, there seems to be a demand for outlets in which to do things for others. Increased transparency about what Freemasonry is, and being open to people of all ages, ethnicities and backgrounds has resulted in a number of younger OHs seeking to join the Lodge. We are very much looking forward to welcoming more new members in the coming months.

The next meeting of the Lodge will be on the 1 July 2021, which will be followed by a dinner and songs.

Any OHs who would be interested in learning more about us would be more than welcome to join – please contact the Secretary.

James Skeggs (The Head Masters 1997³ )

OH FOOTBALL CLUB Gbeminiyi Soyinka (Bradbys 19993) celebrating his 100th goal for the club in his 100th game

In keeping with most other OH societies and sports clubs, the OHAFC’s activities have been badly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic over the past 12 months, with the 2020-21 Arthurian League season called to a halt in March. Given the rather disappointing nature of some of the results, this was no bad thing from a Harrow perspective.

The 1st XI, led once again by Fraser McGuinness (The Head Master’s 2003³), earned an encouraging 3-3 draw away to the Etonians on the opening day of the season, but that proved a false dawn as a number of heavy defeats duly followed, a lengthy injury list not helping matters. The 2nd XI drew four of their first five fixtures but lost skipper Geoff Taunton-Collins (Bradbys 2001³) to a serious ACL injury in September and results deteriorated either side of the winter lockdowns.

The 2s’ progress in the hastily reconvened Junior League Cup in April was ended by a strong KCS Wimbledon side in the quarter-finals. Meanwhile, the 3s gradually found their feet in Division Four with some encouraging performances, although they too tasted Cup defeat when losing 2-0 to the Old Stoics in the DW Trophy. All three sides will remain in their respective divisions for next season.

One potential route to silverware still remains this season with the Vets, scheduled to face the Old Chigwellians in the semi-finals of the Cup in mid-May on the School astroturf.

All the club news, fixtures and match reports can be found at ohafc.com David Lederman

(Newlands 1988³)

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

50

OH CLUBS AND SOCIETIES There are many OH clubs and societies. Read more about them here and, if you are interested, you can make contact via the Group pages on OH Connect or through the contacts listed below.

HARROW AVIATION CLUB The OHAC is a club for those who work in or are interested in aviation. Members include airline, military, helicopter and private pilots as well as cabin crew and engineers.

We aim to have one dinner and a group ‘fly-in’ every year and no previous experience is necessary.

OH ADVENTURERS CLUB The OHA was founded in 2012 to encourage, assist and promote the interests of fellow OHs and Harrovians in adventure, extreme sports, remote scientific fieldwork or any other original outdoor activity. Harrow has a phenomenal record of

HARROW FOOTBALL CLUB The joy of Harrow clay on a sloping soggy pitch. The whizz

achievement in adventure and exploration, and the OH Adventurers is founded on this extraordinary heritage.

of the ball, and the thump of the opposition. Bases attempted and rescued and won. Harrow football is possibly the most fun way to reconnect with OHs young and old, and know you are keeping the great old game alive.

HARROW WANDERERS Join the Harrow Wanderers for great cricket every summer with friends old and new – T20 tournaments at Eton and Harrow, a Yorkshire tour, the Goose Match and more. Harrow Wanderers celebrated their 150th anniversary in 2020 and will be holding a dinner to celebrate in 2022.

Leavers’ special joining fee: £50 for five years’ full membership.

OH ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL CLUB The OHAFC runs three Saturday teams competing in league and cup competitions, and a veterans’ side on Sunday mornings. Players of all standards are welcome. Tuesday training is held in South Kensington at 7pm. Social events include biennial dinners at the Hurlingham Club, players’ dinners and overseas Easter tours.

51

OH FENCING CLUB The OH Fencing Club is for OHs with an interest in keeping up this skilful and athletic combative sport after they leave the School.

OH GOLFING SOCIETY OH CROSS-COUNTRY CLUB A club for OHs young and old who might like to take part in an annual five-mile race across Wimbledon Common in December against old boys and girls from other schools. In recent years, OHs have excelled, with several finishers in the top ten.

OHs who join the OHGS have plenty of great golf to look forward to and are encouraged to enter competitions such as the Halford Hewitt, the main old boys’ competition. There is also a strong social side to the club, with regional social events held at major UK golf clubs. Under 30s pay only £10 for annual membership, as well as enjoying subsidies at most events.

It would be great to build on this with more young OHs joining the ranks. Inevitably, a visit to the local pub takes place after the race each year.

OH ENTREPRENEURS AND INVESTORS CLUB The OH Entrepreneurs and Investors Club was founded in 2011 with the vision of building a global entrepreneurial network of OHs, family and friends of the School. Since 2011, it has grown into one of the largest OH clubs with a membership of over 250.

OH HORSE RACING CLUB The OH Horse Racing Club is an opportunity for those with an interest in horse racing to gather together at one of the largest dinners of any of the OH clubs. Every two years, the club meets for its biennial dinner in a central London location where over 150 OHs are able to celebrate the Turf.

OH FIVES CLUB

OH LAW ASSOCIATION

The OH Fives Club has an active membership and has

The OH Law Association is open to OHs of all ages

enjoyed considerable success in recent years. This year,

studying or working in law, and offers opportunities

the OH team won the prestigious Alan Barber Cup three-

for careers guidance and networking.

pair competition for the first time. Players of all standards are welcome and the number of matches on offer increased from September 2019 when a second team entered Division 2. A plethora of weekend tournaments is also arranged by the Eton Fives Association.

OH LAWN TENNIS CLUB The OH Lawn Tennis Club would love to encourage more OH sign ups to the club to be able to expand its limited fixture list. The club is currently made up of a small but very keen nucleus of players. All matches today are very good fun, and the tennis is good.

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

52

OH PROPERTY CLUB

OH LODGE

OHs around the world have been responsible for the

The OH Masonic Lodge was founded in 1924 as a Lodge of Freemasons especially for Old Harrovians, Governors and Masters of the School. Charity is a fundamental aim in Freemasonry, and the OH Lodge has donated thousands of pounds to a number of organisations in recent years.

design, construction, leasing or trading of millions of square feet of property. The OHPC seeks to promote the industry both in our own ranks and to the upcoming leaders of tomorrow. The OHPC is run by a committee made up of OHs in the industry and aims to have a representative from each age group.

OH MEDICAL SOCIETY

OH REAL TENNIS AND RACKETS ASSOCIATION

The OH Medical Society, for those studying

The OHRTRA was started to encourage OHs to

and working in Medicine, has an annual

continue rackets and take up real tennis after they

tri-partite dinner with the Old Etonian

leave Harrow. Every season, matches take place

and Old Wykehamist medical societies.

against clubs at venues such as Queen’s Club and Lord’s. Young OHs are encouraged to join, with under 25s enjoying free membership and discounted match fees. We also have introductory offers with real tennis clubs for those new to the game.

OH MOTORING CLUB The OH Motoring Club is open to all OHs with an interest in cars and motoring. A meeting place for petrol heads of all ages, the club holds various motoring-related get-togethers throughout

OH SAILING ASSOCIATION

the year at a variety of fascinating venues. All cars welcome,

The OH Sailing Association offers three main areas of

none excluded.

participation in this exciting sport: the Arrow Trophy, an inter-school race off Cowes in October (find out more at arrowtrophy.org.uk); team racing against the School

OH PLAYERS The OH Players, 1952–2021 and still going strong, has

on Datchet Water in April or May; and the Round the Island race, which takes place in June or July with around 1,500 yachts sailing anti-clockwise around the Isle of Wight (roundtheisland.org.uk).

performed Shakespeare for the boys and guests in Speech Room for the last 68 years. If you are keen to keep the wonderful tradition of Shakespeare in Speech Room alive, please join the OH Players to take part in future productions either on stage or behind the scenes.

OH SQUASH CLUB The Old Harrovian Squash Club is always keen to hear from all OHs wishing to represent the School at both friendly and competitive matches. Matches are typically played from October through to April, annually.

53

OH WINE CLUB For wine enthusiasts of all ages, the OH Wine Club meets for regular wine tastings at various wine merchant locations, as well as

OH SHAFTESBURY ENTERPRISE SOCIETY

the occasional UK and European wine tour.

There is the potential amongst OHs to change society for the better and make a significant impact in the spirit of the 19th-century reformer, philanthropist and Old Harrovian Anthony Ashley Cooper, the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury (The Head Master’s 18133). The Shaftesbury Enterprise Society is looking to attract OHs inspired by the thought of this and keen to work together to use their capacity, talents and resources for the benefit of others.

OH WELLBEING SOCIETY The OH Wellbeing Society is a new club created in 2019 to provide a networking space for anyone interested in mental and physical fitness, spiritual growth and personal development. The club offers the chance to network with individuals within the field of mental and physical wellbeing as well as offering members discounts and special offers

OH TECHNOLOGY CLUB

at various OH-run businesses.

The OH Technology Club is a new club aimed at bringing together OHs with an interest, career-based or otherwise, in technology. The club offers both a platform to pitch tech

THE BYRONICS

start-up ideas to possible investors or collaborators, and opportunities to ask for help with a problem found in the

The Byronics is the club for LGBT+ OHs. An open and

working world that you think could be solved, or be made

inclusive social club for OHs of all ages, The Byronics

easier or faster using tech.

is a fun and friendly network for all LGBT+ alumni.

The club holds several gatherings a year at a range of venues and all are welcome to attend.

Harrow Aviation Club

JB Steel (Rendalls 1967 3)

Chairman

john@greatrollright.com

Harrow Football Club

LA Kunzig (Druries 19833)

Member

louis4@sciaky.co.uk

Harrow Wanderers

JR Gillions (Elmfield 19873)

Secretary

james@gillions.eclipse.co.uk

OH Adventurers Club

RM Portal (Elmfield 1981 2)

Secretary

bert.portal@sky.com

OH Association Football Club

K Pittalis (Rendalls 20063)

Secretary

Kyri_5@hotmail.com

OH Cross Country Club

HM Farrar-Bell (Moretons 20023)

Secretary

henryfarrar-bell@msn.com

OH Entrepreneurs and Investors Club

JBG Taylor (Elmfield 19933)

Secretary

jgbtaylor@gmail.com)

OH Eton Fives Club

PG Dunbar (Former Harrow Master3)

Secretary

pgd@harrowschool.org.uk

OH Fencing Club

AE Webb (Druries 1989)3

Secretary

ukdocinnz@gmail.com

OH Golfing Society

WA North (The Knoll 1962 2)

Secretary

ohgsoc@gmail.com

OH Horse Racing Club

AP Rogers (Elmfield 19843)

Secretary

anthony@airliestud.com

OH Law Society Association

HA Office

OH Lawn Tennis Club

Alistair Scott (Tennis Coach 1988-2000)

Secretary

alistaire.scott@hotmail.com

OH Lodge

JDI Skeggs (The Head Masters 19973)

Secretary

secretary@ohlodge.com

OH Medical Society

OL Duke (Newlands 19993)

Secretary

oscarlduke@gmail.com

OH Motoring Club

IH Wallace (Bradbys 20003)

Secretary

ianh@ian-wallace.co.uk

OH Players

SL Sessions (Rendalls 19683)

Secretary

lsessions@clara.co.uk

OH Property Club

TRM Stoddart-Scott (The Park 19923)

Committee Member

tomstoddartscott@gmail.com

OH Real Tennis and Rackets Association

H Boralessa (Moretons 19833)

Membership Secretary

hboralessa@hotmail.com

OH Sailing Association

DE Butler (The Head Master’s 19603)

Secretary

debutler@argonet.co.uk

OH Shaftesbury Enterprise Society

TM Dalton (Newlands 19923)

Member

tmd@harrowschool.org.uk

OH Squash Club

DCA Titchener-Barret (Elmfield 19903)

Secretary

dominic@dtbsportsandevents.com

OH Technology Club

PL Hedley (West Acre 20083)

Member

oldharroviantech@gmail.com

OH Wellbeing Society

A Gray (The Head Master’s 19993)

Secretary

oldharrovianwellbeingsociety@gmail.com

OH Wine Club

HA Office

The Byronics

RJH Smith (The Park 20023)

ha@harrowschool.org.uk

ha@harrowschool.org.uk Secretary

roryjhsmith@gmail.com

FOLLOW UP! • COMMUNITY

54 I believe I was slow to read and I remain a slow reader, usually taking months to get through a book. In fact, I am apt to have a few on the go and switch to and fro; this practice slows things further. I try to read before going to sleep but in term time the eyes are apt to droop before long. Reading is certainly something I am looking forward to having more time for in retirement. What were, I am sure, the great efforts of James Morwood and “Ducky” Martin at O Level, sadly did not excite me with literature and I remain rather limited in taste.

LISTINGS

BOOKS Having taught at Harrow since 1992, one of the longest-serving Harrow Masters, much-loved Mathematics beak Charles Farrah-Bell (Moretons 19721) retires this summer. During his time on the Hill, if he didn’t teach you mathematics, many of you will have known him as House Master of The Knoll from 2002–05 or Master-in-Charge of Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme. He has been involved with running Flambards throughout his time at Harrow. As a keen runner, he was Master-in-Charge of Cross Country for many years. During the Summer term, he is a constant presence at the side of the athletics track with either a megaphone or stopwatch to hand.

On behalf of generations of Harrovians, thank you Charles for the enormous contribution you have made in so many areas of life on the Hill.

A SHORT WALK IN THE HINDU KUSH

BY ERIC NEWBY

This is about a wild expedition to beat all Duke of Edinburgh’s Award expeditions.While working in the fashion industry in 1956 Newby receives a telegram from his diplomat friend Hugh Carless, with a plan to climb an unknown 20,000-foot peak in a remote corner of Afghanistan.

Neither of them knows anything about climbing; their training consists of a weekend in Snowdonia being taught basic technique by two waitresses.

The expedition begins with a neardisastrous drive from London to Kabul, with Newby’s wife Wanda joining them as far as Persia. After a trek on horseback and foot, they reach the mountain and remarkably climb to within 700 feet of the summit, without serious injury.

On the tortuous return trek to Kabul they contract dysentery, shake hands with lepers and bump into the explorer Wilfred Thesiger, who calls them pansies for carrying airbeds.

I have read most of Newby’s books, which are full of humour and insight.

They show what can be achieved and experienced with a spirit of adventure and a readiness to accept discomfort: definitely an inspiration for Dof E!

SIX MINUTES IN MAY

BY NICHOLAS SHAKESPEARE

My interest in history comes from both my father and Ross Beckett.

I remember being captivated in Old Schools by the wonderfully clear explanation of the Seven Years’ War. This book is a brilliantly researched detailing of the events that led to Winston Churchill taking over as prime minister from Neville Chamberlain in May 1940. Until reading this fascinating account I had not appreciated how improbable it was that Churchill should take over the leadership. The title of the book refers to the time that it took MPs to vote for no confidence in the Chamberlain administration.

The early chapters cover the lesserknown opening hostilities of the war: the disastrous Norwegian campaign.

As with Gallipoli in the First War, this failure had much to do with Churchill’s stubbornness. Shakespeare opens up the character of each of the lead protagonists in this extraordinary political drama: Chamberlain, Halifax and Churchill, but equally fascinating are the supporting cast including Lord Beaverbrook and the Russian ambassador Maisky. Even though we all know the big story, the book is riveting and there is much remarkable detail that has never been previously researched.

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FOUR SEASONS IN ROME ANTHONY DOERR

I love Italy, having spent three months in Perugia during my gap year, and this book makes me want to keep returning. Anthony Doerr, his wife and twin baby boys spend a year on a scholarship at the US institute in Rome. He writes with humour and perceptiveness about his new experience of fatherhood, while trying to write a novel. This is a book to read slowly and to savour Doerr’s experiences of Rome. He reflects with humility on the lives of the ordinary Italians whom he meets. “A year is an infinity of perceptions, not just the shapes of starlings, and the death of the Pope, and watching our sons learn to walk, but the smell of roasting meat in an alley, the dark brown eyes of a beggar on a church step, a single dandelion seed settling soundlessly on the habit of a nun who was riding the train…”

THE UNLIKELY VOYAGE OF JACK DE CROW

BY ALEXANDER MCKINNON

This is one of the funniest books I have read. In 1997 McKinnon decided to leave the Shropshire boarding school at which he has been teaching in style. He sailed away from his leaving party, in an 11-foot dinghy borrowed from the school. His intention was to reach Gloucester; in the event, he ends up at the Black Sea, having crossed The Channel and travelled over 3,000 miles. Along the way he has one scrape after another, including capsize at Eton, shipwreck in Kent and kidnap in Romania. Each is followed by a remarkable recovery, involving wonderful kindness from so many people he meets on the way. The book is full of honesty and self-deprecating humour. I would love to leave Harrow at the end of this term by boat but sadly there is no river within range.

KNOWING GOD

BY JIM PACKER

This is one of the most significant and popular Christian books of recent times and has deepened the faith and understanding of millions of people around the world. Dr Packer says we're cruel to ourselves if we try to live in the world without knowing about the God whose world it is and who runs it. He writes, quoting from the book of Jeremiah, “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” Such is the invitation which this book issues. I have found it profoundly helpful and would recommend it to anyone wanting to investigate or deepen their Christian faith.

Short clear chapters unpack the doctrines of the Bible and the character of God in a highly readable manner.

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ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE "So much of my love of live entertainment comes from theatres themselves, from the actual buildings.

I remember the first time I saw a show at Harrow's Ryan Theatre–just as I was leaving, some of the cast came through the 'hidden' door into the foyer and I glimpsed the thinning backstage carpet and the breeze-block walls. Throughout my time at Harrow, going through that door–the smell of mothballs and sawdust –the novelty never wore off. A lot of my work nowadays invites audiences to experience that thrill of 'being behind the curtain', of exploring secret spaces and their stories."

SOMETHING FOR THE WEEKEND

Oscar Blustin (Newlands 2001³ ) is a writer and director of immersive theatre - a popular theatrical variant which sees plays performed in unconventional spaces, often inviting audiences to explore their surroundings as part of the show. Since 2015, he has staged immersive productions in an extraordinary range of places - from stately homes to office blocks, from a central London phone box to a TFL storage depot, from a disused Woolworths to the National Maritime Museum and the foyers and balconies of the National Theatre. Each production draws on the history, architecture and atmosphere of its venue for inspiration. In this spirit, as we eagerly anticipate returning to in-person entertainment this summer, we asked Oscar which venues around the world he is most looking forward to revisiting.

THE MINACK PENZANCE, CORNWALL

Just a few miles from Land’s End, with the Atlantic Ocean providing an incomparable backdrop, the Minack Theatre is a treasure of a performance space. Minack, or in Cornish meynek, means “a rocky place” - apt for this stunning amphitheatre which has been hewn out of the cliff-face. Founded and built (quite often literally, with her own two hands) by the visionary artist Rowena Cade, starting in the 1930s, the Minack has grown into a unique and cherished part of the UK’s theatre scene. Plays, musicals, opera, circus, concerts - a Minack season really does provide something for everyone, and even if you can’t find a show to your liking, it is worth a visit just for the view.

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THE MCKITTRICK HOTEL NEW YORK, US

A gigantic rambling old warehouse, in the heart of New York’s Meatpacking District, has been transformed into a performance venue, ostensibly a hotel called The McKittrick. It is best known for hosting Sleep No More - immersive theatre company Punchdrunk’s retelling of Macbeth. I first saw the show in previews in 2011, and it opened my eyes to the potential for immersive theatre to tell complex and engaging stories.

The building is more of an additional character rather than just a set, a vast five-storey, multi-sensory labyrinth which you are free to explore.

LÄCKÖ CASTLE VÄSTERGÖTLAND, SWEDEN

The middle of rural Sweden might not strike you as the most obvious place for culture, but the summer season of opera and concerts at Läckö Castle has been delighting visitors for over 20 years. With foundations dating back to the 1200s, the stunning baroque castle sits on Kållandsö island in Lake Vänern, surrounded by fields, trees and water. A multi-tiered stage is erected in the castle’s central courtyard, and the acoustic from the stone walls is fantastic. Last time I visited, Mother Nature treated us to her own percussive accompaniment a raging summer thunderstorm that harmonised perfectly with the orchestra. Absolutely unforgettable.

DALHALLA RÄTTVIK, SWEDEN

Still in rural Sweden (unlikely as that might seem) but moving further north, to the town of Rättvik in the county of Dalarna, brings us to Dalhalla. Built in a disused limestone quarry, which half a century of rock-blasting has by happy accident turned into a perfectly shaped amphitheatre, it is becoming one of the most exciting concert venues in Europe.

With its unique setting in the middle of a forest, a capacity audience of over 6000 people, and a truly fantastic lighting rig, this astonishing space lends itself to a variety of genres, as perfect for Wagner’s Ring Cycle as it is for Iggy Pop.

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HOXTON HALL SHOREDITCH, LONDON

Behind an unassuming frontage on Hoxton Street in London’s East End lies a true gem of a theatre. Hoxton Hall has been welcoming punters since 1867, and today is the only surviving example of a Victorian Salon style music hall in the UK. It has always had a dual purpose, to both entertain and educate, and the tradition carries on today with their schedule of fantastic and important community work as well as broad programming that ranges from Shakespeare to panto to burlesque.

I produced an immersive show here a couple of years ago, using not just the stage but the entire building - dressing rooms, boiler room, stairwells, cupboards, from basement to rafters as our performance space. It’s a magical place to both visit and work in, steeped equally in history and contemporary life.

TEATRO BIBIENA MANTOVA, ITALY

Teatro Scientifico Bibiena, in the charming Northern Italian city of Mantova, was designed to host not just concerts and theatre but scientific lectures and conventions, and its program continues along similar lines today. On the bill in its opening season in 1770 was a concert by a young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; his father Leopold wrote about the auditorium,“In all my life, I have never seen anything more beautiful of its kind”, and it is very hard to disagree. Simultaneously grand and intimate, the auditorium is a jewel-box of rococo splendour that truly lets you feel as if you’ve stepped back in time.

THE VAULTS WATERLOO, LONDON

Nestled under Waterloo Station is an intricate maze of disused railway tunnels which has been converted into London’s premiere interactive and immersive performance space. It is home to everything from themed dining experiences and pop-up bars to critically acclaimed productions such as Alice’s Adventures Underground and London’s leading contemporary cultural showcase - Vault Festival all played to the atmospheric accompaniment of trains rumbling overhead. For those keen to meet the artists who’ll be shaping the next decade of theatre in London and beyond - look no further.

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WANAMAKER PLAYHOUSE SOUTHWARK, LONDON

Although it is very firmly on the beaten track, the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at The Globe in London is worth putting on any innovative theatre itinerary. A faithful reconstruction of a Jacobean playhouse, the wooden stage lit solely by candle-light transports you straight into history and provides an atmosphere and experience quite unlike anything else - every show feels more like time-travel than a night at the theatre. I’m thrilled that the Old Harrovian Players will be staging their 70th anniversary production here later this year - the ideal excuse for a visit.

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The Army showed foresight honouring Captain Sir Tom in this way– painted portraiture is the backbone of the Army, predating photography as a way of recording and remembering historic figures. Mess portraiture is very much ingrained as the language of military recognition.”

ALEX

BIG PICTURE

CHAMBERLIN Alex Chamberlin’s (Druries 19863) portraiture is inspired by modern British painting as well as the works of the late nineteenth century, and his work reflects an obsession with good technical painting. Primarily, Alex paints the fall of the light on the subject while paying close attention to its absence in the shadows.

By giving equal weight to the positive play of light against the negative effect of shadow, the paintings have a three-dimensional quality and a feeling of depth.

The freshness of the paint and the fluidity of his work shines through his portraits, while fulfilling the brief of creating a good likeness and making paintings that are powerful and complimentary. Alex’s natural interest in people combined with his calm approach makes potentially daunting sittings a relaxed occasion.

In August 2020, it was Alex’s immense privilege to be chosen to paint the Army’s official portrait of Captain Sir Tom Moore, following his extraordinary fundraising achievement in support of the NHS during the Covid-19 pandemic. It demonstrated to Alex how important the Army was and is to him. “The Army showed foresight honouring Captain Sir Tom in this way–painted portraiture is the backbone of the Army predating photography as a way of recording and remembering historic figures. Mess portraiture is very much ingrained as the language of military recognition.” When Alex was serving in the Light Dragoons, portraiture was very much part of Army mess life and served as an everyday inspiration and a constant reminder of the sacrifices and achievements of our former leaders. In Captain Sir Tom’s painting, he included items related to his service in Burma, as well as the box for his Knight Batchelor Medal.

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Portrait of explorer Levison Wood.

Alex is currently working towards an exhibition of Veterans who have moved on to alternative careers.

Currently in talks with the National Army Museum, the show would include the Captain Tom portrait and tell the story of the military as a springboard for a multitude of careers and celebrate the successes of different Veterans. Sitters who have either pledged or have already been painted include James Blunt (Elmfield 1987 3), adventurer and Chief Scout Bear Grylls, astronaut Tim Peake, Olympic gold medal winner Dame Kelly Holmes, former British Military Commander General Sir David Leakey, former World Champion boxer Nigel Benn, Conservative MP Johnny Mercer and world-renowned explorer Levison Wood.

Alex paints in an historic studio in Windsor and undertakes commissioned work while creating paintings for upcoming exhibitions. Sitters include The Duke of Edinburgh, The Bailiff of Jersey, Black Rod, Nigel Havers, David Gower, Peter Oborne, Andrew Ridgeley and England cricket hero Lord Ian Botham.

Official portrait commissioned by the British Army of Captain Sir Tom Moore KB, part of the permanent collection of the National Army Museum.

To see some of Alex’s work visit alexchamberlin.co.uk or follow him on instagram @chamberlinalex for updates on exhibitions and commissions.

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Follow the HA on Instagram @oldharrovians

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LA

65 At just 34, Chris Travers’ (The Head Master's 20023) whirlwind career has seen him work on sporting events around the world: from the London 2012 Olympics and 2015 Rugby World Cup to Formula 1’s travelling circus. In a new role as Commercial Director for Formula E’s ROKiT Venturi Racing Team, he’s taking on the challenge of a fast-growing, dynamic racing sport and helping deliver Venturi’s sustainability and diversity mission along the way.

ANES

WHEN HE LEFT HARROW IN 2005 , Chris had sporting aspirations himself. He’d been ‘dropped in’ from his home in Zimbabwe on little more than a week’s notice to the daunting prospect of all-boys boarding in a new and different country. A Sir John Beckwith sports scholar, captain for the cricket 1st XI and fullback for the 1st XV, sport helped Chris fit into a new environment at Harrow – and, in his final year, into The Philathletic Club. “Sport drops the barrier to making friends and finding friendship groups ... I remember the thing I loved most was always the dash to the Phil in break time for biscuits, tea and a catch up.” Beyond the eccentric uniform and Phil Room snacks, these were early experiences with leadership that Chris looks back on gratefully. Chris is especially thankful for the support of House Master Joe McKinney during a very difficult period. Despite all the challenges, in just three years, Chris had just about ticked every box of the Harrow experience (including Head of House for The Head Master’s) and he remains in touch with that cohort: “It was an incredible time in my life”.

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THE CRICKET CAREER wasn’t on the cards and neither, at that point, was returning to work on his father’s farm in Zimbabwe. So Chris began studying Sports Science at Exeter, an environment he describes as “a complete contrast” to Harrow. He graduated with a 2:2 into a job market spinning from the 2008 financial crisis – but graduated nonetheless into a job with the sales team at IMG. His advice to graduates facing a similar dearth of opportunity after this year’s lockdown is to focus on opportunities for work experience in university holidays.

“Degrees are of course incredibly important but so too is the ability to get off your butt and graft, no matter what it is you want to do in life.”

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It was like living inside an episode of The Sopranos. You had teams that wouldn’t talk to each other, the FIA, who wouldn’t talk to Formula 1, who [in turn] didn’t always get along with race promoters. It was an ecosystem always competing against itself.”

Those internships were a humbling experience.

“You get treated like dirt”, Chris remembers. “I was the guy that made the tea for the guy that made the tea.”

But opportunities followed: first shadowing with sports agents and then selling places to compete in massparticipation events like the London Tri-Athlon. Selling was a new skill, but one that Chris picked up quickly.

Looking back on his early career, even Chris would admit: “I hate salespeople”. But he recognised early on that – in an environment where people expect to be misled – trust and honesty were strong selling points. “People buy from likeminded people they know and trust.”

A combination of hard work and a winning personality created a “natural progression” of opportunities to the hospitality team at the London 2012 Olympics.

Chris spent the next three years working towards the 2015 Rugby World Cup hosted in England. At a tournament which was career defining in all the wrong ways for Stuart Lancaster’s men, Chris made his own career-defining move into a leadership position within the sales team. England dropping out at the pool stage of a home world cup was (and is) “a shocker”. But for Chris’ team the implications were more serious than the average fantasy league fan – losing at least 5% in hospitality sales from the upset.

“To this day, those were the best three years of my life. It was insane.” A “thrill”, but also an opportunity for which an old boss and now a mentor, had simple advice: “whatever happens make sure you come out as the number one sales guy”. True to those words, Chris delivered no less a client than the Crown Prince of Dubai.

Like a child with a fast-pass to Disneyland, the prince bought ten tickets to every event. It was a catch-of-theday sale and an opportunity for Chris to enjoy the games himself (table tennis was a highlight). The prince, it turns out, also has a refined taste in sports, watching both opening and closing ceremonies, the 100 metres, 200 metres – and beach volleyball.

With no more big-ticket events in the UK on the horizon, Chris made the move from hospitality sales into sports sponsorship with TRM (now Two Circles). “Amazing … relentless … eye-opening” – Chris’ innings with TRM were brief before an unmissable opportunity presented itself: after a quick call with the Commercial Director at Formula 1, a contract arrived on his doorstep via moped.

At just 30 years old, this was a source of conflicting emotions. With full knowledge that he wasn’t ready for the position, Chris knew he had to take it – and work tirelessly to pull it off.

Between driver rivalries and team drama, Chris compares working in F1 to a rugby scrum or, if you prefer, a mob: “It was like living inside an episode of The Sopranos.

You had teams that wouldn’t talk to each other, the FIA, who wouldn’t talk to Formula 1, who [in turn] didn’t always get along with race promoters. It was an ecosystem always competing against itself.” For three and a half years Chris lived inside the circus. Even now

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To the F1 purist, Chris would acknowledge that Formula E doesn’t yet have the off-track drama to fuel Netflix shows like Drive to Survive. But looking back from Formula E he also admits that – after the dramatic jostles on the starting grid and before Lewis Hamilton wins – “the middle bit is boring.” At 45 minutes, an E-Prix is the length of half a football match and innovations like attack mode (which boosts drivers round the course like Mario Kart) and Fanboost (an app which lets viewers award their favourite drivers extra speed) mean that every minute of the 45 is action packed.

You can’t describe it – the magic, the drama, the aura.

It has this amazing pull.”

In the same way F1 drives innovation in motor cars, each Formula E team is united in the goal of creating the technology of the future for electric vehicles. What makes Venturi special is their mission, spearheaded by Wolff, to introduce more women and greater diversity into a male-dominated industry. According to Chris, Wolff’s commitment to gender diversity began in her own stellar racing career: “She tells an amazing story about how as a young kid she was always treated differently. She finished 15th in a race and was given a trophy, just because she was the only girl who took part; that really annoyed her. Now that she’s in a position of ownership and management, she has the opportunity to make a direct impact”.

The team sees motorsports as a way to “sexify” diversity in STEM careers – with equal opportunity internships, university placements and a “stand-alone” culture of opportunity. Today, Venturi is the only female-owned and managed racing team in the world and the most gender diverse team in motorsports.

he is lost for words: “you can’t describe it – the magic, the drama, the aura. It has this amazing pull.” It would take a lot to turn your head from a career with F1. That is until, last year, Chris picked up a call from Susie Wolff, with the chance to join F1’s electric counterpart: Formula E. With 63 years between them, Formula 1 is old enough to be Formula E’s grandparent. And in a young sport, Venturi is an even younger team – reborn under Susie Wolff’s management just three years ago. From a sponsorship perspective, the two breeds of extreme motorsport bring different stories to the table. Where the “mammoth” fame of Formula 1 draws eyeballs to any sponsor, its electronic offspring is more purposeful and story led. It’s “nimble” (where Formula 1 is bureaucratic “giant”) and it delivers a far more viewer friendly spectacle from start to finish. It is clear Chris’ pitch is well polished.

Joining in January 2021, most of his time with Venturi so far has been clouded by national lockdowns, but Chris sees opportunities big and small in a changing work environment. With F1 “it was totally normal to fly to New York for one meeting”, but the pandemic has raised questions about whether plane travel will be as ubiquitous in the future. This means an even more sustainable future for motorsports and more time to spend at home in Hampshire with his young family: Archie and India. A salesman at heart, it has been difficult to close deals over Zoom, but Chris also sees it as the chance to enter a different environment, where interruptions from pets and children are part of the charm and you are invited into someone’s home.

Chris hasn’t landed his dream job in cricket yet, but between a cluster of international Grands Prix and the two largest sporting events in the UK’s recent memory, he’s already had enough career highlights for a small stadium of sports fans to share. Cricket will have to wait a little longer yet while his immediate future unfolds with the combined and uniquely powerful mission of sustainability and diversity at Venturi.

REEL LIFE F O L L O W U P ! • C A R E E R S A N D E M P L OYA B I L I T Y

WHEN AWARD-WINNING FILMMAKER

Dominic Sutherland (The Park 19863) was invited back to the Hill to produce Harrow’s 450th-anniversary film, it gave him the opportunity to rewind and reflect on a profession spent in the deepest recesses of the Earth, exploring some of the darkest chapters in human history, and driving into some of the most remote corners of the globe. So lights, camera, action for the director’s cut of a life spent in film, as Dominic does a second take on his 25-year career and a passion rooted in his formative years at Harrow.

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As I look back now I can see how the foundations for my interests and career were laid down at Harrow.”

It was at Harrow that Dominic Sutherland (The Park 19863) developed an interest in the past and its relationship to the present. He was taught Anglo-Saxon A level history by the scholarly, charismatic medievalist Christopher Tyreman. ‘We felt that he was teaching us much as he lectured his undergraduates at Hertford College, Oxford.

He had an appealing anti-authoritarian streak and a nose for stories that fired our imaginations - about bretwaldas, coin hoards and blood eagles.’

Dominic was also drawn to drama, co-producing and co-directing The Park House play, Tom Stoppard’s After Magritte, with fellow Parkite Charles Bain (The Park 19853).

‘I recently dug out a cast and crew photo. About a fifth of the House was involved in the production; a real team effort. The dialogue is still etched into my memory. I also remember that of our £100 budget, £73 was spent on the nastiest wallpaper we could find ‘down-town’.’

After Harrow, Dominic studied English Literature and History at the University of Edinburgh. By the time he graduated in 1996 he was clear that he wanted to work in broadcast, on historical factual content. It wasn’t a straight line to finding work in history documentary production, however, and initially he was hired on science programmes.

He spent a week filming aboard the USS John C. Stennis, a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered supercarrier in the United States Navy, on manoeuvres off the coast of Puerto Rico.

‘Nothing prepares you for the exhilaration of standing on a carrier flight deck, with the deafening engine noise and the heady smell of aviation fuel, watching F-18s being steam-catapulted over the prow. The ship’s captain, familiar with the hyperbole beloved of our commissioners at the Discovery Channel, delivered the perfect opening line: ‘When the President dials 911, this is what he gets!’

Dominic cautions that documentary work is not always as alluring as people suspect. A case in point was the production of a film about Mponeng Western Deep Level #1 Shaft, a gold mine outside of Johannesburg, and at the time, the furthest humans had worked underground.

‘The deepest point–3.5 kilometres under the Earth’s surface– was hellishly hot and dominated by a massive cactus crane that scooped rock into the large bucket we’d arrived in. The foreman barked instructions in Fanagalo, a language spoken only by miners, while we drank a revolting orange-flavoured saline solution to keep from passing out.’

While there’s a mistaken whiff of glamour about documentary work, the experiences and facts you collect do make for good dinner-party chat, explains Dominic.

‘I know just enough to sound knowledgeable about super-volcanism, cigarette-boat racing and tunnel-boring machines, but the question everyone asks is ‘Do you come up with the ideas yourself?’, to which the answer is invariably no!’’

In 2000, Dominic joined the BBC History unit in White City, London. ‘Commissioners were recognising that it was the last chance to capture the testimony of those directly involved in the Second World War.’

F O L L O W U P ! • C A R E E R S A N D E M P L OYA B I L I T Y

Dominic worked on Secret Agent, a series about the agents of the Special Operations Executive (S.O.E.), Churchill’s secret army charged with ‘setting Europe ablaze.’ For The Battle of the Atlantic, testimony was captured from naval intelligence officers, Bletchley Park code-breakers, Royal Navy officers and seamen, merchant mariners and members of the U-boat arm. ‘For me the most memorable interviews were with sailors who, after being torpedoed, had spent weeks in open lifeboats in the Atlantic or the Greenland Sea. Inevitably when I asked them to recount the moment they were rescued they wept, as did I in the wake of their emotion.’

The series of most historical importance was Auschwitz, the Nazis & ‘The Final Solution’, which told the story of the Holocaust through the decision-making process of the Nazis. Three years in the making, the six programmes were based on extensive research and nearly 100 interviews with survivors and even perpetrators. The team secured an interview with Hans Friederich, who admitted on camera to executing Jews as a 19-year-old soldier in the Ukraine in 1941 while part of an SS Infantry Brigade.

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Our simultaneous translator broke down, unable to bring herself to translate from German into English the words she was hearing.”

As the questioner, Dominic adds, he’s often asked himself what he would have done in a particular situation.

‘Sometimes you recognise that it would have been difficult to be brave or to follow one’s moral compass.’

In 2008 Dominic made the bold decision to leave the BBC to set up his own production company, but not before an all-in overland trip. ‘The Toyota Hilux is the preferred vehicle of insurgents all over the world for good reason. It’s almost impossible to destroy, which my wife and I certainly tried to do with ours on several occasions in driving from London via Central Asia to Shanghai.’

Sleeping above their vehicle in a roof tent, they relished being self-sufficient and mobile. For Dominic, the highlights of their six-month trip were the mountains of Tajikistan,

Another unprecedented TV interview was captured with Oskar Gröning, a member of the SS who worked at Auschwitz in the accounting department. A bank clerk before the war, Gröning was by no means a stereotypical Nazi, and yet he was an eye-witness to atrocities that included the murder of babies and the use of Zyklon B to kill adult prisoners. ‘His on-camera interview was of historic significance, and difficult for us all to process.

Our simultaneous translator broke down, unable to bring herself to translate from German into English the words she was hearing.’

Dominic has conducted many hundreds of interviews, with a broad spectrum of contributors: from prime ministers and terrorists to ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. ‘There is a skill to successful interviewing for TV, no doubt, but there is also the power of the camera, which is harder to qualify. It brings a sense of the confessional to some interviews and certainly the process can be therapeutic for the contributor. I’ve been told by more than one interviewee that they’ve shared something with me on camera that they’ve never told their partner of 50 years.’

Filming in a goldmine, South Africa (2000) Interviewing a witness to atrocities at Treblinka death camp (2004) Interviewee Hans Friederich of the Waffen SS, who admitted to atrocities on camera (2004) A drama scene for BBC’s Secret Agent (2000)

71 Cast and producer / directors of After Magritte in 1990 Charles Bain (The Park 19853) and Dominic, co-producer/directors of The Park House play After Magritte Dominic during his first term (1986) Front row forwards in 1990, with Simon Botes (The Park 19863) left, and Nick Howard (The Knoll 19863) right.

Navigating across Mongolia (2008)

Few places are more off-the-grid than northern Mongolia.

With little distraction other than sourcing food and fuel I read a huge amount, about the countries we passed through and, increasingly, how to get a new business off the ground, about which I knew absolutely nothing.”

overlooking Afghanistan, and Mongolia. ‘Few places are more off-the-grid than northern Mongolia. With little distraction other than sourcing food and fuel I read a huge amount, about the countries we passed through and, increasingly, how to get a new business off the ground, about which I knew absolutely nothing.’

Dominic returned to the UK in 2009 to set up a corporate video production company, NextShoot.

‘The development of cheaper cameras, the recent arrival of prosumer editing software like Apple’s Final Cut Pro and the increase in internet speeds meant the timing was spot-on to create content for businesses. It helped massively that our first commission, for Yellow Pages, was an order for 8,500 short videos.’

Over the last decade NextShoot hasn't looked back, working with brands and organisations that include Bloomberg, the World Bank, Louis Vuitton, the National Gallery and the Royal Shakespeare Company. ‘We’re drawn to work in the arts and fashion in particular, and anything to do with an organisation’s heritage. We were delighted,

therefore, to be asked to produce a video with the Harrow Development Trust that frames ‘Harrow 450,’ exploring the School’s rich past and its exciting plans for the future.’

For Dominic, producing the video involved reflection on what the School means to its alumni. ‘Harrow Songs capture the healthy nostalgia that is baked into the Harrow School experience. It’s poignant that in singing Forty Years On the boys picture their future selves looking back on their present. Often, of course, they sing this in the presence of OHs, some rheumatic of shoulder if not yet 40 years on, who wonder how the years have passed so fast. It perfectly encapsulates the relationship between past, present and future, reminding us to live our best lives.’

To find out more about NextShoot visit nextshoot.com Scan QR code to watch NextShoot's Harrow 450 video

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THIS YEAR A SMALL COHORT OF OHs FROM WEST AFRICA

got in touch with the HA to discuss setting up an OHs in West Africa group. If you live or work in the region then keep an eye on OH Connect for further details about this new club. This inspired us to invite a number of OHs living and working in Nigeria to contribute to our OHs working across the Globe feature.

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OHs WORKING ACROSS THE GLOBE

F O L L O W U P ! • C A R E E R S A N D E M P L OYA B I L I T Y

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My time at AFC has been extremely rewarding. It has put me on the cutting edge of innovations in the African infrastructure space. On a daily basis I work with my colleagues from across the continent to come up with solutions to providing Africa with the infrastructure required for the continent’s development.”

OMATSOLA OTUBU (Lyon’s 2011 3 ) I N V E S T M E N T A N A LY S T AT A F R I C A F I N A N C E C O R P O R AT I O N

MOVING TO LAGOS WAS A HOMECOMING FOR ME.

I grew up here and moved to the UK and US for A levels and university. The city I met on my return was familiar but, in many ways, completely different.

As a teenager in Lagos I had seen the transformative impact the Lekki-Epe expressway and the Lekki-Ikoyi link bridge had on the city. Both infrastructure projects drastically reduced commute times for Lagosians, improved their standard of living and integrated communities deeper inland to the commercial hubs.

This improved the standard of living, drove economic growth and provided employment to people who may not have otherwise had the opportunity.

As a Nigerian keen to play a role in the development of my country, I was interested to learn how I could work on delivering such impactful projects. In line with this desire, I moved back to Lagos after graduating from the University of Pennsylvania’s Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business and started work at the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), a multilateral finance institution focused on bridging the infrastructure gap on the continent.

My time at AFC has been extremely rewarding. It has put me on the cutting edge of innovations in the African infrastructure space. On a daily basis I work with my colleagues from across the continent to come up with solutions to providing Africa with the infrastructure required for the continent’s development. The experience has shown me how much has been done and how much more still needs to be done. It has also provided me with the amazing opportunity to contribute to chipping away at the infrastructure deficit while still developing myself professionally. As part of my work at AFC, I have also been fortunate enough to travel around Nigeria and to other African countries including Djibouti and Ghana.

Living in Lagos has been a great experience. I already

knew what to expect in terms of the vibrance of the city, the reunion with family and childhood friends and the access to the beach and warm weather (two things I was now incredibly grateful for following not so warm winters in London and Philadelphia). However, I have been pleasantly surprised by the depth and variety of the experiences available. There has been an explosion in Lagos in music, in arts and in culture. Young people with a more global outlook are creating and sharing their interests and talents through concerts, exhibitions and theatre. The number of “alternative” things to do has also increased dramatically. You can now spend an afternoon glass-blowing, or trying out water sports such as kayaking and scuba diving or even touring historical buildings and sites. There are so many different communities in the city and while they are not always easy to find there really is something for everyone here.

I’ve enjoyed my homecoming and I look forward to discovering more of what Lagos, and Nigeria more broadly, has to offer.

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MICHAEL OKOIGUN (Druries 20003 ) MANAGING DIRECTOR AT L AT E N I G H T L A B S NIGERIA IS A TRULY MULTICULTURAL NATION with over 500 languages, 250 ethnicities and a diverse environment to match. It has a troublesome dependency on oil exports and a wobbly currency. The economy is constantly under duress from religious extremism in the northeast, oil pipeline saboteurs in the Niger Delta, a huge reliance on imports and consistently high levels of corruption. When I decided to relocate there in 2019, some people thought… why? However, coming from a family of entrepreneurs, what I saw in all these problems was potential that is yet to be fully unlocked.

After graduating from Imperial College London with a degree in Information Systems Engineering, I ventured out into the music/entertainment industry, setting up a recording studio in Peckham, providing professional services to local artists. After work hours I tutored students from the community on music production and sound engineering. Many of those producers went on to have chart-topping singles. It was a truly rewarding experience for me. However, once I had set up a sustainable business system in London, I was ready to make the move to Nigeria.

My family business focuses on energy support services and it has been operating for over 41 years. This is very uncommon in Nigeria due to the harsh business climate; most businesses seldom make it past their first 10 years, let alone the first generation of owners. Presently,

I am a second-generation part-owner and I lead the Impact Development team. My job is to ensure the four subsidiaries within the company meet performance standards while creating a positive impact on the people and the planet, as well as our profits.

The first objective was to develop a new subsidiary specialising in drone support services and establishing a sizeable share of the market. Despite Nigeria’s difficulties, I found that with adequate processes and planning, as well as some level of adaptability to local chaos, innovation is possible. Through negotiations with customers, suppliers, regulatory agencies and other key contacts, I was fortunate to secure favourable terms for the company.

That subsidiary is currently one of the top five drone companies in the country with revenues of over £2 million within the past two years. Our clients include the top IOCs as well as the Nigerian government. We have recently implemented a training programme to certify our pilots as part of our efforts to develop local capacity. Moving forward, I aim to attract global partners interested in making a positive impact by leveraging on the entire company’s local expertise and heritage.

Although the country has a long way to go, there are plenty of positives. The youth have an extraordinary drive and resilience. Nigeria is also blessed with myriad natural resources that can be harnessed with the right leadership and business acumen. If I can build businesses that create a quality life for employees and family members for generations to come, I would say the move to Nigeria was worth it.

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CHINEDU OKEKE (Druries 19983 )

FOLARIN AO KUKU (Rendalls 19963 )

M A N A G I N G D I R E C T O R AT U N I V E R S A L MUSIC GROUP NIGERIA

CEO OF SECURITY AND LOGISTICS C O M PA N Y

I AM AN IMPRESARIO AND ENTERTAINMENT-ENTREPRENEUR

set on changing the conversation about Africa. I’m a Law graduate (LLB) from the University of Bristol, I hold a diploma in Chinese from Tsinghua University, Beijing, and speak English, French, Spanish and Chinese. Following my education, I undertook business training at two Fortune 500 companies, namely Credit Suisse in New York and the AP Moller Maersk Group in Shanghai and completed the management training programme upon returning to Nigeria in 2008.

In 2010, I founded Eclipse Brand Agency, a branding and communications company which has developed entertainment properties for multinationals like Pepsi, Red Bull, Bollinger and Nokia to name a few. In 2013, I also launched Eclipse Live Ltd, an entertainment company focused on bringing live, affordable and accessible entertainment to the youth of Africa.

At Eclipse Live, I developed The Gidi Culture festival, which is the biggest music festival in West Africa and SeatGate, a B2B white label ticketing solution. The Festival has been coined as defining the progression of music and urban youth culture in Africa as it’s known today.

I am a member of the Steering Council for the ILMC Futures Forum and I have been named one of the 10 most powerful people in entertainment on YNaija’s Power List.

I am also a founding Trustee of the ECHO Music and Arts Foundation. I have spoken at Midem, Social Media Week, and Davos.

I was the Executive Director of The Wicklow Group with multiple interests in the agriculture value chain and CANVEST Nigeria Limited, a food marketing company that acts as agency to McCormick & Ducros in West Africa.

What Harrow really taught me was the value of personal relations, drawing on the best experiences of each other to better shape your own reality. This in turn breeds confidence and ownership of your own decisions, which has been the fundamental benchmark of how I achieved what I have so far.

All these skills, though I didn’t realise it at the time, were learnt at Harrow. Not just from beaks, but from boys as well. Beaks such as Roger Uttley, who was as much a role model as he was a rugby coach; Bill Davis, Head of the CCF, a legend in his own right; Davies 28, Quartermaster, another personality that was a real guiding light; Jon Ing, who set the bar high in regard to physicality, mental toughness and personal conduct, but also made it very clear that his high standards were very much achievable.

After Harrow I attended Newcastle University, represented the university in rugby, playing both for the 1st XV, and at county level as well. I took a break from all things military, determined to embrace as much as Newcastle had to offer, also something I learnt at Harrow: the value of experiences.

I graduated from Newcastle with a degree in Ecological Resource Management in 2005 and decided to have another look at the Army. I attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst from 2005.

At Sandhurst I continued playing rugby for the academy as well as polo, which has been and very much still is a major part of my life. In 2006 I was commissioned into the Grenadier Guards and was awarded the Silver Bugle for Athletic Achievement.

Life in the Army was a rollercoaster. A side note was that I was the first black officer to commission into the Guards, who at that point were the oldest of five regiments dating back to 1649, the Grenadiers history going back to 1656.

For my part, like most of my generation, I saw active service in Afghanistan, conducting three operational tours.

Unfortunately, I was seriously injured on my first tour, which eclipsed the story I mentioned earlier. I was declared fit some 18 months after being wounded, just in time to deploy on my second tour.

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Some time after I returned home and was fit enough to return to duty with my regiment, I had the pleasure of seeing Bill Davies. Seeing him really brought into focus my journey from boy cadet in the CCF to young officer, a veteran of combat. Bill saw potential, he nurtured it and gave me the space to realise and achieve it: an example I rely on, even to this day.

I served 10 years in Army and had some truly amazing experiences. I was Aide-de-Camp to Major General Sir George Norton in 2012. During that time we took part in all major parades in London, including the Diamond Jubilee parade, and delivered military support to the London Olympics. Apart from my operational tours, 2012 was my greatest year in the Army.

In 2014, I took the decision to resign my service to the colours, one of the hardest and the boldest decision I have had to make.

I moved back to Nigeria in summer 2015 after completing my 12-month notice period with the Army.

I worked in the security sector for two years, before starting CEFO Premium Logistics Ltd with an ex-Army friend, also a Nigerian. We deliver security and risk management services to companies such as Facebook, the BBC and CNN. Our main work, however, is delivering security for gold mines and major infrastructure projects and construction.

Combining military-based management techniques, willingness to get onto the ground to gain first-hand experience and understanding of how to run a business has enabled my company to grow and provide me a lifestyle that still involves polo and the opportunity to share my experiences. We are still growing as an organisation and will be competing with the major regional players in the risk management space.

I’m a firm believer that everyone has their time, you just have to be ready to grab the iron whilst it's hot and have the confidence to drive home. It’s been 20 years since I left Harrow, a place and a point in time that very much helped shape me and prepare me for what has been a whirlwind.

Harrow is and will always be a place of great and happy memories; memories I have had the pleasure of sharing with my younger brother, Ehiada Garuba (Newlands 2017 3), although he is in Newlands. I will have to learn to forgive him for that.

Life in the Army was a rollercoaster.

A side note was that, I was the first black officer to commission into the Guards, who at that point were the oldest of five regiments dating back to 1649, the Grenadiers history going back to 1656.”

ROHIT DASWANI (Rendalls 19863 ) ENTREPRENEUR

AFTER MY ACADEMIC PURSUIT AT HARROW I went to the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA to study for a dual degree from The Wharton School (Entrepreneurial Management) and University of Pennsylvania (Economics).

An industrialist with over 25 years’ business experience, I have developed a fulfilling career in plastics manufacturing and technology and currently run viable plastics manufacturing and distributing companies in Nigeria and Angola. I started my career in the plastics industry as Marketing Director in Plastika Pty Ltd, Johannesburg, South Africa in 1995, and in 1998 moved to Nigeria to join the family business as Marketing Director of the then Leoplast Industry Limited.

Currently, I am the owner and Chief Executive Officer of The Papilon Plastics Company Limited, Ogun State, Nigeria, a plastics manufacturing company focused on production of household and domestic items, as well as the majority shareholder and Managing Director of Leao Viva LDA, Luanda, Angola, one of the fastest growing household plastics manufacturing companies in Angola.

I am also a shareholder in Leoplast Industry Ltd Myanmar, a leading manufacturer of household plastics products in Myanmar with a vast expanse of machines and manpower serving the community and nation of Myanmar at its best. Part of my long-term business vision and goal is to build a Plastics Academy in Nigeria, where technicians can be trained in the art of plastics technology.

An ardent reader and a philanthropist who loves giving back to the less privileged, apart from my passion for Plastics technology, I was once the president of the Indian Cultural Association, Nigeria Chapter, and am a member to date. When not working, I enjoy travelling by air, watching movies and listening to good music as a form of relaxation.

I am also a member of the Jetski Club in Lagos.

I married my beautiful wife Sanjana in 1995 and we have three lovely children together. Despite a demanding work schedule, I strive to make sure that I have quality time with my family at our homes in London and Nigeria.

We also have a cute pet dog, Romeo!

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OHS IN ENGINEERING

ENGINEERING AT HEART SECTOR SPOTLIGHT

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Like Sir Rowland M Stephenson (The Head Masters 19233) British Railway Engineer, Rookes Evelyn Bell Crompton (The Grove 18583), early pioneer of electric lighting, Dudley Gordon, 3rd Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair (The Head Master's 1897 1) President of the British Engineers Association and President of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers to name but a few who went before them, these OH engineers are drawn to the potential of engineering to innovate and change the world, in all sorts of areas.

TOMKAT ENGINEERING OWNER THOMAS HOLTBY (THE HEAD MASTER’S 19761) At Churchill Songs one year, Sir Keith Joseph gave the address and spoke of the importance of British industry to the country.

Without much of a clear idea of what to do for a career after leaving school in the early 1980s, Thomas’ father enrolled him on a course in Agricultural Engineering at Rycotewood College in Thame, Oxfordshire.

On completion of the course, he returned to the East Yorkshire family farm to build a career in machinery maintenance and a soft fruit venture they had running at the time. He enjoyed the mechanical maintenance part of his life and went on to start his own business following a brief spell in media sales in London, Leeds and Manchester.

Thomas closed the business in 2006 and began a new career as a mechanical technician and engineer in the offshore oil and gas industry, working in both production and drilling.

The industry is heavily regulated in terms of health and safety and this area started to hold a fascination for him particularly in the area of process safety.

After completing a home study course in Applied Health and Safety and taking membership of IOSH, an opening appeared where he would be able to use the acquired experience of many years ‘on the tools’ in an HSE Advisor role.

“I never cease to be amazed by the ingenuity of humans to produce engineering marvels in the most challenging of locations and this has led to a highly rewarding life working with some of the finest minds in British industry.”

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SCIAKY ELECTRIC WELDING MACHINES LTD MANAGING DIRECTOR LOUIS KUNZIG (DRURIES 19833) Sciaky has been making resistance welding machines since 1929. It was founded by four Sciaky brothers. Last year it passed the milestone of 25,000 machines built in the UK. The machines are used in aerospace, defence, nuclear, automotive, medical and general industries. We make the machines that allow manufacturers to produce metal parts. Sciaky design all aspects of the machines: mechanical, pneumatic, hydraulic, electrical, electronic and software. A wide range of subcontractors make the parts which are then assembled, piped, wired, programmed, tested and proved to the customer’s requirements.

As a third generation Sciaky, Louis was in and out of the factories in UK and France from childhood, and was allowed to get summer jobs building and servicing machines from the age of 15 during the holidays. Mechanical engineering at Dundee was followed by seven years of project managing property and office renovations in London, before coming back to Sciaky as a project manager in 1998. Overseeing installations at customers' factories all over the world provided the opportunity to see the advances in automation and technology firsthand. Engineers always like to show off their latest shiny acquisitions. Sciaky customers include most of the major blue chip players in aerospace and tier one manufacturers in automotive, as well as household names in white goods.

Research and development are priorities.

Spotting new advances in technology that can be incorporated to improve quality, speed and reliability allow Sciaky to stay at the cutting edge and ahead of the competition. You have to evolve and change to meet new challenges, requirements and markets.

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You have to evolve and change to meet new challenges, requirements and markets.”

DIRECTOR AT PURE COLD PAUL JOLLIFFE (BRADBYS 19841) After leaving Harrow, Paul travelled and worked extensively in Asia.

Being practical and engineeringminded, he procured sub-assemblies and componentry for international companies. In 2006, Paul co-founded Pure Cold, a company specialising in the design and manufacture of commercial refrigeration. Pure Cold initially focused on the convenience retail sector and in 2008 started supplying refrigeration to its first national retailer. The industry has faced enormous environmental challenges with the legacy use of ozone-depleting gases. Since the early 1980s, the developments in refrigerants have been constantly evolving, from R22 which severely impacted the environment to the development of higher pressure CO2 systems and hydrocarbon refrigerants. Today, Pure Cold only supplies products using natural refrigerants and the company continues to invest in research and development. Pure Cold has supplied products globally, including to Asia, Australia, and the USA.

STRUCTURAL DESIGN ENGINEER DIEGO DE ARMAS (THE KNOLL 20063 ) Diego is a fiction writer at heart who studied Engineering Science at the University of Oxford to satisfy his curiosity about the physical world. This has evolved into a rather lengthy detour; he is now a structural engineer with over five years’ experience.

He works at Edge Structures, in London, where he collaborates with a variety of architects, developers and contractors. His recent projects have included the design of schools, rooftop extensions, apartment blocks and care homes.

Before moving to Edge Structures, he worked at AECOM, where he carried out structural assessments of historic bridges.

Diego is passionate about improving the environmental sustainability of construction, which is estimated to account for over 40% of energy-related UK greenhouse gas emissions. His current focus is developing systems to evaluate the embodied carbon of structures.

In his free time, he is keen on promoting diversity in science and engineering and has organised and delivered STEM-centred activity days for schools. He is also still writing.

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RED BULL RACING VEHICLE DYNAMICS AND ANALYSIS ENGINEER RICHARD COOKE (RENDALLS 20073) Motorsport was always a passion for Richard, an enthusiasm he inherited from his late father Gary Cooke, Harrow beak (1999–2007).

In the Lower Sixth at Harrow, he was fortunate enough to attend a talk in Speech Room by Red Bull Racing team principal, Christian Horner, and this encounter cemented the dream to work in Formula 1.

After deciding to study Aeronautical Engineering at Bristol University, Richard conducted a placement year at Red Bull in their vehicle dynamics department, which he rejoined full time after completing his Masters degree.

He specialises in the suspension of the F1 car, providing setup feedback to the racetrack before and during race weekends in order to optimise the performance of not only the vehicle but the driver and vehicle combination. The high-pressure environment combined with the immediate feedback of engineeringbased decisions is something which he finds particularly thrilling.

Having been primarily based at the factory in the “mission control” room, Richard is now being trained up to join the race team. This has presented the rare opportunity to travel over the last year, although he has often been confined to the hotel and race track. The focus for now firmly remains on winning the Constructors’ and Drivers’ World Championships.

I never cease to be amazed by the ingenuity of humans to produce engineering marvels in the most challenging of locations and this has led to a highly rewarding life working with some of the finest minds in British industry.”

MARITIME SYSTEMS ENGINEER DEFENCE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGIES LABORATORY GEORGE LUNDY (MORETONS 20093) Growing up on the north coast of Devon, George developed an early attachment to all things maritime through many summers spent surfing and sailing. After leaving Harrow in 2014, he studied for a Masters in Mechanical Engineering at University College London (UCL) where this attachment continued. His Master’s thesis focused on the naval architecture and systems design of a small, semi-autonomous high-speed surface craft.

During his degree, he completed a summer internship at the Defence Science and Technologies Laboratory (Dstl), in the Maritime Systems Engineering team. As part of the Ministry of Defence, Dstl is one of the principal Government organisations dedicated to science and technology in the defence and security field. Dstl supplies specialist services to MOD and wider Government, working collaboratively with external partners in industry and academia worldwide, providing expert research, specialist advice and invaluable operational support.

After graduating, George returned to Dstl, spending the next two years on their graduate scheme, rotating through a number of capability areas including Aerospace Systems and Underwater Technologies before recently returning to the Maritime Systems Engineering team. The role provides the opportunity for a lot of hands-on testing and experimentation on maritime systems in collaboration both with industry partners and the end users.

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CAREERS ADVICE

“How you react to the challenges of a game might show an employer not only your problem-solving skills but also how quickly you learn and how easily you give up when things get difficult.”

THE GRADUATE GAME Careers Advisor Michael Wright, employed jointly by the School and the Harrow Association to increase and improve careers advice provided for Harrovians while they are at the School and to offer careers advice and support to members of the OH community, shares his insight into the important career considerations of the moment.

Entering the competitive graduate recruitment process at the most popular companies has always been a difficult game to play. However, with increased use of technology and AI as part of the recruitment processes, it is more important than ever for young OHs to be ready to play this game successfully.

Over the past few years, we have seen the use of computer-led video interviews and gamification assessments soar.

With more graduates than ever before leaving universities with first class and upper second-class degrees, employers are exploring all avenues to help them pick which graduates to recruit.

These activities have not replaced the established methods of aptitude testing, selection days, telephone and face-

to-face interviews, instead they are additional challenges new graduates must take on.

Video interviews consist of a set of questions for candidates to answer that are delivered autonomously by a computer programme. Candidates log on to the programme and are given questions one at a time. They have a short period to consider their response for each question, then the programme automatically begins recording their answer via webcam. Throughout the process candidates never see or speak with a real person, which can be very unsettling for some.

Answers are sometimes reviewed by HR teams or more usually by artificial intelligence within the programme itself.

This AI can pick up if candidates are being engaging in their answers and use voice recognition software to search for key words candidates have spoken.

All of this data results in a grade for the interview in comparison to the other candidates applying.

Gamification, which is also referred to as game-based psychometric assessments or gamified-recruitment, is also growing.

Gamification assessments incorporate game elements into psychometric tests. They are designed to make the recruitment process more effective and efficient for employers and provide an engaging experience for candidates.

Candidates are given a number of short online games to complete, with each game being used to measure a certain

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VIDEO INTERVIEWS > Preparation Practise recording yourself before the interview.

Think of questions they might ask you and practise your responses. Review your recording to see how you look, how you sound and your gestures when you talk. Look at the skills and experience listed in the job description and try to use these terms within your answers in case the programme AI is searching for certain words.

> Control your surroundings Try different lighting methods, sometimes having light behind your laptop that illuminates your face can really improve how clear you look on camera. Try raising your camera angle to make sure you sit nicely in the frame of the video. Ideally, your laptop camera should be at the same level as your eyeline, so you are looking straight at the camera not up or down. Is your laptop fully charged? Do you have a good wifi connection?

Make sure you are ready before you start.

> Eye contact One thing to remember is that you must try and address your answers to your laptop camera. This goes against our natural instincts and will take practice to perfect. However, giving your answers directly to your camera will drastically improve how you look. Practise beforehand and see the difference it makes.

> Gamification Identify which gamification assessments are used Knowing this ahead of time might allow you to research and be aware of what types of games might come up.

You will also be able to find a range of online providers that allow you to practise game assessments before you try them for real.

skill or trait. This provides employers with thousands of behavioural data points that can be used for a more focused selection of candidates. If you imagine a computer game combined with a traditional aptitude test, you’re on the right track. How you react to the challenges of a game might show an employer not only your problemsolving skills but also how quickly you learn and how easily you give up when things get difficult. Your gamification test will create a profile of strengths and weaknesses that employers can review.

This might sound daunting, tackling impersonal online tests that might affect your job prospects, however, as always, there are ways to ensure that you do the very best you can in both areas.

> Read all game instructions carefully Do not presume you automatically know what to do.

You may be given a chance for a short practice, if so, always take it. If not, make sure you fully understand the instructions before you start.

> Assess what is being measured After reading the instructions for a new game, think about what is being measured. Is it your numerical skills, situational judgement, risk-taking, memory or personality? This will help you navigate the game successfully.

> Use laptop and Chrome browser Avoid using mobile devices (unless asked to do so), some of the tasks may be difficult to perform on a touch screen device.

OHs are encouraged to contact Careers Advisor Michael Wright via the Careers Help and Advice Groups page on OH Connect for careers guidance, information and resources.

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Like everyone across the world, Harrow has had to adapt to the changes that 2020 brought with it. Luckily, thanks to the enthusiastic and willing OH community, we have been able to seize the opportunity of ‘going virtual’ to develop some exciting and pioneering careers programmes to support current boys.

VIRTUAL

VOLUNTEERS The Careers Convention has long been the jewel in the crown of the careers programme at Harrow, bringing over 100 advisors from across the OH and School community together to offer face-to-face targeted advice to the hundreds of boys looking to explore different careers. With face-to-face events looking unlikely, the decision was made to create a bespoke online resource in place of the Careers Convention. The new Careers Video Library is a growing collection of videos, where OHs talk through their own career journeys and answer some key questions to explain what has led to their own career success. The video library now contains advice across a wide variety of sectors and boys spent an evening online exploring these videos in place of the usual convention. Feedback from boys was extremely positive and reflects the time and effort that the OHs who took part put into their videos. Even though the Careers Convention will return, we plan to continue to grow the Careers Video Library so it can act as a constant resource for boys looking for career guidance.

Creating opportunities for boys to learn from the experiences of OHs is a key pillar on which the careers programme in built.

Another way this is achieved is by inviting notable OHs who are leaders in their field to deliver presentations on the Hill. Visits being out of the question for most of 2020, we looked to create a new format for these events to continue in a virtual setting. Our answer was to develop a programme we call Business Lunches.

Our plan was to organise small groups of Sixth Form boys who have already shown a keen interest in a certain employment

sector. Boys were invited to log on to take part in a video conference call with a leading OH working in that sector.

The OHs involved explained their current role and career path and then let boys ask questions to gain more information about what it is really like working in that sector and how to get ahead. The move away from a formal presentation towards a more informal group discussion led to many astute questions from boys across the several Business Lunches we held over the academic year.

We would like to express our gratitude to the following OHs who gave up their time for take part in the Business Lunches programme. Louis Kunzig IV (Druries 19833), Chris Travers (The Head Masters 20023), Gavin Owsten (Moretons 19833), William Beresford (The Park 19853), Matt Thomas (Newlands 19913), Mark GiffardLindsay (The Grove 19823), Mark Landon (Rendalls 19773), John Macpherson (The Grove 19803) and Tim Hinton (Bradbys 1977 3).

We would also like to give a huge thank you to all those OHs who took part in the Careers Video Library, both programmes have had a positive impact on boys and only go to strengthen the bonds of the OH community as a whole.

To anyone who might wish to contribute to the Careers Video Library or take part in a one of the Business Lunches, we would certainly love to hear from you.

Please contact Michael Wright, wrightmd@harrowschool.org.uk

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VARIETY IS THE SPICE OF UNIVERSITY LIFE THINKING BACK TO THE FLURRY OF ACTIVITY SUBMITTING UNIVERSITY APPLICATIONS,

Former Monitor and Outstanding Talent Scholar Dan Shailer (Rendalls 20133) graduates from Cambridge this year with a degree in English Literature. We asked him to share his experience of the last three years and his advice for OHs starting out on their university journey.

“It’s never easy to start something new, especially once you’ve found a crowd, but I’ve learned that the most meaningful friends from each corridor of University life have stayed with me.”

running references past my House Master and tweaking personal statements in the Vaughan, three years seems like a very long time. I was excited then to receive a place at Cambridge and – while for many reasons the experience has not been what I expected – it has been remarkably rewarding. As I approach my final term with the hope of seeing friends in person again, I can already feel what a special community I have been privileged to share in.

In my first term at Pembroke College, an older student gave me the best advice for making the most of my time at university. He told me to mix things up each year: swap out clubs and college sports to try something new each time. So in my first year I threw myself into rowing and made it into the men’s 1st VIII for my college, racing for the Head of the River Thames and bumping other crews down the Cam. I also kept up music from Harrow and was awarded a scholarship playing second trumpet for the university orchestra and brass quintet. All of which culminated in a summer tour of Poland: playing Tchaikovsky too loudly in local chapels and drinking cheap beer in cobbled squares.

The year after, I dropped rowing for swimming and trained through the winter to swim across the English Channel in a little over 15 hours. Drawing from fond memories editing The Harrovian, I also took on a role with English National Opera as a student critic and applied to edit my college’s quarterly student magazine with a friend: a small, unique publication which came into its own during the months of lockdown. Both my swimming project (along with which I fundraised for the Marine Conservation Society) and editor role sprang at least in part from experiences at Harrow, whether that be Double Long Ducker or The Harrovian; but now, at Cambridge, I’ve discovered how rewarding the balance of risk and responsibility can be without the safety wheels. This year I’m taking a new responsibility back to the Channel, as I captain Cambridge’s team in a race against Oxford.

With finals on the horizon, I am reminded that in that time I did also get through some academic work. Over a three-year English Literature course, I’ve moved through texts in a broadly chronological fashion, beginning with Medieval and middle-English, before moving through the Renaissance and long 18th-century, up to the present day. Along the way I’ve discovered an interest in nature writing and specifically American writing about the sea: from Moby-Dick to Steinbeck’s biological expeditions off the Californian coast.

There were certainly moments when I’ve felt exhausted balancing hobbies and academic work, but I know I wouldn’t have it differently.

The days I remember most fondly are those which seemed to squeeze a whole week’s worth of activity into 24 hours and, looking back from lockdown, if I could have my first two years again I would only try to do more.

I would pass the same advice I received onto any Harrovians starting at university. It’s never easy to start something new, especially once you’ve found a crowd, but I’ve learned that the most meaningful friends from each corridor of university life have stayed with me. Now, during lockdown, I’m lucky to have had such a diverse group to call on.

It is safe to say my cohort will not emerge into the world with a “normal” university experience. Returning to Cambridge for exams will mean we have lost three of our nine short terms and most of our graduation celebrations are likely to be either postponed or altered. We are also emerging into a more than usually challenging job market: many students I know who graduated last year have moved back home with parents while they search for the right opportunity.

I was fortunate enough to earn a spot on Columbia’s Data Journalism Masters programme, but the jigsaw of funding isn’t quite complete yet, so I’ll be taking the year after graduating to reapply to scholarships, reset after a very strange year and make up for time with friends lost to lockdown.

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Refounding our Future While much of the School’s Harrow 450 programme looks to Celebrate our Past, it is the job of the Harrow Development Trust to focus on Refounding our Future. This year, they have launched the Harrow 450 Campaign to raise £100 million and encourage all OHs to Play their Part and support the School’s 450 ambitions. All those who choose to contribute, at whatever level they are able, will become valued members of the 450 Society.

THE HARROW 450 CAMPAIGN

£20m

£70m

BURSARIES

TRANSFORMING LIVES

WIDENING ACCESS TO FIND AND NURTURE LEADERS OF TOMORROW The School’s bursary provision remains guided

by John Lyon’s original vision, enabling talented boys from families with limited means to benefit from a Harrow education. Our aim is to increase the percentage of boys in receipt of means-tested support from 10% to 30%. £10m will also go towards funding up to four new Churchill Places bursaries per year.

BUILDING New landscaping on the east side of the Hill

FOR THE FUTURE

on the capital projects to the east side of the Hill. Foremost among the building priorities is the refurbishment of the Shepherd Churchill Dining Hall and the construction of a new state-of-the-art science facility providing an inspiring learning environment for Biology and Chemistry.

WORK HAS ALREADY BEGUN

Later phases include a new Sports Centre and a landscaping scheme that will provide a safer, more direct thoroughfare across the east side of the Hill, shifting the pupil centre away from the busy High Street.

£10m H E R I TAG E

PRESERVING AND I N N OVAT I N G

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‘Play Our Part’ says Jim Glover (Rendalls 19783 ), Chairman of the Harrow Development Trust.

“Last month, as a Governor, I was able to pay my first visit back to the Hill for over a year.

The grounds looked splendid, as they always do in spring, but most eye-catching was the construction work that had commenced on the east side of the Hill, enabling our upcoming transformative development projects.

A further £10m will go towards preserving our magnificent buildings, with work underway to restore and renovate Old Schools, and plans for improvement works to Speech Room and the Vaughan Library. We are also being innovative with our heritage spaces and the Old Armoury room in Old Schools is being repurposed for the installation and development of a new state-of-the-art Centre for Teaching and Learning, Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Studies.

Has an enterprise of such scale and ambition ever been attempted before at Harrow? Even the venerable Old Schools building was covered in cladding while a considerable and careful renovation is undertaken. During my visit, I concluded that we have all enjoyed the special opportunities offered to us by Harrow at some point in our lives. For that reason, I urge all of us Old Harrovians to ‘Play Our Part’ and support the Harrow Development Trust’s Harrow 450 fundraising objectives.”

MAKING A SIGNIFICANT SOCIAL IMPACT An inspiring learning environment for Biology and Chemistry

A refurbished dining hall

A sports centre worthy of the greats

At the heart of the School’s vision for Harrow 450 is the support that it would allow us to offer to people who live locally, in north London and beyond, through greater access to the School through bursaries, access to our new facilities and expansion of existing Shaftesbury Enterprise programmes.

Scan your phone over the QR code to read the Harrow 450 campaign brochure.

Read more about joining the 450 Society and playing your part overleaf.

Corporate Events Old Harrovians, did you know that you can host a corporate event and welcome your colleagues to share the history and traditions of your School?

Out of term time, Harrow School offers a portfolio of meeting rooms, reception spaces, conference venues, award ceremonies, team away days and facilities for small and large-scale dinners.

SPECIAL OFFER: State your HOUSE and your YEAR when you book to receive a complimentary Harrow School tour guide to attend your event. Our experienced tour guides can offer pre-dinner entertainment and deliver a welcome address to set the scene for your guests.

events@harrowschool.org.uk

harrowschoolenterprises.com

+44 (0)20 8426 4638

WEDDINGS | RECEPTIONS | PARTIES | DINNERS | PERFORMANCES | CORPORATE EVENTS

Join the

450 Society The 450 Society recognises those supporting the Harrow 450 campaign

It is our ambition to attract 4,500 members by 2025. There are different tiers of membership: involvement is just as important as value.

All members will receive a special Harrow 450 anniversary commemorative lapel pin and have their name displayed on the virtual LCD in the Science Schools when the new building opens.

To find out more or join today visit harrowschool.org.uk/450-Society

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HARROW LIVES

“It’s great that OHs are so invested in the history of the School” TACE FOX ARCHIVIST AND RECORD MANAGER

Hidden down a passageway beside Dave’s, the Hill newsagent, the Archive is not an easy place to find.

Behind its unassuming doorway, however, are some of Harrow School’s most treasured possessions.

Presiding over these is Harrow’s Archivist, Tace Fox.

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TACE ARRIVED AT HARROW IN 2015 , after a short

stint at the British Library digitising early sound recordings and some of the BBCs considerable collection of sound effects. “There are only so many recordings of trains that you can listen to before you feel it is time to move on,” she observes.

Having decided early in her History degree that she was not cut out to be a teacher, she stumbled on archivism during her research into alternative careers.

She completed an MA in Archive Administration but found it difficult to get a first job in such a niche field: “It’s a case of dead men’s shoes. People find a job and hold onto it for ever.” She finally obtained a post at Southampton University, where she spent eight months

working on the Duke of Wellington’s correspondence, much of which is written in French – difficult, she points out, for someone who doesn’t speak the language: “I’m not sure I would trust the metadata for it.”

Tace’s first impression of the Harrow archives was “Wow – what a lot of history!” But what really struck her was that she was on her own: “I’d always worked in groups, so all I could think of was where do I start? Who can I ask? In somewhere like the British Library you are often given a specific project to work on. Here I had to deal with archives, records management, regular events in the calendar, like Speech Day, and special events like the Schools’ performance of Twelfth Night at the Globe. It does give me a lot of autonomy though.”

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Tace describes the principal function of an archivist as making records and objects accessible to people while at the same time preserving them – which today really means digitisation so that material can be viewed online.

For Tace, this involves photographing thousands of objects and documents to add to the Archive’s website and other Harrow-related sites such as Harrow Families and the Harrow World War I Memorial website.

Alongside this, much of Tace’s time is taken up replying to the 1,000 or so enquiries that the Archive receives each year. Around 70% of these come from Old Harrovians and their families, who might be researching something from their time at Harrow or asking about a relation who was at the School. Younger Harrovians often ask for copies of their School records and exam certificates or duplicates of School photos they have lost. The Archive has built up a strong relationship with the OH body, mainly through the Harrow Association, with whom Tace works closely.

“The HA are always interested in things that will feed into their projects, for instance their 12 Days of Christmas social media series that featured an interesting item from every House. The HA has never posted anything from the Archive that hasn’t elicited some sort of response – usually to tell me that the date is wrong or something – and it often leads to further research. It’s great that OHs are so invested in the history of the School.”

Members of the public who contact the Archive usually want to know if an ancestor was a boy at the School, particularly since the Covid-19 lockdown has seen a surge in interest in genealogy. Sometimes, Tace says, they want to find out quite obscure facts: “Why would you need to know who made a particular set of iron railings?”

Other queries come from university students working on their theses, or people writing books on Churchill – “You’d be surprised how many.” Sometimes these enquiries can lead her down unexpected and fascinating routes. “My favourite piece of unintended research was when I discovered, while going through various records and newspaper articles, a story about the first female aeronaut, who made hot-air balloon flights. She was quite a large lady and felt that her picnic hamper was more important to her than a navigator. When she was flying over Harrow, she made a crash landing near St Mary’s Church and was dragged through the fields. She was eventually saved by some Harrow boys who saw her crash and went after the balloon in hot pursuit.”

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“ My favourite piece of unintended research was when I discovered, while going through various records and newspaper articles, a story about the first female aeronaut, who made hot-air balloon flights. She was quite a large lady and felt that her picnic hamper was more important to her than a navigator.”

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8020 5

EXTERNAL

CATALOGUED

ITEMS

RESEARCHERS VISITS IN PER YEAR

YEARS OLD ARCHIVE OPENED

IN 1981

ARCHIVIST AND RECORD

MANAGER

2,808 INDIVIDUAL ISSUES OF

THE HARROVIAN UP TO 2011

40 HOURS

A WEEK

Within the School, Tace is the go-to person for information on any subject from Harrovian explorers to the history of football. She works very closely with the Vaughan Library as well as the academic departments, providing material for exhibitions, topics boys are studying in the form room, or for special projects such as booklets for the Shell trip to the First World War battlefields. She also carries out research for some of the School’s non-teaching departments; she has, for instance, been searching out documents relating to the building of the Shepherd Churchill Hall in the 1970s, before a major refurbishment starts there later this year.

Occasionally, Tace is contacted by people wanting to donate – or sell – Harrow-related items. “We are always very happy to receive donations, but buying things is trickier: it has to be something of real significance.”

One of the most interesting items bought by the Archive in the last few years was a rare pre-World War I military swagger stick with a silver top bearing the Harrow crest.

The most recent donation was a collection of meticulous records made by a bird-spotting Harrovian in the 1950s.

“They’re fascinating,” Tace says, “as many of the species he records are not seen in Harrow anymore.”

The most important items in the Archive are probably the Charter, granted by Queen Elizabeth I in 1572, and the original wax seal, miraculously still unmelted after 450 years. These will be a focus of Harrow’s 450th anniversary celebrations, with plans to place the Charter on the altar of St Paul’s Cathedral during a memorial event, and a replica of the seal being presented to each of the Houses. Tace has been involved in the creation of these replicas, transporting the priceless seal across London by taxi and standing guard over it while a 3D-printed version was made.

Over the next year, preparations for the School’s 450th anniversary will be a major feature of Tace’s life, as she gathers material for the films, displays and books that will make up part of the celebrations. Her research so far has included finding authors to feature in an anthology of work by Harrovian writers and providing objects for a book of photographs of 450 Harrowrelated subjects.

The School is keen to involve the whole Harrow community in the celebrations, and Tace has been collaborating with local history groups on plans for a festival on the Hill that will see local buildings transformed back into butcher’s shops, pubs and ironmongers, with people from the community playing some of Harrow’s historical residents.

Tace is enthusiastic: “It’s all really good fun.”

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A FEW WEEKS AGO, A LARGE PACKAGE ARRIVED in the HA office sent to us by JCT Harvey (Bradby's 1951²).

Inside was a large blue weather-beaten, leatherbound scrapbook belonging to his father, J St C Harvey (High Street 1914¹), dating back to his time at Harrow between 1914 and 1917. This utterly enthralling discovery was made when John had been clearing his attic and, rather than consigning it to the bin, decided to post it to us. It was duly gifted to Tace Fox, the School Archivist who accepted it with alacrity.

The scrapbook contains all manner of items including, trial papers, school reports, fee bills, bill books, music programmes, newspaper cuttings, letters and general mementos of his time at Harrow. Tace commented, ‘Rarely do we receive such an in-depth record, from over a hundred years ago, and at such a significant moment in history. This really is a special donation and we’re very grateful’.

The book will be sent away for conservation and restoration where possible. Our intention is that it will then become both a learning tool for the boys and something of general interest for others to muse over.

A

UNIQUE DONATION TO THE ARCHIVE

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Should you find objects like this in your attic or elsewhere and are wondering what to do with them or who to donate them to, please remember the Harrow School Archive who are always delighted to receive any gifts that are Harrow related. Contact Tace Fox at archives@harrowschool.org.uk

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‘We continue, then, to look to the future with confidence and with faith in the task which the School makes it its business to be busied in. Nowhere is this faith more evident than in the courage and determination with which the Governors have grasped the nettle of building anew in order to maintain and preserve the old.’

1981 or 2021?

FORTY YEARS ON THE HARROVIAN IN 1981 Michael Hoban, on Speech Day 1981, could equally have been spoken today as the School embarks on its Harrow 450 development programme.

THESE WORDS FROM HEAD MASTER,

Michael Hoban’s speech was reproduced in The Harrovian of 6 June. In it, he spoke about the construction of a new home for The Knoll, which was the first of a series of building projects that included plans to modernise The Grove and Druries – the two Houses whose latest remodelling was completed in 2021: ‘Now today you can see completed below Hillside a large proportion of the outer shell of the new boardinghouse, which it is hoped will be ready for occupation in January next year. What is arranged is that as soon as the building is ready The Knoll will move into it and will remain there at least for the period necessary for the completion of the modernisation of the other Houses…

It has been decided that The Grove is to be the first House to be modernised, followed by Druries…In my years at Harrow I have seen several large contracting works undertaken; and I know that none has been more important for the future of the School and for its future wellbeing than this vast project which will last for a period of several years.’

It wasn’t just in building projects that Harrow in 1981 presaged the School of 2021: it also saw a similar urge to incorporate the latest technology into a Harrovian education. On Speech Day, Michael Hoban also announced plans for ‘the introduction into our curriculum of education on a wider scale in the use of microprocessors; of the creation of a commodious audiovisual room for general use; of the establishment of a media centre to feed the various departments and to keep their individual pieces of equipment in good trim. All these will be needed to meet the educational challenges of the years immediately ahead’

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A microprocessor launched in 1981

The first London Marathon in 1981

– a foreshadowing of the current transformation of Old Schools into a technological cutting-edge Centre for Teaching and Learning, Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Studies.

As the construction projects of 2021 echo those of 1981, so do some of the misgivings about them. Alongside the enthusiastic embrace of new buildings and new technology, there was equal nostalgia for what was being lost and concern for the School’s natural environment.

In the first issue of The Harrovian of 1981, on 24 January, the leader writer, R I Prole, laments: ‘And this brings me to a second and even sadder farewell: it is to the ruthlessly eliminated Knoll garden. Countless Harrovians either sitting in the Maths Schools or peering over the fence on their way down to the Music Schools have gazed in raptured silence at a group of shrubs that horticulturalists all over the world have sought after.

Now there merely stands one lonely and imprisoned tree, surrounded by the mechanical destroyers of tradition, which daily chew up the proud history of The Knoll garden and replace it with lumps of concrete.’

The most passionate argument against the destruction of the natural environment of the School was made

by Head of Biology, Michael Thain, in a letter published in The Harrovian of 23 May: ‘Time was when I felt this ancient institution had the welfare of its heritage at heart. In those days cows wandered amid buttercups in Park Field; then a hot summer's day would bring forth common blues, small coppers, meadow browns, large and small skippers, orange tips and green-veined whites because wild flowers and grasses were allowed to set seed. Those were the days when undergrowth provided natural shelter for a host of rodents, insects and ground-nesting birds. Halcyon days, when one could walk at peace

amid the cattle; when balmy evenings were heady with the scent of the season's growth and hardly a building lay visible amid the richness of the foliage. Nature was not in anybody's way, and even quietly prospered on our Hill, surrounded though it is by suburbia. Our grounds were a miracle to behold: a remnant of what Middlesex had once been. Alas, too fragile; too good; too natural to last the Seventies! For the butterflies have all but gone, the cattle more restrained in their movements; undergrowth has been cleared… But news now reaches us of the current insult to be flung at this heritage. For it seems that someone, refusing to rest content with the elimination of much of the flora and fauna above the soil has seen fit to experiment with the destruction of much that lives within it. A plan is afoot to eliminate the very worms from the golf course by saturating their burrows with sulphur. But can this be true? What barbarous mentality considers that custodianship of the land brings with it the right to decimate what lives there? What greater indictment of our handling of this globe can there be than that we can no longer abide the presence of the worms of the soil?... Is there the slightest chance that someone will see clearly and reconsider, before this latest retrograde step in the de-population of the Hill is put into effect? Do we really want to live in an urban playground? Or can we allow the blackbird and the thrush their place alongside us, worms and all?

Which is the more enlightened alternative? If we display illiberalism on this issue do we not forfeit our right to the custodianship of these acres altogether?’

It was not all bad news for the environment, though. In the same issue, in a report about a Natural History trip, the writer records that: ‘And on the Hill a sparrowhawk and green woodpecker have been noted in recent weeks – the latter is the first for almost two years.

A hobby has also been spotted flying over the Shepherd Churchill Hall and a cuckoo seen in Harrow Park.’

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Next year, in 2022, Harrow will celebrate 450 years since the granting of the royal charter

by Queen Elizabeth I and the foundation of the School. Over the last few issues of Follow Up! Peter Hunter (Harrow Master 1985−2018) has been taking a fresh look at some of the Hill’s most familiar buildings, exploring the part they played in Harrow’s development over the centuries.

This year he looks at an icon of the 20th century.

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Left: The topping out ceremony in 1976 Below: A view of the Shepherd Churchill Dining Hall today

THE SHEPHERD CHURCHILL DINING HALL “PEEL WAS A POACHER AND STOLE THROUGH

goes the song. Although we know of Harrovians before 1800 enjoying custards and cordials, this early 19th-century image of the future prime minister is perhaps the first of a boy supplementing personal supplies with his gun.

THE COVERTS GREEN”

Walter Trevelyan’s diary notes (September 1812) ‘Did 10 verses, eat three Cashew nuts’. This meagre fare was rather compensated by supper a few days later with the Head Master, Dr Butler, where the 15 yearold enjoyed ‘Mock Turtle Soup, Hare, Partridge, custard and trifle’- and 3 glasses of wine. Charles Merivale (Druries1817³ ), later one of the founders of the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, aged 9, breakfasted from rolls and jam ‘generously left on the table’; but by 1863, after 7.30am First School, breakfast of tea or coffee, bread, milk and butter was supplied.

Any desire for further ‘relishes’ could be acquired from the local pastrycooks.

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“As momentous an occasion as any in four centuries of Harrow’s existence” A House Master at the opening of the Shepherd Churchill Hall, 1976.

Well-off boys could ‘find’ their own food and many local businesses supplied it: James Ramsay (The Head Master's 1825³ ) supped off hare, pheasant and partridge – finishing the repast ‘with a pipe and a song’. He also dined at the King’s Head, where he broke windows, rowed with the cook and was nearly expelled.

Sir Douglas Straight (Small Houses 1859¹ ) was lyrical about Fullers without which ‘Harrow would have been a desolate wilderness: In the morning, steak pie, chicken, tongue could be bought,’ to add to the house breakfasts.

He paints a picture of cheerful and hungry chaos: ‘Such a rush and scramble. “Brawn, Miss Fuller!”, “Potted ham, Miss Fuller!” “Six of steak-pie, Miss Fuller!” ’ In the evenings, such establishments saw busy fags scurrying to ‘find’ supper for their masters. Straight describes fetching ‘a hot rump-steak in a dish full of gravy’, a practice which he thoroughly approved as part of a time-honoured system which sees ‘a marquess carrying letters for a merchant’s son’ - ideal for tackling ‘the confounded dignity’of uppity Harrovians.

An anonymous writer in Black and White (1894) had a dismissive attitude towards boys who achieved Sixth Form status through ‘precocious hard work’: they could ‘have a bad time at the hands of their fag, especially if he be an athlete. A popular cricketer naturally (sic) feels some distaste at having to carry a kettle for an unpopular Greek scholar.’

The 19th-century boy wasn’t so hungry that he couldn’t stockpile a heap of bread rolls for the curious ‘Rolling in’ ceremony, whereby a candidate seeking admission to the society of Hall in The Head Master’s was initiated by sitting on a chair whilst hard, stale rolls were flung at his head. Afterwards, he rose dazed, but happy - endowed with the privileges of Hall and able to commandeer a fag of his own.

When Winston Churchill arrived in 1888, his first letter home drops in the pointed observation that ‘boys generally bring back hampers’. He clearly hadn’t, hence his request for ‘1 Chicken 3 pots jam 1 plum cake I think that will be all.’

As we move into the 20th century memories become richer. The index of AT Casdagli’s (The Grove 1920¹) diary of his first year in The Grove contains 66 references to food. Only sport gets more.

As an editor of The Harrovian, he enjoyed a splendid seven-course feast with seasonal turkey to celebrate the end of the Christmas term 1924.

Below left: James Ramsey 1st Marquess of Dalhousie (The Head Master's 18253) Below: The Park Boy's Dining Room 1887 Above: Festive dinner in The 'old' Knoll - date unknown Inset: The Harrovian Editors' Christmas Dinner, 1924

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Simon Welfare (The Grove 1960² ) recalls that “we were much envied in The Grove, since we ate rather well … suppers of baked beans and fried bread (which of course we liked). Matron, Miss Flora MacDonald being a good Scot, put on an excellent trifle.”

In some houses, “Finds breakfasts” continued, with Masters and their wives being invited. Peggy Harris recalled in Moretons c. 1949 being offered a plate of sausages and turning to find that her waiter was King Faisal of Iraq (Moretons 19492 ). The present writer was served smoked salmon in The Grove one Sunday morning in 1985.

In The Park under Bernard Middleditch ‘we had excellent food’, wrote Timothy Wilkin (The Park 1931³) but this, and the plentiful supply of coal, changed for the worse when the Revd EM Venables took over. David Gifford (The Park 1934²) overheard Mrs Venables on the telephone to the butcher ordering ‘six nice pork chops and thirty pounds of boys’ meat’. Although Dale Vargas (Druries 1952³ ) recalls the food in Druries as “atrocious”, the arrival of Charles Lillingston saw a significant improvement in the fare. The monotony was occasionally varied when the House Master produced game or a haunch of venison which he, a regular shooting guest at his “parents”, would claim had come from his own gun. “I don’t think many boys fell for that, but they certainly appreciated the upgrade from Spam.” In an unverified anecdote, Dale reports that Val, the Polish butler, was serving out porridge when he hit something solid. After a bit of scooping, he produced a rat - which he put to one side before gamely carrying on.

Anthony Speelman (The Park 1954³) concurs that the quality of the food depended entirely on the House Master. For five years he endured no other type of potato than mashed or boiled, a torture aggravated by the description of other Houses who had roast potatoes and roast lamb. On Fridays, “the smell of the fish fried in something that masqueraded as batter was so nauseating that most of us gagged as we entered the House”.

Sunday supper was unforgettable, consisting of soup in a variety of colours (even pink) but not necessarily of flavours. One Park cook, for whom good hygiene was not a priority, bought a large pork pie in Harrow, but then spent the afternoon (with the pie) in a pub, eventually returning to serve it for supper with mushy peas. Matron had a queue of 22 boys at 3am and the House was put in quarantine, though one desperado broke out to buy plums, which he gorged and threw up at Matron’s feet.

The Houses had their own domestic staff.

One Park butler, Stanaway, nicknamed “Staggers” is remembered both for changing a fuse without switching off the mains, by which he electrocuted himself and ‘blackened his arm’, and for removing a rotten tooth (his own, presumably) with pliers - a practice which allegedly came back into vogue during the lockdown of 2020.

Butlers could see their responsibilities going beyond a mere supervision of the catering. Herbert, in The Head Master’s, would helpfully lay bets for the boys down in Harrow. Harry, in The Grove, leant over once to admonish a junior boy: “Elbows off the table, my Lord. You’re not at home now!” Clearly the boys’ ally, however, he gave warning of the untimely explosion of a home-made beer kit before it was discovered.

Michael Egan was translated from butler in The Knoll to manage the newly opened SCH and brought Irish charm and generosity to the role. In the early 70s some House Masters attempted to make something of an event out of lunch and occasionally invited guests. Masters might be on rotas to attend in a House on a particular day. Sidney Patterson at The Grove invited Margaret Thatcher, then Education Secretary, where she met Jeremy Lemmon: Mrs T: “And what do you do here?”

JPL: “I teach English.”

Pause Mrs T: “Can't you teach the boys something .... useful?”

Newlands was highly popular with beaks. House Master Mark Warman is remembered for breaking up sherry and and gossip because “the boys had waited long enough”.

Although the Governors were extremely reluctant to build a central dining facility, they embraced the inevitable change, encouraged particularly by Lord Allan of Kilmahew (West Acre 1928¹). The cost of maintaining and staffing 11 separate kitchens had become unsupportable.

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The sale of Shepherd Market, a shopping and red-light area off Piccadilly, the bequest of Augustus Shepard Churchill (The Grove 1860³), provided the means to go ahead; and the Shepherd Churchill, the great achievement of the Head Mastership of BMS Hoban (1971-1981), was born.

The hall opened in September 1976 for five Houses.

The Harrovian reviewer was beguiled by ‘the Mediterranean lightness of the architecture’ and the quality expressed in ‘the magnificent elm tables and the Royal Doulton tableware’. Later, a room was opened upstairs for Masters.

Without Hoban’s insistence, this splendid facility would have been sacrificed in the interest of economy. Today, it still offers a congenial setting for the entertainment of visitors.

The architect was Dennis Lennon, whose reputation had been enhanced by his designs of the interiors of Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth II. The layout of the new hall showed immense efforts to make a smooth transition, with pillars separating the Houses to retain some individual identity. The change in the way Harrovians now related to each other was immense: they saw and socialised with each other in a completely new context; but their House Masters’ autonomy took a severe knock. Some deplored the loss of status (and perks). Old-school Edward Malan saw it as a farewell to gentility: “I hear you’re now stacking in the Knoll!” he remarked archly to his successor, Raymond Venables. Len Walton christened it “The Trough”.

Jack Webster was unwilling to move from West Acre; and with one year before retiring, was granted a stay of execution. However, John Ingram at The Park was pleased not to have to step in and make eggs for 60 boys at 7.30am if the cook failed to turn up for duties.

Fine dining in The Park: the House Master entertains tutors and VI2's, 2006 Right: Fire up above!

The 1987 fire Below: The SCH under construction, 1975

Originally, a Head Master’s table stood in grand isolation in the centre on a sunken wooden floor, surrounded by cases of magnificent silver trophies, giving a luxurious sense of space - later compromised under pressure of expanding numbers.

Thirty-four staff represented a 30% reduction; and investment could be made in modern machinery.

The Harrovian reviewer was particularly impressed by kit for chipping, dicing, shredding and grating. The special features of the “bald-chopper” he did not investigate.

Jonathan Fosh (The Head Master’s 1973² ) felt great respect for the staff: “It was their place very much, so we felt grateful to them that they ran [it] so efficiently”.

As Head of School, Fosh played a pivotal role in establishing good discipline. Masters’ duty rotas came later.

103 The grand opening became the focus for the dramatic dénouement of Simon Astaire’s (The Head Master’s 1975² ) novel Private Privilege. Just before the royal visit, “Burford” lobs three sachets (containing potassium permanganate) from his room in The HM’s into the fountains, outwitting a posse of beaks mounting guard through the night, before the hero appears with his girlfriend on the back of a horse in native American costume…

In 1979 the SCH received a Civic Trust Award for ‘the outstanding contribution to the quality and appearance of the environment’.

A fire in 1987 was an opportunity to enlarge the Masters’ Room. Later, the kitchen was extended from an inadequate corridor separated by a high brick wall from those queuing for food to embrace an attractive concept of “theatre kitchen”, where cooks and diners were visible to each other. At the same time, family service (with large dishes of stew being served up from the ends of the table and Shells clearing the plates) gave way to cafeteria style.

Today, the whole-School Christmas and Leavers’ dinners still recapture the numbers of Belshazzar’s feast.

The SCH was not always the most congenial environment; and after 4th school on a January evening could be a challenge for the Masters on duty. The worst aspects of bad behaviour saw food not always being kept on the plates for which it was intended. Recently, however, more beaks and their families have happily dropped in for breakfast and supper and the atmosphere has immeasurably changed for the better.

FEEDING OUR FUTURE But, what was a new and a brilliantly executed project having such a major effect on Harrow life in 1976 is now old, and the Shepherd Churchill Dining Hall is set for a substantial refurbishment. Originally designed to feed up to 1,000 boys and staff, it is now producing over 3,000 meals a day. A substantial modernisation project, due to start in September 2021, will not only meet today’s needs, but will also mean that the dining hall can be let out for functions of all types and sizes. The new layout will ensure this central hub where Harrovians gather three times a day will encourage social interaction and improve the mealtime experience. A more efficient layout with step-free access will increase capacity and speed of service as well as resolving key operational issues, improving its appeal for commercial lettings and making it serviceable for at least another 40 years.

Visit harrowschool.org.uk/harrow-450 to find out more.

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FOUNDED IN

UNDER A ROYAL CHARTER Harrow’s royal seal, which does not often see the light of day, is not, at first sight, a particularly impressive object – a round lump of greyish brown wax with some slightly worn engraving. It is probably the oldest object associated with the School’s history, perhaps predating even the Charter itself. Recently, it made a very rare and highsecurity journey into the wider world so that a 3D-printed version could be made.

The Charter, a metre-wide piece of vellum, will also be making its first, very expensively insured, foray outside the School for many years when it travels to St Paul’s Cathedral for a ceremony to celebrate 450 years of the School’s history in 2022.

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WHEN JOHN LYON CONCEIVED THE IDEA

to establish a school at Harrow on the Hill, it probably never occurred to him that it would still be there, and known across the world, almost half a millennium later.

To describe John Lyon as a farmer in today’s terms is perhaps a little misleading. He was one of the richest landowners in a prosperous farming area and, by 1562, was the major land holder in the parish, owning or leasing property in Middlesex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Marylebone and Paddington.

It does not seem to have been educational fervour or the ambition to establish a centre of great scholarship that motivated him to found a school. Nor does he seem to have been a religious zealot: born a Catholic but readily swaying whichever way the religious wind blew. For a childless man of seemingly conventional piety, founding a school where local boys of limited means could receive a free education may have seemed a desirable way of disposing of his wealth after his death, as well a way of ensuring, as he had no descendants, that his memory would be preserved – even if only in the name of a school.

F O L L O W U P ! • H E R I TA G E

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Left: A view of Old Schools in 1802 before the extension was added.

Below: John Lyon's signature.

It could be argued that he did not really even found a school; the Charter explicitly states that he was reendowing a school, and later documents record that his purpose was the “re-erection of a school at in the parish of Harrow”, implying that a school already existed, or had done in the past. This earlier school could have been an ecclesiastical one that was disbanded during Henry VIII’s destruction of the monasteries and other religious foundations. It could possibly have been merely the schoolroom of local member of the gentry Sir William Gerard, whose house, Flambards, was located where The Park now stands and some of whose sons are recorded as having been educated in Harrow before the founding of John Lyon’s school.

That pupils of an earlier educational establishment were the sons of William Gerard was significant because William was the brother of Sir Gilbert Gerard, Elizabeth I’s Attorney General and a man of very great power. Lyon may have had the money and land to found the school, but it was Gilbert Gerard who seems to have been the real mover and shaker behind the project – perhaps he could even have put the idea into John Lyon’s head.

As Attorney General, he was able to ease John Lyon’s way to the granting of the Charter. He and his brother, who both became Governors of the school, later helped Lyon acquire some of the land needed to fulfil John Lyon’s Charter commitment to ‘repair and mend at his own very great expense certain highways between Edgware and London as well as in other places’. It may be that Gerard’s patronage of John Lyon was not entirely disinterested: by endowing the school, as the Charter states, ‘for the perpetual education, training and instruction of boys and youths of the said parish’, John Lyon was removing the potential burden of contributing to the cost of educating the poor of the parish that might otherwise fall on prosperous Harrow inhabitants like William Gilbert; the provision for financing the maintenance of the Edgware and Harrow roads also ensured that someone else was paying for the upkeep of important trade routes into London, to the benefit of all local landowners, including the Gerard brothers.

The Charter of 1572 was the beginning of the founding of Harrow but by no means the end. After the granting of the Charter, there was a hiatus of over 40 years before the school proper opened. John Lyon and his wife, Joan, had a lifetime interest in the income from the property that would eventually be used for funding the school, so even construction of the school building could not begin until after their deaths.

It was not until 1591 that John Lyon drew up the Orders, Statutes and Rules setting out how his school was to be run and governed, right down to the type and degree of corporal punishment allowed, which was beating ‘with a rod moderately, except it be a very thin ferule upon the hand for a light negligence’.

The Statutes included instructions for the administration of the various trusts and the funding of the construction of the school house. Most of clauses were similar to those of very many other contemporary foundations. The school curriculum was to be Latin, Greek and English grammar; recreational opportunities were rather joyless and limited – pupils were only to be allowed to drive a top, to toss a handball, to run and to shoot; there was no acting, no music and no wrestling.

The ethos was firmly Protestant, with the religious texts to be used clearly specified, and fee-paying ‘foreigners’ from outside the parish were to be admitted.

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‘ The construction of the original school house did not start until 1608, after the death of Joan Lyon, and it was not until 1615, over 40 years after the granting of the royal charter… …that the Free Grammar School of John Lyon was opened to its first pupils.’

There were a few stand-out clauses: entrance was completely free for the lucky 30 local scholars; there was no rule barring admittance to anyone suffering from disease; and girls were explicitly to be excluded: ‘he shall not receive any girls into same school’.

The Statutes ordained there should be two teachers – the master and the usher, both of whom were to be unmarried. They were to be paid pretty well compared with those at many similar schools: 40 marks (around £26) and 20 marks (around £13) a year respectively, with five marks a year for fuel.

There was an opportunity for the master to earn extra cash by sharing with the vicar of St Mary’s the duty of preaching 30 sermons a year.

The Statutes also provided money – £20 a year – for the support of 60 of Harrow’s poorest parishioners, as well as establishing rules for the other provisions of the Charter: ‘to endow and maintain’ four university exhibitioners, two at Cambridge and two at Oxford (with priority given to the poorest of the scholars at the school); and the ‘repair of certain highways between Edgware and London as well as in other places’. The rules set out for funding the upkeep of the roads to London became, in later years, the source of considerable legal headaches for the Governors.

In the period between the granting of the Charter and the opening of John Lyon's school proper, there were arrangements for an interim school of some kind, also funded by John Lyon, in a building known as the Church House, somewhere in St Mary’s Churchyard. The construction of the original school house did not start until 1608, after the death of Joan Lyon, and it was not until 1615, over 40 years after the granting of the royal charter, a great deal of litigation and more than twice the amount of money being spent on its building than the £300 set aside by the Statutes, that the Free Grammar School of John Lyon was opened to its first pupils.

Harrow's royal seal

F O L L O W U P ! • H E R I TA G E

You will have come to realise from reading this magazine over the years, but particularly this year as you read more about the archives, that Harrow is a treasure trove of remarkable items.

To mark the 450th anniversary of Harrow's founding in 1572, the School has commissioned a special book of 450 items from the archives and collections.

Each item has been carefully selected and the beautifully stylised photographs of curious and often surprising artefacts, buildings and, occasionally, people give a unique insight into the traditions that make Harrow the place it is.

This limited edition book will be available to purchase in the autumn, perhaps making it the perfect Christmas gift.

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HARROW

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Clockwise from left to right A Bill Book from 1770 and the present day; A telegram from Sir Winston Churchill (The Head Master’s

1888 2) to Head Master AP Boissier (1940-42) following the bombing of Speech Room in 1940; Lord Byron’s (Harrow

1801 2 ) slippers and school book; Anthony Trollope’s (Home Boarder 1823 2 ) manuscript of of Framley Parsonage; rugby shirt (circa 1946); School Farm milk bottle 1945; signed letter from Jawaharlal Nehru (The Head Master’s 1905 2); Custos’ nameboard chisels.

FOLLOW UP! • PROMOTIONS

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INSTANT HIRE

We are able to supply an extensive range of HIRE and SALE equipment for all your outdoor and indoor needs and requirements.

15 Depots Nationwide HARPENDEN/HERTS./BEDS. Tel 01582 767945 Fax 01582 462697

BIRMINGHAM Tel 0121 325 8686 Fax 0121 328 7475

HAYES/W. LONDON-H/THROW Tel 020 8573 7717 Fax 020 8561 2215

LIVERPOOL/N.WEST Tel 0151 546 9988 Fax 0151 546 9922

S.E.LONDON/N.KENT Tel 020 8303 7711 Fax 020 8303 0359

ASHFORD/S. KENT Tel 01233 616999 Fax 01233 626788

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SOUTHAMPTON/HANTS. Tel 02380 743777 Fax 02380 743770

CRAWLEY/SUSSEX Tel 01293 617766 Fax 01293 619981

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Nationwide Service Open Hours Mon to Fri 7.30am to 5.30pm

www.cwplant.co.uk 1st Class Products

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“Everything from a 21 Metre Telehandler to a 1/2" Drill”

The

Authorised Supplier to

Outfitters

(formerly Harrow School Outfitters) 23 High Street, Harrow On The Hill Middlesex, HA1 3HT

SUPPLIER OF OLD HARROVIAN MEMORABILIA

Ties

Cufflinks Blazers Scarves Buttons

STOCKIST OF ALL HARROW SCHOOL UNIFORM & SPORTSWEAR

SUPPLIER OF OLD HARROVIAN MEMORABILIA Ties Cufflinks Bows Blazers Scarves Cravats Buttons

Tel: 020 8422 1045

email harrow@theschoolwearspecialists.co.uk

www.theschoolwearspecialists.co.uk

45-47 High Street, Harrow on the Hill, Middlesex, HA1 3JA Tel 020 8422 1701

www.billingsandedmonds.co.uk

Our Shared History

Billings & Edmonds have been the Outfitter to Harrow School since before the First World War, when we served parents from our West End store. After the Second World War we acquired a tailors, known as Stevens, located at Harrow on the Hill. This shop would become, Stevens, Billings & Edmonds and since the 1980s, it has been simply known as Billings & Edmonds.

We have collaborated with Harrow School over the last century to evolve the uniform and sportswear.

Service & Quality Ethos

Since 1896 our Company’s founding ethos has been to deliver excellent quality clothing with first class personal service. Today, by offering excellent value for money and maintaining strong relationships with House Masters and Matrons, we continue to deliver Harrow boys excellent service throughout the year. Billings & Edmonds strives to showcase British craftsmanship and where possible, we purchase uniform from British suppliers. Most recently we were recognised by being awarded Best UK Schoolwear Retailer runner up.

Memorabilia & Award Items

We stock a very comprehensive range of Harrow School memorabilia, including House cuff links, Old Harrovian silk ties and socks. In addition, we stock over one hundred society and award ties, as well a Harrow golf society clothing. Our spacious store, which includes a sports shop, is located at the southern end of the Hill opposite the green verge and we have a small customer car park at the rear of the shop that you are very welcome to use.

COMING SOON...

UPGRADED DIGITAL ARCHIVES As part of the Harrow Association’s Harrow 450 heritage activity we have been upgrading our Digital Archive sites for The Harrovian, Harrow Contio, and Harrow Families, plus adding a brand new resource: Harrow School Digital Sources.

These sites are currently open to all OHs to access – simply email Tace Fox at archives@harrowschool.org.uk or Chelsea Caterer at catererc@harrowschool.org.uk for a dedicated log in.

The new look digital archives will be launched shortly and will include:

New content and material never before seen in digital form.

Enhanced advanced search filters to help you to find things faster.

All-new look and feel with easy-to-use navigation and browsing interface.

Improved search results now includes document excerpts.

Browse the archives of publications by date, using the new timeline.

Upgraded PDF viewer with improved search functionality.

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UPCOMING EVENTS The events calendar below is correct at the time of going to press. If you would like to keep updated with developments to our events programme, please keep an eye on OH Connect and our social media channels. Please ensure we have your current email address, especially as we will be holding a series of global events to celebrate our 450th anniversary year in 2022. Email oldharrovians@harrowschool.org.uk to update your contact details.

10 AND 11 YEARS ON DRINKS REUNION

VIRTUAL WINE TASTING

MONDAY 5 JULY 2021 6.30PM ONWARDS

FRIDAY 16 JULY 2021 7PM

The Burlington Arms, 21 Old Burlington Street, West End, London W1S 2JL This event is for all OHs who entered the School in 20103 and 20113

David Wright (The Park 19722) of Neethlingshof wines, will chat to winemaker Guy Webber, about his philosophy, the wines and the South African wine industry

OH PLAYERS' THE TEMPEST

THE KNOLL HOUSE DINNER

HA SONGS FOR OHs 1975 3-19802

SAVE THE DATE SATURDAY 18 AND SUNDAY 19 SEPTEMBER 2021

THURSDAY 30 SEPTEMBER 2021 7.15PM FOR 8PM

THURSDAY 7 OCTOBER 2021 6.30PM

Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, Shakespeare's Globe, 21 New Globe Walk, London SE1 9DT

LONG DUCKER SAVE THE DATE SUNDAY 7 NOVEMBER 2021

HARROW ASSOCIATION CHRISTMAS CAROLS MONDAY 6 DECEMBER 2021 7PM

Ironmongers’ Hall, Shaftesbury Place, Barbican, London EC2Y 8AA

LONG DUCKER BIKE RIDE SUNDAY 5 SEPTEMBER 2021 OHs, family and friends of the School are invited to take part in this fully guided and supported ride starting and ending at Harrow School

Register at longduckerbikeride.co.uk

Speech Room, Harrow School Songs will be followed by a drinks reception in the Shepherd Churchill Room and buffet supper in the Shepherd Churchill Hall.

HARROW SCHOOL CAREERS CONVENTION SAVE THE DATE SUNDAY 23 JANUARY 2022 OHs are invited back to speak to current boys at the annual careers convention.

Contact Michael Wright, Harrow School Careers Advisor at WrightMD@harrowschool.org if you would like to help.

HA SONGS FOR OHs 1980 3-19852 SAVE THE DATE THURSDAY 3 MARCH 2022 6.30PM

Speech Room, Harrow St Stephen Walbrook, 39 Walbrook, London EC4N 8BN Join us at this breathtaking church in the City for a unique evening of Christmas carols followed by some festive fare.

HARROW WANDERERS 150 TH ANNIVERSARY DINNER SAVE THE DATE THURSDAY 6 OCTOBER 2022

FOUNDER’S DAY

Songs will be followed by a drinks reception in the Shepherd Churchill Room and buffet supper in the Shepherd Churchill Hall.

SAVE THE DATE SUNDAY 27 FEBRUARY 2022

HOW TO BOOK FOR EVENTS

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Sign up to ohconnect.org.uk and visit the events section.

harrowassociation

Email haevents@harrowschool.org.uk

@oldharrovians

Telephone 020 8872 8186

@oldharrovians

The Long Room, Lord’s

Write to Harrow Association, 5A High Street, Harrow on the Hill, Middlesex HA1 3HP

Harrow Association