OA BULLETIN May 2004
Corps day, 1951 – the drums
Old Albanian Club
DIARY DATES Presidents’ Garden Party – Sunday 20th June 2004 OA Club Dinner – Friday 2nd July 2004 Founders’ Day – Saturday 3rd July 2004 London Drinks Party (East India Club) – Wednesday 17th November 2004
O A C O N TA C T
OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
OA CLUB www.oldalbanianclub.com President Andrew Mills-Baker 01582 764842 020 7917 7241 (office) 07903 930990 (mobile) Secretary David Buxton 01727 840499 d.buxton@virgin.net Treasurer Brian Sullman 01582 460317 Membership Secretary Roger Cook 01727 836877 Rogercook@btinternet.com
Colts Mini & Junior Rugby Chairman
FOOTBALL Manager
CRICKET President Chairman
OA SPORTS RUGBY President
Chairman
www.oasport.com www.oarugby.com Ali Mills 01582 715983 07974 414342 (mobile) Richard Milnes 01442 262750
1st XI Captain 2nd XI Captain
Secretary
Chairman of Playing Committee
Tony Buchanan 01923 859324 Club Captain Richard Walker 07931 734876 (mobile) Secretary Peter Lipscombe 01727 760466 Sponsorship Secretary Adrian Tominey 01727 830226 Treasurer Chris Walker 01727 822143 Social Secretary Ed Knighton 01727 836764 Ist XV Captain John Davy 07944 371570 (mobile)
Nick Chappin – Editor Andy Chappin – Design & Production Roger Cook – Membership Mike Highstead – Gazette Printing - Herts & Beds Printing 01923 234959 2
David Hughes 01727 867075 Rory Davis 01727 843538
www.oasoccer.co.uk Simon Bates 01727 852418 / 0772 0383 600 www.oacc.org.uk John Josling 01296 632227 Andrew McCree 01727 845513 andrew@oacc.org.uk Robert Bee Julian Baines 01727 751862 julian_baines@merant.com Colin Bashford 01707 395431
OTHERS Rifle & Pistol Angling Golf
OA LODGE John Williams
Andrew Wilkie 01727 856857 Geoff Cannon 01582 792512 Royce Bryant 01727 863130
01438 715679
SCHOOL WEB SITE www.st-albans.herts.sch.uk
Address for correspondence: Nick Chappin 18 The Pleasance, Harpenden, Herts AL5 3NA Telephone: 01582 461674 (home) 07980 565645 (mobile) e-mail: nick@chappin.co.uk
OA COMMENT
OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
Editorial
On paper or online
to cover production and postage costs. So whether you’re a confirmed technophobe or merely prefer not to It’s official: after a lengthy courtship, take your computer into the lavatory the Old Albanian Club is fully when you’re in need of a quiet read, embracing the digital age with the the Bulletin will be available in a launch of a new Internet-based handy printed version for many members’ database and years to come. communication facility. There’s been Talking of which, and much to the much public debate on this subject in irritation of my dear lady wife – who recent issues of the Bulletin with is somewhat of a traditionalist in some trenchant views expressed, and as the President confirms in his notes these matters – I read my newspaper from back to front, beginning with on page 5, the Committee has taken the sport and progressing (or is it all these views into account in regressing?) to other subjects as time commissioning this service. The chosen system is already successfully permits. Anyone who reads the used by 35 former pupils clubs across Bulletin in a similar fashion (in this case to go straight to the the UK, and according to letters) will have noticed Membership Secretary a change in the usual Roger Cook, “I think you What does this running order. In will find our new system response to pleas to superior to mean for the make the magazine less ‘friendsreunited’ in every sports-oriented, we’ve way!” You can read more Bulletin? Fear not, moved all the OA Sports about this new service, reports to the rear and run in conjunction with loyal readers, moved the Gazette and the School, in Roger’s report on page 14, there’s life in this Letters section up the pecking order. You may together with a also notice a significant reassuring article on how old organ yet increase in the weight of to get started on the this issue, testament to Internet. the marvellous response we’ve “But what does this mean for the received to our requests for more Bulletin?” I hear you ask anxiously. OAs’ news and correspondence. Fear not, loyal readers, there’s life in While one or two of the more epic this old organ yet. Although an pieces have had to be edited, online version will be available as wherever possible I’ve tried to part of this new members’ service include as much of the original text (which is absolutely free, as possible and I apologise in incidentally), the Bulletin will advance if my copy typing of handcontinue to be distributed in printed form for the foreseeable future, and a written contributions has misrepresented any names or other nominal charge levied to subscribers
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OA COMMENT
OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
important details. Once again it’s the wartime and immediate post-war generations which have proved to be the most prolific writers, but I’m delighted to note more and more despatches coming from OAs of the 1960s. These include a letter from Keith Atkinson, whose younger brother Paul – a founding member of legendary pop group ‘The Zombies’ – recently lost his long and courageous battle with cancer (see Obituary on page 22). Another of this vintage is Martin Smith (OA 62), Chairman of English National Opera and a classmate of Stephen Hawking, who will be main speaker at this year’s OA Club Dinner on Friday 2nd July, the night before Founders’ Day. Having attended last year’s function with several old schoolfriends, I would heartily recommend this event to everyone – see the President’s Notes on page 6 for details of how to book. Elsewhere in this issue you’ll also find the Headmaster’s Notes – in which Andrew Grant reports on a hectic and successful couple of terms for the School – the OA Lodge report, and an important announcement about a change to full charitable status for the Old Albanian Sports
New OA Club President Andrew Barnes Association (see page 42). Finally, my special thanks to Mike Highstead and Betty Scammell for allowing us once again to raid the School Archive and reproduce a selection of photos from The Albanian – this time from the 1950s – which we hope will trigger some fond memories and encourage further correspondence. Nick Chappin Editor
WHO TO CONTACT Please address your correspondence to the following people – you’ll find their contact details on page 2. OA Bulletin Nick Chappin, Editor Comments, letters, photos Subscription/membership enquiries Roger Cook, Membership Secretary Change of address, notification of deaths OA Gazette Mike Highstead, Archivist Member news, obituaries, School archive and museum
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President’s Notes
Moving on ■ Newly elected Old Albanian Club President Andrew Barnes looks forward to a new era in the Club’s history and pays tribute to his illustrious predecessor During my term as President, I hope to consolidate the excellent, indeed, outstanding work my predecessor did for the Old Albanian Club. The Club is in fine shape. Under our general manager, Neil Dekker, our bar and catering functions run well, our appointment book for the next few months is filling up and we look forward to a very busy summer. For a more detailed update, read Andrew Mills-Baker’s OA Sports report on page 42. In the last issue there was a letter from Chris Pope. Many of his comments were to the point, and reflected discussions that the OA committee had been having. If one poses the question, what does the average Old Albanian want from his or her former pupils club, the responses will be varied but with a common thread. It’s quite easy to write a wish list: ● Membership of the OA Club for life, subscription free, for all those who have been educated at St Albans School. ● Provide the means to contact friends and acquaintances instantly and with little expense. ● Provide an update service for members’ contact details and records, which are changed or modified by the members themselves. ● Disseminate information and news provided by members. ● Provide extracts from The Albanian and provide news of School highlights,
give access to the School’s website including a cross-section of the most interesting activities and successes within the School and recent significant changes, concerning staff, sport, the arts or any other activity. ● Report OA sports. ● Provide the OA Bulletin. With all this in mind, it is intended to fulfil all the above requirements. A decision has been made to set up a members’ database and a club members’ communication facility on a web platform, in conjunction with the School. The School has agreed to fund a life membership payment for the benefit of all School leavers. This annual payment will cover existing club expenditure and that which is anticipated for the future. Recent school-leavers and graduates accept Internet-based ease of communication and its immediacy as the norm. On the other hand, some of the more mature club members are entering the Internet age tentatively. For the foreseeable future, therefore, the Club will continue to offer members the option of postal delivery of the Bulletin. We recognise that this is vital for those who do not yet have convenient Internet access. This service will be maintained for existing subscription paying members. The Bulletin will be made available by post at a reduced cost after existing subscription membership has expired. A broader range of articles will be included with an expanded non-sporting content. In this edition our hard-working Membership Secretary, Roger Cook, gives a comprehensive description of the changes that are to be made and the approximate timing.
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Proposed change in legal status of the Old Albanian Sports Association: conversion to full charitable status The Sports association is registered as a company incorporated under the Industrial and Friendly Society Act. It owns the Woollams lease and assets. The OA Club is the only significant shareholder in this company. As controlling shareholder, the committee of the OA Club have voted to approve the change, and have indicated this to the trustees of the OA Sports Association – see the report on page 42. OA Dinner: Friday July 2 2004 Following last year’s successful black tie formula at Woollams, we intend to do the same again and this year’s dinner is to be held on the Friday of Founders’ Day weekend. We intend to reduce the number of speeches and limit the length to allow more time for the most important part, that is to give plenty of time to catch up with old friends. The principal guest at the dinner will be Martin Smith (OA 62), Chairman of English National Opera. He was in the same class as Stephen Hawking and we can expect his address to include some nostalgic reminiscences and be informative and amusing, but with little sporting content. The price will be £20. Shane Roberts has finally retired as dinner secretary and on behalf of the club I would like to thank him for the seven years he fulfilled this role. Samantha Patten will co-ordinate dinner reservations this time. For your enjoyment and for the success of the evening the effort in gathering a table (10) of friends and contemporaries will make a real difference. Please phone round now. Cheques to Sam Patten, OA Dinner Secretary, 359, Old Bedford Road, Luton, LU2 7BL please, or email your booking to
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OA Dinner guest speaker Martin Smith (62), Chairman of English National Opera sampatten@yahoo.co.uk I know that Dave Varty is co-ordinating a big response from the class of 1982 and the 1964 leavers are marking ‘40 years on’ with a Founders’ weekend reunion. OA Directory At the moment and until the autumn, the Directory has been the only convenient way of finding contact details for club members. Many of us greatly value this reference. This updated issue has once again been sponsored by Agfa, through the intervention of Dave Varty. I thank Dave for this generous contribution to the OA Club. School Parents After an approach from the Headmaster, the club is to extend a welcome to School parents with a view to introducing members of the student body to the club, of which they will become life members once they leave School. A parent member category is to be created which will allow parents to become social members of the Old Albanian Club. No other rights are to be conferred by this form of membership. Presidents’ Garden Party: 3.00pm, Sunday 20th June 2004 It has been recognised that some means should be found by which the club and sports
OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
clubs can say ‘thank you’ to those who, throughout the year, have made an exceptional contribution to the smooth running or advancement of the Club. At the same time, a social event where every constituent part of OA Sport and the OA Club is represented, would help build a feeling of unity which sometimes is not recognised within the individual sports clubs. A limited but proportional number of invitations for sports club members and their partners will be sent to those chosen by the sports club Presidents. There will be a smaller number invited as guests of the OA Club. This is to be a club event where the OA Club President and OA Sport Presidents are joint hosts . The Garden Party is to be a bridgebuilding, inclusive event, and as such we welcome applications for tickets from all members. The cost of a single ticket will be £12.50. Champagne, fine wines and delicious canapés will be served by the Woollams staff. I hope you would like to be part of this club celebration, if so, please send a cheque with a return address to The Presidents’ Garden Party at Woollams. Andrew Mills-Baker Once in a generation an organisation may be blessed with a far-sighted decision maker and achiever who makes the difference between commonplace and exceptional. Andrew Mills-Baker is unique in being the only President to serve two terms, in fact for a total of four years. The conditions for his re-election for the first three-year term as President were set: the move from Beech Bottom had been identified as necessary many years ago, to ensure that the sporting facilities were of a suitable standard for the future success of the Club. Years of work
under the guidance of Bryan Short and David Culpitt and the far-sightedness of the chairman of the school governors, Bob Sharpe, and AM-B himself were finally rewarded with success. After a public inquiry with its inescapable squandering of capital, provided by the School and to a lesser extent, by the Club, permission was granted to use part of the School’s asset, Cheapside Farm, as sports grounds for the School and the OA Club. The Woollams name was chosen. The development potential of Beech Bottom was shown to be much more valuable than the original consortium were willing to pay. AM-B achieved a significantly higher price. The consortium took their share of profit, and Laing Homes carried out the development. At Cheapside farm, proposed designs for the OA clubhouse were considered and a London architect was chosen. Bickerton was awarded the construction contract. The 63 acre joint School/OA playing fields were prepared – the largest contract of its type awarded in Europe in 1999. During the clubhouse construction stage, the sheer volume of decision making in this complex project was huge, without the additional problems associated with the main contractor going into liquidation. With our treasurer, Brian Sullman’s support and hard work it is fair to say that AM-B decided on or was consulted on every element of the building, equipping, opening and running of the OA Woollams clubhouse. Its success is carried on his shoulders. He has handed on the club presidency but continues with almost daily involvement as Chairman of the Woollams OA Sport executive. Andrew Barnes President
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OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
Headmaster’s Notes
Shooting ahead ■ Headmaster Andrew Grant reports on a busy programme of activities, and the growing popularity of sports such as shooting, badminton and netball. Looking back as far as the autumn term, the rugby season closed with our bestever ratio of wins to losses across all ages overall; unfortunately, injuries and illness to key players meant that it was the First XV who bucked this encouraging trend, though they ended a disappointing season on a high note with an emphatic win over Mill Hill in the last fixture of the season. The Senior cross-country squad, despite looking more vulnerable than at any time in the past five years, nevertheless survived the autumn term undefeated and let rivals know they would not be easily dislodged, by successfully defending the first big six-man team race of the year, the Dr Challenor’s Relay, for the seventh time in a row. Thereafter, however, illness and injury afflicted them, too, and they were up against it in the second half of the season. There were some encouraging results in badminton, which is growing in popularity and the girls had a good start to the netball season, winning more than 50% of their matches. At Christmas, the traditional end-of-term programme included a fine School concert and a spectacular, colourful and hugely energetic production of Arabian Nights. The last day of term saw record numbers at the Carol Service, which we are having to adapt, year-on-year to try to ensure we involve those in the quire and crossing in the service as much as we possibly can.
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Once again, the choir was on splendid form, and the readers, particularly the very youngest, deserved congratulation, too, for measuring up so well to what is a daunting task. Over the Christmas holiday, the traditional winter CCF camp took place at Thetford and I had good reports both from, and of, the cadets. Offers of places at either Oxford or Cambridge were made to 12 of our students, which constitutes a respectable year relative to our long-term average. At the end of the term, Head of Economics and ace coach of the hockey 2nd XI Hussein Modak left to take up a post as Deputy Pride of place in Principal of the Al Ruya Bilingual the spring term School, Kuwait, while Jeremy went to shooting, Burrowes and Lisa Bloomer both in which our team moved out of teaching, the one won the Green to devote more time to a business Howards / Country and the other to pursue her career Life competition as an artist. Recent OAs will know our new Economist, Aniket Gocoldas, himself an OA, who has recently completed his degree and PGCE in Economics at Warwick University and joined the staff at the beginning of the summer term. In the spring term, the First hockey XI had a good season, winning over 60% of their domestic matches among which they put eight goals past Berkhamsted, seven past Haberdashers’, Harrow and Bancroft’s, and six past Aldenham. On the Easter
OA BULLETIN MAY 2004 Celebrated cosmologist and OA Stephen Hawking, subject of a recent BBC2 drama, and former classmate of Martin Smith (see page 6)
holiday tour in Germany, they had two wins and a draw against the best of local opposition, whilst the Mixed XI, benefiting from a girls’ hockey season that included their first win over Loreto, came back with a win, a draw and a loss. After half-term, the girls completed an excellent netball season, rounded off by the traditional Old Girls’ tournament that brought back the largest-ever number of past year-groups, all to be beaten, unprecedentedly, by the current Lower Sixth. After several years of extraordinary national dominance at senior level, illness and injury to several of our top crosscountry runners allowed The Judd School (coached by OA Simon Fraser) to usurp our crown in the three biggest events of the season: The Knole Run, The King Henry VIII relays and the South East Schools Championship, though we beat them on other occasions. These were our only losses, and it is a measure of the standard we have set ourselves that to have merely finished among the medals in three national events makes for a disappointing season. Nonetheless, we had five runners selected to represent the county in the English Schools and two individual bronze medallists in the
South East Championships, whilst the Intermediate squad successfully defended the season-long Pat Bagnall League Trophy. Other sports that continued to do well included badminton, where, in Robert Bagshaw, we have a county gold medallist and a silver medal-winning U15 team, and swimming, in which the juniors won the Herts League. Pride of place in the spring term, however, went to shooting in which, for the first time ever, our team won the Green Howards/Country Life competition, the oldest and most prestigious school competition in the UK with an entry of some 250 schools. The spring term saw a huge amount of dramatic activity in ‘New Place’ and a very full musical programme, crowned by an Easter holiday tour of Paris by the choir, chamber orchestra, string ensemble, and saxophone and clarinet quartets. They performed to sizeable audiences in two of the city’s finest buildings: Notre Dame and Eglise Madeleine, where the pupils enjoyed the grand settings and fine acoustics almost as much as the opportunity of visiting Disneyland Paris. Things were equally busy in the CCF and
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Duke of Edinburgh’s Award over the term and the holiday. There were Silver training and assessment expeditions in wild country including hostile farmers, tenacious peat bogs and other obstacles surmounted by our intrepid sixth formers. Meanwhile, the CCF had seven Army cadets on the prestigious and arduous UK Land Forces Cadet Leadership Course and the RAF section on camp at RAF Lyneham, whose Commanding Officer wrote in very complimentary terms about how they acquitted themselves. In Exercise Combat Cadet, a competition weekend which Captain Ed Beavington describes as “testing all cadet skills and paying little respect to civilised working hours,” our team came fourth from the 22 best CCF and ACF contingents in the region. The Easter holiday was, in fact, frantically busy. 53 Classicists with nine staff spent six days in Greece, during which they took the opportunity to test the world-renowned acoustics of the theatre at Epidaurus with a rendition of ‘Swing Low Sweet Chariot’, no doubt in homage to English Rugby and in the cause
Corps day 1951 – the drill squad
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of European unity. A party of 30 skiers and five staff descended on Serre Chevalier in the French Alps, where, thanks to excellent weather and decent snow the beginners and intermediates made remarkable progress, to be descending red and black runs respectively by the end of the week and return with all limbs intact. Meanwhile, the golfers toured in Dorset before hosting the ‘home’ leg of their golf exchange with Biarritz. Grateful as I am to my colleagues for all their hard work over the Easter break, unfortunately, I cannot offer them a period of rest and recuperation on return to School; merely a brief interlude for intensive revision before the onslaught of exams! Founders’ Day, as you are no doubt aware, is on Saturday 3rd July and the preacher will be a former parent and present neighbour, The Right Reverend Chris Foster, Bishop of Hertford. I look forward to renewing many an acquaintance over the term. Andrew Grant Headmaster
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OA Lodge
Crossing generations ■ The OA Lodge celebrated its 75th Anniversary last May ‘compèred’ by Geoffrey Goodman, past secretary of the Lodge and Chairman of the Federation of School Lodges. Secretary John Williams presents some extracts from Geoffrey’s notes To start this Celebration of our 75th Anniversary, please rise while Dickie Davison recites the School Prayer. Memories! The school had been associated with Freemasonry for many years before the Lodge was consecrated in 1928. We have a record of the Provincial Grand Master (PGM) parading through St Albans in 1908 together with his Officers in full regalia and top hats to lay the Foundation Stone of the ‘new’ School Hall. The event is recorded by an inscription in Latin in the corner stone. The Lodge was sponsored by Halsey Lodge and consecrated on our Chaplain, Don Kiff’s 4th birthday, Saturday 19th May at Freemasons’ Hall, London, by the PGM, Charles Edward Keyser. No less than 14 candidates were initiated in the first year! These included the Headmaster, Major Montague Jones and Charles Argent, well known to many of us as Sgt Major Argent. Many will remember his slipper ‘James’ which I recall being burned at the stake with due ceremony when he left in 1949. Later in 1928, on 24th September, the PGM again processed through St Albans in full regalia to lay the
Foundation Stone for the new Junior School with full masonic ceremony. The Lodge flourished. The new Headmaster, W T Marsh (known in the war years as ‘Stoker Bill’ in view of his part time job at the Admiralty, when he took morning Assembly in his naval uniform of a Commander) joined and became Master in 1937. He was responsible for the discreetly chequered flooring and the dais still in use today in the Lodge Room in the Gateway. In 1948 the City of St Albans, three churches (St Michael’s, St Stephen’s and St Peter’s), the Market and the School celebrated the 1000th Anniversary of the traditional date of the Founding of the City by Abbot Ulsinus, with a Pageant at Verulamium. The Lodge held a special Meeting on St John’s Day, 24th June, (231st anniversary of the formation of Grand Lodge). The brethren were reminded, in an Oration by J C Mitchell that Alban is the Patron Saint of Freemasonry, something a ‘new bug’ learned on his first day at school, for it was in R O Sanders book presented to every boy. Few will admit to remembering the School Song ‘Domum Nostram’ (which the Worshipful Master forbids me to demonstrate!) introduced at that time, attributed to W T Marsh. The first line read: “Quae per annos mille stetit”, which for the classically challenged, translates as “our school that for a thousand years has stood”. In 1949, the Lodge became a Founder Member of The Federation of School Lodges, and has played an important part in its development to
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this day. Very shortly before the 25th Anniversary Meeting, on 11th April 1953 a youthful 39-year-old organist was initiated into the Lodge: At this point in the proceedings Ray Hughes was presented with a certificate from the PGM to commemorate his 50 years in masonry. Ray recalled that he had been present at the Masonic procession to lay the Foundation stone in 1928 as a member of the OTC and had fired a salute! The Lodge has been fortunate to number amongst its members brethren who have achieved high rank, notably Geoffrey Pryke, Deputy PGM and ‘Dickie’ Hammond, PGM in the Mark Degree. (N.B. at this stage the appointment of Colin Harris as PGM had not been announced). Many eminent citizens of St Albans joined the Lodge, names which recur over again. Indeed the list of members is littered with Giffens: one of the Founders, Reginald, his brothers Lionel and Frank, and Reginald’s sons John and George and George’s son ‘young’ Jonathan, who are here today, creating a link with the birth of the Lodge. Fathers and sons feature throughout our history. Apart from three generations of Giffens, we have the late Cliff and Richard Wedgbury, Brian and Matthew Ward, Peter and Richard Johnson, and all being well we hope to welcome the two sons of a recently deceased member; the father of an OA who we hope will be a future member, and the son of one of
our Past Masters. Richard Wedgbury then presented an Honours Board to the Lodge, recording the names of our Past Masters and also donated his Master’s Apron formerly the property of W T Marsh. Finally, may I ask your indulgence for a moment while I make a personal observation. I am a joining member from a Lodge where masonry was a very serious business. Never a laugh or so much a smile during a Meeting was acceptable. My first and enduring impression of Old Albanian Lodge was one of happiness and fun. The atmosphere in this Lodge brought an entirely new dimension to my masonic life as I am sure it has to others, and taught me that while conducting the formal part of our proceedings with precision and dignity, we can also enjoy ourselves to the full. Above all, I learned that MASONRY IS FUN, and long may this Lodge prosper to develop that principle. And so, in celebrating 75 successful years, we look forward with enthusiasm and anticipation to the next landmark, our Centenary, which is already booked for the first Saturday in September 2028. On that date we shall host the Annual Festival of The Federation of School Lodges. As a peppery old 95-year old, I hope to see you in September 2028, if not in person, in spirit! Those who know him are sure Geoffrey will be there! The Lodge meets only five times a year on the second Saturdays in
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Top table OAs at a reunion dinner in February 2004, organised by Don Higson (who was visiting the UK from his home in Australia to celebrate his mother’s 100th birthday) Anti-clockwise from left: Philip Eden, Mike Kenningham, Peter Sherring, Alban Warwick, Graham Ledger, Geoff Goodman, Roger Austin, Don Higson, Charles Bloxham, Brian Waldron
January, March, May and September and the first Saturday in November. All those connected with the School, including fathers of past or present pupils are welcome to apply for membership, for which purpose the first approach should be to any Lodge member, the Secretary as below, or Nigel WoodSmith or Alan Smith at the School. Members of other Lodges, be they OAs, parents of
past or present pupils, staff or Governors are encouraged to visit the Lodge whenever they wish, and the Secretary will be delighted to hear from them. John Williams Lodge Secretary
4 Rollswood Road Welwyn Herts AL6 9TX Telephone: 01438 715679
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OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
Membership Secretary’s Notes
Going online ■ OA Club Membership Secretary Roger Cook rounds up all the latest membership news – including the revolutionary new OA Online service The revolutionary changes planned by your committee are introduced in the President’s article. All will benefit from the reduction of the club subscription to zero! The system we, together with the school, are purchasing has already been installed in 35 former pupils’ clubs. Reports from those clubs that we have contacted are all very positive. In summary, the system offers all OAs: ● a website providing personal details of all members ● web access fully secure ● a unique e-mail address for life ● facilities to update your details online ● ability to limit which of your details shall be accessible to other members ● ability to send e-mails to other members ● a notice-board facility ● appropriate search facilities for the web content There was an article in the last Bulletin about friendsreunited – I think you will find our new system superior to that site in every way! What will change? You will no longer be asked for any renewal membership subscription
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provided that you are willing to receive all information from the club, including the Bulletin, electronically. The Bulletin and Directory will continue to be available in hard copy at an annual fee. The amount has not yet been determined but it is likely to be in the range of £5 – £10 pa. We recognise that a significant proportion of members do not, as yet, have Internet access. They will, of course, remain full members of the club and will be invited to pay the fee mentioned above to cover the costs of the Bulletin. There is an article on the Internet on page 17, directed specifically to those without Internet facilities. Full details of the system and how to enrol will appear in the autumn Bulletin. I am certain many more members have e-mail addresses than are shown in my database; if you have an e-mail address, please e-mail me giving: ● your e-mail address ● an indication whether you are likely to opt for the electronic only system – (no commitment!) I recommend that, if you have not already done so, you look at the online copy of the Bulletin. We anticipate that the contract will be signed in time to enable the system to be live before the end of the year. However, it will probably take some six months after that before the system becomes fully operational. My target is to have a live system, with limited facilities, for Christmas. Finally, please check the address on your envelope and advise me if it
OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
OA CLUB ACCOUNTS Income & Expenditure for year to 30th September 2003 2003 Subs/Donations Social Events Postage Printing: Albanian Bulletin Admin/Other (net)
8,534 1,308
8,065 (638)
1,060
1,775
527 1,848 246
544 1,830 489
Excess Income
3,681
4,638
6,161
Balance Sheet as at 30th September 2003 Bank 33,222 Debtors 2,245 Stock 594 Creditors Subs in Advance Equity Excess Income
2002
564 15,511 13,825 6,161
2,789
29,274 36,061
922
30,196
36,061
1,087 15,284 11,036 2,789
30,196
Shortened version of OAC accounts for year to 30th September 2003 is wrong, including the omission of the postcode. OA Website The website has now expanded to eight pages. I hope that you are finding it useful. To date, I have had little feedback from members – I trust that this implies you have no major concerns. It is difficult to estimate the number of visits – our ISP provides statistics indicating about 300 visits per week, but this may include random visits by surfers! You will have noticed that, to reduce load time, I split the last Bulletin into three sections. I propose
to do this with this edition and to leave the password unchanged at 5718. In view of OA online there is no longer any need to post the Directory on our website. OA Directory We will shortly be reissuing the Directory, and once again we are indebted to Dave Varty and Agfa for agreeing to sponsor this publication. Finally, as usual, your address label states the year when your subscription expires. OA ties are still available from me at £12.50 (silk) and £15 (bow tie). Roger Cook Membership Secretary
1 Pondwicks Close St Albans AL1 1DG Telephone: 01727 836877
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Waifs and strays We have lost contact with the following OAs – can anyone help? Year
Name
38 39 41 42 43 44 54 55 55 56 57 58 59 59 60 62 64 65 66 67 67 67 68 68 70 71 71 71 71 71 72 72 72 73 74 74 74 75 75 76 76 76 76 76 77 77 77 77 77 77
Buckingham, K M Wilkinson, A D Wright, J A Powell, G H Bracewell, C M Hudson, P H F Dilley, N C Coombe, B J Knight, J V Ingram, P Bishop, S C O’Sullivan, P J Brierley, R J Mills, K J Robertson, D M Clarke, J Bass, Stephen Kirk , D Thomas, R N Ansell, Paul Cockbain, P A Marsh, A Craighead, R M Gingell, R R Martin, I G Barker, Mark Duxbury, M J Earl, G Lawrence, D J D Williams, D P L Bayley, A R J Mattingley, R J Parker, S C Thom, D K Kingham, D R Marshall, J T J Warner, I C Forbes, I A Funnell, Stephen Bulsing, J M Lavin, C N Orange, C A Turner S E Waygood-West, Kevin Bayoumi, T A Clitherow, P A Granger, Andrew Jones, A P R Lee, A P Marshall, N J
Last known location Harrow Harpenden St Albans St Albans Leicester Cranbrook High Wycombe Brookmans Park Blackboys Glasgow Shefford Harpenden Totteridge Stoke-on-Trent Herts Knebworth Danbury Walthamstow Edgware Luton Redhill Borehamwood Potters Bar Bury St Edmunds Birmingham Sutton Coldfield Hitchin Newbury St Albans Harpenden Chesterfield Baldock Harpenden Stevenage East Grinstead St Albans St Albans Bristol Barnet Welwyn Garden City Attleborough London Faversham Hatfield Welwyn Garden City Harpenden London Keithley Gwynedd St Albans
77 Stansbury, C J 77 Welsh, David J 78 Evans, N G 78 Parker, P E 78 Samuel, M G 79 Albury, C D 79 Armitage, Stephen 79 Cooper, R C 79 Dixon, C 79 Hall, M 79 Haysom, A J 79 Menzie, B 79 Riddle, J 79 Tynan, P 80 George, A J 80 Warwick, Neil 80 Woodrow, J C G 81 Hodge, R J W 81 Palmer, Andrew 82 Peters, Mike 83 Norris, R G T 83 Pryce, Tim 85 Andrews, David 85 Finlay, Laurence 85 Gresswell, A M 85* Smart, Adrian 85 Somerville, D J 85 Turner, Andrew 86 Bladen, John 86 Bending, Thomas 86 Cook, Adrian 86 Dewhirst, Martin 86 Newman, P L 87 Meeson, Mark W 87 Payne, Nicholas 89 Hollingsworth, Damian 89 Jones, Christopher 91 Peters, David A 92 Carden, Richard E W 92 Harris, Daniel S 92 James, Jonathan 92 Simmons, Jonathan E 92 Moss, Radley 92 Wheeler, Seth 93 Brian, Andrew J 93 Clarke, Richard P 93 King, Caroline 93 Ives, Simon 94 Clayton, Thomas 94 Lester, Miles 94 Simmons, Matthew 95 Topper, Marc 96 Barclay, Mathew 97 Morgan, Dean 97 Summers, Paul 99 Myers, Richard B P 00 Stephens, Benjamin *New entry
St Albans St Albans Hemel Hempstead Harpenden St Albans St Albans London Luton Harpenden Rickmansworth Harpenden Wheathampstead Wakefield Cockermouth Flamstead St Albans Wheathampstead Peterborough Bracknell St Albans St Albans Notting Hill Gate High Wycombe Barnet Welwyn Brighton Hemel Hempstead Swindon Luton Cambridge London Hatfield St Albans St Albans St Albans St Albans St Albans Harpenden Southhampton Radlett Wheathampstead Totteridge Radlett Utica, USA St Albans St Albans St Albans St Albans St Albans Hadley Wood Flamstead Stanmore St Albans Watford Harpenden Barnet Enfield
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Net gains ■ Roger Cook describes the benefits of joining the Internet community Only 11% of OA members have admitted to having an e-mail address and, hence, having access to the Internet. I am certain that this percentage is wrong. If you have an e-mail address, please ensure that you have informed me of it and ignore the rest of this note! For the remainder, I am writing a few words on why you should consider joining the Internet community. First, let me remind you of the meaning of e-mail and Internet. Any individual or organisation with a computer can apply for an e-mail address and, thenceforward, can send and receive messages (normally over their telephone line) virtually instantaneously to anyone else in the world who has an e-mail address. The cost will be a few seconds of local telephone connection. Similarly, any individual or organisation with a computer can construct a website containing relevant information (text, pictures, sound), register its address and allow anyone in the world to access and communicate with this information. The government may post new reports, cinemas their daily programme, TV channels the latest news and all is accessible throughout the world within fractions of a second (transmission of pictures or the whole of the ‘Gone with the Wind’ may take somewhat longer). The terms world-wide web and
Internet are, to a large extent, interchangeable. We are all familiar now of being exhorted to contact a website. BBC announcers must be satiated with saying “www.bbc.co.uk forward slash…”. Every marketing organisation attempts to get us to purchase goods ‘online’ (it is much cheaper for them), the government, hospitals, churches, organisations (including the OA club and the School) have websites. During the recent Hutton enquiry, all the submissions for each day were put on a website in the evening for public viewing (a precedent for all future enquiries?). The financial advantages to organisations whose members all have Internet access are significant. If all OA club members had access, we could post news, the Bulletin and the Directory on our website and let members access and read it in their own time, thus saving several hundred pounds in postage; the downside is that every member would need to spend a few minutes of telephone time accessing the documents and, if they required ‘hard copy’, to print the document. Most school children in the UK are taught and have access to the Internet, all university students have e-mail addresses via their university, many children expect their parents to provide home computer access, most public libraries provide internet access for a small fee. A large growing band of new users in the UK is those recently retired. In third world countries farmers can, for the first time, using e-mail and the
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Internet, discover the market prices of their goods without asking the middlemen who buy their products. Some repressive governments have, unsuccessfully, tried to limit electronic communication to the wider world. In China there are 80 million regular Internet users, an increase of 35% over 2002. The Internet can provide for real-time dialogue between users – although the local time differences between far-flung parts of the world may make this difficult! A friend of mine plays real-time bridge over the Internet with partners in South America and China. The web has put unbelievable amounts of information within the reach of a computer system whether it is in one’s home, office, school or, with suitable communication links, in a moving environment. Much of the information is wrong, prejudiced or libellous. We hear of websites that have been created for pornography, to spread religions and to foment unrest. Despite these problems, all branches of industry and commerce as well as personal users are, today, successfully and effectively using the Internet. The total information out there has not been measured but must exceed that of the largest library in the world. The initial concept of the Internet was that it should be freely accessible to everyone in the world. and be without a single controlling organisation. My observation is that Internet users expect all information to be accessible to all without payment. Efforts are being made by
governments to control its content but, as yet, with little success. An exception is the agreement regarding Netscape, which was making copyright music freely available over the Internet. Within the OA Club, we are determined to utilise the Internet for the benefit of our members. We are actively implementing, in a joint project with the School, a system which will provide excellent intercommunication and information transfer between members, the club and the School. This is more fully described elsewhere in the Bulletin. We recognise, however, that, for many years, we must also satisfy the needs of members without access to electronic communication. I think you will already be aware of the general concepts of the Internet that I have outlined above. Why have you not yet taken the plunge? Is it disinterestedness, lethargy or fear of learning a new technology? Most of us have mastered the telephone, the TV, the mobile phone and even the video recorder. Should you decide to invest in an internet computer system you will have, also, acquired an advanced word processor, an essential adjunct to your digital camera, an advanced games console for your children/grandchildren and a myriad of other applications. Careful, however – Internet surfing can be addictive! The steps I would suggest are: to talk to a friend who has a computer system; talk to the local high street
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retailer and then buy a low cost second hand system from your local computer maintenance shop (computers are like fashions in clothes – obsolete within a year but still perfectly functional – you should get a system a third to half of the high street price). If your friend is really helpful you can probably avoid going on one of the many excellent local computer introductory courses; if you do opt for a formal course, install your computer first. If your
eyesight is not the finest, get as large a screen/console/VDU as possible and avoid a laptop computer. After a few months your confidence and expertise will be such that you may then wish to consider a brand new, latest fashion computer system. Society is now dependent on the increasing facilities that the Internet offers. Come along – dive in! Happy surfing! Roger Cook Membership Secretary
Flying the flag Following the tradition established by Ray Buxton at Beech Bottom, his son David and family have donated a new OA Club flag, which carries the new style and motto of the school crest. This flies along side the Union Flag also presented. The third flagpole will fly flags such as OA Sport, St Georges or as appropriate to any occasion
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De fortunis Albanorum ● Malcolm Mitchell, having seen the photos in the last OA Bulletin, writes of his memory of ‘Beery’ Webster, although, having been to so many schools, he could not remember where he met him! He mentions Alan Evans who was on the staff for a short time prior to going into the forces in 1939 and although they were not at the School at the same time they met up in Kingsbridge in 1970. Alan died in about 1990 but Malcolm keeps in contact with his widow, Nancy. ● Cyril Mobbs writes from Canada to compliment the School and OA Club on their excellent new sporting facilities: “When I was in the UK last July, I took the opportunity to drive past and around the new sports ground and was absolutely amazed. Having played rugger – under
Charles Bloxham – at the Causeway (mind the cowpats!) and cricket at Belmont, the current boys do not know how fortunate they are having such a wonderful ground.” ● Tony Quance (64) writes from Mississanga, Ontario: “I was not a great student, but carried away from the School a passion for rugby and athletics and a love of the English language, so my time at St Albans was not completely mis-spent.” He asks for his best wishes to be passed to Andy Barnes, Dick Dunn, Chris Harris (his Best Man), Tim Hunt, Robin Johns, Charlie Lee, Andrew Maslen, Mick Rogers, Gerry Steele, Steve Taylor and John Williams – stalwarts of the 1963 1st XV. ● Chris Duffield has recently been
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appointed Town Clerk to the City of London. ● Edward Worthy (65) has been appointed Parish Priest of Wellingborough. ● Michael Watts (71) sends his greetings from the West of Scotland. “At the beginning of October, Angie and I moved from Wind Ridge, Lochgoilhead to Tigh-na-Cala – just five miles down the road but also five miles further from civilisation! ‘Cala’ is a Gaelic word that doesn’t really have a direct counterpart in English but means a hard or firm beach or landing place. ‘Tigh’ means house, so for brevity’s sake the easiest translation of our house name is simply ‘house by the beach’.” ● Julius Bryant (76), chief curator of English Heritage (see press cutting left), has recently completed a massive 440 page catalogue of the Iveagh Bequest at Kenwood, the first new catalogue for over 50 years. ● Justin Pollard (86) writes that since graduating from Cambridge he has worked in the TV and film business, running a small company which produces documentaries and provides historical consultancy for movies. One recent project was a seven hour documentary series for Channel 4 called ‘Seven Ages of Britain’, a social history from the Mesolithic to the Early Modern period. The book of the series was published in October and Justin is now working on his second book, a
biography of Alfred the Great, to be published in early 2005. Married with a young daughter, Justin (“like all people in TV”) lives in Surrey. ● Edward Slade (90) tells of his marriage to Jennifer Lake, a former pupil at St Albans High School for Girls, in September 2003. Many OAs were present: Jennifer’s father John Lake (59), her brothers Robert and William Lake, Matthew Slade, Chris Willis, Alex Belton, Julian Baines, Matthew Newby, Paul Beresford, Peter Sarris, Mark Pine, John Cartwright and Nick Burrage. From the High School: Lorna Bishop, Elizabeth O’Flynn (Phistermuller), Helen Stergios, Jenny Willis, Angela Meakins (Jarrett), Nichole Slade and Claire Horwell. ● Nigel Sellars (00) is currently studying for an MSc in Computer Science at University College London and recently captained the University of London Representative Hockey side. When he has completed his Masters degree he will begin employment with KPMG. ● John Squares (02) has been elected JCR President at Corpus Christi College, Oxford.
Erratum In the last issue of the OA Bulletin, it was wrongly reported that Robert Aghajanian had been awarded a 2:2 for his degree at Southampton University, when in fact he gained a 2:1. Our apologies for the error.
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Deaths It is with regret that the following deaths are announced:
● Ben Holloway (02) died in tragic circumstances. After a gap year he went to Warwick University. It was whilst he was there that he died.
● Brian Nelson (33)
Obituary
● Gordon Weatherhead (33)
● Paul Atkinson (64) Respected music industry veteran Paul Atkinson died peacefully in his sleep shortly before midnight on Thursday 1st April 2004 at the UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center, after a long battle with liver and kidney disease. Atkinson's career as a musician and record executive has spanned almost four decades. He started as a guitarist for The Zombies, one of the first and most original of the British Invasion bands of the 1960s – widely acknowledged as being both ahead of their time and among the best of their era with smash hits such as ‘She’s Not There,’ ‘Tell Her No’ and ‘Time of the Season.’ Atkinson made the rare transition from artist to executive, ultimately heading up A&R departments at three of the five major multinational record conglomerates. His contributions range from artist development and production, to international marketing and
● Tom Bennett (39) ● Edward Sudell (39) died in February 2003. ● Mike Bixby (46) died on the 20th November 2003. ● Tom Bennett (39), who was one of four brothers to attend the School, died on 1st February in Broadstairs. His brother Norman writes: “After retiring from IBM, he became a reader at All Saints Church, Westbrook. He was a Freemason, rising to high honours both in London and East Kent Provinces as well as the United Grand Lodge of England. He became Chairman and Chaplain of the Royal Marines Association in the Isle of Thanet.”
The Zombies, featuring Paul Atkinson (far right)
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● Harry Everett (46) died in 2002. Anthony J Lane writes: “He had a career in insurance, which took him all over the country, until ill-health forced his retirement. A St Albans boy who was an Abbey chorister in Mr ‘Bunny’ Warren’s School choir, he married a local girl (a cousin to Don Kiff, in fact) who survives him, and three sons, four granddaughters and two greatgrandchildren.”
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catalogue development in the US and Europe. Born in Cuffley, England, Atkinson resided in Los Angeles for the past 20 years. He is survived by his wife, Helen, their two children, James and Lucy, and son Matt by a previous marriage. Donations in Atkinson’s name may be made to (UNOS) United Network For Organ Sharing. There are no plans for services at this time.
are due to him for this generous offer. A design has been suggested by Robin Ollington and he has had a quotation for the board. What we need to know are the names of all those pupils and staff who have been awarded Blues at Oxford and Cambridge. It is important that we do not omit any. If you know of anyone awarded a Blue, please send their names to Mike Highstead at the address below.
The Archives
An obsessive search
● John Meulkens (35) has donated two photographs. The one of the OTC Corps of Drums in the Upper Yard has many names appended including the now Major General Mike Heath, John Leggett and Len Druce. The second is the Headmaster’s cricket team naming Sam Webster, A J Warren, Rogers, Hammy Hamilton, Ernie Nightingale, Jean Garnier, Hugh Wortley, Gordon Jarry, P I Walker and Montague Jones himself.
● Neil Rowland accompanied his son Grant in 1974 on a visit to Pen Arthur together with Bob Tanner and Charles Bloxham. On the way home they made a detour to Gloucester Cathedral and the on to a village in the Cotswolds to see some particularly interesting architecture. They then went on for a fish and chip supper in Northleach. They arrived back at school three hours late. Were you on this memorable trip? Do you remember the diversion, and more to the point, can you say where the village is? Neil has been searching for it ever since that visit. Is there anyone who can help, or is there a Bermuda Triangle somewhere in the Cotswolds? If you can help please contact Neil Rowland on 020 8275 0018.
● Robin Ollington (47) whilst rooting about in his loft found a blazer with an OA Club badge on it – he has donated the badge. Thanks for those items. Are there any more lofts, sheds, garages or wardrobes being emptied?
Honouring our blues ● John Meulkens has offered to help with the funding of an Honours Board to be mounted in the OA Pavilion at Woollams. Many thanks
Wrong dates As several eagle-eyed readers have pointed out, the dates in the photo caption on page 25 of the November
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Bulletin were inadvertently transposed. The photo of skaters on a frozen Verulamium Lake (above) was taken in 1936, and the Shooting VIII picture was from 1948. One of the skaters is regular contributor Len Druce (’36), and he is particularly keen to set the record straight as many of those pictured were to lose their lives in the Second World War. Our apologies for the error, and my thanks to everyone who took the time to contact the Bulletin. ● Simon Stebbings writes via e-mail: Very interested to see a picture of my uncle (I N Stebbings) as part of the shooting team on page 27 (repeated right). I haven’t checked when he was there but I very much doubt that either he or my father (I B Stebbings who was at School at the same time) were there as early as 1936. ● Alan Richmond (45) writes: In the November issue, the group photograph of boys in army uniform must be wrongly dated. It is given as 1936 yet battledress did not become the Corps uniform until, I think, 1940. Until then, we wore WWI uniform, complete with peaked cap and
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puttees. Furthermore, Ivor Stebbings, who appears in the photograph, was only about eight years old in 1936! By 1940, the Corps had changed its name from the Officers Training Corps (OTC) to the Junior Training Corps (JTC). Subsequently it changed again to, I believe, the Combined Cadet Force (CCF). ● Gerald Batty (48) writes: The photo of the Shooting VIII is certainly not 1936 but might have been 1946. I probably took over from Ian Stebbings in 1947 or 48 but as far as I recall the post of captain of shooting was a de facto one and not to be mentioned in the same breath as rugger or even cricket! It was the guy who happened to be a decent shot and was prepared to take some interest in it.
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Maundy Money The annual Royal Maundy Service takes place at a cathedral selected by the monarch, who then distributes two small bags of specially minted coins to the same number of men as her age and a similar number of women. The nominated recipients must be over 70 years of age, have spent many years in the service of the church and be ‘of slender means’. This year she went to Liverpool and 78 men and 78 women were chosen to receive the Royal Maundy
from her – including Old Albanian, The Reverend James Pollard (41). “It was my immense privilege to be one of the recipients this year,” he says. “I had met the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh before and it was a true honour to meet her again in this role.” The Reverend Pollard was accompanied to the ceremony on 8th April by his younger daughter Elisabeth.
Please send all items for inclusion in the Gazette to: Mike Highstead, 33, Cornwall Road, Harpenden, Herts AL5 4TQ.
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Cut price membership? ● Daniel Green (86) adds his thoughts to the membership debate. I received my recent OA Bulletin and read your editorial with interest. The forwarding letter enclosed reminded me that it was the last edition before my membership expired and asked me for £15 p.a. to renew. I will not be renewing and thought you would appreciate this letter to explain why. All I want is to keep in touch with what my peers are up to and maybe to understand any developments at the School. £15 p.a. is far, far too expensive for that. I am not interested in your rugby club or your masons or even your fishing. Within that context I am really not sure why the membership should be so expensive. If I were you, I would have a ‘cut down’ membership – maybe £1 p.a. or even free. For that you would get an e-mail newsletter once a year. I think friendsreunited is really good. You talk about £5 membership fee, but basically it is free (for those who don’t wish to contact peers). I hope this helps you explain why not a lot of people are wanting to join or renew their membership of the OAs. Hopefully, the announcement of the new (and entirely free) online members’ service will persuade Daniel to reconsider. See the President’s Notes on page 5 and Membership Secretary’s Notes on page 14 to find out more – Editor
Esprit de Corps ● Andrew Firth (61) recalls his days in the CCF and his continuing interest in military matters. I noticed Arthur Lewis’s letter in the October 2003 Bulletin, wondering what had happened to the OTC. I enjoyed my time in the CCF (as it was by then) at school between 1957 (I think) and 1961. It was one of the few school activities where I felt I achieved anything. I was very pleased when Percy Pryke awarded me a red lanyard. (How important those sort of things were in those days!) I was appointed to be an understudy in the Quartermaster’s stores sited in a shack-like structure in what I think was an old stable block (was it called ‘The Stable Block’? Wasn’t ‘Doc’ Coles rumoured to have kept his horse there before the war?). Across a pathway was the Armoury which was at the side of the school canteen on the ground floor level of the old hat factory. Teaching me useful things in the QM’s stores, like the official way to fold battledress blouses, were Paul Lawrence and his ‘superior’ Rod Wilson. I was followed by the rather more colourful figure of Jon Cohen who went on to become CQMS and Cadet Sergeant Major. I did volunteer to learn the bugle, but lasted just two weeks at it, because my parents banished me to the garage for practice. Several of my notes used to hit a harmonic with the metal garage door, which annoyed
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the neighbours even more than the wheezy notes I produced. In the interests of neighbourliness, my folks suggested I try something else. As with most other topics for me at school, I ran out of enthusiasm for the CCF in the Upper Sixth achieving merely my sergeant’s stripes. I left school in July 1961, joining a firm of solicitors local to me in Welwyn Garden City, where I signed Articles of Clerkship for a five year term. The starting pay was a mere £1.00 a week. (Fortunately the days of your parents paying the solicitor to take you on had passed!). I looked for ways to increase my income and, thinking back to my CCF sergeant’s stripes, volunteered for the then St Albans TA unit, 286th (Hertfordshire & Bedfordshire Yeomanry) Field Regiment, Royal Artillery. That’s a story for another day, but I could mention that among the local TA Gunners I found a number of OAs including Rich Hopkins, then a sergeant, Lt Phil Brown and Capt Ian Forsyth. A year or so later, three more OAs signed on as Officer Cadets: Neil McGregor, John Davies and the ever enthusiastic Jon Cohen (who, alone of us, went on to command the successor sub-unit). I retain my interest (from a short distance) in military matters, and the local TA units in particular. In the last few years I have helped to support the publication of the history of the Hertfordshire Yeomanry and Artillery, written by John Sainsbury, a former colleague in the Regiment and, as it happens, a close neighbour. In answer to Arthur’s question, the
School Corps was founded in 1902 or 1903 by the Headmaster Captain E Montague Jones, and in 1908 it joined the Junior Division of the newly formed Officers’ Training Corps (OTC). Shortly after the outbreak of the war in 1939, it was announced that all candidates for commissions in HM Forces would have to serve a minimum period in the ranks, and appointment direct to commissions from the OTC ceased. The title of the Corps was accordingly changed in September 1940, when the Junior Division of the OTC became the Junior Training Corps (JTC). In 1948 JTC contingents became part of the Combined Cadet Force (CCF).
Losing touch ● Gerald Batty (48) writes via e-mail: It is a matter of great regret for me not to be nearer St Albans but that’s just one of those things. I did manage to get up to Founders’ Day three or four years ago and had hoped to come this year but something urgent cropped up. You [Roger Cook] must have been in the same year as Robert Garnier and/or Bryan Straker and Raymond Lait. We always used to walk to school together via King Harry Lane, weather permitting. I was a year junior to the latter two but have completely lost touch with all three. I last saw Garnier at the Int Corps Depot in 1950 when he was newly commissioned and I was going through the demob formalities. I saw Bryan’s father George quite often during the 1960s or 70s when family
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affairs sometimes took me through Petersfield whither he had retired. I am in contact on and off with Anthony Lane who has been a mine of OA information. Sadly, he is now increasingly troubled with arthritis so he cannot easily write and has no computer – or not when I last saw him. Fortunately, Anthony is still able to contribute regularly to the OA Bulletin – see his letter below. Editor
Lost – and found ● Anthony J Lane (48) successfully tracks down a contemporary. In the October 1999 Bulletin I reminisced about some of the names that appeared in the first OA Directory – and some of those for which we looked, but failed to find. J H Knopf (49) was one of the latter, he having been in the Athletics team and unbeatable over a mile; and after beating the School record two years running, going on to compete for Cambridge over that distance and in the three miles (W T Marsh’s event). In fact, he also broke the record for two miles in one Varsity Match. No one seemed to know anything of him. It was only when I had cause to contact Gerald Batty, another contemporary, that he claimed to have seen a notice-board somewhere in Southampton, describing a J H Knopf as Minister of the local Unitarian Church. Recourse to the Southampton phone directory soon put me in touch with John, only for me to find that he had had to retire
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from his ministry, of all ironies being pretty much disabled by something like Motor Neurone Disease. It must have been a couple of years after that that I chanced to take advantage of a break in the weather one afternoon for a stroll. Literally just round the corner I failed to mind my own business and crossed the road to look at a notice-board in someone’s garden. Just then, by another chance, the householder, on whom I’d never before clapped eyes, came into his front garden trundling a wheelbarrow. It turned out in conversation that a Unitarian meeting was to be held that night in his bungalow, addressed by the Minister of the Southampton Unitarian Church. I remarked straight away that I had known his predecessor in that office. To my amazement I was informed that John, in remission, was due to attend that meeting, being driven there by his wife Brenda, daughter of the master who had taught us both history in the Sixth Form, Mr H E Wortley. We duly met for ten minutes, for the first time since I’d seen him at Selwyn College nearly fifty years before. Being a rather enthusiastic Trinitarian I declined a kind invitation to attend the meeting, but I was able to fill in the gaps in my knowledge of John’s career in athletics, having the opportunity also, with Brenda there, to pay tribute to Mr Wortley and his teaching. However, Mr Heather was the greater influence in my Sixth Form days, since I was going to read
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English. The OA Directory gave me an address for his son, so I was able to send him a similar tribute when I saw his father’s death recorded. He most kindly wrote back, sending me a copy of Further Advanced English Exercises by his father, which Longmans had published. This really gave Mr Heather deserved status in his profession, with four other of his textbooks getting into print. All this has previously been quite unknown to me. Others of my generation will no doubt be as delighted as I was to learn of this accolade which came to Mr Heather after our time. He later became Second Master, so many OAs will remember him as such. Due to his droopy moustache and rather lugubrious way of speaking, Philip Heather had the alliterative nickname ‘Happy’. Mr Ernest Nightingale we knew as ‘Uncle Ernie’ because of the relaxed lesson he always gave just before Christmas every year and which he called “Uncle Ernie’s Christmas Party.” He had also produced a textbook, no doubt long out-dated, but from which he taught us physics. A neighbour of mine, formerly a physics teacher himself, well remembers learning the subject from the book by E Nightingale. A final word about nicknames – I was amused to discover from the May 2003 Bulletin that Barry Phillips had acquired one during his short time back on the School staff. I say this since I think he himself might have been responsible for dubbing Mr A J Coles ‘Doc-O-Doc’, and for
saddling Mr G E Pryke, a prefect in our day, with the nickname ‘Percy’.
History repeated ● Biddy Hodge congratulates the School on its continuing excellence. Last week I was delighted to receive two copies of The Albanian 2003, one of which I passed to Michael Hodge (65). I do not know how I qualify for receiving this, but I know how much I enjoy reading it. Every word! I can only add that I can only send you my thanks and all our congratulations on such a wonderful and continuing record of such excellence. I am hoping not to have to die just yet, but when that does happen I shall know that the School is greater and more special than ever before. And yet history does repeat itself. I can remember when on Speech Day the seniors acted a Greek play. In Greek, of course, and I was probably seven years old – not a real scholar at that time, 80 years ago… We lived at Monastery Close with ‘our’ boarders from September 1921 until 1932 when my father retired as Housemaster. Regularly he took me across to see Mrs Woollam at this time, in her garden. Once I asked him why we went to see her so often, and he said “she’s very lonely, because she has no children of her own.” We did not ask “why?” in those days, of course, and I have often thought just how much the Woollams couple contributed to the children of the city. And it goes on now – for ever.
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Our Man in Basra ● OA Committee Member Calvin Man (91) announces his deployment to Iraq. Unfortunately, I will be unable to play a full part in the OA Committee until later in the year as I have been called away for the next few months. As some of you are aware, I was a Regular Army Officer and still serve in the Territorial Army. I have recently been served compulsory mobilisation papers by the Ministry of Defence and will be deploying to Iraq for six months from April. I am being posted to Headquarters 1 Mechanised Brigade and will be the Officer responsible for the restoration and provision of essential services (mainly power, water and fuel supplies) for Basra and a large part of south-east Iraq. Although the details have yet to filter down, my role is likely to involve co-ordinating the activities of military engineers, local contractors and the international engineering firms within the Brigade’s area of responsibility as well as ensuring the security of key infrastructure. Although a major change from the investment banking environment to which I am now used, it will be an exciting opportunity to play my part in helping to improve the situation in Iraq. I am sure that I will gain from the experience. I look forward to seeing you all on my (safe) return in October and to receiving news by e-mail from the home front during my absence at
calvin.man@calvinman.co.uk
Drum role ● D J Higson (51) has recently rejoined the OA Club, and writes from Australia. In the October 2003 Bulletin I was particularly interested in the latter and photograph from Arthur Lewis, one of my predecessors with the bass drum. I have a photograph somewhere of the Corps Band marching down St Peter’s Street behind drum major Titch (Basil, Trevor?) Tyson, circa 1950. I well remember Baumgartner and Argent but I think they had moved on by the time that I was performing. I also liked the 1948 Pageant photograph. I could easily be one of the participants but could not possibly recognise myself. Until about a year ago, I had entirely lost touch with contemporary OAs, apart from a few casual encounters while at university 50 years ago and when wandering around St Peter’s Street during visits to Wheathampstead. We went to Australia in 1964, had two years back in 1967-69 and have lived in Sydney since then. My brother, Mike, and his family moved to Staffordshire and then (sometime during the 1970s) my parents moved to that part of the country too, so we stopped going anywhere near St Albans when we visited England. Then, last year, Roger Seymour telephoned out of the blue, having seen my name in the Sydney telephone directory. It turned out
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that he had spent a fair bit of time in NSW and now lives a few hours’ drive up the coast. We haven’t actually managed to get together yet but he provided me with e-mail contacts for half a dozen or so old friends around the world. When I announced that I would be in England in February 2004, first of all Bryan Waldron suggested that we meet for lunch then Geoff Goodman rallied all available contemporaries around to join in. It was a bit of a pity that no wives were included, as several of them are also old friends. However, Naomi could not be there either, for health reasons.
Wartime memories ● A barrister who spent 40 years as a lawyer in the newspaper industry, F L ‘Pat’ Tyler (41) remembers his wartime School generation. It is some time now since an updated casualty list of OAs from the Second World War was published but I want to put on record my appreciation of this document on behalf of my generation who left School during the war. My School years were 193241, all under W T Marsh. As Editor of The Albanian during the last year I was involved with casualty lists which were so heavy among our young pilots. Army casualties remained relatively light. The School itself was directly involved after the Dunkirk affair when teams from the OTC unloaded wounded soldiers from trains to ambulances which took them to local
hospitals. We mounted night guards in the Armoury expecting an invasion! The blackout and travelling problems meant that most school societies (apart from the OTC) had curtailed activities and we all studied ‘Infantry Section Leading’ by a certain Major B L Montgomery, of whom more was to be heard! My friend Paul Webster (son of the master) was SCM of the OTC and we were advised by the General during the Corps inspection to go to Cambridge for a year before actually joining the Army. The result of this was that the El Alamein battle was almost over before we joined. Paul, who was in the Tanks, eventually found himself in charge of a mobile unit looking after a huge territory in Eritrea with camels and mules instead of tanks! The effect of joining up so late was that we had a much shorter war than many! I went the more conventional route in the Signals: Arromanches (D + 7 landing in perfect weather), Bayeaux, Caen, Rouen, Brussels, Osnabruck. We were bombed waiting in a huge queue to land by the Mulberry Harbour (not then complete) but once landed I never saw another German aeroplane until Christmas – although there were a few V1s over Brussels. How lucky can you get in an invasion? My wife and I have had a 15th Century house in the Dordogne for 15 years but are in the process of selling. We have visited the grave of my mother’s first husband, killed on the Somme on 1st July 1916. My
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father fought in Afghanistan in 191819. My wife’s war service was at Bletchley Park and we have attended various celebrations of ‘Anciens Combatants’ in France on 11th November at which we remember our comrades – but we also reflect that two of our children have reached 50 without any involvement in war. Long may that state of affairs continue!
A dark secret ● Ian Watson (’53) reveals a dark sporting secret… I noticed in the October 2003 Bulletin that Tony Hedge’s letter concerning the disastrous 1952 cricket season was written from Canada. It is one of the School’s dark secrets that many of the 1952 XI were forced to flee the country. As Johnny Holt’s letter was written from New Zealand, I think we might assume that the 1951 season wasn’t too good either.
Safe house ● John Billington (55) has just joined the OA Club after nearly 50 years! I was sorry to read that such a small percentage of old boys belong to the Club: I had somehow assumed that I was unusual in not belonging. I looked – largely in vain – for reference to contemporaries but found few apart from Tony Hedge (52) and Bloxham and Jarry (staff). I joined Woollams as a boarder in 1949 and greatly enjoyed it under the
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tenure of the hawk-like Geoffrey Pryke and his sidekick, whose name temporarily eludes me. There were some fairly mad people in the house at the time, including a Whittingham and Cook whose first names escape me (the former, in one of his mad rushed along the corridor, put his arm through a glass door and severed a vein). There was a cellar below stairs which contained a large iron safe (is it still there?) which myself and another maniac by the name of Peter Ball adopted as a sort of private study – you could just squeeze in two people – until Geoffrey in one of his forays to stoke the boiler overheard us giggling inside, which put an end to that caper. Woollams closed down in about 1952 and the boarders there were transferred to School House under the mildly irascible and autocratic rule of W T Marsh. This period saw my induction into the world of traditional jazz under another obsessive by the name of Harrison, and I still enjoy listening to it – like Philip Larkin, discounting all progress since the mid-1950s! I left in 1955 for Oxford (Teddy Hall) but, of course, remember many staff with pleasure, including Bloxham (for the First XV), ‘Happy’ Heather and MacLellan as English teachers, and others whose names escape me but will no doubt return as your Bulletin becomes more familiar. In 1958 I went to India (Bombay) to teach and took Salman Rushdie for private tuition in Latin in 1961 – something that would make W T
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laugh as I was hopeless at the subject, as indeed Salman Rushdie would soon discover. Later I moved on to Darjeeling before returning to the UK in 1965. I then taught at Repton School in Derbyshire (as Head of English) and remained there until retiring in 1996. In retirement I run a project for GAP Activity (Reading) – Tibetans in India – and make regular visits to India (I’ve just come back) and to Tibet. My chief leisure activity is tennis though I have a large garden and a couple of llamas here in mid-Wales. In the 48 years since I left I have met only one OA whom I recognised (Ray Pahl, who left about 1952-53), and oddly enough I met him twice: once in London about 25 years ago, and once earlier this year in nearby Bishop’s Castle. Distance probably precludes my joining you on anything other than a rare occasion but I’ll keep an eye open for a suitable event.
An ex-pat life ● Keith Atkinson (61) describes his life abroad as an ex-pat. I left the School in 1961. The one event I still remember vividly was playing Helen of Troy in Tiger at the Gates, with Mick (‘Four Weddings’) Newell and Martin Smith (now ENO Chairman). I did the unthinkable and went into chartered accountancy – “I think we’ve had one of them before” said WT Marsh at my so-called career counselling. He hadn’t got a clue about the non-academic world. My
most inspiring teacher? JMK Finley – thanks so much. After a spell in the UK I left for Kuwait in the 1970s, mainly to escape the horrors of Ted Heath’s three-day weeks and union-run Britain. What an eye-opener working as an ex-pat for the first time; for a visionary Kuwaiti entrepreneur unlimited by taxes, exchange controls, unions or other constraints. But heat and dust were not conducive to bringing up babies so we returned to Europe, and I worked as VP-Finance for a major Hollywood international film distributor – wellpaid and great fun but raw, snarling red-toothed capitalism at its most scary. So when my mid-life crisis struck (at about 42) we decided that enough was enough and that expatriate life was altogether more amenable. I joined Lonrho under the infamous Tiny Rowlands and soon found myself in Nairobi, Kenya, where we stayed for 16 years. Wonderful experiences: game parks, scenery, lovely people and a really challenging business environment. Our three kids still say the Banda, Nairobi was the best school they ever attended. By the time I retired three years ago at 58, I found myself (to my own great surprise) as CEO of a London-listed PLC. And then the real fun began! We had bought an old property in Provence and decided to retire there. Numerous euros later it is liveable and surprise, surprise, we found Andy and Rosie Barnes living a few miles to the north. We found we had
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both married on exactly the same day in 1970. But the climate in Provence is harsh – hot summers (last year, forest fires came to within four miles of our house) and cold boring winters. So we bought a golf condo at Naples, Florida to pass the winters – very agreeably! Recently on a short cruise in the Caribbean we met up with Richard Lee (67), who is now firmly settled in San Francisco. Andy Barnes was more a contemporary of my brother Paul (64) who some of you may remember as a Zombie. A St Albans group, they had great success in the 1960s – especially in the US – with ‘She’s not there’, ‘Tell her no’ and ‘Time of the season’. He went on to become a highly successful record executive – an A&R man – en route discovering and signing ABBA among many others. He moved to the States about 20 years ago but recently times have not been so good for him. First a liver transplant that went wrong, necessitating a second transplant, the kidney failure for which he needs regular dialysis and finally inoperable cancer which he is bravely bearing. In recognition of his contribution to the music business his colleagues and many of the artistes he signed up recently held a benefit concert for him at the House of Blues, Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles. He received a special industry award, and plaudits from many well-known names. The Zombies (including Paul) got back on stage in the US for the first time in 30 years and the evening
finished with a 30 minute session from Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys playing many of their greatest hits – “for you, Paul.” I was proud to be there for my little brother. Sadly, Paul recently lost his brave fight against cancer and passed away on 1st April 2004. See the obituary on page 22 – Editor
Big Tuckers ● Mike Walker (39) identifies some of the 1936 Athletics team (pictured right) Thanks for recent Bulletin – as enjoyable as ever. I notice there are no names on the photo of the 1936 Athletic team on page 27. Too little space or lack of data? I can do a few for you (the figure after each shows the percentage certainty): Back row from left: GF Taylor (85); No bid; ‘Little’ Tucker (100); No bid; JG (John) Hartley (100); “On the tip of my tongue but no bid.” Front row: No bid; Ian Harrison (75); Ken Bréhaut (75); ? Seager (40); ‘Big’ Tucker (100). Comments: I’d be pretty sure of Kenny Bréhaut except that I cannot recall any athletic prowess on his part at all. The Tucker brothers were in School House. One was large, the other was enormous. So big, in fact, that he couldn’t usefully bind in the scrum (where all big lads went automatically) but was converted to being a centre-threequarter and was very fast and difficult to stop. He was nearly as fast as John Hartley who
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was good at everything except long distance running, so his younger brother David Hartley took care of that. One year the brothers Hartley (from Welyn GC) came first in every senior event, with John doing the weight and high jump as well. He also won a big Public schools event at the White City doing the hundred yards (the quaint old unmetric soul that he was) in (I think) 10.4 secs. They are both now (if still alive) in Australia.
History repeated ● O M A Butler (40) writes from Australia, recalling another long unbeaten run for the School 1st XV over 60 years ago. May I refer to Headmaster Andrew Grant’s ‘Notes’ in your May 2003 issue and – with congratulations to
the undefeated School XVs of 2002 (almost!) and with all due deference to Mr Grant – delve into pre-history? This is simply to record that during the seasons 1939-40, 1940-41 and 1941-42 the School 1st XV lost one match only. For the first and last of these years they were undefeated. With the onset of war and evacuation of schools from London we lost the Rutlish and Emmanuel fixtures but these were more than replaced by four Hertfordshire schools to give us a full fixture list. The single match lost was, coincidentally – and I can quote verbatim from the Headmaster’s Notes – “perhaps significantly, an away fixture at Merchant Taylors.” Thus history, surprisingly, repeats itself. All the old enemies – one of them for the first time in history – and all but MT of the new ones lost their scalps.
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I would like to have named names, anyway for the year I captained the side, but that could be an invidious exercise since, I confess, a few names have slipped beyond memory. Still, possibly (and hopefully) some teammates will read this and respond. As a personal footnote: I took my 1st XV shirt, shorts and socks with me into the Royal Navy, hoping there might be a game somewhere, some time. But opportunities proved few – too much sea-time in the ‘Med’ during those years! – and before an opportunity arose I lost the lot to an army nurse whom we pulled from the sea when her hospital ship lying next to us – fully lit and emblazoned – was bombed and sunk one night off Sicily. I never saw them again.
Back in touch ● Peter Riley (’41) sends us a treasured snapshot from his schooldays. I am a new member of the OA Club but by now longish in the tooth. I left the School in 1941 and have many happy memories. I was a boarder and
Four amigos: left to right, David Marsh, Garret, John Hancock, Peter Riley
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the Headmaster was, of course, W T Marsh. I expect many things have changed since I was there. I enclose a snap (below) I have kept for 62 years, of four happy rugby supporters on the way to a key game. On the left is David Marsh (the Headmaster’s son), and next to him is Garret, although I can’t remember his initial. The third was my best friend John Hancock, who was killed in a car accident in South Africa in 1951, and the last is yours truly – although I looked younger then! I would be interested to hear any news of the first two names, and am happy to have reestablished contact.
French leave ● Roger Bradshaw (56) writes from France via e-mail: Oui, c’est moi – Roger Bradshaw! Learning French fast after moving to France this year. Only very dim memories of failing French four times at O Level. I have given up sprinting down the wing but have very happy memories of my time with OARFC and am getting fitter on
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red wine, good food and plenty of activity so who knows? A bit about myself: I left School in 1956 and went to Imperial College with Robert Aubrey – one of the few OAs I still meet, the other being Tony West (55) and Nick Holmes (57?). My closest friend Richard Chaplin (‘Charlie’) died in a tractor accident in 1957 – I still miss his sparkling fun. Mechanical Engineering gave way rapidly to working with George Roberts and Bruce Duncan with Displaced Persons in Germany and the setting up of the Eastern Ravens in Teesside in 1960 – for which I was undeservedly awarded an MBE. In ICI I moved on from engineering to management training and consultancy and then left to set up my own private practice leading to my working with many large companies. I have a good collection of photos of the 1955-56 era which I shall look out – they are somewhere in all the boxes waiting to be unpacked. I would welcome meeting old friends or hearing from them!
News from the Cape ● Mrs Antoinette Gibbons writes on behalf of her father Stanley Reece (30). I am writing on behalf of my father S G Reece, who has come to live with my family (his eldest daughter and two grandsons) on a Karoo sheep farm since the death of my mother, Mrs Patricia Alice Reece, last year. Dad turned 89 this in May this year
and his short-term memory is not good, but he talks a lot about his youth in St Albans, his years of actively playing soccer and the war years which he served in the South African Air Force, having been advised by the British Air Ministry that in view of his age at the time they would not need him to enlist with the British Armed Services. He was sent out to South Africa by John Dickensons, who trained him in the paper business, but his heart was finally with the growth and development of the South African paper industry (SAPPI) after the war. Dad was a meticulous record keeper and annotated scrapbooks, writing names and details beside photographs. He therefore has photographs of the St Albans Scouts Football Club for 1932 and the St Albans City Football Club 1934 and 1935. On one of those photographs he wrote: “Winners Amateur FA Cup at Newbury Park, Ilford, 1934, when I was 20 years old and the youngest player in the team.” After he retired to Natures Valley, Dad made two summaries of phases in his life, in beautifully neat longhand writing. One was about his post-war business experiences with SAPPI, and the other about his love of sport. Not long ago someone asked him what he thought of the big sporting spectacles of today, and he commented reflectively: “Of course, when I played, we paid to play, it cost us, but that was our pleasure. Now, they are paid to play.” I am sure his old school had much t do with the adult he became – a true gentleman,
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always well mannered, kind, considerate and humorous. He still has two little black books with ‘Mediocria Firma’ on the cover, and a certificate pasted inside the cover, completed in beautiful copperplate writing by E Montague-Jones. The books were published in 1925 and the Foreword states: “Privileges bring responsibilities.” Dad grew up at 44 Brampton Road, St Albans, and was a babe in arms when the First World War broke out. His oldest brother, Horace E Reece, died of gas poisoning in the Battle of Loos on 25th September 1916 and is recorded in the St Albans Roll of Honour and the Old Albanian Roll of Service. His father, Walter Reece, had a business based in Hamilton, Bermuda, where he died after a short illness on 3rd September 1941, around four years after my father had been sent out to South Africa in March 1937. His fatherly letters of advice to his son Stanley are concerned and caring, and it was possible fortunate for Walter that he never learned that another of the Reece boys, my father’s favourite brother who had gone to New Zealand in 1928, died in the Military Hospital, Altamura, Italy on 29th July 1942, having gone missing in Libya in December 1941 and the being located as a prisoner of war. His letters home, pleading for food to be sent to the prisoners, were kept in St Albans by another brother, Sydney, and apparently the family and the Red Cross were sending food parcels but they never arrived. When his brother died my father was in North Africa, serving with the South
African Air Force, 12 Bomber Squadron, where he received a telegram. The news must have been doubly sad because he had missed seeing his brother in Cairo before the New Zealand forces were moved out. After the war Dad visited St Albans in 1948, and attended the annual dinner dance of the St Albans Football Club, from which he kept a menu with many autographs and a photograph signed by ‘B Butcher’. In 1959 Dad took us all to visit his family in England, and when he visited his old school during the Masters’ mid-morning tea break, ‘Beery’ Webster apparently instructed him to state the years that he had attended the school and then commented: “You must be Reece, the footballer.” Dad’s reply was “Yes, but you disappoint me, Sir.” “No, no, no, don’t ‘Sir’ me, but why do I disappoint you?” “Well, Ihad hoped to be remembered more for academic achievement than sporting ability.” “Oh, well, you haven’t done too badly, have you?” replied Beery Webster. This has been one of Dad’s favourite anecdotes, linked to the fact that he played soccer at a rugby playing school. Dad says that a Sergeant Major Charles Argent, who organised the PT classes, the school boxing contests and also trained the OTC, was an ardent soccer enthusiast. With the full approval of the Headmaster, Major MontagueJones, Charlie Argent organised the soccer games at school even though the ‘soccerites’ as they were called, were hardly tolerated. After dad retired from SAPPI my parents
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visited England fairly often, and on one occasion, I think in 1976, Dad visited Beery Webster in his own home. Dad was upset after that visit because he was told that the old fellow had kept his garden immaculate, but that he had neighbours who were constantly throwing their rubbish over the fence or garden wall, and littering Mr Webster’s property. I think I have written because of comments in past magazines about dear old Beery Webster – but also because Dad has such fond memories of St Albans, though never about the English weather! I hope that he will continue to enjoy your OA Bulletins for a good few more years.
Royal approval ● Stephen Neal (53) recalls his role in the 1948 Millenary Pageant in front of the King and Queen. The letters from Tony Hedge and John Holt have prompted me in turn to record one or two memories of the same era. Tony Hedge may feel ashamed of the record of the 1952 Cricket First XI but I can assure him that it was capped by that of the Rugby First XV during the following season. We were certainly handicapped by having no players with any previous First XV experience. Our first match against Haberdashers set the pattern for the whole season – a comfortable defeat. I can still picture WTM striding away from Belmont in disgust having endured the first 20 minutes or so,
never to be seen again on the touchline that season! My enduring recollection of John Holt was his habit of biting off chunks of flesh from the callouses on his hands during English lessons – these caused by all that cricket practice with Peter Lord. An exasperated Mr ‘Happy’ Heather was driven countless times to ask “Hungry, Holt?” with measured sarcasm. I took part in the Millenary Pageant in 1948. The School was responsible for one episode portraying the visit to the School in 1626 of King Charles (L G Walker). A brief history of the School was enacted in mime by the boys. I played the part of a small Saxon schoolboy (with sacks on!) who was not at all keen on attending his lessons. I can remember my cue to this day, delivered by the Chronicler, Jo Barnett, in his cut-glass accent: “In the year nine hundred and forty-eight, A school was set up at the Abbey Gate. Boys came from far, they came from near, Some came willingly, some, I fear, Had to be coaxed, or goaded or led, To hear the lessons the master said.” My ‘father’, Ron Simon, dragged me unwillingly to my fate, but at an opportune moment I tried, unsuccessfully, to make a dash for it. He grabbed me by the arm and gave me a hefty boot up the backside. I am
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sure I heard the Queen (later Queen Mother) chuckle at my misfortune on the day she attended! At the end of the Pageant a cast of over 1,000 paraded into the arena to the stirring music of William Walton’s march ‘Crown Imperial’. To this day, I get a certain tingle every time I hear it! I still have in my possession my souvenir programme for the Pageant, together with the special Herts Advertiser supplement which gives a fascinating descriptive and pictorial account of the Pageant and includes a record of everyone who took part. I also have a copy of the latter from the Queen to the organisers expressing her appreciation. The School is welcome to add these to the archives if they are of interest.
A confession ● Trevor Forecast (50) owns up to his part in a near-miss at the 1948 Pageant. I would like to add to the memories of Peter Lord who lived for cricket in those happy Junior School days, and talked of nothing else on our journeys to School from Radlett on the 355 bus. I had the pleasure of playing with Peter and John Holt in the Junior School XI and invariably, when I timidly made my way to the wicket at Number Seven, there would be Peter with his permanent grin at the other end or John fluently laying about him. I also have a confession to make to John Holt following his description of the 1948 Pageant (OA Bulletin
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October 2003). I was a mounted page, John, and I was in the group of horses that charged out of the arena, somewhat out of control, and nearly ran you down! Glad to hear you are enjoying Marlborough, we enjoy their wines!
Community spirit ● Gerald Wallington-Hayes MBE (48) recalls a long career of public service. I left School in 1948 after being a dismal academic failure (although just managing to scrape through School Certificate at the second attempt) and did my National Service stint like everyone else at that time, dismally and disappointingly failing to pass out of Sandhurst and thence leaving the Army with nothing to show for my time under the colours – except for having had a wonderful period of exhilarating sport and outdoor activities. However, I then went into the Merchant Navy, joining the P&O Steam Navigation Company in May 1952 as an Assistant Purser, marrying in August 1952 and leaving that company to join The Ellerman Lines to become a Purser. For the next 12 years I travelled the world visiting exotic (and not so exotic) places, savouring the tastes and smells of the Middle and Far East, the Antipodes, the USA and various European ports of call, as well as studying for my catering exams which I passed at sea under the hot Persian Gulf sun, supervised by the Master of the ship in which I was
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then sailing. A few years later, young Dick Thrale supported my election to Fellow of the Association, for which I thank him for his generosity. Due to family reasons, among them being that my wife was having to raise our family on her own, I left the sea to swallow the anchor in 1968 and found myself as Catering Bursar in an ILEA Teacher Training College at Egham, Surrey. Fortunately, after only 12 months I was appointed by Trinity House to set up a Catering Establishment based at Harwich in Essex, and as their Catering Superintendant established a network of suppliers to the Lighthouse Authority covering the whole of England and Wales, which meant years travelling the length and breadth of the country. Unfortunately, due to the reduction of the Tender Fleet (maintenance vessels for navigational aids – buoys and lighthouses) the Catering Department was closed down in 1985, and I was made redundant, as was my staff. From the time that my family and I had moved to Harwich in 1969, I had become very involved with the local community in all sorts of ways (apart from carrying out my work with Trinity House) as one does! My involvement with Local Government was my main interest and as a District and Town Councillor I eventually became Vice Chairman of the District Council (I lost my seat in the Election Year that I should have been Chairman) and then became Mayor of Harwich in 1988 for one year, remaining on the Town Council
until 1992. Meantime, my work with the District Council meant, among other nominations, that I had been nominated to serve on the North Essex Area Health Authority and the North East Essex District Health Authority from 1975 and on their dissolution I was appointed to the North East Essex Mental Health Trust. When that Trust was dissolved I was appointed to the North Essex Mental Health Partnership Trust as an Associate Mental Health Act Hospital Manager. Last year I wrote a ‘Hospital Manager’s Handbook’ (Mental Health Act 1983) which I am pleased to say has been generally accepted as a primary book on the subject. Apart from these activities I am actively involved as a Trustee, President, Vice President, Chairman or Vice Chairman of many and various Associations, Clubs and Groups in and around the area, mainly concerned with youth and the elderly. The consequence of this frenetic activity is that I have been appointed a Member of the British Empire in the 2004 New Year’s Honours List. Unfortunately, the Queen did not appoint me ‘Baron’ as WTM had given me that sobriquet during my years at School! In August 2002, my wife Peggy and I celebrated our 50th Wedding Anniversary, a very happy event not celebrated too often these days – and one has to bear in mind that we have not spent too much time together over the years. Perhaps that’s why our marriage has lasted so long…
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Woollams Update
Sporting success ■ Chairman of OA Sport Andrew Mills-Baker reviews the growing range of sporting activities at Woollams OA Sport has just completed 18 months of operation at Woollams. Under the management of Neil Dekker, utilisation of the facilities continues to grow and our reputation for the quality of facilities and the excellence of our hospitality is now second to none. Over the winter months OA Rugby continued to grow its membership, particularly in the Minis and Juniors section. The new women’s team, OA Saints, quickly established themselves and, at the time of writing, are running second in their league. OA Football has enjoyed a successful second season at Woollams, once again challenging for league honours and boosting membership. Rugby was given a terrific boost in the autumn months with England’s success in the Rugby World Cup. All England’s games were shown live on the big screen in the pavilion bar, with overall attendances running into many hundreds. In the early autumn, the new floodlights on the main competition and training pitches were brought into operation. This meant that Saturday home league fixtures could continue to start at 3.00 pm. As well as proving very popular with spectators, it greatly facilitates the logistics on the day, particularly where visiting sides are travelling a
considerable distance. It was agreed that Saracens 2nd Team would play its home games at Woollams and between December and March there were regular Monday night visits from top Premiership sides, enabling members to see rising stars and established internationals in exciting fast flowing matches. Rugby League was established as a summer sport last season and in March a floodlit warm-up match was played between a London Broncos side and the London Barbarians. St Albans Centurions continue to attract new members and their National League fixtures dovetail well with OA Cricket’s Hertfordshire League matches. OAs and their guests are very welcome to visit Woollams at any time. Over the summer, cricket and rugby league will be played every weekend, and OA Tennis will be fielding two teams in the mid week Watford League. On Monday 10th May the Rugby World Cup was on display at Woollams, as part of the Sweet Chariot Tour. Details of the activities taking place at Woollams can be viewed on the website, www.oasport.com or telephone enquiries to Neil Dekker on 01727 864476. Proposal to convert the Old Albanian Sports Association into a charity In recent years the Government has introduced a number of measures designed to improve the tax treatment of sports clubs. This is because it is acknowledged that community sports clubs provide an
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important social benefit to the local community and they should receive equivalent benefits to registered charities. The route offered for the majority of sports clubs is registration with the Inland Revenue as a Community Amateur Sports Club (‘CASC’). The principal benefits of registration, for most clubs, is mandatory relief from business rates at a rate of 80% and the ability to receive donations under the arrangements of Gift Aid. The Old Albanian Sports Association (‘OASA’) (which is marketed as ‘OA Sport’) is an Industrial and Provident Society which owns and manages the
facilities at Woollams. The management of OASA has taken professional advice to establish whether it can be registered as a CASC, unfortunately, for a number of technical difficulties, this is not easy to do and therefore a proposal is currently being taken forward to convert OASA to a sports charity. The effect of this conversion will provide equivalent benefits of CASC status and also additional benefits that are not available to CASCs. A detailed paper setting out in detail the results of the review and the reasoning behind conversion to charitable status has been presented to the Old Albanian Club Committee
The 1954 School 1st XV. How many can you name?
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and approved by them, as the majority shareholder in OASA. One of the most significant impacts of achieving charitable status is that once registered, it cannot be reversed. This means that on any winding up, the assets of the charity must be distributed for the public benefit. This, in effect, is no different with the present constitution of OASA which requires assets on winding up to be distributed to St Albans School. This proposal is subject to approval of the Members of OASA in an Extraordinary General Meeting to be held later in the summer. If any OA would like more information, please contact me using the Woollams address. The 948 Sports Foundation OASA established The 948 Sports Foundation as a sports charity with a donation of £500,000 made under Gift Aid arrangements. The Foundation has been established to make grants to young people participating in sport in the St Albans district. The Foundation was launched at a reception attended by the Mayor in February 2003 and began making awards from April onwards. This February the Foundation held its first Annual Review and, at a presentation again attended by the Mayor, it reported that over £25,000 had been donated to over 25 local schools, sports clubs and individuals. The Chairman of the Trustees is Nigel Seale, a former President of OA Rugby and the Trustees include a number of OAs and other individuals
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who have been involved over the years with the OA Sporting Clubs. The Foundation would be delighted to receive a donation from OAs under the Gift Aid Scheme and a letter setting out a request is included with the Bulletin. This could be done in the form of a one-off amount or by regular standing order, if an individual would prefer. Andrew Mills-Baker Chairman, OA Sport
OA RUGBY
Blank Czech ■ OA Rugby Club President Ali Mills looks back on an up and down campaign for the First XV but a good season for the Club overall – including a fantastic tour to Prague Since my last report, so much has happened during the historic 2003/2004 season, that it is difficult to know where to start. However, I shall try to bring back to mind the various highs and lows of a roller-coaster season for the Club which saw the 1st XV dive into the abyss of threatened relegation in our first season in London One before the New Year, only to produce an outstanding run of wins in the last third of the season to finish a respectable eighth position in the League. We lost to Bishop's Stortford heavily, then Havant twice, once in the League and once in the National Cup. Defeats followed against Staines, Sutton and Epsom,
OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
Worthing, Canterbury and Hertford. Our wins were against fellow strugglers, Camberley and Harlow. The simple fact of life was that we had lost most of the front five from last season for a variety of reasons, thus we were trying to compete in a higher league with a weaker pack. Harry Harrison, Tony Buchanan and Mike Peters did a sterling job on crucial recruitment which undoubtedly helped turn the corner. During November, of course, we had the wonderful distraction of the World Cup and for all those who were not able to be there, it seemed that the only place to be was Woollams. On the day of the final, between four and five hundred of us gathered for breakfast to watch on the big screen and there we stayed for the rest of the day! Back to the rugby, and the great New Year comeback. A win against Camberley, but losses against Havant and Sutton and Epsom. Then it all happened: wins against Harlow, Bishop’s Stortford, London Nigerians (away), Staines and then the scalp of Hertford, the League leaders, whom we smashed 3-0! Then down to Canterbury for a ferocious game which ended with honours even. It was Mike Peters’ last game, a poignant occasion, and he played, as always, as if his life depended on it, the end of a long and illustrious career. Mike Walker has been out for most of this season, and we hope he is on the road to recovery after a nasty shoulder injury. Chris Eke has had another fine season. During the ups and downs, we also
lost our Coach, Phil Moyle, but we have been very fortunate to secure the services of Bruce Millar, former player and ex-Director of Rugby at Saracens, whom I am delighted to inform you, is committed to us for next season. The Club has once more fielded five sides this season and the 2nd XV has had an outstanding season, skippered once more by Ian Haywood. Honours have been even for the rest of the sides who have all taken on higher opposition, as reflecting our new league status. We have also welcomed OA Saints Women’s Rugby who have had a storming season and are now running two sides. OA Saints are to become fully affiliated with the Club from next season. They have contributed to a most successful social season at the Club, one of the highlights of which was the firework display at Woollams, which has proved to be a magnificent ambience for such an event. Our pre-match luncheons are proving to be very popular with VPs and opposition alike – pity about the speakers! We have been holding the Saracens 2nd XV home games at Woollams on Monday nights and even welcomed the London Broncos Rugby League team in a floodlit match against the Centurions. So, as always, the answer is, to get on down to Woollams and get involved with OA Rugby. The season ended with our traditional tour which this year was to Prague. A scratch side played some wonderful rugby to get to the
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final of the Prague International Invitation fifteen-a-side tournament. On the way, we defeated a Dutch side and the much fancied host team, Slavia Prague. However, in the final a strong Blackheath side proved too much for the OAs who had been on the pop all the previous day! Once more, your President felt obliged to attend. I am told that Prague is a beautiful city. I can’t remember. The Mini and Junior Sections continue to flourish and the Club is represented by the U11s at Twickenham, playing in a curtainraiser game on the hallowed turf before the England v Barbarians game, and the U16s who lost by just 3-0 to Stortford in the final of the County Cup. The Club also hosted the County Mini Festival for the first time in its history over the weekend of 24th and 25th April. In conclusion, you can see that it is all happening at OA Rugby. It has been a season which has been a steep learning curve, and one of which we can be very proud. I look forward to seeing you all next season and to meeting new members from the ranks of leavers from the School Ali Mills President OA Rugby Club
OA CRICKET
Worthington best ■ David Rourke welcomes a new overseas player and looks forward to a successful 2004 season As April arrives, daylight hours extend, warmer weather prevails and
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the rugby players leave the cricket outfield for a few months, so thoughts turn to cricket. England’s thrashing of the West Indies has whetted the appetite for the 2004 season, OACC’s third at Woollams, which promises a good deal after the much-needed consolidation of 2003. Robert Bee’s first season as captain in 2003 saw the 1st XI finish in tenth position in the League, but the closing run of four wins, two draws and a single defeat epitomised the development of the side – and Rob’s captaincy – during 2003. A nice mix of youth and experience contributed to a genuine team effort, and success echoed throughout the club. Julian Baines’s 2nd XI finished the season even more strongly, while the 3rd XI under David Goodier were promoted as runners-up from Division 13 at the first attempt. Perhaps even more significantly, the new Colts section proved to be a great success under the dedicated management of Richard Morgan, Paul Richardson and Nigel Woodsmith. Under 11, Under 13 and Under 15 teams will each contest around 10 fixtures in 2004, a long-awaited development which augurs well for the club’s future. The team captains have, unsurprisingly, all been re-appointed for 2004, and they look as if they will be selecting from a strong roster of players. With Shane Worthington replacing his fellow Victorian, Marcus ‘Wally’ Hill, as overseas player, and a number of potential new ‘domestic’ signings to augment the 2003 squad, it seems that
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numbers won’t be a problem – always an important consideration. The superb facilities at Woollams are starting to improve the quality of player at OACC, either from the existing squad or from the potential signings. Membership of the OA Gym remains disappointingly low, however Andrew McCree, Robert Bee, David Rourke and Anthony Goodin are regular users of the machines after Andy Mills-Baker has finished pounding out records on them. New developments for 2004 will include a brand new, electronically controlled scoreboard on the main pitch. Planning permission has been granted and construction will hopefully take place during midApril. This means that the scorers can use the box next to the pavilion, rather than trekking across the ground, and that the conventional scoreboard will be used on the second pitch. Installation of plug sockets by the nets will mean that the automatic bowling machines – beset by battery problems in 2003 – should come into their own this season, particularly as the OA Club has invested in a trailer to ease transportation of them from the shed to the nets. A greater amount of cricket-related material will be put up in the clubhouse over the coming months, as club archive material is unearthed and displayed. Finally, 2004 promises to be the year of the left-hander at Woollams, as a number of left-arm batsmen and, especially, bowlers will be playing. A 1st XI featuring an all left-arm pace attack
of Shane Worthington, John Bateman, Alf Rehman and Pascal Culverhouse is possible, with Tom Preest possibly rolling back the years and gritting his teeth off his longer run, for some ‘Rick Preestly’ military medium pace – or some left arm spin in normal circumstances. Matt Newby has planned a new four-day club tour to Brighton, which is already well subscribed and promises to be an enjoyable few days. President’s Day takes place relatively late this season, on 22nd August, with Daniel Barlow again leading John Josling’s side. One week later, club legend Mike Thomas returns from the USA for two matches over the August Bank Holiday weekend – one game featuring Mike’s XI against the 1st XI, and the other being a ‘veterans’ fixture. Optimism is rife at this time of year, and probably rightly so for the 2004 season. If the necessary determination needs reinforcing, one only has to consider how close the 1st XI came to relegation in the first season at Woollams, and think about how much further away that would have left OAs from where we would like to get to in the league structure. From that perspective, Simon Wood’s match-winning and relegationpreventing innings of 83 not out against Hatfield in the final game of 2002, compiled from a near-hopeless position, acquires greater lustre as time goes on – the type of performance that, if attained by most of us, week after week, will see OAs through to successful times. David Rourke
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OA FOOTBALL
Going up ■ Manager Simon Bates looks back at a successful second season at Woollams for the OA Football Club The Old Albanian Football Club ended its second season at Woollams, finishing mid-table in the Observer Review Sunday Football League Division Three. This was a good performance following promotion last year. There were also two strong cup runs, the club reaching the later stages of both competitions. The league season was dominated by injuries. Manager Simon Bates, and Assistants David Goodier and John Mansell managed to field a competitive side for every game, as the team battled hard through the winter mornings. Lack of player availability made consistent selection difficult, and hampered the club’s bid for a successive promotion. A number of players picked up injuries during the season, almost on a weekly basis. With holidays over the Christmas period causing further difficulties, Simon and his team were forced to begin building a larger and stronger squad in the hope that this will pay dividends next season. This approach proved successful with the squad growing in numbers, and increasing standards becoming apparent. The Player’s Player of the Season, Daniel Webster-Smith (Goalkeeper), and Most Improved Player, David Burrows (central defender), played a major part in maintaining the standards the club has set itself
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during its short existence. It can only be hoped that the club continues to improve, allowing the focus to shift to creating and scoring goals rather than stopping them. Other club awards this went to the Manager’s Player of the Year Nic Christy and Clubman of the Year Adam Osmond. Dave Goodier was top goal scorer with 19 goals. The prospects for next season are already looking bright. A number of players from higher divisions have expressed an interest in joining the squad, attracted by the great facilities at Woollams. Any additions to the current squad already containing players of the calibre of Andrew Douglas, James Rourke and Daniel Seeby, to name but three, will ensure that the club is pushing for success in all competitions next year. Sadly, two players are leaving the club as they move with their careers to towns too far away to travel for a 10am start. James Moore and Charlie Whinnee have both served the club with distinction over the past two seasons. So as we bid them farewell and wish them good luck in their new roles, we also thank them for all their efforts. The Football Club could not have been better supported this year and great thanks go to those behind the scenes at Woollams and the OA Club. Special mentions should go to Ian Smith and his ground staff for preparing the pitch and Andrew Mills-Baker and Neil Dekker for their support throughout the season. Simon Bates Manager, OAFC
OA BULLETIN MAY 2004
OA ANGLING
OA SHOOTING
International waters
Shooting stars
■ OA Angling Society Honorary Secretary Geoff Cannon reviews a varied and enjoyable year’s fishing
■ Old Albanian Rifle and Pistol Club Secretary David Buxton applauds the Club’s recent successes – and looks forward to attracting more new members
With the trout fishing season finishing in the autumn, the club outings focused on sea and coarse fishing. Trips during the autumn and winter saw members visiting Scotland, the bi-annual visit to Strumpshaw in Norfolk, the levels in Huntingdonshire, and the Berkshire Kennett. David Morgan and Geoff Cannon have just returned from a trip to the Florida Keys catching tarpon up to 160 lbs and shark up to 350 lbs. The coarse fishing season has now closed and members are looking forward to the new trout and salmon season. The annual fishwives supper took place in November, which was well attended. Also the club members visited France in February for a French repast followed by a visit to the Boulogne Aquarium. Any Old Albanians who are attracted by our activities are welcome to join us and should contact Geoff Cannon, the Secretary at the address below. Geoff L. Cannon Hon. Secretary
14-16 Church End, Redbourn, AL3 7DU Tel: 01727 861622 (daytime) 01582 792512 (evening) Fax: 01727 861623 E-mail: cannonmorgan@btconnect.com
At the recent AGM, the Club Secretary Owen Simmons reported the continuing problem of low membership and this is reflected in the reduced amount of activity in league shooting. Honorary Members now exceed active shooting members! So whilst the small shooting members are still presenting good results, we do need new members to increase our presence in county and national leagues. As ever – please do not hesitate to contact any of the Committee if you are interested in getting back into shooting. Recent results: Small Bore The Club Captain reports that for the Winter League 2003/04, Div 4 Team 3 results were Won 9, Lost 1 – so we won the Division! A ‘handicapped shoot off’ will now take place around the time of the Bulletin being published. The team consisted of Owen Simmons, Andy Wilkie, Andy Moore and welcomed new-comer Giles Harlow (Captain of Shooting at School). Unfortunately, due to the low numbers at present and as schoolboys will be involved in exams, we are unable to enter a team in the 2004 Summer League. However, we will try and enter a team in next Winter League – made easier
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following the recent return to shooting of that renowned shot Moray McMillin. And on the subject of Giles Harlow, the Club Captain is also pleased to report that Giles came second in the Juniors section of the Herts Special Competition Rifle Championship with a score of 550/600. The winning Junior was K Baldwin (Dacorum) with 573/600. A splendid result for which Giles deserves congratulations and he gets a gilt medal for his efforts from the County. In terms of county representation, despite our low membership, standards are still high and we continue to provide representatives in the county teams – notably Owen Simmons, Andy Wilkie and Prucilla Simmons. Put another way, over 50% of club members shoot in county teams – not a feat matched by many clubs! Recent results: Full Bore We lost the opening match of the season to Old Lawretians 460.29 to 444.24 at Bisley on 27th March 2004, but the plan is for more full bore shooting this summer at Bisley to compensate for loss of small bore competition. Competions will include the annual match against the Old Alleynians with whom we share our annual dinner at Bisley. So let’s hope for another dry summer and calm winds at 1200 yards! On the subject of full-bore, we were pleased to be asked to help the School set up their three new cadet rifles at Bisley in March which Nigel Wood Smith brought
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down from the School. We met two schoolboys new to full bore and hope to see more of them in the coming season. Our next visit to Bisley is on 24th April. And a final plea – if there are any out there who wish to re-acquaint themselves with a rifle, or whose sons/daughters/wives or significant others may be interested in shooting, please contact us. For those who no longer shoot but wish to see the club thrive in other ways, the Treasurer (Andy Moore) reminds you all that County Membership is only £25. We look forward to hearing from you – see page 2 for contact details. Finally – as ever, we thank the School again for the ‘Orchard’ range so crucial now to our existence. David Buxton Representative to the OA Club
A picture provided by David Buxton of someone who does not enjoy the usual target facilities of Bisley or the School range
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