Letter from the Vice-President

Transcription

REEDER
THE
2015
Committee
Contents
The Old Reedonians
Editorial
3
Committee 2014/2015
Committee profiles
5
Letter from the President
9
President
N. Taunt
Chairman
M. Hoskins – Headmaster
Treasurer
Mrs. L. Hurford – Bursar
The School Development Director
R.M. Garrett (until 31st December 2014)
Mrs. K. Bartram (from 1st January 2015)
Alumni Manager
Mrs. S. Matthews
Decade Representatives
R. Mew – 1950s
A. Wotton – 1970s
J. Herbert – 1980s
R. Winter – 1990s
M. Ridsdale – 2000s
Ms. J. Ross – 2000s
Editor
G.R. Martin
[email protected]
[email protected]
2
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10
Letter from the Headmaster
11
News of Old Reedonians
13
News of former staff
40
Obituaries
43
Marriages
48
Then and Now
49
Old Reedonian Dinner
52
Reunion Day
53
Andrew Reed Debate
61
The Girls’ School at Dogmersfield
62
Watford memories
66
OR Reunion, Totnes 2014
73
World War One
76
CCF - Army Cadets at Reed’s
82
Senior Cadets, CCF
85
Sport
86
Philip Horton MVO
90
Robert Hacon Williams and the QE2
91
Reed’s 40+1, Madrid 2014
93
Hall of Fame
100
Sixth Form Leavers 2014
102
Staff Leavers 2014
104
School Captains
107
Past Presidents of the OR Association
110
Editorial
The School has now moved on from the very busy
Bicentenary Year and some significant changes have taken
place subsequently. David Jarrett has retired from the
Headship and been replaced by Mark Hoskins who will
have been in post for almost a year by the time you read
this. He had to go through an unexpected full inspection
of the School last November and you will be pleased
to know that Reed’s came through with flying colours.
Richard Garrett has retired as Development Director
and has been replaced by Mrs Kathryn Bartram. Richard
has put an enormous amount of time and effort into
revitalising the relationship between Old Reedonians
and the School and many of you will appreciate just
how much he has done in so many different ways NetworkReeds, City Drinks Receptions, Recent Leavers
meetings and so on. He continues to work for Reed’s
in a part time capacity and I am sure that there will
many opportunities for you to meet him in the future.
Chris Hawkins has stood down as President of the Old
Reedonians after 12 years of dedication to the role
which has brought about the very successful new Old
Reedonian structure; Nigel Taunt has taken up the reins
as you will read elsewhere.
You will also read elsewhere in this edition about the
“Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red”, the display of
ceramic poppies at the Tower of London. The Old
Reedonians purchased poppies, one for each OR who
was killed during the First World War, and these will be
used in the future for commemorative displays at the
School.
As always I am very grateful to all those Old Reedonians
who have sent articles, news and photographs for this
2015 edition and I am pleased to be able to report that
there is an ever increasing number of contributors. I
hope that even more of you will make contact next year
and beyond and, in particular, I urge you to send me
photographs to accompany your pieces or indeed send
me any photographs of Old Reedonians, past events or
the School as it was in years gone by. I have attempted in
this edition to highlight some of the very many changes that
have occurred at Cobham since Reed’s re-located there
after the Second World War and I would like to have more
material to work with for a continued feature in 2016.
I recently received the following piece and urge any of
you who are able to support the proposed memorial
bursary. Both Simon and Charlotte were in Mullens
when I was Housemaster and I remember the tragic
events Charlotte outlines very clearly.
Ed.
Do you remember Simon Church and
Jonathan Turner?
Incredibly, it has been 34 years since my brother, Simon
Church (Mullens 1979), was tragically killed, a few
days shy of his 18th birthday, in a motorcycle accident
in the South of France alongside his friend Jonathan
Turner (Blathwayt 1979). Only Ian Organ (Mullens
1980) returned from the holiday that was supposed to
celebrate the end of their school days and the beginning
of their adult lives.
An event like this has an earth shattering and long-lasting
effect on families and that most certainly was the case for
mine. People react differently to awful situations and the
way our family dealt with it was to bury our grief and not
talk about Simon. Subsequently, sadly my parents divorced
and I continued to live with my mother in Cobham.
Just before Christmas 2014 my father passed away and it
made me really want to turn the finality and negativity of
death into something a lot more positive and life-giving.
To this end, I would like to commemorate my brother
Simon’s life and give it a lasting legacy. I have just set up
The Simon Church & Jonathan Turner Memorial Bursary
Fund to give a boy from a disadvantaged background the
opportunity of a solid foundation and education which
will help him achieve his full potential. The initial target
is to raise £7,000 – which would give a Foundationer
an annual Bursary of £1,000 for each of the seven years
he would be at Reed’s. Would you be able to join me
and help achieve this goal? Any donation or legacy, of
whatever size, would be deeply appreciated - not only
by me, but also by my mother and the Foundationer
himself. To donate, please contact Sharmaine Matthews,
Assistant Alumni Director, on 01932 589490 or by
email: [email protected]
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Editorial
On a slightly different and more personal note, because
my family never really talked about Simon I feel that I
do not have as many memories as I would like. If you
would be willing to share any stories that you remember
or any photos that you may have (via my email:
[email protected]), I would be delighted
to receive them. The stories may be good, or not so
flattering! I was only 10 when Simon died, but I do
remember he was a bit of a rebel – or maybe it was just
that I was more of a goody-two-shoes!
Reed’s has played a very important part in my life. Not
only was my brother at Reed’s, but also I was one of
the first few Reed’s girls of the 1980s. It was where I
initially met my husband – Jocelyn Mocatta (Bristowe
1987) – although we did not actually get together until
2006! Jocelyn is now a solicitor and works in London.
Our daughters, Sophie and Alice, were born in 2009
and 2011 respectively. Both girls are thriving and keep
me very busy. My mother, Pamela, has just moved into
an apartment in Cobham and is looking forward to the
newest chapter in her life.
Charlotte Mocatta (née Church)
(Mullens 1988)
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Committee profiles
Nigel Taunt
(Mullens 1971)
OR President
I left Reed’s in 1971 and followed a traditional path
through university and Chartered Accountancy training.
Once qualified I moved into industry, leading to 20 years
as Finance Director of various industrial, technology and
financial businesses. In 2001, I moved into corporate
finance and, latterly, venture capital investing. This has
allowed me to “retire” in stages and I now work parttime, looking after a few VC investments and sitting on a
private equity investment committee.
During the 1970’s I played rugby and cricket for the ORs,
enjoying rugby tours and captaining the OR cricket team,
although my primary sporting focus then was squash.
Sporting “retirement” may have been due to injury,
marriage or the arrival of children but, regardless, I played
a bit of golf and continue to do so.
Linda and I married in 1980 and we have lived in
Harpenden since 1999. We have a son (1986) and a
daughter (1989) both living and working in London. Our
joint hobbies include travelling, hiking, reading, music and
wining/dining whilst I remain passionate about cricket and
many other sports.
Taking over from Chris Hawkins as President, and joining
the Board of Governors, will be a new challenge for me
and I hope I will be able to meet many ORs to share
ideas on how we can take the organisation forward.
Please feel free to make contact with me, either directly
[email protected] or via Sharmaine, to renew old
acquaintances or to offer advice, comment or new ideas.
Justyn Herbert
(Capel 1983)
OR Vice President
& 1980s Decade Representative
I left Reed’s in 1983 and studied hotel management at
Westminster College, after which I started a management
training course at The Savoy for four years. I then worked
at The Ritz, was promoted to Accounts for the owning
company, Cunard Hotels, looking after the Ritz, the
Stafford and Dukes Hotel, where I stayed until 1993.
After working for a small luxury hotel group, I became
the Finance Director for London Bridge Hotel and was
there from the very beginning, when it was a building
site. I left after ten years and now work for Luxury Hotel
Partners as Commercial Director, which is owned by
the operators of Small Luxury Hotels of the World. Our
company specialises in managing Small Luxury Hotels of
the World for the owners.
I live in Streatham and have a son and a daughter, both
currently at university. I am Chair of Governors at a
local primary school and, in 2010, my wife and I cycled
from John O’Groats to Lands End to raise money for
them. Through my connection, Reed’s is very involved
in this school and provide many of the children with
opportunities they may never experience otherwise.
As the Decade Representative for the 1980’s, I have met
a few leavers from this era but I am actively looking for
more. The School offers many functions for the ORs, and
it would be great if you could attend some. Please contact
me [email protected] or Sharmaine for more
information.
Roger Mew
(Bristowe 1959)
1950s Decade Representative
Aged between five and 11, I was a boarder at Andrew
Reed’s Royal Wanstead School before, on passing the
11+, I transferred with nine others to Cobham in 1953
to join Bristowe. I did not excel at sport generally, but
represented the School at boxing as well as learning the
piano and clarinet. I was Secretary of the Woodwind
Orchestra, a member of the Choir, the Jazz Club and the
Cycling Club and a Corporal in the CCF.
I left Reed’s in 1959 and, after travelling and working
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Committee profiles
in Europe, finally settled down in the financial world. I
eventually become a tax consultant, which still occupies
me on a part-time, freelance basis. My passion has
always been classic cars and, during the 80’s and 90’s,
I competed in a Triumph TR6 in club level sprints, hill
climbs and circuit racing including Le Mans, Magny Cours
and Brands Hatch. Increasing levels of both cost and fear
persuaded me to stop competing but I still run a TR6, do
all maintenance and servicing myself and I am involved
in the local Triumph motor club. I am still interested in
travel and have visited around 25 countries, most recently
Estonia. I am a volunteer helping disabled children ride
horses and dabble in painting in water colours and
DIY generally. I am married but have no children. I am
enjoying immensely the renewed friendships of ORs and
running the online 50’s Forum.
about the life and work of Andrew Reed and this has led
me to become more interested and engaged in the work
of the Foundation.
It can seem rather daunting to make contact with people
you were at school with, which in my case is around
40 years ago, and for some there was no interest in
doing so. It took me almost that long to take the plunge!
For others, however, the wish to pick up with former
acquaintances may exist and I’d be delighted to hear from
you, either directly via [email protected] or via
Sharmaine in the Development Office on smatthews@
reeds.surrey.sch.uk
Matt Ridsdale
(Bristowe 2003)
Andy Wotton
(Mullens 1975)
Leaving Reed’s in 1975, I joined National Westminster
Bank (as it was once known!) and essentially had two
careers with the organisation. The first lasted for 12 years,
and was what would now be considered “traditional
branch banking.” The second was in the Training and
Development arm of the bank and, for the next eighteen
years, I undertook and managed every aspect of adult
learning and development, and I enjoyed every moment
of it.
I married my wife, Judy, in 1981, we have two grown up
children and, as of May 2011, our first grandchild.
Now retired, I always look forward to the summer
months, when I can watch cricket, be it at the School,
at County level or Test matches, all of which I find both
absorbing and enjoyable.
I have always been very interested in history, whether it is
family, social or military related, and the desire to research
and learn more about the past has always been a focus
for me. Recently, I undertook some reading and research
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I left Reed’s in 2003. Whilst at the School I was a keen
hockey player, dabbled at other sports and was a regular
contributor to school productions and arts festivals. Since
leaving Reed’s I have pursued a career in the City and am
currently a Director of Tavistock Communications.
My role as the “Noughties” Decade Representative
is to act as a conduit between individual ORs and the
Committee, ensuring that OR’s views are represented
and their needs are catered for at OR events and within
the community more generally.
To that end, I am always keen to hear from ORs of all
ages, but particularly those who left in the ten years since
the millennium. Please write to me with news and views
at [email protected] copying all correspondence
to our Alumni Manager, Sharmaine Matthews, at
[email protected]. If you don’t currently
receive news of events or invitations do write in and we’ll
ensure you’re on our list for the next one.
Committee profiles
Mark Hoskins
Chair of OR Committee
& Headmaster
I was educated at Gowerton School and at the University
of Nottingham where I read Economics. After working
briefly for the Civil Service as an economist, I studied for
my PGCE at the University of London and then entered
the teaching profession. I have a Master’s degree in
Education from the University of London and a Master’s
degree in Applied Economics from SOAS, University of
London.
I was previously Second Master (Senior Deputy Head) at
the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, and before that
was Head of Middle School and Head of Economics and
Business Studies at Whitgift School. I took up my post at
Reed’s in September 2014.
My wife, Sharon, and our two children – Oliver and
Imogen - are looking forward immensely to being part of
the Reed’s community and working with governors, staff,
parents, pupils and Old Reedonians to continue to build
on Reed’s School’s many successes.
Lucy Hurford
Kathryn Bartram
Development Director
Being American, I graduated from Colby College in
Maine, where I earned a double degree in Economics
and Mathematics. During this time I also spent one year
at the London School of Economics reading Statistics
and Mathematics where I completed the general course
programme. After my undergraduate years I worked for
the Federal Reserve Bank in Boston as a research assistant
in the financial markets sector. I then received a MBA
from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
I moved to the UK in 2000 as a management consultant
with McKinsey & Co, focusing on branding and marketing.
I then joined Citigroup as their Head of Product for
Credit Cards. In between Citigroup and Reed’s School I
founded my own business in the wholesale distribution
sector. I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the Reed’s
School team.
After nearly 20 years in the corporate world it is
wonderful to be working in an educational environment.
The strength of the Reed’s community is inspiring and I
look forward to getting to know all of you more closely
over the forthcoming years. I live in Oxshott with my
husband Jacob and our two children James and Caroline.
Treasurer to OR Committee
& Bursar
I was educated at St Teresa’s School, Ruskin University
and Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge.
I taught at Seaford Head Community College and
Chichester High School for Boys before joining Hewlett
Packard to train as a management accountant. I then
started a career as a Bursar at Ripley Court School in
2008 before joining Reed’s as Bursar & Secretary to the
Governors in January 2013. I married Ed in 1998 and we
have three children.
Geoff Martin
Editor, The Reeder
I was educated at Southend High School for Boys, the
University of Durham and the University of Southampton.
I joined Reed’s School in 1970 as Head of Geography
and was subsequently Mullens Housemaster, Master i/c
Cricket, Director of Studies and Second Master from
1990 to 2006.
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Committee profiles
In retirement, I have continued to do some work for
the Foundation and have taken on the editorship of The
Reeder.
Sharmaine Matthews
Secretary to OR Committee
& Assistant Alumni Director
I joined Reed’s School in November 2008 after spending
25 years working in corporate communications,
marketing and PR in the City, mainly in the media world.
My hope is that I can transfer some of these skills to the
role of Assistant Alumni Director to ensure we continue
to build strong relationships between the School and
our ORs.
My two youngest boys are now attending Reed’s School,
and thriving in its wonderful environment. My passion
for all the positive elements that Reed’s stands for has
developed very quickly and has only become greater as
I now find myself a parent, adding another dimension
to my role and my understanding of the School and the
Foundation.
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Letter from the President
Nigel Taunt
What a wonderful bicentenary year to look back on!
Whilst world events continue to shock, the legacy
created by Andrew Reed in 1813 stands as tangible proof
of the goodness and generosity of both our Founder
and subsequent generations who have supported the
Foundation. With the generous support of individuals and
institutions, Reed’s offers assisted places for around 10%
of the pupils, with ambitions to increase this to 15%. Our
Foundationers all come from challenging backgrounds,
with Reed’s offering so much that would otherwise
be missing in their lives including, most importantly, an
incredible level of pastoral care. It would be wonderful
if the Old Reedonians, collectively, could increase our
contributions to the fund-raising that, year after year, is
needed to maintain the number of Foundationers who
provide an essential cornerstone to the whole ethos of
Reed’s School. And Reed’s charity activities don’t stop
there – their work in the community, with inner-London
schools in deprived areas, offer many more reasons to be
proud of the old school – it really is worth supporting. I
will likely return to this theme in the future!
Back to the Bicentenary - both before and after the
changing of the guard, I have been privileged to attend
some memorable events. Between the Service of
Thanksgiving at St Paul’s and the Carol Service at
Guildford Cathedral, I have seen at first-hand what an
amazing school Reed’s has become.
Sport’s Day was competitive and fun; Speech Day was
inspiring, on so many levels, attended by over 2000
people in the biggest marquee available in Europe notable achievements were honoured and the two
School Captains each made outstanding speeches about
what Reed’s meant to them. I was able to attend a
very special evening of well researched presentations
by students taking the Extended Project Qualification,
with such thought provoking topics as world water
shortages, renewable energy developments and the
challenges of exponential population growth. For the
latter presentation, several bemused audience members
and I were herded into a crowded sheep pen, each of us
representing 1 billion people – let’s just say that the 6th
Form presenter did not lack confidence! Brilliant!
And there were so many other days to enjoy – the
Celebrity Cricket Match, the ORs vs School Hockey and
Rugby matches, the recent Andrew Reed Debate and the
opening of the new Tennis Centre, with Tim Henman
joined by Andy Murray to play doubles with the Reed’s
Tennis Scholars – very competitive and an unbelievably
high standard!!
Of course, not every event is open house but many of
them are and ORs are always welcomed back at the
School if you can plan a return visit. We had a good
turnout at the OR Reunion at the end of June and please
make a note of our next reunion on Sunday, 28th June
2015. I hope to meet many of you there – why not put
together a group of your contemporaries and join us? Full
details can be found on our web site http://networkreeds.
org/or-home-page
Finally, on a personal note I often wonder what happened
to my contemporaries who joined Mullens Lower 4th in
1966, many of whom left before 1971. If you have any
news, please contact me on [email protected] - and
that invitation is extended to any of you who have news,
views, comments or suggestions on how the OR’s can
meet your expectations.
Nigel Taunt
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Justyn Herbert
When Nigel Taunt was appointed as President of the Old
Reedonians, I was asked to assist him as Vice President
to support his role and the wider alumni community. As
decade representative for the 1980s leaver, I had already
served on the OR Committee for a few years and am
proud to be involved in this new elevated position.
Last year there were many events that ORs were invited
to for the Bicentenary celebrations, including the OR
Dinner at Cutler’s Hall, the Thanksgiving Service at St
Paul’s Cathedral and OR’s Day. We also had a private
room at the Oval for one of the Surrey T20 games, with
a meal and refreshments provided.
I became involved about seven years ago when I was
invited to one of the Reed’s City Network receptions.
I mentioned to Richard Garrett that I was chair of
governors at my children’s former school, Links Primary
School, and very quickly we established a link between
this school and Reed’s. This has involved the Primary
Engineer scheme, a competition between state primary
schools that Links has been the winner of every regional
final, and the overall winner of the national final in 2013.
In addition, some of the children have been to Reed’s to
take part in annual sports days, Lego Innovation Days in
the new FutureTech facility, drama sessions, tennis events
and music sessions. The relationship is now very well
established and I am delighted to say that other schools
in Merton and the education department of Merton are
establishing a more formal connection with Reed’s.
I hope this year to be able to meet many more ORs and
hope you will join us for some of the events such as the
City Reception on 26th March, Reunion Day on 28th
June and cricket at the Oval in July. Anyone from the
‘80’s’ who would like to get in touch to find out more,
please contact me on [email protected]
Everyone who has attended Reed’s School is
automatically an Old Reedonian, and our purpose on
the Committee is to help capture the contact details of
leavers, ensure we keep in touch and nurture the OR
community. We have several events throughout the year
for ORs, all of which are well organised by the School’s
Development Office, well attended and very hospitable;
I would encourage you all to try and attend at least one.
Details of all forthcoming dates can be found on the OR
website, www.networkreeds.org
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At present I am Finance Director for Luxury Hotel
Partners, managing small luxury hotels, I am based in
London, and live in Streatham. We have two children
both at university, one of whom is training for the London
Marathon this year, which has inspired me to run a half
marathon in March.
Justyn Herbert
(Capel 1983)
Mark Hoskins
Reading last year’s letter to the Reeder, of course written
by my illustrious predecessor David Jarrett, was fairly
intimidating. As Headmaster, in my first year and the
School’s 201st year, I have enjoyed a wide array of
wonderful experiences but nothing I fear that can quite
compete with the bicentenary year of the School in 2013
-2014. So, rather than write a similar piece in this year’s
edition of the Reeder, my intention in this letter is to
break a little with tradition and outline my philosophy of
education and touch on where I believe we, as a school,
are headed as we stride confidently into the next two
hundred years of Reed’s history.
Reed himself, is one which is driven by the values we
seek to instil in our pupils; values such as empathy,
compassion, humility, generosity of spirit and a love of
learning. To accomplish such an outcome it is vital that
pupils who attend Reed’s and indeed any school are
happy. As we all know if our children are happy then they
will learn and they will thrive. The question that then
arises is how do we ensure that our pupils are happy?
The answer I believe is by giving each and every Reed’s
student a sense of self-worth and self-confidence so that
they are able to find themselves, to make the most of
their abilities and to find talents they didn’t know they had.
I haven’t, in this article therefore included a summary
of the cultural, sporting, academic, artistic and dramatic
highlights of the past six months; however, I would
recommend that ORs visit the School website and OR
Facebook page which covers the School’s many activities
in great depth and with real clarity and inspiration.
The next step in this logical sequence is to ask how
we provide pupils with that sense of self-confidence so
that they are able to find out who they are. At Reed’s
there are a number of different facets that enable this
and I wonder if you would agree with me when I list
them. The overall term used of course to describe an
environment which enables spiritual growth is the ethos
of the School, a much repeated epithet but what does
it mean? To our pupils it means the atmosphere, the
collective spirit of the School and how everyone, but
particularly pupils and staff, interact with their peers and
each other; and so to the list. Reed’s is still a relatively
small senior school, although larger than when many of
you were here. We are currently 655 and this number
is likely to rise in September but that is another story...
The scale and layout of the School means that we are
in an intimate setting and this fosters human interaction,
the House system is still very strong and the pastoral
care that it shapes remains probably the greatest strength
of the School. The boarding element means that every
student benefits from the strengths of a boarding school
environment, we are always open, and the staff that I
I hope that as you read this letter you will see that
my educational philosophy is grounded in the values
of Andrew Reed. My view on what constitutes an
outstanding education is summed up by the notion that
we state on the introduction to the website that ‘we at
Reed’s strive to equip our young people with not only
the skills but the determination to go into the world to
seek to make it a better place’. I hope that at Reed’s we
provide the foundation for each pupil to find his or her
own way to have a lasting impact on our world. I spoke
about this at our recent Open Morning, to which I am
delighted to report that we had more prospective parents
than ever attend.
The desired outcome therefore of a Reed’s education,
one that I believe would resonate strongly with Andrew
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11
have inherited is passionate, committed and highly able.
All of this means that we focus on the individual student;
that we encourage and nurture; that we push but don’t
pressurise. The history of the School and that of course
refers to all of you, to former staff and to Andrew Reed,
continues to inspire our pupils today in a palpable way.
More than any other school I have been a part of, such
as the Royal Grammar School Guildford where I was
Second Master and Whitgift where I was head of Middle
School and head of Economics, the values laid down
by the founder are alive and shape all that we do. The
Foundation element is the soul of the School’s ethos and
I am pleased that this year we have more foundation
applications than ever, We are working hard with other
children’s charities as well to ensure that these applicants
can become Reed’s pupils in September.
If the Foundation is the soul then the Chapel remains
at the geographical and spiritual heart of the School and
the 112 names of ORs who fell in the First World War
and who are inscribed on the memorial board inside the
Chapel door are testament to this. The Remembrance
Service in November, where Reed’s boarders read
out all the names, thanks to the meticulous research of
Old Reedonian Andy Wotton, was a very moving and
emotional occasion. Again we come back to the values
that Reed’s promulgates and the final suggestion in my
list is that we provide, as a school, a boundless range
of opportunities to our pupils and all we ask is that they
throw themselves into the life of Reed’s so that they
enrich themselves and grow academically, culturally and
spiritually.
I have therefore outlined what I believe is the
fundamental core of a Reed’s education; its ethos. Of
course the often overlooked fact is that schools must
evolve and great schools which last for centuries, such as
Reed’s, only do so because they continue to adapt whilst
remaining true to their values and ethos. A changing
global economy, social media, the omnipresence of
technology are just a few of the changes that our pupils
are presented with as they move through school and into
the world beyond. At Reed’s we consider ourselves to be
ahead of the curve compared to many of our competitors
in preparing our students for the new world. For example
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THE REEDER 2015
we are initiating robotics in the third form and we are
working with the Tallow Chandlers Livery company on
a outreach programme which will help deliver STEM
(Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education
to local primary schools and importantly schools in our
primary forum, many of which are sited in inner London
where Reed’s School began its life.
However, there is still much for us to do before we
can claim to be setting the agenda in the many aspects
of education, but that aspiration is a goal we have:
to be thought-leaders and renowned for educational
excellence, dynamism and innovation. We are in the
process of initiating a ‘Masterplan’ for the School campus
which will seek to provide a vision for the physical
infrastructure of the School over the next ten to fifteen
years. We hope to engage all of the Reed’s community
as we develop our ideas for the future and plan for an
educational landscape which does not yet exist.
That is the future but in the very recent past you may
be aware that we were inspected by the Independent
Schools Inspectorate in November 2014 and I am
delighted to report that we were judged to be ‘excellent’,
the highest grading, in all categories. These accolades
were just reward for the commitment and talents of the
governors, pupils, staff and of course my predecessor,
David Jarrett who I know felt justly proud of the school
he led with such distinction for seventeen years and it was
a fitting way to round off the first 200 years.
Mark Hoskins
Norman Alvey (Blathwayt 1938) The following
appeared in the ‘Herts Advertiser’ on 11th September
2014. “Russia’s Ambassador to the UK has awarded a
medal to a 92 year old Second World War veteran from
Harpenden, in recognition of his service on the perilous
Arctic convoys. Norman Alvey was recently presented
with his Ushakov Medal by Alexander Yakovenko at the
Ambassador’s official London residence in Kensington
Palace Gardens. His citation includes words of
appreciation from President Vladimir Putin for the crucial
role the Arctic convoys played as part of Britain’s help in
defeating Nazi Germany.
In February 1944 Mr. Alvey served as Petty Officer
aboard HMS Chaser, an escort carrier. It was one of
a ‘ring’ of British warships charged with protecting an
unusually large convoy of about 40 merchant ships
carrying vital military supplies from the UK to Britain’s
Soviet allies.
Unfortunately the convoy did not get through unscathed,
as Royal Navy destroyer HMS Mahratta was hit by a
torpedo and sank quickly, with the loss of about 200
lives, and just 17 survived. Then, on the return voyage,
when one of the merchant ships was also attacked and
sunk, Mr. Alvey witnessed convoy escort warships and
planes destroy three attacking U-boats.
Earlier during the Second World War, he served on
convoy operations westward into the Atlantic helping
to protect merchant ships carrying military and other
supplies from North America.
Winston Churchill described the Arctic convoys as ‘the
worst journey in the world’.”
Norman writes about the above piece “the title has been
omitted as it referred to an ‘Arctic Hero’ which I am not.
The real heroes were the air crews who set out into the
icy Arctic gloom in the open cockpits of Fairey Swordfish
biplanes looking for U-boats. After long patrols they
were hauled out, frozen stiff, and handed a reviving glass
of rum. E. R. Bennett (Blathwayt 1938) was a Swordfish
pilot on the Arctic convoys and he is mentioned in Lord
Kilbracken’s ‘Bring Back My Stringbag’.”
The 1,500 mile route embarked upon by the northbound
convoy began at the sheltered waters of Scapa Flow
within the Orkney Islands. Mr. Alvey said ‘The two
week-long voyage to our destination, on the Kola Inlet
close to the Russian port of Murmansk, took us relatively
close to the Norwegian coast to avoid Arctic pack ice.
But that made us more vulnerable to attack from German
dive-bombers and U-boat wolf packs’ (when up to 20
submarines would attack such convoys en masse), guided
by Luftwaffe reconnaissance planes.’ Mr. Alvey added:
‘As we headed up beyond the Arctic Circle, one of our
essential jobs was to keep the ship’s flight deck and other
equipment clear of ice, using steam hoses. So intense was
the cold that we kept all our clothes, including our boots
on for the whole two weeks. HMS Chaser was carrying
22 aircraft including 11 anti-submarine torpedo bombers.
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James Bartosik (Mullens 1998) lives in Weybridge,
Surrey and works in the City as a firewall engineer for
UBS the investment bank. James is getting married this
summer to Ruth who works in graphic design. He is still a
keen amateur athlete and competes for Walton Athletics
Club, he completed his 20th marathon last summer with
a race round Guernsey. He also cycled the 900 miles from
Lands End to John O’Groats in 12 days, two summers ago.
of two wonderful boys, Jake and Dylan who keep us
very busy. I remain close friends with a number of ORs,
Matthew Noakes, Mark Hudson, Tobie Van Ingen, Nick
Stanger and Julian Fennel to name but a few!”
Emma Beamish (Blathwayt 2001) has moved back
to Ireland and is teaching English at King’s Hospital School
in Dublin.
Alastair Beardsall (Mullens 1972) Alastair remains
involved with several companies in the international oil
and gas industry with a particular focus on projects in
Africa and the former Soviet Union, although few places
are off-limits in the pursuit for hydrocarbons! He shares
his time between London, field/site visits and briefing
stakeholders to remain patient with their investment. The
Beardsall family continue to live on the River Hamble with
Heather managing the family logistics of four children,
two schools, and several after school activities, e.g. music,
swimming and hockey. The family remain keen sailors,
with all children training and competing at both national
and some international regattas, and while sailing
consumes vast amounts of time and money it does
develop self-confidence, and some great friendships and
memories. Alastair celebrated his 60th in 2014 and whilst
retirement is often talked about, there seems little chance
of it happening soon.
Mike Beeley (1961). After leaving Reed’s and
following a six year spell in the banking industry he
spent the next 33 years pursuing a successful career in
Local Government working in various UK towns until
taking early retirement in 2000. He celebrated his 70th
Birthday in June 2014, in the presence of all his family,
in Bewdley, Worcestershire, where he has lived with his
‘long-suffering’ wife Sandra since 1972.
Rob Beaton (Bristowe 1998) writes “two years
married to Anna and we have a baby boy called Felix.
I am currently working at BUPA Global full time and
undertaking my MBA in International Management at the
University of London (due to finish in 2016 - I hope!). I
look forward to seeing some of my contemporaries soon.”
James Beckett (Mullens 1991) writes “I am working
as an Associate Investment Manager for Investec Wealth
& Investment in Guildford. Mary and I are proud parents
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Mike’s favourite pastime is holidaying abroad with Sandra
and, as recent as 2012, they took their first ever cruise
ending up in the Baltic and visiting St. Petersburg. This
was to be the first of many cruises. In addition, the
Moraira area of the Spanish Costa Blanca has beckoned
them at least twice a year for the past 22 years. Mike’s
son Mark (Scotland) and Daughter Helen (Hampshire)
both provided Mike and Sandra with two wonderful
grandchildren - so now much of their spare time is taken
up travelling up and down Britain’s motorways.
Mike attended the OR Reunion in June 2013 and
was pleased to be able to meet up with some of his
contemporaries – he hopes to attend many more in the
years to come. He would be pleased to hear from any of
them and can be contacted at [email protected]
David Beldon (Mullens 1986) writes “Not much
has changed here in Jersey. I am still at BNP Paribas in
the electronic banking team. Louisa (16) is now studying
sports at the local college and Ethan (nine) is enjoying
rugby with Jersey Rugby Club under 10’s and school
football. Jo still works with the kids at the village preschool. I still help with a local scout troop but don’t do
anything very active other than cycling to school.”
Alex Billman (Blathwayt 2005) writes “I’m still
working at O2 and have recently been promoted to be
the lead marketing manager for digital products.”
Francesca Burchill (Mullens 2012) writes “I have
just completed my three weeks work experience at Savills
with Clive Moon (Blathwayt 1994) which I thoroughly
enjoyed and from which I gained a lot of knowledge.
I wanted to say a huge thank you to Sharmaine for
organising this for me! The Old Reedonian network has
been very beneficial for me and I shall make sure I stay in
contact.”
Ian Cairns (Bristowe 1971) writes “I bumble along
in quiet retirement, having done so for the past twenty
years. My children, rather bizarrely, live next door to each
other in Battersea. All three of them have passed their
speed awareness tests. I count that as a triumph of private
education.”
David Carson (Bristowe 1982) writes “I must be
getting middle-aged as time seems to fly nowadays. 2014
was a year of big birthdays. Charlotte celebrated her
21st in April with a fantastic party at home. She is in her
last year at the University of Leeds and is hoping to work
in the London reinsurance market from mid 2015. She
has spent most of the summer working / doing work
experience at a number of firms in the City. Georgie did
brilliantly in her A levels and started at Imperial College,
London, last October reading biochemistry. She turned
18 in the summer, again celebrated with a great party
at home. I wasn’t so keen to reach my own milestone
this year but I had a fabulous 50th, hurtling down the
Thames in a speedboat and enjoying a wonderful family
dinner. Clemmie is in her GCSE year at Cheltenham
Ladies’ College and enjoying being sports captain for
her house. Henry has just started at Radley College
and is settling in well and enjoying playing fly-half for
one of the school teams. Fiona’s private-tuition business
continues to thrive. My catastrophe re-insurance
underwriting business is now a year old and is starting
to gain welcome traction under the Pioneer umbrella.
It’s hard work and there’s lots of overseas travel but all
thoroughly enjoyable. I keep up with a few ORs, most
notably Simon Woodfield (Blathwayt 1982) and am
LinkedIn with a number too.”
George Cavil (Capel 1962) writes “I was sent to
Reed’s in September 1956, being delivered to Waterloo
Station by my sister and standing waiting with a number
of ‘new crows’, all in shorts, for the train to Oxshott.
We were escorted on the train by Arthur Pitman who
turned out to be our Housemaster at the Close. I had
been brought up by my sister and her husband, from
being two years old, on a farm in the North Midlands.
A train journey to London and on to Reed’s was really
one enormous adventure for an 11 year old farm boy
who had never been more than 10 miles from home. I
really do not know how my sister managed to convince
me it was a good idea, it didn’t take long for me to realise
there had been a huge mistake and all was not as it had
been sold to me. Years later when I came to leave I
realised she had been right and I had indeed enjoyed
my time at the ‘Shack’ more than I could have ever
imagined.
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On arrival at Oxshott we were marched, loosely
speaking, across the Heath and into the School. I cannot
remember the exact detail of the first days but we were
sorted into houses, fed and watered and sent to the
Close where new crows were able to seek sanctuary
from marauding older boys trying to throw you in the
gorse bushes. I think I presented something of a problem
for them because I could run fast and having been
brought up on the farm to believe attack was the best
form of defence. I was lucky I never had much trouble
after the first few skirmishes and the reputation stayed
with me all my school life. Some of the others did not
fare so well and I remember one boy in particular had a
pretty bad time. One of the most memorable incidents
at the Close involved Bert the janitor/boiler man: one
night he must have forgotten his keys and decided to
climb in quietly through the window of the ground floor
dormitory where upon the whole dorm jumped on him
and ruffed him up. We thought he was a burglar so even
at that stage of our time at Reed’s we had already learnt
to stick together. Mr Rooth who followed Mr Pitman as
Housemaster was quite bemused by our reaction and we
got off scot free.
My House Capel was I think always ‘Cock House’, led
by great house Captains, “Ned” Tunnely, “Chubby” Kite,
“Smiler” Mason, Rex Sinden, and Peter Clayton. We
were not an academic house, just good at rugby, cricket,
cross country, boxing and swimming - in fact we were
great at games. I moved from the Close, after a year,
to the top floor of the ‘Shack’ which we initially shared
with Blathwayt, they later moved out into the new
accommodation block built on the ‘bowling up green’.
I think it was really at this point I started to enjoy my life
at Reed’s, learning to play rugby under the tuition of Mr.
Scott (Nunc)- can you imagine spending days learning set
positions without a ball, but what great instruction. I think
there were less than 250 boys at the School at this time
but we took on schools with much larger numbers and
did very well. I was lucky enough to play for the 1st XV
from an early age and enjoyed every match. I think the
peak of my rugby career was being selected to play for
the Three Counties as well, of course, as representing
Reed’s.
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THE REEDER 2015
I of course don’t know what the pupils at Reed’s get up
to now but I remember some of our extra-curricular
adventures quite clearly, the after lights out visits to the
girls’ school at Claremont and also the girls’ finishing
school at the end of Sandy Lane. The trip on our bikes
to Chobham ranges with “Giv” to collect ordnance. He
worked on the theory, of dragging an unexploded mortar
bomb towards us on a long piece of string (50m) tied to
the fins, should have caused it to exploded by the time
it got to us if it was going to at all! There was a stash of
mortar bombs and rocket propelled grenades under the
floor of our common room, later someone had enough
sense to tell Mr. Drayson who had them removed by
“Busty”, the groundsman, and buried in the grounds.
It would be interesting to know if they have ever been
found.
A great example of Reed’s boys sticking together was
when over 200 of us, little and large went down to the
Oxshott Common Tea Rooms to sort out the local yobs
who were intimidating and threatening the younger
boys. One of us went in to the tea room and walked up
to the ring leader and invited him outside, he of course
followed thinking he was going to beat the day lights out
of our bloke, can you imagine what he thought when he
saw all of us. Strange how they quickly came on side and
decided we were all great chaps.
When I think back it is not surprising some of the boys
of my era became high ranking officers in the Armed
forces, SAS, Royal Marines, Bomb Disposal and similar
professions including MI5. I know some went to the
other side of the law operating out of Mexico, Columbia,
and Miami. Anyway I am probably beginning to bore the
readers and I know we all have our tales to tell from our
respective eras so I will leave my reminisces of school
at that.
When I left Reed’s like a lot of Foundationers, and
perhaps other boys too, had quite a struggle. I went
back to school destitute about six months after I left to
see if I could get any help finding work. Peter Gaillard,
my old Housemaster, gave me £5.00 for which I was
ever grateful and wish I could find him to pay him back. I
had the opportunity to thank Tony Turnbull for his duffle
coat at a recent OR Reunion Day, I don’t think he could
remember the incident. I eventually found my feet and
have spent the rest of my life working in the construction
Industry. I have worked as a site agent and project
manager on some big projects: hardened aircraft shelters,
the Trident Project in Devonport, a contingency landing
site in Gambia for NASA, the Skye Bridge, reconstruction
of the telephone system for Cable and Wireless in Jamaica
and various other MOD projects which I can’t talk about.
I am still in touch with a few of my old school friends,
Tony Rerrie in Jamaica, who is a great friend and
confidante, Dick Youd who lives near to me here in
Plymouth and sails with me whenever possible. I look
back on my time at Reed’s with great pleasure and thank
the masters and all responsible for getting me to such
a great school which was my home for most of my
formative years.”
Tom Chalcraft (Mullens 2009) writes “I was pleased
to make my 1st team appearance for National League
One Esher RFC in January 2015. My rugby journey
started with Esher at the age of six and where I played
for every age group from the U7 team in 1998, as well
as the Academy and 2nd XV. I also represented Surrey
from U14 to U18, a side which went on to do fairly well:
the starting line-up can now be seen most weeks in the
Premiership, Championship or National League One.
I joined Reed’s School at Sixth Form on a Sports
Scholarship in 2007 which opened up a lot of doors for
an ambitious scrum half. During my two years at school I
went to the USA with the Lambs (Independent Schools
side), played for London Irish Gold Group Academy until
18 and, having achieved three As at A-Level, went to the
University of Exeter playing in two consecutive varsity
games for Exeter University 1st XV v Bath University at
both Sandy Park & The Rec.
Rugby was developing at the School as I joined; Mr Talbot
was heading up the 1st XV which was competing well
on a tough circuit of much larger schools. The coaching
and facilities during those two years were vital for me – it
complemented the coaching received at Esher well and
ensured that I was playing as much as possible which
is exactly what was needed at that age. Having kept a
keen eye on the results of the current School 1st XV –
where they have won against KCS Wimbledon, Brighton
College and St John’s - the effort and enthusiasm to
improve and develop the squad has certainly paid off!
Esher itself has and always will be “my rugby club” –
whether I play there for the rest of my career or not.
The past few weeks have been especially exciting for me
at Esher: having aspired since the first time I ran onto a
pitch at Molesey Road to play 1st XV rugby, I got my first
start vs Hartpury College
having come on off the
bench for several weeks
before hand. Although the
result wasn’t anywhere
near what we were
hoping for in the end, I
felt immensely proud to
have finally got to where
I wanted to be all those
years ago.”
James Chicken (Bristowe 2011) was awarded the
David Thompson Scholarship (which means he was
awarded a First Class Degree) and a College book Prize,
for an outstanding project or course work, on Computer
Science Part II.
Peter Chicken (Bristowe 2013) writes “since
leaving Reed’s I’ve fallen into life at the University of
Bristol, where I’m studying Drama and English. The
course is great so far and I really can’t believe how
quickly it’s all gone; I’ve just reached the halfway point
in the degree and I’m not really sure how I’ve got here.
James Wallis will be glad to hear I’m still keeping up with
hockey, although perhaps not to the same level as he’d
wish as I play regularly for the 4th XI. I’m more involved
on the social side of the Club, getting to know the new
members on our weekly socials and spearheading the
Instant Impact Video Competition, in which we came
third in the country and received £300 sponsorship.
This wouldn’t have been possible, however, without
my integration with the Film & Television Department
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17
that has come as a by-product of both my degree and an
associated society, Studiospace, of which I am Theatre
Rep for this year. Working with Studiospace has produced
some of my fondest memories at university so far, whilst
keeping me pretty busy producing work that hopefully
Tim Silk would be proud of. Most notable has been my
part in our production of Abi Morgan’s play ‘Lovesong’,
a play I went to see as part of my AS course at Reed’s
and indeed wrote about in my AS exam. Playing the
role of Billy was an absolute treat for me and taught me
much about the world of physical theatre. I’m particularly
excited about performing the part of Toby in Lucy
Prebble’s ‘The Effect’, which I was also privileged to see
at The National during my time at Reed’s.”
Nik Collins (Bristowe 1976) was not at all well in
2014 but by November he was hopefully beginning to
make a recovery. Nik is married with three daughters,
one step daughter and two of his own, the girls are 13,
eight and three years old. Having spent 25 years in IT
predominantly in the investment banking sector he retired
from that in 2001 and retrained as a truck driver.
Rose Crosby (Bristowe 2010) writes “Having
completed my postgraduate teacher training I now teach
Music and English at the Royal Alexandra and Albert
School in Reigate.”
Clive Davis (1960
Mullens) writes “After a
lifetime in education, I have
retired with my wife
Jeannette to rural Devon. I
recall after the death of my
father in March 1950, and
at the age of eight, being
whisked into my Primary
School Headteacher’s office, with no explanation, and
presented with some exam papers to complete. With my
elder brothers having left home, my mother and maiden
aunts had decided that I needed to move away from an
all-female environment and go to a boys’ boarding school.
With the financial support of the Civil Service Benevolent
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THE REEDER 2015
Fund, I became a Foundationer and entered ‘The Close’
at Reed’s in September 1950. It was a shock. With my
trunk sent on “In Advance”, my aunt put me on the train
at Waterloo, into a carriage filled with older boys from
Reed’s, who obviously did not want me around them.
The label on my hand luggage was changed from ‘Clive
Davis’ to ‘Olive Davis’, but there were no other issues.
My boarding school education had started.
For the next three or four years I remained in the
bottom class as each year the School’s entrance age was
raised. The staff members at the Close were strict, but
supportive and fair. In many ways, life there was idyllic. I
recall the smell of the coke boilers, of furniture polish, of
pine trees and later from our pet mice and rat cages! The
setting was beautiful with old elm trees, majestic cedars,
conifer woods, large fields, wild flower grassed areas and
those infamous gorse bushes. Our dormitory cleaning
routine at the Close involved spreading green tea leaves
from the chests of ‘Dusmo’ across the floor to keep
down the dust, dolloping polish from large tins in piles
around the room and then swinging the heavy, manual
floor polisher to bring up the required shine. The winters
seemed to be cold and snowy with windows heavily
frosted in the mornings. There were the long walks up
and back to the Big School ‘Shack’ for meals, chapel and
visits to Sister with my open chilblains. During these walks
we chatted about worldly events whilst observing the
spiders’ sparkling webs on the gorse bushes and, at night,
examining the clear sky with its shooting stars and comet
tails (no satellites then). In the summer, we observed the
lizards in the heather, the stag beetles, the Maybugs, and
the vast quantities and varieties of moths on the top floor
ceiling of the Close - encouraged in by us leaving the
window open and the landing light on. Bath nights were
memorable for the immense amount of steam, the lobster
red skins of those who had the misfortune to have first
baths and for that hairbrush used with effect by matron.
Education at the Close was provided by Arthur Pitman,
‘Huggy’ Hughes, ‘Nunc’ Scott, ‘Boff’ and Miss Gee.
For me, lessons were a necessary inconvenience
and were only successful if we could persuade the
teachers to repeat their ‘tour de force’ such as making
a South American bolas to bring the blackboard and
easel crashing to the ground, re-explaining the ‘naughty
boy method’ ensuring the correct number of noughts
appeared in long multiplication, or having lessons
outdoors. They were also considered positive if we could
provoke flying chalk and board dusters. Fond memories
remain of the Tuck Shop, ‘Bowling-Up’, Cub and Scout
‘Wide Games’, winning the Surrey Cubs’ Soccer Cup and
testing what was “Out of Bounds”. As for those ‘Everlasting
Night’ celebrations with endless bottles of Tizer...
When we moved up to Big School, I repeated a year as I
was in the ‘San’ for a term with ‘T B glandular fever’. Fifty
odd years later and about to undergo open-heart surgery,
the consultant informed me I was actually ‘binned’ for a
heart problem! However, with age group separation so
important, the repeated year provided the opportunity to
mix with a wider set of school friends.
Another form of education was introduced when two
of us were spotted smoking one evening near the War
Memorial on Oxshott Heath. After chapel next morning
we were referred to Arthur Pitman and Nobby Clarke.
We handed over the rest of our packet of 10 Carreras
“Turf” cigarettes together with its invaluable card of a
British Aircraft. Arthur Pitman wisely said, “Smoking is not
good for potential boxers, but if you are going to smoke
at least you should smoke a decent cigarette like these
Piccadilly or, perhaps, Senior Service. Here, try one.”
We tried and agreed, and then received the customary
slipper. We would have had more of a ‘slippering’, but
for the fact we were wearing our school caps whilst
smoking. The next years passed quickly. I thought I took
‘A’ Level courses in Hockey, Cricket, Rugby, Boxing,
Chess, Athletics and ‘Public Speaking’, but the records
reveal only courses in History, Geography and R.E. With
being a School Prefect and House Captain and, therefore,
introduced to the detached, white collar with stud, my
secondary education was complete and I left after ten lifeforming, character building and happy years.
Naturally, I moved into teaching, but kept in touch
with Reed’s and played for the O.R.’s Cricket XI’s and,
with Alan Barrett, started the O.R.’s Hockey Team. My
sporting career finished thirty years later when the phone
for my availability stopped ringing. Over the years, I
became Headteacher of a large Junior Mixed School, and
then Headteacher of a very large primary school which
expanded its buildings and pupil numbers to 840. Some
of its pupils went on to Reed’s. As the primary school was
popular, over-subscribed and successful, I was delighted
when, sometime after my retirement, two of our four
grandchildren were able to secure places at that school.
With no mobile phone signal and three miles to the
nearest village, Jeannette and I are enjoying a peaceful
retirement - once again able to see the clear night sky,
being surrounded by large fields, woods and visited by
the wildlife.”
Nick Dean (Bristowe 2011) writes “I am in my final
year of four studying Economics at the University of Bath.
I took a year-long placement as part of my degree with
Ernst & Young in assurance as a result of which they have
offered me a graduate job starting in September 2015.”
Roger Dipper (Blathwayt 2010) Roger appeared in
the highly acclaimed production of ‘Gypsy’ with Imelda
Staunton at the Chichester Festival Theatre in late 2014.
‘Gypsy’ has recently transferred to the ‘West End’.
Jim Dobie (Blathwayt 1997) writes “I have skippered
the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race and have also
skippered in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race with Sir
Robin Knox- Johnston as my navigator in the last race.”
Logendran Doraipandian (Mullens 1986)
writes “It has been 28 years since I left Reed’s School and
I have been based in Singapore for the last 18 years.”
Julian Doyle (Bristowe 2000) Congratulations to
Julian and Jenny on the safe arrival of baby Elsie Marie,
born on the 27th June 2014 at 5:18 am and weighing in
at 7lbs.
Mark Fenwick (Bristowe 1973) and his Madridbased architectural practice, Fenwick Iribarren, have
revealed plans for the latest 2022 Football World Cup
venue in Qatar.
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Ben Geach (Mullens 2001) and Ruth Habershon
(Mullens 2001) were delighted to welcome Sophie
Matilda on 6th February 2015. Alexander (now three)
is enjoying helping look after his new baby sister. The
Geach family currently live in Surbiton area.
a modicum of small-time poaching and the occasional
bike ride to Worthing - centre of the known world!
I had a wonderful time; my French improved
exponentially, but my French friend never wrote to me.
Wonder why!”
John Holt (Bristowe 1975) writes “I am very involved
professionally with Operational Research (Management
Science). Since retiring a year or so ago, I have been coorganizing a Third Sector group, conducting voluntary,
short projects for charities including the RNLI and the
RSPCA. The Operational Research Society Conference
was held at the Royal Holloway College in Egham, for
three days in September 2014.
Simon Gregory (Mullens 1956) writes “I recall
a French Exchange Trip in 1955.There were 12 other
Reed’s pupils who’d been excused wearing the School
Cap for the duration by RQD (Headmaster - Bob
Drayson). We were accompanied by four very pretty,
bilingual girls who, I’m sure, would rather have been
somewhere else than on a train with a party of rowdy
14-year-old schoolboys. I was hugely impressed with
their sophistication and worldliness, wondering how
they’d got that way, particularly as they were only about
four years older than me.
I stayed in a Paris spa suburb, Enghien-les-Bains, close
enough to the city to ensure daily visits by local train. We
did all the monuments, climbing everything that had stairs
or ladders and dropping one centime coins from the top
of the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame, (I know! I know!)
We toured the city in those rickety open-backed buses,
for which you had to buy a carnet of tickets, (in French!).
At the weekend, we swam in Enghien’s lake and tried
to get into the casino by lying about our ages. We drank
wine with meals and smoked Gitanes and made ourselves
thoroughly sick.
On our return to the UK, my French friend was
unimpressed by the small village I lived in, in the middle of
the South Downs, and even more unimpressed that the
local entertainment consisted of long walks over the hills,
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Our daughter, Elle, has recently got the job of
Project Executive with Landell Mills, an international
development consultancy, near Bath, She has just got
a distinction in her MSc in International Development.
She is living in Bristol with husband Pete. Both are very
involved in The Woodlands Church, Bristol.
Son, Dan, is in his final year of a Physics degree at
Birmingham University. He just spent a year at Hong Kong
University and the family went to visit him at Easter 2014!
Jeanette and I are very involved in Esher Green Baptist
Church, which has just opened a new building in Park
Road, Esher, which we are very excited about indeed!”
Nick Holt (Bristow 1976) writes “Reaching an age
when conversations at OR’ s Reunion Day turn to who
has now taken retirement, I am at the early stages of
the latest phase in my career. As a Foundationer my life
was shaped in profound ways by receiving an education
at public school. My father had recently died and John
Leach, Reed’s Director of Music in 1969, heard my 10
year old self sing a solo at evensong in our local parish
church where I was a choir boy in Harrow, North
London. John’s conversation with our vicar at the end
of the service began a process that led, at the age of
11, to my arriving at Reed’s as a Queen’s Scholar – the
Queen as Reed’s Patron – pays the fees of two pupils
each year (sic).
As a school boy at Reed’s I would like to think of myself
as a discontented philosopher but I think I was a bit of
a moody, chippy adolescent who teachers such as Mr
Green, my Housemaster, Mr Warnock, Mr Martin, Mr
Hoskins, Mr Hewett and Mr Challis must have thought
I was a bit of a pain. However, after the death of my
mother and my older brother John, joining me at Reed’s,
other individuals again were working hard to provide
stability and support for both of us. By this time we were
in local authority care and our social worker managed to
find us fostering arrangements so we could continue to
attend Reed’s which was the single stabilising factor of
our lives.
Leaving university and feeling incredibly rootless, John
and Mary Wright took John and myself into their home as
lodgers for a number of years until we could find our feet.
John finally left the Wright home to take up a lectureship
at Southampton University Business Studies Department
and went on to a career in Operational Research from
which he retired recently.
In the meantime, the first job I was offered, having
completed my PGCE, was as Head of English at Parkside
Prep School in Cobham. However, I really felt compelled
after all the care I had received through my life from the
age of 10, to take up a job teaching children with special
educational needs in a Banstead comprehensive school.
My experience of the poor behaviour and support
systems in the state school system after seven years at
Reed’s made me feel I had landed on an alien planet. It
took me at least three years before I felt I was getting
anywhere in terms of keeping the pupils in their seats,
working in a reasonable level of silence and actually
learning anything. However, I persevered with teaching
as I felt that working with children and young people was
the best way I could in some way make a meaningful
response to how key adults had made the difference in
my own life. And I really did feel those eyes of Andrew
Reed, in the Chapel painting, looking at me over the
years challenging me to give back something of what I had
been given.
Following twenty years in the classroom, I moved on to
work in two London boroughs, Kensington and Hackney,
at one point managing a £1million plus budget and a team
of twelve community officers, working on the estates
of Hackney. We would organise schemes to help eight
year olds to raise their own aspirations to doing more
with their lives than being a runner in a local drug gang.
The heart of our “manor” was Murder Mile, a notorious
area of North Hackney which witnessed a lot of drive
past shootings and murders in the 1990s. Half way
down Murder Mile is a girls’ secondary school where we
undertook outreach work with at risk pupils. The school,
Clapton Girls Academy, still has the Victorian portico of
the original institution built on the site of the school in
1828. This institution was no less than the purpose built
London Orphans’ Asylum where Andrew Reed moved
into from a house in Islington where he had first taken
orphans into a home.”
Matthew Huckin (Mullens 1981) writes “It has
been moving... in fact it has been a continual feast (is
that the right word?) of moving as we have moved out
of our home in Bath to rent it out; sold and moved out
of my flat in Birmingham; moved out of our barn in
Brittany so we can rent that out; moved into the small
barn (the Ecurie) in Brittany to make it rentable; moved
into the Gite down here for renting; and moved into
our house here in Bournazel, south west France, where
we live. And as you all well know, once you’ve moved
in to somewhere you are then perpetually moving
things around inside the house as you decorate and
settle in. ‘Serves you right for having so many properties
you show-off’ you may well say, and you’d be right of
course. This is a luxury complaint if ever there was one!
It has been a logistical challenge and one that required
more muscle than I possess (thank you son Alan for your
burliness and spatial awareness)
We deserve a decoration... for all the decorating we
have done. Check out the Gite down here in sunny
Bournazel on www.labellevuegite.com and you can
see what we have been up to. Elena has been the
mastermind behind the whole project and hats off to her
for determination and the ability to charm and coerce the
army of French and Portuguese builders we have had on
the team. I should also give a small ‘plug’ for our builders
too... about whom all the prejudices and stereotypes
THE REEDER 2015
21
of the fabled French ‘workforce’ proved to be wrong.
Pascal Parra and his crew are a fine bunch of craftsmen
and craftswomen. We have also advised the children that
whatever inheritance they might have anticipated has
been well and truly ‘buried’ in the walls that we have built
on the property...
It’s a wildlife here... in fact there is an abundance of
wildlife here. Deer, foxes, wild boar, hares, rabbits, bats,
owls of many different hues and cries, hawks, giant moths
and humming bird varieties, hoopoes, all of which grace
the valleys, hills and woods around us and are a source
of constant delight. Throw open the windows in the
morning to glorious sunrises and the sight of deer grazing.
Have lunch on the terrace and watch the mad March
(and April & May) hares perform for you. The only blot
on the landscape is the noise of hunters and their yelping
dogs. We have though, come to a grudging respect for
the French hunters here who manage to murder large
quantities of all sorts of creatures, which they then eat,
without damaging the ecology or stocks of wildlife. That
reminds me though, I really must buy that canon so I can
play the hunters at their own game & fire shot at them in
the fields below.
The lingua franca... is, in fact, well, French. Whilst I knew
this to be the truth I have until recently managed to bury
my head in the sand and avoid this reality, some would
say this is merely a metaphor for my life. In the meantime
Georgia has become very accomplished at French and
now is above average in French at her school, and is the
only English girl in her class, a fact of which I am very
proud. Sadly I cannot bask for long in the glow of her
22
Fit for the future... gone are the days of international
travel, corporate dinners, five hours sleep a night if you
are lucky, sitting down all day with the joint seizures and
aches that accompany hours of immobility, stress and
pressure in the testing world of business, and the inability
to switch-off when at home which deadens you to those
you love. These things I miss not one jot! In exchange
for these I have enjoyed fine food and wine, eaten and
drunk at a sedate pace, interspersed with an outdoor
life and many physical tasks on the property, long dog
walks and time to spend gazing at the blissful views
here. Two stone lighter, fit as a fiddle (still with aching
joints but these are soon warmed-up into action) and
equally importantly the time and energy to, hopefully, be
a better person, or at least more of the person I hope
to become – father, son, friend, brother, husband. This
remains work in progress!
Running away... is really what we did when we decided
to come and live here. Running from the old life,
abandoning our three older children, Alan, Harriet and
Ottelien, in GB and running toward a new adventure.
2014 was a tough year for Harriet and Alan health-wise
but both are now in good shape. The biggest downside
of being here is the distance from the children, two in
Bath, one in Edinburgh, and the ever present worry
and wondering about how they are... I seem to have
swapped work worries with children worries (perhaps I
simply am a worrier?!)
But things catch-up with you... some things you can’t run
away from, most of all yourself. This is the biggest lesson
for me – figuring out who I am, what I want, what my
achievement as my French is at the stuttering, spluttering
level. Thankfully Elena’s fluency more than makes up
for my muteness, but I seem to comprehend more and
more and find myself smiling and chuckling along less
often in the wrong places. However, 2015 is the year in
which I feel confident I will break out of my grade C at
‘O’ level French to achieve a basic conversational level –
you know the sort of thing, being able to comprehend an
role and purpose is, what value I can contribute in my
new roles. And dealing with my ego needs has been a
‘learning journey’ as they say (code for ‘interesting’ which
in turn is code for ‘tough’!) From being ‘in the thick of it’
at work and being ‘on’ 24 hours a day, with no doubts at
all about my role and contribution... to new and multiple
roles, and new ways of creating value, and learning to
value these things has been hard work for me! And
answer to one of my simple questions (How are you?)
and to be able to at least ask a second question/make a
coherent comment as a follow-up to their high-speed
answers. Fingers crossed...
consequently hard work for dear Mrs Huckin who has to
put up with me and my ever presence at home! I think I
am getting the hang of it, if slowly... ”
THE REEDER 2015
John Hughes-Wilson
Gordon Jackson (Mullens 1969) writes “as I think
(Mullens 1962) I received the
following information about
John’s latest book
you know, I am currently Guildford Borough Councillor
for the Pirbright Ward and sit on the Executive of
Guildford Borough Council with lead responsibility for
Economic Development and Tourism. I have recently
been nominated by the Council as Deputy Mayor of
Guildford for 2015/16. This is subject to being re-elected
as a Councillor in May! The Deputy Mayor normally
goes on to be elected Mayor in the following year - May
2016 to 2017. On the home front our son Tim (also an
OR) and his wife, Rochelle, now have a one year old
daughter, Maya, and we are looking forward to an active
future! All in all I don’t feel very retired!”
‘1914 FIRST BLOOD - A
TOMMY GUNN ADVENTURE’
ISBN: 978 1 86151 277
Meet T.O.M. Gunn. He’s a young infantry lieutenant in
the Sherwood Foresters, back on leave from India just
as Europe catches fire in the chaotic summer of 1914.
The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) is off to France, and
Gunn is determined to join the war before it’s over. He
joins a hastily-formed mixed battalion of reservists, regular
and territorial soldiers to find himself pitch forked into the
mayhem of the battles of the Marne, the Aisne and then
Mike Jaggard (Mullens 1972) and Graham Lambert
(Mullens 1970) relaxing in Sydney.
the long-drawn-out agony of Ypres as the high hopes
of summer sink into the frozen trenches of the winter
of 1914. By the time of the Christmas Truce with the
Germans, Thaddeus Gunn and his men begin to realise
that this is going to be a long war – and they will be lucky
if they survive.
About the author: Colonel John Hughes-Wilson, one of
Britain’s leading military historians, served in the army
for 31 years in the infantry, the Intelligence Corps and
Special Forces. He retired as a colonel advising NATO’s
diplomatic staff. He has been a regular live TV broadcaster
for the BBC at military events and is the author of several
highly-acclaimed works of military and intelligence history,
his latest being the Imperial War Museum’s A History of
WW1 in 100 Objects.
He likes good pubs and interesting conversation. He lives
with Lynn and a small zoo in Turkish North Cyprus.
More information about John and his work can be found
at www.memoirspublishing.com
Kenneth Ip (Blathwayt 1986) is a travel writer and
columnist based in Hong Kong and can be contacted at
[email protected]
David Kelly (Bristowe 2004) writes “I currently
reside on a dusty rock known as Australia. I’ve been
living and working here for over two years. I work for
an engineering firm which specialises in facades - JML
Engineered Facades. The company is based in Australia
and Dubai and we have projects all over the world. I’ve
been very fortunate and now have a position within the
company as the Design Manager and Project Engineer
for Australia.
We’ve been involved with some of the new builds in the
heart of Sydney. We have projects nationally in Victoria
and the Australian Capital Territory. I’m very pleased to
report that our buildings have recently received awards.”
THE REEDER 2015
23
Richard Leach (Capel 1978) writes “So, in 2005 my
family (Oscar aged 15 and Alice 12) moved with Justine,
my wife, from Peaslake near Guildford to Sherborne
in Dorset, for lots of reasons but mostly work, as I’m
dependent on an area that has a thriving agricultural
base. The number of livestock units in the south east
had diminished significantly, we wanted to find a decrepit
house with space to ‘do up’ - we found that alright! and
we liked the schools in the area.
I’m working for myself affiliated to various companies
and supply forage, seed and feed to livestock farmers
from Cornwall to Kent and up into Gloucestershire;
my wife is a Landscape Architect and Urban Designer
working three days a week in Bath on various projects
and developments, private, commercial and government.
The children go to school in Sherborne and appear to be
bright, sporty and well-mannered when not with their
parents – what more could we want ?
I recently completed a commission for the NHS in
Hammersmith & Fulham, which engaged with the local
community to create a large-scale artwork that captured
the thoughts and feelings of young people from the area.
It was my first public commission and very challenging
and satisfying in equal measure, not least because of my
longstanding relationship with the area. There’s currently
(2014) an exhibition of some of my paintings on show at
the David Simon Gallery in Bath and am hoping to show
some new work next year (2015) with Thompson’s
Gallery in Marylebone.”
Although hampered with tennis elbow I’m still playing
squash a couple of times a week and last played cricket
two years ago, Fathers vs Boys when Oscar left his last
school – I took a couple of wickets and my son hit me for
four, it’s still debated as I maintain it was more of a nick
than a stroke.
I see Greg Firth (my brother in law) fairly often, his brother
Trevor, occasionally Simon Cowcher, Graham Guy, the
Savills, Adam Jones, Simon Taylor, Simon Bailey, Adie Ricks,
Ed Peters, and Rob Simmonds – the last get together was
at Julian Smith’s memorial service. When I’m up in Surrey
I do mean to get over to the rugby club to watch a game
and see who is about but time never seems to allow.
We live in Adber just 10 minutes from A303 Sparkford
junction and if any OR passing to west country do get in
touch – [email protected]”
Ben Lowe (Blathwayt 1992) writes “Ellie and I, and
three year old Ronnie, welcomed our new son, Buddy,
into this world back in February 2014. We’re very much
enjoying our new life in rural Gloucestershire, a far cry
from our 12 years spent living in Shepherd’s Bush! We
miss London all the same though, and relish our trips
back as ‘tourists’.
24
THE REEDER 2015
Neil Mackenzie ( Blathwayt 2012) writes “I have
been rather busy with life since finishing at Reed’s. I
did gap year re-sits at Oxford International College and
from there went to Oxford Brookes University to study
biological sciences and I’m currently in my second year.
I have continued with my military interests,I was RSM
of our Cadet Force before I left, and I am part of the
University’s Naval Unit.”
Dave McElhiney (Mullens 1969) spotted me (Ed)
playing just in front of him at Littlehampton Golf Club
last Autumn and we had a brief chat about the then
forthcoming OR Rugby Past Players Lunch.
Mike Meadows (1945) is believed to be the oldest
surviving OR President having been in office from 1974
to 1977. He joined the School at Watford and he was
School Captain in 1944/45 during the Totnes evacuation.
This year will mark the 70th anniversary of Mike leaving
Reed’s and a small presentation is planned to mark that
occasion.
Any help that you could provide would be most
welcome and we would be eternally grateful. Having the
advice and support from someone like yourself would
also be truly invaluable.
Dave Middleton (Mullens 2008) is preparing for his
biggest challenge yet. As part of the Atlantic Lions rowing
team, he will be taking part in the 2015 Talisker Whisky
Atlantic race - a biennial rowing event from the Canary
Islands to Antigua, dubbed the ‘toughest race on earth’.
If you are interested in the race or indeed sponsoring the
team, details can be found at http://atlanticlions.com/
David’s inspiration for taking on the Atlantic with just
arms and oars comes from his Uncle Gary. He was a
man who lived his dream by spending his days climbing
in the amazing Scottish Highlands and Gary moved up
to Ballachulish when he was 25 as his main ambition was
to follow his passion which was climbing and walking the
mountains that surrounded his house. One day whilst on a
rescue mission in Glen Coe on a Munro near the Aonach
Eagach Ridge, Gary started feeling dizzy but he carried
on and completed his mission as was his constant attitude
to his volunteering work. However this dizzy feeling and
lack of balance started to progressively get worse and
worse and so he finally went to the doctors. Tragically
he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and from there
on in his outdoor dream for the Scottish Highlands came
to a shocking halt which for someone as active and free
Andrew Miller (Blathwayt 2009) On 8th
August 2014 Andrew Miller was commissioned at
the Sovereign’s Parade at the Royal Military Academy,
Sandhurst. Andrew was awarded the Trust Prize as the
officer cadet who obtained the best aggregate mark in
academic subjects.
spirited as Gary was truly heartbreaking. The disease took
over Gary’s life and he passed away in 2009.
David’s dream is to row across the Atlantic Ocean in
2015 and in doing so he and his team want to inspire
more people to live their dreams, just as Gary did.
The Multiple Sclerosis Trust is a fantastic charity and the
tireless men and women who work there helped Gary
throughout his life by providing incredible nurses and
care whilst he lived in both Scotland and England. David
and his team are desperately trying to raise the necessary
funds, promote their campaign and explain their
motivation for doing it to as many people as possible.
Richard Moore (Capel 1976) writes “I left Reeds
in 1976, and declared I was going to study psychology,
THE REEDER 2015
25
which was met with a knowing chuckle from a certain
TAMS. I found university a steep learning curve on many
levels and to be honest didn’t give Reeds another thought
for decades! Anyway, to cut a long story mercifully short,
I became involved in the mental health arena with
children and adolescents, first in Birmingham, then further
MH nurse training in York, managing an inpatient service
in the Midlands and the citywide service in Coventry.
One thing I really couldn’t contemplate was retiring in
Nuneaton (!) and for the last seven years I have been
working in Western Australia in a regional town called
Geraldton back in a more clinical role. Politics and culture
aside, Western Australia is a great place to be and great
therapy for anyone with seasonal affective disorder! I
live here with my wife Sally and both our sons are in the
country, one in Perth studying electrical engineering and
the other in Melbourne training in the army.
was playing golf in France, when at the first tee I seem
to lose my co-ordination. At the second tee the same
thing happened, so I retired from the competition and
continued around the course on the buggy. That evening
we had a typical French Chateau dinner with many
different strange courses. In the night I felt sick, got out
of bed and fell to the floor. I was unable to walk.
To cut a long story short, I was taken off to Rouen
Hospital. Had many tests and they told me that I’d had
a stroke. Then they asked, when did I break my neck?
Being in France I thought that there was a language
problem, and did they have the wrong patient, and I told
them that I have never broken my neck. They told me,
yes you have broken your neck and it’s mended itself,
but not properly. A spur of the bone has blocked your
artery which has caused your stroke. After a couple of
weeks, I was transferred to King’s College Hospital, as
all my tests and future operations in France were getting
very expensive. At King’s I had my neck re-broken and
reset, but the artery was left as it was too dangerous
to operate, and it was hoped that the artery would
eventually clear itself. To date it is still blocked and this
has affected my balance. I still lead an active life. Once
a week I sail with the disabled on Bewel Water, twice
a week I attend the local sports centre for aerobics,
workout in the gym and swimming, and finally I attend a
Tai Chi class. It’s well worth keeping active.”
Christopher Neira
Ivor Nash (Bristowe 1948) writes “I enclose a
photograph taken at Cobham way back in 1947
(see opposite page). What a difference between the
laboratory then and the many special labs now. As can
be seen in those days we seemed to work on the simple
basics, where as now the world is the pupils’ oyster.
I have had a few problems in the recent past. In 2004
I was out jogging an tripped over a flagstone on the
pavement and broke my neck (Hangman’s Fracture).
At the time I didn’t know it was broken, I was more
worried about my arm and shoulder, as I couldn’t move
my arm. I was treated for my arm, got it going and was
able to return to my beloved golf. 12 months later I
26
THE REEDER 2015
(Capel 1998) writes “It was
a pleasant surprise to see
my wedding photograph
in the last edition of The
Reader, so no need to
say that life has changed
considerably over the last
few years! Even more so,
since the arrival of our
baby daughter, Olivia, last September. She weighed just
under eight pounds and is a perfectly healthy girl. Old
Reedonian James Matthews is going to be Olivia’s new
Godfather and the service will probably be held in Spring
2015 in Mallorca.
Ivor Nash’s photo from 1947
This last year has been quite a roller-coaster ride. We
undertook a complete renovation of the Hotel during
the winter which consisted of refurnishing all rooms and
reception areas. We opened our doors in the beginning
of May which nearly clashed with my wedding and all of
the consequent planning and rushing about. We managed
to escape for a week’s honeymoon-cruise up the Fjords
which was great before facing the British invasion over the
summer months.
I was also pleasantly surprised to see Reed’s tennis
subvention mentioned in the Spanish edition of the Daily
Mirror. I remember playing in the Reed’s Tennis team
myself back in 1998. I hope everyone back at Reed’s
is well, I imagine that the remaining and remembering
members of staff are few and soon no one will remember
the small spec I was in Reed’s long history. Olivia might
follow in her father’s footsteps and re-live the journey
one day, so who knows if I will be back to the School as a
parent next time!”
William Nichols (Capel 1983) writes “I turned 50
a few weeks ago, a moment that has led to much soul
searching and introspection. A very sobering moment,
which I celebrated by getting pissed. Joking apart, it is a
big wake-up call for me. It is more than 30 years since
I left Reed’s and whilst some of it is a bit of a blur, some
of it is still very fresh in my mind. This is because my kids
are curious about my education and upbringing, because
I suppose they are trying to work out how I became
who I am. So a lot of memories, happy and sad, are
getting dredged up. I have to self-censor my recollections
and anecdotes quite carefully, for the world we live in is
considerably more PC than it was back in 1976-1983,
especially in Capel House.
My earliest memories are from when I started my Reed’s
career at the Close, run at the time by ‘Peggy’ Wright. I
was dressed in clothes that had been scrounged from the
School Housekeeper, Mrs Hayden, and were third hand
by the time they were passed down from my brother
to me. I looked like a clown and gave the comedians of
the time much material to work with. The dark, rainy
THE REEDER 2015
27
winter mornings and the daily trudge up to the main
school for breakfast were depressing. But the return
journey was downhill and livened up considerably by the
second formers indulging in random gozzings (throwing
first formers into gorse bushes). The journey to and from
the Close was further complicated by trying to avoid the
surveillance of prefects, mainly in Mullens and Capel,
who would sit on the window sills in their bedsits and
summon your presence if they felt you had contravened
any regulations - running, shirt hanging out, ‘squonk’ tie,
anything really. Sometimes nothing. But if you made it
to class unscathed, things did look up. I enjoyed most of
the lessons, especially Classics, taught by Jonny Byrom.
He was the most entertaining of all the teachers, but
completely barking mad. He would pace around the
classroom, recounting fabulous myths and legends, whilst
trying to play a tune on the glass light shades with a
window pole.
Moving up to the main school was something of a relief,
a slightly bigger fish in a slightly bigger pond. This feeling
was only temporary, everybody had their place and
third formers were at the bottom of the pile again. The
School was a tight ship, and the prefects had considerable
latitude when setting punishments. ‘Whites’ – entirely
pointless essays – were dished out as punishments on a
regular basis. I remember some of the best ones, with
entertaining subjects such as ‘the inside of a ping pong
ball’ and ‘the sex life of a cornflake’. 500 words please.
By tomorrow.
Around about this time I had my first run-in with religion.
In some form of stubborn protest I wrote a scripture
essay for Jimmy Challis and spelt the word ‘God’ all the
way through with a small ‘g’. I got my first detention
for that. What a rebel. But I did find out about getting
Confirmed, which seemed like a jolly good idea at the
time, because you got an extra Sunday afternoon exeat
to take after the service. The big day rolled around
pretty quickly, but things got a bit complicated about
half an hour before the mass confirmation was due to
take place. Someone, somehow, found out that I was
not actually Christened, which meant I could not be
confirmed. This posed a bit of a problem, because the
table at the Homestead in Cobham was already booked
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THE REEDER 2015
and my mother and stepfather were en route to school.
As luck would have it, the Bishop that Jimmy Challis had
wheeled in for the day had his Christening kit with him.
So one quick splash and dash later I was confirmationready. I remember having a very nice burger at the
Homestead afterwards. However, there was another
twist to the tale. I did not have any Godparents, and
it was suggested that Tommy Stedman, who as my
Housemaster acted ‘in loco parentis’, was technically
my Godfather. We did not speak formally about this
arrangement and he never sent a card on my birthday.
I would have thought a case of port would have been
a nice gesture, but I think he must have drunk it all. But
I could not have wished for a better moral compass
than Tommy in my journey through the jungle of school
life. The constant threat of caning kept me on the very
straight and narrow and taught me the vital importance
of blind obedience. Soon after, I discovered that the
important lesson was not about obedience, it was about
not getting caught. So whilst others in my year (most
notably Andy Riach who sadly is no longer with us)
accumulated strokes on a regular basis, I flew under the
radar and got away with almost everything. Except once.
I was caught smuggling four bottles of brown ale into the
dorm on a Saturday night, and I was dobbed in, rather
ironically, by my brother, who was the prefect on duty.
So I got my caning from Tommy and joined the club.
Academically I tried my best but was always piped to
the post in the Three Weekly Orders by swots like Mike
Jenner, Martin Leonard and other assorted brain-boxes.
I did OK with my ‘O’ levels (we did proper exams
in my day) but sixth form was a bit of a challenge. I
scraped three ‘A’ levels in maths, physics and chemistry
and ended up down the road at Surrey University in
Guildford, to read chemistry. This really was a disaster
on several fronts. I discovered that my interest in
chemistry was only superficial, driven primarily by my
private experiments at Reed’s using pure sodium and
magnesium ribbon that were purloined from the labs
when Basil Green and Walter Kynaston weren’t looking.
The curriculum and workload proved too much for me
almost immediately. The other big problem was that
my social skills were not great, and I was surrounded by
people who were brighter than me, spoke differently and
some of them were even females. Andrew Reed said that
a good education is a fortune that a child cannot spend.
I must have lost my wallet or been paid in the wrong
currency or something, because I was all at sea after I left
school. I lasted two years out of four and finally crashed
and burned and withdrew from the course.
No job, no money. So I did what any sensible lad would
do, I fell back on my bar keeping skills and ran the bar
at the Star and Eagle Hotel in Goudhurst, Kent. One of
the regulars observed that I was clearly wasting my time
behind the bar, I belonged in front of one. With my lack
of useful qualifications, semi-posh accent and penchant
for booze, he suggested that I should get a job in the City.
“Which one?” I asked innocently. So I donned a borrowed
and highly unfashionable suit and went job hunting. I
ended up at Warburg Securities and bagged a two year
posting to Tokyo in 1990, trading exotic instruments
like US Dollar warrants and Japanese convertibles in a
very spivvy market. I travelled extensively around Asia
and two years turned into five. My City career ended
as soon as I returned to the UK in 1995, physically and
mentally washed up after five stressful years. At this point
I was reminded by UK Immigration that I was actually an
American, resident in Japan, so they kindly took away my
UK residence. I should have mentioned to you that I was
born in America and always had an American passport.
This was a real problem for me and I had to stay put for
several years in order to re-establish my UK residency. I
contemplated emigration, but the only place that would
have me was Malta, so I stayed put. I am now British.
I now live in rural Wiltshire, married with two youngish
children. My wife, Charity, a retailer by trade, runs a
successful ethical gift business, Green Tulip. Between us
we run Green Pioneer, a distribution business specialising
in products for a sustainable lifestyle that reduce our impact
on the environment. Our interest in this niche was sparked
by my time in Japan. As someone who has been described
as unmanageable, working for myself is a blessing,
although if you asked my wife what it’s like working with
me you would probably get a different answer.
I am in regular contact with Anthony ‘Mike’ Hobbs
(Capel), Major James Alexander Macdonald Watt (Capel)
and Adam Pensotti (Mullens). We meet regularly
for beer, curry and tall stories in the Wilts/Berks/
Surrey corridor. I don’t get out much apart from these
gatherings. Over the last 30 years I almost met up with
Mike Jenner (Bristowe), he lives in the USA; I saw Guy
Lungmuss (Bristowe) once, he was an armed Police
officer at the time, and I also saw Ian Ross (Blathwayt)
once - he was an engineer in the Royal Navy.
It is fitting to finish off this brief history with some
apologies. I would like to say sorry to Geoff Martin for
not writing more, although after this he would probably
like to hear less from me. I would like to say sorry to
the science staff at Reed’s (Basil Green, Frank Anstis
and Eric Hearle) who tried to make a scientist out of
me, when my only interest was anything other than
science. I would like to apologise to Jimmy Challis for my
sham confirmation, and to his successor Bill Fillery for
tying sheets to the Chapel bell clapper. I would like to
apologise to anyone who had to pick their way through
wrecked body parts that littered the Chapel corridor
on some mornings after me and ‘Rhino’ Rhind (Capel)
had played cockroach hockey the night before. I would
like to apologise to my long suffering violin and piano
teachers for never practicing, nb after I left Reed’s I
never played another note on any instrument ever again.
Helluva waste, but the spark was not there. In fact, the
most useful part of my violin was the case. That’s where
I hid my cigarettes when I was in the third form, Silk
Cut supplied by ‘Jelly Roll’ Moreton (Capel) who nicked
them from his mum’s stash. Apologies to Mrs M. I would
like to say sorry to Richard Warnock and Neil Heather
for not quite being the upstanding role model in my
final year at school, but I hope all is forgiven. The Capel
matrons Penny Lawrence and Betty Darby deserved
better, teased about sock-washing and other unsavoury
tasks. I guess Richard Garrett gets a big sorry from me
too, for being so unresponsive over the last 20 years.
But I did set up the OR Hockey Club with Chris Potts,
so I did do something. Lastly, if possible, I would like
an apology from the School for re-introducing girls and
opening a sixth form centre (with bar) approximately one
nano-second after I left. Thanks guys! “
[that’s enough, Ed.]
THE REEDER 2015
29
Harry Pakenham (Mullens 1990) writes “I am
now living in Ascot with my wife and nearly new baby,
Olivia - who is six months old. Apart from watching Baby
TV and learning baby language again, not as difficult as
I’d thought, we have just started trading as a Limited
Company. Pakenham Education Ltd helps clients from
outside the UK to find the right school for their children.
It offers schooling advice, music and academic tuition to
facilitate entry to the top British schools. I’m still finding
time for the odd round of golf although can’t keep up with
Henman anymore who is now so good that he has to
give the pros a handicap start!”
Noel Preston-Jones (Blathwayt 1968) writes
“When people ask where I went to school, I always say
how very fortunate I was to benefit from the Foundation
scheme provided by Reed’s. No doubt very many other
ORs would share that sentiment and share my sense of
gratitude, both to the staff at the School and also to those
who worked so hard to raise the money that funded the
Foundation scheme. Of course, this is not a new theme
but it bears repeating because that gratitude is enduring.
For me two key parts of the Reed’s experience were
sport and drama, both of which remain passions to this
day. The school plays (and, if I remember correctly, some
inter-House competitions) provided both an opportunity
to understand how plays are produced and also a chance
to discover whether any of us had a real interest in acting.
I remember good productions of ‘Macbeth’,’Henry V’
and ‘Dr Faustus’; less memorable was having to play the
part of a female prostitute in ‘The Love of Four Colonels’!
It was all a helpful grounding in theatre and I have
sustained that interest ever since. But sport was more
of a passion; and the chance to sample many different
sports at Reed’s was inspirational. I have continued
playing several sports since leaving Reed’s but my main
involvement has been in hockey. I still play for a local club
on Saturdays and for the West Over 60s, and am also
involved in promoting Masters’ Hockey (for the various
age groups over 40) in Devon. Looking back, I owe
much to teachers such as Rodney Exton, John Savage and
Richard Warnock who helped to foster interest in these
activities. Perhaps, therefore, I can use the pages of The
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THE REEDER 2015
Reeder to record my gratitude.”
Zeid bin Ra’ad (Capel 1981) is the current United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Colin Richardson (Bristowe 1952) has had his first
book published online and is available from Amazon.
‘Modane’ is a dramatic and evocatively told tale of
mystery, adventure and romance set in 1917.
Harry Ridsdale (Bristowe 1959) writes “My
daughter Cathy has worked as a diving instructor/
underwater photographer/videographer for many years
now and in January 2014 my wife and I decided to visit
her in the Bahamas (New Providence, Nassau) where
she was working at the time. Cathy suggested that I
might like to go down to visit the sharks with which she
frequently works. With, as you might imagine, no little
trepidation I agreed and after a short refresher SCUBA
course, I had not dived since she taught me seven years
earlier, down we went. About half way down, 20 feet or
so, I looked up to see a layer of sharks between me and
the surface, oops! However, once down on the foredeck
of the wreck from which Cathy’s colleagues were to
feed the sharks, and parked hanging from gunwale of
that foredeck by my elbows I found myself remarkably
at ease with the situation. Well Cathy told me it would
be OK and she has not lost a client to the sharks yet,
although she has lost a couple to heart attacks! Looking
about me I could see that I was surrounded by what I
am told was between 30 and 40 Caribbean reef sharks,
mostly between six and eight feet long. I began to film
using the GoPro camera I had been supplied with. This
was difficult as the one I had was not fitted with a screen
or view finder so my aim was pure guess work.”
Harry also writes “During the late spring of 2010 I
received a call from a Howard Rigg, a name at the
time unknown to me, engaging me in my capacity as
freelance architectural technician to prepare plans and
obtain local authority approval for the extension and loft
and otherwise conversion of a private garage he owned
in Lockengate, Cornwall, to provide a ‘granny annexe’
within his property. It was necessary for me to take a
detailed survey of the building including that loft. The
words Reed’s School on a framed newspaper clipping,
therein, caught my eye. Closer inspection revealed it as
an article about Howard and son Christopher being the
first Old Boys, father and son, to play rugby together
for Old Reedonians. Subsequently I spoke to Howard
and revealed my status as another Old Boy and we had
a brief chat about our sojourn at Reed’s. However, he
was a couple of years or so senior to me so we did not
recognise one another and our experiences did not really
overlap but it is a small world.
And then, just a few weeks later; intending to head for
South Eastern France in our motor home and with the
prospect of a 50 Years On reunion looming, my wife and
I managed to combine the two into the one trip, well it
is quite a way from Bodmin to Cobham. Having enjoyed
the Reunion even more than we expected we continued
across the Channel and headed south, skirting Paris,
towards Annecy where we intended to meet up with
some friends. After a very few days of gentle southerly
wandering we came to Bray Sur Seine, about 50 miles
south east of Paris, where we saw our intended stopping
point, a motor-home service area, as we crossed the
Seine bridge. The Satnav unaccountably prevented me
from turning off immediately after the bridge which
would have been the correct way to go. Had that not
happened I would not have gone into the far eastern
corner of the service area. As it was we bypassed the
area completely arriving at the riverside a mile to the
east. After a while I got bored with lounging in the sun
by the river and unloaded my motorcycle to ride to
investigate the services. Approaching from the east I
came across a UK motor home and pulled in for a chat.
Somehow the fact that we had come from a school
reunion and that the school was in Cobham came into
the conversation. It was then revealed that both the
driver of that motor home and I were ORs and although
we did not know each other, were approximately
contemporary. This was Jock Thompson. We were
heading south and they were coming up from the south
and both making that stop of only a few hours. What a
set of coincidences.”
THE REEDER 2015
31
Tim Robb (Mullens
Mark Russell (Blathwayt1997) writes “Alistair John
1985) writes “Life continues
apace with a house full of
four children, three of whom
are teenagers, and two dogs.
Never a moment’s peace
let alone anything staying
tidy for more than five
minutes. Usual battles over
homework, the importance
of reading, not watching too
much TV, time in front of
the X-Box, and not posting
inappropriate things on
Russell was born on July 21st 2014. I’m in my second year
of teaching Fourth grade in Kennewick, West Australia.”
Facebook, Snapchat etc. It makes me question whether
our parents had the same challenges with us as we were
growing up but no doubt the answer is yes. I remember
fondly how my school report would generally arrive on
Christmas Eve and act as a ‘mood hoover’ until thankfully
forgotten sometime in January. Does the School still send
reports through the post as an early Christmas present or
is everything accessed online?
Life as a taxi driver to the kids at weekends is always
eventful. The usual discussion with my daughters about
the fact that I have no real idea over what is and is not
appropriate for a 13 and 16 year old to be wearing
out, and the usual request not to talk to their friends as
I am so embarrassing. With the boys it is more about
wearing rugby boots in the car is not acceptable and with
the eldest it is normally if you are going to be sick do
it out the window. Who would believe that at 17 they
would be drinking. Ah yes, fond memories of the ‘Vic’
in Oxshott spring to mind and surely I must have been
over 17...perhaps not. The kids are growing up and it
seems every year is shorter than the previous one. Even
scarier is that I left Reed’s in 1985 and 2015 will be the
30th Anniversary. Yes, for those of you who know me I
have learnt how to count since leaving, next is reading
and writing. Mrs Robb and I still try to keep fit and the
photo is from a cross country 10k obstacle course called
the Wolf Run. Always a good event and if cross country
runs through Oxshott Woods had been like this I am sure
there would have been fewer attempts at shortcuts.”
32
THE REEDER 2015
Alan Shillum (Capel 1950) writes “My study is full
of mementoes of a working life in newspapers. I came to
it late and then never wanted to do anything else. Now
in my dotage I have little doubt that a Reed’s upbringing
gave me the necessary je ne sais quoi to do it. That, and
my English master John Lead. On the study walls are
a Cudlipp Award ‘for journalistic excellence’; a USSR
passport authorised by Mikhail Gorbachev; an invitation
from Jacques Chirac to join him on the tribune at the
end of the 1986 Tour de France and a medal blessed by
Mother Theresa for helping her over a problem. The list
is long. My favourite, though, the one that transports me
back to when I was doing the job I loved, is a large photo
of that tumultuous heaven on earth, the huge newsroom
of ‘The Daily Mirror’ of yore. If it were a ‘soundie’
you’d hear the incessant clatter of typewriters, shouts of
reporters and sub-editors, non-stop phones and a lot of
masculine language. That’s how it was on my first night
there. I had been on local papers for just four years,
coming late to the trade eight years after leaving Reed’s
in July 1950, qualification-less because a change in exam
dates would have meant my staying on until I was 16.
There was a big world out there and so I went with just
a prayer book and a bible and the ‘Victor Ludorum’ cup.
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be a tour-type bike rider –
esoteric stuff then – or a tenor saxophonist with Stan
Kenton’s Shouting Big Band. But bike riding hurt too
much and the nearest I got to Kenton was to talk to
him at Ronnie Scott’s when his band played there in the
Seventies. Awesome.
My first job was courtesy of Colonel Newman VC, hero
of the St. Nazaire raid, in a drawing office. Strangely, it
wasn’t because I could draw but because I was good
at rugby, which I didn’t want to do any more although
Col. Newman wanted me for his local club – and he
was the firm’s MD. I turned out to be good at drawing
plans. Reasonable enough to be allocated all the General
Arrangements, as they were called pre-computer, but I
knew it was not for me. After National Service I never
went back. Jobless, needing to earn to help my war
widow mum, I thought hard about the future.
When I took retirement 30 years later I was managing
editor of the group.
Enter John Lead. After Headmaster Axton had given me
up as ‘a yob’, Mr Lead said, ‘Shillum, you should be a
writer. You’d be very good.’ I don’t know what sort of
writer he had in mind but I’m sure it was far removed
from being a tabloid hack. That I became just that was due
to Albert Pittman, erstwhile editor of the ‘Walthamstow
Guardian’. After I walked into that paper’s HQ one rainy
Friday afternoon in 1958 and pleaded my case, he gave
me a month’s trial. ‘No hard feelings if you’re no good, he
said. ‘We shake hands and off you go’.
A number of good men seem to have seen something in
me but I must reserve my sincerest thanks for the man
who saw something through my yobbishness and whose
advice eventually paid off: John Lead, the kindly light that
in the absence of a father initially guided me. But (sorry,
Sir, for that nasty tabloid habit of starting a paragraph
with a conjunction) I could not have done this without
the love and support of my mother and my wife, Sylvia.
Mum struggled largely alone as a war widow to give my
sister Raye, my late brother Keith (Reed’s 1956) and me
a decent upbringing. As for Sylvia, she created a loving
environment for our three sons, often single-handed as
my Fleet Street editor’s life was, to say the least, chaotic.
Now grown-up and heading computer companies, the
boys adore her. We are a very close quintet. Which is as
it should be.”
At the end of the month, the editor’s buzzer went in the
newsroom and his voice over the tannoy intoned, ‘Mr
Shillum. See me please’. I took the long walk and entered
to see him holding my latest piece of copy by thumb and
forefinger. He looked at me piercingly. ‘The chief sub
editor has shown me this. Can you do any better? No
waffling.’ But I did waffle. I said, ‘I’ve tried with it and hope
I’ll improve with experience. ’Hmm,’ he said. ‘If you say
you can do better you may stay. I think this is absolutely
first class’. He shook my hand. ‘Start Monday as a full
reporter with an increase in salary.’ Up it went from £8 to
£10 and I walked out into the darkening evening and said
‘Thank you, John Lead’.
Not long afterwards, I got an exclusive interview with
the widow of a man who’d shot dead two West Ham
policemen. The ‘Daily Mirror’ heard of my ‘scoop’ and
their news editor contacted me asking if I’d sell it as an
exclusive. I refused, saying I was duty bound to write it
up for my own paper first but would let him have it when
the paper was out on the Friday. The news editor’s name
was Roland ‘Roly’ Watkins, a true gentleman. He said, ‘I
applaud your attitude. Would you care to come up and
see me on Friday evening and work a shift? Start six pm
and bring the story with you. We’ll pay you for that plus
four guineas for the shift and if we like you, we’ll invite
you back to see whether you make the grade’. At six
pm on the dot that Friday I was in that newsroom, never
dreaming when I shook hands with ‘Roly’ that five years
later I’d graduate from reporter to becoming the Daily
Mirror’s night news editor and five years after that its
news editor, sitting in the same chair at the same desk.
James Smith (Capel 1999) James is planning to
marry Ellie in April 2015. They both took part in a charity
cycle ride from Greenwich to Paris in June 2014 to raise
money for Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research.
Richard Smith (Capel 2003) After a seven month
deployment on HMS Diamond in the Gulf and the
Mediterranean Richard is currently based in Portsmouth.
Doug Smyth
(Bristowe 1976) writes
“Following a great meetup with GRM and several
ORs in Sydney last year,
I rashly committed to
writing some words for
the Reeder. I’ve had little
contact with Reed’s or the ORs over the years, mainly
because I arrived at Sydney in1985 (just after 17 year
old Becker won Wimbledon), and am still serving out
my sentence here. As I said to GRM, Reed’s was good
to and for me- I loved all the sports (incl. being a hockey
ball boy at Lord’s for Andy Cairns in the Varsity match –
THE REEDER 2015
33
see last issue), music and choir, was OK academically, and
had great friends around me. My main issue on leaving
school was ‘What do I want to do in life?’
Uncertain, I headed to university to study English/
Linguistics and complete my education outside a single
sex environment (territory that Reed’s did not address so
well back then - are there still “dances” with Claremont?).
University was followed by a fascinating year teaching
English to business executives in Japan (and playing rugby
for Tokyo Customs, where a student of mine worked). By
coincidence, I also bumped into Richard Watrous (Capel
1977) in Shinjuku Station and we became good mates for
our year in the Orient.
Back in England, I worked with Sumitomo for a while,
and then had a spell in advertising (not my cup of tea)
before deciding that travel to Oz would assist in career
analysis. What began as a travel adventure morphed
into permanent settlement via a series of casual jobs
(bicycle courier, swimming pool fencer’s gopher, political
market researcher). I found Australia very freeing because
anything seemed possible and I felt less obliged to ‘toe the
line’ in the more traditional careers. The sand, sea, and
surf were also fairly enticing.
Once my Australian residency was granted, and I
could officially work, I moved back into the education/
recreation field and from there worked with children with
disabilities and their families, organising respite care and
youth group activities. The social work-type role had not
really been something on the radar at Reed’s, but I found
it interesting and fulfilling. I have since worked with the
NSW Ombudsman in Community Services, conducting
investigations into child protection/disability matters etc
(gruelling but absorbing), and I’m now with NSW Ministry
of Health in drug and alcohol policy, which keeps me
honest - though a glass of red never goes amiss...
Which brings me to another coincidence. Back in
2000, I was about to play Vet’s Hockey (old gits not pet
workers) out at Olympic Park, Sydney, when I am asked
by another spectator if I know which teams are playing.
Removing my motorbike helmet, I take a closer look
at said spectator and spontaneously, out of my mouth
tumbles the word ‘Stocken’?. Spectator, looking equally
34
THE REEDER 2015
quizzical, responds ‘Smyth’? Such is the way former
Reed’s pupils, with no contact over an intervening 26
years, address each other on foreign shores. As if that
wasn’t a big enough coincidence, we found we both
lived in the same suburb, and our children attended the
same primary school. Following an Xmas ‘barbie’ (and
segue red wine) that year, Tony and I have had many
years playing in the same Rusty Nails football team, are
doubles partners at the local tennis club comp (as we
were at Reed’s), and are soon to spend a week in NZ
mountain biking down a volcano.
I’ve also had contact with fellow-Bristowe 76rs - Pete
Maple, who worked in Canberra for several years,
Bob Andrews, my musical mentor along with Graham
Hoskins, and Nick Buckland,- visiting from S. Africa,
to see the British & Irish Lions tour v Wallabies. Life in
Australia continues to suit me and my lovely wife, Frankie
(originally from Oxford). We have two gorgeous (and
reasonably dinkum) Aussie girls at university, (with gap
year in reverse to UK for both). I miss friends, family and
pubs/beer in UK, but make the most of occasional visits.
Hopefully down the track, and as work eases up, I will
find time to attend some OR events, or games of 1st XV
rugby on 12 Acre. In the meantime, regards to all who
were at Reed’s in my time, and a particular mention/
appreciation of the then Headmaster, Rodney Exton and
all the great staff, who helped me on my way.”
George Spinks (Blathwayt 1953) writes “The
biennial reunion celebration was a great day and an
opportunity for three Reedonians, Geoffrey, in the
middle, George on the left and John on the right to get
together along with their families. John, my younger
brother, spent 30 years in the police and was ordained
whilst still a serving police officer. He is now a retired
vicar and lives in Harefield, Middlesex with his wife Josie
and still very much involved with the Church. Geoff,
lives in Plumpton Green with his wife Angela, Geoff is a
flautist and pianist and taught music at schools in Sussex
and is member of several orchestras in that county. He
is a musical examiner for Edexcel who in turn provide
the results for GCSE and A level students. And me, I
am living in Sunninghill with my wife Sheila, and I look
after the sales side of the business for a house builder
in Woking, Surrey. On Saturdays, in the winter, you
will probably find me running the touchline for Reeds
Weybridge RFC. Come on you mighty Reed’s!!
Stephen Tooby (Bristowe 1989) admits to having
less than fond memories of Reed’s but has gone on
to obtain two undergraduate degrees, an MBA and an
excellent career.
Jamie Treays [Jamie T] (Capel 2002) has been
announced on the line-up for the Reading Festival 2015.
Jamie was described as “the missing link between Joe
Strummer (Jake Strimmer?), bridging the coiled intensity
of punk and the rhythmic lyricism of rap via the intimacy of
a proper singer-songwriter” in The Times in August 2014.
David Varley (Blathwayt 1969) writes “I really can’t
remember where I am up-to with the remnants of the
family. My brother (about 1964) the term before I started
anyway, died of a malignant melanoma in 2009. He spent
the year following his fatal diagnosis planning his departure
rituals. These included full requiem mass complete with
opera soloist in the gallery. A very understanding priest
(his widow’s) seeing as brother was, like father and me,
a confessed atheist! He must have come to Gilbert and
Sullivan late in life as I don’t recall any tendency to such
musical theatricals when he was younger. I maintain
contact with his widow who is presently in France and I
also maintain contact with my nephew, from brother’s
first marriage which ended in divorce. My cousin’s widow,
no Reed’s connection, and their two daughters complete
the immediate family line-up. As both brother and cousin
died in their 63rd year I am quite looking forward to
Twelfth Night when I will have reached 64. Redundancy
caught up with me in 2011. Having been astonished that
anyone would want to employ me in the first place (the
last having done despite me expressly suggesting, when
interviewed, that he would be mad to do so) it was no
surprise to find myself a long term job seeker.
I have been visiting London around March for several
years now timed to coincide with the Institute of Marine
Engineering, Science and Technology’s Annual Dinner. I
have been a local committee man for a few years now
and the duplicitous so-and-sos that form the rest of it
made me Chairman when I wasn’t looking. Although my
two year term in that capacity ended in 2013 I remain
‘committeed’. What exactly we serve is another matter.
The Merchant Navy is virtually defunct and certainly
devoid of fun. I doubt I could recommend the life as it
is now to any young person who did manage to find a
position. I had a really great time both afloat and ashore,
launched into a life where I was nearer the top of the
class than the bottom with many thanks to a Reed’s
education. I cannot claim to have followed Frank Anstis’s
own formula of preferring the life of a large fish in a small
pond from the outset but that is quickly how my career
developed. Had he given it as advice, which I am sure he
didn’t, it could not have been more appropriate.
2012 saw me reacquainting myself with Noel PrestonJones, I was looking for a speaker on the Titanic and still
have some hopes that the local KGFS representatives
will invite him to speak at the Trafalgar Ball – so, if this
is published, Commodore please note! Even when
restricted to e-mail and ‘phone it was quite a strange
experience after more than 40 years since we had last
had any form of contact.
This year, following a remark or two on Linkedin, I made
contact with both Ian Carmichael and Michael TooleStott. Somehow this was not quite as strange, perhaps
the ‘ice had been broken’. Peter Verstage still commands
our local Friday Lunch Club so I see him when he’s
not away surf-glide-chuting or whatever. Retirement,
the reality of job seeking in one’s 60s, forced me to
THE REEDER 2015
35
find something apart from lawn mowing to fill my time
without emptying my purse. eBay offered several
avenues and I chose to take up the collecting of electric
master clocks of a particular type. I now live in fear of
sister-in-law’s first visit since I started this hobby, she
has brother’s half share of the house and is in complete
charge of style. She may need some of the wall space
for something else! I am really quite an able bore on the
subject already.”
Joachim Verbeek (2010) graduated from
Nottingham (MA Chemistry) and has started working in
London.
and two girls (18 months and three months). Retirement
about two years ago has enabled us to make the most
of our grandchildren, especially when the parents need
to go off for a quiet weekend to recharge the batteries.
We have also been able to spend more time not only
in our holiday home in Brittany but also to travel more.
I haven’t been back to the UK for about five years now
but maybe I’ll get across for the Rugby World Cup if I get
lucky with the ticket lottery.
I look forward to receiving the next edition of the Reeder
and see the news from my contemporaries. I am also
attaching some photos taken during the construction
of the club house at Whiteley Village and a team photo
which I think was taken in 1972.
Naomi Verbeek (2012) qualified as a pastry chef in
Sydney and is now working in Canberra.
Becky Vos (Sixth Form House 2009) writes “I
am currently nearly a year into my PhD in Electronic
Engineering at the University of York.”
Guy Warwick (Blathwayt 1968) writes ”Over 40
years now in France! it only seems like yesterday that I left
the UK, home and OR rugby on a wet, foggy, thoroughly
miserable November afternoon, and that was only
the start of the adventure. Arriving in Calais (instead of
Dieppe as was planned) I found that I had locked myself
out of my car. That problem was solved and I was the last
off the hovercraft so, of course, French customs wanted
to see what I was carrying. However, on seeing my rugby
boots on the back seat I was sent on my way with a smile
and a wave. And it’s still not finished: due to the fog I got
lost (no GPS in those days!) and somewhere between
Calais and Rouen (my final destination) the car broke
down not once but twice!
The second time luckily just outside a garage which, even
at 8 pm, was still open.
All’s well that ends well and I have since made my home
in France, where, with my wife Chantal, we have raised
our three children (two boys and a girl) who are now
married and we are the proud grandparents of, at the last
count, four grandchildren: two boys (10 and eight years)
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THE REEDER 2015
Rory Way (Mullens 2005) writes “after leaving Reed’s
I went straight to Loughborough University for four years
and obtained a 2.1 in Product Design & Manufacture
(MEng Hons). I had the pleasure of living in the same
halls, and house, as James Springer (2005) for a few
years and also regularly saw Alex Billman (2005) and
Nathan Scott (2004).
On leaving I was offered a place on the Siemens
graduate scheme at an R&D company called Roke
Manor Research, where I worked for four years mainly
developing mechanics for electronics systems in the
defence industry. I left in October 2013 and started
contracting at Prysmian Cables & Systems developing
optical fibre connectivity solutions (custom racks and
sub-racks, street cabinets, wall mounted boxes etc).
Since starting at Prysmian I’ve started my own product
development consultancy - Consultant Design Engineers
Ltd (www.consultantdesignengineers.com). Apart from
offering product design services and consultancy I also
write articles on various topics to share what I’ve learnt
over the past 10 or so years. I’ve just won my first bit of
business and I’m in discussions with a few more potential
clients which is very exciting for me. However it does
mean I work all hours of the day seven days a week, as
I’m still working full time on my contract with Prysmian.
Apart from that I’m living down in Romsey, Hampshire,
with my partner who is an art teacher at a local school.
We are looking at moving back up to London in August
2015, so I hope to attend some OR events soon.
Jim Williams (Capel 1959) writes “Taking the
underground from Shepherds Bush to Waterloo Station
accompanied by my mother in September 1955 was an
event which I’ll never forget. This was the day when I was
going to be “palmed off” into the hands of strangers in an
institutionalised environment which I could not possibly
imagine. The closest experience I could connect with,
being the time when I had been put up for adoption as
a child migrant to be shipped out to Tasmania. This time
I felt pretty much like a first timer going to prison! What
on earth had I done wrong to deserve this? I cannot
remember if I was uniformed at this stage; were we not
kitted out on arrival, but being deposited on the platform
with a crowd of other boys of similar age told me that this
was now very definitely ‘IT’ and it was also sink or swim
time for Jim Williams. Walking up through the woods from
Oxshott Station with a group of ‘newbies’ like myself toting
various bits of home reminiscences made the final lap of
this journey to our new life a daunting experience. Then
there we were at, what was for me, a most impressive
but austere building – ‘The Shack’ – as I soon learned, the
colloquial name for this imposing red brick structure and
my new home. What were my ‘gaolers going to be like?
Was there going to be anybody either of my own age or
a ‘keeper’ that I could relate to and survive with?
One of the first people I met was ‘new boy’ R.Q.
Drayson! He started his reign (new Headmaster - Ed)
the same time as me and apart from his ‘batman’ outfit
which I’d never been exposed to before, only ever
having attended lower level academic establishments
where teachers, with university degrees complete with
hoods and gowns had not been a pre-requisite or a
dress code feature - RQD came across as a reasonable,
albeit somewhat austere, bloke. Fortunately, for me,
we seemed to connect and the ‘fearsome’ headmaster
became a figure that I respected and whose teaching
style I related to. Me not being the brightest bulb on
the Christmas tree and his subjects, Latin, Maths and
Divinity were all more or less over my head but he
persevered with me and certainly from my vague
remembrances was most tolerant of my (C-) academic
standard. He encouraged and supported me and was
most complementary with regard to my speed on the
rugby field. As a Cambridge Blue at hockey he soon
introduced this sport into the School and encouraged me
to “chase after the ball” with the same gusto – although
my dexterity with the stick left a lot to be desired.
My lasting memory of RQD was In July 1959 when he
called me into his office and said that he wanted me to
come back into the 6th form – WOW! Academically I
was no great shakes but he wanted me to be available as
a prefect, to play sport and to contribute to the general
ethos of the School. Oh! and by the way, don’t worry
about “A Levels” - you can do a few more “O’s”! With
that sort of interest in me and my future it was very easy
for me to like this man who many preferred to be as
distant from as possible. With the benefit of hindsight
now, not accepting his generous offer was one of my
life’s greatest regrets!
So with RQD obviously being the ‘Alpha Male’ boss man,
his bearing, self-assuredness, general demeanour and
THE REEDER 2015
37
no-nonsense military training background he was without
doubt Reed’s natural leader for many years. If he was
the leader, then who was 2nd in command? This was
not so easy to determine. My original school residence
was at The Close for about 10 days where Arthur
Pitman was the main man. He taught English and was
the P.T. master as well as Housemaster for the ‘newbies’.
Although he appeared a reasonable guy and ran The
Close environment well enough, I guess, we didn’t really
connect and in fairness although I learned later that he did
not possess a university/teaching degree (sic), by my book
he was nevertheless OK. I soon became aware who the
senior masters were and what their hierarchical pecking
order was. One, Philip J. Scott (nicknamed, Nunc) the
geography master and Richard H. Baugh (Boff) maths
master seemed to be vying for deputy head position (sic).
The nicest and most human of masters was Peter
Prior (only recently deceased). He was the top floor
Housemaster for both Capel and Blathwayt, history
master and I think also our form master. He was
an involved and caring individual, not so much of a
sportsman although much younger than the general age
of teachers at that time. He was a classical music buff, well
up in politics and current affairs and used to spice up his
lessons with various snippets of interest before we had
to delve back into Henry VIII and his numerous wives.
Our relationship was a most interesting one in that as the
class idiot he kept me as his ‘go to’ guy for light hearted
comment and put up with any amount of my disruptive
behaviour and when I came out with something ludicrous
would join in the laughing at ‘Willie’ (my nickname) being
the class clown. He seriously tried to help and encourage
me, all regrettably to no avail as I failed my “O” level
despite the fact that at the mock exam he felt I might well
be able to just scrape through.”
Andrew Woodrow (Mullens 1985) writes “I was
a dayboy at the Close, and then in Mullens - it was an
amazing time, really was, magical moments, one memory
is hitting a tennis ball with a hockey stick against that old
garage, strange how some things stick, and then getting
pelted with snow balls on Gorse Lane, then the excitement
when Shirt Sleeve Order was declared in summer!
38
THE REEDER 2015
After the Close, I did one year in the third year, but then
left as my options were not as favourable as my parents
wished, and we moved to Nottingham, I could have
continued as a boarder, but did not.
I was at the Close with Alex Balls, who I know is
now a member of staff. Something must have rubbed
off on me, as I now work for a mail order company
specialising in selling sports equipment to the educational
marketplace, so all that time running round 12 Acre paid
off, even though I broke my arm playing rugby, although
that was not as bad as Richard Moir’s injury -he broke his
neck, if my memory serves me correctly. (He did break
his neck and then made a full recovery - Ed)
I am soon to visit my parents and will see if there is an
old Close Class photo, it would be with Mr. Hoskins,
Mr. Pyrgos, (always wore purple tracksuit bottoms), I am
not sure who else, I will somehow send a copy to you if
I can.”
Peter Woollard (Blathwayt 1980) writes “The
family is now well and truly settled back in the UK, with
my daughters going through an important s school year,
including GCSEs and A levels. We are living down in the
sunny climes of Somerset where I have set up a new
business supplying branded reusable eco-friendly cups to
the event market www.green-goblet.com.”
Gareth Yoxall (Capel 1995) writes “I left Reed’s
in 1995, I spent two years as a boarder and whilst this
cannot be considered a long time for a Reedonian I
specifically remember at the time feeling as though those
years were highly formative and influential for me and
that they certainly felt longer at the time! I was always
made to feel welcome, the fact that I had attended state
school previously was never brought up as an issue by
anyone and I was always very grateful to be benefiting
from the resources and opportunities that Reed’s offered
me; all of which I took with both hands. I am very
grateful for the funding given to me and my mother by
the Foundation; it’s generosity at a difficult time when I
had lost a father has always been deeply appreciated by
my family.
Looking back I would not say that those years were the
easiest and life at Reed’s was by no means perfect, I
found some teachers far more capable and approachable
than others with varying levels of consistency with their
respective levels of energy and enthusiasm for teaching
which was a real shame. I would single out Mr. Davies as
arguably one of the finest teachers I was lucky enough to
be taught by, he nurtured a work ethic, new methods of
learning and retaining information and a fascination with
the past that has never left me. I understand he is still very
much at Reed’s, I hope he teaches with the same fire.
At 37 years young, I now live in Devon with my beautiful
wife, our son Leo and our soon to be born second child
due next month; I regard myself as the luckiest person
alive. Professionally I lead a team of account managers in
a division that serves the growing demand for renewable
commercial heating solutions, we also get involved in
large domestic new builds for schemes in and around
Oxshott and the M25, private estates that require
commercial sized systems; I often come across the odd
contact that has an association with Reed’s.”
For those of you on LinkedIn there is news of many
more Old Reedonians - rather too many for me to
include here - Ed.
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39
David Jarrett (Headmaster 2014) writes “Anne
and I are blissfully happy living in a flint-barn conversion
in Jevington in East Sussex and enjoying retirement life
post-Reed’s. We of course still keep in touch with all that
is happening there and it was great to hear of another
triumphant inspection result last November.
Self-indulgently we are spending time travelling overseas,
exploring Sussex, visiting galleries and museums, seeing
and entertaining friends, golfing and reading. A period of
recharging batteries before some constructive work in
Africa in 2015!”
Ed Jones (Assistant Director of Music 2011) writes
“My news is not terribly exciting in that I am still working
at Christ’s Hospital as Assistant Director of Music (the job
for which I left Reed’s in 2011) but I am also a boarding
Housemaster. I am also Musical Director of the Claygate
Choral Society and occasionally see various former pupils
at Claygate station as I am waiting for the train home. I
enjoyed participating in the Festival Hall concert in March
last year and am glad to see that Reed’s music is still
so strong.”
Tom Jones (Head of Physics) writes “Since retiring
in 2000 Maggie and I have lived in Marriott, a village just
north of Crewkerne in Somerset. I taught part time at
a local comprehensive school for two years, and then
worked part time at Scott’s Nurseries for five years
where I learned much from real plantsmen. I continue to
mark A Level papers and enjoy maintaining a connection
with Physics and keeping the old grey cells ticking over.
Maggie continued to teach Special Needs at Taunton
School until she retired in 2010.
We are both fully involved in village life. I have been a
governor of our local primary school and now, under
pressure, am a churchwarden. It’s turning out to be a
varied and interesting job. Maggie organises “Marriott
Drivers”, a voluntary group offering transport for medical
appointments - local public transport is dire. We are both
members of local choirs.
I am a member of Crewkerne U3A and along with four
other oldies, called the Anoraks, a bit like “Last of the
40
THE REEDER 2015
Summer Wine” we make films. Our latest venture is a
film for the National Trust, recording the restoration of
Dunster Castle Water Mill. Maggie has joined a writing
group and has a couple of short stories published locally.
If anyone thinks retirement leads to boredom, think again.
One of the perks is holidays in term time, though no
weekends off! Perhaps our most treasured experience
was Damascus five years ago - peaceful and awash
with very much alive cultures of Christianity and Islam
side by side. It’s painful to think how much the people
have suffered.
We have very fond memories of our time at Reed’s
and still keep up with events at the School through
friends. Though not users of Facebook we would love
to hear from any Old Reedonians who remember us at
[email protected] ”
Carmen Lams (Rijnlands Lyceum, Cobham) writes
“I introduced a Flemish school from Veurne to Reed’s to
take part in the bringing of soil from the battle fields to
London for the new First World War Memorial Gardens.
A Flemish boy came over to visit Reed’s this year. I
have been busy at the American Community School
but it is my last year there. Joachim (2010) graduated
from Nottingham (MA Chemistry) and started working
in London, Naomi (2012) finished as a pastry chef in
Sydney and is now working in Canberra.”
John Leach (Director of Music) writes “After leaving
Reed’s I moved to Manchester and I retired from
teaching at Chetham’s School over 20 years ago so I am
mainly in touch with them, but I hear from old boys of
Reed’s from time to time where I spent five happy years.
I went to the inspiring service in St. Paul’s Cathedral in
2013 and was very glad to see the School thriving - both
musically and in many other ways.”
Tom Murdoch (English and History Departments
2013) writes “I’m now well settled back in Auckland,
New Zealand with my wife, Anna, and son, Bruno. We
have been back for nearly a year now and are expecting
another child in April 2015. In December 2013 I was
preparing for the Guildford Cathedral Carol Service and
I know that Christmas 2014 won’t feel the same - the
weather will be a little warmer and it will be shorts and
flip flops rather than scarves and jackets. The run in to
Christmas was one of my favourite times at Reed’s. I
can picture Iain Carnegie conducting the choir and hear
the strains of ‘Silent Night, Holy Night’ as strongly as if I
was there!
I am teaching at Macleans College - a large and quite
academic state school - where I’m fully involved with
the House system and English Faculty. It came as quite a
shock when I had to don my new House colours, more
similar to a Capel gold than my much preferred sky blue
of Mullens, however, recent emails from James Norman
informing me that Mullens were performing well in the
Edmondson Cup allayed any house related anxiety. I
have had a successful year coaching the 2nd XV rugby
and was delighted when Tony Talbot told me about the
great start to the season made by several of the boys I
used to coach in the Reed’s 1st XV. I’m pleased to say
that the Reed’s boys would stack up well in terms of skill
and courage when compared to the general standard I’ve
seen here in Auckland.
I enjoyed catching up with recent leavers Adam Stacey
and Charlie Saunders at the start of 2014 - both were in
New Zealand as part of their gap year - and would be
keen to hear from any other ORs passing through. I am
in touch with several of the teaching staff from Reed’s
and, one year on, can say with surety that it was an
unforgettable privilege to work with them at Reed’s. It’s a
brilliant school in so many regards. My six years at Reed’s
were some of the best of my life and Anna and I both
miss our friends and look back with great fondness.”
Katie Rogers (Maths Department) writes “I am
currently living and working in Hong Kong for a British
International School called Kellett.”
Howard Robinson ( Head of Biology 1980) writes
“When I left Reed’s in 1980, somewhat reluctantly I
might add but at the same time with an air of excitement,
I moved with my family, Louise, and three children all
under the age of eight, to live in a cottage which we’d
bought two years earlier on a house-hunting trip around
East Anglia.
Our cottage was seven miles outside Framlingham,
Suffolk, where I took up the post of Head of Biology
at its College. At the time it might have appeared to
have been a rather sideways step, since I’d already
been Head of Biology at Reed’s, even from my time
of leaving College in Chelsea … and how green I was
as a 23 year-old in my first job there! However, the
job at Framlingham College was in a department with
three other teachers (as compared to just myself and
Eric Hearle at Reed’s) and a school which numbered
450 in the senior school and another 150 in its nearby
prep school of Brandeston Hall (300 more than were at
Reed’s at that time with its pupils aged from 11 – 18).
The ethos / work atmosphere at Framlingham College
was much more matter-of-fact in as much as you went
into the school to work, did your job / activities, and then
went home again. No-one lived on the campus except
the seven housemasters, their families, and the bachelor
house-staff. How different it was at Reed’s when nearly
all of us lived on site; it was simply too expensive for staff
to be able to buy our own houses in the ‘gin and jag’
belt of Sandy Lane, noted for its millionaires more than
its poorly paid teachers! As such the staff at Framlingham
College were friendly but less sociable than at Reed’s.
The laboratories at Framlingham College were so
antiquated with very old-fashioned furniture, and there
were different types of electric plugs in each one so it
was impossible to move any electrical equipment from
one lab to another … what a challenge! I had nothing
to lose. I immediately applied to the Head, Laurie
Rimmer, a one-cap England Rugby player, to implement
THE REEDER 2015
41
laboratory upgrades. He was delighted that I’d asked
and then said that one of the reasons he’d appointed
me was because of my experience at laboratory design,
something I’d done at Reed’s just before I left. Remember
the ‘new’ labs built just behind the Chemistry Labs ? …
although even these have now been replaced. So, within
a year at Framlingham I had three newish labs to enjoy for
the next 15 years. Eventually even these were knocked
down and replaced with state-of-the-art laboratories in a
newly vamped Science Block.
I rapidly became fully involved in the teaching and
activities at the College where my nick-name … well one
that I knew of, at any rate …was Zip Zowie Howie. It
must have been all the times I jumped around the labs
trying to put across one point or another to the pupils
before they lost interest. Eventually after a few years, this
was reduced to Zowie … perhaps some of my Zip had
gone ? Come back Hank … all’s forgiven.
We, my wife and I, now live in Worcestershire, closer
to our three children and seven grand-children than we
were when living in Suffolk. We’re very much enjoying
our retirement doing all sorts of things: singing in two
groups:- the Elgar Chorale of Worcester, and also a
small eight-voice ensemble singing all those lovely slushy
close-harmony type numbers, King’s Singers style, in
concerts … for charity; bell-ringing; guiding at Worcester
Cathedral; giving illustrated talks on a variety of topics to
U3A / Probus / Friendship groups … you might be able
to take the teaching out of a teacher but you can’t stop
‘em talking! We enjoy going to concerts in Birmingham
at Symphony Hall and the Town Hall, and the theatre in
Malvern, Stratford and Birmingham. What a life!
I always enjoyed refereeing rugby … all the discussions
at Reed’s, with Richard Warnock, Basil Green and Eric
Hearle, weighing up all the pros and cons of the various
laws stood me in very good stead, that is until the laws
changed. I also started a Barbershop Singing Group,
which then ran for the next 26 years! I even managed to
arrange a few extra numbers, including Christmas ones:
the very well known ‘My Evaline, say you’ll be mine’
became ‘This Christmas time, the stars will shine’ … full
version on request from [email protected] …
and a Christmas version of ‘Kym by yah, my Lord’ which
we performed at one of the Carol Services.
We keep in touch with Eric & Barbara Hearle, and also
Geoff & Jude Martin … both of whom we’ve stayed with
and enjoyed good times, including not a little ‘chewing
over the cud’ of our time at Reed’s. Well, what else
would you expect from old-timers like us? If anyone
wants to get in touch, please do so using the email
given in this article. I’d be delighted to hear from former
pupils who might remember me in a favourable light
… maybe? Others can get lost! Nah … just joking! I do
hope you’ve all done well and gone on to great things
after your time at Reed’s.”
Apart from Biology, singing was always my great love
/ passion and I was soon able to develop a minor
reputation as a tenor soloist around the East Anglian
region, which led to me giving an average of 25
concerts a year with various choral societies, including
performances at the Snape Maltings, Benjamin Britten’s
concert hall. I even teamed up with Graham Hoskins in
Norfolk on a few occasions.
John Tatham (Bursar) writes “I much enjoyed
I took up bell-ringing, something I enjoy doing even now.
I’ve since discovered that Eric Hearle, in his retirement,
has also taken to a bit of campanology. Must have been
the acetone used for cleaning those OHP rolls which got
42
into our systems and led us to want to pull bells in our
old age! Funny people, old biology teachers. After 26
years of teaching at Framlingham I felt burnt out and so
decided to take slightly early retirement at 60.
THE REEDER 2015
meeting up with a number of people at the OR
Reunion and, following the excellent bicentenary events
and annual Carol Service, this does strengthen my
connection to the School. My godson and nephew’s son
joined the Close in September 2013 and absolutely loves
it and won the Close 1st Form prize for his sporting
prowess as captain of both U12 Rugby and Cricket teams.”
Peter Thomas (Art Department) is still painting
(very successfully I believe - Ed) and living at St Meard de
Gurcon in the Dordogne region of France.
Obituaries
Richard Robert John Bellamy (1930)
Richard’s daughter writes “My father left the London
Orphan Asylum on 30th June 1930 aged 16 to enter the
Royal Navy. He told me he felt he had to have a job that
provided accommodation, as he had no close family he
felt he could impose on. He mentioned several times
that he enjoyed his 16 years in the navy where he was
“mentally and physically challenged.” He progressed to
the position of Petty Officer after nine years and for the
last five months of his time (November 1945 to March
19’46) became Chief Petty Officer at HMS Drake.
He enjoyed visiting far-off countries before they became
westernised and took many interesting photographs.
Several visits appear to have taken him inland, particularly
in South Africa. I even have a cover of ‘The South African
Dancing Times’ with his photograph on it - goodness
knows why, as according to my mother he certainly
couldn’t dance and if he did the floor would not survive!
before he opened his eyes. He rode his bike right up to
his death in 2005.
He was always very independent, I suppose as a result of
his early life, and did things ‘his way’.
He was a staunch churchgoer and he enjoyed being
outdoors, especially at his allotment. He did a lot of
family history research in order to find out about his past
- to feel he belonged somewhere I suppose. His Aunt
Alice, who had been a matron at Winchester College,
had collected sponsors for him to get to the London
Orphan School as he had no father and his mother had
to work. His father had died in 1915 when they lived
in Oregon, so in December 1915 dad, with his mother
and older sister, came back to England to stay with
her parents. He was later sent to live with an aunt in
Southampton and he returned there during the school
holidays. On occasions he stayed with his mother on the
farms where she took jobs as housekeeper.”
He married my mother whilst still in the Navy in 1941.
When he left the Navy he worked for a time as a
postman and then at Sywell Aerodrome painting aircraft
until he obtained a post at BTH in Rugby as a designer
draftsman and electrical engineer - he once told my son,
“The best thing about my job was the title - I can’t draw...”
He had really bad hearing, he thought possibly as a
result of the war, and had several operations between
1950 and 1962, but they didn’t really help. He held
extremely strong views on positive thinking in all aspects
of life - mind over matter. In 1978 he went into hospital
in Aylesbury for cancer in the mouth, neck and shoulder,
but after a few days observation asked for a re-check
as he knew he no longer had cancer in the neck and
shoulder - this proved to be the case. He said he didn’t
like to tell them not to operate on his mouth even though
he thought this would soon be OK. This operation went
ahead and was successful.
He was knocked off his bicycle in 1985 and sustained
a cracked knee, twisted ligaments and had cracked the
base of his spine. As a result of another road accident
in 1988, when he was again knocked off his bicycle, he
became epileptic. He ‘saw’ himself lying in the road with
no hearing aid and asked the ambulance men to find it,
Antony Chinneck (Blathwayt 1936) 1921 – 2014
The following is an extract from the eulogy delivered at
Antony’s funeral at Easthampstead Park Crematorium on
7th July 2014.
“Dad was born at home in Underhill Road, Dulwich, to
Ada and Horace Chinneck. His brother Hubert, some
13 years older, left England for Kenya in 1929 for an
overseas post with his Bank and he died there in 1942.
Dad joined the London Orphan School when he was
eight in the middle of the summer term. His father
THE REEDER 2015
43
Obituaries
had died in 1927 and, because his father had had no
City connections, his mother had to pay a lump sum of
around £350 to the Governors for his entry. It took her
some time to save up and find the funds thus he did not
start at the beginning of term. The School was in Watford
and he attended as a boarder and the conditions came as
quite a shock to a young boy who had been immersed in
home comforts to that time.
The Spartan regime was alleviated in his first three years;
the uniform was relaxed to a more comfortable suit with
soft-collar shirts, ordinary shoes replaced the stiff black
boots and central heating was installed. In addition the
communal bath was replaced by six individual ones.
A vivid memory of those years was the House Matron,
The School was a mixed school in that girls attended
as well as boys. It appears that was as far as it went.
During Chapel the girls filed in through a different door
and occupied their half with a divide down the middle
controlled by masters. During meal times the divide was
even greater. The only mixing was for brothers and sisters
on Sunday afternoons. Talking of meals, it was due to
school that it took a long time afterwards for Dad to like
porridge and he never reconciled himself to custard.
a very stern ex-nurse who was a martinet with a very
waspish tongue. She apparently had a grudge against Boy
Dad was never very good at the main sports of rugby
and cricket (his own words) but he did make the Under
Scouts. Her stern attitude did, however, help to form a
strong companionship amongst the boys. She was also
in charge of the boys’ money and doled out the weekly
pocket money. Apparently his weekly 3d went a long way
in the Tuck Shop!
15 rugby side in his last year and was chosen to be
scorer for the cricket team. He remembers visiting Eton
for one match. Train spotting was a hobby he did enjoy
along with many of the boys, from outside the Carpentry
Hut there was a clear view over the shunting yard and
the mainline from Euston to the north.
When he was 10 the Headmaster decided that some of
the boys could not continue with both Latin and Physics,
probably down to lack of space in the Physics laboratory.
For whatever reason he was in the Physics contingent
rather than the Latin one and this arbitrary decision would
turn out to govern his subsequent education and the first
25 years of his professional life. Dad entered the Senior
School in January 1933. A strong memory of those years
was a Saturday evening treat when the boys were invited
into the Housemaster’s sitting room to listen to the BBC’s
weekly variety show. There was a regular Sunday walk,
fairly unrestricted, but with definite boundaries. Watford
town was out of bounds as was the roadside food stall
called ‘Ticky Snacks’. This did not deter the boys if they
were in funds.
Scholastic work in the Senior School was aimed towards
the School Certificate in the final year. During his last
couple of years English was taught by the Headmaster
and the Shakespeare play was ‘Julius Caesar’, the set book
was ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ and the poetry was a selection
of works by Browning. During this time he learned to
44
truly appreciate the beauty of language. His main history
memory was being made to correlate the various strands
of the turbulent history of Europe from 1485 to 1815.
This gave him an invaluable insight into world events in
later centuries, again relevant for his later career.
THE REEDER 2015
Academically he was very good, at least much better
than Eric Corner, a lifelong friend and relative, according
to Eric. In 1936 he passed the School Certificate and
won that year’s prize for Mathematics. He was awarded
the Dickie Barrett Exhibition which was worth £50 a
year for three years. This allowed him to continue his
education as a day-boy at Alleyn’s School in Dulwich
where he passed the London University Higher School
Certificate in 1939. Later that year an opportunity to join
the National Physical Laboratory occurred and he joined
the staff on the 1st August as part of the Aerodynamics
Dept on £120 p.a. A month later World War 2 started
and he immediately enlisted in the Royal Artillery. He
was given one day’s pay and placed on the reserve list.
In June 1941 he was called off the list and sent to a
training depot in Towyn, North Wales. From there he
was sent to Officer Cadet Training Unit at Shrivenham in
Wiltshire. Extracts from reports on his progress show the
regard in which he was held. Adjectives such as keen,
intelligent are evident and his Commanding Officer‘s
Obituaries
summary read ‘He has keenness and enthusiasm and
his knowledge is sound. He can take command and
responsibility and has a pleasant and cheerful manner.
He is developing rapidly and as he gathers experience
he should become a competent and thoroughly capable
officer’. He was commissioned in 1942 and a year
later was posted to 70th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment in
Leicester where it was being mobilised with new guns
and vehicles prior to going overseas. The Regiment
was expected to go to North Africa but ended up being
allocated to the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. After the
successful invasion the Regiment provided air defence
of Sicilian harbours and airfields. In April 1944 he was
sent to the School of Artillery just south of Salerno in
Italy from which he was posted to 77th Highland Field
Regiment then engaged in fighting that led to the capture
of Florence. Dad was wounded and was in hospital in
Naples when Florence was captured and then spent a
convalescent spell in Sorrento on the Bay of Naples. He
said very little about this, even to Eric Corner. He told us
that this was a beautiful place well suited for recovering
service personnel with easy access to the Mediterranean
Sea for a therapeutic swim!
He re-joined the Regiment as they were making slow
progress from the east coast of Italy towards Bologna. In
December 1944 the Regiment was due a period of rest
and recuperation in Palestine before re-joining the 8th
Army for the Spring Offensive. However, while waiting
for transport, the communist uprising in Greece meant
there was a need for troops there and his was the nearest
Regiment. Once this situation stabilised the Division was
immersed in Greek relief work and collecting data for
UN relief organisations. Dad applied for training as an Air
Observation Post pilot expecting that he would then be
posted to the Far East and the war against Japan. Shortly
after VE Day he started pilot training at Cambridge and
began flying in September 1945, getting his ‘wings’ early
in 1946. He spent time in Venice and he became one
of two pilots involved in some unofficial intelligence
gathering and communications work. At the time of
his discharge in September 1946 he was granted the
honorary rank of Captain which he was entitled to use
for the rest of his life. During the war he performed on
stage with Frankie Howard who offered Dad a job as his
straight man! How that might have changed history!
After the war he re-joined the NPL as an Assistant
Experimental Officer. He first met Mum before the
war at the Dulwich Tennis Club. In 1947, with a steady
job and, hopefully, a good career ahead of him, they
married and that partnership lasted for a further 67
years; together they provided both of us with a loving,
caring family home throughout our childhood. Through
part-time study he obtained his degree, a B.Sc. (Special)
in Maths from London University in 1950.
In 1956 he was appointed Assistant Secretary of the
Aeronautical Research Council and served about seven
years in that post. In 1964 he was selected for transfer
to the Civil Service and was posted as a Principal to
the Ministry of Aviation. His branch of the Ministry was
responsible for production of all military aircraft and the
Government’s relations with the aircraft industry.
He was appointed as Private Secretary to John
Stonehouse MP, Minister of Aviation, in 1966 and
then, when Stonehouse became Minister of State for
Technology under Tony Benn, he followed to the larger
Ministry. John Stonehouse was made Postmaster General
in 1968 and dad then had a new boss, Bill Mallalieu. I
remember a family holiday being interrupted in August
1968 when Russia invaded Czechoslovakia and he had
to rush back to the office. From memory we stayed on
in Wales and finished our holiday while he worried about
more important matters.
In 1969 he became Head of the branch in which he
served from 1964 to 1966 and this was transferred to
the Ministry of Defence in 1970. In 1973 he took on
his final role as Deputy Chief of Public Relations in that
Ministry. This role was a highly stressful one and was the
cause of the start of his cardiac problems. The problems
continued and he was glad to accept the offer of early
retirement which happened at the end of 1976. For
the next few years he was an even more avid sports
spectator than he had been before.
After a move to Bedhampton he became Hon. Treasurer
and part-time administrator of a local charity that ran three
houses for the elderly. He then worked as a part-time
THE REEDER 2015
45
Obituaries
researcher for the Hampshire Genealogical Society until
2007. Soon after moving to Wokingham he was elected
a director of the company that runs the complex of flats
and bungalows in which they lived, this at the tender age
of 87!!! He was Chairman of the Board until 2011.”
Simon Gregory (Mullens1956)
Simon died suddenly and unexpectedly in his sleep in late
February. A full obituary will appear in the 2016 Reeder.
Robert Kerswell (1941)
7th November 1935 to 14th September 2014
We received this message from Judy, Robert’s wife: “My
darling Robert passed away on Sunday 14th September
after a horrid spell in hospital. Thankfully he is now at
peace and no longer suffering but he had a really rough
ride latterly.” His funeral was on 30th September at
Telford Crematorium.
Philip Michael Larkin (1943)
Stuart Larkin writes “Philip Michael Larkin (Phil) was born
in 1925 in Watford, but spent his early years abroad on
St Thomas, Virgin Isles, where his father was posted
for work and was also the British Consul. Phil’s father
died when he was eight years old and he was accepted
to the School in Watford as a Foundationer. Phil made
many lifelong friends at Reed’s, including Mike Royal who
preceded him in joining Reed’s and was later to be Phil’s
best man. We understand from looking at his school
reports that his attention improved as he progressed up
the year groups, and it seems that he was School Captain
(sic), but it is not clear whether this was sporting or
otherwise. He was a keen swimmer and played cricket
at school, but his first love was rugby. He represented
the School and later played for the Old Reedonians as
hooker. His son Stuart’s first introduction to a Rugby Club
bar, and various fellow old boys such as John Laidman and
Ken Burbidge, was as a teenager with the odd half pint
(officially coke) and the usual rugby banter. We also saw
England rugby internationals on a number of occasions
courtesy of the club ticket ballots. Phil’s recollections of
the School’s move to Totnes during the war were of a
much more relaxed environment.
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THE REEDER 2015
Phil went on to serve in the Royal Navy and trained as
a radio operator. He served on motor torpedo boats,
initially protecting the larger ships during the D-Day
landings, but rarely spoke of his war time experiences.
He went on to serve in submarines on HMS Searover,
a similar vessel to the one at the Submarine Museum in
Portsmouth. He was very proud of his involvement in the
submarines and wore his submariner lapel badge or tie.
After the war, Phil worked in various parts of the
energy industry, for the CEGB, for Gulf Oil, for various
stockbrokers as an oil analyst, and finally for Vickers de
Costa in the City. He would have loved to have gone to
university but the war intervened, so in the mid 1980s
he took a management degree at Thames Polytechnic.
He ended his working life self employed advising various
companies on all things oil and gas. One of his regular
pastimes was keeping an eye on the weather which
indicated domestic oil and gas demand, cutting the
weather reports from the Financial Times to record
patterns, a habit he kept up until a few months before he
died in April 2014.
Phil married Jo in 1952 near Watford, and they enjoyed
61 years of marriage. They had three children, Fiona,
Helen and Stuart and seven grandchildren and were
devoted to them all. After 60 years living in the same
house in Watford, they moved to a flat near Brighton to
be closer to Fiona and Helen. However, following Jo’s
death in October 2013, Phil was less able to cope on
his own and moved into a care home for the last couple
of months of his life. Phil’s sister Kathleen, who went to
Reed’s Girls School misses him greatly, as do his children
and grandchildren.
Phil often talked about Reed’s school and how grateful he
was for the opportunity to have had such an education.”
Frederick Roy Wyatt (Bristowe 1940)
Ralph Wyatt (Bristowe 1942) writes “Roy was one of
three children, elder sister Enid, and younger brother
Ralph. We were brought up on a livestock farm at
Heckfield near Basingstoke until our father died suddenly
in 1932 in the depth of the Great Recession. Mother
was forced to sell all the livestock quickly and to give up
Obituaries
the tenancy of the farm as fast as possible.
Our widowed grandfather who lived with his eldest
spinster daughter Blanche, took all three children in at
very short notice whilst mother took a caretakers job
with an elderly gentleman. There was no welfare support
at that time. Then a friend told us about the London
Orphan School, as Reed’s School was known at that
time, and Roy went there first, followed by Ralph a year
later. This was undoubtedly the finest thing that could
have happened to us as we were given an excellent,
completely free, boarding school education with all
expenses paid, at Watford.
Roy left school and went to work on Southern Railways
in 1938 as an electrical engineer. At the start of war in
1939 he wanted to join the RAF but was refused as he
was too young and later was prevented from doing so
as he was in a reserved essential occupation. It was here
that he met his great friend, Geoffrey Chrimes who later
became his brother-in-law.
He later moved to Brighton where he met his future
wife, Sheila, though he did not marry her for another
six years. In 1946, disallusioned with slow promotion
prospects, he applied to join the Central Electricity
Generating Board in the small power station in Hayle.
In 1948 he got promotion and moved to Portsmouth
where he saw more of Sheila and married her in 1949.
His final move was to the new larger power station
being built at Poole in 1951 where he stayed until 1981
when the power station was slowly closing down. He
accepted voluntary redundancy at the early age of 58
years, on a full pension. He stayed with his wife in Poole
for the rest of his life, getting involved in several local
community activities.”
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47
Marriages
Angus Darroch-Warren (Capel 1986)
Ed Whiffin (Capel 2005)
Congratulations to Gus who married the lovely Belinda
on 14th June 2014 in Thailand.
Congratulations to Ed and Victoria who got married on
29th March 2014 at Parkside School. ORs Toby Ashbee,
Jeremy Connell, Alex Billman and Mark Marijnen were
all there to wish the couple well.
Chris Neira (Capel 1998)
Congratulations to Chris and Cecilia on their marriage
which took place in Majorca on 17th May 2014. OR
Jamie Matthews was in attendance.
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Then and Now
I have been asked to write something about the physical
changes that have taken place to the School in Cobham
over the past few decades. Those of you who left Reed’s
in the 1980s and earlier and who have been back will
know that there have been substantial changes, those
of you who have not returned may be surprised by the
number of new buildings, the changes that have been
made to the original buildings and the fact that the School
Grounds are appreciably smaller.
The sale of land, largely in the early 1990s, was a
‘necessary evil’ at a time when there were financial
challenges brought about by recession and falling pupil
numbers and so the Croft hockey pitch, the Coombe
rugby pitch and the western end of 12 Acre are now
covered in new housing development. Stacey, the
Headmaster’s house, The Croft, the Second Master’s
house and the Coombe, a staff house, are also long
gone and new houses for the Headmaster and the
Second Master/Deputy Head were built behind what
was the Bristowe/Blathwayt building and which now is
the Sixth Form House. I hope that you will be able to
identify these changes on the recent map of the School
Grounds above although there has been a re-aligning
of the roadway to the Sports Hall since this map was
printed.Tto date I have been unsuccessful in trying to
find a similar map from pre 1990. You may also see
these changes in the aerial photos overleaf although
unfortunately the recent and older shots have not been
taken from the same angles.
Many old buildings have been replaced by a wide
range of new. Many of you will remember the wooden
CCF Hut near the top of the main drive: that is now
the site of the Economics and Classics Department in
the building that was formerly the Rijnlands Lyceum,
THE REEDER 2015
49
Then and Now
Cobham, and next to this is the imposing FutureTech
building a photograph of which appeared on the front
cover of the 2013 Reeder. The old squash courts
have been replaced by the Music School and the old
Biology, Chemistry and Physics Laboratories have been
replaced by the two storey Prince Centre and conjoined Bridgeman Centre which house all the sciences,
Geography, History and Maths. The ‘new’ classroom
block has been extended and is linked to the Day Pupil
Centre which is immediately behind the Cricket Pavilion.
The first of the major new buildings on the estate was
the Sports Hall which is now part of the complex which
includes the modern indoor Swimming Pool. On the
west side of Bigside Cricket is the recently opened Indoor
Tennis Centre which has replaced the first such structure
opened about 12 years ago. Between the Main Building
and the Close there are two artificial turf hockey pitches
and three hard tennis courts.
Within the Main Building there has been enough
alteration to confuse someone who has not visited for
a while. The Library is now on the ground floor looking
out towards the Rose Garden and Bigside; the two open
courtyards on the opposite side of the main corridor have
been covered so that one is a reception office and the
other an extension of the Dining Hall. The Dining Hall
itself has been enlarged and re-organised and the passage
way that went out past the ‘boot room’ has also been
covered in to form a much more attractive entrance to
that part of the School, and if you use this entrance and
turn left past the Chapel to the end of the corridor you will
find everything there has changed since the early 1970s.
The Bursary occupies what was variously used as a
common room, classroom and meeting room on the
ground floor and above are the offices of the Royal
National Children’s Foundation, the Royal Wanstead
Children’s Foundation merged with the Joint Educational
Trust, in what was at one time the Geography
Department. The music practice cells and the Capel and
Mullens changing rooms have disappeared in a complete
re-modelling of the Art and Printing Departments. At
the other end of the Main Building the Assembly Hall,
which once doubled as the gymnasium has also been
enlarged, has a reception area and Archive Room and
retractable tiered seating has been installed to create
a versatile space for assemblies, meetings, drama
productions and concerts.
There have been other smaller changes too - if you have
not been back to Reed’s for some time please come and
see it all for yourselves.
Ed.
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Then and Now
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51
Old Reedonian Dinner, 3rd April 2014
The Bicentennial OR City Dinner was held in the
splendid surroundings of Cutlers’ Hall in Warwick Lane
and it was very gratifying to see such a good attendance
from across the generations of former pupils and staff,
a list of those who attended can be found below. The
Worshipful Company of Cutlers, one of the oldest livery
companies in the City, is one of a number that have long
standing connections with the School so this was a very
appropriate venue for this excellent event.
The Headmaster welcomed the guests, Stuart Popham
(Mullens 1972) addressed the gathering at the conclusion
of the meal and Matthew Huckin (Mullens 1981) gave
the Vote of Thanks. David Prince, one time Headmaster,
arguably produced the highlight of the evening when
he presented a cheque for £200,000 to the Reed’s
Foundation on behalf of SFIA Educational Trust, an
extremely generous gift to mark the 200th anniversary
of the School. On a lighter note the assembled diners
took part in the Loving Cup Ceremony, a tradition of
the Cutlers’ which dates back to Anglo-Saxon times and
the assassination of King Edward the Martyr who was
stabbed by the command of Efrida whilst drinking from
a two-handed goblet. Mercifully on this occasion there
was no such violence nor any of the unseemly events that
occurred at the end of the 50th Anniversary Dinner in
1863 which were reported in the 2014 Reeder.
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THE REEDER 2015
Guests
ORs and partners - Bernard Vincent-Pryke, John and
Daphne Rogers, Bill Collins, George and Sheila Spinks,
Tim Corrie, Roger Mew, Les Edgar, Chris Hawkins,
Peter Verstage, Martin Burton, Andrew Wilson, Stuart
Popham, Roger Northwood, Christopher Wilson, Andy
and Judith Wotton, Nicholas and Ros Yellowlees, Carl
and Hilary Bjorkstrand, Nick Dean and Gabby Godfrey,
Mark Snelling, Ed Peters, Raj Kanwal, Matthew Huckin,
Justyn and Ann Herbert, Marcus Brown, Angus DarrochWarren and Belinda Shearer, Benn Shepherd, Owen and
Hannah Rogers, Alex Balls, Benedict King, Tony Wild,
Mark Moresso, Dan Murray, Ross Webster, Jason Foster,
Luke O’Donoghue, Nigel Mitchell, Jamie Salmassian,
Sam Donnelly, Andrew Hendley, Stephen Merry, Alex
Wratten, Shahin Baghaei, Alex van Holk, Will Bulman,
Sam Donnelly and Anna Partridge, Ben Price, James
Robinson, Ross Barden, Harry Cosgrave, Oliver Fletcher,
Oliver Weguelin, Chris Wilkinson, Sam Rommer and
Phoebe Gorry, Henry Forder, Claudia Fletcher, Ismael
Chane, Sophie Soeting.
Past and Present Staff - David and Anne Jarrett, David
and Jenny Prince, Mark and Sharon Hoskins, David
and Alison Atkins, Alan and Jane Bott, Lucy and Edward
Hurford, John and Annie Tatham Richard Garrett,
Kathryn Hamlet, Gill and Michael Robinson, Geoff and
Judith Martin.
Reunion Day, 29th June 2014
We were blessed again with another sunny afternoon
to welcome back our Old Reedonians to celebrate the
special Bicentenary Reunion Day. The Headmaster,
David Jarrett, hosted some 200 ORs for lunch in the
marquee which was beautifully decorated, adding to
the party atmosphere. As well as the displays, bunting
and table settings, there was a specially-commissioned
Bicentenary ice sculpture (measuring 1.5 m x 1.5 m) to
welcome the guests.
Our guests represented old boys and girls from across
many decades and it was wonderful to see ORs who
left in the 1940s chatting at ease with our 2013 leavers
sharing their memories. Many ORs had travelled far and
wide to be there: Jim & Liz Williams from South Africa,
Michael & Kathleen Braybrook from Australia, Geoffrey
& Charlotte Levy from Belgium, Sabitava Mishra from
Switzerland, Philippe Duterloo & Epke le Rutte from The
Netherlands, and not just one, but two ORs from The
Philippines - Malcolm & Joy Maries and Clive Holgate.
We were also delighted to be joined by former staff: John
Tatham, Maureen Savage (wife of John Savage), Alan &
Jane Bott, Frank & Evelyn Anstis, Richard Warnock, Eric &
Barbara Hearle, Geoff & Jude Martin and Jane Shelton.
It was especially touching that so many of the
Headmaster’s former School Captains attended the lunch
too: Jamie Salmassian, Shahin Baghaei, Daniel Westley,
Philippe Duterloo, Jeremy Stephens, Stephanie Burrow,
Matthew Rose, Andrew Miller, Izzy Aspeling-Jones,
Jessica Chandler and Peter Chicken. The Headmaster
was able to welcome for the first time, the Chair of
Governors, Ian Plenderleith and his wife, Elizabeth. He
also introduced to the ORs the Headmaster Elect, Mark
Hoskins and his wife Sharon and the President of the Old
Reedonians Elect, Nigel Taunt.
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53
Reunion Day
It was always going to be an emotional day not only in
remembering the compassion of our Founder and what
he achieved, but for a number of other reasons too.
A minute of silence was held prior to the start of the
Dylan Paris Memorial Cricket Match to remember our
fellow OR who sadly died ten years previously. We are
indebted to Christian Gore and the Memorial Cricket
team for their commitment to this match.
Chris Hawkins, the President of the ORs, gave a touching
tribute to David Jarrett and thanked him on behalf of all
former pupils for his dedication not only to the School but
to the OR community. He extended the thanks to Anne
Jarrett who supported the Headmaster in all he did. A
specially commissioned piece of artwork – created by OR
Barry Cawston – was presented to them as a token of
gratitude from the ORs.
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THE REEDER 2015
It was then the turn of Chris Hawkins – who after 12
years as President or the ORs and a School Governor
– was due to step down at the end of August. The
Headmaster expressed his gratitude and that of all
Old Reedonians to Chris for helping to build the OR
community into the thriving body it is today and for his
leadership of Reed’s School Enterprises. A commissioned
oil painting of Reed’s School taken from the Rose
Garden was presented to Chris and a stunning orchid
given to Sylvia Hawkins, his wife.
After lunch and tours, there was then a special service
in the Chapel focused on remembering Andrew Reed
and also those ORs who fell in the Great War. Chris
Hawkins addressed the congregation and then unveiled
a special commemorative board with the names of the
106 ORs. This updated board is the result of research
carried out by Andy Wotton, Mullens 1975. It was a very
poignant moment realising that some of these heroes
were younger than many of our current pupils.
The afternoon ended with another 100 or so ORs and
their families joining us for smoked salmon sandwiches,
cream tea and a glass of Pimms to watch the cricket,
catch up with old friends and generally enjoy the bond of
being Old Reedonians in our special 200th year.
Sharmaine Matthews
Reunion Day
Reed’s Girls’ School at Dogmersfield who left when that
school closed in 1955 and transferred with several other
girl ORs to King Edward’s School at Witley. Her maiden
name was Buxton-Carr and she remembers a few of the
girls who were with us Old Wansteadians in the juniors
up to age 11. As promised I have already passed her
email address to several OR girls I am in touch with.
A further report
En route to Cobham I collected Jim and Liz Williams,
over from Johannesburg, from his sister’s house in
Shepperton and we arrived at Reed’s about 11.30. I had
been handicapped by my computer being faulty for a few
weeks before Reunion Day so was unable to view the
guest list Sharmaine had posted on the ORs’ website.
Sharmaine looked healthy and cheerful as she greeted
ORs and guests and we were welcomed at the reception
desk by a couple of Reed’s girls plus Kathryn Hamlet
from the Development Office and her newly-appointed
colleague, OR Ed Whiffin Capel 2005.
On the subject of Royal Wanstead School (RWS) I was
approached in the marquee by Paul Godley, Bristowe
1964, the young brother of Steve, Bristowe 1961,
both of whom were at RWS and I had not seen Paul
for over 45 years. Paul was the final pupil to transfer
from RWS in 1957 with an automatic place at Reed’s
on passing the 11+ following which RWS senior school
became a secondary school so no further transfers.
Coincidentally Jim Flack, 1954, at the lunch was the
first ever to transfer from RWS to Reed’s in September
1949 so present at the Reunion were the first and the
last RWS transferees.
We milled around chatting with drinks and at about 12.40
were encouraged to join our tables. Jim, Liz and I were
on a table with regulars Barrie & Jacqui Tyler, plus Clive
Holgate, Malcolm & Joy Maries, all three over from Manila
in the Philippines, Bob Glassborow, Mike Ryalls and Tessa
Smith. I had not met Tessa before but she is an OR from
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55
Reunion Day
1955, and Frank Polak, Bristowe 1956, but I did not see
them. Frank I believe resides in Spain.
We were all delighted to greet former master Frank
Anstis (1951-85) & wife Evelyn up from Truro in
Cornwall and many of his former pupils eagerly engaged
him in conversation plus Geoff Martin a former Second
Master (1970-2006) and current Editor of The Reeder
with his wife Jude who taught art at Reed’s for a year
in 1980. There were no doubt others there who I
should mention but with apologies I‘m ashamed not to
remember as the day was so hectic.
Derek Owen, 1955, was also there and he was the
second to transfer from RWS in 1950. A healthy looking
man in a linen suit approached me without a name badge
and was amused at my failure to recognise him: Philip
Crowson, Mullens 1958, whom I had not seen for 46
years. He had come specially to see Malcolm Maries
who last visited Reed’s in 1971 so there was a jovial
group from their time reliving their youth, later joined by
George Davies, 1955, former Editor of The Reeder and
Roger Smalley, Capel 1955. The three Spinks brothers
Geoffrey, 1952, George, 1954, and John, 1952, were
present with their wives but I spoke only briefly with
them. Frank Parker, Mullens 1958, had planned to but
was unable to come from Ireland but George Parker,
Blathwayt 1954, was there looking quite athletic with his
two new hips, as I had previously seen him hobbling with
a stick. Others preceding me were Brian Turner, 1953,
Richard Turner, 1956, David Shiner & wife plus his OR
sister Jenny Abbott, John Rogers & Daphne. Closer to
my year were Neilson Kite, a former School Captain,
Roger Hockey & wife Maureen, Dave Skuse & partner
Christine, Graham Ryder & wife Christine, Ron Wood,
Arthur Forrest, Harry Ridsdale and Nick & Anthea Jenkins
all of whom we see regularly plus a pleasant surprise to
see John Wimbleton, 1959, who had contributed details
of his life since Reed’s in The Reeder 2014 (pages 35-36).
Nick & Anthea normally bring Mike Meadows, 1945, the
OR President 1974-77 but he is now rather frail and in a
wheelchair so it was not possible for him to attend. I was
able to have a brief chat with Mary Burbidge while she
was talking with Daphne Rogers. Also on the list of ORs
attending but not lunching were Robin Pingree, Mullens
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THE REEDER 2015
Please make a note in your diaries that Sunday 28 June
2015 is next year’s Reunion Day.
Roger Mew
The following Old Reedonians were invited to the
lunch - all those who attended the School in Watford
or Totnes; all those who left between 1960 and 1969,
1980 and 1985 and 1995 and 2000; all those who left in
1953 and 1954, 1963 and 1964, 1973 and 1974, 1983
and 1984, 1993 and 1994, 2003 and 2004 and 2013 as
they celebrate special anniversaries coinciding with our
Bicentenary year.
Memorial Cricket Match
So where to start ? OR’s Day is a hugely popular event
these days and combine that with it being the School’s
200th Anniversary plus David Jarrett’s last year as
Headmaster and the year that Jonny Gleed was finally
Reunion Day
let back into the School for the first time since letting off a
fire extinguisher in the Society’s Room at the Ex-Scholars
Dinner in 1994, it had all the makings of a very special
day indeed.
The following things of note happened:
1. Chris Hugall showed that even with 2 left feet he still
cannot field. But perhaps crucially on one occasion
when he did manage to stop the ball (albeit with
one of his left feet standing on the ball), the umpire
had already signalled four as he thought it had hit the
flag. When Chris threw the ball in Gore knocked
the bails off as the school boys were high fiving and
chest bumping in the middle. Rather than play by
the strict laws of the noble game, Gore generously
withdrew the appeal to avoid any incidents (unlike
the Sri Lankans recently with Jos Buttler) but the
umpire’s card was marked.
2. Ross Webster was no-balled when one of his
deliveries bounced 3 times, which prompted the
Captain to offer the wise words of “pitch it up
Rossco”, which resulted in several full tosses plenty
of which were slow and on the legside to boot and
so were dispatched to several very small gardens
nearby.
The OR’s First Team were playing on Big Side as usual
and made the school boy error of starting before lunch
which meant their game was over soon after lunch.
Meanwhile the DP Team in their usual neckerchiefs were
tucking into lunch with aplomb and decided to stay for
the speeches, all 7 of them, which meant they were well
and truly hydrated by the time it came to head down to
‘5 Acre’ for their match. Their Captain who had missed
last year’s loss by carrying out valuable charity work in
the colonies on his bike was once again doing more
charity work this time on home shores, and was en-route
from Edinburgh. His flight which was meant to land at
City Airport at 12.40pm finally landed at 1.20pm, then
plane troubles led to car troubles with some train issues
thrown in meant he missed the start and Simon Stokoe
(pronounced S.T.O.K.O.E ...OK ?) stepped up.
Luckily Gore arrived pretty soon after the start and took
Stokoe off as he was bowling (and quite frankly blowing)
from both ends. The School were making slow but
steady progress when Foster took a wicket and Andy
Shiells was his usual slow self too. Rather than bore you
with an over by over account, I will summarize it instead.
3. Jonny Gleed’s language got bluer and bluer and
started full on sledging. Unfortunately most of this
was aimed at his own team, the umpire, and then
himself as he dropped a complete sitter. To make
up for this he then dived full-on at a ball that had
clearly gone past him and the seismic tremors
caused a mini-tsunami at Wisley Lake and Charlotte
Church to drop her cream tea.
4. Captain Gore much to everyone’s surprise took
three wickets thanks to a fine catch from Ross
Webster an LBW decision (from the card marked
umpire) and even one hitting leg stump.
5. Joe Paris showed that cricketing ability is not
inherited but did dive ala Arjen Robben to save a
few runs .
6. Al Coomes made Angus Darroch-Warren look
positively spritely in the field and at one point was
heard asking Buddha for divine intervention.
7. Phil Slocombe showed some hints of golden times
gone by (shame this cannot be said of his batting but
more on this to follow). He then dropped a harder
THE REEDER 2015
57
Reunion Day
chance at mid-wicket which meant Gleed felt better
(and rewarded himself with yet another drink).
19. The required run rate went up to 9.5 an over but
with Webster in we still had a chance.
8. Marcus, the Cat Viner, was all arms and legs behind
the stumps and generally performed well.
20. Viner played a few, even hit a few but didn’t make
enough.
9. By the end even Shiells was being punished and not
just by Gleed.
21. Shiells and Webster looked like a winning pair.
10. Foster was brought back on and his last over was
costly and indeed the last ball was hit for 6 !
23. Slocombe came in looking hungry and left looking
thirsty.
11. So the School made 153 runs of their 20 overs with
the loss of only 5 wickets which generally felt like 20
too many. Did I mention Gore got three of them ?
24. As the run rate ticked up so did the pressure and
then when Webster was out we needed a miracle.
12. The umpire (who seemed to be updating his profile
page on Facebook most of the game) hinted that
we might not break for tea only to look up to see
Coomes running at top speed towards the marquee
with Gleed hot on his heels (he had heard a rumour
that there was Pimms available). Stokoe was seen
sulking at not being Captain anymore and Chris
Hugall was explaining that someone must have tied
his shoe laces together to make him fall over so much.
26. They had not batted together since a House Match
in 1985 and time has not been kind to either of
these athletes. Quick singles were shunned looking
for the big boundaries but by then the game was
gone so they both decided to carry their bats,
maintain their averages and ask why they hadn’t
been put in earlier.
13. There was no reserved tea for the cricketers and so
we had to mingle with the general public, decline
several attempts to join George Spink’s tug of war
team, queue for ages to get any food, watch Lynne
Paris on the bouncy castle, and try and keep Gleed
away from the School’s chaplain and Sian Jones.
25. A miracle was needed, Gleed and Coomes we got.
27. In the end we made 144 runs so were nine short,
but if we were to take off the four Hugall managed
to stop we lost by five.
28. To be fair the School did have some pacey young
bowlers and held their catches well. They even ran
when fielding which I am not sure is in the spirit of
the game.
14. In order to open again, Stokoe got back to the pitch
first and went to wait in the middle and after 23
minutes Hugall joined him and oddly enough he
didn’t fall over on his way to the crease.
29. Thanks to Sharmaine for bringing down two boxes
of beers for us to celebrate our near victory and
once Gleed had finished these he was off to the Vic
for a few more and to test their fire extinguishers.
15. Stokoe selfishly or selflessly took the strike and
wafted his willow at a few. Crash bang wallop he hit
a four. Swing and a miss followed by swing and a cut
to gully. OUT.
Next year I am sure we will win this match. Not all
of the above happened and no offence is meant or
intended, the value of your house can go up and down
and a stitch in time saves nine and if Hugall had actually
saved a few who knows. Let’s do it all again next year
please but win.
16. Stokoe then went home.
17. Ross Webster then showed everyone how good he
used to be and ended up getting well over 50 runs,
mostly made from boundaries.
18. Hugall batted quite well (eventually) but was out for
20 ish valuable runs.
58
22. But so did Sturridge and Sterling for England.
THE REEDER 2015
Chris Gore
(Mullens 1987)
Reunion Day
Guests attending Lunch
Mr John Alvey CB – Blathwayt – 1940
Mrs Celia Alvey
Mr John Nethercleft – Blathwayt – 1942
Mrs Margaret Nethercleft
Mr Ralph Wyatt – Bristowe – 1942
Mrs Isobel Wyatt
Mr Gordon Denholm – Bristowe – 1943
Mr Bernard Vincent-Pryke – 1945
Mr Derek Weston – Capel – 1945
Mrs Eileen Weston
Mr John Rogers – Bristowe – 1946
Mrs Daphne Rogers
Mr Tony Wiggins – Bristowe – 1947
Dr Kuen Yeap
Mr Bill Collins – Bristowe – 1948
Mr Bill Crawforth OBE – Blathwayt – 1948
Mr Ivor Nash – Bristowe – 1948
Mrs Frances Nash
Mr Edward Kellet-Bowman – Bristowe – 1949
Mr Richard Raymont – Mullens – 1949
Mr Norman Morris – Capel – 1949
Mr Brian Corke – Mullens – 1952
Mrs Jennifer Corke
Mr Brian Turner – Bristowe – 1953
Ms Alison Joy
Mr George Spinks – Blathwayt – 1953
Mrs Sheila Spinks
Mr Derek Beaumont – Capel – 1954
Mrs Brenda Beaumont
Mr James Flack – Capel – 1954
Mrs Jennifer Flack
Mr George Parker – Blathwayt – 1954
Mrs Babara Parker
Mr Barrie Tyler – Blathwayt – 1954
Mrs Jacqui Tyler
Mr Robert Glassborow – Bristowe – 1954
Mr Malcolm Maries – Bristowe – 1958
Mrs Joy Maries
Mr Clive Holgate – Bristowe – 1958
Mr Jim Williams – Capel – 1959
Mrs Liz Williams
Mr Roger Mew – Bristowe – 1959
Mr Mike Ryalls – Bristowe – 1960
Mr Neilson Kite – Capel – 1960
Mr Graham Ryder – Blathwayt – 1960
Mrs Christine Ryder
Mr Arthur Forrest – Mullens – 1960
Mr Roger Hockey – Blathwayt – 1960
Mrs Maureen Hockey
Father Alan Clarke
Major John Tatham
Mrs Maureen Savage
Mr Chris Hawkins – Blathwayt – 1962
Mrs Sylvia Hawkins
Mr Paul Godley – Bristowe – 1964
Mrs Jane Godley
Mr Christopher Price OBE – Mullens – 1964
Mrs Wendy Price
Mr Ian Plenderleith CBE
Mrs Elizabeth Plenderleith
Mr Alan Bott
Mrs Jane Bott
Mr Anthony Turnbull – Bristowe – 1964
Mrs Helen Turnbull
Mr Trevor Jeanes – Mullens – 1964
Mrs Jeanes
Mr Ian Chate – Bristowe – 1962
Mrs Charlotte Levy
Mr Michael Braybrook – Mullens – 1965
Mrs Noor Braybrook
Mrs Kathleen Braybrook
Mr David Pafford – Capel – 1965
Mrs Margaret Pafford
Mr Timothy Poole MBE – Capel – 1965
Mrs Jill Poole
Mr Peter Verstage – Capel – 1965
Mr Nick Hawkins – Blathwayt – 1965
Mrs Mary Hawkins
Mr Richard Gaunt – Mullens – 1965
Mr Stuart Kerr – Mullens – 1966
Mr Mike Smith – Capel – 1967
Mr Donald Taylor – Mullens – 1967
Mrs Lesley Taylor
Mr Stephen Fitt – Mullens – 1967
Mr Nigel Taunt – Mullens – 1971
Mrs Linda Taunt
Mr Andy Wotton – Mullens – 1975
Mrs Judy Wotton
Mr Richard Warnock
Mr Geoffrey Martin
Mrs Judith Martin
Mr Eric Hearle
Mrs Barbara Hearle
Mrs Jane Shelton
Ms Megan Fitzgerald
Mr Christopher Paget – Bristowe – 1980
Mrs Jane Paget
Master Will (15) Paget
Miss Izzy (13) Paget
Mr Raj Kanwal – Capel – 1980
Mr Sabitava Mishra – Mullens – 1982
Mr James Eason – Blathwayt – 1982
Mr Andrew Marsh – Mullens – 1984
Mr Owen Rogers – Bristowe – 1987
Mrs Hannah Rogers
Miss India (5) Rogers
Miss Orla (5) Rogers
Master Jack (15) Rogers
Mr Ben Haran – Mullens – 1994
Mr Gavin Grattan Wilkinson – Bristowe – 1994
Mrs Mirjam Grattan Wilkinson
Miss Lucy (3) Grattan Wilkinson
Master Samuel (6) Grattan Wilkiinson
Mr Frank Anstis
Mrs Evelyn Anstis
Mr Graham Spawforth
Mrs Sara Spawforth
Miss Pippi (11) Spawforth
Mr Richard Garrett
Mrs Kathryn Hamlet
Mr Jamie Salmassian – Capel – 1998
Mr Shahin Baghaei – Capel – 2002
Mrs Mary-Ann Baghaei
Mr Daniel Westley – Capel – 2004
Miss Nicola Bryson – Bristowe – 2005
Mr Philippe Duterloo – Capel – 2005
Miss Epke le Rutte – Mullens – 2005
Mr Jeremy Stephens – Capel – 2005
Mr Ed Whiffin – Capel – 2005
Mrs Anne Jarrett
Mr David Jarrett
Miss Stephanie Burrow – Bristowe – 2006
Mr James Pearce-Thomas
Mr Matthew Rose – Capel – 2008
Mr Andrew Miller – Blathwayt – 2009
Ms Izzy Aspeling-Jones – Bristowe – 2010
Miss Jessica Chandler – Bristowe – 2013
Mr Peter Chicken – Blathwayt – 2013
Mr Mark Hoskins
Mrs Sharon Hoskins
Mrs Lucy Hurford
Mrs Sharmaine Matthews
Mr Sam Boulton – Mullens – 2013
Miss Bethan Davies – Bristowe – 2013
Miss Clare Ford – Blathwayt – 2013
Mr Stephen Hobson – Bristowe – 2013
Miss Ellen Paterson – Bristowe – 2013
Miss Lucy Pidgeon – Blathwayt – 2013
Mr Charlie Saunders – Bristowe – 2013
Mr Alex Truelove – Blathwayt – 2013
Mr Zain Chaudhry – Blathwayt – 2013
Mr Gabriel Gordon – Blathwayt – 2013
Mr Rory Fletcher – Capel – 2013
Mr Nick Oldreive – Mullens – 2013
Mrs Christine Kemp
Mr Paul Kemp
Mr Gareth Hart
Miss Anna Apostolou
Mr Simon Southion
Mr Angus Hamilton – Blathwayt – 1997
Mr David Coates – Blathwayt – 2001
Mr Jonathan Hedges – Blathwayt – 1999
Mr Rory Woolston – Capel – 2012
Mr Michael Wakefield – Mullens – 2005
Mr Sam Brandon – Capel – 2008
Mr Matthew Macpherson – Capel – 2013
Mr Adam Stacey – Mullens – 2013
Mr Alex Redmayne – Mullens – 2012
Mr Jack Raimondo – Bristowe – 2007
Mr Harry Coates – Mullens – 2012
Mr Christian Gore – Mullens – 1987
Mrs Nicola Gore
Miss Amelia (10) Gore
Miss Madi (8) Gore
Miss Bea (7) Gore
Dr Jonathan Gleed – Mullens – 1987
Mr Alaistair Coomes – Mullens – 1985
Mrs Aletta Coomes
Master George (8) Coomes
Master Freddy (10) Coomes
Mr Chris Hugall – Mullens – 1994
Mr Jason Foster – Blathwayt – 1995
Mrs Sophie Foster
Master Sam (4) Foster
Miss Zoe (10 mths) Foster
Mr Joe Paris – Bristowe – 1986 (Hon)
Mrs Lynne Paris
Ms Sophie Paris
Mr Sam Paris
Mr Andy Shiells – Bristowe – 1984
Mrs Debbie Smith
Mr Phil Slocombe – Bristowe – 1986 (Hon)
Mr Simon Stokoe – Mullens – 1986
Mr Marcus Viner – Mullens – 1986
Mr Ben Woolnough – Mullens – 1993
Mr Ross Webster – Mullens – 1995
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59
Old Reedonians’ reunion day
Table 17 x 17 (rectangular table)
Mr Malcolm Dunn – Blathwayt – 1982
1st XI School team plus umpires
ORs joining for Tea
Mrs Jennie Abbott – Dogermsfield – 1955
Mr James Allan – Mullens – 1988
Mr Alex Balls – Blathwayt – 1988
Mrs Lucy Balls
Master Charlie Balls
Master Oliver Balls
Master Toby Balls
Mr Peter Bellet – Mullens – 1988
Mr Mark Buxton – Bristowe – 1969
Mrs Gemma Buxton
Miss Mary (6) Buxton
Master Solomon (10) Buxton
Miss Mary Charrington
Mr Ian Clapp
Mrs Clare Clapp
Mrs Victoria Cripps – Bristowe – 1987
Miss Cecilia Cripps
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Master George Cripps
Miss Rose Crosby – Bristowe – 2010
Mr George Davies – Bristowe – 1955
Mrs Pamela Davies
Mr Ian Deans – Capel – 1975
Mr Peter Haran
Mrs Rowena Haran
Mrs Jennifer Hart
Miss Cerya Hart
Mr Nick Jenkins – Bristowe – 1958
Mrs Anthea Jenkins
Miss Laura Johnson – Mullens – 2010
Mr Alexander Kemp
Mr Gavin Kemp
Master Jack Kemp
Mr Tom Knight – Capel – 2013
Mrs Amanda Knight
Mr Robert Knight
Ms Kim Lambert (Teaching staff)
Mrs Charlotte Mocatta – Mullens – 1988
Mr Jocelyn Mocatta – Mullens – 1988
Mr Bryn Nathan – Capel – 1977
Mr Richard Nicholson
Professor Robin Pingree – Mullens – 1959
Ms Patricia Pingree
Miss Laura Pingree
Miss Jessica Pitcher – Mullens – 2010
Mr Frank Polak – Bristowe – 1956
Mrs Miche Puddle
Mr Christopher Puddle
Mr Harry Ridsdale – Bristowe – 1959
Miss Jerry Ross – Mullens – 2008
Mrs Sian Rowland – Mullens – 1986
Mr Benn Shepherd – Blathwayt – 1986
Mrs Sylvie Shepherd
Mr David Shiner – Bristowe – 1956
Mrs Elizabeth Shiner
Mr David Skuse – Capel – 1958
Mr Roger Smalley – Capel – 1955
Mrs Catherine Smalley
Miss Sophie Soeting – Bristowe – 2010
Reverend John Spinks – Mullens – 1951
Mrs Josie Spinks
Ms Christine Tate
Captain Richard Turner – Mullens – 1956
Mrs Jenny Turner
Mr John Wimbleton – Blathwayt – 1959
Mrs Glenda W imbleton
Miss Sophie Youngs – Capel – 2010
Andrew Reed Debate
In February 2014 as part of the Bicentenary Celebrations
the first Andrew Reed Debate was held at the Guildhall
in London as the start of a planned on-going series with
the aims of raising awareness about child deprivation and
disadvantage; identifying solutions to child deprivation
and disadvantage; developing interest from the City in
these issues and engaging their involvement in addressing
them, and raising awareness of Reed’s School’s Charitable
Foundation and those partner organisations with whom
it works.
Simon Stokoe (Mullens 1986), Nigel Taunt (Mullens
1971), Michael Voller (Capel 2005), Tom Way (Bristowe
1986), Ed Whiffin (Capel 2005), Andy Wotton (Mullens
1975), Peter Verstage (Capel 1965).
The 2015 Debate was “Can sport help break down the
barriers between advantage and disadvantage?” and the
panel, chaired by John Inverdale the television sports
presenter, was Tessa Sanderson-White CBE Olympic
Gold Medallist and founder of the Tessa Sanderson
Foundation & Academy, Tim Henman OBE Old
Reedonian, Grant Cornwell MBE Chief Executive of the
Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, and David Stalker CEO
of ukactive. Several hundred people attended the debate
in the Great Hall which was followed by a dinner for the
Speakers and Sponsors in the Old Library.
Among the guests the following ORs were present:
John Alvey (Blathwayt 1940), Kristi Arlidge (Blathwayt
2002), Alex Balls (Blathwayt 1988), Adrian Blackman
(Mullens 1992), Christopher Brogden (Capel 1984),
Rupert Bryan (Mullens 1992), Peter Budge (Blathwayt
1961), Sam Chamberlain (Mullens 2011), Bill Collins
(Bristowe 1948), Ian Cornwall (Blathwayt 1974), Sam
Donnelly (Blathwayt 2001), Alastair Hamilton (Blathwayt
2000), Andrew Hendley (Blathwayt 2000), Tim Henman
(Blathwayt 1991), Justyn Herbert (Capel 1983), Richard
Jefferies (Blathwayt 1975), Eileen Laidman (1946),
Graham Massie (Capel 1975), Roger Mew (Bristowe
1959), Nigel Mitchell (Mullens 1997), Daniel Murray
(Blathwayt 1992), Roger Northwood (Capel 1973),
Luke O’Donoghue (Blathwayt 1997), Guy Pakenham
(Mullens 1988), Ed Peters (Bristowe 1979), Steven Poole
(Blathwayt 1974), Stuart Popham (Mullens 1972), David
Rawles Mullens 1967), Jeremy Sharples (Bristowe 1989),
Benn Shepherd (Blathwayt 1986), Daniel Shepherd
(Capel 1990), Jeremy Sherwood (Blathwayt 1975), Andy
Shiells (Bristowe 1984), Tim Smith (Mullens 1979), Mark
Snelling (Blathwayt 1979), Oliver Stokes (Bristowe 2010),
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61
Tout Change at Dogmersfield
Reed’s School for Girls turned into an Hotel? We
couldn ‘t have imagined that when we were there.
I read Rosemary’s article with interest, and I send
commiserations for the loss of her husband; I hope
my article will not be a repetition of her visit to
Dogmersfield. I write with the aid of photographs, to
show comparisons. What comparisons could there
possibly be? Of course there are significant changes; how
could there not be? But there were still features which
struck me vividly of the past.
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As my husband and I drove up the drive to the front
door, I recognised it immediately. We walked into the
hall, and at once I missed the black and white flooring,
where we stood in line for the inspection of our
uniforms, before starting the two mile walk to the village
church on a Sunday morning. One hot day my friend
Gill tells me, she took off her hat in the park, and for
punishment, had to repeat the walk to and from the
church in the heat of the afternoon, in full uniform! I was
most relieved to learn that it had not been allowed to
remove the flooring, and that it was only covered up.
It was a delight to see the great staircase still in place.
Perhaps readers may recognise themselves, posing on
those forbidden treads? What a thrill for me to stand on
I suppose the restaurant where we had dinner, and
breakfast the following morning, used to be part of the
Assembly Hall, where Miss Mills delivered prayers, a
that hallowed ground! I remembered the wooden doors
on either side of the front hall, with the carved wood
Adam fireplaces. They were two of our classrooms. For
exams we sat in alphabetical order. I was three from the
front Barker, Brown, Creedy, Croxford etc, ran the calling
of the register each morning. My desk was by a window
overlooking the front; the strip of grass where we ran our
potted sports, and the park and lake. Somehow, there
was always the hum of a lawnmower. The weather hot
and sunny. The lazy atmosphere often dragged me away
from the question about the witches in Macbeth, to gaze
out of the window for several precious moments.
hymn, and AOB, every morning. Also perhaps a part of
the old Dining Room. I don’t recall the tables adorned
with flowers, but I do remember the nights when
the alarm bell hauled us out of our beds to an air raid
practice. We sat at the empty tables, having donned
our navy blues under our nightdress, draped a blanket
round us, and carried our gasmask to our designated
place in the Hall. Stupified with sleep I once picked up
my sponge bag instead of my gasmask, and was not very
popular with the teacher on duty!
At teatime we drank milk, except for one day a week
we had tea with bread and dripping. A real treat on cold
rainy days. On Sundays we were allowed “Home Tuck”
jam, Marmite, honey, or whatever we’d brought from
home. We always tried to swap something we fancied,
sometimes without success! The Hotel had a very
different tea table.
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63
I suppose there were six or seven beds in our
dormitories. They had the old metal springs and rather
thin matresses. They seemed comfortable enough at the
time. Unlike the guest room we enjoyed at the Hotel,
with the en suite bathroom, and long white dressing
gowns to lounge about in! Absolute luxury.
Before we left we walked round the grounds. The
tennis courts looked very smart, the white lines not
confused with red netball marking, as ours served a
dual purpose. We searched for the tree the Princess
Elizabeth had planted on that memorable Sports Day. I
knew roughly where to find it, but it was nowhere to be
seen. There was not even a commemorative plaque. I
spoke to one of the hotel staff about it, suggesting it was
something of an insult to Her Majesty the Queen.
He said he would look into it! Of course our grubby old
squash court had disappeared. I have fond memories,
as it served as a gymnasium, and we hauled in the horse
and box etc for our lessons.
Luckily, it was a sunny morning. We walked past the
grassy lawns and shady trees and I was reminded of the
summer we made sun tops and sunbathed on the grass
in the rhododendron walk while we revised for exams.
One needlework exam required us to make “half a bra”,
the results of which Mrs. de Ville probably scrutinised
carefully. We were grateful for this skill, but of course
made the whole garment. Half was not much use, but
of course the time factor had been important. The
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THE REEDER 2015
formal garden looked just the same, and I walked on the
beautifully manicured grass without a qualm! The only
other time I had done this, was when we gave a Folk
Dance display. We learned dances from many different
countries, but the Scandinavian ones stick most in my
mind. In fact my Special Study in College was based on
this subject.
The Estate plan, or legend read rather differently, but as
they say over here tout change, and in the main I was
pleased with our visit.
Joan McDonald - Creedy
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65
Watford memories
Junior School
Memories
The article in the 2008 issue of The Reeder by Margaret
Williams about her days at Watford has spurred me to put
on record my memories of my boyhood there, which
was in the same time span as her years. Her descriptions
of many of her experiences echoed my own but others
brought home to me the fact that although we were colocated we were for all essential purposes two different
schools. Hence some of my memories differ considerably
from hers.
I joined the London Orphan School shortly before my
eighth birthday in June 1929. I am not sure why I did
not join at the start of the summer term, but it may have
been related to the fact that my father, who died in 1927,
had no City connections through whom my mother
could solicit votes and hence she had to pay a lump
sum – my recollection is that it was about £350 - to the
Governors and that this was not completed by the date
of the start of the Summer term. At that time the location
of the School retained some reminders of its foundation;
the approach was by Orphanage Road and the School
was still labelled London Orphan Asylum on Ordnance
Survey maps.
The Headmaster was the Rev. G.K. Allen; he left
after a year or so and his successor was the Rev. C.R.
Attenborough. My brief acquaintance with Mr Allen leaves
me with few memories of him, but such as they are
they call to mind a large, somewhat avuncular figure. Mr
Attenborough’s was a much colder personality. He had
served in the Royal Navy during the First World War and
he ran a tight ship, but he was a brilliant teacher.
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My house in the Junior School was Capel (No.1) and I
started in the lowest form, our Form Mistress being Miss
Seymour – who was also in charge of the Cub pack.
Life was fairly hard, certainly judged against modern
standards, and came as a considerable shock to one of
my tender years whose previous life had been immersed
in all home comforts. The only heating in the house was
provided by an anthracite-burning stove in the middle
of the wall opposite the door into the Day Room. The
furnishing in this room was bleak; long trestle-type tables
and wooden forms and lockers round the sides with
lift-up lids that provided the only other seating. The
washroom had a central communal bath and basins
against two walls, but at least there was hot as well as
cold water. Upstairs were two, unheated, dormitories
with between them a small toilet room for use after
lights-out. By day one had to use the “bogs”, a roofless
lavatory used by all the Junior Houses with a continuous
urinal round two walls and central half-door closets which did, however, have a roof overhead. There was a
similar one for the Senior School.
Our uniform was a suit of a thick dark-grey tweed-like
cloth, with short trousers and knee-high woollen socks
for those in the Junior School; this was worn with a
white shirt and a separate, starched, Eton collar. We
were also provided with flannel vests and pants. The
only concession to climate was that the vests and pants
in the summer term were of thinner material, but we still
had to wear the thick suits in even the hottest weather.
Our footwear was heavy black boots that were laced up
to the ankles. There were three changes within my first
two years that made life a little less Spartan. The first was
the change in uniform to grey-flannel suits and grey softcollar shirts, which were much more comfortable than
the old suits and collars. Ordinary black shoes replaced
the boots. The second was the installation of central
heating in the Houses. Large-diameter pipes running
through the lockers carried hot water to the radiators;
these pipes were covered by a thick cladding of an
asbestos compound! The anthracite stove remained
but there was no longer a need to huddle as close as
possible to it during the winter months. The third was
Watford memories
the replacement of the sports-club type communal bath
by six half-length individual baths.
Each House had a resident Matron, who had a bedsitting room on the ground floor, and two House Prefects
from the Senior School with whom lay the primary
responsibility for House discipline. A member of the
teaching staff was the House Master but as he played
little part in House affairs, apart from the selection of
sports teams to represent Capel House, I cannot recall
his name or anything more about him. The atmosphere
in the House was mainly dependent on the Matron and
the Prefects. During most of my time in Capel it was
not a very happy House, largely due to the Matron who
took charge early in my first year. She was a martinet
with a waspish tongue who had previously been the
Nurse in the Infirmary and, apart from living up to the
strong disciplinary code of that profession, she was full
of prejudices with a particular “down” on Boy Scouts.
However her attitude helped to reinforce our natural
boyhood companionship in the face of adversity so life
was not intolerable. One of Matron’s duties was to look
after our pocket money, for which we gave her funds at
the start of each term. My memory is that in my early
years this sum was 2s/6d (12.5p) and I drew a maximum
of 3d per week from her – but 3d went quite a long way
in the Tuck Shop!
Prep. was a nightly occupation, Monday to Friday, from
the earliest years. Done in silence in the Day Room under
the supervision of the Prefects it lasted for an hour in the
Junior School. There was then a supper break – one thick
slice of bread with some form of spread on it - then the
supervised cleaning of shoes before the nightly hands,
neck and face wash (inspected by Matron) that preceded
undressing for bed. Baths were taken twice a week. Lights
out was around 9pm, when the Prefects came to bed.
On Sunday afternoons there was the House walk –
two by two in a crocodile, though we did not have
to keep in step! The route was usually the same. We
walked diagonally across Bigside, through the gate in the
corrugated-iron boundary fence and then a path that
ran down a slight hill to a tarmac road. In my early years
this path was through agricultural land but by the time I
left most of the land had been submerged in roads and
houses. After a short distance the road bent right but
our usual route lay straight ahead into the path through
Munden Avenue, where in the autumn we could search
for beechnuts and chestnuts, though occasionally we
would follow the road and cross the River Colne. For
the Junior School the limit of the usual walk was the
point where the Avenue met the Watford Bypass (A41)
but the Senior School, whose walk was free within
prescribed boundaries that excluded Watford town,
were allowed to cross the main road into the upper
section of Munden Avenue towards Brickett Wood.
I have few scholastic memories of my time in the Junior
School. The only particular one is that when I was
about 10, the Head decided that some of us could not
continue with both Latin and Physics; I cannot recall the
reason for his decision, but it may well have been that
the there was a maximum to the number who could
use the limited space in the Physics laboratory. Whatever
the reason, it was decided that I should be among
those who should continue with Physics and drop Latin.
Although I could not know it at the time it was a decision
that governed all my subsequent education and the first
25 years of my professional life.
Senior School
The School’s scholastic year coincided with the calendar
year, ending in December when the Sixth Form sat the
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Watford memories
Cambridge University School Certificate Exam. This
created difficulty for me when I later attended a day
school that had a scholastic year allied to the university
year and meant that I had to cover the 2-year Higher
School Certificate syllabus in only 18 months.
I entered the Senior School at the start of the new year
in January 1933. My House was Blathwayt (No.7). This
was the only House in the School that had a resident
Housemaster, at that time Mr S.C. Cooke, who had
apartments annexed to the building. It had a separate
external door but for us boys the main entrance was by
a door off the Day Room; there was also a door on the
first floor in one of the dormitories that Mr Cooke could
use occasionally to see whether all was well after lights
out. Mr Cooke also provided a regular treat for us on
Saturday evenings when he would invite us in our night
clothes to join him in his sitting room to listen to the
weekly variety programme broadcast by the BBC at 8pm.
During my second year in the House I had the duty each
morning during the winter months of clearing the ashes
from the grate in his sitting room and relaying the fire for
Mr Cooke to light at the end of his day. Mr Cooke paid
me for this duty – I think it was a shilling a week.
The senior year in the House did not have a true fagging
system but the junior year, whose members were known
as “Yinks”, were expected to perform simple errands for
them. They would be summoned by the cry of ‘Yink’
and the last one to report to the caller would be selected
for the particular task required by the senior. When we
were in the Junior School we would from time to time
hear ‘horror’ stories of this system being abused and
Yinks being bullied as a result, but I never encountered
any such organised bullying and the horror stories were
probably a form of folklore relating to much earlier times.
As previously mentioned, the Sunday walk for the Senior
School was much less restricted. We had to leave the
school in pairs, rather than en masse, by the same Bigside
gate but from then on the only restriction was the laiddown boundaries. Apart from the upper part of Munden
Avenue, we were allowed to walk along the Watford
Bypass beyond the crossing of the River Colne and as far
as a road that led to part of the Bushey Golf Course that
was near Aldenham. Aldenham itself, like other built-up
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areas such as Watford town and its environs, was strictly
out of bounds, as was the roadside stall (‘Ticky Snacks’)
a short distance further along the Bypass where, for a
few pence, one could buy hot meat pies – though we
frequently risked a visit to it if we were sufficiently in funds.
I have noted from Margaret’s reminiscences that the
Sunday walk for the girls took place after morning chapel
and before the midday meal. I presume that must have
been chosen in order to avoid the possibility any of us
boys in our afternoon walks meeting with any of the girls!
Scholastically our work in the Senior School was always
aimed towards the School Certificate Exam in our
final year, and in our penultimate year we prepared by
concentrating on the syllabus of work set for the year
above us. Our Shakespeare play was to be ‘Julius Caesar’
but as the Old Vic production of it, with Henry Oscar
as Caesar, Leo Genn as Brutus and William Holden as
Cassius, was playing in the last quarter of 1935 we were
taken to see the performance of it before we began
our study of it. Our set book was ‘A Tale of Two Cities’
and our set poetry was a selection from Browning’s
works. The Head took us for all the English studied, as
well as for Scripture, and from him we learnt to analyse
critically the texts before us and, as I certainly found
later in life, to appreciate the beauty of the language. My
other outstanding memory is of History lessons from
Mr McCracken; our exam years were 1485-1815 and
the method he used to make us correlate the various
strands in this turbulent period of European history and
emergence of Empire gave me a grounding that has
proved invaluable in understanding world events in the
later centuries.
Watford memories
cannot recall the sounding of Last Post; indeed I cannot
recall any boy being qualified to blow any tune on a bugle.
Chapel and Dining Hall
Each weekday began with a short service in the Chapel.
This followed the Matins ritual of the ‘Book of Common
Prayer’ as far as the reading of the first lesson and there
was then one hymn. During my first years this was
from ‘Hymns Ancient and Modern’ but soon after Mr
Attenborough’s appointment this was replaced by ‘Songs
of Praise’. On Sundays we had the full Matins service at
11am; the sermon was normally preached by the Head
though there were occasional visiting preachers. After
tea we again went to the Chapel for the full Evensong
service, but without any sermon. Lessons were almost
always read by one of the Prefects. Attendance at all these
services was compulsory. Senior boys who had been
confirmed were expected to attend Holy Communion on
Sundays at 8am. I was amused by Margaret’s reference
to ‘Lord dismiss us’ and ‘Lord behold us’ being sung with
gusto. ‘Lord dismiss us’ - Yes. but ‘Lord behold us’ – No!
The latter was sung more with resignation and, especially
among the younger boys, with much sadness at the
thought of three months’ absence from the comforts of
home, which would be further marked for a few days by
the sound of stifled sobs in the dormitory after lights out.
My memory of the observation of Armistice Day
differs from the description given by Margaret and
makes me wonder whether the boys had a separate
commemoration from the girls. My recollection is that
on 11th November the normal morning service was
replaced by a special service that started at 10.45am with
the singing of ‘I Vow to Thee My Country’ and as the
hour approached we sang the hymn ‘O Valiant Hearts’.
After the two minute silence the service ended with
a short prayer and the singing of ‘For All The Saints’. I
Chapel services were one of the only two occasions
when we were conscious of the girls’ school the other
being in the Dining Hall but, apart from the weekly
meeting on Sunday afternoons of brothers and sisters,
there was, of course, no contact of any form. The girls
entered the chapel by the south door in the cross aisle
and sat in the pews in the front half of the building; the
boys entered by the north door and sat in the western
half. There were single box pews by these doors; each
of which was occupied by a master who ensured that
there would be no form of communication between the
two halves! The choir was drawn only from the boys’
school. An additional duty undertaken by the boys was
pumping the organ bellows; for this task two of us were
in the organ loft with the organist and when he was in full
blast you had to work very hard to keep the tally above
the line marking the minimum pressure required.
The separation of the boys and girls in the Dining Hall
was even greater than that in the Chapel, the central
space was occupied on one sidewall by a stage and
on the opposite side was a gallery housing an organ; a
grace was sung before and after the meal was eaten.
In the Junior School we assembled for meals on the
quad outside the House and when all were present
we moved off in orderly file, entering the Hall by a
door at one end. I think there must have been a similar
procedure in the Senior School but I have no memory
of this. We were grouped by houses and sat at wooden
trestle tables, about twelve to a table; the food for
each table was divided between individuals by a prefect
or a master. With hindsight one has to admit that the
meals were typical of school food of that era; hardly
adventurous and some quite enjoyable, though there
were some horrors. It was several years after leaving
before I came to like porridge and I have never been
able to reconcile myself to custard!
Sport
The main sports were rugby in the autumn and winter
terms and cricket in the summer term. Wednesday
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Watford memories
and Saturday afternoons were given over to these and
participation was compulsory. As might be expected
prowess at these games, rather than academic distinction,
gave a boy enhanced kudos among his fellow pupils and
1st XV Colours with their tasselled caps were like gods
to the juniors. For those who were selected for school
teams matches had the additional benefit of special teas
after home matches and trips out of school for away
matches. Unfortunately for me I was never very good
at these sports, though in my last year I did make the
Under15 XV and in that summer I was chosen to be
scorer for all 1st XI matches. I remember particularly
a visit to Eton for a match against them, probably their
Colts XI, on Agar’s Plough.
There was a swimming bath – with a length of about
twenty yards - off the corridor between the Junior and
Senior Schools, which was open only in the summer
term. The walls were fitted with climbing bars and in the
winter the bath was covered with a wooden floor to
convert the room into a gymnasium with climbing ropes
and a vaulting horse. A ring would be erected in the gym
for house boxing tournaments and on at least one occasion
we had as guest referee W. Barrington Dalby who used
to give inter-round summaries during BBC broadcasts of
boxing matches, the call of “Come in Barry” becoming
a well-known catch phrase in pre-war days. PT periods
were held in the gym if the weather outside was unsuitable.
The School did not have a running track but competitive
athletics were held in the summer term on the playing
fields, our footwear being ordinary plimsolls. On Sports
Day we had the usual selection of running races up to
the mile, but field sports were limited to high and long
jumping and instead of shot putting we had throwing
of the cricket ball. Longer distance running was limited
to cross-country running once or twice a term, with a
competitive run being included among the Sports
Day events.
In addition to these organised activities roller-skating in
the quads was a very popular activity. The skates were
a mixture of types, ranging from simple platforms with
wooden or hard rubber rollers to super models with
ball-bearing wheels and key-operated toe clamps. Skates,
whatever the type, were a boy’s private possession and
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not everyone had a pair. Those who did not had to
depend on the goodwill of others if they were to enjoy
this activity; most found themselves able to do so.
Train Spotting
Outside the carpentry hut below the Senior school
playground one had a clear view, across the shunting
yard, of the London, Midland and Scottish mainline from
Euston to the North; this was a good place for train
spotting, which became a favourite pastime for many of
us. We had particular interest in the Royal Scot class of
locomotives and knew the regimental names of all the
engines in that class, the particular prize being a sight
of The Royal Scot (No. 6100) itself with its brass bell
mounted on the front buffer bar that had been fitted
when it toured Canada and retained after its return to
England. But we also knew the names of other classes,
such as the Patriots, and could readily recognise other
types of engine such as the Midland compounds. Later
came the Pacific class – Princess Elizabeth (6200) and
Princess Margaret Rose (6201). All these engines
seemed to us to have a life of their own, something
that is sadly lacking in the faceless electric and diesel
locomotives of today.
The Sergeants
The teaching staff was supplemented by two retired
sergeants: Sergeant Johnson and Sergeant Balshaw
who took charge of all swimming/gymnastic activities
and also the PT sessions. Sergeant Johnson had been
an infantryman, he may well have been in the Guards,
and was a typical senior NCO; leanly built with a small
bristling moustache and a sharp bark that tried hard to
conceal a warm nature. Sergeant Balshaw, who had
been a Marine, was a very different character; with a
well-rounded figure and more quietly spoken he seemed
more like a friendly uncle, but on the rare occasions
when he had been particularly upset by a boy’s
behaviour his wrath was a terrifying sight. Under them
we also learnt the elements of parade-ground drill. In
those days the infantry platoon still had four sections, the
change to three came late in the 1930s. We therefore
Watford memories
paraded in two ranks and when we were ready to march
off the command would be “Form Fours”. Each even
number in each rank would take one step back and two
to the right, thus placing himself behind the odd number
who had been on his right. After a right turn by all, the
parade was then ready to march in column of four.
thought one was not paying sufficient attention in class
or was being particularly dense. “Dates” we called these
slaps, since they were delivered with the palm of the
hand, and they certainly stung.
The Governors
The lowest form of punishment for scholastic offences
was detention, and usually meant extra time in the
classroom at the end of the school day or on half-holidays
– which since it meant missing compulsory sport had its
compensations for some, especially on cold winter days.
I never remember anyone in detention being given the
The members of the Board of Governors were worthy
and remote figures who we saw about twice each
term when they held a meeting and also lunched at
the School. We did, however, understand that many of
them were senior figures in “the City” through whom
we might be able to get jobs as clerks when our time
came to leave school. Like Margaret Williams, I too
recall Lady Gilbert attending these meetings and my
legendary “lines” as punishment; the normal task was
perhaps additional arithmetic or the learning of extra
memory of her is exactly the same, though none of the
boys ever had the privilege of personal contact with her.
foreign irregular verbs. The Head was the only member
of staff allowed to administer corporal punishment and
this was usually applied with a bamboo cane on a boy’s
trousered bottom while he bent forward with head
between his knees. The maximum number of strokes
that could be given was six and the record of the offence
and the number of strokes given was kept in an official
Punishment Book. On rare occasions it might be decided
that the offence was so serious that strokes with the cane
was not a sufficient punishment and that the birch should
be used; this was applied to the bare bottom. I can only
recall one particular case of birching, which happened to a
boy in Capel House, and I would be surprised if the total
number during my seven years at Watford exceeded four
or five. Few of the offences that merited any beating were
W.S. called her “Kitten”, a nickname that seemed most
appropriate for this delicate and still pretty figure. On
Board Meeting days we paraded formally under Sergeant
Johnson, watched by Board members. Houses paraded
in numerical order, each house being drawn up in two
ranks with a right-hand marker carrying the House flag –
its pattern being like a small Blue Ensign with the House
name in white letters on it. There was no inspection by
any Board member but after being ordered to attention
we would form fours and march off in columns of four,
each House being preceded by its flag bearer.
Punishments
likely to cause any ill feeling towards the recipient from his
fellow pupils. Mostly the victim was treated as a sort of
martyr and the red and purple stripes left on the buttocks,
which he was expected to exhibit at bedtime, were
treated almost as badges of honour! However, the mass
of small cuts left by the birch were regarded as awesome.
Although, as noted above, corporal punishment could
only be officially administered by the Head, one could still
get a sharp clip round the ear from one of the Sergeants
if he thought you were slacking during PT. There was
also one master, Mr Adams who taught English to lower
forms, who was prone to slapping across the cheek if he
Mark Money
For us the most important activity of the Board when
they met was the payment of Mark Money. The amount
paid was primarily based on one’s scholastic work and
behaviour, but extra money was awarded for additional
achievements or responsibilities. The maximum award
for class work was 3d in lower forms and 6d in upper
forms. Prefects certainly got extra money – the amount
escapes me – and I think that the award of school
colours for sport was also recognised. My memory of
the payment procedure differs from Margaret’s; I recall
that we paraded before a Board member who had a
master with a record book sitting beside him and he
announced the amount to be paid after one gave one’s
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Watford memories
name. What happened afterwards is lost in the mists of
time, but as the Tuck Shop was usually open for an hour
or so on Board Days at least some of the Mark Money
found its way there.
Leaving
I have no recollection of a leaving procedure similar to
the one described by Margaret. My memories of the
final weeks at Watford are linked to the freedom given
to those of us who were taking the School Certificate
Examination. Mr. Attenborough did not believe in
intensive last-minute revision, taking the view that it
would be much better for us to sit the exams with minds
refreshed rather than cluttered with jumbled facts that we
should have learned sufficiently in our previous schooling.
All classwork was therefore suspended and we were free
to go wherever we pleased, including into the previously
forbidden Watford town. The main items in the leaving
outfits we were given to fit us for life in the outside world
were two suits, one for formal office wear consisting of
a black jacket and waistcoat with pin-stripe trousers, the
other dark grey for less formal occasions. To accompany
them we had a dark overcoat, two white shirts with
detached collars, neutral-coloured ties, dark socks and
underclothes. I think we may also have been given a grey
trilby hat, but perhaps the mists of time over 70 years are
causing me to confuse this particular with my ‘demob’
outfit some 10 years later. Obviously we said our final
goodbyes to the Head and other masters but I do not
remember anything more formal.
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Back to school in Devon
If you ever think of visiting South Devon choose the first
two weeks in September immediately after the children
go back to their schools for the autumn term. A number
of us who were evacuated to Totnes in 1940 meet up
each year at that time in that pleasant town and we
always seem to have fine weather. So it was in 2014
when about 20 “boys” and associated spouses met up yet
kept, had recently been redecorated and as in previous
years we were greeted by the Manager Lindsay Cowling.
Can’t believe we got up to and swung across the room
on the roof tie bars. We were pleasantly surprised that
The Kiosks now shows that name as one walks up to
them from Totnes. A picture of a few of us “Old Boys”
shows the new sign.
again. Getting somewhat aged now, but becoming well
known in Totnes and particularly the Bridgetown part.
A number arrived early to have a worthwhile break
around the specified Wednesday and Thursday. Semi
formal proceedings started with meeting up in the bar
of The Royal Severn Stars Hotel before walking a short
distance to the Steam Packet Inn situated opposite the
classrooms we used all those years ago for an informal
meal together. Unfortunately tides on the River Dart
never seem to be in our favour. The River Dart was
always a major attraction to us as small boys and we were
made to remember the saying “The River Dart claims a
heart every year”. Those who did join us on the River
Rat boat thoroughly enjoyed travelling up to the head of
navigation, Totnes Weir. We hoped to see seals but I think
they saw us coming and went underground or more
likely under water. We then returned to what we called
“The Kiosks”, our classrooms opposite the Steam Packet
Inn now returned to their original roles of the Riverside
Cafe and Steamer Booking office. The Cafe is beautifully
In the afternoon we went up to St John’s Church where
the Reader, Liz Waterson, had prepared a service,
which was very well attended, and beautifully delivered.
“Lead Us Heavenly Father” sung with great fervour and
panache and an item remembering London Orphan
Asylum boys who had died during the World War I an
imaginative thought. St John’s had a major fire a few years
ago but the interior has been completely rebuilt from a
large and unattractive Victorian Gothic one to a light and
airy worship space and now includes kitchens, toilets and
even a badminton court in the former vast roof space.
Then in the evening The Deputy Mayor of Totnes drove
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up to our various hotels to drive us personally in Bob the
Bus, the Community Bus, out along the Newton Abbott
road to the Pig and Whistle, a new venue for our more
formal dinner. The Pig and Whistle is situated very near
Littlehempston the end point on one of our regular cross
country runs. Could not persuade anyone to put on their
“daps” (plimsolls) to actually run there though. An excellent
venue. Good food , a quiet room of our own and no
unneeded music to interrupt our retelling of events of so
long ago. Relatively early return by Bob the Bus to our
various hotels in Bridgetown or Totnes.
More Totnes Reminiscences
Arriving at the School in September 1939 I was
overwhelmed by its sheer size. It had all the trappings
of a public school: a house system, purpose-built
classrooms in which an all-graduate staff taught their
subjects, an indoor swimming pool , an infirmary like a
small hospital, a dining hall to seat 800 pupils – 400 boys
and as many girls, but rigidly segregated. And a chapel,
also rigidly segregated, with an organ scholar. The man in
charge had a house to himself.
All this was swept away close to the end of the term.
Our next-door neighbour was Watford Junction, a
strategic site in the railway system and likely to be
bombed. It was. Ironically, our boundaries were fenced
and the campus converted easily to a prisoner of war
camp (sic). Do I have to spell it out?
So another pleasant and evocative Totnes reunion. A
struggle now to organise and to make the journey down
to Devon. We did have one of our number who now
lives near Totnes, Ken Sambrook and from further away
Alan Rogers resident in Canada as well as several from
all over England. Old Reedonians present included: John
Nethercleft, Ralph Wyatt, Derek Weston, Keith Miller,
Bill Collins, Bill Crawforth, John Rogers, Alan Rogers,
Richard Borley, Ken Sambrook and your correspondent
Tony Wiggins.
Which brings us to Totnes; the School had to be downsized and moved to evacuation quarters. Girls went
to I know not where and a rump of 150 boys was
crammed into coaches just before Christmas then driven
to our new home, a hotel on the left bank of the River
Dart next to a bridge leading into the town of Totnes.
Classrooms included a ticket office for people booking
trips to Dartmouth and two refreshment kiosks. One
had a pot-bellied stove complete with a long tube sealed
at one end for poking out the ash.
There were, of course, no fences. Which meant that
for the next six years we ran riot. Well, not quite. The
youngest formed a group approximating to Juniors
and were taught by two women, a Miss Morton and
a Miss Seymour. They were very effective and are still
remembered with affection by those they taught. In
what might have been their time off they ran a Wolf
Cub pack where we ‘Dibbed and Dobbed’ and worked
for badges. They took us on country walks known as
crocks – short for crocodiles – because we were in twos
and could be counted at a glance. One of the teachers
led and the other brought up the rear. A dreaded
punishment for older boys was to be ‘put on crock’,
where they stuck out like sore thumbs.
There were rites of passage which signalled a boy’s
readiness for higher things, wearing long trousers instead
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of the shorts that identified the lower group. They could
join the Army Cadet Corps and go on cross country runs
that took place in all weathers. Locals got used to the
sight of a hundred boys in shorts and plimsolls, soaked
to the skin on rainy days or indifferent to the cold in
deepest winter. Another rite, and the most treasured,
was the free walk. Remember the absence of fences? We
could set off in groups of not less than three, trusted to
behave ourselves. We didn’t, we ran riot. Autumn was
favourite; we went scrumping and became experts on
cider apples, which of them were sweet and which were
sour. We ignored signs reading TRESPASSERS WILL BE
PROSECUTED and plunged into woods in search of
sweet chestnuts, blackberries and hazel nuts.
If winter brought snow we went tobogganing on WindWhistle Hill. We had stripped the corrugated iron sheets
off the roof of a neglected barn to make toboggans, bent
up at the front to ride over the snow. What followed was
almost suicidal. Ten guys sat on a sheet, one behind the
other. Those waiting their turn held it in place and let go
when it was full. I reckon we hit 30 mph plus – Devon
hills were that steep. The near suicidal bit came at the
bottom. There was a wide path t’other side of which
was the River Dart. All had to bail out at the same instant
or risk going into the water. Our craft, free of bodies,
was stopped by the reeds on the water’s edge, to be
retrieved for another run.
Let’s go back to the Army Cadets. An evening a week
they set off into Totnes, their heels hitting the road like
Guards trooping the Colours. Our destination was
the Grammar School where men from the Territorial
Army taught us rifle drill in the school quad then took us
indoors to demonstrate how to take a Bren gun apart and
reassemble it. We wandered back to school rather than
march, meeting girls and advancing ever so slightly our
knowledge of people the stark arrangements at Watford
had put off limits.
Let me end with two bits of fun, both relating to the river.
Fun one: a tree hung out over the water to which a
rope had been tied. Swimming in the river was strictly
forbidden except at an allotted pool under supervision.
The brave among us would strip off and pull the rope in.
It had a big knot on the end you could sit astride making
you the weight on a huge pendulum. Release yourself
and you swung out in a huge arc with only one choice
– to drop into the water far, far below. On a hot day a
crock was spotted and the skinny-dippers had to hide in
the only vegetation available – a bed of stinging nettles.
Fun two: there existed at Dartington, a village in the
country a comfortable walk from Totnes, a progressive
school where the pupils were hip before the word had
been invented. They invited us to play them at cricket, a
fixed number of overs so that there would be a decision
that day. We had an eleven that togged up in whites for
matches against Totnes Grammar – which we always
lost. They set off early on a fine day with a handful of
supporters. Dartington would provide grub for the midday break so that was no problem.
The slightly odd nature of the game was the Dartington
team. It had girls in it. There was a very attractive fast
bowler and a stunning wicket keeper. I forget who won
the game, but when it was over I remember that our
team was invited for a swim in their open-air pool.
When they said they had no togs it was brushed aside
with a remark that they would not need them. The
assumption was that there would be enough spares to
go round. At the pool team Dartington stripped off and
dived in. Team Reed’s fled.
And finally, brethren, a story about the Territorial Army.
They took us to a firing range where we handled real
rifles and fired at real targets. Terms like ‘inner’ and ‘outer’
and ‘bull’ entered our vocabulary. Remember the potbellied stove and the poker? I nicked a bullet, pushed it
into the fire and held it there till it would be red hot then
dropped in the bullet. The bang was so loud it must have
been heard miles away. It left a neat hole in the ceiling.
Totnes is such a beautiful town that you should plan a
holiday there, but try to avoid the high season when
traffic is nose-to-tail in the approach roads. But whatever
date you choose make a point of stopping to see the
bullet hole.
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World War One
The London Orphan Asylum and the
First World War
volunteered for active service. He was killed in action
on the 5th January and was buried in the WulverghemLindenhoek Road Military Cemetery south of Ypres.
Some Corner of a Foreign Field
Another former pupil to perish in the early months of
1915 was Lauriston Percival Edward Bell. He came to
the School, following the death of his father, William,
a Civil Service Clerk from Notting Hill. When he
left, Lauriston went to work for a paper merchant.
On the 16th March 1913 he enlisted in the Queen’s
Westminster Rifles (another London Regiment) and
when war broke out he volunteered for active service.
He was killed at Houplines on the 21st March, aged 21.
In a letter of condolence to Lauriston’s Mother, Milly, his
Commanding Officer Captain G. Lambert wrote, “your
son Rifleman Bell was killed in the trenches yesterday
morning. It may be small consolation to you, in your
great trouble, to know that he died as he had lived, a
true soldier and in him I have lost one of my good men.”
This is the second article in the series about World War
One and its impact on all those associated with the
School. In this article, the School struggles with funding
as the War intensifies and the pressures upon the nation
grow ever more demanding. More ex-pupils are listed as
killed in action adding to the sense of foreboding which
surrounds the Managers of the Institution.
The Growing Horror of the War 1915
By 1915 it was obvious that the War was going to
last a long time and the misguided optimism of the
previous summer had vanished. Kitchener’s Army
was not yet ready to take to the field and the original
British Expeditionary Force had been all but obliterated.
The mood of the country was sombre and this was
reflected in the School’s Annual Report, which described
the conflict as, “the present terrible war in defence of
humanity, honour and justice.”
At least 19 former pupils died in 1915. The first was Alan
Parsons who was killed on New Year’s Day. Four days
later Charles Arthur was killed. Charles was born in 1890.
His father worked for the very fashionable ladies’ tailors,
Messrs Busvines of Brook Street. Following his death,
Charles was admitted to the School in January 1901 and
during his time at Watford he was accomplished both
academically as well as on the sports field. He passed
the Cambridge University set exams, gaining honours
in three subjects. As well as winning several swimming
championships, he captained the Cricket 1st XI. Upon
leaving the School, he won a scholarship through the
retailer, Mr J. Debenham (a long-time supporter of
the School) and studied in Switzerland for two years
before returning to work at Messrs Debenham & Sons
in London’s Wimpole Street. Whilst in Switzerland his
sporting achievements were undiminished, gaining a
diploma in football and winning a tennis tournament. In
1908 he joined the Queen Victoria Rifles (9th London
Regiment) as a Territorial and in August 1914 he
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The year 1915 saw many “firsts.” On the 19th January,
British civilians faced their first aerial bombardment
when parts of the Norfolk coastline were attacked
by Zeppelins. A month later, on the 18th February,
Germany declared the waters around Britain and
Ireland as a war region. Mines were laid and submarines
deployed in an attempt to blockade the ports and
eventually starve the population into submission.
Commercial shipping as well as naval vessels became
targets for the Germans and on the 7th May the
Lusitania was sunk off the coast of Ireland with the loss
of over 1,000 lives. There was a huge outpouring of
anti-German sentiment as a result of the sinking which,
in part, led to the Royal Family changing its name to
Windsor. It was also the first step towards the United
States of America entering the conflict. 128 Americans
perished and whilst it would be another two years
before the United States joined the Allied cause, the
revulsion of the German action stoked the fires of hatred
across the Atlantic.
On the 22nd April, at Ypres, the World had its first
experience of what were to be known as “weapons of
mass destruction,” when Germany released chlorine
gas from canisters and relied on the prevailing winds to
blow it on to their enemy’s lines. The terror wrought
World War One
by the gas was horrific. In addition to chlorine, phosgene
was used, an insidious weapon that had little immediate
impact, but one that struck down soldiers 24 hours
later. Mustard gas was the worst, causing the deaths of
thousands of soldiers on both sides. After the initial use of
canisters, both sides used gas shells from 1916, containing
liquid gas which evaporated on impact. Since they
were fired from large and small calibre artillery pieces,
they could be targeted at the enemy’s most vulnerable
arteries; communication trenches and reserve areas miles
behind the front line.
It has been calculated that during the War, in Belgium
alone, 1.8 billion artillery shells were fired by the
protagonists, of which a fifth (360 million) did not
explode. Every day since the end of the conflict, farmers
have been uncovering these shells and arranging for the
Belgian Army to dispose of them. It is anticipated they will
continue making these discoveries for the next 50 years,
150 years after they were fired.
The year 1915 saw the name of Andrew Reed’s
institution change. On 25th January the word Asylum
was replaced by School and the Annual Report proudly
stated that, “the Board has received many expressions of
approval of the change.”
During the year, the War had a growing financial impact
on the running of the School. A deficit of £6,500
(approximately £428,000 today) was recorded requiring
the Board of Managers to draw on their meagre reserves.
Large War Funds had diverted money away from old
established charities, and legacies, on which the School
depended, had all but dried up. The number of pupils in
1915 was 446 and the total running costs were £17,000
(nearly £1,118,000 in today’s values).
Notwithstanding the financial pressures brought about by
the War, and the growing impact of so many ex-scholars
being killed, the School tried to maintain a positive
outlook. Indeed, the reports of independent professionals
supported this optimism. The Medical Officer, Dr. F.
Haycraft Berry, reported that, with the exception of an
outbreak of diphtheria in the early months of the year,
there had been very little illness. The Reverend Basil Reay
considered the religious instruction given to the pupils
to be careful and earnest and he was, “struck by the
keenness of the boys and their desire and effort to acquit
themselves well and with a reverent tone prevailing.”
The Examiner of the Cambridge University Local
Examination Syndicate, Mr Herbert Bendall M.A.
was particularly impressed with the written work for
Mathematics and French, as well as the gymnastics
exercises and football. He went on to say, “House
Singing, a new departure which was in embryo last year,
has now been developed to good purpose amongst the
boys as I can bear witness, after attending on a Saturday
evening in which unison songs were alternated with
performances by the School Band.”
He said of the girls, “I have been, in general, favourably
impressed with the results of my observations, for the
pupils continue to show great interest in their work, and
obviously appreciate the efforts of their teachers, who do
not spare themselves in their labours.” Bendall concluded
his report, “a good tone is maintained throughout,
combined with orderliness and good discipline; in fact,
within the bounds necessitated by the conditions of
school life in the Institution, and considered relatively
to the ages of the pupils, I hold that a good secondary
education is provided.”
Two pieces of news to cheer all those connected with
the School came from the battlefronts. In the Annual
Report reflecting on 1914 it had been recorded that
A. D. W. Mole had been killed. The Report on 1915
commented that, “he has turned up alive and well.” In
fact, Ambrose Mole survived his service in the Royal
Army Medical Corps, went on to marry Dorothy
Lambden in 1929 and died fifty years later age 85. The
other news to cheer the Board concerned John George
Attenborough (known as George), who was awarded
the Distinguished Conduct Medal, second only to the
Victoria Cross, for “conspicuous gallantry and devotion
to duty on the 19th May at Ypres, when he remained
in shell holes under heavy fire during a retirement and
ultimately advanced with the 10th Hussars in a counter
attack.” George survived through the fighting of 1916
and 1917 and on the 18th February 1918 he married
Jenny Kelly. Sadly, four months later he suffered a
gunshot wound to the chest and was invalided back
THE REEDER 2015
77
World War One
to the Third London General Hospital in Wandsworth
where, on the 1st July, he died. He was buried in his
home town cemetery in Burnham-on-Crouch.
Roberts on the 10th August and five days later John Rice
perished. Their names are recorded on the Lone Pine
and Helles Memorials on the Gallipoli Peninsula.
The year 1915 is remembered for another reason;
Gallipoli. In the early months of the year an AngloFrench Task Force was sent to the Mediterranean to
attack Turkey through the narrow straits known as the
Dardanelles. The planning for the campaign was very
poor, the progress ponderous and the eventual loss of life
enormous. The strategic planners had little knowledge
of the Turkish strength and most of their information
about the likely terrain they would encounter was based
on tourist guides. In addition to the British and French
troops, forces from Australia and New Zealand joined
the campaign. Much has been written about the plight
of the Allied troops, but none more eloquently than the
Commander of a hospital ship, the future Poet Laureate
John Masefield.
The War spawned many poets and 1915 saw, arguably,
one of the most famous poems to be written. “In
Flanders Fields” was written by a Canadian Surgeon, John
McCrae, and remains a powerful and haunting refrain to
this day.
“Imagine the hills entrenched, the landing mined, the
beaches tangled with barbed wire, ranged by howitzers
and swept by machine guns, and themselves three
thousand miles from home, going out before dawn with
their rifles, packs and water bottles, to pass the mines
under shell-fire, cut through the wire under machine gun
fire, clamber up the hills under fire of all arms, by the
glare of shell bursts, in the withering and crashing tumult
of modern war, and then dig themselves in a waterless
and burning hill while a more numerous enemy charges
them with the bayonet. And let them imagine themselves
enduring this night after night, day after day, without rest
or solace, nor respite from the peril of death, seeing their
friends killed and their position imperilled, getting their
food, their munitions, even their drink from the jaws of
death, and their breath from the taint of death. Let them
imagine themselves driven mad by heat and toil and thirst
by day, shaken by frost at midnight, weakened by disease
and broken by pestilence, yet rising on the word with a
shout and going forward to die in exultation in a cause
foredoomed and almost hopeless.”
The Gallipoli campaign claimed the lives of over 250,000
Allied troops, five of whom were ex-pupils. Arthur
Bradford was killed on the 25th May, Percy Pritchett on
the 6th June, George Stavert on the 14th July, Robert
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“In Flanders fields the poppies grow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place: and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.”
John McCrae did not see the War’s end. He died of
pneumonia on the 28th January 1918.
Nineteen ex-pupils died in 1915, but with the need to
break the stalemate of the trenches worse was to follow
as the War entered 1916. The School’s anguish and
hope were summed up at the end of its Annual Report,
“the Board of Managers hope, however, that the coming
year may be more favourable for this old established and
noble Institution. Their own efforts will be unrelaxing,
and if all who know and sympathise with the sad lot of
those on whose behalf this appeal is made, will assist to
the utmost of their power, the deficit referred to may
still be cleared off, and the £17,000 necessary from
World War One
voluntary sources for the maintenance of the Orphan
Family in 1916 be provided.”
“When you go home, tell them of us and say,
for their tomorrow, we gave our today”
(An epitaph written for World War One in 1916 by the
English Classicist, John Maxwell Edmonds)
Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red
In the moat at the Tower of London, this above titled
exhibition has drawn many onlookers and on Monday
13th October 2014, the School was able to pay honour
to its former pupils who died in World War One, when
the Constable of the Tower, General the Lord Dannatt,
read out the names of all 112 known to have perished.
Every evening, between the 1st September and 10th
November a Roll of Honour, containing 180 names in
each, has been read out, followed by the sounding of the
Last Post. A total of 888,246 poppies filled the moat, one
for each British and Colonial fatality during the War.
On this particular evening, there was one additional
name read out, that of Nurse Edith Cavell, who was
executed by the Germans in 1915 for treason. A poppy,
in her memory, was added to the host of others in the
moat, and the choir of Norwich Cathedral School sang
two choral pieces in her honour. It was a fitting tribute as
her final resting place is in the grounds of their Cathedral.
Heavy rain fell for most of the day in London, but at
the moment of the names being read out, it eased to a
persistent drizzle, which rather captured the solemn, but
respectful, mood of the 150 or so onlookers.
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79
World War One
Reed’s School First world War Centenary
Lecture, 19th September 2014
Some of you may remember OR John Godfrey now
surnamed Hughes-Wilson (Mullens 1962).
John’s military career included service in the Falklands,
Afghanistan and Iraq and he retired in 1994 as a Colonel
on NATO’s International Political Staff [Brussels]. His
military career also included the following posts – Head
of Policy Section and Senior British Intelligence Officer,
SHAPE (Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe)
and Intelligence, Counter Terrorism, Special Forces. UK/
NATO appointments, Command and Staff.
John is a full time author and broadcaster specialising in
military-historical and intelligence matters. In addition to
being an Associate Fellow of RUSI (Royal United Services
Institute) and member of the RUSI Journal’s Advisory
Board, John is an Archives Bi-Fellow of Churchill College
Cambridge, and a specialist consultant to the United
Nations, European Union, MOD, universities, and
businesses. He is President of the International Guild of
Battlefield Guides and a frequent broadcaster for BBC
television and radio as well as commentating on the
annual Service of Remembrance at the Cenotaph with
David Dimbleby. His acclaimed intelligence books include:
“Puppet Masters”: “The Secret History of Intelligence”,
“Military Intelligence Blunders”, “Blindfold” and “Alone”
plus his latest work “A History of the First World War in
100 Objects”.
On 19th September 2014 at Sandy Lane the guests
included 6th form pupils, staff, parents, and ORs but so far
as I could tell the only ORs present were Chris Hawkins,
Andy Wotton (1970s Decade Rep) and myself, Roger
Mew (1950s Decade Rep). Guests mingled with drinks
and nibbles then entered the Assembly Hall, which in our
days was the gymnasium. John was introduced by Adam
Waller, Head of History and spoke for a little under an
hour with 90 slides. He was an appealing and engaging
speaker who conveyed a wealth of knowledge about
the events of WW1, dispelling myths about “Lions led
By Donkeys”, about the actual numbers of deaths from
inhaling mustard gas and the number of deaths of UK
personnel compared with the French. He explained how
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WW1 was able to accelerate advances in technology
and communications plus medicine with lessons learned
from the field hospitals. The roles played by women
in the absence of men fighting abroad was a factor in
developing women’s rights. John discussed selected parts
of his latest book “A History of the First World War in
100 Objects” and afterwards took questions. It was a
most thought-provoking educational lecture and John
was vigorously applauded by the audience.
John had brought along copies of this latest book
normally priced £30 but only £20 that night and he spent
some time seated to sign individual copies. I purchased
a copy of this 448 page tome and it is fascinating. Earlier,
Sharmaine Matthews had taken John (I tagged along)
on a tour of the School he had not visited for about 15
years and he was impressed by the new buildings and
reminisced about those which have disappeared e.g.
the squash courts, the cycle club building, the masters’
car garages, the armoury store which he said at only 17
years of age he was assigned to take charge of including
rifles and Bren guns.
An enjoyable evening and as John had a great enthusiasm
for the CCF at Reed’s this must have triggered his
future career. I showed him the 1956 photo of the
(later Captain) Williams we are trying to identify and he
immediately said “Robert Williams of the QE2 incident.”
Below is John in recent times and then in 1956:
World War One
Old Reedonians serving in the Armed
Forces today
Those who attended OR Reunion Day 2014 may have
noticed a display honouring those Old Boys who fell in
the Great War and while the public imagination has been
captured by the Tower of London poppies, reflections on
the 2014 Christmas Truce and impactful requiems held
across the country as the centenary passed, I thought I
would touch on the several more recent ORs currently
serving in the forces.
new connections between Reed’s and the military so do
get in touch, I’m sure I may have inadvertently omitted
some names!
Andrew Miller
(Blathwayt 2009)
Back in 2009 when in the Upper 6th I assisted Pete
Thomason and others in running a ‘Help for Heroes’
day and we were visited by ORs Major Mike Holgate
RE (Mullens 2000) and Major Mike Foster Vander Elst
RIFLES (Mullens 2001). Both were Head of CCF during
their time at Reed’s, a theme which has continued with
Lt Jos Curtis SG (Capel, 2007) who was commissioned
in December 2013 and most recently me, who was
commissioned into The Rifles in August 2014, in the
process joining the same battalion as Mike. Reed’s current
School Staff Instructor Colour Wright was present at my
commissioning parade to wish me well and see his first
Reed’s student off the Sandhurst parade square.
Another former Head of CCF, Jamie Robertson
(Bristowe, 2010) is, at the time of writing, entering his
second of three terms at the Royal Military Academy
Sandhurst. While just a handful of months after leaving
school, George Rounce (Capel, 2013) opted to dodge
the £9,000 university tuition fees by gaining a place at
Lympstone to commission as a Royal Marine officer.
James Spencer (2014) finds himself in a similar position
due to undertake the forty-four week Sandhurst
commissioning course in May 2015. Further down the
line Alex Hedges (Blathwayt, 2011) is set to form up in
September 2015.
Outside of the Army both Lts Ben Blackledge (Mullens
2005) and Richard Smith (Capel 2003) serve in the
Royal Navy and often are spotted at the Reed’s School
Regimental Dinner held annually in June. There are
several more ORs currently in the application pipeline
and I look forward to learning of their progress through
the forces in the years to come. It is always great to make
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81
CCF - Army Cadets at Reed’s in the 1950s
I started at Reed’s aged 11 in Bristowe House in
September 1953, having transferred from Andrew Reed’s
Royal Wanstead School with eight others all having passed
the 11+ exam. Later I joined the scouts under Arthur
Pitman then around age 14 was eligible to join the Reed’s
branch of the East Surrey Regiment Army Cadet Force,
later renamed the Combined Cadet Force. See cap
badge below.
underneath but Officer Johnny Lead spotted this on one
parade inspection, denounced the cadet as a weakling
and forbade anyone from wearing pyjamas. I and a few
others spotted ex-military officers’ khaki shirts on sale
extremely cheaply in adverts in Readers’ Digest and
Exchange & Mart so we purchased these probably having
pleaded with home for funds for this ‘essential’ kit. These
shirts were smooth and comfortable so were worn on
the next parade. Johnny Lead noticed one on his parade
inspection, but merely smiled briefly at presumably the
ingenuity and moved along without a word.
Now on to the guns which were the most exciting
aspect for cadets. A brick built three sided firing range
was situated halfway between The Close and the main
building and firing practice with .22 calibre rifles occurred
there. Here is a picture of cadets using this range.
The enthusiasm for smartly pressed uniforms and kit
was boundless and various techniques were used to
keep boots pristine. Brand-new boots came with toecaps
slightly dimpled so these had to be eradicated if the
desired mirror smooth effect was to be achieved. Some
boys experimented with a spoon heated by candle then
rubbed hard over the toecap. Black boot polish came
in tins about one inch deep and perhaps six inches in
diameter and another trick was to heat the tin from
underneath the base until the polish melted slightly to
make it easier to penetrate the leather using a toothbrush
or cloth but more than once the heat was overdone
and the polish caught fire. Despite the name Blanco
suggesting the colour white, this particular cleaning agent
was green and came in blocks which had to be used
with a wet scrubbing brush for softness before applying
to webbing on gaiters and belts. Brass buttons on tunics
and belt buckles were shined and to keep the polish away
from the uniform a plastic protector shaped like a keyhole
was used to slide over the button. To produce impressive
creases in trousers the insides of the creases were rubbed
with dry soap then when pressed the creases were smart
and long-lasting. I don’t remember having access to an iron
so trousers were placed underneath the bottom bedsheet
on top of the mattress to be pressed while sleeping.
Army shirts were devilishly itchy and some found them
so unbearable that they took to wearing pyjama tops
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L-R standing - Frank Polak, Simon Holden, Roderick Green,
Robin Marriott?, David Foale, Peter Jebens, Officer Johnny
Lead. L-R on ground - Bryan Trotter, unknown, Maurice Webb.
In addition to .22 rifles the cadets had bolt action 10
round capacity magazine Lee-Enfield .303 rifles as used
by soldiers in WW1 and WW2. These were used by
cadets on marches, square bashing drill and parades and
we became quite skilful at reacting to the commands
‘shoulder arms, present arms, attention and stand easy.’
We also were taught how to dismantle, clean and oil a
rifle. Highlights were visits to army shooting ranges at Ash
and Bisley where live ammunition was doled out. Under
strict guidance we shot at targets at varying distances and
the results of a session were pointed out by stick markers
indicating the holes on each target. Cadets had to take
turns in the butts which were a form of protective deep
trench behind the targets. Targets were on a revolving
vertical pulley system in pairs so while one target was
subjected to fire, the other was being repaired down in
the trench by sticking a patch over each new bullet hole.
When instructed, cadets indicated on the targets with a
stick marker where each bullet had penetrated so the
gunner of each target could view his aiming skill. When
the order came to change targets the repaired one was
swung upwards to be in view of the gunners while the
used one swung down into the butts for repair. At the
end of each visit to the firing ranges the cadets had to
line up, be inspected by an officer and salute him while
declaring individually words to the effect of “I swear by
Queen and Country that I have no live ammunition Sir!”
However, some of them were untruthful and returned
undetected to school with live rounds but I do not know
what happened to those bullets.
The Bren gun .303 calibre (see pic) was the ultimate
weapon available to cadets. It had a 30 round capacity
magazine and the gunner could select single fire or rapid
automatic fire. On auto the barrel had to be changed to
a spare after a couple of magazines were exhausted to
avoid overheating. In an exercise in the school grounds
for the benefit of visiting officers there was an attack
and defence scenario and I was paired with Ross Young
to defend a position in the bushes on the edge of The
Close garden. I fired blank rounds then when it was time
to change the barrel Ross forgot the safety instructions,
correctly held the barrel by the wooden handle but his
other bare hand clasped the metal barrel, burning his hand.
in battle. Several of these were smuggled away unused
for private fun later.
Near the old squash courts was a large wooden hut
containing all of the spare uniforms, drums, bugles, rifles,
etc. Sometime in the late 1950s early 1960s this was
broken into and much of the kit stolen including weapons
which created a huge fuss and rumours suggested the
IRA was responsible.
At the end of the 1957 summer term a number of
cadets were sent for a week to an army camp at
Alverstoke near Gosport in Hampshire. This seemed to
be compulsory and several cadets were irritated that it
took place during summer holidays. In 1958, at the end
of the summer term along with several other cadets I
was given a train travel voucher for a journey to an army
camp for a week at Stiffkey (locally pronounced Stookey)
near Blakeney Point on the north Norfolk coast. Out of
the Reed’s boys my memory rustles up only the names
of Chris Burnett, Tim Corrie and Corporal Colin Bird but
there were more. We were housed in tents intermingled
with tents of cadets from other regiments. Some of
these seemed quite hardnut rough lads so we ensured
we did not cross them. There were numerous drills,
parades and guard duty rosters at the main gate. Food in
the canteen was utterly dreadful and I remember looking
at the serving ladies as they dolloped stuff into our tin
plates and thinking “how can these ladies being wives and
mothers serve up such awful food e.g. mashed potatoes
containing huge raw lumps and black spots.” It made
school food seem wonderful. Another of our duties was
to wash up the dirty crockery and cutlery in large bins of
cold greasy water.
In the NAAFI one day some of the Reed’s cadets were
sitting around drinking and listening to the juke box when
a commotion occurred at the other end of the room
with chairs knocked over and a fight started between
about six cadets, none of them from Reed’s. It got quite
violent and when one the hard lads from a nearby tent
stubbed a lit cigarette in another’s face we knew it was
time to run out of the NAAFI.
Thunderflashes were also exciting which were a form of
heavy duty firework thrown for distraction and confusion
We were given instruction about outdoor survival
techniques in readiness for an exercise during which
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83
we would be away from camp overnight. When that
day came we were given a waterproof groundsheet, a
full army water bottle and a few hard biscuits but I can’t
remember whether we had a backpack or a compass or
a map. The purpose of the trip was to return to camp
when we would be judged on how quickly we arrived
and how smart we were in appearance. We were all
paired off and told to climb into an army truck after which
the rear curtains were sealed closed and off we set on a
journey lasting perhaps two hours. The sealed curtains
were to prevent us observing the route or identifying
landmarks or signposts. At intervals the truck stopped
and only one pair of cadets was dropped off then the
resealed truck continued until another drop then another
until the truck was empty. I was paired with Tim Corrie
and we walked through woods until dusk approached
when it was time to make an overnight camp. As we
had been taught, we broke off branches from trees then
fixed our groundsheets in a triangle i.e. one third on the
ground then one third for each of the two walls but
open both ends to make a triangle supported by the
branches for each of our solo tents. Training had taught
us to conceal our presence so we gathered ferns
and anything else suitable to hang over the tents as
camouflage.
It was a hot night so I took my tunic and shirt off and
used these as a pillow. In the morning we awoke and I
found a slimy silver trail across my bare chest where a
slug or snail had crawled over me during the night. We
thought we had been transported in a southerly direction
from camp but had no idea where we were or when we
would next eat or drink so were careful with our water
and biscuits. We packed up camp and set off walking in
the direction we thought would be correct. After several
hours we found a railway line and could just make out the
sea in the distance. Rather than continue through fields
and woods we decided to walk along the sleepers as the
embankment was steep but how we decided in which
direction escapes me. This was most uncomfortable as
sleepers are spaced apart less than a proper pace. Finally
we reached the camp exhausted, earlier than some but
later than others. During our entire absence from camp
we never saw another cadet.
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On another day the entire camp was sent on a fast
pace route march on a public tarmac road carrying full
equipment. This was absolute agony and I would have
dropped out but the fear of what the instructors would
do to me if I failed the task somehow kept all of us going.
They ran alongside the marching cadets bawling into our
ears all the time. However, one non Reed’s cadet did
collapse and was taken to a local hospital. Sunday was
a free day or maybe half a day so Chris Burnett and I
decided to visit our classmate Mike Ryalls whose Mother
had a cottage at Wells-next- the-Sea about five miles
away from camp. Thankfully he was in and kindly fed us
tea and cakes.
At the end of the week I was glad to get home in London
to a proper bed and good food but poor Colin had a
dreadfully long journey home to Newcastle involving
a five hour wait to change trains at Peterborough. The
amusing part was that he left school that summer so the
School had overlooked that the uniform would have to
go with him to Newcastle, all other clothes having been
sent home in advance by rail. Colin tells me that got him
into a lot of trouble.
Somehow along the way I had passed Certificates Part I
and II and been promoted to single stripe lance corporal.
I was thankful to have missed call-up for National Service
by about two years. Apologies if failing memory of events
of 55 years ago have not recounted the above incidents
accurately and thanks to the several ORs who helped me
with information for the article.
Roger Mew
Senior Cadets, Combined Cadet Force
1955/56
n/a
1985/86
A.D.I. Darroch-Warren
1956/57
W.G. Eckford
1986/87
1957/58
V.B. Whitmarsh
1987/88
S.C. Graham
1958/59
R.J.S. Brown
1988/89
J. Jones
1959/60
P.N. Kite
1989/90
C.S. Rigg
1960/61
A.C.C. Mason
1990/91
M.R. Neal-Smith
1961/62
T.C. Rolland
1991/92
M.R. Neal-Smith
1962/63
J.G. Newton
1992/93
N.J. Hilll
1963/64
A.L. Turnbull
1993/94
N.J. Hilll
1964/65
I.C.M. Driver
1994/95
J. Foster
1965/66
M.J. Harrison
1995/96
R. Hilton
1966/67
A.J. Price
1996/97
N. Hearle
1967/68
K.A. Boulter
1997/98
J. Bartosik
1968/69
D. Varley
1998/99
O. Wheeler
1969/70
M.S. Potter
1999/00
M. Holgate
1970/71
M.S. Potter
2000/01
M. Foster van der Elst
1971/72
A.R.L. Chester
2001/02
D. Stapleton
1972/73
N.J. Kubale
2002/03
R. Smith
1973/74
R.J. Moffatt
2003/04
D. Kelly
1974/75
R.T. Watson
2004/05
J. Springer
1975/76
A.R. Dension
2005/06
S. Rowling
1976/77
P.R.T. St John
2006/07
J.I. Curtis
1977/78
P.A. Glen
2007/08
A.L.M. Young
1978/79
N.S. Moate
2008/09
A. R. Miller
1979/80
R.J. Pearson
2009/10
J. C. Robertson
1980/81
A.G. Bowyer-Tagg
2010/11
C. P. MacDonald
1981/82
J.M. Stevens
2011/12
N. Mackenzie
1982/83
A.C. Richardson
2012/13
A. Truelove
1983/84
B.N. Roth
1984/85
B.V. Smallwood
THE REEDER 2015
85
Sport
Cricket
An Old Reedonian team was entered in the Cricketer
Trophy for the first time in 2014.
It was a great night of hockey and the School really
appreciates the efforts of the OldReedonianss to come
and play.
1st Round v Old Epsomians (away) - ORs won by 2
wickets. OEs 192, ORs 194 for 8
2nd Round v King’s Taunton OB (away) - ORs lost by 4
wickets. ORs 166, KTOB 168 for 6
Team: W. Clapp, J. Hedges, A. Klimcke, J. Brandon,
D. Coates, H. Coates, T. Coates, A. Redmayne, M.
Wakefield, J. Raimondo, M. Kerslake
Hockey
Stephen Shiells Memorial Matches
The U16A XI played an experienced Old Reedonian side
in March 2014. The School started well and took the lead
through Michael Wasko. Ellen Paterson then equalised
for the ORs before Eddie Brown’s goal gave the U16s a
deserved half time lead. In the second half the experience
of the ORs took over and two goals from Rhys Davies as
well as one from Andrew Miller saw them finish up as 4-2
victors. The U16s can be proud of their efforts and will
hopefully have learned from the experience ready to step
up into senior hockey in 2015. It was good to see such
a strong OR side featuring the likes of Ali Hitch, Jason
Foster, Richard Smith, Jamie Hutchins, Jack Hawkes, Alex
Bull, Ellen Paterson and they would have given the School
1st XI a good game had they been available.
In the second match the Common Room took on the
ORs. Despite the absence of the 467 international caps
of Jimmy Wallis and Brett Garrard the Common Room
still had a strong side with four members of Surbiton
2nd XI in Ben Edwards, Adam Jolly, Werner Van Der
Merwe and Jason Ellis Woodley, plus Surbiton veteran
Luke Michael as well as host of other hockey staff. The
Common Room went 2-0 up before a mass substitution
from the ORs saw some big guns come back on to level
at 2-2. In the second half two clinical strikes from Tom
Rimmer saw the Common Room win 5-3. The Stephen
Shiells trophy went to the ORs as the result of their
victory over the School.
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OR Girls Hockey v the School - 3rd Sept 2014
The following represented the ORs:
Grace McGeehan, Sammy Tutty, Saskia Ruys, Lucy
Whitear, Sophie Soeting, Sophie Newton, Charlie
Brown, Lucy Pidgeon, Georgia Russell, Katie
Hawksworth, Joscelin Lester and Hannah Stout.
Rugby
President’s & Past Players Luncheon
Saturday 25th October 2014 saw the inaugural
President’s & Past Players Luncheon take place at our
charming clubhouse and grounds in Whitely Village,
near Weybridge, Surrey. This social gathering was the
brainchild of incumbent President Simon Wallis and the
ubiquitous new young social secretary that is Harry Ricks,
and was made possible thanks to great efforts from Club
Chairman Ed Peters and club stalwart Adrian Ricks who
between them ensured some 60 former players and club
associates came along to be amazed at the transformation
the Club has undergone in the last few years.
This transformation was started some 18 years ago when
three dedicated members, Simon Bailey, Jes Isaacs and
Adrian Ricks, decided it was time to start a junior section
at the Club. Not only was this seen as essential for the
survival of the Club but also the timing was right with
young children appearing at remarkably regular intervals
within the playing membership! The Club had recently
been suffering a few years of declining membership and
at one point some five years ago actually ‘folded’ and
dropped out of the leagues through lack of players.
Sport
Little could these three founder members have believed
just how successful this welcome initiative was going
to prove. Today sees Reed’s Weybridge Junior section
with some 650 members under the age of 18 and a
very successful Under 21 section who have realistic
hopes of winning the Surrey League this year having only
been pipped by the odd score last time out. With the
initial batch of our minis now returning from University,
the 1st XV has been transformed and indeed we have
entered a 2nd XV into the leagues for the first time in
over 10 years. State of the art new daylight floodlights
have been installed allowing night time rugby matches to
take place. Large sums of money have been invested in
reseeding and irrigating the five grass pitches at the club
which means not only do they look magnificent but are a
pleasure to be tackled on!
And so it was that these lucky visitors sat down to a
delicious three course luncheon prepared by the ‘hostess
with the mostest’ that is Fran Wallis. After a stirring
welcome speech by our President and then a more
factual statement of the progress made at the club by
our Chairman it fell to the evergreen George Spinks
to illuminate proceedings and entertain our guests with
one of his trademark hilarious recollections of some of
the matches, tours and happy days we all remembered
when we were just that little bit younger. There was
plenty of banter and laughter with the wine now flowing
freely and on show a fine collection, mainly worn, of ORs
memorabilia including the newly introduced and strikingly
handsome club blazer cleverly initiated and designed by
the dynamic young Harry Ricks.
Now one of the reasons that the timing was right for this
inaugural lunch was to showcase the magnificent brand
of rugby now on weekly show at the club. With the
average age of the 1st XV at around 23 other teams were
finding it very hard to live with our expansive, speedy
and highly skilful style of play, coached through the most
recent years by the living legend that is Nigel Connell. He
is rightly very proud of his young charges, as indeed we
very efficient rugby playing unit in their own right, simply
couldn’t live with our brand of rugby and the large crowd
were treated to a comprehensive home victory.
After the final whistle and with the darker autumnal
evening drawing in it was back to the warmth of the
clubhouse to reminisce with friends about what great
players we all were in our heyday whilst, in all honesty
at the same time, admiring the quality of the younger
generation of player coming through at our very own
club. Beers with old friends and new, storytelling, banter,
catching up, everyone agreed it had been a thoroughly
enjoyable occasion, great to see the Club in such rude
health and looking forward to the next gathering.
Talking of which if anyone would like to be kept abreast
of future events please drop me a line at adrian.ricks@
commercial-interior.co.uk and I will add you to the
mailing list.
Adrian Ricks
OR Recent Leavers XV v The School
This annual fixture took place on 3rd September last
year resulting in a victory for the School.
all are and they found themselves top of the league with
three wins out of three and a points advantage of over
150 at this early stage of the season. The hapless visitors
on this occasion were Haslemere, who whilst being a
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Sport
Tennis
D’Abernon Cup
On Sunday 7th September 2014, the Old Reedonian
Tennis Team took part in the final of the D’Abernon
Cup which is the national competition for Old Boys
of independent schools. We had reached the final
after coming through a 16 team qualifying round in
April followed by victories in the summer over Old
Bromsgrovians and UCS Old Boys. It was a real reward
to be in the final as it was played on the hallowed grounds
of the All England Lawn Tennis Club in Wimbledon. The
team consisted of Adrian Blackman (Mullens 1992), Paul
Jessop (Blathwayt 1991), Gary Le Pla (Mullens 1994), Ben
Haran (Mullens 1994), Josh Miller (Mullens 2005) and
Alex Bull (Mullens 2007). The final itself was of the highest
quality and was against Old Reptonians. Under bright blue
skies, the team fought hard and we had a 2-1 lead after
the first round. However, this was not to be our day and
we ended up losing the fixture 6-3. However, it was a
brilliant experience for all involved and great to get this
fantastic group of ORs together, some of us on the court
together for the first time in over 20 years! Roll on the
D’Abernon Cup 2015 when we will be aiming to go one
better and bring home the silverware!
Adrian Blackman
(Mullens 1992)
New Indoor Tennis Centre
The Tennis Centre was opened on 18th November 2014
and the following former Tennis Scholars attended the
event: Adrian Blackman (Mullens 1992), Tim Henman
(Blathwayt 1991), Ben Haran (Mullens 1994), James
Davidson (Blathwayt 1991), Christian Throm-Jones
(2012), Evan Hoyt (Blathwayt 2013), Gary Le Pla (Mullens
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1994), Paul Jessop (Blathwayt 1991). Other OR guests
were Jeremy Sharples (Bristowe 1989), Jeremy Ovenden
(Bristowe 1989), Benn Shepherd (Blathwayt 1986), Ed
Whiffin (Capel 2005), Nigel Mitchell (Mullens 1997).
Sporting Memories
The problem with writing about your memories
is that the reader, particularly those that may have
been involved, may not have the same rose tinted
recollections as you.
When Geoff Martin asked me to put down some
thoughts related to sport at Reed’s in the 1980s, I found
myself staring blankly at a computer screen, pondering
what is, seemingly, a fairly straightforward task. A bit
like the employer who asks a prospective employee at
interview “So, tell me about yourself?”, possibly I should
have asked Geoff what in particular he wanted to know.
So, here goes. Sport at Reed’s in the 1980s was,
ostensibly, the same as today comprising rugby, hockey
and cricket as the main team sports with a smattering
of “minor” activities such as squash, tennis, badminton,
sailing, athletics, cross country running, swimming and
shooting. However, the slightly more rarefied individual
sports such as golf and skiing did not feature, and tennis
was a very genteel occupation carried out on courts
behind the Sports Hall. A bit like smoking.
However, sport was an integral part of life and as a
boarder starting at the Close, I remember the races
at break and lunchtime to get down to the Common
Room and bag a ‘TT’ table – unless of course you
found yourself lying in one of the many gorse bushes en
route. Table-tennis was very competitive and the annual
Common Room championship a fiercely contested
competition. As an impressionable 12 year old at The
Close, the sound of the 1st XV shouting their count
down during their warm up sprints on the back lawn
and then seeing the team burst through the gap in the
hedge onto Big Side is an image that remained with me.
The School would line the touches, juniors on one side,
seniors and Masters along with visiting teachers between
Big Side and Scotts. Noisy and intimidating afternoons
that some four years later I could experience as a player
Sport
with an immense sense of pride.
Pride was central to all Reed’s sportsmen and during
House matches this pride was perhaps more evident.
House matches gave an opportunity for all to participate in
sports that they might not otherwise have tried and playing
for your House brought out the best in individuals. While
there were often significant mismatches the camaraderie
and competitive spirit engendered were, on occasions,
significantly stronger than that created for school matches.
The highlight of each sporting term was, arguably, the
Masters v Boys rugby, hockey matches and cricket
matches. In particular rugby provided a humorous
spectacle of teachers who may have last played rugby
at their prep school (or who had never played), with
Australian arrived and had the temerity to wear a helmet
at U15 level.
Cricket brings back memories of watching some class
players, the likes of Shiells, Glass, Jamieson, Maddock
and Paris showing their ability with the bat and others
like Peart, Jaksic and even Stokoe bowling with speed,
aggression or guile. On a personal level a couple
of incidents stick in my mind from scoring a six and
smashing the Bursar’s window; being chastised by Geoff
Martin for playing against his leg spin (he had been swept
or pulled for 16 off one over) during a Masters vs Boys
match, to sitting in a car during a rain break from an
U14 game, swigging cans of Pale Ale which made for an
interesting fielding experience later in the day.
strapped knees, hamstrings and shoulders facing up to
Sixth formers who may have had certain points to prove.
Cross country running was never my sport and Thursday
afternoons after Christmas were filled with a certain
Think of the Monty Python sketch, but worse. While the
rugby games were discontinued due to the high injury
rates and potential for litigation, 2nd XI hockey against
the Masters made for an intriguing Wednesday afternoon
on The Croft (the 2nd best grass pitch in Surrey, or
was that the UK?) or the All Weather pitch that meant
picking gravel out of skinned knees. Cricket sweaters with
Oxbridge college colours, long shorts, 21 ounce sticks,
bamboo goalie pads and white laces in black boots were
the order of the day. Names such as Savage, Hoskins,
Garrett, King and Prince were spoken in hushed tones by
the boys whose tactics were always to make the Masters
run after the bully-off – but greater experience and guile
(and usually a partisan umpire or two) made for a good
match. A fun time was had by all, at what other time do
dread as the whole of the senior school set off on a
course that took in the sand pit on Oxshott Heath and
crossed Sandy Lane at various points (health and safety
be damned). Mr. Nicholson made sure the sick and
the lame (including those partaking in blue gargle doses
provided by Sister) were posted along the course to
ensure no-one deviated from the course. The House
Competition was decided by the amount of points
earned. 9 or 6 points for the whippets that danced their
way through the mud and who enjoyed the experience.
3, 1 or 0 points awarded to others depending on how
long it took to trudge around the Heath and cut the right
corners. I am sure there was a point to it and we are all
mentally stronger from the experience!
you get to frequently knock the Headmaster over in a
‘fair’ manner without fear of reprisal (apart from some
very grown up swear words and threats of detention and/
or demotion)?
Cricket was a very gentlemanly sport and we spent a lot
of time being taught etiquette rather than the intricacies of
googlies, away swing and the glories of the perfect cover
drive. Headgear was permitted, as long as it was a peaked
cap – no sun hats; long sleeve shirts, neatly rolled above
the elbow; clean and blancoed boots; no one-handed
catching and Heaven forbid you used your foot to stop a
ball. You can imagine the consternation when one young
Sport at Reed’s has undoubtedly developed over the
years and with the growth of the School it can now
compete with, and beat, other schools at both team and
individual sports that 30 years ago we could only dream
of competing with. While winning is not everything
(just most of it), I sincerely hope that the young sports
people at Reed’s today play their sport of choice with
enthusiasm and enjoyment. In 30 years they can then
look back on the highs and lows of their participation, at
whatever level, and realise how sport has enriched their
lives as it has ours.
Angus Darroch-Warren
(Capel 1986)
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Philip Horton MVO
mother’s original enquiry into Reed’s School, even
though, being three years older than David, it was me
who did go there first. Mum really felt David needed
more guidance and discipline than she could give him.
Therefore, the result of the interview this time, held
even greater significance than the first time with ‘much
easier to handle’ me. Mr. Horton’s pronouncement was,
mercifully, Yes ! My mother always remembered Mr.
Horton’s wise and wonderful decisions – and, a number
of years later, even invited him and Mrs. Horton to my
wedding. They happily agreed to attend.
Philip Horton MVO, Secretary to the
Board of Governors – 1940’s to 1972
Over the last few years, when we have been particularly
thinking about our Reed’s heritage, I have submitted a
couple of pieces to the Reeder expressing appreciation
for the work of our Founder, Andrew Reed, and for the
wonderful opportunities he made possible for so many
of us. In the case of the girls at Dogmersfield, I have also
attempted to illustrate what a great and caring person to
each one of us, Miss Mills, our Headmistress, was. I have
since heard that other O.R. girls attending events say they
totally agree.
The reason for writing this time is that, before we shift
our focus from the past, more towards the future, I
would like to express not only my, but also my mother’s
appreciation for the work of Philip Horton, who was
Secretary to the Board of Governors from the 1940s
through until 1972. He had agreed to see us at his office
in the City, with regard to the possibility of my being
accepted to go to Reed’s. Despite not too brilliant a
performance, on my part – he did accept me. This was
truly a blessing for my mother, which she appreciated
immediately. As an 11 year old, it took me a number of
years before clearly understanding what a tremendous
blessing and privilege it was for me.
Of even greater concern for mum was when she made
the same trip two years later – but this time with my
unruly brother, David ! He was the reason for my
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I just wonder how many families’ lives have been
blessed by Philip Horton’s life-changing work – and that
wonderful team of our Founder Andrew Reed, and the
honourable members of the Reed’s team of that era:
Miss Mills of Dogmersfield, Mercy Evernett of the
Close at Cobham – and up in the City, Mr. Philip
Horton. On behalf of us all who passed through your
office, Thank you, Mr. Horton, for your dedication and
life-changing work.
Ann Adam
known at Reed’s as Beryl Wheaton (1955)
Shortly after 3pm on the 17th, Charlie Dickson, Finance
Director of the Cunard Shipping Line, received a call at
his office in New York from someone claiming to have
planted seven bombs aboard the liner – and these would
be set off unless a $350,000 ransom was paid. At that
moment the QE2 was sailing across the Atlantic, midway
through a cruise from New York to Cherbourg, where
she was due to dock with her 1,438 passengers in three
days’ time. William Law, its captain, was called and told of
the threat, ordering all doors be sealed and a search for
the bombs to start. The FBI and Special Branch in London
were brought into the widening investigation and the
Ministry of Defence was ordered to prepare a plan to fly
a military team out to the QE2 at a moment’s notice.
Robert Hacon Williams (Mullens 1960)
In March 2012 the following report appeared in
WalesOnline regarding Robert Williams. Of the six Reed’s
boys surnamed Williams he was number 2. Robert has
corrected some of the inaccuracies, slightly modified
the narrative and has approved the following article for
publishing in here.
It was the world’s most famous cruise liner. But 40 years
ago a bomb alert on the Queen Elizabeth 2 would see a
Welsh bomb disposal expert take part in one of the most
daring British Special Forces missions since the Second
World War.
The drone of the four engines filled the cabin of the mighty
C-130 Hercules aircraft as it thundered over the Atlantic
Ocean, making conversation among the four passengers
sitting nervously in the rear of the plane impossible. Not
that any of them were in the mood to exchange small
talk. Their task was to locate and defuse seven bombs
feared to be hidden aboard the luxury liner Queen
Elizabeth 2, due to explode in just a few hours’ time. It
was late afternoon on May 18th, 1972, and the sequence
of events that led to the scrambling of the Hercules from
RAF Lyneham with the four-man team aboard – one SAS,
two from the Special Boat Squadron and a Welsh bomb
disposal expert of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps –
began with a telephone call 24 hours earlier.
Selected to lead the team and deal with any devices
found was Welshman Captain Robert Hacon Williams,
who is now retired after 35 years’ service and runs
a health and safety consultancy in Carmarthen. Pulled
out of a class where he was giving a lecture to ATOs,
he was flown by helicopter to RAF Lyneham, where a
fully fuelled Special Forces C-130 Hercules transport
aircraft was waiting. During the flight to the QE2 it
was necessary for oral communications between the
aircraft and the QE2 to be set up This became their first
problem as the Hercules was not equipped with maritime
communications systems. However, an RAF Nimrod
Maritime Patrol Aircraft MPA was loitering over the QE2
to provide immediate assistance and terminal guidance for
any rescue attempt. The team’s conversations went to
the UK and were relayed to the MPA who relayed them
to the QE2. This problem was therefore resolved. All
he and the three other soldiers were told was that they
were to be ready to parachute to an unnamed ship at sea
– something Williams had never done before.
“It was my first military jump but this was a high threat
military operation and there wasn’t time to get nervous,”
he recalls. “There were over a thousand people on
board and our job was to make them safe. We had lot
of equipment to carry, the winds were high and the SBS
Captain was carrying unconventional load.”
On the other side of the Atlantic, Dickson was handed
a letter from the extortionist, demanding the ransom
money be dropped off in a blue bag at a telephone
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91
booth several miles north of the city at 9.30 that night.
“Be alone. Any sign of police and you will have a
catastrophe on your hands,” the note ended chillingly.
Refusing the FBI’s offer to have one of their agents handle
the drop, Dickson set off with the cash, shadowed by
plain-clothed FBI agents.
Aboard the QE2, Captain Law informed the stunned
passengers of the bomb threat and told them a British
bomb disposal team were on their way. But there was
growing unease in the Hercules as it reached the drop
zone. The cloud base was 300 feet, the Atlantic rollers
were 15 to 20 feet and the wind was 15 to 25 knots. The
safety margin for the Special Forces was a drop height of
1000 feet and for Williams it was 1200 feet. However,
parachuting through cloud is prohibited as is jumping into
waves over about three feet and the parachutes were
designed to be used in wind speeds up to 10 knots. On
the return to level flight they were subjected to negative G
and the parachutists were floating above the aircraft’s deck
thus they had to be assisted out of the aircraft. On the
sixth pass of the Hercules Captain Williams became airsick.
Williams hit the water badly but within minutes they were
all finally aboard. “We hit the water at such a high speed
and from a low height that we all went some 30ft under
the water before we bobbed back up again,” he adds.
“We were picked by the ship and fully briefed before going
to the area where the crew had found suspicious items.”
While Williams’ team got down to the serious business of
clearing the suspicious items and then combing the ship for
suspect packages, Dickson arrived at the phone booth and
waited for the extortionist to make contact. At 9.40pm, he
from boarding as her child was disabled. By the early
hours of the next morning, Williams and his exhausted
team concluded that the whole affair had been a hoax.
The FBI’s investigation continued and the extortionist
was eventually identified. Far from being a criminal
mastermind, the man who had sparked the whole crisis
was 48-year-old shoe salesman Joseph Lindisi from
New York. Charged with attempted extortion and
making threatening phone calls, he was found guilty and
sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Looking back on that time, for which he and the
members of his team were awarded the Queen’s
Commendation for Bravery, Williams, who went on to
enjoy a long and distinguished career in the Army, serving
in Northern Ireland, Belize, Cyprus and the Balkans,
before retiring in 1998, says: “I was 29 at the time and it
had proved to be a real adventure. We had to act quickly
on information and undertake a parachute military jump
having never done that before. But all I was thinking
about was how to get the job done and how to protect
the lives of those on board and my team.”
Since the incident 421 EOD (Explosive Ordnance
Disposal) Section has been trained as a team of ATOs
able to act with Special Forces in a multitude of scenarios.
At the time of the incident the QE2 Captain offered the
four soldiers with their wives a free voyage on QE2.
Robert was unable to take advantage of this until 2000.
A brave OR whose contemporaries still remember his
enthusiasm for the CCF at school.
answered a call ordering him to go to a diner a few miles
away, where further instructions would be taped under a
basin in the lavatory. Dickson left the blue bag containing
the ransom cash in a secluded spot as instructed, while the
FBI hovered discreetly in the background.
Back on the ship, there was a brief moment of anxiety
when the two suitcases whose owners couldn’t
be traced were neutralised. Both cases contained
personal items belonging to women passengers who
had forgotten their cases. Four other large packages
were dealt with on the car deck and all found to be the
contents of a householder who had been prohibited
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Captain Williams, SBS Officer Richard Clifford,
QE2 Captain Law, soldiers Oliver and Jones
On the 19th September 2014, Andy Cairns (Bristowe
1973), Graeme Cottam (Mullens 1973), Martin Hayton
(Blatwayt 1973) and Simon Bolton (Capel 1973)
landed at Madrid Airport and were met there by Mark
Fenwick (Bristowe 1973) to spend an epic weekend of
memories and new experiences. It was potentially quite
a challenge to spend a whole weekend together after not
having seen each other for 40 years; but really as things
turned out it was amazingly simple. Time just seemed
to flow continuously on from the end of the summer
term in 1973, when we had all parted, picking up again
seamlessly at the end of the summer of 2014, as if the
intervening 40+1 years had been nothing more than a
brief interlude.
aptitudes had changed and he deserved a retrial. So,
for the 2014 1st Xl Hockey team photo the selectors
dropped George Atterbury (I hope George doesn’t read
this - Ed), and Graeme replaced him in the front row.
Graeme, recently admitted to the team, sits to the right
of Andy, and so all members of the REED’S 40+1 event
are in the front row, slightly aged, but with much more
experience.
To start the trip Mark handed out to all a self-edited CD
with music from the year 1973 (our last year at school)
which included some memorable tracks from Santana,
Lou Reed and The Rolling Stones, all carefully selected to
become the background for the next few days.
The CD had as its title photo a 1st Xl hockey photograph
from 1973, and printed on the CD was an updated
“2014” version showing some of the team members a bit
older than before.
In the 1973 picture below, in the front row is Simon
Bolton to the left of the picture, Andy Cairns (Captain) in
the centre, Martin Hayton to his left and Mark Fenwick
to the far right as goalkeeper sporting a cool “German
Helmet“ haircut.
The Romans
The first track on the epic REED’S 40+1 CD was an
excerpt from the Monthy Pythons epic, “What have
the Romans done for us?”, which (with a bit of artistic
license) went something like:
OR 1: Well what has Reed’s done for us? really what
HAS Reed’s done for all of US?
OR 2: ........Education?
OR 1: Well, er yes Education, but what ELSE has Reed’s
done us for besides Education?
OR 3: Fair Play... Friends?
OR1: Oh God, well yes of course, Friendship and Fair
Play, but apart from Education, Fair Play and Friendship,
what ELSE has Reed’s done for us?
OR4: ........Sport and Culture?
OR1: Oh for Goodness sake YES, but apart from
Education, Friendship, Fair Play and Sport and Culture,
1973 Reed’s 1st Xl Hockey Team picture
Graeme for some reason did not get into the side
in 1973, but we thought that so many years on his
what ELSE has Reed’s given us??.
OR 2: A good start in LIFE?
OR 1: Oh Shut Up!!!!!
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Mark had set out an intense and demanding agenda
designed to encompass a wide range of activities including
sport, gastronomy and even high culture.
The first stop was to visit Mark’s son, Jaime, who has
set up making custom motorcycles, reviving the famous
Spanish make “ROA Motorcycles”, established by his
grandfather in 1952. All admired the stylish “retro” look of
Jaime’s custom creations, and all said how similar Jaime is
to Mark, although better looking (which is not difficult).
Bristowe team on the way to victory over Capel
and Blathwayt
Memory snippet: sports
Jaimes’ “Loft” with the new bike in the foreground
We then moved on to Mark’s office, “Fenwick Iribarren
Architects” one of the most successful architectural
partnerships in Spain, close by and saw some of the
projects and schemes he has been doing over the past,
arduous years, and during the recent very difficult time
weathering the massive economic crisis in Spain. Back to
Mark’s house for a refreshing cup of tea. Sadly the brilliant
Spanish weather did not hold out, and this was the first
weekend in months where rain pelted down, but this did
not deter the team at all.
This reminded Andy and Mark of the amazing feat in
1973 where Bristowe managed to win a hat trick in
all house matches in Hockey and Rugby (captained by
Andy) and Cricket (captained by Mark) This was an
amazing feat as Bristowe was not a sports house, but
thanks to the excellent leadership of the Captains, Andy
and Mark (and Peter Stoehr as secret weapon on the
bowling) this unique feat was achieved, much to the
disbelief of Martin and Simon who couldn’t remember
this at all (selective memories even then!!)
Gastronomy: dinner
Dinner was in an amazing restaurant set 150 metres
up in the Madrid sky in one of Mark’s recent buildings,
the Torre Espacio, one of the tallest in Spain, standing at
250 metres high, offering an amazing view over Madrid
through panoramic windows.
Sport: Padel Tennis
Sport started in the evening with a game of Padel Tennis,
with two teams competing in a first set, Bristowe (Mark
and Andy) versus Capel and Blathwayt (Simon and
Martin). Mullens (Graeme) stayed on the edge as official
photographer and referee. Bristowe managed to win
the set (maybe the fact that Simon and Martin had never
played the game before could have been a factor, but
very minor)
View from the Espacio 33 restaurant, mind boggling and
not for those with a fear of heights
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Our first difficulty was in finding a menu for Graham, a
vegetarian. Spain is not the best country for vegetarians,
but we managed to sort it out. Everyone was totally
knackered and retired to bed after a full day of emotions
and exercise, ready for what was to come.
Saturday 20th September 2014
Breakfast
Saturday morning was an early start, with breakfast at
Mark’s home, and dozens of scrambled eggs and bacon
being brought in by Paloma, Mark’s wife, washed down
with fruit, tea and coffee. More memories kept flowing
out. Graeme appeared with a number of photocopied
sheets of the Reeder, and some photos of the Old Reed’s
way of life, which sparked instant recall of both the School
and our time there
Memory Snippet: Reed’s
A picture of a dormitory really shocked Mark’s son, Jaime,
and he was instantly told that that was what made men
out of boys, those stark metal beds, mattresses one inch
thick, and one blanket for those cold winter nights. He
said he couldn’t care less, it was inhuman.
fourth form from a stretch abducted to Torremolinos
where he went to school for two years (and still got a
grade 6 Spanish O level!!)
Sport: Go karts
Off we then went to start with a bit of juvenile fun, in the
Carlos Sainz Go Kart Centre. Martin, Simon, Graeme,
Mark and Andy were joined by Jaime, Mark’s son, who
was the local hope for winning the race, and fancied
beating these old farts on the track. After putting on
some very tight racing overalls and kinky net hats, and
with a safety explanation only in Spanish, understood
by nobody, we all set off to get our cars. Some of us
actually had difficulty getting our backside into the very
tight sports seat, but finally the pressure of our weight
managed to squeeze them in, in some cases almost, as
Mark confirmed.
The race was hotly controversial with a few blue flags
shown and the most competitive of us slamming around
the track to try and get the best lap time. Graeme took
this as a stroll, not falling for the intense competitive
spirit, and he managed to break the track record, as the
longest lap time ever. We managed to lap him at least
once on every lap, but he had a great time. We even had
two races, which got us sweating. Results were close,
but Jaime was clearly the race winner, not like his
Dad who trailed behind Andy (our version of Jeremy
Clarkson), Martin and Simon, but still ahead of Graeme
(thank goodness)
Reeds Dorm early morning
Graeme’s photocopies showed that Simon, Andy and
Martin were mentioned in all the pages, while Mark and
Graeme had a minor entry only once.
Martin, Simon and Andy were at the Close, and fought
their way up the School from very early years, while
Graeme was one of the few day boys in those days (as
rare as the girl pupils in biology), and Mark came in at the
The REEDS 40+1 Team ready to go on the track
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Memory snippet: cars
The main difficulty in our days at Reed’s was freedom,
and cars brought that to us, but there was only one
problem: we weren’t allowed them. Mark managed to
hide a Lotus Cortina down Sandy Lane, and Andy had
his mum’s Riley; he remembered Mark overtaking him
on the outside lane of the A3 roundabout on the way to
Byfleet. Martin still remembers the eight track stereo in
Mark’s car: Dark Side of the Moon, Santana and a couple
of others were going round and round (we had no
money for any more). Cars allowed us to get to the pubs
(also not allowed) and to the walls of Claremont School,
but we suspect that all this was known to the staff, and a
blind eye was turned.
Another epic moment in a car was Graeme’s 18th
birthday party in his house. We all had great fun and this
marked the end of the Reed’s venture. Graeme was later
famous for managing to crash his dad’s Saab into a ditch,
when he decided not to take a curve near Sandy Lane.
Everyone remembers this and the many claims to have
actually been in the car by a surprising number of people
meant the car must have had the capacity of a London
Bus! No harm and no injuries were suffered, but we are
not sure how Graeme explained this to his father.
all in a for free; a bit cheeky but very effective (who said
Reed’s didn’t teach us anything?)
Team after lunch with funny hats at El Escorial
Monastery in Madrid
Andy added to the glory by actually joining in the group
photograph on the steps of the Church, and I am sure
that more than one to this day is asking who that ugly
guy was!
Culture
It was then time for bit of culture, up to the foothills
around Madrid to see the Magnificent El Escorial
monastery and palace built by Phillip ll of Spain in the
1570s, one of the crowning achievements of the
“Spanish Golden Age”. We all were awed by this amazing
building, set so wonderfully in the landscape, and spent
a few hours walking around. We walked through the
geometrical hedge gardens and then set off to enter the
Palace and see the main Church within. At the entrance
we were told we had to go to another entrance, pay a
hefty fee, and finally we could get in to see this marvellous
religious monument.
At that precise moment Andy noticed that a group of
tourists were being herded in through the rope, and so
instantly he beckoned us to latch on and join in the group.
We were swept into the main courtyard, not paying a
euro, even though Graeme had his qualms, but we were
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Graeme following the Group in, NO looking back,
Andy, in red, heading for the stairs and the group photo
Gastronomy: lunch
It was then off to a restaurant in the town, and a great
meal there, again negotiating with the waiter a vegetarian
delicacy for Graeme. Superb food again, and the weight
lost in the Go Karts quickly was put back on.
easy match for the golfers in the group. Mark has never
really played the game and Graeme took his place as the
official Caddy of the group. (Graeme remembers that
Seve started as a caddy).
Lunch and funny hats, maybe they thought we were Swedish
(see flag)
Memory snippet: Girls
Talk finally went back to our last years at the School and
our very clumsy incursions into meeting girls. Obviously
a boys’ boarding school, where we were only boys
(I think), meant we had to look out of the bounds of
the School for members of the opposite sex, because
obviously Matrons and Sister Kiehne didn’t count.
Claremont School was a first source to turn to, and the
houses surrounding the School were another obvious
hunting ground to the initiated.
The scene was set of two teams of two (again Bristowe
against the rest) with Andy and Martin being solid
and consistent golfers all the way round. Simon had
an exceptionally bad day, and almost managed to kill
Graeme with a sliced ball as he was wading out of the
lakes where, in his official capacity as Caddy, he was
diligently fishing out lost golf balls (he nearly slid in a
couple of times). Mark had beginner’s luck and managed
to keep his team going with a few good shots. At the end
Bristowe won, again re-living the glory year of 1973.
Bristowe winners in the Middle, with Capel to the left
and Blathwayt to the right
Back to Mark’s for a rest (well earned) some tea and
more memories and chats
Alvin Short surrounded on Sports Day 1973
We all confessed that in truth nothing major happened in
any of our first encounters, and really nothing more than
an innocent good time was had with the girls we met then.
Sport: Golf
Back down to Madrid in the car and everyone except
for Martin, and obviously Mark driving, fell asleep. We
were headed for a touch more sport, and off to the Golf
Park. This is a pitch and putt course, which proved a very
Memory snippet: the CCF
The Cadet Force was something to be remembered:
all those hours cleaning the belts and the boots, and
charging around the School grounds, in a state of mock
war. Graeme, Mark and Andy tended to the RAF, mainly
to fly around in Chipmunks, and even attend a gliding
course.
A very memorable incursion in kayaks in a lake seemed
vaguely familiar, with Graeme capsizing and not being
able to get out, a very delicate moment. We also recalled
the shooting range: firing with those .22 rifles and
missing everything; we are amazed nothing untoward
ever happened.
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Gastronomy: dinner
We tried to get to the centre of Madrid for the evening
dinner, but masses of people, roads closed and no entry
signs finally made us give up and look for Plan B. Luck
had it as we passed by the Bernabeu Stadium, and so we
managed to get into a great restaurant which amazingly
has an enormous panoramic window overlooking the
famous Real Madrid pitch, place of many a legendary feat.
Dinner in this historic stadium, home of the best team in
the world (says Mark, as they are one of his clients) and
the view over the pitch impressed all, and was a fitting
close to our first full day in Madrid.
Culture
On the way to the Reina Sofia Museum we stopped off
at the very moving Atocha Station Monument to the
191 people killed in the horrific terrorist train bombings
in May 2004. The Monument is a very minimalist magic
space and we spent a short and quiet time in there
The museum is a magic space, and the light is quite
amazing. Graeme and Andy in contemplative mood
Real Madrid Pitch from our table at dinner!
The team then headed off to the famous Madrid Modern
Art Museum, the Reina Sofia. Here is housed the
famous painting by Picasso, “Guernica”, which casually
Martin mentioned he had studied in an Art History and
Philosophy degree he had recently taken.
The food was also very good and again we managed to
get Graeme a good vegetarian meal, even though we all
ate some (or all) of his croquettes....
Sunday 21st September 2014
Breakfast
Breakfast in Mark’s house again led to lots of scrambled
eggs, croissants, bacon, toast tea, coffee etc etc.
Sport: Bowls
Sunday’s original agenda had included a bit of bike riding,
but we decided to miss this and go straight for culture
instead, next on the list. We could not head off without
a little bit of sport, and Mark brought out a splendid set
of Petanque Boules to play on his lawn. Again Martin
and Simon showed their natural ball skills, but Graeme
surprisingly came to the fore and gave them some strong
competition.. this is definitely his sport for the moment.
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We had a look around the gallery, seeing paintings by
Braque, Juan Gris, Kandinsky and sculptures by Miro,
Calder and Henry Moore, finally arriving at “La Guernica”.
On the way around the museum we found Andy and
Simon looking very closely at an early 20th century nude
painting. Mark, Graeme and Martin took the visit a bit
more seriously and entered into the deep symbolism
of the Guernica painting. Guernica being difficult to
remember, Simon and Andy looked to find a simpler way
to pronounce the name of the painting and the closest
we got was “Girl Knicker”... This actually is very close!
The next stop on the agenda was the Prado Museum,
to see a bit of Goya, but it seems Simon and Andy had
seen enough nudes for the day, and Andy’s limp got a bit
stronger, so the walk there was postponed for a beer in
the Atocha Station.
Culture and gastronomy: lunch
We then headed out to the Casa Grande, owned
by Mark’s father-in-law and run by his wife Paloma.
Casa Grande is an amazing 16th Century monastery/
agricultural building founded also by Phillip ll (El Escorial)
and a guided tour around the building included the original
16 metre oak wine press, the enormous Vats Hall, and
finally the Icon Museum, with over a thousand icons on
view. What most impressed some was the solid gold
ceiling, and Andy nearly got a ladder to scrape some off.
Icon Museum with Gold roof, under the eye of Andy Cairns
Memory snippet: academic agenda
Obviously our main reason to be at Reed’s was to learn
something and have a good academic record. The leader
here was Martin “Brains” Hayton, who managed 9 grade
1 O levels, 3 A Grade A levels and two S level distinctions
(back in the day when results like these were exceptional),
and went on to study at Cambridge. However, Reed’s
gave us all a solid basis for a successful future path in life.
Andy also excelled academically and went on to study
medicine at Cambridge, where he also became a hockey
“Blue”, scoring the winning goal for victory over Oxford.
Simon is still running his own business, and Graeme is
now well into his second career having retired from
being a partner at PWC. And Mark’s architectural practice
continues to flourish, with prestigious commissions
(including one of the football stadia for the World Cup in
Qatar) – even though his recently-found school reports
seemed to say “He can do better” on every page!
Language Lab with Les Braeden in charge
Wrapping up
All in all a great weekend, a weekend not just to
remember old times, which we did, but which in the
end always seems a bit sad and signs of us getting on,
which we are! More importantly it was an opportunity
to build new memories, and reconnect with old friends
after a brief time apart of only 40 years. It is great to see
we have all done well, in our different paths. We are all
married happily (and still on our first marriages), and we
all have great children. So all in all, we cannot complain,
not even slightly. REED’S 40+1 was a great success and
we need now to think about the future 40+2 event to
be held somewhere yet to be decided. This year’s trip
will be impossible to beat, but it just may be possible to
match it next time...
On a finishing touch the departure at the airport came
with the last track of the REED’S 40+1 CD at full blast.
The song “Always look on the bright side of life” by
Monthy Python seemed a fitting farewell, and a symbol
for our past and present. This is the new Anthem of
the 40+1 event. The car was a blast with the five of us
chanting the chorus:
“Always look on the bright side of life,
Dum de-dum de-dum de-dum de-dum...”
By, in alphabetical order, not in order of intelligence,
nor of height, nor weight... Simon Bolton, Andrew
Cairns, Graeme Cottam, Mark Fenwick and
Martin Hayton
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Hall of Fame
2000s
Luke Steyn (Capel 2011)
Alex Corbisiero (Blathwayt 2002)
Chris Eaton (Bristowe 2004)
James Morrison (Mullens 2003)
Jamie Treays aka Jamie T (Capel 2002)
Zimbabwean Winter Olympian (Skiing)
England & Northampton Rugby Player
Tennis Player
Golfer
Musician, Singer, Songwriter
1990s
Tim Henman OBE (Blathwayt 1991) Dan Skinner (Bristowe 1991)
Tom Hardy (Capel 1992)
Tom Nicols (Bristowe 1992)
Jamie Delgado (Capel 1993)
Nigel Mitchell (Mullens 1997)
Grand Slam and Davis Cup Tennis Player
Actor, Comedian and Script Writer
Actor
Songwriter and Composer
Davis Cup Tennis Player
Television and Radio Presenter
1980s
Prince Zeid bin Ra’ad (Capel 1981)
Timothy Taylor (Blathwayt 1980)
Jeremy Ovenden (Bristowe 1989)
Jeremy Sharples (Bristowe 1989)
Jordanian Prince, one time Jordanian Ambassador to the United States and
current United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Art Dealer
Internationally renowned Opera Singer
Classical Singer & member of “Tenors UnLimited”
1970s
Stuart Popham (Mullens 1972)
Simon Keenlyside CBE (Capel 1978)
Simon Robey (Capel 1978)
House
Robert Seatter (Mullens 1974)
Bryon Shaun Scott (Blathwayt 1973)
Andy Cairns (Bristowe 1973)
Alastair Beardsall (Mullens 1972)
Former Managing Partner, Clifford Chance
Internationally renowned Opera singer
UK Head of Banking, Morgan Stanley, Chairman of the Board, Royal Opera
Head of History at the BBC
TV and Film Actor
Cambridge Hockey Blue
Executive Chairman, Sterling Energy
1960s
John Hughes-Wilson (Mullens 1962)
Keith Boulter (Capel 1969)
Don Taylor (Mullens 1967)
Author and Broadcaster
Cambridge Hockey Blue
Cambridge Rugby Blue
1950s
Tim Corrie (Bristowe 1959)
Robin Pingree (Capel 1959)
Nick Wadley (Capel 1952)
100 THE REEDER 2015
Theatrical Agent & Chair of BAFTA
Visiting Professor, Institute of Marine Studies, University of Plymouth
Artist and Member of Royal Academy
Hall of Fame
1940s
John Alvey CB (Blathwayt 1940)
Edward Kellett-Bowman (Bristowe 1949)
Elvi Hale (Patricia Hake)
Former Deputy Controller R&D Establishments & Research and Chief
Scientist RAF Ministry of Defence. Retired Director of BT plc and Chairman
of the Alvey Report
Conservative Party MEP
TV and Film Actor (BAFTA nominee)
1930s
Norman Alvey (Blathwayt 1938)
William Tyrie (1933)
Author
Awarded Distinguished Flying Medal for Valour, Courage & Devotion during
World War Two.
Pre 1930s
Clarence Leonard (1919)
Posthumously awarded the King’s Commendation for Brave Conduct during
Joe Fothergill (1906)
Curtis Perry (1903)
Alan Bott (circa 1900)
Charles Hill (1900)
Rupert Hill (1900)
Charles St Leger (1898)
Norman Cowell (1896)
Ronald Pendred (1893)
Aubrey Ninnis (circa 1893)
John Atttenborough (1892)
World War Two.
Awarded the French Croix de Guerre for gallantry under enemy fire during
World War One.
Awarded the Military Medal for Gallantry during World War One.
Founded the publishing company Pan Books and was the author of
An Airman’s Outings. Awarded the Military Cross and Bar during World War
One for conspicuous gallantry in action and one for escaping whilst a Prisoner
of War.
Awarded the Military Cross for Conspicuous Gallantry in Action.
Awarded the Military Medal for Gallantry during World War One.
Architect worked with Sir Herbert Baker (designer of the Tyne Cot Cemetery)
on the Union Buildings in Pretoria, amongst many others.
Most decorated former pupil in World War One being awarded the Military
Cross, French Croix de Guerre, Belgian Croix de Guerre and also the Belgian
Ordre de Leopold avec Croix de Guerre Chevalier.
Deputy Lieutenant for the County of Middlesex in 1950.
An Antarctic Explorer who had a key role in Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ill-fated
Imperial Trans- Antarctic Expedition of 1914.
Awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal (second only to the Victoria Cross)
during World War One.
I hope to add more names to this list as information becomes available - Ed.
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Chris Addison
University of Surrey
Chemical Engineering (5 years)
Cameron Aldred
University of Exeter
Mechanical Engineering
William Atkins
Gap Year and apply 2015
Charles Azuh
St George's, University of London
Medicine
Lily Back
University of Nottingham
Geography
Jagmaan Bakshi
London School of Economics and Political Science
Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method
Duncan Bell
University of Southampton
Electromechanical Engineering
Baile Beyai
University of Newcastle
Geography
Sky Blowers
Charlotte Brown
Hannah Burden
Celeste Camilleri
University of the Arts, London
Art Foundation Year
Jack Cantelo
St Mary's University, London
Primary Education (ITT)
Jack Casey
University of Leeds
Management and The Human Resource
Samuel Chadwick
Geography
Jack Chamberlain
Architecture
Julianna Chan
Law
Shamael Chaudhry
Davidson, North Carolina (USA)
Liberal Arts with Tennis scholarship
Matthew Chung
Civil Engineering
George Clapp
University of Sussex
International Relations and a Language (French/Italian/Spanish)
Thomas Coates
University of Bristol
Geography
Kieran Corbett
Gap Year & Apply 2015
Patrick Corning
Medicine (5 year)
James Dawson
Caitlin Dear-Fitzpatrick
Canterbury Christ Church University
Applied Criminology and Forensic Investigation
Louis Djalili
American Studies and English
Josef Dodridge
Wisconsin (USA)
Liberal Arts & Tennis Scholarship
Edward Dyer
University of the West of England, Bristol
Business Management with Marketing
Ross Edser
Economics and Finance with Industrial Experience (4 years)
Ella Finley
Royal Academy of Music
Music Performance (Scholarship)
Ben Fluck
Built & Natural Environment
Ben Forder
Alfie Gaffney
Geography
Layla Hanif
Psychology
Elliot Harris
University of Leeds
English Literature
Katie Hawksworth
University of Liverpool
Communication and Media
Emily He
Mathematics with Finance
Sam Higgins
University of Leeds
Management with Marketing
Sam Hinton
Oxford Brookes University
History/International Relations
Leila Husain
Photography
Matthew Johns
Geography
Aidan Kendler-Rhodes
Medicine - MBChB Standard entry (5 years)
Charles Kerr
University of Birmingham
English
Max Kerslake
Physics
Freddie King
Geography
Tom Kirby
University of Brighton
Geography
Louis Laville
Bournemouth University
Sports Management (Golf)
Venus Lee
Mathematics with Actuarial Science
Angus Lewis
University of Dundee
Forensic Anthropology
Giles Lingwood
Classical Studies
102 THE REEDER 2015
Industrial Economics
Jeremy Lo
Imperial College London
Materials Science and Engineering
Jack Luker
Loughborough University
Systems Engineering
Oliver Lunt
Creative Product Design
Jamie Malik
Rice (USA)
Liberal Arts & Tennis Scholarship
George Marais
Stellenbosch (SA)
Accounting & Finance
Kirsten Matthewman
James Madison (USA)
Liberal Arts
Harvey McMillan
University of Leeds
Broadcast Journalism
Alex McNair
University of Bath
Computer Science
Line Meyer
Stellenbosch (SA)
Accounting
Benjamin Miller
University of Kent
Architecture
Harrison Moore
Education & Psychology
Sophie Newton
University of Edinburgh
Biological Sciences (Biochemistry)
Munashe Nyabadza
Law
Jack O’Brien
University of Loughborough
Retailing, Marketing and Management
Leo Petty
University of Durham
Geography
Poppy Ravan
Oliver Ricceri
Ted Riley
University of Chichester
George Rounce
Music Performance
Royal Marines Officer Training
Scarlett Rowley
University of Lincoln
Drama
Daniel Roy
Computer Science (4 years)
Georgia Russell
Art Foundation
Harvey Sayer
Business Management with Marketing
Christopher Sharp-Paul
University of Sheffield
Economics and Politics
Rory Shiells
Dentistry
Justin Siaw
University of Kent
Accounting
James Sieber
University of Bath
Sport and Social Sciences
Marcus Sirmon
Art Foundation
Josianne Slinger
University of the Arts, London
Art Foundation
Ben Smith
Industrial Design and Technology
Josh Southern
University of Bath
Natural Sciences (with Year Abroad)
Chloe Spooner
University of Cardiff
Medicine with a Preliminary Year
Alexander Stead
University of Manchester
Computer Science
Daniel Steeden
English with Creative Writing
Sebastian Stewart-Taylor
University of Durham
Biomedical Sciences (4 year SW)
Brendan Strohm
Film Studies
Kimble Stuckey
University of York
Management (with a year in industry)
Katie Tait
University of Cardiff
Archaeology
Jeffrey Tam
Management
Justin Tambini
King's College, University ofLondon
Music
Nicholas Taylor
University of Cambridge
Medicine (5 years)
Katherine Thomas
Drama (Guildford School of Acting)
Theo Thompson
University of Leeds
History
Andrew Tolfree
De Montfort University
Architecture
Edward Tsui
University of Cambridge
Natural Sciences
Louis Vasili
Gap Year
Theo Vukasinovic
Brunel University
Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences
Naomi Wakeling
Music
Henrietta Weedon
American & Canadian Studies with Year Abroad
Lucy Whitear
English
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103
Staff Leavers 2014
David Jarrett (Headmaster 1997 - 2014)
The following is reproduced with the permission of the
Chairman of Governors.
“This record of success is a team effort. But it owes
everything ultimately to the leadership of one man –
David Jarrett, who retires today after 17 years as a truly
outstanding Headmaster. His record over those years
in leading the School onwards and upwards is quite
remarkable. School numbers have increased, from 377
when he came in 1997 to nearly 650 now. The School’s
physical facilities have been transformed, with new
classrooms, the Music School, the Bridgeman Building,
sports facilities, enhanced pupil centres and boarding
houses and, very notably, our iconic FutureTech Building.
The curriculum has been broadened and a wide range of
co-curricular activities developed. Centres of excellence
have been established in tennis, where we are one of
the pre-eminent schools in the world, and in golf and
ski-ing. Standards have been raised, academically, but also
in sport, in the arts and in community activities. David
has led Reed’s to reach out not only locally, through for
example our links with state schools, but also overseas,
through for example our work in assisting the Calabash
township in South Africa. Through all these changes, the
Foundation has been fostered and anchored at the core
of what we do at Reed’s, so that we remain a mixed
community with a strong caring and pastoral ethos.
Reed’s today is what David has made it and the memorial
to Sir Christopher Wren in St Paul’s Cathedral could just
as well be applied to David’s achievements: “Si monumentum requires, circumspice.” which in this
case could be translated as: “If you want to know what David has achieved for
Reed’s, just look around you at the School as it is today.” None of this could have been achieved without the
vision, the wisdom, the intelligence, the determination,
the energy and commitment and the sheer hard work
that David has put into leading Reed’s forward, steadily
and consistently, over the past 17 years. In support of
all his efforts, I want to pay tribute, too, to the immense
contribution that Anne has played as an exemplary
104 THE REEDER 2015
Headmaster’s wife – involved right across the School,
always interested, always positive and supportive. For
all the Governors who have served with David, and I
believe for all the staff and you, the parents, David has
been a superlative Headmaster - a dedicated teaching
professional, demanding high standards and delivering
them by example, but sympathetic and constructive
when there are setbacks, an excellent manager and an
inspirational leader. We are fortunate to have had, in
David, at Reed’s, quite simply one of the outstanding
Headmasters of his generation – and I would ask you
all now to stand and join me in applauding David’s
outstanding service to the Reed’s community.”
Danny Becker
Danny leaves Reed’s after two years in the Drama
and English Departments and as a Blathwayt tutor. He
has been an effervescent and popular teacher who
has added much to all facets of school life. His natural
enthusiasm and sense of humour have made colleagues
and students alike warm to him. Danny has made
many positive contributions to extra-curricular drama
from directing productions of “Alistair in Wonderland”
and “The Cagebirds” to assisting with the main school
productions of “Vernon God Little” and “The Tempest”.
What will be most missed are his musicality and his
contribution of original compositions and energetic
choreography when required.
Danny was also a valued member of ‘Team Blathwayt’,
who I know will miss him greatly.
Danny is moving back to Australia and then hopefully on
to America. Although at Reed’s for a relatively short time,
but such a good time, Danny will be a hard act to follow.
Tim Silk
(Head of Drama)
Pilar Espinosa
Pilar leaves Reed’s after six years as Head of Spanish and
a tutor in Capel House. She has been a very organised,
efficient leader and a creative, popular teacher who
has achieved excellent examination results as well
Staff Leavers 2014
as communicating a love of the Spanish language and
culture to her pupils. She has led many fantastic trips to
Salamanca, Almería and Cantabria, as well as giving pupils
the opportunity to practise their oral skills in Spanish
Conversation Club and appreciate films in the Spanish
Cinema Club. Her flamenco class on European Day of
Languages will also live long in the memory!
Pilar moves on to a new, exciting adventure back in her
native Spain where she hopes to continue her teaching
in a new project amongst adults. We will, of course, miss
her but we wish her and her husband, Olaf, all the best
and look forward to remaining in touch, continuing to
develop our links in the future.
Simon Bramwell
(Head of Modern Languages)
Katie Roberts
Katie is going to pursue her fortune in Hong Kong as a
Maths teacher which has long been a dream of hers.
She will leave a large gap to fill, as she is a talented,
born teacher and could teach the whole gamut of
mathematics, from First Form to Further Maths in the
Upper Sixth.…and all the complications that that brings
with the multiplicity of combinations of modules at AS
and A Level. As a tutor in Capel House, Katie took
extraordinary pastoral care of all her tutees and was fully
involved in events for the House. Head of Swimming was
another bow to her arrow and she created a real splash,
taking the teams to new heights under her management.
Integral to the smooth running of the School, Katie
was a positive and delightful member of staff who will
undoubtedly be missed, but we wish her an exciting new
phase in her career, confident that she will rise to meet all
sleek functioning of the Duke of Edinburgh scheme at
Reed’s and relished going on expeditions, whatever the
weather. Nancy hopes too to grow this aspect of her
extra-curricular commitment which might have become
more resolute when she met and chatted to the Duke
of Edinburgh during his and Her Majesty’s visit to the
School in 2014. A fantastic colleague, her work with the
Senior Christian Union was second to none, and she
led by example. Many a Slum Survivor night under the
stars and tin at school was warmed by her presence.
It was not uncommon to see her changing shoes in the
Staff Common Room, from pumps to stilettos to running
shoes to wellies. We wish her well in all her future
endeavours.
Alexa Prior
It was sad to say goodbye to Alexa after 13 years at
the School. I am devastated, and the pupils are gutted
that she has gone! During her time at Reed’s she truly
inspired GCSE and A Level biologists to achieve better
than expected results year after year. As the Head of
Girls’ Sport, she also led this to new heights during her
time with us. She contributed to the success of winning
squash, tennis and ski teams and celebrated many
individual successes and outstanding performances.
What an organised and efficient teacher, Sixth Form
tutor and sports leader she has been. As well as her
day-to-day teaching and coaching, her ‘to do’ list that
she created every day ensured that she never missed
an opportunity or deadline. We will miss her positive
thinking, cheerful outlook and spicy humour.
We wish her well in her new challenge as a Science
teacher, running the Science Department at La Cote
challenges with her customary energy and charm.
International School in Aubonne near Geneva in
Switzerland.
Nancy Evans
They say that no one is indispensable. We’ll see!
Nancy leaves the English and Geography Departments
to go to Cumbria after five years at Reed’s. She intends
to study further in Geography, changing the focus of
her teaching slightly in line with her passion for the
great outdoors. She was integral to the growth and
Leanne Paterson
(Head of Biology)
THE REEDER 2015
105
Staff Leavers 2014
Will Gatti
Ex-Head of English who became part time in his last year
in order to write more, Will leaves us after 14 years.
His knowledge, understanding and insight into literature
were unparalleled and he taught his students to read
and search and strive. Will led the English Department
in his time with a steady and inspiring hand - he intends
to spend more time in Ireland embracing that great
literary tradition. We at Reed’s expect to see his new
books gracing our library’s shelves in the future and will
be proud to say he was one of us. Many of the First
Form were inspired by “The Geek, the Greek and the
Pimpernel” and even more pupils will remember being
taught by a real-life author very fondly.
Hamish Hamilton
Hamish has been at Reed’s for 30 years and is now
retiring. He is one of those extraordinarily gifted scholars
who read both English and Mathematics at Cambridge
and has forged his career at Reed’s, as an incisive and
brilliant Head of Maths and a true believer in encouraging
his students to be independent, enquiring and aspirational.
Hamish has been involved with many sports, the CCF,
the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme; he has also
been a tutor in The Close. He has coached kayaking and
accompanied countless skiing trips - most recently he
has been known as the “Lone Wolf” on the slopes. The
Sports Editor of the Reedonian Magazine was a more
recent acquisition, which he accomplished with aplomb,
given his mathematician’s desire for logic, his keen eye
for grammatical misdemeanours and relish for reading
sports reports in the newspaper. A true schoolmaster, his
dry but acerbic wit will be sorely missed in the Common
Room and around the School. Hamish is already a legend!
Carol Bryant
A wise Housemaster once told me that a successful
boarding house always revolved around a good matron.
This was at a time when Sixth Formers did many
duties and the majority of pupils boarded full time, so a
colleague with sense and sensitivity was able to resolve
issues before they had even been thought of! The matron
106 THE REEDER 2015
would always be there with a shoulder to cry on and
a cup of tea and quietly encourage the older students
perhaps not to discipline the Third Form in that particular
way. So when I became Mullens Housemaster, the
boarders were in safe hands with Carol in charge. This
was Carol at her best; she was totally engaged with the
School, both staff and pupils, and she loved her central
position in the community.
When the boarding systems changed, Carol found
herself frustrated by the technicalities and the distance
from the pupils that this required and so it became more
a job than a vocation, always completed thoroughly and
professionally, however.
To serve Reed`s in this capacity, outlasting six
Housemasters, is exceptional and 26 years of staff and
pupils will be eternally grateful for all that she did for
them and the School. I understand that she is now
enjoying her retirement, meeting up with friends from
Reed’s so that she can keep up to date with what is
going on and keeping busy helping to look after her
grandchildren. It is nothing less than she deserves.
Ian Clapp
School Captains
School Captains
1943/44
J. Marsh
1944/45
M. Meadows
1945/46
G. Ballard
1946/47
D.R. Lewis
1947/48
D.R. Lewis
1948/49
E. Bowman
1949/50
J. Phipp
1950/51
N. Wadley
1951/52
N. Wadley
1952/53
P. Murton
1953/54
P. Murton
1954/55
G.T. Kenney
1955/56
G.S.C. Wills
1956/57
W.G. Eckford
1957/58
V.B. Whitmarsh
1958/59
R.D. Pingree
1959/60
P.N. Kite
1960/61
P.C.C. Bint
1961/62
R.W. Sinden
1962/63
K.H. Tyrrell
1963/64
G.M. Levy
1964/65
E.D. Pafford
1965/66
P.H. Hollins
1966/67
H.V. Myles
1967/68
W.A. Clermont
1968/69
1969/70
1970/71
T.R. Simmons
1971/72
P.G. Bolton
1972/73
1973/74
1974/75
G.C. Fuller
1975/76
I.R.H. Myles
1976/77
1977/78
1992/93
P.A. Knight
1993/94
M.D. Elliott
1994/95
R.J. Webster
1995/96
C.M. Bilmes
1996/97
A. Hamilton
1997/98
J.A. Salmassian
1998/99
A.O. Dosaj
1999/00
A.I. Hamilton
2000/01
D.B. Coates
2001/02
S. Baghaei
2002/03
W.F. Bulman
2003/04
D.L. Westley
2004/05
J.D. Stephens
2005/06
Miss S.A. Burrow
2006/07
Miss J.A. Houlgrave
2007/08
M.I. Rose
2008/09
A.R. Miller
2009/10
Miss I.S. Aspeling-Jones
2010/11
Miss E. Forder
2011/12
Miss J. Inverdale
2012/13
Miss J. Chandler
P. Chicken
2013/14
Miss S. Newton
L. Petty
T. Worner
A.D. Edwards
P.S. Duterloo
N.M. Muir-Little
A.J. Watkins
C.J. Brookes
T.S. Sharp
A. Hedges
B. Stokes
Captains of Cricket
P.G.R. Williamson
1955/56
C.E.W. Tunley
K.A. Boulter
1956/57
C.E.W. Tunley
J.F. Robson
1957/58
C.E.W. Tunley
1958/59
E.W. Preece
1959/60
R.L. Wood
R. McL. Newman
1960/61
C.M. Blumenstein
A.W. Cairns
1961/62
C.M. Blumenstein
1962/63
P.J. Kimber
1963/64
C.J. Candish
A.W. Kidd
1964/65
E.D. Pafford
A.W. Buchan
1965/66
S.L. Kerr
1978/79
T.D. Legg
1966/67
D.G. Taylor
1979/80
C.J. Michel
1967/68
P.G.R. Williamson
1980/81
A.M. Huckin
1968/69
D.O. Taylor
1981/82
A.M. Huckin
1969/70
D.O. Taylor
1982/83
J.A.A. Price
1970/71
I.J. Chitty
1983/84
A.M.J. Glass
1971/72
A.N. Ricks
1984/85
P.M.J. Edmondson
1972/73
M. Hayton
1985/86
1973/74
P.J. Stoehr
1986/87
A. Emam
1974/75
J.G.H. Legg
1987/88
G. Pakenham
1975/76
A.J. MacMillan
1988/89
J.C.S. Rowlands
1976/77
R.J. Plank
1989/90
A.M. Noakes
1977/78
J.N.F. Savill
1990/91
D.S. Faulkner
1978/79
P.E.E. Farenden
1991/92
A.J. Blackman
1979/80
M.A. Rowland
M.J. Dover
R.J. Moffatt
M.C. Burwell
A.G.B. Robbins
I.J. Locke
J.H. Sugden
T.E. Cotton
THE REEDER 2015
107
School Captains
1980/81
P.J. McDuell
1969/70
D.P. Patten
1981/82
-
1970/71
P.K.H. Hawkey
1982/83
A.M.J. Glass
1971/72
P.F. Grainger
1983/84
A.M.J. Glass
1972/73
A.W. Cairns
1984/85
S.H.K. Maddock
1973/74
A.W. Carins
1985/86
S.H.K. Maddock
1974/75
N. John
1986/87
T.T. Oliver
1975/76
G.D. Starr
1987/88
O.W. Pendered
1976/77
C.V.L. Rich
1988/89
J.P.W. Ovenden
1977/78
S.J. Keenlyside
1989/90
C.M. Pole
1978/79
P.E.E. Farenden
1990/91
M.R. Neal-Smith
1979/80
R.S. Kanwal
1991/92
M.R. Neal-Smith
1980/81
K.S. Harper
1992/93
D. Keep
1981/82
J.M.A. Price
1993/94
R.J. Webster
1982/83
J.M.A. Price
1994/95
R.J. Webster
1983/84
W.M. Pendered
1995/96
R.H. Hilton
1984/85
D. Jaksic
1996/97
A.G. Hamilton
1985/86
C.J. Potts
1997/98
N.J. Darke
1986/87
C.J. Gore
1998/99
T.C. Klimcke
1987/88
S.M. Shiells
1999/00
D.B. Coates
1988/89
J.R. Dharmasena
2000/01
D.B. Coates
1989/90
P.F. Howgate
2001/02
J.I. Morrison
1990/91
A.J. Pole
2002/03
J.I. Morrison
1991/92
T.D. Watney
2003/04
M.P. Wakefield
1992/93
R.S. Page
2004/05
M.P. Wakefield
1993/94
G.J. Clarke
2005/06
L.O. MacDonald
1994/95
R.J. Webster
2006/07
R.A. Sachdev
1995/96
R.H. Hilton
2007/08
W.G.A. Clapp
1996/97
S. Sprotson
2008/09
W.G.A. Clapp
1997/98
N.J. Darke
2009/10
T.C.T. Tarrant
1998/99
J.M. Smith
2010/11
S.A.C. Sweeney
1999/00
R.G. Conyers
2011/12
H. Coates
2000/01
J.O. Parker
2012/13
M. Macpherson
2001/02
J.O. Parker
2002/03
J. Dodd
2003/04
D.L. Westley
2004/05
S.C. Cole
2005/06
A.L. Hitch
2006/07
J.B. Syms
2007/08
D.J. Middleton
2008/09
S.P.R. Horst
2009/10
A.S Bodini
2010/11
S.A.C. Sweeney
2011/12
J. Sones
2012/13
R. Bowerman
Captains of Boys’ Hockey
M.P. Ritchie
H.A. van Slooten
1955/56
n/a
1956/57
n/a
1957/58
R. Friend
1958/59
R.J.S. Brown
1959/60
C.H. Davis
1960/61
D.J. Sumner
1961/62
D.J. Sumner
1962/63
W.D. Giles
1963/64
R.C. Garford
1964/65
R.C. Garford
1965/66
C.J. Sprackling
1966/67
M.A. Elson
2000/01
B.C. Dufourne
1967/68
N.P.C. Chilton
2001/02
B.C. Dufourne
1968/69
A.J. Wright
2002/03
B.C. Dufourne
108 THE REEDER 2015
Captains of Girls’ Hockey
School Captains
2003/04
B.C. Dufourne
1992/93
P.A. Knight
2004/05
E.A. LeRutte
1993/94
D.J. Woods
2005/06
E.K. de Graauw
1994/95
R.J. Webster
2006/07
L.C.S. Chisholm
1995/96
A. Klimcke
2007/08
A.R. Stevenson-Smith
1996/97
A.G. Hamilton
2008/09
H. Malthouse
1997/98
S. Coleman
2009/10
J.A. Invderdale
1998/99
T.C. Klimcke
2010/11
G.F. McGeehan
1999/00
A.I. Hamilton
2011/12
J. Inverdale
2000/01
C.T. Taylor
2012/13
E. Paterson
2001/02
B. Cooper
2002/03
A. Kidd
2003/04
N.S. Patterson
2004/05
L.M. Coates
2005/06
T.W. Price
2006/07
A.J. Watkins
2007/08
S.B. Walker
2008/09
L.F. Chance
2009/10
A.D. Pilkington
2010/11
J.P. Walker
2011/12
W.M. Isaacs
2012/13
R. Bowerman
Captains of Rugby
1955/56
G.S.C. Wills
1956/57
P.C.F. Crowson
1957/58
P.C.F. Crowson
1958/59
E.W. Preece
1959/60
R.H. Hockey
1960/61
A.C.C. Mason
1961/62
D.J. Sumner
1962/63
P.J. Clayton
1963/64
A.L. Turnbull
1964/65
E.D. Pafford
1965/66
J.D. Reid
1966/67
D.G. Taylor
1967/68
P.M. Camp
1968/69
K.A. Boulter
1969/70
T.R. Simmons
1970/71
T.R. Simmons
1971/72
J. Mason
1972/73
B.S. Scott
1973/74
A.W. Cairns
1974/75
B.J. Auld
1975/76
P.R. Smart
1976/77
Q.R.T. King
1977/78
A. Jones
1978/79
D.G. Hunter
1979/80
P.F.D. Engelen
1980/81
I.R. Griffin
1981/82
M.A.C. Watson
1982/83
A.M.D. Bell
1983/84
M.P. Finch
1984/85
T.W. Robb
1985/86
A. Lobidra
1986/87
A. Emam
1987/88
A.R.W. Balls
1988/89
J.C.S. Rowlands
1989/90
J.F. Locke
1990/91
D.P. Andronicou
1991/92
D.J.M. Bayat
R.A. Cleary
S.J. Youngs
THE REEDER 2015
109
Past Presidents of the
Old Reedonian Association
1875-1877
Samuel Lowry
1878-1882
G.H. McLaughlin
1883-1884
W. Nottage
1885-1893
G. Bedford
1894-1902
G. Berry
1903-1904
G.H. Judd
1905-1906
G.R. Hutchings
1907
Samuel Miller
1908
H.T. Walker
1909
C. Comley
1910
G.R. Hutchings
1911-1919
W.G. Emery
1920-1921
H. Reeder Clarke
1922-1923
H.S. Rounce
1924
W.G. Emery
1925
A.L. Kennedy
1926
Miss M.C. Bowie
1927-1930
W.G. Emery
1931
W.E. Pollard
1932-1936
H. Sedgwick
1937-1939
G. Pearmain
1940-1947
H.S. Rounce
1947-1949
Eric H.S. Banyard
1950-1951
Edwin D. Griffiths FRIBA
1951-1952
Joe H. Harrison
1953-1954
Mrs. M. Naomi Davidson
1955-1958
S. Harold Gilbert
1959-1961
Geoff P. Maddison MBE
1962-1966
Douglas E. Parker
1966-1967
Peter J. Daffey
1967-1969
Brin R. Thomas
1970-1973
Peter J. Daffey
1974-1977
Michael P. Meadows
1978-1986
John S.H. Laidman
1987-2002
John B. Rogers
2002-2014
Christopher Hawkins
2014-
Nigel Taunt
110 THE REEDER 2015
Designed & Printed in Great Britain by The Lavenham Press Ltd
www.lavenhampress.com

Letter from the Vice-President

Transcription

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