the wykehamist - Winchester College

The Wykehamist
Winter 2012 - No 1463
Editorial
The Editors review the year
2
012 has been a year to remember. While the last issue of The
Wykehamist celebrated the
Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty the
Queen, this edition highlights the
other significant events of the past
few months.
put and the discus, recording two
of the worst throws in the history of
the games, before deciding to compete in the lawn tennis, of which he
was knocked out in the preliminary
rounds. All hope for a Gold medal for
Winchester seemed lost, until the fi-
Sporting under no political influences is an Olympic dream.
The passion held by Wykehamists for
football became evident with the advent of the Euro 2012 competition: it
dominated lunchtime conversation
and was responsible for the regular
crowding of house Common Rooms
that began promptly at five every
afternoon. Even the political columnists saw an opportunity for sporting
remarks when commenting on the
Germany v Greece match.
nal day, in which he entered the written Greek poetry competition and, in
truly wiccamical style, proceeded to
beat the Greeks at their own game.
insists he will not be another dictator, but with no lower house of parliament until the new constitution
is formed, the President has given a
decree that gives him even stronger
powers than those of his overthrown
predecessor.
In the case of the Chinese government, everything is thoroughly predetermined. For some, Xi Jinping’s
rise to the Communist throne was little more than a re-shuffle of the face
of the new politburo, rather than the
politburo itself. Having never had
to face election, he is said to have
been groomed for the top job by
his predecessors. Will he inject new
ideas to China’s political circuit, or
is he merely the protégé of the old
ones? China’s politicians have no
higher priority than the economic
success of their state, free from having to play political games or create
vote winning policies. President Hu
Jintao opened the party congress
with a stark warning on corruption.
Analysts have high economic expectations, and his people desire more
personal and political freedom. We
await the rule of China’s new leaders
with much anticipation.
Sporting under no political influences is an Olympic dream. Outside
the Olympic Stadium in Stratford we
were to witness a series of political
transformations around the globe.
Several countries have undergone
major political reforms in the last
After Spain’s long expected domi- few months. While proud Americans
nation of the competition came the elected Barack Obama to a second
London 2012 Olympics. The Games term in office, the French were so
were a spectacular success. Sir Chris pushed for viable options that they
Hoy cycled, Mo Farah ran, and Jessica (marginally) elected François HolEnnis delivered all round. Our own lande’s Socialist Party. Following the
George Nash, formerly of Beloe’s,
took bronze in the gentlemen’s pair,
finishing well ahead of the Italian
crew. Team GB enjoyed its most sucIs he merely the protégé of the old ones?
cessful Olympics ever, taking Gold in
twenty-nine events, and sixty-five
medals in total. The success of the
equestrian team knew no bounds: Arab Spring of 2011, and the subse- Wykehamists will have the abilNick Skelton, who, at fifty-four, was quent toppling of autocratic regimes, ity through their influence in many
older than many competitors’ par- the Communist Party of China calmly walks of life to make a beneficial conents, took Gold in the Team Show appointed Xi Jinping, whose priority tribution to the world’s political cliJumping; and Zara Phillips was pre- has to be the addressing of corrup- mate, and while the cosy microcosm
sented with Silver by her mother, the tion and inequality.
of Winchester College may seem a
We ask ourselves if these changes are world away from the political strugPrincess Royal, in the Team Event.
Winchester has played a part in the for the better of a country. Obama gles of other peoples, our educated
modern Olympics since the first has successfully established himself awareness of the world beyond our
Games of 1896. George Robertson, a still to be the right man for the job. walls is crucial to our playing a conCollege man in the late 19th century, It doesn’t guarantee prosperity in structive role in its future.
travelled to Greece to compete in the America’s future, but he is certainly As the year draws to close, The Wykehammer throw, only to discover that the people’s choice.
hamist wishes all its readers a happy
the class did not exist at Olympic lev- Mohammed Morsi was recently
el. Undeterred, he entered the shot elected as Egypt’s fifth president. He
Christmas and a prosperous 2013.
The Wykehamist - EDITORIAL
3
The Wykehamist
FEATURES 5-9
9 Binge Drinking - Freddie Parker
THEATRE 10-14
13-14 A Summer Fantasy- Nicholas Wilks
MUSIC 15-18
16-17 My Subject is War- Cathy Townsend
SPORT 19-20
20 The Downs and Up of Winchester Soccer - Hugo Sever
WICCAMICA 21-26
22-23 Ladakh 2012 - Jamie Truell, Theo Martin & Yiu Hei Shek
THE REGISTER SHORT HALF 2012 27-39
The Wykehamist
Editor-in-Chief
Jacky Chau
Editor
Richard Cubitt
Features
Humphrey Paton
Yiu Hei Shek
Theatre
Charlie Macnamara
Music
Matthew Chan
Sport
Charlie Macnamara
Wiccamica
Humphrey Paton
Yiu Hei Shek
35-38 Studium
39 Salvete
Photography
Carwyn Dalrymple
Typesetting
Jacky Chau
Carwyn Dalrymple
Don-in-Charge
RDT
The Wykehamist is delighted
to receive correspondence
addressed to:
[email protected]
4
CONTENT - The Wykehamist
Features
Book Review
The Head Man reviews a new book about OW War Poet Timothy Corsellis
Helen Goethals, The Unassuming Sky:
the Life and Poetry of Timothy Corsellis, Cambridge Scholars Publishing
2012 214pp ISBN (10): 1-4438-3975-2
ar Cloister is probably the
largest and most beautiful
private war memorial in England. Wykehamists are surrounded by
memorials to the causalities of war,
including poets, of whom the subject of this fascinating book, Timothy
Corsellis, is one. Helen Goethals has
constructed the story of the short life
of this remarkable man, born in 1921
and killed by accident in an aeroplane
in Dumfriesshire in 1941, in six periods,
each situating within it a group of his
poems relevant to the period, totalling one hundred poems in all. Some
of these poems were published in
anthologies in the years before and
after the end of World War II, some in
later collections, but the majority receive their first printing here. Goethals
presents a single life as a thread in the
fabric of the vast social problem that
was the Second World War.
Corsellis spent the early years of his
childhood with his family in Constable country in Suffolk. His father was
killed in a plane crash in 1930. Five
years later Corsellis was sent to Winchester, an intelligent but free-spirited
boy. The Winchester chapter of the
book records the influences over him
of names still alive in OW memory:
Headmaster Spencer Leeson, Housemaster Murray Hicks, Div Don Harold
Walker and the brilliant young medievalist Walter Oakeshott. Like all such
schools at that time (and many of
them still) sport was what really mattered in the general scheme of things;
Corsellis took up fencing but he liked
books more and was attracted to serious reading and thinking. He was
fortunate to be guided by Winchester
dons who offered intellectual nourishment to those who wanted it. The
prevailing forces were classical studies
of language and literature combined
with a good grounding in science and
high-church-socially-aware
Christianity. Philosophy and contemporary
W
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Features - The Wykehamist
poetry were read and discussed too.
(This book includes an Appendix in
which Corsellis’s borrowings from
Moberly Library are listed, as well as a
list of books in his personal collection.)
Corsellis was selected to join the intellectual cream of the School in the Essay Society. In a poem he wrote while
a member of it he explored the moral
function of art and tried to persuade
his reader to see the world from his independent ethical point of view. Even
as a teenager he grappled with the sophisticated matter of the relationship
between aesthetics, the reasoning
mind and God (or ultimate reality). At
the same time, he made himself into
an accomplished magician and put on
turns for House parties.
and Isherwood left for New York, and
Corsellis began work as an articled
clerk in the Town Hall at Wandsworth.
There he became involved, through
fencing, in the social clubs for teenage
boys and young men sponsored by
Winchester, at the same time actively
watching events build up to war. He
read T.S. Eliot’s The Idea of a Christian
Society and joined the Federal Union,
a peace movement which had intellectual aspirations strikingly akin to
current proponents of European political and fiscal union among the European states. Movements such as this
had already had success in fostering
the formation of the Commonwealth
of Australia in 1901 and the Union of
South Africa in 1910.
... an example of a young man whose education led him
to take an independent moral view of things.
By the time Corsellis left Winchester
in 1938 he had written nearly eighty
poems. On his own account he was
treated as an oddity at school, though
he mentions in a notebook that there
were three other poets in his House
(which out of a total of forty is quite
a high proportion). Two others, in other Houses, were writing poems too
(Frank Thompson, whose biography
under the title A Very English Hero has
just been published by Peter Conradi,
and Robert Conquest). “When to this
list,” writes Goethals, “are added two
names of a previous generation – the
great poet-critic William Empson and
the soldier-statesman Lord Wavell, author of the best-selling poetry anthology Other Men’s Flowers – then one is
tempted to ask whether there was not
someone or something making life at
Winchester in the 1930s particularly
conducive to the reading and writing
of poetry.”
The prelude to war moved out of the
realm of debate about peace aims
and into a world of obedience to orders. Corsellis considered conscientious objection, but by June 1940 had
made up his mind to leave London for
life in the armed forces. He joined the
RAF, but when during the course of
his training he learned that he would
fly in bombers and not fighters, he
applied immediately for a transfer to
a fighter squadron where he would
not be involved in the bombing of
civilians. “In the context of the continuous celebration of the courage
of the pilots of the Battle of Britain,”
observes Goethals, “and his own oftacknowledged tendency to show off,
Timothy’s decision not to fly, if flying
meant the bombing of civilians was
courageously anti-heroic.” He received an honourable discharge and
became a civilian once again, a civilian
who loved flying in a way described in
Corsellis did not go on from Winches- a popular book of the time by Cecil
ter to university. In January 1939 Bar- Lewis entitled Sagittarius Rising, an
celona fell, Auden (a strong poetic and account in poetic prose of a young
philosophical influence over Corsellis) pilot’s experience in World War I. Cor-
flight from Luton to Carlisle, his Miles
Magister L8268 stalled in a turn near
Annan in Dumfriesshire, and in the
In December 1940 Corsellis bought a subsequent forced landing, hit a tree.
copy of Herbert Read’s Thirty-five Po- His name is inscribed on a war memoems. Read’s idealism was based on the rial in Annan.
conviction that man’s aesthetic sense While Helen Goethals gives us as
is fundamentally in harmony with his much biographical information about
moral sense. Read inspired war-time Timothy Corsellis as is available, careartists like John Piper, Graham Suther- fully annotated and well-indexed,
land and the film-maker Michael Pow- hers is a book more about an English
ell. Corsellis identified with such visual poetic sub-culture nourished by the
artists through his interest in surreal Second World War than a biography
art, his training as a magician and his of a conscientious dissenter or a critinavigational experience as a pilot. His cal appreciation of a minor though
sensual nature also made him attract- accomplished poet. The place of
ed to women and they to him. In a Corsellis among the Second World
chapter entitled “La Belle Dame Sans War poets of England is established
Merci” Goethals traces the influence of in the anthologies. Here additional
women, and Corsellis’s experience of poems which justify attention and
them, through his poems – “Timothy which have not before gone into print
had decided he would try love neat present him as an example of a young
with a prostitute, one of a category man whose education led him to take
of women who were certainly more an independent moral view of things
visible on the streets of the East End and identify with a neo-romantic apthan in the quads of New College or preciation of his world and its events,
Peterhouse.” Women to whom he was
sexually attracted, but with whom he
could not converse, were part of his
Bohemian night-life, but there were
also women, like his elder sister and
others, who were an essential part of
his intellectual life and a strong influence over his poetic imagination.
sellis’s poems about flying written at
the time of his discharge echo Lewis’s
classic.
in Goethals’ words, “physically and
bodily committed, intellectually and
spiritually detached.” A fortnight
before his death, Corsellis penned
a poem commemorating a chance
meeting he had had with the poet
Stephen Spender. Fifty-four years later, in 1995, Spender published his response; “Timothy Corsellis” was his last
poem to be published while Spender
was still alive. Corsellis had learned at
Winchester that the worth of civilisation was to be seen not in its military
or material wealth but in the achievements of its poets, philosophers and
artists. Timothy Corsellis’s poems remain to proclaim what war poets have
always proclaimed, that something of
each one of us may survive our bodily
death. War Cloister at Winchester (in
the south-eastern corner of which can
be found the name of Timothy John
Corsellis) is a reminder of that, and this
book reminds us that the poet’s voice
matters in our assessment of the sad
reality of war.
After his discharge from the RAF in
February 1941 Corsellis applied to
serve in the Air Transport Auxiliary
(ATA). It was at about this time that he
set aside the Christian faith in which
he had been brought up. His experience of the Blitz changed his way of
looking at things. The hard work of
rescuing bodies from untimely death
and their gentle handling required
sensual, physical acts which brought
to consciousness the power of human
compassion and the responsibility of
human beings one to another. Three
poems in the chapter entitled “Ruins
and Visions” suggest his replacement
of religious doctrine with the redeeming power of poetry.
The ATA was a civilian organisation set
up in 1939 to relieve the RAF of certain non-combatant duties. Its chief
task was to fly new aircraft from the
factory to the appointed base. Corsellis began service in late September
1941. Within a fortnight, at the age of
twenty, he was dead. On a ferrying
The Wykehamist - Features
7
A view from The Economist
Humphrey Paton (I) puts some questions to Emma Duncan, Deputy Editor of the renowned weekly news
and international affairs magazine
H
P: What advice would you give
to Wykehamists leaving school?
EM: If the economy is tough it
puts even more of a premium on what
pupils should be doing anyway. Anybody looking ahead through their university choices to their careers would
really do best to decide quite early on
what they think they want to be doing
in the future, and to bare that in mind
when choosing extracurricular stuff
they might do at university and also
to start working on getting internships
and building up contacts in whatever
area of life they think they might want
to go into.
I am in this job partly because I wrote
to somebody here at The Economist
when I was in my first year at university
and I was invited to come here and do
an internship that summer. Although I
worked elsewhere after university, that
helped me come back later on. What
you do with your life and how you
think about your career from the age
of eighteen onwards can make a real
difference to what happens to you later.
HP: What effect do you think the “attitude” of Britian’s youth will have on the
country’s hopes for a return to prosperity in relation to our peers?
ED: I think it will be a huge determining
factor. Britain’s youth is going to have
to work jolly hard. My generation has
spoiled the prospects for the future by
spending too much money and leaving a massive debt overhang for your
generation. It also may have given your
generation the false impression that we
can get away in the West with working
less hard than our counterparts in Asia.
We in Britain, just in terms of the hours
we work, work far less hard than people do in Asia. You can’t really do that
and think that you are going to retain
well paid jobs in this country. Your contemporaries will have to work jolly hard,
probably a lot harder than you thought
you were going to have to, and also a
lot harder than we thought you were
going to have to. That is partly because we could have got “fat and lazy”
in the West, and we just can’t be like
that anymore, and partly because of
8
Features - The Wykehamist
this rotten debt overhang. We, my own
generation, are also going to have work
harder, we are going to have to work
much longer than we thought we were
going to have to do, and I am sure the
best thing we can do to remedy some
of the damage we have done is to go
on working for much longer than we
thought we would. Now some people in your generation might think that
“us lot” should just get out of the way
and make room for “your lot” to take
our jobs, but I am afraid that economics doesn’t work like that. We have to
go on producing in order to create a
larger economy which will create the
opportunities for “you lot”, and we also
have to go on producing so that “you
lot” don’t have to pay for “us lot” to sit
around on our bottoms claiming pensions for thirty years.
HP: I believe you have spent some time
studying issues surrounding the effects
of climate change. Do you believe that
solving the issue of climate change
should be handled through the private
or the public sector?
ED: I don’t think you can do it just
through the private sector because
cutting carbon emissions or reducing
the amount of greenhouse gases generally by necessity increases the costs
for businesses, and although there are
some areas where you can cut emissions and not raise costs or even reduce
them - for instance where companies
are using too much energy and just
not paying enough attention to their
energy bills, generally speaking when
businesses cut emissions - by and large,
it will involve businesses using more
expensive forms of energy than they
would otherwise use themselves. So,
you can’t really expect businesses to
put on extra costs to help the planet
because the difference that any one
business can make is miniscule, so it
has got to be done, like any other environmental improvement through regulation. There are a whole lot of regulations which might be appropriate to
adopt but this is really something that
has to be organised, like any other regulatory regime, at governmental level,
and preferably at inter-governmental
level if we can possibly manage it.
HP: What avenues of particular interest
to you personally have you been able
to pursue in your current position as
Deputy Editor of the Economist?
ED: That is sometimes tricky as my main
job is editing the paper when the Editor is not here and helping him to edit
it when he is here, and so I have to kind
of snatch areas of interest and carve out
niches for myself. So, this year I spent
five weeks doing a Special Report on
London which came out just before the
Olympic Games and that was really interesting and very good fun. Just now, I
am settling down to researching a piece
on the increasing wolf populations in
North America and Europe which is for
our Christmas Issue, which I edit, and
which is very good fun because our
Christmas Issue has traditionally been
full of off-beat and sometimes eccentric pieces which are generally things
which our correspondents really wanted to write about and don’t get to write
in the normal run of things and as I edit
the Christmas Issue I am able to commission myself to write whatever I feel
like writing. Last year I did a piece about
endangered frogs in India, and this year
I am really quite interested in wolves
as they represent a general increase in
the population of predators in various
countries in the world. The question
arises as to whether one can live with
large mammals that are predators. The
politics of wolves in America I think are
particularly interesting as in rural areas
they are often seen representatives of,
and as metaphors for, Federal Government because the Federal Government
mandated that wolves should be reintroduced into National Parks and the
ranchers out there are furious that the
wolves are roaming around attacking
their cattle. Since they regard the Federal Government as rather predatory
it is a fine metaphor. So, I thought it
would be quite fun to explore around
that story. As you can see the stuff I
manage to do as Deputy Editor which
is real journalism as opposed to editing other people’s journalism is rather
strange and various and depends on
the Editor’s whims as well as mine.
Binge Drinking - What's the real problem?
Freddie Parker (K) reflects
‘You don’t have to know the reason for it.
You just do it anyway. Everybody does
it, it is the way the world is.’ Anonymous
(18 years old)
tal effect on an individual’s physical
health; sustained over-consumption
of alcohol can cause liver disease, infertility, heart problems and cancer.
People can also injure themselves
as a result of loss of balance and cofound the quote above in a re- ordination – indeed one only has to
port by the Institute of Alcohol watch a reality show such as ‘Geordie
Studies into the problem of the Shore’ or ‘The Valleys’ to see this.
over- consumption of alcohol among
young people. It highlights the scan- If we are aware of the consequences
dal of binge drinking, a British prob- of binge drinking, it begs the queslem which is consistently a focus of tion: why do young people drink?
the supposed ‘Broken Britain’ in the There are some broad motives as to
media. Despite the fact that there is why people binge drink: to have fun,
seemingly not a problem of binge to conform to one’s peer group and
drinking among Wykehamists, I of- to manage stress. There is a broad
fer a young person’s perspective on culture of equating excessive drinka problem which involves and affects ing with having a good time, that
one can have a more enjoyable night
so many young people.
if one drinks first. Thought drinking
What is binge drinking? Binge drink- to excess is often seen as a cause of
ing is the consumption of a large depression, often young people will
amount of alcohol over a short pe- turn to alcohol if they are frustrated,
riod of time. Binge drinkers will con- already depressed or anxious. These
sume alcohol with the intention of issues can concern all young people
getting drunk or at least feeling the – including Wykehamists. Cheap alcoeffects of alcohol. There is no defin- hol is in abundance.
ing threshold for ‘bingeing’ although
the National Office of Statistics and If the government and the health
the NHS use a marker of around dou- service are aware of what is causing
ble the daily unit guidelines for al- binge drinking then they should be
cohol in one session. A man will be working towards solutions to this
binge drinking if he consumes more ‘epidemic’. It should be said, howthan eight units of alcohol (three ever, that a problem of this nature
pints of strong beer) or if a woman and magnitude is not solved by an
drinks more than six units of alcohol educational programme or a typical
(two large glasses of wine). These ‘police blitz’ on drinking in public. In
guidelines are not set in stone, but as my view, if as a country we are going
a general threshold, does it not strike to deal with the UK’s binge drinking
problem, far-reaching solutions are
you as being rather low?
needed. The first solution is to stop
What are the effects of binge drink- exaggerating the problem; when
ing? It is now a regular occurrence the Prime Minister talks about the
to see shocking images of young ‘scandal’ of binge drinking, he crewomen or men showing the effects ates ‘social norming’: when a man
of over-consumption of alcohol in thinks that everyone else is drinkpublic. Binge drinking can lead to ing to excess, he is inclined to think
anti-social, aggressive and violent that it is all right for him to drink to
behaviour. In fact, alcohol is a factor excess. Drinking needs to become a
in one in three sexual offences, one different part of our culture; it should
in three burglaries and one in two become more associated with modstreet crimes. It can also have serious eration and as it is on the continent,
mental repercussions; binge drink- with food. The idea of drinking with
ing has been linked to self-harm, de- a meal should build a sense of apprepression and long-term memory loss. ciation for alcohol as a taste and as
Binge drinking can have a detrimen- something that should be consumed
I
over a longer period of time. One
could also nationalise off-licences (i.e.
the Systembolaget shops in Sweden).
These shops have a very sterile image which has been compared to a
pharmacy. This has the advantage of
removing any glamour or supposed
social cachet that young people can
associate with buying alcohol.
Maybe I am missing the point. The solutions I have put forward may solve
only the symptoms of a wider problem. Possibly, the question we should
ask is what does binge drinking say
about our society. Are the media
right about a ‘Broken Britain’? The
children of single-parent and dysfunctional families are often some
of the worst abusers of alcohol, as
are young people who have relatives
with a history of substance-abuse.
Those with anxiety and depression
tend to over-consume alcohol. The
government could well look at binge
drinking as an indication of potentially more serious issues.
Finally, to take a different approach,
one could convincingly argue that alcohol is not the only means of having
a good time (though it certainly can
help). One might argue that alcohol
and the over-consumption of alcohol
is part of growing up. Of course an
element of moderation is needed in
binge drinking, this may sound paradoxical but a ‘rare binge’ is not going
to have health repercussions. There
are issues if people, both young and
old, build a reliance on alcohol to
de-stress or to have fun. There are
problems if this leads to anti-social
and violent behaviour. Binge drinking in moderation might sound like
a contradiction in terms but it is not
the principal problem. The problem
is a consistent and continued overconsumption of alcohol; nonetheless,
this will not be completely solved
by a radical reform of alcohol in the
United Kingdom. Excessive binge
drinking may be to some extent an
indication of young people’s dissatisfaction with the values of the society
in which they live.
The Wykehamist - Features
9
T H E AT R E
What's been on in QEII?
J
ack Keating (C) writes:
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the
Galaxy, directed by Johnny Cardozo (F) was well-suited to the easily- amused wiccamical audience. Arthur Dent’s intergalactic adventure
began when his friend Ford Prefect
tells him that the Earth is about to be
destroyed and that in order to save
himself he needs to be carrying a
towel. Whilst this is happening builders are trying to destroy Arthur’s
home. This first scene was managed
to introduce the two main characters and their traits efficiently. The
dialogue between Arthur and the
demolition man was also rather comedic and was an engaging parody
of the British planning office. Rather
quickly the play moved from Earth
into a spaceship.
The set for this production was minimalistic and the only discernible
feature was a TV screen. This was utilised throughout to act as the ship’s
computer (Ben Chua (E)) and, to everyone’s amusement, the Vogan captain’s (Ben Maciejewski (K)) channel.
After being introduced to the Vogan
captain on the screen we were soon
introduced to him in the flesh, him
and his dimwitted henchman, Maxim
Bird (F). After listening to some Vogan
poetry and having a wonderfully silly
conversation with the Vogan soldier
the two main characters somehow
found themselves on Zaphod Beeblebrox’s ship. Beeblebrox (Ben West
(G)), was a pretty ‘cool dude’ and happened to be related to Ford. It was at
this point we were introduced to the
funniest character in the play, Marvin,
the ship’s depressed robot, played
by Dominic Penton-Hauchard (Coll),
who could clearly relate to the troubles associated with being too intelligent. From this point onwards most
of the laughs were induced by Marvin’s sarcastic comments and constant moaning.
Soon the adventurers found the lost
planet of Magrathea, which used to
manufacture luxurious planets be-
fore the universal recession. It is here
that Arthur was separated from the
group and meets Slartibartfast, (Ben
Chua again), who explained to Arthur
that Earth was actually a super computer that had been working out the
question which if answered would
explain the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. Two of the
people who had commissioned the
Earth, Benjy and Frankie Mouse (Ed
Strang (F) and Julian Kirk (Coll)) arrive
on the planet and explain to Arthur
that they need his brain as it contains
a latent version of the question. Obviously Arthur was not too keen on
their proposal and so was relieved
when a series of distractions allows
him and the rest of the group to escape. We then met the universe’s useless council, made up of Jamie Allner
(K), Tommy Peet (F) and Kaz Costello
(F), before the play finishes in the restaurant at the end of the universe.
The majority of the cast were either
jun play veterans or otherwise inexperienced. This inexperience was
rarely noticeable but when it was it
seemed to add comic value. Andy
Li’s (E) cameo as a policeman was especially funny. Despite these smaller
roles being a bit hit and miss the
play was anchored by two extremely strong performances from Ivan
Kirwan-Taylor (F) and Sam Groom
(Coll), Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect
respectively. As the main characters
it was vital that these two held the
play together, not an easy job faced
by the chain of jokes. Another constant which made for a good show
was George Herring’s (I) narration,
which was smooth throughout. On
the whole Hitchhiker’s Guide to the
Galaxy was an engaging and enjoyable play which hit the mark in terms
of comedy.
Sam Groom writes:
Hitchhiker’s Guide was always going to be a tough act to follow. Like
this play, the Phil’s production of I
Killed the Count did not attempt artistically to defy categorisation, to
go against the conventions of genre.
The G House play I Killed the Count
sat comfortably in the whodunit tradition, promising no gimmicks but
those that the black-gloved detectives of Scotland Yard are trusted to
provide, and the directors’ understanding of the world of crime stories
The Wykehamist - THEATRE
11
came through so clearly to the audi- just as satisfied as our eyes.
torium that David Suchet could have I like short plays. Not only do they get
been pulling the strings himself.
the audience to concentrate so much
We had, centre stage, the dynamic better than they might for some
duo of Tyler and Spanos. Their ex- three-act monster, but the undichanges were lightning-quick and luted creative energy of the producseemed almost improvised; each was tion team is really tangible: less time
well-suited to his character, and the spent learning lines, getting blocking
pairing was perfect. Spanos’ frustra- sorted; more time having fun. One
tion at the seemingly unusable evi- suspects, however, that Bentley and
dence he was receiving and Tyler’s Colin could have coped with somenear-uncrackable
professionalism thing more substantial for this their
debut: we await, sirs, your return.
were convincingly portrayed.
To help these two pillars keep the
production aloft, an array of flying
buttresses danced across the stage
throughout: a large number of varied and colourful characters which, I
dare say, no one could have provided
as well as Phil’s. The first line of the
play, delivered by Sweet-Escott, garnered laughs for the simple pleasure
his old-style regional accent gave: an
accent which during the course of
the hour rewarded the attentive by
shifting subtly from one end of the
Commonwealth to another. Just another red herring, it turned out, for
those, like myself, who thought they
had spotted the undercover agent.
As is right and proper, the audience
was treated to all the classic archetypes (a cynic may call it cliché, but
what could be more in the spirit of
the thing?), including Langley-Coleman’s white-suited gangster, Pusinelli’s cabaret girl – the only thing able
to break Tyler’s focus on the job – Petersen’s terse butler (all right, maybe
he wasn’t technically a butler, but
such was the role he filled), Macdonald’s toff and West’s dodgy doorman.
The set was immaculately assembled:
compulsive attention to detail paid
off and the company was lucky to
have an effective pair of designers
in Bentley and Colin, the V Book directors. Lighting, managed by Peat,
Peat and Phillips, helped provide atmospheric flashbacks, and competently directed our attention across
the space. The one real scene change
was covered by a live performance
of some Miles Davis by members of
the cast and crew: an unusual and
delightful treat. This, combined with
the classy, old-style intro music, setting the tone so spot-on at the start,
meant that our ears left the theatre
12
THEATRE - The Wykehamist
lationship between Louis and Edith
D’Ascoyne (Harriet O’Connor). There
was a real passion in the encounters
between Sibella and Louis. A consistently superb Ed Horrocks (A) provided a lot of laughs with his range
of characters (his resplendent barrister and his lyrical hangman were my
personal favourites). The supporting
cast had a large responsibility in the
production, and on the whole they
did a commendable job. Ed Wylde
(H) played the role of Lionel brilliantly
with the aloofness that the role reHarry Palmer (F) writes:
quired, and the bland nature of LiAn adaptation of a screenplay is very onel’s early character contrasts well
difficult to get right. Often produc- with the real desperation with which
tions can get stuck trying to repro- he throws himself at Louis’ feet later
duce a moment that works on the on.
screen, but not on stage. What struck The staging of the play was complime most about Charlie Macnamara’s cated, and the stage crew had a real
(Coll) adaptation of Kind Hearts and job on their hands. In order to keep
Coronets was the intelligent way in up with the flash-backs, which were
which the speed of the plot man- often very short, there were constant
aged to be retained on stage.
scene changes. Whilst this was for
The play revolves around the tenth me sometimes a bit distracting, as
Duke of Chalfont, Louis Mazzini, Jack changes took place alongside the
Cammack (A), who is writing his action, it was absolutely necessary
memoirs in prison, condemned to in order to maintain the pace of the
hang the next day. The plot is narrat- story. This seemed to me to be one
ed by Louis in the form of flashbacks, of the features of the screen play that
which tell the story of his attempts would have been more difficult to
to take revenge upon his slighted transplant.
mother’s aristocratic family, the Cammack was perfectly cast in this
D’Ascoynes. Louis plans to murder role, and was in his element. Louis’
all the D’Ascoynes who are between sense of chivalry, seemingly contrahim and the Dukedom. The charm dictory, was put across well, and the
with which Cammack played the role friendships he formed with his vicputs the audience firmly on his side; tims were especially comic. I found
the murders seem justified when car- that the small changes in costume
ried out by such a likeable assassin.
whilst narrating was sometimes a
Playing the role of six D’Ascoynes bit complicated, but the attention
was Will Ashford (D). The variety with to detail was superb. The blocking
which Ashford brought to life his was fantastic throughout, and with
uncannily similar looking characters such varied characters and uses of
was one of the key components to the space throughout, nothing was
the success of the production. From repetitive in style.
the graphic picnic scene to the hi- Macnamara deserves high praise for
larious brass-rubbing enthusiast The taking on a very complicated piece
Reverend Lord Henry D’Ascoyne, this in terms of tone and variety, and for
play gave Ashford an opportunity to delivering a distinctive production.
demonstrate a smorgasbord of creep. The script was hilarious, the bold
Mazzini juggles his murderous activi- characters were convincing and brilties with a hectic social life, and Ma- liantly acted, and there seemed to
tilda Bedford’s Sibella Holland was be a huge confidence in the way that
the perfect counterfoil for Cammack, the cast delivered their lines. Whilst
and was brilliantly acted. The playful it was sometimes clear that this was
nature of Sibella’s flirtatious relation- originally not made for the stage, this
ship with Louis is an ideal contrast to adaptation worked brilliantly.
the more respectful and formal re-
A Summer Fantasy
Nicholas Wilks reviews the Winchester performances
The Minack Theatre Company’s production of Shakespeare’s As You Like,
directed by Simon Taylor, played in the
Warden’s Garden before it went down
to its home base in Cornwall.
A
s You Like It has perhaps the
most threadbare plot in all
Shakespeare, but this very feature allows the play to explore human
nature in a way which is uniquely leisurely and generous. I remember seeing an unforgettable RSC production
as an undergraduate with the muchmissed Susan Fleetwood as Rosalind
and Sinéad Cusack as Celia and being
struck by its humanity and warmth
– qualities in abundance in this fine
performance by the Winchester College Players. As You Like It is above all
could have felt that any actor fell short
of the demands of his or her role, and
yet the effect of the production was
a deeply moving sense of the whole
– a profoundly humane vision of the
Garden simply was the Forest of Arden, and the audience was at liberty to
engage with the characters and their
interaction with each other. Harry Sever’s ingenious music similarly did not
Unexpected rhythmic quirks.
young and old, foolish and wise, arriv- draw attention to itself, but served the
ing at an acceptance of each other and, play perfectly, being a hybrid of styles
– renaissance court in appearance, but
critically, of themselves.
The setting of the Warden’s Garden with decidedly rustic manners and
could not have been happier, being unexpected rhythmic quirks, all exat times almost comically congruent quisitely sung by the cast. The nearest
with the text of the play. The lines thing to a romantic lead in As You Like
referring to “an oak whose antique It is Orlando, and Harry de Moraville
root peeps out / Upon the brook that was not afraid to play him as a young
man who was not the sharpest tool in
the box, but whose integrity and honesty shone through – he was without
A profoundly humane vision of the young and old.
guile, and perfectly prepared to accept
the disguised Rosalind at face value,
courting her as Ganymede as though
an ensemble piece, and, critical as the
this
were the love of his life. Oliver by
role of Rosalind is, its success depends brawls along this wood” were deli- contrast undergoes a transformation
upon actors working together to cre- cious. The setting was the opposite from jealous brother to warm-heartate something greater than the sum of of a distraction, since we never had to ed and generous lover. The particuits parts. No member of the audience suspend our disbelief – the Warden’s lar challenge for Tom Yarrow, as he
The Wykehamist - THEATRE
13
over Orlando and fathom the depth of
his love for her – it was really a means
by which she could test herself, and
her readiness for a life-long emotional
commitment. Megan Salter’s Celia was
clearly no push-over. She was warmhearted but highly principled, sane,
intensely loyal, and decisive. It would
be hard to imagine a better friend for
Rosalind or a more understanding
While suggesting an underlying sense of injustice.
lover for Oliver. Simon Taylor claims to
have broken two golden rules in this
production – never act with animals
to bereft father showed – we did not to yield her cherry until matrimony and never act in a play you are directdoubt his reformation for a moment, was well and truly sealed. Harriet Eas- ing. He appeared so natural in the role
not least because of the sheer delight dale’s Phebe exhibited comparable of the shepherd Corin that at first I
Oliver demonstrated in discovering self-confidence, enabling Freddie Tay- failed to recognise him (perhaps I was
a new self. Oliver’s two selves are an lor’s touchingly love-lorn Silvius to elic- distracted by the ram, who probably
extreme form of the divisions within it all the audience’s sympathies. An air harboured a desire to upstage eveother characters. Simon Eliot’s Duke of uncertainty hung over these lovers ryone). Like Adam Crick’s beautifully
Senior took philosophical delight in
the simplicity of his rustic court in exile,
while suggesting an underlying sense
Determined not to yield her cherry.
of injustice. Anthony Dakin found a
sense of guilt lurking beneath the
Machiavellian usurping brother Ferdi- at the play’s close. Anna Tolputt was judged Adam, his Corin was in many
nand. Peter Broad delved deeply into unforgettable in the role of Rosalind. ways the still centre of a kaleidoscopic
the role of the saturnine Jaques, and Not only did she speak the verse as world, quietly steeped in the values of
caught his dark brooding presence un- though it was the most natural thing his rustic life, and wisely impervious
forgettably while demonstrating that in the world (much of it sounded strik- to the prejudices of Touchstone. He
this elusive character is perhaps ulti- ingly modern), she also conveyed the should be enormously proud of this
mately unknowable. The pretensions vulnerability behind an assertive fa- exceptional production.
of John Tolputt’s Touchstone were cade. Her disguise as Ganymede was
marvellous – the speech about rhetor- not so much a ruse to gain control
pointed out in his programme note, is
that this metamorphosis takes place
off stage – the audience has to take
the actor’s word for it. Tom Yarrow
played a memorable King Lear here in
2005, and the experience of playing a
king who changes from peevish tyrant
14
THEATRE - The Wykehamist
ical devices can be interminable in the
wrong hands (it was clearly put in by
Shakespeare as a simple device to give
the principal actors time to change offstage) but this was a model of comic
clarity. He met his match in Emma
Cole’s astute Audrey, determined not
MUSI C
My Subject is War
Cathy Townsend (with help from Tim Cox) reviews the performance in the Cathedral of Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem Op.66
“My subject is War, and the pity of War.
The poetry is in the pity...
All a poet can do today is warn”
A
rum est”. We then moved seamlessly
to the murmuring pleas of the openThe composer makes huge demands ing movement. This slow, tender
upon his musicians. When Britten repetition by the chorus of Requiem
was conducting a recording in 1963 aeterna leads to the entry of the Quihe expressed frustration at the com- risters, their strange distant sound
On the night of 14 November 1940 poser’s intentions! Nicholas Wilks quietening the soul. The Quiristers
Coventry’s mediaeval cathedral was controlled his forces with his usual throughout produced the sound that
bombed. Britten was commissioned expertise and vigour. The Winches- Britten wanted: nothing was forced,
to compose a work for the opening ter Music Club Orchestra played with as though they had been singing for
of the new Cathedral in 1962. His re- virtuosity and energy. The Southern eternity. The first movement ends
sponse to the commission was a large Pro Musica conducted by Carl Claus- with the unaccompanied choral singing of the Kyrie. It was beautiful.
scale work combining the words of
the Missa pro defunctis with the war
poetry of Wilfred Owen. This gave
an intimacy and immediacy to the
The propensity of man for self-destruction.
work and with it Britten explored the
conflict between personal and public
duty.
s we pass through War Cloister each day the echoes of the
Somme haunt us. In his War
Requiem Benjamin Britten warns us
of the propensity of man for self-destruction.
The work is in six movements with the
words of the Requiem interspersed
with nine poems of Wilfred Owen.
The musical forces he engages are
vast. Britten calls on only three soloists: the soprano who sings the words
of the Requiem with the chorus and
full orchestra, the tenor and baritone,
who take the roles of the British and
German soldiers in Owen’s poetry
and are accompanied by the chamber orchestra and finally the boys’
choir accompanied by a portable
organ. It is the combinations, alterations and interplay of these three musical forces that provide the structure
of the piece. The score makes great
include falling and rising arpeggios
followed by repeated triplets.
en accompanied tenor, Justin Lavender and baritone, Stephen Gadd
with poignant beauty and some very
fine playing. The Chorus of the Winchester Music Club and the Glee Club
found their voice even through the
wild orchestral landscape and with
the outstanding soprano, Clare Rutter, they revealed some of the most
moving music of the evening. The
Quiristers conducted by Malcolm
Archer and accompanied by Jamal
Sutton provided an ethereal voice
which, although distant and unseen,
floated into all the spaces of the Cathedral.
The Dies Irae follows with its terrifying power and austerity. The Chorus
sang very well against a brilliant orchestral sound. The Teste David cum
Sybilla before the Lacrimosa was explosive. This movement is the longest and includes four of the Wilred
Owen poems. These were sung with
a drama and tenderness that transfixed, but it is the conclusion of the
Dies Irae beginning with the Lacrimosa that contains the most sublime
music. Clare Rutter’s voice effortlessly
conveyed weeping and sadness. Justin Lavender’s “Move him gently into
the sun” was full of compassion. We
will not forget the translucent “Was it
for this the clay grew tall”.
The central drama of Abram sacrificThe composer makes huge demands upon his musicians. ing Isaac follows. Justin Lavender
and Stephen Gadd sang together
with exquisite delicacy. Great demands are made upon the chorus
use of the “Diabolus in Musica” the tri- The evening began with a reading by here and Wilks kept the fugal entries
tone C – F sharp. The unease created Harry Culverhouse of a letter Owen tight and the accents strong, espeby this dissonance sets up a conflict sent to his mother from the Front cially in the concluding inversion of
that requires resolution. Other motifs and a recitation of “Dulce et deco- the original fugue. The retelling of
16
MUSIC - The Wykehamist
the story is shocking as one knows
that “half the seed of Europe” was
slaughtered during the First World
War. The music here becomes sinister and menacing after the glorious
heavenly harmonies of the Angel’s
provision of a ram.
The percussion and soprano open
the Sanctus in startling form. The
chorus then intones the fugal Pleni
sunt caeli. This worked very well,
creating a confused yet purposeful
sound. The Benedictus for soprano
and chorus expressed a hushed
yearning for tranquillity before the
return of the vibrant Hosanna.
Then the Agnus Dei with tenor and
chorus gave us a reprieve from the
intensity of the drama as we reflected on Christ’s sacrifice.
The peace is then shattered by the
Libera Me. The opening Choral section starts slowly and very quietly,
gathering speed. It is difficult to
control but very exciting. Owen’s
“Strange Meeting” was a poignant
reminder of the futility of war and
both tenor and baritone, ably sup-
al and moral depth. Britten, a pacifist, living through the Cold War of
the late 1950s and early 1960s wanted, through work, to make us look at
The peace is then shattered by the Libera Me.
ported by the soloists of the chamber orchestra, expressed this lucidly.
In Paradisum combines the whole
musical ensemble in an otherworldly expression which resolves
the dissonance of music and war
into the heavenly resolution of the
“Tierce de Picardie”.
This is the fiftieth anniversary of the
first performance of the War Requiem and we are grateful to Nick Wilks
for revealing this twentieth-century
masterpiece. It is a work of emotion-
our situation. He has said “It is not
a Requiem to console the living. It
should disturb every living soul.”
As the performance drew to a close
and the attention of the whole Cathedral was drawn to the wish of
the soldiers to “Let us sleep now”,
the quality of the listening was so
intense and our concentration so
deep that after the last Amen the silence that was held reigned inaudibly through the Cathedral for many
minutes. This was a most memorable performance.
The Wykehamist - MUSIC
17
A Very Russian Evening
William Ashford (D) surveys the School Concert
A
n extract from Prokofiev’s
1930s ballet Romeo and Juliet
was first item of the evening
on the musical menu. It was performed by the Winchester College
Academy Orchestra and conducted
by the maestro of the violin, ADA.
‘Montagues and Capulets’ is perhaps the most famous piece from
the ballet, having been used as the
theme tune for the BBC show ‘The
Apprentice.’ Fortunately the music
was so inspiring that all images of
Lord Sugar, hollering swear words in
a boardroom with the expression of
a disgruntled gargoyle, were quickly
put aside. The string arrangement by
Gideon Baker was cleverly pieced together so that the cellos and double
basses played the on-beat-belching
brass part while the higher strings,
with sparks of electricity flying from
their perfectly-synchronised bows,
agitatedly played the aggressively
turbulent tune on top. The performance was so good, in fact, that it
was performed twice and, as ADA
was so confident in his players, he
decided not to conduct the second
time playing - showing the audience
the weeks of hard work and practice
that had gone into the piece.
and a brawl in the brass. NPW had a greater sense of arrival was created.
expertly crafted a miniature lecture Stravinsky's Firebird was the next
for the audience and described how orchestrated Russian folk tale of the
each section of the orchestra repre-
The stage seemed to transform into the Starship Enterprise.
sented a certain theme. This greatly
enhanced the performance and the
audience’s reception as they were
able to relate the concrete ideas to
a certain musical motif. The enlightened audience expected a fantastic
rendering as their musical appetites
had been tempted by these short
orchestral snippets. They had more
than a ‘fantastic’ rendering; pure passion and hard work came together in
this performance.
A tempest of noise was created in the
first few bars as the marching lower
strings swelled and then fused with
the infernal brass. A tornado had
been unleashed as the sheer might
and strength of brass, string, percussion and woodwind united in a black
cauldron of perfect, musical mayhem. Bedlam had been orchestrated
It is a musical depiction of a witches' sabbath.
Russian folklore is full of the weird
and the wonderfully wacky, from
Zmey Gorynych (the three- headed
dragon) to Domovoi (the coveredin-hair-all-over house spirit.) Mussorgsky’s ‘Night on the Bare Mountain’ was one of the first tone poems
in Russian repertoire. It is a musical
depiction of a witches’ sabbath. Various debaucheries take place as the
witches try to conjure the devil with
all kinds of strange voodoo and black
magic. There is demonic wailing in
the violas, satanic shouting from the
trumpets, hollering from the timpani
18
MUSIC - The Wykehamist
to produce this wonderfully rich and
decadent Russian masterpiece.
Rimsky-Korsakov’s arrangement included an enchanting ending that
was not originally intended by the
lazy Mussorgsky; he was more interested in chugging vodka at his local
Russian pub. The ethereal breath of
a D harmonic in the cellos, the pure
silver sonority of the shimmering
harp in symbiosis with alpine horns
and the distant call of a church bell,
aurally depicted the break of dawn.
In knowing that good has triumphed,
evening, this time played by the Winchester College Symphonic Wind
Band and conducted by Carl Russel. We heard three excerpts from
Stravinsky’s 1910 ballet and through
them, entered the realm of Kaschei
the Immortal. After the melancholic
‘Round Dance of the Princesses’ the
audience was suddenly attacked by
the percussion section and led into
the ‘Infernal Dance of all Kashei’s subjects.’ The menacing theme and the
lightning like use of percussion infatuated the audience. ‘The collapse of
Kashei’s Palace and the dissolution of
all enchantments’ was pure genius:
the fanfares from the trumpets and
thunderclaps from the percussion
worked like clockwork. The crescendo and chromatic climb upwards of
the main theme in the last few bars
ended with an atomic explosion
from the cymbals.
Finally, the stage seemed to transform into the Starship Enterprise as
the audience was guided into the
outer realms of the galaxy amid Saturn, stars and spaceships. Making a
highly banterous cameo appearance
RJW wearing a gaudy gold bow-tie
on his neck, took on the role of Captain Kirk and recited the opening
lines of the original series of Star Trek:
“Space: the final frontier. These are the
voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Its
five-year mission: to explore strange
new worlds, to seek out new life and
new civilizations, to boldly go where
no man has gone before.” This added
the finishing touches to what proved
one of the finest school concerts in
recent years.
SPO R T
The Downs and Up of Winchester Soccer
F
ootball at Winchester is an
enigma. It really is. Just when
you think that, after three years,
you understand the process of Soccer XI games and their possible results, you find yourself constantly being surprised. This season was always
going to be challenging, with a very
large group of players leaving at the
end of last year. However, there were
a few mainstays of last year’s team
remaining, with the captain Sever (I)
and key player Hodnett (C) entering
their third and final year in Soccer
XI. The season began with four days
of pre-season training, but it went
badly with Lyons (K), a possible striker, who injured the ligaments in his
left foot. Nevertheless the rest of the
group worked hard in an attempt to
regain some of the fitness inevitably
lost over the long summer.
Our first real game of the season
came on the Sunday afternoon, in
the traditional curtain-raiser against
Corinthian Casuals. After holding
out for seventy minutes against a
talented opposition, who lest we
forget roundly beat us 3-0 last year,
Winchester’s resistance broke in the
last play of the game and the Casuals took their chance with aplomb.
However, the defensive performance
gave some encouragement, with Bacon (D) starting his first game and
Adeeyo (C) beginning to find his feet
at left back. Our next game was on
the Thursday against arguably the
best side in our area of England, St
Bede’s. Winchester worked very hard
without the ball and showed excellent defensive discipline on a hot
day but, with the score at 2-1 after
65 minutes, tired and conceded four
goals in the closing stages.
The games followed thick and fast,
with a home fixture against KES
Witley two days later. Regarded as
a winnable game, the complacency against which coach Chatterley
warned set in and Winchester ultimately went down 3-1, our consolation scored by the excellent Hodnett.
Next up was Eton, and Soccer XI continued to show the enigma that is
20
SPORT - The Wykehamist
The Captain of Soccer XI reports
football here. Having played appallingly against a weak KES side, Winchester were a different team against
their old enemy, a much more talented side and, had it not been for the
width of the post and a slice of bad
luck, should have been in front at the
interval. Again though, tiredness set
in and concentration slipped as Eton
made the most of sloppy errors at
the back and in the end Winchester
lost 4-1, the goal of the game coming
from Herring with a pile-driver from
just inside the box.
Next it was the ISFA cup against a
highly-regarded Alleyn’s team, and
it was a performance to forget from
Soccer XI, going down 3-0 in the
first round of the competition. Luck
was not on our side as, after a dramatic goal line clearance from Sever,
their midfielder lashed the resulting corner into the top corner from
thirty yards. However, after this performance it is clear a few faces were
looked at in the mirror, and as a result
a more invigorated side returned for
our next batch of games. The Hampshire Schools game was a classic, full
of attacking dynamism, defensive ineptitude and a truly atrocious performance from the referee. At one point
4-2 up, Winchester gave the game
away with some comical defending,
coupled with a few peculiar decisions from the referee, and lost 5-4.
ticularly pleasing as not only were
we more defensively astute but also
clinical in attack, with the ever impressive Hodnett netting two.
The first win of the season came
away at Aldenham. Having lost 3-0
last season, the team sought to make
amends. It did so emphatically. A
brace from Hodnett, a length-of-thefield solo goal from Sever and further
goals from Herring and Dowson (H)
gave Winchester a dominant victory
over a physical team. The last performance before leave out was away
against Bedales, and Winchester registered another victory with a handsome 6-2 score line.
Having rested and recuperated over
Leave Out, Winchester continued
their winning streak with victory over
Lancing in an entirely forgettable affair, which was settled from the penalty spot by Hodnett. Next up it was a
rematch with Alleyn’s, having already
played them in the cup competition earlier in the term. This, though,
was a different Soccer XI from that
which had excited the cup nearly
two months earlier. After a bitterlyfought contest that could have gone
either way, Winchester lost 1-0, but it
was the reaction of the Alleyn’s players at the final whistle that showed us
how far we had progressed in the period between our two fixtures. With
a few more games to go, we hope
The next game was away to Charter- we can continue to progress both as
house and Winchester performed individuals and as a group, and finish
with more passion and more deter- the season on a high.
mination than had previously been We thank the driving force behind
seen and, with the score at 0-0 after Soccer XI football, Lew Chatterley. His
sixty minutes and the game on a role is often underappreciated, but
knife-edge, Winchester nearly scored whether it is in sun, wind, rain or hail,
at one end then conceded with the he continues to give absolutely everesulting counter-attack. Two goals rything for Winchester College footin the final few minutes put an un- ball, and on a personal level I would
appetising gloss on the score line like to thank him for everything he
for the home side, but Soccer XI re- has done for me, not just in football,
turned home knowing that their per- over the last three years, and what he
formances were picking up.
has done for every single player to
The next two games both produced have played for him. As an ex-profesentertaining draws, the first 1-1 sional it must be infuriating at times
against Westminster and the second to watch us play, but his commitment
2-2 against a strong Ardingly side. and loyalty is second to none.
The Ardingly performance was par-
W I CC A M I C A
Ladakh 2012
Jamie Truell (H), Theo Martin (G) and Yiu Hei Shek (A) report on a truly challenging project in the
foothills of the Himalayas
T
his was our second major project
with the Lotus Flower Trust. The
Trust’s CEO, John Hunt, has
spent the last fifteen years delivering
projects in India with the sole aim of
‘changing lives forever’, working with
some of the world's poorest children
and communities. The School's first
project was to build a primary school
in Tarsaal, a small rural community
in the foothills of the Himalayas. Following successful completion last
year, 31Wykehamists took on the
challenge of raising the money to
construct a new home for a community of Buddhist nuns in Ladakh. The
new home will house fifty, taking in
young girls who are either homeless
or no longer able to stay in the family
home. Many come from Zanskar, one
of the poorest regions in the area.
Over the last year, the team raised
the funds required to allow the project to commence. Of a required total of £50,000 to be secured over a
two-year period, the target for the
first was £26,000: at the time of departure, there was £40,000 available
to support the project. Members of
the team individually or collectively
completed a wide range of activities
to gain sponsorship: 100 holes of golf
in a day, tombola, a cake sale, a physi-
cal challenge that saw the team complete the distance from Winchester
to Ladakh on ergs in the gymnasium
(10,500km), cycling the South Downs
Way etc. It has been a remarkable effort, nearly reaching the two-year target in the first year!
a few tries we managed a load one
around every 25mins. The load was
then unceremoniously dumped into
a pile, promptly breaking a third of
the bricks.
For me, inside was the best job. It was
For me, inside was the best job.
Our first attempt at a human chain,
in moving huge amounts of rock,
was about as successful as my first
year Mill project. But soon our Dear
Leader, SEH, cracked some skulls and
we managed to move another 100
yards longer. We shifted around 600
bricks from hand to hand, half way
from the brickyard to the nunnery.
So after shifting 3.6 tonnes of bricks,
they conveniently told us that they
had a truck. The pace and leadership
picked up after that. Essentially there
were three main jobs; bricks, inside
and granite. Granite is exactly what it
says on the tin. Picking up large boulders and putting them onto a truck.
These were then used for the foundations of the buildings. Bricks were
pretty similar; we loaded around
650 mud bricks for every truck. After
the hardest and dustiest job but it
had one major advantage, the nuns.
They made the bricks lighter and the
dust, ever so slightly, less dusty. They
were the most incredible people that
I have ever met. The local community has donated every possession of
theirs. Yet, despite this material poverty, I never saw a single argument,
no raised voices. In fact, each sentence, in surprisingly good English or
quick fire Ladakhi, is punctuated with
a smile.
Language was not much of a barrier. They all spoke varying levels of
English and we, haltingly, learnt varying levels of Ladakhi. The nuns were
fascinated to learn anything, from
rudimentary French to the Soulja Boy
dance. Friendships struck up quickly.
Several boys, and dons, were granted
the title of atcho, meaning brother.
One of the nuns, Moskit, was 16 and
I felt slightly sorry for her. The main
group of nuns were aged from six to
twelve. The elder nuns are around 30.
She had no friends of her own age,
definitely not going to parties or updating her Facebook. She did great
natural skill with my camera though.
She took some of my best photos.
Each day, as construction progressed,
the two groups from either ends of
Earth grew closer.
When it was finally time to leave the
whole village turned out for a goodbye ceremony. Girls from the local
school did some traditional dancing.
The young nuns sang two beautiful
songs, one dedicated to John Hunt.
After which we gave pitch perfect
22
WICCAMICA - The Wykehamist
renditions of ‘Reach for the Stars’
and ‘Jerusalem’. Following some very
variable comedy sketches by Wykehamists the time to say farewell arrived. Naimdal gave a moving speech
thanking us for our work, saying “you
will forever be in our hearts” and “we
will never forget you”. As the nuns
left, several members of team were,
justifiably, emotional. In five days I
formed closer friendships than I ever
could have imagined. Lardon, Moskit,
Chinle and all the others will forever
be my nomos, my sisters.
The next part of our journey began
as we slowly edged away from Stok
Village, pulling our blistered and generally pretty exhausted bodies up
into the unknown. But the prospect
of climbing Stok Kangri, a mountain
6153 metres high, higher than the
tallest mountain in Africa, Europe,
Australasia and North America was
one which enticed us all, and pulled
us along the dusty path which curled
off away from civilisation.
We reached our first camp at midday,
in time for lunch and some rest. That
afternoon we went for a short walk,
up onto ‘Ton-Ton La’ Pass where an
empty river valley laid ahead, a huge
mass of gormless boulders and small
streams within the gap between the
mountains. That, we were told, was
the way up. As we trekked up, apart
from Tanta, our small, robustly built,
croc-wearing guide, all of us were
finding out that altitude sickness isn’t
a myth, with the unlucky ones having to endure the sickness itself.
We reached Base Camp next afternoon and stayed inside our tents
until dinner. Lentil curry and rice was
the menu on the mountain, a meal
which caused repressive thoughts
of Cheeseburgers, English breakfasts
and most notoriously the rumoured
Dominoes at Delhi Airport (which
turned out to be true). However the
meals cooked really were astounding
culinary achievements considering
we were 5000 metres from sea level.
The following day we trekked up to
Advance Base Camp; preparation for
the summit attempt.
it was seven or more hours trekking
to the top and at 0200, sweating
feverishly in the freezing vacancy
of the night, inching our way up an
endless pillar of blackness interrupted only by the splashes of light from
our torches, we were certain that
this would “take some time”. Hours
later, after crossing over a crevassestrewn glacier and working our way
through the towering mass of snow,
ice and rock we finally had to use all
available limbs to tackle the ridge
line itself, which twisted up to the
summit. At this point we peered off
the edge of the mountain and were
confronted with the reality that if we
tripped up we would fall thousands
of feet to our deaths. Needless to say,
we were enormously grateful when
we finally reached our goal at sunrise
after walking throughout the seemingly endless night.
both the mind and the body starts to
relax, however we were walked and
talked through this by our leaders,
and we stumbled on full of stories,
greatly enriched and totally drained.
After our exhausting summit attempt
on Stok Kangri all of us were bustling
to get down from base camp to civilisation where we could relax, have
a shower, watch TV and most importantly leave behind the dreaded
loo tents. After another early start
of 4 in the morning we headed off
to Leh airport to catch a plane to
Delhi. When we arrived in Delhi, all
of us we looking forward to return
to the Ashok Country Resort where
air-coned rooms and a pool awaited
us. That afternoon we got on a coach
which took us sightseeing around
Delhi, to places like the Indian Gate,
the house of Ghandi as well as an
The stark beauty is almost indescribable.
The stark beauty is almost indescribable and the views gave us all an extraordinary lift. Maybe the days we
spent building the nunnery had given us some spiritual preparation as
well as the physical acclimatisation;
there was certainly something there
that was beyond the experience of
most of us. The descent back down
That night we made it to Advance was the beginning of the descent
Base Camp and before us was a gla- back to “normal”, somewhat banal,
cier and standing stalwart and high life. They say that this is often the
above it was Stok Kangri. Apparently most dangerous part of a climb as
authentic Hindu temple. Early next
morning we took a train to Agra for
more sightseeing. The Taj Mahal and
Agra fort were brilliant sights but the
best by far was the abandoned city
of Fatehpur Sikri. After we returned
to Delhi we were all treated to dinner buffet at a 5 star hotel (John Hunt
knew the owner). The next morning,
exhausted but full of unforgettable
memories, we finally boarded the
plane which took us back to the UK,
home.
The Wykehamist - WICCAMICA
23
Into The Land Of Vampires
Sebastian Fletcher (A) reports on a Romanian trek
A
n expedition to Romania
makes an exciting and adventurous trip, a fantastic opportunity to explore this part of Europe.
This trip consisted of hiking and kayaking through the Danube Delta.
When we arrived in Bucharest we
drove throughout the day to reach
Pennsylvania. The minibus journey
lasted the whole day so we all caught
up on the sleep we on the flight.
When we arrived at Pennsylvania we
stayed at a campsite called ‘Vampire
Camping’.
in a hotel because of torrential floods
which would have severely affected
us if we were camping. In the morning we scoffed down a delicious
breakfast and drove to the water’s
edge. We had a little reminder session and then set off kayaking. For
lunch we stopped and made a fire on
the
land by the delta. The first day of
The next day we got up early to atkayaking
we kayaked a total of 35km
tempt the tallest mountain we were
to
where
we
were camping.
hiking up. When we arrived we saw
boulders up in the distance, but our The next day, we kayaked to a town,
guide explained to us that this was where our Romanian guides lived,
only 1/3 of the height we had to which was only accessible by boat or
climb. Halfway up, a thunderstorm helicopter. We stocked up on food
arose so we were forced to take shel- supplies and then proceeded to our
ter lower down the mountain. When campsite. On the last day of kayaking,
we reached the summit, we ate din- we journeyed to a pension where
ner in a chalet and camped just be- we stayed the night and had our first
low the peak of the mountain which shower for a while. That night we
was higher than Ben Nevis. Next were cooked a traditional fish soup.
morning we ate our remaining food After having a well-earned sleep in a
supplies and did a half day trek down bed, we got into a motorboat which
the mountain. We walked to a new took us to the bus on which we were
campsite where we stayed the night travelling on to get to the airport in
before travelling to the Danube Delta. Bucharest. When we arrived in EngThe following morning we said our land everyone was relieved to be
farewells to our guide and made the able to enjoy their creature comforts
journey to the Delta. When we ar- again!
camp everyone was exhausted and
after eating went straight to sleep.
The second day of trekking wasn’t as
hard as the first; we managed to get
back to the camp site at 3:00 pm. The
thing which was worst about this day
was that there was no shade where
we were walking.
The next day we had a cooked breakfast made by our Romanian guide
called Nick. We were giving a quick
briefing on what to bring in our rucksacks and set off at 09:00. To get to
the mountain we were going to
climb, we had to walk through a village and past Dracula’s Castle. The
path outside the village we hiked up
was on a very steep hill. We had a
break when we were halfway up and
admired the spectacular landscape
of Pennsylvania. Halfway through
the day we stopped by a local shop
to re-supply after climbing down the
mountain. When we got back to the rived, we were lucky enough to stay
Journey To Iceland
Ryan Chan (A) travelled north with geographers
A
fter a three-hour flight from
Luton airport, we entered a
rather new airport in Iceland.
Our luggage arrived quickly and efficiently and went to the arrivals,
where we had to wait half-an-hour
for our tour guide and driver to find
us. Meanwhile, we were busy trying
to change our money to Icelandic
krona. When the tour guide found us,
we climbed onto a large bus with an
elevated chassis and headed for the
famed Blue Lagoon. This was where
it is claimed that a spa provides silica
mud masks that can make your skin
24
WICCAMICA - The Wykehamist
cle of Iceland” by visiting the world’s
first parliament, and then the Althing and the rift created by the separating Eurasian and North American
plate. We also saw geysers erupting
at a place called “Geysir” but unfortunately we didn’t get to see the main
large one go off. Then we went to
a gigantic waterfall called Gullfoss
(golden waterfall) that was situated
within the rift valley. Unfortunately,
our sun-roof in the bus exploded on
the way and had to be temporarily
The next day, we did the “Golden Cir- supported by a tourist umbrella and
a bag of apples until the bus driver
look and feel younger by ten years. Of
course, we were all quite interested
and went for a dip in the warm blue
water lined with dried silica mud. We
all tried the mud and went into the
saunas and steam rooms before going on to more sights related to the
study of geography. We ate Icelandic
fish and chips for lunch and headed
to some bubbling smelly mud pools
complete with a sulphur crust and
steam. Later that night, we stayed in
the capital city.
was able to put a plank on it.
The next day we journeyed to the
tame island of Heimaey (Home Island) to walk up the Eldfell volcano
that was born on the 23 January
1973 from opening lava fissures on
the island. This volcano destroyed
400 homes, nearly devastated the
fishing business on the island from
a lava flow; the government spent a
large amount of money to stop the
lava flows from destroying the love-
ly town. We managed to see some
puffins with SKW’s help on the island of Surtsey, not far off. After this
we took the ferry back and went
to walk behind a waterfall called
Seljandfoss before heading to Hotel
Laki, where we relished good food,
free Wi-Fi and a golf course.
tic columns, Europe’s largest lateral
moraine and we climbed a glacier.
Before leaving for the capital, we
also crawled into a lava tube and
saw spectacular costal landforms
with the familiar basalt columns. As
a treat we then had an eat-all-you
can pizza challenge before we left!
The final two days of the trip was
mostly concerned about ice. We
visited a glacial lagoon, another
waterfall flowing over black basal-
We were quite sad to leave Iceland
as we had a wonderful time there,
thanks to DEP, SKW and JJC, who
had shown us Iceland’s best.
Operation Garelochhead
James Temple (C) tells the story of a Royal Marines exercise
D
uring the last two weeks of
Cloister Time three Wykehamists participated in the
annual Royal Marines Cadets training camp in the west of Scotland. We
travelled by train with mountains of
kit and were met at the station by
the coach driver, a gruff Scottish man.
Upon arrival we were shown around
the accommodation: two long thin
buildings with 16 beds each; and
the ‘galley’ (dining room) where we
would eat our ‘scran’ (food) when not
out in the field.
The next morning we woke at 06:00
but were excused from early morning
‘phys’ as it was our first day. Having
eaten breakfast we went to the training area where we were introduced
to our weapons, complete with collapsible bipod grip and telescopic
sight: a first for us as cadets. We then
revised everything from camouflage
and concealment to weapons handling drills. After a day of sunshine
we returned to the campsite, confident that the stories of hardship from
previous years were exaggerated.
The following morning we were punished for such wistful thinking, having risen at 05:30, arranged in two
files and with the background music
of the PTI’s calls of one-two-threefour, set off on a jog. This early morning ‘phys’ session was to become part
of our routine over the subsequent
two weeks.
Over the next few days some marines from the Fleet Protection Group
taught us to fight in open ground
and in close quarters, a particular
highlight of the camp. With our appetites wetted for the battle exercise
that weekend, we moved on to survival skills. The next day consisted of
hacking down trees with axes, saws
and even knives as we lit fires and
constructed shelters under the constant attack of clouds of midges.
truck we patrolled forwards and
soon spotted the building in which
they were hiding. The fire support
groups were lined up in silence and
smoke grenades thrown at the building, providing cover for the assaulting group to move closer. We soon
heard shots from the building and
returned fire, eventually reaching
the door where we were engulfed in
But the greatest challenge was yet smoke. Choking, we discovered the
to come: the three day exercise. This door to be locked, but soon found
began on Friday morning when we another. The ensuing contact with
went to Fas Lane and were taught the marines inside was thrilling, as
the basics of beach landings with the we moved from room to room until
help of three Offshore Raiding Craft. all threats were eliminated.
We then carried out a full landing, The next week focused on adventhe beginning of the exercise, and turous training and commando hishaving sorted out our kit we set off tory. We canoed, kayaked and hiked,
up the difficult and muddy terrain of as well as making use of the range
the hillside. Eventually we reached simulator and shooting range at Fas
our harbour location (tactical camp- Lane. We also participated in a run in
site) and set up our bivvies. It was memory of Captain Phil Guy, a Royal
now that the rain began which didn’t Marine who had previously been the
stop until the end of the exercise.
commanding officer of the Royal MaThe next day we carried out numer- rines Youth Training Team but sadly
ous attacks on enemy positions, en- passed away when serving in Iraq.
joying the unlimited blank rounds The camp was difficult yet extremely
that are usually denied cadets. Dur- rewarding. As well as gaining an exing these attacks we put into practice cellent insight into life in the Royal
our close-quarters training as well as Marines we also learnt lots in the
casualty evacuation. We also had the space of just two weeks. What’s
chance to improve our leadership more, because it was carried out with
skills, everyone rotating into com- the Royal Marines we had access to
equipment and expertise that is not
mand positions of the platoon.
Next day we woke up at 04:00 on the normally available: an opportunity
final morning of the exercise and re- not to miss and one that I would recceived orders. Having been dropped ommend to anyone who loves a chaloff near the enemy location by the lenge.
The Wykehamist - WICCAMICA
25
Pringle
Matthew Tyler (G) participates in the Marine competition
O
n the afternoon of Friday 5
October, the Pringle team
assembled in the Armoury.
After a three-hour journey to Lympstone Barracks, we unloaded our kit
and began to set up our area in the
gym hall. Later that evening, after
some confusion about the time of
dinner, all the teams were welcomed
and briefed in the presentation hall
on the proceedings for the next two
days.
by a frenzied rush to reach the point- ence with red smoke. As soon as we
reached the casualty we came under
scoring boundary.
contact
from an enemy directly in
The next stand was where we had to
front
of
us. Once the casualty was
retrieve items from a ‘shark-infested’
treated
by
Shaw, we stretchered him
area with a length of rope and two
out
of
the
burnt
gorse.
carabineers. Initially we tried using
the carabineers as a hook on the
midsection of the rope. However,
when this failed we tied the rope between two trees and sent Alexander
Davies (F) across, who subsequently
Then came our winning performance.
At five o’clock the next day, having
had a good night’s sleep thanks to
JJCW’s expertise on night duty, we
made our way to the food hall for a
hasty breakfast and then made final
preparations before boarding our
mighty transport vessel, the minibus. With CGY at the wheel we made
Woodbury Common in good time
and advanced to our first stand: first
aid. We carried out the first aid well,
primarily thanks to Oliver Blanshard
(X) and Alfred Shaw (B), whose performances impressed the assessors
got ‘eaten’. When we ran out of time,
we proceeded to the section attack
stand where Blanshard, as IC, briefed
us and moved us up a gentle hill. Two
men contacted us in a depression at
the top. Charlie section assaulted the
position by flanking left, while Delta
section provided covering fire.
Our final stand of the day was fire
control orders. We arrived early and
while bantering with the young officer, Bills was yet again given physical punishment for his foolish ways.
We had spent the week prior to the
event practicing giving fire control
orders, so it was a breath of fresh air
to simply receive an FCO and mark
the position of the would-be enemy.
The next day brought drill to begin
with. Thanks to Frederick BenhamCroswell’s (F) and Davies’ superb efforts our dress was in good order.
After a quick change we headed
down to the bottom field for the assault course. It was an all-out sprint
over and along walls and suspended ropes, across monkey bars and
through tunnels. The whole course
only took four minutes with Bills
storming ahead to take first place out
of our team. As soon as we finished
the assault course we were brought
across to the regain tank. This is a
five-foot-deep pool with four taught
ropes suspended across its length
and three metres above it. One man
slides along each rope and, once halfway, hangs below it and then must
Then came our winning performance: observation. We patrolled
along a lane in a wooded area, looking for any objects of interest, such
as a tent peg or an RPG. We then recalled them from memory after passThis was followed by a camouflage ing through the lane. James Pinder
and concealment stand, which en- (Coll) found it very difficult not to
tailed the section being split into two jump for joy at the next stand - map
groups. The first group had thirty reading - but unfortunately (to his
seconds to hide, within certain limits, dismay) we came second to Bradfield
with a view of the other group who in this event.
were on high ground looking for
them. The roles were then reversed
after five minutes. Only one person
While bantering with the young officer...
was found - we later found that this
was not to our advantage. Moreover,
Harry Bills’ (G) mistake was his desire The weapons-handling stand was
to join the army rather than the royal very much about learning the steps regain his position on it and proceed
marines, which resulted in twenty and carrying them out. This encom- to the end of the rope. It really wasn’t
press-ups! Then this stand was con- passed loading a magazine and as easy as it looked as only two of us
veniently followed by a stalk. We standard handling procedures of an made it across.
were all given one blank round. From SA80 rifle. What is valued as prob- Finally, the scores were announced:
within a certain range, we had to ably the most technical and impor- we came fourth, a very respectable
fire this, without being seen, at two tant stand was the battle exercise. result. It wouldn’t have been possible
young officers who were trying to We were tasked with retrieving a without the input of the whole team
spot us. We were all surprised when downed pilot from hostile territory. under our captain Charlie Macnawe suddenly heard, “one minute re- We proceeded in arrowhead forma- mara (Coll), as well as our two leaders
maining!” This was swiftly followed tion and the pilot indicated his pres- CGY and JJCW.
26
WICCAMICA - The Wykehamist
R EG IS T ER
The Wykehamist - WICCAMICA
27
QEII Programme
The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy
Adapted and directed by Johnny Cardozo
October 11-13
Phil's House Play: I Killed The Count
Adaptation of a Hitchcock whodunit
October 22-24
Kind Hearts and Coronets
Adapted and directed by Charlie Macnamara
November 8-10
Toye's House Play: The Bald Primadonna
By Eugène Ionesco
Directed by Patrick Herring and Nicholas Fennell
November 21-23
King John
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Rob Wyke
December 6 – 8
28
REGISTER- The Wykehamist
Music Diary
Chamber Music I Scholars’ Concert – 23 September 2012
Violins Violas
AllegroNicholas Lau (B) James Fraser (Coll)
Geng To Law (E)Ryan Chan (A)
Jacob Thorn (Coll) Calvin Chan (D)
Cellos Double bass
Alexander Howard (I) Arnold Ching (C)
Min Hyuk Choi (Coll)
Samuel Grew (B)
Regan Ring (Coll)
Nocturno
Richard Strauss (1822 - 1905) Hugh Chilcott (G) horn Nicholas Salwey piano
AdagioKodaly (1882 - 1967)Christopher Cheng (Coll) cello Nicholas Salwey piano
Recitativo e Allegro
Defossez (1905 - 1988)
Alexander Toal (B) trumpet Nicholas Salwey piano
Braziliera, from Scaramouche Milhaud (1892 - 1974)
Jacob Thorn (Coll) & Angus Robinson (Coll) piano duo
Quartet no. 1 in G major
Grechaninov (1864-1956)
Nicholas Lau (B) & Tom Allinson (Coll) violins
AndanteJames Fraser (Coll) viola Rowan Ferguson (Coll) cello
Poulenc (1899–1963)
Tommy Peet (F) oboe Nicholas Salwey piano
Elégie from Sonata for oboe & piano
Banjo and Fiddle
Kroll (1901-1980)
Kaz Costello (F) violin Adrian Adlam piano
Fantaisie
Demersseman (1833 - 1866)
Daniel Porter (B) alto saxophone Brian Lee (B) piano
Two songs from
Finzi (1901 - 1956)
Hugo Sever (I) voice Nicholas Salwey piano
Let us garlands bring
Come away, come away death
O Mistress Mine
Allegro con spirito
Bowen (1884 – 1961)
Laurie Harris (I) horn Nicholas Salwey piano
3rd movement from Horn Sonata
Te quiero como loco
Igudesman (b.1970-)
Brian Lee (B) & Nicholas Trapp (A) violins
La Cucaracha
Brandenburg Concerto No.3 J.S. Bach (1685-1750)
Avenue St Andrew’s, Southampton – 27 September 2012
Violins Violas
AllegroNicholas Lau (B) James Fraser (Coll)
Geng To Law (E)Ryan Chan (A)
Jacob Thorn (Coll) Calvin Chan (D)
Cellos Double bass
Alexander Howard (I) Arnold Ching (C)
Min Hyuk Choi (Coll)
Samuel Grew (B)
Regan Ring (Coll)
Adrian Adlam director
Brandenburg Concerto No.3 J.S. Bach (1685-1750)
The Wykehamist - REGISTER
29
Recitativo e Allegro
Defossez (1905 - 1988)
Alexander Toal (B) trumpet Nicholas Salwey piano
I am the very model Sullivan (1842-1900)
Edward Horrocks voice Charles Maxtone-Smith piano
Grechaninov (1864-1956)
Nicholas Lau (B) & Tom Allinson (Coll) violins
of a modern major-general
Quartet no. 1 in G major
AndanteJames Fraser (Coll) viola Rowan Ferguson (Coll) cello
Poulenc (1899–1963)
Elégie from Sonata for oboe & piano
Banjo and Fiddle
Kroll (1901-1980)
Fantaisie
Demersseman (1833 - 1866)
Two songs from
Finzi (1901 - 1956)
Let us garlands bring
Come away, come away death
O Mistress Mine
Allegro con spirito
Bowen (1884 – 1961)
3rd movement from Horn Sonata
Te quiero como loco
Igudesman (b.1970-)
La Cucaracha
Tommy Peet (F) oboe Nicholas Salwey piano
Kaz Costello (F) violin Adrian Adlam piano
Daniel Porter (B) alto saxophone Brian Lee (B) piano
Hugo Sever (I) voice Nicholas Salwey piano
Laurie Harris (I) horn Nicholas Salwey piano
Brian Lee (B) & Nicholas Trapp (A) violins
A Classical Guitar Concert by pupils & tutors with special guests:
Tim Rushworth Flamenco Guitar & The Vida Guitar Quartet – 14 October 2012
Vals no. 1
B. Calatayud
Christopher Elliot (I)
Tango esta noche
V. Lindsey-Clark
Kevin Lo (B)
Theme from the Godfather
N. Rota
PeteneraTrad. Alexander Crew (I)
Rumbaarr. R. Pearson
Drewrie’s Accordes
Anon 16th Century
Michael Turner (Coll) & William Nestor-Sherman (B)
CavatinaS. MyersJerold Chu (H)
El Roble
J. Montoya
William Nestor-Sherman (B)
Minuet in A
F. Sor
Prelude no. 4
H. Villa Lobos
Polacca op. 5 no. 3
J. Mertz
Adagio - Allegro
G. P. Telemann
Jerold Chu (H) Michael Turner (Coll)
La fille aux cheveux de lin
C. Debussy
Alexander Crew (I) William Nestor Sherman (B)
Hotel California
D. Henley & G. Frey
& William Malpass (C) bongos
arr. J. Chu & A. Neville
Allegro (from Sonata in D)
C. Scheidler Michael Turner (Coll)
Adrian Neville & Malcolm Hebron
Four song arrangements: Spanish & South American
Salamanca arr. L. Williams
Cantar Montaňés
El Paňo Moruno
Cubana
Santaurio (Soleares)Trad. Tim Rushworth
En Las Cuevas (Farruca)
arr. P. Pena
Largo & Rondo op.34
F. Carulli
Adrian Neville & Mark Eden
Un Paraiso Moro
A. Neville
Adrian Neville
30
REGISTER - The Wykehamist
The Miller’s Dance M. de Falla
(from the Three-Cornered Hat) G. Bizet Habanera (from Carmen) Ritual Fire Dance
M. de Falla
Vida Guitar Quartet
Mark Eden, Mark Ashford, Helen Sanderson &
Christopher Stell
Chamber Music II – 18 October
Irish Fantasy
Harty (1879-1941)
Geng To Law (E) violin Adrian Adlam piano
Piano Sonata in A Minor Mozart (1756-1791)
James Fraser (Coll) piano
KV 310 (300d)
I. Allegro maestoso
II. Andante cantabile con espressione
III. Presto
Adagio & Allegro op. 70
Schumann (1810-56)
Sonatine
Ravel (1875-1937) I. Modéré
II. Mouvement de Menuet
III. Animé
Scherzo
Brahms (1833-97)
Edward Beese (G) cello Nicholas Salwey piano
Harry Metrebian (Coll) piano
Nicholas Trapp (A) violin Adrian Adlam piano
Concert (Woolrich, Ireland, Bach) – Sunday 21 October
Watermark
John Woolrich (born 1954) Peter Cornish bass clarinet/clarinet
Partita No. 3 in E Major
J.S. Bach (1685-1750)
Adrian Adlam violin/viola
Preludio Stephen Robbings piano
Loure
Gavotte en Rondeau
Menuett I
Menuett II
Bourée
Gigue
Fantasy Sonata John Ireland (1879-1962)
Farewell
John Woolrich (born 1954)
Chamber Music III – Thursday 8 November
String Quartet opus 17 no. 2
Haydn (1733-1809)
Nicholas Lau (B) & Jacob Thorn (Coll) violins
i. ModeratoCalvin Chan (D) viola Samuel Grew (B) cello
ii. Menuetto: Allegretto
iii. Adagio
iv Allegro di molto
Sonata for Piano & Violin in Beethoven (1770-1827) Kazuma Costello (F) violin Nicholas Salwey piano
F Major op. 24, ‘Spring’
i. Allegro
ii. Adagio molto espressivo
iii. Scherzo: Allegro molto
iv. Rondo: Allegro ma non troppo
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Nocturne in B major
Chopin (1810-1849)
Jacob Thorn (Coll) piano
Brahms (1833-97)
Brian Lee (B) violin Nicholas Salwey piano
op. 62 no. 1
Nocturne in E major
op. 62 no. 2
Violin Sonata in D minor op. 108
i. Allegro
ii. Adagio
iii. Un poco presto e con sentiment
iv. Presto agitato
School Concert – Sunday 11 November
Montagues & Capulets
Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Winchester College Academy Orchestra
Adrian Adlam conductor
Night on the Bare Mountain Mussorgsky (1839-1881) Winchester College Symphony Orchestra
arr. Rimsky-Korsakov Nicholas Wilks conductor
Excerpts from The Firebird
Stravinsky (1882-1971) Winchester College Symphonic Wind Band
arr. Bocook (b.1953) Carl Russell conductor
Symphonic Suite from
Gianchino (b.1967)
Winchester College Symphonic Wind Band
Star Trek
Courage (1919-2008) Carl Russell conductor
Roddenberry (1921-1991) Rob Wyke narrator
Arr. Bocook (b.1953)
Britten – War Requiem – Thursday 15 November Claire Rutter soprano
Winchester Cathedral Justin Lavender tenor
Stephen Gadd baritone
Winchester Music Club
Winchester College Glee Club & Quiristers
Nicholas Wilks conductor
Delius Centenary Concert – Sunday 18 November
Sonatina Bax (1883-1953) Lionel Handy cello
i. Allegro risoluto Nigel Clayton piano
ii. Andante
iii. Moderato
Sonata 1916
Delius (1862-1934)
SonataDebussy (1862-1918)
i. Prologue
ii. Serenade et Finale
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Chamber Music IV – Thursday 22 November
Piano sonata in E major Beethoven (1770-1827) Angus Robinson piano
op. 14 no. 1
i. Allegro
ii. Allegretto and Maggiore
iii. Rondo, Allegro comodo
Violin Sonata no. 2 in Brahms (1833-1897) A major op. 98
i. Allegro amabile
ii. Andante tranquillo-Vivace-Andante-Vivace
iii. Allegretto grazioso (quasi andante)
Ballade No. 4 in F minor op. 52 Chopin (1810-40)
Violin Sonata in E minor op 82 Elgar (1857-1934)
i. Allegro
ii. Romance
iii. Allegro non Troppo
Nicholas Lau (B) violin Adrian Adlam piano
Timothy Wong (F) piano
Byung-Hyun Gong (H) violin Nicholas Salwey piano
Cantores Episcopi - Mince Pie Concert
Thursday 6 & Friday 7 December Jamal Sutton, Jack Cammack (A),
Hugo Sever (I), Laurie Harris (I), George Herring (I)
Andrew Terrafranca (E), William Ashford (D),
Wind, Brass & Percussion Concert - Tuesday 11 December
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Sports Results
SOCCER
TeamPlayed
Won
Drawn
LostTeamPlayed
Won
Drawn
Lost
Soccer XI 14329 Jun Colts A 14527
2nd XI
10
3
4
3 Jun Colts B
11
5
0
6
3rd XI 9405 Jun Colts C 10307
4th XI 7214 Jun Colts D 6123
5th XI 6303 Yearlings A 13319
6th XI 3201 Yearlings B 10118
Sen Colts A 11524 Yearlings C 9018
Sen Colts B 5104 Yearlings D 6105
Sen Colts C 5203
Sen Colts D 2011
GOLF
TeamPlayedWonDrawnLost
Seniors6402
Juniors2002
RACKETS
TeamPlayedWonDrawnLost
Princes5302
Overall187110
SAILING
TeamPlayedWonDrawnLost
Overall9900
FENCING
TeamPlayedWonDrawnLost
Foil A6402
Epee A7601
Epee B6501
WATER POLO
TeamPlayedWonDrawnLost
U187115
U161001
34
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Studium
STEPHEN CARTER
The value of trying to think differently
First developed in 1999, Hawk-Eye Innovations has used the expertise gleaned from years of broadcasting to remain
at the cutting edge of sports technology and broadcasting. Honours include two BAFTAS and one Emmy. Since these
initial accolades, Hawk-Eye has become one of the leading vision processing companies within the sports sector. First
used as a broadcast tool for the leg before wicket decision in cricket, the company has since revolutionised sports
broadcasting, officiating and coaching across a number of sports. The company is proud to be an integral part of many
of the world's premier sporting events. These include The Wimbledon Championships, the Cricket World Cup, Davis
and Federation Cups, World Championships snooker, the Indian Premier League cricket, and the Olympic Games.
DOUGAL GRAY (D), FREDDIE PARKER (K), HUGO SEVER (I), JAMIE TRUELL (H)
The Ladakh Expedition
Dougal, Freddie, Hugo and Jamie will give an account of the expedition with some stunning photography.
PETER KRAKENBERGER
The 15th Century Apocalypse of the Dukes of Savoy
Peter Krakenberger is in his 40th and final year as a maths don at Winchester College, where he is also lay chaplain
and organiser of the Illuminated Manuscript Society. The Apocalypse of the Dukes of Savoy is generally considered by
experts to be the most beautiful of all the medieval apocalypse books. It has 97 larger paintings, 91 smaller ones and
profuse marginal decoration. The first half took seven years to decorate, from 1428 to 1435; the artists involved being
Jean Bapteur and Peronet Lamy. The second half was completed in the years 1484-1490 by the outstanding French
book artist Jean Colombe. The paintings are spectacular and of great beauty, and because they refer to cataclysmic
events due to happen as the end of the world draws near, they are sometimes awe-inspiring.
NICK MACKINNON
Poetry reading
Nick MacKinnon was runner up in the 2009 Bridport Prize and a major prizewinner in the 2007 and 2008 McLellan
Festivals and the 2009 Plough, Hippocrates, and tall-lighthouse competitions. He has just won the 2012 Keats-Shelley
prize.
CHARLIE MAULEVERER AND COLIN UPTON
From Canon St to Abbey Rd – a musical journey
Back in 2001 Charles Mauleverer (E, 1997-2002) and former maths don Colin Upton got together to record their compositions in Colin’s home studio in Canon Street. Pop, rock and classical were all explored, and many of the school’s
best musicians – boys, old boys, and dons – found themselves being roped in: Robert Bottone, Phil Nash, Malcolm
Hebron, Adrian Adlam, Leo Cairns, Will Keen, Tom Jesty and Harry Sever amongst others. Buoyed by some radio play
on Classic FM, the pair decided to make an album using a top class professional orchestra to back the school’s musicians. Two memorable trips to Abbey Rd Studio 2 followed, and after years of overdubbing, editing and mixing, the
album is finally ready for release. Meanwhile Charles has graduated from Oxford with a degree in music, and from the
Royal College of Music as a Master of Composition. The Studium talk will include recordings of some their early efforts
through to excerpts from the album.
DR ANTONIA WHITLEY
The Art of War
Teaching Fellow in the War Studies Department of Kings College London. Art historian and lecturer with a particular
interest in the art and architecture of the Italian Renaissance- her PhD from the Warburg Institute was an interdisciplinary study of Sienese society in the 15th century.
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The war in question is WW1, of which Ernest Hemingway wrote that it had been: “...the most colossal, murderous, mismanaged butchery that has ever taken place on earth. Any writer who said otherwise had lied. So the writers either
wrote propaganda, shut up or fought.” Was the same true for painters? We consider some notable examples and also
how the Great War called for a new kind of art, while maintaining a tradition stretching back to the Renaissance.
ANTONY BEEVOR OW
The Second World War
Antony Beevor is the author of The Second World War which has already been a No 1 Bestseller in five countries. He
will speak on the nature of the conflict, and why historians have disagreed even over its duration. Was it the main part
of the 'Long War of the Twentieth Century'? Was it a clash between the great powers, or a conglomeration of conflicts
including an international civil war?
DR ELIZA FILBY AND STEVEN CLARKE
Speakeasy: Learn to be Heard
Acting techniques as a way of improving confidence, conquering nerves and projecting your voice. Public speaking is one of those key life-skills but we rarely receive training in it. The world is full of bad communicators but what
makes a good one? Are great orators born or are they made? Drawing on acting techniques and academic know-how,
Speakeasy is an interactive workshop which will provide you with a tool kit of skills necessary to be an effective communicator. This is not a lecture on the art of rhetoric, but an interactive workshop; you will practise the exercises and
will receive personal feedback. The course includes how to conquer nerves, think on your feet, voice projection and
the art of speech writing.
JULIAN FRANCIS OW
Ethiopia – land of contrasts
Julian Francis is a highly successful city lawyer who is also an avid collector of private press books and a serious ornithologist. His talk will be not just about the birds but also the mammals, landscapes, music and people of Ethiopia.
RICHARD FULLER
Fuller’s
Fuller's has been around for over 165 years. Whilst we may be best known for brewing London Pride, there is a lot
more to Fuller's than first meets the eye. We are proud of our heritage and manage to successfully combine it with
a thriving, modern retail business. With our iconic brewery and head office in West London and our portfolio of 364
pubs, inns and hotels, it is a multi-faceted operation.
TOM PAKENHAM OW & HUGH KNOWLES OW
Six ways to die
A trained solicitor, Tom launched greentomatocars in 2006 as the first in the greentomato group of companies of
which he is CEO. In the last five years he has grown greentomatocars to a fleet of 120 vehicles and launched greentomatoenergy and the greentomatokit. Hugh is Principal Sustainability Advisor at Forum for the Future. ‘Working with
pioneering partners, we transform the essential systems of food, energy and finance to secure a more fulfilling life for
us and future generations. A slightly irreverent tour of 'The six ways you can die' and why the world is a becoming a
more complex and dangerous place. We will have a conversation about the many ways you can help society through
some tricky times.
DIMA YEREMENKO
Dima is often called a Dog Whisperer because of his extraordinary rapport with dogs and gentle approach in training.
This can be seen in the award winning film by Michael Slowe ‘The Leader of the Pack’ (accessed on the homepage of
his website). A large number of dogs, all with different owners, harmoniously follow Dima around Hampstead Heath.
In this first session, Dima will do a demonstration with his own two dogs, one of whom, George, has appeared in the
Harry Potter films. He will explain his philosophy and take questions.
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SAMVIT KANORIA OW (on Skype from Dubai)
Global Forces
This is a seminal work done by our strategy practice that lays out some of the biggest macro-economic trends (e.g. rise
of the middle class) that are affecting our world.
DR IAIN MCGILCHRIST OW
Two brains, two minds, one person
Dr Iain McGilchrist is a former Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, a Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, and
former Consultant Psychiatrist and Clinical Director at the Bethlem Royal & Maudsley Hospital, London. His latest book,
published by Yale in November 2009, is The Master and his Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western
World.
Why is the brain divided? Why does it matter? What can it tell us about our experience as human beings, what we
are like, what sort of thing the world is, and how we relate to it? How might understanding this even help us stop
destroying it?
ED PARKER
Walking with the Wounded
– from battlefields to the North Pole, Everest and beyond ….
In 2011 our team set a World Record by taking four wounded servicemen to the Geographic North Pole, our first
expedition. In 2012, the charity set its sights even higher and on the new challenge, and aimed to put five wounded
servicemen on the summit of Mount Everest, the worlds’ highest peak standing at 8,848m. Charity Co- Founder Ed
Parker will tell of the epic experiences from both The North Pole and from Everest. Whilst the Everest summit attempt
was sadly cancelled in May due to unprecedented conditions, Ed will speak of their journey from the battle field to the
final selection process for joining the summit and base camp teams, including their summits of Manaslu, the world’s
8th highest peak, Lobuche, 6145m, and finally their attempt on the world’s highest mountain. Ed will also speak of the
next expedition, our largest yet, which is currently in the planning stages for 2013. This has been named as the largest
modern day expedition.
BEN HEASON
First Free Climbed Ascent of Angel Falls
Ben Heason is one of the UK’s leading climbers, having been climbing full time for over 15 years. He is world-renowned
for his bold climbing on routes at the cutting edge of the sport including his impressive exploits on big wall expeditions around the globe.
In his presentation Ben describes the first free climbed ascent of the 1000m Angel Falls wall, the world's highest waterfall, in 2005. The team's successful expedition, with climbing at the highest level, in an incredibly remote region
of the planet, has been praised as 'one of the finest achievements by British rock climbers on foreign soil'. Situated
in the heart of the Venezuelan jungle, this is not merely a story about an audacious rock climb on one of the Natural
Wonders of the World, but the emotions and experiences encountered along the way.
RALEGH LONG
In concert
Ralegh Long (I, 1999-2004) is an English Singer-Songwriter, guitarist and pianist. He mixes a love of classic song writing
with improvisational tactics. Ralegh has recently supported Darren Hayman (ex-Hefner) and Thomas White (Electric
Soft Parade) on tour. 'Placing the enigmatic within the classically melodic'.(Sweeping The Nation)
WILL SHARPE OW & TOM KINGSLEY
Black Pond screening
Will Sharpe, aged 25, wrote, co-directed and acted in Black Pond which was BAFTA nominated Outstanding Debut
film, Winner of the Evening Standard Best Newcomer award and nominated for a Raindance award. He and his codirector, Tom Kingsley, will take questions following the screening of the film.
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GEOFFREY TIBBS OW
Why look at social movements?: The case of Southern Mexico
Geoff Tibbs (B, 2003-8) took three sciences early, leaving plenty of time for Art and Art History in his final year. He
studied Fine Art at Oxford and has just completed a Masters at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. He
was recently accepted as a member of the Magic Circle. His talk will be split between his academic work in Mexico and
some ‘How did he do that?!’ magic. It is amazing.
PROFESSOR CHRISTOPHER SACHRAJDA FRS
Prof Sachrajda’s research continues to be focussed on the development and exploita¬tion of Quantum Chromodynamics, the quantum field theory of the strong nuclear force. He obtained his Ph.D. from Imperial College (London) in
1974. After periods of research as a Harkness Fellow at Stanford University in California (1974-76) and in the Theory Division at CERN in Geneva (1976-79) he was appointed to a faculty position in the Physics Department of the University
of Southampton. There he has held most senior roles including Head of Department. In recognition of his research,
Prof Sachrajda was elected to the Royal Society in 1996.
The Higgs Boson – Prediction, Discovery and Significance
On July 4th 2012, experimenters at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) announced the discovery of an elementary particle which is likely to be the anticipated Higgs Boson, the last missing ingredient in the Standard Model of particle
physics. In this lecture Prof Sachrajda will explain the reasons behind its prediction in 1964 and discuss its discovery at
the LHC and the implications for the future of particle physics.
DR THOMAS DE WESSELOW OW
Making Sense of the Turin Shroud
Dr Thomas de Wesselow is an independent art historian and the author of The Sign: the Shroud of Turin and the Secret
of the Resurrection. He gained his PhD from the Courtauld Institute of Art in 2000, worked for a year in the curatorial
department at the National Gallery and was then a post-doctoral fellow at King’s College, Cambridge. Eight years ago
he took on the challenge of researching the most controversial, enigmatic object in the world: the Shroud of Turin.
A long linen sheet, bearing an extremely faint image of a crucified man, the Shroud is traditionally supposed to be
the burial-cloth of Jesus but is now generally dismissed as a medieval fake. In this talk Thomas tells the story of his
investigation of the Shroud and explains why it has led him to a radical conclusion regarding the birth of Christianity.
PETER TATCHELL
Economic democracy - Power to the people
Peter Tatchell is an Australian-born British political campaigner best known for his work with LGBT social movements.
He was selected as Labour Party Parliamentary candidate for Bermondsey in 1981, and was then denounced by party
leader Michael Foot for supporting extra-parliamentary action against the Thatcher government. The Labour Party
subsequently allowed his selection when he ran in the Bermondsey by-election in February 1983. In the 1990s, he
became a prominent LGBT campaigner through the direct action group OutRage!, which he co-founded. He has
worked on a wide variety of issues, such as Stop Murder Music, which campaigns against music lyrics that incite violence against LGBT people, and is a frequent contributor on human rights and social justice issues in print and through
broadcast media, authoring many articles and six books. In 2006, New Statesman readers voted him sixth on their
list of "Heroes of our time". He attracted international attention when he attempted a citizen's arrest of Zimbabwean
President Robert Mugabe in 1999 and again in 2001.
In his email to LCW he wrote: ‘I have several very simple, achievable ideas on how to make the economy more participatory and accountable. I think the pupils will find them interesting, challenging and may well wonder why no
government has bothered to put them into effect.’
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Societies Diary
CathedralChronicles of Light
Classical
Robert Leach (Coll)
Plato & Socrates
Rebecca LeighCatullus
EmpsonHilary MenosPoetry Reading
Friends
Lt Gen Sir Hew Pike
The Falkland
Peter OborneThe Future of the Coalition
GermanFilm: Der Utergang
HistoryProf Angus HawkinsOur Democracy
Prof Miles TaylorThe Triumph of Democracy?
MusicDavid CairnsBerlioz
Oriental
Iain Buchanan OW
From Winchester to North Korea
Guy Clutterbuck
Emeralds, Taliban & the Asian Gem Trade
RamseyAdrian HornsbyMoney, Value & Something Other
Michelle BaddeleyGames & Economic Behaviour
Science Prof Steven Simon
Knots, World-lines etc
Christopher Spencer MDObstetrics & Gynaecology
Mike KlugstonGreat Ideas in Chemistry
Prof Adrian SuttonThe Metallic State
Spirit Lamp
Hanna Jameson
Something You Are
Calum KerrFlash Fiction
Theol & Phil
Prof Keith Fox
Has Biology Buried God?
Salvete
Alfred Edgar William Artley - Classics
Cecilia Diana Davis-Hayes - Physical Education
Richard Edward Joseph Foster - History
Andrew Craig Shedden - Registrar
Richard Stephen Stillman - English
Rebecca Jane Topley - Biology
Maria Zampeta - Mathematics
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