RadleyN E W S L E T T E R

THE

Reflections on the 2006 Boat Race | The View From The New Pavilion

The Shell Normandy Trip | Radley Achievements and Activities in 2005/6

The Sixth Form Lecture Programme

2 T H E R A D L E Y N E W S L E T T E R

Tom Parker rowed in an exceptional

Radley 1st VIII in 2001, when the

crew reached the final of the Princess

Elizabeth Cup for School VIIIs at Henley.

He went on to row for Oxford Brookes and

for Great Britain, winning a bronze medal

at the World Championships in the VIII.

The Boat Race in 2006 which he describes

here was a titanic struggle in rough

conditions; the strength and will-power

of the Oxford crew in the end broke the

resistance of the favoured Cambridge crew.

The only glamour or delight that is

derived from the Boat Race experience is

in abundance for those few hours between

winning and waking up the following

morning with a sore head; the rest of it is

relentless training around the ruthless

demands for essays from tutors. We

trained very hard and there were times

when I went through days driven only by

the desire to win when the body and mind

was under stress the like of which I had

never experienced. The work is a constant

niggle for the Boat Race athlete, it is ever-

present and, more often than not, one is

invariably behind! In previous years I have

always taken this with a pinch of salt.

Knowing how hard the Blues train I had

presumed that the work must be kept on

the back burner. I had images of the odd

sympathetic nod from an interested tutor if

you were to wearily shake your head amid

murmurings of unhelpful tide tables or

long morning ergo sessions. This, however,

is far from the case. You will be met with

little sympathy if you come up with

excuses for the tardy essay.

April the 2nd this year made it clear

why we had trained so hard; the unique

feeling of the last couple of hundred

metres in very heavy conditions and with

Cambridge 6 lengths adrift, knowing that

you are about to be victorious, makes it all

worth while over and over again. So what

are the emotions that pulsate through your

body when you cross the line victorious in

the Boat Race? The answers I have given

have echoed the stereotype that is

associated with this fairly unique position.

I usually utter phrases such as ‘amazing’,

‘incredible’, ‘something I will never forget’,

which are of course true, but what about

the initial emotion, the very first thing I

thought about. Now that I sit and write

about it for the first time it is clear what I

was thinking; it was disbelief, that we had

actually done what I had been dreaming

about for the last six months. I suppose

the feeling of disbelief came from how

comprehensively we had beaten

Cambridge; how an elite crew had fallen

so hard due to the pressure we put on

them right from the start. As a Blue Boat

athlete you cannot spend any time on

what it is you should feel or do if you

cross the line first; all focus is put into

what you have to do before that time to

give yourself the best possible chance of

By Tom Parker OR (Pilgrims’ and H Social)

being in that position. But having won so

emphatically against the favourites in one

of the most recognised sporting events in

the British calendar might permit one a

small trace of disbelief.

From a personal point of view I can

base this feeling on the fact that despite

rowing for Britain in the World

Championships, this race was the first

event I have won which contains athletes

of a world class standard. My confidence

in my abilities was by no means backed

up with the plethora of victories that has

dominated the big names in rowing

throughout the Pinsent-Redgrave era.

That night at the Boat Race Ball feelings

of disbelief started to sift away, numerous

congratulations coupled with riotous

celebrations clarified what it was that

the nine of us had achieved that day

and from then on it has been ‘amazing,

incredible and something I will never

forget’.

T H E R A D L E Y N E W S L E T T E R 3

Front Cover: Tom Parker celebrates Oxford’s victory in the 2006 Boat Race (Getty Images)

Insert: The 2001 1st VIII with Tom rowing at number 5

4 T H E R A D L E Y N E W S L E T T E R

It is rather extraordinary that for a

school which takes its sport so seriously

there had never been proper changing

facilities for our opposition teams –

until last year, that is. And in responding to a

pressing need the architects managed to create

a spectacular bonus, a low, round building by

the Silk Hall with a circular viewing gallery,

on top of the 8 changing rooms, where tea

is served to parents and visitors on match

days. The view is panoramic, and the focus

shifts with the seasons. So bitter and wet was

it for the last few rugby Bigside matches of

the 2005 season that the less hardy watched

the 1st XV defeat Marlborough and Bedford

from comfortable warmth above the dead-

the view from New Pav

ball line, cup of tea in hand. Long suffering

Hockey supporters were sometimes driven

indoors whilst the 1st and 2nd XIs compiled

impressive seasons on the new Astroturf.

But the facility’s real versatility is seen in

the summer term: cricketing visitors can

escape chill May winds and watch the 1st XI

on Bigside and the 2nd XI on Secondside

while tennis supporters on the other side

of the gallery watch the school tennis VIs

attempt to match the recent feats of Alex

Hackett (Downsend, H Social) and Tom

Dance (Dragon, H Social), last summer’s

unbeaten 1st pair. Through the trees beyond

the tennis courts is the Radford track;

the start of the 100 metres is crystal clear

below the spectators but a line of plane trees

inconveniently obscures the finish line. No

doubt there will be a long debate between

conservationists and Athletics enthusiasts

about their future….

Not every year does Radley produce an

Andrew Strauss OR (Caldicott, B Social),

Jamie Dalrymple OR (Ashfold, H Social), Ben

Hutton OR (Holmewood House, B Social)

or Robin Martin-Jenkins OR (Cranleigh

Prep, B Social) on the cricket field, a Richard

MacDowel (Bilton Grange, G Social) at Hockey

or Chris Sheasby (Caldicott, F Social) at Rugby

– but the hope is to provide future spectators

with an agreeable environment the better to

enjoy competitive games the year round.

T H E R A D L E Y N E W S L E T T E R 5

theilion

the shellNormandy

trip by Dr Jim Summerly, History Don

6 T H E R A D L E I A N N E W S L E T T E R

The bus travelled slower and slower.

We were now at walking pace on the

Cherbourg ring road. The hydraulic fluid

was leaking out of the gear box and the driver

found the range of gears he could engage was

disappearing. The video played on. Finally the

driver turned to me and said, ‘that’s it.’ I got out

of the bus and flagged down the first car I saw

with a British number plate. They took me down

to the ferry terminal where the other bus was

waiting, oblivious to our problem (those long

gone days before mobile phones.). The coach

at the terminal put its boys aboard the ship as

foot passengers and went back for my coach’s

passengers who had unloaded and were waiting

by the side of the road. Thirty minutes later we

were all aboard the ship. That was Normandy III

– quite a long time ago and probably the largest

single problem we have ever had. This year was

Normandy XV – one of the quiet ones.

The Normandy trip was conceived back in

1988 as a means of showing Shell boys something

of the realities of warfare during World War

II. It would give a focus to the departmental

teaching on World War II and it would give the

boys the experience of travelling in France. The

idea was that evocative sites such as the Pointe

du Hoc, where the Texas Rangers scaled a cliff

to secure the sites of naval guns that overlooked

Utah and Omaha beaches, would be interspersed

with cemeteries, museums and the beaches

themselves. The reconnaissance trips were done

in 1989 and looking back at the photographs it

is clear the whole area has been transformed for

tourism during the last eighteen years. Videos

on the coaches would provide the images of

1944 and impose them on the imaginations of

the Shells and the whole trip would be given a

commentary and a context by the teaching dons.

Apart from two years when we visited the

World War I battlefields, there has been a

Shell trip to Normandy every year since 1990.

If there is a lull in cocoa back in the Socials any

History don knows the space can be filled with

a Normandy anecdote. If the boys’ memory

of Shell History becomes indistinct in time

they almost always recall quite a lot about the

Normandy landings and some have revisited

the sites with their parents. The Bayeux tapestry

has always been visited and though some of the

early trips probably established record times for

viewing the embroidery I learned to put myself

at the front and defy any boy to go around more

quickly than me.

We must have taken about 1800 Radleians to

Normandy over the years. And we have brought

almost all of them back – though in 1997 one boy

had his appendix removed.

What can you do with 125 Shells in Caen

on a Saturday night? About 60% of Normandys

have included a trip to the Fair where dodgem

cars, go karts and endless varieties of spinning

rides combined with burgers and candy floss

have produced a fair amount of vomit over

the years, and revealed quite surprising skills

amongst my colleagues.

Inevitably, perhaps, it is the stories of

problems and semi-disasters that come to mind

when recalling the Normandy Trip. The boys

probably tell rather different stories but what

they do not usually talk about is the feeling

they get from their presence on the coast of

memories. I can remember minutes of silence

at the Hermanville Cemetery or at Omaha but

the boys will have their own minutes of peace

contemplating war. Omaha and Utah beaches

were often for us the scenes of huge football

matches but just as often boys would turn

their eyes to the sea and wonder. Perhaps they

wondered later when they saw the extraordinary

first twenty minutes of ‘Saving Private Ryan’.

They must have wondered when they saw the

gravestones with the Kipling epitaph, “A Soldier,

Known unto God.”

T H E R A D L E I A N N E W S L E T T E R 7

8 T H E R A D L E I A N N E W S L E T T E R

ACADEMIC4The summer 2006 A level results were

good; 84% of grades were at either A or B,

slightly down on the previous year’s 87%

record but very satisfactory nonetheless.

In Latin, Greek, German, Spanish, Music,

Design Technology and Theatre Studies

all candidates achieved either an A or a B.

Hamish Anderson (Cothill, B) and Matt

Atkins (Rokeby School, F) were placed in

Edexcel Product Design’s top 10 (out of

3024) candidates.

4The GCSE results were by some margin

the best ever with an extraordinary 88% of

grades achieved being at either A* or A. All

1224 papers were passed; indeed only 26

papers were C grade. In a host of impressive

performances perhaps English Language

with 115 out of 125 candidates achieving A* or

A deserves special mention. Alexander Rose

(Thomas’s, C) and Theodore Withworth

(Aldro, C) were placed in AQA Spanish’s top

5 candidates (out of 35112 candidates) and

Rory Stallibrass (Milbourne Lodge, C) was in

the top 10 (out of 23164) for Edexcel English.

4Perhaps Radley’s proudest academic

performance of the summer was from an

old boy, David Lloyd (Bramcote, A), who

gained the top First in Natural Sciences

at Cambridge, in itself the top and most

competitive Science course in British

universities.

4Radley’s Geography Department ran the

web-based Metlink International Weather

project for over 400 schools world wide to

exchange weather data. We also helped to

host the U.K. Raincatch 2005 project.

4The Economics Department entered a

team for the National Interest Rate Challenge

and came 2nd in the southern area.

4Asa Bennett (Dragon, C) was placed 3rd

in the Oxford Area Classical Association

Reading Competition.

4Ed Martineau (Dragon, H) and Tom

McPhail (Dragon, H) won through to the

finals of the National Debating Competition.

4Matt Atkins (Rokeby, F) and Tobin Chew

(Moulsford, D) are both Arkwright

Scholars in Design Technology.

4The Radley College Chronicle, the new

school newspaper, is written and edited

largely by the boys and has continued to

flourish in its second year with a mix of

reviews, opinion pieces and gentle satire.

14 issues have been published thus far.

4Declamations – judged by Andrew

Trotman, former Radley don, now Warden

of St Edward’s Oxford – was of a very high

standard. The competition winners were:

Frederick Moynan (6.2, Belhaven Hill, B);

Jake Cheetham (6.1, Summer Fields, A);

George Leeming (5, Summer Fields, A);

Freddie Tapner (R, Ludgrove, F);

Benjamin Hatt (S, Lockers Park, H).

4Many visiting speakers have come to Radley

this year, for example: David Cameron

(Leader of the Opposition); Evan Harris

MP; Peter Riddell; Andrew Gordon;

Professor Jim Norton; Tom Shakespeare OR;

Professor Gary Sheffield; Professor Jeremy

Black; Anthony Worrall-Thompson; Clive

Stafford-Smith OR. The biologists welcomed

Professor Nick Rawlins, Dr Martin Speight

and Professor Sir Richard Gardner.

4Rob King, Head of Chemistry, has

written the Chemistry sections of

the AQA and Edexcel new GCSE

Science courses for Harper

Collins. Nick Weaver, Head

of Physics, was runner-up in

the Salters Horner A level

Physics Teacher of the Year.

Iain Campbell has been

commissioned to write

on ‘The Classical World

and Heavy Metal’ in a

German Study of British

Heavy Metal.

4Alex Chadwick

(Cothill, H), Seb Lomas

(Crosfields, H), Jamie

Bromfield (Cothill, A) and

Tobin Chew (Moulsford,

D) have worked with the

RAF to design a system to

test the laden flying capacity

of the Puma helicopter.

4The 6.2 Conference with St

Helen’s in November was one of

the best: controversial, engaging

and with a high standard of debate,

‘Changing the World, Making a

Difference’ had two outstanding talks,

Julian Filochowski on Third World Poverty

and James Mawdesley on North Korea.

Radley Achievemen

4Adrian Pascu (Wirral Grammar, B) was highly

commended in both The Times Stephen Spender

prize for poetry and translation, and Foyle’s Young

Poet of the Year.

T H E R A D L E I A N N E W S L E T T E R 9

ARTS4This year has seen the inauguration of the New

Theatre. The Haddon Cup was held in the Old

Gym in October. Late November saw a fitting

opening of the New Theatre with ‘School for

Scandal’, a tour de force, directed by David

Edwards. The theatre has subsequently been well

used for Social plays and culture evenings; last

term Ed. Chalk (Cothill, C) wrote and directed

‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’, a colourful

and professional production. Rupert Lazarus

(Moulsford, B) and Rory Stallibrass (Milbourne

Lodge, C) have won places with the National

Youth Theatre.

4It has been a busy year for Music. Trafalgar’s

200th Anniversary was marked by a spectacular

performance of the Choral Society’s Nelson

Mass in Chapel; the Gloria was sung by the

whole school, which lifted the roof. Senior boys

celebrated later with a Nelsonic feast of heroic

proportions. The Scholars’ Concert, Wharton

Piano Prize, Ferguson Singing Prize and Hudson

String Prize were all of a high standard, and

this term’s Warden’s Music in the Theatre was

a great success. So too was the Venice trip

with 40 musicians, performing in – amongst

other venues – St Mark’s. We have a rich vein

of pianists at present: at the Oxford Music

Festival Jonny Williams (Westbourne House, H),

Jamie Brown (Caldicott, D) and Greg Williams

(Norman Court, C) took 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the

U18 Piano Recital class, and Jonny and Greg also

won the Abingdon Concerto Competition. The

Chapel Choir has had a good year; the 16 or so

choristers from local primary schools are a real

addition to its sound. Many of them sang the

May Morning Madrigals from Mansion Roof,

directed by Luke Bartlett. In the Associated

Board exams, George Nye (Dragon, E) achieved

a Grade 8 Distinction in Singing, Jonny Williams

(Westbourne House, H) Grade 8 Distinction

on Piano, Greg Williams (Norman Court, C)

and Arthur Sawbridge (Hall Grove, E) Grade

8 Distinction for Violin. The Ferguson Singing

Competition was won by Robert Crabtree

(Christ Church Cathedral School, E); the Hudson

String Prize by Arthur Sawbridge (Hall Grove,

E) and Myles Watkiss (KCS Wimbledon, H);

the Gunn Cup (Woodwind) by Francis Forbes-

Edwards (St. Piran’s, C); the Gunn Cup (Brass)

by Jamie Hepburn (Sandroyd, D); the Wharton

Piano by Greg Williams (Norman Court, C); the

Guitar Prizes went to Michael Little (Dragon, A)

(Acoustic/Classical); Pelham Groom (Summer

Fields, E) (Electric) and Tom Dance (Dragon,

H) and Nick Holland (Moulsford, B) (Original

Composition). Jonny Williams (Westbourne

House, H) won the Organ Prize.

ACTIVITIES4Radley’s revamped Wednesday Afternoon

Activity Programme continues to broaden

boys’ horizons, be it to introduce new skills,

awaken new enthusiasms, or cultivate an

awareness of the importance of helping others.

The 5th Form has been helping patients at the

Nuffield Hospital, organising weekly concert

parties for the elderly and infirm, and teaching

and helping in primary schools.

4Boys have also run, climbed, cycled, swum for

Charities. A total of over £60,000 has been

raised. Patrick Chambers (Cothill, B) raised

over £2500 for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

4229 Blood donations were given by boys

and Radley adults this year.

4There has been a wide range of

expeditions and visits: Art Historians

went to China, 6.1 boys to Romania

to run an orphanage holiday

club, Hispanists to Cuba, Paris

exchange with Lycée St.

Geneviève, 40 musicians

performed in Venice in

February, the Bigside

squad worked hard

near Verona, the Shells

invaded Normandy. Most

satisfying have been

frequent favourable

comments from total

strangers on the manners

and behaviour of the

boys.

4A number of boys

achieved Gold Duke of

Edinburgh Awards in

2005/6: Michael Richards

(St. Ronan’s, H), Hugo

Codrington (Elstree, E),

Henry Thompson-Ashby

(Twyford, A), James Brown

(Elstree, A), Charles Twallin

(Cheam, A), Charles Quigley

(Elstree, A), Fred Macnamara

(Summer Fields, E), Tom Cabot

(Sunningdale, E), Ali Holmes

(Caldicott, G), Harry Nicholls (Cothill,

A) and Oliver Hunter (Farleigh, C). Freddie

Bolton (Summer Fields, G) and George Pitcher

(Cothill, B) won the Young Citizen’s Award,

and Hugh Taylor (Cothill, H), Freddie Ackrill

(Bilton Grange, B) and Toby Burgess (Elstree,

D) were awarded the ‘Millennium Volunteer

Award’ for service to the Community.

4David Pumphrey (Northcote Lodge, B)

and Jamie Bromfield (Cothill, A) won

Army Scholarships.

/ts and Activities in

10 T H E R A D L E I A N N E W S L E T T E R

Radley Achievements and Activities in /

SPORT4The most impressive fact about Radley

sport is its depth: 21 XVs regularly play

rugby matches in the Michaelmas term,

24 XIs of Hockey and Soccer on a Lent

Term Saturday, whilst at the same time

rowing VIIIs prepare for Spring Heads

of the River and Rackets, Cross Country,

Squash and Golf teams perform on minor

games days. With a roll of 630 boys the

majority represent the school; and unlike a

number of other larger schools, all fixtures

were fulfilled during the World Cup....

4The 1st XV had a good season, and the 42-15

victory over Marlborough, and the 20-12

win at Wellington were highlights. The

Captain, Charlie Oakes (Brambletye, G),

played for the Southern Schools XV. All the

senior XVs were strong (4th XV notably

so) and the Colts 1st XV developed into an

excellent unit. Once again Hockey at Radley

had a really good year; the 1st XI won or

drew all but 2 games, the 2nd XI lost just

once, other senior sides were strong, and

Midgets 1st and 5th XI, Colts 2nd and 3rd

XIs were unbeaten.

4Whilst Andrew Strauss OR (Caldicott, B)

captained England and Jamie Dalrymple

OR (Ashfold, H) joined him in the one day

squad (a rare moment indeed for 2 players

from the same school to be in the same

England team), a young 1st XI cricket had its

moments this summer with good wins over

Winchester and St Edward’s. Two Radleians,

Thaddeus Cooper (Summer Fields, D) and

Jack Tyrwhitt-Drake (Highfield, E), scored

100’s for the 2nd XI. The Colts XI under The

tutelage of Simon Dalrymple OR (Ashfold,

H) has been successful, and the Midgets year

group as a whole has been strong, Midgets

1st XI beating both Eton and Harrow. It is not

often that a Midget cricketer scores back to

back centuries, as Henry Verrill (Moulsford,

G) did.

4It was not a notably strong 1st VIII this year,

but J16 VIII won the Reading and Wycliffe

Heads and the Reading Amateur title, and

J15.1 VIII gained silver and J15.2 VIII gold

at the National Schools regatta. J15.1 won

at Reading Town Regatta. Tom Parker OR

(Pilgrims’ and H Social) won bronze with

the G.B. heavyweight VIII at the World

Championships and was part of the Oxford

VIII which won the Boat Race in March.

4The Steeplechase winners were Jamie

Bromfield (Cothill, A) (Senior); Archie Vey

(Farleigh, B) (Inter); Xan Wood (Dragon,

E) (Junior), with A Social winning the

overall title.

4In Sailing Sam Petty (Dragon, D) won the

Laser fleet race in the National Schools

Sailing Association Championship at

Farmoor, and the Prism Trophy in the

BSDRA Midlands Fleet Championship.

4The Golf team had a good year with the

side winning 8, losing 4 and drawing 2

school matches. In the West Sussex Trophy

the team (Callum MacQueen (Westbourne

House, A), Tom McPhail (Dragon, H), Tom

Atkinson (Elstree, G) and Harry Nicholls

(Cothill, A)) played very well to come 2nd

out of 22 schools. Tom McPhail retained the

Torrance Trophy at Royal St George’s this

summer.

4The Fencing team, Duncan Browne

(Sussex House, F), Philip Råge (Sussex

House, C) and Fred Ahern (Sussex House,

F) won the Southern Region under 18 Team

Foil Championship.

4In Athletics William Stinton (Sandroyd,

B) (U17 Javelin and Shot), Ollie Hunter

(Farleigh, C) (U20 Hurdles) and Ed Barton-

White (Oratory Prep, D) (U20 Triple Jump)

were County Champions.

4Henry Arundel (Ludgrove, F) has raced

for the Fortec Racing Team in the British

Formula BMW Championship.

T H E R A D L E I A N N E W S L E T T E R 11

For the past dozen years Radley’s 6.2 has attended successive

series of weekly lectures in the Michaelmas and Lent Terms given

by distinguished visiting speakers. They have been an important

element in Radleians’ education, designed to inform, stimulate and

provoke. Across the years it seems that they have succeeded in their

aim; many speakers have commented on the quality, directness and

perception of the questions, and many Radleians have, in their

turn, affirmed that the lectures have left a real mark on

them. For example, Gena Turgel came ten years ago,

a concentration camp survivor from Auschwitz and

Belsen, and her testimony had a profound effect on all

who heard her; Clive Stafford-Smith OR, death-row

lawyer, only this year overturned many comfortable

assumptions when he challenged boys to engage with

the treatment of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, in

an impassioned lecture; and Colonel Mark Cook so

moved his audience about the conditions in post-war

Bosnia that it raised £38,000 for his charity Hope and

Homes for Children.

We have entertained enough front-line politicians

to people a whole government: a Prime Minister,

John Major, who was as engaging and enthusiastic

on cricket as he was on the condition of politics post-

1997; two foreign secretaries, Lords Howe and Hurd, a

Lord Chancellor (Lord Falconer), two Tory leaders in

the Lords (Viscount Cranborne and Lord Strathclyde)

and a Labour leader (Lord Richard); a Speaker of

the House of Commons, Lord Weatherill (a truly

delightful, witty raconteur, and a real favourite with

his audience); a Conservative Party Leader, rehearsing

for us six days before he launched his now famous

Party Conference bid for the top – David Cameron;

a Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Rt. Hon. Andrew

Smith MP; and a maverick entertainer with a razor-

sharp mind, Boris Johnson MP. Alternative political

messages were articulated particularly brilliantly

by Jonathan Porritt (Friends of the Earth) and Sir

Crispin Tickell, again on the importance of the

environment.

Quite as informative, often quite as articulate

as the statesmen have been the political journalists

we’ve hosted: Melanie Phillips was impassioned in her

attack on ‘All Must Have Prizes’, a prevailing ethic of

rewarding mediocrity; Peter Hitchens was terrifying

in his vision of creeping statism; Yasmin Alibhai-

Brown icily angry over Iraq; Andrew Marr, David

Aaronovitch and Fergal Keane all cerebral and witty on aspects

of Britishness and Identity; and Libby Purves and Peter Riddell

(a regular) have brought us the incisiveness of their Times columns.

For an overview which seeks to make sense for the boys of what

has happened in the past we’ve had some notable historians: Viscount

Norwich on the importance of saving Venice, Andrew Roberts on

counter-factual history, Niall Ferguson whose ‘Pity of War’ revised

some common misconceptions of World War One, Field Marshal Lord

Bramall on being a young officer in Normandy, June 6th 1944, and

General Sir Mike Jackson on a more recent war in Kosovo. And to make

boys think about morality and ethics we have had Peter Garratt from

LIFE on abortion, Tom Shakespeare OR on genetic manipulation and

selection, and Marianne Talbot on moral relativism.

Equally important has been the aim to give boys an

understanding of business and the economy. Since 1994

they have heard from Mervyn King, Governor of

the Bank of England; Professor John Quelch of the

Harvard Business School; Bridget Rosewall (one of

the government’s economic advisers); Professor Jim

Norton on technological advancement; Johnnie

Boden on founding a mail-order business; Eric Nicoli

on adapting EMI to radical shifts in music technology;

Rupert Lowe OR on running a football club

(Southampton); and Peter Bazalgette on reality TV.

The Lecture cycle has also been a means to

broadening cultural horizons. Sessions on music

have ranged from popular musicals (Sir Tim Rice

on his career), to biographical (Hilary du Pré talking

on her sister Jacqueline) and to lecture recitals (sung

by Ann Murray, parent and opera diva and Andrew

Kennedy, former Radley don and recently winner

of the Leider prize at the Cardiff singer of the year

competition). There have been equally memorable

lectures on art and design, from talks by Gavin Stamp,

Sandy Nairne OR and Richard Cork, to more practical

demonstrations of a designer’s oeuvre from Dick

Powell of Seymour Powell. We’ve had writers

(a poetry reading by Old Radleian Poet Laureate

Andrew Motion, and readings from the Amber

Spyglass by Philip Pullman), wine critics (most

notably, Jancis Robinson, conducting a communal

wine taste for 120 boys) and a celebrity cook,

Anthony Worrall-Thompson.

Finally, we recognize how much the boys are

inspired by listening to tales of human endeavour.

We’ve heard from three successful conquerors of

Everest (including the youngest, Bear Grylls, and

the first British woman, Rebecca Stephens); from

successful Olympians, for example Matthew Pinsent;

from sports journalists like Clare Balding and Simon

Hughes, and sports lawyers, the doyen of whom

is Michael Beloff QC, recently retired President of

Trinity, Oxford, who has spoken twice at Radley.

We are hugely grateful to all the speakers who sacrifice their time to

come to Radley; their efforts have been, and will continue to be, greatly

appreciated, not least because their stories, their message, are not

incorporated in A level syllabuses. And we hope that only a very few

will emulate the nameless politician who rang when barely three miles

from the school to ask ‘what exactly am I speaking on today?’ In the

end the MP for Henley improvised very well in the time available….

Sixth Form Lecture Programme

the

Getty Im

ages

radleians

After leaving Ludgrove I had huge

expectations for Radley and it has lived

up to them. I really enjoy my sport but

I knew that my work would have to come first

and I knew that Radley would help me to find

the right balance between the classroom and the

sports field.

The rugby term was great fun despite my

team’s lack of wins (Midgets 2). This did not

stop the team enjoying themselves. We all have

to play rugby, which for me was great. I really

enjoyed it and also having this compulsory

sport means that you have one less decision to

make in your very hectic first couple of weeks

at Radley. The Lent term brought on the new

challenge of sculling which I was keen to try, as

hockey and cricket had never been my strong

points. Having sculled as a Wednesday option

in the Michalmas term I saw that it could be

great fun particularly as I have not capsized so

far! The rowing in the Lent term was cold and

I prefered the warm weather and regattas in

the summer.

Having taken a scholarship in March 2005

(JP Couzens Scholar) I did feel a little academic

pressure and after five months without huge

volumes of work I felt ready to go. I was very

happy to find the first couple of weeks a gentle

build-up to what I would find to be a challenging

load but I soon got used to it. The workload at

my prep school was certainly much lower than

what I now know to be the Radley norm.

Being a Shell boy at Radley is great, and I

think it will get even better in years to come.

There is so much to get used to in your first term

and in the first few weeks you are given a taster

of all the activities in a round robin. This gave a

little taster to a huge array of sports and activities

for people to get involved in. Music lessons are

also fun and I have been very fortunate to have

the same teacher from my prep school teaching

me here. There are a huge variety of instruments

to be played and you will come across people

who play several instruments.

One of the highlights in the first term in

the Shell is the Haddon Cup. Unfortunately the

new Theatre was not open but then we had the

honour of being the last performers in the Old

Gym. It was great fun and although every year

in G had won it in the Shells D Social narrowly

beat us.

Overall life at Radley has treated me well

and I am looking forward to my Remove year.

12 T H E R A D L E Y N E W S L E T T E R Website: www.radley.org.uk . Admissions enquiries: 01235 543174 . admissions@radley.org.uk

Hector Bevan (Shell)LUDGROVE AND G SOCIAL

Whenever the name Radley comes

up in conversation with an adult

I’m meeting for the first time the

question invariably seems to be either ‘do you

row?’ or ‘are you a rugby player?’ Humbly, I am

forced to concede that I have never indulged

in the former, and that my abilities in the latter

would perhaps have been better left untried; a

recent venture onto the pitch for a tame contest

of inter-social rugby resulted in a knee injury

that kept me out for the rest of the season.

Thankfully, however, I have found other

means to occupy my time. Since arriving at

Radley acting has been a huge passion of mine,

and I’ve been fortunate enough to have the

opportunity to get involved in three school

productions that I will never forget. The sheer

variety made each special in different ways,

starting with the musical Cabaret in the fifth

form, then moving on to Shakespeare’s A

Midsummer Night’s Dream in the 6.1, and

ending with Sheridan’s Restoration comedy,

School For Scandal.

Cabaret was great fun, incorporating a

group of Downe House students as the Kit

Kat Klub girls which obviously added to the

glamour, as well as having an orchestra onstage

- a sensational feeling as you sung the numbers,

albeit in lycra and fishnets at certain points

(I regret to say that my mother still has photo

evidence). In fact, A Midsummer Night’s Dream

forced me into equally unfortunate attire, being

set in modern day costume; some are made to

be tattooed and topless - not me.

In both Cabaret and A Midsummer Night’s

Dream I was double cast with another boy,

named Lawrence Grant, in the year above.

This was an inevitably double-edged sword.

On the one hand I was glad to have the company,

since both Emcee and Oberon were fairly solitary

roles. On the other hand it was agony having

to watch the other actor playing the role on his

nights. It was made easier, though, by the fact

that we were so dissimilar; he was a thin, blond

would-be rock star; I was a brown haired student

with an affinity for Latin. Despite the underlying

hope that the other would develop a sudden

bout of flu in the final week leading up to the

performance, it was a largely positive, and mainly

productive, experience working together.

I was delighted nevertheless to be single

cast in the final production of School For

Scandal. Indeed, the whole play was particularly

significant to me for a number of reasons; it

was the opening of the new theatre; it was my

final school play; I was getting to act alongside a

number of 6.2 actors who I’d never been in scenes

with before; it was an all boys production rather

than being done with Downe House girls as the

previous two; my character, Sir Joseph Surface,

was a devious, two-faced scoundrel – huge fun to

play; and the director, due to the current head of

drama being on maternity leave, was my house-

master – a man with a voice so booming that it

would rival Brian Blessed’s. Furthermore, the

new theatre was a fantastic place to act, making

the show feel so much more professional for the

sheer ambience.

I would have to admit that almost all of

my hobbies have really revolved around public

speaking. Debating has also been a source of

pleasure over the past few years, and perhaps the

greatest source of annoyance as well. I don’t feel

that I’m a particularly bad loser in most arenas

but if I lose in a debate a subsequent sulk emerges

that would rival Eeyore at his birthday party.

In the 6.2 I was lucky enough to become

Senior Prefect, a role that, I have to confess,

I very much enjoyed. I no doubt over-indulged

my argumentative side as well as the attempted

gravitas of the chapel readings, but it has been

really interesting trying to mediate between the

boys and dons, which I would see as the main

importance of the job.

When you come close to leaving Radley

the things you will and won’t miss become

unmistakeably apparent. For the most part I feel

ready to move on to university. However, seeing

the audition sheet go up for next year’s production

of A few good men did spark a tinge of envy. The

new theatre really has opened up the possibilities

for the school drama, and not being a part of that

is perhaps one small source of regret.

I would hate for this article to sound like

some false sycophantic rant about how wonderful

Radley is. It’s obviously entirely dependent on each

person. The one common feature I imagine all

of us would identify as having acquired after five

years, however, is the ability not to take ourselves

too seriously. The all boys’ boarding school

experience seems to have been all about realising

the archaisms and eccentricities of the system, and

appreciating them. I would hope that I don’t take

myself too seriously. After the ridiculous costumes

and hairstyles (which I’m frequently reminded of)

it would certainly be hard to.

Edward Martineau (Senior Prefect)DRAGON AND H SOCIAL