Whinchat 2016 by Bedford-School

BEDFORD PREPARATORY SCHOOL

WHINCHAT MAGAZINE - AUTUMN 2016

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CONTENTS

Table of Contents GUILDS AND ASSOCIATIONS

INTRODUCTION Headmasterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Introduction

STAFF

Prep Guild Report

BSA Bedford School Association

Salvete (New staff)

TRIPS/OUTINGS

Valete (Staff moving on)

Bunyan Museum & Higgins Gallery

Chapel Choir Tour To Spain

French Trip

PGL

Bude / Jersey

Skiing

South Africa

Ickwell

Whipsnade Zoo

ACADEMIC English

Mathematics

Science

Modern Foreign Languages

History

Geography

ENRICHMENT Enrichment

THE ARTS

SPORT Athletics

Badminton

Art

Cross Country

Drama

Cricket

Design Technology

Golf

Music

Hockey

Rowing

Rugby

Triathlon

Swimming

Leavers

And Finally...

HOUSES Eagle House Report

Bunyan House Report

Harpur House Report

Howard House Report

Whitbread House Report

CHARITY Charity Committee Report

Charity Events

THE DIRECTION IN WHICH EDUCATION STARTS A MAN WILL DETERMINE HIS FUTURE IN LIFE.”

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I N T RO D U C T I O N

Headmaster’s Introduction WELCOME TO THE WHINCHAT 2015-2016 This magazine is our yearly opportunity to look back over the year and enjoy reminiscing about a few of the highlights.

M 01

01 Winner of the Tisdall award - Joseph Needham 02 Prep School Prize-winners 2015-16 03 Year 8 boys who performed at Open Morning

y usual caveat applies, that most of the amazing things to have happened throughout the year are not caught on camera, and neither should they be. In fact, it is more usual that our best moments of the year - the personal triumphs, the highs and highlights, the events which build our character - are not captured on film. However, contained in the Whinchat are a few that we have caught; the rest of the experiences will have to live on in personal memory. At Speech Day this year, we were lucky to have previous Head Boy and star of stage and screen, Jonno Davies, as our Guest of Honour. He spoke to the boys about the importance of perseverance in the face of adversity. It is something we have also talked about in assemblies throughout the year, the importance of learning through mistakes, as well as from what has gone well. This is something we believe strongly at the school, that in order to succeed we need, what in modern educational parlance is called, a “growth mindset”. We are more likely to enjoy success when we work hard, learn from the occasional failure and mistake and use knock-backs to sustain us and become stronger. We need to keep learning, to really believe that we can get better at something. We need to understand that our intelligence is not fixed, but can grow through constant effort and the will to find our way around problems. At Speech Day we awarded prizes to those who had been successful academically, and who had shown this growth mindset in abundance. However, also crucial to the life of a school are those everyday successes, those small victories, those little failures which combine to build our character. Also at Speech Day, a new prize was awarded for the first time in honour of an OB, Arthur St Clair Tisdall, who died in action in the First World War in 1915. The Master of Trinity College Cambridge, where he received a double first, describes him as being “our foremost scholar … a man of generous intellectual culture and also of high ideals. He seemed made for

distinction in life, and that not of the selfish kind.” He was awarded a Victoria Cross in Gallipoli for saving many lives under heavy fire. The Tisdall award has a sum of money associated with it so that the recipient can spend it on a beneficial and worthwhile endeavour. It is given to a Y8 pupil who is respected by peers and teachers alike, who most embodies the school’s ethos, and in particular displays kindness to others. This year, it was awarded to Joseph Needham. Well done to Joseph, and I am proud of all the boys of Bedford School. Plato wrote that: “The direction in which education starts a man will determine his future in life.” Children don’t always get everything right, of course, but the direction of travel this year has always been forward, and Bedford Prep School boys are always a delight to be around. Our boys, more than any that I have seen in the six schools I have taught in are stretched, challenged, given ample opportunities ... and they come up trumps. Collectively, they are cause for great optimism for their and for our future, whatever happens in the post Brexit climate. W O R D S BY

Ian Silk Headmaster

Harry Constantine Head Boy

S TA F F

Salvete (New staff )

M R S J OY LE E SO N Maths teacher and Year 7 teacher

rs Leeson is an experienced teacher of Maths who joins us from the Bedford School Study Centre, where she has taught Maths since 2005. Before that she ran her own department at St Gregoryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. She is also a talented sportswoman, having played rounders for England at under 18 level and county basketball. She represented Bedford Hockey Club at 1st team level for many years, and is now an Eastern Region Masters player. She is also a committed Christian.

M I S S DA N I E LLE B O U G H E Y Speech and Drama GTA

iss Boughey joined the Prep School in September after completing a degree in Theatre and Performance Studies at the University of Warwick. She worked with Five Star Theatre company throughout her university years, directing and acting in shows and getting fully involved in all aspects of the running of the company. She has also worked with children with Kits Academy and TheatreTrain, a company for children aged 6-18 who are interested in performing arts, helping them prepare scripts and a devised scene for performance at the Royal Albert Hall. She attended Rugby School and is a keen sportswoman; she represented school in netball and swimming, and played football for Coventry City Ladies.

M S LU I S A VA LE NTI N O Year 4 teacher

s Valentino joined the Prep School in January this year from The Firs Lower, where she was a Key Stage 2 teacher. She originally trained at Brunel University as a lawyer and enjoyed work placements at a couple of law firms, before eventually retraining as a teacher. She is keen to start a debating society, would like to be involved in a school newspaper and enjoys playing the piano in her spare time.

W H I N C H AT

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S TA F F

MISS JESSICA HONE Enrichment coordinator Year 3 & Year 4 and Year 3 teacher

iss Hone also joined us in January this year to teach in Y3 and Y4. Before Bedford Prep School she taught at Pinchmill Lower as a Key Stage 2 teacher, where she was also Head of Key Stage, PE subject leader and co-ordinator, MFL subject leader and co-ordinator and extra-curricular after school sports club leader. She is an avid runner in her spare time, enjoys lacrosse and describes herself as a â&#x20AC;&#x153;bookwormâ&#x20AC;? and is really keen to inspire a love of reading in children. She is also a keen musician and plays both flute and double-bass, and has performed in Venice and the Royal Albert Hall.

M R S S A R A H S I LK English teacher

rs Silk has taught Speech and Drama here at the Prep School and now the English department. She is a highly experienced English teacher who began her career as a teacher of English and Drama in 1994. She has been a second in department and has run her own performing arts department. She has taught throughout the age range, from 7-18. She is also a professionally trained dancer who trained at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance, and is a keen writer with a particular interest in literature for children.

M R S R AC H E L OS B O R N E Geography and Maths teacher

rs Osborne joined the Prep School in January from Robert Bloomfield Academy where she taught Maths from 2000. She has also experience teaching English, Science, Humanities and Religious Studies. Whilst she has been at Bedford School she has run weekly Maths clinics and Maths club, and has been on a number of school trips. Whilst at Robert Bloomfield, she was an NQT mentor and devised a number of schemes of work. She attended Dame Alice Harpur School as a pupil.

S TA F F

W H I N C H AT

Valete (Staff moving on)

e said good-bye to six teachers this year. Firstly, Geoff Wickens, who has been at the school for 37 years. Last year, in February, he suffered a stroke which has led to his early retirement on the grounds of ill-health. In his many years at the school, he has carried out a number of roles, teaching Maths and Science, Master in Charge of Hockey and more recently Deputy Headmaster. The community has raised significant funds to pay for equipment to go towards making life a little easier for him and his family. It is a very sad way to finish such a distinguished teaching career, but he will be in our hearts, and will be much missed by the whole community. Four other teachers who have given a combined service of 87 years to Bedford School moved on last year. Charles Blacklock retired after 33 years teaching, 27 of which have been spent educating and inspiring the boys at Bedford Prep School, which he also attended as a boy. We would like to record our huge gratitude for all his many years loyal service as a class teacher, Housemaster of Whitbread, leader of the CCF RAF section, sports coach, provider of numerous exciting extra-curricular experiences (including the much-loved model aircraft club) and much else besides. I am sure, and hope, we will still see him at future Prep School events. He also continues with a role in the CCF. Louise Thomas left us in December 2015. She worked at the Prep School as a Year 3 and Year 4 teacher for a quarter of a century and inspired generations of boys, who come back for the “survivors” photo each summer (see photo which includes Mrs Thomas and Mrs MacAskill). She also leaves a legacy in the form of the Louise Thomas cup for the boy who has given the most to tennis each year. The inaugural winner of the award was Tobias Todd, who moves on from Year 8 to the Upper School this year. In terms of years devoted to the school, Mrs MacAskill is not far behind, with 14 years spent inspiring and giving the best possible start to our boys. As well as teaching Year 4, she also ran our PSHE programme and introduced a number of innovations. She leaves to

spend more time with her husband, who has relocated to Scotland with his work. Both ladies have given a huge amount to the school, and in particular the Y3 and Y4 department, and we thank them for their unstinting service. Vicky Chance also left us in July, after 22 years teaching art and working as art technician in both Prep and Upper School. Her first role was especially significant in the formation of the, then, new Prep School. She was responsible for transforming the Inky library from the old Inky School Hall, to its present usage as school library. We wish her great joy in her retirement. Finally, Sarah Portsmouth has not been here for as long as those already mentioned, but she has given an enormous amount in her two years at the school. She joined us as our Drama GTA, with particular responsibility for running the Speech and Drama programme and has transformed our offering in this department, certainly if judged by the outstanding successes at the Bedfordshire Festival and Lamda examinations. However, she has given so much more than that. She has worked in Eagle House looking after the boarders; and she has put on amazing plays, such as Archie Dobson’s War, and The Comedy of Errors, and co-directed the musical Bluebeard. She also taught French, covering for Madame Trounson for the whole of the academic year. She was last seen climbing, surfing and abseiling with her group, the Beach Boys, at Bude with Years 5 and 6 on their adventure holiday. She has packed an awful lot into two years, and we hope we haven’t seen the last of her.

01 02 03 04 05 06

What Mr Wickens means Vicky Chance Miss Sarah Portsmouth Mr Charles Blacklock Mr Wickens in the tug of war Mrs MacAskill and Mrs Thomas with 6th form leavers (front right of the picture)

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S TA F F

ENGLISH

W H I N C H AT

English ENGLISH REPORT

I DON’T LIKE POETRY

The Poetry Composition Competition used the theme of “school” this year. Some amazing poems were created and the following are some examples from each year group. Alongside composition, boys were also awarded House points for their handwriting. Congratulations to the following boys: Handwriting

Composition

Handwriting

Composition

Benjamin Roberts

Fraser Morgan

Anish Katechia

James Deardon

James Pinkney

Ruairi Cassell

Yonathan Sileshi

Talha Khan

Daniel Blight

Ali Khan

George Ashcroft

Harry Clifton

Charlie Eggleton

Ben Beckmann

Raafay Saad

Robert Wells

Clement Rahwangi Gough

Ibrahim Hassan

Henry Williams

Michael Bennell

Harry Pilcher

Sam Mullaney

Edward Dagg 8M

Freddie Peacock

Tom CameronFraser

Hari Mistry

Mattie Lousada-Blaazer

Shaun Thomas

Finn Montgomery

Harissh Paheerathan

Theo Sutton

Oliver Needham

William Everitt

Umar Khan

Archie McLean

Tom Godber

Callum Ward

Gurkaran Johal

Rohan Jacob

Thomas Hayward

Harry Midgley

Harlan Todd

Sam Wells

Max Pearson

Merlin Toms

s well as the composition, the Recitation Competition was keenly contested by some very confident competitors. I was more nervous than the boys in ensuring I was ready to prompt, which I did only once. Congratulations to the following boys for their performances: Jamie Maling, Alexander Deane, Sam Maling and Caleb Sanders. A huge thank you goes out to Miss Garrett for her positive feedback as our esteemed judge. Other highlights of year must include the Public Speaking Competition, the Inky Gothic Evening, and the Heroes and Villains Day, where the majority of boys and staff dressed up as their favourite hero or villain in celebration of World Book Day. The breadth and range of subjects for public speaking was fascinating and our judge, Mr Adams, found it hard to pick only one winner as they were all so good. Henry Faulkner’s persuasive and entertaining talk entitled “Sugar” won in Y8 and a hugely knowledgeable talk on the Cuban Missile Crisis meant James Cutler

I don’t like poetry I don’t like similes Every time I think of them, My brain feels like it is the size of a mountain, My head feels like it will explode, My spine feels like its tingling. I don’t like metaphors Whenever I attempt them, My fingers are greasy claws. My head is a big bowl of soup wobbling when I walk slowly. I don’t like alliteration We learn about it in school. But it’s horribly hateful, Dreadfully disgusting, Smelly, sweaty, stinky socks! I don’t like onomatopoeia I wish I could blow it up, With a BANG and a DAZZLE and a BOOM and a CRASH! And I don’t like verbs They make me jump and hop and sprint with ANGER! W O R D S BY

Ruariri Cassell (Y3)

won in Y7. Well done indeed to both boys, as it is no easy task speaking so eloquently in front of such a large audience in the EMH. The Inky Gothic Evening was enormous fun. Ghost stories emanated from the haunted home of the English and History Departments. Screams of terror were heard long into the night…

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ENGLISH

THE PERFECT BOY

ESCAPING SCHOOL

THE STAFF ROOM

We have a perfect boy in our class, The teacher thinks his work is greener than grass, Just if I were a perfect boy, Just how much would it annoy?

We gotta get out of this crazy school The teachers are evil and tyranicool.

If you walk past the creaky stairs, Past the first corridor, You will see a wooden door Labelled the STAFF ROOM.

The perfect boy, the perfect boy, That’s his name, All that attention he gets, Because he’s always in the top set. If he were to go out of class, I would be top of the class. The perfect boy, the perfect boy, I’d be given so many toys. Some call him ‘smellyhut,’ Some call him ‘bellybutt,’ He must be robotic, Or hypnotic. I want him gone, But NO, he stays. Now one day, He’s on holiday. Now I’M top of the class. Hip, hip hooray. W O R D S BY

Like Mr Bignose and his snotty tissues The way he talks about important issues. Mrs Goaty with her wild beard And her big, bad stick that must be feared. Mr Stumpy and his pile of books Who always shouts at the Italian cooks. Mrs Specs who always leered And when she fell the children cheered We’re gonna go through the lunch hall Before the bell has rung. But we gotta look out for the lunch ladies: Linda, Gina, Landy, Mina, Paula, Tutu, Margy, Lulu And all the rest…

Rumour has it there is a butler And his name is Buster, Once I saw Mr Kipling Come out with six cakes. My friend says there is a dog And it sings opera. Apparently there is a bed Big enough for 9000 elephants to be fed. There is a coffee machine as tall as a skyscraper, Its coffee is apparently super lush, It is from the Amazon Rainforest And its mug says ‘so lush!’ I would guess that there is a pizzeria That has pizzas made in Italy, With an ambrosial and crunchy crust. All the finest ingredients, Mozarella and brie!

Edward Dagg (Y4) We’re dodging curry, Soup in a hurry They’re chucking chicken KFC and Maccy D’ Those evil ladies must really hate me. They’re gonna kill us with their acid gravy, Their spicy salsa that burns like crazy, Their drowsy drops coated in chocolate And the sticky sauce that lets off a smell. Good, we got past them but wait, WE WENT THE WRONG WAY! “DETENTION!” roars the Headmaster. Next time I will just go through, The Fire Exit! W O R D S BY

Finn Montgomery (Y5)

I’ve seen planes fly over the school, So I guess there is an airport And the plane seats are first class. They have champagne topped up in their glass. I assume that there is a greenhouse, With pizza trees and hotdog trees And money trees, All the plants that would keep me pleased. I’ve found out they do yoga, To get ease their ‘teacher stress!’ They meditate all together That’s why they couldn’t care less.

I think they have a teacher Who actually teaches them Physics & Latin Carpe Diem. One boy says there is a bouncy castle, That bounces really high And you can see the whole school. It feels like you can fly. I heard there is a toilet that speaks And cleans itself too. So you can have a conversation, Whilst sitting on the loo! I heard they have a lake, So that they can water-ski And their ramps are really high. They are as free as can be. The only thing I am upset about, The only thing at all, Is that there is no picture of me, For being the best student of all. W O R D S BY

Callum Ward (Y6)

ENGLISH

W H I N C H AT

English THE EVIL SCHOOL Teachers haunt the school… Pupils wander, brain-washed with formality and fear. Classrooms are tortured with silence, The possessed buildings are ancient labyrinths, Blocking out fun and games.

JOSHUA SEIGAL’S VISIT

n Wednesday 20th January a poet called Joshua Seigal came to visit all the boys in Ys3 and 4. It was very interesting. First, Joshua recited some of his poems to us and he was very entertaining. Later on, Joshua ran some workshops for us. We each wrote a “What if…” poem and a poem about hating a particular vegetable! I loved the day and I wish I could do it again. I am now more into poetry and I find it more fun. W O R D S BY

Charlie Eggleton (Y3)

The word ‘behave’ scratches at your brain, Devils eyes watch you around every dark corner. The so called ‘play area’ is like a ghastly prison yard, Encasing you. High above the victims, in his shadowy lair, Lurks the head spectre, His mouth of hell and tongue of sparks, Blazes out hatred and punishment. They mess with time, Stretching the freak day to last hours upon hours longer. The maths teacher subtracts children from enjoyment And multiplies the torture. The Dark Arts Emperor paints panic on the walls And prints boredom on the floor. The taste of distress fills the rotting air. Fumes of noxious work rise up your nose. There goes the freedom bell, Lighting up the evil corridors. It opens up the frightful doors as excitement floods in. Children are cleansed of this curse And bound out of the entrance, Happy and cheerful to leave. Until the next day when the horror returns!

JOSH LACEY VISIT

n June we were joined by author Josh Lacey for the day. Josh spoke to boys in all year groups about what inspired him to become a writer and his journey to where he is today. He talked about his favourite books and authors. Josh also read from some of his books and explained how and where he writes them. The boys were invited to guess what he wanted to be when he was their age. His clue was a towel – can you guess what he wanted to be? A question and answer session followed and Josh was bombarded with a wide range of questions from ‘What is your bestselling book? ‘Do your children read your books and do they like them?’ to ‘Do you get lonely when you are writing?’ Boys in Y3 and Y4 were treated to some readings from Josh’s ‘Dragonsitter’ series accompanied by some of Gary Parsons’ illustrations. These books have been very popular in the library since Josh’s visit as the boys are keen to find out what goes wrong when you look after your uncle’s pet dragon! A big thank you to Josh for entertaining and inspiring the boys and to all the boys who asked him such brilliant questions! By the way, Josh wanted to be an astronaut when he was a boy.

W O R D S BY

James Deardon (Y7)

Amy Lumley-Wood

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ENGLISH

HARRY POTTER BOOK NIGHT

s last year’s Harry Potter Day was so much fun, we decided to take part again on Thursday 4th February. This year the theme was ‘A Night of Spells’. Nash’s and Tisdall’s buildings had a Hogwarts makeover to set the scene, and Nash’s library was once more transformed into Diagon Alley and Platform 9 ¾.

Armed with their cloaks and wands, boys battled hair-raising spells and enchanted potions, took on magical quizzes, word searches and a treasure hunt. Staff wore their gowns and throughout the day lessons had a magical theme. Mrs Carrington even made some really horrible looking potions, and the boys tried levitating balloons in Science.

After lunch boys swapped their hockey sticks for broomsticks for a great game of Quidditch, before reliving some of their favourite magical moments from the Harry Potter series in dramatic readings by Miss Portsmouth, Mrs Silk, Mr Affleck and Mr Roberts. Our taste buds also enjoyed a treat in the dining halls as we sampled a whole array of Hogwarts’ wizardry delights, including chocolate frogs, golden snitch cake pops and butter beer, cooked up by our own wizards of the kitchen! Prizes were awarded for the all the magical competitions and the winners received a Harry Potter Book of their choice. W O R D S BY

Amy Lumley-Wood

AC A D E M I C

W H I N C H AT

Mathematics Y5 PAT TE R N S A N D S EQ U E N C E S

n Maths we investigated patterns by using bridges and arches. We did this by making a basic bridge and adding on to it in a continual pattern. We put our results in a table. The columns were: bridge number, height, width of bridge and finally total number of blocks. We tried to figure out the number of blocks needed to make the 10th pattern without finding the 8th and 9th; we did this by studying the continual pattern and adding on to it. W O R D S BY

Matthew Goodman (Y5)

y Maths class were working on arches and bridges and we had to make bridges and write them down in my Maths book. We made tables to show how we actually drew them in patterns. We drew a lot of arches and bridges. The first one and the second one we drew were a bit easy, but they got harder and more fun. After we drew the tables for the first and second, everyone worked out that there was a pattern in the table. Everyone finished the table which then made it a lot easier to draw the arches or the bridges. After we drew the arches and bridges, we coloured them in then we had decided to make them out of blocks. It was very fun! W O R D S BY

Anas Mehrez (Y5)

£110,000.00

£105,000.00

£100,000.00

DATE

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Andy Wong (Y8)

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£95,000.00 /12

Mr Egan set up an end of year project based on trading skills to use the concept that we were taught this year. We were asked to invest a hundred thousand pounds into different stock and shares in the London stock market. However, there were certain criteria we had to follow for example:

It was a fun and an awesome experience, exploring in new technology. At the time of writing this report I have made a 14% profit to my portfolio. I sold all my stocks just before the EU referendum. I predicted that the economy will drop after the referendum. As you have noticed the referendum has made a big change to the UK economy of 10% drop. Watch out parents, especially accountants and stock brokers, we’re catching up.

ANDY’S PORTFOLIO VALUE DAILY CHART £115,000.00

07 /0 6

aths is widely used in the real world, from accountants, to stock brokers to shop keepers. It is not just about exam results; it is to learn how to use it in the wider world.

1. Invest in four sectors and a maximum of 10 stocks 2. Sell 50% (or more) of your portfolio and reinvest in new stocks 3. Analysing and recording evidence of daily share prices on Google sheet or Excel

VALUE

Y8 S TOC K S AND SHARES

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AC A D E M I C

J U N I O R M ATH S C H A LLE N G E R E P O RT

he Junior Maths Challenge is aimed at pupils in Y7 and Y8 (or equivalent in Scotland and Ireland). The challenge involves answering twenty-five multiple choice questions that got harder in difficulty as you went along. We were given an hour to do complete the test, under exam conditions. It is designed to test the problem solving capability and mathematical knowledge of each student. The last ten questions will gain you more marks if correct, but if answered incorrectly you will find yourself losing marks.

J U N I O R M ATH S C H A L L E N G E R E S U LT S BEST IN SCHOOL -

Theo Ward Y8

This is to prevent guessing. You do not necessarily need to be good at maths to do well: you need to be able to think logically!

B E S T I N Y8 -

Theo Ward

BEST IN Y7 -

Alex Aellen

‘The problems on the Junior Maths Challenge are designed to make students think’ is printed on the back of certificates. It was made so that you can apply techniques and skills to different questions to improve your applied Maths (logic) skills.

G O L D C E RT I F I C AT E S :

George Winder Y8 Alex Linney Y8 Matt Rea Y8 Varun Parmar Y8

W O R D S BY

Harilaos Karavaggelis and Theo Ward (Y8) J M C G O L D AWA R D W I N N E R S

Henry Faulkner Y8 Henry Tryer Y8 Harilaos Karavaggelis Y8 Maxwell Martin Y7

Y8 R E V I E W O F TH E Y E A R “My Y8 has been very interesting. I have learnt an awful lot this year and have had lots of good times. I have enjoyed the fast paced learning strategy we have used in Maths this year and I feel I have learnt more this year than any other year, although I found the estimated median quite hard and would like to revisit it in the Upper School.”

“I have enjoyed lessons where we have incorporated technology into our learning using websites like MyMaths and Kahoot. I also had the chance to go to Cambridge University and take part in the Junior Team Maths Challenge.” W O R D S BY

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Amir Solanki (Y8)

Alex Linney (Y8) “Out of the units we did this year my favourite was by a small way significant figures. I enjoyed finding the estimation and found it useful in other units throughout the year. I also enjoyed percentages and substitutions because it taught me how to use those techniques in word problems and appeared a lot in exams. It was also rewarding to be able to crack the formula to an equation.”

“One of my favourite topics was Pythagoras Theorem, because I had been wondering about his work for quite some time and now I feel that I have a good understanding of it. I also enjoyed learning about sequences. I also really enjoyed doing Kahoot in some lessons as I think it is fun to do once in a while and it is a good way to improve your mental mathematics.”

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Antonio Reale (Y8)

Ashlesh Chandrapu (Y8)

AC A D E M I C

W H I N C H AT

Science SCIENCE DEPARTMENT SUMMARY 2015-2016 As can be seen from the photos displayed, much has been happening in the Science Department this year:

Sam Ferrari Oliver Blakemore and Luay Mughal Henry Cudjoe and Dylan Swain Learning how to set up chromatography - 5S Chromatography - Shaun Thomas Sammy Inman, Joseph Edwards, Jamie Maling, Fraser Morgan - Y3 Science Sleepoveer 07 Investigating disclosing tablets - Will Reddy 01 02 03 04 05 06

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AC A D E M I C

W H I N C H AT

Modern Foreign Languages

Y4 F R E N C H M O R N I N G

n French Morning, lots of people came dressed up. Everyone looked great! The first thing we did in the morning was go into the EMH and play a few French games, such as Loto and singing. It was extremely good fun. Next, we went to the dining hall and we had a French breakfast which was delicious. I had a croissant and a pain au chocolat; they were very tasty. At the end of break, we all lined up in our classes and we were put into groups. The first thing we did was play French drama games with Madame Portsmouth. I thought it was fantastic. Then we went into Madame Phelpsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; room where we got to eat pancakes with different toppings (they were absolutely delicious!). Finally, we did a French task based on all the ingredients used to make the pancakes. That was really good fun. Personally, I thought the whole morning was fabulous. W O R D S BY

Samuel Mullaney (Y4)

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AC A D E M I C

MA SEMAINE OUTSTANDING FRENCH WORK

Tyler Pickersgill

undi matin, je suis allé au parc avec mes copains. L’après-midi, j’ai joué au tennis et le soir j’ai mangé au restaurant avec ma famille.

ardi matin, je suis allé au cinema et j’ai vu “Deadpool”. L’après midi, je suis allé faire un promenade et le soir j’ai mangé une pizza à Dominoes.

MI CASA OUTSTANDING SPANISH WORK

Jack Davis

ivo en una casa bastante grande y moderna en el pueblo, en el sudeste, cerca de Bedford. Mi casa tiene dos plantas y dieciséis habitaciones.

ercredi matin, j’ai mangé mon petit dejeuner avec ma famille. L’aprés midi, je suis allé au Niketown et le soir je suis allé chez mes grandparents.

endredi matin, je n’ai pas joué aux cartes mais jai joué au volley ball avec mes copains. L’après midi j’ai mangé au Quick et soir j’ai regardé un film à la maison.

eudi matin, je suis allé à la piscine avec mes copains. L’apres midi, je suis allé au club de jeunes j’ai joué au tennis et le soir j’ai mangé au Quick.

amedi matin, j’ai mangé mon petit dejeuner chez mes grandparents. L’apres midi j’ai joué au foot avec mes copains et le soir je suis resté à la maison.

Vivo en una casa moderna, confortable y bastante uenose un pueblo llamado Great Denham, al norte de Londres. Mi barrio es mi agradable,tranquilo, y las personas son amistosos. Mi casa tiene tres plantas y diecisèis habitaciones. En la planta baja hay un baño, un despacho, una cocina , un ueno, un comedor y un conservatorio. En la primera planta hay cuatro uenosees: mi dormitorio, el dormitorio de mis padres, el dormitorio de mi hermano mayor que se llama James y finalmente el dormitorio de mi hermano Michael. También hay tres baños. En la segunda planta hay un ueno de juegos y otro dormitorio con un baño. En el salon de juegos tenemos una pecera con peces tropicales. Afuera tenemos un garaje para dos coches, un cobertizo y dos jardines, una uenose de las casa y una atrás de la casa. Los jardines están llenos de flores y el jardín de atrás tiene un patio pequeño. Me encanta mi casa porque es cómoda, privada y grande. También nuestros vecinos son muy amables y uenos amigos.

W H I N C H AT

History

Year 6

Kentwell Hall Trip Y6 concluded their work on the Tudors by spending the day in 1586. Our visit to Kentwell Hall provided a fantastic opportunity to understand life on a working manor.

ll boys (and staff) were dressed in suitable costume and had to adapt to speaking 16thC English. The reenactors were superb, their attention to historical detail meticulous. From training as an archer to using a camera obscura, the boys experienced a wealth of sights, sounds, smells, tastes and textures. Here are a few highlights from the boys:

“I was surprised that there were homeless people wandering around the manor.” “The peacock was beautiful. I’d never seen one close up before.” “I didn’t know that people had to pay to go to school. I thought that education was free in Tudor times. It cost parents a lot of money to send a child to school. They must have thought it was worth the investment.” “I could have stayed in the kitchen all day watching people making pies. I really wanted to try one!” “The alchemist was quite scary because he had jars with dead animals in and the backbone of a whale.”

“The archers had to be so strong. Some of the teachers tried to draw the bow and couldn’t.” “The horses were gorgeous, but the stables did not smell nice!” “I was amazed that they had people who specifically made sweets for the lord. I was also surprised that marzipan was so popular.” “The hourglasses were really clever. Each time you turned it over an hour had passed. To keep count of the hours, the kitchen servants would put a dried bean on the top. I also learned that time didn’t really exist because they didn’t have watches and clocks.” “The pottage smelled really tasty.”

“It felt like we were in a foreign country because I couldn’t understand what the people were saying.”

“Musical notes look so different now and I didn’t know the Tudors played the guitar.”

W H I N C H AT

History Year 4

Lunt Roman Fort Report

t the gates of Lunt Roman fort we had to say a password in Latin: ‘tomacula’ (which means sausages). Romans used to absolutely adore sausages.

Our first activity involved learning about joining the Roman army. Sahvan Jutla volunteered to be a recruit called Marcus. Our guide named, Rufus, helped Sahvan change into the special equipment and armour that he would need to be a Roman soldier. Our second activity was to explore the fort. We had to march like a Roman soldier and we entered the area where Roman soldiers would train to fight. We also passed a lot of stonework in the ground, which marked areas where buildings had not yet been re-constructed. I certainly enjoyed learning about and visiting the Lunt Roman Fort! It has helped me develop an awareness and understanding of the Roman Army. W O R D S BY

Reis Fernandes (Y4)

Year 8

Racism Essay

ttitudes to racism have changed dramatically in the last 200 years. We have moved from a position of intolerance to one of greater acceptance and inclusivity, but that move had to be fought for by various pressure groups, individuals and religious institutions. As a result, English society in general, and the Law itself, recognises a person’s right not to be discriminated against on account of their race. However, there will always be those who refuse to accept the notion that certain races are not superior to others. White Europeans in the 19thC believed that they were superior to all other races. According to their science of eugenics, they believed that (depending upon how big your nose was, the shape of your skull, how wide your lips were, the length of your fingers and your skin colour) it was possible to determine your intellect and place in society. Many European countries believed in this “proven” theory. Pears soap produced an advertisement in the 1800s which showed a black person being bathed by a white person using Pears soap. After he has finished, the

Q. How Far Have Social Attitudes Changed Between c.1800 and 2016? Chosen Topic: People from Different Racial Backgrounds (Racism) black person’s body had turned completely white, showing the “quality” of Pears soap. In the 20thC, the various nationalist movements that aimed for independence from the British Empire and, later, the Civil Rights Movement in the USA, helped to challenge the notion of racial superiority. Men and women like Mahatma Ghandi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Rev. Martin Luther King Jnr, Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks and Eleanor Roosevelt fought for equality in societies. In so doing, they helped to change attitudes in many European countries, including the United Kingdom, towards the issue of race. The Race Relations Act of 1976 was an important step in England. It made it unlawful to discriminate against a person on the basis of their skin colour. Signs reading “no blacks, no Irish, no dogs”, which were not uncommon in England were now prohibited. But, did this Act really banish racism from England? We still have the EDL (English Defence League) that claims that England is for the English alone and that others are not welcome. We still have crimes, such as

the Stephen Lawrence murder, where black and non-white people have been the target of attacks, some fatal. The police in England have been accused of institutional racism. Finally, on 29th February 2016, the black MP Dawn Butler complained that she had been mistaken for a cleaner when using a lift at the House of Commons, due to her skin colour. On balance, there is no doubt that our attitudes to race have changed for the better over the past few generations. There is no better illustration of this than the high number of inter-racial marriages that take place in this country. By and large, the English people have accepted different communities living amongst them and have been bighearted enough to embrace these cultures. That said, how far have these cultures also embraced the idea of racial equality? Perhaps there is something to be learned from the English people and their tolerance. W O R D S BY

Rohan Jacob (Y8)

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AC A D E M I C

Twitter

Year 3

Year 7

Archaeology Workshop

English Civil War Talk

3 spent a morning exploring the work of archaeologists as part of their work on Ancient Civilisations.

7 enjoyed a lecture given by our regular visiting speaker, Kevin Hicks. Ending with the firing of a musket, he regaled them with stories of the English Civil War.

Year 5 Mountfitchet Castle

5 descended upon Stansted Mountfitchet in Essex in March. They spent the day exploring the reconstructed 11thC motte and bailey castle. Not sure if anybody saw the ghost in the baron’s hall, but attempts to leave Mr Affleck in the stocks at the end of the visit failed …

Year 8 Pizza Time

8 channelled their inner Mary Berry to create either a cake or pizza to tell the story of Bedfordshire’s brickmaking industry.

Year 8 Family History Projects

8 study the 19thC throughout the year, investigating local, national and international history. As part of the course, they complete a piece of extensive independent research. The “Family History Project” - conducting an interview with the oldest member of the family, constructing a family tree, choosing a photograph of an important family event, and identifying a family heirloom – enables boys to develop a deeper understanding of their personal history. The pride taken by the boys in their final projects was exceptional. Hopefully, they will treasure the work and pass it onto their children or grandchildren.

Y6 Geography FOR ROCKS AND DINOSAURS

6 enjoyed hearing about Rocks and Dinosaurs at this annual workshop which took place in the Erskine May Hall. Mr Graham Woollard from “Portals to the Past” gave a fascinating talk to the boys. He explained how the earth was formed and talked about the time of the dinosaurs. He was aided by an awesome collection of fossils and models. His fossils included stromatolites which are 3000 million year old plants, megladon sharks’ teeth, ammonites, belemnites and trilobites. He had some excellent dino-models including a T-Rex, Stegosaurus, Enchodus (a big fish) and a model of the world when it was forming. Finally, the boys were shown five objects and by comparison and investigation of the evidence given they had to work out what they were. The boys thoroughly enjoyed it.

AC A D E M I C

W H I N C H AT

Geography

Y4 Geography MEXICAN MASKS — EASTER 2016

“…..The Aztecs used to live in Mexico” Arthur Polhill “I liked learning about Tocuaro, a Mexican village.” Alex Hammond “I enjoyed learning about chillies. I found the ghost chilli the hottest. I loved learning about how chocolate is used in some sauces.” Fred Dickson

“….Mexicans put chocolate in their salsa. They also melt chocolate down to a liquid. My mask is based on the golden eagle which is on the Mexican flag” Gabriel Almeida “….Most people wear a sombrero in Mexico. They eat a lot of chillies and chocolate is put in sauces and then this is put into tortillas” David Wiltshire

Y7 Geography PRIORY COUNTRY PARK

7 experienced field work with their visit to Priory Country Park. The boys made observations on the sustainable features seen in the park. They learnt how to draw and annotate field sketches to support their understanding on the sustainable management of the park. Although the field work was based on geographical information, the historical aspects of the park were discussed too; with evidence of Roman and Anglo-Saxon history on display in the Visitor’s Centre.

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AC A D E M I C

Geography

Y7 Geography ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES; NATIONAL PARKS

ollowing the Priory Country Park fieldtrip, Y7 boys went on to learn about the environmental issues facing National Parks in the UK. They were each asked to research a park and provide a summary of the features seen at their chosen park: the landscape, the main settlements, transport routes, specific wildlife, touristic hotspots, main land-use and industries. The following images depict two of the many commendable posters that were produced:

Y8 Geography PLATE TECTONICS â&#x20AC;&#x201D; EARTHQUAKE PROOF STRUCTURES

n Y8, boys study the tectonic settings that produce earthquakes. The topic discusses the primary and secondary effects of major earthquakes around the World and the fact that so many people live in earthquakeprone areas. Boys are asked to design an earthquake structure, incorporating a number of the design features used in real life into their designs. The following buildings were designed and constructed by boys in Y8.

ENRICHMENT

W H I N C H AT

Enrichment This has been an exciting year for the boys, and there were many Enrichment opportunities available for the boys to choose from. These were the opportunities available for the boys in the Autumn term: Day

Subject

Room

Time

Monday lunchtime

Maths

W19

12:30 - 1pm

Monday after school

Geography

W17

4:30 - 5pm

Monday after school

Physics

W19

4:20 - 4:50pm

Monday after school

Beginners Chinese

W18

4:30 - 5pm

Tuesday lunchtime

Maths

W19

12:45 - 1:20pm

Tuesday lunchtime

Biology

12:45 - 1:20pm

Tuesday after school

History

W19

4:30 - 5pm

Tuesday after school

English Creative writing / poetry

W18

4:45 - 5:15pm

Wednesday lunchtime

Chemistry

W19

12:45 - 1:20pm

Wednesday after school

Beginners Turkish

W13

4:30 - 5pm

Wednesday after school

Biology

W18

4:30 - 5pm

Wednesday after school

Biochemistry

W19

4:30 - 5pm

Thursday lunchtime

Politics and Economics

W17

12:45 - 1:20pm

Thursday lunchtime

English

W16

12:45 - 1:20pm

Thursday after school

Maths

W19

4:30 - 5pm

Friday lunchtime

Religious Studies

W19

12:45 - 1:20pm

Friday lunchtime

Maths

W16

12:45 - 1:20pm

Friday lunchtime

Physical Geography

W17

12:45 - 1:20pm

GENERAL KNOWLEDGE QUIZ

id way through the first term an inter-school General Knowledge Quiz was held between the Prep School boys in Y 5-6 and Girls from Bedford Girls’ School. Held in the EMH, it was very well attended by parents, pupils and sibling alike. The Prep School was victorious on this occasion; however they will need to keep on their toes as the Girls teams were very good.

ROCKET SCIENCE

he topics were wide-ranging. For example in Physics boys studied Astronomy, Energy, Waves, Forces, Electricity, Magnetism and Radioactivity. This was delivered by 6th Formers who were in the Prep School themselves not so long ago! In History, they learnt about a “Villain of the Week” featuring some of the most evil people in History, which the boys were very curious to learn more about! Biochemistry sessions saw boys learning about DNA and advanced cell biology. The 6th Formers had the aim of keeping the content both accessible and engaging for the prep School boys. Politics and Economics was a popular course, and again this was delivered in a most interesting manner by former pupils. In other subjects, there have also been various enrichment activities, above that which goes on in everyday lessons. One example is the Talented Artist days, run by Mr Studd, Head of Art. In Science, boys in years 3,5 and 7 were treated to trips to the Planetarium and Observatory after school over a series of evenings to learn more about the topic of Space which they were studying at the time.

he Science department also took part in the UK wide Rocket Science project. This was a fun interactive way to get pupils thinking about how plants might grow in space, enabling them to understand the difficulties of living, growing and eating in space! Boys planted 100 rocket seeds which had been on the International Space Station and 100 seeds which hadn’t, but weren’t told which seeds were which, so that it was kept fair. Tim Peake himself fronted the experiment and kept us guessing which packet had come from space. (It was the blue packet!)

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ENRICHMENT

NATIONAL INTER-SCHOOL QUIZ CHAMPIONSHIP

e were also delighted that a team from Bedford School was awarded as the General Knowledge Area Heat Winner 2015-2016, in the National Inter-School Quiz Championship. Four boys, from Y3-6 did exceptionally well to achieve this, and represented the school in the next round, which was the national semi-finals. Following an excellent performance, they were unlucky and didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make the finals. However, we were very proud of their success and team spirit. Well done, excellent team work!

CHAMBER MUSIC DAY 2016 Y3 LEGO MORNING

irstly, we went in and met a nice man called Philip. He talked us through what we were going to do during the morning. We had to build a house, then a garden and then free build. I worked with Dylan and Noah. We had about a minute until BGS stormed in and three girls joined our group. We introduced ourselves and then we started building. The base of our house was white and I think everything was white except the garden, because Noah was obsessed with the flowers. We finally finished when we put our houses together. It was a huge city. Then Dylan and I built a stadium for the football pitch and the goals and commentary box. We had break and played with the girls. When we went back inside, we finished what we were doing and I went on to build a cinema with Jamie, Dylan and Luca. Then Noah and I built a skyscraper. We took a lot of photographs and then had to pack everything away again. It was awesome! W O R D S BY

Sammy Inman (Y3)

n Thursday 25th February we hosted a chamber music day and invited pupils from local schools as well as some of our own students. We had a great response to this and welcomed a total of about 30 children for a day of wonderful music making from the following schools: Heathmount, Westbrook Hay, Lockerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s park, York House and Webber Independent School. A young professional ensemble, The Lipatti Piano Quartet, was brought in to work with the students in small groups as well as dazzling everyone with a live performance of some Dvorak and Brahms. At the end of the day all the children came together to form an orchestra conducted by Mr Bantock, Head of Strings, and they gave a successful performance for parents and teachers. It was a highly rewarding day and the children went away buzzing. W O R D S BY

Robert Thompson

ELSEWHERE

hree of our boys, Dylan Swain, Tyler Choga and John Ellwood acted in the Upper School play, Coram Boy. Coram Boy is a dark play about the child slave trade in Britain in the 1750s. It was a stunning production, with superb singing and acting. Well done to our three Prep School boys. Also well done to arguably our greatest individual sportsman this year, Tom Stephens (Y7), who recently competed in the Netherlands and the UK Ice Hockey Championships in Sheffield. In his first season playing at elite level Tom has been invited to join the South West Under 15 team and has even been considered for the England programme.

T H E A RT S

W H I N C H AT

Art ART DEPARTMENT Overview

ART DEPARTMENT The Art department is a flourishing and inspiring environment where boys can realise their artistic potential, using imaginative and observational skills. Art is a core and vital part of a boyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s education at Bedford that encourages them to engage and relate to the world around them.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Mosaics

YEAR 8

YEAR 3

Eagle and Porsche by Matt Rea Stormtrooper by Oliver Setterfield

To support their learning in history, boys have examined mosaicmaking in Art, organising tesserae to present a pattern or motif.

YEAR 8 -

Y 3 N DAV I D P I N K N E Y

Y 3 N F E L I X B EC K M A N N

Y 3 N J O N AT H A N H A L L

Y 3 N R UA R I C A S S E L L

Y 3 N N OA H S I L K

Y3N THOMAS HUGGINS

Self-Portraiture

Using the grid value techniques of photorealist, Chuck Close

Top Row: Oliver Brown, Daniel Lumley-Wood, Arin Mital, Archie Walsh, Max Ward, Oliver Setterfield. Bottom Row: Harvey Toms, Harry Constantine, Freddie Pelling, Henry Faulkner, William Spearman.

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T H E A RT S

HOUSE ART

ART SCHOLARSHIP

Theme: The Circus Congratulations to all boys who supported their house by submitting work. A large pat on the back to Harpur who assembled the highest total, winning by one point! The competition was judged by Mrs Fiona Whiteman from the US Art School. Our warmest thanks to her for taking the time to view and comment on the boys’ works. RESULTS 1st: Harpur, 71pts; 2nd: Howard, 70pts; 3rd: Whitbread, 44pts; 4th: Bunyan, 37pts.

This was the first year of preparing boys for Art Scholarship. Seven applied, four were shortlisted, one was awarded the scholarship but ALL were winners. Freddie Peacock’s Clown, A2 Graphite Study—not his reaction when he discovered that he his scholarship application had been successful.

Congratulations too to Florio Chryssaphes, Divine Edjejovwo, Tim Jee, Gurkaran Johal, Matt Rea and Oliver Setterfield.

C I RC U S A N I M A L S O N T H E M A RC H - H E N RY C U D J O E , Y 7

YEAR 7 -

Shoes, Perspective And Bedford

An exciting and promising year group in art

DRAMA DEPARTMENT From the Head of Department

t has been another exciting and diverse year for boys involved in Drama; it has also been a year of firsts. It was with great pleasure that we were able to introduce a Theatre Tech Club for Y8 boys and a House Drama Competition. Both initiatives proved to be incredibly popular and will give many more boys across all year groups the opportunity to get involved in the life of the theatre. More can be read about these events in these pages. A personal highlight from this year was watching six Y8 boys audition for the Upper School Drama Scholarship in the Easter Term. Rowan Bascetta-Pollitt was the deserving winner overall, but I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the boys who auditioned; each piece was unique and thoroughly engrossing to watch, and the judges had some very tough decisions to make. Other highlights include the performances given by Dominic RussellSmith and Dylan Swain in Aristophanesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; comedy, Wasps, Nick Challacombe and Ben Barnes in Frogs, Tom Howe and Cameron Mellyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Best Actor performances in the House Drama Competition and the ensemble acting in Treasure Island and Bluebeard. It is especially pleasing to note how the boys pass on their skills and knowledge to the younger years in the Prep School and the sense of purpose our boys derive from taking part in the plays, whether it be onstage or behind the scenes; the future looks very rosy indeed.

W O R D S BY

Jonathan Hooley

T H E A RT S

W H I N C H AT

Drama

TR E A S U R E I S L A N D Prep School Drama staged a new adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island as part of Bedford School’s Summer Arts Festival and I think it is fair to say that the play set a new standard for school productions.

erformed outside in St. Luke’s Gardens, the whole production felt very professional indeed. Whilst the story itself is relatively serious, this adaptation delivered new characters and plenty of laughs too. Sam Hundal’s John the Goat stands out as one of the new characters who delighted and enthralled the audience on the night I went. His pirate, whose broken skull had been replaced with a melted stewpot lid, was totally unhinged and added an interesting new dimension to the story.

Even though the play was performed outside and was staged on a huge set that changed from the Admiral Benbow Inn, to Bristol docks, to on board the Hispaniola ship and then finally a haunted island, it was the superb ensemble acting that stood out to me the most. Highlights include Rowan Bascetta Pollitt’s comical portrayal of Ben Gunn, the marooned cabin boy driven to insanity by the island, Freddie Pelling’s dynamic and intriguing Long John Silver, Henry Tyrer’s sinister pirate Black Dog, Max Sogan’s austere Doctor Livesey, Ben Barnes’ witless Squire and William Robert’s superb narrator, Jim Hawkins, whose story it is we follow. I can only highlight a few performances here, but the entire cast were brilliant in the way they brought to life the colourful and dangerous world of 18thC pirates. The story was told with incredible energy and clarity. Stunning fight sequences broke out all across the set and added to the action-packed style of the play. My personal highlight was the mutiny on the ship, which involved about thirty characters and was choreographed incredibly well.

The music, which was composed especially for the play, really added to the production as well and created an exciting and haunting atmosphere. Underscoring fight scenes and creating the mysterious island, the audience were totally immersed in the world of Jim Hawkins and the thrilling hunt for buried treasure. It was a play that I and the rest of the audience will never forget. Congratulations to all involved for providing such great entertainment on a summer’s evening.

W O R D S BY

Max Lusty Y8

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TH E ATR E TEC H C LU B W O R D S BY

Jonathan Hooley

T H E A RT S

n the Autumn Term, thirty-five Y7 and Y8 boys took to the stage to perform two challenging comedies by the Ancient Greek playwright, Aristophanes. Presented in the style of the Drama Festivals staged in honour of the God Bacchus, the fast-paced, offbeat productions gave pupils an insight into the origins of theatre and drama, and an opportunity to put their own spin on stories that challenge audiences to think for themselves. The fast-paced and often madcap style of the two productions was certainly a first for the Prep School, but the audiences “embraced the random” and received the performances in the spirit they were intended. So much so, that when Wasps ended with the ritual dance performance by the Chorus, members of the audience joined in from the stalls and congaed off into the foyer with the rest of the cast!

F ROG S A N D WA S P S W O R D S BY

Jonathan Hooley

characters was impressive to note from such young performers. Both Choruses grabbed the audience’s’ attention from the off and guided them through the world of the plays, but special mention should go to Rowan Bascetta-Pollitt for his bold performance as the old curmudgeon, Philo, to Dominic Russell-Smith and Jack Davis for their energetic and engaging performances as the slaves, and to Nick Challacombe as Dionysus and Ben Barnes as his longsuffering slave Xanthias. However, it was the ensemble performances that ensured both productions will live long in the memory.

Each production adapted ancient political and social jokes for a contemporary audience and gave the boys the opportunity to include their own ideas too. The energy of the storytelling and the clarity of the characters was impressive to note from such young performers. Both Choruses grabbed the audience’s’ attention from the off and guided them through the world of the plays, but special mention should go to Rowan Bascetta-Pollitt for his bold performance as the old curmudgeon, Philo, to Dominic Russell-Smith and Jack Davis for their energetic and engaging performances as the slaves, and to Nick Challacombe as Dionysus and Ben Barnes as his longsuffering slave Xanthias. However, it was the ensemble performances that ensured both productions will live long in the memory.

T H E A RT S

W H I N C H AT

Drama

B E D F O R DS H I R E F E S TI VA L R E S U LT S

First Place

Y3 - Benjamin Roberts (own written story) Y4 - Will Hayward (solo poem) Will Hayward, Shayen Patel, Alex Lamb and Arthur Polhill (group poem) Shayen Patel (prepared reading) Charlie Eggleton (prepared reading) Y5 - Jack Harte (solo poem) Barnaby James & Aaron Berman (duet poem) Y6 - Sam Hundal (dramatic solo)

SPEECH AND DRAMA

Martin Rosende and Joshua Cooke (duologue) Thomas Hayward (public speaking) Y7 - Benjamin Ingram-Moore (own poem)

ith over a third of the Prep School opting to take part in Speech and Drama, it is becoming ever more popular. The first term is spent building up a bank of performance skills and getting those all-important creative juices flowing. From articulation and projection exercises to devising your own work, this term really prepares the students for performances in the future.

Y8 - Thomas Allen and Cameron Melly (duologue) Henry Faulkner (own written story) Thomas Bailey and Phillip Hughes (duet poem) Rohan Jacob (solo poem) Alex Linney, Freddie Pelling, Parwaaz Upadhyay (dramatic scene)

Second Place

The second term is then focused towards preparing for the Bedfordshire Festival of Music, Speech and Drama. This takes place in March at the Corn Exchange and showcases the talented young people from Bedfordshire and beyond. This is a prestigious event that is in its 95th year and is improving and advancing each year. This year, Bedford Prep School entered 140 boys into at least one class each, some for two, some for three. The classes ranged from Verse Speaking solo classes, to Prepared Readings from great authors such as Michael Morpurgo and David Almond, to writing and performing your own poem or story. There were also many acting classes which proved very popular - especially performing monologues and duologues. Each boy learnt and rehearsed their pieces over ten Speech and Drama lessons where they focused on projection, articulation, vocal expression, characterisation, physicality and audience awareness. Every boy did incredibly well for simply going through this rehearsal process and performing in front of a large audience at the end of it. Some boys even came 1st, 2nd or 3rd in their performance class and these successes can be seen below. Everyone involved did a fantastic job. “I have loved Speech and Drama – it has improved my confidence so much and I feel I can express myself even better now. It helps me to understand English so much better as well as I can practise where to put expression into words. I would recommend it to anyone!”

Y3 - James Pinkney (solo poem) Benjamin Roberts and Noah Silk (duet poem) Noah Silk (solo poem) Fraser Morgan (own poem) Jonathan Hall (prepared reading) Y4 - Robert Wells (solo poem) Arthur Polhill (prepared reading) Y5 - Kurtish Mistry (solo poem) Y6 - Martin Rosende (public speaking) Tom Deardon (solo poem) Ashton Stewart (solo poem) Y7 - James Deardon (solo poem) Austin Ward (prepared reading) Y8 - Mattie Lousada (own poem)

Third Place

Y3 - Elliot Rossington and Freddie Goff (duet reading) Y4 - Reis Fernandes (prepared reading) Reis Fernandes (own poem) Y7 - Ellison Hendry and Will Maltby (duologue) Miles Ratcliffe and Oliver Blakemore (duet poem) Joey Robinson (solo poem)

Ivan Savelyev ESOLY6 on Speech and Drama Following the success in their Verse Speaking Duet class at the Bedfordshire Festival, Aaron Berman and Barnaby James in Year 5 were chosen out of hundreds of performances to be one of the 4 acts competing for the Jane Whitbread cup for Best Junior Speech and Drama Performance. Their superb performance of ‘Wrestling with Mum’ was perfectly timed and full of energy resulting in an excellent comedic duo. Finally, the summer term is dedicated to combining all the skills learnt previously to prepare for graded Speech and Drama exams with the prestigious London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA). Boys can opt to take the Verse and Prose exam or the Acting exam. In the Prep School we cover the Introductory Grades right up to Grade 5 exams.

Ethan Whitlock (prepared reading) Joseph Rossington, George Ashcroft, Arvin Rai and Nick Challacombe (group poem) Sam Ferrari (own poem) Y8 - Hugo Mathew (public speaking) Thomas Bailey (prepared reading) Dominic Russell-Smith (dramatic solo)

W O R D S BY

Sarah Portsmouth

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T H E A RT S

Design Technology DESIGN TECHNOLOGY

e are all designers, whether we know it or not. We select what items to own and which to have around us. We build, buy, arrange, and restructure: all of which are a form of design. When consciously, deliberately rearranging objects on our desks, the furniture in our living rooms, and the things we keep in our cars, we are designing. Through our designs, we transform houses into homes, spaces into places, things into belongings. I firmly believe that Design and Technology should be fun and exciting. My aim is to provide an opportunity for boys to develop their thinking and learning skills, and to get their creative juices flowing. We cultivate a creative and innovative atmosphere, which allows pupils to take risks and experiment in a safe and positive environment, underpinned by secure knowledge and understanding. The high satisfaction levels amongst our pupils are testament to the value of the subject in raising self-esteem; pupils feel immensely proud of the projects they have nurtured from paper to product.

This year, the boys have completed a wide range of wonderful projects:

Y 3 - OW L PEN C I L H O LD ERS A N D SU PER H ERO CUS H I O N S Y4 – H A R RY P OT TER Q U I LT A N D PI R ATE SWO R DS Y5 - H I STO R I C S H I ELDS A N D STA R WA RS STA I N ED G L A S S W I N DOW S Y6 - C ROS S BOW A N D G U M BA LL M AC H I N E Y 7 - A RT D ECO C LOC K A N D FOOT STOO L Y8 - BOT TLE O PEN ER A N D C A D Well done. I am so proud of you all. Let’s have another excellent year next year. “Keep on sanding!” W O R D S BY

Michelle Aldridge

“DESIGN TECHNOLOGY IS ALL ABOUT MAKING THINGS THAT PEOPLE WANT AND THAT WORK WELL AND ARE DURABLE. CREATING THESE THINGS IS HUGELY EXCITING: IT IS AN INVENTIVE, FUN ACTIVITY.” S I R J A M E S DY S O N

PREP SCHOOL ACTORS REALLY HAVE BEEN SPOILT FOR CHOICE THIS YEAR

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T H E A RT S

Music

MUSIC DEPARTMENT W O R D S BY

Hamza Noor Y8

usic has been booming this year at Bedford School with events including House Singing, House Music and the Bedfordshire Festival. With lots of Y3 and Y4 joining groups like Junior Strings and Junior Choir, the future looks bright. At the beginning of the year the Chapel Choir were invited to sing at the Royal Albert Hall for the Festival of Remembrance. They proudly took the experience in their stride, singing beautifully in front of royalty and VIPs alike. House Singing was a rousing success and all the boys enjoyed it, singing some very good songs which were great fun to learn. Assembly Band has been resurrected this year, accompanying our hymn in most Monday assemblies. Orchestra has boys from Y6 to Y8 playing as a group and enjoying themselves immensely. The concerts this year have been superb. Altogether, this year has been one of the most musical years ever for the Prep School, but I know it will carry on getting better with boys constantly exploring new musical experiences.

BLUEBEARD REVIEW W O R D S BY

Dominic Russell-Smith Y8

his year I had the pleasure of performing in the mindblowing “Bluebeard - The Musical”, with music and lyrics written entirely by the amazing Mr Groom. In the Summer Term I felt that I wanted to do some more Drama, so when I heard that auditions for Bluebeard were open, I jumped right in and was given the part of Bill, an adventurous knight with no brains … and no brawn. I acted alongside the wonderful Josh Cooke, who played the part of Ben. Rehearsals started and we dived deep into heart of the story. I got the chance to act alongside yet more great actors including Jude Sanders and Harlan Todd, who played the delightful two sisters, Harvey Bolger as the swashbuckling pirate Blackbeard, and Dylan Swain, playing the dashing yet sinister Bluebeard, who really brought the play to life.

The time finally came to perform the play. I realised that nothing would be possible without the outstanding performance of the chorus, who accompanied the actors throughout the play. The chorus was a mix of Y4 to Y8 boys and put in an unbelievable amount of effort and determination. After I got into Bluebeard, auditions for Treasure Island opened; I thought I made a huge mistake, but in fact I made one of the best decisions in my life. Prep School actors really have been spoilt for choice this year. Finally, I would like to give one of the biggest thank yous I have ever made to Mr Groom, Mrs Gedye and Miss Portsmouth, because, without them, the play definitely wouldn’t have been possible.

HOUSES

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Houses

A E AG LE H O U S E R E P O RT W O R D S BY

Simon Lincoln

s another successful year in Eagle House draws to a close, we can reflect upon a year of adventure, of achievement, of personal growth for our boys. Numerous exciting trips and adventures have brought us all closer together as a family. Many thanks to our Heads of House Joshua Holdsworth and Andy Wong who were ably supported by our prefects, Carlos Martinez-Bonet, Nikita Markov and Divine Edjejovwo who have all been superb role models. Sadly, we do have to say our goodbyes to our fantastic Year 8 boys who have been amazing this year and have certainly played a huge part in making this year in Eagle House such a successful and enjoyable one. We wish them all well and they are certainly welcome back any time for a BBQ, house trip or to help supervise prep time! We also must say thank you and goodbye to the fantastic Mr James Ingle who moves on to take up a Director of Rugby role at Gordons School. We wish him all the best and thank him for all the hard work and enjoyment he gave to the boys. He has played a very important role within the house for the last two years and he will be missed. It does mean we are delighted to welcome in Mr Brett as our Resident House Tutor. He will be a fantastic addition to the team and I know the boys are delighted to have him as part of Eagle House.

As always we enjoy many weekend trips which have this year included cinema, indoor surfing, rock climbing, go carting, inflatable water park at Box End, tenpin bowling, dingy rapid riding, high rope climbing, zorb football and crazy golf to name but some of the activities that have challenged the boys and given them new and exciting adventures. There have been many highlights this year. The number of boys involved in the theatre has been amazing. It has been a real pleasure to watch the plays and see the talented performances and joy at acting on the big stage. More academic success has been enjoyed with many boys reaching their Gold Awards and also receiving prizes at Speech Day. On the sports field boys have represented their teams at all levels in a range of sports including rugby, football, hockey, tennis, athletics, swimming badminton, golf and table tennis. This all demonstrates how much the boys have thrown themselves into boarding life and enjoyed the opportunities given to them. Hungry Boys Club has been a superb addition too, as boys are regularly bringing their cooked food back from the Dining Halls for us all to enjoy, which has inspired many boys to cook more and Mrs Travis to run an Eagle House “bake-off” one Sunday. There is time to relax in Eagle House and whilst you will see boys chilling out watching television or enjoying the games room in the basement, for others another hour of football on the astro before showers and bed is the perfect tonic to a hard day’s work at school.

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As always the House trip to the Peak District was a wonderful experience. The boys were a credit to the School and enjoyed some fantastic sights and superb activities. The highlight of the trip was the determination and enthusiasm the boys displayed to scale the grueling walk as we climbed to the top of Kinder Scout, the highest point in Derbyshire. A superb achievement by all of the boys and staff! We also enjoyed a morning playing army games with laser guns in the woods, orienteering though the Peaks, crate stacking, archery and canoeing plus many other team building games to really cap off the year with an exciting if exhausting trip. The trip was finished off with another great day at Alton Towers Theme Park, even if we were soaked most of the day due to very heavy showers! Many thanks to all the staff and boys this year in Eagle House who have made it a truly memorable and enjoyable one for us all.

HOUSES

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Houses

BUNYAN HOUSE REPORT W O R D S BY

Jonathan Beckwith Bunyan Housemaster

by some cups. You sang well for a range of reasons, but you did it primarily for the House: a winning formula before you even opened your mouths.

The year started off with everybody pulling together extremely quickly to get ourselves prepared for House Singing. What can I say? It is always an occasion that I enjoy and Bunyan sang their hearts out and pulled together to give another outstanding performance … accompanied

Now that we come to the end of the year, the boys have done remarkably well to move us up the leader board. The competition this year has been super and a great team effort by all boys from Y3 to Y8. I know, whatever the outcome, Bunyan boys will have done their best, so, in my eyes, you are all already winners. Winning is not everything, but the effort that we invest and the cohesion that is shown is what Bunyan do best. Individual successes appear too numerous to mention, but I congratulate you all. Special thanks must go to a fine team of House Officers

say this every year and I’m going to say it again: “wow!” It has been another rollercoaster of thrills and excitement. A splendid effort, chaps. No one could have given more than you did during the year, and I applaud the marvellous spirit and enthusiasm that you have consistently shown in all the House events and activities. On a constant basis you have made me very proud to be the leader of such a great bunch.

who have shown a loyalty and commitment that has pervaded all aspects of Bunyan this year. I thank you all - staff and boys - for making Bunyan a House of which I am truly proud to be Housemaster. I step down from the role of Housemaster this year as I move on to be Head of Mathematics. I am sad, as I will miss the boys. Being a Housemaster for ten years now, I have grown to love the role and watch the boys’ progress all the way through the School. I hope that I have done a good job in pushing the House forward. Keep up the good work and a BIG bit of my heart will always be Bunyan. Do me proud and keep the Bunyan ethos strong.

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B HARPUR HOUSE REPORT W O R D S BY

Andrew Whitbread Harpur Housemaster

efore I sat down to write this review of Harpur’s year, I read through some of my House reports from my ‘early years’ as Housemaster. A running theme was my view that there was a lot of potential in the House and I predicted future successes after many ‘barren’ spells. One might not get too excited by such words, especially if, like me, you have heard similar rhetoric from Arsene Wenger and seen many ‘false dawns’ from Arsenal! Yet, I am delighted to report that this year’s victory for Harpur is our fifth in seven years; a truly remarkable run of success for our House…Arsene, please take note! My review of this year highlights how every single member of the House has made their mark and helped to contribute to this continued success. We really hit the ground running in the Autumn Term with victories in the Y3 and Y4 School Run, Y5 andY6 Badminton, Y3 Rugby, Y7 and Y8 Swimming Relays, as well as Y3 and Y4 and Y5 andY6 Merits. Added to this, we saw 2nd places in Y4, Y6 and Y7 Rugby. This lead to us picking up the Term Cup in December. The ‘big event’ of the Spring Term was, of course, House Singing. Once again, as in previous years, all boys in the House worked extremely hard and focused well in rehearsals; I thank Mrs Gedye for, as always, inspiring us all with her passion and drive to help prepare us for the big day. Our unison medley of ‘Mary Poppins’ tunes was fantastic and (in my opinion) sorely under marked. Our part song performance of Sting’s ‘Fields of Gold’ was, quite simply, stunning and a worthy winner. The ovation from the audience in the Great Hall will stay with me for many years! All the boys involved gave up hours of free time to achieve such musical magic and I congratulate and thank them all. A special mention, of course, goes to our Music Captain, Jude Sanders, for his leadership and composure when conducting the House. The Spring Term also witnessed Harpur victories in Y5 and Y6 Squash, Y7 and Y8 Hockey, Y3 and Y4 Merits and a joint 1st place in the inaugural House Tug of War competition. We also participated in the inaugural House Drama competition; this is a welcome addition to the House calendar and I look forward to seeing it grow as an event in the coming years.

As a reminder that a victorious House needs talents in many areas, the Summer Term saw us win House Music, Poetry Composition and House Art. We won the latter competition by one point; every single piece of Harpur artwork was crucial! Thank you to all who took time to enter. More summer sporting successes followed – Y5 and Y6 Table Tennis, Y3 and Y4 Swimming and, most satisfyingly, Sports Day. This was such a memorable day for Harpur. Not simply because of all the victories in the track and field events, but also because many boys achieved personal bests to pick up valuable points. I was also very impressed that so many members of the House were happy to ‘fill in’ where necessary and compete in events which may not have been their personal preferences. This collective spirit and eagerness to support each other was truly wonderful to behold. And so, Harpur boys and staff had the pleasure to witness our House Captain, Sam Dicks, lift the Term Cup and the Nestor Cup for our overall victory in the final assembly of the year. As House Captain, Sam has been a wonderful role model for all boys in Harpur and he has been ably supported by a magnificent team of House Officers – Tobias Todd, Archie McLean, Cameron Melly, George Kendall, Jude Sanders, Amir Solanki, Oliver Brown and Hugo Mathew. I have, once again, been blessed to have a ‘dream team’ of House Tutors who have been extremely supportive throughout the year. Thank you to Mr Affleck, Mrs Christian, Mrs Spina, Mr Loader and Miss Hone for all you have done. Sadly, we had to say farewell to Di MacAskill after fourteen years as a Harpur House Tutor. She has been a fabulous member of the Harpur team and she will be sorely missed; but I know she will be particularly pleased that we could give her the perfect leaving gift! A big ‘thank you’ to all the Housemasters for their continued efforts and camaraderie. Sadly, Jonathan Beckwith and Charles Blacklock step aside; it has been a great pleasure to work alongside you and be a ‘friendly rival’ over all these years.

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Houses

HOWARD HOUSE REPORT W O R D S BY

Penny Oakley

eturning to School for the final assembly of the Easter Term to hear the fruition of Howard’s efforts so far, winning the Spring Term House Cup made for a very special welcome back from my maternity leave. I would like to thank the wonderful Howard House Officers; Tom Allen, Sam Welch, William Sayer, Joseph Needham, James Worker, Freddie Peacock, Joshua Holdsworth, Jack Davis and Hamza Noor, who have all contributed well and worked hard to spur on the boys, encouraging high levels of participation in House competitions. A special mention too to Andy Wong who has been an incredible powerhouse of energy in the House this year, supporting the boys in so many ways. The House Officers have helped me to review the year’s events in my absence. This year for the first time the Prep School held a House Drama competition for boys in Y5 to Y8. The boys loved the experience and overall it was a huge success, especially for Howard who came second in Y5 and Y6, (winning best actor for Tom Howe), and first place in Y7 and Y8. A superb effort all round. Big thanks to Jack Davis and Joshua Holdsworth for being instrumental in organising and supporting the House teams and to our legendary Mr Hooley for creating the event and providing this new incredible opportunity for the boys. Very well done to all! Muhammed Ali: He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.

House Charity Day was another new idea this year. I was overwhelmed by the boys’ desire to participate and contribute in so many thoughtful ways to create a very successful event. I’m proud to say that we raised a very respectable £455 for our House Charity, ‘Special Effect.’ A special mention to the lovely Mrs Allen for her stunning and yummy cake creation which raised £90 alone in the ‘guess the weight of the cake’ competition. Many congratulations to all the boys and a HUGE thank you to boys, staff and parents for your very generous support. Muhammed Ali: Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth. The busy Summer Term continued with achievements in House Art for Gurkaran Johal, Freddie Peacock, Joshua Holdsworth, Henry Cudjoe and Clement Rahwangi Gough. All winning prizes for outstanding pieces in this year’s circus-themed competition. Muhammed Ali: The man who has no imagination has no wings. Further congratulations due for the fiercely fought House Music and the Poetry Competitions. Some super successes in House Music for William Everitt, Hamza Noor, Tom Hayward, Ashwin Santosh-Kumar, Edward Dagg, Joseph Rossington and Aaron Laing. Well done too, to the finalists in the Poetry Recitation; Martin Rosende, Matthew Goodman, William Hayward and Alex Deane.

As the rains persisted in June one of my personal highlights of the year, Alex’s excellent win in Y4 category with the most apt, weather- related, tongue twisty tongue twister of a poem, I have ever heard:

A SPATTER A SCATTER A WET CAT A CLATTER A SPLATTER A RUMBLE OUTSIDE. EVE MERRIAM

House Swimming, as always, saw enthusiasm and energy aplenty in all the year groups. Stirling efforts by all concerned. Howard finishing, 2nd in Y7 and Y8, 3rd in Y5 andY6, and 3rd in Y3 andY4. Muhammed Ali: I never thought of losing, but now that it' s happened, the only thing is to do it right. That's my obligation to all the people who believe in me. We all have to take defeats in life. Sports Day was a sunny fun-filled day. The boys giving their all as always. Special mentions to Oliver Blakemore and Jamie Norris for their victories in the shot putt and high jump respectively, and to Ricki Jani for THE most exciting sprint finish to a relay I have ever seen! Very well done to all of the boys for their efforts and commitment.

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“Sport in Howard has been a true delight for us this year. Y4 and Y8 pulling off brilliant performances to win the House Rugby in their year groups. Tom Allen and Henry Warren definitely deserving of special mentions for their efforts. House Hockey has also been responsible for some valuable House points. Howard dominated the competition, winning in Y4, Y5 and Y6 and coming second in Y7 and Y8. Great team spirit and superb skills resulted in much deserved successes. Very well done to all of the players. Racquet sports were also exciting. Great performances from Zane and Sami Haroon led to a win in the Y7 and Y8 squash competition. The Y5 and Y6 team also played well to finish in second place and there was a Badminton win for the Y5 and Y6 team.” James Worker, Howard Games Captain

Muhammed Ali: I am an ordinary man who worked hard to develop the talent I was given. I believed in myself and I believe in the goodness of others. Lastly, a heart-felt thank you to the staff as always for their help and support throughout the year. An especially BIG thank you to Mr Allen, who motivated and inspired the boys and made the transition of my return a very smooth one. I congratulate him and wish him well (but not too well!) as he moves on to lead Bunyan House as their new Housemaster in the Autumn Term. Muhammed Ali: Champions aren’t made in gym. They are made from something they have deep inside of them. A desire, a vision, a dream. And so, Howard, this year… we keep dreaming. Congratulations to Harpur House on winning the House Cup. But September brings a new year and a new battle.

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Houses

T WHITBREAD HOUSE REPORT W O R D S BY

Michelle Aldridge

he Whitbread House Officers have, as always, been absolutely superb and they have displayed huge enthusiasm and responsibility. I am extremely grateful to them for all their support and they have all have received their House Colours: Harry McPhail (Captain), Joseph Young, George Whitcombe, Joshua Lyon (Vice Captains), Tom Chambers, Michael Phillips, Christopher Broens (Sports), and Jack O’Donovan (Music). This report contains some of their thoughts regarding the “Whitbread Year”. I am extremely proud to be Housemaster of Whitbread and I now wear the colour green with great pride. I am part of a House that has such great warmth, a real sense of community spirit and is full of talented young men. Whatever they have faced this year, they have shown genuine enthusiasm. They are also very good at supporting one another, be it winning or losing: true team spirit. Through the House system, boys have the opportunity to earn recognition for being themselves, as well as understanding how participation and being part of a larger group can reap rewards. Whitbread boys understand that to be a successful House everyone has to give their best; every House Point counts. This means all levels of competitions amongst the boys have meaning and value. House Singing has to be a personal highlight; winning was a wonderful experience. We created our own versions of Take That’s “Shine” and “See You Again”, by Charlie Puth. This is one of the biggest events of the year, an event where all members of the House are involved and need to support each other and work

together. It was a very close competition, but Whitbread worked extremely hard and deserved to win. Well done, boys! I believe it is vital for our boys to understand their place in society and to be in touch with the wider community, as well as having their commitments at school. Whitbread boys have fundraised for a local charity, Keech Cottage Hospice, this year and we had lots of inventive stalls during Charity Week. It was fantastic to see every boy involved and their efforts will have made a significant difference to the charity’s work. The sports programme is full of variety, allowing a broad range of boys to represent their House. Housemasters keep their tactics very secret. This became apparent to me when I asked my son (who is in Bunyan) which events he was in for House Swimming. He replied, “I am not telling you, mum: you might change who’s against me!” Teams of talented boys pulled together throughout the year to represent the House. From the moment we entered the stadium for Sports Day, everybody knew Whitbread had arrived. We gave an almighty House chant, accompanied by a forest of the green bang-bang sticks. Other Houses tried to compete, but simply couldn’t. Every boy sang his heart out: “Go, Whitbread!” The boys have earned as many House Points as they possibly could this year and I take great pride sharing and showing off all their accomplishments. Every point won by individual boys and teams was added together at the end of the year to determine the winner of the prized House Cup. Unfortunately, the Cup was not ours this year, but for me you are my true winners.

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In conclusion, here are a few words from our House Captain, Freddie Stock:

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whitbread House has had a brilliant year. Starting off with the House Swimming, with a superb performance by George Winder. Our finest moment came in February with the House Singing Competition. The boys and staff worked tirelessly and we were rewarded, when we won the overall competition along with the unison song. All possible, because of our very talented, music conductor, Nat Otley. This was a really big highlight of the year. Sadly, Mr Blacklock our amazing Housemaster for many years, retired at the end of the Autumn Term. He will be greatly missed, but leaves the House in great shape and in the capable hands of Mrs Aldridge who is very enthusiastic about Whitbread. Whitbread boys have been taking part in many House sporting events throughout the year. Their achievements would not have been possible without the encouragement of their Games Captains, Finlay Cummings and Ben Parrish. The boys and staff have been very committed to working towards the final goal, The House Cup, which, unfortunately we did not win. Well done, Whitbread, anyway for another outstanding year.â&#x20AC;? Thank you to all my House staff, House Officers and Whitbread boys for all your help and support this year. You have been superb!

C H A R IT Y CO M M IT TE E R E P O RT

his year each House was asked to choose a charity, with the suggestion that they would be local/regional, or have a link to the House in some way. Following discussion and difficult decisions, the Houses chose the charities below.

B U N YA N – R I D E H I G H

A Milton Keynes Charity for Disadvantaged Children. Ride High aims to give each child an enjoyable experience with horses that will help him/ her to cope with daily life in a more positive and constructive way.

H A R P U R - M OTO R N EU RO N E D I S E A S E A S S O C I AT I O N

Improve care and support for people with MND, their families and carers. Fund and promote research that leads to new understanding and treatments, and brings us closer to a cure for MND.

H OWA R D - S P EC I A L E F F EC T

Using technology ranging from modified joypads to eye-control to help people with physical disabilities play video games. So bringing families and friends together and having a profoundly positive impact on therapy, confidence and rehabilitation.

W H I T B R E A D - K E EC H H O S P I C E

Palliative Care Services offered to the whole family, throughout a child’s illness and into bereavement. This care is available inhouse at the charity’s bright and comfortable hospice near Luton, or via the community nursing team at the family home.

Money raised from various events throughout the year (e.g. mufti days, Carol Service collection, House Singing donations, Y7 and Y8 Disco with BGS, Friday cake sales, the Military Mud Run) was divided equally five ways for the four House charities, plus a cause chosen by the Headmaster. In addition to this, each House organised a separate event and the extra money went to the House’s charity. Bunyan chose to do a sponsored walk and the other Houses organised lunchtime mini-fetes. The money from Headmaster’s fund was added to donations made by boys, staff, parents and OBs for various pieces of mobility equipment for Geoff Wickens. The amount of money raised this year was just short of £10000. Outstanding!

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Michael Mallalieu

CHARITY

Charity Events

MINI-FETE – ARM-WRESTLING COMPETITION

M I L I TA RY M U D - R U N – F R E D D I E S TO C K

M I N I - F E T E – P E N A LT Y TA K I N G C O M P E T I T I O N

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G U I L D S A N D A S S O C I AT I O N S

BSA (Bedford School Association)

PR E P G U I LD R E P O RT A nother fantastic year for the Prep Guild; as I sit down to write a few words and ref lect on all we have done it reminds me of two things: firstly, how busy we are, and secondly, how very lucky we are to have such a wonderful group of parents who give up their time to contribute to such a superb sense of community.

ome events have now become an established part of the calendar; the MacMillan Coffee Morning is such an event; it’s a whole school event, but is organised by the Prep Guild. Once again it was a lovely morning which gave parents the opportunity to come and have a coffee and a delicious cake with great company, and the chance to browse some fantastic stalls whilst raising money for this important charity. Next on the calendar was the BSA New Parents Evening. This is an invitation to all new parents to the Prep School. We are there as representatives of the parent community and have the opportunity to talk to many new parents over a glass of wine, and of course let them know all about the Prep Guild and our events! Our 1st big Prep School event was a new one for us. For those who can remember we showed the 1st England Game for the recent Rugby World Cup. All were invited, parents and children and it was a fantastic night. The boys really enjoyed the atmosphere in the EMH, many wearing flags and face-paint. This was a great social event for all, and was one of the very few games which England won! The Autumn term kept us very busy purchasing and wrapping presents for the Christmas Sale. As always the boys’ manners were impeccable, and it was great to see their enjoyment in coming to purchase Christmas gifts for their family and friends, and sometimes even for themselves! The term ended with the wonderful Carol Concerts; the Prep Guild donated and served mince pies and biscuits along with the mulled wine kindly donated by Mr Silk.

Our final event for the year is another great event for the whole community. The Prep Guild provide all the refreshments for parents at sports day. This year, experience told us to be prepared for both hot and cold weather options, and we were very busy all morning. As always, ice lollies for the boys and staff after they have finished went down very well. From events over the last few years we have managed to raise a substantial amount of money and are currently funding some exciting initiatives: we are pleased to announce that we have commissioned three Honours Boards detailing the Prep School Headmaster, Head Boy and Winning House. They have been made and will be put up outside the Headmaster’s office over the summer. It is thanks to Mr Silk and his investigating skills that we have all the names dating back to 1993. We are also over the moon to have raised enough money to pay for the external classroom/ quiet area outside the Tisdall’s Building. This will give the opportunity for lessons to be brought outside whatever the weather but also give boys a quieter area to use during break and lunch times. Look out for it when we return after the summer. A big thank you from me for all that the Prep Guild and amazing parents do to contribute to the wonderful sense of community in the Prep School; Mr Silk would also like to pass on enormous thanks from the staff and boys for the amazing work of the Prep Guild. W O R D S BY

Andrea Spice Prep Guild Chair

MRS HAMMOND AND MR HINE – P O S T S P O RT S DAY C L E A R U P

CHRISTMAS GIF T SALE

G U I L D S A N D A S S O C I AT I O N S

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BSA (Bedford School Association) OLD BEDFORDIANâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S CLUB The OB Club is a global network, with representatives across the UK and the world, and a busy calendar of reunions, sports fixtures and social and networking events. Find out more at www.obclub.org

aving served for many years at the School, both OB Charles Blacklock (70-78) and Di MacAskill left the Prep School at the end of the Spring Term. They have contributed an enormous amount and we wish them well, and hope, in the future, that they will stay in touch with the School through the Old Bedfordians Club. Old Bedfordians always love to catch up with former staff, and the Club is a great way to stay in touch when one moves on.

C H A R L E S B L AC K LO C K (70 -78) I N F RO N T O F T H E I N K Y, W H E R E H E TAU G H T FO R T H E M A J O R I T Y O F H I S 27 Y E A R S AT B E D FO R D, W I T H F E L LO W O B S O N T H E P R E P S TA F F, F RO M L E F T TO R I G H T - S A M RO B E RT S (8 5 - 9 6), J O N AT H A N H O O L E Y (89 - 9 5), C H A R L E S B L AC K LO C K , A N D S I M O N L I N C O L N (94 - 9 6)

he past academic year has seen many Old Bedfordians returning to School to offer their advice, expertise and knowledge to current boys. There are many ways to get involved â&#x20AC;&#x201C; from delivering talks on their profession to assisting with mock Oxbridge interviews, and chatting to students at the annual Careers Fair to adjudicating prizes, we have been delighted with the support this year.

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BEDFORD SCHOOL FOUNDATION

B Lance Feaver (69-74) took over as Chairman of the Foundation at its AGM in April 2015 and has now been in the role for over a year. Explaining the current work and purpose of the Foundation, Lance said: “Over the long history of Bedford School, many OBs and parents have kindly decided to give something to the School in recognition of the start in life it gave them or their son. By doing this the School will hopefully continue to go from strength to strength. Bedford School Foundation, although managed by the School is a separate charity (Charity No 1095681). In recent years it has helped finance the Music School, Quarry Theatre, Lindsay-White Fitness Suite, Langham Pavilion, Boat Club equipment, and scholarships and bursaries, as well as a number of less high profile projects. The Trustees of the Foundation are elected at the AGM and work closely with the School to see how the Foundation can support the strategic objectives of the School. Donations can be for specific projects, or unrestricted, which means we look at the current needs of the School and the best use of the gift. Fundraising appeals are carefully thought through, and we always try to take an approach which is both appropriate and sensitive.”

The Quarry Theatre at St Luke’s, which opened a year ago, has now staged over 148 shows with over 10,000 people passing through its doors. The rich variety of theatrical, musical, artistic and literary events have been a fantastic addition to both the school and the Bedford Arts scene.

L A N C E I N O U R R EC E N T LY R E F U R B I S H E D S C I E N C E D E PA RT M E N T

Begun in September 2013 and phased over three years, we are delighted to announce that the development of the School’s Science Department, funded by the Bedford School Foundation, the Bedford School Trust, a number of individual donors and the generous legacy from late OB Brian Saville (40-48), has now been completed. This project has seen twelve laboratories and classrooms within the Science Department refurbished and modernised to create a superior learning environment. On Monday 25 April 2016, Lord Professor Robert Winston officially opened the refurbished laboratories. Lord Winston met with boys and saw first-hand the twelve laboratories and classrooms during a tour, before taking to the stage in the Great Hall to deliver a lecture on ‘Beginnings of Life’.

The theatre has been recognised for its architectural excellence and contribution to society by The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in their recent East of England awards, and was also voted the winner in the Community Benefit Category in The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) East 2016 Awards. The name of the theatre recognises the former Moravian Church’s rich heritage and the support provided by OB Gareth Quarry (68-77) and his wife, Jill, who both played a key role in its transformation. If you are interested in supporting the Foundation, please contact Richard Garrett or Natalie Thompson on foundation@bedfordschool. org.uk or 01234 362256.

G U I L D S A N D A S S O C I AT I O N S

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BSA (Bedford School Association) ARTHUR WALDERNE ST. CLAIR TISDALL VC

rthur Tisdall was the first Old Bedfordian to receive the Victoria Cross, awarded for his actions at Gallipoli on 25th April 1915. He was killed on 6 May 1915 and exactly 100 years after his death the Prep School remembered him with a Chapel Service and special assembly. We were honoured to be joined in school by Arthur’s nephew, Mr Philip St. Clair Tisdall and his wife Sue and Mrs Jenny Woolner his great niece. Our day started with a Chapel Service, including Mr Tisdall’s choice of ‘I vow to thee, my country’ as our final hymn and a thought provoking address from Reverend Atkins, which is reproduced below. Our guests were seated with a good view of the Tisdall memorial board showing Arthur and his younger brother John who was also killed in action. A third brother Edward was seriously wounded and awarded the Military Cross. All three brothers were at Bedford School as was their younger brother Francis, father of one of our guests. After coffee with Richard Garrett, Director of the Old Boys Club, Reverend

Atkins and two local historians, our guests toured the school; including the newly completed Quarry Theatre. They were also able to watch the Combined Cadet Force parade for their Annual General Inspection. Following lunch in the GDR with the Headmaster, we had a whole school assembly in which Mr Silk taught us a bit more about the Gallipoli Campaign and the acts of bravery during the landings that led to the award of Arthur’s Victoria Cross. Mr Hooley performed a moving interpretation of Tisdall’s reflections at the end of his life. After lunch our guests visited Tisdall’s, named in honour of Arthur and opened in October 1999. They were also able to visit the Memorial Hall and see the house in Kimbolton Road where the Tisdall family lived. The Tisdall family moved to Deal in 1913 when Reverend William St Clair Tisdall became Vicar of St George’s Church, in 1916 he erected a stone cross in the churchyard as a memorial to his sons Arthur and John. The names of other local men killed in The Great War were added in 1918. A service was held at St George’s on Saturday 25th

April 2015, 100 years after the Gallipoli landings and a number of members of the Tisdall family attended, including a party from New Zealand. Michael Stainer, the Old Boys Club Divisional Vice President for the local area, represented Bedford School and laid a wreath at the foot of the memorial. Mr Philip Tisdall wrote to me after his visit; ‘Sue and I thoroughly enjoyed all that you had organised and we felt very honoured to be included in the day. I so enjoyed the chapel service and it was so refreshing to hear the hymns being “belted out” with such enthusiasm. I was also impressed by the confidence of the two boys that read the lessons.’ Mrs Jenny Woolner also wrote a very complimentary letter thanking everyone for welcoming her, and commenting on the calm atmosphere around the school. We hope Mr and Mrs Tisdall will return to visit us again in the autumn.

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Amy Lumley-Wood

REVEREND ATKINS’ ADDRESS

ARTHUR WALDERNE ST. CLAIR TISDALL

hundred years ago today, a young officer in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve was involved in the second battle of Krithia, in Gallipoli, in what is now Turkey. With others, he was taking a break from the fierce action – taking cover in a captured enemy trench from the heavy machine-gun fire they faced. Unfortunately, he was picked out by a sniper, shot in the chest and killed. He was buried where he fell, and the site of his grave is not now known. He was twenty-four years old. Who was this man, and why are we commemorating him today? Arthur Tisdall was born on the 21st July 1890, in Bombay, now Mumbai, in India, where his parents were missionaries. He was educated at Bedford School from 1900 to 1909, where he was regarded as a boy with many fine qualities – a master wrote of him, ‘I shall always remember him as one of the most brilliant pupils. He was one of the most intelligent and

appreciative boys I have ever encountered, conscientious in work and hearty in play. His sense of humour was always alert, and it was a pleasure to catch the twinkle in his eye. He had an unswerving allegiance to what was right and honourable and pure.’ From School he won a scholarship to read Classics at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he won the coveted Chancellor’s Medal, and achieved First Class Honours in both Part I and Part II of his degree – a distinguished ‘double First’. After Cambridge, he entered the Civil Service, but when war broke out he immediately enlisted in the RNVR, where he was soon promoted to Sub-Lieutenant. He was posted to the ill-fated Gallipoli Campaign in 1915, described by one historian as ‘one of the Allies’ greatest disasters in World War One’. Arthur was killed on 6th May. He had a younger brother, John, who also joined up and, sadly, was killed in action in France on 6th August 1916.

Arthur Tisdall’s particular distinction is that he was the first Old Bedfordian to win this country’s highest award for gallantry, the Victoria Cross. The action for which he was awarded it took place on the first day of the landings at Gallipoli, 25th April 2015, but the actual award of his VC was delayed until 31st March 1916, nearly a year later. It is not entirely clear why this was, but it seems that although many men witnessed his bravery, because he never spoke about what he had done and because he was a naval officer no-one knew who he was and no official report of his action was made at the time. After his death, however, his family received so many letters which referred to it that they made enquiries as to why he had received no recognition, and eventually an official inquiry was ordered.

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The citation for his award reads:

THE KING HAS BEEN GRACIOUSLY PLEASED TO OFFER TO APPROVE OF THE GRANT OF THE VICTORIA CROSS TO THE FOLLOWING OFFICER IN RECOGNITION OF HIS MOST CONSPICUOUS BRAVERY AND DEVOTION TO DUTY: S U B - L I EU T. A RT H U R WA L D E R N E S T. C L A I R T I S DA L L

‘During the landing from S.S. River Clyde at V Beach in the Gallipoli Peninsula on April 25th 1915, Sub-Lieut. Tisdall, hearing wounded men on the beach calling for assistance, jumped into the water, and pushing a boat in front of him, went to their rescue… In all, Sub-Lieut. Tisdall made four or five trips between the ship and the shore, and was thus responsible for rescuing several wounded men under heavy and accurate fire.’

troops – of the first wave of two hundred who attempted to land, only twenty-one actually made it, and of the total seven hundred men there were over three hundred casualties that day, an extraordinarily high count, even for the First World War. It was in the face of such concentrated and deadly fire that Arthur Tisdall risked his life to save others. Five other members of the ship’s crew were also awarded the VC that day.

V Beach was in fact far more strongly defended than had been expected, especially from machine-gun posts in an old fortress positioned immediately above the beach. The S.S. River Clyde carried seven hundred

On hearing what Arthur had done, a friend of his from both School and Cambridge days commented, ‘We often wondered what Tisdall would do in the world. We knew it would be note-worthy, but we never dreamed

of this… he risked his life in rescuing men under heavy fire. Humble men they were, perhaps, men without any of his gifts, but he counted his life cheap beside theirs.’ In 1916, a book was published as a memoir of his life, and an article from the Ousel magazine of 1992 finishes with these words: ‘A well-liked and humble man who did his bit for King and Country nearly eighty years ago and made the ultimate sacrifice; it’s encouraging to think that his memory still lingers on.’ It is good that it still does today.

C H A P E L S E RV I C E

T I S DA L L FA M I LY AT S T G EO RG E’ S C H U RC H , D E A L

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Bunyan Museum and Higgins Gallery / Chapel Choir tour to Spain B U N YA N M U S E U M A N D H IGG I N S G A LLE RY

n Thursday 16th June we went on a school trip to the Bunyan Museum and Church. We walked so we could see the different statues and things displayed in his name. One showed pictures of the Pilgrims Progress, which is a book John Bunyan wrote while in prison. The other told us the place where John Bunyan was imprisoned for 12 years which is close to faces statue in the town centre. During our walk we also saw a model of the old Bedford Castle in metal and the John Howard statue. During the morning, we visited the John Bunyan Museum, the John Bunyan

Church and we could look at things people would have used to drink, eat and what they would have used to light their houses. In the Museum we learnt that John Bunyan was 6 foot 4 inches tall which was very unusual in olden times. He was born in Harrowden in 1628 and later lived in Elstow and Bedford. He was poor and worked as a tinker. He had been a bit of a rascal as a boy but heard God’s voice and after being in the army became a minister for the Free Church; they preach differently than the Church of England.

The Bunyan Church was built because of him. It is the third building in the same place. He is now famous all over the world.

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Jonathan Hall Y3

TH E C H A PE L C H O I R TO U R E D SO U TH E R N S PA I N AT TH E E N D O F J U LY

When Charles II was made King the Free Church was no longer allowed, and John Bunyan was put in prison as he didn’t want to give up preaching his way. First, he had to stay for 12 years, and later 6 months. That’s where people think he started writing Pilgrims Progress and many other books. He died in 1688, aged nearly 60 years old.

he Chapel Choir toured southern Spain at the end of July 2015. The tour location was absolutely spectacular, being in the heart of the Alpujarras mountains a couple of hours from Granada. Travel sickness was a bit of an issue as we spent many hours zigzagging our way up and down the sides of mountains, often with precipitous drops on one side! The mountain villages are really beautiful, and the cooler temperatures, slower pace of life and isolation make for a very different feel from the sea-level cities. We were warmly welcomed everywhere we went, and performed in a variety of venues including local churches, a threshing circle surrounded by high peaks, and Granada Cathedral. We also did some busking in villages and sent the youngest prep school boy around with his hat to collect coins. I managed (after considerable persuasion) to get everyone to sing a couple

of things on the Easyjet flight home - perhaps the first ever performance of Rachmaninov Vespers at 36 000ft? I was really heartened to see the older boys making music together in their spare time, whether performing close-harmony arrangements or their own compositions; in fact sometimes it was hard to get them to stop and rest. A great thing for the younger boys to see. The boys’ conduct throughout the week was exemplary and they were great company, all of which made it very enjoyable for us staff. I was joined by Joss Sanders, Eleanor Wilson and the Chaplain, to whom I’m very grateful.

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Jeremy Rouse

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French Trip

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Sarah Portsmouth

n March of this year, boys from Y6, Y7 and Y8 travelled to the Maison Claire Fontaine Activity Centre situated in the quiet and beautiful hamlet of Meluzien, in the Burgundian countryside. This action-packed six-day trip incorporated physical activities with constant exposure to the French language. These included a morning at the local market in Avallon, where they had to buy ingredients en français of course, and prepare their three course lunch which was then presented in French, judged by the staff and rapidly consumed! They also visited the Chateaux de Bussy-Rabutin and learnt about many paintings and the history of the people who lived there. The labyrinth within the grounds of the castle proved a hit as the boys had to find

y favourite part of the French Trip was definitely going into a French market and having to buy our lunch all in French. However, every activity we did was fun and enjoyable. The staff at MCF made the whole experience something none of us will forget. As well as having fun we all learnt so much more French. The way we learnt though was fun and none of us actually knew we were learning. The whole experience was really enjoyable and was a great trip to go on. A shout out has to go to Oliver Setterfield who tried to sieve an egg! W O R D S BY

Tom Allen Y8

answers to questions dotted around the maze in teams. Other activities included visiting a monastery in Vezelay; swinging from the trees in a high ropes course; being clowns and trapeze artists in French circus skills; channeling their inner warrior in archery; making a tartouillette in cooking lessons and using drawings produced at the monastery to carve gargoyles and grotesques out of soft blocks back at the centre. The centre catered for the boys and the staff with wonderful home cooked meals three times a day. Everything was explained in French and they participated in daily French lessons, which were linked to the day’s activities. It was an incredibly rewarding experience for all the boys.

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PGL Monday 23rd May

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Reis Fernandes Y4 We woke up bright and early for our last half day at PGL! Our first activity was Orienteering. I managed to use a map and compass by the end of the activity and was very elated. Then the final activity was the High Ropes. I was so frightened but managed to make it round the course. I wish I could do it again and this time I would not be so worried!

Friday 20th May The day of my trip to PGL finally arrived. After lunch all the boys from Y4 jumped onto the coach with excitement buzzing all around us. On the coach we luckily got to watch the Minions movie which was really funny. We arrived at the site and met our group leader (the person who would look after us before bedtime and in our dormitories.) His name was Fraser and he was brilliant throughout the weekend. We had a quick visit to our dormitories. I shared a dormitory with Hamish Whiteman, Alex Deane and James Dagg. We all absolutely loved our dormitory! We then had a delicious dinner of Spanish Paella to keep us going throughout the evening. All of us leapt off our chairs and arrived at the tuck shop. Then we went to the woods to play ‘Capture the Flag’. It was an extremely fun game and a very good experience. We then all rushed into our sleeping bags ready for our room inspection. We got an amazing score of nine out of ten!

Now it is the end of PGL. I would love to go there again soon as it was an awesome experience. Thank you to Fraser and all the teachers who took part in putting this journey together.

Saturday 21st May

Sunday 22nd May

We woke up next morning and had a delicious breakfast. We went back to our dormitory for ten minutes to get ready for our next activity: Trapeze! What you had to do was climb up a wooden pole and get onto a platform then… leap to try and hang onto a metal pole suspended in the air. I didn’t quite reach the metal pole but it was still a brilliant experience. Next activity was Archery, where we got to play lots of games but my favourite was when we were separated into two teams, each of us aimed to get an arrow onto different colours on the target to make a cake. Each colour meant something, for example blue was the icing of the cake. If you hit the black part of the target then you had burnt the cake and would have to start all over again. Next on the agenda was Fencing. We had time for some mini duels and I won most of mine. The last activity of the day was my favourite - Rifles! I loved learning about how rifles work and what you use to shoot rifles (pellets). Soon after, we had dinner and went to our evening activity of Wacky Races. It was ultimate fun and we all got pushed to our limits as we sprinted or dribbled with a football to the finish line. After that we had a good night’s sleep.

A new day - Hamish, Alex, James and I woke up early in the morning and sneakily played a game of top trumps. We went to the dining hall for breakfast and excitedly went to our first activity, kayaking. I absolutely loved this experience, capsizing twice and having to stop 5 minutes before the activity ended as I was absolutely FREEZINGGGGG!!! We rushed back to our dormitory to have a nice hot shower and had a delicious lunch. Next I had the ’Challenge Course’ which was very tough. We played lots of little games, one of which I fell off a plank of bark -ooops! We then excitedly went for our last activity: Climbing. Apparently the instructors thought I was the best ‘belayer’ of the day! Belaying is how you release the rope to let someone climb up a wall. Somehow, I managed to reach the top of the climbing wall which I was definitely proud about. After an extremely tiring day we went for our last dinner at PGL and then it was back to our dorm block to change into our disco clothes. Boy, did I bust some moves on the dance floor! After a fun time at the disco we went to sleep.

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Bude / Jersey

BUDE

JERSEY

n July 2015 we returned to Outdoor Adventure at Bude in Cornwall with thirty-three Y5 and Y6 boys for an action packed multi-activity, adventure holiday. We were not quite so lucky with the weather this year, but it didn’t stop us enjoying the activities. The boys (and staff) were involved in a range of different activities – surfing, body boarding, kayaking, climbing, abseiling, archery, coastal traversing, problem solving and team building challenges. We all tried all the activities – with varying degrees of success (staff!) and learnt lots of new skills. However, abseiling down a slippery cliff-face in the pouring rain did test our resilience to the full. At the small private beach at the bottom of the centre, a whale had been washed ashore a month previously and for many seeing the skeleton at close hand was the real highlight of the holiday. The instructors were outstanding and worked hard with our staff to encourage our boys to develop a range of different skills beyond the structured activities. This involved: • • • • •

B R I N G I N G O U T H I D D E N S T R E N G T H S A N D TA L E N T S B O O S T I N G S E L F- E S T E E M A N D CO N F I D E N C E D E V E LO P I N G S O C I A L S K I L L S B ECO M I N G PA RT O F A T E A M BUILDING INDEPENDENCE

We all enjoyed getting to know the boys better, away from school and, once again, we were all very impressed by their exemplary behaviour. They were all polite and well-mannered and I was also impressed by how supportive they were towards each other when activities became challenging. I would like to thank Mrs Christian and Mr Phillips for accompanying the trip and giving up a week of their holiday. Thank you.

n Friday 11th March twenty-one boys from Y6, along with three members of staff, set off for the thirty-sixth weekend sports tour to Jersey. Following a flight from Gatwick Airport bags were collected and we made our way to the Apollo Hotel to check in. After settling into the rooms we made our way to the first sporting venue to play hockey against Victoria College and Victoria College Prep. The A team played well just losing to a Y7 side and beating VCP and the B team. Honours were even between the Bs and VCP, but the Y7s proved too strong for these teams too. The boys then enjoyed a swim at the hotel pool followed by a large pizza and a few games of pool. After a good night’s rest and a full English, we took part in a rugby tournament with six teams featuring, including two mixed from BPS. An excellent start was made with the Bedford 1 winning over St Michael’s Prep. This team had further wins over VCP, Bedford 2, De La Salle and a St Helier Schools team. Team 2 had wins against De La Salle and a St Helier Schools team. After two hours of entertaining and committed rugby the boys were exhausted but happy. In the afternoon a trip was made to the world renowned Durrell Wildlife Park, where all the animals were out in their enclosures making the visit entertaining. The meerkats were particularly active and were a real source of amusement for all. In the evening the boys went to the bowling alley competing fiercely and enjoying themselves. Sunday morning was Football, the ‘A’ team played a strong team and had a lesson in how to play. The ‘B’ team, although working hard, and improving as they went along, lost as well but their physicality kept them in the game. Our mini sports tour now at an end the twenty-one very tired boys returned to school on Sunday evening after a busy weekend. They were a credit to the School both on and off the sports field.

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Jane Di Sapia

Shawn Phillips

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Skiing C H R I S TM A S S K I TR I P

his year we have seen the two ski trips go from strength to strength. The Christmas Y6, Y7 and Y8 trip was a roaring success, with amazing conditions for the time of the season.

The boys concentrated fully on their instructor’s instructions, and as a result the progression in skills and confidence was significant and encouraging. The beginners, led by Dominic Russell-Smith, were chomping at the bit to move on to the more daunting slopes after seeing Mr. Beckwith, Mrs. Travis and the higher groups swooshing across the alpine vista. Luay, Alex E, Joey R and myself progressed by sheer determination and resilience, and were soon flying down and motoring across the now not so daunting slopes. Great fun was had at the fun pool with particular attention being paid to the game, “how many can we get down the water flume at one time”? I would like to point out that Mr Guest and his Dad gave us a full safety brief, and we only attempted any games when they weren’t looking! Evening entertainment was also part of the week’s tapestry. The Bedford Prep boys, were in competition with the Upper School, Yarm and Wellingborough, but we held our own at the competitive Tyrollean evening. Luckily Mr Guest had briefed our parents of this event and we came prepared with our lederhosen, may I add, not my normal holiday attire. The jury is still out on the result of the log sawing, but we did find out the terrific strength of Lewis Schael and Alex Edun. As the week progressed and routines were established, the many ways and means of the Bedford Prep school ski trip were running through our blood. Wake, Ski, Eat, Sleep, Repeat. On one of the last nights, we had a fantastic experience, we would play Austrian style bowling with a ball like no other. When we hit that sweet strike, we were quickly brought back down to earth by Mr Guest shouting the classic catchphrase “yeah baby”. As we headed back on the bus for home we knew that we had experiences like no other and made friendships that wouldn’t have happened at school. As we pulled into Burnaby Road we had mixed emotions, happy to see our parents, but sad that we had come to an end of a super holiday.

E A S TE R S K I TR I P

he eclectic party of forty-four visited the Zillertal in Austria at Easter. We had beautiful late season weather and good snow conditions. We set off on our first day with the boys under very clear instructions, “point your skis downhill and don’t put your tongue on the metal bar on the lift.” For the first-time skiers, expectations and reality can often diverge when we get to the slopes. We imagine gracefully swishing down an Alpine mountain, but actually spend our first day on our bums. For the Bedford group, under the expert direction of our instructors, this initial phase was quickly overcome, and swishing became the reality. The boys and their families were up and running and discovered the potential of what gravity and a pair of planks strapped to the feet could lead to. The weather was sunny and pleasant and soon Robert Wells was starting to sport a very impressive goggle tan face, and the rest of the beginners, including Tom Cameron-Fraser, Alex Hammond and James Gordon were smiling and laughing with very little prompting. The top group of skiers were also hitting their straps, but it was difficult to keep tabs on them as the mileage started to clock up. Dylan French, Alex Harrison and the Maling brothers were particularly to the fore. The returning heroes, Robert Groves and Matthew Jones were also able to show that their progress continues unabated.

I know I’m already booking myself in for next year. W O R D S BY

Oliver Gregory Y8

The evening entertainment was enjoyed by all, swimming, bowling and the infamous Tyrollean evening; unfortunately for Mr Guest, modern technology means that his dancing in lederhosen has been recorded for perpetuity. Oliver Munn, Sam Wells, Isaac Madidson and Natty Lord were able to demonstrate their competitive inclination. A tired group returned to Bedford very happy, with boxes ticked and a group of proud parents, who themselves had discovered a few new routes down the mountain. A big thank you to Mr Beckwith and Mrs Travis for their work making the trip so successful, but especially to Mr Brett you joined the party late in the day, and was seen buying his first pair of ski socks the morning of departure! W O R D S BY

Stephen Guest

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South Africa

SO U TH A F R I C A

Days 1 and 2 Rowan Bascetta-Pollitt Y8 Although travelling to a new country is exciting, special and amazing. All the boys and the staff understood that this was a cricket tour and we were here to play cricket. The plane journey was a whopping ten hours to Johannesburg, and another two to Cape Town. So all of us understood that we needed to get some rest if we were going to perform. We weren’t going to waste eighteen weeks of training for nothing. We were at last at our destination. A week of cricket and being with your mates which in my opinion are the best things ever. The atmosphere was good and everyone was nervous and excited. We were greeted by our team rep and set off to the rugby game Stormers vs. Jaguars. The

Days 3 and 4

Days 5 and 6

Ashlesh Chandrapu Y8

Finlay Cummings Y8

After breakfast we had a training session which was very useful as we got our first taste of the South African Pitches.

We went to Western Province Cricket Club for our training session that morning and the weather was on our side. It was sunny and clear blue skies and Table Mountain looked amazing. A good training session was then followed by a trip the V&A Waterfront. We were transferred to SACS which stands for South African College Schools for our 2nd fixture.

After the session we went to watch the 5th South Africa vs England ODI. Unfortunately, England lost. It was a great experience as we got to go into the England dressing room. We got to meet Ben Stokes, James Taylor, Chris Jordan, Johnny Bairstow and the captain Eoin Morgan. In the evening we were treated to a lovely steak dinner and we then went back to the hotel.

The game was a 30 over each side. SACS won the toss and they chose to bat. At the end of their innings they ended up on 149/5 after good bowling spells from James

THE WHOLE EXPERIENCE WAS TRULY AMAZING AND HAS NOT ONLY TAUGHT US A LOT ABOUT HOW TO IMPROVE OUR CRICKET BUT ALSO ABOUT ALL THE AMAZING CULTURES IN SOUTH AFRICA. journey was fantastic with Table Mountain to the right of us, huge palm trees and the sun beating down and the spectacular atmosphere that SA has. When we arrived at the rugby, thousands of people chanted for their team. The atmosphere was amazing you truly felt like you were in the game. What a great start to the trip.

In the morning our hotel had a pool, this meant that we had a very relaxing morning leading up to our first game of the tour. We played our first game against Sweet Valley primary school. Unfortunately, we lost by five wickets. After the game we went off to spend the night with our first host families.

Worker and Cameron Melly. A great effort from Cameron to hit a very good 75 off 62 balls to take us within a chance of winning. But some good bowling and fielding from the SACS school prevented us and we ended up on 140/9 only 10 runs short. A big game of football followed between England and

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of bowling from Philip Hughes who took 3 wickets and a run out. After the game we went back to the hotel and then we went to the Waterfront for our end of tour dinner with all the parents that had supported us at Quay Four which was delicious. They also had a live band and a dancefloor which was awesome fun!

South Africa which was great fun. We were then taken back to the hostsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; houses to have a good nightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rest. The following day we woke up and went back to SACS to be collected by the bus. We took the boat to Robben Island where we had a great tour of the island. We then played our 3rd fixture versus Bastion Primary. It was a T20 game and Bastion won the toss and put us into bat. A poor batting performance all round meant we ended up on 78 all out. Some good bowling from Henry Warren and Zane Haroon made a game of it but in the end it was just not a big enough total set. After the games we were taken to meet the host families of the people we were playing the following day in Paarl.

Days 7 and 8 Cameron Melly Y8 The boys enjoyed spending the night at the host families before meeting up at 7:30, to begin our day. We then travelled down to visit the oldest cricket club in Cape Town where we played football! Our 4th game against Paarl did not go well as our batting lacked positivity, being bowled out for 62 allowing Paarl to knock them off easily and win by 9 wickets. After the game the school hosted a huge barbeque for all the parents and players, all the boys enjoyed swimming in the pool and bonding with the opposition. After the disappointment, the boys were keen to come back strong this afternoon and get there first victory of the tour. Our performance that afternoon against Parkland College was much improved as we scored 170 and stopped them getting close

to that total. After the game it was time for the squad to go to South Africa vs England T20 match at Newlands. The games was very exciting with the result going down to the last ball. The squad started some huge chants which started a battle between the South Africa fans! It was probably my favourite day and I will remember it for a long time.

Days 9 and 10 Matt Rea Y8 Saturday morning after we had to be at breakfast we set off to Kirstenhof Primary School. It was here where we would play our last cricket match on tour in South Africa. We batted first and ended up with a score of 203 for 9 off 35 overs with Matt Rea scoring 69. When the last two batsmen came off the field, we were all very happy with our team effort. With some tight bowling and good fielding we ended up winning our last game by 82 runs. It was an outstanding display

When I woke up on Sunday morning, I was quite upset, and so was everyone else, that we were leaving South Africa today. But then I remembered that we were going to Ratanga Junction Theme Park. In the park there was 2 rides that I mainly went on, one was called The Cobra roller coaster, and the other one was Monkey Falls log flume where we all got very wet. But like all good things, unfortunately it had to end. We got back on the bus and said our goodbyes to South African soil. Then went to check in to our 2-hour link flight to Johannesburg where we then flew to London. The whole experience was truly amazing and has not only taught us a lot about how to improve our cricket but also about all the amazing cultures in South Africa.

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Ickwell I C K W E LL TR I P

On Wednesday 7th October Y4 went to Ickwell. We left school at 9am. When we got there we were sorted into groups and unpacked our bags. We then had a tour of the grounds, so that we knew where everything was.

he first activity that we did was mini theme park making. We got lots of sticks, branches and leaves to make our own rides and attractions. The second activity was marshmallow toasting. That was fun! We also did some wood carving and den building at the same time. By that time it was 12 o’ clock, so we went to go and have some lunch. After lunch we did the autumn art activity. For this, we had to gather some twigs and leaves and create smiley faces. They had lots of different textures. Next was the bug hunt. We found a lot of something called “mother of pearl”. We also found some lizards. I really liked that. Lastly, we did leaf and berry pressing. You got a piece of cotton material, laid out the leaves and berries on it in a nice pattern, then used a mallet to squash the leaves and berries so that the cotton got covered in multi-coloured juices. They looked really nice. After all of that, we got back on the bus and went back to school. I hope we go again. Thank you to Mrs Russell for organising such a fun day.

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Harry Clifton Y4

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Whipsnade Zoo

T R I P S/ O U T I N G S

ATHLE TICS REPORT

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S P O RT

Athletics

FIERCE COMPETITION MADE THE BOYS PERFORM TO THE BEST OF THEIR ABILITY

he season began with the Y7 and Y8 league fixtures, which saw some strong performances across all disciplines. This enabled the team to progress to the League Final where they competed amongst the best eight schools from an original twenty-seven. Fierce competition made the boys perform to the best of their ability and their combined efforts saw them placed 7th overall. The meet at Spratton Hall was in sunshine, for a change, and this spurred athletes from Y5 to Y8 to do their best in their events. When the results were announced the team came a very creditable 2nd just a few points behind the winners. After half term the Y6 league began, but this was really affected by rain and only one of the planned three events took place, with the team just pipping Lincroft for a win. The East Area Prep Championships were held at Bedford Athletics Stadium in the first week back after half term and a small squad of premier athletes attended this. Lewis Schael (Y8 Discus) and the Y6 relay team were placed second and Alex Edun (Y7 Long Jump) won gold. All were invited to represent the East at the National Finals, but, due to unforeseen circumstances, only the relay team will be competing. The Y4 and Y5 boys competed at the East Anglian Athletics and had a really enjoyable time, experiencing competing against the best from this region. All tried hard and learned some valuable lessons from their events. Sports Day was most enjoyable and it was great to see boys from all the year groups competing at the same venue, working towards a common goal for their Houses. The events were hotly contested with winners coming from all Houses and the minor places becoming incredibly important. Only 3.2% of the marks separated first and fourth place in the end and Harpur managed to pip everyone else to the 2016 title.

Finally, on a pretty damp Wednesday, the School competed in the District Athletics. The Y6, Y7 and Y8 relay teams had already qualified for their finals from a previous event, so an almost full squad attended this event. Strong all-round performances enabled the Y6 to come second by one point. All others performed well again despite the weather and enjoyed the event. Congratulations to all boys who competed in an athletics event for the School and thank you to Mrs Aldridge for her time. W O R D S BY

Shawn Phillips

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W H I N C H AT

Badminton

adminton has enjoyed another very successful year. Encouragingly all three teams qualified in the top eight for the District Finals of out of a field of thirty teams. After fierce competition, the School teams completed a clean sweep: first (As), second (Bs) and third (Cs) places. The squad then enjoyed a hugely successful day at the County Finals. The A and B teams, who had both qualified from the District Finals, reigned supreme on the courts to win the silver and gold. The B team (George Mansell, Joshua Stewart, Max Pearson and Vaibhav Garde) won 18 of the 25 games played on their way to winning silver - a fantastic effort considering five of those lost were to our A team. The A team (Josha Mital, Matt Rea, Finlay Cummings and myself) won 24 out of 25 of our games to claim the gold and U13 County champions crown. This set up a playoff against the U14 County campions to gain a place the Eastern Region Finals. As expected this was against Bedford School’s U14 team and, whilst the boys performed brilliantly, the seniors were just too strong. Arin Mital, however, played for the U14 team and therefore qualified for the Eastern Finals, which they went on to win gaining them a place in the National Finals.

The National IAPS Badminton Finals took place at Great Walstead School in Sussex. The U13 pair of Arin Mital and myself performed very well, as we reached the finals, but ended up runners up as we were beaten by a very strong team from Winchester House. On the way to the Final we won all seven of our matches, including a very tough group game against Beachborough who had the British U13 Number 1 playing for them. This set up a very tense and exciting semi-final against Great Walstead, which we just won 21-18 before losing the Final by 2 sets to 0. The U11 pairing of Josha Mital and Joshua Stewart went one better as they were crowned IAPS U11 National Badminton Champions. The boys worked brilliantly as a team, as they won all seven of their games including having to beat a strong pair from Milton Keynes Prep twice as they met them in the group stages and again in the Final.

BADM INTON RE PORT W O R D S BY

Ashlesh Chandrapu

Within school, congratulations go to the Y5 andY6 Harpur and Howard teams and Y7 and Y8 Whitbread team for winning their respective House competitions.

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Cross Country

C ROS S COU NTRY RE P ORT

ross Country has been successful this year, particularly the Year 6 team. It has been great to see the number of boys compete in the Bedford Park run, suggesting much success in the future. The Y6 team won the Middle Schools District Cross-Country Championships, and did especially well to share first place with hosts Beachborough at the Maidwell Chase. Two superb individual runs by Robert Parrish (1st) and Tom Deardon

(3rd) gave the team the impetus they needed on the day. Bryn Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Dell was next home, and these three were well backed up by Ashton Stewart and Sam Wells. The difficult conditions did not deter the team, and they secured joint first place with Beachborough in the age group contest. Also deserving of a special mention is Alex Walker in Y8, who has done very well in every cross country event, finishing high in the rankings in all of them.

W H I N C H AT

Cricket

O U T S TA N D I N G AC H I E V E M E NT S

Batting Henry Warren 108* vs Oundle 1st XI George Mansell 80* vs Bedfordshire U12 Elliott Byrne 74 vs Bilton Grange 1st XI Charlie Blythman 70* vs Caldicott U11A Cameron 66 vs Wellingborough 1st XI Ashlesh Chandrapu 63 vs Caldicott 2nd XI Ashlesh Chandrapu 63 vs Bilton Grange 1st XI William Sayer 63* vs Wellingborough Tom Allen 57 vs Stamford 2nd XI Varun Parmar 56 vs Bishops Stortford 2nd XI Charlie Blythman 54* vs Bedfordshire U11A Elliot Byrne 52 vs Bishops Stortford 2nd XI William Sayer 52* vs Bishops Stortford 4th XI Harry Midgley 50* vs St Gregs U12A

Bowling

George Mansell 6 for 14 vs Wellingborough 2nd XI George Mansell 5 for 6 vs Bishops Stortford 3rd XI George Mansell 5 for 5 vs Stamford 2nd XI George Mansell 4 for 5 vs Oundle 2nd XI Henry Warren 4-14 vs BMS 1st XI Henry Warren 4-16 vs St Faiths 1st XI Zane Haroon 4-4 vs Bedfordshire U13 Shiva Songara 4-23 vs Cornwall Hill 1st XI (South Africa) Henry Warren 4-8 vs Witham Hall 1st XI George Mansell 4-16 vs Swanbourne House 1st XI

W O R D S BY

Simon Lincoln

CRICKE T RE PORT

O C TO B E R 20 1 6

mazingly even with the rain 90 fixtures were completed this year and BPS won 70% of these with 63 wins and only 25 loses. To have a win ratio that high is a superb effort so congratulations to all the boys who have played this year and for representing BPS so well both on and off the cricket field. Off the back of the South Africa Tour the 1st XI enjoyed another successful season winning 10 of their 12 fixtures. The players have enjoyed many team highs including beating Bedfordshire U13 and Caldicott who went on to win the National JET Cup this year. The disappointment of losing to Repton School in the 3rd round has certainly helped them learn and develop their games further. Henry Warrens 108* vs Oundle 1st XI was the individual high of the season. The 2nd XI and the U11A also both enjoyed successful seasons winning 7 from 10 and 6 from 8 games respectively. With many of these players being from years 6 and 7 next season is showing good potential. George Mansell deserves a special mention as

he not only scored 80* versus Bedfordshire U12 to guide BPS to an memorable win, but also took no less than four 5 wicket hauls bowling leg spin which he only started doing in March. Congratulations should go to the U10A team who after a difficult start to the season showed great resilience and determination to win their final 2 games of the season. Finally the U9 A, B and C team need to be commended not only for collectively winning all of their 9 fixtures to leave the U9â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unbeaten for the season but also for the fantastic skill they showed along the way. They were lucky enough to meet Alistair Cook before one of their fixtures so hopefully that has inspired them greater things! Well done to everyone who has played cricket this year and thank you to all the staff who have supported, coached and umpired us to make the season of 2016 another enjoyable and successful one for Bedford Prep.

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Golf

GOLF A RE PORT

nother good year for the golf as the sport continues to grow within the School. The Golf Squad at Bedford Prep School practises at Bedfordshire Golf Club in Stagsden under the watchful eye of PGA coach Richard Banks and this year has continued to develop.

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Finlay Cummings Y8

This summer term has seen us in competitive action. We defended the MacGuire Cup against Wellingborough and finished the ISGA Junior Open held at Sunningdale Ladies Course with all three boys - myself, Philip Hughes and Carlos Martinez Bonet - finishing within the top forty. The match against the staff was unfortunately cancelled due to a massive thunderstorm, not that it stopped Mr Mallalieu taking a really close look at the clouds. Last term, there was also genuine success

at the ISGA Wellington Salver for Shaun Thomas who finished 2nd in the U12 Stableford Competition We still have one event left, as the Stowe Putter takes place in August, yet, having played in the BPS Open on the last Sunday of term, I know golf in the School is in really good health. The result may not have gone my way (I lost by one shot to Philip Hughes), but I was really pleased to see so many Bedford School boys out there swinging a club. This included our first ever Y3 - William Mowe who took 51 shots to get round the Academy course; that’s only two more than Mr Roberts manages it in …

“I KNOW GOLF IN THE SCHOOL IS IN REALLY GOOD HEALTH”

I was really proud to captain the school side this year and I would like to thank all my fellow squad members and Mr Roberts for all their hard work.

HOC KE Y RE P ORT

total of 26 teams represented the School in competitive matches, playing a total of 152 (nearly 200 boys) matches altogether. The strength of the hockey here saw an encouraging amount of success and a real development of skill and team work amongst the boys at all levels. Their response to the game-oriented training methods of the coaches was noticeable as their understanding of the game grew with experience. This was put to use in the competitive situation and made the encounters with other schools enjoyable. The 1st VII had a poor start and end to their season, but put together some good performances in the middle, led well by Archie Walsh. Their draw against Bishopâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Stortford who won our regional IAPS tournament was a real highlight. The 2nds played some enterprising hockey and the Y7s in the team gained much experience over the term. They worked hard on keeping their shape and produced some fine attacking movements throughout. We look forward to them developing further next year. The 3rds were the most consistent of the U13 sides winning all but one of their school matches with a combination of powerful attack and steadfast defence. They were pushed in training by the 4th team who all developed in skill and understanding. The 5ths & 6ths enjoyed themselves playing an expansive brand of attacking hockey which enabled them to score over sixty goals in their combined 13 games. Their defences held strong and only three matches were lost. The 7ths & 8ths also showed improvement over the term and learned that defence was necessary despite being strong going forward. Their team shape got better and, therefore, their play improved. At U11 there was much evidence of a talented year group. All teams played an attacking brand of hockey backed up with solid defence. As this year group matures their ability to score goals on a regular basis will improve and they should be a force to be reckoned with. The U10s really worked hard on their game and showed that hard work pays off as both their skills and game understanding developed. This allowed them to enjoy their season. At U8 and U9 the work on learning the game through playing allowed the boys to expand their skill sets and look forward to experiencing more competitive matches as they grow older. Thank you to all the staff who gave a large amount of time to all out hockey players and it was encouraging to see the boys playing with a smile on their faces.

W O R D S BY

Shawn Phillips

ROWI NG RE P ORT

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S P O RT

Rowing

have just watched footage of the Bedford School 1st VIII racing Hampton School at Henley Royal Regatta, feeling so proud. Not because they won (sadly they didn’t), but, as the commentary said, “these boys have really performed out of their skins.” Six of the 1st VIII came through the Prep School and started their rowing careers just like the boys we have been coaching this year. Rowing is a tough sport, not for the faint hearted, but has continued to increase in popularity and we have been particularly impressed with the progress of the boys this year, with run time and ergo records being broken. We are looking forward to watching the boys from Y8 progress as they move up the School. We are fortunate to have the guidance of former Olympian, Director of Rowing and First Eight Coach, Mr Pete Mulkerrins, who has continued to coach with the Wednesday Group, run the extra ‘After School Rowing Club’ and the Monday Games group this term. This has given more boys the opportunity to try out rowing and/or enhance their skills. During the final term everyone experienced the excitement of side by side racing. A team of Y8 rowers did us proud at Bedford Regatta, manning the stake boats with maturity and gaining valuable race day experience.

We brought the rowing year to a close with our annual fun racing matrix. This year we had two events. The first, a single scull event for six of the more competent scullers, which was won by Max Sogan, closely followed by Harvey Toms and Max Lusty in silver and bronze positions. The other was a ‘Scratched Quad Race’ where each boat comprises of boys of all sizes and abilities, with the aim to make them as equal as possible. After a series of races, the final outcome was a convincing win for the crew, consisting of Daniel Lumley Wood, Gabriel Davis, Henry Christian, William Spearman and Bradley Cole. The silver medal was won by the crew consisting of Harry Constantine, Blake Ayling, Sam Ferrari, Ethan Whitlock and Harry Goodman. Well done to all the boys and I look forward to seeing you next year. My thanks go to Mr Mulkerrins, Mrs Guise, Mr Satchwill, Mrs Maltby and Mr Gadsden, who have been an inspirational coaching team over the year. W O R D S BY

Imogen Bowis

THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS Jurgen Grobler

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W H I N C H AT

Rugby

RUGBY REPORT

W O R D S BY

Shawn Phillips

The 1st XV had a successful season, winning 10 of their 15 matches. Highlights were a gutsy victory against a very physical Felsted side, a hugely brave performance against an outstanding Caldicott side and an enjoyable tour to Worcester.

13Bs performed well overall, some good wins early on against Felsted and The Dragon got the ball rolling. There were some tricky matches against Caldicott and St. Hughs, but the boys actually had periods in those games where a lot

TE AMS

PL AYED

was learnt. The most pleasing win came at Wellingborough; having lost to them earlier in season, we went back and triumphed 21-7. A successful season for the U12A side despite it being very much a transitional year as the RFU’s “New Rules of Play” - no lineouts, no conversions, no pushing in the scrum and the reduction to 12-a-side - were adopted for this age group. Whilst Caldicott were more than a match for us, the only other game we lost was the narrow defeat to Warwick, which suffered from dreadful weather conditions. Although we pushed hard, we were just not able to do enough. The two most notable victories were a convincing win against Northampton School for Boys at the beginning of the season and then probably our best performance in our final match of the season securing a comfortable win against Stamford The U12C had a tough start to the season with fixtures against Spratton Hall and Caldicott and, despite conceding early tries in both games, the boys showed their resolve in the second half, displaying promising signs for the rest of the season. This was highlighted in their most compelling victories against Dragon, St Faith’s and Bishop Stortford by seizing possession from the kick off and

then completely dominating all facets of the game. An evenly balanced season and clear progression by the whole team confirmed by a number of changes in the line-up as boys have moved up the ranks, most notably those who scaled the ladder from Cs to As.

WON

DR AWN

The U11As had an excellent season, their results not reflecting the development and progress being made each week. Highlight of the season being their Plate win at the New Hall tournament. Top try scorer of the season was Caleb Sanders, but it is testimony to the development of their style that all the boys have graced the try charts as the team has come first. The U11Bs endured a season full of close games, sometimes on the right end of the scoreboard and sometimes on the wrong end. As a result of these enjoyable well-matched games, the progression of each individual player has been huge. Their handling has improved immensely, notably Adam Trussell and Harry Norris. Consequently, the team has produced some sublime attacking plays finished off by the likes of Oliver Comery and Harry Midgley. The defence has held strong with Tom Deardon, James and Harry Wootton-Evans as our top tacklers. Gabriel O’Neill and Freddie Sowerby were highly involved and always at the centre of things, be it hooking in the scrum, playing scrum-half or holding the width in phase play; they were always doing whatever necessary to achieve a good team performance. Sam Walker pulled the strings for us in attack, leading by example

in training and matches Sam was rewarded with a thoroughly deserved promotion to the A team towards the end of the season. Without doubt the most improved players have been James Marchant and Charlie Carey, who are now stalwarts of the B team. Special mention to Max Pearson who we unfortunately lost early on in the season due to injury, but Max also looks like an exciting prospect and one for future. All in all, a team full of character and desire for rugby who have made huge strides in the game. The U10A team had a busy term on the rugby field playing 16 fixtures in total winning 5 and drawing 2. Whilst they lost more than they won they should be very proud of their performances and progress they have made this season. The team’s commitment and willingness to learn has been excellent and it has been a real pleasure to watch them develop into a good rugby side looking to play and expansive game. Some

LOST

WIN R ATIO

highlights for the season include getting their first win as a team away at Felsted, drawing with both Dragon and Warwick who are 2 excellent rugby schools and the performance in beating Lincroft 45-10 having lost to the 30-0 earlier on in the season. The U10B enjoyed a relatively successful season only suffering true defeats to Caldicott and The Beacon, who proved too strong. Other than these fixtures, the boys pitted themselves well against all opposition, scoring many well worked tries and winning many games. A feature of their season was their tackling and once they realised this was the key to success, they worked hard in training to improve their technique. All boys in Y3 & Y4 played for the School in a variety of matches against a number of schools and thoroughly enjoyed themselves as their games developed. Congratulations also go to Tom Allen, Harry Constantine, Sam Dicks, Lewis Schael, Gurkaran Johal, Matt Rea, Oliver Gregory and Henry Warren for being selected for their age group/region in the Northampton Saints DPP with Tom, Lewis and Harry going on to be selected for the Saints EPDG.

ST FA ITH ’ S

N ATI O N A L 7S

An inexperienced squad attended St Faith’s U13 rugby 7s tournament playing four matches altogether. Losses against St Faith’s and Barnadiston and a win against King’s Cambridge meant a 5th/6th play off v Felsted. Sadly, this match was lost as well. The boys played some good 7s, but were undone by poor tackling

After a solid start under our belt by beating Port Regis the side fell apart, losing to both Summerfields and Caterham and did not qualify for the knock out rounds

B RYA N STO N An improved performance from the squad saw two wins in the league meaning a quarter final place v St Olave’s. A tough battle ended in a sound defeat to a side which eventually reached the semifinals of the National Prep School 7s.

DU LW I C H After a poor start the squad really stepped up a gear to beat Haileybury, Danes Hill and Felsted. A mediocre performance against Moulsford meant third place in the group and a place in the Plate competition. Inspired play against Colet Court and then Aldro meant a 5th place finish over all.

N O RTH A M P TO N SA I NT S B ED FO R DS H I R E In a round-robin event wins over Lincroft, Goldington and Woodlands meant a semi-final v Holywell. Despite some pleasing play and three tries, each the team lost on conversions. W O R D S BY

Matt Allen

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W H I N C H AT

Triathlon

TRIATHLON REPORT

t was hard to predict how the TriSquad would fare this season, after the departure of our very talented Y8 cohort. Fortunately, interest in multidiscipline sport has grown and it has been encouraging to see a significant number of boys, ranging from Y3 to Y8, participate in their first aquathlon, duathlon or triathlon. We are fortunate to have a budding local junior triathlon scene, one that offers both road and off-road cycling, plus pool and open water swimming. The ongoing success of the national team and the Rio Olympics only help to promote the sport further.

01 01 Gabriel Davis Stowe Triathlon 02 Sam Deardon Thurleigh Duathlon 03 George and Jack Sivills Buckingham 04 Gabriel Davis Stowe Triathlon

We started our season on home turf, with the Bedford Aquathlon in Bedford Park. Then it was on to the fast course at Thurleigh Autodrome. A number of boys took part in the duathlon (run-bike-run), with a fourth place for Tom Deardon and a win for his younger brother, Sam. Special mentions should go to Kurtish Mistry (taking the plunge and entering his first ever duathlon) and to George Sivills (who cycled further than was expected, but still finished strongly). George would go on to compete again later in the season, at Buckingham. In another family affair, his younger brother, Jack, finished third in his first ever triathlon. It is extremely encouraging to have talented triathletes amongst the younger years. The peculiar nature of the triathlon season, with its winter break, meant a lull in competitions until the Summer Term. The boys were still training hard, however. Monday morning spin was popular throughout the year and the fitness levels of the boys visibly improved, with one regular able to knock six minutes off his “road run” time. Impressive. Our final TriSquad event was at wet and windy Stowe. The standard was very high, but our boys more than held their own. The Deardon Brothers – Sam, Tom and James – finished 7th, 16th and 21st respectively. Both Gabriel Davis and Tom Allen had tough days, but were able to take lessons from the experience. Gabriel has been a stalwart of the squad since its inception and is keen to compete and learn, so the results will come. The biggest cheer of the day was reserved for Charlie Lawrence, who, due to staggered starts in pool based triathlons and it being his first ever triathlon, had the course to himself for a few laps. He crossed the finish line wearing the biggest smile of the day. Such is the warm and welcoming nature of the multi-discipline community.

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Ruth Mann 03

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Swimming

he first term saw several galas including home and away v Aldwickbury where, unfortunately, we were defeated, though the results are getting closer. A new fixture combined with BGS against Beechwood Park was arranged and closely fought – a win for the Bedford schools. Another close win, this time against Kimbolton, was enjoyed, again combining with BGS. During the spring there was a lot of activity on the swimming front. A close match at St Faith’s saw a defeat by their combined Boys and Girls team but this was rectified three weeks later by winning at home with the Y8 team leading the way. The IAPS qualifiers, held at Aldwickbury School, saw all boys work hard swimming some encouraging times. The Y8 relay teams looked particularly strong with the medley team qualifying for the finals alongside Rowan Spong in the individual U13 backstroke. At the challenging Bromsgrove relays the U13 squad of Rowan Spong, Tobias Todd, Harvey Toms and George Winder swam season best times in the medley and freestyle relays. The freestyle time was 59.05s, which was their first time under 1 minute this year. They were 4th in the medley and 5th in the freestyle events. The U11s finished in 10th place in both events. The ESSA Primary Relays in Watford gave the boys the chance to reach the National Finals. Some excellent swimming saw the U11 relay teams achieve their best times of the season finishing a creditable 8th in both events. This did not get them to the Finals, but was a great achievement. A gala for U8 to U11 against Heath Mount proved a real challenge and, with exception of the Y3 team, we were comfortably beaten at all age groups by a very strong school. This

was followed by a meet with BGS, where, despite some sterling efforts (particularly by the Y3 and Y8 teams), the girls proved too strong for us and won comfortably. Surprisingly, there has not been much competitive swimming at the end of the season, but in the IAPS finals, held at the K2 centre in Crawley in early May, four Y8 boys - Rowan Spong, George Winder, Harvey Toms and Tobias Todd - represented the School in the U13 Boys Medley Relay Final. Having qualified in 11th position, they all improved, taking the team up three places to 8th. Rowan also swam in the U13 Boys 50m backstroke heats qualifying for the final later in the morning. Despite breaking his hat at the start, he swam well and ended up in 8th position. Well done to a strong and committed Y8 team The only other gala was at Maidwell Hall in a small 15m pool. The races were tight and the boys adjusted to the environment well. Against some experienced swimmers the task was difficult and a defeat by a mere four points was the result.

SWIMMING REPORT

“THE GALA AGAINST BEDFORD GIRLS SAW THE TEAM PERFORM TO A HIGHER STANDARD” The House events were, as usual, highly competitive, with the elite swimmers able to show their ability. Closely fought at all ages, the winners were Harpur at Y3 and Y4 and Bunyan at both Y5 and Y6 and Y7 and Y8. Congratulations to all boys who have represented the School in swimming matches this year.

Leavers

L E AV E R S

W H I N C H AT

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L E AV E R S

Y E A R LE AV E R S A N D TH E P OS T- E X A M PE R I O D The post exam period was an exciting one for the Year 8 boys. They enjoyed an exciting and extensive enrichment programme, which aimed to get them thinking about the future, as well as equipping them with important skills to make the best of the next stage of their education.

hey had training in first aid and school social media, a history talk on slavery, a geography field trip to the Great Ouse, a Moving On workshop and bushcraft at Ickwell courtesy of our own Mrs Russell, and a range of outstanding speakers. Many thanks indeed to all those who gave up their time to give such interesting, informative and thought-provoking talks to the boys. Judging by the number of questions afterwards, the boys loved the talks, and there was a really impressive range. Mrs Sogan talked about financial services and banking, Miss Karavaggelis talked about bioengineering, Dr Barnes explained what life was like as a doctor in the baby special care unit, Mr Linney revealed insights into the world of the medicinal chemist, Mr Setterfield gave the view from the air and lectured on what it takes to become a pilot in the RAF, and Mr Dicks gave a talk entitled “Disruption through technology in industry”. I’m looking forward already to the program next year as I will be adding to the wonderful array of activities.

LI S T O F Y E A R 8 B OYS (all but one moving on to the Upper School)

W O R D S BY

Jonathan Beckwith

We will really miss the Y8s, they have been brilliant, and I add here the advice the Headmaster gave to them at Speech Day. It is borrowed from Nelson Mandela’s inspirational book A Long Walk to Freedom. He says: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended.” Our Y8s have but a short walk to the Upper School in September – we wish them well and will follow their progress with interest as those few steps open up an increasingly bright future. The full list of Year 8 leavers is added below.

Tyler Aldridge, Thomas Allen, Blake Ayling, Tom Bailey, Ben Barnes, George Barrett, Rowan Bascetta-Pollitt, Michael Bennell, Harvey Bolger, Joseph Briggs, Oliver Brown, Elliott Byrne, Ashlesh Chandrapu, Florio Chryssaphes, Harry Constantine, Riley Cook, Samuel Corner, Finlay Cummings, Jack Davis, Joss De Kersaint Giradeau, Sam Dicks, Divine Edjejovwo, Henry Faulkner, Vaibhav Garde, William Garner, Sam Garrett, Oliver Gregory, Zane Haroon, Joshua Holdsworth, Danny Hubber, Philip Hughes, Rohan Jacob, Ricky Jani, Tim Jee, Gurkaran Johal, Harilaos Karavaggelis, Piratheesh Karunakaran, George Kendall, Umar Khan, Alexander Linney, Mattie Lousada Blaazer, Daniel Lumley-Wood, Max Lusty, Nikita Markov, Carlos Martinez Bonet, Harry Mason, Hugo Mathew, Edward MathewJones, Archie McLean, Cameron Melly, Arin Mital, Yaamin Mohamed, Joseph Needham, Hamza Noor, Jamie Norris, Nathaniel Otley, Harissh Paheerathan, Varun Parmar, Ben Parrish, Freddie Peacock, Freddie Pelling, Harry Pilcher, Leo Policella, Elliot Potter, Matt Rea, Antonio Reale, Kelan Riddell, Dominic Russell-Smith, Jude Sanders, Ashwin Santosh Kumar, William Sayer, Lewis Schael, Oliver Setterfield, Sami Shameen, David Pak Yin Sin, Maximilian Sogan, Amir Solanki, Shiva Songara, William Spearman, Rowan Spong, Frederick Stock, Theo Sutton, Tobias Todd, Harvey Toms, Henry Tyrer, Parwaaz Upadhyay, Alexander Walker, Callum Wallis, Archie Walsh, Theo Ward, Max Ward, Jonathan Wardle, Henry Warren, Samuel Welch, George Winder, Kap Yan Andy Wong, Dylan Wood, Ben Wood, James Worker

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#This Is Ground Control To Major Tim# #Neaaar, Faaar, Wherever You Are# #They’re Creepy and They’re Kooky, Mysterious and Spooky# Before They Were Famous: The Chuckle Brothers #He’s A Dedicated Follower Of Fashion# Andy “Gordon Gekko” Wong #All The Young Dudes# Rio 2016 08

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It’s An Honour To Serve In The New Government. Caught On Camera: The Inky Ghost It Dawned On Mdm Faulkner That Survival Depended Upon Her Cooking Skills. Health and Safety Gone Mad! It’s Not Rocket Science! Oh, Wait … Lovely Summer We’re Having #1 Icebreakers Inexplicably Loses Its Appeal. Excuse Me, Dear Chap, May One Borrow A Pencil? I Surrender It’s Not The Winning, It’s The Taking Part, Mr Maitland. Egads, Someone Has Stolen My Binoculars!

01 Yes, Hugh, Saturday School Starts Next Year. 02 James Dean, Eat Your Heart Out. 03 The Christmas Holidays Couldn’t Come Fast Enough. 04 The Three Musketeers (And Dev) 05 Lovely Summer We’re Having #2 06 So, Alex, Any Advice Ahead Of Wimbledon? 07 What Do You Mean, You’ve Got Some “Fat Lady” To Sing My Part?!

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