FINDING NEO

Infamy! Calumny! Raise the hue and cry! Some dastardly charlatan has dognapped our precious Neo, and the blackguard is holding him hostage!

That was how we all came into assembly on Wednesday morning. Mrs Cawley was beside herself, and as the day wore on the sense of foreboding only got worse. In the evening, though, our meretricious mountebank revealed his awful plan in full. Dr. Poffley’s evil twin (or maybe it was just the real Dr. Poffley in a fake moustache who can say?) had locked the dog up, with the aim posting him to Siberia so we’d never see poor Neo again. But the villain had given us one last chance to save our furry friend!

Six fiendish puzzles lay before the hopeful teams of children and adults. Solve these, and the code to the lock on Neo’s cage was revealed. In the science labs Garlic led eager teams through his complex Physics based escape room. In the chapel Deacon Simon challenged one and all to follow the lives of our House Saints and build up a composite picture. In the sports hall Miss Kay put girls and parents alike through their paces, and in John Bosco House Ms. McDowell challenged them to a session of frantic code-breaking. came to the library, setting them a sequence of rhyming riddles concealed in the books. By the time everyone had returned to the dining Neo was being held. Fortunately the walls were now decorated with profiles of our staff, and a further “Guess Who” puzzle pointed teams to the first clue in a sequence that eventually led to his location. A mad scramble ensued, from the pavilion to the fountain to the gazebo to the daffodils. The chase ended at the old ice house, where Neo was found, safe and well!

To signal this joyous reunion the fastest team rushed to the chapel again, where the bells were rung in joy and evil Dr. Poffley fled in thwarted frustration. A prize of sweets for the girls and wine for the adults was shared out, and everyone left knowing that disaster had been averted.

The last we heard from evil Dr. Poffley he had barricaded himself in the linen cupboard, and even now he plots his revenge. But with such quick-thinking girls and parents on hand, he doesn’t stand a chance of pulling the wool over our eyes next time!