The Old Tonbridgian Magazine Autumn 2023

OLD TONBRIDGIAN MAGAZINE The

In this issue: Bill Bruford (FH 62-67), who became a legendar y rock drummer with the groups ‘ Yes’ and ‘King Crimson’, reflects on the musical journey he began at Tonbridge.

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OT Magazine produced by: Tonbridge Society Tonbridge School High Street Tonbridge TN9 1JP

tonbridgesociety@tonbridge-school org tonbridgeconnect.org

Editorial Team:

David Walsh (Editor) david walsh@tonbridge-school org

Adrian Ballard adrian.ballard@tonbridge-school.org

Tara Biddle tara biddle@tonbridge-school org

Paddy Butler (Sc 78-73) tonbridgesociety@tonbridge-school org

Bev Matthews beverley matthews@tonbridge-school org

Tonbridge Society Team:

Adrian Ballard Director of the Tonbridge Society

Sir Anthony Seldon OT President

Richard Hough OT Chairman

John Gibbs OT Honorary Life President

Tara Biddle Alumni (OT ) Relations Manager

Bev Matthews Archives and Heritage

David Walsh

Yvette Young Development Manager

Sarah Merriman PAS Relations Manager

Katie Tribe PAS Chair

Catherine Duncan Development Assistant

Rebecca Gardner Database and Finance Administrator

Editor ial

Searching for the right balance across 70 plus years of Old Tonbridgian memories and experience is a challenge, but, in this edition of The Old Tonbridgian Magazine, reflection on the past jostles for space with the idealism and energy of the present. Idealism and energy can be found in the stor y of what Ben Yonge and his friends are doing to perpetuate the memor y of the much-loved Suanu Saro-Wiwa, raising money for the condition from which he died. Reflections from the more distant past start with Bill Bruford who, until the arrival of Keane, was the best-known Tonbridge pop idol, giving us a fascinating insight into his musical journey James Stewart writes about swimming at Tonbridge while William Reeve reflects on Bernard Wheeler and ‘Expedition Day’, both recalling an era before health and safety and risk assessment came to frame school activity.

James Priory’s call to ‘go to your wide futures’ reflects not just the amazing breadth of extra-curricular and even super-curricular provision in the school, but also the fact that today’s Tonbridgians and young OTs lead different lives and follow more diverse careers than the generations of their parents and grandparents

Increasingly often this can be found in not-for-profit activities and the School and OTS Committee would like to celebrate this by introducing this year the ‘OT of the Year’ award to honour an OT whose career or voluntary work has made a significant contribution to the public good, reflecting Tonbridgian values of community and service

Causes and protests galvanised older generations as much as today’s environmental and social issues energise the young Charles Barr, an OT of the 1950s, who himself played an important role in making cricket face up to its responsibilities over apartheid in South Africa, writes about the link which Tonbridge had with the iconic 1968 film If… This film, whose impact all of us of a certain age can remember, characterised the fight against stuffy and oppressive rules which turned schools into a cultural battleground in the late 1960s and 1970s

Anthony Seldon, our new President, has become a figure of immense authority in education, history and politics, but reminds us of his own rebellious past at school when the tectonic plates of society were shifting and the Vietnam War and civil rights issues galvanised a generation to press for change in no less strident a way than climate change issues do today Anthony will himself be reflecting on a cataclysmic episode in Tonbridge history by leading an OT trip to the Western Front in April 2024, details of which can be found in ‘Forthcoming Events’ and on Tonbridge Connect

The gap between the distant past and the present is filled by Duncan McCombe, writing about Park House at the dawn of the millennium, and Dom Merchant, who bravely sets out the difficulties he has faced since leaving Tonbridge in 2012 Mark Church combines with Andy Zaltzman to reflect on their different experiences of cricket at Tonbridge as contemporaries in Smythe in the 1990s and illustrate Tonbridge’s impact on the world of cricket broadcasting. Future quiz question - what do Anthony Seldon and Andy Zaltzman have in common? Both enjoyed the role of Tonbridge 1st XI cricket scorer. We also have historical reflection on Barry Orchard,

a growing letters column (more welcomed please), and a careers section highlighting two different career routes taken by OTs During the past year we have welcomed Adrian Ballard as Director of the Tonbridge Society, replacing Andy Whittall, about whom Jono Arscott writes in this edition, and Tara Biddle as OT Relations Manager, whose husband, Will, wrote the customary ‘From the Chalkface’ article

Each generation of OTs will remember this school at a particular moment, conditioned by the societal norms which existed at the time, but, while we honour tradition and are proud of our heritage, we cannot solely be defined by the past and we embrace each step forward the School takes, as it builds proudly towards its 475th anniversary in 2028

David Walsh (CR 72-09), Editor, The Old Tonbridgian Magazine david walsh@tonbridge-school org

Contributors

Jonathan Arscott (PH 83-88 and CR 05-18) taught at Tonbridge from 2005 to 2018 He was Deputy Housemaster at Ferox Hall for a period, and ran the 1st XI hockey and cricket, as well as being master in charge of hockey As a Cambridge University undergraduate he played in the 1993 Varsity Match against Oxford at Lord's Jono left Tonbridge to teach for three years at Marlborough, Malaysia and is now at King's College, Doha as Head of Sixth Form

Charles Barr (PH 53-58) studied Classics and English before becoming one of the first generation of teachers of Film Studies, based at the University of East Anglia and then in the USA and Ireland His books include Ealing Studios and a study of Hitchcock’s Vertigo, both in multiple editions, and he continues part-time work as a member of the production team for Wisden

Will Biddle (PH 1976-81 and CR 04-) returned to Tonbridge in 2004 to teach Design Technology, having worked in the advertising industry and taught at Wymondham College in Norfolk He was Deputy Housemaster at Hillside before becoming Housemaster at Whitworth, completing his 15th and final year in that role last summer Will has held previous roles as Anti-Bullying coordinator and Head of PSHE As well as continuing to teach DT, he is currently Head of Sustainability, OT Outreach Coordinator and master-in-charge of Ultimate Frisbee

Bill Bruford (FH 1962-67) is unusual in being both a celebrated drummer and a later-life scholar Named by Rolling Stone magazine as number 16 Greatest Drummer of All Time, his 41 years as a musician straddled both jazz and rock He retired from public performance in 2009 to study aspects of creativity and performance psychology, earning a doctorate from the University of Surrey in 2016

Mark Church (SH 87-92) scored a few runs for the First XI and, after leaving Durham University, realised he needed a job He was always good at talking to himself, so started working in radio and has been a sports commentator for the last 25 years He has worked for the BBC and Test Match Special and still talks to himself

Stefan Hargreaves (CR 10- ) studied Music at St Peter’s College, Oxford, and joined Tonbridge in 2010 He was Assistant Housemaster of Parkside from 2014-2019, after which he took up the Housemastership of Manor House He has been the CCF Contingent Commander since 2021, holding the rank of Squadron Leader He is married to Kate, and has three young children: Violet, Wilfred and Rupert

Duncan McCombe (PH 00-05) studied Chinese at Cambridge and is now a commercial barrister based in London He was Chair of the Young Bar of England & Wales in 2017 He lives in Ealing, West London with his wife and three-year-old daughter In his spare time, he likes swimming, going on holiday and eating with friends Duncan greatly enjoyed his time at Tonbridge, mainly due to the lasting friendships he made and the wonderful and inspiring teachers that he had

Dom Merchant (WW 07-10; PH 10-12) is a cognitive therapist based in London and online He specialises in helping people with addictive behaviours of all kinds, anxiety issues, ADHD coaching and stressrelated concerns Dom also runs workplace workshops on resilience and wellbeing for high-performing teams Alongside this, he teaches and is studying for a PhD at the Centre for Addictive Behaviours Research at London South Bank University

William Reeve (PS 60-64) worked in Iran and Africa as a civil engineer after studying at Leeds University He then read Oriental Studies at Oxford and worked with the BBC World Service for 25 years as a producer, editor and foreign correspondent He was BBC correspondent in Afghanistan for several years at different stages before 9/11 Since then, he has helped governments and other organisations enhance their strategic communications He is currently on the Faculty of the London School of Mediation

James Stewart (FH 56-61) has been involved in swimming competition and administration for more than 60 years He authored a history of Otter Swimming Club after 60 years as a member, 20 years as Honorary Secretary and four years as President In the late 1960s he was in the top ten of British 100m freestylers and has continued to swim competitively, setting a new Kent record in 2019 for the 75-79 year age group He qualified as a chartered accountant in 1967, working with Mobil Oil overseas and in the UK, latterly as Mobil’s UK Pension Fund Manager, before joining Capital Group in the UK He finished his career in 2004 as Managing Director of Fidelity Investments in London

Ben Yonge (PS 13-18) left Tonbridge in 2018 and wen on to study Economics and Finance at the University of Bristol He works in AI at the legal technology company Luminance and is responsible for helping in-house teams to leverage AI and proactively manage risk He is an active fundraiser for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) and is an event promoter, having hosted 13 events in Bristol, London and New York

Andy Zaltzman (SH 87-92) read Classics at Oxford and then became a stand-up comedian He moved into broadcasting, co-hosting The Bugle, a weekly satirical comedy podcast from 2007 His love of cricket has seen him write a regular column for Cricinfo and he has been the statistician on Test Match Special since 2020 He also now hosts the News Quiz on BBC Radio 4

WELCOME FROM THE OTS PRESIDENT

I was bowled over, and honoured, to be asked to become President of the Old Tonbridgian Society this summer. I have enjoyed spells of similar length at Tonbridge as pupil and teacher, and the School has always been close to my heart and powerfully shaped my thinking in my career and life.

I was at Tonbridge from 1967 to 1972, the end of the McCrum era and the start of the very different Ogilvie years These were tumultuous times in schools as in the country and world at large, encapsulated in the iconic film If , about whose Tonbridge connection Charles Barr writes so brilliantly in a later article in this magazine My own contribution was to lead a much less bold protest against the CCF and the Vietnam War, succeeding in bringing the latter to an end if not the former Unsurprisingly such challenges to authority brought down the wrath of Michael McCrum, a titanic figure in Tonbridge history, who, for all his genius and foresight, did not entirely understand what was happening in wider society. He made the School see the film Lord of the Flies to show us, I assume, what happened when authority abdicated

With the perspective of history, I see the modern Tonbridge as still very much Michael McCrum’s School in terms of the trajectory on which he set it, the aspirations he encouraged, the academic rigour he brought and the many outstanding appointments to the staff he made. I was very fond of Robert Ogilvie, an outstanding academic and kindly man, who took me out to play golf at Knole as a way of channelling some of my rebellious spirit There were so many other important influences on me including Robert Austin, my housemaster; Mike Bushby, who rescued me from oblivion by making me 1st XI scorer; the history teachers Geoffrey Parker and Colin Reid, who both went on to headmasterships; and the newly

appointed Jonathan Smith, whose first novel Wilfred and Eileen followed the Great War story of my maternal grandparents.

It was Jonathan Smith who persuaded me back to Tonbridge in 1989 initially as Head of Seminar, which later morphed into running the history and politics departments In these more pressured days, it is instructive to recall how ambitious and enlightened a programme Jonathan’s Seminar was – eight periods per week in the Lower Sixth and six in the Upper Sixth I was able to stimulate discussion of world issues by inviting down speakers of the calibre of Richard Rogers, Dirk Bogarde, Geoffrey Howe, Leonard Cheshire and Vera Lynn. I have so many happy memories of my four years back at Tonbridge as a teacher, encouraged in what I was trying to do by the kindly vision of both Christopher Everett and Martin Hammond Happiness too with my wife Joanna and a growing family and so many talented colleagues. I remember the history trips we started to take to the trenches in 1990, a longrunning theme in my life, but often a disaster of organisation including the memorable one when the coach broke down and then backed into the hotel in which we were staying. Starting the Parents’ Arts Society too, with the strong support of Martin and Jane Hammond, who kindly hosted so many speakers and events, and which became such a uniquely Tonbridge triumph under the genius of David Tennant

I look forward to engaging with the OTS and the School in my year of office The Tonbridge I joined had only 500 boys and the growth to nearly 800 has been a feature of the stronger independent schools, Wellington in my time going from 690 to 1120 pupils, and Brighton from 450 to 710. The political and affordability challenges facing schools are considerable, but our communities are now so much more diverse and more engaged with the world outside and the causes which inspire the young, while we have all learned how much care, community and compassion are at the heart of any great school, as Tonbridge certainly is I would like to bring OTs of every generation together in shared adventure and companionship, including reprising, with David Walsh, a trenches trip to explore what the Great War meant to the School As Tonbridge approaches its 475th anniversary in 2028, I would also like to help it engage with its history It will be a busy year, not least because I have taken up the challenge of restoring equanimity to Epsom College after the tragic events of earlier in the year One of the initiatives I have taken there this term was to send some of my staff to Tonbridge to learn about how things are done there under James Priory’s inspiring leadership. So, I have much to thank Tonbridge for in my life and look forward to repaying some of that debt this year

Sir Anthony Seldon (HS 67-72) OTS President

WELCOME FROM THE OTS CHAIRMAN

What a pleasure it has been to return to a full schedule of in-person OT events! One of the highlights of the year was the OT Dinner which took place in the Long Room at Lord’s last September. The ongoing refurbishment work at Skinners’ Hall has provided us with an opportunity to tr y out different venues for our flagship event, and Lord’s was a popular choice.

200 OTs attended the dinner and it was great to see so many OTs of different eras mixing once again - there was a 70 year age range amongst our guests The dinner was hosted wonderfully by Peter Fincham and the Headmaster, James Priory Peter’s account of Doc Battersby chasing after the school glider on Martin’s as it was about to go airborne will live long in the memory

As well as our large and traditional events, such as the OT Dinner and the OT Reunion, we are introducing a number of smaller and more bespoke OT events into the calendar. This is in response to feedback from OTs who are looking for events which have a greater personal relevance to them. So, in recent months we have held events for each of the five year, ten year and 20 year leavers, hosted the Summer City Drinks in Farringdon and introduced a ‘Second Wednesday’ drinks each month for OTs to drop in to a London pub for an informal catch-up with friends We have also arranged international events in Hong Kong, Singapore and New York, where school ties remain strong Looking forward, we have plans for other focused reunions covering various aspects of School life, different geographies and sectors of the economy - not least Whitworth’s 50th anniversary celebration next summer As always, if you have any suggestions of the type of event you would like to see, please let us know

You will also see on page 46 in this magazine that we are introducing an ‘OT of the Year’ award This is intended to celebrate the contribution an Old Tonbridgian has made to society, perhaps in charity work or in some other venture where they have

unselfishly and generously given their time.

On the sporting front, it is great to see the breadth of interest and level of enthusiasm among our OT clubs At the time of writing, the Old Tonbridgians have reached the final of the Cricketer Cup, beating Merchant Taylors, Bedford, Bradfield and Eton along the way The OT golfers had a great run in the Halford Hewitt, losing narrowly to Charterhouse in the quarter-finals. More generally, we encourage all the OT clubs to be as inclusive as possible, and I am encouraged to see how many younger OTs feel welcome to participate in OT sport It is a great way to stay in touch with the School and with friends, irrespective of the level of competition In that vein, we are looking to host a Festival of Sport at Tonbridge next spring, with matches between OTs and the School across a wide range of sports, followed by food and refreshments.

I am very grateful to Peter Fincham for the time and energy he has devoted to the OT Society during his year as President In this publication last year, Peter expressed surprise at being invited to take on the role, having not been an active OT since leaving Tonbridge And yet the fresh perspectives he has provided have been of great value to the OTS Committee and to the School Sir Anthony Seldon took over as President at our AGM in June, bringing his typical energy I would like to thank Anthony for accepting this role at Tonbridge while at the same time pursuing his significant responsibilities as Headmaster of Epsom College. We are delighted that Gerald Corbett has agreed to become our next President, in June 2024. We are lucky to have such a

distinguished list of OTs from which to choose our Presidents.

During the year, we welcomed James Tarry and Alex Hume on to the OTS Committee James provides day boy house representation on the Committee - he was in Whitworth under Mike Duncan and is a current parent Alex has a musical background and formed part of the choir that sang at the King’s Coronation in the spring Paddy Butler retired from the Committee at the AGM. I would like to thank Paddy for his valuable contribution to the OT Society over the past 20 years.

I would also like to thank all members of the Committee for their commitment of time and ideas throughout the year Special thanks go to Andy Whittall who stepped down as Director of the Tonbridge Society in November following 18 years of outstanding service at Tonbridge. Andy has provided considerable support to the OT Society, and to me personally, over the past few years. We wish him well as he focuses his energies on supporting the group of schools he founded in Zambia a few years ago. We welcome Adrian Ballard, Andy’s successor, and Tara Biddle, our OT Relations Manager Adrian joined us after 20 years at Sherborne and Tara is clearly up for a fresh challenge after 15 years spent looking after Whitworth! We are grateful for the support they have both provided in organising various OT events over the past few months, as well as the new ideas they bring to their respective roles

Richard Hough (PH 79-84) OTS Chairman

FROM THE HEADMASTER

James Priory reflects on the School year just past in the speech which he gave on Skinners’ Day 2023

It has been a year in which sails have been hoisted, oars have rhythmically scooped the water and creative experiences have been shared Not least, the long-awaited launch of The Argo, a musical work inspired by the legend of Jason and the Argonauts which was due to be premiered in March 2020 but cut short by lockdown, leaving everyone feeling somewhat fleeced - emotionally, at least

After such disappointment, it really was something to behold the Symphony Orchestra in full motion, soloists popping up in pulpits and the entire

School packed to the gunwales in the Chapel, setting sail together for Colchis

No wonder the Sailing Club has been in such good form this year, winning best school at the RS Feva National Championships and heading to Italy for the Worlds Imagine what we might have achieved if there had been a class for triremes

It’s a year in which Tonbridge has been airborne, too On CCF Inspection Day a Chinook helicopter alighted on the Fifty, lowered its tailgate and invited cadets on board, including one in an advanced

state of middle-age to whom I apparently bore some resemblance, desperately trying to find a parent willing to sign the consent form It was exhilarating to see our School from the air, but even more uplifting to see the expressions on the boys’ faces as we flew

Inspired, the CCF has had a tremendous year: the Honour Guard invited to perform at the presentation of new colours to the 4th Battalion, Princess of Wales Royal Regiment, in the presence of Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark

“Climb aboard and take our places, Raise the sail and catch the breeze, Draw the keel into the water, Dip the oars into the seas.”

Skinners’ Day line-up: Phillip Ludgrove (Beadle), The Earl of Woolton, Johnny Aisher, James Priory, Hubert Ashton (Master), Gavin Rochussen (Chair of Governors), Sir James Devitt, Andy Mulligan (All Souls Examiner)

Whether on water, land or air, it has felt like a year in which School life has been fully resumed and perhaps even more thoughtfully enjoyed: not only here onsite, but trips, tours, expeditions and exchanges were also part of the reconnection taking place in pupils’ lives “Go to your wide futures”, says the poet Grace Nichols, and it certainly feels as if opportunities and horizons have expanded this year

We have seen this in the university destinations our Upper Sixth aspire to: a record 676 offers from top 20 UK universities; 44 unconditional offers from the US, including Princeton, Chicago, Harvard, Duke, Columbia, New York, Dartmouth; offers to study at European centres of excellence, too, such as Delft, Dublin and Bocconi As Cardinal Newman said: ‘universities matter because this is where enquiry is pushed forward the collision of mind on mind ’

At Tonbridge we have been thinking about how we nurture intellectual creativity and ambition in the boys, whilst supporting them to grow as people thanks to the roundedness of their experience and the diversity of interests they pursue. We talk about fine minds and good hearts ‘and a half decent voice as well’, we might add, after this year’s communal music-making.

In an age of Artificial Intelligence, it matters to be human and to understand what that means, something we were reminded of in an art exhibition inspired by Edouard Paolozzi’s pioneering vision of the interaction of human and machine Or again, in our Science Conference in the Barton Science Centre when chemical engineer, Professor Lev Sarkisov urged future chemists to learn to code because collaboration between human and machine is already happening in laboratories and hospitals throughout the country

The nurturing of good hearts has been a major focus this year as we continue to find that balance between individual and community in a school defined by its boarding ethos and enriched by the quality of its house system

Pastoral Education is now firmly embedded in the curriculum, providing the opportunity for regular small group discussion about identity, health, relationships, and the role the boys can play in wider society Boys have taken the initiative to launch new groups this year: the Jewish Society, the South East Asian Society, a growing programme of events, too, for the African Caribbean Society, which included a summer party for pupils, parents and staff in the Smythe Library Garden

The Eliza Acton Cookery Classroom has been formally opened with the help of parent and writer, Annabel Abbs From Tonbridge Brawn to Tart á la Judd, Eliza’s historic recipes may not appeal to all, but the opportunity to develop new life skills, including cookery, certainly does Our boys have made a big effort this year raising over £100K for causes such as Porchlight through the Novi Sleepout and the Tennis Club’s innovative backing for Bright Ideas, making tennis accessible to people with disabilities It was excellent to see OT Edward Barry nominated for a national ‘Mo’ award and Tonbridge recognised as being one of the top school supporters for ‘Movember’

Prize Giving this year sees the award of a new prize in memory of OT Adam Smethurst whose loss we continue to feel keenly, not least because he cared so deeply about supporting others and helping to make our community more inclusive This new prize, generously supported by Adam’s parents, is awarded to the individual who, in the view of his peers, has made a significant contribution to the positive mental health and wellbeing of others

Given that Adam was a stalwart member of the Chapel Choir, it seems entirely appropriate that the prize takes the form of a magnificent shield awarded from 1912 to 1971 for House Singing, and that the first recipient should be Ash Dodd, a singer-

songwriter who has consistently raised awareness of issues relating to mental health

One profound way in which the School is seeking to become more inclusive is by expanding the number of Foundation Awards so that we can attract and support bright, talented boys from a wide range of backgrounds Giving Day has been incredibly powerful in this regard, and I am proud of the way in which the boys have embraced the Foundation Award programme and helped to create an environment in which so many recipients feel confident about promoting their experience

We have discovered the importance of partnership work in identifying potential candidates and in supporting them and their families: Royal Springboard is an excellent example nationally and there are other regional partner organisations who are playing a valuable role We have benefitted from the generous support of individuals and families, including major new benefactors such as the Christopher and Clarissa Trust who are helping us to sustain Sir Andrew Judde’s founding vision

Giving Day has, extraordinarily, raised more than half a million pounds in support of Foundation Awards and

affirmed a dynamic range of partnerships with primary and special schools, local community groups and educational charities

It is in this context that it has been exciting to see the quality of results achieved by the boys this year The Sunday Times Parent Power for 2023 ranked Tonbridge 8th in the UK for this year’s A-level and GCSE results, placing us for the first time in the top ten independent schools in the country

What is possibly even more exciting, however, is the quality of the boys’ super-curricular achievements: becoming the first ever school in the UK to win the Trinity Maths Competition; Isaac King and Alex Chui, winning Gold Medals whilst representing the UK in the International Mathematics Olympiad in Japan; outstanding performances, such as those by Justin Leung, in the British Algorithmic and Western European Informatics Olympiads; finalists in the UK Rocketry competition; global finalists in the Weizmann Safe Cracking competition in Israel; team winners of national Spanish debating contests and prize-winning performances in Francophile Drama festivals; finalists in the Cambridge Union Schools Debating competition; and a global winner, in Luke Coll, of

The Young Investor Society Stock Pitch competition held in Salt Lake City Our school-wide reading strategy, now in its second year, very simply promotes the enjoyment of reading Attitudinal surveys and library borrowing records indicate that it is having a positive impact As Victor Hugo said, “To learn to read is to light a fire: every syllable that is spelled out is a spark ”

All of which is happening alongside an equally active and successful cocurricular programme, as seen in the boys’ sport, music, community action and drama: from the epic grandeur of Les Misérables in revolutionary Paris to the comedic capers of Emil and the Detectives in interwar Berlin, we have seen some brilliant productions in the EM Forster Theatre, productions shared with young people from other schools

Sport has entertained hugely too Athletics has enjoyed one of its best seasons ever: Max Clark breaking the 100m record in a time of 10 8 seconds and the team coming second overall in the prestigious Lord Burleigh Trophy Our 1st XI footballers not only won the league but a new national ISFA trophy The U16 Rugby Sevens topped the tables nationally The 1st V in Squash earned promotion into the First Division of the Roehampton Competition Max Freudenheim produced the Fives Club’s best result for 50 years in the Senior Singles of the National Schools’ Championships Denys Mialkovskyi has been selected to represent Ukraine at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Swimming

The CCF Shooting team were beaten into second place by just one point in a national tournament, whilst Jais Picariello and Kieran McWilliams became national champions in their individual classes

And in cricket, the U14s are unbeaten, and the 1st XI have enjoyed a super season with Captain Ollie Sykes scoring three centuries, including 150

in a T20 match, and reaching the National Twenty20 final for the first time in Tonbridge’s history

All of this is only made possible thanks to the energy and commitment of a talented and tireless support and teaching staff It’s a reflection of their quality that we have been invited by the Independent School Teacher Induction Panel to become a regional centre for Early Career Teaching, and that we are the first school in the UK to be welcomed to the Employer Champion programme by the Science Council, alongside organisations such as King’s College, London and the Francis Crick Institute

I would like to thank all those staff who are leaving us this summer for the impact they have had during their time here and to wish them well in their new roles in the future: Charles Sale (Geography) as he sets sail for a fulltime PGCE; Nathan Anthony as he flies to Texas to undertake a Masters in Fine Art; Ben Barber (Divinity) as he prepares to exchange his mortarboard

for a barrister’s wig; Sarah Pinto del Rio as she becomes Head of English at Our Lady of Sion School, Worthing; Mr Mark Ackroyd who stays within the Skinners’ family in his move to Judd but not before leading a Biology expedition to South Africa; and Hugh Grant as he becomes Deputy Head Academic at Downe House

We also say farewell to two colleagues who are retiring after more than 50 years of service between them: Digital Events Producer, David Love, who has been responsible for capturing the life of the School on camera and in our archives; and Larry Thornbury, who joined Tonbridge as a pioneer of the theatrical arts and who has turned 33 years into productions as hilarious as his swansong The Thirty Nine Steps We wish them both long and happy retirements

As ever, the Governing Body has provided support, challenge and wisdom, and I am particularly grateful to Jo Naismith, Deputy Chair of Governors, who retires this summer

after 12 years’ service, throughout which she has provided good humour and shrewd insight at Tonbridge and more recently at The New Beacon School Finally, I would like to congratulate all those members of the Upper Sixth, many of whom I first met at the Novi Visit back in March 2018 before any of us had clambered aboard Tonbridge They are the first cohort whom I have had the pleasure of seeing come through the School and for whom Skinners’ Day, therefore, feels like a shared rite of passage, not least because of some of the extraordinary challenges that we have navigated together Tom Instance, Chris Sneddon and Charlie Thompson have been a great Head of School crew and I look forward immensely to following their and everyone’s journeys beyond their time at Tonbridge

One final echo from The Argo: “Time to leave familiar coastlines, To the edge of our known world, Great Apollo guard and guide you, Safely home across the seas ”

It’s been quite a year and our course is set: Fine Minds, Good Hearts and, as EM Forster urges, Only Connect.

Nick Samuel ( WH 18-23) gives his address on Skinners' Day

N E W S O F O T s

President-Elect Gerald Corbett (JH 65-70) will become President of the Old Tonbridgian Society in May 2024 After Tonbridge and Cambridge, he went to London and Harvard Business Schools Over a long business career, he served on the boards of 13 different public companies, seven of them as chairman These included Segro, Britvic, Betfair and Moneysupermarket com In his executive career he was Chief Executive of Railtrack, and before that Finance Director of Grand Metropolitan plc and Redland plc He was High Sheriff of Hertfordshire in 2010 and is now a Deputy Lieutenant of the County He chaired the St Alban’s Cathedral appeal for their new welcome centre and was Chairman of the Hertfordshire Community Foundation Last year he retired after six years as Chairman of Marylebone Cricket Club, where he steered MCC through Covid, carried out significant governance changes and re-built the Warner, Compton and Edrich stands He is married to Virginia, who is an artist, and they have four children and 12 grandchildren

celebrated his 93rd birthday in May

We had the great pleasure of meeting Anthony at the exhibition of his work From Tonbridge To Tate at the School in 2021 Anthony’s 1950 Self Portrait (below) is now part of Tonbridge School’s collection and is hanging in the Headmaster’s Dining Room Anthony’s ‘Yellow Moving to Green’ abstract mixed-media painting is on display in the Royal Academy’s Summer Exhibition, themed ‘Only Connect’

Brigadier Anthony Vivian CBE (PS 46-51) celebrated his 90th birthday with a lunch at Brooks Club in London Pictured here with Anthony are Andy Whittall, David Walsh, Tim Haynes, Helen and James Priory, along with Anthony’s 97-yearold Staff Sergeant from the Royal Welch Fusiliers

Anthony Whishaw (MH 44-48)

Neill Bruce (PH 56-60) has been a professional photographer since 1971, working mainly in the automotive world and specialising in Ferraris Now semi-retired, he has written a book, 50 Years with Ferraris: A lifetime Working with Maranello Concessionaires, which takes the reader behind the scenes at the well-known Surrey-based importer of Ferraris Neill also photographed the late Martin Colvill (FH 54-58) handing over a new Lotus Elan from his garage Bell & Colvill to the comedian Dick Emery in 1971

Peter Longley (JH 57-62) has written a novel The Cedars of Beckenham set in 1930s Britain and beyond Peter read theology at Cambridge before becoming involved in the cruise line industry, including being Cruise Director of Queen Elizabeth II He was later horticultural interpreter of a large American botanical garden in Missouri He started writing books in 1978 and now lives in Beckenham

Stephen Stowell (HS 59-64) has been playing England Grand Masters Hockey from the over 60s in 2007 to over 75s level in 2023, ascribing his hockey skills to David Kemp’s coaching at Tonbridge He has now played World and European Cups in places which include South Africa, Germany, Australia and Belgium In the World Cup final in Barcelona in 2018 he was part of the England over 70s team who managed to succeed against Australia in a penalty shuttle shoot-out (8 seconds to dribble from the 23 metre line into the circle and beat the goalkeeper – frighteningly swift for indecisive 75 year-old players!) He is not sure how he has kept himself match fit and free from injuries, but continuing in a game he loves has brought many good memories, not least captaining England over 60s to victory in the World Cup in Hong Kong in 2008 and the European Cup in Amsterdam in 2009 He has just won the Masters European Cup in Valencia this summer and was top tournament scorer

Mark Allbrook (WH 68-73), Jim Heffer (Sc 68-72) and Sherard Cowper-Coles (PS 68-73) met in April at the funeral service in Norfolk for the Reverend Edward Turner (CR 69-81)

John Gibbs (FH 56-61) celebrated his 80th birthday with the Tonbridge Society team in October 2022 The team surprised him with a Champagne breakfast and a chocolate cake, courtesy of Bev Matthews

Vikram Seth (Sc 69-70) has reissued his epic novel, A Suitable Boy, in a limited edition three-volume set to mark its 30th anniversary The author’s calligraphy features on the front

Tony Marcoff (Sc 70-73) went to St John’s, Cambridge after Tonbridge and is a published poet in Poetry Review and other literary publications His new book River of the World covers his life in Africa, Iran, France and Japan

Will Biddle (PH 76-81 and CR 04-) recently took part in the World Great Grand Masters Beach Ultimate Frisbee Club Championships 2022 in Portugal for players aged 48 or over He has been selected again this year by team ‘Flash’, the only GB representative club to play in the upcoming World Great Grand Masters Beach Ultimate Championships in Villasimius, Sardinia in September

Carl Gorman (PH 75-79) has become President of the British Small Animal Veterinary Association for 2023-24 He is Clinical Director of a veterinary practice in Newbury and Clinical Instruction Mentor for Surrey University

Jeremy Lazell (PH 81-86) is Travel Editor for the Scottish editions of The Times and Sunday Times He also edits Alba, the lifestyle section of The Times (Scotland) and writes regular travel articles for the national travel section of the Sunday Times as well as a number of other travel publications In 2022 he won an award for Best Travel Writer at the Scottish Press Awards

Philip Langford (PH 82-86) worked for 27 years in an Italian wine export company in Milan, latterly as its President with a portfolio of over 50 wineries and offices in USA, Canada and Japan In 2022, still living in Italy, he launched his own company, a new high-end wine tour company, Maestro Tours (www maestro-tours com), drawing on his longestablished relationships with many of Italy’s top boutique wine producers, restaurateurs and hoteliers from most regions of Italy

Greg Bagwell (SH 75-80) retired from the RAF as Air Marshal and is current President of the UK Air and Space Power Association Previously a combat fighter pilot, he ended his distinguished RAF career as Deputy Commander (Operations) at RAF Air Command He was appointed CBE in 2007 and CB in 2012

Paddy Brice, David Nix and Owen Tatford (all FH 82-87) managed to get eight Ferocians from their year to the OT Reunion in June Owen won the prize for the longest journey, travelling from Melbourne, Australia to attend while Stewart Cook made the trip from France The others were Manu Sachdeva, Charlie Carrick, Ben Bentley and Simon Worrell, a professional singer in between his doctoring

Tim Hedley-Jones (SH 82-87) has been appointed as Executive Director of Railway Heritage Trust He previously held senior positions in the UK rail industry after working in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for eight years He is pictured at Euston for the naming of a locomotive ‘Railway Heritage Trust’

Richard Warlow (JH/WW 85-90) is a writer for film and television He was the lead writer and Executive Producer on all five series of Ripper Street on BBC and Amazon Prime, and for the six episodes of The Serpent about the hippie trail killer, Charles Sobhraj He is currently working on an adaptation of Giuseppe di Lampedusa’s novel The Leopard

Stephen Groves (Sc 83-87) became Director of Music at Watford Grammar School for Girls in 2007 In 2012 he completed his PhD in Musicology at Southampton University He has now retired but is Editor and writer for ‘Great British Wine’, an online resource dedicated to the promotion of English and Welsh wine He has recently written and had published The Sound of the English Picturesque: Georgian Vocal Music, Haydn and English Aesthetics This reveals the connections between the veneration of national landscape and eighteenthcentury English vocal music This study restores English music’s connections with the picturesque, suitable for anyone with an interest in eighteenthcentury music, aesthetics and the natural environment

Nick Hawkins (MH 91-96) is a pilot with Cathay Pacific and found himself flying Andrew Leale (CR 93-19), his former Economics teacher, on a flight to Hong Kong Andrew is currently Headmaster of Harrow International School, Bengalaru, India

Alex Howeson (PH 00-05) and Matt Banes (CH 93-98) enjoyed a game of squash in Bondi, Sydney Matt is Director of Boarding at Cranbrook School, Sydney and Alex is Head of Growth at Lendi Group, one of Australia’s fastest growing fintech companies The result of the match was subject to a non-disclosure agreement

Dom Hodson (PH 01-06) played young Pip Bin in the popular British Comedy, Bleak Expectations at London’s Criterion Theatre Based on the award-winning radio series by Mark Evans, Bleak Expectations takes you on a joyfully anarchic journey through Dickensian London and beyond

Luke Wallace (MH 04-09) joined the School Cycling Club on their Saturday cycle ride around the Kent countryside Luke has just picked up the Club Champion of the Season award at Harlequins rugby

Alastair Taylor (CH 04-09) is Senior Director, Strategy & Consultancy, CSM Sport and Entertainment After completing a BSc in Economics, Finance and International Business at Oxford Brookes, he began his career interning at Influence Sports and Essentially Group, before moving on to work as a marketing and research co-ordinator at SNTV - Sports News Television

Ross Bennett (CH 05-10) is General Manager of Tonbridge Angels Football Club After studying law at Birmingham University, he went on to work at companies investigating and detecting money laundering, culminating in the role of Head of AML Investigations at the Betway Group In May 2022 he joined Tonbridge Angels first as Commercial Manager and now as General Manager where he oversees the day-to-day running of the club

Cosmo Warner (PS 07-12) ran the Paris Marathon, raising £4,000 for the Mind charity He is currently living in London and working for Price Forbes

George Bourne (FH 11-16), right, won a silver medal in the Men’s Quadruple Sculls in the World Rowing Championships in the Czech Republic His boat finished less than a second behind the Polish champions and they hope to go on to success in the Paris Olympics in 2024

Conor McKee (CH 09-13) has just received his doctorate from Cambridge University His thesis was on the medieval poem Piers Plowman

Ed Culliney (FH 09-14) centre, has been working in the Civil Service as head of a Ministerial Private Office He works directly with Ministers and Mandarins on a number of matters including policy decisions and communications

Nick Winder (MH 10-15) is Client Manager at Sportfive, looking after professional golfers He gained golf and cricket blues at Cambridge and currently plays in the OTGS Halford Hewitt team

Gabriel Wheble (WH 11-16) under his stage name Gabriel Tierney has been performing on Netflix in Enola Holmes 2 as William Lyon

Zak Crawley (WH 11-16) was the top England run-scorer against Australia and scored more runs in an Ashes series than any England opener in the last 30 years His unbelievably high strike rate of 88 runs per 100 balls included a thrilling innings of 189 in the Fourth Test He also contributed to the team's success with near immaculate slip-catching

in the

which won the English

by England

Nick Winder (right) with one of his clients

Ben Earl (JH 11-16) played

Saracens team

Premiership, was capped

in the Six Nations and is now playing in the World Cup in France

Andrew Morgan (WW 12-17) is a qualified commercial diver after reading Chemical Engineering at Newcastle University Inspired initially by the Scuba Club at Tonbridge, he spends most of his working life up in Shetland working in aquaculture and inshore marine construction Aquaculture involves the construction and maintenance of salmon farm cages He hopes to move on to diving projects in Africa and Asia

Alex Moen (FH 13-18) was awarded the 2021/22 Hawks Club Sportsman of the Year at Cambridge for his performances in hockey, cricket and rackets He taught at Tonbridge for two terms and is now playing hockey in Australia

James Goh (MH 16-21), Sam Ford (WH 17-22) and Zac Beasty (WH

have completed their Gold Duke of Edinburgh awards and recently attended celebrations at Buckingham Palace to receive their awards

Gabriel Riordan (WW 17-22) has been selected for the USA U20 rugby team After competing against Canada in a two-match qualifier to represent North America in the World Rugby U20 Trophy 2023 bracket, the USA squad flew to Nairobi, Kenya for the U20 World Cup Trophy Tournament

Harry Mobbs (WH 15-20), second on the right, founded the Mancunian Consort in January 2023, taking part in a beautiful rendition of Antonio Lotti’s Crucifixus, sung at Holy Name Church in Manchester during Holy Week

Tom Rigney (WH 16-21), third from right, rowed for Oxford’s Isis against Cambridge’s Goldie in the Men’s Reserve Boat Race Goldie won by one length

17-22)

Wilkie Hoare (WW 17-22), centre back row, sang in front of the Royal Family with Bath Camerata at the funeral of Simon Elliott, Queen Camilla’s brother-in-law A student at Bristol University, he is involved with the university’s two auditioned choirs, University Singers and the Bristol University Madrigal Ensemble, along with joining the Bristol Cathedral choir as a choral scholar

Peter McManus (CR 66-03) paid a visit to Tonbridge from Scotland in May to view the Science Centre and catch up with former colleagues Jamie McManus (WH 89-94) is Head of Chemistry at Winchester College, where he was previously a housemaster

Garth Wynne (CR 88-90) is currently Head of Christ’s College, Christchurch, New Zealand, one of the country’s most prestigious independent schools

After two happy years teaching history and cricket at Tonbridge, he taught in Australia and was Head of Christ Church GS, Perth from 2001-15 before moving to New Zealand

Chris Morgan (CR 04-) recently received a Chief Constable’s Commendation for bravery and public service for his part in rescuing a woman from a brutal attack in the local area

Mike Bushby lunch Following a long tradition instituted by Anthony Seldon, ten former members of the Common Room met in March to lunch together in honour of Mike Bushby The lunches first took place when Mike was able to attend and have continued following his death, as a way of remembering what he meant to all of us Joe Davies acted as host at the Oriental Club in London, and he was joined by James Cockburn, Peter Carpenter, Hilary Davan Wetton, Richard Knott, Paul Parker, Randall Stevens, Paul Taylor, David Tennant and David Walsh Apologies were sent by Anthony Seldon, Jonathan Smith, John James and Jon Maynard

OTs gather for Charity Football Match in memory of Suanu Saro-Wiwa (PS 13-18) In November 2022, 25 OTs gathered for the annual Charity Football Match in memory of Suanu Saro-Wiwa Two teams were assembled to play some dubious quality football against a (regretfully) superior staff team who ended the round-robin victorious It was a fantastic day out, provided this group with a rare chance of a reunion and raised £1,050 for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) Suanu tragically suffered from a cardiac arrhythmia while playing football on his gap year in October 2018 He was his own man, loved to push boundaries, and always sought adventure

Jamie McManus ( WH 89-94)

Peter McManus (CR 66-03))

OT BIRTHS

SPRINGBETT On 18 June 2023, to Peter Springbett (CH 00-05) and his wife Billie-Georgina, a son, Henry Arthur James

OT MARRIAGES

RIDD Oliver Ridd (SH 04-09) and Sarah Norman on 5 April 2023 in Stratford Oliver Siddall (OH 02-07) was one of the three best men

OTS COMMIT TEE 2023

The names of the OTS Committee are listed below, along with brief bios of the two new members of the committee, Alexander Hume and James Tarry Paddy Butler has stepped down from the committee after many years of service, although he continues to advise the editorial team for this magazine

Alexander Hume (FH 09-14) has established a diverse freelance singing career after reading Music at Manchester University He regularly sings in world-famous choirs and consorts in the UK and abroad, including Tenebrae, The Sixteen, and Les Voix Animées, whilst alongside them he frequently sings with the choirs of Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral and His Majesty’s Chapel Royal, St James’ Palace He has performed the title and lead roles in Benjamin Britten’s Albert Herring and The Rape of Lucretia, both with the Aspect Opera company, and can often be found appearing as an oratorio soloist in major choral works

WATTS Alexander Watts (WW 08-13) and Kerry Long on 6 August 2021 at Bangor, Northern Ireland

James Tarry ( WW 87-92) is a senior portfolio manager at Aviva Investors In addition to managing portfolios of real asset investments for pension fund and insurance clients, he leads the multi-asset portfolio management team. James qualified as a chartered accountant at KPMG after reading Modern Languages at Pembroke College, Oxford He is married to Catherine and they have three children: Will who is in the Lower Sixth at Tonbridge and twin girls (Niamh and Martha) who are in year 10 at Walthamstow Hall In his spare time, he enjoys cycling and watching his children play various sports and he is also Membership Secretary of Holmesdale Cricket Club in Sevenoaks

Chairman

Richard Hough (PH 79-84)

President Sir Anthony Seldon (HS 67-72)

Honorary Treasurer Chris Rash (MH 78-82)

Honorary Life President John Gibbs (FH 56-61)

Vice President David Walsh (CR 72-09)

Vice President Phillip Roberts (Sc 62-66)

MORGAN Chris Morgan (CR 04-) and Jamie Braaten on 22 October 2022 at St Clere Estate, Sevenoaks

Committee Richard Stocks (Sc 53-58)

Peter Dodge (MH 73-78)

Seb Pollington (PH 80-85)

Dom McCarthy ( JH 81-85)

Kurt Seecharan ( JH 82-87)

Jeremy Cronk (HS 97-02)

Richard Sankey (PS 83-87)

Jono Arscott (PH 83-88)

Philip Cheveley (PS 84-89)

James Tarry ( WW 87-92)

GRIFFITHS Dr Edward Griffiths (PS 09-14) and Julia Rohn on 3 June 2023 at Tonbridge School Chapel and Nettlestead Place, Maidstone

Hugo Snape (PH 04-09)

Alex Hume (FH 09-14)

Alexander Hume

James Tarry

OLD TONBRIDgI ANS AND THE CORON ATION

Two OTs had contrasting roles in the Coronation of King Charles III. Colonel Piers Ashfield DSO MBE late Grenadier Guards (HS 91-96) was Chief Marshal of the Coronation Procession, while Alex Hume (FH 09-14) sang in Westminster Abbey in the Coronation Choir. They give a brief account of their roles and memories, while we also return to the Coronation year of 1953 as Roger Curnock (PH 48-53 and Head of School) remembers the visit of the Queen Mother to Tonbridge.

MARSHALLINg THE CORONATION PROCESSION

The Coronation procession provided the public opportunity for an overt display of grandeur in keeping with the occasion More than 4,000 Armed Forces personnel formed the procession from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace following the service To assist in ensuring that the procession was effectively set up, a select group of Marshals was assembled from across the Household Division Many of the marching troops had never attended a parade or event of this scale or significance

Consequently, Marshals were a crucial feature to ensure that the procession proceeded with minimal disruption and in keeping with the magnificence of the occasion Almost every Marshal was from the Household Cavalry or Foot Guards to ensure the requisite level of state ceremonial experience

The start sequence was one aspect where the Marshals were essential As Chief Marshal, when their Majesties left Westminster Abbey, I was able to message the Procession Group Commanders to bring the procession

to attention and slope arms As the King boarded the Gold State Coach, the order was given to ‘raise batons, flags up’ whist ensuring that the Marshals replicated my baton in the air across Westminster Abbey and down into Parliament Square Once the door was shut, and the Chief Marshal had received the salute signal from the Crown Equerry, the order was given to ‘lower batons, wave flags and start the click-track’ It was difficult to hear against the noise of Westminster Abbey’s bells and we could only just make out the sound of the band striking up

As the dismounted procession set off towards Buckingham Palace the mounted elements remained in place, to ensure that there was sufficient gap between the marching troops of the Household Division and the mounted elements that would move slightly faster This was to ensure that the Gold State Coach would never stop or experience the impact of a concertina effect from the troops marching through Admiralty Arch After what

probably seemed like an eternity for all those eagerly anticipating the word of command, the Chief Marshal ordered ‘Walk-March’ through the radio, verbally and by raising his baton a second time The Gold State Coach set off surrounded by His Majesty’s resplendent mounted troops and escorted by 1,000 soldiers and officers of the Household Division Throughout the procession the Marshals cajoled to maintain dressing and distance along the entirety of the mile-long procession The end result surpassed any rehearsal, and everyone was justifiably proud of what they had achieved

Piers Ashfield

Chief Marshal, Colonel P L Ashfield DSO MBE (late Grenadier Guards) on the right and Assistant Chief Marshal, Major M O C Dobbin DSO MC (Grenadier Guards)

SINgINg IN THE CORONATION CHOIR

The customary show-stopping extravagance of state carriages in amongst vast and glorious military processions was complemented by the intimate simplicity of pieces such as the Gloria from William Byrd’s 4-part Mass The service was, amongst so many other things, a celebration of music from these shores, with 12 new commissions written for the service Hearing that majestic introduction of Handel’s Zadok the Priest, originally composed for the Coronation of George II in 1727, and performing it in the same building whose walls, windows and flying buttresses would have heard it for the first time, was another of the many ‘pinch-yourself’ moments The pomp and circumstance of that and Parry’s I was Glad, represented perfectly the broad grandeur that the Coronation so embodied

THE QUEEN MOTHER’S vISIT TO TONBRIDgE IN 1953

The Coronation Choir felt like a Rolls Royce engine able to fire on all cylinders for the climactic moments of pieces such as William Walton’s Te Deum The choir itself was made up of the Choir of Westminster Abbey, the Choir of His Majesty’s Chapel Royal, the Monteverdi Choir, and girl choristers from Truro Cathedral and Methodist College, Belfast I was miraculously fortunate to be involved in the day’s proceedings, as a relatively last-minute replacement for one of my tenor colleagues who was otherwise indisposed, but to have been a very small part of the most historic event of our generation was an experience I shall treasure most dearly

Alex Hume

‘In July 1953 I was due to leave School and go into the Army in December. However, the Headmaster asked my father if I could stay on for most of the next term, with no fees, as School Head Boy to organise the 400th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the School The main thing was to organise the visit of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. After the Cadet Force Guard of Honour on her arrival, I escorted her to lunch, during which we talked about my decision to join the Army I then escorted her on a tour of the School, meeting boys, which ended with her unveiling the new Boars’ Heads at the main entrance to the School. As she was getting into her car to leave, she asked me which regiment I hoped to join I said the 3rd King’s Own Hussars, to which she replied: “My daughter is Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment” Two years later, after Sandhurst, I was told there was another application for the regiment However, I got the place. It was many years later that I found out that I got the place on the request of Princess Margaret, who was the Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment. I will always be grateful to the Queen Mother ’

Roger Curnock

Alex Hume (third from left) sings in the Coronation Choir

It was a privilege beyond comprehension to sing in the choir at the Coronation.

Roger Curnock assists Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother

‘YOU COULD HAVE BEEN QUITE MUSICAL’

BILL BRUFORD’S JOURNEY

Bill Bruford (FH 62-67) became a legendary rock drummer with the groups ‘Yes’ and ‘King Crimson’ Here he reflects on the musical journey he began at Tonbridge, and on the perils and pitfalls of performing percussion in public

As a 14-year-old Tonbridgian and a budding percussionist, I had marvellous encouragement from two quarters Firstly, Richard Bradley, housemaster of Ferox Hall in my day (1962-67), allowed and encouraged the house jazz quartet to make use of his private dining room, complete with baby grand piano It was there that I first got to grips with the mysteries of stick control and the high level of co-ordinated independence necessary to juggle four instruments (typically right foot bass drum, left foot hi-hat, and two hands playing the snare drum, toms and cymbals) at varying and variable dynamic levels simultaneously Secondly, the School’s distinguished brass and woodwind teacher, George Cooper, taught me to sight-read rhythm lines George was a flautist who had played for most of the crowned heads of Europe before the Second World War

From a third quarter, however, came an icy blast of negativity

The School’s Director of Music, organist Dr Allan Bunney, had not yet come to the conclusion that percussion represented any kind of music that he wanted to have in his Music School, and I was strongly discouraged: “Such a pity, Bill [that I had chosen that instrument]; you could have been quite musical”

But cleverly, I had arranged to appear on this earth in 1949 This put me, in 1967, on the cusp of a post-Beatles golden era in popular music Ecological conditions couldn’t have been better Groups and musicians were falling over themselves to get up the newly-tooled M1 motorway to play in towns and cities now within a few hours’ drive from London A highly unregulated car-rental industry stood ready to provide transport Recording studios were popping up everywhere I made all my mistakes and did all my learning in small clubs in the middle of nowhere, out of sight of parents, the general public, and mercifully, Dr Bunney

Bill Bruford at Tonbridge, second from left, with Nick Bigsby on drums Others not Tonbridgians

First you must survive failure, then you must survive success The band I had helped form in 1968 was called ‘Yes’, and remains operational today, half a century later After four years we had hit records aplenty and, importantly, in the United States; but I had only played with a handful of people and badly needed to broaden my horizons I left the group in 1972 looking for further challenges, which duly appeared in the form of another group ‘King Crimson’, with whom I performed - on and off - for over 30 years and made dozens of albums At about the 20 year mark I returned to my earliest love, and formed a band called ‘Earthworks’ which proffered a very contemporary form of jazz For the next two decades we ambled around the world’s jazz clubs and festivals until I tired of Heathrow and Gatwick airports and retired from performance in 2009 at aged 60 With hearing and brain still just about intact, I acquired a Doctorate in Musicology from the University of Surrey aged 67 and have been an academic author/lecturer ever since

That account belies, however, the considerable stress and strain on any artist involved in creative music performance Key attributes in a successful career as an independent or freelance musician include, but are not limited to: flexibility, adaptability, punctuality, stamina, resilience, and the ability to cope with the shock of the new, to make others sound (or look) good, and to pick yourself back up off the floor and start all over again You’ll need a thick skin and, if you’re a family man, a very patient wife All of these (apart from the wife) are required (and acquired) not only on a Tonbridge School rugby pitch, but any place where a small group of people is involved in some poorly defined creative endeavour of uncertain outcome Scarcely a day has passed without thinking of Bradley, Cooper, Bunney, the Ferox Hall jazz ensemble and the skill set which my time at Tonbridge gave me

The future of (unfunded) popular music instrumentalists is in jeopardy A recent recording of a violinist sent to me by a performer who is most decidedly not a violinist demanded that I ask the name of this brilliant player Turns out there was no performer – it was a digital sample of a violin played from a keyboard under the guiding hand of AI, able to predict how the vibrato on the next phrase should sound since its components could be abstracted from the previous phrase Beautiful it was, too

With music for gaming the fastest growing sector, musicians now tend to view themselves, and be viewed by

others, as ‘content providers’ In the provision of that content, a modest degree of ability on a variety of instruments is probably more use than a very high level of competence on a single instrument, such as a drum kit Computer software now steps in to assist the creative impulse and to connect the emerging artefact to a global audience in some way The relaxed collegiality of four or five people inventing something together in real-time in a rehearsal room or studio tends now to be seen as too expensive, so many hours for today’s musicians will typically be spent physically alone in a study or bedroom, in front of the laptop, even if connected to others in cyberspace

Despite the vast army of content-providers providing and ‘monetising’ their music online, there remains the irrepressible human satisfaction involved in playing with two or 20 others all in a room together Amateur and professional music performance thrives in bedrooms, front rooms, back rooms, pubs and arts centres, garden sheds and circuses, school halls and concert halls, churches and synagogues; in many cases irrespective of any reward other than that of trying your best to get it right, and despite the fact that no-one other than the participants may ever hear the results Long may it ever be so

Bill Bruford at Catalina’s Jazz Club, Hollywood 2003

20,000 LEAgUES ACROSS EURASI A

Ben Yonge (PS 13-18) recounts a memorable journey made by himself and three other OTs to raise money for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY ) in memor y of Suanu Saro-Wiwa (PS 13-18).

October 2023 marks five years since Suanu Saro-Wiwa tragically passed away due to a cardiac arrhythmia. Suanu was a naturally talented sportsman, member of the 1st XI football and 1st XV rugby teams and played an essential role in Tonbridge’s maiden NatWest Champions Trophy in 2016 He was his own man, loved to push boundaries, and always sought adventure

To honour his memory, four OTs from Suanu’s year –Alfie Shankland (FH), Ben Yonge (PS), Hugo Flower (Sc), and Meurig Shotton (CH) – embarked on a six-month Vernian epic called ‘20,000 Leagues across Eurasia,’ driving 20,000 miles through 20 countries from London to Kyrgyzstan, and back, to raise over £11,000 for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY)

We set off from Suanu’s house in Reigate and motored south, climbing down the Alps and traversing the Côte d’Azur, cooking and sleeping in our 1988 VW Transporter, although the nights off the Italian motorway don’t make the guidebook We multi-pitched

through the Dolomites and embraced Slovenia with a multi-day trek in the shadow of Mt Triglav fuelled by Ćevapi This earned some downtime in Budapest, then Bulgaria, complete with post-Soviet water parks and a casino sky bar in Plovdiv We then kicked on to Turkey where we met our partners in Istanbul

After a week in Istanbul – and a few days in the mechanics – we crossed the Bosporus into Asia, a major landmark in our journey The terrain morphed from forests and grasslands to Anatolian deserts with eccentric Cappadocian rocks, underground cities, and the proto-Christian churches of the Ihlara Valley We enjoyed kebabs and manti, hammams,

tea and beers, and eventually arrived in Georgia Here we picked up some souvenirs and had to go back to the drawing board as unrest in Karakalpakstan and the closure of Azerbaijan forced us overboard and into a plane headed over the Caspian Sea to Central Asia

We landed in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, welcomed by Laghman, Plov and bread to conquer the best baguettes Nature was back, with a short walk through the Tien Shan mountains, across the Ala-kol Mountain pass (3,900m), swimming in the secondlargest alpine lake in the world, visiting nomadic tribes, and ascending Mt Utchitel (4,540m) Via Almaty, Kazakhstan, came Uzbekistan, with its

Meurig, Ben and Alfie in Nolay France

ancient Silk Road capitals full of stately Islamic architecture, an abundance of history and more kebabs It’s hard to summarise this month, but the diversity of experiences, the time spent with those whose lives are so different from ours, and the strain the food put on our stomachs won’t leave us

The journey back began again in Georgia A week in Tbilisi, a charming city with a thriving sub-culture, indulgent Khachapuri and overwhelming support for Ukraine, before conquering Turkey and Europe again to come home

We lived from car park to car park, days were spent in nature, evenings playing backgammon, chess and

reading It is safe to say we saw our fair share of the world

Following our return, 25 OTs gathered for the fourth annual Charity Football Match in memory of Suanu, and raised £1,050 for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) Leading heart charity CRY aims to give all young people (aged 14-35) across the UK the choice to be screened for undiagnosed heart conditions Every year in the UK, 624 apparently fit and healthy young people die from a previously undiagnosed heart condition 80% of these deaths will occur with no prior symptoms and research has shown screening reduces the incidence of young sudden cardiac deaths by 89% We will continue to remember Suanu

and to raise funds in his memory for CRY For those of you who would like to come and support us, the next charity football match will be on Sunday 22 October at Tonbridge, when OTs hope to turn the tables

Ever y year in the UK, 624 apparently fit and healthy young people die from a previously undiagnosed heart condition

Ben and Hugo - Ala-Kolmountain pass Kyrgzstan

CRICKET NERDS

Andrew Zaltzman and Mark Church were exact contemporaries in Smythe from 1987-1992. They were both dotty about cricket, Mark captaining the 1st XI in 1992 and Andy captaining the 3rd XI in the same term. Ian MacEwen gave Mark great credit not only for an unbeaten season until the last match, but what he did to engender a very positive team spirit. Andy wrote his own selfdeprecating report about the 1992 3rd XI season for The Tonbridgian: ‘He signalled his intentions for the season with a dazzling 6 in 75 minutes in the first match….rumoured to have scored a run in front of the wicket in the last match against Eton, but a veritable Brearley of a captain’. Not surprisingly they have both ended up in cricket reportage, Mark reporting and commentating for BBC Surrey and Andy as the resident statistician for Test Match Special ( TMS), among his many other media roles

Andy and Mark sat down and interviewed each other about cricket and Tonbridge and how they have ended up talking about the game for a living

Mark – “So Andy…what are your memories of cricket at Tonbridge?”

Well from a playing perspective not glorious, until the last couple of years when I was in the 3rd XI which was a lot of fun. I was a pretty bad player but, in those days, you could get away with scoring six in an hour and a quarter which I did against the mighty Bidborough Cricket Club Those were the days when you could still play “ proper cricket”

I might not have been very good at playing but I did start my scoring career there. I remember sitting with my scorebook when you scored a century down on the rugby pitches for the Under 16 As and then started scoring for the 1st XI on the Head and did some away games as well My lack of playing ability opened the avenue of jotting scores down in a book which I eventually managed to turn into a large part of my career

Mark – “So how have you turned jotting scores down in a book into a career that has seen you end up in the Test Match Special commentary box?” Well, it has been a long and circuitous journey. When I was at Tonbridge, I did think that being a cricket journalist would be a nice way of earning a living, but it didn’t really happen I left university with a portfolio of absolute nonsense that I had written for the student paper which I found out was not a very good way of getting a job in actual journalism. My focus became stand-up comedy and I put cricket to one side as a potential career avenue But via my comedy podcast, The Bugle I was invited to write a column for Cricinfo who wanted a weekly humorous column about cricket. So, I started playing around with their statistics engine, “stats guru” because I had been obsessed with cricket statistics since the age of six That became my angle, writing about

statistics with a bit of humour and eventually my column for Cricinfo came to the attention of the powers that be on Test Match Special. If I’m honest I can’t really remember how it all started on TMS, but I do remember spending some very enjoyable days with you on the radio at Surrey games, honing my scoring system before doing my first One Day International for TMS.

My TMS debut was the morning after the Brexit vote in 2016 and it was a rather strange opening to my TMS career. I had been up all night, watching the news and researching Sri Lankan cricketers which was quite an odd combination and then suddenly I was sitting in the TMS box at 11am fulfilling a childhood dream

Mark –“ What is it like working for TMS and being in that famous commentary box?”

Well, it is as much fun as it would probably seem listening to it I have loved every day I have been on the programme It’s a strange workplace Even though we are at work, at its best it can’t sound like work to the listener There is a grey area between being at work and just hanging out with friends watching cricket and talking about it

Everyone in the TMS team is really nice and it has enabled me to indulge in my lifelong obsession with cricket statistics, to the extent where I can sit at home in the evening looking at spreadsheets and tell my wife that I am working and doing some very valuable research

Mark – “And what have been your highlights so far in the TMS commentary box?”

The first game I did will always be a fond memory It was a one day International between England and Sri Lanka and it went pretty well and gave me the confidence that it could be a long-term thing The World Cup Final in 2019 was an extraordinary game to be part of in the commentary box The last two hours of the final was the most tension I have experienced anywhere outside the birth of my children As the statistician, by the end of the final the stats had become irrelevant, so I didn’t really have to do anything apart from soak up the final and realise how lucky I was to be a small part of it.

And watching the Test Team since Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum have taken over has been incredible As a statistician there has been a deluge of records and things that have never been done before in Test Cricket. But just as a cricket fan, to see Test Cricket being played in a new and extraordinary way has been a great privilege

But the main highlight is the fact that every day I am in the Test Match Special Box it is a real delight

Andy – “I remember you were quite good with a bat in your hand. What are your memories of playing cricket at Tonbridge?”

I think they were some of the happiest days of my life. I remember starting off in the Under 14 As on the Lower Hundred which was the size of a postage stamp I think in my first game I edged one over slip for six and thought this will be fun

I have some wonderful memories of playing cricket at Tonbridge and I think you appreciate it more when you leave the School The facilities are unbelievable, we were lucky enough to have cricket professionals who would throw balls at you for hours and I spent more time with Chris Stone in my lower and upper sixth years in the nets than I did in the classroom

I distinctly remember my debut for the 1st XI It was in my third year at Wellington and the minibus journey there I was nervous because I was surrounded by massive blokes, that I had only ever seen around the school and had never spoken to. Suddenly, I was playing cricket with them and thankfully I managed to scrape together some runs and it was a wonderful experience

In my final year, due to a lack of other viable candidates they made me captain and we had a great year We played some great cricket, it was fun, and you were playing with your mates on The Head, which I still think is a very special place to play your cricket

Andy – “Are there any games you distinctly remember?”

That first game against Wellington. I opened the batting and was terrified I can’t remember what I got, but I was nervous for the whole game And this will tell you how long ago it was because we got back to Tonbridge and saw David Platt score in the final minute of extra time against Belgium in the World Cup

Andy Zaltzman in full flow

Mark Church with Surrey cricketer Jade Dernbach

I think cricket back then was very different to now because it is all much more professional under Ian Baldock and Rich Oliver. I do remember the pressure of playing in house matches, because everybody expected me to score runs and I could hardly get if off the square But my overriding memory is it just being great fun and at the time was very important to me and I am still very proud to have played for the 1st XI.

Andy – “So how did you end up becoming a sports journalist and commentating on cricket?”

I went to Durham University and quickly realised all the other cricketers there were much better than me. I played some club cricket up there, and whilst I was desperately trying to get a politics degree, I started working on the student radio station and loved it After leaving Durham I started a proper job, which I was awful at, so resigned and went to Portsmouth and did a post graduate course on Broadcast Journalism Part of the course was a work experience placement and mine was at BBC Southern Counties I was sent to cover Woking and Kingstonian in the Vauxhall Conference and within six months I was at Wembley commentating on the mighty Kingstonian in the FA Trophy Final I was also sent to Sussex to report on their games and in 2003 I had the bright idea that the BBC could do ball-by-ball online commentary when audio started to be streamed Surrey liked the idea and I have been doing the ball-by-ball commentary ever since

I have been very fortunate to be there at the start of the county commentary service and basically tripped over and fell into it and I still cannot believe my luck I get to watch some amazing cricket, meet some amazing players and waffle on all day about cricket.

Andy – “And what have been your highlights in the cricket commentary box?”

The two Championship wins for Surrey in 2018 and 2022 would be up there I have also had the privilege of commentating on the likes of Ricky Ponting, Hashim Amla, Kumar Sangakkara, Mark Ramprakash, Kevin Pietersen and Graeme Smith which is very special I have got to know some of these players personally and even now I get starstruck. If one of my great heroes comes up to the commentary box, I am still like a little kid with them and get over-excited

I am so old now that lots of the current players I commentated on were at the start of their careers, and to see their careers develop and some of them to go on and play for England is very special All the BBC commentators are a lovely bunch and I have made some wonderful friends over the years. And I do remember getting a phone call from the TMS producer Adam Mountford, telling me he had this chap who was a genius at stats and could he come and get some experience of being on air with me at Surrey games. I asked him the name of this statistician and he told me it was a fella who went by the name of Andy Zaltzman And 15 years after leaving Tonbridge you and I were working together and that has been a real joy

Andy – “And what do you think the art is for cricket commentary on the radio?”

It is all about painting a picture with words In the modern world of social media and live streaming you can sometimes forget what your job is, but we are there to describe to the listeners what we are seeing And I always try and convey to the listeners what a great time we are having in the commentary box and how lucky we are to be doing this job. And if something special is about to happen, like Mark Ramprakash’s hundredth hundred at Headingly, don’t get it wrong because you can’t ask them to go out there and do it again

I have also had the privilege of commentating on the likes of Ricky Ponting, Hashim Amla, Kumar Sangakkara, Mark Ramprakash, Kevin Pietersen and graeme Smith which is very special.

FROM THE HADLOW ROAD OUTDOOR POOL TO THE TONBRIDGE SCHOOL CENTRE: SWIMMING AT TONBRIDGE SCHOOL.

James Stewart (FH 56-61) is one of the best swimmers Tonbridge has produced and he became a significant administrator in swimming as Secretar y and President of Otter Swimming Club Here he reflects on the histor y of the sport at Tonbridge and, in particular, the facilities in place.

The history of Tonbridge School published by Septimus Rivington in 1925 refers to a new School swimming bath built in 1897 “at the back of the Town Mills in the Hadlow Road” He records an earlier tradition that the whole School led by the Head Boy bathed in the Medway on the morning of Skinners’ Day and this custom transferred to the swimming bath after its construction An 1894 book in the Badminton Library records Tonbridge as one of 18 schools where “swimming competitions are carried out and the pastime is encouraged”

By 1960 Rivington would not have observed much change The pool, 200 feet long and 40 feet wide, was lined by wooden open-air changing sheds and wooden diving boards at the deep end Excepting a seven-lengths race in the School sports, the longest competitive race was 100 yards, with competitors starting at the shallow end, racing to the deep end, returning for another half-length and touching a bar lowered across the pool There were matches against Dulwich, Christ’s Hospital, King’s Canterbury and Sutton Valence, with Senior Relay squads competing in the Schools’ Freestyle (Bath Cup from

1910) and Medley National Relay championships (Otter Medley from 1951) at the Seymour Hall in London –then organised by Otter SC alongside the Oxford and Cambridge University annual swimming match Participating schools numbered around 50 but in 1961 these relay events split from the Varsity swimming match and moved in 2014 to the London Aquatic Centre (2012 Olympic Pool), when as President of Otter SC, I presented bronze medals to a Tonbridge School squad for the 4x50m Schools Medley Relay in a competition then numbering over 100 participating schools

Outdoor pool in the 1920s

The swimming pool in the 2009 Sports Centre

Tonbridge had a long relationship with Otter SC, with regular matches between 1911 and 1938 and OTs joining the club after leaving School, including two among the 50 listed Otter casualties in the two world wars

During my time at Tonbridge from 1956-61, an open-air unheated pool confined swimming to the summer only, with swimming starting around mid-May The mains-fed water was initially crystal-clear in the low 50 degrees Fahrenheit, but, as the temperature rose, the water became increasingly murky, until at a peak of around 75 degrees, a scum, on which it was possible to float a pre-decimal copper penny, often coalesced at the sides Sir Sandy Wilson, 1959

Swimming Captain, recounts an incident when the water was analysed by a local vet who pronounced “your horse has syphilis” – probably apocryphal, but an example of how our generation laughed away deficiencies which would have left modern ‘elf and safety’ monitors rather unhappy

Tonbridge swimming in the 1960s was different to that enjoyed today No swim-caps were worn, and prolonged immersion left everyone with splitting headaches, while the cold was energysapping When temperatures reached the higher 60s, a freestyler was no longer able to see even his hand in front of his face and the lane-ropes with their intermittent corks were difficult to spot Finishing on the bar

for half a length, 50 or 100 yards necessitated actually touching the bar – swimming past it was not enough The modern three turns for 100 metres in the current indoor pool, without the need for hand touches, versus our single turn plus touch, does enhance performance, as does modern swimming in optimum temperatures with wave-calming and other aids School records could only be set during the School sports If our times seem pathetic to the modern reader, please look kindly upon us – we inhabited a different world Even my own 100 yards time improved by seven seconds within two years of leaving School

Swimming in the 1960s was one of many ‘Minor Sports’ that shared the same School Colours for ties and barge-bands Captain of Swimming JPH Kendall (PH 52-57), presented me on his last Skinners’ Day with his Minor Sports barge-band, bequeathed to him in turn by a former Captain of Swimming DM Alexander Chris Morgan, Director of Sport, advises that now no sports are designated as ‘minor’

I believe the first OT swimmer to win international honours was DJC Barnes (MH 54-59), with an Irish cap for water polo in 1965 School swimming improved when a new indoor 25m pool was constructed in 1975 - a pool that was replaced with the current excellent

facility within the Sports Centre in 2008 This allowed the development of the finest swimmer to have passed through the School to-date – namely Simon Handley (Sc 87-92), who went on to win the 100m freestyle at the British Swimming Championships in 1995 and then, at the FINA World Swimming Championships in 1997, came 3rd in the Men’s 50m Freestyle and was a member of the British quartet that won Bronze in the Mens 4x100m Freestyle Relay

Competitive swimming needs three ingredients for success – pool availability, committed coaches and

committed participants Today’s School has these ingredients, with results that include, in 2018, wins by School squads in the Kent Schools Swimming Championships in the Senior 200m Freestyle and 200m Medley Relay competitions In 2022 Max ElMokadem, Whitworth Novi, won one Gold, 11 Silver and four Bronze medals at the Kent Swimming Championships Further successes seem bound to follow

Hadlow Road swimming baths between the wars The pool remained in use until replaced by the first indoor pool in 1975

If the Tonbridgian of 2023 is looking for a role model in the School’s published aims of innovation, creativity and curiosity, then he needs look no further than Millis Jefferis Jefferis was a soldier who proved himself a brilliant inventor of unconventional weaponry to be used in Second World War regular and irregular warfare Such was his genius for ‘ungentlemanly warfare’ that he came to the attention of Winston Churchill in 1940 who made sure that Jefferis would work directly for him, describing him as ‘a brilliant officer with an ingenious, inventive mind’

Historic Tonbridgians

Millis Jeffer is (PH 1912-17)

David Walsh (CR 72-09), author of A Duty to Serve: Tonbridge School and the 1939-45 War writes about an important military figure of that era whose career did not come to light when that book was being researched

Jefferis entered Tonbridge in 1912 and left with a Judd Exhibition in Mathematics in 1917, worth the princely sum in those days of £75 per year, equivalent to a year’s School fees He was in the Engineering Sixth, coxed the 1st IV and won the Signalling Prize in the Officers’ Training Corps He left in July 1917 for the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, and was commissioned into the Royal Engineers just in time to catch the last months of the war RMA Woolwich was the institution to which potential officers went if they wanted to enter the Royal Artillery or Royal Engineers The technical demands were exacting, with high standards in maths and science required, and the entry extremely competitive After a year in the Army of Occupation in Germany, Jefferis transferred to the Indian Army, joining the exquisitely named Queen Victoria’s Own Sappers and Miners, with whom he won the Military Cross in 1923 for building roads and bridges under sniper fire during operations in Waziristan, on India’s north-west frontier As warfare became increasingly mechanised and technological between the wars, all the Armed Forces developed their own research departments, stocked with specialist officers like Jefferis from a science and engineering background, devising weaponry of great ingenuity and destructive power In the 1930s, Jefferis’ skill in building bridges was overtaken by an even greater interest

Major-General Sir Millis Jefferis KBE MC (courtesy of NPG)

in how to blow them up, and in the whole field of sabotage and explosives

Jefferis returned to England in 1936 to re-join the Royal Engineers He also became an adept sailor in this period before the war, working with friends in the winter of 1938 to build from scratch a 36ft racing yacht Prelude, which they raced in Royal Ocean Racing Club events in 1939 One of those friends was Brian Passmore, not a Tonbridgian himself but the grandfather of Chris (Sc 1972) and Stephen (Sc 1973)

When the war started, Jefferis was in command of a secret unit, ‘Military Intelligence Research (MIR)’, in which his expertise in explosives could be put to good use He had soon written a pamphlet, How to Use High Explosives, which contained accurate advice for anyone wanting to blow up a train, bridge, or any other object of use to the enemy It was translated into many languages and later distributed around resistance movements in Europe He

took part in the 1940 Norwegian campaign ‘to get some practical experience in blowing things up’, writing a report on his mission which was discussed in Cabinet and caught Churchill’s eye His unit, based in Buckinghamshire, became a production line for detonators, timefuses and explosive devices like limpet mines, acquiring the nickname of ‘Winston Churchill’s toyshop’ His weaponry inventions included the ‘Sticky Bomb’, nitro-glycerine wrapped in a toffee-like glue which, when attached to the hull of a tank, created a deadly inward blast Churchill wrote him a note from 10 Downing Street: ‘Sticky Bomb, make one million WSC’ Later came the ‘Hedgehog’, a multifiring mortar used with great success by warships attacking submarines, and the Projector Infantry Anti-Tank (PIAT), a shoulder-fired projectile used to destroy tanks Over 115,000 PIATs were manufactured from 1943 and were regarded as a highly effective infantry weapon Just before D-Day, Jefferis staged an exhibition in London for senior officers, showing off the astonishing range of weapons he had designed, all of them cheap to produce in mass numbers

Knighted in Churchill’s resignation honours list in 1945, he was promoted Major-General and became Chief Engineer to the Indian Army, retiring from military service in 1953 When offered a six-figure reward by the Royal Commission on Awards to Inventors, he turned it down, believing he should not profit from helping to defeat Hitler He died in 1963, his obituary preserving the secrecy still existing around his work and describing him as ‘a backroom boy’ It is only more recently that the veil of secrecy has been lifted and history has recognised his extraordinarily inventive mind and ability to put his ideas into the production of such varied and destructive weaponry

Millis Jefferis (right) and Brian Passmore (centre) on Prelude in 1939

MY HOUSE: PARK HOUSE IN THE NOUGHTIES

Park House in the early noughties was a place in transition Some of the harsher vestiges of boarding school life remained, but by the new millennium it had become a kinder, more forgiving place than it had been, at least if the stories that the Upper Sixth would tell us Novi about their experiences were to be believed.

Sport, however, remained the centre of house life Under the long tenure of the legendary John ‘Gibbo’ Gibbs, Park had become a sporting powerhouse,

retaining house match and league trophies in practically every sport for many years This became a selffulfilling prophecy Being known as the sporty house, Park tended to attract sporty boys

As a chubby, academic scholar, I was not one of them However, by the time of my arrival, under the leadership of Paul Taylor, sport certainly remained supreme, but ‘Tayls’ was keen to win everything, not just sport It became a great source of pride to the house that

it even won House Music and House Debating

Park House was three long corridors arranged on top of each other The Novi were in dorms of six, second years in dorms of four and everyone else had their own rooms in corridors arranged by year group Socialising took place on these corridors, with each year group generating a distinct atmosphere However, constants included: corridor cricket (if you broke a window, as long it happened while

Duncan McCombe (PH 00-05) recalls life in Park House as the new millennium dawned

PH in 2002 - Duncan McCombe second from left, third row from back

playing corridor cricket, there were no disciplinary consequences), posters of scantily clad women (all posters were inspected periodically by matron and the most risqué ones removed) and competing musical styles emanating from different rooms (this period saw the death rattle of the Brit Pop era and the rise to dominance of Hip Hop and R&B)

There were other social hubs The TV room was one Who was in control of the ‘doofer’ was (like many things) decided on a strict age-based hierarchy The only constants were Neighbours and Friends Adverts were not tolerated, with music video channels surfed during any advert break The TV room was also the setting for more sobering moments I will never forget watching the unfolding of the terrible events of 9/11 with practically the whole house of 70 boys squeezed into that TV room

The yard outside was chiefly the venue for football where, football not being a School sport until the third year, we could indulge our passion for the beautiful game Tutors (including Andrew Leale who would succeed Paul Taylor as housemaster) would often join in, with varying degrees of success The lawn next door was also the venue for fiercely competitive games of croquet

The changing room was another place to gather, generally after games It smelt of a mixture of damp kit, cleaning products and (being next to the dining room) fried food The adjoining bathroom contained three large baths And, due to a drain in the middle of the floor, these baths could be filled to the brim such that, when sat in, they would overflow satisfyingly Many a happy evening was spent chatting with friends in those baths, until they were removed (apparently safeguarding mandated that all washing facilities be private)

In the evenings, prep for the bottom two years would take place in the dining room supervised by the Prae on duty The first half hour was normally reasonably studious but would then deteriorate at varying speeds (depending on the Prae in charge and how much work they had to do)

Looking back, I am astonished how order was (mostly) maintained amongst 70 boys with very limited supervision By evening, Tayls would normally retreat to the private side of the house, leaving the boys’ side in the charge of one house tutor and a group of 17- to 18-year-old Praes barely able to look after themselves, let alone a house of 70 boys Dorm raids were common but were normally put down (with varying degrees of harshness) by the Prae on duty A new rule that no physical punishments such as early morning runs were allowed unless the Prae did it too, meant that physical punishments had almost entirely vanished Copying out The Times leader, verses from the Bible or labelling everyone’s orange juice before breakfast were the usual punishments

I was very happy at Park, and I think that overall Park in the noughties was a happy place for most boys most of the time, which is probably the most one can hope for from 70 teenagers This was most obvious during House Supper, which took place just before the Christmas holidays This was the occasion for mediocre Christmas food and even more mediocre ‘entertainment’ in the form of sketches put on by the boys It always finished with a rousing rendition of White Christmas which, like the sketches, was of questionable quality, but sung with the real collective feeling and camaraderie which characterised my time at Park

What’s in a name THE ORCH ARD CENTRE

There are many houses, buildings and playing fields at Tonbridge with names that mean little to the current generation of schoolboys. They are nevertheless part of the fabric of School histor y and David Walsh (CR 72-09) here tells us about one such name.

The Orchard Centre sits at the very heart of Tonbridge, providing house lunches, match teas, snacks of all kinds and much else, but you need to be an OT of at least 50 years old to remember the person after whom the building was named.

Barry Orchard was in Judde House from 1944-50, and Head of School in his final year, succeeded in this post by Colin Cowdrey After Cambridge and National Service, he returned to Tonbridge to teach in 1958 and remained at the School until he died in 1992 It is very unusual in Tonbridge nomenclature to have buildings, houses or other facilities named after anyone other than significant benefactors, headmasters or those OTs who have earned fame on the world stage such as EM Forster Barry was none of these, so it is a mark of the huge esteem and affection in which he was held by boys, OTs, colleagues and governors that such a prominent Tonbridge landmark was named after him He was essentially just a much-loved Tonbridge institution – teacher of French, housemaster of Knox House (then a house not only for senior students but a ‘waiting house’ for Novi) and founding housemaster of Whitworth in 1974, which reaches its 50th birthday in 2024

Barry, however, was so much more than this He was a wonderfully funny public speaker and chronicler of School news in the predecessor to this magazine, the OT Blue Book,

with a unique, self-deprecating sense of humour He helped out with a wide range of extra-curricular activities and became tutor and unofficial counsellor to so many boys, particularly those for whom the restrictions of life in their houses or the overbearing nature of their housemasters became too much Many boys had Barry to thank for helping them to see out their Tonbridge careers in full His faithful basset hound, Benjy, followed him around the School, both suffering from various ailments and moving at similar speeds.

Barry Orchard

He was, in Tim Denham’s words, ‘ a man of contrasts, loving the company of others, but also a very private man; a man subject to bouts of melancholy and yet could laugh at himself at the same time’ In his last School Letter in the 1987 Blue Book, he mused on his retirement from teaching: ‘I think I retired Perhaps I resigned Perhaps I was sacked Anyway, the Headmaster was very nice about it What he said, though not quite in such blunt terms, was that he thought I had reached my ‘’sell by’’ date’. Barry’s classroom teaching may have ended, and his health was deteriorating, but he was most certainly not beyond his ‘sell by’ date, for he continued to devote himself to OT business, organising reunions (which he had instituted in the 1970s), computerising the OT address records and writing a new history of the School, A Look at the Head and the Fifty, published only a year before he died He is fondly remembered by all who knew him, and his memorial reminds us of his value and devotion to Tonbridge and its community

In his last School Letter in the 1987 Blue Book, he mused on his retirement from teaching: ‘I think I retired. Perhaps I resigned. Perhaps I was sacked. Anyway, the Headmaster was ver y nice about it.

Orchard Centre

BERN ARD WHEELER AND THE DECISION WHICH CH ANgED MY LIFE

William Reeve (PS 60-64) recalls the lifechanging decision made by his housemaster, Bernard W heeler. ‘Expedition Day’ was a Summer Term Tonbridge institution which started William on his illustrious career in broadcasting.

When David Walsh asked me to write about a teacher who had been inspirational to me at Tonbridge, I wondered hard about who to choose How were they inspirational for me and why? Looking back after 60 years, some had left a strong impression A few had been fine sportsmen, many were very bright, some engaging, others more distant

After much soul-searching I eventually chose Bernie Wheeler for one particular decision he made for me that I realised was inspirational later in life When I first knew Bernie he had taken over as housemaster of my house, Parkside, the term before Initially he lived much under the shadow of his predecessor, John Knott, who had been a supreme cricketer and rackets player Bernie played viola in the School orchestra, and he taught me maths I knew he had spent time teaching in Cairo, but I really didn’t know much more about him, as we rarely spoke at length

Each Summer Term in those days, however, Tonbridge held what was called ‘Expedition Day’ Boys could choose to pursue any venture that day

within reason Aged 15 in 1962, I decided I wanted to fly abroad as far as possible and back by getting a free return ticket As far as I knew no boy had done this before I caught a train early in the morning from Tonbridge to Gatwick and toured around the airport asking for such a flight No surprise that I failed in my venture But there was one company who told me “Do get in touch in advance next year We’ll see what we can do ”

I did so, with no reply, but I thought it worth a second try Arriving early again at Gatwick in 1963, I went straight to the aviation company’s office A receptionist greeted me, and said that yes, we did get your letter, and she summoned a colleague “Would you like to go to Tel Aviv? I think we can get you on board ” Tel Aviv sounded exotic, and I said I would love to go Unfortunately, this fell through, as did another possibility to Venice But before long I was handed a free ticket for a return flight to Genoa on an Italian airline

I remember a feeling of disbelief and sitting down to try and work out the day ahead I was supposed to be back at

School by 9pm, but the plane didn’t take off until 10pm and was then due back at Gatwick early the next morning With trepidation I ‘phoned Bernie Wheeler, and asked if it was OK to go, so long as I got back for breakfast There was a long pause I was sure he would say no “Be back for the first lesson tomorrow,” came his reply Looking back, I remember being most surprised by his decision Thanking him, I was impressed too that he was in effect supporting my venture

I had an extraordinary trip there and back with lots of incidents Not least was the difficulty of getting on the plane back, because it wasn’t expecting any passengers on the return flight I spent half an hour trying to persuade the excitable Italian crew to let me on board “When did you arrive in Italy?”

“About three hours ago ” “What are you doing here?” “I’m on a sort of School competition ” I was worried that Bernie was not going to be impressed if I missed the flight

Eventually the Captain said, “Get on board” and we were soon airborne, with me as the only passenger on an airline

flying over the Alps at dawn I got back to Parkside from Gatwick in time for breakfast and did go to the first lesson Exhausted by then, and without request, I missed the rest of the morning’s lessons, sound asleep at Parkside

Years after he died, I found out more about Bernie from his widow, Helen, than I had ever guessed as a boy She said he had spent much time during the Second World War based along the Afghan border area in what is now the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan After spending many years myself in Afghanistan as a BBC correspondent before and just after 9/11, and then working on many other projects there, I would have much enjoyed talking to Bernie about his time along the Afghan border

I never thought I had been an especially notable journalist, but I was very good at getting to major stories I managed to be the only member of the BBC to get to report from Kabul on the sudden start of Moscow’s withdrawal of the Soviet Red Army from a decade of occupying Afghanistan in the spring of

1988 Then after 9/11, I managed to be the only broadcaster to get to Kabul with a BBC camera crew a week before the Taliban fled the capital, while all the world’s media was desperately trying, but failing, to do so I was notably blown off my seat by a 2,000 pound American smart bomb exploding 70 metres from where I was carrying out a live BBC TV interview the night the Taliban were fleeing the Afghan capital in November 2001

I have often wondered whether Expedition Day at Tonbridge in the Summer Term all those years ago had much to do with these excitements for me many years later And I have come to think that yes, maybe indeed it did! And thanks to Bernie Wheeler taking the risk of letting me as a young teenager head off overnight across Europe and back to Genoa? Yes too!

(Editor’s note – if there are any other memories out there of ‘Expedition Day’, from the age before risk assessments were de rigeur, please let us know)

Parkside 1964, Bernard and Helen Wheeler seated right and William Reeve left

William Reeve in Afghanistan, Kabul 1988, at the start of Soviet withdrawal

Dom Merchant talks about life after Tonbr idge and, in the words of EM Forster, to Live in fragments no longer.

I have the great pleasure of knowing Dom Merchant since we met in his Novi year in W hitworth in 2007. This also happened to be my first year as Housemaster, so it felt a little like we were growing up together in some ways! Dom was a highly impressive individual from the start. He was clearly ver y bright, ambitious and hardworking but was also amiable, polite, caring and respectful, and in possession of a great sense of humour. Dom’s career at Tonbridge was predictably impressive, and a move to boarding for sixth form didn’t dent his progress. It therefore came as some surprise that after leaving, Dom began to find that life’s path wasn’t as rosy or predictable as he might have expected based on his trajector y at School. Life continually presents us with problems and challenges. The things that will get us through and help us keep on track is being honest with ourselves, developing self-awareness and an understanding of what our values are, and seeking out and asking for support from friends, family, professionals or even School, when we need it. We aspire to build these qualities at Tonbridge, and Dom’s piece exemplifies with great honesty and openness how his response to setback and challenge has helped him on his road to success and fulfilment.

Biddle

Dom writes:

It’s been a little over ten years since I left Tonbridge and I’ve had four or five changes of career and direction in that time, covering areas as different as sailing, local politics and tech But the pandemic was a clarifying experience and since then I’ve qualified as an addictions therapist, set up a private practice and started a PhD in Addiction Psychology

Precisely none of that was the plan on Skinners’ Day 2012 I had spent a highly successful, predominantly happy and rather highly strung five years at School, initially in Whitworth and later in Park House for sixth form after my family moved to the Lake

District I was leaving to read Medicine at New College, Oxford, having been Deputy Head of School and won the Paterson Sword for leadership in the CCF I had a wealth of friends and was equal parts excited and stressed by the trajectory I had planned for myself I couldn’t possibly have told you at the time, but the ways I had already learned to cope with difficulty and distress made me something of a timebomb I was, however, well aware that I enjoyed a drink

By 2016, rather than pursuing clinical training on a naval bursary (which would have been ‘Plan A’), I had changed course, suspended my

studies for a while, spent a month in rehab, returned to Oxford and then dropped out completely I spent the summer at home, sober but in agony, suicidally depressed and unable to see any path that I wanted to take

Thanks to the constant love and support of family and friends, good therapy and a healthy dollop of resilience (the three are interrelated!), things improved But, still lacking some direction, in the first lockdown I enrolled on Master’s level training in Addiction Counselling at London South Bank University which specialises in that area

Will

Never having been shy of a challenge, I took a job in the substance misuse service at Pentonville prison as my training placement A proper account of my time there would fill pages, but it was simultaneously immensely rewarding and draining work The environment is worse than you are likely to be able to imagine and, leaving any politics to one side, in my view shockingly under-resourced and under-supported The stories of most of the men I had the privilege to meet and work with were more sad than bad

The prison population very closely reflects the various dimensions of deprivation and marginalisation in London and, while my own experience shows that the disadvantaged do not have a monopoly on addiction or suffering, these men had not had the resources I had to help them recover Good outcomes didn’t come around all that often which could be dispiriting, and it was hard to measure impact or ‘success’ But complex problems tend to have complex solutions and sometimes ‘just’ keeping people safe week to week is enough

I’m now working in private practice to allow for more flexible hours around my research The role Tonbridge has played in all this is complicated and hard to unpick On the surface, I’m sure that a determination and perseverance that was fostered there has served me well eventually But, more significantly, it was also the first place that I learned to ask for

help and lean on pastoral care beyond my immediate network I had some panic attacks in my second year and the love and support I received planted some important seeds It may not have seemed like much at the time – a few brief but honest conversations – but I have a huge amount for which to thank the Biddles in Whitworth and Shirley Lauryn, School Counsellor

I’ve always kept up an interest in academia and research, and the exceptional science teaching and critical thinking training I received at School have certainly enabled me to go on to PhD study But more than my achievements, it’s what I learnt, or began to learn, about myself and in relationship to others that I value most about my time at Tonbridge Forster’s injunction to “Only Connect” is rightly one that School seems to emphasise now But what’s often missed is that he is describing an internal as well as an external process of connection It’s a very modern and a fundamentally therapeutic message about recognising and reconciling “the prose and the passion”, “the beast and the monk” in all of us - an essential part of any process of growth or development which applies far beyond the therapy room

In the same passage he makes another appeal that captures the spirit of my type of work, which typically involves somewhat broken people: “Live in fragments no longer”, he asks That’s probably good advice for any of us, whatever our age or circumstances, but it’s harder than it sounds!

Dominic Merchant ( WW 07-10; PH 10-12)

Tonbridge School has recently launched their Pastoral Outreach Programme, and Will Biddle and other members of the Pastoral Outreach Team will be visiting universities during the academic year to check in with OTs and to remind them that their relationship with the School remains open to them, both with practical help and emotional support.

CRUSADERS: If….AND THE TONBRIDGE CONNECTION

Charles Barr (PH 53-58) has written British Cinema: A Ver y Short Introduction (2020) Here he reflects on the relationship between Tonbridge and the iconic 1968 film

Apologies for the long letter, I didn’t have time to write a shorter one This quote gets attributed to multiple authors, and you can see why, because it makes such good paradoxical sense Writing British Cinema: A Very Short Introduction Cinema cost me more time and anxiety than earlier books of three times the length

The OUP’s long-running VSI series (several hundred titles so far) sets a limit of 35,000 words – in this case, for making sense of more than a century of cinema and many thousands of extant films In the end, the best I found I could aim for was a solid basic framework, historical and conceptual, for grasping the subject overall: picking out some strong recurring patterns, plus key moments, and names, and films

Such as, respectively: the genre of the boarding school film; the year 1968; the critic/director Lindsay Anderson; and his film, If , made and shown in that year

Prominent among the book’s illustrations is a frame-still of Malcolm McDowell, leader of the student rebels, on the roof of the school chapel, scattering the assembled Speech Day crowd with bren-gun fire, the film’s unforgettable final moment: permanently evocative of 1968, the year of the student riots in Paris, and of other unrest in Europe and beyond, though the film was made – with uncanny prescience – before all that burst out If would have been a key

reference point for the book even without my own unmentioned angle on the film as a Tonbridgian of the 1950s There was no scope to mention, alongside Anderson, three Tonbridge contemporaries: David Sherwin-White (Sc 55-58), John Howlett (SH 53-58), Michael Mason (MH 55-58) None of them survive; all deserve honouring as essential contributors to this production, a true landmark in British film history and in the wider culture

I have no idea whether If now gets seen and discussed at all at the School – or whether, if so, it is taken as a source of pride or of embarrassment or just of vague period interest EM Forster recorded negative memories of his time at Tonbridge, but a theatre is now named for him, and it surely makes equal sense for the School to acknowledge ownership of If , despite its portrayal of the boarding house of its period – School House (in the film, College House) – as, in the words of its main writer, ‘a Nazi war camp’

Ownership would have to be shared with Cheltenham Anderson was a boarder there in the 1940s and went back to shoot much of the film on Cheltenham locations Film directors commonly get privileged over writers, Anderson was a strong and articulate personality, and If is commonly seen as belonging to him and his school But it is at least equally rooted in Tonbridge The initial script, Crusaders, was written by Howlett and SherwinWhite soon after they left in 1958 After

rejections elsewhere, Anderson eagerly took it on In the years of stop-start development, Howlett dropped out, his co-writer rebranded himself as David Sherwin, and the title too was changed, but the central concept remained intact: that of a band of rebels against the school and its values, still named collectively on the closing credit titles as Crusaders

Sherwin prominently, and Howlett less so, receive on-screen credits, though not Mason All three men earned Guardian obituaries, now freely accessible online Writing of Mason, the distinguished academic John Sutherland noted that “Rebellious instinct he certainly had; he claimed to be the original of Mick in David Sherwin’s screenplay for Lindsay Anderson’s 1968 film, If , and it was easy to believe ” Sherwin confirmed this, naming him as his inspiration Mason had gone on to a fiercely individualistic career as writer, teacher and publisher, before dying at 61 Perhaps others who knew Michael personally at Tonbridge, as I did not, can tell us more?

The distributors of If were amazed by its immediate success in December

David Sherwin co-writer for If

1968 It hit a topical note with audiences at the end of that turbulent year, me included I was caught up at the time in ‘the d’Oliveira affair’ Like many others, I had been outraged by the omission, in September 1968, of the non-white cricketer Basil d’Oliveira from the England team chosen to tour his native South Africa, directly afterafter his match-winning innings of 158 in the final Test against Australia

Selection was still in those days done by a committee of the Marylebone Cricket Club; as a new MCC member, I took the chance to set in motion, via a letter to The Guardian, the protest that culminated in the cancellation of that tour

giving way soon to David Sheppard and Mike Brearley and others, as dominant campaigners

Early on, the initial group (crusaders?) were summoned to Lord’s to encounter the authorities, including the incumbent England Captain, himself an older Tonbridgian in Colin Cowdrey –friendly, ready to shake hands, just as Mick in If shakes hands with the whip (in Tonbridge terms, Praeposter) after being beaten In its way, Lord’s was like a confrontation from the film, the rebels summoned by the whips: spared a beating, but made to feel small, or so they hoped I had never quite articulated that parallel before, but it makes sense The old structures of

authority, in cricket and in the boarding school and far beyond were, in 1968, ripe for challenge and revision, and If was perfectly timed, and perfectly crafted

Mike had also told me of a visit by Sherwin to Tonbridge, invited by him and others, to talk about If a few years on The talk had seemed to go well, and Mike was hurt that Sherwin had then made some negative public comments about the occasion

Let me end with memories of Mike Bushby, who remained a dear friend for life, as he did to so many other Tonbridgians On the d’Oliveira affair, his instinct was to trust the integrity of the MCC selectors and – like David Kemp – he argued the point, more in sorrow than in anger Here I think of the headmaster at the end of If , calling out to the rooftop crusaders ‘Trust me, trust me’: he got a bullet in the head, and the MCC of 1968 have since received a succession of metaphorical bullets as more of the story is uncovered Mike generously came to accept this, and we had a great day together watching the first day of the first post-apartheid Lord’s Test in 1994

In his way Mike became the Mr Chips of Tonbridge, devoting his whole professional life to the School, and staying on, like Chips, after retirement That name entered popular discourse via an earlier film that used the boarding school as metaphor for the nation Another image in the VSI British Cinema book is of Robert Donat in the title role of Goodbye Mr Chips (1939), hugely popular at the time as a sentimental endorsement of the established order, a feel-good film at the start of a war which would rapidly explode its message that nothing needs to change If was in effect a riposte to that film, a warning not to slip back into accepting the old rigid structures

Unlike Chips, Mike did change: continuously adapting, while remaining wholly loyal to the School And it is in that spirit that I suggest Tonbridge can take pride – however paradoxical that may seem – in the complex shaping role it played in that film of 1968

Poster for the iconic film If

Mike Bushby

FROM THE ARCHIvES

THE STOKOE CIGARET TE BOX

In August, the School was given a silver and ebony cigarette box by the family of Henry Stokoe The box is inscribed: ‘I was wrought for Henry Robert Stokoe, M.A., Oxon, by command of the Old Boys of Park House to mark their appreciation of his forty-one years as Housemaster, 1890-1931’

If anyone has a claim to be a ‘School legend’ it is Henry Stokoe In the days when the boarding houses were sold on by the housemaster to his successor, Stokoe came down in 1890 from a school in Scotland to take over Park House from Reverend JR Little and it is reputed that he wrote to the Headmaster, Joseph Wood: ‘I have bought Park House and will be joining your staff next term’ He remained as housemaster of Park House for an astonishing 41 years, and was over 70 years old when he retired, building the house up from just nine boys in 1890 to 50 in 1931 As well as this role, he was acting Headmaster in 1922 when

Charles Lowry’s health broke down; form master of the Classical Vth form; Treasurer of The Tonbridgian; and Senior Honorary Member of the Old Tonbridgian Society, presiding over the OT Dinner in 1936

His most lasting valuable work for Tonbridge, however, was as sole editor and producer of Tonbridge School and the Great War of 1914-19, published in 1923 This remarkably detailed record of both the living and the dead was

based on voluminous lists collected by Stokoe during the war itself, a war in which his elder son was killed in 1915 As a labour of love and a list of accurate record, it has no peer in other schools

We are very pleased that the Stokoe family have reconnected with the School, passing on not only the cigarette box but notes which Henry Stokoe himself wrote about his life and career

Henry Stokoe presents the Athletics' Prizes 1923

TS Cigarette box

CRAS

The first cross country run took place on Saturday 25 March 1905 The original course was up the London Road, branching off into Hildenborough then turning into the Shipbourne Road at Cage Green before returning to the winning posts at the School’s Avenue gates.

The winner of the first race was Eric Dougall, VC winner in the First World War Originally races were called the ‘paperchase’ or the steeple-chase but later changed the name to the ‘Cras’ as first noted in the School magazine of 1918 In a letter to The Tonbridgian in 1982, GP Hoole (CR 1922-59) said “I was told there had been a master with a very affected accent, much mimicked by the boys, who called it the ‘Crass Cahntry’ race ”

Can you recognise yourself or other boys in the picture with Major Brennan taken in 2003? Please let us know beverley.matthews@tonbridge-school.org

Can you name the cadets?

From The Tonbridgian, 1974

Cras c.1910

From The Tonbridgian, 1974

Letters to the editor

We welcome letters on any matters raised in this edition or others relating to the School or OTS tonbridgesociety@tonbridge-school.org

Dear Editor

HS HOUSE PHOTO 1952

I enjoyed dipping into the recent issue of the Old Tonbridgian Magazine Thank you for the many interesting articles I was especially interested in Alec Graham’s obituary, as he was a regular visitor to Hill Side as a friend of Harry Gripper, our housemaster

The OT Booklist gave me courage to submit a copy of my second book of poems, More from my Knapsack, published in 2018 The poem House Photo 1952 describes my feelings on seeing a copy of the photo from that year Harry Gripper, housemaster as well as chaplain, dominates the foreground of the photo

In the house photo I am fifth from the right in the first standing row behind those seated Next to the left of me, as we see them, is Richard Warburton (the boy with the prominent ears!), who after a peripatetic life now lives up the road from me in Winchester At the far left of our row, on the left is John G Smith, who moved to Canada soon after we graduated from Cambridge;

Dear Editor

SUCCESSFUL MAGAZINE

he has published two books of short stories, which are worth a read We three, along with TD Morris, (looking rather stern, behind Harry G, standing beside his widely-grinning half-brother CHA Garrett) all went up to Pembroke College, Cambridge in the autumn of 1955, having done National Service

After Cambridge and theological college, I did a curacy at Wigan Parish Church (where Harry had been a curate many years before)

Then to India, and at the summer language school in the hills in 1964 met the woman who became my wife One of my poems recalls that year, and the beginning of a slow process of spiritual upheaval and renewal I married Rosemary at the

This is just a note to congratulate you and through you those who worked alongside you to produce what I believe is the best communication with OTs for over five years I received my copy just two days ago, but I was forewarned, as by then I had already received two telephone calls from contemporaneous OTs commenting on the high quality There was so much to enjoy Overall, the magazine gives a

same hill station the following year, and we continued to serve in India (broken with a year at an evangelical theological college in UK) till 1975

Two of our three children were born in India I served in two parishes in Kent, first near Ashford, then Hildenborough 1980-90 The job I most enjoyed was my last, working in Manchester, not as a vicar but as the church’s “Asian Worker in Old Trafford” In Manchester I began to get to know Muslims and those of other faiths in a way I never did in India, caught up as I was there with the life of Indian churches

Thank you for all your work keeping in touch with us OTs.

David Corfe (HS 48-53)

strong message of an active and vibrant community Gavin Rochussen, in his contribution, expresses a wish “to engage with the Old Tonbridgian community ” I believe that this magazine issue will be a helpful step in support of that ambition Overall a great issue and in my view a great success My congratulations to all of those involved

James Stewart (FH 56-61)

Hill Side 1952

Dear Editor

TONBRIDGE 50 YEARS OR SO AGO

Congratulations to the editorial team on the excellent Autumn 2022 issue of the Old Tonbridgian Magazine Several of the articles evoked fond memories of my time at Tonbridge in the late 1960s and early 1970s

Unfortunately I was unable to attend the service of thanksgiving in November 2021 for the life of David Kemp, who was my housemaster at Park House for the final two years of my School career His predecessor, Bill Lake, seemed to live in a world of his own and the running of the house was very much in the hands of the prefects and of the redoubtable Mrs Lake For some reason, she chose me out of all the Novi, to arrange a rota so that she would always be sitting next to a different couple of new boys at lunch The problem was that some of them found Ros so formidable that they were very reluctant to sit next to her!

David Walsh’s article about David Kemp’s life of dedicated service to Tonbridge (and beyond) was a pleasure to read In a firm but tactful way DSK was already getting Park House onto a better track during his first couple of years there I found him to be a most sympathetic housemaster when he accepted that, rather than take on praepostorial responsibilities, I would prefer to move to Knox House as a ‘senior student’ and prepare for Oxbridge entrance exams Thereafter, I had the best of both worlds - benign care from Barry Orchard at Knox and civilised conversation with David at lunchtime in Park House I am also ever-grateful to David for allowing me to go off on the bus to Sevenoaks from time to time in order to play golf at Knole Park As it was evident by then that I wasn’t much of a cricketer (though I did once play for the 5th XI!), it was great to be allowed to enjoy a sport which has become a life-long passion

It was also very interesting to read David’s piece about an earlier châtelaine of Park House, Sheila Hoole I don’t think I ever met her but I certainly remember her husband, Gilbert, who was already in charge of the then fairly new Smythe Library when I arrived at Tonbridge in 1966 I can’t recall whether I volunteered or was ‘volunteered’ to be a library assistant but I really enjoyed getting to know the library well at an early stage of my School career I certainly wasn’t expecting any reward for putting returned books back in their correct place on the shelves, so I was surprised and delighted towards the end of my first term as an assistant when Mr Hoole gave me an envelope containing a tenshilling note as an ‘honorarium’ It felt like a small fortune in those days and went a long way in the ‘Grubber’!

Ian Bradley’s 1968 reminiscences and 2022 reflections about School life in the 1960s and the central importance of

Chapel services also caught my attention Michael McCrum was undoubtedly an awe-inspiring headmaster who succeeded in taking Tonbridge onwards and upwards One of my memories from early on at Tonbridge is of feeling absolutely terrified when I had to go to his study to be congratulated on a piece of work which had been deemed worthy of a merit! Sadly, by the time I reached the dizzy heights of membership of the Athena Society, McCrum had moved on to Eton, though I should add that his successor, Robert Ogilvie, was a charming man as well as an erudite scholar

And the two appreciations of Jonathan Smith at Eighty also evoked some wonderful memories I was very fortunate to be taught English at A-level by Jonathan and his head of department, Peter Pollard Although very different personalities, they were a great double act The classrooms in Dry Hill House were quite small Consequently, when Vikram Seth arrived shortly after the start of one term, he had to sit within the horseshoe arrangement of desks Nothing daunted, our young Indian contemporary held us spellbound by the brilliance of his contributions

Patrick

Dear Editor

DISTRACTION FROM MARKING

I enjoyed reading the OT magazine – lots of interesting content (I had no idea Mike Aylwin was a rugby journalist now - he was the year above me in PH) and no idea that Kurt Seecharan was now a housemaster in School House at Tonbridge! He was in the Rugby XV when I was a Novi watching on the touchlines and he used to take the kicks to touch – I can still see his amazing corkscrew kicks The Magazine is beautifully produced and put together - give yourselves a mighty pat on the back I spent last night reading it cover to cover when I should have been marking!

Francis (PH 66-71)

Jonathan Smith in conversation with Christopher Reid (PH 62-67)

Peter Kemp (PH 86-91)

OLD TONBRIDGIAN OF THE YEAR AWARD

We know that many Old Tonbridgians make a real difference across the globe in a variety of ways This year, the Old Tonbridgian Society is launching a new initiative called the Old Tonbridgian of the Year Award – an award that recognises and celebrates the contribution an Old Tonbridgian has made to society, reflecting Tonbridge values of creativity, tolerance, ser vice, and social responsibility.

We are looking to recognise one person who has unselfishly and generously contributed their time and talents or displayed courage or resilience in the face of adversity during the past 12 months This activity should have enriched or inspired others and could be a voluntar y or humanitarian act, undertaken on their own or as part of a voluntar y organisation

Do you know of an Old Tonbridgian who has gone above and beyond to help their local community or society at large? Maybe they set up a food bank or helped refugees settle in their new environment. Maybe they were involved in supporting threatened/displaced communities, reducing environmental damage or improving the health and welfare of people or wildlife.

If you know of any such Old Tonbridgian, please nominate them for this award The result will be announced in the New Year To be considered, those nominated should demonstrate a clear and positive impact that has occurred as a direct result of their engagement and commitment and examples of this impact should be provided along with the nomination.

The deadline for submissions is 31 December 2023. Submissions should be sent by email to Adrian Ballard, Director of the Tonbridge Society. tonbridgesociety@tonbridge-school.org

The Tonbridge Society requests your nominations for the

OT Booklist

The Path of Peace: Walking the Western Front Way

Anthony Seldon (HS 67-72)

Without a permanent home, a wife, or a job, and with no clear sense of where his life was going, Anthony Seldon set out on a 35-day pilgrimage from the French-Swiss border to the English Channel

Reflections on Conducting

Hilary Davan Wetton (CR 94-06)

Hilary Davan Wetton is one of Britain’s most versatile and dynamic conductors Following studies at the Royal College of Music and Oxford University, his wide-ranging career of over 60 years has featured both choral and orchestral repertoire, as well as many acclaimed recordings A regular guest conductor with choirs and orchestras both in Britain and overseas, Hilary can be regularly heard on BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM Reflections on Conducting is for anyone with an interest in the English choral and orchestral music scenes, both amateur and professional, as well as conducting students Written in an engaging and approachable style, the book is filled with practical advice - including chapters on conducting technique, programme planning, rehearsals, touring, recording, and working with contemporary composers - alongside interesting and humorous anecdotes from Hilary Davan Wetton’s diverse and extensive career

Broadlake

Ed Bingham (SH 92-97)

Bingham’s debut novel is a tragicomic exploration of family, friendship, love, and loss, written in rhyming prose It is also a murder mystery, forging a unique literary detective story

The deceased narrator has one day left to pinpoint the origins of his downfall Yet why is he in such a rush and did his demise stem from his childhood, his career, his friends, or his doomed relationships? Will he find the answer before it is too late and how will his account affect the outcome of the murder investigation?

Bingham’s mastery of the long poem has been compared to TS Eliot, BS Johnson, and Allen Ginsberg, with author Ann Chettle describing it as ‘a masterpiece in originality, creativity and storytelling’

The route of his 1,000 kilometre journey was inspired by a young British soldier of the First World War, Alexander Douglas Gillespie, who dreamed of creating a ‘Via Sacra’ that the men, women and children of Europe could walk to honour the fallen Tragically, Gillespie was killed in action, his vision forgotten for a 100 years, until a chance discovery in the archive of one of England’s oldest schools galvanised Anthony into seeing the Via Sacra permanently established

Tracing the historic route of the Western Front, he traversed some of Europe’s most beautiful and evocative scenery, from the Vosges, Argonne and Champagne to the haunting trenches of Arras, the Somme and Ypres Along the way, he wrestled heat exhaustion, dog bites and blisters as well as a deeper search for inner peace and renewed purpose Touching on grief, loss and the legacy of war, The Path of Peace is the extraordinary story of Anthony’s epic walk, an unforgettable act of remembrance and a triumphant rediscovery of what matters most in life

Johnson at 10: The Inside Story

Anthony Seldon (HS 67-72) and Raymond Newell

After his dramatic rise to power in the summer of 2019 amid the Brexit deadlock, Boris Johnson presided over the most turbulent period of British history in living memory Beginning with the controversial prorogation of Parliament in August and the historic landslide election victory later that year, Johnson was barely through the door of No 10 when Britain was engulfed by a series of crises that will define its place in the world for decades to come From the agonising upheaval of Brexit and the devastating Covid-19 pandemic to the nerve-shredding crisis in Afghanistan and the outbreak of war in Ukraine, Johnson’s government ultimately unravelled after just three years

This gripping behind-the-scenes work of contemporary history maps Johnson’s time in power from start to finish and sheds new light on the most divisive Prime Minister to have led the United Kingdom since Thatcher Based on more than 200 interviews with key aides, allies and insiders, Johnson at 10 gives the first full account of Johnson’s premiership, the shockwaves of which are still felt today

Out of the Blue: The Inside Story of the Unexpected Rise and Rapid Fall of Liz Truss

Harry Cole (SH 03-05) and James Heale

Liz Truss’ journey from schoolgirl revolutionary to Britain’s shortestserving Prime Minister Despite being written off and mocked by even her closest colleagues, Liz Truss slowly but determinedly achieved her goal of taking over 10 Downing Street – only to instantly plunge her administration into chaos and announce her resignation after a record-breaking 44 days

How did she do it?

And what exactly went so wrong?

With unrivalled access and insight, award-winning political journalists Harry Cole and James Heale provide the answers, drawing on interviews with Truss’ friends and supporters, as well as her worst critics and rivals, from Kwasi Kwarteng to Michael Gove

Tracking Truss’ transformation from geeky teenage Lib Dem to Tory PM, with the inside scoop on her first – and only – month in office, Out of the Blue is the unmissable behind-thescenes account of Britain’s shortestserving Prime Minister

Making Decisions

Ed Smith ( WH 90-95)

As chief selector for the England cricket team, Ed Smith pioneered new methods for building successful teams and watched his decisions tested in real time on the pitch During his threeyear tenure, England averaged seven wins in every ten completed matches, better than they have performed before or since

Making Decisions reveals Smith’s unique approach to finding success in a fast-changing and increasingly datareliant world The best decisions, Smith argues, rely on a combination of differing kinds of intelligence: from algorithms to intuition This is a truth that the most successful people know: data cannot account for everything; it must be harnessed with human insight Whatever the power of data, humans aren’t finished yet

Sharing for the first time the tools he introduced as England selector, Smith’s book captures the immediacy of life at the sharp end, while also exploring frameworks from the top levels of sports, business, and the arts

Decision-making is revealed as a creative enterprise, not a reductive system Making Decisions offers an invaluable guide for those who want a better framework for developing, explaining, and implementing new ideas

Touching Cloth

Fergus Butler-Gallie (PS 05-10)

The very word ‘reverend’ inspires solemnity To be a priest is to dedicate one’s life to quiet prayer and spiritual contemplation Isn’t it? Fergus ButlerGallie reveals what it’s like to become a priest in the 21st century Find out why black really is slimming, how to keep a straight face when someone is inadvertently hot-boxing a funeral, and which royal-themed biscuit tin can best contain a very loud personal alarm that no one knows how to switch off Spot a sweet old lady trying to pay for a taxi with coinage from fascist Spain? Congratulations, shepherd, she’s your problem now

Behind the daily scrapes is an all-toohuman love letter to the Church of England, and the amazing variety of people who manage to keep it going, providing a listening ear, company and community at a time when so many people desperately need it, as well as a reflection on what it means to follow a spiritual path amid the chaos of the modern world

Toys/Tricks/Traps

Christopher Reid (PH 62-67)

In Christopher Reid’s marvellous new collection, a schoolboy furtively and thrillingly drops a marble through the top of his desk so that it makes its way in darkness along a complicated chute of books, rulers, and rubbish, only to emerge from a hole in the base and be caught deftly in his other hand The poem is titled ‘Homeric’ and might serve as a clue to the mood and construction of the collection in general, where the poet, now in his 70s, seeks to track down and commune with his much younger self It is an investigation that tests Wordsworth’s ‘the Child is father of the Man’ by contriving a series of transtemporal encounters between two selves who may now, conceivably, begin to understand each other

Reid was born in Hong Kong and, thanks to the roving nature of his father’s employment, spent some of his childhood in foreign places Most of the locations in this book, however, are the Britain of the 1950s and 1960sperhaps, at this distance in time, no less exotic As the poems move from pre-verbal experience to adolescence, the younger self is captured in scenes that illuminate the steps by which a man - a poet - has been raised Another poem conjures up the childhood of Henry James in order to reflect on ‘the large part/mystery plays in both childhood and art’, a proposition that the book as a whole may be said to endorse through both its wondering gaze and its ingenuity

British Cinema: A Very Short Introduction

Charles Barr (PH 53-58)

Cinema has had a hugely influential role on global culture in the 20th century at multiple levels: social, political, and educational The part of British cinema in this has been controversial - often derided as a whole, but also vigorously celebrated, especially in terms of specific films and filmmakers

In this very short introduction, Charles Barr considers films and filmmakers, and studios and sponsorship, against the wider view of changing artistic, socio-political, and industrial climates over the decades of the 20th Century Considering British cinema in the wake of one of the most familiar of cinematic reference points - Alfred HitchcockBarr traces how British cinema has developed its own unique path and has since been celebrated for its innovative approaches and distinctive artistic language

E v E N T S

146th Annual OT Dinner

September 2022

T S

OThe President of the OT Society, Peter Fincham (Sc 69-73), was present as well as the OT Society Chairman, Richard Hough (PH 79-84) and the Headmaster, James Priory The event was a huge success and was well-supported by OTs of all ages ranging from 22 to 83 years of age

A vibrant rainbow over the cricket ground greeted OTs as they arrived at Lord’s for drinks in the Long Room Bar The bar was packed and conversation flowed OTs were then invited to take their seats in the splendid Long Room, and after Grace, said by Fergus Butler-Gallie (PS 05-10), were treated to a superb three-course meal

NFollowing a toast to His Majesty King Charles III, inspirational and amusing speeches were delivered by Peter Fincham, James Priory and Tom Instance (Head Boy)

All who attended said they had a wonderful and memorable evening

event was well supported by OTs of all ages.

Alex Moen, Ed Gray, Ed Springett a nd Henry Weston

Chris Morga n a nd Ben Earl

Jona s Freema n a nd Freddie Johnson

Drink s i n t he Barton Science Centre

TIn September, we warmly welcomed 200 Old Tonbridgians to the 146th Annual OT Dinner which was held at the magnificent Lord’s Cricket Ground

Anthony Osmond Evans, Richard Dalzell, Ed Hyde

Marcus O’Riordan, Hugo Snape, Julian O’Riordan

Hugo Pettman, Mark Pettman, Toby Pettman

Nick Stewart, James Mitchell, Jasper Smallwood, Alex Travers, Harry Naismith

Ben Sturgess, Nico Bryan, John Gibbs, Sam Meakin

Will Brown, Alex Mason, Rupert Loveland, Cameron O’Brien

Kurt Seecharan, Mark Pettman, Hugo Pettman, Ben Earl

Richard Stocks, Jim Baird

Jamie Rushmer, Stephen Stowell, James Munton

James Champness, Will Tidy, Jonathan Firmston

OT Dinner in New York October 2022

The New York chapter of Old Tonbridgians met for the annual dinner on Saturday 15 October 2022. There were many familiar faces and some new ones too for what was a very enjoyable evening in the Reading Room at The Whitby Hotel, Midtown, Manhattan Everyone felt very much at home and we have found our venue for the foreseeable future

We were very grateful to James Priory, Headmaster and Andy Whittall, Director of the Tonbridge Society, for making the effort to be with us James deserves a special thank you because his flight was diverted to Boston! And Andy deserves a special thank you for bringing School swag: the tote bags were a nice touch (and a neat way to carry all the important marketing literature), and the paperweights marking the opening of the Barton Science Centre were very welcome, although they must have played havoc with his luggage allowance

We were also joined by Tracy Fu and Sharon Wee, current parents Sharon and Tracy are based in New York and

are active members of the School community, so it was great to have them with us They also hosted a smaller group, including James and Andy, the next day at the Metropolitan Museum, for a tour of the Tudors exhibition with the curator no less A very special treat

The last few years have offered few opportunities to connect directly with the School This was the first OT Dinner since 2019 that we’ve had members of the Common Room attending, which made it all the more special It really was great to have James and Andy with us, and we urge any OTs from across the US to connect with either myself or Ignacio; we’re always delighted to meet new OTs who are here in New York, whether they’re here for a long time or just a good time!

No doubt we’ll be back at the Whitby Hotel next Fall, so please make a note in your diaries to join us if you can

From the Editor:

Many thanks to Dom McMullan (PH 92-97) and Ignacio Jayanti (Sc 81-86) for organising this event

Dom McMullan (PH 92-97)

From left to right: Tom Dye, Dominic McMullan, Kali Denton-Clark, Ignacio Jayanti, Raquel Cabo, Nick Denton-Clark, Jenny Chan, Alastair Maclay, Andy Whittall, Julian Mitchell, Sheila Kahyaoglu, James Amiss, Kelly Amiss, Ian Hooper, Anthony Davis, Suki Shakira, Tracy Fu, Sharon Wee

OT Reunion (1985-2000)

June 2023

We had the great pleasure of welcoming around 100 OTs and their families back to the School on Sunday 11 June for the inaugural Summer OT Reunion OTs came from all over the world for the occasion, including Australia, Nigeria, Holland and the US For some, it was a first visit back to the School for nearly 25 years.

OTs congregated on the Upper Hundred and enjoyed catching up with their peers in the sunshine They were met by current boys, taken on a trip down memory lane with a tour of their old house and shared amusing anecdotes from their time at Tonbridge OTs also visited the Chapel of St Augustine, new to many as it had been rebuilt following the Chapel fire in 1988

Guests then enjoyed drinks in sweltering sunshine whilst hearing from the Headmaster, James Priory, who gave an amusing speech and warmly welcomed everyone back, giving special mention to our international guests and to two future Tonbridgians who were there with their fathers

A BBQ was then enjoyed by all, to the sound of leather against willow, as the OT Cricket Club played the Old Merchant Taylors’ on the Head OTCC beat Old Merchant Taylors’ by 146 runs OTCC 317-6 from 50 overs, OMTs 171-10 in reply Guests then departed to either take refuge under the trees by the Head, or for a cold ale in one of the local pubs

Rory Channer, Ben Alexander, Chris Watts, Tim Steward, Ben Meredith and Michael Burton

James Tarry and Nick Lovering

Charles Statham, Alexander Wilson and Matt Barham

Jonathan Worraker, Nick Mauger, Chris Rowe and Manoj Sachdeva

Ten Year OT Reunion for 2012 Leavers

February 2023

On Tuesday 9 February Adrian Ballard (Director of the Tonbridge Society), Tara Biddle (OT Relations Manager) and Catherine Duncan (Development Assistant) welcomed 40 Old Tonbridgians who left in 2012 to the Glassblower in London Piccadilly for the annual Ten Year Reunion.

The Glassblower was centrally located, and offered a private room where OTs could enjoy a glass or two of ale and a delicious mini pie or burger

Former Housemasters Chris Henshall, John Bleakley, Will Biddle, Richard Evans, Colin Swainson and Jon Perriss, who joined us from Norfolk, were in attendance as well as Judde House Matron, Clair Miller and Director of Sport, Chris Morgan

It was great to see so many 2012 Leavers join us to catch up with old friends We hope to welcome them to another event in the future

Durham and Newcastle Universities Visit

February 2023

On Monday 13 February, Will Biddle, Pastoral Outreach Coordinator, welcomed 40 Old Tonbridgian undergraduates to The Swan and Three Cygnets in Durham The aim of the trip was to reconnect with our young OTs, and to find out how they were doing, as well as offering continued support from the School’s pastoral and teaching staff

We were delighted that undergraduates from Newcastle made the effort to join us in Durham for the evening, and it was wonderful to see OTs enjoying catching up with each other

Will was accompanied by Tara Biddle, former 'house mum' at Whitworth and OT Relations Manager A wonderful evening was had by all

Please do reach out to us if you need help, advice, support or just want to tell us what you have been up to! Will Biddle (will biddle@tonbridgeschool org)

OT Undergraduates from Durham and Newcastle

Toby Peters, Ben Hopley, Freddie Lacey, Pradeep Chandrasker, Will Biddle

2012 Leavers

Ozzy King, George Lawson, Duncan Ballingall, Clair Miller, Nick Moynihan, Ed Marsh, Christian Squire

Whitworth House leavers- Dan Little, Harry Ford, Will Biddle, Ollie Robotham

Hugo Goodson, Harry Jenner, Jon Perriss, Harry Buxton, George Beesley

Five Year OT Reunion for 2017 Leavers

February 2023

We were delighted to welcome approximately 60 Old Tonbridgians to The Clarence in Dover Street, London on Tuesday 23 February, for the annual Five Year Reunion. OTs left the School in 2017 and for some it was the first time to catch up with fellow Tonbridgians since their schooldays.

In a busy and vibrant room, OTs enjoyed a beer or two and a chance to reconnect with their peers They were also able to catch up with some of their former Housemasters: John Bleakley, Will Biddle, Richard Evans, Colin Swainson and Jonathan Harber Judde House OTs were fortunate enough to have their former Matron, Clair Miller there as well

Adrian Ballard, Tara Biddle and Yvette Young (Development Manager) joined from the Tonbridge Society team

Thank you to all the 2017 Leavers who were able to join us, and we hope to welcome you all to another event in the near future

Back row (l to r): James Norris, Rory Edwards, Rory Dickson, Oscar Burnett, Charlie Oster, Spencer Alderton, Andrew Morgan Front row (l to r): Hugh Nicholl, George Wooldridge, Will Biddle

Jack Prideaux, Sachin Rawson, Will Clemence, Callum Needham

Finn Kinsler O'Sullivan, Michael Cotter, Charles Kingston, David Wilkinson, John Bleakley

Charlie Spawforth, Colin Swainson, Harry Forbes-Nixon

Jack Prideaux, Adam Sixsmith, Oscar Brown, Daniel Discombe and Clair Miller

20 Year OT Reunion for 2002 Leavers March 2023

The Clarence was again chosen as a Central London location for drinks for the inaugural 20 Year Reunion of 2002 leavers, on Thursday 3 March 2023.

Hosted by the Tonbridge Society Team of Adrian Ballard, Yvette Young and Tara Biddle, the 2002 OTs all enjoyed a drink or two and a chance to reconnect with their peers James Priory and Richard Hough were also in attendance

Thank you to all the 2002 Leavers who were able to join us It was wonderful to see you and we hope to welcome you all to another event in the near future

Will Tidy and Luke Sanders

Alex Holbourn, Freddie Etherington-Chillcott

Ryan Chishick, Dan Page, Jay Boreham, Oliver Chivers

Mark Thornton, James Orme, Jonathan Firmston

Jay Boreham, John Maskell Bell, Richard Hough

Hong Kong Drinks Reception

April 2023

The Headmaster, James Priory, greatly enjoyed a visit to Hong Kong, accompanied by Adrian Ballard the new Director of the Tonbridge Society and the outgoing Director, Andy Whittall They had the pleasure of meeting up with many of the Tonbridge Hong Kong community and enjoyed excellent dinners with parents, and a drinks reception with OTs and parents at The Hong Kong Club on 27 April Many thanks to Alex (Sc 82-87) and Carolyn Cheuk who kindly hosted this event

The reception was attended by over 150 guests and the Headmaster gave an informative speech, updating all guests with news of the School On his way to Hong Kong, Adrian visited OTs and parents in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur and is looking forward to working with members of the Tonbridge community in these areas to organise more gatherings

Justin Wong, Hon Ting Tsoi, Timothy Ng, Alex Cheuk

James Priory, David Wong, Charlie Chow, Billy Goldring

Joshua Payne, Ronald Chow, Lawrence Wong, Silas Yuen

Alex Pong, Daniel Ng, Michael Tse

Jonny Leung, Ernest Wong, Adrian Ballard

James Priory at the memorial to OT doctor, Peter Witney (HS 26-31) killed in Hong Kong in December 1941

Second Wednesday Drinks

May 2023

On Wednesday 10 May, we held our ‘Second Wednesday’ gathering in The Vintry, Abchurch Lane. This new event suggested by an OT, is simply the chance for OTs who work in Central London to get together informally at the end of the business day to network Over 40 OTs joined us and had a good two hours of chatting and catching up.

We will be repeating the event every second Wednesday of the month, so come along and find us from 6pm to 8pm Just look out for the black Tonbridge jacket!

Hong Kong OT Annual Christmas Dinner

December 2022

The OT Annual Dinner took place in the Edinburgh Room at the Hong Kong Club on Thursday 8 December 2022 28 OTs from across all age groups attended Due to the recent relaxation of the COVID quarantine period, many OTs took the opportunity to travel abroad, thus resulting in a lower attendance than usual

The tables were named after the School colours: black, white and maroon, and a great time was had by all

With many thanks to Alex Cheuk (Sc 82-87) for arranging this wonderful event, and for providing us with photos of the occasion

Duncan Elliott, Richard Langdon and Alex Burton-Brown

Lawrence Bradler, Christopher Wong, Roy Chung and Harrison Tsoi

Elton Wen, Ronald Chow, Jeremy Mok and Raymond Fan

Alex Cheuk and Joseph Cheng

OT Summer Drinks

June 2023

Our OT Summer Drinks were held in a beautiful outdoor area at The Fence in Farringdon, London on Thursday 22 June Many thanks to David Sowrey (PH 79-84) for arranging this special evening

OTs of all ages gathered to network and socialise in the sunshine Richard Hough (PH 79-84), Peter Dodge (MH 73-78) and James Tarry (WW 87-92) represented the OTS Committee and Adrian Ballard and John Gibbs were there from the School

It was an enjoyable event

David Sowrey, Peter Dodge, Richard Hough

Artem Vasenin, Michael Purves, James Tarry and Henry Kevis

Peter Jones and Duncan Elliott

Phil Callow and James King

T S P O R T OT CRICKET CLUB

OTCC has enjoyed an active summer in 2023 For the first time, OTCC entered a team in the Last Man Stands League in London Last Man Stands is an eight-a-side T20 league with games lasting under two hours OTCC played in the Southwark league on Tuesday evenings OTCC registered three wins and four losses across seven fixtures, with two matches being cancelled due to poor weather Stand out performers were Eddy Gray (FH 11-16) and Hugh Howard (PS 11-16).

OTCC also enjoyed a good run in the Cricketer Cup Drawn at home to Old Merchant Taylors’ in the First Round, OTCC posted 317-6 thanks to a 123 from Julian O’Riordan (FH 14-19) OMTs were then bowled out for 171 with Joe Baldwin (HS 17-22) taking 4-42 Old Bedfordians were next up in the Second Round 80 from Marcus O’Riordan (FH 11-16) ensured OTCC posted 252-8 from 50 overs In response, Old Bedfordians were up with the rate until Tom Coldman (MH 07-12) ended Bedford’s hopes by taking 5-33 2022 Cricketer Cup champions, Bradfield Waifs, were the opponents in the quarter-final at Bradfield On his return to the side, Olly Howick (Sc 00-05) took 4-37 to help restrict the Waifs to 163 With the bat, Harry Bevan-Thomas (WH 16-21) blasted 51 before Howick marshalled the OTs over the line with 41 not out In the semi-final Eton Ramblers were the visitors to Tonbridge, and a terrific century from Fabian Cowdrey was a match-winning innings Henry Cope and Joe Baldwin each took three wickets as the OTs won by 76 runs to set up a final against Malvern A report on the final will be found separately

OCongratulations to Olly Howick and Fabian Cowdrey who have been selected in the Cricketer Cup Hall of Fame team for the 2010-2019 decade! For more information, see here: https://www thecricketercup com/news-2020/nicholson-cricketer-cup-hall-of-fame-of-the2010-19-decade-announced

The annual OTCC day survived rugby-like conditions on Sunday 30 July, with a 25 over match taking place on The Head in persistent rain Team Bryan posted 164 off 25 overs thanks to 60 from Joe Baldwin, whilst Team (Sam) Baldwin finished four short on 160-9 from their 25 overs, with 70 from Julian O’Riordan Stand out moments included a remarkable catch from Will Nolan on the boundary, in addition to some wet weather acrobatics from Jono Arscott in the outfield

Please get in touch with any cricket-related news or ideas

OT Cricket contact Ed Hyde (FH 11-16) bighyde@hotmail.co.uk

Tom Elliott and Olly Howick OTCC Day July 2023

OT FIvES

OT Fives has had another busy year, with a number of new players making an appearance and several good matches, including another epic against the Jesters (last season ending in a draw), this time a very narrow (98-95) loss for the OTs The match against the school, albeit without the boys’ top pair, which certainly helped us, resulted in a more comfortable win We also had the pleasure of fielding two ‘new’ (to the match) OTs in the side, Nick Whitney and Ed Hyde, alongside Rupert Mathieu and Guy Harman

Elsewhere, Martin Wilkinson was not quite able to retain his Grandmasters National title, given increased competition in the over 75s category, although he remains an astonishing force on court; while Ian Jackson, Rod Oscroft and Rupert Mathieu all made it into the semi-finals of the Vintage (over 55s) National Doubles (with Rod and Rupert losing to the eventual winners) Alas we lost David Lewis to injury this year, but doubtless he’ll be back and, along with John Keyes (our stand out player), and Michael Studdard We all look forward to the return, from New Zealand, of Neil Arnott, so he can resume his weekly masterclasses in the art of the drop shot

OT Fives contact Neil Arnott (MH 63-68) neil.d.arnott@gmail.com

OT FOOTBALL

After a strong Club-wide performance in the 2021/22 season, the 2022/23 results have been disappointing for the OT Football Club However the recruitment and offfield camaraderie continue to be exceptionally strong and the Club remains a thriving OT community

The season started badly when summer train strikes meant several cancelled pre-season games and the 1st and 2nd XIs starting the season cold This showed for both teams with bad losses occurring in September and October getting the season off on the wrong foot One stand out performance was a 6-5 victory for the 1st XI against Old Carthusians - new recruit Rory Wade (remember the name) scoring a last minute winner in front of the away support Special

Despite some excellent performances, too many late dropped points meant the 1st XI were relegated from the Premier Division for the first time in eight years A similar season unfolded for the 2nd XI with an exciting Cup run to the Semi-finals but some disappointing league results in between

With no Veteran league anymore, the OT Vets team do not have as many games as previously but still get a strong team out when needed With several very successful OT footballers now nearing the required age of 35, the Vets are sure to be a serious force in the next few years

My thanks to Alex Holder, Nicolas Bryan and Dixie Cook for captaining the 1st, 2nd and Vets XI respectively, as well as the ever-giving Chairman, James Mitchell We shall be back with a vengeance next year

OT Football contact Charlie Adam (OH 08-13) | cjnadam@gmail.com

Rod Oscroft, John Keyes, Martin Wilkinson, Michael Studdard, Neil Arnott, Rupert Mathieu

OTFC 2023

OT

gOLFINg SOCIET Y

The OTGS has been in full swing this year, with its variety of meetings, matches and competition golf having taken place in the first half of the season

At the AGM in March, some changes to the officers managing the Society occurred After five very successful years as our Hon Secretary, Johnny Allbrook, with his move to Scotland, decided to stand down from the role, and passed that mantle on to Adrian Cooper We are immensely grateful for the industrious and enthusiastic contribution that Johnny has made to the Society during his period in office In addition, David Mills’ two-year term as our splendid and engaged Captain came to an end His successor William Marle was warmly welcomed as our new Captain

Meetings: Our principal event of the year – the three-day Spring Meetingtook place in March in Norfolk at the two fine cliff top courses of Sheringham and Royal Cromer Dry, but with a cool and demanding wind throughout, conditions were testing but this did not detract from the enjoyment had by some 32 OTs who attended The winners of the principal competitions were: Adam Smith (gross medal), Richard Stocks (Captain’s prize), and Craig Pattinson and Mark Atkinson (foursomes, for the President’s prize) In June our Summer meeting took place at its customary and delightful venue of the New Zealand Golf Club in Surrey This is one of the most popular of our fixtures, and on a sunny and balmy day amongst the pines and heather, it did not disappoint again this year Adam Smith

won the scratch medal, whilst John A Thompson won the net Stableford David J Evans and Tom Bushell won the Stableford foursomes

Competition Golf: Three inter-schools’ competitions in which our best golfers (according to age) represent Tonbridge have taken place this year so far, although with mixed results

2023 Halford Hewitt In early April, under the captaincy of Christo Lloyd, we had a good run, given we faced a tough draw In the harsh, sometimes atrocious, weather we battled through a succession of testing matches (vs Malvern, Sherborne and Uppingham) to reach the quarter-finals on the Saturday afternoon Regrettably, Charterhouse proved just the better of us on the day, winning very narrowly by

Jonathan Hubbard, Adrian Cooper, Tim Jenkins, Peter Saggers, Andrew Sims, Richard Partridge

3/2 The team comprised: Chris Lloyd (Captain), Mike Cox, James Hedges, Calum Mackenzie, James Norris, Richard Partridge, Ed Richardson, Simon Rogerson, John Spurling, George Taggart and Nick Winder

2023 Senior Darwin (over 65s)

Tonbridge won this year’s Senior Darwin at Woking in mid-June

Enthusiastically captained by Jonny Hubbard, the team of Adrian Cooper, Tim Jenkins, Richard Partridge, Peter Saggers and Andrew Sims came through (by narrow margins) the semifinal against Harrow, and perennial rivals Charterhouse in the final

2023 Bernard Darwin (over 55s) At the end of June, a strong Bernard Darwin team - John Spurling (captain), Jamie Owen-Browne, Richard Partridge, Andrew Sims, Julian Spurling and George Taggart unfortunately went out early in the first round to Winchester Such is match play golf

Friendly matches and other events

A number of friendly matches have also been held – against the Old Shirburnians at Huntercombe, the Old Cranleighans at Royal Ashdown Forest and our annual match against the School at the Wildernesse In addition, we played in the ‘friendly’ Three

Schools (OTs, Old Alleynians, Old Salopians) competition at Tandridge (which we won) and the Schools Putting Tournament at Royal Wimbledon (in which we did well enough to qualify for next year)

Rest of the 2023 Season There are a variety of events in the remainder of the season – we have qualified for the Grafton Morrish tournament in October, an U35s meeting in late July, the Autumn meeting in September at Woking, the Winter meeting at Seaford in November, and more friendly matches to come, against the Old Wellingtonians, the Old Eastbournians, Royal Ashdown Forest GC, Wildernesse GC and the Four Schools gathering at Royal Worlington

The OTGS is in good health and provides a great platform for all OT golfers, whatever their standard of play, to enjoy some fine courses and make great friendships with other OTs We particularly encourage younger OTs to join us and offer generous subsidies to make everything as affordable as possible If you would like to join the Society just visit our website: -

www otgs org uk

Jonathan Steed, Johnny Allbrook, David Mills (OTGS Captain), Adam Smith, Gerald Corbett and Jeremy Hamer

Johnny Allbrook at Royal Cromer, just before retiring from being OTG

OT RACKETS

Tonbridge Rackets Club hosted our now annual Invitational Tournament at the end of February This is promoted as a fun doubles tournament, with 24 players from various old boys’ clubs, some as far away as Devon, making the trip here We were fortunate enough to have Ed Hyde, Toby Snape, Cam Ellis, Alex Moen, Nick Winder, Alfie Shankland, Alex Hume and John Jung playing for the OTs this year They were joined by Jonny Calow and Bob Cook who were as competitive as when they were representing us at Queen’s in the 2nd pair final in 1987

The final was won by Alfie Shankland, partnered by current Tonbridgian Sam Seecharan (son of Kurt) After speeches and prizes were awarded, we gathered for dinner at the Rose & Crown, where our new master-in-charge, Leo Walsh, made a speech, with the legend that is John Gibbs in attendance A wonderful day was had by all, players and spectators alike, and it was great to catch up with OTs who had made the effort to travel back to their old school

The National Schools’ Rackets Doubles Championships at Queen’s took place in March Going into the last day, after seven days of continuous matches at all levels, Tonbridge just needed to win the 2nd pair final to retain the Mark Faber Cup (awarded to the top school in the country) for a second consecutive year Sadly, we lost that 2nd pair final to Harrow by three games to two Our 1st pair, Alex MacPherson and Sam Seecharan, lost in the semi-final of the main event The U15A pair lost in the first round to the second seeds, but our

OT REAL TENNIS

The OTs have enjoyed a successful 2022/23 season of real tennis, with a win against The Queen’s Club in October by three rubbers to two followed by a draw at Petworth House in November at four rubbers all, although claiming the win on overall games won and lost by 63 to 58. In the Triangular tournament played at Queen’s in March, we beat both The Skinners’ Company and Real Tennis Hong Kong to regain the trophy which we had lost to the Skinners’ in the previous season We also played in the Cattermull Cup, the handicap doubles tournament for alumni played at Middlesex University in April where we had good wins against Merchiston Castle and Bryanston before losing to Winchester II who progressed through to the final, only to lose to Winchester

U16A pair of Hugh Jacobs and Freddie Mulder reached the Colts Final, where they were beaten by top seeds Haileybury The accumulative points won in all competitions at Queen’s, singles in December and doubles in March, count towards the Mark Faber Cup While it was, in the end, a case of narrowly missing out, the tournament still represented a fantastic week for Tonbridge Rackets

Those who represented the OTs in 2022/23 included: Ed Hyde, George Nodder, Angus Nodder, Charles Fuente, David Mills, Will Chawner, Richard Dalzell, Alex Hume and Sam Lowres We are always looking for new recruits to our squad and will be happy to organise introductory sessions at Queen’s for those who may not have played this wonderful game: please contact George Nodder We also operate a subsidy scheme for match fees and equipment for the under 30s, so do please get in touch

com

John Jung and Alfie Shankland

Oliver Sykes and Jake Hazari-Webb, the Tonbridge rackets 2nd pair

OT Rackets contacts Ed Hyde (FH 11-16) Secretary bighyde@hotmail.co.uk

Dave Makey, Rackets Professional dave makey@tonbridge-school org

Alex Hume (OT ), Oscar Parker (Skinner) and Richard Dalzell (OT and Skinner)

OT Real Tennis contact George Nodder (PH 03-08) george nodder@gmail

OT SAILINg

It was with a sense of anticipation that nine OTs gathered at Port Solent to contest the 2022 Arrow Trophy over the weekend of 1-2 October 2022. We had had an excellent regatta in 2021, achieving our highest place and were hopeful of repeating our success.

Sadly it wasn’t quite our weekend We enjoyed our best result in the second of four fleet races, coming in 6th (out of 10), though were unable to mount a meaningful challenge in the other three, finishing at the back of the pack We can blame the boat, the sails, the dirty keel, Brexit, the weather and whatever else, but it seemed that whatever we tried it wasn’t going to be our day!

The crew, however, were excellent as ever – as full of enthusiasm and ‘ up for it’ as we could have hoped We were honoured to have Richard Hollis as our helm; as a Cowes native, there could have been no-one in the fleet who knew these waters better than Richard It was disappointing that our regular helm, Alistair Impey (OTSA Secretary), was unable to be with us on the day, though he was very much involved behind the scenes and our gratitude for his efforts is worthy of mention

Many thanks to the OTSA sailors who participated and thanks to Richard for hosting an excellent dinner on Friday night

The fun and camaraderie more than made up for the results and we look forward to fairer winds in 2023

OT Sailing contact Nick Pointon ( WH 84-89) nick@pointon net

Ted Peggie, Artem Vasenin, Alex Masters, Nick Pointon, Bruce Vigar

Ted Peggie

Richard Hollis on left and Bruce Vigar

James Leahy, Richard Hollis, Bruce Vigar, Ted Peggie, Alex Masters, Nick Pointon, Jamie Grant, (not in shot) Artem Vasenin

OT SQUASH

The Old Tonbridgian Squash Club has concluded another successful 2022/2023 season resuming our usual fixtures and competitive outings A youthful Old Salopians challenged OT fitness, while the Wine Trade challenged the OTs wine tasting skills complemented with a bountiful cheeseboard Once again, we were graciously hosted at the RAC with a mixture of singles and doubles

In recognition of the late Gordon Aylward who injected boundless energy to reinvigorate the OT Squash Club, Mark Aylward and Justin Aylward launched the inaugural Old Tonbridgian Aylward Cup This was a special evening at the RAC with a tournament of singles and doubles followed by a celebratory dinner to remember Gordon's contributions to the Club The intent of the evening is to get as many people playing squash as possible, regardless of ability All that matters is to get on court! May the Aylward Cup continue for many years to come We are always looking for further OTs and welcome players of any ability seeking some friendly squash to keep growing the OT Squash Club

OT Squash contact Alex Mount (PS 05-10) | alexanderspencer mount@gmail com

CRICKETER CUP

FIN AL 2023

Chris Walsh (PH 89-94) reports on the OTs falling to

Old Malvernians in the 2023 Cricketer Cup Final

Old Malvernians triumphed over Old Tonbridgians in a hard-fought, high-class Cricketer Cup Final on 13 August, watched in the sunshine on the peerless Arundel Castle ground by a large and appreciative crowd, including James Priory and OTs of every generation It was a battle of the titans in this 34-school competition, now in its 56th year, with the OTs having 16 wins and Old Malvernians now having 11 wins (Bradfield are next with four wins)

Malvern won the toss and batted, putting Hugo Snape and his young side under pressure from the outset with their openers posting an opening stand of 85 Malvern’s position was so strong at the 30 over point that a total of 350 looked on the cards, but Tonbridge fought back well in the latter stages as Snape, Olly Howick and Henry Cope each took two wickets

OT ULTIM ATE FRISBEE

A team of OTs came together on Skinners’ Day for the annual fixture against the School’s 1st team, the Boars

After a very close game, the OTs took the last two points for an impressive victory in a game played with great spirit and camaraderie

OT Ultimate Frisbee contact Will Biddle (PH 76-81) | will.biddle@tonbridge-school.org

Rich Maltz, Simon Lambert, Ollie Marsh, Mark Aylward, Will Montgomery, Alex Mount, Sam Lowres, Justin Alyward

Henry Cope appeals

A run chase of 306 in a final is a tough ask and the OT innings got off to the worst possible start when their talisman Fabian Cowdrey was bowled by former Gloucestershire all-rounder Mark Hardinges for 7. This exposed an inexperienced middle order which struggled to keep up with the required runrate against brilliant fielding and tight bowling, especially from the Old Malvernian’s array of county spinners.

Freddie Geffen played his highest Cricketer Cup innings with an attractive 61 at a runa-ball but wickets fell around him and, when he was out at 124-5, only Howick with 39 and Sam Baldwin with 21 not out delayed the inevitable The OT youngsters will however have benefited from a long and successful run in the 2023 competition and will no doubt push hard to go one better in 2024

OTCC 2023 ArundelBack row: Ed Hyde, Ben Robinson, Henry Cope, Tom Coldman, Harry Bevan-Thomas, Julian O'Riordan, Freddie Geffen Front row: Sam Baldwin, Fabian Cowdrey, Hugo Snape, Olly Howick, Joe Baldwin

Arundel Castle ground

Freddie Geffen in his innings of 61

Joe and Sam Baldwin (courtesy of Mary O’Riordan)

DAVID WALSH STEPS DOWN AS PRESIDENT OF THE YELLOWHAMMERS AFTER 19 YEARS.

Tara Biddle and Bev Matthews wanted to celebrate David Walsh’s time as President of the Yellowhammers Cricket Club. With the help of Jono Arscott (PH 83-88), Chris Cowdrey (PH 71-75) and Mar y O’Riordan (past parent), they have managed to arrange this article in secret as a surprise for our Editor. Jono Arscott has now become Yellowhammers President

This year the Yellowhammers Cricket Club celebrated its 114th anniversary Founded in the Edwardian twilight of 1909 by the first Club President Leonard Marzetti (Sc 1905-10), it has always provided very good quality cricket for OTs and friends as an adjunct to the OT Cricket Club And it always kept that same pre-First World War rose-tinted glow of this most British of games, with tremendously competitive, but hugely sociable and enjoyable sporting occasions

The Yellowhammers are in a unique position in two senses Firstly, it is an Old Boys Club that allows non-OTs to participate at the invitation of OTs and has always enjoyed this ability to spread the OT love of cricket to a broader audience Secondly, although a ‘wandering club’, it enjoys the fact of holiday cricket on the Head, undoubtedly one of the finest grounds in the world, through the generosity of the School, and in particular a succession of Headmasters How many non-OTs have put their sons down for Tonbridge, or just learnt or had enhanced their knowledge of Tonbridge’s love affair with cricket through this quiet commitment? We all know the numbers are legion

David stepped down this year after 17 years of exceptional service as the Club’s President A calm presence on

the boundary, always supporting matches, after packing away his own cricket boots that were sturdy enough to allow him to score a first-class double century for Oxford University in the halcyon days of 1960s university cricket

David has also been a huge presence in the ‘office’ as well as on the boundary, ensuring match fees are forwarded, umpires and scorers are ever present, fixtures are organized and players are well supported on the field and socially, after the game He has also ensured our own match managers are well supported and that oppositions are particularly well looked

after, even introducing a Champagne and Pimm’s reception for older supporters and guests before lunch in the fixture against Jim Swanton’s ‘Arabs’ Though President in name, he was more of a president, club secretary, fixtures secretary and assistant treasurer all rolled into one Never complaining that this was too much for one man

Of course, many will know David’s huge role in school cricket as master in charge, and 1st XI cricket master in the 70s and 80s when the role was occupied by one single person He was also on the MCC Committee for his expertise in schools’ cricket, taking a

Judy and David at 2019 Cricketer Cup Final (courtesy of Mary O’Riordan)

All Yellowhammer and OT cricketers would like would like to take this opportunity to wish Jono all the best as he takes over as President of the Yellowhammers.

combined school’s XI to South Africa that included Messrs DI Gower, CS Cowdrey, NJ Kemp and NFM Popplewell, amongst others It obviously stuck in his memory as, for the Yellowhammers, he was instrumental in organising our hugely successful tour of Cape Town in 2001/02!

Each year the three-day midweek visit to Eastbourne, started in the 1950s, still captures the very essence of that most wonderful of experiences – a cricket tour: consecutive cricket matches, swimming in the sea with Eastbourne Pier as a backdrop, nights out that must not impinge too greatly on cricketing performance the next day and, of course, wonderful camaraderie, for the Yellowhammer is a ‘sociable bird of the Kent and Sussex hedgerows’, and long may it be so!

For the Yellowhammers, David has been a constant presence and an impetus to tens of thousands of combined hours of cricketing enjoyment for so many OTs, Tonbridgians and cricket friends of the school No fuss, just doing the job with that occasional very dry sense of humour surfacing, with the odd exceptional speech revealing a more adroit sense of humour when required!

Where were we all 17 years ago, as David took on the mantle of efficiently serving a club and making sure so many enjoyed the game? It is only by taking a moment to stop and think back that far that we can truly appreciate the old-fashioned values that have served the Club and the game so well Anyone who has played for the Club, or enjoyed playing against them will testify to these sentiments Thank you from all Yellowhammers, young and old

It’s frightening to think it was 50 years ago when we toured South Africa with David Walsh as our Manager We were called the Crocodiles, but the young fit South Africans had a bit more bite than us.

It was a great experience but we didn’t do very well despite having a 17 year old David Gower in the team

What a privilege it was for me not only to be brought through my Tonbridge years on the Head with Walshy, but also to accompany him on tour in South Africa

Chris Cowdrey

DRW with Chris Cowdrey

Jono Arscott

Yellowhammers in early 1980s David Walsh is sat between Mike Bushby and John Knott Richard Gracey seated centre, with Christopher Everett standing behind him

Obituar ies

The following deaths and obituaries section covers notifications that we were made aware of between 1 May 2022 and 30 June 2023 For more recent obituaries and notifications, please see our website at: tonbridgeconnect.org/news

MARSHALL, Sir Peter Harold Reginald, CMG KCMG CVO (SH 38-43)

The following obituary appeared in the Daily Telegraph.

Died on 10 June 2023, aged 98.

During the Second World War, Peter navigated B24 Liberator bombers

Following his graduation from Cambridge he joined the Diplomatic Service His greatest love was cricket, and it is appropriate that he died peacefully while watching the World Test match on television

Sir Peter Marshall was a diplomat who ended his career with the Commonwealth Secretariat, a posting that tested his smooth and easy-going manner He was Deputy SecretaryGeneral (Economic) from 1983 to 1988, a particularly lively period in the history of the Secretariat As the leading British figure in the organisation, Marshall had the difficult task of ensuring that it remained an effective body while acting as a check on what the British Government saw as its excesses

Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s defiant attitude to South Africa meant that Britain’s relations with the Commonwealth were strained. Despite this increasing anti-British feeling, Marshall managed, with his courteous manner and straightforward honesty, to maintain the trust of those with whom he worked He considered the Commonwealth to be a dynamic international asset and proclaimed an undying faith in the institution

Marshall had special responsibility for economic and social affairs in the Secretariat, a field that mirrored his previous work in the Foreign Office His economic affairs division played a key role in identifying economic problems and worked to achieve international consensus It monitored economic issues of concern to Commonwealth governments The division serviced the annual meetings of the Commonwealth finance ministers and numerous expert groups Marshall managed meetings of Commonwealth ministers with skill and tact at a time when Britain often found herself in an uncomfortable minority The rhetoric of Commonwealth conclaves suited his own style, and his drafting of communiqués was considered masterly

Peter Marshall was born on 30 July 1924, in Reading. After education at Tonbridge School, from 1943 to 1946, he served as a navigator in the RAF, considering himself lucky to survive. He then went up to Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, where he read Economics and would become an honorary fellow in 1989

He joined the Foreign Service in 1949, and during his early years held appointments in Washington, Baghdad, Bangkok, Geneva and Paris as Counsellor and Head of Chancery from 1969 to 1971. Marshall was more Eurosceptic than the Conservative administrations under which he served (indeed, in later life he was an outspoken Brexiteer), although he was fully at home in Europe and with his continental opposite numbers In the late 1960s, after successive sterling crises, devaluation and thwarted

negotiations for EEC entry, there was a realisation that the Foreign Office would lose out if it could not contribute to the Whitehall economic debate In 1968 a new Financial Policy and Aid Department was established, which Marshall headed from 1971 to 1973, and continued to cover departments dealing with financial relations, trade relations and export promotion as assistant undersecretary of state from 1973 to 1975. Unusually for a British diplomat, Marshall had professional training as an economist He was therefore able to go straight to the heart of complicated technical subjects.

Marshall could not be considered a powerful thinker but he had the gift of seeing all sides of an argument He was cautious and balanced in his judgements and had talents in co-ordination and committee work In essence, he was an organisation man and a team player, always willing to talk over problems rather than behave like a prima donna. In 1975 Marshall entered the expanding world of multilateral diplomacy with postings to British missions in New York and Geneva He worked first as UK representative on the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (1975-79), at a difficult time when anticolonial attitudes were still working themselves out. He was at the centre of the process to construct a global dialogue between richer and poorer countries and to ensure the functioning of structures such as the IMF

Marshall then served as Ambassador and UK Permanent Representative to the UN and other International Organisations at Geneva (1979-83).

He was in high demand to chair difficult meetings and was often the architect of the consensus and robust compromise necessary to secure a positive outcome to knotty problems

Following his retirement from the Secretariat, Marshall served as chairman of the Commonwealth Trust and the Royal Commonwealth Society (1988-92), President of Queen Elizabeth House, Oxford (1990-94) and patron of the Commonwealth Association from 2010 He wrote and contributed to many publications on diplomacy. In Positive Diplomacy (1997) he reflected on his experiences as a practitioner

One of the keys to Marshall’s personality was his religious conviction as a prominent Anglican layman, and his Christian values underpinned his professional effectiveness He advised the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of London on international issues and was a strong supporter of many charitable institutions and Commonwealth-linked bodies. He was appointed CMG in 1974 and KCMG in 1983

In 1957 Peter Marshall married Patricia Rendell Stoddart She died in 1981, and in 1989 he married Judith, widow of the essayist EWF Tomlin; she died in 2013 He is survived by a son and daughter from his first marriage.

JOHNSON, Bryan Peter, Cmdr RN (Sc 40-43)

Died on 8 January 2023, aged 96 Husband of Jane, father of Paul (Sc 69-74), Robin (Sc 71-75), Richard (77-81) and brother to the late Ronald (Sc 41-45).

GOODLAND, David Hyde (PS 41-44 / PH 44-46 & CR 51-54)

The following obituary was written by James Goodland

David Hyde Goodland, who died at the age of 95 on 26 January 2023, was both a pupil and a teacher at Tonbridge He moved from Parkside to the reactivated Park House in 1944, and was a Praeposter there He maintained contact with Gilbert and Sheila Hoole throughout their long lives.

After attaining a double first at Magdalene College, Cambridge and completing his National Service, he returned to Tonbridge as a history teacher. He later took up a similar role at Bradford Grammar School before arriving at Clifton College, where he was Head of History and later Senior Master

In retirement in West Somerset he pursued his interests in music, which always had an important place in his life; his practice of humming to himself everywhere he went – one of many habits adored by those of us who loved him – was apparently already in place while at Park House Also in place were the certitude, stoicism and kindness that flowed from his quiet but unshakeable Christian faith He gave freely of his time to innumerable charities; amongst other things he was both a guide for the National Trust at Dunster Castle, and the voice of the West Somerset Talking Newspaper. He was for many years a church warden at St Etheldreda’s, West Quantoxhead Books rose in piles wherever he went He never lost his interest in meeting new people or discovering new ideas One of his greatest roles was saved for the final years of his life, as a carer to his beloved Gill. He is greatly missed by friends, former colleagues and pupils, and his family, not least his three children and eight grandchildren

RAMAGE, Robert (JH 43-47)

Died on 19 December 2022, aged 91. Husband of Anne and father to Timothy ( JH 79-83) He will be sadly missed.

WILSON, Desmond Gabriel, Lt Col, TD JP DL (PH 45-48)

Died on 23 August 2022, aged 91. Desmond was commissioned into the 1st Battalion of The Queen’s Royal West Kent Regiment and transferred to The Queen’s Royal Regiment ( West Surrey) TA in 1951 before commanding the 6th ( V ) Battalion The Queen’s Regiment between 1971 and 1974 Desmond’s voluntar y work included District Commissioner of Reigate Scouts and ser ving on the Surrey Scout Council He was Chairman of the Venture Scouts as well as Chairman of the Rifle Club before becoming President He ser ved as a Magistrate on the Reigate Bench and was made a DL in October 1976 His interests included pheasant breeding, sailing, shooting, and Victorian paddle steamers

BEVINGTON, Henry Loder Shelley (Loder) (FH 46-51)

Loder died peacefully at home on 9 May 2023, aged 90 Dearly loved husband of Julia, father to Clare, Dickon and Alice, and grandfather to seven Older brother to John (FH 50-53).

JACKSON, Berkeley Cunliffe (JH 46-50)

Passed away in December 2022, aged 90. On retirement Berkeley moved from Malaysia to Menorca with his wife He is very much missed by his wife, children and grandchildren.

NICHOLSON, Peter Graham (Sc 47-51)

Died on 18 September 2022, aged 89 He was the much-loved husband of Nicola and father of Hatty, Adrian and Laura, grandfather of Lara and Katya.

BRADLEY, Ronald Duncan, Professor (PH 42-47)

Sadly passed away on 26 May 2023, aged 93 Loving husband of Betty for 71 years Father of Mandy, Nessa and Giles and proud grandfather and great grandfather

A keen singer, actor and sportsman who will be greatly missed. After the Royal Navy and Cambridge he spent most of his career working for Selection Trust, travelling a great deal particularly to Australia

KING Thomas Maxwell (PS 47-52)

Tom passed away on Boxing Day 2022 with his daughter Vicki by his side.

Tom was born in Grimsby in July 1934 and enjoyed the love of a large extended family Sadly his father died when Tom was just 13 and he and his mother moved south to Dorking. A family friend suggested Tom be sent to Tonbridge for the rest of his schooling, and the result was some of Tom’s happiest years A member of Parkside House, he enjoyed all aspects of the school and excelled at languages including French, German and Russian, and sport – he was a member of various teams including cricket, rugby, swimming and diving

After School, Tom did his National Service in the Royal Engineers and was seconded to the Intelligence Corps due to his linguistic abilities, and as with school he thrived in this environment too. Following the Army, Tom became an Electrical Engineer and whilst working in Halifax met his future wife Win. They married in 1957 and had two much loved children, Philip and Vicki Married life included several house and job moves finally bringing him to the South again in 1966 Employment following this included more engineering based work, motoring innovations and also a diversion into financial services where he became one of the top 10 Hambro Life investment consultants

In 1989 having seen Phil and Vicki through all of their schooling, universities and first couple of jobs, Tom and Win moved to Greece where they spent almost 20 years enjoying life on the island of Skopelos Tom added Greek to his linguistic skill set, built their own house and helped Vicki build one too and he also became a

plumber! The stories he could tell! The Greek ladies loved him because he cleaned up after his work – not the norm at that time in Greece - and was always happy to eat whatever sweet Greek treat they offered him as a reward Win and Tom returned to live with Vicki in the UK in 2000, although they spent several months each year back in Skopelos or in Australia staying with Phil who lived in Melbourne with his wife and children

Tom’s curiosity never left him and he would spend hours on the computer trying to find out the nth detail of whatever invention had caught his imagination, or indeed whatever magic trick he had discovered – a hobby he had enjoyed throughout his life and used to entertain his children and grandchildren In 2009 the family moved to the village of Yatesbury, Wiltshire where they enjoyed a real sense of community Win died in 2020 after 63 years of married life and her very sudden passing left the family devastated but closer than ever Tom’s passing in 2022 has left an equally enormous hole in the lives of Philip and Vicki and the extended family but they are all hugely grateful to all those who contributed to Tom’s life in such positive ways with friendship and love, a sense of humour and curiosity They miss him deeply

DUDLEY, Graham Herbert (HS 47-51)

Died on 20 January 2023, aged 89 A leading light in the OT Golf Society for many years. He will be sadly missed.

The following obituary was written by Richard Stocks (SC 53-58)

Graham Dudley has died just short of his 90th birthday

Graham was the Hon. Secretary of the Old Tonbridgian Golf Society in the 1960s, and he became Captain in 1973 and 1974. He was a devoted attendee of our Spring Meetings and firmly believed that all aspiring Halford Hewitt players should play in the meeting He himself attended 50 consecutive spring meetings before advancing age finally prevented him.

He played in 16 Halford Hewitts between 1956 and 1975, completing 53 matches with a scoring record of

53.8%. He was unfortunate to start playing in our fallow years Earlier, when we had plenty of seriously good golfers, we should have won the trophy, but we were a team of individuals, not to say prima donnas, one of whom was reputed to race to the bar to be able to explain first how badly his partner had played

Graham’s long-standing partner was the Walker Cup player Alec Hill, with whom he played in eight of the 16 years They were an unusual partnership; Alec was a superb striker of the golf ball but had a strange rather scoopy putting stroke Graham, also a superb striker, barely reached five and a half feet and was affectionately known as ‘the jockey’ They blended well together Graham reached the semi-final three times over his 16 years

Graham played his golf at Brookman’s Park and was a chartered accountant in a medium-sized local practice He married Brenda, who predeceased him by several years, and they had a family For many years they used to holiday in Cornwall, where Graham could play golf at St Enodoc Though quiet and self-effacing like many accountants, he had a wicked sense of humour which emerged when least expected, and of course he was an immensely loyal member of the OTGS

CLAY, Richard Anthony (HS 48-53)

Passed away on Monday 24 April, aged 88. Former President of the Old Tonbridgian Golf Society, Richard had a deep and profound affection for the School and made many life-long friendships during his years at Tonbridge He will be sadly missed by his wife Heather, son Matthew, family and many friends Older brother of the late Geoff Clay (HS 52-56)

STATHAM, Philip Reginald, Major (MH 48-53)

The following obituary was written by Charles Statham (MH 85-90)

Philip was in Manor House between 1948 and 1953. To say that he loved his time in Manor and at the School itself would be an under-statement Whilst at School he developed many of the loves of his life which stayed with him – cricket, bridge, Gilbert & Sullivan and the Army. He served in the Cadet Force where he excelled reaching the rank of Sergeant in the Royal Artillery Troop with its 25 pounder and it was this and the fact that he was comfortable in a rigidly structured and highly disciplined way of life at School that led to a 38-year career in the Royal Artillery

After leaving School Philip wrote down his memories in a book called From Prep-Room to Praes’ Room. Near the end of the book he wrote “The thing that strikes most as I look back on my school days and see the School as it is today, is how very pleased I am that I was at the School when I was, and not now. The School and the house have improved; I do not question the value of improvements; I accept that both School and house are now much better than they used to be but still I would not swap my school days for those of the present”.

Philip retired from the Army on his 58th birthday in 1993 to Thorpe Bay, a suburb of Southend-on-Sea There he enjoyed playing golf and bridge, watching cricket, going to the theatre, walking a succession of dogs, travelling the world and returning to the School whenever possible.

After a long illness he passed away peacefully at home a couple of weeks after his 88th birthday leaving his beloved wife Caroline of 52 years and his two sons Charles (MH 85-90) and Christopher (MH 91-96) and five grandchildren Freya, Brooklyn, Barney, Bella and Brendan

SANDERS, Michael David, FRCP, FRCS, FRCOphth (PH 49-53)

Died peacefully in Hampshire surrounded by family on 25 July 2022

Greatly respected surgeon, beloved husband, father and grandfather.

The following obituary appeared in the Daily Telegraph

Neuro-ophthalmologist who pioneered the study and treatment of the visual effects of brain disease

Michael Sanders, who has died aged 86, founded neuro-ophthalmology, the study of the effects of brain disease on the eyes, as an ophthalmic subspecialty in this country.

A prodigious researcher, gifted lecturer and inspired teacher, he brought a little-known branch of eye surgery into mainstream ophthalmology With the aid of advanced computer technology, including the emerging use of CT and MRI scans, he helped to revolutionise the diagnosis of many forms of eye disease

Michael David Sanders was born on 19 September 1935 in Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, where his parents managed a tea estate. Educated at Tonbridge School, he joined Guy’s Hospital shortly after his 18th birthday The award of the Charles Oldham eyes prize at Guy’s determined the future course of his career in ophthalmology

After qualifying, he joined P&O as an assistant surgeon Performing a delicate and successful operation to repair the tendons on the hand of a sailor who had been involved in a brawl gave him the confidence to become an eye surgeon, and on his return to London he joined the Maudsley Hospital to train in neurosurgery

Sanders’s success as a neuroophthalmologist owed much to the breadth of his training A year’s course in general medicine at Balham Hospital led to his acquiring membership of the Royal College of Physicians in addition to the Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons, gained after three years’ further training at Moorfields Hospital. He then won a Medical Research Council fellowship to study in San Francisco under Professor William F Hoyt, the leading neuro-

ophthalmologist of his day. The disciplines acquired during this year were to set the tone for the rest of his career.

Back in London, Sanders remained in close touch with his talented colleagues in San Francisco During his subsequent appointments as consultant neuro-ophthalmologist, first at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, and then at St Thomas’ Hospital, he set up an international network of visiting professors from North and South America, Europe and Australia Their lectures became part of his acclaimed training scheme for young ophthalmologists.

In his 30 years at Queen Square and St Thomas’, Sanders saw cases, taught students, gave prestigious named lectures, organised conferences and published more than 180 peerreviewed papers, embracing new knowledge and techniques. These included one of the first papers on the use of fluorescein angiography for investigating diseases of the blood vessels in the retina and the optic nerve; and on the use of CT and MRI scans. With Professor Ivan Moseley, he wrote the first book on computerised scanning in neuro-ophthalmology

Although Sanders was scholarly, he was no introvert His success as a trainer of young doctors came from his enjoyment of people and from the stimulus they gave him His prodigious output of research papers depended on his enthusiasm and urge to communicate For him, medicine was fun: the arrival of, and the achievements of, members of his team had always to be marked by parties whose atmosphere he relished. The instinct for hospitality, shared by his wife, Thalia, extended far beyond his professional circle.

His generosity extended to his charitable work as a trustee of the Fund for the Prevention of Blindness, of the Gift of Sight, which supports work at Southampton Eye Hospital, and of the Frost Foundation, where he helped establish the Frost Professorship at St Thomas’ King’s College Hospital

In retirement he preached the virtues of relaxation, advice to which he paid little attention himself As a resident of the Hampshire village of Chawton, he took great interest in its famous inhabitant, Jane Austen, and produced, with his St Thomas’ colleague, Elizabeth Graham, a fresh and convincing diagnosis of the cause of her death as lupus (the theory achieved prominence in a recent edition of the Daily Telegraph). Two years in the researching, this paper was the product of his usual meticulous attention to detail. In addition to raising funds for a statue of Jane Austen in Chawton churchyard and for restoration of the church bells, he also found time for fishing and golf, a sport which did not benefit from his usual devotion to accuracy.

He is survived by his wife Thalia and their two children.

his interest in vintage motor cars In his final year, he purchased his 1932 2litre Lagonda

Clive returned to Cambridge for the rest of his life In 1971, he started a company in his front room that eventually became Cambridge Insitu Ltd Initially they manufactured a new, unusual electronic thermometer for measuring the core temperature of people Unfortunately, the device did not work as the inventor imagined. Clive worked out how to correct this

A friend then persuaded Clive to take up a contract for manufacturing strain-gauged load cells using designs coming out of Cambridge University. This brought Clive into contact with John Hughes and Peter Wroth, who were doing interesting work in soil mechanics They had developed a novel tool for the measurement of soil strength, stiffness and lateral geostatic stress Clive acquired the rights to manufacture these devices, known as “Cambridge self-boring pressuremeters” They were used for the British Library, the new Forth Crossing, the second Severn Bridge, Crossrail, Changi Airport, HS2, on nuclear power projects, and for off-shore windfarms

committed governor for long periods to three local schools.

Clive’s Lagonda needed a complete overhaul and was off the road until 1988 If parts were unavailable, he simply made them himself The car was then much used, with Clive and Shirley using it to attend various meets and rallies around the UK and Europe, as well as for more mundane local trips He believed that such vehicles were there to be driven, not treated as museum pieces Perhaps Clive’s greatest pleasure was also the simplest. A good meal with friends and family, with interesting and amusing conversation long into the evening ( With thanks to Queen’s College, Cambridge)

RAVEN, Frederick Charles (Charles) (SH 49-54)

Died peacefully on Sunday 27 November 2022, dearly loved husband of the late Liz, father of Julian, Alexander and Rupert and grandfather to Daisy and William.

DALTON, John Clive Palmer (Clive) (PH 49-54)

Clive Dalton died on 18 September 2023 aged 86 He was the loving husband of 62 years to Shirley, father to John and David, grandfather to James, Tommy, Christopher and Alexander, and great grandfather to Alfie and Oscar

After Tonbridge, Clive completed his National Service in the Royal Signals, meeting his future wife, Shirley, at that time. In 1956 he went up to Queens’ College, Cambridge, to read Mechanical Sciences Joining the University Automobile Club initiated

Clive was an enthusiastic and generous teacher and many people have had the benefit of his considerable engineering knowledge Hundreds of engineering students attended the equipment demonstrations he arranged in his garden Clive was widely sought out as someone prepared to undertake oneoff tasks for various Ph D students and research projects Cambridge Insitu financially supported several doctorates Fifty years ago Clive knew that what he was making was important. That foresight is its own kind of genius But Clive’s real talent was allowing others to find theirs He made the space for people to discover what they were capable of and encouraged them to achieve their potential. He was a very generous man

Clive had vast curiosity and an enormous range of other interests He was musical and had a strong sense of duty and obligation He was very active in local government and was a

LINDESAY, Richard Hugh Mauleverer (PH 49-54)

Died on 3 February 2023, aged 86.

The following obituary was written by Tony Lindesay, Richard’s cousin: Richard was born in Changi, Singapore where his father was in The Royal Artillery He spent many of his early years in the Orkneys where his father was posted next and had many happy childhood memories of clambering over crashed aeroplanes with his brother, James and especially seeing spitfires flying overhead Aged eight, he went to prep school at WestonSuper-Mare where he proved to be an able student, so much so that he was awarded an academic scholarship to Tonbridge School in Kent I have a cutting from one of his last school

reports that he kept in a frame in his study It reads:

“His work is still undistinguished If all members of his form were doing the same work, I should expect him to come seventh or eighth. Last December Christ’s, Cambridge put him at about 10% below entry standard I hope that he is now much better. He will, however, not have much reason for selfsatisfaction if he is not better than exhibition standard; nor will Cambridge do him much good if he continues to regard work as an unwarranted intrusion into his spare time”

Having said that he was awarded a scholarship to read Ancient Greek at Christ’s, Cambridge and he always referred to his educational years as his happiest times

From Cambridge he joined the Army as part of his National Service and seeing that he had read Greek at University, the Army, in all their wisdom, decided that the obvious thing was to send him to Cyprus as a Greek translator. To his alarm and to the Army’s dismay he discovered that the Greek that he had mastered at Cambridge bore little resemblance to the modern Greek that was spoken in Cyprus He had to go back to school to learn the modern version

When he left the Army, he went out to Malaysia to become a manager with Harrison and Crossfield, a plantation company who produced rubber, palm oil and cocoa The role demanded that he travelled extensively in Asia and Australasia and he spent a lot of time in the jungle collecting data and checking that jobs were carried out correctly and targets were hit. I came across a senior manager who Richard had given his first job to and he was telling me that nobody could quite understand why a man who was so obviously cultured wanted to do the job he was doing in the jungle. Apparently, he was always flitting off to see visiting opera performances or ballets. He kept up with his Malaysian cohorts right to the end of his life

Richard was always up for a party, be it with family or friends, and he spoke of dinners and reunions with School and

university peers with whom he had spent such happy times, all of which were very important to him

His great loves were the ballet, the opera, playing tennis and gardening, and he was very proud of his collection of many different types of geranium which filled his flat with a lovely scent

He was an interesting and inventive cook, usually cooking from scratch, often having an oxtail in the slow cooker or his speciality, a rabbit pie made for special guests, served cold and set in a jelly. He usually made this for my mum who, quite frankly, struggled with it! Each year at Christmas he was in charge of the brandy butter, which was certainly more brandy than butter!!

Richard never married or had children, but his family of cousins were very important to him and he never missed an opportunity to be with them He even drove all the way to Wales and back for Christmas this year, just four weeks before he died Richard had an extensive circle of friends and enjoyed his weekly lunches with mates from the tennis club His neighbours were amazing in their support for him right up until the end, for which we are and always will be very grateful

He will be missed by us all and I think he will be sad to have gone so soon but he lived his life well

SYLVESTER, William Rodney (Bill) (JH 50-55)

Died on 23 January 2023 aged 86. Husband to Alyson, father to George, James and Edward and brother to Sam ( JH 48-52). He will be sorely missed.

CONNELL, John Arthur Sealy (PS 50-54)

The following obituary was written by John’s brother, Miles (PS 52-57)

John Connell was the elder son of Dr John Connell (Sc 21-25) and was born in Sheffield. Whilst at Tonbridge he was best known for his excellent treble voice and was a member of the School Choir throughout his time at School. He was also a member of the boxing team with Robin Berkeley, and never lost a bout.

Having left Tonbridge, he did his National Service in the RAF and then returned to Sheffield where he worked for Davy United and qualified as an engineer He married Patricia ( Trich) in 1958 and relocated from Sheffield to Ireland where he worked for Bord Na Mona Due to the problems in Northern Ireland he and the family moved to the northwest coast of Scotland where he set up Loch Ewe Cycles, making bespoke bicycle frames. In the 1980s he and his family, now with four children, moved to Whitby where he continued his business.

In 1991 he suffered a stroke after which he never worked again but remained in Whitby He and his wife separated but she lived nearby and cared for him until his death.

WILTSHIER, Jeremy Gordon (PH

51-56)

Passed away peacefully on 4 July 2022, aged 84 Sadly missed by his family and friends

BANTING, Kenneth Mervyn

Lancelot Hadfield, The Venerable (HS 51-56)

Died 8 February 2022, aged 84 Kenneth Mervyn Launcelot Hadfield Banting, eldest child of the Rev Canon Maurice and Mrs Phyllis Banting was born on 8 September 1937. In July of that year the family had moved to Studley in Warwickshire where Mervyn’s father had taken on the incumbency Mervyn attended King’s Choir School in Cambridge and then Tonbridge, perhaps recommended

by a teacher there who had been a friend of his father from his Selwyn days Mervyn distinguished himself academically gaining entry to Pembroke College, Cambridge and making a start to his love of rowing

Before Cambridge came National Service Mervyn joined the Navy as a Portsmouth rating in September 1956 He went on to officer training, eventually serving on a boom defence vessel that went out to the Med during the Suez crisis. Armed with a good degree in history, Mervyn became an assistant master at Winchester College where he taught for 5 years before taking leave of absence to attend Cuddesdon Theological College to train for the ministry. The then principal was one Robert Runcie, later to have a marked influence on Mervyn’s future career He then returned to Winchester as a chaplain before joining a team of curates at Leigh Park, a large housing estate in Havant

Mervyn and Linda married in 1970

The marriage was blessed with four gorgeous daughters and subsequently seven lovely grandchildren Mervyn had many hobbies and interests. He was keen on clocks with quite a collection, many of which he enjoyed restoring and/or repairing; rowing, both taking part and coaching; reading (he had a large library); cycling trips; and a lover of cakes – never known to refuse an offer He and Linda were able to enjoy a decade or more of retirement in the idyllic surroundings of Furzend There was a short interlude when he was persuaded back to Winchester as Acting Chaplain He became the family cook and enjoyed the opportunity to travel widely. At 70 he had a first go at skiing and at 80 white water rafting! The family recall him delighting in saying hellos to those he met usually wearing his Panama hat

As you would expect of a man of the cloth, he had a love for his fellow man, a sense of fairness, always a good listener, ready to give help and wise counsel to any who sought it leaving you to think and question He was never pushy – you were left to make your own decision You can’t think of Mervyn without Linda What of their legacy? Love for all, especially the family Live life to the full, give help

wherever you can, take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way They are both sorely missed

CHETTOE, Hugh Edward

(SH 51-55)

Died in France on 3 July 2022 aged 84 years He is very much missed by his wife Jodie and her children Abigail, Ivan and Joshua. He was our rock and support and gave us a beautiful home and life in France He is sorely missed by his older brother John Chettoe (SH 47-52) and his sister-in-law Joselyn

CLAY, Alan Geoffrey (Geoff)

(HS 52-56)

Died on 30 December 2022, after a period of declining health, aged 84 A passionate golfer and a dedicated member of the OTGS

The following obituary was written by Richard Stocks (Sc 53-58)

I first met Geoff at prep school in about 1951, under the tutelage of Hubert Snowden at Hildersham House in Broadstairs Hubert was an avid golfer and a member of Royal St George’s, and he used to take us over there occasionally to play

He went to Tonbridge a year ahead of me, where our paths didn’t cross much as he was in Hill Side, which was as far away from my School House as you could get, but we did meet on Martins from time to time to hit golf shots Geoff started work in London training to be a chartered surveyor He had a dislike of large organisations so set up on his own when he married Jill and moved to Gloucestershire, eventually living in a lovely house overlooking Golden Valley near Stroud with their two children, David and Julia

It was the Old Tonbridgian Golfing Society that brought us together, and in 1963 we found ourselves playing in the inaugural Grafton Morrish tournament at Hunstanton and Brancaster Remarkably we managed to win it that year and the following year Geoff went on to win it for a third time in 1976 Geoff had already played in the Halford Hewitt in 1963. Little did

he realise that he would be playing almost continually until he finished in 2014 He only missed two years, once when his brother Danny died, and once with family problems. By 2014 he had played in 186 matches, which became a remarkable record easily beating all others, except for Jeremy Lowe of old rivals Malvern, who also reached 186 before he retired the following year. His winning percentage over that time was 70 4% He played in 7 of our 9 winning teams, by that time usually with George Taggart.

I was lucky enough to play with Geoff in the Halford Hewitt from the early 1970s to 1980 before we were good enough to win the tournament, and that was an amazing experience I have never played with anyone who was as certain to hit the green as he was with his simple repetitive swing – he really had no idea how difficult the game was for ordinary mortals For part of that time, we and Peter Saggers stayed with Alec Hill in his house in Bowling Street, where with huge glasses of gin and tonic in our hands we listened to the great man talking about his experiences as a Walker Cup golfer and captain of both Royal St George’s and the R&A. That led eventually to Geoff joining the R&A in 1994 Geoff played regularly in the R&A Spring and Autumn medals, though always rushing home to be with his wife Jill He had the privilege of winning the Gold Medal at the Autumn Meeting one year for the second-best gross score (the winner takes the Royal medal).

In his youth Geoff won the Sussex County championship in 1966 and played a lot of county golf. When he married and moved to Gloucestershire, he won their championship in 1970 and was a regular in the Gloucestershire County team He was elected a member of the Senior Golfers’ Society in 1977 and represented their scratch side in the triangular matches with the Canadians and Americans on three occasions. He was a lifelong member of Minchinhampton, near where he lived. He undertook the extension of their clubhouse, and the creation of their second new course, the Cherington. For his many contributions the members elected him an Honorary Life Member in

2001 Additionally, Geoff was a member of Royal Porthcawl.

As a person, Geoff was a great friend to me and to many Old Tonbridgian golfers He loved talking and loved people He was intensely loyal to his family and to his friends. His general friendliness could make him the butt of humour on occasions which he took in good part. He was proud of his dress sense leading to some amusement amongst his golfing friends On one memorable occasion when the Halford Hewitt team were staying at our regular stately home at Knowlton Court the Tommy Hilfiger corduroy trousers that he proudly owned ended up in the fire It says a lot for his character that he took it all in good part

He was a wonderful ambassador for the game of golf and for life in general, always thinking of others, as result of which he set up the Special Fund for supporting younger golfers with their Halford Hewitt and other expenses He will be greatly missed.

TAIT, Michael Alan (WH 52-57)

Died peacefully in Maryborough, Vic, Australia on1 September 2021, aged 82 years Loved and loving husband of Wilma. Treasured father of Lyndon and Euan A life well lived Rest in peace

SINGER, Thomas Anthony (Tom)

James and daughter Erica, immigrated to Canada in 1968 and settled in Ontario He enjoyed a long career in the insurance business He became well known in the industry for his seminars across Canada and his insurance evening classes at George Brown College in Toronto, for which the Insurance Institute of Canada awarded him their Award of Merit In 1991, he lost his beloved wife to MS and he was fortunate enough to meet another Marjorie They married in 1997 and they enjoyed many happy years together until his passing His hobbies were photography and making model ships. Tom will be remembered as a quiet man, a listener rather than a talker, and a giver who was always ready to help if he could.

Published by The Globe and Mail, Canada.

WINTER, John Michael, Dr (Michael) (MH 53-57)

Died peacefully on Saturday 19 November 2022, aged 83 years.

ACII

FIIC CRM (MH 52-57)

Died on 25 December 2022, at the age of 84. A child of the Holocaust, Tom was born in Vienna, Austria in 1938 and fled with his parents and older brother, reaching England later that year having managed to stay one step ahead of the Nazis They were sponsored by his father’s business friend in London. His father immediately joined the British Army and this helped the family gain British citizenship. For the next 30 years he lived in Kent in the South of England While attending the University of London, he suffered an accident and whilst in the hospital he met Marjorie, a nurse, who became the love of his life. Seeing no future in England, the family, which by then included son

War broke out when Michael was less than three months old, and one of his childhood memories was of tanks rumbling through the streets of Cirencester on their way south. Michael grew up in a medical family and his father practised as a GP in Cirencester. When his father retired, Michael joined the same practice in St Peter’s Road and worked there for more than 25 years. Generations of local people have been born, lived and died under the care of the Winters

Michael’s character was rooted in his Christian faith He was an elder at Cirencester Baptist Church, and chair of Cirencester Churches Together After retirement he sang in Cirencester Choral Society, was a member of South Cerney Sailing Club, had an extensive collection of maps and delighted friends with his local knowledge. He also joined Street Pastors, patrolling the town at night to show kindness without judgement to strangers who were often the worse for wear But it is as a GP that he will be most widely remembered. “He was unfailingly professional” said a colleague “A highly respected doctor and an amazing person who quietly carried his faith into all areas of life”

Like his father before him, Michael also worked in Cirencester Hospital and was on-call almost every night, alongside his work as a GP This was a golden era for patients but not for doctors and their families “He would come out to care for us in the middle of the night, always in a suit and tie” said one former patient “We owe him a debt of gratitude we could never repay.” He attended Oakley Hall School, where he was head boy, and then Tonbridge School before medical training at Bart’s Hospital in London. In 1965 he married Adrienne Nye, also a second-generation doctor Together they travelled to Uganda to do medical work with support of the Church Mission Society

Michael will be missed by many, including his wife Adrienne, three children and five grandchildren whom he enjoyed spending time with

HAMILTON-GROVES, Charles Antony Bennett (Grove) (PH 54-59)

Died on 19 March 2022, aged 80

WILLIAMS, EUR ING Anthony Robert BSc ARSM FIMM CEng (JH 54-59)

Died of cancer on 10 February 2023 in LOROS Hospice in Leicester. Metallurgical Consultant who travelled the world and was a leading expert in tin smelting.

MCLELLAN, Peter Roger, Dr (Sc 55-60)

Died on 22 September 2022, aged 80

QUIBELL, Michael Timothy (MH 55-58)

Beloved, sorely missed and loving husband of Caroline for 58 years

Adored father of Toby, Michele, Polly, Emily and Justin Devoted grandfather of Jacob, Luke, Tom, Ned, Max, Gus, Fin, Charlie, Jack, Issie, Daisy and Poppy Died at home on 27 October 2022, aged 81

PARKIN, William Keith (WH 56-60)

Passed away peacefully at home on Easter Sunday, 9 April 2023 aged 80

WINKWORTH, John Francis (MH 57-61)

Died suddenly at home in Chobham on 12 July 2022. Dearly loved husband of Jane and wonderful stepfather to Matthew and Ben A treasured, kind and generous Grandpa.

ANDERSON, Robert Andrew (PH 57-62)

Died on 10 September 2022, aged 78

HEATHCOTE, Edgar Colin, FRAes (Colin) (MH 58-63)

Died on 1 March 2022, aged 77.

This obituary is adapted from a eulog y given at Colin’s funeral service by Richard Armstrong

Colin was a generous, funny, kind, private and thoughtful man, a sportsman, an astute businessman, skilled pilot, classic car rally driver, devoted to his family and his Regiment He could also be aloof, acerbic and politically incorrect, which made him something of an enigma

You were either in or out of Colin’s circle of trust and many times I straddled it depending on whether I was in his good or bad favour!

Colin was born in Esher in January 1945 He was educated at St Edmunds in Hindhead and then at Tonbridge, following in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps It was here at Tonbridge, while in the RAF Section of the Combined Cadet Force that he had

his first yearning to fly Those happy days of anything connected with flight would eventually lead him to a profession and lifetime of flying

Colin left school at 18 not knowing what he was to do, so his first job, much to the annoyance of his mother, was to become a refuse collector! It was at this time at age 20, in March 1965, he joined the HAC as a reservist He served in 1 Squadron, 2 Company, A Battery and in the Pikeman & Musketeers. His final role before retirement of the Regiment was to be Armourer

He worked briefly in the printing industry, but this was not really for him, so at 21 with no job Colin bought his first aeroplane with the help of his aunt and began his career in aviation starting by qualifying as a flying instructor In 1969 he established Cabair and from then he worked tirelessly building up the company offering services of flying training, air taxi services and aircraft maintenance

He even had the role of the flying eye for Capital Radio and Chiltern Radio in the late 70’s and 80’s providing a weather and traffic service over Greater London He was affectionately known as ‘Captain Col’. He was flying the great and the good from film stars to jockeys and politicians Tony Blair was one of them and I never knew why but he had a photograph of Tony Blair and himself standing next to a plane hung in his cloakroom at both Green End Barn and Tudor House!

Colin’s entrepreneurial skills helped expand the business and at one point there were over 100 aeroplanes and helicopters on the Cabair fleet. By the

time Colin retired from Cabair in November 2000 there were several flying schools, flight training, helicopter and aircraft maintenance centres He had, with the help of his colleagues built a business that employed nearly 200 people and turned over £12 million

In 1972 he bought his six months old Jaguar E-Type, something which young men of his age could only dream of That car went all over the world and Colin loved it even to his dying day. He poured huge amounts of affection into that car along with a lot of cash, but it served him well

Colin’s rallying career crossed all continents, London to Cape Town, Panama to Alaska, The Inca Trail, London to Singapore and 5,000 miles around India, the rally on which I was co-driver with him

Colin’s other sporting pastimes were sailing and skiing Through his life he had two yachts and family and friends had many happy times aboard them Colin left the Elstree area to move to Green End Barn in Datchworth where

Colin Heathcote (standing between David Kemp and Mike Bushby)

his young family grew up, and later bought Tudor House He adored being up on the hill and he loved the views across the open fields and tending his garden He enjoyed the accessibility to important local facilities such as The Red Lion, Redcoats and The Rusty Gun and of course being close to his family and friends

He was to have seen his new grandchild into the world but that was not to be. Baby Beatrix is here with us today which is quite poignant and a great shame she won’t meet her grandfather, who would have enriched her life in the same way as he enriched everyone’s lives who got to know him

SCOTT-SUTHERLAND, Alasdair

Douglas FIPRA (HS 59-63)

Died in September 2022, aged 76

STREVENS, Phillip Richard (Pip) (FH 59-63)

Died at home on 23 January 2023, aged 77 Much loved husband of Mandi Proud father of David and delighted Grandpa to Lily.

Richard’s detailed knowledge of the law and his negotiating skills that, after completing the transaction, he invited Richard to lunch at Claridge’s when he asked him to take over his MD role as he was about to retire Richard ran Warnford for the next 17 years until his retirement in 2013

Born in 1949, the family moved to Orpington where Richard went to Bickley Park and then Tonbridge A keen sportsman, he rowed and played rugby for the School, but his real interest was rifle shooting, representing the School at Bisley. In those days, Community Service, designed to help run errands for those in need in the community, was an alternative to joining the CCF and Richard embraced this with enthusiasm. Always one to go that extra mile, after leaving Tonbridge Richard kept in contact with one of the elderly ladies, Miss Wheeler, until she died 40 years later

After Tonbridge, Richard read Mineral Engineering at Imperial College but, after a spell in a goldmine in South Africa, decided to make a career change and took a post-graduate course at the College of Estate Management (now part of Reading University) After a stint at Tarmac, he moved to run the property portfolio of the aluminium manufacturing company British Alcan, and from there he went to Reed.

He and Jane also bought a house in France which Richard lovingly renovated Realising that building materials could be sourced more cheaply in the UK he would drive down to Bordeaux with things he needed. On one occasion he even had a dishwasher strapped to the roof! Richard was a devoted family man and particularly enjoyed taking his growing family, by then including five grandchildren, on holidays to Africa, leaving memories with them all which will last forever

ASHBY, Richard Harrington (Sc 62-67)

Died peaceably at home on 14 May 2022 from a brain tumour, surrounded by his family

The following obituary was written by Andrew Mayer (FH 62–65) and John Kent (Sc 65–69)

Richard was a distinguished chartered surveyor, managing portfolios of mainly large commercial properties and becoming an expert in the arcane world of Landlord and Tenant law. It was while managing the property portfolio of the publishers Reed Elsevier that he first met Sam Sebba, the Managing Director of the property company Warnford Investments, when negotiating a renewal of Reed’s lease of their office headquarters building in Piccadilly Sam was so impressed with

While at British Alcan, Richard and his wife Jane moved to Beaconsfield where they brought up their two children Claire and Mark, both of whom followed their father into the real estate profession Richard was a DIY enthusiast with a particular expertise in plumbing Family holidays were taken on the ski slopes and caravanning in France, often involving riding on a steam train

Upon retirement, Richard could indulge in his hobbies – he was a model railway enthusiast, the proud owner of a Royal Blue 1932 Alvis and a keen bridge player He was appointed a governor of Wycombe Abbey School putting his property knowledge to use in building two boarding houses A keen churchgoer, he also helped his local church with their building matters, particularly the renewal of the lighting throughout the church.

BARROW, Ronald Frank (Sc 62-67)

Died on 27 September 2022, aged 74. Brother to Richard (Sc 67-71) and Edward (Sc 73-75)

The following obituary was written by Richard Barrow (Sc 67-71)

Ron got an exhibition to Cambridge from Tonbridge School, where he was Head of School House. At Cambridge he gained a degree in Geology

After leaving Cambridge he eventually became a teacher, teaching sciences at secondary school Really his interests in life were intellectual. He studied mathematics and composed a renowned website as a teaching aid. This received praise from around the world, particularly from schools in India and Africa

Ron wasn’t an ambitious man but he was really interested in intellectual pursuits He loved classical music of which he had an encyclopaedic knowledge, was also very interested in the arts, and extremely well read I suppose he was a modern-day polymath

He lived for a long time with a dear friend of his, Suzy and her husband Michael, a victim of a terrible accident which left him paralysed. Michael is a

very brave man who sailed to the Azores single-handedly even with his disability This symbiotic relationship worked very well Suzy and Ron worked together on various projects including a small farmhouse in France

In later days Ron became ill with heart problems and diabetes, leading to his death on 27 September at the age of 74 He had many friends, some close ones from Tonbridge who I think will be sorry to hear of his passing, though he outlived a good many His work is much acclaimed

WILLIAMS, John David (David) (FH 63-68)

Passed away in late January, aged 72 after a long and brave battle with cancer An OT golfer of considerable talent and a delightful man in every way He will be greatly missed

PROCTER, John Rawsthorne (JH 64-69)

Sadly passed away on 26 March 2023 aged 71 Much loved husband of Caroline, father of Thomas and Mark and grandfather of Millie, Tabby, Iris, Edith and Dorothy

HOOLE, Richard Lt Col (WH 65-70)

The following obituary was written by Henry Dodds (PS 70-75)

Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hoole, Old Tonbridgian, Army Officer, President of the Army Rifle Association and President of the Limassol Lions Club Richard died unexpectedly in Cyprus on Sunday 1 January 2023 at the age of 70 He attended Tonbridge from 1965 to 1970 and shot for the School VIII. On leaving, he joined the British Army and was one of the last intake of Regular officers to go to RMA Sandhurst (Dettingen Company, Intake 49) for a full two years

He was commissioned into the Royal Signals on 4 August 1972, completing the two year Staff Officer course in 1986 As well as his postings in the Army - mostly in the UK and Germany - he was active in Army shooting (he was an accomplished pistol shooter) and was SO1 Operational Shooting and Secretary of the Army Rifle Association from 2001-2007 He became Life Vice President of the ARA in 2019.

On retiring from the Army in 2007 he settled in Cyprus with his wife Muriel, where they built a house outside Limassol Richard was active in the local community up until his untimely death from complications arising from the leukaemia he was diagnosed with in 2019. He became President of the Limassol ‘Coeur de Lion’ Lions Club, Treasurer of the British Forces Animal Rehoming Centre and Chief Instructor and Deputy Fund Manager of the Episkopi Garrison Gun Club

Richard was instrumental in many OTs joining the Army Rifle Association He was always interested in the activities of the OTRC, sending apologies for absence to shoots and taking a keen interest in our progress in the Veterans’ match As Ian Mitchell has written elsewhere he was the guiding force behind the autumn dinner and shoot and provided one of the Club rifles He is survived by his wife Muriel, son Chris and daughter Charlie. Son of Gilbert and Sheila Hoole and younger brother to Peter ( WH 58-63)

URQUHART, Ian Gawthorpe (PS 65-70)

Died peacefully on 8 January 2023, after a short illness, aged 71. Beloved brother, uncle and great uncle

JACOBSEN, Timothy Charles (PH 68-72)

Died on 15 April 2023 aged 68

PARTINGTON, Bryan Erik (FH 70-74)

Died on 8 January 2023 after a short illness, aged 66 Husband of Veronica, father to Rachel and Giles and younger brother of Colin (FH 66-70) He will be much missed

HESKETH HARVEY, Christopher John (Kit) (SH 70-75)

Died suddenly on 1 February 2023, aged 65

The following obituary was written by Sherard Cowper-Coles (PS 68-73)

I first met Kit – then plain Christopher John Harvey – more than 50 years ago, when he was a precocious fifth former, and I was in the sixth form, at Tonbridge I don’t know why our paths crossed, because he was a musical prodigy, and I certainly wasn’t, but he was clearly a member of the School’s

intellectual and cultural elite – a brain, a personality, a creative force, of great social and personal sensitivity, high achievement, and a powerful but wellconcealed ambition to succeed. There was never the slightest doubt that he would go on to Cambridge, read English, and take the university by storm – which he did

In those days – the mid-1970s – the head boy and his deputy were lucky enough to occupy a flat over Smythe House, and Kit was one of a group who often turned up for tea or coffee, and conversation, usually about the future Afterwards, I saw him on occasional visits to Cambridge, and I think he appeared in Oxford at least once But then we lost touch, as I travelled the world as a diplomat, and he pursued his extraordinarily rich career on and off the stage, on radio and television, and the upper reaches of the worlds of music and of entertainment, and of high society.

We reconnected only when, as Ambassador in Saudi Arabia, I decided that the expatriate communities, who had endured a particularly nasty and persistent terrorist campaign, needed cheering up And so, somehow, I arranged for Kit – and the Widow – to come out to Saudi Arabia, and to perform in the Embassy Garden in Riyadh, and in Jeddah and the Eastern Province Their shows were an absolute tour de force: witty, carefully calibrated (on the basis of some quiet homework beforehand) to the personalities in the local British community, and above all a truly exhilarating escape from the demands of life in Saudi Arabia He was outrageous, funny, clever, wicked, camp, and we laughed and laughed and laughed, at him, at his depiction of an England and a Scotland that many of us had forgotten, and at ourselves

Then, a couple of years later, I repeated the exercise, this time in Kabul, for the western diplomatic and aid communities, and for the British Army garrison at the airport Again, Kit delivered a complete triumph, parodying the US Ambassador, nicknamed “Chemical Bill” for his obsession with aerial spraying of the poppy crop, with a specially adapted version of Tom Lehrer’s song on the Periodic Table, the Elements As I wrote in The Times, the Guards’ officers loved his performance: the squaddies thought him an insufferable pansy, an accolade Kit would have adored.

One of my favourite – and typically risqué – stories about Kit was when he performed for (as they then were) The Prince of Wales and Mrs Parker-Bowles at Windsor Castle He had written a particularly racy song about picking up pheasants on a shoot, the chorus of which began with the immortal words:

“I have in my hand a throbbing cock” When he first sang this line in the Royal presence, there was a deathly silence, until, after a long pause, Camilla started to giggle, and everyone joined in, with relief and gusto Which is one reason why HM The King was represented at Kit’s funeral, by none other than Penelope Keith

He also used to relay with relish how Andrew Lloyd-Webber had threatened legal action against Kit for a song which implied that many of the maestro’s most famous tunes had been borrowed from elsewhere For all the fireworks and sense of unending fiesta, there was a quieter, calmer, family-side to Kit: he loved his wife and children, his parents, his siblings, with a deep and abiding affection, which was obvious only to those who knew him well And with that went a certain private sadness, buried deep.

Kit enriched my life, in ways that still make me chuckle, and he enriched the lives of countless thousands of others He walked, or rather bounded along, in the marchlands of true genius We are all the poorer for his premature passing.

SEABROOK, Jonathan Richard Alec (PS 75-79)

The following obituary was written by Leonie Seabrook and James Leahy (PH 74-79)

Jonathan Seabrook died peacefully on 30 October 2022 in Brisbane, Australia, aged 61 Jon is survived by his wife Leonie, sons Alex and Charlie, his mother, Diana and his brother, Mike

Jon was put into Park House under the watchful eye of his housemaster, David Kemp, though he would have been a daunting sight for his fellow Novi as a hulking brute of six foot at age 13 His fun-loving and easy-going character quickly broke down any barriers

Jon was also very sociable and had a great love of sports and games characteristics that remained unchanged throughout his life. These traits somewhat derailed his academic progress in his senior years at School, where the delights of Tonbridge High Street, in particular the pinball arcades, in the company of likeminded friends proved rather more fun that studying Jon worked hard to keep in touch with many of those friends over the years

Jon met his wife of 42 years, Leonie (Lulu) Bicknell in London in 1980 They bonded over a similar sense of humour and a love of motorbikes. In 1993 the Seabrook family moved to Australia where Jon’s love of DIY was satisfied by renovating an old timber cottage in NSW, which he pretty much dismantled and rebuilt from the ground up. In the meantime, he joined Suncorp Bank, where he developed over many years a successful personal and small business lending practice Although he made enduring

friendships at work, he would have conceded that for him work was more a way of paying the bills rather than a way of life

Jon’s steadfast character and kindness was leavened by quirks such as overexuberant motorbike riding where a grinning Jon would scare the living daylights out of anyone who got on the back of his bike, and by his support of both Chelsea and Manchester United football teams, which amounted to something of a criminal offence His excuse was that Chelsea were relegated in the 1970s so he had to pick a new team to follow!

The onset of aggressive Parkinson’s disease when he was 57 unfairly stacked the cards against Jon, but he was a true stoic with the ability to make the best of any situation Even as he became more and more disabled, he still enjoyed life and was positive to the end One of his last actions was to ask his engineer brother Mike to design a high-flow oxygen meter so that Jon could escape from hospital Mike’s response noted that the “ pass me my spanner, I’ll fix this” approach was well-embedded in the male Seabrooks, as was the “get me home now ” instinct

Throughout his adult life, Jon was happiest at home, surrounded by family and friends, cooking up a storm, downing G&Ts or beers, playing games and laughing He was at ease with everyone he met, providing unconditional support, guidance, and loyal friendship He was always looking to help people. In particular, he loved his boys, Alex and Charlie Hanging out with them over the years gave him so much pleasure. To his wife, Leonie, he was always a true romantic loving, caring and thoughtful

BETTS, Adrian James Michael (JH 78-83)

Died on 29 September 2022, aged 57 from Motor Neurone Disease Brother to Hugh Betts ( JH 77- 81), sister to Rosalind Son of Michael and the late Jennifer Beloved husband of Alexandra (nee Albertini) and wonderful father to Freddie and Bill (Obituary on Tonbridge Connect and in next year’s magazine)

LOW, Dominic James (WW 89-94)

Passed away on 21 April 2023, aged 47, at the Hospice in the Weald from a brain tumour. He leaves his wife Joanna, daughter Megan and son Oliver. The following obituary is written by his friend Neil Hudd ( WW 89-94)

1989, Whitworth House Novi Common Room, Day One. An awkward mixed bunch of pre-teen reprobates sporting over-sized jackets - some clutching brand-new briefcases (it was de rigueur back then), sat in near silence

Unbeknownst to us on that day, the different traits and qualities of this group of Novi would ultimately provide the perfect blend during these formative years, to fuse into a permanent brotherhood It would last far beyond the corridors of School Rooted in the invincibility and optimism of youth, it is, and has been, a comforting and constant bastion in our ever-shifting and sometimes unsettling lives However, it has transpired that even this isn’t immune to life’s cruel wrecking ball. This year we lost one of our own, one at the epicentre of this band of brothersDominic Low. Dominic put the ‘dom’ into indomitable, not only when it came to his overall spirit, energy, friendliness, cheerfulness and loyalty, but also his incredible determination and stoicism which never abated in the last couple of gruelling years following the diagnosis of a brain tumour in late 2019. Those that visited him during his illness were recipients of his constant apologies for not being his usual 100%. His concern was always for other people, always asking how people were

Such was his popularity, that frequenting his local pubs in Plaxtol was akin to being with a local celebrity Everyone not only seemed to know him but was equally pleased to see him As one Whitworthian noted ‘he was great company, the sort you wanted to keep and be around’ School provided the perfect ground to rapidly develop the ability to not only laugh at ourselves, but also a determination to

extract fun and joy at any given opportunity, often at each other’s expense. Dominic’s keen sense of humour was invariably present

Dominic loved to remind us of good times past whether it was his impression of his French teacher and House Tutor ‘Taffy’ Richards, who uttered in his Welsh lilt that ‘two lunches are better than no lunches’ when none of us had remembered to bring his packed lunch for a tutor period presuming someone else had Or Mr Austin in German lessons, knocking the table and saying ‘Passt Auf!’ (pay attention) Incidentally it was Austin, in his role as Head of the RAF section, who threatened to bust me down from Sergeant to Corporal after a minor infraction on an RAF base. We were all guilty, including Dominic, but it was pinned on me Dominic gleefully called me Corporal Hudd on the journey back and continued to do so right up until our last telephone exchange

Dominic could also be on the receiving end with good grace During house lunch, Dominic kindly asked us whether we would like second helpings of Yorkshire puddings Whilst Dominic piled the eight plus Yorkshire puddings for us on his plate, housemaster Mr Duncan enquired whether all the Yorkshire puddings were for him Dominic explained that they were for his friends Mr Duncan asked us if this was true. Naturally we denied all knowledge A horrified Mr Duncan shouted “That’s disgusting! It’s just greedy!” and stormed off, leaving Dominic open-jawed with a mountain of Yorkshire puddings (which he still dutifully shared out. That’s the type of guy he was)

After Tonbridge, Dominic studied French at the University of East Anglia where he met his wife-to-be Jo They moved back to Sevenoaks and ended up in Dunks Green and had two children, Megan 15, and Oliver 13, who will be attending Tonbridge.

Dominic became a shipbroker, in the footsteps of his father Brian He started off at Gearbulk and finally moved to Clarksons where he became a highly respected broker and Director He was so highly-regarded that, on his passing, the flags of Clarkson’s offices all around the world were lowered to half-mast.

When we lost Dominic, we lost part of ourselves that day But here’s the thing, his enduring friendship, that started at Tonbridge, and the rich history that we have all shared together with Dominic will always be ingrained on our lives. Certainly, when it comes to his School friends, Dominic would have rubbed off and influenced each of them, and he will always be part of us for the rest of our days When it comes to people, he was the best in class, and he will be missed terribly Our thoughts are with his parents Brian and Jackie, sister Tasha, his wife Jo and his children Megan and Oliver

NEWMAN, John (CR 59-63)

John was a distinguished architectural historian He was educated at Dulwich College and University College, Oxford He taught Classics at Tonbridge School from 1959-1963, where he was a tutor in School House, ran the Mermaid Society and took part in arduous training with the CCF Tony Gould, a fellow staff member at the time, also recalls their trips with pupils to Italy and joyful drives in the Kentish countryside in John’s charabanc. John joined the Courtauld Institute and spent his life there studying, teaching, lecturing and writing. He worked with Nikolaus Pevsner editing and writing books on architecture, including definitive accounts of the buildings of Kent He was a keen and knowledgeable gardener and a major supporter and President of the Friends of Kent Churches Ride and Stride charity He lived in Kent throughout his life with his wife Margaret and two daughters, Elizabeth and Hilary

CULLEN, John (CR 67-93)

John was born in 1936 near Dundee, but spent his early life in Aberdeen Although not musical, his parents were committed members of the Church of Scotland, and as a teenager John regularly played the harmonium for hymns at their local church John wanted to be a church musician and led to him studying the organ at The Royal College of Music in London

He was interviewed for this by Herbert Howells, who was the first to point out that John had perfect pitch. Following a year of National Service as a bandsman with the Royal Corps of Signals, John won an organ scholarship at Christ’s College, Cambridge He revelled in the rich musical experiences that this gave him, studying for his Fellowship of the Royal College of Organists with David Willcocks on the organ of King’s College.

At Cambridge, John also realised that it was as a schoolmaster that he felt called to share his love of music, and especially church music, with others After a year of teacher training at Moray House in Edinburgh, he became Assistant Director of Music at Aberdeen Grammar School and organist and choirmaster at St Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral in Aberdeen In 1964, John became Director of Music at Abingdon School in Oxfordshire It was here that he met Mary, whose brother was on the Classics staff. They were married in 1966 in Hereford Cathedral, where Mary’s father was Archdeacon and Residentiary Canon.

John and Mary moved to Tonbridge in 1967, when John became Director of Music The impressive School chapel and large, three-manual pipe organ were great attractions, as was the fine musical tradition already existing at the School. John delighted in the opportunities that these provided and sought to develop all aspects of the School’s musical life. He was particularly keen that music was made accessible to every boy in the School, and so he developed what was then a pioneering curriculum for classroom music, initiated whole-School hymn practices in Chapel each Friday morning, revived the House Singing Competition, and every few years put on a major work such as Handel’s Messiah or Orff ’s Carmina Burana in which the whole School took part

John felt extraordinarily grateful to work with such creative colleagues in the Music department and was keen that they developed their gifts within the musical life of the School During his time, the School choir and orchestra performed a wide range of classical repertoire, as well as newer pieces such as David Fanshaw’s African Sanctus, and a fine setting of Psalm 122 commissioned for the whole School from Howard Goodall by former Headmaster, Christopher Everett

Although these big works were highlights, it was the week-by-week rhythm of choral and congregational services in the School Chapel that meant most to John He loved conducting the Chapel Choir, again keeping it large and inclusive so that as many boys as possible could benefit from the experience The School’s carol services were particular highlights each year John had a natural harmonic fluency as a composer and produced many arrangements and compositions for choir and congregation to sing in School Chapel services

John initiated choir and orchestral tours abroad, including to Vienna in 1977 and the USA in 1981 and 1990. He and colleagues later took the Chapel Choir for residencies at various English cathedrals. The Chapel fire in 1988 was a tragedy in John’s life The loss of what had been his spiritual home and professional workplace, as well as his personal organ music and some compositions, was distressing and disorienting.

In addition to his teaching, for many years, John was an examiner for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music He was also President of the Music Masters’ Association in 1977, hosting the MMA’s conference at Tonbridge in 1979 which highlighted the innovations in classroom music teaching that he and colleagues were establishing at the School. Between 1972 and 1993, John was conductor and director of the Tonbridge Philharmonic Society, performing a wide range of choral and orchestral repertoire

Alongside his professional work, John was very much a family man He was absolutely devoted to Mary, and rejoiced that their three children, Christopher, Alison and Jonathan all went into school teaching, with

Jonathan becoming a Director of Music at several leading schools

After retiring from Tonbridge in 1993, John and Mary lived briefly in Herefordshire and Horsham, before finally settling in Woodstock, Oxfordshire John was much in demand as an organist in local churches, and for the last ten years of his professional career, he was organist and choirmaster at St Martin’s in Bladon, Oxfordshire. Here he again began composing, creating musical settings for choir and congregation. John finally retired at Candlemas 2017, leaving Bladon with a setting of a text and prayer that he especially cherished: ‘Come Down, O Love Divine ’ He died peacefully at home on 1 July 2022

TURNER, Edward Robert (CR 69-81)

Canon Emeritus of Rochester Cathedral, beloved husband of Anne, died on 15 March 2023, aged 85

The following obituary was written by Sherard Cowper-Coles (PS 68-73)

“Edward’s here”, I shouted up the staircase in Magpie Lane in Oxford

“Edward who?” came the carefully choreographed reply, from Alex Wylde ( JH 1967-72), who was giving a party at Corpus, Oxford, to celebrate Edward Turner’s state visit to Oxford. As always with our beloved former Second Chaplain, we showed our affection by trying to puncture his paper-thin pomposity

When Edward Turner arrived at Tonbridge for the Michaelmas Term in 1969, he created a minor sensation, not just in the School as a whole, but mostly form Va, whose form master he immediately became He started as he went on, always in a hurry, always in pursuit of excellence, with a style and a certain intellectual snobbery that disguised the kindest and most generous of souls, someone probably shyer beneath the show than he ever let on.

That year

1969 to 1970 – with him as our teacher left indelible impressions for life He treated us like grown-ups, encouraged us

incredibly

for the first time to call each other by our Christian names, and said he would be teaching us Theology, not and never just Divinity And so he did, starting

with a breath-taking walk through the Book of Revelation that none of us will ever forget, as we marked our bibles – I have still have mine – up with his comments and explanations He had us to coffee at home He played us Stravinsky: I so well remember hearing the Rite of Spring leaping out from his gramophone in our classroom underneath the Smythe Library. And he took us to St Paul’s Cathedral, to put on a show based on Revelation, written and produced by us, accompanied by Stravinsky

Edward, or ERT as we called him, talked about economics (his other love), and business (before becoming a priest he was said to have had a brief career in the drinks trade), and about that strange and distant land – the North of England. But he didn’t just talk about the North: he took us there, through the art of LS Lowry and on the wonderful expeditions to Coventry, to experience everything from the football club to the Massey Ferguson factory, from the Cathedral (and John Piper) to a Sikh Gurdwara Closer to home, he marched us through Thamesmead, to experience through the local priest, later bishop, what an urban ministry was really like Edward enriched the life of the School in so many – sometimes surprising –ways He coached rowing – the Colts IV, I think – pedalling furiously beside, and on one famous occasion into, the Medway As an officer in the CCF, he became Second Lieutenant the Reverend Edward Turner: my brother remembered him administering the eucharist in a midge-infested Scottish glen, using a Land Rover as his altar. He founded a theological discussion society

the Warner Society, named after a colonial bishop, I think

to which we were invited to present

papers, and from which another of my brothers resigned after reading a paper on an Indian guru which Edward had dismissed as “rubbish”. Edward overlapped with Michael McCrum as Headmaster for only one academic year, but they soon got the measure of each other Edward had studied Hebrew at Cambridge, and told us that the way McCrum initialled documents bore a close resemblance to the Hebrew for Jahweh – the ineffable name of G-d for Jews. This of the man who went on to be Head Master of Eton, Master of Corpus, Cambridge, and Vice Chancellor of that university. I assumed it was Edward’s customary exaggerated sense of academic humour, until, years later, studying Hebrew before being posted to Israel, I discovered that, all those years before, Edward had been right: McCrum had signed himself as God We never knew if he knew

Edward’s other trademark was his blue Mini, which he drove dangerously fast, including once causing the engine to explode on the Tonbridge by-pass, and which, in mark of affection, appeared in the Chapel nave one Skinners’ Day, after a Herculean effort by a group of leavers. In all of this – his kindness, his hospitality, his generosity with his time and his advice, his intellectual rigour, his unceasing activity – his great ally and constant companion – and wisest adviser - was his dear wife Anne I am sure Edward had her in mind when he preached one of the greatest – among many great – sermons I heard in Tonbridge Chapel, on the simple theme of “You must be friends as well”

Edward went on to even greater things, as a Canon of Rochester Cathedral, managing – with his formidable administrative skill – Church schools across Kent, and playing a prominent part in the public life of the county But he kept in touch with Tonbridge, and Tonbridge kept in touch with him, not just in Kent, but during his long and happy retirement in Norfolk, where he continued, almost to the end, to contribute so much to the Church which was his life. Like so many of his pupils, I owe Edward so much – more than he ever realised – and give grateful thanks for having known him, as a teacher, as a mentor and as a dear friend

FRANCIS, Martin Rufus, The Reverend (CR 69-83)

An obituary, written by Martin’s elder son, is on Tonbridge Connect A longer obituary will appear in next year ’ s OT Magazine

Martin Francis, who died in August 2023, was born in 1937, went to St John’s, Leatherhead and then Pembroke, Oxford, where he won a Blue in athletics, trying out for the Olympic team at 100 meters hurdles. After Oxford, Martin went on to National Service in Korea, then trained for the priesthood before becoming a muchloved Chaplain at Tonbridge from 196983. On leaving Tonbridge Martin went on to be Deputy Head and Chaplain at St John’s Leatherhead and then Rector at Herstmonceux, East Sussex until his retirement in the late 2000s, when he moved to Blandford Forum and later Sherborne with his late wife Venetia. Martin remained active in the local parishes, as well as balancing out his spiritual needs with his keen hobby of fly fishing, spending many retirement hours on the chalk streams of Dorset. Martin lived a full life and is survived by his sons Matthew and William, their partners Annette and Pieta and grandchildren Ellamay, Elliot, and Josette

REDSTON, David (CR 75-98)

This obituary is written by Lionel Austin (CR 75-94)

It was with great sadness that we learnt of the passing of David Redston on 27 November 2022, a much-valued former member of the Modern Languages Department For those who knew him he will perhaps be remembered principally as a teacher of Russian. However, his inspiring teaching of Russian was far from being his only contribution to the School!

Early on in his education he excelled at Latin and French, he took up Greek with great success and his love of the Classics took him to Oxford in 1955, where he added Theology to the broadpalette of subjects he studied David was the very opposite of an ‘ivory

ERT at the bottom of the steps

tower’ student. He was not only a competent rugby player but also became a keen golfer, and an excellent pianist. His impressive range of academic and sporting accomplishments was complemented by a love of travel, both in England and further afield, sometimes much further afield! Before Tonbridge, David, accompanied by his growing family, taught in Tasmania, Leamington, Somerset, Canada and Texas It was during his time in Somerset that he embarked on a one- year course for young teachers to learn and teach Russian, in which he later took a doctorate

It was Tonbridge’s good fortune that David spotted an advertisement in the TES for a Russian teacher who could also offer sport He was appointed and threw himself into Tonbridge life. For him, Russian was not just a classroom subject: he ran seven school trips to the Soviet Union. He was amazed by the enterprise of boys and how they could deal with the Soviet Union and its strange procedures. David’s love of travel was well-exemplified in 19861987, when he spent a year teaching Russian at the University of Colorado. On his return he continued as a teacher of five subjects, but also, along with David Clack and Dick Longley, ran the School’s golf team David Clack recalls that it “ was a highlight to be the minibus driver for the ‘Doc’ for many years on the golf club outings, where our friendship evolved Golf society became ‘lessons in life’, characterised by David’s humour, good nature and wisdom Most memorable was the great success of our golf team winning both the Public Schools’ and European Schools’ Championships in 1986 Also memorable were the historic walks, known as the ‘Hysterical walks’, reflecting our shared sense of fun A great friend and a kindred spirit.”

Less well known, but equally worthy of mention, are several other tasks David carried out at Tonbridge He had the unenviable task of organising the Skinners’ Day prizes and provided

coaching in English to overseas students, who will have certainly valued his help David will be remembered by those fortunate enough to have known him as eminently, but unassumingly, erudite, warm, approachable and, above all, fun!

With thanks to his daughters Jo, Sarah and Carolyn for kindly sharing so many details about their father, and to David Clack, it seems fitting to end with a quote, not from David, but from his grandmother “You will only get out of life what you put into it ” David’s life was a shining example of this. He made a huge contribution to Tonbridge and much enriched the life of those around him.

EVERETT, Billy (CR 75-89)

Billy’s obituary is written by her children Hilary (better known as Billy) Everett, died on 29 December 2022, aged 89, after suffering a stroke in August. She had been Christopher Everett’s wife for nearly 70 years and was Headmaster’s wife while Christopher was Headmaster at Tonbridge School from 1975 to 1989

Born in Surrey in 1933 Billy was the last of three daughters to a First World War Veteran and gifted pianist, Raymond and Mary Robertson. Having been brought up by her beloved Nanny, she thoroughly enjoyed boarding school and made lifelong friends at both Moira House and the Central School of Art and Drama, where she earned a teaching certification.

Billy and Christopher were married in 1955 and Billy ran a small school in their Oxford kitchen while he completed his degree! From there they moved into the British diplomatic world, first in Beirut from 1958 to 1962 and then in Washington DC from 1963 to 1967. Billy loved the challenge of creating new homes for the evergrowing family: Alexandra was born, the youngest sibling to Victoria, Charles, and Nicholas while they were in DC Energetic and social, Billy loved the communities wherever they lived and worked as a teacher throughout their many moves When Christopher left the diplomatic service to become Headmaster of Worksop College, Billy threw herself into learning a new role: Headmaster’s wife. By the time they arrived at Tonbridge, she played the part with gusto - thinking nothing of

teaching at a local prep school in the morning, hosting a visiting dignitarybe it bishop or MP - with senior boys for lunch, and then presiding over a concert with 220 guests in Skinners’ Library that evening - in the days when the headmaster lived in School House. While Billy performed these duties impeccably, running the house and garden with the countless staff of yesteryear, she had a great sense of humour and kept up witty correspondence with various masters who shared her irreverence With no internet, leaked papers were not a worry!

Billy had been a Girl Guide in her teens and jumped back into Girl Guiding while at Worksop and continued at the local and regional level when they lived in Tonbridge By the time they moved to Tunbridge Wells she was active at the national level, representing the Southeast on the National Board of the Girl Guides and serving in a national leadership role with the Trefoil Guild Several Guides and Guiders came to Billy’s Service of Thanksgiving on 25 January 2023 to express their gratitude for her support and energy in their lives!

Billy is survived by her husband, Christopher, and children, Victoria, Charles, Nick and Alex, and their grandchildren, Lizzie, Hattie, Charlotte, Henry, Bea, Millie, and Connie; Eben, Mikey and Kezia; and Esme; and great grandchildren, Theo, Ben and Martes

We have recently been informed of the deaths of Ian Boyce ( JH 58-63), Roger Ordish ( JH 53-57) and Judy Bushby. Full obituaries will be published in due course on Tonbridge Connect and in the 2024 magazine.

FROM THE CHALKFACE

The World Health Organisation ended its declaration of COVID-19 as a global health emergency on 5 May 2023 For Tonbridge School, it was a year earlier on 20 April 2022 when school life returned to its fully open and unrestricted prepandemic state. I was lucky that this coincided with my final term as Housemaster of Whitworth last summer, allowing me to fully enjoy my last few weeks in the role and to savour this rite of passage, after what has been an extraordinarily rewarding and happy 15 years at 11 Dr y Hill Rd. I’d experienced the emotional highs and lows of celebrating the five years and departure of so many Whitworthians over that time; Tara, Grace, Ruby and I found ourselves in a period of transition, with a house move ahead of us and the girls heading off for university. Emptying the nest of 70 boys and two of our own girls was going to feel ver y different indeed! That term also saw the departure of my beloved father and OT, David Biddle. It really was a time of change, endings and new beginnings for us and the School

Whilst adjusting to a new way of school and home life, I am also reflecting on how normal our return to normality actually is The challenges, stresses, opportunities and changes that the pandemic bore continues to impact boys and staff in complex and lasting ways and the world feels very different The isolation of lockdowns inflicted a

weighty load on some that resulted in declining mental health, whilst for others, the free time and associated boredom stimulated creativity and healthy recreation We have also seen the emergence of online workspaces that have enabled social and professional interactions with greater convenience and the added benefit of less environmental impact, be it for family catch-ups, parents’ consultations, or business meetings

We have though, also seen huge rises in the levels of anxiety and depression in young people in recent years and the pandemic certainly exacerbated this The fact that suicide is the biggest killer of young men under 50 shows us that something needs to change, whether it be offsetting the causes or building resilience Mental health is a muchdebated issue and we are all aware of the risk factors that can impact us; they are well-documented and reported Fortunately, Tonbridge School has evolved excellent levels of pastoral care and support in recent years, and, day to day, teaching and non-teaching staff are presented with an overwhelming majority of thriving, happy and engaged young men A community of supportive staff and boys, the energising buzz of fruitful teaching and learning and an extraordinarily rich co-curriculum provide an excellent diet However, it is abundantly clear that a number of our boys are having to live with poor mental health, at Tonbridge and beyond

Tonbridge is taking proactive steps to deal with this We now have Pastoral Education embedded in the academic curriculum, where boys and trained staff can openly and candidly discuss issues around mental health, sex and relationships, the pernicious effects of pornography and their online behaviours We are trying to break the taboos that keep these important topics in the dark They need to be aired and discussed frankly for our boys to develop understanding and insight into how these issues might affect their lives and relationships in the knowledge that it’s okay to share and articulate personal problems with trusted others These sessions are especially valuable, as they model and promote nuanced conversation where everyone’s views and experience can be heard, valued and respected; something to nurture and treasure in a world where online and real-world discourse can quickly become oversimplified and polarised

I am also privileged to have set up a Pastoral Outreach programme, with staff visiting universities to check in and catch up with recent leavers OT undergraduates benefit from a couple of ales on the School, at a pub of their choice, and the chance to swap notes with their peers whilst being reminded that the School community is still there for them should they need help, support or guidance Our first visit was to the Swan and Three Cygnets last term where over 40 OTs from Durham and Newcastle joined us for beers and conversation It was an evening full of warmth and goodwill, and we can’t wait for our next visit outside Tonbridge

Aside from some outstanding stage productions this year, one of the cultural highlights was the pandemicpostponed Lent term whole School concert where the School orchestra and the voices of all the other boys performed ‘Argo’, written by Hywel Davies These concerts happen every five years, giving every Tonbridgian a chance to perform at this scale I never fail to be moved by the voices of so

many working together to make beautiful sounds, whether its weekly hymn singing or large-scale recitals such as this that celebrate and showcase culture, creativity and collaboration

The School continues to value, promote and encourage reading too as a healthy and beneficial activity, as well as offering an alternative to some of the more wasteful online activities A visible sign of this is our recently restored telephone box that has been converted into a book exchange Upcycling and sustainability are subjects close to my heart, something I have been teaching at Tonbridge for many years The issues surrounding environmental sustainability are thankfully becoming top of mind for governments, organisations, households and individuals Tonbridge School is taking more responsibility in this area too and I was honoured to take on the newly created role of Head of Sustainability this year

This new role has been newly-created to help continue the school towards a carbon neutral future as well as

educating staff and boys about the complex and often conflicting issues surrounding environmental sustainability We are also working with outside agencies to develop a Carbon Net Zero Strategy and to score some ‘quick wins’ such as installing more solar arrays and electrifying the onsite fleet of vehicles There is increasing interest amongst boys and staff in this area and we have an enthusiastic boyled Green Committee that is being proactive in encouraging more efficient waste management and energy saving in their respective houses The added incentive of enjoying one of Bev Matthew’s homemade tray bakes and a cup of tea or coffee has probably helped attendance too!

On the subject of sustenance, an increasing number of boys and staff are now making use of our new teaching kitchens This is another side of School life that I am thrilled to see developing, having benefitted from learning to cook as a young lad and, to this day, enjoying the creative and social fruits of preparing and sharing meals with friends and family

It has been a joy to see a whole year of ‘full fat Tonbridge’ pass by where academic results are as strong as ever, our co-curriculum continues to grow and refresh and our busy lives make time fly again The School also continues to look outwards, embracing and responding to societal and global changes (such as navigating emerging educational AI tools) and seeking new and better ways to inform and educate our boys to prepare them for our rapidly evolving world

Will Biddle (PH 76-81 & CR 04-present day)

MARTIN BRENNAN

After 23 years at Tonbridge School – some 70 terms –Major Martin Brennan, better known to his cadets as ‘Boss’, retires from the role of CCF Adjutant In so doing, he turns over another chapter in a distinguished career in uniform spanning nearly half a centur y.

Guardsman Brennan joined the Irish Guards in 1975, aged 16, the son of a former Irish Guardsman who had since become a publican Martin had always wanted to be in the Army and initially expressed a preference for the Parachute Regiment, until his meeting with the Irish Guards recruiter After training at the Guards depot, he moved in 1976 to join his battalion which was stationed in Germany In 1980 he trained to be an instructor at the Guards depot, where he served until 1983 It was during this time that Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands: Martin went to see the Regimental Sergeant Major, a Welsh Guardsman, but his request to serve in the South Atlantic was refused (Martin recalls that he was, in fact, told to ‘turn right, and gain height’) Six of Martin’s recruits were killed when the RFA Sir

Galahad was bombed by Argentinian Skyhawks Martin would go on to spend six weeks in the Falklands later in his career, which he recalls as a barren and beautiful place with a persistent biting wind He happily confirms the story that the penguins do, indeed, look up and then fall over when overflown by a helicopter

Returning to the battalion, Martin undertook the Senior Brecon Course, earning a distinction and further promotion to the rank of Sergeant, and then Colour Sergeant in Brecon aged just 24 Martin loved this posting and spent over three years there It was during this time that a Junior NCO exercise in demolition resulted in a ‘flash-through’ of the det cord, which burnt through its whole length, not in one minute but rather in a matter of

seconds, giving Martin and three other soldiers no time to get away: the explosion hit Martin as he turned away to the left, resulting in extensive injuries down his right side All four soldiers were evacuated to Hereford by special forces helicopter, Martin displacing the co-pilot to sit in the jump seat whilst the other three soldiers lay in the back on one stretcher and two six-foot tables Two of the soldiers lost arms and another lost fingers; one of them eventually died of his injuries Martin was the luckiest of the four: he lost an eye and, with it, his sense of depth-perception and the all-important ability in a soldier to judge distance After his recovery he relearnt the skill by going into the hills with map, compass and camera, and in so doing was able to stay in the post which he so loved at Brecon

Stefan Hargreaves (CR 2010- present and CCF Section Commander) writes about Martin Brennan who has retired from his role as CCF Adjutant after 23 years at Tonbridge

On promotion to Warrant Officer Class 2, Company Sergeant Major (WOII, CSM), he returned to the battalion for the first time in seven years, initially taking 4 Company away for one month on their final training exercise At the completion of the exercise, a petition signed by the whole Company was presented to the Commanding Officer, a never-before-seen request for their temporary company Sergeant Major to stay on permanently Accepting the job, he turned the company around: soldiers with debt and drug problems were cared for and given proper support Returning to the UK, Martin took 4 COY to Northern Ireland to join what was the busiest area of operations in Lisnaskea Martin did two tours of Northern Ireland and relished the distinctly challenging experience of soldiering there

Posted back to Sandhurst for his second tour, now as Company Sergeant Major, he remained just nine months before promoting to Regimental Sergeant Major (WOI, RSM) at the age of just 34 Martin’s second tour in Northern Ireland came shortly before the Good Friday Agreement, when he saw first-hand the transition from patrolling in helmets with rifles at the ready, to patrolling in berets with rifles at their sides

Leaving the Army, Martin and his family bought a house up Norfolk and took a job doing close protection for the Onassis Foundation, working overseas with the children and grandchildren of Aristotle Onassis Keenly aware that he was missing his sons growing up, Martin’s wife, Lisa, saw the job of Adjutant advertised at Tonbridge School in 1999 Driving down to Tonbridge, Martin parked his car at the George and Dragon, and

changed into his suit and regimental tie After a four-hour interview, Martin was offered the job the following day

When Martin started at Tonbridge on the first day of the new millennium, his office contained two green metal filing cabinets, a phone which was wired directly into the ceiling, and on an old wooden desk, three trays: in-tray, outtray, ashtray Stores were empty and the garage was full of car parts The life of the Army Section was limited to weapon training and the only camp was one 12-hour exercise on St Martin’s Plain

After 23 years and 3 months as Adjutant, Martin leaves a Section and a Contingent in rude health Stores is fit to burst with all the kit needed to run three highly successful sections, and ever more of the CCF building has been converted to meet the everincreasing needs of a growing and successful unit A thoroughly honed training programme now includes as its centrepiece surely, the very best CCF camp available to cadets of all ranks and experience levels in the country The Quarter Guard, which he started in 2001, has developed from a group of twelve cadets to an Honour Guard of almost fifty on some occasions, performing a ten-minute

display of silent drill which is entirely unmatched by cadets across the country; and this has been recognised in invitations to perform at the Dover Tattoo and the Presentation of Colours to the 4th Battalion, Princess of Wales Royal Regiment, in the presence of Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark More than a few people have commented that the guard is the single most impressive thing that happens at Tonbridge School

Martin’s incredible legacy is shown in the fine state in which he leaves our Contingent; as well as the huge number of Old Tonbridgians who, thanks to his example and encouragement, have gone on to serve in the Army as well as in the senior and junior services Fortunately for us, Martin is not moving far: just across the road, to take up the job of landlord at The George and Dragon – like his own father, he is now a former Irish Guardsman-turned-publican; and, equally fortunately, he continues to work as a Cadet Force Adult Volunteer for the benefit of the cadets of Tonbridge School CCF After almost half a century in uniform, we’re delighted to say that we haven’t seen the last of ‘Boss’ yet

ANDY WHIT TALL (CR 04-22)

It was thanks to James Hodgson that Andy came down to stay in Tonbridge in 2003, although he told James, “I’m really not interested in teaching”. Andy left deeply impressed with the passion and professionalism of the Common Room –a quality he still believes makes Tonbridge such a special place. I first met Andy on a brisk autumn day in Grange Road, Cambridge, with the Zimbabwean fresher wearing shorts, t-shirt and sandals. Now I will tr y to capture the 19-year career of my university friend, teammate, colleague in the CR, and even co-coach of the 1st XI! 19 years of exceptional care and vision in at least six different roles –Director of Sport, maths teacher, master-in-charge of 1st XI cricket, Ferox Hall housemaster, Head of Digital Creativity, Director of the Tonbridge Society.

Andy Whittall, or 'Whitts' when he was not in earshot of the boys, parts company with the School he has served, not as long as some, but in as diverse capacities as anyone in its long and rich history This does not even include ‘parent’, a role which also ends this summer, as his son Ollie (SH 1723) also leaves

As our first Director of Sport (a role forged by Paul Taylor’s diplomacy with Martin Hammond), as well as maths teacher and master-in-charge of the 1st XI, Andy certainly had his hands full on arrival, though he admits that starting halfway through the Summer Term gave him something of a head start Starting with such a ‘holy trinity’ of roles is testament to his multifaceted skill set - with an

engineering degree from Cambridge, he was even asked if he wanted to teach physics or maths! He confesses that having Tim Jones, Nick Lord, Ian Jackson and Jeremy King in the department he chose, though daunting, had its benefits! As Director of Sport, his first huge task was to lead and bring to completion the new Sports Centre in 2009, which showed his vision, team leadership and project management skills to perfection

Prior to teaching at Tonbridge, and after Cambridge where he captained the university cricket team, Andy had been working successfully in sports marketing in London, including introducing the now ubiquitous foam advertising boundary rope to several countries under the design patent

which a Zimbabwean cricket friend had secured Mind you, getting certain countries to pay for it was a challenge for even his business acumen He had also started the Zimbabwean Professional Cricketers’ Association, played in the World Cup for Zimbabwe, starred in a video game ‘Brian Lara Cricket’ and faced Shoaib Akhtar in a test match as night-watchman! Tonbridge were clearly getting someone with a variety of skills

Andy is the first to admit that there was also the small matter of his university girlfriend living in the UK that might just have influenced his decision to quit professional cricket to get what his mother had always termed ‘a proper job’! A decision that was repaid in more ways than one, as that

Jonathan Arscott (PH 83-88 and CR 05-18) reflects on Andy Whittall’s career at Tonbridge

Amy and Andy

girlfriend is his now wife, Amy, and they still live in sunny Hildenborough with their three children, Isabella, Oliver (Head of Smythe House) and Jemima Andy admits, thankfully for us, they have no intention of moving and are very happy, in their little slice of Africa in West Kent

Tonbridge cricket was initially a tough job, but a labour of love His first captain was Olly Howick and he had talented players such as Ant Shales and Chris Hammond in the side, but other schools, notably Harrow, were very strong with Sam Northeast and Gary Ballance on the roster Success was not elusive for long, with back-to-back Cowdrey Cup wins for Hugo Snape’s and Tom Elliot’s sides, Fabian and Julius Cowdrey to the fore amongst others Later sides included notable names such as Zak Crawley, the O’Riordan brothers, Ben Earl and Ed Hyde among many other very good players

When asked what he thought being a ‘cricket school’ meant, Andy was quick to say he did not like this moniker as Tonbridge was so much more than thiswith extraordinary music, science and arts departments amongst so many other facets - a testament to his own understanding of what schools should be and his own versatility His answer to my mum’s question of whether he had taken some of what he has seen at Tonbridge to his Zambian schools’ venture (that he now leaves us to run full time) allowed him to stress the importance of a holistic approach Trident, his flagship school has got pupils into MIT, Oxford and a host of other outstanding universities and not for cricket! Nevertheless, Andy was quick to add that ‘Tonbridge is a school that has a genuine love of cricket’

As housemaster of Ferox, Andy and his family had some of their very happiest years He had a wonderful tutor team in Nick Lord, Colin Swainson and Jamie

Lawson, along with his matron Liz Hamilton, and her husband Alex, who deputised as ‘Matron’ at the weekends, making life in Ferox carry wonderful memories for so many The post wasn’t without its humorous moments Second Master Ceri Jones had to step in and quietly suggest that Andy’s brand of African discipline, with ‘station runs’ for serial offenders who were late for breakfast, might be deemed a little old fashioned! Laying his fire in that wonderful oak-panelled study did remain, however

One stand-out memory was an extraordinary house sixth form trip to Zimbabwe where the risk assessment was halted at 14 pages, as Andy felt he could not reasonably include all the risks of the trip! Peter Belbin was placated and after Ceri Jones had backed down on the matter of whether live rounds would be carried on safaris, where elephant and lion might be encountered on foot at Andy’s family ranch, the trip went ahead I was lucky enough to accompany it, and yes, it really was ‘the trip of a lifetime’ that none of us will forget

Itchy feet every few years, accommodating Headmasters like Tim Haynes and James Priory, and an obvious sense that this was someone we really needed to keep, ensured the roles kept coming - a stint as Head of Digital Creativity must have surprised a few, but not Andy who introduced our avant-garde and now much emulated, BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) policy for pupils Just one small example of his vision

It is perhaps in his final role as Director of the newly-formed Tonbridge Society that Andy has done some of his most powerful work, a role which also brought him into the Senior Team His organisational and people skills successfully brought together the OTS, Parents Arts Society and Foundation into one accomplished team within the Tonbridge Society office, increasing the range of events and communications and embedding a strong outwardlooking vision He has also been a very successful fundraiser (a school’s record for a ‘Giving Day’), allowing those who cannot afford it to benefit from all that a Tonbridge education offers

To assess the sheer scale of his other achievements we have to resort to a list: introduction of the academy system for hockey, cricket and rugby that allows us to compete with schools that seem to have limitless money and/or PE staff compared to our one hero at a time in Graeme Gales and Chris Morgan; starting the HMC Schools T20 cricket competition; MCC Cricket Committee member; founder of seven schools in Zambia in his ‘spare time’

Andy Whittall, visionary leader, schoolmaster, husband, father: singularly modest, universally popular, respected and admired Thankfully, it’s more ‘au revoir’ with your continuing proximity to so much you shaped We salute you and wish you every happiness in the future and success in your new passion, developing schools in Zambia - in a continent so close to your heart

Andy in Ferox Hall

VALETES

The following members of staff have given more than seven years’ ser vice to the School and are now leaving.

Larry Thornbury

CR 1994-2023

In the Michaelmas term of 1994, a young fresh-faced Lawrence Thornbury joined the Drama department He had been a professional actor featuring in Selling Hitler (1991), Kavanagh QC (1996-1998) and the Camomile Lawn (1992) amongst others on screen and countless performances off it Affectionately known as Larry by one and all, he joined the School as Actor-in-Residence.

He soon made his mark and became Head of Drama the following year, leading the department for the next five years Along with teaching and directing, Larry’s skill at propmaking soon became apparent If you have ever visited his office, you might just have been able to spot his desk amongst the lamp shades, bed pans, machine guns etc that are strewn around in a perfect chaotic order! Props are crucial for any production and because actors interact with them, the audience pay close attention to them Larry is a master at producing accurate props and his meticulous approach in detailing, according to style and era, are secondto-none He has always aimed high and has perspired to achieve authenticity – an appropriate malapropism?

The actor Dan Stevens once commented; “In the oddness of the public school system, English and drama were my salvation Jonathan (Smith) and Lawrence made the English department feel like a special place; they also recognised my passion for acting and were able to channel the various problems I might be going through as a teenage boy on to the stage It helped a lot ” This sentiment is echoed by many of the boys here at School Larry cares This is one of his greatest attributes, he is genuinely interested in the welfare

of everyone who crosses his path Countless boys have mentioned his infectious enthusiasm in the department and beyond I had the pleasure of acting with him in The History Boys in 2012 where his sage advice and care were warmly welcomed by this newbie ‘actor’

Larry’s directorial swansong at Tonbridge was the Lower Sixth Play, The 39 Steps by Patrick Barlow The acting by the talented and versatile cast was terrific The subtle and not so subtle ‘Larry’ touches were priceless! Beyond the classroom

Larry has enriched the life of the School in many ways He became master incharge of shooting in the Lent term of 2014 and ran a successful club for his fouryear tenure Alongside this he has been an active member of the CCF where he has been happy to impart his considerable

knowledge from outdoor survival to flying Larry’s presence will be missed at the School for his expertise in many fields Beyond this, it is his camaraderie and sense of humour that have enriched the school day at Tonbridge Aristotle once said, “Laughter is a bodily exercise, precious to health ” The School is certainly a healthier place for having had Larry in its employ

Jon Woodrow

David Love CR 2003-2023

avid Love came to Tonbridge School 20 years ago after a career as a technical engineer for Studio Builder, based in London At the time the School was developing ideas about better technical provision with an eventual view to building up the recording of events from sport to music, drama and other events.

With the growth of the instant image and easy availability of video his job has turned from the prosaic sounding AV Resources Technician to the grand Media Centre Manager with a few twists and turns on the way to the grander Digital Events Producer Keeping track of the very many Saturday games in particular as well as so many requests for other events, with the current stock of equipment has been, on occasions, quite a logistical challenge! This has meant putting up with the grimmest weather conditions on a Saturday afternoon so others can enjoy the eStream later or rushing from the end of a Chapel service on Skinners’ Day to ensure live coverage of the following Prize Giving He does, however, enjoy the company of the boys who have supported him through his managing of the tech work and have provided vital assistance and received top class training from him

An important educational pastoral feature of his time here has been outside his work and very much a health and safety issue with personal resonance: As a keen petrol-head he competed on motorbikes and in cars from clubman to international level However, competition driving and ‘normal’ roads don’t mix well: He was hit by a car, while on his Honda VTR SP1 motorcycle and feeling ‘fearless’, which partially severed his right leg below the knee, broke his pelvis, three ribs and a collar bone He has been active in giving talks about safer driving to those about to celebrate their 16th birthdays with a provisional license! Having had three girls to look after, he and Sam have decided they all can now think of what they would like next in their life journeys So they’ve bought a little piece of France, in the Occitan region in the southwest

As an immensely practical man he has chosen a property which needs a lot of work but might be looking forward to making it into a business together with some land which could be put to good use So clearly not a retirement package but a new life in a new place Exciting!

We wish him the best future as he navigates the other side of the road!

David Williams

Mark Ackroyd CR 2012-2023

Dr Ackroyd aka Ackdroyd or “The Droid” – origins unknown – started at Tonbridge in September 2012, and in the intervening 11 years has taught biology and chemistry, coached rugby, driven boats for sailing and minibuses for almost everyone, been a valued instructor with the climbing club, a ‘Legend of D of E’, a boarding house tutor in Judde and a day house tutor in Smythe

As a tutor in Judde, Mark had the most challenging year group for many years Mark took no quarter with them, he told them how it was and they respected him for it Mark knew the boys very well, spent a lot of time thinking about each of their futures, and he drove them hard so that they could have the best future possible He brought the same spirit to Smythe and is widely acknowledged as an excellent and conscientious tutor

Mark has devoted a lot of his vacation time to School trips Duke of Edinburgh trips are always eventful, and one Scottish trip involved Mark wading across a river in spate to return to the minibus, and then ripping both wing mirrors off playing ‘chicken’ with a campervan In the climbing club, on trips to Costa Blanca and El Chorro, Mark’s innate kindness meant that he would always look out for the (few) lads unable to climb elite-level grades with the others and made sure that they had appropriate routes to climb and were enjoying the trip Back at the School wall, Mark was the club’s ‘rope monitor’, ensuring that any frayed and worn ropes on the climbing wall were replaced One very concrete legacy he leaves us with is several hundred metres of spare rope in the cupboard, perhaps in anticipation of his leaving Ski trips, climbing trips and D of E trips will be the poorer for his absence

Schools like this rely on people like Mark Always involved, always going the extra mile, always putting the boys’ interests first, and generous with his time and even with his personal kit ‘Irreplaceable’ is the word that cropped up most often in consulting the Common Room about Mark Fittingly, his final contribution will be to lead a School expedition to South Africa (little known fact: Mark was born in Malawi) We wish him all the best in his new role at The Judd School, they’re lucky to get him, and we’re all pleased that he’ll still be just down the road and available for climbing trips in his reduced state school holidays!

Patrick North

Sarah Pinto del Rio CR 2015-2023

arah joined the English department in September 2015 and, immediately impressing with her administrative competence, she was given the onerous task of overseeing the outraged protest directed at the Cambridge International Examination Board after they had savaged the English coursework and exam marks that summer and demoted the grades of every single boy in the GCSE cohort.

Sarah’s letter that she wrote to CIE runs to over 2,500 words, and is trenchantly phrased and ruthlessly argued, qualities of Sarah’s with which we have all become familiar from her work running school debating, as well as her brilliant work as Union Representative defending the legal rights of her oppressed colleagues against the Tonbridge School ‘man’ Sarah’s capacity for hard work is immense, to say nothing of her attention to detail, painstaking care and basic common sense, and a great deal of the successes of the English department in the seven years that she spent as Second in Department are down to her vigour and resourcefulness In fact, speaking of resources, one of Sarah’s great skills, left over from her long apprenticeship working in state schools, is her ability to construct Power Point presentations running to over 50 slides in length No one else in the English department had ever even read a PowerPoint that long, let alone written one, but Sarah’s GCSE Language and Literature revision Power Points are mighty bastions of the English Department Firefly site that will still be here when we are all long-gone

Despite her outstanding competence for the job, Sarah always said that she would never want the stress that comes with being a HoD, and that she didn’t even think that she would be very good at it So it was with tremendous pleasure that we learnt she had accepted the job of Head of English at Our Lady of Sion School in Worthing, and of course Sarah will be absolutely brilliant at being a Head of English, because apart from her omni-competence in administrative terms, she is first and foremost a fantastic teacher who really values her students’ progress and development She has excelled in teaching texts as diverse as Frankenstein, Butterworth’s Jerusalem, Oranges are not the Only Fruit, The Handmaid’s Tale, One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest and The Duchess of Malfi Her lessons were always assiduously well-prepared, and no students in the School were better prepared for their public exams than Sarah’s Her students would come to Sarah when they were in difficulty, both academic and emotional, and have learnt so much in the last eight years from her acute intellect and wonderful emotional intelligence

We, in the English department are losing the hardest-working, sparkiest, best friend to us all, and for many of us the best colleague we have ever had Thank you, Sarah, for everything you have done for the Tonbridge School English Department, and the School as a whole, over the last eight years

Nick Waywell

Hugh grant CR 2014-2023

There was great excitement when the announcement was made that Paul Ridd’s replacement at Head of Biology was none other than international movie star and playboy, Hugh Grant. His academic pedigree was very impressive, made even more so as he must have been filming Love

Actually alongside his studies

When Hugh finally appeared in September 2014, we realised our error, but he quickly set about showing us that we had recruited the better HMG Arriving from a jet-setting few years at Dubai College and North London Collegiate in Jeju, South Korea, Hugh was keen to return to England with his wife Jenny and their young daughter Phoebe, with Zoe quickly following Jenny is a historian who taught at Bromley High and is currently completing a PhD in Polish Military History

Within the Biology department, Hugh had big shoes to fill and a heavy-hitting department to manage With the Head of Science, two boarding housemasters, a PhD biochemist and his predecessor to provide advice, Hugh set about the task of enticing more students to the top floor of the science building to study A level Biology Various approaches were tried –snakes and lizards found homes in the department, tests were written enabling students to score over half marks and young dynamic teachers like Joe Painter and Aisha Cooper were recruited Eventually, a straightforward solution to the top-floor conundrum was found – Biology moved to the middle floor during the creation of the Barton Science Centre I much enjoyed working alongside Hugh as we considered the design of the BSC and possible solutions to get the most out of investment in the department His attention to detail and common sense, when planning logistical phases, helped ensure the smooth transition to and from the ‘Temporary Science Village’

With Biology safely established in its new home, and extension activities revolving around sauerkraut and yoghurt bubbling away nicely, Hugh sought a new challenge, stepping into Russell Freeman’s shoes as the newly defined Performance and Data Co-ordinator He has revolutionised this role and ensured that housemasters and heads of department have access to and understand the significance of myriad pieces of information that give insight into the development of boys in our care Phrases like ‘average of averages’ have become commonplace, while the ability to compare data across different terms has helped guide impending changes to the reporting process

I have also had the pleasure of seeing Hugh away from the academic side of his role He is a mean football coach, bringing unexpected pace and the ability to chat at length to anyone on the field, and served the RAF section loyally Given his multiple talents, it was no surprise that Downe House snapped him up as their new Deputy Head academic and we wish him all the best for his role there

James Fisher

Neil Coomber Deputy Head Catering 2000-2023

eil arrived at the end of August 2000 from the Great Danes Hotel, looking somewhat different from his first visit to the Orchard Centre; it was then we found out he had dyed his hair brown to look ounger and now had grey hair!

Neil’s arrival marked a new era at the Orchard Centre, he was brought in to make changes to both the staffing and the food across the campus, and in 2006/7 the School was awarded the Healthy Eating Award for offering healthy menu choices

Neil introduced a wide range of menus, along with new ideas of cooking and serving dishes He soon became known to our suppliers as a bargain hunter, which had its good, and bad points As I was his Head Chef at the time, I liked getting new sauces and ingredients to use but on one occasion he got such a good deal on mince pies (only 5p a pie for 50 cases of 72 mince pies) he ordered 3,600 of them! I had to think of every way possible to use so them, so I dusted them, iced them, crumbled them, served them as sports tea cakes, the list went on and on It took me from January to March to reinvent them all

In his time as Orchard Centre Manager, Neil oversaw more than 500,000 meals served Neil then moved up the ladder to become the Food Production Manager in 2005, and then Deputy Head of Catering, where his keen eye for a bargain or discount really came into play Although he was well liked by our suppliers, they all knew that when he rang or asked them to come in and see him that he may well be taking the shirt off their backs

Neil oversaw the effects of both Brexit and Covid, with the catering department stocking up on thousands of items that would be needed when daily deliveries were unavailable He cared a great deal about boys missing out or having to be served a different meal because of something we couldn’t control We encountered huge problems with items not being delivered and thanks to Neil’s foresight we were able to plug the gaps with our

stores – we had everything from Coco Pops to poppadoms, and frozen chicken to garlic bread

Neil has seen the School change in lots of ways When the Tonbridge School Centre opened in 2008 he helped make a massive model out of cake for the launch celebrations, and in 2003 when the School celebrated its 450th birthday he helped cater for over 2,000 people on eight big BBQs

He was a big supporter of local producers and always tried to use as many of these as possible, many of which we still use today, from our mini tubs of Solley’s ice cream to our sausages from Speldhurst

Over time the role became bigger and bigger with Neil overseeing everything from stocktakes and ordering, to new van tyres, but he shone in this role He also started upgrading all the kitchens with the Evolve Project He helped introduce more modern equipment, and helped restructure School, Smythe, Judde Houses and the Orchard Centre

In total Neil helped deliver well over 5,000,000 meals in his 23 years and has seen over 1000 new catering staff come and go during his career He will always be remembered for his support, dedication and for just being there when you needed him

When he wasn’t fulfilling his role, Neil would be booking holidays, going to music concerts in particular those of his favourite band, Keane, or driving his beloved cars

We can’t say goodbye to Neil, without mentioning Highland cows, and the love of his life Monty, and the other love of his life, his long-suffering and lovely wife, Linda

He will be very much missed around the whole School campus and by everyone that knows him On the upside, he will get to book more holidays and the department looks forward to saving money on Post-it notes

Have a great retirement, Neil and thank you for everything

Stuart Marle and Rebecca Peek

CAREERS AND MENTORING

I am always amazed at the sheer number of sectors our OTs have excelled in Being able to share their successes with the current boys and inspire them to reach for similar goals is always such a positive experience and one of the ways we do this is through our online, career-specific evenings Sometimes boys can find it hard to apply their academic studies to the workplace, but hearing the stories of those that have gone before can often flick a switch and help to give purpose to their endeavours and encourage them to reach their full potential

This past year we have had talks on perennial favourites law, finance, sports related industries, medicine, software engineering and cyber security Two OTs joined us for a talk about law; Simon Perry (PS 84-89) and George Ewen (PS 05-10) They were able to talk through the process of application and shed light on the roles from graduate trainee through to Partner

Medicine followed on, with the Perry family taking centre stage once more with Dr Nicki Perry, wife of the aforementioned Simon, their son Alex Perry (PS 13-18), a student doctor at Leeds, and Charlie Pearson (WW 14-19), a student doctor at Cardiff, all talking about the extensive training and possible routes that medicine can offer

Our new subject of Software Engineering and Cyber Security came next with Dan Jarvis (MH 94-99) and Ed Hill (WW 11-17) joining us from the US and London Dan now works for Meta on their VR projects and Ed has designed and developed the BrightSign Glove, which translates signs into the spoken word They gave very different stories of their experiences postTonbridge, but both were keen to promote the sector to those with an interest in software engineering and the ability to look forward to the possibilities new technology will bring

The perennial favourite ‘Finance in the City’ came next and this year we were very fortunate to persuade amongst others Jake Brewer (WW 11-16) and Ollie Davies (CH 09-14) to join the panel Jake is a senior geopolitical analyst at Gatehouse Advisory, advising investors on conflict scenario planning in the energy sector Ollie Davies (CH 09-13) is Assistant VicePresident in Private Equity and Real Estate Investment at Citi, so perfect examples of how varied the career choices within finance can be

We finished with Sport and listened to Ross Bennett (CH 05-10) tell us about his role as General Manager of Tonbridge Angels, where he can be found getting involved in every aspect of running a football club Alastair Taylor (CH 04-09) is a Senior Director at CSM Sport and Entertainment and joined from South Africa where he is currently based Alastair helps clients respond to the growing expectations of consumers through advancements of technology

Other popular topics over recent years have included Civil Service, entrepreneurship, property, energy and sustainability, F1 and automotive engineering If you can suggest a topic that you think will resonate with current boys or would be happy to speak at one of the evenings, do please get in touch

Our other major event of the year is our Networking Garden Party, held towards the end of Summer Term in the Library Gardens Our last gathering was on a lovely evening in late June where we were delighted to invite OTs and parents past and present to join us to chat to Lower Sixth boys about their sectors and to give advice and guidance to those interested in similar careers A total of 16 OTs came along from a range of sectors including the Civil Service Thomas Mobbs (WH 13-18), Will Arndt (CH 08-13), Marcus Ringer (HS 08-13); finance Chris Booth (SH 08-13), Henry Kevis (WH 08-13), Alex Wheble (WH 10-15), Mark Pettman (WW 81-85); IT/ software Freddie Isaac (OH 05-10), Will Thompson (OH 16-21); law George Ewen (PS 05-10), Henry Evans (OH 02-07), Simon Perry (PS 84-89); PR Dom McCarthy (JH 81-85); education Luke Masters (PH 13-18); film Vikram Jayanti (Sc 68-72); property Chris Hammond (PS 00-05) Along with over 50 parents and friends it made for a lovely evening with conversations flowing We are always looking for OTs to join us, so do get in touch if you’d like to take part in future events

Work experience continues and is beginning to happen in person again after a few difficult years with boys having to make do with virtual placements, which although having value weren’t really the same Hybrid and home working has made some

Looking at the current boys’ university offers for 2023 there is a definite international flavour with eight boys accepting offers to study in the US including Princeton, Chicago, Columbia, Southern California and Duke European offers include Italy, Austria, Netherlands and other have offers from Canada and Hong Kong

roles, notably in the City, a bit tricky, but we are happy with a few days in the office and a home task or two, which is after all representative of current working patterns Boys have lots of varied interests, but finance, law and engineering continue to dominate requests If you feel you could offer a few days in any sector do contact Portia

Looking at the current boys’ university offers for 2023 there is a definite international flavour with eight boys accepting offers to study in the US including Princeton, Chicago, Columbia, Southern California and Duke European offers include Italy, Austria, Netherlands and others have offers from Canada and Hong Kong A strong showing of 27 Oxbridge offers and over 65% receiving at least four offers from their UK choices suggest a solid set of applications These are made more powerful by being able to include work experience and guidance on career options, supplied in great part by our alumni and for which we are immensely grateful Added to the mix, in the past year, is the opportunity to apply for Degree Apprenticeships and we have a student beginning his career at Barclays and gaining his degree whilst being employed and paid Security of a job and no debt is definitely a tempting option and, with Russell Group universities getting involved and degrees in finance and engineering proving particularly popular, I am sure we will see more boys enrolling on this pathway in future years

Portia King (Careers Adviser) portia king@tonbridge-school org

Mark Pettman ( WW 81-85)

Richard Hough (PH 79-84)

Will Arndt (CH 08-13)

Tim Beckett (Sc 67-71)

Two OTs, Max Medhurst ( WW 10-15) and James Denton-Clark ( WW 88-93) have taken ver y different career paths. Max has set up his own business, ‘Icenine’, while James has followed a career in advertising and is now the newly hired CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi, one of the leading advertising agencies.

“Let’s get shots!” - a phrase that evokes mixed emotions I am not sure anyone truly enjoys the taste of throwing back a small glass of bottom-shelf vodka, yet there’s an undeniable draw to the shared experience that is a round of shots This was the inspiration behind our venture: capturing that experience – a moment shared with friends on a night out – but transforming it into something playful and genuinely delicious

At Icenine, we have created a completely new drinking experience: bite-sized ice spheres filled with quality spirits We’ve designed these ice spheres to burst in your mouth, resulting in an explosion of flavour and a unique experience Pop our margarita-inspired Icenine into your mouth and you’ll first taste the citrusy lime shell with a hint of salt cutting through Then, after nine seconds, the refreshing shell will burst open to release liquid tequila The low freezing point of alcohol means the centre remains liquid while the outside is frozen By combining different shell flavours and spirit fillings, we can create hundreds of different flavour combinations that mean you’ll never have to down your shot with a shudder again

My co-founder and I have been working on Icenine for just over a year In 2022 we focused on developing and testing our product, trialling it at private events, parties and a nightclub in Soho – all to great success Through a huge amount of experimentation, we developed a scalable manufacturing process to bring us to launch and with careful analysis we created a detailed business plan with cost estimates for the next three years for employees, production spaces, machinery, R&D spending, utilities, patents, packaging, transport, and much more We were delighted to close our pre-seed funding round at the start of this year, with six angel investors collectively investing £150,000 We have also secured a strategic partnership with Husky Intelligent Fridges BV, a subsidiary of Husky International Together, we are creating custom Icenine freezer units which venues will use to store, display and serve Icenines Now we’re rapidly working towards our

official launch this summer: building a bespoke production line, creating eye-catching packaging, developing striking freezer units, and – of course – formulating even more fabulous flavours

With so many concurrent projects, it’s an exciting but busy time at Icenine Tonbridge prepared me well for the challenge of my entrepreneurial journey, particularly when it comes to working at such a high intensity in a way that’s not just sustainable but enjoyable As our Chief Technology Officer, I’ve found myself frequently utilising the practical skills I gained through countless afternoons and evenings in Tonbridge’s Design Technology workshops, as well as the technical problem-solving skills which I started developing in the classrooms and then refined through my Mechanical Engineering degree at Cambridge

We would love you to follow Icenine’s journey through our website at icenine-drinks com Please also feel free to reach out directly if you would like to learn more about Icenine or know somebody who can help us on our way

Max Medhurst writes about Icenine

Icenine: Max and his co-founder

As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be in advertising

Well, that’s not strictly true Tonbridge RN CCF got me interested in the Navy (didn’t have the eyes for it), and then the Army (didn’t have the fitness for it), and then the security services (didn’t have the who knows what they want for it) However, those interests still served me well in advertising as I led the recruitment for the British Army Breaking stereotypes and recruiting the next generation of ‘snowflakes’ and ‘gamers’ Asking what it’s like to be gay in the Army; or female; or a Muslim Changing the view that to be the best you have to be a white macho man who likes guns (although they do want them as well, please, so go for it guys)

I love provoking the media; I love breaking taboos; I love work that gets people thinking or looks to change the world We just did a campaign for the United Nations to support the 17 sustainable development goals Big hairy audacious goals like ending poverty in all its forms everywhere

Advertising these days is no longer just about the poster or the TV ad We no longer look to (solely) interrupt people’s days with paid for advertising spots We look to be relevant within social media We look to drive national headlines We try to get people to think different or just do it

And this is done in the service of business and brands It’s commercial work that sells things and you get paid well, we’re reassuringly expensive Graduate starting salaries will not be the same as in banks or law firms, but when you get up through the ranks it starts to even out The pro quo for your quid is the compensation of being in a creative industry where you get to make cool things You get to work with the most extraordinary people You get to do work that sells washing powder, but also work that potentially changes people’s lives

You can’t do that in Canary Wharf, well unless you work for Ogilvy & Mather of course

I’ve worked in big global advertising networks, and I’ve worked in scrappy independent start-ups I’m now CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi, the original gangsters Two outlaws who took on the advertising industry and changed it

forever, with provocative work for the Conservative party ‘Labour Isn’t Working’ and the ‘pregnant man’ (would you be more careful if it was you who got pregnant?)

That gangster spirit lives on within an industry that wants to disrupt the norm and challenge conventions We may not do it within the same channels that we used to, but the goal remains the same Get noticed Be relevant Challenge people’s behaviours Blow some shit up

James Denton-Clark ( WW 88-93) writes about his journey in advertising

THE IMPACT OF A FOUNDATION AWARD

The Foundation Awards programme is at the heart of our widening opportunity work. It is designed for life changing opportunities for those young people of talent and ambition who simply cannot afford the fees.

We know from many years of experience that Tonbridge School has inspired and been inspired by having such high-calibre and determined young individuals. It is a win-win situation where everyone benefits.

We asked two recipients of a Foundation Award, across the generations, to tell us about what it meant to them.

someone who shares that passion and someone to help you develop it I had never spoken a word of German when I arrived in Year 9, yet here I am writing this on the way back from a Modern Languages University Open Day

The Foundation Award has also allowed me to delve into both drama and music, with School plays and piano lessons - something I have enjoyed immensely They say that if you can play an instrument, you have a friend for life There’s a lot of truth in that

Ialways used to drive past Tonbridge School with my Mum, and she would point out the window saying how good a school it was. When I first heard about the opportunity of coming here by way of a Junior Foundation Award, I was keen to apply, but at the same time probably too young to realise how much it would change my life

The fact that I could go for an evening swim with a friend or join a beekeeping club - these are things I never would have been able to do if it wasn’t for the Foundation Programme Tonbridge is a place where it doesn’t matter what your passion is, you can always find

I'm not quite sure what I will do with my life, but I often think about whether I would have even done one language at university - many schools don’t even offer two I will be forever grateful to the Foundation Awards Programme for these opportunities

Tonbridge is a school that can take pride in many things: its academic achievement, the communal sense between teachers and boys, the fantastic facilities But the fact that Tonbridge School can also unite boys from opposite financial backgrounds and offer boys the opportunity to learn and thrive together - that is something truly remarkable and inspirational Sam Edwards (PS 18-23)

Transform lives with a donation, however large or small Become a member of the 1553 society with a regular gift or become a member of the Judde Society by leaving a gift in perpetuity with a legacy

Ican still remember the day in 1958 when I was playing with a group of friends on the village green in front of my parents’ pub in Groombridge and my mother came out to tell me that I had won a scholarship from my local primary school to a prep school in Tonbridge That turned out to be Yardley Court (in its former premises) where I was shrewdly guided by the various Bickmores, but especially Maurice, from a position of knowing no Latin or Greek to being able to sit for, and win, a scholarship to Tonbridge three years later, leading to five years in Manor House

I was surprised at how quickly I then settled in as a boarder in such new surroundings, and I never felt ‘second class’ because of what I had foolishly perceived to be an ‘inferior’ background Despite the somewhat rigid and petty house rules largely based on seniority (which I am sure have long since gone) it was a generally friendly environment, under Vernon Hedley-Jones, who set and achieved high standards And the house Praes, who initially seemed like somewhat vindictive gods, in reality mostly set a good example to the younger boys, and even paid us for fagging

Academically, I progressed quite quickly (too quickly, perhaps) but more importantly – and like all the boys - I was encouraged to take advantage of many out-of-class activities I enjoyed sport, especially cricket, though I was never much good at it, but I participated keenly in music (orchestra and military band), debating, and the Athena Society

In my last year, and to my surprise, I was appointed Head of School by Michael McCrum That gave me two terms of remarkable experiences and responsibilities, fully encouraged and

supported by both McCrum and Hedley-Jones

After Tonbridge I took a degree at Trinity College, Dublin, and I then joined the Bank of England, where I spent the rest of my working life

So what did Tonbridge teach me from a non-academic perspective? Here are just a few examples that were of great help in my later life First, simply getting on with people, both fellow schoolboys and masters, and listening carefully to what they said The boarding environment means that you can’t escape close and prolonged exposure to a range of individuals, and life soon becomes miserable if you can’t get on with them

Secondly, I became relaxed about public speaking My first major experience of this was in my last term at School, when the School Praes were invited to lunch in London with the Master of the Skinners’ Company and his senior colleagues After several glasses of sherry and then some wine, the Master turned to me and mentioned that he would be saying a few words and he hoped that I would reciprocate My first speech in such august company, and absolutely no warning of it! My daughter’s wedding was a breeze after that

Thirdly, I gained experience in how to chair meetings, which became a surprisingly useful attribute in later life

Fourthly, being willing and able to take responsibility After a few years at the Bank of England I had a performance review where, when asked if I had any comments, I complained that during my time in the Bank I had never had as much responsibility as during my final year at Tonbridge This prompted a somewhat surprised reaction and did lead to some subsequent improvement

Finally, once I realised that I was never going to make my name on any Tonbridge sporting field as a player, I turned to umpiring That helped the masters in two ways - no longer having to find a place for a sub-par performer, while also having on hand an additional whistler Umpiring requires its own set of skills and I continued to umpire both cricket and hockey for many years subsequently

Tonbridge also provided the opportunity to make my television debut (which was also my finale) when the School participated in the shortlived programme Sixth-Form Challenge – a companion to its much more famous university version However, that was not Tonbridge’s finest half-hour

Of course, it would be foolish to suggest that I would not have developed any of these skills at the grammar school that I was expecting to go to rather than at Tonbridge But Tonbridge did, I feel sure, provide an intensity of experience and life-long learning that it would have been hard to replicate as effectively elsewhere

John Bartlett (MH 61-66)

CELEBRATINg WIDENINg ACCESS AND OPPORTUNIT Y

Giving Day is our flagship initiative to widen access to the amazing opportunities that a Tonbridge education provides.

Our aim is to have between 80 – 100 boys at Tonbridge on Foundation Awards (bursaries) by our 475th anniversar y in 2028. Thanks to your support, we are making tremendous progress.

In the 2022/23 academic year, for example, 16 new Foundation Award scholars joined Tonbridge, taking the number of Foundation Award recipients in the School up to 67 (up from 39 a few years ago). It is wonderful to think that your philanthropy may well have paved the way for a future leading engineer, medic, composer or filmmaker.

Our aim is to ensure that we continue to attract the most academically able and talented boys, and Giving Day plays a crucial role in helping us to achieve that. Widening access, in turn, helps us to raise the level of achievement for all, to increase the diversity of the Tonbridge experience and to further enhance the academic and co-curricular life of the School.

New Foundation Award scholars joined Tonbridge

RAISED FOR THE FOUNDATION AWARD PROgRAMME

TONBRI TELEPH CA MPAIGN TH ANK

logging pigs, debating… w a s on ly in Z ac , Foundation 2 weeks, 12 y

TONBRIDGE GIVING DAY 2023

Our School community showed “extraordinary generosity” as Giving Day raises £525,000

Tonbridge’s Giving Day, for the second year in succession, raised more than half a million pounds

Since the School’s inaugural event in 2021, the total sum raised by Giving Day for the Foundation Awards Bursary programme stands at more than £1 5 million

This year’s event was supported by 680 donors as well as match funders, challenge gift sponsors, boys, parents, staff and the wider School community of OTs and friends

On 28 and 29 June, during the last week of the Summer term, many hundreds of people across the School community worked together to help support Tonbridge’s mission of increasing its number of Foundation Award places

James Priory, Tonbridge’s Headmaster, expressed thanks for the “extraordinary generosity” of everyone who supported Giving Day – now a tradition in the School calendar “In the context of today’s cost of living crisis, it is even more important for us as a School to do everything we can to support young people and to offer them the very best chances in life,” he said

The theme of community plays a large part in Giving Day. Nearly 700 children, from 14 local schools, spent a day at Tonbridge taking part in a range of sporting, artistic and academic activities Pupils were looked after by Tonbridge’s first years, with activities run by sixth formers and staff members.

The School’s young visitors tried their hands at all sorts, from archery, art and

athletics to dance, poetry, drama and science, with everyone encouraged to have a go at something new “We are very grateful for the opportunity to see how fun and interesting science can be,” wrote one teacher from a visiting primary school following an activity in the School’s Barton Science Centre

“The Tonbridge boys were great the children particularly loved the session on rockets ”

There were also 12 off-site projects taking place, involving more than 350 second and third year boys, as they ‘gave back’ to the local community Boys and School staff visited a number of local primary schools to help with projects such as creating nature areas, planting, installing water features, organising fun runs and helping pupils prepare for sports days and drama productions.

Boys also headed to the Tonbridgebased Multiple Intelligence Hub and the Scott’s Project charity, for a packed day of activities which included painting play areas, creating wood-chip paths and decorating. At Princess Christian Farm, in nearby Hildenborough, students helped create a sensory room, including making touch boards, painting murals, installing sensory toys and hosting sporting challenges.

Others headed to Barden Lake in Haysden Country Park, working alongside staff and volunteers from Kent County Council to help tackle bank erosion and to improve the overall environment for visitors

All Giving Day gifts go towards to the Foundation Awards fund.

Some of the activities taking place both at Tonbridge and in the community during Giving Day 2023

Adr ian Ballard

Director of the Tonbridge Society

As I write this piece for the OT magazine for the first time, I have just returned from watching the OT team playing in the Cricketer Cup on the Head, whilst the School hosted a reunion for the classes of 19852000. What a setting and in incredible weather!

It is an immense pleasure to join such a great School and I am keen to achieve a great deal for the School and Society with the OT community’s help and guidance We hope to increase the number and range of reunions, dinners and informal drinks in the coming months reaching out to year groups, professions, and groups around the globe and across the UK If you have any innovative ideas then please let us know I have already met close to 150 OTs one to one who have given me feedback on events and ideas.

We are hoping during 2024, to host over 20 reunions and events from regional lunches to our new informal ‘Second Wednesday’ evening gatherings in the Vintry in Abchurch Lane. We welcomed over 40 OTs to the first one Each event is designed for you to connect with old friends and meet new contacts Each year we will also be holding a house reunion starting in 2024 with the 50th birthday celebrations for Whitworth on Sunday 7 July, this will continue as we build toward the bumper gathering at the School for the 475th anniversary of the School’s founding in 2028 Please do watch out for the events as we are trying to ensure every OT has at least one event per year relevant for them.

We also hope to bring together new events relevant for both parents and OTs as we launch a series of events under the banner of the Tonbridge Society including a series of business

breakfasts in London from the Autumn These complement both the OT events and the highly successful Parents’ Arts Society

You will also see in this magazine the success of the Tonbridge School Foundation and its great Giving Day working alongside the boys to widen access to the School but also work constructively with the local school and town community It is the mission of the Foundation along with other projects to widen access to talented boys who would otherwise not have had the chance to benefit from a Tonbridge education We have already had the chance to support 67 boys and hope to increase this to 80 to 100 boys by 2028 Thank you to those of you who gave to Giving Day in June and helped us raise over £500,000.

Finally, I must acknowledge the incredible work done over the last eight years by Andy Whittall, who is spoken about at length elsewhere, my esteemed predecessor. Thanks also need to be given to the hard working Tonbridge Society team and especially here to Tara Biddle, the OT Relations Manager as well as the editorial committee of the magazine, all our contributors, the OTS Committee, and of course our incredible Editor, David Walsh.

We look forward to seeing you at reunions in what remains of 2023 and in 2024

FROM YOUR LEGACY TO THEIR FUTURE

It has been a great pleasure for me to meet so many members of the Judde Society since joining Tonbridge Tara has done a fabulous job in managing the Judde Society and I know will enjoy meeting many of you with her new OT hat on.

The Judde Society is designed to honour those who have left the special gift of a legacy to the School that remembers their time at the Tonbridge In my previous school this group met regularly and I am keen to hold special events for Judde Society members exclusively in 2024 and in the year as we build toward the 475th anniversary of the School in 2028.

If you are considering a gift in your Will to Tonbridge then please let us know if we can help with anything and we look forward to you joining the Judde Society

If we have not had the chance to chat in the last year then please reach out to me on 07749 703449 or adrian ballard@tonbridge-school org and we can arrange to meet.

As we approach our 475th anniversar y, it is our hope that Old Tonbridgians and friends will consider including the School in their Will and so become part of this important tradition.

Adrian Ballard Judde Society Manager

“I am eternally grateful to the School for giving me the will to succeed”

Nick Jarrett (SH 47-50)

“My legacy pledge to Tonbridge is the result of my gratitude not just for myself but also for my son, who far better than I has shown the benefit of a Tonbridge education”

David Cave (Sc 42-47)

tonbridgesociety@tonbridge-school