KGS Friends, December 2016

DECEMBER 2016, ISSUE 20

www.kgs.org.uk/community/alumni

KGS Friends

...INCORPORATING THE OLD KINGSTONIAN ASSOCIATION

Alumni News

Roger Marlow Those who happened to be visiting Kingston Market on Saturday 24th September may have seen Ruby, Roger Marlow’s 1935 MG PB. Roger (OK 1961) and his beautiful car were drumming up support for the Rose Theatre’s Christmas pantomime, ‘Wind in the Willows’.

The car has also been used in the theatre’s poster for the panto, albeit in cartoon form. Tickets are available on the Rose Theatre’s website: www.rosetheatrekingston.org/whats-on/the-wind-in-the-willows

Richard Dawes Congratulations to Richard Dawes (OK 1993), whose company DawBell continues to draw accolades and garner garlands in the world of PR. The company was ‘recognised’ in the PR Week Specialist Consultancy of the Year Award on 18th October and honoured with a Highly Commended in the Specialist Agency category at the PRCA Awards on 8th November.

Josh Williams Josh Williams (OK 2012) made his Donmar Warehouse debut in ‘One Night in Miami’ this October to December. It is wonderful to see how far he has gone since his starring role as Tobias Ragg in KGS’s Sweeney Todd.

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sam Ainsworth Congratulations to Sam Ainsworth (OK 2010) who won the National Student Film Festival awards - Best Thriller, for his short film Cabrón.

This was Sam’s final graduation project for his Masters at the Met Film School. It has now been selected to screen at twenty forthcoming festivals and we look forward to sharing it when it is released to the public.

Sebastian Baxter

Andrew Cohen

Congratulations to Sebastian Baxter (OK 2002) who is now the proud father of Leo Charles Baxter, born 28th October.

Prompted by Eddie Cole (OK 1984) to attend the 80s reunion, but unable to make the trip from the USA, Andrew (OK 1984) wrote to share his memories of KGS update us on his life since then.

Andrew Cohen was at KGS from 1979 until 1984, where he was “taught Physics by Mr Turvey and Mr Krzyz, Chemistry by Ron Gilmour and Mr Cook, Mr Putnam and Mrs Ashton, Biology by Mr Parfitt (where is he now?), Geography by Roger Brown and Ray Ward, History by Mr Grossel and Mr Howat, French by Mr Jones and Maths by Mr Davies (Dai). Mrs Cairncross taught me English. All were very good teachers…

“I left KGS in 1984 with terrible A level results (Maths, Chemistry, Physics) and went to Brooklands to resit, after which I did a BEngEE degree at Newcastle-on-Tyne Polytechnic and worked as an electronic design engineer for three years then moved into semiconductor product marketing for Digital TV (Think Sky/ Freeview etc). I emigrated to San Francisco in 1996, worked at Microsoft, AMD, Comcast Cable and Samsung, got married in 1998 and had two kids, Gemma and Sam, who are now 14 & 9. I am now divorced and have tea parties with my cats.”

Any OKs who would like to contact Andrew should get in touch with us at friends@kgs.org.uk

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From Journey’s End to The Dam Busters Old Kingstonian R C Sherriff came to fame with his World War 1 drama ‘Journey’s End’, which was based on his own experiences as a young officer on the Western front. Its success made him a household name and opened the door to a highly lucrative career as a novelist, playwright and screenwriter, both in Hollywood and Britain. In all he wrote 20 plays, 10 books, and over 50 screenplays, including classics such as ‘The Invisible Man’, ‘Goodbye, Mr Chips’, ‘The Four Feathers’, ‘Odd Man Out’ and ‘Quartet’.

KGS parent Roland Wales has now written the first comprehensive biography of Sherriff, and it reveals a life filled with incident: his fraught experiences in the trenches on the Western Front; the overnight success of Journey’s End; his experiences in the early days of the ‘Talkies’ in Hollywood; his tussles with the movie censors, and with the Nazis who sought to destroy his scripts; his years in Hollywood during WW2, when he was both chastised as a ‘shirker’, yet also wrote ‘Lady Hamilton’, Churchill’s favourite film; and a stream of plays and movies in the 40s and 50s, culminating in The Dam Busters, which prompted the Guardian critic to commend him for finding ‘the right dramatic dialogue for the men of 1939-45, as well as those of 1914-1918’.

Visit Roland’s website at www.rolandwales.com

Peter Freitag Peter Freitag (OK 1967) and his wife Marilynn recently stopped off at KGS on their travels around Europe and the UK. They have lived in Australia for many years now and Peter was until recently a teacher at Scotch College, an independent boys’ school in Western Australia.

The Freitags met in Kingston when they were both at school and have been together ever since. Coming back to KGS and seeing the Cage brought back a lot of memories for Peter, who played hockey at international level and has hosted KGS hockey tours to Australia on a number of occasions.

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James Buchanan The new £5 note can play a vinyl record... Raising the value of the pound. This turntable only accepts £5 notes.

As the pound falls to new lows, let’s bop to the baseline... This ridiculous piece of happy news has struck a note.

James (OK 1995) used to worry about speakers, but has found a new way to cash in on his passion! The pound may be down, but the tunes are up! See his video here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtNXDTPBzB0

72nd Anniversary Contact KGS Friends @KGS _ friends friends@kgs.org.uk 020 8939 8859

On 1st October, a group of friends met at the Commodore Hotel in Instow (Devon, in case you don’t know) to mark the 72nd anniversary of our arrival at KGS. I am pleased to report that memories are just as keen, though I must also point out that we don`t spend all our time reminiscing. There is too much else to talk about. And that is as it should be. After all, the world has to be put to rights, and who better to do it than distinguished alumni of KGS? Berwick Coates (OK 1952)

mark Spr ackland We were very sorry to hear of the sudden loss of Mark Sprackland (OK 1980), who passed away on the 17th November after a short diagnosis of cancer. Whilst at School, Mark was in Taverner House and represented KGS in squash and table tennis. We recently caught up with Mark and his classmates at the 1970s Decade Reunion in 2014, where they re-created their old school photograph outside the cage (pictured left). Our thoughts are with his friends and family at this sad time.

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Andrew Wakefield Andrew Wakefield (OK 1973) died suddenly on the 26th October.

Andrew joined the KGS preparatory form in 1965. He was the middle of three brothers, all of whom went to KGS; their father was the highly efficient secretary of the Parents’ and Staff Association. Andrew’s academic career at the School was successful. When he joined the Sixth Form, he was one of four pupils who managed to persuade Tony Prichard to teach them A Level Theology.

He recalled the lessons as most enjoyable, if not always entirely focused on rigorous academic study.

After a brief flirtation with Politics at Southampton, Andrew read Theology at King’s College London, prepared for the ministry at Mirfield College in Yorkshire and was ordained priest in 1979. After curacies in Mitcham and Putney and a spell in the Wimbledon Team Ministry, he became Vicar of St. Andrews in Wimbledon in 1991 where he stayed until his untimely death.

Andrew belonged to the liberal wing of the Church and, as his flirtation with Politics at university might suggest, had both the desire and the talent to involve himself with the wider community. He became a pivotal figure, both in the Borough of Merton and across London. He 6

was Chair of Merton Chamber of Commerce, the local credit union, the Safer Neighbourhood Board and the London Civic Forum. He had a deep commitment to inter faith work and was universally admired by all faiths for his sincerity and practical effectiveness.

Andrew was no prig. When not involved in parish and community work, he had a huge range of interests. He was a season ticket holder at Crystal Palace and a loyal follower of Kingstonian FC. He was devoted to Surrey cricket and annually attended the Oval test with a group of fellow Old Kingstonians.

He followed the Tour de France obsessively and revelled in the recent success of British cycling. He loved Bruce Springsteen and Richard Thompson, Shakespeare at the Globe, and walking his dog, Darcy, on the Common.

Andrew’s sudden death was a great shock. It brought fulsome tributes from both Wimbledon’s Conservative MP and the Labour leader of Merton Council. These were matched by comments on the Surrey and Crystal Palace supporters’ forums and a public tribute from Kingstonian FC, where there was a minute’s applause for him at half time at the next home game. AFC Wimbledon

also expressed gratitude for his committed support for the building of their new ground. Andrew loved Twitter and many other individuals and organisations used social media to pay their condolences.

St Andrew’s Church overflowed for his funeral. For perhaps the first time, all his friends came together, either to pay or to listen to moving tributes to his extraordinary contribution to civic life. He was a true and irreplaceable pastor and an irrepressible personality. It was so fitting that the University of Roehampton recently awarded him an honorary doctorate in recognition of his community work.

David Grossel (OK 1968)

Geoff Hunt We deeply regret having to report the death on 13th September of Geoff Hunt, OK 1961 and former Captain of School. Geoff died at home after a short and cruel illness. He was 74. Our deepest sympathies are with Geoff’s family at this difficult time.

Peter Allen (OK 1961) writes: “I was a prefect under Geoff when he was Captain of School. He was a great leader and role-model. Like many others I particularly remember his escorting the Queen during her visit to the School in 1961 - a duty he carried out with great credit to himself and the School.”

Alan Eldridge (OK 1964) writes: “Alex, Geoff’s daughter, had been with him earlier in the day, and Jackie, his wife, and his cousin were by his side at a very peaceful ending. Amazingly he had attended Alex’s wedding barely two months ago, where he gave her away and produced a very Geoff-like ‘father of the bride’ speech. Only two weeks ago I was with him in his sitting room where he enjoyed some cheese and biscuits, and a small glass of rum and ginger ale! It has all been so peacefully quick but devastating all the same.”

Chris Nelson (OK 1960), Geoff’s Vice-Captain, remembers happy days: “The immediate image that passed through my mind when I heard the sad news about Geoff was of the summer of ‘59, when Geoff, Duncan, Nobby and I had a chaotic and totally irresponsible 14 day cycling holiday together in the west country. So much water has passed under the bridge since then!”

David Millichap (OK 1961) writes: “I’ve not seen much of Geoff in recent years but have very fond memories of our school days together. I’ve always held a great admiration for his customary aplomb on the occasion of the Queen’s visit. He was a fine captain of the Hockey 1st XI for two successful years.

Geoff and I, along with Duncan and Nobby, spent much of our out-of-school time playing sport, cycling far afield, listening to rock music and visiting as many pubs as would let us in! I shall remember a fine chap of many talents and attributes.”

Gopal Srinivasan (OK 1961) shared these sentiments: “Geoff was a good friend during my schooldays in the 1950s through to 1961. I fully agree with the thoughts shared by others. I should like to add that he took on his role as School Captain (1960-61) with enthusiasm and commitment in the days when the duties entailed a very wide range of responsibilities including maintaining discipline throughout the school. He was a good team leader.”

And Richard Carter (Ok 1961) remembers: “Geoff and I were the only two who had intended to carry on with Greek in the Sixth Form and were disappointed when the HM would not timetable it that year. So we ended up in Doc Nicholls’ French and Spanish class, and I suppose we had to be grateful that through his ministrations we both gained a place to read Modern Languages at Oxford. Unfortunately, Geoff and I rather lost touch in the course of our studies, relations tending to be college rather than faculty based. I was glad to receive a phone call from him about three or four years ago, although we never met again face to face at any of the KGS reunions since, which I much regret.”

Pictured are Geoff, on the left, and Chris, on the right, with Her Majesty on the historic occasion of her first visit to the School in 1961

Clive Penny We were sorry to hear of the death of Clive Penny (OK 1969). Clive’s father and two uncles were Oks, so it was not surprising that he followed them to the School. He was an able student with a facility for languages. In his day, it was possible to avoid sciences at ‘O’ level altogether, by opting for Greek and Latin, and Clive chose to follow this path.

He was well taught in the middle school. Tony Prichard laid the foundations in his inimitable way and ensured that Clive had a secure framework in Latin and Greek. Clive was also a talented modern linguist, but eventually opted for Classics in the Sixth Form.

All four members of his Greek set went to Oxbridge.

In later years, Clive enjoyed reminiscing about this time, remembering with especial fondness Cecil Richardson’s Latin lessons.

Clive chose to read law at Caius Cambridge, but was not drawn to the Law as a career and joined the Home Office, spending many years as an immigration officer at Heathrow. Unfortunately, his health began to fail in his early fifties when he was diagnosed with severe diabetes. This affected both his mobility and his eyesight and contributed to his early retirement.

He subsequently moved to Herefordshire to be close to family and gave much support to his parents in their last years. Sadly, he discovered earlier this year that he was suffering from terminal liver cancer.

Clive kept in close touch with many friends from the School and communicated regularly via Facebook. He had been a keen opera goer in his KGS years, thanks to Tony Prichard’s connections at Covent Garden, and his musical tastes remained engagingly eclectic. He retained fond memories of his time at KGS and many Old Kingstonians visited him in his final illness.

David Grossel (OK 1968) KGS Friends

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recent Events

1980s Decad

Quiz Evening Saturday 8th October saw a mighty assemblage in the Hall of brain-boxes, boffins and brainiacs for the annual KGS Friends quiz. The teams who turned up to answer their questions had some clever types too, and it was clear that plenty of fish had been consumed and loads of gingko-biloba taken on board in preparation for the event. In some cases a bit of swotting might have come in handy as well.

It was good to see a group of recently departed rowers taking part and competing fiercely, with all that old Boat Club spirit, for the honour of last place, denied to them by a titanic effort from last year’s wooden spoon runners-up, led by Gopal Srinivasan. It was a good year for previous runners-up; at the other of the scale end years of training paid off for Team Pugh and Park with an emphatic victory after a long run of second-place finishes.

Our thanks to question-setter Stewart McCartney for his fiendishness and fairness, to guest questioners Jenny Shpeter, Joe Hilty and Matthew Pugh, to former parent Anne LewisLloyd for running the bar and to Jerry and the caterers for another top curry. Next up it’s the PSA Quiz in ????. I’ll look forward to seeing you there!

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On 19 November I overca first KGS reunion. For thr remember me; thankfully generous hospitality have The occasion was the 198 former pupils and staff ga reminiscence. Former pup and Northern Ireland, and to get reacquainted with Marks, Barry Bladon, Karat a disadvantage in thes master, but it would be u to remember you, especi Still, I was delighted to se remembered me. As the l imaginable, I didn’t have or Mr Cook (Chemistry), w Also present were Mr Mill Barker, Mr Bond, Mr and M Gunatillake, Mrs Haggas, seem to have discovered After a delicious lunch, p which, while familiar in p undreamed of in my day: the boys’ lavatories in th to the prefects who gave to all who contributed to Oliver Tims (OK 1988)

de Reunion

ame 28 years of timidity and attended my ree decades I have worried that no one would y, I was wrong, and the warm welcome and e made me eager for the next event.

80s Decade Reunion, which saw 130 ather at the school for drinks, lunch and pils had come from as far as Mexico, Madrid d of course it was a particular pleasure old friends, including Richard Taylor, Jon -Mun To and Andrew Lockett. Teachers are se situations: no one forgets their old physics unreasonable to expect the physics master ially if your physics were as poor as mine. ee Mr Turvey again; and Mrs Wisbey even least scientifically distinguished Old Boy the courage to speak to Mrs Ashton (Biology) who made a delightful speech of welcome. ler, Mr Creber, Mr Ambrose, Mr Balkham, Mr Mrs Brailsford, Mr Cooper, Miss Crothers, Mrs Mrs Rushforth, Mr Stribley and Mr Taylor. All the elixir of eternal youth. prefects led groups on a tour of the school, places, has attained levels of luxury : no more prefab huts for art and English, and he quad even have a roof. We were all grateful e up their Saturday to entertain us so well, and o such an enjoyable day.

“It was lovely to meet so many successful, grounded ex-pupils - I came away so proud to have been part of their development.”

Pauline Crothers “Many thanks for such a wonderful day yesterday. One of the highlights of my year! What great people we had at KGS and long may it continue.”

Jane Fearn “It was just wonderful to have an opportunity to catch up with so many former colleagues and students. My thanks again for organising the very enjoyable and successful event.”

Chris Taylor “It was great to see so many faces many of whom I’ve not seen for (ahem) around 30 years give or take.”

Neil Sinclair “Thank you for a wonderful afternoon…I so enjoyed meeting staff and past pupils and hearing all about their lives and achievements. I had a really lovely time.”

Mary Rushworth

Careers in Media Dinner On the 1st of November, Fifth and Sixth form students were given the opportunity to network with seasoned veterans from the media industry and other KGS alumni through a pre-organised gathering of like minds at Jamie’s in Victoria. Professional journalists, film makers, editors and producers all took time out of their busy schedules to speak to the up-and-coming KGS talent, helping to provide the next generation with the skills they require to succeed and offering useful contacts.

With each course of the meal the seating placements were rearranged allowing for more interaction between the hopeful students and the alumni, at least some of whom, we hoped, might be looking for promising students to offer work experience. A natural similarity of interests allowed the conversation to flow and the atmosphere to remain convivial throughout the evening.

The professionals were impressed by the drive displayed by the students and the students were fascinated by the stories of how their forebears had forged their way in a competitive sector. I hope the professionals were reassured that their industry would be safe in such enthusiastic hands.

Theo Cons U6

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Forthcoming Events The Kingstonian December Look out for the newly designed issue of The Kingstonian that will be hitting your mats and inboxes this December.

If you would like to receive a hard copy, and haven’t yet told us please do get in touch with your address details and we would be happy to send you one. friends@kgs.org.uk

Careers Evening Thursday 26th January Careers evening will once again take place this January with a fabulous array of over 40 careers represented by alumni, parents and friends of KGS, for pupils to discover. We are always looking for great volunteers for such events so if you would be interesting in joining us, please do get in touch!

Careers in the Visual Arts Thursday 23rd February The latest in our series of special evenings devoted to interesting career paths will be an exploration of the visual arts. Alumni, former staff and parents representing the worlds of fashion, fine art, architecture, graphic design and more will showcase their work in a special exhibition and talk about their lives and careers.

This very exciting occasion will be a must for people working, or hoping to work, in a visual medium, be they seasoned professionals, just setting out on a

career, or interested in doing so. The evening will provide an invaluable opportunity to talk to established practitioners, exchange ideas and contacts, share good practice and learn from the experience of others. It will also be an evening of general interest to a wider audience without a career focus.

Careers in the Visual Arts takes place in the QEII building. Please look out for booking information, and we look forward to seeing you there.

KGS Or atorio, Camina Bur ana by Carl Orff saturday 18th march, 7pm 10

Lee Campbell Art Exhibtion

Professional Networking Evening

The Baxter Gallery

the Lansdowne Club

Thursday 2nd march

Thursday 4th May

Twickenham-based artist Lee Campbell will be exhibiting a selection of her work at the School and we are hosting a viewing from 6.30pm to which KGS Friends are warmly invited.

Lee, who has a studio on Eel Pie Island, specialises in oil paintings and is an art tutor at Kingston University.

She has very kindly agreed to donate a proportion of any proceeds to the Lovekyn Chapel restoration fund.

Through the good offices of the Head Master, we are pleased to announce that, following the success of the event held in the Palace of Westminster in April, the next Professional Networking Evening will be in the beautifully appointed Ballroom at the prestigious Lansdowne Club in Mayfair on May 4th.

Full details will be published in the next issue of the Newsletter and online, and will be circulated by e-mail and on social media. Places are limited so please book early!

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From the Archive

Spanish and French Circle production, Christmas 1957 For this year’s seasonal feature, I would like to take you back to yuletide 1957, when the highlight of the Christmas Term came in the form of a show presented by the combined French and Spanish Circles. These photographs of the production, along with a description including some names, were kindly donated to the KGS Archive by Roy Holliman (OK 1949-58) in 2011. Roy sadly passed away in 2012.

The production was led by Dr Nicholls, who Roy remembered ‘suffered from a disease of the nervous system and could not stand still, walk very well or speak very intelligibly’. He overcame these disabilities to get the boys through their exams, put on many excellent shows and also drive a car.

The following account of the production is from The Kingstonian, May 1958: ‘The plot, loosely adapted and abridged from Calderon’s play “The Mayor of Zalamea”, with Falconer

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as the wicked Captain; [Michael] Drummond as the gallant Commander; [Hugh] Bodger as the kidnapped daughter; [Tony] Glass as the King; and Webb as the mayor; supported by [John] Belcher, [Roger] Annett, Conway and Margrett, was enlarged to contain a routine by a brigade of guards, a dancing girl, a skiffle group, a bear dance, songs in four different languages, and other diversions, all of which was greatly enjoyed by a large audience.

Thanks are due to the ladies for the make-up, Mr. Cripps for the announcements, and Dr. Nicholls, whose painstaking efforts behind the scenes contributed no little to its overwhelming success.’

If you were a part of this production, please do get in touch. We would be thrilled to hear your memories of it, and it would be great to put more names to faces.

Joyeux Noël! Feliz Navidad! Merry Christmas!

Stanley Shoveller

School News

Stanley Howard Shoveller was born in 1881 in Park Road, Kingston. He joined KGS (then known as Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School) in January 1892 and was playing centre forward in the school 1st XI by the age of 14. Shoveller left KGS in 1898 and went to work at the London Stock Exchange. He continued to play Hockey, however, representing Hampstead Hockey Club as well playing for Middlesex in 1899 and, from 1901 Surrey. He played for the South in a regional competition in 1901 and was subsequently selected to play for England in a match against Wales in 1902, scoring the ‘prettiest goal of the afternoon’ according to the Manchester Guardian. Over the next 19 years, Shoveller made 29 international appearances. He scored six goals for England against Wales in 1906, as well as scoring five times in one match on three separate occasions and achieving ten international hat-tricks in total.

In 1908, Hockey was admitted to the Olympics and Shoveller represented England (the four home nations competed separately). England took the Gold Medal defeating Ireland in the final. The First World War forced a hiatus in Shoveller’s Hockey career.

Volunteering at the outset of the war, Shoveller gave service throughout the conflict, being awarded a Military Cross in 1915 and rising to the rank of captain by the end of the war. Resuming his international Hockey career in 1919, Shoveller captained Great Britain at the 1920 Olympics at Antwerp securing a second Gold Medal twelve years after his first. Shoveller played his final international game in 1921 and retired from playing Hockey in 1922. His contemporaries regarded him as the extreme exponent of his sport. After his retirement, Shoveller became vice-president of the Hockey Association and an England selector.

Shoveller married in 1938, but did not have any children. He and his wife (Vera Mary) moved to Dorset, where he died in 1959.

Robot Wars Three Third Year members of the Tech Club, accompanied by Head of DT Derek Farr, enjoyed a unique experience competing in Robot Wars. Filming took place over several days in Glasgow, and the bout will be on BBC2 in the New Year. Our lips are sealed about the details and the outcome, but do watch out for KGS’s debut appearance.

Kids’ Lit Quiz Sensation!

KGS are now national champions of the Kids’ Lit Quiz.

The team of four first and second year pupils, coached by a fantastic team of Sixth Formers, stormed to the regional title at KCS Wimbledon and then swept away all competition in the National Final at the Barbican.

Next stop Toronto and the World Finals in July! Watch this space!

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were used during the years that followed, and it is unclear exactly at what point it became a place of learning, but what we do know for certain is that Queen Elizabeth’s School was formally endowed in 1561 by Elizabeth I and a school remained on that site for over 300 years before its pupil numbers outgrew it and the building fell into disrepair. In 1878 the pupils moved over the road to what is now the main London Road school building and, following a much-needed restoration, the Chapel reopened to house the Upper School.

The Many Faces of A Kingston Icon Through the centuries thousands of souls, young and old, must have entered through the Gothic arched doorway of the Chapel of St Mary Magdalene, better known as The Lovekyn Chapel. Here we take a look at some of the varied uses to which our beloved chapel has been put, from its origins as a chantry chapel to its current status as a multipurpose venue for students and the local community.

A Gateway to Heaven and the Entrance to Kingston.

In 1309, Edward Lovekyn, a prominent caterer and businessman in Kingston, received permission from Edward I to construct a chantry chapel on the London Road. Its position is significant in that it marked the entrance to the town and was on the main route into the capital, a road which Lovekyn himself helped to pay for and maintain.

The purpose of a chantry chapel is to provide a place of prayer for the repose of the souls of one’s family – in this case the Lovekyn family.

Those who could afford it would pay for the clergy to ‘put in a good word for them with the man upstairs’ thus ensuring that you and your loved ones avoided the torments of hell, or at least spent a reduced period in purgatory.

Siting his chapel by the London Road may well have served as a reminder to the chaplains who resided within that having helped to pay for such a vital route into London Lovekyn was therefore worthy of their spiritual intercessions.

A School by Royal Appointment Following the Reformation, the Lovekyn Chapel was deconsecrated, its altar removed and even the stained glass taken out and transplanted to Kingston Parish Church, which is why today’s building no longer holds the ornate windows one might expect of a medieval church.

There is little detail about how the Chapel and adjoining buildings 14

Rope burns and splinters Poor Edward Lovekyn may well have been turning in his grave at the start of the 20th century when his beloved chapel became the School gymnasium. Quite why this decision was taken remains a mystery, particularly as the main School hall would have served the purpose far better; nonetheless photographs from this time make for fascinating viewing. A school inspector’s report in 1914 describes it with unwitting understatement as ‘too narrow for the purpose and of an old fashioned type’.

Many Old Kingstonians will recall – hopefully with fondness – the days when the Chapel housed the Prep Form and later when it acted as a workshop for woodwork. Jonathan Mole (OK 1987) remembers doing ‘circuits’: Unbeknown to Mr Rogers a couple of us, namely Ned (Neil) Palfrey and I, used to do circuits around the Chapel. We would take it in turns to be the ‘lookout’ while one of us would go through the small door on the far left hand side to a wooden shed that stored all the larger pieces of woodwork we were working on. We would close the door, climb on top of the shed roof, then onto a 12-foot wall. We would crawl along this wall peering into a Tiffin (‘Sniffitts!’) boys’ classroom then drop down into a yard/front garden near to where music lessons were being conducted.

We would then open a garden gate and sneak back in the main door of the Chapel on the London Road after knocking three times and being let in by the ‘lookout’. I think the record was 10 circuits in a double period held by Ned Palfrey in 1983! We were never caught once!

If music be the food of love The Chapel in the 21st century is a far more soothing and welcoming place. Despite the constant rumble of traffic on the one-way system, once you are inside it is surprisingly quiet and the (mostly) sweet melodies of our students can be heard most days. Music lessons and examinations regularly take place in the Chapel and the rehearsal rooms in the adjoining building.

Meanwhile, on evenings, weekends and during holiday times we do our best to share this historic gem with the wider world. It may surprise you to know that it is possible to have your wedding at the Chapel. In fact, we estimate that since 2003 at least 400 happy couples have tied the knot there and we have hosted countless concerts, community events and exhibitions as well. Once a year we throw open our doors for Heritage Open Day so that anyone who wishes to can come and soak up over 700 years of history. The building may have begun life as a private space but today it is very much part of the community and is a unique piece of Kingston’s heritage that is of both local and national interest.

Another 700 years – your chapel needs you!

Given how much Kingston has changed, even in the last 10 years, it is somewhat of a miracle that the Chapel is still standing. It is the oldest building in the town and, as the last free-standing chantry chapel in England, constitutes a unique piece of our history.

A recent conservation survey highlighted urgent work that is required to keep the building safe and preserve it for the future; next time you’re passing you may be able to see the deterioration of the stonework for yourself. We are pleased to confirm that we have the go ahead from Kingston Council to carry out the necessary works and are keen to hear from anyone who may wish to support our campaign to restore this much loved treasure.

For further information: KGS Foundation 020 8939 8803 foundation@kgs.org.uk

All Change in the Development Office In January we will welcome a new Head of Development. Liz Beatty joins us from the Rose Theatre, where she ran a successful marketing and development programme. She is the permanent replacement for Kathryn Moore, who joined us in 2013 and who has been on maternity leave for the last year. Kathryn will mainly be remembered, as well as for her infectious enthusiasm, for her work on the Ditton Field Redevelopment Campaign, which included the world-record breaking 48 hour hockey marathon.

Kathryn’s maternity leave was covered by Chris Conneely. We thank him for being such a positive colleague and for doing much more than keeping the ship afloat in Kathryn’s absence. We wish both Chris and Kathryn every success and happiness in the future.

Liz’s first challenge on joining us will be to raise funds for the vital refurbishment of the stonework on the Lovekyn Chapel, a much needed maintenance project.

Bursaries will also be a priority in the years ahead. We look forward very much to working with Liz and wish her every success.

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