The
Heron The Newsletter of Loughborough Grammar School Edition 9 June 2014
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June 2014
CCF in Sunlight For the first time in recent memory the CCF Review took place at the end of the Spring Term instead of the beginning of the Summer Term and for the first time for years the weather decided not to rain on the parade! In beautiful Spring sunshine on 29th March one of the best Reviews for years was staged in the Quadrangle with nearly 250 cadets taking part and a very large group of spectators looking on. The warmth of the occasion was reflected in the Reviewer’s address by Group Captain Nick Sharpe, the Chief Executive of the East Midlands Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Association, who took as his theme the triumph over adversity embodied in one of our most famous old boys, “Johnnie” Johnson, and whose complimentary remarks about the superb display he had observed were equally warmly received. Congratulations go to all involved in producing an impeccable March On and March Past; to the RAF and Army Drill display teams; and to the Inter-service Field Gun Race teams who excelled themselves with the Army team triumphing for the third time in a row (counting their performance at the National Armed Forces’ Day in Nottingham last summer) with a near record time of 2 minutes 25 seconds and no penalties.
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Particular credit must go to Josh Matthews whose command of the Parade was remarkably assured and impressive and to the outstanding Standard Bearer party comprising Conor Jakubas, Nikhil Dattani-Patel, Jack Edwards and Matthew Law. To them and to the other Year 13 Senior NCOs who drilled their Escorts and Sections with maturity and confidence, thanks and congratulations are due for their proof of the success of the aim of the CCF “to develop powers of leadership by means of training to promote the qualities of responsibility, self-reliance, resourcefulness, endurance, perseverance and a sense of service to the community”. The Priestley Sword winner this year was Cadet Coxswain Alex WestinHardy, who received the sword from Mrs Daphne Priestley in a ceremony which has quickly become an integral part of the morning’s Parade since its introduction last year, and whose courage and fortitude in being present after a spell of hospital treatment was applauded with particular fervour. The Symphonic Wind Band under the direction of recently commissioned Second Lieutenant Aidan Geary enjoyed their warmest playing conditions for years and the music they provided was much appreciated for its aptness and for its wonderful contribution to the morning’s atmosphere so thanks and congratulations are due to them in equally generous measure for what they brought to the occasion. The final plaudit goes to Cameron Sim who led the Corps of Drums (now richly enhanced by the addition of new members and fifes) for the last time after having done so for a record four Remembrance Day Parades and four Review Parades. The ’Drums were superb and his leadership of them was as impressive as ever.
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June 2014
‘Books on the move’ Day. Saturday 15 February 2014 Ten bold readers from Year 12, accompanied by CGW and BKM, delivered talks on a range of books in a variety of London locations, from dark Batmanology and Einsteinian time travel in Granary Square behind St Pancras Station, to the ethics of so-called chemical cheating in professional sport at the Central St Martin’s College of Arts and Design. The symbolism of angry red colours in graphic novels was addressed in the London Library and father-son relationships in a cannibal-infested post-holocaust universe were explored on an abandoned floor of the Royal Festival Hall: in effect, a form of literary free-running or parkour.
Travel & Tr ip
25 LGS boys and 15 LHS girls accompanied by 5 teachers jetted off to the Bay of Naples for 5 days over Easter. Amongst other things, they were able to wander the streets of Pompeii and Herculaneum as well as ascend Mt Vesuvius which was responsible for the destruction of them both in AD79. They also visited Cumae, the supposed site of Aeneas’ entry to the Underworld in Virgil’s famous poem, the Aeneid. The weather was beautiful, the ice cream delicious and the pupils behaved extremely well and enjoyed learning about the region in which Caecilius (the hero of the Cambridge Latin Course) lived and worked!
The day’s murky morality was enhanced by a viewing of Louis Malle’s classic noir, ‘Escalier a l’Echafaud’ –with sub-titles – at the Mecca of film, the BFI on London’s South Bank. The day was marked by impressive philosophising and original thinking along with strong pizza-sharing skills.
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Tr ips
June 2014
Wonderful, wonderful… Copenhagen is accepted as one of the World’s “greenest cities” and as urban sustainability looms large in our A2 Geography studies at LGS, a visit seems an obvious thing to do and, whilst there, why not hop on a train and take in another example of green planning in Malmo, just over the Oresund Bridge. So it was that a group of Year 13 Geographers and two teachers left Stansted Airport towards the end of the Easter break for four days of exploration. Copenhagen did not disappoint and it soon became obvious that we in Britain have a lot to learn about how to organise urban transport and waste disposal. Rush hour Friday: where are all the cars and what is that strange smell? Fresh air no less! Yes, it is the bicycle capital of Europe with well over 1 million kilometres cycled in the city each day! We joined in and a guided, 25 mile ride took in many of the sustainable projects being undertaken and it has to be said that Mike, our somewhat eccentric guide, made it a most enjoyable experience, even if we did ride round in circles in government building car parks! Waste disposal is also a key issue: the city is crossed by numerous water courses once used as sewers, but they are now very clean: we saw one piece of litter, a newspaper which could be read at a depth of 2 metres! Saturday included a trip to Malmo, more specifically to Vastra Hamnen the largest single sustainable living project in Europe which is transforming an old submarine shipyard into a modern, hi-tech community. Vacuum waste disposal systems, integrated heating systems, vast areas of solar panels, wind turbines of all sizes, biogas-powered buses, electric car charging points and many other sustainable initiatives are being introduced, making the area very attractive. The transformation from old to new is epitomised by the company Kockums who once made submarines (tubes) and now make wind generator pylons (tubes).
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June 2014
An Amazing Tec h of a Pro d Way, way back three decades ago, not long after LGS became a fully independent school, a staff production of “Joseph” took place in the Hodson Hall. It was adjudged, as Hamlet might have said of it, “A hit. A palpable hit!” On the 12th, 13th and 14th March 2014 another production of the show took place, this time in the Drama Studio and it, too, was a hit, a glorious combination of much younger talent and ensemble playing which wowed the full houses with its joie de vivre and its sheer exuberance. It was, in essence, an absolute riot of music, lyrics, costumes, colours and spectacle which would not have looked out of place in a West End theatre, such was the professionalism of every aspect of it. With the brilliance of the set, lighting and technical support and the composed underpinning of the compact band, the young cast rose to the occasion magnificently, led by a remarkably assured and polished Jacob Leeson as Joseph and a trio of uniformed narrators with beautifully complementary voices in the shape of Heather Daniel, Jade Robertson and Holly Prangley. George Evans outkinged The King himself as Pharaoh and Aksel Saukko-Paavola’s calypso turn was convincingly Caribbean. And all were most ably supported by a committed and engaged “band of brothers”. This dream did more than “do”.
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c hnicolor Dream o duction
June 2014
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June 2014
Journalists’ Ease Budding Burton Correspondents and Junior journalists perfect their lines for the BBC School Report in March using the latest and most accessible technology at their disposal – the Ipad.
A Level students show art imitating life in the goldfish bowl of theatre
Oxbridge Men, Shades of Blue Successful applicants to Oxbridge colleges stand shoulder to shoulder in anticipation of their curtain call on A Level Results’ day
Present Prefect The Head Boy, Deputies and the Prefects who have served the school in 2014. It is sobering to reflect that 100 years ago such young men would soon be volunteering to serve their country.
Chiaroscuro Class Act GCSE students perform in contrasting styles with no punches pulled – despite appearances.
Theatre Rules! OK? GCE AS actors demonstrate that some theatre is all about face
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June 2014
Charitable Ovation
Breakfast gold Charity breakfasts have become a popular way of raising money for charity, not surprisingly since our wonderful catering staff always put on a feast for the participants. Last term, it was Year 8 who tucked in and their generosity will certainly be used to good effect by Rainbows.
Annual humiliation “We are taller than they are, we can throw the ball further and we play basketball, so where’s the problem?”
Out of the frying pan With Easter being so late this year the annual Quad Pancake Race didn’t take place until well into March. A number of gallant Sixth Formers managed to complete the course and some even managed successfully to toss the offending delicacy on the way, though most took a battering!
Anthony Nolan Trust
Thus spoke one Year 13 about the second running of the netball match against LHS. No one told him, obviously, that you can’t throw the ball a long way and playing basketball isn’t actually a great help – the rules are different! OK, the boys are taller, but they are by no means as nimble as the girls who actually know the rules and who did, after all, get to the National Finals. Needless to say, LGS came second!
There are some things that make an old schoolmaster realise why he does the job and the fact that well over 400 Sixth Formers from LGS and LHS signed up to donate stem cells for the Anthony Nolan Trust was certainly one of them. It was a truly magnificent response.
It was great fun and a lot of money was raised for the Teenage Cancer Trust. Well done everyone.
Battle of the Bands It was once again time to don eardefenders, especially so this year as the annual battle of the Bands was held in the low-ceilinged Hodson Hall Extension. The talent on show was even better than ever and again it was all in the name of charity.
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June 2014
SPORTING P The Under 16 Hockey Team has progressed to the Midlands Finals to be played later in the season. Having been successful in the County Tournament they came up against Worksop College and Bromsgrove School in the “Zone Pool Final”, which was played at Loughborough. By defeating Worksop College in their first match and despite losing to a very strong Bromsgrove team in the final match, the team secured its place in the next round, the winners and runners-up of which go through to the National Finals. Everyone played their part, but special mention must be made of Captain Edward Snelling whose heroics in goal kept LGS in the game against Bromsgrove for longer than seemed possible; he was awarded Man of the Match. Yaseen Kasuji, Joe Halfpenny and Jamie Ellis scored for LGS on the day and Yaseen was Man of the Match against Worksop.
The 1st XV completed its best season since 2002 with a hardfought victory against Old Swinford’s Hospital School at Quorn on 8th February. A very strong wind whipped across the field making both passing and kicking something of a lottery, but a very composed first half performance saw Loughborough score two tries. After a scoreless first quarter, a superb driving maul, about which the visitors could do nothing, led to Ben Cooke touching down to put LGS ahead. Stout defence was then needed as the opponents stepped up the pace. Slowly but surely Loughborough advanced the ball downfield resulting in a superb individual try from scrum half Chris Stevens, this time under the posts. The conversion was added giving the home side a fairly comfortable cushion under the conditions. As the wind increased, playing any sort of attractive rugby was impossible but, showing great fortitude, LGS held out, allowing its line to be crossed just once. So, with a hard fought 12 points to 5 victory, a very successful season came to an end and fittingly the departing Year 13s were cheered off the field by their younger teammates
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June 2014
G PROWESS
The Under 14 XV crowned a fine season by defeating Welland Park School at Syston Rugby Club to become County Champions. The opposition, as expected, were a formidable team with a big pack and a couple of speedy backs, but some resolute defence and flowing movements allowed the lads to score 22 unanswered points.
Harlem comes to LGS A new and extremely popular innovation this year was the introduction of “streetball” or street basketball played on a House basis. Said to have its origins on the streets of poor areas of Washington DC and New York in the early 1900’s, the game lends itself to relatively small, outdoor spaces.
Making good use of the unique (we think) quadruple baskets in the centre of the Science Park, the participants soon assimilated the somewhat complex rules of the game, thanks mainly to Mr Gacs and basketball captain David Li, and this exciting sport is sure to become a real winner.
The early exchanges showed that we were in for a hard game, but two very wellworked tries gave the team confidence to move the ball. The tackling was superb and, despite their best efforts, the big Welland Park forwards could not make inroads. A third try just before half time allowed some breathing space before we had to play up the slope in the second period. Again, excellent defence kept the opponents at bay and after a period of prolonged pressure the fourth try was secured. Well done everyone who has represented the Under 14 XV this season The U13 XV also completed a successful season by becoming County Champions when they defeated a spirited side from de Lisle Catholic Science College by 53 points to 12 at Loughborough Town Rugby Club on April 3rd. This follows the Under 14s victory over Welland Park in their final last week. Early exchanges were close, but by half time Loughborough had established a 24 points to 5 lead with some determined attacking moves and solid defence. After the interval, with the opposition tiring a little, some very powerful running from the backs ensured that further tries were added and Loughborough took complete control.
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June 2014
Still stands the clock We know that summer has indeed arrived when the first major match is played on the 1st XI Field. This year, in glorious weather, it was the first round of the U14 ESCA Cup against Denstone College and the U14s, last year’s County Champions, set a high standard with a 9 wicket victory. The bowlers bowled superbly and the fielding was sharp, restricting the visitors to 100 all out and openers Charlie Royle and Patrick Shortt put on 72 for the first wicket leaving Charlie (48 not out) and Ravi Nathwani to knock off the remaining runs in 27 overs.
Let’s hope the sun keeps on shining.
Loughborough Grammar School admin@lesgrammar.org Tel: 01509 233233 www.lesgrammar.org ©2014 No unauthorised use or duplication of images or editorial content. Loughborough Endowed Schools is a Company Limited by Guarantee, Number 4038033 and is Registered in England & Wales. It is a Registered Charity, number 1081765. The Registered Office is 3 Burton Walks, Loughborough, Leics. LE11 2DU.
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