Magazine St Edmund Hall 2020-2021
St Edmund Hall Magazine
Editor James Howarth (Librarian) With many thanks to all the contributors to this year’s edition: especially overwhelming thanks to the Hall’s Communications Manager Claire Parfitt and Sophie Quantrell, Emma Carter, Heather Barr and Andrew Frampton in the Library for their enormous help (and considerable patience) with the production. magazine.editor@seh.ox.ac.uk
Front cover Freshers in the Front Quad, following the virtual matriculation ceremony in October 2020. Photo: Lee Atherton. All the photographs in this Magazine are from Hall records unless otherwise stated. The following photos of academics and Fellows are reproduced with appreciation: Stewart Lee Raph_PH - StewartLeeCliffs090320-3, (CC BY 2.0) Laura Shallcross UCL
St Edmund Hall, Oxford, OX1 4AR 01865 279000 | www.seh.ox.ac.uk aularianconnect@seh.ox.ac.uk
@StEdmundHall
Vol. XIX No. 3 St Edmund Hall Magazine October 2021 Section 1: The College List: 2020–2021................................................ 1 The College List........................................................................................................................1 Staff List................................................................................................................................. 10
Section 2: Reports on the Year.............................................................12 From the Principal................................................................................................................ 13 News from the Senior Common Room ............................................................................... 15 Arrivals in the Senior Common Room................................................................................. 23 From the Domestic Bursar................................................................................................... 25 From the Finance Bursar...................................................................................................... 27 From the Librarian & the Library Fellow.............................................................................. 29 Donations 2020–2021..................................................................................................... 32 From the Chaplain................................................................................................................ 35 From the Director of Music................................................................................................... 37 From the Student Recruitment and Progression Manager................................................ 39 From the President of the Middle Common Room............................................................. 41 From the President of the Junior Common Room............................................................. 43 From Student Clubs and Societies...................................................................................... 44
Section 3: The Year Gone By.................................................................55 A Virtual Matriculation by Stephen Blamey........................................................................ 56 Teddy Hall Research on Covid-19....................................................................................... 58 Professor Wes Williams Appointed New Torch Director.................................................... 58 Old Dining Hall Refurbishment Complete........................................................................... 59 Stewart Lee: King Rocker and a No 1 Hit............................................................................ 60 Besse Building Refurbishment Underway.......................................................................... 60 Restoration of the Forum Garden........................................................................................ 60 Hall Student Team Win All-Innovate Idea Competition.................................................... 61 Geddes Trust 2021 Journalism Prizes, Lecture and Masterclass..................................... 61 Writing at the Hall 2020/21................................................................................................. 63 Hall Alumni Lead Conversation About Dyslexia at Oxford................................................. 64 Two Honorary Fellows Sworn In.......................................................................................... 64 Art in Hall............................................................................................................................... 65 Pontigny Lecture 2021......................................................................................................... 69 Fellowship Lunchtime Lectures........................................................................................... 69 Centre for the Creative Brain............................................................................................... 70 St Edmund Hall Law Society: Update.................................................................................. 70 Awards and Prizes................................................................................................................ 71
Section 4: From the College Office ......................................................79 The Senior Tutor’s Year........................................................................................................ 80 Student Numbers................................................................................................................. 82 New Students 2020–2021.................................................................................................. 82 Visiting Students 2020–2021............................................................................................. 89 Student Admissions Exercises ............................................................................................ 90 College Awards, Prizes and Grants...................................................................................... 91 College and University Bursaries......................................................................................... 93 University Awards and Prizes............................................................................................... 93 College Graduate Awards and Prizes.................................................................................. 93 Partnership Graduate Awards and Prizes........................................................................... 94 Degree Results...................................................................................................................... 94 Degree Day Dates 2021–2022............................................................................................ 98
Section 5: From the Development & Alumni Relations Office.........99 From the Director of Development.................................................................................... 100 From the St Edmund Hall Association President............................................................. 102 Donors to the Hall............................................................................................................... 103 The Floreat Aula Legacy Society........................................................................................ 115
Section 6: Looking Back......................................................................116 Poor Bickerton: The Eccentric Life and Sad Death of an Aularian by Stephen Haddelsey....................................................................................................... 117 The Duke of Edinburgh: A Parting to Remember by James Whitbourn.......................... 120 As Three Aularians Walked Out One Summer Morning by Patric Sankey-Barker......... 122 On the Joys of Being a College Tutor by John Knight....................................................... 126 A Good Year to be Online by Tom Crawford...................................................................... 126 Remembering Terry Jones by Geoffrey Bourne-Taylor.................................................... 128
Section 7: Looking Sideways..............................................................130 Callout: The 2021 Fine Artists Degree Show................................................................... 131 The St Edmund Hall Apocalypse by Alex Gunn and Amy Hemsworth............................ 137
Section 8: Looking Forwards..............................................................141 The Development at Norham Gardens by Charlotte Sweeney........................................ 142 A New Look for Teddy Hall’s Logo by Claire Parfitt........................................................... 146
Section 9: Poetry and Reviews...........................................................148 Aularian Poetry................................................................................................................... 149 Book Reviews...................................................................................................................... 156
Section 10: Aularian News.................................................................158 Aularian Updates: De Fortunis Aularium........................................................................... 159 Deaths: Ave Atque Vale....................................................................................................... 166 Obituaries............................................................................................................................ 169
JCR Freshers’ Household Photographs............................................187
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1
The College List 2020-21
1 | SECTION 1: THE COLLEGE LIST
The College List 2020-21
GB denotes member of the Governing Body
Visitor
The Rt Hon the Lord Patten of Barnes, CH, PC, MA, DCL (Hon DJur Massachusetts, Birmingham, Bath; Hon DCL Newcastle; Hon DLitt Sydney, Exeter, Ulster; DUniv Keele, Stettin; Hon DBA Kingston; Hon DSc S E Europe, Rep of Macedonia), Hon FRCPE Chancellor of the University
Principal
Willis, Katherine Jane, CBE, MA (BSc S’ton; PhD Cambridge; Hon DSc Bergen) FGS Professor of Biodiversity GB
Fellows
Briggs, Adrian, BCL, MA, QC (Hon) Barrister, Professor of Private International Law, Sir Richard Gozney Fellow and Tutor in Law GB Priestland, David Rutherford, MA, DPhil Professor of Modern History, Tutor in Modern History, Secretary to Governing Body GB Whittaker, Robert James, MA (BSc Hull; MSc, PhD Wales) Professor of Biogeography, Tutor in Geography, Vice-Principal GB Kahn, Andrew Steven, MA, DPhil (BA Amherst; MA Harvard), FBA Professor of Russian Literature, Vladimir Potanin Fellow and Tutor in Modern Languages (Russian) GB Manolopoulos, David Eusthatios, MA (BA, PhD Camb) FRS Professor of Theoretical Chemistry, Tutor in Chemistry GB Zavatsky, Amy Beth, MA, DPhil (BSc Pennsylvania) Associate Professor and University Reader in Engineering Science, Tutor in Engineering Science, Garden Fellow, Tutor for Undergraduates GB Matthews, Paul McMahan, OBE, MA, DPhil (MD Stanford) FRCPC, FRCP, FMedSci Professor of Neurology, Fellow by Special Election Mountford, Philip, MA, DPhil (BSc CNAA) CChem, FRSC Professor of Organometallic Chemistry & Catalysis, Tutor in Inorganic Chemistry GB Davidson, Nicholas Sinclair, MA (MA Camb) Associate Professor of the History of the Renaissance and Reformation, Tutor in Modern History, Archive Fellow GB Barclay, Joseph Gurney, MA Fellow by Special Election Johnson, Paul Robert Vellacott, MA (MB CHB Edin; MD Leicester), FRCS, FRCS Ed, FRCS (Paed Surg), FAAP Professor of Paediatric Surgery and Fellow by Special Election GB Tsomocos, Dimitrios P, MA (MA, MPhil, PhD Yale) Professor of Financial Economics, Fellow by Special Election GB Johansen-Berg, Heidi, BA, MSc, DPhil, FAMS Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience and Wellcome Trust Research Centre Principal Research Fellow, Senior Research Fellow GB
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Tseng, Jeffrey, MA (BS CalTech; MA, PhD Johns Hopkins) Associate Professor in Experimental Particle Physics, Tutor in Physics, Chapel Overseeing Fellow GB Wilkins, Robert James, MA, DPhil Associate Professor of Epithelial Physiology, American Fellow and Tutor in Physiology, Senior Tutor, Tutor for Admissions GB Nabulsi, Karma, MA, DPhil Associate Professor in Politics and International Relations, Tutor in Politics, Library Fellow, Senior Harassment Officer GB Williams, Christopher Wesley Charles, MA, DPhil Professor of French Literature, Director of TORCH, Tutor in Modern Languages (French) GB Riordan, Oliver Maxim, MA (BA, PhD Camb) Professor of Discrete Mathematics, Tutor in Mathematics GB Yueh, Linda Yi-Chuang, MA, DPhil (BA Yale; MPP Harvard; JD NYU) Research Lecturer in Economics, Fellow by Special Election GB Yates, Jonathan Robert, MA, DPhil (MSci Camb) Associate Professor of Materials Modelling and Royal Society Research Fellow, Tutor in Materials Science, Dean, Pictures & Chattels Fellow GB Dupret, David, (MSc, PhD Bordeaux) Associate Professor in Neuroscience, Fellow by Special Election GB Edwards, Claire Margaret, (BSc, PhD Sheff) Associate Professor of Bone Oncology, Fellow by Special Election Gaiger, Jason Matthew, (MA St And; MA, PhD Essex) Professor of Aesthetics and Art Theory, Fellow by Special Election GB Thompson, Ian Patrick, (BSc, PhD Essex) NERC CEH Fellow and Professor of Engineering Science, Fellow by Special Election Stagg, Charlotte Jane, DPhil (BSc, MB ChB Bristol) Professor of Human Neurophysiology & Senior Research Fellow, Wellcome Trust/Royal Society Sir Henry Dale Fellow, Fellow by Special Election Walker, Richard, BA (MSc Leeds; PhD Camb) Professor of Tectonics, Vladimir Potanin Associate Professor and Tutorial Fellow in Earth Sciences GB McCartney, David, BM BCh Director of Graduate Entry Medicine Medical Sciences Division, Fellow by Special Election Willden, Richard Henry James, (MEng, PhD Imp) Professor of Engineering Science, Tutor in Engineering Science, Tutor for Graduates GB Wild, Lorraine, MA, DPhil College Lecturer in Geography, Fellow by Special Election Aarnio, Outi Marketta, DPhil (Lic Abo Akademi) College Lecturer in Economics, Fellow by Special Election, Tutor for Visiting Students, Tutor for Year Abroad Students Benson, Roger Bernard James, (MA, PhD Camb; MSc Imp) Professor of Palaeobiology, Tutorial Fellow in Earth Sciences GB
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Lozano-Perez, Sergio, DPhil, PGDipLaTHE, (BSc, MSc, PGCE Seville) AMInstP, FRMS Professor of Materials Science, George Kelley Senior Research Fellow in Materials Clark, Gordon Leslie, MA, DSc (PhD McMaster) FBA Senior Consultant and Emeritus Professor at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, Fellow by Special Election GB Taylor, Jenny Cameron, BA, DPhil Associate Professor of Translational Genomics, Fellow by Special Election Nguyen, Luc Le, (BSc Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; PhD Rutgers) Associate Professor of Analysis of Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations, Tutor in Applied Mathematics, Senior Treasurer of Amalgamated Clubs GB Rothwell, Peter Malcolm, MA (MB ChB, MD, PhD Edin), FMedSci Action Research Professor of Clinical Neurology, Professorial Fellow GB Goldberg, Leslie Ann, MA (BA Rice; PhD Edin) Professor of Computer Science, Senior Research Fellow GB Pavord, Ian Douglas, (MB BS Lond; DM Nott), FRCP, FMedSci Professor of Respiratory Medicine, Professorial Fellow GB Bruce, Peter George, MA, DPhil, FRS, FRSE Wolfson Professor of Materials, Professorial Fellow GB Karastergiou, Aris, (PhD Bonn) Associate Professor in Astrophysics, Senior Research Fellow in Astrophysics Goulart, Paul James, (MSc MIT; PhD Camb) Associate Professor in Engineering Science, Tutor in Engineering Science GB Lähnemann, Henrike, MA (MA, PhD Bamberg) Professor of Medieval German Literature and Linguistics, Professorial Fellow GB Chankseliani, Maia, (BA, MA Tbilisi State University; MA Warwick; EdM Harvard; PhD Camb) Associate Professor of Comparative & International Education, Fellow by Special Election GB Winkler, Emily Anne, MSt, DPhil (AB Dartmouth, USA) Fellow by Special Election Pasta, Mauro, (BSc, MSc, PhD Milan) Associate Professor of Materials, Tutor in Materials Science GB Zondervan, Krina, DPhil (BA, MSc Leiden; MSc Erasmus) Professor of Reproductive & Genomic Epidemiology, Co-Director of Oxford Endometriosis CaRe Centre, Fellow by Special Election Al-Mossawi, Hussein, MA, BM BCh, DPhil, MRCP(UK) Honorary Research Associate Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences, NIHR Clinical Lecturer in Rheumatology, College Lecturer in Medical Sciences, Fellow by Special Election Huang, Wei, (BA Qingdao; MSc Tsinghua; PhD Sheff) Associate Professor of Engineering Science, Fellow by Special Election McAlpine, Erica Levy, (BA Harvard; MPhil Camb; PhD Yale) Associate Professor of English Language & Literature, A C Cooper Fellow and Tutor in English Language & Literature GB
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Simpson, Gareth, (BA Nottingham Trent) Director of Development and Fellow by Special Election Gill, Michael, DPhil (BSc Bath; MA Warwick) Associate Professor of Organisational Studies, Tutorial Fellow in Management GB Skokowski, Paul Gregory, MA (PhD Stanford) Professor, Symbolic Systems and Director, Center for the Explanation of Consciousness, Stanford University, Fellow by Special Election Bannerman, David MacKenzie, (BSc Brist; PhD Edin) Associate Professor of Experimental Psychology, William R Miller Fellow and Tutor in Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology GB Izadi, Mandy Mondona, DPhil (BA New York; MA Maryland) Broadbent Junior Research Fellow in American History Vosooghi, Sareh, (BA Tehran; MSc Sharif Univ of Technology; MPhil Camb; PhD Edin) Career Development Fellow in Economics Lamb, Edward Raymond, BA (MA Camb; PhD UCL) Career Development Fellow in Philosophy Pérez-De La Fuente, Ricardo, (BSc, MSc, PhD Barcelona) Museum Research Fellow at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Junior Research Fellow in Palaeobiology Stride, Eleanor Phoebe Jane, OBE, MA (BEng, PhD UCL), FREng, HonFEIT Professor of Engineering Science, Professorial Fellow Hepburn, Cameron, MPhil, DPhil (BEng, LLB Melbourne) Professor of Environmental Economics & Director of the Smith School of Enterprise & the Environment, Professorial Fellow GB Williams, Mark Andrew, BA, MPhil, DPhil Associate Professor of Global Medieval Literature, Fellow and Tutor in English Language & Literature GB Vukovich, Alexandra, (MA EHESS; MPhil, PhD Camb) British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow in Russian, Junior Research Fellow in Byzantine and Slavonic History & Literature Sweeney, Charlotte Anne, (BSc Sussex; MBA, PhD Open; PGCE Bath) Domestic Bursar and Official Fellow GB Kasy, Maximilian, MA (Mag.rer.nat, Mag.rer.soc.oec Vienna; MA, PhD Berk; Habilitation Vienna) Associate Professor in Economics, William R Miller Fellow and Tutor in Economics GB Bell, Joanna, BA, BCL, DPhil Associate Professor in Law, Jeffrey Hackney Fellow and Tutor in Law GB Lloyd, Alexandra, BA, PGCE, MSt, DPhil, FHEA College Lecturer in German, Fellow by Special Election Ogembo, Daisy, DPhil (LLM Nairobi; LLB Lond) Junior Research Fellow in Law, British Academy Post Doctoral Research Fellow Burnett, Eleanor, (LLB Leeds) FCA Finance Bursar and Official Fellow GB
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MacFaul, Thomas, DPhil Oxf (BA Camb) Mitchell Early Career Teaching and Research Fellow Parry, Luke, MSc (PhD Brist) Early Career Teaching and Research Fellow in Earth Sciences Prentice, Joseph, MPhys (PhD Camb) Cooksey Early Career Teaching and Research Fellow Schumacher, Jacob, (BA University of the Pacific; MA, MSc, PhD SOAS) Junior Research Fellow in Economics and Management Wareham, Edmund, BA, MSt, DPhil Cowdrey Early Career Teaching and Research Fellow Jansen, Lars, (PhD Leiden) Associate Professor and Wellcome Senior Research Fellow, Biochemistry, William R Miller Fellow and Tutor in Biochemistry GB Tan, Jack, DPhil Oxf, (BSc USM) EPA Cephalosporin Early Career Teaching and Research Fellow Slezkine, Yuri, (MA Mosc; PhD Texas), Jane K. Sather Professor of History, University of California, Berkley, Senior Research Fellow Howett, Carly, DPhil (BSc Essex; MSc UCL) Associate Professor of Space Instrumentation, Tutorial Fellow in Physics GB Crawford, Thomas, BA (PhD Camb) Early Career Teaching and Outreach Fellow in Mathematics, Fellow by Special Election Guiliano, Zachary, (BA Evangel; MDiv Harvard; PhD Cambridge) Career Development and Research Fellow, Chaplain Sciuto, Ruggero, MPhil, DPhil (BA Pisa) Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellow, Junior Research Fellow in Modern Langauges Whitbourn, James, MA, DMus (LCM) Director of Music and Fellow by Special Election
Honorary Fellows
Oxburgh, Ernest Ronald, The Lord Oxburgh, KBE, MA (PhD Princeton; Hon DSc Paris, Leicester, Loughborough, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Liverpool, S’ton, Liverpool John Moores, Lingnan Hong Kong, Newcastle, Leeds, Wyoming, St Andrews), FRS, FIC, Hon FIMechE, Hon FCGI, Hon FREng; Officier, Ordre des Palmes Académiques (France) Tindle, David, MA, RA, Hon RSBA Daniel, Sir John Sagar, Kt, OC, MA (DSc Paris; Hon DLitt Deakin Australia, Lincolnshire, Humberside, Athabasca Canada, Indira Gandhi Nat Open University India, McGill Canada; Hon DHumLitt Thomas Edison State Coll USA, Richmond Coll London; Hon DSc Royal Military Coll St Jean Canada, Open Univ, Sri Lanka, Paris VI, Univ of Education Winneba Ghana; Hon DEd CNAA, Sukhothai Thammathirat Open Univ Thailand, Open Univ Malaysia; Hon LLD Univ of Waterloo Canada, Wales, Laurentian Canada, Canada West, Ghana; DUni Aberta Portugal, Anadolu Turkey, Québec, Derby, New Bulgarian, Open Univ, Hong Kong, Stirling, Montreal; Hon DLitt & DPhil South Africa; Hon LittD State Univ NY), CCMI, Hon FCP; Officier, Ordre des Palmes Académiques (France)
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Smethurst, Richard Good, MA Cox, John, MA Kolve, Verdel Amos, MA, DPhil (BA Wisconsin) Cooksey, Sir David James Scott, Kt, GBE, MA (Hon DSc S’ton, UCL; Hon DBA Kingston), Hon FMedSci Rose, General Sir (Hugh) Michael, KCB, CBE, DSO, QGM, MA; Comdr, Ordre national de la Légion d’honneur (France) Gosling, Justin Cyril Bertrand, BPhil, MA Nazir-Ali, Rt Revd Michael James, MLitt (BA Karachi; PGCTh, MLitt Camb; ThD Aust Coll of Theol, NSW; DHLitt Westminster Coll, Penn; DD Lambeth; Hon DLitt Bath, Greenwich; Hon DD Kent & Nashotah) Roberts, Gareth, MA Crossley-Holland, Kevin John William, MA (DLitt (Hon) Anglia Ruskin & Worcs), FRSL Graham, Andrew Winston Mawdsley, MA, Hon DCL Edwards, Steven Lloyd, OBE, BA Morris, Sir Derek James, Kt, MA, DPhil (Hon DCL UC Dublin & UEA; Hon DSc Cranfield) Bowen, David Keith, MA, DPhil (Dip Music, MA Open Univ), FRS, FREng, FIMMM, CPhys, FInstP Byatt, Sir Ian Charles Rayner, Kt, MA, DPhil (DUniv Brunel & Central England; Hon DSc Aston & Birmingham), FCIWEM, FCIPS, CCMI Burnton, The Rt Hon Sir Stanley Jeffrey, Kt, PC, MA Mingos, David Michael Patrick, MA (BSc Manc; DPhil Sus), CChem, FRS, FRSC Josipovici, Gabriel David, BA, FRSL, FBA Macdonald, Kenneth Donald John, Lord Macdonald of River Glaven, Kt, BA, QC Starmer, The Rt Hon Sir Keir Rodney, PC, KCB, MP, BCL, (LLB, Hon LLD Leeds; DU Essex; LLD East London; Hon LLD LSE; Hon LLD Reading), QC Shortridge, Sir Jon Deacon, KCB, MA (MSc Edin; Hon DUniv Glamorgan) Lee, Stewart Graham, BA Khurshid, Salman, BCL (BA St Stephen’s College, Delhi) Banks, Samuel Andrew, MA (BA Florida) Hawkesworth, Christopher John, DPhil (BA Trin Coll Dublin; Hon DSc Copenhagen), FRS, FRSE Wainwright, Faith Helen, MBE, BA (Hon DEng Bath), FIStructE, FREng, FICE, FRSA Hollingworth, The Hon Justice Jane Elizabeth, BCL (BJuris, LLB Univ of Western Australia) Fletcher, Amelia, CBE, BA, MPhil, DPhil Ahmed, Samira, BA (MA City University, London) Asplin, Sarah Jane, DBE, BCL (MA Camb) Dhillon, Sundeep, MBE, BM BCh, MA
7 | SECTION 1: THE COLLEGE LIST
Gauke, The Rt Hon David Michael, PC, BA Haworth, Mark Derek, MA Morris, Mervyn Eustace, OM (Jamaica), BA (BA London-UCWI) Gull, Keith, CBE (BSc, PhD, DSc Lond; Hon DSc Kent), FRS, FMedSci, FRSB Krull, Wilhelm, (PhD Philipps University of Marburg; Hon Dr of Ilia State University, Tbilisi) Venables, Robert, MA (LLM Lond), QC Sedwill, Mark, the Lord Sedwill, MPhil (BSc St Andrews), KCMG, FRGS
St Edmund Fellows Laing, Ian Michael, MA
Smith, Sir Martin Gregory, Kt, MA (MBA, AM Econ Stanford), Hon FRAM, FRGS Cansdale, Michael John, MA Pocock, Francis John, MA, DPhil Armitage, Christopher Mead, MA (MA Western Ontario; PhD Duke) Best, Anthony John, BA Xie, Heping, (BEng, PhD China University of Mining & Technology; Hon DEng Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Hon DSc Nottingham Ningbo University, China) Broadley, Philip Arthur John, MA (MSc LSE) Busby, Ian Christopher, BA Ruvigny, Rupert Francis James Henry, BA
Emeritus Fellows
Hackney, Jeffrey, BCL, MA Donaldson, Iain Malcolm Lane, MA (BSc, MB ChB Edin), MRCP (Lond), FRCP (Edin) Hirsch, Sir Peter Bernhard, Kt, MA, DPhil (MA, PhD Camb), FRS Segar, Kenneth Henry, MA, DPhil Child, Mark Sheard, MA (MA, PhD Camb), FRS Worden, Alastair Blair, MA, DPhil (MA, PhD Camb), FBA Scargill, David Ian, MA, DPhil, JP Farthing, Stephen, MA (MA Royal College of Art), RA Phelps, Christopher Edwin, MA, DPhil Dunbabin, John Paul Delacour, MA Stone, Nicholas James, MA, DPhil Reed, George Michael, MA, DPhil (BSc, MS, PhD Auburn) Crampton, Richard John, MA (BA Dub; PhD Lond; Dr Hon Causa Sofia) Knight, John Beverley, MA (BA Natal; MA Camb) Wells, Christopher Jon, MA Wyatt, Derrick Arthur, MA (LLB, MA Camb; JD Chicago), QC Borthwick, Alistair George Liam, MA, DSc (BEng, PhD Liv; Hon Dr Budapest University
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of Technology & Economics), FREng, CEng, FICE, FRSE Collins, Peter Jack, MA, DPhil Palmer, Nigel Fenton, MA, DPhil, (Hon DPhil Bern), FBA Phillips, David George, MA, DPhil, FAcSS, FRHistS Slater, Martin Daniel Edward, MA, MPhil Jenkyns, Hugh Crawford, MA (BSc S’ton; MA Camb; PhD Leic) Kouvaritakis, Basil, MA (BSc, MSc, PhD Manc) Roberts, Steven George, MA (BA, PhD Camb) Newlyn, Lucy Ann, MA, DPhil Blamey, Stephen Richard, BPhil, MA, DPhil Dean of Degrees Martin, Rose Mary Anne, MA, DPhil (BSc Newc) Ferguson, Stuart, MA, DPhil Cronk, Nicholas, MA, DPhil Podsiadlowski, Philipp, MA (PhD MIT)
Lecturers
Alexeeva, Iana, MSc (BA Calgary) Psychology Ashbourn, Joanna Maria Antonia, MA (MA Camb; PhD Lond SB) Physics Badin, Severine, French Lectrice Baines, Jennifer Christine Ann, MA, DPhil Russian Black, John Joseph Merrington, QHP(C), (MBBS Lond), DCH, FRCSEd, FIMCRCSEd, FCEM, Medicine (Anatomy) Bogacz, Rafal, (MSc Wroclaw Univ of Technology; PhD Brist) Clinical Medicine Brain, Susannah, BM BCh (BA, MPhil Camb), MRCP Clinical Medicine Conde, Juan-Carlos, MA (BA, PhD Madrid) Spanish Grigorieff, Alexis, MPhil, DPhil (BA Durham) Economics Gundle, Roger, MA, BM BCh, DPhil (MA Camb), FRCS (Eng), FRCS Orth Medicine Hermann-Sinai, Susanne, Phd Leipzig German Lektorin Jenkins, Ben, MEng Materials Science Johnson, Brooke, BSc Earth Sciences Kennedy, Anthony, BA, DPhil, Law Laird, Karl, BCL (LLB Lond) Law Lazar-Gillard, Orlando, DPhil (BA, MPhil Camb) Politics Leger, Marie Andrea, (Lic, MA Stendhal Grenoble) French Littleton, Suellen Marie, (BSc California; MBA Lond) Management MacDonald, Andrew, MA, BM BCh Neuroanatomy McIntosh, Jonathan, MA (MA, MPhil Lond) Philosophy Mellon, Stephen, (BSc Ulster; PhD Lond) Biomedical Engineering Morrás, Maria, (BA Complutense Madrid; PhD UC Berkeley) Spanish
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Munday, Callum, BA, DPhil Geography Nicholls, Rebecca, DPhil (MSci Camb) Earth Sciences and Materials Science Nishino, Takafumi, (BA, MSc Kyoto; PhD S’ton) Engineering Noe, Debrah Pozsonyi, (BS, PhD Ohio State) Finance Pavord, Sue, (MB ChB Leicester), FRCP, FRCPath Clinical Medicine Pilley, Steven Edward, MBiochem, MPhil (PhD Imp) Biochemistry Popescu, Anca, (BSc Politehnica Univ Bucharest; PhD Camb) Engineering Roberts, Paul, MChem, DPhil Chemistry Shine, Brian, (MB ChB, MD Birmingham; MSc Lond), MRCPath, FRCPath Medical Sciences Sytsema, Johanneke, (PhD Free Univ Amsterdam) Linguistics Wadham, Alastair Jake, DPhil (BA, MPhil Camb) French Wilk, James, MA, MSc (PhD Brunel), FCybS Philosophy Wright, Katherine Elizabeth, MBiochem Biochemistry
Chaplain
Guiliano, Zachary, (BA Evangel; MDiv Harvard; PhD Cambridge)
Librarian
Howarth, James, BA (MA Lond; MA York)
Archivist
Petre, Robert Douglas, (BA York; MArAd Liverpool)
Academic Registrar
Bradshaw, Luke (BA Keele)
Director Of Music
Whitbourn, James, MA (DMus LCM)
Head Chef
McGeever, John
Head Porter Knight, Lionel
Decanal Staff
Yates, Jonathan, MA, DPhil (MSci Camb), Dean Delport, Timothy, (BE, Queensland), AMusA, Junior Dean Russell, Shannon, MSc (LLB Edin; LLM UBC), LLM, Assistant Junior Dean Ramos, Andrew, BSc (Syracuse), Sub-Dean (NSE) Arni, Abhimanyu, BA (MA Lond), WRM Sub Dean Buys, Elinor, BCL (LLB QUT), AMusA, NSE Sub Dean Mellor, Katie, (BSc Lond; MSc Sheff), AFHEA, Tamesis Sub Dean
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Staff List 2020-21 Archives
Sarah Bridge, Regular Giving Manager
Robert Petre, Archivist
Thomas Sprent, Development Officer
Bar
Estates
Hayley Goodgame, Bar Manager
Stephen Lloyd, Estates Manager
Chloe Knight, Scout (Bar)
Alex Grant, Deputy Estates Manager
Bursary
Simon Hogarth, Warden (Tamesis/William R. Miller)
Belinda Huse, Accommodation Manager
Grzegorz Zbylut, Warden (Norham St Edmund’s)
Charlotte Sweeney, Domestic Bursar Susan McCarthy, Conference Manager Clare Woolcott, Nurse Lynne Morley-Johnson, Bursary Administrator Andrea Cockburn, Bursary Assistant (Wine)
College Office
Robert Wilkins, Senior Tutor Luke Bradshaw (until 03.09.2021), Academic Registrar
James Ronaldson, Boatman Elion Angjelo, Carpenter Phillip Didcock, Plumber Stephen Fenemore, General Maintenance Assistant Vahid Kordbacheh, General Maintenance Assistant Gerald McGrath, General Maintenance Assistant
Melody Njoki, Senior Academic Officer
Cleris Piovezzam, General Maintenance Assistant
Melanie Brickell, Academic Records Manager
Finance
Penelope Alden, Academic Assistant Luke Maw, Student Recruitment and Progression Manager Scarlett Nash, Admissions Officer Lizzie Fry (until 16.07.2021), Access & Outreach Coordinator Eve McMullen (from 01.09.2021), Access & Outreach Coordinator
Communications
Claire Parfitt, Communications Manager
Development
Gareth Simpson, Director of Development Sally Brooks (until 06.08.2021), Head of Development & Alumni Relations Catherine Payne, Alumni Relations Manager
Eleanor Burnett, Finance Bursar Stephanie Hanks, College Accountant Sophia McMinn, Deputy Accountant Sumathy Melville, Accounts Assistant Sharon Stansfield, Purchase Ledger Assistant
Garden
Susan Kasper, Gardener Jennifer Cockram, Norham St Edmund’s Gardener
Governance and Projects
Casey Charlesworth, Governance and Projects Manager Emma Steane (until 14.05.2021), Governance and Projects Assistant
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Housekeeping
Barry Wixey, Chef De Partie
Elaine Kavanagh, Housekeeping Supervisor
Dylan Rampton, Apprentice Chef
Michelle O’Keefe, Housekeeper
Lisa Thomas, Housekeeping Supervisor Deanne Aydin, Scout Beata Bartnik, Scout Gil Da Costa, Scout Clea Da Cruz Flausino, Scout Mateus Dos Reis Corbafo, Scout
Bonifacio Pinto, Prep Chef Filomeno Da Costa Napoleao, Kitchen Porter Ventura Da Conceicao, Kitchen Porter Rodolfo Fernandes, Kitchen Porter Floriano Pereira, Kitchen Porter Gonsalo Pereira, Kitchen Assistant
Library
Anchan Drewett, Scout
James Howarth, Librarian
Minerva Evio, Scout
Sophie Quantrell (until 27.08.2021), Assistant Librarian
Barry Fiddes, General Assistant/Scout Dorota Gawronska, Scout Sandeep Kaur (until 16.07.2021), Scout Joan Kavanagh, Scout Patricia Marquez, Scout Aneta Palar, Scout Dragana Rnic, Scout Soraj Sahota, Scout Marija Sarac, Scout Hardeep Singh, Scout Paul Solesbury, Scout Pruang Stephenson, Scout Bosiljka Tetek, Scout
Human Resources
Mandy Estall, HR Manager
IT Office
Andrew Breakspear, IT Manager Ryan Trehearne, IT Officer
Kitchens
John McGeever, Head Chef Clifford Dandridge, Sous Chef Daniel Field, Junior Sous Chef John Claxton, Chef De Partie Peter Malone, Chef De Partie
Andrew Frampton (until 21.09.2021), Graduate Trainee Library Assistant
Lodge
Lionel Knight, Head Porter Ian Coles, Lodge Porter Peter Hack, Lodge Porter John Morrison (until 23.08.2021), Lodge Porter
Principal’s Office
Elaine Evers, Principal’s Executive Assistant
Servery
Samuel Green, Head Butler Molly McCarthy, Deputy Head Butler Nada Milkovic, Deputy Hall Butler Milka Parojcic, Deputy SCR Butler Rita Gennuso, Catering Supervisor Benigno Bonifacio Dos Santos, Servery Assistant Filemon Da Costa Ribeiro, Servery Assistant Amelio Pinto, Servery Assistant Liam Webb, Servery Assistant
SECTION 2: REPORTS ON THE YEAR | 12
2
Reports on the Year
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From the Principal Penny and then Julien Kress, and MCR Presidents Freddie Sørensen and then Ben White.
When future generations of Aularians, fellows, staff and students look back at the College archives, I wonder what their assessment will be of how we coped with the Covid pandemic? It has certainly been one of the most challenging times in the Hall’s history for many years and has tested the College’s resilience, and the personal and professional strength of everyone involved in it. But I hope they will also see a Hall that pulled together in extraordinary ways to make the most out of our every challenge. The staff, fellows and students have been an incredible group of people to work with over this time – and I am personally deeply grateful for all of their support. Coming third (out of thirty-nine colleges) in this year’s student satisfaction survey is a testament to the dedication of those in the College to keep the place functioning as ‘normally’ as possible. To me, it also indicates that on the whole, we probably got it about right; that our focus on the teaching and care of our students and maintenance of the buildings and historic fabric of the Hall’s estate, was correct. If there was a survey the other way around and the tutors and staff had to assess the students, I am sure we would have come first! It has been a two-way support process throughout and the student body has been superb, with outstanding leadership from our JCR Presidents Benjy
Despite the challenges of Covid, or in some cases because of it, there have been many events, papers, books, and talks emerging from our Fellowship over the past year. This has included a newly formed Friday Fellowship lunchtime seminar series (by Zoom of course!) where every other week during term, a Fellow has talked about their research and the inspiration behind it. We have gone from the story of Alexander Radishchev’s Journey from St Petersburg to Moscow and ritual and politics in Rus and Early Muscovy, to living with the Inquisition in Venice, and letter writing and lobbying by nuns in Late Medieval Germany. Legal complexities have also been discussed from judicial review to ‘Snakes and Ladders: Forty years of trying to make sense of the law’. We have heard about genes, genetics and epigenetics, and joining the dots in memory via neural networks in the brain. Tales from Medieval Ireland have featured along with spiders in ancient amber and half-billion-yearold worms (more on worms below!). If you get a moment to ever listen in to a Friday lunchtime seminar (they are accessible via YouTube), I urge you to do so. For me, they demonstrate the incredible scholarly community that we have within our Fellowship – and without exception a group of people that can communicate the most complicated issues to a general audience with ease. We also had the pleasure of hearing Professor Wes Williams talk about his work as the Director of the TORCH network, which is the Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities. Other ways to get a small glimpse of the breadth of research going
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across our community is to read the numerous blogs on the College website that have been published over the past year. I have just caught up on one of the most recent ones which has a photo of one our Fellows holding a weather balloon over a cow in Kenya – I will leave you to read the details yourself! Moving onto our junior members, they have also been incredibly active and successful both within Oxford and beyond. The weekly Ted-E-News (available on Aularian Connect) has been full of their activities, from prowess in sporting activities with many Cuppers triumphs and blades for crews on the river, to music from sacred to rock, and a plethora of other cultural activities including the wonderful Summer Exhibition by our second year Fine Arts students in the SCR. They have also been winning some notable prizes; two in particular that are worth mentioning here are Lena Fuldauer (2018, DPhil Geography & the Environment) who won first place in the Allianz Climate Risk Research Award, which acknowledges and rewards young scientists whose works shed light on the nexus between climate change and an extreme weather event, and Taf Matika (2020, International Health and Tropical Medicine) who led the team that won Oxford Foundry’s All-Innovate Idea Competition. Thirty-three participating colleges took part in this competition which is targeted at undergraduates, postgraduates, and DPhils, and aims to encourage all students at Oxford, regardless of discipline, to develop an entrepreneurial skill set and generate entrepreneurial ideas. Making the College more environmentally sustainable has also been front and centre of our efforts over the past year. The Besse refurbishment, in particular, has included a whole swathe of features to
reduce environmental impact, including enhanced internal insulation which has greatly improved the building’s thermal performance, installing secondary double glazing to the north rooms, and installing new, more energy efficient building services, such as low energy lighting and control. New technology has also been installed which recovers heat from the wastewater produced by the en-suite showers, which in turn reduces the water demand by approximately 25%. We now also have a proper food waste recycling system in our kitchens, with the waste being turned into energy and biofertilizer at a local biogas facility. Many other small changes are occurring throughout our estate but possibly one of the most exciting developments is thanks to our Finance Bursar and Estate Manager, who successfully applied for a government grant over the summer to employ a team of consultants to review all of our Estate, provide a carbon emissions baseline and detailed plans for how we can become net zero emissions. This level of detail is critical before we can set any meaningful targets or approaches to achieve this ultimate goal that we outlined in our strategy. Finally, some of our students, staff and Fellows undertook a baseline biodiversity assessment of all of our Estate over two weeks in June. This involved measurements of the extent of different landcover types (e.g. herbaceous borders, grass, meadows), species of trees, their height and stem basal diameter, birds, insects and worms. This audit was developed by the Conference of Colleges working group (which I chair) and 22 colleges took part to enable them to create a baseline of their college’s biodiversity. The outputs are currently being collated but will, again, give us an important understanding, for example, of the carbon storage and sequestration currently provided by trees and other
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vegetation on site, the abundance and diversity of different species of birds, insects that provide important pollination services, and the health of our soils (as indicated by the abundance and diversity of worms). Importantly this will also inform us whether we are achieving net biodiversity gain in years to come. We have some excellent data emerging and will display this on the website when finished. So, in summary, as I look forward, I am personally full of optimism. As I hope you will glean from the pages of this year’s Magazine, the Hall is thriving. There is much to look forward to – not least we
are about to launch our campaign for the exciting new building at Norham Gardens, which will finally allow us not just to accommodate all second-year undergraduates in modern, purposebuilt rooms, but to do so in an exemplary environmentally sustainable building. Thank you for all your support, please do keep in touch and, importantly, come back and visit in person as soon as you are able to do so. Floreat Aula! Professor Katherine J. Willis CBE, Principal
News from the Senior Common Room Dr Christopher Armitage, St Edmund Fellow, is now a University of North Carolina Professor Emeritus, polishing the MS of Unlocking My Wordhoard: Poems and Prose with Illustrations. It’s scheduled for publication late this year. In addition to her teaching as College Lecturer in Physics at Teddy Hall, during this past year Dr Jo Ashbourn has continued as the Director of the St Cross Centre for the History and Philosophy of Physics, which aims to not just focus on chronicling the history of the discipline as a retrospective exercise but to also critically engage with the philosophy and methodologies which inform how current research in physics is undertaken. Despite the pandemic with the associated social distancing restrictions, the Centre has nonetheless gone from strength to strength with its online events which now
regularly convene over 1000 attendees from across the world. Online lectures have included ‘Physics of the Impossible Revisited’ by Professor Michio Kaku, ‘Scientific Thinking Across the Centuries and the Foundations of Physics’ by Professor Carlo Rovelii and ‘The Martian - Science Fiction and Science Fact’ by Dr Jim Green, NASA’s Chief Scientist. There was also an online discussion panel on ‘Space Travel Across the Decades and Beyond’ which featured key scientists from the major global space agencies with former astronauts as discussants. Details of these events with videos of all the talks plus forthcoming events for 20212022 can be seen at: https://www.stx. ox.ac.uk/the-happ-centre During the past academic year, Emeritus Fellow Alistair Borthwick was elected Emeritus Professor at the University of Edinburgh, and appointed part-time Professor of Applied Hydrodynamics at the University of Plymouth.
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In December 2020, Alistair received the YanYuan Friendship Award of Peking University, only the second time such an award has been made. The award reflects his more than 20-year collaboration with scholars at Peking University on environmental engineering, in particular long-term human and climate change effects on the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers, and pollution remediation. In December 2020, Alistair chaired the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Centre for Marine and Renewable Energy Ireland (MaREI). In early 2021, he was appointed Visiting Professor at Peking University and at China University of Geosciences (Beijing), and reappointed to Visiting Distinguished Professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. During the year, he gave invited virtual lectures on ‘flotsam, jetsam, and lagan’, and on a ‘landslide-induced barrier lake at Jinsha River, China’ at universities in England, Wales, and Ireland. In March 2021, Alistair became grandfather to Henry Borthwick, who is already becoming an expert in bath-splash dynamics from his test facility (an outdoor paddling pool) in Cowley! It only seems fair and fitting to allow Professor Adrian Briggs, Sir Richard Gozney Fellow and Tutor in Law, to describe his year in his own words: “The hope that the 41st and final year of service to the College would be unforgettable came true in the sense that a long and expensive course of therapy would be needed to overcome the trauma of an entire year blighted by this horrid plague. As if that were not enough, the calamity which struck Burma in February, and for which no cure has been found,
destroyed a sizeable part of the plans made for the future. So what to remember and carry away (along with the motley contents of Staircase 4, room 3)? The answers must be: the heroic efforts, made across the College with energy and resourcefulness and on all fronts at once, to make the best of a terrible job; the amazing fortitude of the students who stuck to their task while deprivation and loss was all around; the achingly, heartbreakingly, beautiful sight of the Front Quad in its springtime finery but with no person to be seen; and a liber amicorum, organised in secrecy by my colleagues in the conflict of laws, presented to me at the end of Trinity term. That made the year unimaginable; and perhaps that’s the best way to remember it.” The first chapter of A Conflict Of Laws Companion: Essays in Honour of Adrian Briggs which describes Adrian’s contributions to the study of Law in Oxford as well as the authors’ recollections of time spent with him can be read in full on the OUP Website: https://bit.ly/3l0iD89 St Edmund Fellow Philip Broadley is Senior Independent Director on the boards of Legal & General and AstraZeneca. He is proud of the partnership between Oxford University and Astra Zeneca to manufacture the Oxford Astra Zeneca vaccine, Vaxzevria, and distribute it at no profit during the pandemic. At the end of July 2021 over one billion vaccine doses had been provided in little over a year. Honorary Fellow Sir Ian Byatt’s work this year has led to him reflect on the success and failures of privatisation:
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“I have written a chapter on water in an international Harvard book on infrastructure due to be published in December. A copy will be donated to the Hall Library. This has led me to think about the UK experience on the privatisation and regulation that took place some thirty years ago. Suppliers of telecoms, water, gas and electricity were privatised in stages, from the mid 1980s to the mid 1990s with the objective that they subject to market forces, not government decisions. The privatisation of the telecoms, part of the Post Office, scores as a success. Benefitting from technological developments, competition developed from mobile phones and access to the internet. The privatisation of water services has survived. Water quality (both drinking water and waste water discharged to rivers and coastal waters) has been significantly improved and water companies have become much more efficient.
There are doubtless many reasons for the disappointing results of privatisation, but two factors stand out, namely overemphasis on a public sector/market economy dichotomy and the failure to integrate the public interest in the decision making process. As the water regulator, I took account of water quality obligation, but was always concerned that these obligations had been imposed without sufficient thought and consultation with paying customers. Unfortunately, political decisions, such as to build HS2, and to transform electricity generation from steam turbine to offshore wind turbines, can be extremely expensive. Fully to meet the public interest requires greater transparency, and open consultation with customers, in particular the proper costing of projects driven by political objectives.”
In railways, the track operator is now back in government ownership and the train operating companies have become agents of the public sector Great British Railways. And an expensive government project, HS2, dominates investment in railways.
This year Professor Maia Chankseliani, Fellow by Special Election in Comparative and International Education has launched Global Public Seminars in Comparative and International Education. These are jointly organised by Comparative and International Education Research Group (https://bit.ly/3A4xcM5 ) at the Department of Education and St Edmund Hall. The seminars have attracted a lot of attention from educational researchers and practitioners from all around the world, as well as Teddy Hall alumni interested in education. Recordings of the seminars are available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/ UC1FekBTG8XDi_k4ky6U2X-Q
The part-privatisation of London Transport soon collapsed and investment is now in the hands of the public sector Transport for London.
Online events like these seminars have made it possible to engage with those communities of academics and practitioners who would have been
In electricity and gas, however, key decisions are now taken by the Parliamentary that has been set up to implement the legislation passed to reduce carbon emissions. After initial reductions in customer prices, electricity prices have surged and are likely to surge further as generation is increasingly from off-shore wind turbines.
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unlikely to physically attend such events at Oxford. In fact, Maia’s recent edited volume Higher Education and the Sustainable Development Goals focuses exactly on this topic – how higher education can contribute to sustainable development globally. Many universities are strongly committed to sustainable development but encounter an increasingly compressed space in which to contribute to it. While the pandemic has been exacerbating these constraints, it can also offer a unique opportunity to reimagine higher education as a common good. The understanding of higher education as a common good carries the promise of reinforcing the humanistic vision of higher education that is collectively produced and shared and that contributes to just, equitable, and sustainable development. Read more about Higher Education and the Sustainable Development Goals on the publisher’s website: https://link.springer. com/journal/10734/volumes-andissues/81-1 Building on his longstanding interest in financial decisionmaking, over the past year Professor Gordon Clark, Fellow by Special Election, has continued his research on cross-country patterns of risk aversion and precautionary behaviour in relation to the impact of automation on employment with colleagues through the OxfordZurich Insurance research programme. This has resulted in a number of reports, working papers and presentations that have claimed international attention. Recent publications have included a paper on the role of competence in financial decision-making, the performance of the UK’s Pensions Regulator, and the role of technology in the organisation and
performance of financial institutions. He continues as the Chair of the IP Group’s Ethics and ESG committee, is a board member and/or Advisor to a number of FinTech start-ups in the UK and the USA, and is an employer-nominated representative on the Oxford Staff Pension Plan. Emeritus Fellow Dr Peter Collins will satisfy the curiosity of Hall mathematicians as to his retirement activities by an enquiry he placed with the NHS about the Pandemic rules, an answer to which would have been aided by an understanding of the difference between ‘sufficient’ and ‘necessary and sufficient’. He was referred to the World Health Organisation in Geneva and, ten months on, is still awaiting a response. Other enquiries during the last year failing to gain adequate response include an ongoing discussion, on behalf of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, with Minister for Housing Robert Jenrick on matters relating to the forthcoming Planning Bill in which democracy and the involvement of local people appear to be at a premium. Having just completed his maximum nine years as a Trustee of CPRE’s Oxfordshire Branch, he has been kicked upstairs from the Chair into a Vice-Presidency, with an expectation that he will continue dealing with national matters on the Branch’s behalf. Otherwise, he has a new career, recently appointed by the County Council as a ‘Super User’. If the reduction in the number of pot-holes in the roads of the village of Letcombe Regis is achieved by his application of Council-provided white spray paint whilst wearing a vizjacket plus private access to his boss via FixMyStreet, that will be a measure of success.
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Otherwise it cannot be otherwise than mathematics, music, Europa Nostra and attempts at cooking that keep the silences of isolation at bay. Kevin Crossley-Holland, Honorary Fellow, published Gravity for Beginners, his first volume of poems for six years, and a collection of Norse Tales illustrated by Jeffrey Alan Love. He has been appointed an ambassador for the Almshouse Association, and has written a commissioned poem for their 75th birthday celebrations. Kevin’s cantata The Girl from Aleppo and anthem As Each Leaf Dances (written at the invitation of Barnardo’s), both composed by Cecilia McDowall, have been performed and broadcast by the BBC Singers, while The Sixteen have recorded Bob Chilcott’s setting of his carol, ‘Pilgrim Jesus’. But confined to north Norfolk, where he celebrated his 80th birthday, he will remember the past year above all for the loss of several old friends and the making of a new wildlife pond. Honorary Fellow Sir John Daniel continues in his role as Chancellor of the Acsenda School of Management in Vancouver. His recent publications have focussed on the impact of Covid-19 on education and universities and include: • Daniel, J. S. (2020) Education and the COVID-19 pandemic. Prospects 49, 91– 96 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/ s11125-020-09464-3 • Daniel, J. S. (2021) After COVID-19: Can Quality Teaching be Sustained? Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, 53:2, 6-10. https://doi.org/10.1080/000913 83.2021.1883970
• Daniel, J.S. (2021). La formation à distance: dix principes inspirés par son histoire. Médiations et Médiatisations, (6), 78-84. https://doi.org/10.52358/ mm.vi6.195 From Honorary Fellow Dr Andrew Graham: “I feel guilty saying so, but, for me, 2020-21 has proved a most satisfying period. 4th May 2021 marked twenty years since I founded the Oxford Internet Institute. My account of the OII’s creation can be found here: https://bit.ly/2Vrj9Bw. 2020 also marks my move from Executive Chair of the Europaeum to being a Trustee. Behind this sentence lies four years of work; and, if you will forgive the trumpet-blowing, a staggeringly successful four years. The Europaeum is a student-focused network of leading European universities founded by Oxford in 1992. It is a brilliant idea, but, by 2016, despite many outstanding events, it was faltering. I therefore proposed creating 30 Europaeum Scholarships in which students, alongside their doctorates, would work in four multidisciplinary teams on their ideas of how “to make Europe a better place”. I designed the course, persuaded the Trustees and the member universities, found the money, created an admissions process, and the first cohort started in January 2018. It has been so successful that the Europeaum has grown from ten full members in 2016 to eighteen now. Much remains to be done, but I am very pleased to have contributed my bit to fight the idiocy of Brexit.” The Revd Dr Zachary Guiliano, Career Development and Research Fellow and College Chaplain, started a project on the
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Venerable Bede’s commentary on Luke, with particular attention to its statements on poverty and the management of wealth. His book, The Homiliary of Paul the Deacon: Religious and Cultural Reform in Carolingian Europe, was published by Brepols in July. Meanwhile, he’s written three contributions this year for edited collections and a journal: on Bede’s understanding of knowledge, on the moral legacy of church property, and on theological models for sustainable living. Zack gave papers at the International Medieval Congress and at a conference on anti-racism at the Oxford Centre for Religion and Culture and was invited to lecture on scriptural transmission in the Early Middle Ages at the Logos workshop run by SCIO and the Museum of the Bible. With Professor Henrike Lähnemann and several others, he helped lead the ‘Singing Together — Apart’ workshops on medieval manuscripts and Gregorian chant, sponsored by the Polonsky Foundation. He wrote three short pieces on church fundraising, on the problems of saints’ lives, and on clerical attire for The Living Church magazine.
working on. Andrew also continued to produce work, publishing last summer Mandelstam’s Worlds (Oxford University Press, 2020), a poet to whom all bow down (as the Edinburgh academic and translator Peter France put it). With Irina Reyfman, a long-term collaborator and friend at Columbia, Andrew saw into print a translation of Journey from Petersburg to Moscow by Alexander Radishchev, after a fashion Russia’s Tom Paine. Radishchev’s nemesis was the formidable empress Catherine the Great, also the subject of an ongoing project as Andrew was awarded a substantial grant to continue work on his pilot database of her correspondence. With the help of a co-PI, five research assistants and a digital consultant, CatCor is coming along and should be launched by the end of the year. He was invited by Times Breakfast Radio to talk about the coup that put her on the throne on 28 June 1762 — a lightning 10 minutes hosted by Stig Abell between the football scores. Trips to Russia were deferred till a better day. Having polished off a couple of articles and a short book, he is hoping to have a rest. Re-reading Oblomov would be a good start!
Details on Chapel life may be found in the Chaplain’s Report on pp.35-36. No man or woman stops for Covid, at least not in Oxford. Teaching continued apace and Andrew Kahn, Professor and Vladimir Potanin Tutorial Fellow of Russian Literature and Modern Languages, is full of gratitude to the undergraduates who, deprived of many forms of freedom and extra-curricular enjoyment, regularly and uncomplainingly produced excellent work. It was also great to have a chance to organise the Fellowship Lunchtime Lectures, as convened by the Principal, and to hear what other colleagues were
us of her year:
The irrepressible Professor Henrike Lähnemann, Professor of German Medieval and Linguistic Studies and Professorial Fellow, tells
“My report seamlessly follows on from last year’s: it was dominated by the challenges and – luckily not too infrequent – joys of conducting research, teaching, and socialising online. In terms of research, it proved fortuitous that for the edition of the letters of the nuns of Lüne we had conceived the edition as an open access online resource from the start and had also consistently collaborated across
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Britain and Germany in digital format. We managed therefore to finish the first volume (450 of the 1800 letters) in time for the dreaded Research Exercise census date, and in June I was able to talk about the parallels of convent and College illustrated through letters at the Fellowship Lunchtime Lecture Series Seminar (available on YouTube: https:// youtu.be/RjgjYtuIJ1s). In terms of teaching, surprisingly enough the seminar most closely linked to objects and the materiality of text developed in the most creative way: History of the Book. Thanks to some phenomenal colleagues in the Taylor Institution Library and the Bodleian Libraries, we were able to discuss palaeography and codicology ‘live’ via camera into the library, allowing us also to invite experts from around the world to special sessions. This produced a new format, the ‘Digital Editions Live’ https://historyofthebook.mml.ox.ac.uk/ digital-editions-live/ where we combined show-and-tell sessions of manuscripts and launching the projects the students had been working on. Finally on the social life online: we were really lucky in the Hall for music making to be in the safe hands of James Whitbourn who found ingenious ways of keeping the singers motivated and Evensong viable throughout the year. For me personally, singing in the Crypt became one of the favourite lockdown activities; it proved attractive to viewers. This even made it into the film commissioned by the Bodleian Library to celebrate the finishing of the 3-year-collaboration with the Herzog August Bibliothek Wolfenbüttel in a short documentary about the journey of manuscripts to digitisation which ended with me and a couple of our Chapel Choir members singing from the digitised manuscripts – and if you watch at minute 8:10 on https://youtu.
be/5Gva8JJ8VSQ?t=490 you will even be able to spot a cameo appearance of another Fellow and his wife, zooming in from Germany. While I am looking forward to be able to do most of my teaching and research in person, in the library, in conversation, I hope we will be able to maintain something of the network of solidarity and mutual support built up during the last year.” This year Dr Alex Lloyd, Fellow by Special Election in German, continued to hold a Knowledge Exchange Fellowship at The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities (TORCH), working in partnership with the White Rose Foundation in Munich. She gave a series of talks on the German resistance throughout the year, including at the Being Human Festival of the Humanities. In November 2020 she received a Public Engagement with Research Seed Fund Award to develop a podcast series on the White Rose with the award-winning vocal ensemble SANSARA, and in May she co-organised a colloquium on the textual and cultural references in the White Rose resistance pamphlets. A publication of the proceedings is in preparation. She also completed work on a new book, scheduled for publication in February 2022: Defying Hitler: The White Rose Pamphlets. This year she has also written for The Conversation website and Metal Hammer magazine. David Manolopoulos, Professor of Theoretical Chemistry and Tutor in Chemistry, has been on sabbatical throughout this academic year. He was due to go to New England in the Fall of 2020 to give seminars at Rochester and Cornell, followed by a road trip up
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to Maine with his wife Clare, and then to Berkeley in the spring to enjoy San Francisco and start some new research projects. But sadly, the pandemic has put paid to these plans. Instead, he has spent the year giving talks in some of the most beautiful places in the world (including Lausanne in Switzerland and Telluride in Colorado) from the solitude of his back bedroom in Kidlington. Honorary Fellow Bishop Michael Nazir Alli writes: “As with everyone, my activities have been somewhat circumscribed by the periodic lockdowns but, looking back, it is amazing how much has been possible. Along with a Fellow from All Souls, I have been able to organise a very successful series of lectures at All Souls on the relationship between Eastern Christianity and Sufism (or Islamic Mysticism) during the Michaelmas and Hilary terms. These are set to continue in the next academic year. Concurrently with these, I have also been doing a series of lectures at the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies on the missionary history of Ecclesia Anglicana, that is of the English Church before and after the Reformation. There has also been time to write both ‘academic’ and popular articles in a number of journals, periodicals and newspapers on freedom of speech and belief, religious extremism and the importance of the spiritual in the midst of the pandemic”. Professor Paul Skokowski, Fellow by Special Election in Philosophy, has three articles in books published this year, covering philosophical aspects of quantum mechanics, robot cowboys and the idea of
the brain as a purely physical object. Quantum mechanics predicts that certain experimental outcomes are superpositions of different states. However, in our world we never directly observe superpositions, because whenever we try to, the system “collapses” to just one of the possible states. This paper considers what it would be like to observe superpositions in a universe where there are no collapses – otherwise known as an ‘Everettian’ universe. What would the observer then believe that she saw? Paul’s paper ‘Observing a Superposition’ (in Synthese, 2021) answers that question. We happily watch fantastic creatures like intelligent androids and ‘undead’ zombies in television and Hollywood shows. But if such creatures really existed, what would they experience, if anything? ‘The Philosophy of Westworld’, in Vernallis, C., Kara, S., Leal, J., and Rogers, H. (eds.), Cybermedia: New Approaches to Sound, Music and Media (Bloomsbury, 2021) looks into the details (and minds) of such creatures. Three classic and powerful arguments against the notion that the mind is a purely physical thing have been given by Thomas Nagel, Saul Kripke, and Frank Jackson, and have always been assumed to apply to all forms of physicalism. Three Dogmas of Internalism, in Information and Mind, (Stanford, CA: CSLI Press, 2020) shows that this assumption is false, and that a type of physicalism – externalism – escapes these arguments altogether. Dr Linda Yueh, Fellow by Special Election in Economics, was appointed to two UK government bodies. She became Adviser to the Board of Trade, a body that has existed in various forms for nearly 400 years,
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whose President is the Secretary of State for International Trade. She was also appointed by HM Treasury to the Independent Review Panel on RingFencing and Proprietary Trading. The six member panel has been conducting a review into proprietary trading and the UK’s ring-fencing regime that was put into place following the recommendations of the Independent Commission on Banking
that was chaired by Sir John Vickers, Warden of All Souls College. The third edition of the Oxford Handbook of Medical Sciences, edited by Robert Wilkins, Senior Tutor and American Fellow and Tutor in Physiology, Ian Megson and David Meredith was published in July 2021.
Arrivals in the Senior Common Room Dr Tom Crawford was elected Early Career Teaching and Outreach Fellow in Mathematics where he will combine his outreach work through ‘Tom Rocks Maths’ with undergraduate teaching. Tom’s videos on YouTube have been viewed over 10 million times and he regularly attends schools and events where he presents maths as the exciting, engaging and entertaining subject that it can be! Tom studied at Oxford for his undergraduate degree before switching to Cambridge for his PhD, where he studied the spread of pollution in the ocean. For the latest updates be sure to follow Tom on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram @tomrocksmaths. Tom’s account of a year spent online can be found on pp. 126-127. In October 2020, the Revd Dr Zachary Guiliano arrived as Career Development and Research Fellow in Early Medieval History and College Chaplain. Zack completed his BA in Biblical Studies at Evangel University, his MDiv in Theology at Harvard, and his PhD in History at Cambridge, where
he was a Gates Cambridge Scholar. His ordination training took place at Westcott House, and he was ordained in the Diocese of Ely, serving a curacy at St Bene’t’s Church, Cambridge, and later as Assistant Chaplain at Jesus College, Cambridge. A former journalist, Zack is the author of popular and scholarly articles, essays, and reviews, and is the co-editor of two volumes in the series Studies in Episcopal and Anglican Theology. His academic research focuses on the history of biblical interpretation, prayer, and preaching. He looks in particular at sources that were read widely in the Middle Ages but are rarely discussed today, such as commentaries and sermon collections. Dr Ruggero Sciuto, Junior Research Fellow in Modern Languages and previously a Junior Research Fellow at the Voltaire Foundation and Wolfson College, joined the Hall in September 2020. He is the director of Digital d’Holbach, an international project aiming to create a critical edition of the complete works of French philosophe Paul Thiry d’Holbach, and he has just submitted to the Oxford University Studies in the Enlightenment a
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book manuscript on eighteenth-century French theories of determinism (Diderot and d’Holbach: A Theory of Determinism). Ruggero is a collaborator on both the Oxford edition of the Complete Works of Voltaire and the Edizione Nazionale del Carteggio di Lodovico Antonio Muratori, and he is beginning to work on a second book to understand how d’Holbach’s authorial strategies affected the reception of his ideas at the time of the French Revolution. He has a strong secondary interest in diplomatic history, and his work on Franco-Italian diplomatic and cultural relations has appeared in premier journals, including the Revue d’Histoire Littéraire de la France and Archivio Storico Italiano. With Dr Tracey Sowerby, he directs the TORCH Network on Diplomacy in the Early Modern Period, and with Dr Florian Kühnel he is currently editing a special issue of the International History Review on ‘Gender and Everyday Diplomacy (1500-1800)’. Professor Yuri Slezkine was elected a Senior Research Fellow in May 2020. He is a scholar of Russian and world history, Professor of the Graduate School at the University of California, Berkeley, and member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Professor Slezkine was born and raised in Moscow, USSR, and worked as a Portuguese interpreter in Mozambique and English instructor in Portugal before moving to Austin, Texas to study Russian history. He has taught at Wake Forest University and, for 27 years, at the University of California, Berkeley. He has been a fellow at the Hoover Institution, the International Institute at the University of Michigan, Center for Advanced Study
in the Behavioral Sciences, John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin. He has served as Distinguished Visiting Professor at Vassar College, Honorary Professor at the University of Nottingham, Visiting Professor at the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, and Sciences Po and EHESS in Paris. Dr James Whitbourn arrived as Director of Music at the Hall in April 2020. He was elected to a Fellowship by Special Election in July 2021. Dr James Whitbourn is an internationally renowned composer and an awardwinning conductor. Recognised by The Observer as ‘a truly original communicator in modern British choral music’, his career in music began in the BBC, for whom he has worked as composer, conductor, producer and presenter. With four Grammy nominations to his name, among many other international awards, his compositions are admired for their ability to ‘expand the experience of classical music beyond the edges of the traditional map of classical styles’ (NPR). A graduate of Magdalen College, Oxford, he held a Senior Research Fellowship at St Stephen’s House before joining the Hall in 2020. James Whitbourn is exclusively published by Oxford University Press, having previously held a long-term publishing agreement with Chester Music from 2001 to 2019. Across all genres, he has more than ninety published compositions. Among other research interests, he leads the ‘Music Egypt’ project supported by TORCH, holding a Knowledge Exchange Fellowship from 2019-2021. His works have been performed in many prestigious venues, and there are six complete discs of
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his choral music, alongside representation on many compilation albums.
Duke of Edinburgh can be found on pp. 120-122.
James’ account of producing the BBC Radio broadcast of the funeral of the
SCR obituaries can be in found in Section 10.
From the Domestic Bursar We have made significant efforts to improve the sustainable credentials of the building including installing double glazing to the rear, a heat recovery from waste water system and significantly increasing the amounts of insulation in the building. All asbestos has now been stripped from the building, fire separation is much improved and, thanks to many of you, we have a new roof too.
The team, as ever, have worked hard over the year to deliver an excellent service to the College. Even though many of the staff have been on flexi-furlough, there has been a core of staff who have worked through this period keeping us safe and progressing the improvements to the College that we all want to see happen. Many staff groups have risen to the challenge of caring for, cleaning for and feeding our students, even when we have had periods of Covid infection and isolation, for which we are all very thankful. As the Covid waves have come and gone, restrictions tightened and relaxed and student numbers have cycled, our staff have proven themselves to be dedicated to the College and extremely flexible in rising to the challenge of keeping the College open and functioning.
Projects The refurbishment of 49 – 56 High Street (Besse Building) is nearing completion with handover of the building, now six large apartments, due in mid-September.
A much needed staffroom has now been opened one of our vacant High Street shop units. The window onto the High Street has a display created by our Librarian, James Howarth. We are continuing with our ambitious programme of works to raise up the general standard of our accommodation and the Estate as whole. The upgrading of electrical infrastructure in the College will enable us to work around the College upgrading wiring in individual buildings. The Forum Garden outside the Wolfson Hall is undergoing a major renovation and will be completed in the autumn. We ran an architectural competition early this year to select an architect to develop extra accommodation for undergraduate students at Norham Gardens. Wright and Wright are the chosen architects. They have extensive experience in Oxford Colleges and with delivering highly sustainable buildings (more about the project in a separate article on pages 142-145). This project will not deliver all of the 110 bedroom shortfall, so we are also running a pre-application to see if it would be possible to build the remaining needed
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bedrooms at the Tamesis Guest House site on the Iffley Road.
• Sarah Bridge (Regular Giving Manager)
Events
• Elaine Evers (Principal’s Executive Assistant)
Sadly, with Covid restrictions still in place and limited international travel restricted, we have not been able to hold any conferences during Easter and the summer activity is a shadow of its former self, nor have we been able to host commercial dinners, nor have any B&B guests. This activity usually brings in vital additional funding to maintain the College and its loss for a second year will be sorely felt.
Our People During the course of the year, a number of staff have left us including Christine Beesley who retired after 18 years of dedicated service as Senior Common Room Assistant and Magdalena Ostalecka who left after 15 years as a Scout at Norham Gardens. Others who left included:
• Elinor Buys (Sub-Dean NSE)
• Simon Hogarth (Warden [Tamesis and WRM]) • Gerry McGrath (General Maintenance Assistant) • Sophia McMinn (Deputy Accountant) • Eve McMullen (Access & Outreach Coordinator) • Katie Mellor (Sub-Dean Tamesis) • Shannon Russell (Assistant Junior Dean) • Sharon Stansfield (Purchase Ledger Assistant) • Chloe Knight (Scout)
• Luke Bradshaw (Registrar) • Sally Brooks (Head of Development & Alumni Relations) • Andrew Frampton (Graduate Trainee Library Assistant) • Lizzie Fry (Access & Outreach Coordinator) • Richard Huggins (Manager for Outside Properties) • Sandeep Kaur (Scout) • Dorota Maciejowska (Scout) • Pilar Mardones (Scout) • John Morrison (Lodge Porter) • Sophie Quantrell (Assistant Librarian) • Emma Steane (Governanace and Projects Assistant) The College is grateful for their contribution whilst they were here.
We hope they will all find the College a happy, exciting and inclusive environment in which to work. After being apart for much of the year, we were able to gather for a staff barbecue in early September and celebrate the long service of the following : • Elaine Kavanagh (Housekeeping Supervisor) – 1 April 1985 – 36 years, 5 months • Cliff Dandridge (Sous Chef) – 6 November 1989 – 31 years, 9 months • Nada Milkovic (Deputy Hall Butler)– 26 April 1995 – 26 years, 4 months
We welcome a number of new staff:
• James Ronaldson (Boatman) – 1 September 1995 – 26 years
• Abhimanyu Arni (William Miller Sub-Dean)
• Paul Solesbury (Scout) – 27 September 1999 – 21 years, 11 months
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• Susan Kasper (Gardener) – 29 March 2000 – 21 years, 5 months • Penny Alden (Academic Assistant) – 5 June, 2000 – 21 years, 2 months This year has been very challenging for staff facing repeated lockdowns with varying restrictions. The safety of staff and students alike has been paramount for us, but we have tried to facilitate as much activity as was possible to enable
some form of collegiate life to continue. I hope that all staff can recharge over the summer to be ready for whatever the pandemic does next. I would like to thank all our staff for their hard work and dedication without whom the College would not be such a happy and supportive place to work for both staff and students. Dr Charlotte Sweeney, Domestic Bursar
From the Finance Bursar
It will come as no surprise to you that the finances of the Hall have continued to be severely impacted due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The timing of the Magazine’s publication means that the 2020/21 accounts are still three months away from being completed, however, we anticipate that they will show a deficit on normal operations. The new 2020/21 academic year started with the return of the students to the Hall, but unfortunately in Hilary term 2021, due to the third lockdown, the undergraduates were not permitted to return. The Hall has continued to experience cancelled Easter and summer conferences in 2021, but it is pleasing to note that our Conference Manager is now taking bookings and requests for 2022 and we are hopeful that the Hall’s activity will eventually return to
normal. Overall, the income of the College has fallen by nearly £2.5m since March 2020. To assist the Hall in mitigating some of the lost income, we furloughed many of the catering and accommodation staff whilst continuing to pay them 100% of their salary, to ensure that they were not detrimentally affected by this process. I am grateful to all department heads who have remained cost conscious over the past twelve months, in a time when we were never quite sure when normality would return and therefore cost control was crucial. Each year the Hall makes an application to the University’s College Contributions Committee (CCC), which distributes income grants to the less wealthy colleges, financed by wealthier colleges. As an exception for 2021 and 2022, there is an emergency Covid scheme whose aim is to enable colleges who suffered financially from the Covid pandemic to achieve a sustainable budget in the financial year 2020/21. I am delighted to confirm that the Hall has been awarded £1m. Due to the impact from the pandemic, the Hall’s endowment funds fell to £62.8m at 31 July 2020, down from £65.1m at 31 July 2019. The final valuation of the endowment funds at 31 July 2021 are
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not yet finalised, but pleasingly, the initial indications show that the endowment funds will have increased in value to around £72m, after taking into account the transfer to income of £2.3m under the Hall’s agreed spend rule. The 2020/21 accounts will be published towards the end of the calendar year, when a more detailed analysis will be shown. The Investment Sub-Committee has, again, been particularly active and I am grateful to the members of the committee, especially the external members, for their support. I would like to extend my thanks to Rupert Ruvigny (1977, PPE) and Steve Edwards (1976, Physics), who have supported the Investment Committee for a number of years and have now passed on the baton to two new members. Rathbone Greenbank was appointed as our new investment manager towards the end of 2019/20, managing 40% of the Hall’s investment portfolio, with the balance being held within the Oxford Endowment Fund (OEF). The Hall’s investment policy can be found on our website, with the key aim to manage and invest the entire portfolio in holdings that meet strict environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. During the year, Rathbone transitioned the Hall’s portfolio from the historic funds previously held into new assets that meet these strict criteria. I am pleased to report that notwithstanding the ups and downs of the financial markets, the loan facility is still paying dividends and has retained its value considerably above the initial £20m investment. The College needs to invest in its Estates, particularly the upgrading of its older buildings, and the surplus on the loan is now being used to serve this purpose and this year it has been put towards the Besse refurbishment. I am delighted to confirm that the Besse project is near completion and will be ready
for students in Michaelmas term with fabulous newly refurbished rooms, most of which are now ensuite, and asbestos removal, re-wiring and a new roof adding to the complexity of the project. We are very grateful to those Aularians who answered the call for donations to help fund the roof, once we identified that it needed replacing in its entirety, thus adding a significant additional cost to this project. There will be a campaign launch in March 2022 which will be focused on raising funds to meet the aims prioritised within our ten-year strategy. This includes our aim to fully endow our tutorial fellowships, increase our endowment for student support and will also include raising funds for the new student accommodation at Norham Gardens built to Passivhaus standards. Housing all our undergraduate students remains a priority, and the project at 17 Norham Gardens is now underway, more details of which can be found in this Magazine. Support from our alumni in the form of gifts and legacies are extremely important to the success of this project and your enthusiasm in driving us forward to meet these challenges is equally important. Finally, my thanks go to Stephanie Hanks, our College Accountant, who has continued to improve the state of the finances and significantly improve the financial processes and procedures within the Finance Department and across the Hall. Last summer we welcomed Sophia McMinn and Sharon Stansfield into the team, who have settled in very well, despite joining when they have had to work much of the time from home! I would also like to thank Sumathy Melville and Casey Charlesworth who have remained calm and helpful throughout the year in what has been quite a challenging time. Eleanor Burnett, Finance Bursar
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From the Librarian & the Library Fellow
The beginning of September 2020 found the Librarians preparing to re-open the Library to readers after six months of closure. Social distancing measures were put in place: more than a third of the Library’s space had been taped off, masks were compulsory and returned books were to be quarantined for two days or more. Signs everywhere reminded to students to sanitise their hands and clean desks before and after use. The Library showed a very different face to our normal sunny welcome. Nonetheless, we were determined that once the Library reopened, it would be as open as it humanly could be and would not close as long as there were Teddy Hall students in Oxford and services we could offer those students stuck at home. Unlike many other colleges, the Teddy Hall Library remained open 24 hours a day, seven days a week all year. We had no booking systems in place, but maintained free access at any time. In fact, the only day the Library was closed was Christmas Day. In terms of the number of seats available to our students, we became the second largest college library in Oxford.
We also offered many other services to students. We posted books, new and old, to students at home in the UK, but also to the US, Turkey, China and Germany. We took books to the doors of students in isolation in Queen’s Lane, in Norham Gardens and in private accommodation throughout Oxford. We delivered books three times a day to pigeonholes for students to collect. We offered advice and support at all hours of the day to help students access the vast cornucopia of electronic resources the University now offers. One popular initiative was the offer of a ‘Blind Date with a Book’ – readers could contact us and request either a fiction or a non-fiction book from the collection, along with a brief outline of their tastes, and we would supply them with a book for recreational reading.
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Activities in the Old Library Inevitably, but unfortunately, our ongoing attempts to open up the Old Library to a wider audience have had to pause. However in Trinity term, for the first time in almost a century, we were able to offer the College’s original 17th-century Library as a study space to help compensate for the spaces closed in the main Library. We have also been able to continue to explore and celebrate the treasures of the collection via the Hall blog. The Librarian has identified a previously unidentified and uncatalogued copy of Wenceslaus Hollar’s ‘Quartermaster’s Map’ bound with a copy of John Speed’s A prospect of the most famovs parts of the world (shelfmark CC32). The work, first published in 1644, consists of six folio sheet maps covering England, Wales and southern Scotland. Our copy is incomplete, missing the title page and one of the sheets. However, it does have considerable handwritten annotation and illustration (dating c.1709) on both sides of the sheets. The volume was part of the large bequest of John Berriman in 1765 and the hand of the annotations looks very similar to that in the densely annotated copies of the Koran (shelfmark CC25) and The history of the Saracens (shelfmark 695) from the same donation.
Donations to the Library As ever, we are hugely grateful to everyone who has donated their own works as well as other books to the Libraries. This year, we have received more than 200 books from Aularians, Fellows, current students and other benefactors. In the Aularian collection, this included poetry by Kevin Crossley-Holland (Honorary Fellow), Jim Dening (1958, Modern Languages) and Peter Malin (1970, English Language & Literature).
Welcome donations to the working collection came from John Madgwick (1983, English Language & Literature), John Morrison (Porter) and Christopher Gin (2015, Jurisprudence) amongst others. Stephen Leonard (1978, Mathematics) and his wife Luxue Yu have generously continued their multi-year donation for the purchase of the complete 16 volume Cambridge History of China, and the 6 volume Cambridge History of Japan, as well as the purchase of other material relating to the study of East Asia.
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Library Staff
50 years in St Peter-in-the-East
This year, for the first time, the Library took part in the Bodleian Library Graduate Trainee Scheme. The initiative allows a recent graduate to work for the Library for a year while also receiving regular training from the Bodleian. The scheme is intended to provide the necessary professional experience to enable the trainees to go on to complete a Masters course in Librarianship. Dr Andrew Frampton, our inaugural recruit, faced an unusual year with all the difficulties of the pandemic, but he rose to the challenge magnificently. Andrew will be attending UCL in the coming year working on a MA in Library and Information Studies.
As we noted last issue, the academic year 2020-21 marked the fiftieth anniversary of the parish church of St Peter-in-theEast becoming the Hall’s Library. Alas, almost all our plans for celebration were stymied. Still, we were able to renew a tradition dating back to our first occupancy of the church and celebrate the feast of St Peter on 29 June in the wonderful AngloNorman crypt alongside worshippers from the University Church with which the historic parish of St Peter’s is now united.
In August we said goodbye to Sophie Quantrell, our much-loved Assistant Librarian. Sophie, who joined the Library in 2018, has gone to work as a Ministry Assistant at Grace Church in Cowley and will be much missed. The Library team will however be reinforced and refreshed in the coming academic year when Emma Carter, who has previously worked at the Garrick Club and at Trinity College Cambridge, joins us as Assistant Librarian and Heather Barr becomes our new one-year trainee. In June we received the sad news that former Librarian Sasha Wernberg-Møller had passed away. Sasha was Librarian at the Hall for 18 years from 1972-1990 and we offer our condolences to her family.
However, we feel the greatest and most fitting celebration of 50 years of our new Library has been the effort we have made to keep it open at the heart of the Hall’s life this year and our endeavours to support all our students’ studies. James Howarth, Librarian Karma Nabulsi, Library Fellow An obituary for Sasha Wernberg- Møller can be found on p.170.
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Donations 2020-21 Over the year the Library was the beneficiary of many gifts for the Aularian and Fellows Collections, which are listed below. BISHOP, Carrie (donor) (daughter of BISHOP, Robert Anthony) Bishop, Robert Anthony Memoirs of the Navy in the Second World War: Arctic Convoys and Coastal Forces in the Eastern Mediterranean Inkly Little Fingers, 2021 BRIGGS, Adrian Civil Jurisdiction and Judgements (7th edition) Informa Law from Routledge, 2021 BROADBRIDGE, David Christensen, Inger (translated by Broadbridge, David) Butterfly Valley David Broadbridge, 2021 CONWAY-GORDON, Giles Shamanomics: A Short Guide to the Failure, Fallacies and Future of Macroeconomics Outskirts Press, 2021 CRANMER, Gordon Southern Exposure Five Seasons Press, 2021 CROSSLEY-HOLLAND, Kevin With Love, Jeffrey Allan (Illustrator) Norse Tales: Stories from Across the Rainbow Bridge Walker Studio, 2020 Gravity for Beginners Arc, 2021 DAVIES, Linda 10 things Everyone Needs to Know About Money Atebol, 2021
DENING, Jim With watercolours by Starling, John Landscape: Word and Image Arcade, 2021 DICKINSON, Andrew and Peel, Edwin (eds.) A Conflict of Laws Companion: Essays in Honour of Adrian Briggs OUP, 2021 FOX, Jeremy Conquest Matador, 2021 GORDON, Keith Schedule 36 Notices: HMRC Information Requests Claritax Books, 2021 Residence: The Definition in Practice Claritax Books, 2021 GULL, Keith (donor) PATTEN, Chris First Confession, a Sort of Memoir Allen Lane, 2017 KHURSHID, Salman At Home in India: The Muslim Saga Hay House India, 2015 Bansal, Schweta (with contributions by KHURSHID, Salman) Courting Politics EBC, 2017 BRASIER, Martin Secret Chambers: the Inside story of Cells & Complex Life OUP, 2012 HIBBENS, Joy The Suicide Prevention Pocket Guide Book Welbeck Balance, 2021
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HOLMES, J. Paul Versuch einer Wahrheitmetaphysik Literareon, 2021 KNIGHT, John ‘A Tale of Two Countries and Two Stages: South Africa, China and the Lewis Model’ in South African Journal of Economics Vol 89, no 2 Economic Society of South Africa, 2021 Knight, John; Shi, Li and Chang, Yuan ‘Minorities in Rural China: Poorer but inherently happier?’ in: Gustafsson, B. Hasmath, R. and Ding, S. ed. Ethnicity and Inequality in China Routledge, 2021 Knight, John; Ding, Sai; Guaraiglia, Allessandra and Yang, Junhing ‘Negative Investment in China: Financing Constraints and Restructuring Versus Growth’ in Economic Development and Cultural Change Vol 69, no 4 University of Calgary, 2021 LAUGHTON, Tony Lord Brackley’s Cricket Tour to the West Indies 1905 Boundary Books, 2020 LEAVER, Keith Microelectronic Devices 2nd ed. Imperial College Press, 1997 Leaver, Keith; Anderson, J.C.; Leevers, P. and Rawlings, R.D. Materials Science for Engineers 5th ed. Nelson Thornes, 1990 MALIN, Peter Spirits of Place and Time Quaint Device, 2021 Revived with Care: John Fletcher’s Plays on the British stage, 1885-2020 Routledge, 2021
METTERS, G. Alan ‘Did Oliver Cromwell Sleep at Iringland Hall, Norfolk?’ in The Norfolk Archaeology Vol xlviii, Part III 2020 ROBERTSON, Ian Cameron ‘Some Archaeology on James Beattie’s The Minstrel (1771 and 1774)’ in Scottish Literary Review Vol 12 No 2 Autumn/Winter 2020 ROSE, Edward P.F. German Military Geology and the Fortification of the British Channel Islands during World War II Springer, 2020 Rose, Edward; Ehlen, J. and Lawrence, U.L. (eds.) Military Aspects of Geology: Fortication, Excavation and Terrain Evaluation Geological Society, 2019 Rose, Edward and Mather J.D. Military Aspects of Hydrology Geological Society, 2012 Rose, Edward and Nathanial, C. Paul Geology and Warfare Geological Society, 2000 Rose, Edward and Rosenbaum, M.S. The Tunnels of Gibraltar The Gibraltar Museum, 1991 Rose, Edward and Rosenbaum, M.S. A Field Guide to the Geology of Gibraltar The Gibraltar Museum, 1991 Rose, Edward and Rosenbaum, M.S. Royal Engineer Geologists and the Geology of Gibraltar The Gibraltar Museum, 1990 Rose, Edward; Willi, Dierk; Heyse, Irénée; Allersmeier, Christoph and Doyle, Peter (eds.) Militärhistorisch-kriegsgeologischer Reiseführer zum Wytschaete-Bogen (Messines Ridge) bei Ypern (Belgien) Geoinformationsdienst der Bundeswehr, 2015
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Rose, Edward and Pareyn, Claude Geology of the D-Day Landings in Normandy, 1944 Geologists Association, 2003 SHINGLER, Giles Six CDs of Music and Video SCOTT-PRESLAND, Peter A Gay Century Volume One: 1900-1962 Conrad Press 2021
WINKLER, Emily and Fitzgerald, Liam The Normans in the Mediterranean Brepols, 2021 There were also many gifts of texts for the Undergraduate Library from Fellows, alumni, student members and others. This year particular mention must be made of the donations received from: John Madgwick, John Morrison and Danielle Parkinson.
SHIPTON, Alyn The Art of Jazz Imagine!, 2020
Gifts were also received from: Kristiana Dahl, Philippa Howarth and Christopher Gin.
SKOKOWSKI, Paul Information and Mind: The Philosophy of Fred Dretske CSLI, 2020
Thanks to everyone who has remembered the Library. We are grateful for the continued support we receive in this way.
TELLER, Neville Trump and the Holy Land 2016-2020: the Deal of the Century Matador, 2020 More Audio Drama: 10 more plays for radio and podcast Matador, 2021 TYTLER, Graeme ‘The Presentation of Mr Kenneth in Wuthering Heights’ in Bronte Studies Vol 43 No 2 pp.147-155 Routledge, 2018 ‘Physiognomy in The Professor’ in Bronte Studies Vol 44 No 4 pp.339-350 Routledge, 2019 ‘The Presentation of Two Housekeepers in Wuthering Heights’ in Bronte Studies Vol 45 No 3 pp.272-281 Rouledge, 2020 WINKLER, Emily, Fitzgerald, Liam and Small, Andrew Designing Norman Sicily Boydell Press, 2020
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From the Chaplain Ghost Stories held in early December, with about 20 in person and two dozen over Zoom. Professors Erica McAlpine and Henrike Lähnemann joined Dr Edmund Wareham and me in reciting some spooky poetry, short stories, and songs, capped off with a reading of Edgar Allan Poe’s famous plague tale, The Masque of the Red Death. Many thanks to Gareth Simpson for hosting! I’d love to make it an annual tradition.
Sunday’s Choral Evensong is normally a fixed point in a busy college diary. It was that and other things. Each week of Michaelmas was different — amid shifting guidelines, students or staff isolating, and the city coming in and out of tiers and lockdowns. The Choir adapted brilliantly. I was glad to have a core team to respond to every moment: our Director of Music, Dr James Whitbourn, our Chapel Fellow, Professor Jeff Tseng, and our Chapel Clerk, Timothy Powell. We had strong support from Aularians and the Principal and Fellows, with 55 to 100 people tuning in via Zoom each week, as we offered prayer and song in the best sort of Anglican tradition. There was a twist. With social distancing, Choir members were allocated separately to the Chapel, Crypt, and Old Dining Hall. James and I scurried around (with varying levels of dignity and in all weather) to lead, direct, sing, preach, or pray. December’s ‘Carols in the Quad’ offered the rare luxury of being in one place. I was keen to host events that lent a sense of normality, whether it was weekly walks, exhibitions of College treasures, or special services. A popular event was
The winter lockdown made Hilary term quiet. Few students were around. Chapel services were austere, but marked by exemplary music-making and dedication from two Choral Scholars and our Organ Scholar, who were all in Oxford: Alexandra Burgar, Toby Whitehead, and Connor Wood. Dr Whitbourn arranged pieces that could be performed with three voices and chamber organ, while I was often singer, preacher, sound engineer, and video technician. Trinity was easier in comparison! It was a great gift to see students and colleagues in person, and eventually to gather the whole Choir in Chapel. We had a special Choral Eucharist for Corpus Christi, too, and May Morning saw Prof Lähnemman, Emma Steane, and I play from the tower of St Peter’s-inthe-East as a brass trio, to the delight of Aularians, visitors, and passers-by. We made greater use of the Chapel during the week for Evening Prayer (Monday to Thursday) and a Eucharist on Wednesdays. With our Chapel placed centrally at the heart of the Hall, prayer together can be a daily opportunity and discipline. It has been a solace in these difficult times. Alongside the usual pastoral support, I met with students to prepare them for confirmation and had more intensive
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meetings with others who wanted to speak about vocational discernment. I have also been undertaking some reorganisation of the sacristy, cataloguing our historic Chapel vestments and liturgical vessels, as well as doing some small work to restore them for regular use. An architect came in July to inspect the Chapel, alongside the Quinquennial Review of St Peter’s-inthe-East, and we are eagerly awaiting the report.
The Choir trip to Pontigny had to be postponed again, but we have in its place a Choir residential in Oxford, along with some singing at Douai Abbey at Upper Woolhampton near Thatcham. It will be an excellent chance to say good-bye again to our leavers, and welcome new singers and Organ Scholars in advance of another great year for Chapel and Choir at Teddy Hall. Revd Dr Zack Guiliano, Chaplain
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From the Director of Music The Hall took part in the university-wide auditions process for organ and choral scholars (online) and we made offers to several excellent candidates (all subsequently fulfilled). At the beginning of term, we welcomed American graduate student Connor Wood as Organ Scholar, a one-year appointment before our two newly-appointed undergraduate organ scholars take up their places in 2021.
To write a report on the music in St Edmund Hall during the year of a pandemic is to bring to the fore emotions, challenges and opportunities not experienced within living memory. Yet we look back proudly on the achievement of beauty through sound reached during the testing year of 2020-2021 and on the enrichment that music brought to a special community. In spite of the limitations, we can unequivocally say that music flourished in new and unexpected ways and that its true values became freshly defined and appreciated. In September 2020 members of the Choir of St Edmund Hall came excitedly to Oxford to make music again in our cherished spaces after a long period of remote participation. Knowing that singing may not be permitted, we brought in the international percussionist Joby Burgess for a refreshing and exhilarating day on the study of rhythm. In the event, we could migrate to a building that made quiet singing possible, and it was uplifting to hear the formulation of gentle choral sound again.
Michaelmas term saw innovative applications of technology allow three small choral groups (gathered in the Chapel, the Old Dining Hall and the Crypt) to participate jointly in a single live service distributed online. In her survey of Oxford chapel choirs during lockdown1, Isabelle Allan found St Edmund Hall to be the only college in Oxford to prioritise the live element of weekly Evensong as its chief guiding principle and, in whatever format was permitted, our weekly Sunday Evensong remained a live service throughout the year. It enabled continuance of the discipline and regularity of rehearsal and performance, and it gave singers the unexpected opportunity to combine within small vocal groups. It presented a steep learning curve to Choir members who were challenged with new repertoire, and they responded with extraordinary
1 Isabelle Allan. Church Music during Lockdown: A Case Study of Chapel Choirs at the University of Oxford. https://www.voxhumanajournal.com/allan2021.html
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commitment and skill. ‘Sunday Live’, as it became known, also included short instrumental or vocal concerts prior to Evensong and attracted a substantial online audience each week, including families and alumnae. Gabriele Brasaite (violin) and Gavin Bala (piano) were the first to take to the stage with an emotional performance of Rachmaninov’s Vocalese. The weeks that followed saw excellent contributions from pianists, singer-songwriters and other musicians in College. As students worked with the technology, the broadcasts became cleaner and slicker as the term progressed. Above all, the Hall was ringing with music again. The Advent Carol Service afforded the opportunity for the whole Choir to sing together for the first time in the same building – albeit just for a single piece. The calendar year rounded off with Carols in the Quad, complete with full Choir and a new wind ensemble drawn from the student body – clarinet, saxophones and horns. Carols in the Quad is always a popular event but perhaps it has never been treasured more than in the year when outside events were the only permitted events. The Front Quad twinkled and reverberated with beauty; mulled wine and mince pies reminded everyone of the days that would one day return. Singing lessons for Choral Scholars and Choral Exhibitioners proved one of the great success stories of the academic year. The Hall was delighted to welcome Julie Cooper, a soprano from the internationally-renowned ensemble ‘The Sixteen’ as a singing tutor alongside Jeremy Kenyon. Both teachers were willing to offer online tuition at times when in-person tuition was impossible. Their work, and the opportunity for these young singers to develop and discover their
voices with professional guidance, brought immense benefits. In Hilary term, when most undergraduates were required to study away from College, Choral Evensong was sung live from the Chapel each week by two choral scholars, Alex Burgar and Toby Whitehead, together with the Chaplain, accompanied by the organ scholar. Again, these were broadcast live online. During this time, new repertoire was explored, suitable for the reduced forces, and new musical arrangements were tailor-made for the small ensemble. One week, the choral scholars sang Stanford’s setting of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in G with violin in a newly-arranged scoring. Other repertoire by Philip Moore and others was introduced in the course of the term. Meanwhile, the full Choir continued to meet online weekly for a series of lecturerehearsals, offering context and analysis to works which would be placed before them in person the following term. Trinity term saw the return of the fully residential student body. The Choir re-formed first into two locations – the Chapel and the ODH – and then, for the second half of the term, finally to a single location – the Chapel. Services remained solely as broadcast events until the final two weeks when a few people were allowed to form a small congregation. Members of the Choir were taught new repertoire by Arvo Pärt, James MacMillan, Henryk Górecki, Stanford and Byrd. Meanwhile, the St Edmund Hall Music Society launched its online Trinity term Music concert at the end of term, recorded in the Wolfson Hall, the ODH and the Chapel. Flora Hartz’s own song ‘Rise up against the crowd’ was one of several standout performances in a programme which also included music from vocalists Beth Scott, Alex Burgar, Hiu Suet
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Shum and Zirui Zhou, pianists Courtney Stanage and Jake Elliott, and from Joe Ritchie (Guitar), Jasmin Kreutzer (Violin) and Wei Wei Liu (Cello) together with an appearance of the Hall’s lovely harpsichord played by the Organ Scholar. The Choir residential in September 2021 saw the capstone placed on our year of choral development. The residential included a trip to Douai Abbey, with its sumptuous acoustic. Back home in College, we had a display in the Old Library of facsimiles of sixteenth century manuscripts and printed sources, together with a small collection of items pertaining to Sir John Stainer, perhaps the Hall’s most distinguished musical alumnus. We learnt to sing from partbooks and we explored new repertoire. We welcomed incoming choral and organ scholars and
worked towards a flourishing year ahead. 2020-2021 has also been one of preparation and planning, and several important improvements have been made to instruments and music facilities in College, especially in the organ loft and Music Room. Thanks are due to many members of College staff, including the Chaplain and Bursars, the accommodation and events teams, IT and communications colleagues and dining room staff for all they have done to nurture musicians in College and create an environment in which our work is valued and encouraged. Above all, though, thanks are due to the wonderful student body, who embraced the challenges and helped create beauty in the most challenging times. Dr James Whitbourn, Director of Music
From the Student Recruitment and Progression Manager year began with an ambitious project to produce a series of YouTube videos that covered the whole gamut of the Oxford application process. Using a green screen and studio lighting we were able to make the videos dynamic and engaging, as well as informative. These have garnered thousands of views on YouTube and we expect them to perform even better during the coming admissions round. We had hoped to be able to expand our green screen studio to deliver live virtual visits, but with school closures, lockdowns and a return to working from home, sadly this was not possible. As Trinity term draws to a close and the schools begin to wrap up the summer term, I am afforded a moment to reflect on what has been another unique year in the Admissions Office. The academic
Amongst the lockdowns and school closures we were, however, able to continue delivering some live sessions for schools, with Lizzie Fry engaging with over 500 students across 21 schools during the
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narrow windows where schools were able to facilitate sessions. We have continued to work with the Brilliant Club, contributing to their online programme over the past few months, and ran the second Teddy Rocks Maths essay competition with our Early Career Teaching and Outreach Fellow, Dr Tom Crawford. With school interaction occupying less of our time than usual, we were able to place more focus on the development of the Oxford for East Midlands consortium, in partnership with Lincoln College and Magdalen College. After a period of extensive research and planning, we launched our flagship Oxford NextGen programme in March 2021. This sustained-contact programme works with students from targeted schools with high levels of disadvantage and underrepresentation at Oxford and follows these students from Year 10 through to Year 13. The programme has been designed to target students who are at a greater disadvantage than their peers and will offer a wide range of support from making informed choices at A-level, to introducing the teaching methods and independent study common at university through a research project. With multiple visits to Oxford, frequent opportunities to engage with current students and tutors, and a residential visit to Oxford and an application workshop in Year 13, we hope the programme will raise students’ aspirations, allow them to develop their study skills, and put them in as strong a place as possible to make an application to Oxford, should they choose to do so. During the 2020 Admissions Exercise it was hugely encouraging to see that direct applications to the Hall had increased once again to their highest level, and the proportion of offers made to students from state-educated backgrounds reached 67%, only two offers away from the
University average. Despite an atypical admissions round with all interviews taking place remotely, the College is set to admit one its most diverse cohorts later this year. In July we said goodbye to our Access and Outreach Coordinator, Lizzie Fry, who will begin teacher training in the new academic year at a school in East Sussex. It has been fantastic having her as part of the outreach team over the last two years, and I am immensely grateful for the work she has done. Her work in the first six months of the 2019/20 year saw us engage with more students and schools than ever before, and her commitment to projects spanning outreach, equality and diversity have contributed a great deal to the College’s development in these areas. Later in the summer we will welcomed our new Access and Outreach Coordinator, Eve McMullen to the Admissions Office. Eve grew up in Nottinghamshire, attending a local comprehensive school and then studied History and Politics at Magdalen College before joining the Hall. As we expand our work in the East Midlands, it will be hugely valuable having a member of the team from the region, and I look forward to the insight and vision that Eve will bring to our work. With restrictions having eased over the last few months, we hope we are able to move towards a Michaelmas term closer to normal and look forward with much anticipation to hosting schools at the Hall once again. All being well, we hope to resume our outreach roadshow next academic year and are looking to develop further programmes such as taster days and residentials, to run alongside our dayto-day outreach programme and our work across the East Midlands. Luke Maw, Student Recruitment and Progression Manager
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From the President of the MCR completely shut down social events, we as an MCR continued to keep spirits up in these hard time through socially distant welfare events.
Ben is a 3rd year DPhil student from Hampshire studying Nanotechnology and cancer treatment. This is his third year and last year on the MCR Committee, having previously served as Steward, where, alongside Hans Robin Solberg, he organised social events. This past academic year has been a rather different experience compared to my first two years at Teddy Hall. Indeed, it has probably been a more difficult experience than any other in the history of the MCR. Never has the College and the MCR faced such a challenge. I am proud to say the MCR has remained a home away from home for all our students and the Hall Spirit remains as strong as ever.
Freshers’ Week The year started like never before: a big group of excited and enthusiastic Freshers arrived for a host of Covid friendly events organised over the course of three weeks and culminating with Freshers’ Week. Not only did we face the challenge of our biggest cohort of graduate Freshers (over 140) but we also had to run events in a way that conformed to government guidelines. Where this year other colleges
Over the past years, the Teddy Hall MCR have gained a reputation amongst postgraduate communities in Oxford for being one of the most social, vibrant and welcoming. I am very pleased to report that we are continuing on that path with maximum attendance at all events we ran for new students. We successfully ran dozens of welcome events, including over 140 Freshers attending the traditional welcome dinner in two sittings. Of particular importance was the matriculation ceremony we ran at Norham Gardens; it seemed wrong to welcome these new students without the special tradition that is matriculation. With help from the fantastic College staff, and a live stream from the Vice-Chancellor we were able to inaugurate new students in a near-traditional ceremony, complete with sub-fusc and champagne. This year the MCR committee has had to work harder than ever before, for this I cannot thank the fantastic members of the committee enough! Without their tireless and thankless effort the MCR would be so much worse off. I cannot begin to explain how proud I am of the job they have done this year.
Michaelmas, Hilary and Trinity term We kicked the first term of the academic year off with a somewhat different framework to normal years. The Treasurer Andrew Gibson and I organised a lively Boozy Bob Ross painting session where more than 50 members turned up over 3 separate sessions to enjoy a glass of wine
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whilst painting picturesque landscapes. The recurring High Tea event was taken to the next level by Welfare Reps Raghul Ravichandran and Julie Hechler who put on an impressive spread of snacks and nibbles in personalised bags for a whole day of wholesomeness for graduates to enjoy remotely. Before the end of term, College held the Carols in the Quad Christmas event, it was a lovely event that allowed the MCR, JCR and SCR alike to enjoy College in all its festive glory. The absolute highlight of Michaelmas was of course the phenomenal Christmas dinner that Chef John McGeever and his team had prepared for an evening that was a true example of ‘hygge’. Although split into two events, the dinners lost none of the magic of previous years, over 180 students enjoyed the fantastic night. Unfortunately, due to the rise in cases after the Christmas holidays the scope of events we could run in Hilary term was very limited. Thankfully to the rescue came the Stewards Fernando Jiminez Gallardo and Thijs Van der Plas, and the Welfare Reps Raghul and Julie, who held a plethora of online events to keep the spirits of the MCR up. These events included online painting by numbers, and virtual beer tasting. Trinity term saw the gradual unlocking of restrictions and with it, more flexibility in the way the MCR could operate. The restarting of sports teams saw the MCR Football Team competing in an intercollege 5-a-side competition led by Captain Jack Mills. The Croquet Team made it to a record breaking last 16 in Cuppers under the leadership of European doubles champion Mark Baker. With new rules in place the MCR was able to hold events once again, of particular
success the barbeques at Norham Gardens in the glorious sunshine saw over 60 people at two separate events enjoy the fantastic British summer.
Academic events For yet another year, Professor David Priestland has graciously invited us into his home virtually for academic minitalks by members of the MCR, enjoyed over dinner, snacks and drinks from the comfort of everyone’s home. I wish to extend a special thanks to our Academic Rep Paul Röttger for orchestrating speakers, not only for this event series, but also for the first ever Teddy Hall Lightning Talks, offering a diverse spread of our postgraduates to give 5-minute talks for an audience of their peers. It was a great event that only underlines the massive advantages of our diverse MCR community.
Closing remarks The implications of the global pandemic have been ever apparent throughout this year, but the MCR once again proved just how strong a community it is when faced with a new challenge. Facebook groups were created, a peer support network for students who were self-isolating was organised, and once in-person events such as ‘pub-quizzes’ were moved online. The lockdown just emphasised what I knew to be true already: whether you are in Oxford for just one year, or for several, the welcoming and social nature of the MCR helps you create lasting friendships within a network of people that you can rely on for life. I have tried my best to outline key elements on what has been going on in the MCR this past year, but the MCR is much, much more than I could give an account of here. Leading the MCR this year during these difficult times has been an
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absolute privilege. Teddy Hall has become my home away from home, and the MCR has become my new family. As we look forward to returning to normality this year I cannot state how proud I am to be part
of an MCR that has remained as amazing and supportive throughout this year as this one has! Benjamin White (2018, Engineering Science)
From the President of the JCR
To say this year was unconventional would be a massive understatement. From the moment students were back in the Hall for Michaelmas 2020, College staff and students alike all worked exceptionally hard towards making everyone’s experience as normal as possible. Led by my predecessor Benjy Penny, the JCR Committee did an incredible job at greeting a new batch of Freshers amid ever-changing restrictions. Collaboration between College staff and the JCR was perhaps never as important as it has been this year, and it has been, overall, a great success. While Michaelmas term ended with a glimpse of hope and the start of the vaccine rollout, Hilary term began with a bleak outlook. As a fresh lockdown was imposed, students were to remain at home for most of term. But JCR life kept going, with online JCR meetings, socials,
and continued welfare provision from our wonderful Welfare Officers Felicity Hudson and Alex Abrahams. For those who were in Oxford, the Hall stayed as open and welcoming as possible. Unlike most other colleges, our Library was open 24/7 with no booking system throughout the lockdowns, and having a separate workplace was a massive help for student wellbeing. On top of dinner in the Hall, we kept warm breakfast going throughout Hilary term, giving students a bit of comfort before starting a day of online classes. We had snow in Oxford in January, and our spontaneous snowman competition was a highlight for many of us. In the middle of term, the second years held an online ‘Halfway Hall’ with an impressive turnout to mark the occasion, with refreshments and entertainment provided to households by our tremendous Entz Presidents Millie Liddell and Caitlin Conway. In Trinity term, the Hall very much came back to life. As most students returned to Oxford, many enjoyed the start of spring by swimming in Port Meadow and socialising in the sun with their friends they had not seen since Michaelmas term. From May, we were able to organise a range of in-person events and socials again. The Buttery reopened for drinks indoors, and Freshers were able to discover the Oxford pubs and restaurants they had not had a chance to explore amid the various lockdowns. Millie and Caitlin did an amazing job at making up for all the lost
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time. The JCR organised hugely popular seated BOPs, which were, for many, the most normal socials they had experienced since the start of the pandemic. We also hosted a proper second years’ formal, with a drinks reception in groups of 30 in the Front Quad and the Graveyard. We even had former MCR President Freddie Sørensen take professional photos all evening. Our Finalists were also invited by their tutors to two Schools’ Dinners in the Hall after they had finished their exams. Our new Welfare Officers Katie Long and Greg Halliwell were exceptional throughout Trinity term. A source of great excitement for all in the JCR this year was the arrival of a new friend, our JCR Tortoise. After an online poll, we settled on the name Monty for this beautiful specimen of a Hermann’s Tortoise. Monty is taken care of by our Welfare Officers and our dedicated Tortoise Keeper Verity Black. Trinity also saw the return of our famed weekly JCR Tea (JCRT), with treats and snacks for all years every Friday. They also invited everyone to enjoy strawberries and cream in the graveyard, which was a great occasion to bring Monty out and introduce him to the JCR. While sports were, to say the least,
disrupted by Covid restrictions this year, our captains did a tremendous job at making the most of the moments we were able to play. In Trinity term, the Freshers got their first taste of Hall rugby by winning the Rugby 7s Cuppers. The Boat Club is in great shape, with W1 and W2 winning blades, M1 bumping Wolfson to reach 5th place in Division 1, and M2 falling short of blades but maintaining a 7-year upward streak. Mixed Athletics and Polo also won Cuppers, and a brave mixed Rounders team reached the Cuppers final. Women’s Cricket won Cuppers, and the men also had a great term. Overall, our sports teams were able to blend fun, inclusiveness and success throughout Trinity term. I will therefore conclude by stressing how strong our community has remained throughout the pandemic. While restrictions have been a hard blow to our experience as students, they may have had the unexpected effect of strengthening communication and cooperation between the JCR and College Fellows and staff. I am confident that we will keep the momentum going, and that next year will be a great one for the students of the Hall. Julien Kress (2019, History)
From Student Clubs and Societies Professor Luc Nguyen, Tutorial Fellow in Mathematics writes as Senior Treasurer of the Amalgamated Clubs: To begin with I would like to record our thanks to our former Treasurer, Professor Roger Benson, who has helped shape the way of the Clubs in many ways. Being new in this role, I am very pleased to see that, despite very difficult circumstances,
aspects of cultural and sporting life at the Hall carry on undeterred though rather differently. Many activities could only be held remotely or very briefly when situation permitted. Discarding aside all the uncertainty, we hope that the pandemic will soon come to an end and look forward to our chance to follow our ambitions in the nearest future.
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Sports Clubs Men’s Association Football
1st XI Captain: Jordan Dring Social Secretary: Oliver Ogden Vice-Captain: Joe Stevani President: Rick Anslow 2nd XI Captain: Alessandro Gallo 3rd XI Captain: Shariz Azlam SEHAFC were looking to build on a promising 2019-20 season where we got to the semi-finals of Cuppers, losing to the eventual winners. Sadly, due to the pandemic, the season was very frustrating for all, only managing two games in Michaelmas and no football in Hilary. However, there was hope in Trinity where we competed in a 5-a-side league. Teddy Hall put out two sides, with some great Fresher participation. There were some Women’s Association Football Captains: Sian Langham & Rebecca Whant Despite a rocky start to the season due to Coronavirus, we as captains believe we still managed to have a great season. Due to the season starting in Trinity, which is typically cricket season, we played in a
great performances on show and some great signs for next year. In particular, some very resilient performances from the 2s. Both sides finished third in their respective leagues with four wins and two losses. However, a victory in a friendly against Queen’s was a fantastic way to end the shortened season. Players of all abilities are strongly encouraged to play at Teddy Hall, with three 11-a-side teams normally competing. The stage is set for the 202122 season. The club is in very capable hands with 1st XI Captain Sam Boulger and vice Tomas Dwyer, who I’m sure will strive to Cuppers success. Jordan Dring (2018, Chemistry) 5-a-side league this year instead, which we all thoroughly enjoyed (some more than 11-a-side). We managed to field two teams a week playing a total of 10 games and winning half of those. Even after scoring 20 incredible goals, unfortunately we still narrowly missed out on qualifying for the quarter finals but there was some great football on display throughout.
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We thought fielding two teams during exam season would be difficult, but we had over 25 women represent Teddy Hall, which shows how much the Hall loves football. For this reason, the teams each week varied somewhat and involved a wide range of people including postgraduate students, Freshers, experienced players, and brand-new players. It has been great to get so many players involved and meet plenty of new faces through football this season. We managed to do a couple of socials too which brought us all closer together and created a good team spirit. We ended the season with a crazy mixed match at Teddy Hall sports day where we had six girls confidently represent us. As a goalkeeper, the highlight for me was the warm weather which I will definitely miss next season. We are excited to see what next season holds under our new captains Gemma Bingham-Smith and Yasmin Ratcliffe. Sian Langham (2019, Engineering Science) Chess
When Covid hit, most sports and societies were forced to stop. Luckily, chess is one of the fortunate activities that can easily be adapted to an online format. And with the success of the series The Queen’s Gambit and people being stranded at home due to lockdown regulations, chess actually experienced a real boom and saw increased numbers of players worldwide. This trend was also visible in this year’s Chess Cuppers in Oxford, as a recordbreaking 40 teams competed in four divisions for the title. The Teddy Hall Squad started in the second division. Over nine matches throughout Michaelmas and Trinity the team tried their best to withstand some of the extremely strong opponent teams in this division. In the end, the title in the second division went to a combined team from Merton/Mansfield, who managed a clean sweep and won all of their nine matches. The Teddy Hall Squad won two of their matches and drew another two: just enough to closely scrape past the relegation! The atmosphere in team was friendly and supportive all the way through and was welcoming to players of all levels. Whereas the top two boards were generally filled with some of the more experienced Teddy Hall players, the two lower boards offered plenty of opportunities for some of the (Teddy Hall) chess newbies to gain experience in their first ever tournament chess matches. We are grateful that Chess Cuppers enabled us to keep some of the Hall Spirit and the Cuppers feeling alive, even in a time when most other events had to be cancelled. Nevertheless, we are looking forward to the upcoming term, and are hoping that in person ‘over the board’ tournaments will be the norm again.
Captain: Lilli Hahn
Lilli Hahn (2017, DPhil Molecular Cell Biology in Health and Disease)
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Cricket Captain: Oliver Ogden After not having a season last year due to coronavirus, the members of SEHCC were ready to get their teeth sunk into a full season of cricket in Trinity term. We started the season with a few net sessions in the Uni parks and the Queen’s College ground. After not seeing the second and first years play before, the older members of the club were scouting out new talent to keep up the high standards of the cricket team. We started the season with an emphatic win over Lincoln. Batting first, we totaled 203/4 and bowled them out for 83. This was a great all-round display by the team and stood us in good stead for the rest of the season. Following this win, we then went on to face Sommerville in the first round of Cuppers again beating them 223/5 to their 120/5 after the full twenty overs. Our outstanding players in this match were the former Captain Jordan Dring, scoring 98, and Fresher Robbie Hardwick scoring 87- their huge opening partnership giving us the base to a total that no team would be able to chase. After a few weeks of bad weather and losing a lot of the team to the library, we had to forfeit the rest of our group league games. Despite this, after our first big win we still came fourth out of six in the group! Putting all our focus on our Cuppers campaign, we went on to beat St Hugh’s - easily chasing their 80/6. After two big wins in the early rounds of Cuppers, we went on to face Jesus in the quarter finals. After a good display in the field, we were left to chase 176. Jordan and Robbie got us off to a great start and we were looking in the driver’s seat sitting at 130/3 after 14 overs. After a very quick middle order collapse, the tail enders were given the
task of bringing the team home. However, this was not the case as we were bowled out for 172, bringing our good Cuppers campaign to an end. This was a great season for building the foundation for next year’s season and I would like to wish the best of luck to Robbie Hardwick as he captains the vessel that is SEHCC next year. Oliver Ogden (2019, Engineering Science) Hockey Captain: Shariz Aslam A pandemic isn’t great for casual sport, and SEHHC’s 2020/21 season felt that quite sharply. To start with what went well, this intake of Freshers was filled with lots of keen and/ or talented hockey players, many of whom (alongside a rather skilled visiting student) have committed themselves to the club. This meant the club had several Blues players, men and women, in its ranks and – equally importantly – had lots of keen faces who’d never played the sport before. We were also quick out the gates with getting risk assessments sorted to enable us to play early in the Michaelmas term. But that’s where everything ground to a halt for a while. The second national Covid-19 lockdown put an end to any hopes of play for what turned out to be the rest of Michaelmas term, with the third lockdown taking up a similar role for Hilary term as well. So as Trinity term came around, it became devastatingly apparent that, as captain, I would not be able to lead the club through a full league campaign or even a full mixed Cuppers tournament. However, the OUHC Cuppers Secretary was able to organise a couple of mini-leagues in Trinity term,
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featuring the few colleges remaining confident of consistently fielding a playing squad. We were placed in a mini-league with other strong hockey sides. The campaign opened with a thrilling 4-3 victory over Keble; we were 0-2 down at half time but persevered to turn the game around. The next game, unfortunately, saw an opposing fate as we led Jesus/Worcester 1-0 for the majority of the game before conceding two quick successive strikes in the dying minutes of the game to lose 1-2. Next up was a game against Queen’s, who turned up with a squad of just nine. Given the long Covid-enforced absence from sport, we were all just keen to play and so one of our players switched sides. The Queen’s + 1 team proceeded to narrowly beat SEHHC 3-2 (with said pinched player providing some key movement in their midfield). The Cupper Secretary later pointed out a player loan would usually be mean concession by Queen’s but, since no concession was discussed in advance, we let Queen’s take all 3 points. Our lesson was learned when we faced Brasenose, who had to borrow two of our players and agreed concession before we came away with a 1-0 win anyway. This was followed the week after by a comfortable win against Exeter. The final game was against New, for which various eighth week plans and exams had depleted our squad to just 4. With some reinforcements from St Hilda’s (who weren’t in a league) we just about had seven, enough for a half-pitch game against a full New College squad in the intense heat. It would have been far easier to call the match off, but we love hockey and – even with a 5-0 loss – it was good to get out and play.
The final whistle of that game marked the end of a very unusual and turbulent 2020/21 season. As we hopefully put this pandemic behind us, we’re ready for a normal season next Michaelmas (fingers crossed) for which the club will be in the very trustworthy hands of Harriet Eyles. I wish her the best of luck as captain. Shariz Aslam (2019, Economics and Management) Netball Captains: Kalli Dockrill & Nailah Ranjan The netball team had a challenging year, as due to lack of court availability and Covid restrictions we were unable to play in Michaelmas or Hilary. However, during Trinity we were lucky enough to play in the Cuppers league, where we were put into the top group. It was tough as we didn’t have a consistent team and could not train much, but everyone who played did a fantastic job and we ended up placing 11th in our group. There was real improvement between each game which was amazing to see, even if we did not win as many matches as we would have hoped. We also had regular training sessions at Jackdaw Lane, which were always fun even though we didn’t have an actual court. The team really developed and improved from these sessions and it was great to run them along games. We’re looking forward to next year, when hopefully games will be more regular throughout Michaelmas and Hilary and we can have a strong Hall turnout at Cuppers in Trinity. Our new captains are Beth Scott and Esmé McMillan and I’m sure they’ll do an amazing job! Nailah Ranjan (2019, History & Politics)
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Rowing
President: Jess Radley Vice President: Natasha Cooke Men’s Captain: Oliver Shepherd Women’s Captain: India Brough Men’s Vice Captain: Toby Whitehead Women’s Vice Captain: Maddie Prottey Captain of Coxes: Catriona Campbell Treasurer: Beth Goodfellow Secretary: Felicity Hudson IT Officer: Aleksei Malyshev Men’s Social Sec: Julien Kress Women’s Social Sec: Brittany Perera Water Safety Adviser: Alistair Ross This academic year started with the great news that British Rowing had allowed rowing in eights again after a long time off due to the coronavirus pandemic. We were happy to see that many Freshers were keen to try out rowing. Mixed novice training was run whereby the men and the women trained together, and over 50 Freshers tried the sport out. Meanwhile, the seniors were getting fours and eights out, trying to remember how to row after such a long time off. Only one race went ahead in Michaelmas term before the
second lockdown, the Isis Winter League. The women pulled together a crew to enter this and achieved a modest time of 6:17. Then on 5 November, we found ourselves in second national lockdown and all rowing activity was halted. Luckily, the committee was now experienced at keeping morale up online. Socials and circuits on Zoom began again, and athletes were encouraged to log their activities on a Google sheet. Our coaches ran online workshops giving expert tips on rowing and coxing. Rowing began again after the lockdown was lifted on 29 March, and the captains really hit the ground running with at least two SEHBC outings being run every day. The next race we could enter was the Isis Spring League A on 16 May. The Women’s First Eight (W1) was the second fastest women’s crew out of 44 women’s boats with a time of 5:13 and the Men’s First Eight (M1) was the third fastest men’s crew out of 42 men’s boats with 4:22. The Men’s and Women’s Second Eights (M2 and W2) also did well, coming 28th and 31st, respectively.
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Some old members came back in May to chalk up their M1 blades from 2019, where M1 went from ninth to fifth on the river. The second Isis Spring League took place on 30 May, and we entered five boats. All boats improved on their times from the last race, with the results showing Teddy Hall has the second fastest W1 (5:06) M1 (4:16.5) and W2 (5:34.5) and the fastest M2 (4:53). Usually in Trinity term, Summer VIIIs is the big race of the term. However due to the lack of rowing for the past two years, Oxford University Rowing Clubs (OURCs) decided it would be safer to use Torpids rules rather than Summer Eights rules. This means only the boat that achieves a bump drops out of the racing, rather than the pair of boats involved in the bumping. The captains then voted for Torpids charts to be used (rather than Eights charts). University athletes were allowed to compete. The divisions were reduced to 10 from the usual 13 and since there were more entries from women’s boats then men’s, the races each day finished with Women’s Div 1 for the first time.
Spectators were also discouraged from watching this year’s races and instead a livestream was set up. SEHBC entered six boats in Torpids, which is the first time a W2 has been in Torpids since 2012 and the first time a W3 has ever appeared. Just before Torpids began, we were lucky enough to get some upgrades to our boathouse. Alex Grant and Elion Angjelo, from the Hall’s maintenance team, put up a new shelf for lifejackets, a cupboard for cox boxes as well as looking into rejigging our lights system downstairs and putting in a new cupboard for shoes and bags. We also rediscovered our third, outdoor toilet and a fob system was installed so members can use their Salto keys to get in. Another St Edmund Hall crest was installed which had been recently restored. The Friends of St Edmund Hall Boat Club, our benefactors, generously purchased some new Concept 2 skinny blades for the women. For the first time, W1 were rowing with suede handles rather than wooden ones which everyone was very pleased about. We had two rowers competing in the OUWLRC Blue Boat this year, Hazel Wake and Katie Wellstead. Torpids All six of the College’s teams achieved solid results across the four days of Torpids. M3 finished their campaign level in fixed divs, now as the second highest M3 across the colleges. W3 bumped twice and W2 moved up a division and won blades. M2 were tragically denied blades when, on day 4, the rudder fell of their boat while they were making their way to the start. After 5 years of falling, SEH W1 has finally climbed back up to where they rightfully belong. This is the third time our W1
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has achieved blades in Torpids, the two previous times being 2004 and 2005. Since the divisions were smaller this year, these results mean our W1 will actually start at the bottom end of Division 2 in Torpids 2022 (without ever having to be the sandwich boat!). M1 fought hard to get their row over along with all other crews in Division 1, maintaining their spot at 5th on the river. The last time our M1 has finished this high in Torpids was 1969.
SEHBC has had a wonderfully successful season despite all the restrictions in place. I’d like to thank all the members, committee, our senior member Charlotte Sweeney, and the Friends of SEHBC for their support throughout. Jess Radley (2018, DPhil Psychiatry) Men’s Rugby Captain: Ed Hayes
In total, SEHBC achieved 17 bumps this Torpids campaign, the most of any college. M1 +1 W1 +6 BLADES M2 +2 W2 +6 BLADES M3 0 W3 +2 The members celebrated their success with a trip to South Park until the early hours of the morning. Then on 19 June, SEHBC entered seven mixed, men’s and women’s boats into Oriel Regatta. The women formed a composite with Hertford and won their category, gaining a bottle of gin. The mixed men’s and women’s first boat put on a good show, winning all their heats but unfortunately losing to Christ Church in the final, who had clearly been training much too hard. The committee put on a fun regatta-style race on 20 June 20 for members, which included spinning the boat and backing it down the fastest. Torpids dinner was due to take place on 23 June with hope that restrictions would be fully lifted by then. This however wasn’t the case so plans had to be quickly changed to move it from our usual venue of Vaults and Gardens to an outdoor venue. We were luckily hosted by Isis Farmhouse, a location we all knew well but not many of us had had a chance to visit yet. The evening continued almost as normal and was a fantastic way to end a successful season.
The 2020/2021 SEHRFC season has been as disrupted as everything else this year. Having not been allowed to play or train until Trinity term, we had a lot of catching up to do. Without the usual league or 15-aside Cuppers tournament in the first two terms, OURFC held a mixed touch tournament and sevens Cuppers tournament. We were determined to bring home some silverware and continue our reign as the best college team. Needing to blow away a few cobwebs, training commenced in the sun with a strong turnout from both older and younger years. It was excellent to finally bring the club together after a year of attempting to replicate the College bar’s atmosphere on Zoom. Despite it being a very short season, in true Teddy Hall fashion it did not lack success. With the Varsity match being moved to July, the club was not able to field its contingent of OURFC blues players. However, the depth of our club
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meant that numbers were never an issue helped by an influx of Freshers accounting for more than half the team.
normal next year as we look to retain the Cuppers trophy in both fifteens and sevens as well as piling back into the College bar.
The mixed touch tournament was a brilliant display of the unity of the College. We were required to field a team that was made up of at least half of women from the Hall. Fortunately, they certainly stepped up along with a large group of Freshers. Cruising through both the quarter and semi-finals, we made it to the final against New College. The final was filled with action and ended tied. Going to extra time fatigue set in, and a golden try from New College meant the game finished dramatically meaning we finished in a very respectful second place.
Ed Hayes (2019, BA Economics and Management)
The Sevens Cuppers was the only full contact event of the year meaning that it was the one all college teams were desperate to win. Having made our way through the group stage comfortably on the first day, our strong form continued the second day with big wins in both the quarter and semi-finals. The final was tightly contested against Hertford with the second half finishing tied, 14-14. Like the Touch Cuppers, we ended up in a golden try situation. This time, with a try from Ed Hayes, we got the win and meant we took home the silverware. It was an excellent display by all the lads involved and a brilliant way to finish off what has been an unusual year. We look forward to things being back to
Ultimate Frisbee Captain: Davidson Sabu Teddy Hall’s Ultimate Frisbee was squashed into one term this year, due to unforeseen circumstances, with restrictions easing in Trinity term. League matches were across a few weeks in Trinity term where we were paired with the Balliol team. In the penultimate week of term, we had our Cuppers debut, after it was cancelled last year. Given it was during exam season for the older undergraduate members, it was wonderful to see the Freshers and younger years representing the Hall, with Matthew Morris heading up our side. Even more impressive, finishing 5th in our first Cuppers competition. It’s only upwards from here and we look forward to growing the team next year and reaching ever closer to the Cuppers victory. Congratulations to the team for this year’s achievement and the best is yet to come! Davidson Sabu (2018, Materials Science) Other sports clubs playing in 2020-2021 included Athletics, Basketball, Women’s Cricket, Croquet, Lacrosse, MCR Football, Polo and Rounders.
Cultural, Social & Volunteering Christian Union President: Hannah Treece The Christian Union of St Edmund Hall (Magdalen and Teddy Hall CU) has met bi-weekly since the merging with the CU in Magdalen earlier this year, using
Zoom for all of Michaelmas and Hilary, except for the last few meetings in Trinity, where the advantage of good weather and relaxing of some restrictions allowed us to meet in the Deer Park in Magdalen. We
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met to study the Bible together, support each other through prayer, and to have a community. Keeping the sense of community was difficult this year, but we found ways to overcome this difficulty. Food could not be shared through a screen, and so instead online game tournaments became a staple – most notably Pictionary, which became wonderfully competitive. It was only when we met in person that snacks could be enjoyed. The creation of a group chat on WhatsApp also allowed us to talk and get to know each other. Due to the nature of this past year, we did not get the opportunity to run many special events, except for at the end of Michaelmas, where we helped run carol services in Magdalen, served mulled wine, and gave carol packs to anyone in either College who wanted them, which included mince pies and more mulled wine. Hannah Treece (2021, Classics and Oriental Studies, Magdalen) Music Society Student representative: Jasmin Kreutzer Music-making this year in the Hall has been diverse and varied. Throughout Michaelmas there was a series of recitals preceding Sunday Evensong, which were streamed over Zoom and featured beautiful and high-standard performances by Gabriel Brasaite (violin), Gavin Bala (piano), Connor Wood (Organ Scholar), Raven Undersun (singer/songwriter), Joseph Lucas (viola) and Melissa Guiliano (soprano). The term was rounded off with the annual ‘Carols in the Quad’ Christmas celebration on 3rd December, featuring a wind band of clarinets, saxophones and brass instruments, as well as the Choir of St Edmund Hall. A socially distanced part of the College community was able to join for the carols in person in the Front Quad,
gathering with mulled wine and mince pies to sing along in a jolly and cheerful atmosphere, while the event was also recorded and livestreamed for the rest of the College. Another recital series had been planned for Hilary term but became impossible because of the Covid situation in the spring; instead, in Trinity term, a range of professional audio and video recordings were put together by George Cole and Sarah Armstrong, with lighting for the videos by Cherona Chapman. The five recordings spanned a variety of genres–– classical music, pop, musical theatre, and singer/songwriter––and featured participants from across the years and subject-groups: Alex Burgar (soprano), Jake Eliott (keyboard), Flora Hartz (vocals and piano), Jasmin Kreutzer (violin), Wei Wei Liu (cello), Joe Ritchie (guitar), Beth Scott (vocals), Hiu Suet Shum (vocals), Courtney Stanage (piano), Connor Wood (harpsichord) and Zirui Zhou (vocals). Both the audio and video recordings can be accessed via the Teddy Hall website. Apart from musical performances, Teddy Hall students also had access to music facilities and instruments for practice throughout the entire academic year: the Music Room in the Rear Quad remained open from Michaelmas through to Trinity, and a piano was set up in the Welfare Room; the high-quality piano
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in the Norham Gardens MCR was also accessible for playing. Several of the Hall’s instruments were upgraded, too. The drum-kit was renovated, pianos and amplifiers repaired, and the harpsichord tuned and relocated to a more accessible spot in the Chapel. We hope that more in-person events will be possible in the coming year, both short and full-length concerts, of all genres, instruments and voices. Students interested in performing, or in joining the Music Society and planning music-related events, are very encouraged to contact me or other officers of the Music Society with their ideas and wishes. We’re looking forward to many suggestions and concert opportunities and a very musical academic year for 2021/22! Jasmin Kreutzer (2020, English) Writer’s Workshop Throughout the past year, despite isolation and uncertainty, creativity did not cease to flourish at Teddy Hall. Though many of the creative writing group’s regular members graduated last summer, their literary shoes have been undoubtedly filled by various talented newcomers. In Michaelmas, we overcame restrictions and overlapping quarantines to meet both physically and virtually. It was during this term that we got our first glimpses at Aili Channer’s (2020, English) strange, beautiful, and frequently egg-themed poetry, and that William Heath (2020, English) shared the first threads of what would later become a fully-fledged film project entitled Checking Out. Hilary once again presented us with the challenge of online term, which meant that we again moved creative writing into cyberspace. In the face
of time differences, errant cats, and pestering parents, we persisted in our literary pursuits. Jasmin Kreutzer (2020, English) produced an array of original poetry and prose, drawing from dreams, memories, and life in the pandemic. Other students came by on a less regular basis, sometimes to share writing, but mostly to participate in the discussions and debates which would arise. Towards the end of Hilary term, we organised a creative writing exchange throughout College. The participants exchanged various pieces, from poetry to journals, but a special mention must go to Cormac Farrell’s (2020, Maths) Gavin and Stacey MATLAB function for being one of the most formally interesting pieces of writing I have ever read. I hope that my creative writing successors will continue the exchange each year, as it was a great showcase of both talent and community spirit at the Hall. With Trinity came the opportunity for us to (cautiously) meet again in person, and the change in environment seemed to spur the group into increasingly explorative conversation. Every participant this year has proved not only their capacity to adapt to adverse situations, but more importantly their ability to turn that adversity into beautiful and interesting writing. I have sincerely enjoyed my year running the group and believe that I am leaving it in very capable hands. With some semblance of normality returning to life, we may also see a re-emergence of a creative writing publication, and I look forwards to returning to College to see how the group will have progressed in 2021-22. Alexander Abrahams (2019, English Language & Literature)
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3
The Year Gone By
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A Virtual Matriculation by Stephen Blamey
On a normal Matriculation day more than 200 Teddy Hall Freshers would all crowd into the Wolfson Hall for a practical briefing from the Dean of Degrees, followed by a roll call. Then they’d form a procession and be led up the lane to the Sheldonian, where they’d be packed into the building along with people from half a dozen or so other colleges to take part in the ceremony. This year Freshers were marshalled into several separate locations on College premises: some into the Wolfson Hall, some into the Doctorow Hall, some into the common room at Norham St Edmund. Wherever they were, they stayed put, sitting suitably socially distanced, to watch an ersatz Matriculation ceremony streamed from the Sheldonian—and a few even had to remain isolated in their own room to watch it on their laptop or tablet. I was lurking at the back of the Wolfson Hall, where there was the largest number of people, along with Dr Alex Vukovich, one of my deputy Deans of Degrees. We were all in subfusc, of course (even wore subfusc masks, though this had not yet been written into the subfusc regulations— as it has now been). And, to provide a sense of occasion, fizzy wine was served.
From the Sheldonian we saw the ViceChancellor walk in with a couple of bedels. The Dean of Balliol then popped up, on behalf of all colleges at once, to present—as it were—all the distant matriculands scattered around the University: Insignissima Vice-Cancellaria, praesentamus tibi hos nostros scholares ut referantur in matriculam Universitatis1. And the Vice-Chancellor remotely matriculated everyone: Scitote vos hodie in Matriculam Universitatis relatos esse, et ad observandum omnia Statuta istius Universitatis, quantum ad vos spectent, teneri.2 Then—what seems to be de rigueur at ceremonies these days—the Vice-Chancellor lapsed into English to deliver some uplifting words of welcome.
Most eminent Vice-Chancellor, we present to you these our students that they may be registered in the ‘matricula’ (registration book) of the University.
1
Know that today you are registered in the ‘matricula’ of the University and are bound to observe all the statutes of this University which apply to you.
2
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When the broadcast was over, Alex and I processed up to the front of the hall to a fanfare from the College trumpeter, namely Professor Henrike Lähnemann (who’d rushed back to College for the occasion after abseiling down Mary Mags’ tower), to inflict yet another welcome speech on the poor Freshers. (Hadn’t they already heard enough? — from the Principal, the Dean, the Bursar, the Tutor for Undergraduates or the Tutor for Graduates, ... and just a moment before from the Vice-Chancellor.) This was streamed to Norham St Edmund, but we went up to the Doctorow Hall for a repeat in-person performance. We told them about subfusc and ceremonial, about different gowns and different hoods, about how things would have gone at a normal Matriculation and how we hoped things would actually go when they got their degrees, and about dressing up for the exams they needed to do to get a degree in the first place. Being so old, I was able to give them a couple of stories—I hope not too inaccurately remembered—from my own experience. I made a bit of an
idiot of myself, I’m afraid, stumbling over my words and knocking over my glass of fizzy wine; but Alex was there to provide some grown-up competence. I felt it appropriate to enlarge on a particular obsession of mine: how not to wear the hard cap. It’s so irritating to see the cap worn tilting backwards: it should be worn horizontal, or, if anything, tilting slightly forward. Old fashioned caps, with a firm crown, have a clearly defined big bit at the back and small bit at the front. If you have one of these, you shouldn’t put it on with the big bit at the front. More modern caps sadly have a softer crown and less of a difference between back and front; but this is still no excuse for wearing it tilting backwards. However, you can see from the photos of the occasion—look at the ones taken after people had poured out into the open—that my admonition had no effect. Or maybe it had? Perhaps they were wilfully doing what I’d told them not to? Dr Stephen Blamey, Emeritus Fellow and Dean of Degrees
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Teddy Hall Research On Covid-19 Hall Fellow Develops New Rapid Covid-19 Antibody Test
The study was led by Professor Alain Townsend from the MRC Human Immunology Unit at Oxford University. The team includes scientists from Taiwan, India, Thailand and France, as well as UK university and NHS researchers. The test, which spots the presence of virus-fighting antibodies rather than a coronavirus infection, can be adapted to work on blood from a finger prick – making it quick and easy to use. Dr Tan commented:
An international research team led by Oxford University scientists has developed a portable test for antibodies that fight the novel coronavirus that causes Covid-19. Part of this team is Dr Jack Tan, EPA Cephalosporin Early Career Teaching and Research Fellow, at St Edmund Hall. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, Dr Tan has been working at the Alain Townsend Lab at the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine to find new vaccines and tests to control Covid-19.
“We have sent the reagents free of charge to over 21 different countries and we will continue to supply the reagents for free to researchers or laboratories around the world who are keen to try it out.” This new test will help provide a better way of testing antibody levels and understanding immune defences in individuals and across populations, and ultimately help to control the spread of coronavirus. Dr Tan’s recent work on developing a new vaccine to fight the spread of Covid-19 variants can be read on the St Edmund Hall Blog: https://www.seh.ox.ac.uk/ blog/developing-a-next-generation-sarscov-2-vaccine
Professor Wes Williams Appointed New Torch Director Wes Williams, Professor of French Literature and Tutor in Modern Languages, has been appointed the new Director of TORCH (The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities) for three years. Wes has been involved with TORCH for many years, including his Knowledge Exchange Fellowship and before taking on the role of TORCH Director, he was Knowledge Exchange Champion of the
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Humanities at Oxford. He brings with him a wealth of experience in many areas, and a long-standing interest in fostering cultural collaborations and exchanges that amplify, diversify, and transform our collective intellectual and social resources. Professor Williams commented: “I have been involved in TORCH-related activities for some time (see for instance the Storming Utopia project) but this is a new adventure, heading up the University’s newly instituted Humanities Cultural
Programme. I hope in my time as Director to be able to both generate and curate a wide range of cultural collaborations and exchanges that amplify, diversify, and transform our collective intellectual and social resources. I would be delighted to hear from any members of SEH, past or present, who have ideas or contributions to make to this project.” If you would like to get in touch with Wes please email: wes.williams@seh. ox.ac.uk.
Old Dining Hall Refurbishment Complete The Old Dining Hall is one of the most loved, and most used, rooms in College. For those matriculating before 1969 it was the setting for evening dinner, for others is it the scene of poetry recitals, plays, concerts, seminars, formal dinners and weddings. Over recent years, it was clear the Old Dining Hall was in need of an update – not only to décor, fixtures and fittings, but also to update the electrics, small kitchen and provide better access with a disabled ramp.
Thanks to gifts from many generous Aularians, the first phase of the refurbishment began in March 2020 just before lockdown, but the contractors and maintenance team worked hard over the summer and the refurbishment was completed for the start of Michaelmas term. The lighting and acoustics have been improved, the historic woodwork has been restored and the walls have been repainted in a green colour consistent with the early period of use of the room as a dining hall. The portraits of former Principals have been returned to the walls. The Hall has been beautifully furnished with dining tables and chairs in keeping with this historic space. The 60 Aularians who supported this project are recognised with a plaque on the back of the wooden dining chairs. Donors will be invited to dine in the Hall again later in the year.
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Stewart Lee: King Rocker and a No 1 Hit Honorary Fellow Stewart Lee (1986, English) was sampled by electro-punk ethnofuturists Asian Dub Foundation on their number 1 hit single ‘Comin’ Over Here’ in January, quoting AngloSaxon poetry, and the video featured a copy of
his former tutor Bruce Mitchell’s ‘A Guide To Old English’. His anti-rockumentary ‘King Rocker’ was released in January and featured his fellow 1986 English scholar and Honorary Fellow Samira Ahmed miming to a song satirising the narrative structure of documentaries. Watch the video for ‘Comin’ Over Here: https://youtu.be/_kkOHtniTts and read more about King Rocker: https:// kingrockerfilm.com
Besse Building Refurbishment Underway Thanks to the generous support of Aularians, in the spring of 2020, St Edmund Hall started the refurbishment of 49-56 High Street (Besse Building). This is part of the Hall’s plan to improve the quality of all College student accommodation over the coming nine years. The refurbishment includes rewiring the building, installing en-suite bathrooms to the bulk of the rooms and improving the sustainability credentials of the old Grade II listed building by improving insulation, adding double glazing and heat extraction
from waste water. By September 2021, it will house six self-contained student apartments, and some offices and teaching rooms.
Restoration of the Forum Garden After a year’s delay due to the pandemic, the restoration of the Forum Garden was completed over the summer of 2021. Situated at the heart of the College, the Forum Garden provides a key space for Hall members to rest and relax. This major new restoration project has revived and enhanced the Garden with new plants, new trees, and additional seating and lighting. An important part of the work has been to remove and replace the soil in the beds,
all by hand, spade and wheelbarrow. A local allotment group is making good use of the soil, and a number of plants and bulbs have been removed from the beds and transferred to pots for use elsewhere in the College. New plant supports are installed on the walls of the Wolfson Hall to make use of this empty space and help green the College walls. The garden needs a restoration like this only once every 40 years. When Aularians next visit the College, we hope you enjoy the new outdoor space.
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Hall Student Team Win All-Innovate Idea Competition Congratulations to the Teddy Hall team Taf Matika (2020, International Health & Tropical Medicine) (founder/leading team member/Hall student), Dennis Mazingi (Wadham) and Chido Chigweder (St Catz) for winning the Oxford Foundry’s AllInnovate Idea Competition 2021 for their business idea Takura Couriers. The students won £10,000 grant funding and follow-on support to help grow their delivery company business which helps small-to-medium size businesses deliver their products (e.g. clothes, cakes, groceries, etc.) to their customers. They will work directly with customers to receive low weight goods (e.g. meals), and Takura Couriers’ future website/app will allow customers to buy directly from businesses. Ten teams from 33 participating Oxford colleges pitched their entrepreneurial ideas to a panel of expert judge for a chance to win a share of £20,000. The competition, targeted at undergraduates, postgraduates, and DPhils, aims to encourage all students at
Oxford, regardless of discipline, to develop an entrepreneurial skill set and generate entrepreneurial ideas. The team reported that “It feels very surreal, humbling and affirming to have won especially against such excellent competitors. We are really thankful to the Oxford Foundry for giving us the chance to not only share our idea, but for empowering us to take the idea further.” We wish the team at Takura Couriers all the best with their business. Read more about the final on the Oxford Foundry’s website: https://www. oxfordfoundry.ox.ac.uk/all-innovatehilary-term-competition-winnersannounced And more about Takura Couriers at: https://takuracouriers.co.zw
Geddes Trust 2021 Journalism Prizes, Lecture and Masterclass Prizes This year’s Geddes Trust prizes have been awarded to three very talented Oxford student journalists. Lois Heslop (Lady Margaret Hall), who is in her second year studying physics, won the main Philip Geddes Prize for the most promising student journalist at the University of Oxford.
The portfolio of work she submitted included several exclusive news stories she broke for The Oxford Blue – Oxford’s first new student newspaper in 30 years, which she co-founded – that hit national headlines. These included reporting of the arrest of a Christ Church professor for stealing ancient papyrus from the Sackler, a Pembroke don pleading guilty to child pornography possession, and a
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long read on the Governing Body feud at Christ Church, laid bare in confidential documents she obtained. The Blue has had over half a million website views in the year since its founding, has published articles by 400+ authors, and has won a national student journalism award. The prize will go on a number of long-term projects for the paper, with a particular focus on science and technology journalism. These will include the development of a science channel and outreach project, events, and an Oxford Blue app. Eren Orbey (Magdalen College), who is a second year MPhil student in Modern Middle Eastern Studies, won the Clive Taylor Prize for sports journalism. Eren submitted a portfolio of work published by The New Yorker, for which he has written since 2016. Eren plans to use the prize money to report on American women’s gymnastics in the run-up to the Olympic Games. Lauren Shirreff (Balliol College), who is in her third (and last) year studying Classical Archaeology, won the Ronnie Payne Prize for Foreign Reporting. Lauren sent in articles about #MeToo, A-Level results day, college responses to Covid-19 last term and an interview with a student LSD dealer who runs his ‘business’ out of his college room. Lauren is hoping to use the prize money to go to California and speak to Native American tribes about how cannabis legalisation is affecting their communities.
The Lie in the Machine: Truth, Big Tech and the Limits of Free Speech – Phillip Geddes Memorial Lecture 2021
This year, 491 people from across the world listened to Mark Thompson as he delivered the first online Memorial Lecture ‘The Lie in the Machine: Truth, Big Tech and the Limits of Free Speech’ on 9 March 2021. The lecture commenced with two introductory speeches: the first from St Edmund Hall’s Principal, Professor Katherine Willis and the second from the Chairman of the Geddes Trust, and previous Geddes Trust prize winner, Peter Cardwell. Mark, former CEO of The New York Times Company and Director-General of the BBC and current Chairman of Ancestry.com, spoke of historic, sometimes centuriesold, toxic mythologies, present-day fake news and digital misinformation; the audience learnt of Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln (1246-1255), whose death was falsely attributed to Jewish people and the difficulties and responsibilities that journalists, publishers and the media have had in the past, and continue to face, when reporting on conspiracy theorists cults, within the limits of woke culture and free speech protections. Watch the 2021 Geddes Memorial Lecture on the Hall’s YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/H0Q8CBM44O0
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Geddes Masterclass 2021 This year’s Geddes Trust annual master masterclass for student journalists was held on 29 January. BBC specialist disinformation reporter Marianna Spring, a former editor of Cherwell, gave a masterclass on how to use social media and the internet to find stories - and tell them to your audience. Marianna has spent the last year reporting across the BBC, including for News at Ten on coronavirus conspiracy theories, disinformation around the US election
and the ongoing role of major tech corporations in our public discourse. She explored how reporters can use online platforms to root out stories that media outlets can otherwise miss. After the masterclass a panel, featuring former Oxford students and Geddes Prize winners who are working in a range of media jobs, focussed on how student journalists can make their way in the media. [With acknowledgement to the Philip Geddes Memorial Fund website]
Writing at the Hall 2020/21 Although Covid restrictions limited students’ and members’ opportunities to hear poets and other writers read in person at the College this year, the writing community at St Edmund Hall continued to flourish both online and within the College grounds in various ways despite it all. The student-led Wednesday Workshop creative writing group still met when possible, producing really excellent work—and not all about the pandemic! The Hall Writers Forum also continued to flourish online, with frequent challenges and prompts to keep its members going. Our former writer in residence, Linda Davies, published her latest book this June and old member Nicholas Evans, the author of The Horse Whisperer, participated in an online conversation during Trinity term with Fellow in French Wes Williams. Third-year English student Scarlet Katz-Roberts won the Hall’s annual Graham Midgley Poetry Prize for her poem ‘Sestina.’ Everyone is looking forward to enjoying the Hall’s regular programme of readings and writing events next year. Erica McAlpine, A. C. Cooper Tutorial Fellow in English
A report from the students’ Wednesday Workshop is on p.54 and the Graham Midgely prize poem is on p.152.
Hall Writers’ Forum’s New Book: Unruly Riddles Members of the Hall Writers’ Forum and their friends kept themselves amused over this spring and summer by means of verse riddles. Ninety of these riddles, which range from surreptitiously simple to hair-raisingly horrendous, have now been collected by Darrell Barnes (1963, Modern Languages) into an Unruly Riddles book. All profits will go to the Hall Writers’ Forum which exists to encourage and support Hall writers, whether students, staff or alumni. Unruly Riddles is available to purchase: https://bit.ly/3yoWnbK.
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Hall Alumni Lead Conversation About Dyslexia at Oxford members of the local community.
Dyslexia at Oxford is a visual film and photography project about dyslexia, exploring the strengths and challenges of having a different brain wiring. It has been led by Hall alumna Olivia Williamson (2017, Fine Art) and is part of the TORCH Humanities Cultural Programme. Featured in the video are Teddy Hall alumnus Leslie Dickson Tetteh (2016, Medicine) and current student Vance Tan (2016, DPhil Geography and the Environment) who talk about their experience with dyslexia. Overall, the video is a conversation with students, alumni, staff, tutors, and researchers at The University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes University as well as
Summing up the project, Olivia said: “The aim was to create a resource for dyslexic, neurodivergent people to see their way of thinking reflected in someone else’s story, to open up a space for dialogue, driven by an invisible network of neurodivergent people. The project explores the strengths of dyslexia, as well as highlighting ongoing challenges faced in spaces that were not designed to be inclusive – with a focus on education.” This project celebrates our different ways of thinking, the stronger teams that can be created and the benefit to society if difference is valued, supported and seen as part of what makes us human. Released alongside the film are extended cuts of the interviews, with portraits of the speakers and further resources. Read more about the Dyslexia at Oxford Project Page: https://www.torch.ox.ac.uk/ dyslexia-at-oxford#/
Two Honorary Fellows Sworn In The College’s Governing Body swore in two new Honorary Fellows of St Edmund Hall on Wednesday 19 May. Each Fellow is distinguished in their respective fields, which include law and politics. Lord Sedwill (1987, MPhil Economics), in recognition of his distinguished career in politics. He was Cabinet Secretary from April 2018 to September 2020 and National Security Advisor from April 2017 to September 2020. Prior to this, Mark Sedwill was the Permanent Secretary at the Home Office (2013-17), FCO Political
Director (2012-13), NATO Senior Civilian Representative in Afghanistan (2010-11), HM Ambassador to Afghanistan (200910) and Director of UK Visas (2006-8).
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He joined the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in 1989, serving in Egypt, Iraq, Cyprus and Pakistan. Robert Venables QC, in recognition of his distinguished career and his period of office as a Tutorial Fellow. Robert studied Literae Humaniores at Merton College in 1966, followed by Jurisprudence from 1970 to 1972, was the Hall’s Tutor in Jurisprudence from 1975 to 1980 when he left the position in order to take up full-time practice at the Revenue Bar in London. He took silk ten years later.
He was elected Chairman of the Revenue Bar Association in 2001 and is a Master of the Bench of the Honourable Society of the Middle Temple. Robert’s clients range from entrepreneurs to celebrities, from nobility to politicians, and from FTSE 100 companies to charities. On those occasions when he is in court, Robert has found the Oxford tutorial system to be the best possible preparation for thinking on one’s feet–or rather, pretending to, because nothing succeeds better in advocacy than preparation, preparation, and preparation.
Art in Hall JCR and MCR Wildlife Photography Competition Timothy Hartog (2019, MEng Materials Science), Freddie Sørensen (2017, DPhil Statistics) and Yishan Wang (2017, DPhil Anthropology) were the winners of the joint JCR and MCR wildlife photography competition in June. Their prize-winning images featured swifts nesting in the Summer Palace in Bejing, a murmuration of starlings over wetlands in Otmoor and a snail on a bike in Cowley. See the winning photos on the opposite page.
Second Year Fine Art Exhibition On Thursday 17 June, Teddy Hall second year Fine Art Students held their annual art show in the Senior Common room at St Edmund Hall. Each student selected a piece from the College’s private collection to respond to in any medium. All the art works and a summary by the students about each piece can be seen on the Hall website: https://www.seh. ox.ac.uk/news/second-year-fine-artexhibition-annual-show-2021. Sadly, Covid restrictions meant the third year Fine Art students were unable to hold their final show in person but a virtual staging of their work can be found on pp. 131-136.
Photos opposite, clockwise from top left: Yishan Wang: Summer Palace Beijing Swift; Timothy Hartog: Unexpected Passenger; Frederik Sørensen: Starling Murmuration in the Sunset
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This page, clockwise from top left: Emily Webb: The moths between commas; April Dublin-Beeton: Elephant; Jenny Gill: Daydream
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This page, from top to bottom: Yang Gao: Untitled; Lewis Campbell-Smith: Bedroom Queen
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Pontigny Lecture 2021 was hosted by the Principal of St Edmund Hall, Professor Katherine Willis and was attended by 178 people across the Oxford community and general public. Lord Sedwill’s lecture was a review of the last decade covering topics such as the 2008 financial crisis, climate change, immigration pressures, G7 and Russia to name a few.
Mark Sedwill (1987, MPhil Economics), member of the House of Lords, former UK Cabinet Secretary, Hall Honorary Fellow and alumnus, gave the inaugural Pontigny Lecture on Wednesday 16 June 2021. He spoke on ‘Global Governance in a Contested World’. The online lecture
The second half of the lecture was an audience Q&A in which multiple questions were raised on the future of the civil service, the nature of democracy and sustainability and the climate crisis. The Hall thanks Lord Sedwill for this special lecture which is available to watch on the College’s YouTube channel: https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCjnZbJfQyc
Fellowship Lunchtime Lectures From Michaelmas term 2020 to Trinity 2021, St Edmund Hall ran a new online lunchtime lecture series which aimed to highlight the incredible depth and breadth of research across the Teddy Hall Fellowship. These talks have been very popular as students, fellows, lecturers, staff and alumni have tuned in each week. We’ve had a plethora of topics covered by our academics from reviewing the law over the last 40 years, medieval nuns, how memory works, Byzantine and Slavonic History, which genes we pass to our children to worms from half a billion years ago.
Most of these lectures are available to watch on the Hall’s YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIzbJQ4o aZo&list=PLNXj40GwnmWVk8gXWjq8jmJuY2s1TXjD&index=1
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Centre For The Creative Brain This year the Centre for the Creative Brain (CCB) held three online workshops with huge success. Professor Charlotte Stagg, Fellow by Special Election, leads the CCB’s event programme with the assistance of the CCB’s student committee. ‘The Mystery of Hypnosis: How Suggestible is your Brain?’ was held on Thursday 26 November 2020 and explored the theory and practicalities of hypnosis and was attended by over 170 people. The speakers were Dr Enrica Santarcangelo, the University of Pisa, Jack Blackbourn, a magician and hypnotist, and Dr Devin Terhune from Goldsmiths, University of London.
The second event was ‘Detective Stories: Inside the Criminal Mind’ on 11 March 2021. The workshop explored the criminal mind through psychology, psychiatry and literature, and 174 people took part. The audience heard from Professor Seena Fazel, University of Oxford, G. M. Malliet, an acclaimed author of mystery novels Dr Julia Shaw from University College London. The Centre’s final event took place on
Thursday 13 May 2021. Through the lens of artistic culture and psychiatry, the workshop explored how cultural experiences influence our brain and contribute to our mental health. The talk was led by current Oxford medical student Jessica Nicholls-Mindlin (Worcester College) who introduced four speakers to help guide the audience through the impact of culture on mental health. The speakers were Dr Jim Harris, Andrew W Mellon Foundation Teaching Curator at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, Dr Rebecca Sheriff, Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, and Susan McCormack and Helen Adams who were also from the Ashmolean Museum. All Centre for the Creative Brain Events are free and open to all. The Centre for the Creative Brain is generously endorsed by St Edmund Hall and the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford. Read more about its work on the College website: https://www.seh.ox.ac. uk/discover/research/centre-for-thecreative-brain-2
St Edmund Hall Law Society: Update Whilst the Aularian Law Society has not been able to meet in person this year, they have been active with assisting with mock interviews and mentoring for current and former students. Restrictions permitting, they hope to hold an event in person in the autumn. If you’re in any way
legal, please do join and if you would like to find a mentor or advice please do get in touch. If you would like to become a member of the society please sign up here: www.seh.ox.ac.uk/alumni/get-involved/ alumni-societies/law-society
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Awards and Prizes As ever there have been many admirable achievements of SCR members, current students and worldwide alumni during 2020-21. These are chronicled in sections 2, 4 and 8 of this Magazine. Here, special mention is made of some of these awards and prizes, and of other successes deserving to be placed on record. Within in the SCR particular congratulations are extended to Professor Alistair Borthwick, Emeritus Fellow, was awarded the ‘YanYuan’ Friendship Award by Peking University. Professor Borthwick received the award in recognition of his long collaboration on environmental science and engineering research with scholars in PKU (commencing in the 1990s). This is the second time such an award has been given. Dr Michael Gill, Tutorial Fellow in Management, and three co-authors won the annual ‘Best Paper’ award at the annual Academy of Management for their article ‘Building Theories From Qualitative Interview Research: How Many Interviews Do I Need?’. Professor Keith Gull, Emeritus Fellow, has been elected as a Corresponding Member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences.
Heidi Johansen-Berg, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience and Senior Research Fellow, was one of 11 University of Oxford biomedical and health scientists that the Academy of Medical Sciences elected to its fellowship this year. Professor Johansen-Berg was elected for her ongoing stewardship of research that focuses on how the brain changes with learning, experience, and damage. The Institution of Engineering and Technology announced 16 Honorary Fellows to mark its 150th year. Professor Eleanor Stride, Professorial Fellow in Biomaterials, was awarded the Fellowship in recognition of her contribution to biomedical engineering and research into treatment of major diseases. Dr Luke Parry, Early Career Teaching and Research Fellow in Earth Sciences, was awarded the Lyell Fund by the Geological Society of London which is given to geoscientists that have “made excellent contributions to geoscience research and its application, in the UK and internationally.”
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Aularians Honoured by the Queen Margaret (Maggie) Adela Miriam Carver (1982, Biochemistry) currently Interim Chairman of Ofcom and Chairman of the Racecourse Association and also on the Board of the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and The Licoricia of Winchester Statue Appeal (Chairman) has been awarded a CBE for services to media and sport. Maggie writes, “I am absolutely delighted to be awarded the honour of a CBE for services to media and sport. It has been both a joy and a privilege to serve both sectors and I look forward to continuing to do so.” Professor Amelia Fletcher (1985, PPE), Honorary Fellow at St Edmund Hall, has been awarded a CBE for services to the economy. Amelia read PPE at the Hall and then gained a DPhil and MPhil in economics from Nuffield College, Oxford. She is currently Professor of Competition Policy at Norwich Business School and Deputy Director of the Centre for Competition Policy at the University of East Anglia. Amelia is also a Non-Executive Director at the Financial Conduct Authority and the Payment Systems Regulator and a member of the Enforcement Decision Panel at Ofgem. John Lindsay (1964, Ethnology) was awarded a British Empire Medal (BEM) in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List for services to the environment. Specifically for collecting rubbish off East Lothian beaches!
David Kenton Reed (1983, English) lately Chief Superintendent of the Metropolitan Police Service, has been awarded an MBE for services to Policing. David began his 27-year career with the Metropolitan Police Service in 1992. Between 2008 and 2019, as a Programme Director and Change Manager, David was behind a number of complex changes to local policing in London. These were aimed at making the police service more effective by addressing both historic and emerging operational issues, as well as meeting budgetary challenges. David’s work transformed a number of core policing functions and moved the delivery of local policing into 12 command units rather than 32 boroughs. David writes, “I joined the Met, as many of us do, to make a difference. Working on the transformation programme gave me an opportunity to help change and improve policing – but I am very aware that such an award represents the hard work of many colleagues. This is a challenging area of business for everyone who is involved – and I am delighted that the difficult work we have collectively done to make people feel safer has been recognised.” Professor Eleanor Stride, Professorial Fellow, has been awarded an OBE for services to engineering. Eleanor specialises in the fabrication of nanoand microscale devices for targeted drug delivery. She holds a joint position between the Departments of Engineering Science and the Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences.
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Eleanor writes, “It was the most incredible and wonderful surprise. I still feel quite overwhelmed but also even more motivated to drive forward our research and to continue to work closely with the Royal Academy to support and promote Engineering.” Dr Laura Shallcross (1996, Medicine) has been awarded an MBE for her contribution to the national pandemic response in Adult Social Care. Laura is an Associate Professor at University College London and Honorary Consultant in Public Health in the Division of Infection at University College London NHS Trust. She holds a NIHR Clinician Scientist Award (2017-2023) and leads a programme of translational research applying data science methods to the analysis of electronic health records and omics datasets with the overarching goal to improve the management of infection and reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing across the NHS and social care. Laura’s research on antimicrobial resistance has informed national policy, and she regularly interfaces with national decision makers in her field through her membership of the Government’s Scientific Advisory Committee for Antimicrobial Prescribing, Resistance and Healthcare Acquired infection (APRHAI). During the Covid-19 pandemic, she has taken on a national public health leadership role as the academic lead for the largest UK study of Covid-19 in care homes and as a member of the Government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) Social Care working group. Laura established the VIVALDI (Covid-19 in care homes) studies in collaboration with the Department of Health and Social Care and Professor
Paul Moss’s group at the University of Birmingham, which have delivered timely findings to inform the pandemic response on subjects including: vaccine effectiveness, the emergence of variants, the risk of re-infection, and the antibody and cellular immune response following natural infection and vaccination. Congratulations to all for their welldeserved recognition.
Student Awards and Achievements Although the intra-collegiate sports competitions were sadly curtailed by lockdown for the second year running, the Hall’s sports men and women still recorded some notable successes. Mixed Athletics and Polo won their cuppers, and a brave mixed Rounders team reached the cuppers final. The Rugby team won the Sevens Cuppers and came second in a mixed touch rugby competition. The Women’s Cricket Team won their Cuppers, while the Men’s Cricket team reached the Cupper’s quarterfinals. Warm congratulations also go to the following students who were recognised this year for their participation at University level: Mark Baker (2016, DPhil Engineering Science) Croquet Half Blue Sam Cherry (2020, PPL) Rifle Half Blue Logan Clew-Bachrach (2020, PPE) Lightweight Rowing (Women’s) 2nd Team Colours Oliver Gales (2020, MPhil Environmental Change and Management) Australian Rules Football Half Blue Felix Gallagher (2019, Economics and Management) Swimming Half Blue Tamara Gibbons (2018, Chemistry) Polo Half Blue Samuel Miller (2017, Materials Science) Rugby Football Full Blue
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Barbora Schönfeldová (2019, DPhil Infection, Immunology and Translational Medicine) Lawn Tennis Full Blue Tom Schwantje (2019, DPhil Economics) Lacrosse Half Blue Gemma Smith-Bingham (2020, English) Eton Fives Half Blue Lewis Sutton (2018, Materials Science) Rugby League Full Blue Piers von Dadaleszen (2019, Engineeering Science) Rugby Football Full Blue Hazel Wake (2019, Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry) Lightweight Rowing (Women’s) Full Blue Herbert Watson (2018, Geography) Rugby Football Full Blue Katie Wellstead (2020, Materials Science) Lightweight Rowing (Women’s) Full Blue Annie Wooler (2019, Experimental Pyschology) Hockey Full Blue Yasemin Zurke (2018, DPhil Cardiovascular Science) Hockey Full Blue The Hall’s Amalgamated Clubs started giving awards to Hall members for obtaining the distinction of a Blue (£200) or Half Blue (£100). Thanks to the continuing generosity of Richard Luddington (1978, Modern History), Luddington Prizes were awarded to Ryan Jones (2017, Engineering Science), Abigail Jones (2018, Geography) and Samuel Miller (2017, Materials Science) for having achieved both a First in Finals and a Blue during their undergraduate careers. And thanks to the continuing generosity of another Aularian, Professor Simon J Simonian (1962, Animal Physiology) and his family, the Simonian Prizes for Excellence in Leadership went to: Robin De Meyere (2017, DPhil Materials Science)
Amy Hemsworth (2018, Jurisprudence (with Law in Europe)) Yasmin Jackson (2017, Modern Languages) Molly Ross (2020, MSt Modern Languages) Petra Stankovic (2020, MSt Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics (AS)) Ben Fernando (2016, DPhil Environmental Research (NERC DTP)) and Aleksei Malyshev (2019, DPhil Atomic and Laser Physics) were named as the joint winners of the sixth annual Ex Aula MCR Writing Competition for their articles ‘An ear to the ground, on Mars’ and Aleksei’s ‘Three Memes And A Quantum Computer — Or Why Do Theoretical Condensed Matter Physics?’ The judging panel said: “This year the judges have decided to award a joint first-place award to Mars and Quantum Computing. These two in particular, all four judges agreed, capture the idea of writing for a non-specialist audience, and do a great job addressing the general reader. Quantum Computing impressed us because 1) it’s a very difficult topic to address in a non-academic fashion, and was written with aplomb, and 2) it left us with a feeling of passion and excitement for the subject. Mars impressed us because 1) it has a clear narrative, with challenges, suspense, and solutions, and 2) it’s a great example of how to make problem-solving in research come to life in writing” The judges thanked all the contestants for sharing their research. The winning entries can be read on the Ex Aula website: https://mcr.seh.ox.ac.uk/ ex-aula-research-journal
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Masterclass Fund Awards The aim of these awards of up to £1,000 is to facilitate further development and achievement, for individual students. These year two awards were given to the following students to help them to pursue advanced training in the extra-curricular activities — creative or sporting — in which they excelled.
Lilli Hahn (2017, DPhil Molecular Cell Biology in Health and Disease) Chess Tom Schwantje (2019, DPhil Economics) Triathlon The Hall remains extremely grateful for the sponsorship which supports this successful Masterclass Fund Awards scheme.
Keith Gull Fund Mellissa Penagos Gaviria (2021, MSc Biodiversity, Conservation and Management) has received an award from the Keith Gull Fund. The fund is to be used at the discretion of the Principal to provide direct support to current Hall students who wish to undertake special projects
such as charitable work, choral and drama tours, travel for unusual academic opportunities and to assist others. Keith Gull initiated this fund during his tenure as Principal at the Hall, reflecting his commitment to both ‘Hall Spirit’ and supporting student ambition.
Jiayi Li wins 2020 Routledge Scholarship Jiayi writes, “It’s my honour to be the recipient of the Routledge Scholarship. It’s a pleasure to have it accompany me on my Oxford journey. The Routledge Scholarship has become a motivation that inspires me to continue exploring the field of Comparative and International Education to seek new academic challenges and rewarding experiences. Hopefully one day in the future I will see my name with Routledge again as an author. It’s my goal now.”
Jiayi Li (2020, Education) is this year’s Routledge Scholarship winner. The scholarship is awarded annually to a student on the MSc in Comparative and International Education at the University’s Department of Education.
Ian White, of Routledge/Taylor & Francis, writes, “our warmest congratulations are extended to Jiayi on receiving this award. Routledge is delighted to support the Scholarship and hope that it will provide a springboard for emerging scholars of international and comparative education to further their research and to develop their careers.”
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Thomas Henning is Pre-Clinical Runner-Up in National Undergraduate Neuroanatomy Competition 2021 Congratulations to Thomas Henning (2019, Medicine) for being the PreClinical Runner-Up in the National Undergraduate Neuroanatomy Competition (NUNC) 2021 at the University of Southampton. The NUNC is an annual competition open to all medical students in the UK and Ireland. It first started in 2013 and now attracts over 150 students. Students who enter the competition get the opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to the neurosciences and ability in neuroanatomy, meet and network with likeminded people, and see the exciting collection of neuroanatomical dissections. The competition was held online for the first time but the format remained the same, with exams taking place via an online portal and talks happening over Zoom. There are three main components of the competition: a neuroanatomy spotter examination, a clinically-orientated multiple-choice examination and series of talks from contestants on aspects of neuroscience. Thomas says: “The NUNC to me was an opportunity to gain further insight into an area of medicine and research that I grew to love during my second year here at Oxford. The brain is such an intricate system of various structures that probably gets more complicated the more you look at it; however it is always deeply rewarding when you further your understanding of it in the slightest way.
I never entered this competition to win but for the learning and – arguably – the fun of the preparatory sessions and the competition itself. Therefore it was even more humbling when I realised that my efforts had paid off in such a way that I was able to secure the title of Pre-Clinical runner up for the university. On that notion, I would really like to thank my second year tutor for Neuroscience, Teddy Hall’s own David Dupret, as well as Zoltan Molnar (St John’s) and Oliver Bredemeyer (last year’s runner up) for sparking and furthering my interest and knowledge in neurology and neuroscience. I would also love to thank my family and friends back home and here at Oxford for supporting me throughout this time and for always making me laugh or have an open door whenever I need to talk to someone.”
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Teddy Hall Student Wins Oxford Impact Award assistance and advice throughout my journey in the UK”.
Vance Tan Zong Hao (2016, DPhil Geography and the Environment), a doctoral student at St Edmund Hall from Brunei Darussalam was awarded the prestigious Impact Award from the University of Oxford’s Student Union (Oxford SU) on 20 June 2021. Vance is a recipient of the Sultan’s Scholar scholarship which is awarded to students in Brunei Darussalam for outstanding academic and extra-curricular pursuits. Upon receiving the Impact Award, he expressed his gratitude to His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah Ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan And Yang Di-Pertuan of Negara Brunei Darussalam for granting him the opportunity to pursue his doctoral studies through the scholarship. Vance continued, saying “the Sultan’s Scholar scholarship has enabled me to excel both in my academic work and extracurricular pursuits at Oxford, without which this Impact Award would not have been possible. I would also like to pay tribute to my parents as well as officers, teachers and staff at the Brunei Students’ Unit and the Brunei Darussalam High Commission in London for their continuous support,
The ‘Impact Award’ is presented annually to an individual “who has made a lasting change to a sports team, club or society”. This year’s award honours Vance’s commitment to the Oxford University community, his college (St Edmund Hall) and the Oxford University Rugby Football Club (OURFC). His impacts transcend championing diversity, public engagement, and awareness of disabilities. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Vance spotted vital gaps within OURFC which he proactively addressed, leading to his appointment as their first Director of Analytics, Technology and Algorithms. Alongside this role, he also served as the Editor-in-Chief for his college research journal, among his many other pursuits. Oxford SU published extracts of the nomination statement across their social media which reads: “He is a prime role model and exceptional inspiration for people with disability, which in his case is dyslexia and dyspraxia, and for people from ethnic minorities. Vance has positively impacted many of us at Oxford by giving examples of the characters a leader should uphold.” Cikgu Mohammad Danny Aimi, Director of Studies at the Brunei Students’ Unit in London commented: “I’m delighted and honoured to be informed that one of our brightest Bruneian students in the UK has received such a prestigious award. Although I have known him for less than a year, one cannot miss his leadership ability and charismatic quality. Despite his disabilities, he has made a positive impact on his community in Oxford University. He is an example to all the youth back in Brunei.”
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Vance is completing his doctoral degree at Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute, where he is a member of the Oxford Programme for Sustainable Infrastructure Systems. His work aims to understand how future flood risks can be optimally managed by sequencing policy changes and the anticipatory actions of adaptation measures at a national scale. He is mentored by the vice president-
elect of the Institution of Civil Engineers, Professor Jim W Hall FREng, who is internationally renowned for his research on risk analysis for infrastructure and water systems. Vance looks forward to utilising his capabilities and experiences to support Brunei Darussalam in realising its Vision 2035 and inspire the next generation of Bruneian youth.
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4
From the College Office
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The Senior Tutor’s Year The academic year 2020-21 was, of course, another hugely disrupted time, although the experience of Trinity term 2020 meant that we started in October 2020 with a clearer view both of the challenges that the pandemic presented to the College and of ways to counter these challenges effectively. Distancing and other constraints meant that we could not say farewell to Philipp Podsiadlowski on his retirement as Tutorial Fellow in Physics, or celebrate his election to an Emeritus Fellowship. It was also necessary to organise Freshers’ week activities in parallel streams, taking place in different venues throughout the College, and to come up with creative solutions to ensure that a photographic record of the Freshers’ Matriculation could be captured. The cover and photographs at the end of the Magazine show how we did it. As Michaelmas term began, we welcomed (virtually) Carly Howett as Philipp’s replacement. In addition, David Dupret, for some years a Fellow by Special Election, took up a newly created Tutorial Fellowship in Biomedical Science, associated with a University appointment in the Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics. Contributing to the oversight and teaching of Biomedical Sciences and Medicine students, David’s appointment is another step towards our goal of having two Tutorial Fellows in each of our major subject areas. Two more Early Career Fellows also joined the Hall, with specific remits: Zachary Guiliano taking responsibility for the Chapel as part of his post and Tom Crawford assuming the role of Outreach Fellow, building on his earlier work as a Stipendiary Lecturer. Deploying the Early Career Fellows programme in flexible
ways such as these shows the potential for it to make a significant impact on the academic, pastoral and cultural activities of the College. More such appointments are planned. We are very grateful for the generous donations that enabled us to create the positions that David, Zack and Tom now hold. During 2020-2021, we also welcomed over 250 new students, comprising 121 undergraduate Freshers (the largest ever intake) and 129 postgraduate Freshers (with a number of international students initially joining remotely), although the pandemic unfortunately precluded most of our Visiting Students from taking up their places. Undergraduate selection was conducted for the first time in December 2020 using online interviews, which were far less challenging than feared. Interviews will remain online in December 2021 and the University will debate the pros and cons of a permanent change later in the academic year. The same restrictions that complicated students’ inductions and student selection had a significant impact on the conduct of teaching and research during the year. Two terms of hybrid activity, with online teaching supplemented by some
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in-person activity – albeit in large spaces, at two metres, wearing face coverings – in Michaelmas and Trinity terms, bookended another lockdown term after Christmas. The commitment, enthusiasm and adaptability of my colleagues, the administrative and domestic staff that support us, and above all our students, ensured that we came through this challenging year and the examination results that follow this report bear testament to this. As I write this report, Michaelmas term 2021 is just underway. A degree of normality has been restored, with a more recognisable Freshers’ week and Matriculation ceremony, and a far higher proportion of in-person activity. At the Governing Body meeting in week 0, the first to be held in person since March 2020, the Fellowship welcomed
Professor Claire Nichols as the new Tutorial Fellow in Earth Sciences, taking over from Richard Walker who has stepped away from College duties. In addition, we welcomed Professors Filippo de Vivo and Solene Rowan as new Tutorial Fellows in History and Law respectively and elected their predecessors, Nick Davidson and Adrian Briggs, to Emeritus Fellowships. The tremendous contributions to the College made by Nick and Adrian are detailed elsewhere in the Magazine (and also will be further celebrated in the next issue– Ed.), but I would like to conclude by personally thanking them for their dedication to their students and their significant contributions to the academic life of the College. I wish them long and productive retirements. Professor Robert Wilkins, Senior Tutor
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Student Numbers
On the College register at the start of Trinity term 2021 were 410 undergraduates, 338 postgraduates, and 8 Visiting Students.
NEW STUDENTS 2020-21 Undergraduates In the 2020-21 academic year, 121 students joined the College as undergraduates from the following schools, colleges, and universities: Abraham
Chloe
Portsmouth College
Alencar
Mauricio
Latymer Upper School
Arama
Stefan
Colegiul National Sfantul Sava
Ashcroft
Will
Bedford School
Bansal
Aditya
Sutton Grammar School
Black
Verity
Bishop of Llandaff School, Cardiff
Blake
Lila
Ribston Hall High School
Boot
Luca
Epsom College
Boulger
Sam
Holy Cross Sixth Form College and University Centre
Bugge
Marcus
Bedales School
Cai
Zixi
Dipont Education Management Group, China
Campbell
Tehillah
Oaks Park High School
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Capkova
Lucie
PORG
Channer
Aili
Home Educated
Cheng
Zhaoqiu
Adcote School Shanghai
Cheng
Zixiang
Raffles Junior College, Singapore
Cherry
Sam
Royal Grammar School Guildford
Clew-Bachrach
Logan
The Taft School
Coates
Tom
Pate’s Grammar School
Coleman
Redmond
Exeter School
Collyer
Abbie
Charters School
Coombes
Charles
King Edward VI College, Stourbridge
Coupland-Smith
Ella
Colyton Grammar School
Curtis
Jena
Monmouth School for Girls
Dai
Chili
Shanghai Guanghua College
Davies
Jake
Petroc College
Delepine
Quentin
Harris Academy Greenwich
Drago
Luke
Ardrey Kell High School
Duale
John
Lycée International Jeanne D’Arc
Dutton
Erika
Royal Latin School
Dwyer
Tomas
Hampton School
Dyer-Grimes
Anselm
Worth School
Elliott
Jake
Radley College
Espanhol
Daniel
Wallington County Grammar School
Eyles
Harriet
Marlborough College
Falconer
Emily
King Edward VII School, Sheffield
Farrell
Cormac
Brighton Hove and Sussex Sixth Form College
Fawcett
Maximilian
St Paul’s School, London
Frankel
Jamie
Reading School
Furniss
Charlie
Repton School
Ghosal
Anubhab
S.P. College, Pune
Ghosh
Srijia
Wycombe Abbey School
Giddis
Emma
The King’s School, Chester
Gornall
Liam
Altrincham Grammar School for Boys
Hardwick
Robert
Malvern College
Harray
Thomas
St Paul’s School, London
Hartz
Flora
Peter Symonds College
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Heath
William
Shire Oak Academy
Hu
Junqiu
Shenzhen Middle School
Hwang
Yuri
Seoul Foreign School
Jacobs
Mike
University of Oxford
Jasniak
Wiktor
VI Liceum Ogólnokształcące im. Jana i Jędrzeja Śniadeckich w Bydgoszczy
Jia
Qianwei
Ulink College of Shanghai
Kaur
Kiran
Holy Cross Sixth Form College and University Centre
Kirkpatrick
Katie
Hills Road Sixth Form College
Klein
Ellen
King’s College School
Knight
Peter
Leek Federation Sixth Form
Korn
Freddie
Highgate School
Kreutzer
Jasmin
Christian-Ernst-Gymnasium Erlangen
Kruzewski
Aleksander
Sevenoaks School
Kryszewska
Patricia
Greenford High School
Leaver
Abbie
d’Overbroeck’s
Liu
Wei
Hwa Chong Institution, Singapore
Lloyd
Ben
Dame Alice Owen’s School
Loosley
William
Chew Valley School
Manasse
Saul
Lancaster Royal Grammar School
March
Katie
Nottingham University Academy of Science and Technology
Mark
Ella
Putney High School
Martial
Zoe
Langley Park School for Boys
Martin
Stefan
Verulam School
Mawby
Lysander
Victoria College, Jersey
McKechnie
Florence
St Marys School, Ascot
McMillan
Esme
St Joseph’s College
Mehta
Harry
Stowe School
Menon
Anika
Kendrick School
Metcalf
William
Harris Westminster Sixth Form
Moon
Julia
Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts
Mullings
Lucia
Chenderit School
Neville
Jodie
Coleg y Cymoedd
Newbery
James
Eton College
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Nguyen
Tommy
Harrow School
Oates
Leah
York College
Oh
Haedam
Abbey College, Cambridge
Oliver
Daisy
St Paul’s Girl’s School
Onona
Toby
JFS
Parikh
Ishaan
The Cathedral and John Connon School
Pattenden
Adam
Shrewsbury School
Perera
Brittany
Torquay Grammar School for Girls
Pinney
David
City of Norwich School
Pollard
Joe
Collyers VI Form College, Horsham
Priest
Josh
Lady Manners School
Pullen
Hannah
Gordano School
Ratcliffe
Yasmin
Winstanley College
Redding
William
Barton Peveril College
Richardson
Sophie
Wycombe Abbey School
Ritchie
Joseph
The Leys School
Rowden
Kayla
Sir Harry Smith Community College
Sanderson
Holly
St Albans High School for Girls
Sarshar
Alex
Sevenoaks School
Scott
Beth
Alton College
Shum
Zoe
King George V School, Hong Kong
Skipworth
Hector
Merchiston Castle School
Smith-Bingham
Gemma
Highgate School
Stefanoni
Leonardo
Beal High School
Su
Hang
Ulink College of Shanghai
Tan
Ella
Raffles Junior College, Singapore
Treacher
Emily
Sherborne School for Girls
Twinn
Emily
Europa School UK
Walker
Samuel
Hampton School
Wallace
Hannah
Cheshire College South & West
Wellstead
Katie
King Edward VI School, Warwickshire
Whittington
Nicola
Swakeley’s School for Girls
Wiltshire
Ben
Whitchurch High School
Woodford
Sarah
Parmiter’s School
Yang
Tia
Canford School
Zhai
Weikai
Wuhan ULink College of Optics Valley
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Postgraduates In the 2020-21 academic year, 129 students joined the College as postgraduates from the following schools, colleges, and universities: Arni
Abhimanyu
King’s College London
Bajaj
Sumali
Harvard University
Balkaran
Joel
Harvard University
Ban
Ece Gizay
New York University
Banys
Deivis
Ecole Polytechnique
Barnes-Powell
Hannah
University of Sussex
Bi
Han
Beijing (Peking) Normal University
Bohm
Natalie
Tufts University
Bourigault
Pauline
University College London
Brigden
Henry
University of Bath
Bücker
Joris
King’s College London
Burgess
Alec
Heriot Watt University
Burrell
Nancy
University of Southampton
Cannizzaro
Ricardo
Swinburne University of Technology
Carpentier
Sophia
Yale University
Carpentier Balough
Daniel
New York University
Charret
Antonin
University of Oxford
Cheng
Runbei
University of Oxford
Christoffersen
William
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Collings
Josephine
University of Exeter
Cowan
Tanessa
Thomas Edison State College
Dahl
Marcus
Australian National University
Dai
Liwei
Imperial College of Science, Technology & Medicine
De Fonseka
Alesha
King’s College London
Devillers
Eve
University of California, Berkeley
Dickinson
Henry
Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin
Diduch
Emma
College of William and Mary
Edney
Alice
University of Gloucestershire
Evans
Jenyth
University of Oxford
Farma
Lynda
University of Sierra Leone
Feng
Xinyi
University College London
Fil
Miroslav
Charles University Czech Republic
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Fleminger
Rory
University of Southampton
Gales
Oliver
University of Tasmania Hobart
Gedevanishvili
Elisabed
Trinity College
Goupou
Despoina
National and Capodistrian (Kapodistrian) University of Athens Greece
Guo
Dongfang
University of International Business and Economics China
Harlianto
Adi
University of Indonesia
Hilton
Benjamin
University of Oxford
Houldsworth
Lawrence
Harvard University
Hu
Bingkun
Tsinghua University
Huang
Po-Yuan
Technische Universität München
Hussein
Darin J Y
University of Minnesota
Kertbundit
Bundit
Chulalongkorn University, Thailand
Kim
Sanghun
University of Western Ontario
Knerr
Casey
Georgetown University
Lemay
Isabelle
McGill University
Lerch
Aiden
University of Wollongong, Northfields Australia
Lewin-Turner
Caine
University of Bristol
Li
Jiayi
Colgate University
Li
Xiaotong
Beijing Institute of Technology
Lomax
Christopher
King’s College London
Long
Yuqing
Nankai University
Lyons
Amanda
University of Oxford
Mahfooz
Fariha
University College London
Malusà
Marco
University of Edinburgh
Mancari
Alessandro
Universita degli Studi di Pisa
Marinaro
Matthew
Harvard University
Matika
Tafadzwa
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
McGillivray
Amy
University of Oxford
Menggelisha
Menggelisha
University of Oxford
Mezossy-Dona
Luca
University of St Andrews
Mickelson
Stephen
Brigham Young University
Mies
Linda
Radboud University Nijmegen
Moppett
William
University of Oxford
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Morris
Matthew
University of Cape Town
Munday
Kirsten
University of Exeter
Nairne
Patrick
University of Cambridge
Neil
Margaret
University of Oxford
Ngien Szi Min
Annabel
National University of Singapore
Ocana Santero
Gabriel
Universidad Autonoma de Madrid
O’Neill
Aideen
University College London
Ordoñez-Buitrago
Andrés
Universidad EAFIT
Paterson
Aimee
University of Glasgow
Pearson
Iris
University of Cambridge
Penagos Gaviria
Melissa
CES University
Pessoa-Amorim
Guilherme
Universidade do Porto
Pritsou
Konstantina
University of Bristol
Pu
Yixin
Shanghai International Studies University
Rattew
Arthur
Washington University in St Louis
Rice
Daniel
University of Bath
Riedel
Timotheus
Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg
Ross
Molly
University of Oxford
Rowan
Connar
University of St Andrews
Rowe
Daniel
University of Liverpool
Ryan
Gerard
Imperial College, London
Sanghvi
Krish
Australian National University
Saroya
Shehryar
London School of Economics and Political Science
Sayama
Kenta
University of Oxford
Scheibli
Lara Mohammad
University of Oxford
Sharif Shohan
Umer
University of Dhaka Bangladesh
Shieber
Andrei
Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
Shen
Rongjia
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Skalse
Joar
University of Oxford
Smith
Gianfranco
Universidad Catolica Santa Maria La Antigua
Smith
Isabel
University of Cambridge
Smith
Philip
Harvard University
Soni
Rajan
London School of Economics and Political Science
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Spackman
Hugh
Royal Holloway and Bedford New College
Stanage
Courtney
Northeastern University, Boston
Stankovic
Petra
Universität Basel
Steele
Amanda
Rutgers University
Subosa
Miguel Rico
Institut d’Etudes Politiques De Aris
Tooth
Oliver
University of East Anglia
Tu
Weiming
Tsinghua University
Valdez
Giselle
Columbia University
Vallet Buisan
Montserrat
Universitat de Barcelona
Van De Perre
Zenobie
University of Oxford
Walker
William
Swansea University
Wang
Jianeng
Wang
Sihan
Imperial College of Science, Technology & Medicine
Wang
Yufan
Tongji University China
Whittingham
Mark
University of Oxford (Cont Ed)
Wong
Cheuk Yin
University of Durham
Wong
Zhi Yi
University of Oxford
Wood
Ryan
Harvard University
Xu
Fan
Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle (Université de Paris III)
Xu
Haopeng
Peking Union Medical College (PUMC)
Yan
Yi
Shandong University
Visiting Students 2020-21 Chen
Sihan
Chen
Victor
Greenwood
Rachel
Hassan
Maha
Puckett
Hallie
Wu
Jiayi
Zhang
Jing
Zhou
Zirui
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Student Admissions Exercises
In the Undergraduate Admissions exercise 2019, St Edmund Hall received 652 applications for entry in 2020 and beyond (compared with 576 the previous year). Nearly 300 of these applicants were invited to interview. Almost all of the interviews were conducted in person in Oxford, the exception being a small number of international applicants who were interviewed online via Teams. Following the conclusion of December’s interview period, the Hall made a total of 129 offers of undergraduate places for entry in 2020 (compared to 131 offers the previous year). 15 of these were open offers. In addition, two deferred offers of places were made, for entry in Michaelmas term 2021. The Hall also ‘exported’ a small number of applicants, for offers of places at other colleges. Roughly in line with the gender split in the total application numbers (using rounded figures) 51% of offers of undergraduate
places were made to male applicants and 49% to female. The applicants receiving offers comprised 77% UK nationals and 23% of students from overseas including from EU countries. In respect of previous education, of the 91 offers made to UK applicants, 63% were to state-educated applicants and 39% to students attending an independent school (2018: 64% state, 36% independent). Graduate offer-holders for entry in 202021 represent over 32 nationalities: they will be undertaking a range of taught and research programmes in disciplines from across all four of the University’s academic divisions. The expected eventual intake of new graduate students in Michaelmas term 2021 is approximately 120. At the time of the Magazine going to print, this year’s Graduate Admissions exercise had so far seen the Hall consider 323 applications.
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College Awards, Prizes and Grants College Scholars 2020-21 Alexander Abrahams Ayush Agrawal Richard Anslow James Arney Gavin Bala Montgomery Beresford Fenella Blayney Jamie Brash Thomas Bricknell Lewis-Campbell Smith Eleanor Cassidy Yifan Chen George-Valentin Datcu Samuel Digby Jordan Dring April Dublin-Beeton Max Falk Alexander Fuss Alessandro Gallo Bethany Goodfellow Elena Gordillo Fuertes Lewis Grey Zhuo Guan Alexandra Gunn Frieda Hall Hickman
Adam Hawkins Emma Hawkins Edward Hayes Matthew Hedges Ian Hollander Kristoforus Jason Catherine Johnson Ryan Jones Adam Kmec Aikaterina Konstantinidou Julien Kress Aleisha Lanceley Tongfei Liu Chun Hin Ma Andrew Martin Rebecca McFie Emily Milan Joe Minichiello Lucy Nicholson James Odwell Trinity Pate Dominic Peachey Joseph Penn Nailah Ranjan Lucie Richter-Mahr
College Exhibitioners 2020-21 Shariz Aslam Kalli Dockrill Gregory Ball Charlotte Firkins Leire Bardaji Skye Fitzgerald McShane Uribeetxebarria Felix Gallagher Nikita Barysnikov Ana-Silvia Gheorghe Emily-Lucie Bassole Amy Hemsworth Oliver Bater Thomas Knight Gabriele Brasaite Sian Langham Anjali Depala Jiayao Lu
Alistair Ross Willow Senior Betty Shuttleworth Elizabeth Simcock Rustan Smart Alexander Smith Thomas Steeley Annabel Stock Tin Lok Tam Hui Wen Teh Raven Undersun Sacchidanandan Viruthasalam Pillai Chenyang Wang Archie Watt Emily Webb Toby Whitehead Francesca Wilkinson Carenza Williams Ernest Wong Zhaorui Xu Xin Yang Sangheon Yeom Zhe Zhang Matthew Moffat Oliver Ogden Freya Rennison Joshua Ryman Benjamin Thornley Jonathan Tsun Rebecca Whant David Wilkinson Kristina Zvinys
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Progress Prizes 2020-21 Gavin Bala Miyabi Barth Fenella Blayney Catriona Campbell Samuel Cherry Thomas Coates Anjali Depala Jordan Dring Erika Dutton Jake Elliott Daniel Espanhol Srija Ghosh Alexandra Gunn
Thomas Harray Adam Hawkins Ian Hollander Kristoforus Jason Qianwei Jia Katherine Kirkpatrick Adam Kmec Peter McClure Rory McDowell Henry Mehta Samantha Miles India Triay Palazuelo Ishaan Parikh
Joseph Penn Timothy Powell Joshua Priest Nailah Ranjan Timothy Robinson Joshua Ryman Toby Whitehead Carenza Williams Benjamin Wiltshire Zhaorui Xu Weikai Zhai Zhe Zhang
College Choral Scholars Thomas Bricknell Alexandra Burgar Flora Hartz Agastya Pisharody Toby Whitehead
Michael Pike Award Isabel Creed
George Series Prize Nathan Brown Gregory Halliwell
College Choral Exhibitioners Verity Black Cherona Chapman Samuel Cherry Katherine Kirkpatrick Anika Menon Beth Scott Hiu Shum
Tony Doyle Graduate Prize Abeer Alharbi Duhita Naware
Instrumental Awards Gabrielle Brasaite Cochrane Scholarship Willow Senior Graham Hamilton Travel Award Julia Carver Alexander Fuss Thijs Van der Plas
Richard Fargher Bursary Elena Gordillo Fuertes Aleisha Lanceley
St Edmund Hall Association Presidents’ Prize Yasmin Ratcliffe Bendhem Fine Art Bursary Jamie Brash Fiona Cameron Antonio Gullo Williow Senior Elizabeth Simcock Bernard Bewlay Science and Engineering Bursary Joshua Ryman David J. Cox Prize (for 2019-20) Abigail Turner
Graham Midgley Memorial Prize for Poetry Scarlet Katz Roberts Proxime accessit Aili Channer Alexandra Gunn Katherine Kirkpatrick Lucie Richter-Mahr J R Hughes Book Prize Elena Gordillo Fuertes Ogilvie-Thompson English Prize Aili Channer Proxime accessit Annabel Stock Peel Awards For Mathematics & Philosophy Maximilian Fawcett Zhaorui Xu
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Richard Luddington Prize for Outstanding Academic and Sporting Achievement Samuel Miller Abigail Jones Ryan Jones
Teach First Bursary Gabriella Barnes James Mann
Tony Doyle Undergraduate Science Prize Lewis Grey Joshua Ryman Undergraduate English Award Annabel Stock
College and University Bursaries A total of 32 students received the income-related Oxford Bursary. The College components of these bursaries were supported by: a donor who wishes to remain anonymous; 1971 and 1972 Aularians; Aularians Mr Chris Ashton and Mrs Natasha Ashton; Aularian Chris Armitage in honour of his parents Charles and Edith Armitage; the generous bequest of Aularian Mr William Asbrey; Beaverbrooks the Jewellers; Aularian Mr Tony Best in honour of his parents Mr and Mrs Ron Best; Aularian David Harding and Mrs Gale Harding; Aularian Tony Laughton; Aularian Dan Levy; Aularian Mr Peter Johnson; Dr Francis Rossotti’s benefaction; Mrs Dorothy Pooley, Mrs Lucy Webber and Mrs Frances Georgel in memory of their father, Aularian Mr Philip Saul; Aularians Mr David and Mrs Judith Waring; Mr Lawrence Elliot’s benefaction and many Aularians in memory of Sir David Yardley and Carol McClure. A further 39 students received the University’s income-related Crankstart Scholarship, Reuben Bursary, and Santander Bursary.
University Awards and Prizes Gibbs Prize Montgomery Beresford Alexandra Gunn James Newbery James Odwell Freya Rennison
Arthur Lewis Prize Marco Malusà Met Office Academic Partnership Prize Abigail Jones
Department of Biochemistry Book Prize Ian Hollander
College Graduate Awards and Prizes William Asbrey BCL Scholarship Aiden Lerch E.P.A Cephalosporin Scholarship David Cruz Walma YingQui Zheng Emden-Doctorow Maggie Neil
William R Miller Postgraduate Award Isabelle Lemay Georgios Papadakis
MCR 50th Anniversary Jake Arthur Chen Gong Katie Johnston
OxCEP Scholarship Sebastian Klindert
Gao & Ning DPhil Chemistry Conference Award Felix Fleschhut
Pontigny Scholarship Miroslav Gasparek Routledge Scholarship Jiayi Li
Mrs Brown Bursary Armi Bayot Johannes Fankhauser Molly Ross
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Postgraduate Writing-up Grants Xiaoyu Chen Nicola Swinburne Margrethe Troensegaard
Tony Doyle Graduate Prize Abeer Alharbi Duhita Naware
Partnership Graduate Awards and Prizes Clarendon Fund and Brockhues Scholarship Jake Arthur Clarendon Fund and Justin Gosling Scholarship Yaowen Deng Clarendon Fund and Kerr-Muir Scholarship Orion Tong
Clarendon Fund and St Edmund Hall Graduate Scholarship Iva Atanaskovic Sumali Bajaj Tomas Borsa Isabel Creed Yuliang Feng Scott Small Rocco Zizzamia
NERC DTP-St Edmund Hall RCUK Partnership Award Oliver Tooth Oxford-Hoffmann – Julius Baer Scholarship Tafadzwa Matika Melissa Penagos Gaviria
Degree Results Final Honour Schools 2021 These are the Finalists who agreed to the publication of their exam results. Biochemistry Class I Ian Hollander, Toby Whitehead Class II i Natasha Cooke, Timothy Robinson Cell and Systems Biology Class II i Matthew Read Chemistry Class I Class II i
Samuel Digby Elizabeth Evans, Alistair Ross, Alison Squire
Earth Sciences Class I Class II i
Bethany Goodfellow, Catherine Johnson, Sacchidanandan Pillai, Alexandra Smith Annabel Elleray
Economics & Management Class I Joe Minichiello Class II i Zhuo Guan, Terry Kwofie, Christopher Willis, James Wood Engineering Science Class I Ryan Jones, Thomas Knight, Tin Lok Tam Class II i Jin Yeob Chung, Stephen Dolan, William Gasson, Jack White Class II ii Oliver Shepherd
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English Language & Literature Class I Alexandra Gunn, Lucie Richter-mahr Class II i Venetia Campbell, Julian Greenwood, Felicity Hudson, Scarlet Katz Roberts, Alice Warner
Materials Science Class I Anna Elliott, Emily Milan, Samuel Miller Class II i Nathan Brown, Kristian Curtis, Benjamin Levi Class II ii Agastya Pisharody
Fine Art Class I Class II i
Jamie Brash, Willow Senior, Elizabeth Simcock Fiona Cameron, Antonio Gullo
Mathematics BA Class II i Cameron Boroumand
Geography Class I Class II i
Abigail Jones Sasha Giles, Jessica Hobbis, Hannah Leighton-Jones, Abigail Turner
History Class I Class II i
Laura Hurford Cameron Bovell, Frieda Hall Hickman, Tacita Quinn
History & Politics Class I Rahman Mohammadi Rustan Smart Jurisprudence Class I Nikita Barysnikov Class II i Shakila Akhtar, Ruairidh Beer, Christopher Gin, Ruhi Kaur, Caitlin McArthur, Iqra Mohamed, Betty Shuttleworth
Mathematics MMath Distinction Thomas Steeley, Jun Takeuchi, Francesca Wilkinson Merit Bonnor Sullivan Pass Andrew Martin Medical Sciences Class I Gregory Halliwell, Rahul Radia Xin Yang Class II i Alexandra Wood Modern Languages Class I Shayon Mukherjee, Timothy Powell Class II i Gabriella Barnes, Alexandra Burgar, Sophie Caws, Yasmin Jackson Neuroscience Class II i
Samantha Miles, Joshua Ratliffe, India Triay Palazuelo
Philosophy Politics & Economics Class II i Leire Bardaji Uribeetxebarria, Ana-Silvia Gheorghe, Ishan Ramanathan, Bent Untucht
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Physics MPhys Class I Class II ii
Richard Anslow, Catriona Campbell, Tongfei Liu Rory Edwards, Oliver Mathews
Psychology Class I Raven Undersun Class II i Dhea Bengardi Psychology, Philosophy & Linguistics Class I Freya Rennison Class II i Elaine Chan
Higher Degrees Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) 2020 History: Terence Cudbird, Manikarnika Dutta Law: Amedee Von Moltke Materials: Jack Evans Molecular and Cellular Medicine: James Swann Paediatrics: Jane Millar 2021 Clinical Medicine: Rahul Shrimanker, Paolo Spingardi Clinical Neurosciences: Charles ClarkeWilliams Comparative Philology and General Linguistics: Hannah Davidson Computer Science: Julia Camps Condensed Matter Physics: Chelsea Xia Earth Science: Edward Baker Education: James O’Donovan, Yusuf Oldaç Engineering Science: Bowen Cao, Yibing Chen, Xiaoyu Chen, Licio Ribeiro Rodrigues Romão Environmental Research (NERC DTP) Earth Sciences: Lucy Kissick Environmental Research (NERC DTP) – Mathematics: Michael Coughlan Experimental Psychology: Thomas Reed Geography and the Environment: Kevin Rattue History: Di Wu Infection, Immunology and Translational Medicine: Iva Atanaskovic, Johannes Pettmann, Robert Ragotte
Information, Communication & Social Sciences: Sian Brooke, Godofredo Jr Ramizo Inorganic Chemistry: Archibald McNeillis, Yoskamtorn Tatchamapan International Relations: Mjriam Abu Samra Law: Philippa Coore, Lauren Nishimura Materials: Samuel McArdle, Jacob Swett Mathematics: Cristopher Salvi Medical Sciences: Jane Ellis, Rosie Munday Molecular and Cellular Medicine: Gabriela Pirgova Neurosciences: Charles Clarke-Williams Particle Physics: Gabriel Gallardo Plant Sciences: Tarit Konuntakiet
Master of Philosophy (MPhil) Development Studies: Wan Yii Lee (Distinction) Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics: Songjun He Modern Middle Eastern Studies: William Cochrane-Dyet (Distinction) Visual, Material and Museum Anthropology: Brittany Ellis (Distinction)
Master of Philosophy in Politics (MPhil Politics) Comparative Government: Alexander Yeandle (Distinction) European Politics and Society: Julia Carver (Distinction)
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Master of Business Administration (MBA) 2020 Christopher Chang, Roche Derksen (Distinction), Xavier Roy (Distinction), Sunil Kandola (Distinction), Spencer Patel
Master of Science (MSc) 2020 Computer Science: Malgorzata Slowinska 2021 Clinical Embryology: Montserrat Vallet Buisan Clinical and Therapeutic Neuroscience: Luca Mezossy-Dona (Distinction) Computer Science: Miroslav Fil, Casey Knerr, Matthew Morris (Distinction), Daniel Rice Economic and Social History : Emma Diduch (Distinction) Economics for Development: Marco Malusà (Distinction), Rongjia Shen, Rajan Soni (Distinction) Education (Comparative and International Education): Tanessa Cowan (Distinction), Jiayi Li Education (Research Design and Methodology): Miguel Subosa (Distinction) Environmental Change and Management: Eve Devillers (Distinction) Global Health Science and Epidemiology: Sanghun Kim Integrated Immunology: Adi Harlianto International Health & Tropical Medicine: Lynda Farma, Tafadzwa Matika Mathematical & Computational Finance: Yan Yi Mathematical Sciences: Natalie Bohm Oncology: Zhi Yi Wong Neuroscience: Gabriel Ocana Santero Radiation Biology: Pauline Bourigault (Distinction) Social Science of the Internet: Annabel Ngien Szi Min (Distinction), Giselle Valdez
Master of Studies (MSt) 2020 History - Modern British History 1850-present: Fleur MacInnes, Cristina Marini 2021 English: William Christoffersen (Distinction), Josephine Collings, Iris Pearson, Isabel Smith History of Art and Visual Culture: Daniel Carpentier Balough Modern Languages (FRE): Fan Xu (Distinction), Molly Ross Philosophy of Physics: Timotheus Riedel (Distinction)
Master of Public Policy (MPP) 2020 Karen Sichel Arciniega
Magister Juris (MJur) Despoina Goupou (Distinction),
Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL) Marcus Dahl (Distinction), Benjamin Hilton, Aiden Lerch (Distinction), William Moppett (Distinction)
Bachelor of Medicine (BM BCh) Thomas King, Ryan Lea, Samuel Scott, Samuel Sussmes
Postgraduate Diploma in Diplomatic Studies Matthew Marinaro (Distinction)
Postgraduate Certificate in Education Alec Burgess, Alesha De Fonseka, Amy McGillivray, Kristen Munday, Konstantina Pritsou, William Walker
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Degree Day Dates 2021-22
Due to the pandemic, degree ceremonies were cancelled in 2020 and 2021. Colleges therefore have a backlog of 2020 Finalists and 2021 Finalists who still need to attend ceremonies. The College and the Degree Conferrals Office are working together to reduce the backlog since the resumption of ceremonies for the above Finalists in the latter months of 2021. There will be more ceremony dates in 2022 for the above Finalists, as well as ceremonies for 2022 Finalists. Information about the procedure for signing up to a degree ceremony in 2022 will be published on the College website as and when dates are confirmed by the Degree Conferrals Office. Provided
ceremonies can continue to go ahead, Taught course students who are due to finish their degrees in the 2021-22 academic year, will be invited by the Degree Conferrals Office to attend the ceremony date relevant to their degree. It is not yet known when invitations will be sent out by the Degree Conferrals Office (in previous years this has been in December). Research students will be invited to book a ceremony date once they have been granted Leave to Supplicate. Given the above backlog of students still to graduate, MAs can only be conferred in absentia and Historic graduands (preOctober 2020) should contact the College to enquire about the booking process.
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5
From the Development and Alumni Relations Office
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From the Director of Development Throughout the pandemic Aularian solidarity has continued with a record number of 1,454 donors making gifts totalling £3.4 million to the Hall in FY20/21. In addition, a further £2.6m was pledged to future years for the development of student accommodation and, combined, this adds-up to make our most successful fundraising year. In some respects, this really shouldn’t be a surprise; we all know a characteristic of Hall Spirit is helping each other out in times of need. Your gifts this year have ensured the Hall was, not only able to weather the storm, but also progress some very important strategic projects. Many Aularians gave to the Hall after speaking directly to a current student during one of our telethons in December 2020 and March 2021. Over the course of the two telethons 19 student callers made an astonishing 12,265 dialling attempts and spoke to 1,122 alumni, of which 609 alumni donated (54%). Thank you for your support. Thanks to gifts from major philanthropists, the Hall undertook its essential update of the Besse block. In carrying out this work we discovered some major failings in the roof that needed immediate attention. Over 160 Aularians responded to our ‘roof appeal’ and the ensuing work saw 4,266 new replacement tiles on Besse roof. September’s Giving Day provided an opportunity for Aularians across the world to join together over the course of 36 hours and make gifts of all sizes. Once again, this proved to be even more successful than our previous year with 371 donors, from 19 countries, donating £122,828. A distinctive characteristic of Giving Day is its use of social media to reach alumni who may not typically
support the Hall and I am pleased to report that nearly 18% of gifts were from those choosing to donate to the Hall for the very first time. Bequests to the Hall continue to provide very significant support to the Hall. Throughout the year we received legacy gifts from 14 generous Aularians so to preserve the Hall’s teaching and historic estate. My thanks to a further 16 Aularians who, throughout the year, informed us that they have remembered the Hall in their Will; your commitment is hugely appreciated. Whilst meeting in-person was not possible, our online programme of events continued with great success. Over 2000 Aularians dialled-in for one of our 24 Aularian talks and we were particularly pleased to run a special ‘Aularian Authors’ series. As always, a strength of our events is the breadth of Aularian expertise and we are grateful to Linda Davies (1982, PPE), Nicholas Evans (1969, Jurisprudence), Jessica Hatcher-Moore (2001, Modern Languages), Wilf Frost (2005, PPE), Al Murray (1987, History), Richard Kilgarriff (1988, English), Nick Thomas-Symonds (1998, PPE) and Catriona Ward (1999, English) for leading such open and insightful discussions.
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Nearly 300 biodegradable ribbons were tied to our Giving Tree as a result of pledged donations
Our work with the Association also saw new online developments with the launch of the very successful Aularian Connect and a SEHA podcast series. Over 1,200 Aularians are already registered on Aularian connect and the President’s report (p.102) details these important initiatives further. In June, DARO was delighted to welcome Sarah Bridge to the team. Sarah joins us from Hertford College as the Hall’s Regular Giving Manager. The year saw us bid farewell to Sally Brooks (née Smith) who left the Hall to join Wycombe Abbey School. Over 10-years, Sally oversaw the growth and professionalism of the Development Office and we wish her well in her new role. This will also be my final report in the Magazine as, at start of the 2021-22 term, I will be leaving the Hall to pursue new challenges. It has been a privilege to work alongside
so many Aularians and I am truly thankful for the support many have provided to me personally over my tenure. I now look forward to watching the Hall go from strength-to-strength. We were thrilled for Kate Townsend who was married in August 2020 and has taken the name Kate Payne. Many of you will regularly speak to Kate and I am sure you would wish to share in our very many congratulates. Together with Thomas Sprent, Kate, Sally and Sarah have continued to deliver a very strong DARO programme throughout this difficult year and my immense thanks to them all. Thank you once again to you, the Aularian community, for your unwavering support of the Hall. Floreat Aula! Gareth Simpson, Director of Development
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From the St Edmund Hall Association President Aularians were given the opportunity to hear from the Principal about the plans for the College as well as the impressive response to the Pandemic. We launched our first ever podcast series ‘Spirit of the Hall’ where I interviewed ten Aularians or College members about how Teddy Hall has shaped us all, starting with the Principal, leading onto Congressman James Himes, followed by General Sir Michael Rose and ending with our Librarian, James Howarth. The first series has attracted over 2,000 unique ‘listens’ and Series Two is on its way, kicking off with former Principal Justin Gosling!
It has been a busy year for the Association despite the inability and disappointment of not being able to hold in-person events such as the London Annual Dinner. We have leveraged the wonderful capabilities of technology and broadened our Committee to include Aularians beyond the shores of the UK. We hosted our annual Teddy Talk last October on Zoom, ‘Aularians on the Covid-19 Frontline’, attracting a panel and strong audience from all over the world. We were delighted to hold our first ever virtual AGM in February where over 200 Aularians signed up and dialled in from a range of countries including the US, Canada, the UAE, Sweden, Sri Lanka, Spain, New Zealand, Malaysia, Luxembourg, Ireland, Hong Kong, Greece, Germany, France, Belgium and the UK!
On top of this, the Association is proud to have helped launch and support Aularian Connect to bring students, staff and alumni onto one platform providing mentoring, career and networking opportunities for all. To support this effort, we have started our Digital Careers Programme where we are recording short videos of Aularians from different industries. We will post them on Aularian Connect so students can watch them whenever it suits. Next year we plan to push forward with all these initiatives so that the Hall’s students can continue to benefit from the fantastic body of alumni waiting and willing to give back. My thanks go to my Deputy President, Stuart Hopper, and all the Committee for their dedication, generosity of spirit and flexibility of thought over the past year. Olly Belcher (née Donnelly) (1999, Geography)
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Donors to the Hall From 1 August 2020 to 31 July 2021 The Principal, Fellows and students are all extremely grateful for the support of the 1,454 alumni, parents of students and Friends of the Hall who have donated in the last year and whose names are recorded on the following pages. Although the donor list only includes gifts received between 1 August 2020 and 31 July 2021, we are extremely grateful to all supporters who have given to the Hall outside of this timeframe. If you donated after 31 July 2021, your gift will appear in next year’s Magazine. We record by matriculation date the names of all who have made a donation during this period, including the participation rate (the percentage of people in each year who have given), and the total amount received per matriculation year. Where there are small numbers of donors in a particular year we have not listed the amount given in order to preserve confidentiality. *denotes deceased DONOR LIST 2020-2021 1944 (13%) Andrew Foot* 1945 (11%) Victor Parry* 1946 (50%) John Pike* 1949 (20%) Bob Breese Alan Brimble Colin Hadley* 1950 (24%, £868) Noel Harvey Raymond Lee Jack Preger, in Memory of The Revd Dr J N D Kelly Ray Waddington-Jones Jack Wheeler 1951 (59%, £34,310) John Akroyd* Derek Bloom Robin French Kenneth Lund
Denys Moylan Brian Osgood Dudley Wood Plus 3 anonymous donors 1952 (41%, £8,172) John Anthony Ian Byatt Tony Coulson Brian Cudmore* Philip Currah Neil Hall Denis McCarthy Bruce Nixon Royston Taylor Neville Teller David Thompson David Wright Plus 1 anonymous donor 1953 (34%, £10,075) Mike Burgess David Giles James Grindle Keith Harlow Ian Jackson David Picksley
Bob Rednall Guy Thomas Dick Turner Brian Venner Brian Wakefield Eric Windsor 1954 (22%, £5,993) Jeremy Cleverley Michael Duffy Keith Hounslow Tony Laughton John Porter* Brian Shepherd Keith Suddaby Charles Taylor Raymond Thornton John West Plus 1 anonymous donor 1955 (31%, £93,635) John Barker John Billington Tony Cooper John Cox John Dellar Roger Farrand*
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David Frayne David Hare Michael Hilt Del Kolve Alan Mathieson Mike Neal Tony Pearson Gerald Raftesath Irving Theaker Bill Weston Richard Williams Plus 1 anonymous donor 1956 (36%, £15,520) Roy Caddick Michael Cansdale Maresq Child John Cooper-Poole Fred Farrell John French Peter Garvey* Michael Hickey Chris Machen Martin Reynolds Jack Rowell David Short Nevill Swanson* Paul Tempest David Williams Gordon Woods 1957 (31%, £10,265) Michael Archer Ted Aves Robin Blackburn David Bolton Blake Bromley Geoff Brown Duncan Dormor Richard Fishlock Tony Ford Dennis Jesson David Parfitt Michael Rowan George Ruffhead Rob Siedle*
Alastair Stewart Gerry Williams Plus 1 anonymous donor 1958 (26%, £7,593) Jim Amos Gordon Crosse Peter Davies Jim Dening Andrew Garrod Tony Goddard David Harrison OBE John Haydon Ronnie Irving Michael Jarman Pete Kite Tony Nial Michael Pelham David Phillips Philip Rabbetts John Reis 1959 (34%, £244,930) Ian Alexander Ewan Anderson Hinton Bird Keith Bowen David Braund Paul Brett D C Coleman John Collingwood David Cooksey Kevin Crossley-Holland John Curry Tony Doyle Chris Harvey Ian Hepburn Matthew Joy Graham Kentfield Simon Laurence Culain Morris Mike Oakley John Rayner Alan Rowland Brian Saberton* Mike Saltmarsh
John Spires David Stedman Mike Voisey Stewart Walduck Ian Walker Roy Walmsley John Walters 1960 (46%, £16,555) John Adey Nick Alldrit Chris Atkinson David Baines Terence Bell David Bolton Robert Clark Terence Coghlin Jeremy Cook Robin Cox Keith Dillon Ian Evans Jeff Goddard Peter Hayes Kenneth Heard Ken Hinkley-Smith Robin Hogg John Law Chris Long Yann Lovelock David Mash Melvyn Matthews George Ritchie Julian Rogers Michael Rose Patric Sankey-Barker John Sherman George Smith Roger Sparrow John Thorogood Andrew Tod Guy Warner Alan Wilding Plus 2 anonymous donors 1961 (37%, £26,246) Paul Allen
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Don Anderson David Brown Martin Buckley Stanley Burnton Sidney Donald Barrie England Richard Goddard Rex Harrison Michael Hornsby Malcolm Inglis Nick Lloyd John Long Ian Manners Jim Marsh Jonathan Martin David McCammon Peter Newell Hugh Redington Anthony Rentoul Andrew Rix David Scharer Roger Smith Jean-Paul Socard Mike Sproule David Timms Stephen White Plus 2 anonymous donors 1962 (20%, £11,607) Ian Bennett David Buckingham James Burnett-Hitchcock Michael Buttler Chris Cowles Jeff Creek Jim de Rennes Sean Duncan David Goodwin Michael Groves Bill Gulland Michael Hamilton Handley Hammond Ant Hawkes David Hicks Arwyn Hughes Richard Meeres
Bill Megill Tony Moore Sean Morris Nigel Pegram Richard Phillippo Jonny Taylor Hugh Thomas Roger Wardle John Williams Plus 3 anonymous donors 1963 (24%, £13,946) Jennifer Baines Darrell Barnes Steve Benson Peter Brennan Bob Brewer Bob Broughton Nicholas Bulmer John Crawshaw Geoff Day Colin Day Mike Foxon Michael Harrison Rod Offer Michael Sherratt Clive Sneddon John Still John Taylor Nigel Thorp Plus 3 anonymous donors 1964 (33%, £14,971) John Bunney Bob Clarke Michael Clarke John Coope Steve Copley Peter Day Tony Fawke Bill Hartley Derek Hawkins Bob Heygate Peter Hodson Chris Howe John Hughes
Mike Kerford-Byrnes Tony Lemon John Lindsay Peter Liversidge Timothy Machin David Mackie Paddy McFarland David Meredith Derek Morris Brian Moulds David Outhwaite James Pitt Michael Powis David Rumbelow Stephen Sherbourne Hugh Simpson Richard Stoner Plus 3 anonymous donors 1965 (41%, £100,183) Christopher Allen Paul Badman Joe Barclay Robert Beckham Tommy Bedford John Clarembaux John Dennis Paul Fickling Simon Gatrell Ian Gillings Derek Harrison Clive Hartshorn Colin Hewitt Gavin Hitchcock Ken Hobbs Ron McDonald Andy Morgan Thomas Mulvey Humphrey Nicholls Brian North Maurice Pannell Stephen Patrick Billett Potter David Powell John Rea David Reed
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Guy Richardson Ted Roskell John Sayer Michael Sheil Philip Spray Chas Stansfield Michael Tanner Bill Walker Frank Webster James Wein Richard White Richard Wycherley Plus 2 anonymous donors 1966 (28%, £11,133) David Alder Cam Brown Paul Brown Nigel Clarke Howard Coates Bernie Collins Bob Darby Guy Fisher Roger Frankland David Garvie David Hansom Ian Hewitt Linn Hobbs Ted Hodgson Peter Jenkins John Kilbee David Knight Carl Mawer Andrew Middleton David Saunders Jon Shortridge David Stewart Michael Stone Geoffrey Summers George Syrpis Michael Warren Plus 1 anonymous donor 1967 (31%, £21,716) Robert Breckles Charles Bryant
Geoffrey Chandler* Ronnie Colsen Lawrence Downey Philip Hathaway Colin Hawksworth Roger Kenworthy Mike Kerrigan Shepard Krech Ethan Lipsig John Mabbett Simon Maxwell Peter Mitchell Jim Mosley John Orton Dave Postles Bruce Rashkow Philip Robinson Graham Salter Mark Spencer Ellis David Tabraham-Palmer Lawrence Toye Keith Walmsley Rob Weinberg Peter Wilson Georges Zbyszewski Plus 2 anonymous donors 1968 (23%, £13,193) Clive Bailey Andrew Barnes John Berryman David Blezard Phil Emmott James Hunt Steven Hurst Laurence Jackson Tim Jones Alan Jones Stuart Kenner Geoff May Tony Moore John Penfield Mike Pike Ian Ridgwell Ian Stuart Graham Taylor
David Theobald Plus 3 anonymous donors 1969 (24%, £8,858) Brian Battye Mick Birks Roger Callan Gordon Cranmer Bryan Dawson Steve Dempsey Paul Dixon Paul Dobsen Dick Ford Leonard Gibeon Clive Kerridge Bruce Lowe Peter Lush Roy Marsh Nicholas McGuinn David Monkcom Paul Parker Andrew Race Dereck Roberts Alan Scarfe Peter Smith Tim Stibbs Edward Wheeler Peter Wilkinson Plus 2 anonymous donors 1970 (19%, £7,602) Stephen Bedford Julian Currall Will David Kevin Fisher Stephen Fordham Richard Gozney Chris Hawkesworth John Kendall Chris Lewis David Morgan Richard Ormerod Peter Raspin Colin Richmond-Watson Richard Robinson Thomas Shanahan
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Paul Silk Mike Skelding Geoff Smith Chris Sutton-Mattocks Bill Travers Plus 2 anonymous donors 1971 (27%, £65,470) David Audsley Richard J. Balfour Peter Balmer George Bishop III Ian Brimecome Jean Chagnon Roger Chaplin Ian Cheffy Lawrence Coupland Lawrence Cummings John Fazackerley Peter Foot Malcolm Hawthorne Rick Henshaw Craig Laird Dave Leggett Andrew McGilvray Jonathan Ormond John Parr Tim Ream Douglas Robertson Stephen Rosefield Steve Russell Greg Salter Gary Sheehan John Sloan Nicholas Staite Plus 3 anonymous donors 1972 (18%, £10,216) John Catherall Richard Catmur Steve Chandler William Clark Michael Constantine Anthony Deakin Tony Downes Andy Hall
Howard Mason Stephen McCann Paul Mounsey Peter Osborn Andrew Peacock David Rosen Jack Smith Robin Stephenson John Trotman Andy Wadley Allan Walker Martin Winter 1973 (28%, £11,699) Colin Ashby Chris Bamber David Beckett Pete Britton Colin Bullett Sean Butler Robert Cawthorne Geoff Chamberlain Bill Chapman David Copeland Robert Godden Roger Golland Sebastien Goodchild Richard Gretton David Grice Richard Harandon Nick Jones Anthony Jordan Dave Knight Nigel Laing Colin Lizieri Toby Lucas Stephen McNulty Ian Midgley Mark Patterson Nic Peeling Stewart Petrie John Roberts Chas Saunders Tom Schneider Barrie Thomas Mike Wood
1974 (32%, £29,210) Keith Albans Phil Budden Graham Clark Peter Desmond Jeff Drew Steve Edrich Robert Eggar Richard Gillingwater Mark Handsley Andrew Hargreaves John Hewitson Charles Hind Michael Hooton Stephen Hutchinson Doug Imeson Bob Jeavons Frederick Leaf Paul Matthews David Neuhaus John Ormiston Andy Patterson Clive Penwarden Phil Phillips Gary Pollitt John Ramsey Tim Robinson Gerard Rocks Trevor Ryder Dick Sands Kim Swain Stephen Tarran Peter Tudor Graham Wareing Robert Warren Michael Wickham Jake Wien John Wisdom Plus 3 anonymous donors 1975 (19%, £37,061) Jeremy Charles Philip Congdon Alex Davids Bob Gaffey Martin Garrett
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Brian Gasser Graeme Gibbs Roy Hoolahan Gordon Hurst Andrew Johnston Graham Ketley Alex King Alan Lomas Ian McIsaac Richard Nowak Robin Osterley Justin Samuel Ces Shaw Nigel Smith Alan Stansfield Anthony Stopyra Peter Watson David Way Plus 1 anonymous donor 1976 (20%, £10,321) Kern Alexander Bill Baker Jr Robin Beckley Robert Birch Bill Cogar John Collingwood Hora den Dulk Brian Denton Chris Elston Richard Finch Anson Jack Trevor Payne Mike Power Jamie Robertson Martin Saunders Paul Sutton Ian Taylor Stephen Tetley Peter Trowles Andrew Wathey Neil Worthington 1977 (19%, £13,738) Philippe Beaufour David Blakey
Charles Blount Andrew Brown Steve Clark Ian Doherty Peter Foster Oliver Grundy Nick Hamilton David Harding Adrian Haxby David Hope Chris Horner Roger Keeley Byron Light David McKenna Peter Rogers John Round Paul Thompson Jeremy Tullett David Van Roijen Steve Vivian Paul Walker Plus 1 anonymous donor 1978 (22%, £9,711) Doug Ansley John Armitstead Chris Brown-Humes Hamish Cameron Ken Cheong Richard Collins Simon Double Richard Durrans George Gilbert Mark Harrison Simon Heilbron Ian Hutchinson Lloyd Illingworth Stephen Leonard Brian Livesey Adrian Marsh Gideon Nissen Robert Pay Peter Richardson Nicholas Rowe Duncan Smith Mark Turnham
Gurdon Wattles Brian Worsfold David Wright 1979 (25%, £27,306) Tony Best Kate Chaytor Kit Cooke Stephen Coulson Gail Davies Davina Dwyer Mark Earls John Hodgson Gill Kinnear Elizabeth Lee Paul Littlechild Ian Lupson Phil Martin Rob McCreath Ian McEwen Caroline Morgan Janet Nevin Justus O’Brien Rob Quain Debbie Rees Michael Robinson Simon Roxborough Ingrid Sharp Mark Silinsky Paul Skokowski Graham Stewart Duncan Talbert Dan Thompson Robert Vollum David West Plus 2 anonymous donors 1980 (28%, £142,798) Gordon Alchin John Ayton Bernard Bewlay Philip Broadley Nick Caddick Iain Cooke Jonathan Davies Anthony Farrand
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Jon French Alison Girling Alistair Graham Jonathan Hofstetter Simon Kelly Gary Lawrence James Lyle John Madgwick Peter McLean-Buechel Ray Montague Tim Mottishaw Zahid Nawaz James Newman Ashley Pigott David Preston Simon Ramage Celia Russell Jonathan Scott Nick Senechal Paula Skokowski Joanna Smith Richard Smyth Neil Stevenson Brigitte Stollmaier Frank Strang Christina Tracey Rebecca Willis Diana Wright Plus 1 anonymous donor 1981 (19%, £10,068) Andrew Burns David Dees Gary Evans Paul Farrelly Sandy Findlay Julian Hammond Claire Ivins Phil Knight Richard Lambert Jim McAleer Paul McCarthy Tim Miles Sallie Nicholas Tim Parkinson Jai Pathak
Duncan Penny Nigel Purdy Maria Queenan Michael Sherring David Stokes Paul Stowers Jenny Turner Mark Walters Jo West 1982 (20%, £7,202) Maggie Carver Tom Christopherson Nick Cox Karen Cullen Catherine Dale Linda Davies Simon ffitch Guy Franks Nick Gretton Mark Hartshorne Ian Harvey David Heaps Richard Kent Peter Murray Divya Nicholls Gareth Penny Marco Rimini Kevin Sealy Shona Tatchell Simon White Junior Williamson Stuart Worthington Plus 1 anonymous donor 1983 (23%, £20,225) Roy Bishop Sara Browne Stephanie Clifford Steve Coates Chris Coleman Kate Coleman William Connolley Carl Cunnane Thomas de Mallet Burgess Tim Fallowfield
Marion Geddes Richard Glynn Tarquin Grossman Edward Hayes Siân Henderson Mike Iddon Max Irwin Jo Kent Bashir Khan Peter Magyar Phil Moody Christine Muskett Denis Mustafa Kevan Rees John Sharples Andrew Sumnall Andrew Till Mark Triggs Michael Young 1984 (14%, £6,919) Dan Abnett John Bloomer Will Coleman Steve Crummett Andrew Duffy Alison Fallowfield Chris Giles Tom Learner Rob Macaire Bruce Major Tesula Mohindra Robert O’Keeffe John Risman Anthony Rossiter Helena Sellars Andrew Steane Harvey Wheaton Sarah Wright Plus 1 anonymous donor 1985 (17%, £8,638) Deborah Booth Andy Brown Clare Coleman Neil Crabb
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Amelia Fletcher Ian Grant Jon Gulley Michael Hill Fiona Houston Nick Laird Mark Little Julia Little Doug McCallum Nicholas Peacock Will Shaw Catharine Snow Tanya Spilsbury Dane Starbuck Emma Steane Justin Symonds Julia Weiner David Whitmarsh Chris Williams Plus 2 anonymous donors 1986 (22%, £30,427) Samira Ahmed Nikolai Ahrens Mary Betley Jim Charles Geoffrey Chatas Philip Clifford QC David Denholm Rachel Fisher Gavin Flook Walter Fraser David Gillett Andrew Harrison Simon Hodgson Claire Horacek Neil Jacob Emma Kennedy Rachel Kiddey Alison Kraus Stewart Lee Iain Mackie Mark Matthews Sally McKone John Myhill Phil Richards
Robert Robinson David Southall Mike Stanislawski Jacqui Thornton Sharon von Simson Catherine Ysrael Gomez Plus 2 anonymous donors 1987 (17%, £13,499) Susan Anderson Steve Asplin Dan Bayley Helen Boyling Justin Collins Chris Coltart Phil Dominy Ian Fitzsimons Winnie Foo Helen Fox David Gomez Jeremy Harrison Kevin Holder Kevin Johnson Heather McCallum Simon Oakes Clare Rhodes James Mark Sedwill Richard Smalman-Smith Mary Waldner Philip Waldner David Waring Tim Wingfield Lizzie Young Plus 2 anonymous donors 1988 (14%, £6,917) Adam Bell James Brace Marcus Browning Abi Draper Leon Ferera James Ferguson Christopher Garrison Duncan Holden Richard Kilgarriff Richard Luckraft
Susanna Mann Peter Matthews Jan Milligan Peter Othen James Rudd Giles Sanders Lucy Shaw Ingrid Southorn Plus 2 anonymous donors 1989 (15%, £10,107) Tom Argles Grania Bryceson Tina Coast Jonathan Cotton Rob de Rennes Jennifer Doran Catrina Holme Andrew La Trobe Tom Leman Alex McLean John Melling Ben Miller Steve Orbell Richard Rednall Ruth Roberts Edward Rose Mohini Sarda Lynch Chris Sawyer Fiona Sawyer Aktar Somalya Matt Spencer Natalie Tydeman 1990 (14%, £6,823) Marcus Bailey Emma Barnett Stephen Barnett Paul Brady Hew Bruce-Gardyne David Gauke Clio Georgiadis Andrew Green Tim Harwood Graham Hinton Ed Hobart
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Peter Hocknell Adrian Jones Dave Jordan Kevin Knibbs Gill La Valette Chris Manby Elaine Noone Stephen Noone Rob Salter Ed Shelton Natasha Walker Claire White Julie Williams Andrew Williams 1991 (14%, £5,347) Andrew Armstrong Balakumar Arumugam Christopher Ashton Carol Atherton Duncan Barker Adam Bell Julian Cater Tessa Evans Samantha Harries Tim Houghton Anneli Howard QC Nicholas Lane David Liversidge Ruari Macdonald David McGill Luke Powell Anna Rentoul Peter Wallace Plus 1 anonymous donor 1992 (12%, £8,698) Carla Antunes da Silva Anne Caley Thomas Dennis Matt Elliott Katharina Gottwald Lucy Heaven Royan Lam Collin Madden Jane Mann
Mike Milner Sarah Morrison Sarah O’Neill Jules Plumstead Claire Pugh Matt Purcell Wayne Smith Mark Snell Beni Surpin Matthew Weaver 1993 (12%, £11,167) Natasha Ashton Howard Cazin Melissa Gallagher Liz Gibbons Nick Gradel James Hook Tim Jackson Kieren Johnson Rob Mansley Tom McClelland Clare McKeon Al Mordaunt Geoff Mortimer Lucy Newlove James Owens James Parkin Richard Tufft Claire Woolley Plus 1 anonymous donor 1994 (9%, £5,343) Liz Barnard David Hambler Choon Wai Hui Ed Knight Gareth McKeever Caroline Mitchelson Harry Oliver Thomas Peel via the Charles Peel Charitable Trust Piers Prichard Jones Jeremy Robst Benedict Rogers
Ian Valvona David Wilkes Ting Fong Yow Plus 2 anonymous donors 1995 (9%, £6,557) Sophie Arber Jess Bolton Robert Dryburgh Louisa Koe Chet Lad David Lewis Richard Martin Hugh Miller Chris Ruse Florian Seubert Martin Thorneycroft Giacomo Tortora Justin Waine Dominic Walley Alison Waterfall 1996 (14%, £8,413) Paul Boon Claire Burton Martyn Chu James Cookson Hong Dong Phil Duffield John Houghton Tom Long James Mace Jose-Antonio Maurellet Min Min Henry Mullin Tim Needham Richard O’Donoghue Roland Partridge Maya Portolan Chizu Sato Zachary Segal Zoe Stopford Roman Streitberger Chris Valvona Duncan Wallace Alistair White
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1997 (13%, £11,288) Marko Bacic David Barker Olly Bootle Glen Bowman Holly Bristow Sadiya Choudhury Nat Copsey Saurabh Das Chris Eden Natalie Gey van Pittius Nicholas Hamilton PJ Howard Heidi Johansen-Berg Stefano John Ali Mack Dean O’Connell Michael Printzos Peter Ralph Anthony Shackleton Justin Sharples Chris Tinson Guofang Xiao Plus 1 anonymous donor 1998 (6%, £2,964) Michael Bird Nick Hirst Marcin Marchewka James Matthews Clare Murray Ann-Marie Myhill Carl Wells Ben Wilkinson Tom Willetts Lucy Wilson 1999 (11%, £3,071) Jo Alexander Olly Belcher Bjorn Benckert Mark Bolton-Maggs Caroline Court Jonathan Crawshaw Oliver Deacon András Lengyel
Zoe Noonan James Pattinson Alex Prideaux Hanna Richardson Sean Sullivan Rosalind Wall David Williams Plus 2 anonymous donors 2000 (6%, £8,400) Rohan Brown Rahul Chopra Miles Clapham Kieron Galliard Harriet Hungerford Matthew Kott Malcolm Lee Richard Povey Charlie Ramsay Plus 2 anonymous donors 2001 (7%, £4,092) Catherine Blair Charles Hotham Clem Hutton-Mills James Maizels Katie Moran Alevtina Nepomniachtchikh Patrick Schneider-Sikorsky Jen Sugden Aden Turna Plus 2 anonymous donors 2002 (6%, £1,827) Rachel Adams Otilia Bologan-Vieru Ben Chamberlain Tom Coke-Smyth Jackie Colburn Ruth Evans Jonathan Lonsdale Leon Marshall Sam Offer Tord Roe Rupert Snuggs Sarah Snuggs
Sebastian Winnett Plus 1 anonymous donor 2003 (9%, £2,089) Beatrice Andresan-Grigoriu Katharine Arnold Nicolai Boserup Jennifer Chung Simone Claisse Jonathan Edge Lindsay Gibson Joe Hacker Madeleine Humphrey Heather Mack Carina May David McCartney Oliver Rees-Jones Edward Robinson Fiona Ronald Yao Yao Tatiana Zervos Plus 1 anonymous donor 2004 (6%, £916) Robin Fellerman Louisa Fisher Stephanie Hardy Martin Heimburger Catriona Henderson James Hogan Johanna Koljonen Pedersen Cara Krmpotich Kelvin Owusu-Sem Scot Peterson Graham Robinson Plus 2 anonymous donors 2005 (7%, £2,107) Charles Allen Will Brownscombe Ryan Buckingham Will Herbert Timothy Hoffmann Elizabeth Klaczynski Lucinda O’Connor
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Hugo Pereira Ben Shacham Aliza Watters Laurence Whyatt Plus 2 anonymous donors 2006 (7%, £1,703) Jennifer Ayers Sophie Brice Henry Carter Siobhan Chapman Alex Inglis Marina Johnson Sam Juthani Serena Lee Daniel Lowe Sean McMahon Robert Pearce Xu Song Andrej Spielmann Sandamali Sutton Alexandros Vardoulakis 2007 (3%, £512) Katherine Davis Rachel Fraser Evan Innis Iain Parr Frankie Rudge Muhammad Usman Plus 1 anonymous donor 2008 (8%, £1,746) Sam Andrews Chris Clasper Jan-Karl Conermann Christabel Haines Katie Hill Gurnam Johal Christopher Kinsley Bryony Morgan Rachel O’Malley Joanne Pearce Tom Pope David Robinson Adam Sealey
Katy Stout Chris Tatum Grace Thomas Charlie Wilson 2009 (9%, £2,057) Anthony Beddows Matt Bell Josh Coulson Fraser Davies Lucy Durrans Pim Fitzpayne Chris Freeman Michael Graham Yas Ishida Adam Jordan George Lake Eric Lukas Anna Ohrling Rowan Pennington-Benton Frances Reed Xiao Tan Elena Vasilyeva Plus 2 anonymous donors 2010 (8%, £2,323) Bhaskar Bhushan Amy Carbonero Ian Cheong Wilson Cheung Max Goettler Andrew Gray William Gunson David Hewitt Mircea-Dan Hirlea Luke Jones Alex King Gabriel May Grant McWalter Mutsa Mutembwa Michael Nairn Sam Parkinson Camilla Scott Michael Sprague Aran Uppal Plus 1 anonymous donor
2011 (6%, £770) Thomas Bailey Michael Cary Olivier Cedelle Henry Chapman Charlotte Cooper-Davis Pete Davis Hannah Dickinson Dimitris Economou Louis Geary Amy Kenyon Juliet Meara Kirsten Pontalti Michael Rundle John Christopher Waite 2012 (9%, £1,394) Alex Bridle Joe Brown James Butterworth Jack Calvert Marianne Clemence Thomas Davis Sarah Grant William Hak Benjamin Kelsey Nathan King Lucy Langley Angus Maudslay Saad Nabeebaccus Rachel Paterson John-rob Pool Ben Valentine Gemma Wardle Man Yuan Plus 3 anonymous donors 2013 (9%, £3,600) Edward Benson Kunz Chow Josephine Clarke Jessica Davidson William Dinning Iona Horton Jaydip Jani Mark Kelly
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Takashi Lawson Dylan Lewis Eleanor Minney Olivia Payne Steven Pilley Naomi Polonsky Lara Shahnavaz Miranda Spencer-Hope Alistair Swallow Zeinab Wakaf Plus 1 anonymous donor 2014 (5%, £965) Tim Chen Grace Clements Thomas Cosnahan John DeVoy IV Alex Hamilton Kathryn Tierney Hutchinson Josh Mahir Rachael Morris Daisy Ogembo Caitlin Page Jamie Rosenstein Bartolomeo Stellato 2015 (4%, £436) Guy Corlett Amelia Gabaldoni Jack Gavin Shoaib Khan Gary Lau Jason Pilkington Callan Walsh Plus 2 anonymous donors 2016 (2%) Cesar Candelon Kevin Gibbons Jack Spence Jake White 2018 (2%) Natasha Sarna Jeremy Sigmon
Visiting Students (£2,519) Yasmin Carim Daniel Chapman William Ferguson Amelia Pan Thomas Holland Sam Gold Freda Liu John Mullenholz Rich Reynolds Ed Reynolds Eric Cooperman Kevin Kimura Sarah Mullen Elizabeth Stainton Ainsley Katz Michael Zarra Paisley Kadison Jordana Irzyk Peter Donati Parent Donors (£1,362) Lisa Blatch Francis Eames Merfyn Tomos Stuart Harray Friends of the Hall (£1,166,267) Shanti Anand, in memory of Dr Nitya Anand David Azzolina William Broadbent Eleanor Burnett Cascia Trust Clare McKeon Charitable Trust Cockayne Jeanette Cockshoot* Deutsche Bank AG DML Consulting Inc John Dunbabin Ronald Fletcher* GE Foundation Janet Heath HEC Montreal
Peter Hirsch Infrapreneur Ltd Jeremy Lester* Pat Lewis Caroline Millward, in memory of Eric Rhodes Mollie Mitchell* Claire Parfitt Kate Payne Adrienne Roche Georgia Rose-Beaty* Rosenstein Family Charitable Trust Hugh Samuel Gareth Simpson Tom Sprent State Street Matching Gift Program Joyce Thorpe, in memory of William Thorpe Bill Williams* Blair Worden Luxue Yu Plus 2 anonymous donors
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The Floreat Aula Legacy Society Members of the Floreat Aula Legacy Society have acted generously by pledging to remember the Hall in their Will. As of the 31 July 2021, a total of 293 Aularians and Friends of the Hall have made such a pledge; other Aularians who are interested in joining the Society are invited to contact the Development & Alumni Relations Office. The Hall was very pleased to welcome twelve new members to the Society during 2020–2021, including: James Aves (1957) Peter Davies (1958) Andrew Morgan (1965) Richard Miller (1970) Malcolm Sibson (1971) Peter Foster (1977)
Bernard Bewlay (1980) William Carver (1980) Margaret Carver (1982) Christine Muskett (1983) Henry Carter (2006) Caroline Millward Plus two new legacy pledgers who are not yet members of the society. We plan to hold the next FALS dinner in 2022 and invitations will be sent out to members nearer the time.
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6
Looking Back
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Poor Bickerton: The Eccentric Life and Sad Death of an Aularian by Stephen Haddelsey
Portrait of John Bickerton, after Albin Burt. 1818 © The Trustees of the British Museum (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
On the evening of 8 October 1833, at the Crown and Sceptre public house in Westminster, an inquest opened into the death of John Bickerton of the ‘Five Chimneys’, Tothill Fields. Two days earlier, a policeman patrolling the Vauxhall Bridge Road had been approached by a party of gentlemen who asked that he disperse a crowd of ragamuffins who were disturbing the dying moments of an old man in a nearby house. Constable Burke found that the house was the ‘Five Chimneys’ – a building that had served as Westminster’s ‘pest house’ during the Great Plague. On entering, he had found the old man close to death and without so much as a blanket to cover him. 1
Once alerted, concerned neighbours brought food and drink, and called for a surgeon. But it was too late, and Bickerton died the following afternoon. In many respects, there was nothing unusual about the death of the old man: without friends or family to support him, too ill and too weak to work, and invisible to the parish authorities, he had wasted away and expired like many others in the squalid hovels of early nineteenth-century London. However, to the surprise of many, the evidence indicated that Bickerton was in no way typical of such paupers. According to some witnesses, he was a ‘complete master’ of five or six languages; he had been educated at Oxford; and he owned properties in the capital, including the Five Chimneys itself. Moreover, among his few possessions, the police discovered a barrister’s gown and wig, and – most astonishing of all – correspondence between Bickerton and two serving Prime Ministers, the Duke of Portland and Lord Liverpool. Who, then, was this mysterious man, who had last been seen scrounging amongst rubbish for scraps to eat? Universityeducated, and with ample means, how had he fallen so low? Most puzzling of all, what could two leading statesmen have to do with the seemingly insane old miser? John Bickerton had been born on 26 April 1755 near Shrewsbury. By his own account, he had enjoyed “the privilege of a virtuous parentage… and education at Boarding and Grammar Schools.”1 A Presbyterian by birth, his Nonconformist upbringing did not prevent him from accepting the Thirty-nine Articles in order to matriculate at St Edmund Hall, on 6 July
Middle Temple, London, ‘Minutes of Parliament’, 10 November 1809.
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1793, and to graduate as Bachelor of Arts in 1799.
untrammelled access to its substantial library.
As for his academic attainments, a later acquaintance would assert that “he had very little knowledge of the Greek and Latin languages… and knew no modern language whatever, except his own”2, but these claims seem dubious. Under the watchful eye of the conscientious Isaac Crouch, the Vice Principal, Teddy Hall had become a place of genuine learning; indeed, with “a novel character for erudition no less than seriousness”3, it stood at the forefront of the battle against the academic somnolence that had prevailed at Oxford for most of the eighteenth century. Moreover, the Hall’s very low annual intake meant that few undergraduates could evade Crouch’s observation.
But Oxford continued to exert a pull on his imagination because, in 1808, he approached the Duke of Portland, Chancellor of the University and Prime Minister, in search of preferment. According to Bickerton’s own account, Portland offered him the Principalship of Hertford College, which he accepted.5 He then returned to Oxford to claim his prize – and it appears to have been from this point that his life began to unravel.
So far as Bickerton’s post-university career is concerned, in 1879 the historian Gibbes Rigaud claimed not only that Bickerton had trained as a barrister, but that he had “practised with some success, but became eccentric and unfit for the profession”.4 This statement is supported by the records of the Middle Temple, which confirm that Bickerton had become a student member on 3 May 1804. As a student member he would have been expected to devote years to a kind of legal apprenticeship, studying under the tutelage of whichever barrister saw fit to patronise him. We know, though, that Bickerton never received his call to the Bar – or, if he did, he failed to answer it. In fact, the available evidence suggests that, having left Oxford, he saw enrolment at the Middle Temple as an opportunity to continue with his studies, enjoying
In the first half of the eighteenth century, Hart Hall, as it was then known, had been renowned for its innovative approach to university education – but its decline had been precipitous in the latter part of the century, with student numbers dwindling to a handful by 1800. On the death of its last Principal in 1805, Portland, as Chancellor, had nominated his successor. But when his candidate declined the job, in accordance with the college’s statute the right to nominate the next head passed from the Chancellor to the Dean of Christ Church, Cyril Jackson – who, according to the historian of Hertford College, had “made up his mind to allow the College to die a natural death”.6 To achieve this end – which would enable the surrounding colleges to acquire Hertford’s land and buildings – all he needed to do was refrain from appointing a Principal, leaving the College to wither on the vine as its last students graduated. In these circumstances, Bickerton’s arrival on the scene, armed with the Chancellor’s introduction, was anything but welcome.
2
The Oxford Herald, quoted in ‘Counsellor Bickerton, Esq.’, in The Gentleman’s Magazine, December 1833, p.549.
3
See J.N.D. Kelly, St Edmund Hall: Almost Seven Hundred Years (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989), pp.68-69.
4
Gibbes Rigaud, ‘Bickerton’, in Notes and Queries, 5th Series, volume 11, 1 March 1879, p.172.
5
6
Letter from John Bickerton to the Court of Claims regarding his right to Hertford College, 23 June 1820, National Archives, reference C195/1/35. Sidney Graves Hamilton, Hertford College (London: Robinson, 1903), p.94.
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Operating, perhaps, on the principle that possession is nine-tenths of the law, Bickerton took up residence in the now largely abandoned Hertford College and proceeded to petition those he thought best able to facilitate his assumption of his new duties. He received very short shrift. In the first place, Portland’s right to nominate the Principal of Hertford College had expired. More important, though, was the fact that, by the time he arrived back in Oxford, Bickerton’s behaviour had become distinctly odd, with all commentators remarking on his increasingly eccentric habits. It hardly seems surprising, therefore, that his claims were dismissed – and even less surprising that he should attract the unwanted attention of some of the idle young men with which Oxford abounded. One such recalled an occasion when “a Jesus man” invited Bickerton to his rooms for supper. This humourist “then thought proper to anoint the head of Counsellor Bickerton with a quantity of grease, and then powdered it with the addition of flour, kicked him out, and shut the door.”7 Fortunately, not everyone exhibited such unkindness. James Shergold Boone, author of The Oxford Spy, treated him with generosity, noting that “Mr Bickerton is an original character, which, in most places, is of itself sufficient to cast upon a man the imputation of insanity”8. Nor was Boone the only Oxford contemporary to depict Bickerton with sensitivity. In 1818 A.R. Burt made a drawing of him, his portrait clearly being designed to engender sympathy, not derision. We don’t know when Bickerton left Hertford College, but, on 27 May 1820, Jackson’s Oxford Journal advertised the sale of “Capital Fine Old Oak and other 7 8
Building Materials, now pulled down and in lots, On the premises, at Magdalen Hall, and Hertford College.” In other words, much of the medieval structure of Hertford College had been demolished, and Bickerton no longer had a home. Thereafter, following a stint living on a houseboat on the Isis, he returned to London, taking up residence at York Street, Westminster, and opening a short-lived school on Wych Street, before finally washing up in the Five Chimneys, emaciated, confused and dying. Though almost entirely forgotten today, during his lifetime, and for several decades afterwards, Bickerton remained a wellknown character of nineteenth century Oxford. He was written about in prose and verse during his lifetime, and his death resulted in a number of lengthy notices in the Gentleman’s Magazine and elsewhere. Why? What led so many to commemorate a man who, so far as we can tell, was neither particularly talented, influential, nor vocal? A man, moreover, about whom they knew practically nothing. His contemporaries described him variously as ‘poor’, ‘eccentric’, ‘singular’ and ‘unhappy’ but none sought to explain his oddness, being satisfied that the oddness itself made him worthy of observation. Today, we might wish to better understand Bickerton: to examine the influences and to chart the events that led a relatively privileged individual to starve to death in a slum. But the sad reality is that so much water has flowed beneath so many bridges, that many of the clues that might have formed the basis of that understanding have been lost. We know something of Bickerton’s birth, his parentage, and his education. We can
‘Account of the Greek Demetriades, at Oxford’, The Gentleman’s Magazine, January 1826, pp.14-16. James Shergold Boone, The Oxford Spy in Verse, Dialogue the First (Oxford: Munday and Slatter, 1818), footnote to pp.23-24.
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trace some of his movements after he graduated, and, thanks to the surviving records we have some inkling of his motivations. Burt’s portrait also gives us a good idea of what he looked like. But in the absence of all but one letter of Bickerton’s, and without any account written by someone who knew him intimately, we are left, like the majority of his contemporaries, gawping – albeit somewhat less complacently (we hope) – at the wreckage of a man. Is it then Bickerton’s oddity that makes him still worthy of consideration nearly two centuries after his death? In part, the honest answer must be ‘yes’. The descriptions of his life, death and peculiarities catch our attention, just as the man himself caught the attention of his contemporaries. But there is more to it than that. By tracing Bickerton’s footsteps from rural Shropshire to Oxford, from Oxford to the Inns of Court, and, ultimately, to the squalid ruins of a derelict plague hospital, it is possible to see something of late Georgian and Regency
England, albeit through a glass darkly. We might almost think of Bickerton as we think of some of the minor characters in the novels of Dickens: it is their very abnormality, their marked deviation from the accepted norms of behaviour that make them not only fascinating but also an essential part of our perception of the wider world they – and he – inhabited. Through the pursuit of such misfits, we gain access to parts of a world that might otherwise remain entirely invisible to us. Dr Stephen Haddelsey FRGS, FRHistS, is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of East Anglia and an historian specialising in the history of Antarctic exploration. He is the author of Poor Bickerton: The Life and Death of an Oxford Eccentric (Kilgobbin Press, 2021). The illustrated hardback is priced at £25.00 (including postage), and copies may be obtained from the author by emailing sphaddelsey@ yahoo.co.uk. The book is reviewed on p.157.
The Duke Of Edinburgh: A Parting to Remember by James Whitbourn St Edmund Hall’s Director of Music and BBC producer, Dr James Whitbourn, was appointed producer at St George’s Chapel Windsor for the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral on Saturday 17 April 2021. He shares his account of how he brought together the many different elements to broadcast the service to all BBC radio networks. A Pathé newsreel of 1958 shows a spirited Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh—a year or two younger than Prince William is today— commanding with his presence a packed Front Quad of St Edmund Hall before purposefully striding off down Queen’s Lane. He had come to deliver the Hall’s
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Royal Charter, granted the previous year, and to look over plans for the College’s ambitious programme of expansion. When shown by the College the newlypainted and immaculately-decorated room occupied by the organ scholar of the day (Michael Cansdale, 1956, Jurisprudence, now a St Edmund Fellow) the Duke astutely rejected its authenticity as ‘a typical undergraduate room’ and instead of admiring it as planned, engaged in conversation with the occupant on matters that interested him more. Sixtythree years later, his direct, no-nonsense approach found its final expression as his coffin was driven down the castle Ward on a green Land Rover, rather than a gun carriage, to its final resting place. Because of my own longstanding relationship with the BBC, I was appointed producer at St George’s Chapel Windsor that day, responsible for the broadcast of the funeral service to all the BBC radio networks, working alongside my television colleagues and with a substantial radio team. We came together with all those from the chapel and castle who were called upon to bring together and fulfil the event in all its aspects, including liturgical, ceremonial and, of course, musical—the small choir, organists, brass players and pipers. Although I had produced broadcasts of two previous royal funerals and several royal weddings, this was an event like no other. The role of a producer of such events has similarities with the work of a composer: in both cases, much of our work has to be done in advance of the event itself. When working on a commissioned musical work, I always try to imagine myself sitting in the audience at the first performance. I try to anticipate the atmosphere and the movements of performers. Similarly, BBC Events producers try to imagine the scenes, the
feelings, the power and the intricacies of an event which has not yet happened, and we plan for it so that others can experience the event authentically as it unfolds. The broadcast of the event itself is a time of intense concentration when each of the players focuses solely on their own part. The embarrassing announcement of the incorrect Oscar winner in 2017, when a busily-tweeting official had handed over the wrong envelope to the announcer, stands as a salutary warning to anyone who attempts simultaneously to experience an event and make it happen for others. My role was to help make it happen for others, working with a highlyskilled team of commentators, engineers and production colleagues, giving direction when needed and trusting in the abilities of others when that was all that was required. The days before the event, in contrast, are experiential, and it is those times I have always treasured most, especially silent moments in Westminster Abbey or St George’s Chapel, when these buildings stand in expectant readiness. I love those periods of quiet and dedicated attention to detail, often casually observed. Normally, I try to imagine what the place will be like the following day, packed with human energy and breath. The Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral, though, uniquely lacked this contrast with preceding days. Even on the day itself, the chapel was almost empty and continued to house its lofty atmosphere in stillness. Those who were in the chapel wore face coverings and spoke little. The sounds were few, subtle but always telling. Radio is a less literal medium than its younger cousin, television, and its canvas is a combination of sonic actuality and poetic description, minimally used. With this information alone, the brain can assemble images
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that are as rich and powerful as those on screen, sometimes even more so. The tolling bell, the echoing footsteps on the stone floor, the military command: these are all emotive sounds that can call on our full attention. They tell a story that is authentic and uncluttered and which barely acknowledges the newly-painted walls or the immaculate decoration.
of stillness, quite different from that which had been there before. The Duke of Edinburgh’s final journey had been witnessed firsthand only by those inside the castle walls. It is a privilege to be able to be the eyes of others who look on or listen in and to help create the images that will remain in the national and international memory.
Emerging from the event afterwards, the chapel exudes a new atmosphere
James Whitbourn, Director of Music
As Three Aularians Walked Out One Summer Morning by Patric Sankey-Barker
Aghast, we stood and watched the bus disappearing down the road to Bonifaccio with our rucksacks, passports and airline tickets on board. Just at that moment, a beaten up little Citroen drew up at the service station where the bus had stopped for a ten-minute coffee break. Quick as a flash, Rose said to the driver in his colloquial French: ‘That chap’s gone off with all our kit, follow him?’ We all piled into the car, Rose and Shaw scrambling into the back seat amongst a lot of fruit and veg, and set off down the middle of the very busy main road. It was a hopeless chase, but the driver, steering the car with his elbows while on his mobile, was able to contact the bus company and get the bus stopped at the next town.
That was the beginning, and might have been the end, of our walk on the GR20 trail across Corsica in 2010. The three of us – Michael Rose (1960, Philosophy), Michael Shaw (1959, History) and I, Patric Sankey-Barker (1960, Modern Languages) - had done two treks before: from the Bristol Channel to the English Channel and then coast to coast from North to South Wales. With advancing years, our treks became more ambitious: the AV2 trekking route in the Dolomites and then, casting around for something else, the GR11 - 818km from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean along the Spanish side of the Pyrenees. This we started in 2016 and reached the Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean in 2019, walking for between 10 and 15 days each year, ending
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each section at a road or rail link and starting again the next year where we had finished the previous year. The GR11 (La Senda) starts on the Atlantic coast north of Irun just over the border from Hendaye in France, where Hitler and Franco met in 1940. On the first stage of our trek, we climbed up through the foothills of the Pyrenees, reaching some 11 days later the ski resort of Candanchu where the high mountains really begin. Foothills might give the impression of easy walking, but there are plenty of steep climbs and descents in the western Pyrenees. From Candanchu to the Refugi de Conangles in Catalonia near the road linking Huesca and Toulouse was another 11 days. This took us through the extraordinary geology of the Ordesa National Park. On the next stage, we continued through the high Pyrenees passing through Andorra and reaching Puigcerda back in Catalonia. From Puigcerda our route reached its highest point at Puigmal before dropping down towards the Mediterranean. Although the alpine scenery of the high Pyrenees is stupendous, the lower sections are also of great interest. There is more variety, and you meet more of the local people. No one admitted to being Spanish: they were Basque, Navarran, Aragones, Aranes, Andorran, or Catalan, often with their own language. Faced with the task of writing about this great trek, I feel like the man who bought a tapestry which was too large for the room where he wanted to hang it. I will therefore cut a few pieces from the tapestry and recount some of our many experiences.
1. Burguete Burguete is a small town lying on the junction of the GR11 and the Camino de Compostella. We arrived there on a hot
afternoon on the fourth day of the first stage and collapsed into the first bar we came to. After quenching our thirst with cold Estrellas, we set off up the main street to find our hotel, the Hostal de Burguete, where Hemingway had once stayed. As there was some time till supper, and the saturnine patron was less than welcoming, we wandered back down the main street and entered the garden of another rather smarter hotel. A man dressed in a black t-shirt and jeans came to sit at a table near us and started typing on a small laptop. After a time he came over, gestured that he couldn’t speak and pointed to the screen of his laptop. On this he had remarked on our Oxford accents and asked where we came from. It transpired that he was doing the Camino and had taken an oath of silence for three months. He was a Canadian, a lay reader and a chat show host on a Canadian radio station with a bent towards religion, but had been having doubts about his faith. There followed a long conversation, in which we spoke and he replied on his laptop often posing searching questions about religious belief. The next morning, we set off down the high street amidst a large crowd of pilgrims, until the ways parted and we were on our own again. Although our trek was never intended to be a pilgrimage, over the course of the years I think we began to feel a bit like pilgrims. We often crossed pilgrims’ routes, and were deeply impressed by the wonderful pilgrimage church of St Sernin in Toulouse.
2. Ordesa and Monte Perdido The Ordesa National Park is an enormously deep canyon gouged out by the Ordesa river exposing the strata contorted by the tectonic upheaval that formed the Pyrenees. With massive crags rearing above, the path follows the river
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up the valley and then comes out in a wide open area closed at the far end by a sheer wall of rock. A steep path leads up to the Refugio de Goriz. When we arrived at the refuge it was almost empty, but by supper time the place was filling up and, as it was a Friday, people kept on arriving right into the small hours, having left work in Barcelona and elsewhere and climbed up from the valley lighting their way with head torches. The next day was the best and worst day of the entire trek. We had decided to follow the old higher route of the GR11, skirting the south flank of Monte Perdido. This was enormously rewarding with extraordinary views to the south over a remote canyon and into the hazy distance of Spain. An exposed path above a deep valley took us to an awkward corner, where there was still snow and ice. Once past that, we ambled on down to the col where the descent to the Refugio de Pineto began. Three and a half hours later, after a horrendous descent, we reached the valley below and dragged ourselves to the refuge. Outside there were a few disconsolate Andorran walkers, who solemnly handed us a note, which said that the refuge was closed: the guardian had gone to the dentist with toothache. At that point, when our spirits were at their lowest ebb, Rose got out his stove and started a brew-up – a concoction of tea with rum and condensed milk. All went better from then on: a replacement guardian arrived, we were let into the refuge and later enjoyed an excellent supper.
3. Puigmal Puigmal means ‘evil peak’ in Catalan, and at 2911 metres it was the highest point of our trek. We reached it on our fourth and last stage.
With the help of a lift from the gardener at the family-run hotel where we had spent the night, we set out to conquer the evil peak. Even with this leg up, it was a long steep climb ending with a scramble over rough scree for the last few hundred feet, but memorable for spotting a group of chamois and for the snow still lying at the top after the heavy fall which we had seen from the train on the way up from Toulouse two days before. The descent to Nuria was also steep and taxing. The next morning, Michael Rose’s son, Edward (1989, History) – who had joined us for the last stage – told us we were mad to be carrying so much weight. He heroically volunteered to relieve us of a lot of our baggage, making a complicated journey by bus and train, carrying three backpacks to our stop for the next night. Perhaps, as we neared the end of our trek, the evil peak was telling us something about our advancing years.
4. Cap de Creus During the last few days of our trek, the pace became more leisurely. We spent a whole rainy day by the sea in Llanca – glad for once not to be walking, particularly after the previous day’s walk in the heat, much of it on tarmac. Our wives joined us the next day in a lovely rented house in the village of Vall de Creus a few kilometres from Llanca, having flown to Girona and hired a car. We still had 15 kilometres to go. After another day of rest, we finally headed for the cape, reaching it late in the morning of 24 September 2019. A celebratory lunch followed in Cadaques. We didn’t visit the house where Dali had lived. The real world of the Pyrenees had provided amply for body and soul. Patric Sankey-Barker (1960, Modern Languages)
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On the Joys of Being a College Tutor by John Knight I was a Tutorial Fellow of the Hall from 1967 until 2006. Tutoring can become repetitive and boring over the years but the challenge of engaging with bright young minds provides an antidote. As do some amusing occasions. For instance: My room in College (1.1) was immediately below an undergraduate room. Normally, it proved to be no problem at all. With one exception. During a tutorial we heard a resounding noise: thud, thud, thud… and again, thud, thud, thud… and on and on. Eventually, I ran upstairs, all ready to complain. The undergraduate opened the door: “Come in, come in. I’m just practising my juggling.” Long ago, I tutored the son of a foreign potentate. He enjoyed his time at the Hall, perhaps too much so. One evening he attended a party in Brasenose and left in his expensive car. When it crashed into a college wall, another of my pupils, a man of considerable initiative if not diligence, accurately or not took responsibility for being the driver. International incident averted! At end-of-term collections, it
was possible to say of the princeling’s friend: “Mr X. will never get into All Souls, whichever route he tries.” Not long after I was elected, I was proud of a pupil who got a well-deserved first; the world was his oyster. After graduating he was trying to decide whether to join the diplomatic service or stay on and become a development economist. I was conducting research in Ghana for part of that summer. I sent him two postcards. One showed a newly-built concrete monstrosity in the capital. I wrote: “If you become a diplomat you will waste your time sipping cocktails in a place like this. But…” The later postcard, showing a family hoeing its shamba, continued: “But, if you become a development economist, you will be able to help people like this.” That should settle it, I thought. And indeed it did. He reminded me of our correspondence when he attended my retirement celebration, having just retired as HM ambassador to a major developing country. Professor John Knight, Emeritus Fellow
A Good Year To Be Online By Tom Crawford grounds, to the cancellation of almost every in-person event, it would be fair to say a lot has happened over the past nine months…
The first year in my new position as an ‘Early Career Teaching and Outreach Fellow’ at the Hall has been a rollercoaster ride to say the least. From the highs of reaching over two million people with a video filmed in the College
October saw the release of a video entitled ‘How Hard is it to get into Oxford University’ with YouTube star Mike Boyd sitting the Maths entrance exam in the Old Dining Hall. The video demonstrates how anyone can learn the skills required to succeed at Maths, and tries to demystify the Oxford experience. With over two million views to date, the College hopefully has more than a few new prospective
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students all over the world. You can watch the video for yourself here: https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=_deqsuKIf_o Michaelmas was a difficult time in terms of in-person events, with most being cancelled or moved online due to everchanging restrictions. However, I did manage to visit a couple of schools with the highlight being a visit to Hockerill Anglo-European College where over 300 students enjoyed a lecture on the ‘Million-Dollar Millennium Problems’. You can watch an online version of the lecture recorded with the Royal Institution here: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=f251NkeDVB8 I also worked with ‘Maths Week Ireland’ during October with my lecture on ‘The Maths of Sport’ being streamed live to over 100 schools across the Republic of Ireland. November saw the start of admissions season, and working with the Undergraduate Admissions Office at the University, I hosted several mock interview sessions with applicants ahead of the real thing in December. Hilary term was of course all online with the majority of students remaining at home due to the national lockdown. Outreach events followed the same format, including the Royal Institution weekend Maths Masterclasses, and several science festivals at which I was an invited speaker. One particular event that stands out for me was with STAR Academy at the NASA Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico. The passion and enthusiasm that
the students – all of whom came from an assortment of disadvantaged backgrounds – displayed for learning STEM was a real breath of fresh air. Trinity term has fortunately seen the return of in-person events once again, and with it the opportunity to record a series of video interviews with some of our undergraduate students discussing their dissertations or research projects. These videos should be available on the College YouTube channel in the near future, so watch this space! Finally, I have continued to make content for my website and YouTube channel under the ‘Tom Rocks Maths’ brand, with recent videos of me taking an A-level Maths exams reaching almost 1 million views. You can watch the Maths A-level exam video here: https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=uupjxztr2q8 I have also continued to work with the excellent ‘Numberphile’ YouTube channel which currently has over 3.14 (or pi) million subscribers. I have now featured in 10 videos on the channel – reaching over 5 million people – with my recent video on the ‘Gabriels’ Horn Paradox’ in particular generating a lot of attention. You can watch the video here: https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=yZOi9HH5ueU Dr Tom Crawford, Early Career Teaching and Outreach Fellow in Mathematics More information and examples of Tom’s outreach work with ‘Tom Rocks Maths’ can be found on his website: https://tomrocksmaths.com
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Remembering Terry Jones by Geoffrey Bourne-Taylor We honoured the memory of and remembered the laughter brought to us by Aularian and Honorary Fellow Terry Jones last year. Here are some more fond memories. It was with dismay that many of us noted Terry Jones’s death in January 2020. Terry brought so much to the Hall, not only while in stat pup but later when his connections were strengthened by an Honorary Fellowship. I count myself fortunate to have got to know him during those later years on his frequent visits. He was tickled that his room, opposite the Bursary, became a lavatory; it is now part of the administrative offices in the ‘Cottage’ at the end of the Quad; the tale became the centrepiece of his performance at one of the Aularian London dinners. Amongst some of the less-well-known Monty Python recordings is the ditty, “I like traffic lights” which I came across in 1980. The verses ran through an inane recital of the phases of traffic lights – “I like traffic lights, … no matter where they’ve been;… specially when they’re green” and on and on and on… certainly not a choice for Desert Island Discs! Sidling up to Terry as he was about to visit his old room, I whispered the lyrics into his ear. “Oh no! No!” he recoiled, and we were friends thereafter. It was to this song that he recorded an additional verse that we sent to one of my sons, on his gap year somewhere near the Syrian border. There were some stuffy objections when a number of colleagues joined me and Stephen Farthing (one-time Ruskin Master of Drawing) to propose Terry for the Honorary Fellowship: they didn’t think much of his academic credentials! Finally convinced that he was actually a
quite famous and deserving alumnus, the fellowship was granted. Not surprisingly, he was very popular with the SEH community and ever supportive of the Hall. In 2001, the College and some alumni sponsored an anthology of verse, Chatter of Choughs to which Terry contributed the following: When I see a one-eyed chough I pity birds whose life is tough. When I see a two-eyed chough I reckon God has done his stuff. When I see a three-eyed chough I start to think my eyesight’s duff. When I see a four-eyed chough, I know that I have had enough.
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But there was another piece of doggerel he submitted that found its way onto a Teddy Hall mug, alongside a cartoon that depicted Terry as a sozzled chough leaning on the Well: I met a chough as I came here Who I thought was acting queer: His beak was wagging up and down; He wore an academic gown. And as I stared, I saw his wings Were wrapped around some curious things: A scarf, an oar, a rugger ball – I thought: “A member of the Hall! I’d better buy the bird a beer!’ And so I did – but dear oh! dear!....” My guess is that these mugs are now a collectors’ item.
Rumour has it that the Python sketch, ‘the Bruces’, took its inspiration from the late Bruce Mitchell, a broad Australian don who taught Terry Old English (and incidentally contributed Miceles forme raedelle [‘Mitchell’s first riddle’ – about a chough] to the anthology). In the sketch, everyone in the scene is called Bruce or Sheila. Bruce denied that he was the inspiration… but he was not insistent… In another confession, Terry admitted that the part that he had least enjoyed was the exploding Mr Creosote in The Meaning of Life: “I’ve never felt so ill”, he confessed. Geoffrey Bourne-Taylor, Bursar 1988 – 2006
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Looking Sideways
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Looking Sideways In which we celebrate things which should have happened in 2020-21 but alas did not.
Callout: The 2021 Fine Artists Degree Show The public degree show for this year’s Fine Artists was due to be held on the 17 June 2021. Like so much else this year it was cancelled. Despite hopes, it was also not possible for Teddy Hall’s BFA students to show their work in College, so we are celebrating it here instead. Below, each artist introduces their work. The full show was staged online and can be seen at: www.ruskindegreeshows.com/ bfa-home
Jamie Brash
Fiona Cameron
Jamie Brash is an artist whose work begins with texture. Through his practice, he experiences materials within the world as more than they appear on the surface. Textures and surfaces have a history and context; they evoke feeling and produce affect, they are as fundamental to our understanding of the world as language. Jamie’s work is interdisciplinary; he works with casting and collection. He engages with the screen, cinema, softness, moire, and the mesh between the geometric and organic. Through a net of interconnected objects and materials, his sculptural work proposes a haptic visuality, a mode of looking through touch and feel.
Fiona Cameron is an artist who considers drawing and sculpture as tools to navigate what it means to ‘make a home’. Her work suggests the stillness found within the confines of the domestic space and how this, as a catalyst for daydream, transforms the poetics of the home.
www.instagram.com/jamiebrash 1.
Untitled (2021) Concrete, wall paint 50x40x2cm 2. Untitled (shutter) 2021 Concrete, acrylic and spray paint on canvas. 100cm x 70cm 3-4. Untitled (stone beige) 2021 Concrete, stone, cooper, acrylic, artificial moss 5. L-R: Untitled (2021) Concrete, mica powder pigment, 50x30x12xcm, Untitled (shutter) 2021 Concrete, acrylic and spray paint on canvas. 100cm x 70cm and Feet (2021) Concrete, artificial mos, pine 35 cm
6. The plans I have for the next 10 years (2021) Typewritten document A4, transcribed from my Grandfather’s journal 21x29.7cm 7. The plans I have for the next 10 years (Detail) (2021) Paper roll 100x200 cm 8. The plans I have for the next 10 years (2021) A4 scan taken of my Grandfather’s journal 21x29.7cm 9. The plans I have for the next 10 years (2021) Paper roll 100x200 cm, screen shot of video at: https://vimeo.com/558437904
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Antonio Gullo
Willow Senior
This work is an experimental tribute to a yet-unread homoerotic manga called ‘Finder’ by Ayano Yamane. Flag-like, hung from the ceiling by strips of lilac ribbon, this textile piece weaves together contrasting registers to neutralise human desire. Painstaking menial tasks such as stoning and handsewing bias binding and pleats spark the idolising of the image through a solitary devotion to provenance and futurity.
Willow is engaged with the methods of constructing, telling and retelling stories. Her work is often process driven, investigating a narrative by producing and reimagining parts from scratch. Her current work draws its inspiration from her great-grandmother’s letters written in the early 1980s, which explore her American heritage stretching back to the 17th century in Maryland. Willow’s constructions wonder at this narrative, asking what happens when this kind of history is told, and what could happen if it were retold. More of Willow’s work can be found at www.willowsenior.co.uk
10-12. Finder / Find-Her (2021) Assorted fabrics, ribbon, leather laces, resin, liquid latex, plastic pearls, mother’s old jewellery, ink, assorted lace, oil markers, acrylic primer, over 3000 hand-applied rhinestones, embroidery thread, grommets. 105 x 80 cm
Beth Simcock The Zodiac is a painting installation that spans twelve canvases: one for each sign in the astrological calendar. Each painting holds its own internal logic while also referencing the larger connection to its network of neighbours. The canvases span the space in a configuration that might just be accidental, evoking the almost-infinite squares of the Instagram grid. Together, these uneasy constellations suggest the brooding possibility of change. Beth was awarded a Platform Graduate Award 2021 for her work and Zodiac was displayed as a solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in Oxford, 21-31 October 2021. More of her work at www.bethsimcock.co.uk 13-16. Zodiac (2021). Acrylic on canvas, 230 x 690 centimetres total
17. Maryland’s Finest (2020) Photograph 4x6 inches 18. Arranging Flowers for the Home (2021) Photograph 3.1x3.1inches 19. The Good Neighbor (2020) Acrylic on canvas 40x50cm 20. Strawberry Harvest (2020) Acrylic on canvas 40x50cm 21. Lakewood Heights (2020) Photograph 4x6inches
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This page – Jamie Brash: 1. Untitled (2021) 2. Untitled (shutter) 3-4. Untitled (stone beige) 5. Untitled, Untitled (shutter) and Feet (L-R)
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11 Above – 6-9 Fiona Cameron: The plans I have for the next 10 years Below – 10-12. Antonio Gullo: Finder / Find-Her
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13-16. Beth Simcock: Zodiac
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20 Willow Senior: 17. Maryland’s Finest; 18. Arranging Flowers for the Home; 19. The Good Neighbour; 20. Strawberry Harvest; 21. Lakewood Heights
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The St Edmund Hall Apocalypse by Alex Gunn and Amy Hemsworth Sadly, some things have not just been postponed once, but twice by Covid, as Alex Gunn (2018, English) and Amy Hemsworth (2018, Law and German Law) explain in their account of how a play about the end of the world was overtaken by, well… In the beginning, there was Drama Cuppers. Not one member of the final cast of Teddy Hall’s 2018 entry in the Freshersonly drama competition expected to be part of it, and the cast was only settled, and rehearsals only began, about a week before the first performance. To universal amazement, we not only pulled off our abridged and chaotic production of The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon, but made it through to the finals, after which we were nominated for several awards. Having been warned that Teddy Hall was not well known for its pursuit of the dramatic arts, we were giddy with our own success. Yet even with these strange beginnings, we could never have predicted what it would get us into. Later that Michaelmas, Professor Lähnemann, having heard about our Drama Cuppers exploits, approached director Emma Hawkins (2018, Fine Art) about her plan to host a Medieval Mystery Play Cycle, asking if Emma would be interested in organising a group from Teddy Hall. Based on the popular form of entertainment across Europe in the Middle Ages, the plays were to narrate the greatest hits of the Bible, from the Creation to the Last Judgement, and to be staged at various locations around the College. Emma took the news back to us — and we laughed at her. Us, whose only theatrical experience in Oxford had been an absurd fairy-tale play in which a
feminist Snow White rejects her housewife role and retells her own story (having one of the dwarves play her part in drag) — us perform a serious play? About the Bible? Well, naturally, we accepted the offer. We’d been told we could adapt the script we had been given, which was a modernised version of the Last Judgement from the Towneley Plays. That, we decided — or, rather, hoped — gave us the freedom we would need to pull off something like this. And yet, of course, while we wanted to have fun with it, we were also very conscious that the last thing we wanted to do was to offend anyone in our audience, which was to have an unusually high concentration of vicars. We chose the Last Judgement on the grounds that Revelation — as commentators have noted for more than a millennium — already has some… interesting material. However, we did not think about the other implication of performing the Apocalypse, which is, of course, that nothing comes afterwards. We’d agreed to do the Big Finale, the Last Word on the Matter, the One to End It All, Literally: so it was going to have to be good. Fortunately, we were gifted with a fascination for theology (both having survived A Levels in Religious Studies with Christianity), a love for Monty Python, and, at least in Alex’s case, a well-oiled understanding of poetic metre (and in Amy’s, a willingness to learn, but some confusion about why it mattered or even what it was). The first round of edits on the original script were made by Emma’s friend, Benedict Mulcare; then we took over, spending eighth week of Hilary repeatedly staying up until the ungodly hours composing and versifying, intoning
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Miltonic speeches and satirising Brexit — despite Amy’s Law Mods being the following week. As we moved towards the Easter vac, we dragged in as many of our friends as we could cajole, bribe, or blackmail, kicking and screaming, into our cast. We managed to do most of our casting before the vacation, and thought things were well settled. Except for the fact that we hadn’t actually finished the script yet. We kept on working, though, including making some further revisions to the script whilst on holiday in Germany (never let it be said that we don’t take our Bible seriously) and, although this might not have been entirely conducive to our cast’s learning their lines, things seemed to be going well. Then, in the week before the production, we lost our Jesus (the sort of sentence that by then felt quite normal). Fortunately, we found a new one just in time (Joe Rattue, Somerville), who managed to learn his lines within seventytwo hours: which can only be described as a Godsend. This last-minute change was not as difficult as it might otherwise have been, largely because we had done perhaps one rehearsal up until this point — our original read-through for the purpose of casting — and so Joe really hadn’t missed much.
Suddenly, it was Saturday of noughth week, Trinity term 2019, and we were outside the Norman church that is the St Edmund Hall Library, hearing someone in a cassock preface our play in Middle English: a bit of a contrast to what came next. Yet, to our amazement (a feeling we were beginning to grow accustomed to), there was laughter — rather a lot of laughter. And then there was clapping — rather a lot of clapping. Amongst it all there was some puzzlement, but, well, the Word of God has long been subject to that. We had turned the Last Judgement into a satirical comedy, we were the finale to some very poignant and very learned plays, and we seemed to have managed it without offending anyone. One might even have called the resulting applause rapturous. (Sorry.) Jump forward now past Prelims and the Long Vac: it is Michaelmas term 2019, the wine has been flowing in true Oxford fashion, and directing, producing, casting, budgeting, marketing, costuming, and starring in (in various combinations) a full-length production of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest in a single term feels like a splendid and utterly fool-proof idea. Several weeks deep into the all-consuming chaos that followed, Professor Lähnemann approached us again, bringing news of a Second Coming of the Medieval Mystery Cycle, and asking if, after the success of the previous year, we would like to revive the Last Judgement in an expanded version. Again, as though we didn’t already have enough on our plates, we jumped at the chance (this time laughing not with derision but with glee), and, as soon as Earnest was over (with reviews and everything!), set to work on a heavy rewrite of our old script. Now we had the time, there was a lot we wanted to do. For all our comic intentions, we had some serious messages we
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St Edmund Hall Drama Society production of The Importance of Being Earnest
wanted to get across. Our first task was to thoroughly expunge, or at least address in a constructive manner, some of the (quite literally) Medieval attitudes that still lingered from the original script. We were alarmed to discover, for example, that Tutivillus, our suave arch-villain, was historically a precursor of racist blackface figures.1 Secondly, we had tried in our first adaptation to satirise the misogyny of the original: by having the demons treat feminists as comparable to murderers and violent criminals, we hoped to demonstrate the absurdity of the antiquated attitudes found throughout the piece. However, having already had the same demons condemn Donald Trump and co., we realised that then having them criticise feminists made our satire confusingly inconsistent: we wanted sympathy for the devils as they tore apart the Republicans, but not when they did the same to the feminists, so one of them would have to go. This feminist point also hinged perilously on an explanation from Jesus at the end of the play, which, with such limited rehearsals, was in grave danger of being accidentally missed out in performance — as, indeed, it ultimately was. So, how to resolve these issues? Well, Tutivillus was going to be replaced by 1
Satan, who, to take a leaf out of the seventeenth century’s book, was to be a satire on the Brexiteers. (Alex, writing Satan’s soliloquy, spent far too long finding parallels between Leave Campaign slogans and the fall of Lucifer). Deeming our feminist efforts sadly unsalvageable, we scrapped the misogyny altogether. The other thing we fancied was a frame narrative. This was partly because we thought it would give us a chance to look at Revelation as a text with a complex history, written in uncertain circumstances by an uncertain ‘John’, its canonical status fought over for millennia, its eschatological implications long scrutinised. But mostly because we thought it would be funny. After going through many possibilities (an early Church synod debating which books were suitable for inclusion in the canon, like they were reviewing X Factor auditions, was a front-runner), we settled on St John himself in the act of writing his Apocalypse. The play, then, was to open with the Angel imparting the Revelation to John, who would bumblingly commentate on the proceedings, interrupting at crucial moments to get an explanation of, say, how the simple breaking of seals could produce such catastrophic events, and
Robert Hornback, Racism and Early Blackface Comic Traditions: From the Old World to the New (Springer, 2018), p.145
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how Christ could also be his own Father (except not really). Two years in sixth form of learning all the possible Trinitarian heresies were about to come in handy as we made John utterly fail, over and over again, to toe the line of orthodoxy. That background theological knowledge could also be troublesome, however. As we read the original play, it occurred to us that the Jesus of the Book of Revelation is, to put it mildly, somewhat different to the Jesus we encounter in the Gospels (at least the gentler ones). The Jesus of the future seemed to place far more emphasis on vengeance and retribution than the great exponent of forgiveness described elsewhere in the Bible. In writing our version, we wanted to explore this problem. We were intrigued by the idea that the story of Jesus has, in large part, been shaped by centuries of translation, reinterpretation, and political and social change, and that his true character may have been lost somewhere along the way. In the 2019 version, we wrote a closing speech in which our Jesus explained that although his role in Revelation would be a deviation from his previous character, his hands were tied by the story set down by John: he was the product of thousands of conflicting beliefs. In our second version, however, we took an alternative approach. Our frame narrative would allow us to address the reasons for Jesus’ drastically different presentation in Revelation. That said, we thought it might seem a little presumptuous to suggest that a short comedic play written by two students could so easily succeed where aeons of scholarship have failed, and so we opted for farce over realism. Rather than trying to answer the unanswerable question of how exactly millennia of reinterpretation and (mis)translation shaped the Book of Revelation we know today, we simply wanted to ask the question of others, who
had Theology degrees and might do the legwork for us. Once again, we worked through several variations of this story. Initially, we were quite fond of the idea that John was simply illiterate, and didn’t have a very good memory either, but eventually we decided on him not just having any ink. Ultimately, though, our point remained the same — although we had already reworked Jesus’s closing speech from last year’s, we were still keen to further challenge literalist notions of Revelation in a more direct, or at least more slapstick fashion, facetiously suggesting that the whole thing is the half-remembered notes of a man without a pen. The second script, in all its twenty-fivepage glory, was finally finished by the third week of Hilary term. We found a wonderful cast, including our third Jesus; we ordered the most ludicrous array of props, including four rubber horse masks (white, red, black, and pale), which were now decorating our houses; we rehearsed until the end of term, and all in all, we were ready to put on quite the show. And then the real Apocalypse decided to upstage us. And then the next year, it did it again… We still hope that the second version of our play will one day get to be performed, perhaps at a future Mystery Cycle. But there’s no need to wait until then. This year’s script is available to read in all its sparkling glory on the Hall website: https://www.seh.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/ uploads/Last-Judgement-script-2020. pdf. For the complete experience, you can also read (and watch!) the previous version and the original translation: https://www.seh.ox.ac.uk/mysterycycle/judgement. Alex Gunn (2018, English) and Amy Hemsworth (2018, Law and German Law)
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8
Looking Forwards
Visualisation by Wright & Wright Architects
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The Development at Norham Gardens by Charlotte Sweeney
An impression of the new view from the rear of 19 Norham Gardens rear gardens, and through the site line form the East to the West of the plot. Visualisation by Picture Plane.
Offering the optimum potential for expansion, Norham Gardens was chosen as the site for new student accommodation. It is an important project for the College as it brings together several strategic aims: being able to house all its undergraduates, moving towards becoming a net zero energy institution, improving access and diversity, and catalysing a creative and inclusive College culture by: • Establishing a sense of place • Providing an exemplar of biodiversity and sustainability • Relating inside with outside, with good views of and relationship with nature • Creating shared spaces for the community in common rooms and outdoor enclaves, as well as in students’ personal kitchen diners • Making a feature of work and
achievement by members of College: celebrating research and student art in the entrance and other communal areas • Ensuring there are spaces which can be organised and managed for informal cross discipline interaction and for events which need not be alcohol dependent • Defining and accommodating different cohorts • Being intimate and human scaled, with clusters of no more than seven rooms with an individual kitchen/dining room • Taking care with the design of each bedroom, to ensure good aspects; they can also be personalised with the bed arranged in different places. All new build rooms will have an en suite bathroom • Providing a safe, secure and accessible environment for Hall students
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History Norham Gardens forms part of the Norham Manor Estate, which was originally laid out in 1860 by William Wilkinson for St John’s College as the second of two major estates built on college land in north Oxford. Stringent building regulations ensured high standards of workmanship and sanitation, while prohibiting roughcast or cemented facades and high boundary walls between plots. The outcome is a unified and characterful array of handsome villas in the Gothic or Italianate style, three to four storeys high, set in large, mature gardens. Solidly built in mustard or red brick set off by stone dressings, they give the area its prevailing air of leafy sobriety and propriety. The social strata of Victorian domestic life is reflected in a vertical hierarchy of rooms, from larger ‘piano nobile’ drawing rooms to smaller attic spaces with dormer windows. Other features include pitched roofs, gables, barge boards, bay windows and chimneys. Constructed between 1871 and 1876, 17 Norham Gardens was designed by Frederick Codd, a pupil of Wilkinson. In 1888 the site was acquired by St Hugh’s Hall to house female scholars, in particular
the daughters of the clergy. In 1894, St Hugh’s extended the main house, eventually moving out in 1919. The new occupants were St Stephen’s House, a theological college, and it is likely that the single storey chapel was added to the south-west end around this time. During the 1960s, a modern, four storey extension was built at the north-east end. St Stephen’s House moved out in 1980, when St Edmund Hall acquired the site. Currently, 47 postgraduate students can be housed at Norham Gardens, but conditions are not ideal, with one bathroom for every three to four study bedrooms. The site also contains the College gym, a common room with a pool table and several kitchens. Over time, the various piecemeal extensions have contrived to undermine the character of the original Victorian architecture, yet it remains clearly discernible, and the site has the potential to become a more pleasant student enclave and provide St Edmund Hall with an increase in bedroom capacity while improving the overall quality of accommodation.
VISUALISATION BY WRIGHT & WRIGHT ARCHITECTS
Below: Common areas. Visualisation by Wright & Wright Architects.
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The Proposal
Visualisation by Wright & Wright Architects
1. Reinstate the original Victorian villa at 17 Norham Gardens, with the two extensions 2. Create high buildings onto the street, with a central building stepped back from the road, so the new buildings are of similar scale to the surrounding Victorian villas 3. Add low buildings in the rear gardens, akin to the MCR 4. Frame long views through from Norham Gardens between the buildings, to the trees in the park 5. Form a lower ground level, arranged around a cloister garden 6. Separate the cohorts into distinct, individual buildings 7. Have clusters of no more than seven
rooms sharing kitchen and dining room as individual flats 8. Provide a staffed Lodge front entrance, with landscaped front gardens and cycle parking 9. Incorporate communal space that reflects the research and creativity of College members, and promotes social interaction and wellbeing 10. Address the scale, form and mass of the new building adjacent to the Department of Education at 15 Norham Gardens 11. Create an exemplary, climate change resistant and biodiverse garden for the future 12. Build a net zero carbon, Passivhaus, low maintenance development
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A typical student bedroom and an example of a kitchen. Visualisation by Wright & Wright Architects
A Holistic Environmental Concept for Norham Gardens This project will help us towards achieving net zero emissions and becoming one of the greenest and most environmentally sustainable colleges in Oxford. The proposals will be designed to meet Passivhaus standards, which will ensure that the airtightness and thermal performance of the building envelope is significantly better than current best practice, therefore greatly reducing the
energy required to operate our new buildings. In addition, responding to the climate and biodiversity crises, the proposed design creates a landscape that is resilient and supports change, sustaining and encouraging a rich biodiversity throughout its operational life. Charlotte Sweeney, Domestic Bursar
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A New Look for Teddy Hall’s Logo by Claire Parfitt Since the Hall launched its ambitious 10-year strategy in October 2019, I have been reviewing all of the College’s external and internal communications to ensure that we consistently reflect our ambition to become a greener, more diverse and accessible home for world leading research and teaching. As part of this, it became clear that the Hall’s visual identity was inconsistent, especially in print formats. Without an update since 2012, the look was in need of a refresh. To make sure we have a brand fit for the 2020s, we worked with a designer to develop a new modernised logo, colour palette and typeface (text) better suited to digital formats. Thanks to that work, the College is now in a stronger position to appeal to a new generation of potential applicants whilst still maintaining a strong connection to the Hall’s history. Having started the project in earnest in November 2020, we entered an extensive consultation process with the Principal, SCR, MCR, JCR and staff to develop a new logo and brand guidelines which everyone could support and use. The new materials have brought greater consistency in terms of the design and colours used throughout College and in publications for everyone in our community, be they potential
applicants, Aularians or friends of the Hall. Among the most notable improvements to the Hall’s visual identity has been removing the black outline and banner from the logo to produce a cleaner look and more readable text. We also reproportioned the cross fleury to make it less stretched, while the chough is now closer to a real-life chough in appearance. All in all, that means a more elegant and more modern shield. One of the most enjoyable parts of the project was diving into the history of the shield and the logo. The shield and the typeface have always evolved with the times, with each reflecting something about the Hall and its history at that particular time. The cross has even alternated between a patonce and fleury, while the Cornish chough has gone through several different iterations over the years. However, the cross, choughs and yellow and red have remained constant features giving our shield its undeniable distinctiveness. In 2012, the Hall created its first brand guidelines including the logo with the banner you see on this page. Eight years later, I am delighted to present the latest update to better reflect the Hall and its unique place in the world today.
The 2012 St Edmund Hall logo (left) and the updated 2021 logo (right)
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St Edmund of Abingdon’s Coat of Arms, from which the Hall’s shield originated, as shown in the Hall’s Benefactors Book
Over the course of the coming months, my colleagues and I will update all of our print and digital materials with the new branding. The Hall website has been refreshed and we are working on updating the designs of our print materials, putting the Teddy Hall colours of red and yellow
at the heart of all our communications. We are also looking to integrate our subbrands into this new identity to complete the project as the Hall continues to look forward. Claire Parfitt, Communications Manager
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9
Poetry and Reviews
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Aularian Poetry From Landscape and The Accident of Birth by Jim Dening STAR WITH MINT At the level of the grass you can see the star just as well as you could when standing up though now you are further away by almost all your length this is the risk you take but she is still there and lying on the earth you gain the gravity you need to look squarely at a star. Now it is she who wavers distance makes her shy as if she could but see you crouching down in sleeping flowers cleverly you knew the point of gazing at the star from in the grass especially in this meadow in the summer in Ardèche is that with the inconceivable distance mingles the smell of crushed mint.
L’ÉTOILE À LA MENTHE A la hauteur des herbes l’étoile se voit tout aussi bien que si tu restais debout pourtant tu t’es éloigné d’elle de presque toute ta longueur c’est le risque que tu prends mais elle n’a pas disparu et allongé contre la terre tu gagnes la gravité qu’il faut pour regarder carrément une étoile. Maintenant c’est elle qui tremble la distance prête la timidité comme si seulement elle te voyait toi qui te blottis dans les fleurs endormies malin tu savais que l’avantage de contempler l’étoile au ras des herbes surtout dans ce pré en Ardèche en juillet c’est qu’à la distance inconceivable se mêle l’odeur de la menthe brisée.
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THE DAY WE WALKED THE KINDER EDGE ...we dressed up warm in extra layers and marched through shallow crunching snow with your old dog trotting and snuffling nearby and the wind keen in our mouths and eyes; in a semblance of shelter behind a rock we sat sipping cognac, nibbling cake through gloves and scarves; across stones and peat towards the clouded edge our crumbs and words were flung away in the whistling air. The day we walked the Kinder Edge trudging and shivering in the wind’s teeth was a way of dancing in suspense before each other; breathing in the mountain’s eager breath, with streaming eyes we blink and smile, knowing beneath our layers of boots and hats and fur and fleece we are naked, and waiting for each other, and later your breath will flutter on my face. IS THIS A NEW TIME? Slow winter has dawdled into spring, a new sun arouses colour from the soil, and carpets of forget-me-nots are laid; in the woods the bluebells have their day, and dandelions re-state the case for yellow. They say the birds are singing louder than before, and in the sunlight insects hang in clouds; while that pair of rabbits sit beneath the blossom, two robins perch together, a goldcrest has been seen, and a tiny frog has ventured from his pond. It is a new season but is it different? Is it possible when we are quiet and the rushing and the rumbling die away, that we hear and see more sharply a new kind of nature?
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ANOTHER OYSTER Near a southern coast pyramids of oyster shells stand high as trees old as centuries sucked out by ancient tribes. In imitation or in continuity year after year I chuck my oyster shells on to a pile a few inches high. She laughed rue de l’Ancienne-Comédie in a little bar she laughed at the young man – je te montrerai she said she being his new friend showed how to squeeze a drop of lemon juice the oyster crinkles at its edge you know it is alive the living flesh the true communion and after swallowing the soft lambent blob you drink from the shell the liquor of our mother the ocean. Here is another oyster press the knife in and along turn the blade and feel the oyster muscle yield inside there is a kind of pearl small and grey reflecting the merest point of light doubtless formed around a precious memory or a piece of grit and perfectly worthless. Oh, throw the shell upon the pile and perform the ritual again. Jim Dening (1958, Modern Languages)
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Graham Midgley Memorial Prize for Poetry SESTINA ‘A small mouse-like child came into my practice today, complaining of heartache.’ That’s what the doctor said, When she examined my hair for grease And told me that I might get hurt But it was going to be okay. It might have been okay, I felt the strands of my ache pull apart one by one today. The doctor said my insides would turn into a puddle of grease If I kept up my current habits, heartache among the activities I practiced daily— that hurt. Anyway, things will fester if they are un-said. It was once said, That Lancelot would’ve been okay If he hadn’t betrayed Arthur, caused the King to hurt. ‘I slept with the queen, your wife, today’. He might’ve fessed up; too great was the potential heartache. That shameful slick, a yard of grease seeping out over the flagstones. But the grease ate them all up before Lancelot could slip. You said You didn’t want to watch yourself cause me heartache Well look at me now, I want to say, do I seem okay? I went for a walk today, Like a dog taken by a sudden illness dashing from room to room, trying to escape the hurt. I chased every step with the resolve to do better, hurt Less, smile more. I almost slipped in a monstrous puddle of grease, nondescript city liquid. Today, as I walked, I said, to myself aloud, in an incantation: it would be okay. In the future, it might terminate, this heartache. I want to drench that heartache with a pint of grease, suffocate the hurt part. I said: ‘Today is a new day’. I’m going to stop loving you now, okay? Scarlet Katz Roberts (2018, English)
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Midgely Memorial Prize Proxime Acessit POUR FEUILLAGE, L’AVENIR We went for a walk in the underground forest where branches of the past spread and snake, reaching deep, deep, so far down and so far back. But our fingers will not get inked purple with blackberries, down here, nor will we gather apples from the wayside, for memories don’t bud and leaf, nor bees buzz, when up above the cracked earth is treeless, and only stumps remain. Never forget what we buried undead, deep underground Aili Channer (2020, English) To the Blackbird To trill the nocturne, here again he plays— Thou, bird of infinite variety, Perched ’top our tree, Parnassus-high, to praise Apollo in thy tuneful piety. The laurel crown, once Philomela’s pride, By reverend bards giv’n her to glorify, But by dull deafened centuries dashed aside, Now rests a golden halo round thine eye, And sweets thy music like the shepherd’s reeds. Domestic minstrel, make of unfixed phrase, My stale and stagnant soul thy quick’ning needs— Loosen it voiceful with thy liquid lays; Let thine exquisite deluge flood the town And cankered hearts and concrete spirits drown. Alexandra Gunn (2018, English)
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end times when the world ended we thought oh good, finally we can be together. they evacuated the buildings, and the sound of footsteps brought us back to school assemblies, black patent leather on lino floors. we stood still as they read out registers, and revelled in the sound of other people:
the o in joseph like a gasp of surprise.
we let the human body fascinate us with how its softness still remained: cheeks like parentheses, the face as an afterthought. when the world ended we didn’t look at old photos. enough was about to become past. instead we took new ones, saw our real faces staring back at us:
doom hiding in the gaps of my toothy smile, oblivion tucked away like hair behind your ear.
Katherine Kirkpatrick (2020, Modern Languages)
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AQUARIUM SESTINA Quiet in the hall. Through the wall, a phone rings nicely. The word and the phone make me think of a woman, And then a shark. The hall is dark. Except for the thought of shark teeth gleaming. A particular gleaming Covers the hall Where I stand with the ringing in the dark. I feel the shark teeth nicely. I am in the centre of the thought of the shark, Says the gleaming woman. To a child and not a woman, The sound recalls a gleaming. An aquarium ridden with the memory of the shark, And I, in the hall, Am nicely Going back into the dark. Even in this white light the aquarium is dark. I am beckoned forward by a woman Who speaks nicely. And there above the yellow stones, a yellow shark is gleaming. A phone rings through the hall. What is moving down there, in the shadow of the shark? The head of the shark Moves gently. It kneads its shapes into the dark. The woman in the hall And that shark woman Pause to watch its gleaming. And then she’s saying nicely, Watch how nicely That small shark Undertakes it’s gleaming! How clever! How well it turns its head into the dark. She is an energetic woman. Needless to say how the other in the hall Whose gleaming teeth shone nicely Stood with the ringing in the darkness with the shark For a while then the woman in the dark Lucie Richter-Mahr (2018, English)
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Book Reviews Linda Davies: 10 Things Everyone Needs to Know About Money (Atebol Cyfyngedig, 2021) Linda Davies has yet again produced a thought-provoking personal tour de force for us inspired by her late father, the economist Glynn Davies - of what money is and what money does. As she states, “if money is power, so too is knowledge.” She provides an eloquent, comprehensive, yet heterodox and unconventional view of monetary theory that is accessible by the layman. This well written, analytical book is substantially enriched by the excellent and properly positioned cartoons in the text by Nick Bashal, adding a layer of humour, that frequently summarize the author’s arguments in an entertaining manner that is not usually encountered in mainstream monetary economics writings. The book describes the origin of money and its evolution from commodity to fiat money, which is an institutionalised symbol of trust, and it also touches upon the latest developments of cryptocurrencies. The author notes the potential dangers of financial technology that has diminished the use of cash in favour of electronic
money and other electronic means of payments. She then proceeds masterfully to unlock the mystical world of finance and investments. Concepts such as interest rate compounding, mortgages, leverage, and the significance of liquid assets are made readily accessible to non-experts. The subsequent chapters that introduce risk management concepts and offer financial advice on how to protect oneself from financial fraud are most useful to those less financially literate and the importance of developing the financial literacy of children. Linda Davies, as a devout student of Keynes, concludes her personal journey in the realm of money and finance by assessing the perils of market psychology and behavioural finance. She underscores the importance of diversification and the traps hidden in herd behaviour, the risks of moral hazard and of the evolution of financial cycles from boom to bust. In sum, Linda Davies has produced a thoughtful and often provocative introduction to the mysteries of finance and monetary economics that Professor Glynn Davies would be proud of! Dimitrios Tsomocos, Professor of Financial Economics and Fellow in Management
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Stephen Haddelsey: Poor Bickerton (Kilgobbin Press, 2021) Readers have been introduced to the ludicrous but also tragic figure of John Bickerton earlier in this issue. Bickerton was an Aularian who matriculated in 1793 and who seems to have suffered from recurrent bouts of mental illness and paranoia. He became well known in Oxford in the 1800s as ‘Counsellor Bickerton,’ a shambolic figure who, wandering the streets in academic dress, was alternately fondly satirised and cruelly mocked by students. He eventually died of starvation in London in 1833. In this book-length study, Stephen Haddelsey gives us a fuller portrait of Bickerton, his own relative – many times removed.
Along the way he throws up fascinating sidelights on many subjects such as the punishment of necromancy in medieval London and the workings of the notorious Coldbath Fields Prison, also known as ‘the Bastille.’
At its heart the book is a kind of mystery story. Who was Bickerton? Was there any truth to the stories he advanced of ill-treatment and persecution on the one hand, or of the patronage of the Duke of Portland, Chancellor of the University and twice Prime Minister, on the other? How did Bickerton come to die in such appalling circumstances?
There is much that is inescapably comic in Bickerton’s life. We find him attempting to gain access to the court levée at St James’s Palace bearing an enormous rusty sword, buying a ‘chariot’ which he equipped with a portable stove and used to follow a district judge around Oxfordshire, and bursting into a printer’s in Oxford demanding a share in the profits of a satirical pamphlet in which he featured.
Haddelsey investigates and teases out the story, finding traces in contemporary newspaper reports, pamphlets ascribed (perhaps mockingly) to Bickerton and the sole-surviving letter in his own hand – an inexplicable claim for aid and redress sent to the Court of Claims, a body whose only constitutional role was to adjudicate on matters relating to the coronation of monarchs.
Of particular interest to Aularian readers will be the vignettes of late 18th- and early 19th-century Oxford. Haddelsey deftly evokes the Hall in Bickerton’s time when it was under the firm hand of Vice Principal Isaac Crouch. We are also introduced to the strange of cast of characters, alongside Bickerton, squatted in the ruins of the first incarnation of Hertford College. They included a renegade Greek Orthodox priest called Demetriades and Richard Hewitt, the last surviving Fellow of Hertford College who remained long after the last student had departed and who contested the meaningless title of Principal with Bickerton.
However, we are never allowed to lose sight of the fundamental sadness of this story either: the cruelty of the mockery Bickerton endured from privileged students in Oxford, the frustration of his hopes for a career in the University or at the bar and the truly shocking nature of his demise. The book restores to Bickerton a dignity he was sadly denied in his life. James Howarth, Librarian
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Aularian Updates: De Fortunis Aularium 1950s 1952 Neville Teller’s book, Trump and the Holy Land: 2016-2020 was published in August 2020. The book is an account of President Donald Trump’s effort to deliver a plan for Israeli-Palestinian peace and it tracks the process from its beginning to its unveiling but leaves the eventual fate of the ‘deal of the century’ to history. Neville kindly donated a copy to the St Edmund Hall Library. 1956 Basil Kingstone has published his annotated translation of Jef Last’s Mijn vriend André Gide (a Dutch writer’s memories of a French one) with Garnier in Paris. 1958 Jim Dening has produced two volumes of poetry in the last year: The Accident of Birth (surely, the title does not derive from his study of Voltaire at SEH...), and a collaboration with a painter friend: Landscape: Image and Word, being a pairing of watercolours and poems produced over many years. Both volumes are in the Hall Library. 1958 David Wilson has written Two Years at Zero, about the time he spent teaching at a boarding school in Uganda in the 1960’s. It doesn’t pretend to be of any great scientific interest, but is a good yarn, typical of the Hall’s inmates of the 50’s/60’s. The book’s main purpose is to help with school fees for local students who don’t have sufficient funds.
1960s 1961 Jonathan Martin was delighted that his freshman grandson Stefan Martin (2020) has followed his uncle Stewart (1988) to read Geography – a third generation Aularian! Even more pleasing than watching his young racehorse, Lermoos Legend, win four straight steeplechases this season. 1962 Simon J. Simonian spoke to assembled members of Citizens for Global Solutions on the need for the formation of the World Union of all 200 countries and territories, as an extension of the European Union. In response the organisation noted: “The realisation of the World Union will be the most important achievement in the history of the world.” He celebrated his 56th wedding anniversary. His wife Arpi Simonian is a published author on healthy lifestyles. They have three married sons and eight grandchildren. 1963 Nicholas Rogers, Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus, York University, Toronto, has published two books in retirement: Murder on the Middle Passage. The Trial of Captain Kimber (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2020), reviewed in The Guardian, 23 July 2020; and more recently, Blood Waters. War, Disease and Race in the 18th century British Caribbean (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2021). 1963 Michael Scannell has published a novel, much of which is set in Oxford. Entitled A Disturbance of Memory, it can be found on Amazon: www.amazon.co.uk/ Disturbance-Memory-Michael-Scannell-ebook/dp/B091FSDK9B.
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1964 Eltham Lodge is now the Clubhouse of the Royal Blackheath Golf Club. John Bunney’s book Where Perfection meets Convenience tells the story of this unique 1663 Restoration building: of its architect, Hugh May, who was with Wren one of the great Restoration architects: and of John Shaw - vintner, merchant-venturer and financier of the exiled Charles II - for whom it was built (ISBN 9-781912930821: Impress publishing). 1964 Ken Houston was inspired, during Covid lockdown, to write 27 short stories which bring to life the plants in his garden and tell of their adventures. A friend illustrated the stories, which have been printed as Tales of the Wise Gardener and his Friend Jack Frost. To purchase at £6.50 an email should be sent to ken. houston@blueyonder.co.uk giving a postal address. Ken will provide electronic bank details for payment and the book will be posted. 1964 Tony Lemon has co-edited, with two Stellenbosch University geographers, South African Urban Change Three Decades after Apartheid: Homes still Apart?’, published by Springer in 2021. 1964 Tim Machin’s book Colonel Frederick Burnaby: A Great Victorian Eccentric is available on Amazon (www.amazon.co.uk/Colonel-Frederick-Burnaby-184285-Victorian/dp/B08GV8ZVF8/). Burnaby packed in so much in his short 42 year life that ended in the battle fields of the Sudan. He knew no fear, and if the challenge was great enough he would take it on. Two of his books are still in print and the Ride to Khiva is a classic. He was a balloonist, a soldier, an explorer, a politician, a linguist, a war correspondent, and for many he was a great hero. The nation mourned his violent death, there was general grief at his passing - but not from all! Read on! 1965 Peter Johnson stepped down as Chairman of Electrocomponents plc at the end of January 2021 and as Chairman of Wienerberger AG at the end of December 2020. He remains a member of the Wienerberger AG Supervisory Board. More importantly, he welcomed the birth of his fourth granddaughter, and seventh grandchild, Eliza, in November 2020. 1965 Bill Walker moved from Assistant Head, Rivington and Blackrod High School to be Co-ordinator Bolton West Learning Partnership in 2002. After retirement in 2010 he successfully completed a PhD with research on the Commissioners’ Churches. He is happily involved with local history and heritage societies and written several articles and two books on topics in regional history. He has been a volunteer with a housing association and an elderly local paperboy. 1967 Hugh Anderson used his English degree to become an architect, eventually settling in Scotland where he established his own consultancy practice, HAA design. In 2017, he sold his company to Space Solutions, retiring two years later. He now paints, exhibiting his work on his website www.hughandersonpainter.com. 1967 David Cottington has been Emeritus Professor of Art History at Kingston University for two years, after fifteen years there, and has a new book being published by Yale University Press in spring 2022. Radical Art and the Formation of the Avant-Garde offers a groundbreaking new approach to the history of the artistic avant-gardes of Paris (centre of the emergent network in the thirty years before 1915) and London (as one of its satellites).
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1967 Rodney Munday, sculptor of the Hall’s St Edmund, has recently completed two bronze sculptures for the tower of St. John Baptist Church, Cirencester. Each standing over two metres tall, these will have been installed at the beginning of August, followed by a talk about art and Christianity by Rodney, and a dedication on 5th September. (Further information can be found at www.rodneymundaysculptor.co.uk or on the church’s website and Facebook pages.) 1967 Dave Postles presented papers at the Economic History Society Conference and the conference on ‘Disrupted Authority’ and has had another paper accepted for Local Population Studies. 1967 Keith Walmsley has recently stood down after three years as Chairman of the Association of Cricket Statisticians & Historians, and after 24 years as Honorary Statistical Officer to The Cricket Society (London). 1968 John Berryman’s latest publication has been recently released by Balboa Press: The Apapa Six: West Africa from a Sixties Perspective. Based upon his studies and travel in the region during the era of national independence, he analyses the historical legacy of the newly emerged states, linking this inheritance in the light of slavery, colonialism, nationalism and the Black Lives Matter movement. 1968 Peter Scott-Presland was a Scholar at St Edmund Hall 1968 – 74, under the name Eric Presland, which he changed, motivated by love, in the year 2000.
Presented with the challenge of Covid lockdowns, his theatre Company Homo Promos (now the oldest LGBT theatre company in the UK) began on Zoom a series of 68 weekly gay play performances in April 2020. Most of the performances are recorded on YouTube. This epic project, which earned Peter the International Lesbian and Gay Cultural Network Award 2021, began with performances of his A Gay Century. This is an epic in itself: 15 one-act operas and two full-length ones charting Gay Life 1900 – 2001.
The first ten have been published as A Gay Century, Volume 1: 1900 – 1962. The book is subtitled ’10 unreliable vignettes of lesbian and gay life’ and is available on Amazon and from good bookshops. Peter has donated a copy to the College Library, and review copies are available from: homopromos@gmail.com.
1969 Ian Busby was appointed Chair of the Oxfordshire Community Foundation in June. The Foundation is part of an international network of community foundations whose goals are to: encourage local philanthropy; understand local need; and strengthen the local voluntary and community sector. The Oxfordshire Foundation has responded to the Covid crisis by distributing over £1 million of emergency grants to local charities and other key organisations. 1969 Alistair MacKichan has published The Camelot Club, a novel examining an English village’s struggle to preserve its soul. The novel is available as Print to Order from major online retailers, and as an ebook on Amazon/Kindle.
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1970s 1970 Kevin Fisher has moved back up to the Midlands and is busy looking after grandchildren. Bliss! Thinking about current Hall students and staff and the disruption of Hall life over the last 18 months. All we had to contend with in the early 70s were miners’ strikes & electricity supply disruptions. Switching libraries depending on which part of Oxford had power seems trivial in comparison. 1970 After making a failure of retirement nine years ago, Richard Gozney has been Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man for the last five years. He is retiring again in 2021, to Norfolk. 1971 Having spent 40 plus years in a Christian community near Northampton, Andy Stockley has now retired to leafy Loughborough. We have five children and seven grandchildren scattered around the country and where we are is central to them. I worked as a GP for about 25 years before taking early retirement for serious illness from which I (evidently) have recovered. Mixed feelings about my time at Teddy Hall. I wish I could have participated more at the time but late teens and early twenties can be a bumpy ride for some. Floreat Aula! 1972 Having satisfactorily stayed below the radar for 43 years, Peter Osborn more-orless stopped working at the end of 2019 and has enjoyed staying below the radar during lockdown, but more busily. 1974 Alastair Rogers has retired from his businesses and is working on fish conservation issues with the South West Rivers Association. In particular, he is studying the impact of beaver re-introductions on the UK’s threatened sea trout and salmon populations, and lobbying Government on future beaver management policy. He is also renewing his pilot’s licence, having not flown since serving as a helicopter pilot in 3 Commando Brigade Air Squadron Royal Marines 25 years ago. 1974 Bernard Trafford has now retired from work in education, apart from a bit of writing and becoming Chair of Governors of The Purcell (specialist music) School. During lockdown, he completed and published his second historical novel set in 13th century Bologna, Ballad of Betrayal; published a second Christmas carol for SATB choir and organ, ‘At Christmas be merry’; became a grandfather; and lost a stone. He lives in Oxford and Northumberland. 1975 Andrew Baldwin with his wife is based in Istanbul, Turkey, where his son (exNew College) and daughter-in-law have also just relocated. He is now attempting a part-time online Master of Theological Studies degree at the Melbourne School of Theology (MTS@MST!). There have also been opportunities to help provide basic theological training at a fledgling Turkish-speaking Bible School in Bulgaria. He is looking forward to a first post-Covid visit to his daughter and family in Cambridge. 1975 In May 2021 Richard Nowak was appointed Deputy Mayor of Worthing. In addition to his duties as a borough councillor, Richard is also a Covid-19 Vaccine Administrator for Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust and a pastoral care worker for the ARK (Acts of Random Kindness) Project, administered by the local Chichester diocese.
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1976 Simon Staite has retired from CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP on 31 December 2020, straight into lockdown, which was no fun. As the road map out of lockdown has adjusted so has he. Tennis, golf and cycling in The Chilterns are more fun than Zoom calls. As is being a governor and, as of May 2021, a parish councillor. 1976 After more than 40 years of working in a number of general roles for many large commercial organisations: Cadbury, Coca-Cola, Reed Elsevier, Tesco, Mastercard, Ian Taylor has managed to get his wife to allow him back into the house and retire. Bad timing with Covid, admittedly, but he has promised to spend the first year deciding how best get out of the house again and keep busy. If his performance on the golf course is anything to go by, he will have to keep thinking. 1978 Robert Pay has returned to the London after 12 years in New York. He is pursuing postgraduate studies in medieval and early modern history at the University of Kent. 1979 In Empire of Terror - Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, (Potomac/ University of Nebraska Press), Mark Silinsky explores Iran’s most notorious intelligence and security service and the threat it poses to the West. Silinsky compares and contrasts the Guards to two other authoritarian services of the previous century - the KGB and the Gestapo.
1980s 1981 Joy Hibbin’s second book was published in September 2021: The Suicide Prevention Pocket Guidebook: How to Support Someone who is having Suicidal Feelings. The book is full of advice about how to support a family member, friend or work colleague who is having suicidal thoughts. It costs £10.99 and is published by Welbeck Publishing Group. It is available from most booksellers and a percentage of the sales of each book go to the charity Suicide Crisis. 1981 Mark Owens has launched his own men’s accessory business, Otway & Orford, to create and sell made in England silk pocket squares featuring colourful and dynamic sporting, aviation and automotive art designs. www.otwayorford.co.uk 1981 Seymour Segnit’s startup MAGFAST, which makes a family of innovative chargers for mobile devices like smartphones and tablets, raised investment of over $1m within hours from its customers and has now begun shipping to customers. 1982 Simon Ashberry’s latest book To Be A Poacher is being published in the autumn of 2021. It’s his third football book, following Come and Sit with Us (2004) and It’s Not All Black And White (2013). 1983 Bob Collie has established a company, Collie ESG Ltd (www.collieesg.com), advising financial organisations such as asset managers and pension funds on best practice in the growing field of ESG (environmental, social and governance) investing. 1984 Rob Macaire finished an eventful three years as HM Ambassador to Iran in summer 2021.
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1984 Libby Wilkinson was appointed Archdeacon of Durham and Director of Mission, Discipleship & Ministry for the Diocese of Durham in August 2020. 1985 Tanya Spilsbury’s (Née Ashby) business is restoring and re-using historic buildings in the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site in Derbyshire. Her conservation of Darley Abbey Stables and Bakehouse won awards from Derby City Council, Derby Civic Society and Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust. Now refurbishing an old library in the historic mill town of Belper, Tanya also volunteers on the Derwent Valley Trust, creating an off-road cycleway along the River Derwent between Derby and Chatsworth House. 1986 Rachel Kiddey’s (née Trethewey) latest book, The Churchill Girls: The Story of Winston’s Daughters, was published in March 2021. 1988 Lucia Bly lives on a farm near the coast in Devon with her husband Dan and four spirited children, the eldest of which has flown the nest to study medicine. She is a director of two businesses - Swallows’ Flight, a holiday accommodation provider in the glorious South Hams, and Salcombe Dairy - an artisan ice cream and bean-to-bar chocolate manufacturer and retailer. Interests include art and interior design, textiles, travel (any excuse for skiing in Austria) and sustainability, her youngest son being a keen beekeeper. She particularly enjoys welcoming Aularians to stay at Swallows’ Flight. 1988 In March this year, Geetha Venkataraman was invited to become an Ambassador from India (one of five and amongst 140 or so worldwide) by the Committee for Women in Mathematics (CWM). CWM is the committee of the International Mathematical Union concerned with issues related to women in mathematics worldwide. 1989 Steve Whittington is in his 8th year at the Independent Education Union Victoria Tasmania, in Melbourne Australia. Earlier in 2021, during the extended UK lockdown, he was delighted to reconnect via Zoom with other modern linguists from his matric year. It made a difficult period significantly more bearable. Steve’s children Annabel, 7, and Harry, 5, have not exactly thrived during periods of remote learning, but Australia has been more fortunate than many countries with its low infection rates, so he remains confident they will quickly regain their love of in-school learning. He looks forward to their borders opening once again so he can attend future alumni events at the Hall.
1990s 1990 Andrew Dickinson, a Fellow of St Catherine’s College and Professor of Law at the University, was appointed a Senior Honorary Fellow at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law in February 2021. 1996 John Houghton has recently completed an 18-month assignment as a Senior Investment Specialist at the Department for International Trade. He supported officials and advised Ministers on the creation of the UK Investment Council. The Council reports to No. 10 and brings together 38 representatives of multinational companies, including Siemens, Santander, and Morgan Stanley to advise on how to attract investment in UK real estate, regeneration and infrastructure projects.
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1998 Rose Latham has consolidated her experience supporting and guiding others to achieve their goals or overcome challenges by qualifying as a life coach. Working with high achievers who yearn to make sustainable changes in their personal or professional life, she can be reached on Instagram or Facebook: Latham Life Coaching. 1998 On 12 February 2021, it was confirmed that Nick Thomas-Symonds would be sworn of the Privy Council. On 10 March, at Windsor Castle, Her Majesty the Queen formally appointed Nick Thomas-Symonds to the Privy Council.
2000s 2001 Jessica Hatcher-Moore and her husband Philip had their second child, Hugo, in August 2020, and Jessica published her first book, After Birth: What Nobody Tells You - How to Recover Body and Mind, in May 2021. 2001 Eugene Kogan co-authored a book Mediation: Negotiation by Other Moves (Wiley 2021). www.wiley.com/en-ae/ Mediation%3A+Negotiation+by+Other+Moves-p-9781119768425 2005 Jane Lilly Lopez completed her doctoral degree in sociology at the University of California San Diego in 2018. She is now Assistant Professor of Sociology at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, USA, and her book, Unauthorized Love: Mixed-Citizenship Couples Negotiating Intimacy, Immigration, and the State will be published with Stanford University Press in November 2021. 2009 Duncan Watson was appointed Queen’s Counsel (England & Wales) in March 2021.
2010s 2011 Charlotte Cooper-Davis and her husband Peter Cooper-Davis (2011) welcomed their first-born, Alistair Edward, into their family in April 2021. Charlotte’s first book – a popular biography of the medieval defender of women, Christine de Pizan – is due out in November this year. 2012 Ksenija Bogetić and Veljko Pejović had a baby Tara, born in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Ksenija has been awarded the Horizon 2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie fellowship and is to start this research appointment at the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts in 2022. 2013 Zabrina Lo, visiting student from Hong Kong, who read English and Creative Writing, published her 5th cover story in July in Tatler Asia magazine, Hong Kong’s most historic English language lifestyle magazine, where she now works as the Associates Features Editor. Following her previous cover stories about Academy Awards’ Best Director Chloé Zhao and Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement winner Ann Hui, this latest cover story reveals the life of legendary Hong Kong cinematographer Christopher Doyle. She also has a forthcoming cover story in August. 2014 Caitlin Page married Matthew Johnson on the afternoon of 17 July 2021.
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2015 Kevin Rattue is engaged with the Government of Canada in applying his research to protect the Canadian High Arctic. Protection of the Northwest Passage against emergent environmental risks is the focus of this engagement to protect the marine environment and the lifestyles of Inuit communities of Nunavut, Canada. 2016 Charlie Cheesman was recently appointed Vice President at the Oxford Angel Fund, a Los Altos-based VC firm supporting US-based Oxford-founded start-ups. It is currently raising Fund II, a $3m round, and is led by four General Partners, including fellow Aularian Paula Skokowski (1980). If you are an investor or entrepreneur, please feel free to reach out!
Deaths: Ave Atque Vale We record with sadness the passing of fellow Aularians and salute them. Sincere condolences are offered to their families and friends.
1930s Dr Frank Derek Rushworth MA, 3 September 2020, aged 99, London. 1939, Modern Languages and Linguistics
1940s Mr Andrew Hilson Foot BA, PGCert, 2021, Cornwall. 1944, Modern History Mr Rene Victor Wood MA FFA, 1 August 2020, aged 94, Andorra. 1944 Mr David Hamish Bennett BA, Berkshire. 1945, Natural Science Mr Anthony John Knight BA, 23 September 2020, aged 93, Isle of Wight. 1945, English Mr Victor Thomas Henry Parry BA FCLIP FRSA FRAS, 30 December 2020, aged 93, Middlesex. 1945, English Mr John Michael Hopton Scott MA, October 2020, aged 94, Kent. 1947, Jurisprudence Mr Roy Vincent Kings MA, 18 October 2020, aged 93, Wiltshire. 1948, Modern Languages The Revd Thomas William Silkstone, BA, BD, 22 August 2020, aged 93, Oxfordshire. 1948, History Mr Roy Tracey BA, 19 December 2020, aged 92, Essex. 1948, English Mr Brian Victor Clifton MA, 10 March 2021, aged 92, Cheshire. 1949, Chemistry Dr Colin George Hadley BA, 21 March 2021, aged 91, Hertfordshire. 1949, French Mr William Robert Miller CBE, KStJ, MA, DCs (h.c), DMA (b.c), 27 September 2020, aged 92, New York, USA. 1949, PPE
1950s Professor John Gilbert Bellamy MA, 16 December 2020, aged 90, Ontario, Canada. 1950, History
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Mr Peter Gwyn Tudor MA, 11 March 2020, aged 88, Staffordshire. 1951, Modern Languages Dr Brian Vivian Cudmore MA, DPhil, 5 June 2020, aged 88, Oxfordshire. 1952, Geography Mr Antony John Harding MA, 27 December 2020, aged 87, Kent. 1952, English Mr David Michael Jacobs BA, 10 April 2020, aged 90, St Albans. 1952, PPE Mr David Magnus Laing MA, 9 June 2021, aged 88, West Sussex. 1952, Jurisprudence Mr Alan Frederick Johnson MA, ACIB, 10 January 2021, aged 87, Shropshire. 1953, Jurisprudence The Revd Thomas Graves Keithly MA, 21 July 2020, aged 88, Texas, USA. 1953, Theology The Revd Canon Dr Michael Alan Bourdeaux MA, BD, 29 March 2021, aged 87, Oxfordshire. 1954, Modern Languages The Revd John Dudley Dowell Porter MA, 10 June 2021, aged 88, Cheshire. 1954, Jurisprudence Mr Roger Anthony Farrand MA, 4 September 2020, aged 86, London. 1955, History Mr Stuart Holbrook Wamsley MA, 21 August 2020, aged 85, Malton. 1955, Jurisprudence Dr Archie Walter Ross BA, 26 March 2020, aged 89, Christchurch, New Zealand. 1956, Physics Mr Nevill Alexander James Swanson BA, 11 July 2020, aged 82, Worcestershire. 1956, Chemistry Mr Dennis Ronald Bouwer MA, 26 February 2020, aged 86, Oregon, USA. 1957, PPE Mr Robert Alexander Gavin Douglas Miller MA, 10 June 2021, aged 84, Midlothian. 1957, PPE Mr Anthony Eric John Drayton BA, 24 May 2021, aged 84, Herefordshire. 1957, Geography Mr Stewart Emmerich Shepley MA, 19 September 2020, aged 83, Surrey. 1957, History Mr Robin Murray Siedle MA, 25 December 2020, aged 87, Victoria, Australia. 1957, PPE Mr David Alfred Clarke MA, 1 December 2021, aged 83, Cheshire. 1958, English Dr John Laurence Hibberd MA, BLitt, 7 April 2021, aged 82, Avon. 1958, Modern Languages Mr Brian Saberton MA, 13 November 2020, aged 80, Middlesex. 1959, Modern Languages
1960s Mr Peter Bayliss BA, 22 December 2020, aged 79, Warwickshire. 1960, Engineering
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Mr Roger John Plumb MA, DipEd, 12 January 2021, aged 78, East Sussex. 1960, Modern Languages Dr Michael Clifford Todd Brookes MA, 26 May 2021, aged 83, New York, USA. 1962, English Mr Simon Cameron Downie MA, 17 July 2021, aged 78, Kent. 1963, Geography Mr Francis Mark Ivan Johnston Dip, 23 December 2020, aged 78, Malawi. 1963, Public & Social Administration Mr Graham Arthur Dimitris Revill-Taylor BA, 31 July 2021, Tunbridge Wells, aged 76. 1964, Chemistry Mr John Nigel Ablett MA, March 2021, aged 74, West Sussex. 1966, History Mr Norman Clifford John Pope MA, DipEd, 5 March 2021, aged 80, Oxfordshire. 1967, Educational Studies Mr Robert Davis BA, Kent. 1967, History Mr Alan Arthur Hills BA, Cheshire. 1968, Chemistry Mr Jonathan Harold Fryer MA, 16 April 2021, aged 70, London. 1969, Oriental Studies Mr Michael Chun Ko Dip, 29 July 2020, aged 88, Hong Kong. 1969, Law Dr Richard Francis Mullen MA, DPhil, 19 September 2020, aged 75, Oxfordshire. 1969, History
1970s Mr John Francis Clarkson MA, 6 August 2021, aged 69, Merseyside. 1970, Jurisprudence Professor Christopher Michael Mann MA, Hon DLitt, 10 March 2021, aged 72, Grahamstown South Africa. 1970, English Mr Alan Colin Cave BA, 2020, London. 1972, PPE Mr Stephen Howard Johnson MA, 25 August 2020, aged 65, Morpeth. 1974, Chemistry Mr Sylvain Jean Charles Pierre Phlipponneau BLitt, December 2020, aged 68, Carquefou, France. 1974, Geography Mr David Neil Manning MA, 14 September 2020, aged 59, Auckland, New Zealand. 1979, Chemistry
1980s Mr Timothy Peter Laverton Holman MA, 28 July 2021, aged 58, Aargau, Switzerland. 1982, Chemistry Dr Ian Michael Billing MA, 28 October 2020, aged 54, Staffordshire. 1984, Geology
1990s Dr Sandra Louise Steele BA, 6 July 2021, aged 48, Oxfordshire. 1991, English Mrs Jill Marilyn Pattison, June 2021, aged 83, Derbyshire. 1993, Modern Languages
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Obituaries SCR, Staff & Friends of the Hall Obituaries year honours degree course, combining practice and theory. Philip was also elected a Professorial Fellow of St Edmund Hall between 1978-1984.
PHILIP MORSBERGER, HONORARY FELLOW Honorary Fellow Philip Morsberger passed away on Sunday 3 January 2021, aged 87. After being awarded a Bachelor of Fine Art degree (BFA) in 1955 from the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now the Carnegie Mellon University), Philip studied at what was then the Ruskin School of Drawing at the University of Oxford in 1958 on the G.I. Bill, earning a Certificate in Fine Art (CFA) with Distinction, after which he held teaching appointments at the Rochester Institute of Technology, the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts at Harvard University, and Dartmouth College. He returned to Oxford to become the Ruskin Master of Drawing between 1971 and 1984. He was the sixth Master in the Ruskin School’s history and the first American to be appointed to the role. Philip’s achievement was to move the school in 1975 from the ground floor of the Ashmolean Museum to more spacious rooms in the Examination Schools on the high street, and to establish a three-
On Philip’s departure from England his work was exhibited at galleries throughout the US. In addition, Philip held academic appointments at the University of California (Berkeley), California College of Art and, finally, Augusta State University where he was the Morris Eminent Scholar. Philip worked tirelessly at his easel each day, right up until his death from Covid in January of this year. Jason Gaiger, Professor of Aesthetics and Art Theory at St Edmund Hall, paid tribute to him: “Philip Morsberger is warmly remembered at the Ruskin School of Art and I would like to express my gratitude for all that he achieved during his period as Ruskin Master. It is thanks to Philip that the School is now housed in the wonderful Victorian building at 74 High Street, directly opposite St Edmund Hall, and he was also responsible for ensuring the full integration of the study of Fine Art into the University of Oxford. My only direct contact with Philip was in 2011, when he visited Oxford for the summer, and I was delighted to be able to provide studio space for him on the top floor of the Ruskin so that he could continue to paint. His legacy lives on in the School and each new generation of students and tutors is indebted to his vision and leadership at a crucial period in its recent history.” A portrait of Principal Ieuan Maddock CBE, FRS (1979-1982) painted by Philip proudly hangs in the Old Dining Hall. Philip will be very sadly missed by all that knew him at the Hall, past and present.
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went on to become eminent librarians. Sasha became the first ‘Bodley Girl’ to earn an Oxford University degree, attending St Anne’s College while working as a librarian at the Bodleian Library. Taking papers in English Literature and French, she earned her Oxford University BA pass degree in 1953. She was awarded the MA in 1972.
SASHA WERNBERG-MØLLER, LIBRARIAN 1972-1990 This obituary has been provided by Sasha’s son, Lars. Sasha Wernberg-Møller (7 December 1925 – 5 June 2021) was the St Edmund Hall Librarian for eighteen years from 1972 to 1990. Under her care, the St Peter-in-the-East Library offered a well-ordered, positive, calm environment that was conducive to good study and expanded from about 20,000 volumes to close to 50,000. In addition, she ensured the upkeep and refurbishment of the Old Library books, the majority dating from the eighteenth century. Born in Cambridge in 1925, Sasha attended Frensham Heights School in Surrey. She returned there during the Second World War to help care for the young pupils. Her career in librarianship began in 1946, when she started work at the Oxford Central Library. In 1948, she moved to the Bodleian Library, which had a tradition of ‘Bodley Boys’ dating back to the 1880s. The Bodley Librarian of the time, Edward Nicholson, expected and encouraged his library staff to study, while they worked. Many then took their degree at Oxford and
Her life was one of variety and fulfilment in other ways as well. She married Preben Wernberg-Møller in 1955, undertook a 2-month road trip in the Middle East by Land Rover and caravan in 1964 with her husband and their small children, and was an active member of local school governing bodies and of the Oxford Preservation Trust. She found the time to write about her experiences for different publications, including an account of her experience at the Bodleian with its marvellous pneumatic tubes, book cradles, and underground conveyor belt, and the adventure of the voyage through the Sahara and Egypt, Libya, and other countries. While Librarian at St Edmund Hall, Sasha was also responsible for the annual compilation of ‘The Aularian Bookshelf’ and wrote several articles for the Magazine: 1980/81 ‘Letters from Stephen Penton’; 1981/82 ‘The Case of the Missing Library’ (concerning the whereabouts of the one-time parish library in St Peter-inthe-East); 1988/89 ‘Concerning St Peterin the-East’; and 1989/90 ‘St Peter-in-theEast Memorials’. As her five children, family, friends, and former colleagues will attest, Sasha will be missed enormously but remembered always for her kindness, wisdom, and contributions in many domains. Lars Wernberg-Møller
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When Sasha retired in 1990, the thenFellow Librarian Bill Williams paid this tribute to her in The Hall Magazine: “it is difficult to imagine our Library in St Peter-in-the-East without the presence of Mrs Wernberg-Møller… she has been exemplary in providing a service to all readers and users of the Library. She will be remembered for her helpfulness
BILL BROADBENT, BENEFACTOR OF THE HALL Bill (William) Broadbent, a friend of the Hall and the namesake and donor of the beautiful Broadbent Garden at the College, passed away aged 70 on Monday 27 September. Born on 26 January 1951, Bill was educated as an undergraduate at Williams College in Massachusetts and earned a masters at Stanford University. Bill had recently retired after a successful career in the finance industry. Both of his children have connections with Oxford University: his daughter Avery went to St Edmund Hall in 2004 to read Modern History and his son William studied Modern History at Christ Church in 2006.
and efficiency, for ensuring the calm atmosphere so essential to study, and for the imaginative and colourful notices on display at the Library porch reminding users of their responsibilities with respect to conduct in the Library...The whole community of St Edmund Hall will miss Sasha’s steadfast loyalty to the College and its two libraries” The Hall is very grateful to Bill for his generous time, support and philanthropy over the years. Most notably, he funded the refurbishment of the Broadbent Gardens, situated at the back of the Hall’s Library/St Peter-in-the-East; this space is a very popular recreational space with students and staff and is particularly enjoyed in the summertime. Bill and his family also created the Broadbent Junior Research Fellowship in American History, which was set up in collaboration with the Rothermere American Institute and Christ church. The position is currently held by Dr Mandy Izadi. Starting in Michaelmas term 2017, the endowed Fellowship allows a post-doctoral scholar to produce research for publication in books and articles, to gain experience in teaching, and to work alongside Oxford’s specialist faculty in American history. Tenable for three years, the Broadbent Junior Research Fellowship alternates in its college association between the Hall and Christ Church. Lastly, we thank Bill for attending the annual alumni New York dinner over the years. He is survived by his wife Camille and his two children and will be deeply missed by everyone who knew him at Teddy Hall.
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JOHN HAYES, BENEFACTOR OF THE HALL John Hayes, partner of Honorary Fellow John Cox, has died aged 85, was one of the bright lights assembled around the sociologist Basil Bernstein at the Institute of Education, London University, during its prime in the 1970s and 80s before it was disabled by Margaret Thatcher’s campaign against radicalism in teaching. John worked with postgraduates from many disciplines and countries, who responded eagerly to his passionately rigorous teaching and ‘golden lad’ looks and personality. Friendship was another of his passions, which he enjoyed with companions such as the writers Angela Carter and Carmen Callil, the film producer Derek Granger, the literary agent William Miller and the artist David Hockney and many of his pupils. All of whom enjoyed the pleasure of his equally passionate cooking. John was born on 24 November 1935, the elder son of John Hayes, a motor and components engineer, and his wife, Mary (née Hardwick), a florist of Middleton, Rochdale. From Manchester grammar school he went up to Oriel College, Oxford, where he read Greats, graduating in 1958. After Oxford, John became a teacher of classics at St Peter’s school in York and then the City of London school,
while simultaneously reading for a further degree in the sociology of education at King’s College London, where he was recruited as a lecturer by Bernstein. He was obliged to take early retirement when the subjects he taught were purged from the curriculum, but his teaching continued as people of all levels of academic ambition sought him out in his unique home in Greenwich. His expertise was thus constantly expanding so he remained an active scholar for the rest of his life. At Oxford in 1958, he met John Cox, who was to become a notable opera stage director and with whom he became life partner for the next sixty-three years. The relationship, even before it ceased to be illegal, became a model of colourful harmony and productive discord. John Hayes’ health declined seriously in his last few years until his death from kidney failure on 31 January 2021. He is survived by three nephews and his civil partner, ‘the other John’. Derek Grainger observes, “I always relished his anarchic humour and mordantly seditious line of thought. He was a genuine contrarian, and it made his company always a delight of a special kind.” John Cox, Honorary Fellow
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Aularian Obituaries In September 1972 John and his family returned to England for a sabbatical year at Clare Hall, Cambridge, where he spent many hours pursuing his research at the University Library and enjoying ploughman’s lunches in riverside pubs.
PROFESSOR JOHN GILBERT BELLAMY (1950) This obituary has been provided by John’s widow Annette. John passed away peacefully in his 91st year at his home in Ottawa on 16 December, 2020, after a long and slow decline brought on by dementia. John was born in Nottingham, England, the only child of Alfred and Gladys (Robinson) Bellamy. He is survived by his loving family, including his wife of 60 years, Annette (Fearn), his children Joanna (and her partner John Gronau) and Matthew (and his partner Heather Coutts), and his grandchildren Simon Bellamy and Max and Sophia Gronau, all of whom live in Ottawa, Canada. A graduate of Oxford University (St Edmund Hall), after teaching history at Swanwick Grammar School, Huntingdon Grammar School and Loughborough College, John emigrated to Canada with his young family in 1968 to take up a professorial position at Carleton University, Ottawa, where until 2014 he taught medieval English history.
Through the decades Professor Bellamy inspired in his students a love of the topic to which he would dedicate many years of his life in research, and before dementia clouded his mind and memory he wrote eight published books on medieval and early Tudor crime and punishment. A great raconteur, he won several teaching awards and was ranked one of Carleton’s History Department’s most popular professors, worth getting up early to attend the 8:30 a.m. lectures which were his preferred (and uncontested) time slot. In his earlier years John was an avid golfer and tennis enthusiast, a passion that he passed on to his children. His extended family delighted in his brilliant and lively mind and quick wit and appreciated his extensive knowledge of geopolitical and historical ideas. They also affectionately tolerated his efforts as an amateur musician both as an operatic tenor and a self-taught clarinettist – within the confines of his home. John is greatly missed by his cherished family and friends in Canada and his relatives in England. A celebration of his life is planned to take place postpandemic. Annette Bellamy
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In Britain, too, not everyone welcomed Keston: Lambeth Palace, Baptist leaders and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office all shunned it up to the mid-1980s and the advent of Mikhail Gorbachev, because it ‘rocked the boat’ and undermined quiet diplomacy. Yet, while rejecting Soviet misinformation and doublespeak, Bourdeaux also refused to take up an anti-communist crusade: his approach was balanced, even-handed and based on facts. THE REVD CANON DR MICHAEL ALAN BOURDEAUX (1954) This obituary originally appeared in The Guardian. Michael Bourdeaux, who has died aged 87, founded Keston College in Bromley, south-east London, in 1969 as a centre for the study and dissemination of reliable information about religion in communist countries. He described the college in his memoirs as “my concept”, and poured into it his “energy and commitment over a period of 30 years”. It was an organisation that rattled the Soviet authorities; indeed Oleg Gordievsky, the Soviet double agent who once worked for the KGB and escaped to the west in the boot of a car, claimed at a Keston AGM that it was No 2 in the hierarchy of KGB hates, the first being Amnesty International. Why was Keston so disliked? It uncovered unpalatable facts about the true situation of religious believers behind the iron curtain, and it demolished the communist propaganda that there was freedom of conscience in its ‘brave new world’. The fact that religion persisted undermined party teaching as propounded by leaders such as Nikita Khrushchev, whose 1961 party programme promised that communism would be achieved in 20 years and religion would fade away.
Michael was born in Praze, Cornwall, the son of Lilian (née Blair), a primary school teacher, and Richard Bourdeaux, a baker who, Michael claimed, produced the best Cornish pasties in the county. He studied French and German at Truro school and found he had a facility for languages. His lifelong interest in Russia and its history and culture began thanks to a sensible RAF group captain, who at the start of national service sent him to a Russian interpreters’ course in Coulsdon, Surrey. Then it was off to St Edmund Hall, Oxford, and a degree in Russian, followed in 1959 by a year at Moscow University as part of the first student exchange programme organised by the British Council. That year was an important milestone in Soviet history, when Khrushchev launched an intense anti-religious campaign, and Bourdeaux witnessed the closure of churches and discrimination against religious believers. The experience led him to make religion in the USSR the focus of his life. After studying theology at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, he was ordained an Anglican priest in 1961. In 1964, on a brief visit to Moscow, he met two babushki at a site where overnight a church had been blown up. He was taken to meet a group of Russian Orthodox believers who described what was happening to them, and asked him to “be our voice and speak for us”. Five years later Keston was founded, with
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the help of Peter Reddaway and Leonard Schapiro, two LSE academics. Bourdeaux was one of the few who foresaw the collapse of the communist system. In 1984 he was awarded the Templeton prize (at that time given by the Templeton Foundation for “progress in religion”), and in his speech at the Guildhall in London he formulated his conviction that a combination of religion and nationalism would bring down the Soviet system: “I see an empire in the process of decay because there’s no binding loyalty which will keep it together.” A year later Gorbachev was elected general secretary by the politburo and a period of reform began, which led in 1988 to a volte-face by the Communist party on its religious policy. This, to Bourdeaux, marked the end of communism. That year he attended the celebrations of the millennium of the Russian Orthodox church, and recorded in his memoirs the evening he spent at the Bolshoi theatre, where a real set of bells had been mounted as though in a church tower: “A curtain rolled back to reveal the bells, which rang out in a peal of thunder. No one in the theatre, Christian or atheist, could have missed the symbolism: for years the authorities had banned the ringing of church bells, usually even removing them from their stays and throwing them to the ground. Surely this was a pledge of a new beginning for the church in society.” Keston College found its first home in the early 1970s in the former parish school at Keston Common, in the London borough of Bromley. From Keston’s inception, it studied the present and the past: high-quality, wellresearched journalism as well as academic study of the past were the focus of its work. Its reporting earned the respect
of the media – if information came from Keston it was trusted. At the same time, Bourdeaux understood the importance of an archive, of gathering primary sources, samizdat documents, articles from the official and unofficial press in communist countries, as well as photographs and even anti-religious posters. This collection, the Keston archive, is a treasure trove for scholars studying the religious history of the former communist bloc. Keston College found a home in the early 1970s in what had been the parish school of Keston Common. The village belonged to the diocese of Rochester, which in 1990 made Bourdeaux an honorary canon. In 1994 Keston Institute, as it became, moved to Oxford, and gained a sister organisation in the US when in 2007 Baylor University in Texas offered to establish a new Keston Center for Religion, Politics and Society, and to house the Keston library and archive. This center and Keston UK today work in tandem, promoting the study of religion in former communist countries. Bourdeaux’s first wife, Gillian (née Davies), whom he married in 1960, died in 1978. He is survived by his second wife, Lorna (née Waterton), whom he married in 1979, and their children, Adrian and Lara; by Karen and Mark, the children of his first marriage; and by four grandsons. In the briefing pack produced when he was awarded the Templeton prize, Bourdeaux was described as “a mild, soft-spoken, ruddy-cheeked baker’s son from a remote mining region in south-west England”. He commented in his memoirs: “Well, at least the ‘baker’s son’ was accurate.” Xenia Dennen, Director of the Keston Institute
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ROGER FARRAND (1955) This obituary originally appeared in The Guardian. My friend Roger Farrand, who has died aged 86, was publisher and then owner of the quarterly Printmaking Today magazine, which has provided a muchneeded voice for artist-printmakers since the 1990s. The magazine’s founder and editor, Rosemary Simmons, had set it up in 1991. Roger came along shortly afterwards to lend her the professional expertise he had gained from a long career in publishing. When the Royal Society of PainterPrintmakers offered a blanket subscription to the magazine for its members, it really began to flourish. Roger and Rosemary then enlarged upon its quality and readership until she was able to retire and he could become its owner. He appointed the engraver Anne Desmet as the new editor, establishing it as an advocate of the argument that printmaking is an original art form equal in status to the other visual arts. Roger sold the title to Cello Press in 2000 and then retired. Born in Warwick, the son of Ernest Farrand, a railway signalman, and Lucy (née Edna), a cook, Roger attended Warwick Grammar school and then won a scholarship to study history at St Edmund Hall, Oxford. There he met fellow student Gillian Hanson. After national service in Malta and Tripoli he married Gillian in 1958, and they raised three children. Roger began his publishing career in 1957 as an editor at Reader’s Digest magazine
before joining Academic Press in London, first as editorial director and then, in 1971, as managing director. During his time there he saw the commercial potential of academic publishing and developed a business model replicated later by larger publishing houses such as Reed Elsevier. By the time he left Academic Press it had 50 journals on its list, including titles such as the Journal of Molecular Biology and the Journal of Sound and Vibration. In 1982 he set up his own company, Farrand Press, which also produced scientific journals, notably the British Journal of Psychiatry, as well as books of medical research, some of them by Gillian, who became a specialist in intensive care treatment and diabetes mellitus. He wound the company up in 2000 when he retired. Roger was a polymath and a linguist, a generous man with interests in hill walking, rugby, opera and wine. He had a wonderfully sharp wit and enjoyed the company of many friends. He also travelled widely in Nepal and Bhutan with Gillian. On a trek in the Himalayas in 1996 they reached 17,000ft, at which height they were both stricken by pneumonia. Although Roger recovered, Gillian developed pneumococcal septicaemia, which led to her death from septic shock shortly after they returned to Britain. He is survived by their children, Timothy, Anthony and Stephanie, and 10 grandchildren. Joseph Winkelman
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accident remains under investigation, with criminal charges pending. Edward Bernard Ilgren was born in Philadelphia on 13 August, 1950, the son of Dr Herbert and Maxine Ilgren of Lower Marion, Pennsylvania. After receiving his MD from Hahnemann Medical College in 1974, he served as a forensic pathologist in the NY Medical Examiner’s Office. He came up to St Edmund Hall in 1976 and served as a cancer researcher in Oxford, where he also received a DPhil in 1980. PROFESSOR EDWARD BERNARD ILGREN FRCP (1976) This obituary of Ed has been provided by his friend, Daniel Heath. Ed Ilgren, an American toxicologist and neuropathologist known internationally for his work on the human impacts of asbestos, died Tuesday May 19, 2020 after being struck by a truck while cycling in Arica, Chile where he lived. The author of two books and numerous technical articles in scientific journals, he held academic positions in the UK, Chile, and the US, and was an expert witness in many high-profile litigation cases. He was a Fellow of the Royal College of Pathology and Diplomate of the American Board of Pathology, amongst many professional memberships. He was recognised by scientific bodies for major original contributions to oncological, neurological, embryological, forensic, pulmonary, toxicological, and comparative pathology. Dr Ilgren was an avid cyclist who rode wherever he was around the world. He had spoken out recently about the dangers of truck traffic on the Chilean-Bolivian border area, where he was Visiting Professor of Neuropathology and Expert Investigator in Environmental Neurotoxicology at the Universidad de Tarapaca, Chile. The
Dr Ilgren served as Pathologist to H.M. Coroner for Oxfordshire and was on the biochemistry faculty at the University. For the last 20 years, he also worked as an independent consultant and expert on matters related to complex, toxic tort environmental litigation. He sole-authored two books: Tumor Initiation and Promotion (CRC, 1991) and Comprehensive Compendium of Mesotheliomas in Animals (CRC, 1993), and he published dozens of technical papers. His writings in print amount to more than 2,000 pages. He lectured in different parts of the world on related subjects and taught cellular pathology at the Sir William Dunn School and neurological pathology at Oxford and in Chile. Dr Ilgren (with Kevin Browne) was the first to publish on mesothelioma threshold. He continued to make contributions to mesothelioma mechanism per fibre type, dose, size and habit in 11 original articles on all aspects of short fibre chrysotile through what is now generally recognised as the ‘calidria chrysotile’ series per animal studies and human epidemiology. In the process, he discovered one of the largest short fibre animal inhalation chrysotile data sets ‘hidden’ in the NTP – NIEHS archives, materials subsequently reviewed and published by him (with Dr Chris Wagner). Dr Ilgren examined
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in detail all of the amphibole asbestos and chrysotile fibre types, zeolites and various forms of talc in different parts of the United States, Canada, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, Japan, Australia, New Caledonia, Scandinavia, New Zealand, Europe, and South America. He was the first to discover erionite related mesotheliomas outside of Turkey and examined the subject through more than 20 cases of fibrous zeolite related mesothelioma around the world.
interests, Dr Ilgren’s humanitarian nature applied his expertise to many medical and environmental problems, including aflatoxin in food, smoking, pre-natal risks from lithium in Bolivia, asbestos in firefighting, agricultural development in northern Chile. Ed was cited by Proclamation of the City of New York in 2002 for his help mitigating health effects of the 9/11 terrorist attack in New York. Most recently he was working on Covid-19 risks.
Dr Ilgren served as a global alternative causation case specific expert in the asbestos litigation for 24 years, personally conducting on the ground investigations on five continents. He was the first to publish on the health risks from exposures to asbestos, inorganic metals, and various chemicals due to collapse of the World Trade Center in a U.S. Congressional Investigation. Dr Ilgren made major contributions to understanding the role of fibre width as a determinant of mesothelioma particularly through his studies on Bolivian crocidolite and Finnish anthophyllite in more than eight publications and extensive personal field work. Similarly, his comprehensive published study of the biology of cleavage fragments is widely cited providing further support for fibre width determination.
Ed was known to be refined in manner and dress, athletic in demeanor, generous and compassionate. He had a talent for friendship. His wide circle of friends delighted in his rare combination of intellectual purposefulness and impulse to celebrate. His joie de vivre enlivened the private clubs he used in many cities. He made residences variously in Chile, England, Italy, Hawaii and Bryn Mawr. He was devoted to St Edmund Hall, frequently visiting the College and attending its events in the U.S.
Going beyond his specialist professional
He is survived by two of his three sisters, Barbara Russell of Bonners Ferry Idaho and Nancy Schluter of Wilmington Delaware and many nieces and nephews. Family and friends are planning memorials at a later date. Daniel Heath (Jesus College 1974, DPhil Economics)
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ALAN FREDERICK JOHNSON (1953) Alan (10 June 1933-10 January 2021) was born on and raised in Oswestry, Shropshire. The forceps used at Alan’s birth pierced his right eye, damaging the cornea. His whole childhood was punctuated with regular visits to the local Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital. He wrote in his memoirs, “Eventually it was decided that further treatment would be useless and that the lack of vision in my right eye was compensated for by excellent vision in my left eye - or so I was told.” A year ahead of his peers, nine school certificate passes, three higher school certificates, a county scholarship and on to St Edmund Hall, Oxford to read law (19531956). At Oswestry Boys High School he played Macduff opposite Frank Bough’s Macbeth. Alan and Frank stayed in touch, when they both went up to Oxford, and throughout their lives. Two years of National Service in the RAF delayed Alan’s start in Oxford. He did his square-bashing in Bodmin and subsequently spent a year at Cambridge training as a Russian interpreter with the Joint Services School for Linguists. At the Hall, one of Alan’s tutors was a young Nicholas BrowneWilkinson.
It was soon after being demobilised in July 1953 that he found himself at a Gobowen Church summer fete where he met a certain Betty Edwards. Engaged a year later, but with Alan in Oxford and then working in Wolverhampton, and with Betty training as a nurse, they were finally able to marry on 5 July 1958, the beginning of over 62 years together. Life together began in Wolverhampton where their son Ian was born in 1960, but the family were almost immediately back in Shropshire as Alan obtained articles of clerkship with John C Gittins and Co in Oswestry. Four years later their elder daughter, Helen, was born. Betty was a part-time night sister at the local Orthopaedic hospital. Alan wrote, “I used to take Betty to work in the evening with the children in the back of the car, return home and put them to bed, get them up in the morning and go back and fetch Betty home. I was glad when, a few years later, she also passed her driving test.” Their younger daughter Carole followed in due course and the family was complete. Family holidays were mainly in North Wales or Cornwall. Once the children were older, holidays to all parts of Western Europe began for Alan and Betty. But Greece and the Greek islands were the favourite including with Carole and her family as time went on. As the years passed Alan and Betty were blessed with 4 grandchildren - Lucy, Elise, Daniel and Robert. Over the years, Alan progressed from assistant solicitor to partner and finally to senior partner of the much larger amalgamated firm of Longueville Gittins. A mild heart attack in 1990 caused him to slow down at work, giving up his partnership three years later but still serving as a salaried solicitor until retirement in 1998. Even then for a few
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years he helped out in the office at holiday times. Inevitably he was a life member of the Law Society. Back in the 1970s Alan had joined Oswestry Church Bowling Club. Over time he served as member of the committee, secretary, chairman, club president, life member. He followed the same ascent in the league structure and served at County level. The other societies he belonged to, some with Betty, included the National Service (RAF) Association, Shropshire Postal History Society, Blind Veterans Association, Oswestry Recorded Music Society, Oswestry U3A and Oswestry & Border Historical & Archaeological Society. He was very sociable. As a Christian, it was at Oxford that the penny had dropped for him in the years when Billy Graham was first over here. He became a lay reader in 2000 and assisted with services for almost a decade. He was a very generous supporter of many charities, and he was
VICTOR THOMAS HENRY PARRY FCILIP, FRSA, FRAS (1945) This obituary has been provided by Victor’s son, Richard. Victor Thomas Henry Parry, Old Aularian and member of the Floreat Aula Society died peacefully at home on 30 December 2020 aged 93.
kind to those people to whom others may not have been inclined to show kindness. He and Betty would faithfully visit people every week. He kept in touch with people whatever their circumstances had become. There were notable connections with a Russian family in Siberia, and a Palestinian nurse in Nazareth. It is said that not everyone understood his humour, although I think Alan was more likely to say that about himself than anyone else would. There was a genuine humility about him which made him so easy to be with. His wide-reading, and love of English literature and poetry made him very good with his words. He didn’t need many to make his point, to ask a penetrating question or to make you laugh. There are few people who rise so highly in the affections of so many as Alan did. Carole Dix (née Johnson) (1985, Jurisprudence) Born in Newport, south Wales in 1927, he excelled at football, cricket and table tennis as a schoolboy and was chair of the Newport Youth Council in 1945. He went up to Oxford the same year aged just 17, to study English Literature. He enjoyed Hall life immensely. In those days his trunk had to be sent up by lorry, and a Scout would make up a fire in his room and bring him hot water! He recalled winning the tiddlywinks championship and loved to listen to trad jazz. He was awarded Hall colours in soccer and played for the Centaurs. A librarian by vocation, he had a distinguished career and was a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society, and the Royal Society of Arts as well as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals. After national service in the Royal Air Force, he joined the Manchester Public
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Library in 1950 on one of the first graduate training schemes in the country. He moved to London as an assistant librarian in the Colonial Office in 1956 where he set up a legal library for the various constitutional conferences which led to the eventual independence of Kenya and other African states. In 1959 he was made a Fellow of the Library Association and acted as a senior examiner for the profession for over 10 years. He became the first professional librarian at the Nature Conservancy in 1960 and maintained the archives for the Sites of Special Scientific Interest. He then became Deputy at the Natural History Museum Library, followed by service for many years as the Chief Librarian and Archivist at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. In 1978 he left the Civil Service and became Chief Librarian at the School of African and Oriental Studies. He concluded his career with a 5-year appointment as the Director of Central Library Services and Goldsmith’s Librarian of the University of London, taking early retirement in 1988. He thus traversed the public, Civil Service, special and university fields of CECIL WILLIAM (BILL) PERRY (1953) This obituary has been provided by Bill’s son, Matthew. Cecil Perry (20 June 1931 – 4 October 2019) was born in Staplecross, Sussex, close to where his maternal grandparents lived in Ewhurst. His father, Edward Perry, was a member of the Imperial Civil Service in India who was in the UK acting as Secretary to the Simon Commission which considered the future of British India. The previous year he had married Mary Reavell, and Cecil was their first child.
librarianship, in an unusually broad career. He enjoyed membership of Surrey County Cricket Club after retirement and was also a keen supporter of Manchester City FC. He continued to play table tennis until the age of 76 when arthritis became too much of a handicap, but carried on playing Bridge, with some skill, until well into his 80s. But perhaps his greatest love was to see Wales beating their opponents at rugby union, and he joined in the Welsh national anthem with gusto at the start of each match. He was pleased to live within hearing distance of the roar of the crowd at the national stadium in Twickenham. Throughout his life he remained a steadfast supporter of Teddy Hall and was pleased to receive the Aularian and the Magazine which he read from cover to cover. He donated regularly to the Hall and left a legacy of £1000 for the improvement of the Old Library. In May 2019, after a long and happy marriage, he and his wife Mavis celebrated their Diamond wedding anniversary. He is survived by her, his daughter, two sons and five grandchildren. Richard Vyvyan Tristram Parry His parents soon returned to India, the Bombay presidency, where another son, David was born. The two boys grew up cared for by an Indian ayah (nanny) in the way of families in the Raj and apparently conversed with each other in Hindi. A sister, Sallie, was born later to be followed by another sister, Catherine, in 1942. Cecil was sent back to Britain to go to prep school (St Rowlands) where he enjoyed playing rugby. Holidays were spent with his grandparents in Sussex and he always regarded himself as a Sussex man, particularly when it came to cricket.
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After the outbreak of the Second World War Cecil’s mother took him, David and Sallie back to India – and from her I heard accounts of travelling out in convoy and being up on deck at night as other ships were torpedoed. In India schooling meant being sent to Lovedale, Ootacamund, a three-day train journey away that meant he was away for nine months at a time. He spoke little of his time there, and the accounts were not happy ones, unlike the stories of his life generally in India which sounded exciting (if dangerous) with a pet bulldog and accounts of snakes, cobras and krait, as well as mongeese. One thing he did do was to follow the progress of the war, having his own subscription to The Times and following campaigns on maps. After the end of the war, he was sent to Lancing College, again in Sussex. The highchurch tradition there meant that there was a lot of chapel, into which he became actively involved, singing in the choir and ultimately becoming head chorister. He was even a member of the headmaster’s glee club – yet more singing. From Lancing he went on to National Service. Short sight meant that he was unable to join the Navy, as he would have liked. My impression was that his preferred career would have been as a Naval officer, quite possibly in submarines. He instead joined the airborne artillery, where mathematical ability was important for calculating gunfire. He commanded a troop of 25 lb guns. Upon returning home on his first leave he announced that he was now known as Bill – apparently Cecil did not fit! He served in the Canal Zone of Egypt, but before the Suez Crisis, so seems to have had a generally enjoyable time. He certainly fitted well into military life because he continued in the Territorial Army, this time in the Territorial SAS, until
the birth of his first child. After the Army Bill went up to Teddy Hall. Despite having excelled at school in Mathematics he read PPE – this was because it was felt to be good to be a ‘well rounded man’. Perhaps partly in consequence he did not excel academically. This is not to say that his time in Oxford was dull, he “read punting” as his friend and future brother-in-law, John Foster, once said to me later. Bill thoroughly enjoyed sport, playing waterpolo with the University squad, though not getting a blue. A keener cricketer than talented, he played for the Teddy Bears. Bill, who claimed to have learnt to sail from reading Swallows and Amazons, was also a member of the University Yacht Club. One winter he organised a skiing trip to Austria, this was significant in that a friend of a friend from the Yacht Club, Josephine Anderson came along too. Jo became his girlfriend, and they attended a College Ball together. After graduation Bill started as an articled clerk to a firm of accountants in London. When Jo returned from a year in the USA their relationship resumed and they were married in 1958, living in Hampstead. In 1961 their son Matthew was born and they moved out of London to Tonbridge in Kent from where Bill commuted daily to the City. Bill moved from accountancy to work for IBM becoming a programmer in the days of punch cards and tape. Bill kept up his sporting interests playing cricket in the summer (as a wicketkeeper) and hockey in the winters as a goalkeeper. In 1963 a daughter, Susannah, was born. In 1967 Bill took a job with Fisher Bendix near Liverpool, only for them to be taken over shortly afterwards. The family moved for work several times in the ensuing years, with a second daughter, Charlotte, born in 1969 in Stevenage. By the late 70s
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Bill was a self-employed accountant and the family were settled in Kent, living in one half of a large house with his mother in the other end. Bill enjoyed village life in Kent and contributed by singing in the local church choir and the Tonbridge Philharmonic, and continued playing bridge and hockey. He and Jo shared the creation of a fine if demanding garden, which grew almost to smallholding proportions at times. He took great pleasure in the academic success of his children; Matthew read Chemistry at Univ, whilst both Susannah and Charlotte studied at Cambridge. Once the children had left home, Bill and Jo divorced, and from here on he lived
in or around Sevenoaks. He remained actively involved in the hockey club acting as an umpire for the third XI for many years and taking great pleasure in watching the young players develop. He retained his keen interests in politics, current affairs and technology, and required no family support when he bought his first smartphone. Bill had always been a keen games player, particularly of bridge, and in retirement was a member of three bridge clubs. It was through bridge that he met Hazel with whom he shared his final years. Bill suffered a stroke in August 2019 and died a few weeks later in Pembury hospital. Matthew Perry As a teenager John went to Dauntsey’s School in Wiltshire where he did well at languages and won an exhibition to Oxford to read French and German at the Hall… but this was 1942. Pearl Harbour had been attacked in December 1941 and the country urgently needed young linguists to learn Japanese.
JOHN PIKE CBE, PNBS DATO OF SARAWAK (1946) The following obituary is based on the eulogy given at John’s funeral. John was born in Croydon in 1924 to Chip and Betty Pike. He and his younger brother Mick enjoyed a happy childhood, albeit within a strict regime imposed by their father. One consequence of an unspecified childhood misdemeanour was to learn by heart and recite to his father, while standing at the dining table, all 300 lines of the Macaulay poem ‘Horatius at The Bridge’.
At 18 John was recruited to the Intelligence Corps and spent a year at the School of Oriental and African Studies learning Japanese. Then, in 1943, he travelled by sea to India and on to Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, where he joined the group monitoring Japanese military radio traffic, then to Burma, Singapore, Sumatra and, finally, to Sarawak - a country he fell in love with. He was de-mobilised in 1946 at the age of 22 and spent two happy and stimulating years at the Hall (1946-1948) doing an abbreviated War Degree in PPE, some rowing and making several lasting friendships. John then applied to join the Colonial Service. The application form included a section in which the applicant listed their
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three preferences for posting if appointed. John’s three choices were Sarawak, Sarawak and Sarawak. He and Elspeth met when he became her family’s lodger in London while completing his training for the posting to Sarawak. Having met in September 1948, they married in December and sailed for the Far East in January 1949. Sarawak was their home for most of the next 18 happy and fascinating years. The major developments of that era in Sarawak were Merdeka (Independence) in 1963, the Federation with Malaysia later that year, and the war with Indonesia, Konfrontasi, 1963-1966. John served Sarawak initially, through the early post-war years, as a District Officer most happily in Lawas, where long journeys up-country on foot were part of the professional timetable. Later he was posted to the World Bank in Washington for a year in 1961/2 where he drafted an influential study The Fiscal Implications for Sarawak of Entering the Federation of Malaysia in 1962. Finally, he served as Sarawak’s Financial Secretary for the 3 years immediately after independence and at a time of war with Indonesia, ending his period in Sarawak in 1966 at the age of 42. He was honoured by the Sarawak government with the title of Dato, and by the UK government with the CBE for these years of service. The friendships formed during those years in Sarawak (and also during the year in Washington DC), lasted for John and Elspeth’s lifetimes. John returned as a guest of the Sarawak government on subsequent occasions and the final invitation from the Sarawak Government received in 2018, when John was 94 years old, reads as follows:
“…Today we had an audience with the Governor of Sarawak, His Excellency Tun Abdul Taib Bin Mahmud at the Astana. The visit was in conjunction with the upcoming Sarawak Independence Day on Sunday 22 July 2018. His Excellency felt that it would be very meaningful to include Dato John Pike in the celebration as he had contributed immensely to Sarawak….” John was too frail to take up this last invitation, but it touched him deeply to be asked to be there more than 50 years after his career in Sarawak had ended. Following his time in Sarawak, John spent the next 16 years, 1967 to 1983, as Financial Secretary to the London School of Economics starting just as the student events of 1968 and 1969 were kicking off. These were stimulating and exciting years for John given the close links LSE had with the governments of the day. The current Director of LSE wrote of him: “...The School owes a huge debt of gratitude for his pivotal role as Financial Secretary from 1967-1983 during a period of great change for the School….” After LSE, in retirement, John was happily involved on a pro bono basis with a variety of organisations including the Sarawak Association, the British Schools Exploring Society and the Burma Campaign Fellowship Group. This last formed the basis of a variety of friendships with British and Japanese colleagues who were committed to the reconciliation of old Burma Campaign combatants – a group for whom John gave a speech in Japanese at the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo in his 70s. John was supported lovingly and loyally through all these years by his wife Elspeth. They were, together, wonderful parents, parents-in-law and grand-parents.
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When, in her 80s, Elspeth became increasingly frail, John who had always been the provider and never by skills or inclination a house-husband, became her staff and comfort, her loving support emotionally and practically. Because of his sustained care for her, Elspeth was able to die peacefully at home in Long Hanborough, just outside Oxford. After Elspeth’s death in 2007, John was desperately sad and lost and – perhaps more than we the family realised – uncharacteristically reclusive. But, happily, some years later John and Jan – another widowed Long Hanborough resident – fell in love and were married in 2012. John then enjoyed wonderful years of joy with Jan, full of love, friendships, projects
and adventures. A busy and happy life in the Cotswolds punctuated by travels to France, Scotland and the United States and cruises on the High Seas! John’s recent years were marked by increasing frailty. Life re-arrangements, prompted by the Covid pandemic, then meant that we, his family, were privileged to see a lot of him in his final months and he knew us all and his beloved Jan to the end. His last drink was a sip of Laphroaig single malt whisky – which he referred to as ‘ubat bagus’, his most important medication! He died peacefully at home aged 96. We shall miss him. Michael Pike (New College 1968, English) disabled brother to go to primary school and encouraged her other three children to win grammar school places. Despite studying hard and helping out in the shop, Roy recalled happy memories of horse riding on nearby farms and cycling in the Stour valley.
ROY TRACEY (1948) Roy Tracey (29 December 1927 - 19 December 2020) held Teddy Hall in great affection and gratitude throughout his life. He grew up in Colchester; his father was a fishmonger, but his age and declining health led Roy’s mother to take on the tenancy of a licenced grocer’s opening 6½ days a week, at the outbreak of World War II. An intelligent woman, but denied a secondary education, she fought for Roy’s
Roy’s time at grammar school was severely disrupted by the war. Lessons were frequently interrupted by air raid warnings and many of the teachers were called up, their places filled, if at all, by retirees. Roy was an avid reader and regularly visited the local library, where he found a mentor in Ronald Blythe, then working there as a librarian. Roy credited him with setting him on the path to Oxford. Roy sat the entrance exams, earning a place at Teddy Hall to read English literature. The War, however, brought tragedy when Roy’s older brother was killed in action with the Fleet Air Arm in 1945. Their father died the following year. Roy’s strong sense of duty led him to offer to give up his university place to stay and
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support his widowed mother, but she would not hear of it. So in 1948, after two years’ National Service in Army Intelligence, Roy went up to Teddy Hall supported by a bursary from Essex education authority, the first in his family to go to university. Academically and culturally, it was a world away from his earlier experiences and he relished it. He had great respect for his Hall tutors, including Graham Midgley and Reg Alton, and talked fondly of being taught by CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien. He particularly enjoyed tutorials with the latter. He would tell of reading out essays and being disconcerted that Tolkien did not appear to be listening (“His mind was off somewhere in Middle Earth” as he put it), but would then come out with an incisive and apposite comment, before his mind apparently floated away again. Roy took full advantage of summer plays and concerts and was a member of the John Oldham society. No sportsman himself, he enjoyed the company of rowing friends; however, being of slight build he often found himself fair game for pranks, including being dangled out of the window of his room over Queen’s Lane by his ankles. Whilst at Oxford he met a graduate studying Statistics at St Hilda’s, first spotting her when cycling by Magdalen, narrowly missing a lamppost in his
distraction. He could still identify the lamppost many years later. They were married for over 50 years until Pat’s death in 2008 and had two daughters and two granddaughters. Roy left Oxford, his mind filled with poetry and art, imagining life as a writer. However, he needed to earn a living and took the Civil Service examinations. To his horror he was posted to the Inland Revenue and initially turned it down. His mother, somewhat more practical, was even more horrified; Roy duly became a tax inspector. His talents soon came to the attention of Unilever, and he joined their tax department, eventually rising to Head of Taxation. Roy’s time at Teddy Hall opened up this career opportunity but it brought so much more. His skill in argument and discussion, debating and wit all honed there. He enjoyed company and conversation and could talk very convincingly on many topics, if not necessarily with much actual knowledge – a skill he claimed to have learnt in tutorials on books he had not actually read. Oxford developed his love of the arts, which remained a lifelong interest enriching his life and those who knew and loved him. Christina Tracey (1980, Agriculture and Forestry) and Alison Cannard (1985, St Hilda’s)
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JCR Freshers’ Household Photographs Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, it was impossible to take the traditional group shots of the new JCR and MCR members. However, following the virtual matriculation ceremony on 17 October 2020, the undergraduates were photographed in their ‘household bubbles’ and these photographs are reproduced overleaf.
The 2020-21 undergraduate Freshers’ are: Chloe Abraham*
John Duale
Mauricio Alencar
Erika Dutton
Stefan Arama
Tomas Dwyer
Will Ashcroft
Anselm Dyer-Grimes
Aditya Bansal
Jake Elliott
Verity Black
Daniel Espanhol*
Lila Blake*
Harriet Eyles
Luca Boot*
Emily Falconer
Sam Boulger
Cormac Farrell
Marcus Bugge
Maximilian Fawcett*
Zixi Cai
Jamie Frankel
Tehillah Campbell
Charlie Furniss
Lucie Capkova
Anubhab Ghosal
Aili Channer
Srijia Ghosh
Zhaoqiu Cheng
Emma Giddis
Zixiang Cheng
Liam Gornall
Sam Cherry
Robert Hardwick
Logan Clew-Bachrach
Thomas Harray
Tom Coates
Flora Hartz
Redmond Coleman
William Heath
Abbie Collyer
Junqiu Hu
Charles Coombes
Yuri Hwang
Ella Coupland-Smith
Mike Jacobs
Jena Curtis
Wiktor Jasniak
Chili Dai
Qianwei Jia
Jake Davies
Kiran Kaur
Quentin Delepine
Katie Kirkpatrick
Luke Drago
Ellen Klein
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Peter Knight
Josh Priest*
Freddie Korn
Hannah Pullen
Jasmin Kreutzer
Yasmin Ratcliffe
Aleksander Kruzewski
William Redding
Patricia Kryszewska
Sophie Richardson
Abbie Leaver
Joseph Ritchie
Wei Liu
Kayla Rowden*
Ben Lloyd
Holly Sanderson
William Loosley
Alex Sarshar
Saul Manasse
Beth Scott
Katie March
Zoe Shum
Ella Mark
Hector Skipworth
Zoe Martial*
Gemma Smith-Bingham
Stefan Martin
Leonardo Stefanoni *
Lysander Mawby
Hang Su
Florence McKechnie
Ella Tan
Esme McMillan
Emily Treacher*
Harry Mehta*
Emily Twinn
Anika Menon
Samuel Walker
William Metcalf
Hannah Wallace
Julia Moon
Katie Wellstead
Lucia Mullings
Nicola Whittington
Jodie Neville
Ben Wiltshire
James Newbery
Sarah Woodford
Tommy Nguyen
Tia Yang
Leah Oates
Weikai Zhai
Haedam Oh Daisy Oliver Toby Onona Ishaan Parikh Adam Pattenden Brittany Perera David Pinney Joe Pollard
*This student was in isolation when the photographs were taken and does not appear.
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St Edmund Hall Freshers JCR 2021
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St Edmund Hall Freshers JCR 2021
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Development & Alumni Relations Office St Edmund Hall, Queen’s Lane, Oxford, OX1 4AR +44 (0)1865 289180 aularianconnect@seh.ox.ac.uk
www.seh.ox.ac.uk
