Postcard Portraits

Post Card Portraits Mr Winkley

Which three people dead or alive would you invite to a dinner party and why?

Aristotle (polymath, influential on almost everything we think and believe); Stephen Fry (polymath, raconteur, clever but never conceited, good with people); WG Sebald (polymath, deep thinker, truly original) – wit and searching conversation guaranteed.

What one thing relating to St. Peter’s would you put into room 101 and why? Nothing springs to mind: the best is great and the rest can be improved, rather than exiled to Room 101. If I were a pupil, maybe the lunch queue.

What is your favourite thing about St. Peter’s and why? Our extraordinary community spirit: because everything else flows from that.

What do you consider to be your greatest achievement to date and do you have any unfulfilled ambitions? Becoming Head Master of St Peter’s, and before that completing an Open University Masters in Education whilst working full-time. At school: walking 50 miles in a day. My unfulfilled ambition is to write a book.

Which three items would you take with you to a desert island and why? Running shoes (assuming it’s a decent sized island); water colour paints (to learn a new skill) and the complete works of WG Sebald (to keep my mind alive)

Which celebrities or public figures do you like/detest most and why?

Public figures – I’m interested in anyone whose job entails leading others. I find football managers and sports coaches fascinating. I don’t detest anyone but I do struggle to like anything/ anyone on ITV between 7 and 10 on a Saturday night.

What are your best and worst fashion moments?

Best – I thought I looked decent enough on my wedding day.

Worst – photographic evidence from my twenties suggests I laboured under the delusion that facial hair suited me. More recently, that Morris Dancing get-up on Red Nose Day.

If you weren’t yourself who would you most like to be? Jonathan Agnew.

What is your favourite film? Once Upon A Time In The West

What is your favourite album? It’s a tie between Bob Dylan “Blood on the Tracks” and The Divine Comedy “Bang Goes The Knighthood”.

How do you imagine Heaven and Hell? Heaven is the end of desire; oneness with the divine; being wide asleep.

Hell is the life of Scrat, the squirrel from Ice Age: always grasping for the object of his desire, never getting it, never overcoming his desire.

Mr Bembridge

Which three people would you invite to a dinner party and why?

I definitely want Jesus as he could provide decent philosophical discussions, Eddie Izzard because I like some of his takes on things, and I’d like to talk to him about why he’s become an atheist recently. I would also invite a close friend because otherwise no one would believe that I’d had Jesus and Eddie Izzard over for supper.

What do you consider to be your greatest achievement to date?

Convincing my fiancée to marry me is pretty high on my list; I believe that each successive achievement becomes your greatest one because you bring everything you’ve learnt from previous experiences to be better at what you’re becoming.

Do you have any unfulfilled ambitions?

To host a late night phone-in on a radio station, to solve crimes, and to fly a helicopter; I’m fairly sure that having watched ‘Airwolf’ when I was younger I could fly one.

If you weren’t a teacher what job would you like to have?

I think DJing with a phone-in radio station would be interesting; I was in business for a while and enjoyed the creative side of that so I might like some form of marketing. I would definitely enjoy journalism or standup comedy although I don’t think I’m funny enough!

Which three items would you take with you to a desert island and why?

Herbs and spices so my food isn’t really dull, an iPad and a solar charger.

Which celebrities or public figures do you detest most and why?

I don’t like comedians who think just being crude is funny. Also I’m not very keen on slapstick comedy.

What is it about teaching that made you want to do the job?

I enjoy working with young people because different people see things in different ways and sharing that together leads on to new thoughts, so my job is constantly changing.

What are your best and worst fashion moments?

I’ve never really been cool; my worst moment is the day I picked up the wrong jacket when I came to school so I was wearing a pinstriped jacket and normal suit trousers, thankfully hidden by my gown during Chapel. My best fashion moment was a great red waistcoat given to me by my father, a cloth merchant.

If you weren’t yourself who would you most like to be?

A comedy writer or maybe a novelist.

Who are your favourite comedians?

Mitchell and Webb, Armstrong and Miller, Tim Vine and Milton Jones who has also released a book, Ten Second Sermons, which I have enjoyed.

How do you imagine Heaven and Hell?

I like the idea of being in hell because you’re too ashamed or embarrassed about your life to look God in the face. This means you’re not denied Heaven because He doesn’t love you but because you’re focusing too much on the mistakes you made so you feel you are unable to enjoy it even though perhaps you could.

Who is your favourite philosopher?

Epicurus because of his ideas on happiness; he thought that people shouldn’t eat a meal alone so we should share meals with friends and make the most of that time together.

What is your favourite film? I think that all of life’s riddles are answered in films; a lot of films, science fiction in particular, deal well with philosophy. A film that I enjoy and often revisit is The Shawshank Redemption. My least favourite are slapstick comedies because they are boring; I don’t like films that don’t challenge my imagination.

Alex Plane LVI

Mr G Smith

Which three people, dead or alive, would you invite to a dinner party and why? (After a very long silence whilst Mr Smith thought of three eligible people) Barnes Wallis, the inventor of the bouncing bomb, because it was such a fascinating story. Lee Mack, because he’s my favourite comedian. And Johnny Cash; I love his music and I’m actually learning the guitar right now.

Which three things related to St Peters would you put in Room 101 and why? A burette, there has to be something from the Chemistry department. My gown, because it’s about 60 years old and stinks. I even tried to put it in the wash once but that ruined it even more. And Paddy.. obviously only so he never has to retire.

If you were stranded on a desert island, which three things would you take with you? My guitar, so I could keep on playing my Johnny Cash music. A rugby ball, so I could practice kicking and stuff. And Chemistry past papers to keep me occupied.

Which celebrities or public figures do you hate most and why? John Prescott, because he’s just a loud and obnoxious politician. Who’s movies are really bad..? Russell Brand. He thinks he’s an actor and he’s not. He’s just arrogant.

Which aspects of teaching do you most dislike? Being interviewed.

Worst and best fashion moments?

I’m not big into fashion. But my best has to easily be ‘brown shoes grey suit’. My worst has actually been wearing a stripy shirt and a stripy tie together- I was told this by the male members of the PE department.

If you weren’t you, who would you most like to be and why? Well who plays sport and gets a lot of money for it..? Rory McIlroy; he gets a lot of money for not doing a lot. And he gets to travel the world.

What do you see heaven and hell to be? You’ll be asking me what the meaning of life is next! Heaven would be one big playroom, full of pinball machines, PlayStations and an unlimited supply of food. Hell would be one permanent interview.

Sara Pycock & Lucy Schofield LVI