OTs today

Emma Bray

(Hamilton-Russell, 1986)

Molly Arbuthnott (2005)

A friend once told me that you have to use your imagination, or you lose it. I took these words of wisdom quite literally and embarked on an MA in Children’s Literature at Glasgow University in September and have been busy working on two new books too, Oscar the London Cat and Angus the Robin. The school and library visits haven’t stopped either (well, at least until Corona hit!) and have seen Oscar and his growing family touring up and down the country and, I hope, bringing lots of pleasure to people old and young. Oscar the Ferry Cat has just received a Bronze award from the Wishing Shelf Book Awards

Illustrations by Agnes Treherne.

(thanks largely to Agnes Treherne’s exquisite illustrations) which was a happy boost in otherwise more tricky times.

Do look up: www.mollyarbuthnott.co.uk to keep up to date with Oscar and his friends’ adventures.

During her time at Tudor (1979-86), Emma used to enjoy running in the annual cross-country event as well as taking part in both the 800m and 1500m during athletic competitions – always in her fetching green gym knickers! This year, at the grand old age of 51, she has been fortunate enough to have been offered a place to run in the London Marathon for the first time, supporting the charity Hospice UK: a wonderful cause which helps hospices all around the country. After losing a relative last year, who was given wonderful care at the Isabel Hospice in Welwyn Garden City, she is delighted to be raising money for such an amazing charity. Having started training she is realising that she is no longer a teenager at Tudor, but she is gradually building up the miles and is determined to make the most of this amazing opportunity.

justgiving.com/fundraising/ emma-bray12

Georgina Brewer(2002)

A history lover, it’s no surprise perhaps that Georgina went on to become a journalist.

She studied History at Durham. After a few fascinating years on the management trainee scheme at L’Oreal, Georgina decided to study for a postgraduate degree in Television Journalism at City University in London.

She joined ITV News as a producer and after following the royals – covering multiple tours, weddings, babies and jubilees – she was appointed International Affairs Producer.

She was in Brussels for the Brexit referendum and nominated for a BAFTA for her coverage of the migrant crisis. From there she was appointed US Bureau Chief, and moved to Washington DC, where she covered the President Trump election campaign and first two years of his Presidency. She is now living in Hong Kong covering Asia, the coronavirus and the protests but still managing to enjoy her new adventure with her mask, husband and dog, Olive.

Twitter: @Georginatvprod

Camilla Brown (2011)

Camilla started her buying career on the Fenwick Graduate Scheme in 2016. Beginning on the shop floor, she swiftly climbed the ranks into the Buying Office where she took on the buyership of Cookshop. After a shock restructure, she decided to pursue her dream of fashion buying and managed to move across to the Menswear side of the business where she now buys men’s denim. The glamorous side of buying includes travelling to Fashion Weeks in New York, Copenhagen and Florence, viewing the collections six months in advance and meeting lots of exciting people; the not-sochic side is endless analysis of spreadsheets, tough negotiations and an even tougher retail climate. Having said that, it’s the dream career – who wouldn’t want to spend their days surrounded by beautiful clothes?

Alice Clark(Irvine, 1993)

Alice owned and managed The Willow Nursery in Clapham for years before opening The Willow On The Farm Nursery near Hook Norton. Set on her working farm, she has just been awarded ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted - an immense achievement under new Ofsted inspection regulation.

Passionate about the importance of early years learning on a child’s confidence and future mental wellbeing, Alice believes in reconnecting children to the outdoors and nature. At Forest School they explore the natural environment, learn to take risks safely, solve problems, develop imagination, meet the animals and go on tractor and trailer adventures! As Ofsted stated ‘the children benefit from a wonderful range of aweinspiring learning opportunities’.

www.willowonthefarm.co.uk alice@willowonthefarm.co.uk 01608 730143

Alice Collard (2015)

Alice will be running in this year’s Edinburgh Marathon, both in memory of her father, Peter, and to raise money for Katharine House Hospice where he was looked after in his final weeks. Alice’s father was diagnosed with composite lymphoma in late 2017, and succumbed to the disease in June 2019. Although his disease took a severe toll, both physically and mentally, Katharine House gave him as much comfort as possible during his time there, and in the last few months he found a new burst of energy, living his final days in full, as he had his entire life.

Katharine House Hospice cares for almost 300 people at any one time in their homes, in care homes, at their hospice or in the hospital, and they are available to a population of 155,000 people in North Oxfordshire, South Northamptonshire and South Warwickshire. All their services are free of charge to patients, but the Hospice is facing significant budget deficits.

www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ alice-collard

Annabel Eynon (Hunt, 2003)

Little Kitchen Social is not just the business name; it describes what they do. There is no formal class setting. Parents muck in with cooking and childcare while Annabel guides the cooking session and adds an extra pair of hands with the babies.

All the recipes use fresh, seasonal ingredients, so parents know exactly what is going into their child’s food. The recipes introduce little ones to new foods, textures and flavours, and provide parents with a friendly and safe environment in which to chat and ask questions.

Healthy, home-cooked food for our babies is so important, but so is a mum’s mental wellbeing. Cooking for little ones can be a lonely and boring chore. Each session has a homely feel, like spending an afternoon in a friend’s kitchen and at the end, everyone leaves with plenty of food, the babies have socialised and all the parents can go home feeling positive and happy.

www.littlekitchensocial.co.uk

Katharine Landale (1987)

Katharine founded Bold New World Recruitment after experiencing the challenges of returning to fulfilling flexible employment after a career break following a career in Investor Relations in the City. Bold New World offers fabulous, full time, part time, employed and charitable roles for experienced people: Returners, Rethinkers, Rebalancers and Retirers. Katharine only lists roles she’d like to apply for herself and works with a large number of exceptional employers who realise the potential of experienced candidates and understand the benefits of employing people with unrivalled experience who are reliable, work hard and bring a fresh perspective and diversity to a company.

www.boldnewworld.co.uk

Molly Nicholson (2016)

Molly is a singer, songwriter and producer from Oxford, she encompasses a minimalistic and adventurous style built upon haunting and ambient foundations. Over the years she’s been honing her craft by writing music in her bedroom and multiple studios. She enjoys practising covers of songs from her favourite artists which has undoubtably sculpted the way she approaches song writing and performing. Her performances are always unique and lively, with humour playing a big part.

Helen Seymour-Smith

(Cathie, 1993)

Helen studied architecture in Glasgow and Paris, graduating in 1999. After a few years working on a variety of mostly Londonbased projects, ranging from large mixed-use developments to small refurbishments, she decided to focus on private houses and set up her own practice in the Cotswolds in 2005.

The practice’s ambitious design approach and rigorous environmental ethos first came into the public eye when one of her projects, which was the first certified passivhaus in England, featured on Channel 4’s Grand Designs. The project had been granted planning permission under what is now NPPF paragraph 79, a policy giving special dispensation for new houses

in open countryside which are considered to be “truly outstanding and ground-breaking” and to reflect “the highest standards in contemporary architecture”. Since then, the practice has specialised in paragraph 79 projects, which it undertakes alongside some domestic refurbishment and extension projects.

www.seymoursmith.co.uk

Mary Browning,

(Head of Art, 1961–74)

Mary Browning taught art at Tudor Hall for thirteen years and inspired a generation of Tudorian artists. Still a practising artist, she works from her Northamptonshire home producing exquisite pastels of dogs and horses. During her career, which spans more than five decades, she has enjoyed many highlights, including exhibiting with The Society of Equestrian Artists and receiving several royal commissions for her work - including one for HM The Queen’s corgis.

It is no accident that animal portraits have been her speciality: from the goldfinch she rescued and kept as a pet at Art College, to the horse she was gifted by a racehorse owner and cherished for many years, her natural empathy with and love of animals is clear. And this really helps her to capture the essence of the animals she draws so beautifully. R

Above: Mary with a Jack Russell painting and the subject.

Right: Mary with her pet goldfinch.

Below: A painting donated to the Italian Greyhound Rescue Charity.