20152016
GCSE art by Charisse Fung
Editor: Emma McGowan Design: Baseline Arts, Oxford Print: Banbury Litho, Banbury Front Cover: ‘Colourful Language’ (detail) by Rob and Nicky Carter, 2015. Located in the Drama Studio. Photographed by James Stead
THE TUDORIAN . 1
Contents THE WHOLE PERSON THE WHOLE STORY
TI4C: Tudor in Four Continents (TI4C) was set up by Harriet Granville to forge a link between Tudor Hall and the Ebenezer Living Word Matriculation School in Chennai, India. It has since grown and now includes links with the Sparrow School in Johannesburg, the El Porvenir Primary School in Guatemala and the Bolton Lads and Girls Club in Lancashire. Involvement with the TI4C programme offers the girls the chance to make a difference and demonstrate their resilience within communities, countries and continents, reinforcing our school moto 'Habeo Ut Dem' – I have that I may give. AIM HIGHER: In September 2015, Tudor introduced its newly developed Aim Higher Programme across the school year groups. The programme affords the girls a range of academic opportunities beyond the classroom, allowing them to pursue their intellectual curiosity. The programme is inclusive, so all girls can benefit from activities including entry to national competitions, independent project work, attending lectures as well as taking part in the many co-curricular clubs on offer.
THE WHOLE YEAR. Introduction by Wendy Griffiths
2
SEPTEMBER 2015
4
OCTOBER 2015
10
NOVEMBER 2015
22
DECEMBER 2015
29
JANUARY 2016
36
FEBRUARY 2016
46
MARCH 2016
59
APRIL 2016
74
MAY 2016
86
JUNE 2016
98
JULY 2016
128
AUGUST 2016
137
2 . THE TUDORIAN . Introduction
THE WHOLE PERSON, THE WHOLE STORY, THE WHOLE YEAR
THE TUDORIAN . Introduction . 3
All Tudorians will know that their entry interview did not focus on academic performance alone. There is so much more that suggests potential in a young person: passion for a subject, obsessive reading, confidence to take risks, commitment to a particular interest, tenacity when challenged or just a quick wit. These are some of the many things we look for. At Tudor we champion the varied interests and talents of each member of our community. Our pupils are individuals and we endeavour to ensure that, as they go through school, they retain their unique characteristics whilst we work to develop increased resilience and a true sense of self. The extended school day together with weekends provides the time and opportunity for the girls to take part in activities that will enrich their school experience and allow them to flourish. We know that the opportunities offered through our extensive co-curricular programme are, in many cases, more important in helping the girls develop as people than what happens in the classroom. Increasingly we hear from employers that, although they expect excellent academic results, these alone do not allow young people to stand out from the crowd. However, interests sustained and developed through school and beyond provide evidence of the transferable skills and the grit and determination that will get them noticed.
2015/2016 At Tudor, we develop the whole person and this involves a challenging academic programme alongside an outstanding co-curricular programme. Their lives are busy as you will see from this year’s Tudorian where we have endeavoured to capture a year in the life of our students.
Wendy Griffiths Headmistress
4 . THE TUDORIAN . September 2015
It’s a Knockout!
“It’s A Knockout” at the start of the year was a great success. It was a fantastic opportunity for the girls to make new friends and cement existing friendships. The girls were put into tutor groups and completed dressing up challenges, colour inflatable obstacles and survive bubble immersion. The activities made for a fun, light hearted atmosphere with a little friendly rivalry!
September | 15
THE TUDORIAN . September 2015 . 5
6 . THE TUDORIAN . September 2015
Canine chaos
The annual Tudor Hall Dog Show lived up to its reputation of organised canine chaos. With over 60 entries into 7 categories, including ‘most like owner’, ‘golden oldie’ and ‘waggiest tail’, judge Luke Annaly narrowed down the field for ‘best in show’. Coco, handled by Olivia Cave, won best in show receiving a bag full of doggie goodies kindly donated by Crofts of Banbury. The show raised £705, with £655 going to Care UK’s ‘Walk in her shoes’ and £50 donated to Katharine House Hospice on the request of Luke Annaly.
Team building in the Quantocks
The IIIs took part in a residential trip to Lydeard Farm and Quantock Lodge in Somerset over the first weekend of the academic year. On arrival at Lydeard Farm, the girls split into teams and took part in a number of team building activities including balancing the whole team on a beam, building a bridge across water, completing an obstacle course and building a go-kart. The next day, the girls went on a trip to Ansteys Cove in Torquay for coasteering and kayaking on the sea. It was a brilliant day with the girls really pushing themselves to do things that were out of their comfort zone. The girls spent the third day back at Lydeard Farm and took part in archery, air rifle shooting and high ropes. Once again, the girls encouraged each other to face their fears and try new things. A great time was had by all and firm friendships were formed.
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8 . THE TUDORIAN . September 2015
Nanette Godfrey Lecture Series Poetry Evening
The 2015/2016 NG Lecture Series kicked off with poetry readings by Liz Berry, winner of the Forward First Collection Prize 2014, Hannah Silva, poet, playright and performer, and Gillian Clarke, The National Poet of Wales.
Hairspray Dance Workshop Old Tudorian and professional dancer Sophie Malpass (class of 2009) returned to Tudor to teach the Todds and IIs a dance based on the musical Hairspray. The chosen song for the workshop, ‘You Can’t Stop the Beat’, involved lots of spinning and fast choreography. The session ended with Sophie performing the routine which the girls found totally inspirational and gave them a standard of dance to aspire to.
Sophie Malpass (Old Tudorian, class of 2009) After leaving in the Vs, I went to Tring Park School for the Performing Arts where I studied for my A levels alongside vocational dance training for 2 years, graduating with a National Diploma in Professional Dance. I then auditioned and was accepted at London Studio Centre where I studied for a BA (Hons) degree in professional dance and gained a First in Ballet and Jazz. My first professional job was dancing alongside Darcey Bussell and the Royal Ballet in the closing Olympic Ceremony 2012. Since then I danced for 8 months touring the Mediterranean and Middle East and I am now
freelancing in Dubai where my dance credits include: Paul Mitchell, Mercedes, Austin Martin, Formula 1 in Abu Dhabi, Adidas, Nike and I have been invited to join the ballet/contemporary company called Sima Dance Company. During my career so far I have had the pleasure of working personally with choreographers such as Nader Musharbash and Paul Mitchell who have worked for One Direction, Beyonce, Rita Ora and X Factor. This year I will be continuing my training and professional career in Dubai and learning from all the different opportunities there. I also really enjoy teaching children/teenagers and baby ballet and hope to inspire them as much as I have been.
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10 . THE TUDORIAN . October 2015
Warriors, South Africa
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During half term, a group of IVs and Vs set forth with Harriet Granville and Colonel Graeme McDonald to commemorate the centenary of WW1. Coco Cunningham diarised the trip.
At four thirty in the morning we all rolled out of bed to
this ring there are 579,606 names, all in alphabetical order, not
make our way up to the coach ready to leave at five
in order of their rank, nationality or religion. I found about 150
thirty. After three hours on the road we finally arrived at Dover in time to catch the ferry. Most
Cunninghams; this made my jaw drop as, although I may not be closely related, it made me think about my cousins, uncles,
slept, some had breakfast, but I, along with
father and brother who could have died as well. After this we
friends, ended up playing a very unenthusiastic
drove for a short time to Vimy Ridge where we went into the
round of cards. We soon reached Calais where
trenches and the underground tunnels. They were cold
yet again we got back on the road for a much
and tiring to walk up and down; I was appalled at
shorter journey to Notre Dame de Lorette. There lay
the thought of having to do it with a rucksack,
thousands of graves of French troops. To see the graves
while under enemy fire, as a soldier in 1917.
and to walk amongst them is indescribable; photographs
We then made our way to the magnificent
on websites and in text-books, do not enable you to experience the emotion of seeing the cemetery as it really is. When you walk amongst the thousands of graves it makes it seem so much more real. On the site there was a ‘Ring of Memory’, this represented every soldier – French, English and even German – who fell during the Flanders and Artois battles. On
Newfoundland Park, Somme
Vimy Ridge memorial which was put up in honour of all Canadians who died in the Great War.
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In Flanders Fields, the poppies grow...
12 . THE TUDORIAN . October 2015
Left: Colonel Graeme McDonald with Tudor Hall wreath layers Right: Tyne Cott Cemetary, Ypres Far right: Sasha White laying a wreath at the grave of Corporal J S Morton, her great, great uncle, in the Serre Road Cemetary, No. 3. Below: New memorial at Notre Dame de Lorette
Inscribed on it are the names of 11,168 soldiers who have no known grave. The memorial contains many beautiful statues representing different subjects, however one of the most moving and intricate was that of a mother mourning over her lost children. She is known as ‘Mother Canada’ and is the only individual statue on the memorial; she is carved from a single slab of stone. Finally after a long, but eye opening day we arrived in Arras where we had dinner and went to sleep very quickly after such an early start. The next morning we woke early to get to the Thiepval Memorial just as the doors to the visitors centre opened. We walked around the small museum and gift shop then soon made our way out into the fresh but sunny air. We walked round the corner to the memorial where 72,195 names where etched into the stone in memory of British and South African men whose bodies were never found during the Battle of the Somme. After reading about the Somme and how long and painful the battles were, the names of just those who went missing was yet again phenomenal
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October | 15
to behold. It is all so overwhelming and on such a huge scale that it is nearly impossible for it all to sink in. However, seeing all their names in that extraordinary place made them not just another soldier who died in the war, but a real person with a family. After this we made our way up to Newfoundland Park commemorating those members of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment who died in the battle of Somme. It was such a wide open space – this section of the battlefield – and was rather breath-taking when you consider how many died under your feet. We walked past more beautiful memorials and found our way up to the stunning statue of the Highlander which was erected in memory of those in the 51st Highlander Division. For me this was pretty emotional as I have Scottish relations. Soon after we came to the Loos Memorial, commemorating 20,605 British officers and men who were killed in the battle of Loos. Most of them are names inscribed on stone around the top of the cemetery. However, many had headstones; walking amongst them is ghostly and sad, but strangely it made me happy, that although many men died, they all have been remembered. Finally, after another emotional day we arrived in
Ypres to get ready for the service at the Menin Gate. The service was beautiful, the crowds dense and Tudor laid a wreath to commemorate the millions who died in the Great War which ended 97 years ago today. On this trip I also had the opportunity to lay flowers on my great uncle’s grave, which was a very emotional experience, both happy and sad. Sad as he died so young and hardly had his own family at that point, yet happy as it showed that he still has people who care about him. Overall the Battlefields trip for me was emotional and eye opening and I hope I get to experience it again. Coco Cunningham
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Disney International Junior Netball Festival During half term, 12 girls from the IVs set off to Disneyland Paris to participate in the 2015 International Junior Netball Festival. The girls had a packed few days with their pool matches, intensive coaching sessions with super league and ex-England players including Karen Greig, and finals day. The girls had drawn an exceptionally tough pool of teams, however, they demonstrated some excellent netball and qualified for the finals, winning every game along the way. They won the final game 17–6 and were rewarded with a tremendous trophy and the International Juniors Challengers Shield!
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New York, New York degree view of New York by night. The views over Midtown Manhattan were breath-taking, especially looking down at street level where the yellow cabs looked like dinky cars. The constant sound of sirens and horns, although we were 1,250 feet above, was something we had to get used to. We then walked to Times Square to capture the imagery created by the electronic advertising billboards digitally. We had our first breakfast at Grand Central Station on 42nd Street (a must when in New York) and set off for a busy day ahead. We toured Uptown, Midtown
and Downtown Manhattan visiting the Frick Collection, Central Park Zoo, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Fifth Avenue and Rockefeller Center before heading to Times Square’s famous Hard Rock Café for supper. We walked back to the hotel via Madison Square Garden and were swept up by the crowds leaving a match which was exciting to say the least! After a good night’s sleep, we headed downtown to the Staten Island ferry to take a cruise around New York harbour and take in the fantastic views of the Manhattan skyline. We were chilled to the
October | 15
During October half term, a group of UVI fine art, textile and photography students led by Sheila Craske, Head of Art, Lizzi Snoddon, Head of Photography, and Sara Fordy, Head of Textiles, visited New York. Sheila Craske wrote: Arriving in the city that never sleeps, we packed into three days what most visitors would pack into two weeks! We stayed in the beautiful Wolcott Hotel on Fifth Avenue and Broadway, a nineteenth-century hotel in Art Nouveau style depicted in a number of movies for its authentic décor. Once unpacked, we headed out to an American diner before going up to the 102nd floor of the Empire State Building to get a 360
16 . THE TUDORIAN . October 2015
bones by the easterly winds and warmed up with pizza in a snug little American diner. We then paid our respects at Ground Zero and were not expecting the impact the hundreds of names on the deep inverted water sculpture would have on us all – a feeling we had last had when touring the war cemeteries of France. Although saddened, we were impressed by the power of the sombre, modern memorial at Ground Zero designed by architect Michael Arad and landscape architect Peter Walker of the Libeskind Studio. The memorial comprised two large cavernous dark grey holes each containing manmade, polished stone waterfalls engraved with the victims’ names.
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October | 15
An avenue of trees grows between the two caverns; one of the trees survived the terrorist attack as a scorched sapling and was nursed back to life and placed as a symbol of hope and renewal. With our next appointment uptown, we caught a string of yellow cabs up 5th Avenue as far as 89th Street to visit the Guggenheim Museum where we viewed the abstract work of Burri. Our last day was spent in Greenwich Village, visiting Old Tudorians studying art and design at the Parsons School of Design. We were given a private tour by Bella Manns (2013) who is in her third year studying fashion and the girls were impressed by the amount of space and top end technology available for all the art students to use. Bella talked to us enthusiastically about the course and there being a strong requirement for stamina to cope with the rigorous and strict regime and numerous assignments. After our tour of Parsons, we shopped in Greenwich Village and the Meatpacking District where the warehouses and brownstones of downtown New York have become chic vintage clothing venues, cafes and commercial art galleries. We then said a sad farewell to the Big Apple, a truly invigorating city.
Left: Manhatten skyline from the Hudson
Far left: Ground Zero Memorial Above: Street signage at night Below: Autumn leaves in Central Park
18 . THE TUDORIAN . October 2015
Going for Gold Silver Duke of Edinburgh A large proportion of girls from the Vs successfully completed their silver Duke of Edinburgh Award, signing straight up for the gold award. The number of students embarking on gold grows year on year, as the girls recognise the value of such a prestigious award on their personal statements and CVs.
TI4C South Africa The Sparrow Foundation School in Johannesburg, South Africa, provides both a remedial and specialized education to children with learning difficulties between the ages of 7 and 13. The children have a diverse range of abilities and, besides literacy and numeracy, the pupils learn life skills. Over half term, a group of ten LVI girls visited Sparrow to assist in their class rooms and lend a hand wherever help was needed. For both Tudor Hall staff and girls alike, the trip was wholly inspirational and life changing.
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The (condensed) Diary of a Warrior by Rosie Dunbar During half term, I was lucky enough to travel to South Africa as part of the Warrior’s Accelerated Scholarship Programme (WASP). In the eight, actionpacked days we were there, we were thrown out of planes, off bridges and down waterfalls, whilst still managing to appreciate some of South Africa’s amazing culture. The aim of WASP was for participants to learn to trust and appreciate one another while being challenged and encouraged to overcome irrational fears and push ourselves to the limit. This we certainly did!
Right: Serena Goodhart with one of the children from the orphanage
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Each day began at 5.30am with early morning exercise followed by a hearty breakfast, preparing us fully for the day ahead. Activities included visiting an orphanage and playing games with the children, an eight-hour hike and walking across burning coals. So much happened every day it was impossible to diarise everything but highlights certainly included free-falling 10 meters as part of the “big swing” and skydiving. Every experience pushed me to overcome fears (however small) and on returning to the UK I really felt a more confident, responsible and all together better person. I could not recommend the Warrior adventure more highly and only wish I could repeat the experience again this year. Rosie Dunbar
Below: The girls at Warrior’s basecamp.
Above right The bungee jump! Right: Amazing walk
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mock university interviews
TI4C Bolton During half term, ten girls from the LVI went on the inaugural 'fourth continent' trip to Bolton led by Wendy Griffiths and James Stead. The team were working with the Bolton Lads & Girls Club, which provides a safe haven for the young people of Bolton, providing them with a place for them to spend their free time as well as a mentoring service. The girls undertook a leadership training programme and were widely involved in all aspects of the club’s work. The Club now forms part of TI4C.
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Presentation Skills and Following a great talk by Head of Careers, Chris Varney, about presenting yourself and how to prepare for a job or university interview, all the UVI took part in mock university interviews. Based on personal statements or their CVs, the interviews were designed to prepare the girls for some of the questions they might expect. Detailed feedback allowed the girls to approach interviews with more confidence.
22 . THE TUDORIAN . October 2015
The Tempest The LVI and UVI English Literature sets headed to the Oxford Playhouse to see The Northern Stage production of The Tempest. It started with a stage formed entirely of old clothes; a large washing machine threw clothes ferociously about, accompanied by the courtiers thrashing about on stage, perhaps symbolising the island as a place for washedup debris and souls. Prospero and Miranda were cast as black, whilst Caliban was decidedly white, turning the tables on the play’s slavery theme by empowering the typically oppressed and victimising the white. Moreover, McDermott, perhaps tired with the weak Miranda, interestingly cast Ariel as a woman, giving the play a more female narrative and intensifying the intimacy of Prospero’s affection. The play was a huge success, thoroughly enjoyed by all. Iona Cleave
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A Level Textiles by Constance Sale
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Autumn Fun Day Early arrivals to the fun day were treated to a wonderful concert performed by the junior girls. Options after the concert included lunch, sports fixtures and the annual Christmas Fair. Stall holders for the fair came from far and wide with the aim of tempting those who were starting their Christmas shopping early. The finale to the day was a hog roast followed by a bonfire and a spectacular fireworks display. Not only was this an entertaining day but £2,787 was raised for Tudor in Four Continents and Walk in Her Shoes.
The MM Browne Poetry Prize Tudor was delighted to introduce a brand new poetry competition, named after and judged by published poet and OT Maureen Browne (1959). The MM Browne Poetry Prize and Junior Poetry Prize enticed over 50 entries. Girls were awarded first, second or highly commended in both the senior and junior sections. SENIORS: WINNER: The Chase (Sophie Walker) SECOND PRIZE: Trans (Sacha Robertson) HIGHLY COMMENDED: And You Asked Me to Write (Lottie McGrath) JUNIORS: WINNER: The son of the sea... (Alishba Farooq) JOINT SECOND PRIZE: Ballet Dreams (Isabella Bradshaw) and The Mohawk Thug (Tilly Dollar) HIGHLY COMMENDED: Mirror, Mirror (Orlanda Stephens) Pride (Mia Berridge) Time’s Ticked By and Todd’s Arrived (Freya Ashton) Ride Horse (Angel Wang) Bullying (Emilie Hope)
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The Chase We wait in silence, Our eyes wide and ears awake watching them work the cover. The rustling of the forest fodder, Echoed by the hum of panting hounds, Spreads around us like morning mist.
I erupt in call Breaking the silence of the field All eyes are on us. A loose hound emerges from the brush, Nose deep in earth He looks at us and knows.
Its in there. Somewhere. We feel it. And they feel it. Not long now.
A loud yawning cry rings through the valley Followed by the chorus of the eager pack. Yet we stay still.
Her body fills with adrenaline, I can feel it bubbling within her I can sense her laser-like glare Looking on to something I cannot see. Ears pricked forward A signal to me. I stare ahead It’s close, very close.
Gazing after the glimpsing red Followed by a wave of dogs chasing it up the hill. She impatiently stamps her foot she yearns to join the chase! But I hold her back allowing her excitement to boil to the brim.
A flash of red
My hands soften and I let her go. We soar after them All we hear now is the snorting, the pounding hooves together in time with the racing hearts. I feel her elation rise up through me For we’re both grinning, Because we saw it first.
Sophie Walker (LVI)
November | 15
Maureen Brown with the winners
26 . THE TUDORIAN . November 2015
Earning Money and gaining experience
Representatives from Sykes and Co, a recruitment agency based in Towcester, spoke to the Sixth Form about opportunities for temporary work placements in offices, factories or at events. The girls learnt that temping can be another valuable way of obtaining work experience, and a great way to earn money at the same time.
NG Lecture Series The Value of Photography
With instant imaging now driving the world’s social media, photographer Richard Smith’s lecture on ‘The Value of Photography’ couldn’t have been more appropriate.
THE TUDORIAN . November 2015 . 27
Girls were delighted when the young Indie rock band Purple Mafia did their first gig for some time here at Tudor Hall. The boys have had some time out to write a whole new set of original material that was launched in front of an audience of just over 200 girls, parents and staff. The band gave a superb performance that had Tudor shaking to the rafters. Tudor girls provided fantastic support acts and PM were ‘blown away’ by all the girls’ performances.
B&W image: Sofie Svanikier with Purple Mafia Colour images: Purple Mafia in concert
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Purple Mafia
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Right: The Sparrow Choir performing at the Mass Choir Concert Below: Members of the Sparrow Choir at Limes Farm, Farthinghoe
Sparrow School Choir Tour The Sparrow Schools Foundation Choir of South Africa, including 11 pupils and 3 members of staff, spent five days of their three week choir tour with Tudor. Their whistle-stop fundraising tour saw them visit Limes Farm tearoom for a hearty English tea, take part in art, textiles and cookery lessons, visit local schools as well as raise the roof with a Mass Choir Concert. The ensemble, aged from 14 to 18 years, treated the audience to a selection of traditional African songs before they joined forces with choirs from Beachborough School, Carrdus School and Tudor Hall for the show’s finale Asimbonanga u Mandela (We haven’t seen Mandela). Left from top: The Chamber Choir performing at the Mass Choir Concert led by Lindsey Lea-James Pig appreciation at Limes Farm Carrdus Choir at the Mass Choir Concert
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GCSE art by Frankie Dove
30 . THE TUDORIAN . December 2015
Christmas Cards are still alive and kicking
Following on from Sparrow’s wonderful November choir tour, we invited pupils of Sparrow School in Johannesburg to submit entries to the Old Tudorians’ Association’s Christmas card competition. We received many wonderful pictures, however the winning picture was created by Zolile Skepu, aged 14, who won an art box. www.sparrowschools.org Roseanne Watkins (IIs) submitted a painting of Rudolph delivering Tudor's Christmas post which was chosen as the school's winning Christmas card.
School Carol Service Girls, staff and parents gathered in St Mary’s Church, Banbury, for Tudor’s annual Carol Service of nine lessons and carols. Lessons were read by John Gloag, Chairman of Governors, Tudor parent Hugo Kimber, Greta Scott (V), Head Girls Constance Sale and Kitty Kimber, Lian Dancer (Todd), Chair of the Old Tudorians' Association and History Teacher Harriet Granville, Old Tudorian Hester Sale and Headmistress Wendy Griffiths. The Chamber, Senior, Junior and School Choirs and UVI Quartet treated the congregation to some wonderful carols and compositions. The retiring collection was donated to Banbury’s Young Homeless Project and Tudor in Four Continents.
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The OTA Carol Service For the second year running, the OTA Carol Service was held at The Guards’ Chapel, Wellington Barracks, with OTs, parents, staff and friends filling the magnificent chapel for the service of nine lessons and carols, led by Dr John Jackson and the Household Division’s Senior Chaplain Dowell Conning. Carols by the Chamber, Tudor, Guards and OTA Scratch Choirs filled the rafters with Jasmine Faulkner’s (2013) rendition of ‘The First Mercy’ silencing even a church mouse. Huge thanks
The whole school – pupils, staff and staff children – once again had a ball at the Vs Christmas party. The hall decorations were particularly spectacular and the girls’ show did not disappoint – even the Grinch made an appearance and everyone in the hall had to try to get Christmas back! There were lots of fantastic sketches, games and a choreographed dance for the whole year. It was a fantastic way for the whole community to get into the festive spirit.
The drinks reception in the Officer’s Mess was a great start to the festive season. Thanks to the generosity of the congregation, £575 was raised for Battle Back and £320 for Unicef’s Syrian Refugee campaign. December | 15
Vs Christmas Party
to Violet Blackburn, Mary Eckert, Anna Roberts, Polly Waters, Sonali Balch, Martha Prestige, Hannah Newton-Oakes, Connie Sale, Maddy Meeson, Milly Ingham Clark and Molly Maddan for taking part.
32 . THE TUDORIAN . December 2015
Let's Dance
The themes for House Dance were Cats, Film Music and Painting by Renoir, and the competition was judged by Verity Redrup, James Stead, Kitty Kimber and Connie Sale. The girls worked in their own time throughout the autumn term to produce original choreography based on their set theme to be performed in front of the school and judged. The IVs led the younger years and had to consider all elements of the dance that were to be judged as well as costume and overall presentation of the theme. Each group was given a half hour slot on the stage as a final rehearsal where Bronwen Robinson and Layla Williams could give them some help in getting the pieces up to performance standard. The show was a great success, with lots of fun and intriguing interpretations of each theme. The winners, who also got to perform at the Christmas Dance showcase were: Stuart (Cats) Lanc (Music from Star Wars) and Tudor (Painting).
December 2015 . 33
December | 15
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Dance Showcase The Christmas Showcase produced 19 dances in total including Reaction’s dance piece, a number of solo routines, and duets and group dances by the Todds, IIs and IIIs. A beautiful ballet piece also featured from Tudor's Ballet group which was choreographed by Gabrielle Butler. Todd embraced a contemporary style and danced to Real Love by Jess Glynne, the IIs showed their pop princess moves with a Little Mix Piece, in contrast to IIIs Hip Hop routine by Snoop Dog. The showcase demonstrated an array of styles and musical genres allowing each girl to shine and express her individual creativity. The evening culminated with Reaction’s performance which had a mysterious uneasy tone with the girls in white masks performing a version of Cello Greens’ Crazy. Reaction had worked really hard all term exploring complex themes of mental health, isolation and social judgment to produce original choreography. They did not disappoint in their performance and continue to impress Bronwen Robinson and Layla Williams with their talent and commitment.
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Hockey round up
Tudor’s U16 regional side travelled to Wellington College to compete in the Regional Hockey Tournament. The team kicked off with a fast paced game against Stowe School, narrowly losing 2-1, and battled hard against Sir William Borlase securing a fantastic 0-0 draw. Tudor went into the final game against an excellent St Georges College side and battled throughout losing 2-0. The girls’ effort and team ethos could not have been faulted throughout the tournament. Tudor’s U14 regional side travelled to Stowe School to take part in the Regional Hockey Tournament. The team played Epsom College in their opening game; Epsom scored a goal against the run of play and, as Tudor pressed harder, they conceded a second. In their next game versus Godolphin and Latymer, Tudor
conceded an early goal however battled back and equalised with a goal by Molly Levene only for G&L to score a second time. In their final game, Tudor played a very strong Bradfield side and, after a fast and furious game, lost 4-0.
Tudor and Radley Sixth Form Hispanists enjoyed a Spanish Social at Tudor just before Christmas. After engaging in Spanish conversation over an authentic Spanish meal, they were treated to a Cuban salsa lesson, delivered in Spanish by Afro-Cuban dance professional, Ariel Rios Robert. Everyone especially enjoyed the ‘rueda’, where couples dance in a circle and swap partners, according to the moves called by the leader.
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Tudor & Radley Spanish Social
36 . THE TUDORIAN . January 2016
Flaine, France
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Tudor commemorates the Holocaust
Sylwia Holmes, Research Associate at the UCL Holocaust Education Centre and Music Administrator at Tudor Hall, said: “We found that marking the Holocaust purely on the 27th January didn’t allow the girls sufficient time to really learn about and reflect on this time in history. And so, in the week leading up to the day of remembrance, we immersed them with information on Jewish life and ensured that common misconceptions, like
Top: The Memory Wall Above: Greta Scott, Adèle Tumilty, Ulla Smirnova at the Holocaust debate Left: Names on the wall
the geographical spread, diverse socio-economic class and beliefs of the Jewish people, were corrected.” Sylwia's article is available to read on the IOE London blog on their website.
January | 16
To commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day, held in the UK and other countries on the 27th January, Tudor hosted a variety of events over a week long period to remember the 6 million individuals who lost their lives. Girls took part in a Holocaust assembly, the Vs, LVI and UVI participated in Holocaust Remembrance Debates against four other schools, English lessons focused on the poignancy of the day, and pupils had the opportunity to express their thoughts and feelings on Memory Wall.
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Head Girl:
Milly Kaye Head Girl. Nonetheless, it soon became part of our routine and we have definitely nailed the art of laying out chairs! What have you learnt from being Head Girl? Without sounding too cheesy, I really do feel like a different girl from when I started my role as Head Girl to finishing it. The confidence you gain is incredible, from public speaking to organising events, your self-confidence grows enormously. I learnt the importance of working as a team to get things done and my organisation skills were definitely tested at times. Are there any particular events and/or jobs associated with being Head Girl that have stuck in your mind? The meetings we had with Miss Griffiths on Monday mornings and Tuesday afternoons will always be associated with my time as Head Girl. I don’t think I have ever been so nervous as I was the morning before Head Girls' prayers; luckily it all went very smoothly and we hope that everyone enjoyed it. What did it feel like to be asked to be Head Girl? I felt so honoured to be asked to be Head Girl. Going through my time at Tudor I always looked up to the Head Girls and I just couldn’t believe that I was now one too. What are the highs and lows of the job? I definitely enjoyed the PR events that came with being Head Girl. I loved attending school fairs where we promoted Tudor to prep school parents. At the first one I remember being quite nervous about what to say but by the end it was so much fun and it definitely helped with my confidence. The OT event in Oxford was such a fun night out and it was so nice to see old Tudor girls. Laying out the chairs on Sunday evening ready for prayers the next morning was probably the least glamorous part of being
What advice you would give to future Head Girls? Firstly, don’t be nervous. I was terrified when I first had to do public speaking but as the term went on, I got used to it. Time management is also very important, especially towards the end of term when you have to organise Head Girls' prayers and the speeches at mark reading. But most of all just enjoy your time as Head Girl. It goes by in a flash and it really is the most amazing opportunity; just make sure you make the most of it.
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Head Girl:
Flora Bourdillon
What was it like when you heard your name announced as Head Girl? I will never forget the day that I was asked to be Head Girl, I could not believe it. I was so stunned that I actually thought that I would not be able to make it to the table to be congratulated! Being picked as Head Girl was one of the most unbelievable things that has ever happened to me, as I feel as if it has given me the confidence to believe a little more in myself. What were the most memorable events you attended as Head Girl? One of the best events was going to the Varsity Club in Oxford and meeting some Old Tudorians as well as members of the wider Tudor community including former staff and parents. Another high of the job was having lunches with headmasters and headmistresses, as I always find it interesting to meet new people. I also really enjoyed judging the house drama as I was able to view something from an entirely different perspective. What have you learnt from being Head Girl? I learnt leadership skills which were particularly important to put into use when Milly and I were organising Head Girls' Prayers which required a lot of imagination and organisation. Putting the chairs out for prayers however, is one of the less appealing jobs but this low was very easily overcome by the many highs such as our weekly teas with Miss Griffiths.
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What advice would you give to a future Head Girl? I would advise not to be nervous. Although thrilled to be picked, I was absolutely terrified, especially at the prospect of having to shout ‘please stand’ at the top of my voice each prayers to gain everyone’s attention. However, as the term progressed the job got so much easier, and I soon realised that there was little to be nervous about.
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British School Girls' Races success Left: Marina Bealby in action Below: BSGR Group
An elated Tudor Ski Team returned from the British School Girls’ Races in Flaine, France. Marina Bealby (UVI) won a bronze medal in the Under 21 ‘non-registered skier’ section and the team, competing against a field of 131 skiers forming 48 teams from 31 schools, were placed 21st overall. Huge congratulations to Marina, Jessica Carter (Vs), Jessica Miller (Vs), Lorna Fleming (IVs), Maria Agustsdottir (IIIs) and Olivia Belbin (UVI). The girls competed in three races – Slalom, Giant Slalom and Parallel Slalom – over two days in the French Resort. Verity Redrup, Tudor Hall’s Ski Team Manager, commented, “The competition was tough, with teams from all over the UK competing to an extremely high level. Marina has been skiing in the competition since joining the Tudor team in the IIs, so it’s great for her to go out on a high. Huge congratulations also go to Maria Agustdottir (12) who came 63rd in the open Giant Slalom.”
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Left: Marina Bealby on the podium
Skiers, clockwise from right: Jess Carter Jess Miller Maria Agustsdottir Lorna Fleming Oliva Belbin
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Aim Higher
topics for discussion Lateral thinking puzzles The Aim Higher Programme introduced the Todds to IIIs to lateral thinking puzzles, and they pondered questions such as: a man is found hanging in an otherwise empty locked room with a puddle of water under his feet.
The milestones of human genetics Wendy Griffiths introduced the IVs to UVI to the key concepts of human genetics in preparation for Lord Winston’s NG Lecture on ‘Modifying Humans: where does genetics stop?’ Whilst, Sarah Malpass introduced the Todds to IIIs to genetics, incorporating a variety of experiments to bring the subject to life.
Careers in fashion Always a favorite with the girls, this event did not disappoint. Zoe Souter from Condé Nast College of Fashion and Design was an inspiration, with one of the main messages being that you do not necessarily have to be creative to build a successful career in fashion. She explained there are roles for a wide range of skills: design, media, journalism, retailing, e-commerce, blogging, event organising/management, even finance and accounting. Some of her valuable advice was to: Prepare a one-page CV
O
Shadow and try work placements in fashion
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Get a holiday/part-time job in retail
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Volunteer at a fashion show, better still, organise your own
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Go to exhibitions and watch iconic fashion films
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Follow brands you love on social media
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Set yourself projects and carry out research
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Make scrapbooks of inspiration
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Follow everyone on Instagram
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Write for your school magazine and start a blog
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Learn a language: Korean, Mandarin or Japanese are a bonus!
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Vs Cookery Course at Daylesford
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The Vs headed to Daylesford organic farm in Gloucestershire to do a one-day cookery course. The focus was on clean, healthy eating with no chemicals and all organic ingredients and the girls were astonished to learn that they were not going to use any heat in the creation of an entire three course lunch menu. The menu included a variety of delicious raw foods including ceviche, seed and nut crackers and chocolate mousse, as well as a selection of delicious juices. Many of the girls declared that the course had changed the way that they thought about food.
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U13 County Netball Tournament Nine girls took part in the U13 County Netball Tournament at the Oxford Netball Centre. They included Tilly Dollar (Captain), Emily Newsome, Grace Chism, Abigail Rutherford, Arabella Batt, Laoise McNamara, Lotty Walker, Fenella Wills and Natasha Stevenson. The girls took part in five matches; winning three, drawing one and narrowly losing one. As the team progressed
Charity Calendar 2016 Dogs continue to play an enormous role pastorally within the Tudor community, with over 20 dogs either living or ‘working’ daily on the campus. With this in mind, and Sheila Craske’s discovery of Tudor’s Millennium Dog Calendar, it was decided that the time had come for another. After a two-day photo shoot with Lizzi Snoddon, Head of Photography, the finished product hit the printing press and has been a huge hit. £272.10 went to Dogs for Good, www.dogsforgood.org (formerly Dogs for the Disabled), an innovative charity exploring ways dogs can help people overcome specific challenges and enrich and improve lives and communities.
throughout the tournament, they vastly improved their positional play and game awareness. Tudor Hall came fifth overall out of ten schools, narrowly missing out on a place in the semi-final. The nominated player of the tournament was Laoise McNamara. Team coach, Charlotte Pemble, enthused “The girls played extremely well in a tough competition, showing their true grit and determination.”
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Medical Detection Dogs
The Medical Detection Dogs Support Charity visited Tudor to give an inspirational talk to Todd, IIs and IIIs. The charity trains dogs to detect the odour of human disease and told the girls about the Medical Alert Assistance dogs (trained to assist individuals who manage complex, life threatening health conditions) and the Cancer Detection dogs (who aid in the advancement of research into the early diagnosis of cancers through cheap non-invasive tests). Needless to say, the appearance of such amazing dogs on site certainly caused a stir!
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Above: there's always time for a photo shoot! Left: puppy love
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Venice, Italy
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The Vs Textiles trip visited The Royal School of Needlework at Hampton Court and the Vogue 100: A Century of Style exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery to support their course work. The girls took part in a bespoke needlework workshop with the RSN’s BA Hons Degree Hand Embroidery expert, Angie Wyman, creating Victoriana felt hearts and fascinators. They were then given the chance to see the school’s archived ‘Handling Collection’ which demonstrated to the girls how stitch alters fabric in so many ways.
A stitch in time…
Rebekah Knox enthused “The RSN was amazing, it was especially good to experience what it’s like to be at a school utilising exquisite techniques and ideas in the textile world. I enjoyed making the needle cushions and learning a brand new stitch. We also saw the first year students’ projects which included darning, repair and medical themed ideas which gave me inspiration for my new project.”
Left: A fine fascinator
The girls then headed into central London to see Vogue 100 which gave a fantastic insight into the magazine’s history since its first edition in 1916. With magazines from each year on display, the girls saw how the history of fashion, editorial style and photographic approach has changed over the last century.
Below left: Victoriana pin cushion Below right: group sewing
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images of Venice captured by James Stead
IVs Trip to Venice
Sheila Craske, James Stead and Beverley Murphy took the IVs GCSE art group to Venice to carry out some first-hand research for their project on Venetian arts and crafts. The IVs had been studying the oil painting techniques and use of colour by artists such as Tintoretto, Veronese and Titian, as well as Italian Gothic and its use of gold leaf and oil paint to create beautiful triptychs. The girls were amazed to see the paintings they had studied at school and excited to be able to take a close look at the brush strokes and intricate details. Annabel Cave, who had been learning
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how to use oil paint by copying the Renaissance painting of the last Queen of Cyprus, Caterina Cornaro, by Titian, was particularly pleased to find her tomb in the Chiesa de San Salvador.
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The girls visited many of the main sights such as St Mark's Basilica, Doge's Palace, Ca' d’Oro, The Peggy Guggenheim Collection and Scuola de San Rocco, and photographed the Grand Canal from all angles. One of the highlights was the beautiful marble floors that adorn the Ca' d’Oro, and the real bronze horses of St Mark's housed in the Basilica’s museum. They also visited the famous
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islands of Murano and Burano to watch glass blowing and lace making. Beverley Murphy was on a mission to buy a glass lion blown in the authentic factories of Murano. The girls enjoyed watching her barter the dealers before she purchased her artefact.
Left: Annabel Cave in Venetian mask Below left: The art of glass blowing Below right: There's always time for gelato
The weather was perfect for sight-seeing, although the flood sirens went off one day and the army was on standby to help put up the flood defences. Luckily by morning, the water had receded and the girls were able to continue their visual research around the city. Back in school, the girls designed etching plates and lino cuts to print on handmade marble paper and used their visual diaries and photographs to create oil paintings with gold leaf and replicate crumbling and decayed parts of Venice in ceramics. A truly memorable and inspiring trip, the girls found it hard to leave.
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TI4C Chennai
Eight girls from the LVI packed their rucksacks (and a lot of art materials and sports equipment) and headed off to The Ebenezer Living Word Matriculation School in Chennai, India, for February half term. The girls tested their leadership and management skills, running daily 3-hour art sessions masterminded by Sheila Craske with over 40 children on 7 tables making a selection of masks, bags and felt animals. The girls also threw a Children’s Party, complete with pass the parcel and musical bumps, and visited the St Louis School for profoundly deaf and blind children. Thanks to pre-trip fundraising, volleyball and badminton equipment was donated and monies raised by Harriet Granville via the Warwickshire Hunt paid for a new bore hole and pump. Sight-seeing was squeezed into the girls’ timetable with trips to Mahabalipuram and the temples, churches and museums of Chennai.
Top left: Bag decorating Bottom left: Using material creatively
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Top right: Creative bonding
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TI4C Guatemala Five members of the LVI travelled to the rural community of San Lorenzo el Cubo in Guatemala with Ian Edwards and Holly Thomas over February half term for an experience of a life-time. El Porvenir Primary School is one of two schools built by Niños De Guatemala, a Dutch-Guatemalan non-profit organisation which works to break the cycle of poverty in Guatemala by providing quality education to those who need it most. The girls worked as classroom assistants in different year groups, introducing the children to ‘It’, ‘Duck, Duck, Goose’ and ‘Hopscotch’ at playtime, and providing a variety of after-school activities including a textiles and sport workshop for over 40 children each afternoon.
Tudor girls with the children of El Porvenir Primary School
The girls also had an opportunity to gain an understanding of the Guatemalan culture, visiting a factory that transforms American school buses into iconic ‘Chicken Buses’ that ferry passengers all over the country as well as a tour of a coffin making factory. They visited the home of a mother who makes 140 worry dolls a day to supplement her family’s income, and took a boat trip across Lake Atitlan stopping off to see how chocolate is made and take part in a local bracelet making workshop. A highlight was a trip to the local coffee cooperative, De La Gente, touring the plantation on the side of a volcano and then witnessing the process which transforms coffee beans into a tasty cup of coffee. Whilst eating really well throughout the trip, the tastiest meal was prepared by the owner of the coffee plantation – a delicious chicken stew accompanied by tortillas and the spiciest, most flavoursome chilli.
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Nassfeld Ski Trip February half term saw 28 girls from the IIs to IVs head off to Nassfeld in Austria for the inaugural school ski trip. The girls received five hours of instruction per day, interspersed with lunch on the mountain, and learnt to ski powder in the two feet of snow that fell during the week. The trip provided an excellent opportunity for Verity Redrup to identify future talent for the school Ski Team.
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Nobel Prize Winners in the making
Girls from the LVI attended a particle physics master class at Rutherford Appleton Laboratories near Didcot in Oxfordshire, one of the UK’s national scientific research laboratories operated by the Science & Technology Facilities Council. As part of the day, they attended a series of talks on the Standard model and particle accelerators by researchers, and toured the Diamond accelerator. They were then given the opportunity to analyse real data from the Large Hadron Collider in Geneva from the ATLAS detector and were the first group to find the Higgs Boson (a subatomic particle whose existence is predicted by the theory which unified the weak and electromagnetic interactions). Teacher of Physics, Joan Shaw, who led the trip, enthused “The girls did brilliantly to be the first school to find the Higgs Boson – Nobel prizes all round!”
Zwillinge German GCSE students from Tudor and local schools were treated to a funny German play, ‘Zwillinge’, about mistaken identity. Everyone was surprised at how much they could understand and followed the story with ease. After the play, the students were invited to ask the actors questions in German.
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UK Mathematics Trust Challenge
Mathematicians in the IIIs and IVs took part in the UK Mathematics Trust ‘Intermediate Maths Challenge’, a nationwide scheme encouraging children to think outside the ‘curriculum box’. Jackie Zhong and Marie Shen won gold medals, with two girls gaining silver medals and nine girls gaining bronze. The hour long challenge was sat under exam conditions and was no mean feat. Both Marie and Jackie went on to sit the UKMT IMOK ‘Kangaroo’ papers, with Marie coming close to receiving a merit.
Aim Higher
topics for discussion Genetics – an introduction Sarah Malpass, Head of Junior Science, introduced the younger years to the key concepts of human genetics in preparation for the forthcoming lecture from Lord Winston.
Can you solve the riddles? The girls were asked to use mathematics and their friends to help them get over a bridge before the zombies got them?
The geography of HIV/AIDs
all at Eton talk
In February, nine members of the LVI attended a fantastic talk at Eton College by Sir A P McCoy about his life as a jockey.
Bella Roche and Tish Bulwer-Long with AP
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Kerri Hadfield, Head of Geography, talked about the causes and distribution of HIV/AIDs and what is being done to combat it.
AP McCoy tells
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Banbury Young Musician of the Year 2016 Eight girls made it through to the finals of the The Banbury Young Musician of the Year Competition 2016. In the Junior section, Lian Dancer played 'Allegro' by Vivaldi on the violin and came third, and Tilly Sears sang 'Sunrise, Sunset' by Jerry Bock, coming second. In the Intermediate section, Kitty Veale played 'Ladies in Lavender' by Nigel Hess on the violin and was placed second with Grace Sale, who came first with her rendition of 'Song without Words' by Felix Mendelssohn on the cello. Mimi Douglas came second singing 'In His Eyes' by Frank Wildhorn, and Mary Eckert, who sang 'Someone to Watch over Me' by George Gershwin, won the section and was presented with the Banbury House Hotel Trophy. Mary and Jenny Look also sang the duet 'Serenade' by Bizet and came third. In the Senior Piano section, Ella Ziegler wowed the audience with 'Notturno' by Edvard Grieg gaining second place. This year, Tudor Hall donated a ‘Most Improved Junior’ cup, which was presented by Wendy Griffiths. Top: Mary Eckert and Mimi Douglas receiving their certificates Left: Wendy Griffiths with the winner of the Most Improved Cup
Volunteering with BYHP Tudor has had links with Banbury Young Homelessness Project (BYHP) for some years now. Girls from the IVs, Vs, LVI and UVI were invited to attend a talk about the charity and the many volunteering opportunities available which include fundraising activities, cooking, socialising with the young people on a regular basis, blogging, social media and other marketing activities.
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Blue Stockings In early February, the senior school produced a stunning production of Jessica Swale’s “Blue Stockings”. Set at Girton College, Cambridge in 1896, this relatively new play centres on the struggle of Cambridge’s first women students to be allowed to graduate. Its title refers to bluestockings, a derogatory term for female intellectuals, at a time when the education of women was regarded as potentially dangerous for their health, wellbeing and family life. “Love or knowledge: what would you choose?” The fact that the play champions women’s education made for a rewarding and uplifting experience for everyone involved in the production, with strong performances across the board, matching up to an amazing set. This was one of Tudor’s best productions to date.
Degrees for women may have been a dangerous idea in 1896, but in 2016 we hope that this story of four young women fighting for education and self-determination will prove to be an inspiration to all the girls for many years to come.
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Cross Country Round Up
The cross country season proved to be a successful one for Tudor runners at both school and club level. The U17 Cross Country Team won the Oxfordshire Schools CrossCountry Championships at Radley College on 2nd February. Jenny Hannah, last year’s U15s champion, won the individual U17s title, with the Tudor team taking the gold medal. With a large field of Oxfordshire’s best U17 female runners, Tudor featured prominently in the top 10 in the first half of the race. The team then made their move in the second half of the race, forcing the tempo and leaving some of the early pace setters in their wake. In the final stages, Jenny Hannah found herself in the unfamiliar position of leading last year’s U17 champion and managed to retain her lead of some 15 seconds to finish first. Rose Lord ran with her usual expertise over the tricky course and crossed the line in 5th position, followed by Lucy Scruton who ran an excellent race finishing in 7th position, Jessica Miller coming in 11th place and Flora Ayres a highly respectable 22nd. Jenny Hannah, Rose Lord, Lucy Scruton and Jessica Miller were all selected for the Oxon schools county U17 team. In the U15 age group, Molly Levene came 6th, Ottilie Dick came 12th, Tilly Dollar was 45th, Mia Berridge was 53rd and Christina Rodriguez Martin came 70th. Molly Levene was selected for the U15 county team.
Above:Jenny Hannah in hot pursuit Right: From left, Jessica Miller, Flora Ayres, Rose Lord, Lucy Scruton and Jenny Hannah
A Level textiles by Kitty Kimber
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House ‘Drama in a Day’ Tudor girls in Todd to LVI enjoyed a new format for the biennial House Drama Competition. The girls welcomed the task of creating an original piece of drama in just one day. The stimulus for the drama was a bag containing 7 props, all of which had to be used in the drama. Congratulations
to the overall winning house Lanc, to Chiara Burrell, Clara Petrillo and Jenny Look for best ensemble, to Tudor for backstage management, to York for the best programme and Stuart for best direction.
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Inside Out Lucy Chetwode, Flora Loder and Connie Sale performed their A2 piece Inside Out in the Drama Studio to a packed house. Inside Out was a devised piece, written and performed by the girls themselves as part of their A-Level Drama coursework. They produced an outstanding piece of work, which provided the audience with snapshots of the lives of three characters all living on the same street. The aim of the piece was to show how our public faces often belie a very different reality, and how some people feel increasingly isolated in today’s society and communities. What really came to the fore in the performance was the girls’ commitment to each other as an ensemble, their maturity, their flexibility as actresses, the attention to detail in their characterisations which made them so convincing, and their ability to take the audience on a journey through these characters’ lives.
Speech & Drama Senior Showcase
An evening of drama, prose and poetry was enjoyed by parents, staff and pupils, when Speech and Drama pupils from the Vs to UVI performed their LAMDA examination pieces in the Drama Studio. Exciting introductory music and costumes brought the pieces beautifully to life. Performances ranged from five minute extracts of 15 to 20 minute scripted group acting plays to solos, duologues and extracts from 15 minute themed recitals prepared for the Reading for Performance examinations. In one play, a trial in a war torn country was underway, where a young girl was being questioned on suspicion of collaborating with enemy soldiers; Harriet Hope characterised a pushy ‘showbiz’ mother, whilst Hannah Waters rounded off the evening with a passionate speech from ‘Skylight’ by David Hare, in which Kyra defended her choice of career to her ex-lover Tom.
LAMDA
Examination Success Thirty-nine senior Speech and Drama pupils successfully took a variety of LAMDA examinations in the Drama Studio; these ranged from Solo, Duologue and Group Acting examinations to Verse and Prose and Reading for Performance. The girls' outstanding work ethic throughout the year is clearly evidenced by their results: twenty-three received marks with distinction and twenty-five were recognised with merit.
Harriet Hope as Stephanie in Age of Consent
Dr Faustus The Sixth Form English Literature sets travelled to the Swan Theatre in Stratford to see Dr Faustus; Christopher Marlowe’s tale of a dissatisfied scholar selling his soul to the devil. The play was incredible. One of the most astonishing parts of the play was the decision taken live on stage on which actor would play which character by burning matches. Whoever’s match went out first ‘lost’ and had to play the doomed Dr Faustus! All in all, the play was visually stunning, and made one think on how far one would and should go to feed self-greed.
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The Spring Concert was once again a great event, with 16 items of commendable standard. The school orchestra began with folk songs, followed by our Music A level student, Sophie Simoes, singing a lovely rendition of ‘O Waly, Waly’. The clarinet group gave a fantastic performance of ‘Strictly Dancing’ and the choirs once again rose to task with uplifting performances. Every year group was represented with either ensemble or solo items, and it was a joy to see four of our vocal soloists from the UVI, showing what support we have right through the school. A special mention must be made of the humorous and captivating performance of ‘Alto Lament’ by Katie Ross, which will not be forgotten.
Speakers Corner
Sasha White and Anna Stallibrass
The Composer’s Series Baroque The letters and reminiscences of the great composers offer a unique window into the world in which they lived. Each year, Music Teacher Deborah Siepmann writes a script based on a selection of vivid source material to provide a brief overview of a composer’s life, or a glimpse into a period of music history. She then collaborates with Lindsey Lea-James and Susie Lowe to fuse the music with prose. This year we were treated to an evening focusing on the Baroque. With superb dramatic coaching from Susie Lowe, readers Sasha White and Anna Stallibrass brought the movement to life with outstanding expression and clarity. They were complemented beautifully by music from Ella Bridgland on the harp, Joey Zhou, Sasha White, Francesca Dove and Kate Kot on the piano and harpsichord, Grace Sale on the cello, Clementine Beale on the
Harriet Hope, Rosie Dunbar and Izzy Batt formed Tudor Hall’s senior team for the Rotary Club’s Youth Speaks competition. Having won the first round of the competition, which was held at school, the girls attended the second round in Witney. Rosie did an excellent job introducing the team and chairing the proceedings, especially as she stepped in at the last minute and only had a few days to prepare and rehearse. Harriet’s speech questioning whether ‘celebrity culture is a modern day evil’ was both thought-provoking and funny and was delivered with great flair. Izzy wrapped up the Tudor presentation with a witty vote of thanks and, while she assured us she was shaking all the way through, was the very picture of composure. The girls didn’t win but they gave a great performance and their attitude to the whole competition was one of good humour and professionalism.
flute, Harriet Gough on the guitar, Sophie Simoes, Jennifer Look, Elizabeth Coombs and Martha Prestidge on violin and singing by Lucy Trotter, Mary Eckert, Violet Blackburn and Sophie Walker. Deborah Siepmann commented, “I love the privilege of working closely with my inspirational colleagues who, with their great knowledge of instrumental and vocal repertoire, always come up with beautiful pieces for the girls. As we let our imaginations drift back through time, these wonderful performances from our talented young musicians are always a great joy to hear.”
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Poetry Trials We were delighted with the success of the six girls who entered the Poetry Trials competition, all of whom were published in the competition’s anthology ‘Southern Voices’. The competition recognised some great young talent and enthused entrants and others to continue to develop their characterful, engaging writing. Congratulations to Olivia Brounger, Lucy Herbert, Sasha White, Molly Levene, Mia Berridge and Isabella Mackie.
Alone In The Woods Trees stand tall; proud sentries guarding secrets best forgotten. Folk don’t dare to venture too deep. Twisted and crookedly They cackle, malicious whispers Echoing through the stifling, thin air. Like mental patients Silently screaming their agony. The scent of decay hangs in the air, Abundant, but lazy in its movements. A filthy crow with matted feathers Greets the withered claw of an oak. Eyes watching, but do they belong to the crow? Crunching sounds beneath my feet, A welcome change from the strangled silence. My arms brush against something Too heavy to be a branch. Why did I come to this place? Too late to think that, Too late to despair. High above me is a blue hole of hope, But it is too small to glimpse Violet Blackburn
Oxford drinks The OTA hosted a well-attended drinks reception at the Varsity Club, High Street, Oxford, for OTs and members of the Tudor community living, working and studying in and around Oxford. OTs (ranging from class of 1980 to 2015) joined staff, girls, former members of staff and parents for an evening of catching up and networking.
Aim Higher
topics for discussion Decoding languages The girls were challenged to learn the rules to a new language in 30 minutes. Can you?
Why read the classics? John Field, Director of Teaching and Learning, spoke to Todd to IIIs about some classic pieces of fictional writing, discussing why they were written and their wider impact.
NG Lecture Series Justine Hardy
Dana Thomas
For the third NG Lecture of the year, OT Justine Hardy, spoke on setting up Healing Kashmir. Healing Kashmir leads a small network of charitable organisations aimed at developing and implementing a model of free mental health care and education in conflict and crisis situations. After setting up schools and rehabilitation projects with local friends in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake in the region in October 2005, Justine began to research the possibility of creating a lean and easily replicable mental health care system that could work not only in Kashmir, but in any region of the world that is going through war, violence, or trying to rebuild in the aftermath of major natural disasters. Healing Kashmir was the result.
Dana Thomas, author of Gods and Kings: The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano and Tudor Mother, gave a fascinating lecture on two of fashion's greatest players. The girls found Dana’s talk wholly inspirational, and library copies of her book were signed out until the end of the summer term.
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Science Week To mark the beginning of British Science Week, the Science department hosted 70 pupils and staff from four local primary and prep schools putting on a variety of activities across all three sciences. Animal Encounters enabled pupils to have a ‘hands on’ encounter with animals such as snakes, lizards, tarantulas and a chinchilla, with students learning about the unique features each animal group needs to survive. An activity about the gases in our air included learning about the properties of each gas and a few loud bangs, whilst a Marble Maze activity encouraged students to work together to solve a problem. The Explorer Dome activity was a light show investigating light and colour, with an enlightening display of experiments carried out in a dark dome. The Science Department itself put on a number of activities in a lab for the students including making a rainbow in a test tube using acid, alkali and an indicator, and building their own erupting volcano.
BIG BANG! The Big Bang UK Young Scientists & Engineers Fair at the Birmingham NEC is an annual event held during national science week to engage and inspire more students to take up science as a career. All the IVs attended the event. At the start of the event all students attended a Hollywood special effects show which included demonstrations ranging from how to make your own fake blood to how to carry off the perfectly timed explosion. Afterwards students were given time to explore the galleries which showed the range of science careers on offer from the armed forces to the NHS. There were also smaller lectures and displays for the students to enjoy and engage with, such as a heavy metal marine biology talk.
Life Saving, life changing Anna Chambers and Ella Zeigler undertook an assessment for the National Pool Lifeguard Qualification with an assessor from the Royal Life Saving Society. The girls trained weekly throughout Sixth Form and are competent in CPR, first aid, pool rescue skills (including how do deal with casualties with spinal injuries) and have knowledge in creating and maintaining a safe environment at a swimming pool to ensure the safety of all the swimmers. Tudor Girls from previous years have reported using their qualification on their gap year, in part time jobs at leisure facilities and complimenting roles such as teaching. A group of LVI girls also benefitted from attending the course as part of their co-curricular timetable.
The Shooting Team Amelia Campbell-Grey, Jasmine Banister and Lara Browning started the clay pigeon shooting season off by representing school at The Schools Challenge – Oxford competition. They all shot very well considering the poor weather conditions and having to start on the harder targets. The girls continue with regular lessons throughout the year at the Honesberie Shooting School.
IIs Bowl Over Summer Fields
The IIs joined their equivalent year group from Summer Fields School in Oxford for an evening of bowling at Bowlplex at the Kassam Stadium. Kindly organised by Martin Ives of Summer Fields, the mixed teams played a frame before honing their skills in the amusement arcade.
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Spanish Trip During the Easter holidays, girls from the IVs and LVI, accompanied by Miss Thomas and Miss Jiménez, travelled to El Puerto de Santa Maria for five days of learning, culture and fun. The girls stayed in pairs with Spanish familes and mornings consisted of interesting Spanish lessons, whilst afternoons were devoted to cultural activities and trips, including a traditional Sevillian dancing lesson, a boat ride and walking tour of Cadiz, an afternoon in Seville and shopping.
Bella Roche and Anna Stallibrass diarised: Our teacher, José, spoke to us at normal speed so it really helped us to improve our understanding and we learned lots of idiomatic phrases. The host family was unbelievably kind and made us feel like part of the family. They took us out for meals and showed us their favourite parts of the town and beach. The trips showed us beautiful parts of Spain, which looked even better due to the lovely weather. The tours in Spanish were informative and interesting and guides were passionate about the history. We often had to translate for the younger students, which tested our comprehension skills.’
French Trip Madame Kyte and Monsieur Harper took a group of 12 girls in the Todds, IIs and IIIs to Chateau du Broutel near the historical town of Rue. The girls took part in language activities based at the chateau and in the local area, such as conducting surveys at local markets and having a cookery lesson entirely in French. As well as this, they took part in team games at the chateau, visited a local sweet making shop and a chocolate factory.
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Inaugural Mud Run
Girls, staff and families took part in the inaugural Mud Run in aid of the Little Princess Charity. Organised by the Charity Committee, the run tested the runners’ mental and physical strength over a 2.5km course around the school grounds and fields. After crawling through mud, scrambling under cargo nets and running through waterlogged woods, it was hard to recognise participants on the slide at the finishing line! In all, over £2,500 was raised for The Little Princess Charity.
Netball Round Up The U15A netball team had an incredible season where the U15A team won 5 of their 7 matches, beating some exceptional schools including St Edwards, Bloxham and Stowe. The team put up an excellent performance at the County netball tournament and were placed 3rd in their section after meeting some tough opposition. The U15B team remained unbeaten throughout the season with wins against St Edwards, Headington, Stowe, Bloxham and Akeley Wood. This was an exceptional feat and true credit must be given to the strength and depth of netball at Tudor.
The U14s had a successful season, playing some fantastic netball against tough teams. The U14A team won 3, drew 1 and lost 2 matches. The two losses were by 1 goal against strong teams from Headington (22-23) and Pangbourne (10-11). The girls played well as a team and continued to build on their performance each match. The U14B team is remained unbeaten, playing St Edwards, Quinton House, Headington, Pangbourne, Bloxham and Stowe. The U14C team won all matches bar one against, narrowly losing to Bromsgrove.
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Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award
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April | 16
Shakespeare’s
400th Celebrations The IIs kick-started the summer term with an excellent event to celebrate Shakespeare’s birthday and to mark 400 years of his legacy. Parents were invited to ‘drop in’ to their daughters’ drama lessons in order to observe their participation in a variety of exercises exploring the work of the bard. The aim of the lessons was to make the language of Shakespeare’s plays more accessible; ‘Romeo and Juliet’ was the text in focus. The girls also created a wonderful display of artefacts relating to Shakespeare, which included a handmade ruff, a birthday cake, informative posters, quotes, portraits and masks!
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Salters’ Festival of Chemistry Winners! Mia Berridge, Abby Rutherford, Ella Smith and Orly Stephens, all budding scientists from the IIs, travelled to the University of Birmingham to take part in the Salters’ Festival of Chemistry. The girls participated in a practical Chemistry competition against 14 other schools and, after a day of experiments, were declared the winners.
NG Lecture Series Robert Winston Professor Lord Robert Winston gave a fascinating talk on ‘Modifying Humans: Where does genetics stop?’ to the whole school community, discussing the scientific and ethical issues involved with the process. He kindly offered budding medics the opportunity to do work experience within his research lab at UCL – what an opportunity!
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Aim Higher April | 16
topics for discussion
The Great Debate An ability to form an opinion and voice it confidently is essential. In this session, the Todds to IIIs learnt the key debating skills and engaged in some fun debates themselves.
The purpose of education The Todds to IIIs were asked to put their thinking caps on. The girls engaged in discussions about what education is and what its purpose is.
Comparative philosophy The IVs and Vs found that the use of lateral thinking was key with during a session with Julia Thorn, Senior Teacher, which compared languages to establish their historical relatedness.
The story of the novel The Sixth Form engaged in lively discussions on the origins of the modern day novel and considered questions such as what were early novels like and why were they written.
HM The Queen’s 90th Birthday Tudor Hall celebrated Her Majesty The Queen’s 90th birthday in style on her actual birthday, Thursday 21st April. With a dress code of red, white and blue, the whole school poured onto the lawn to form a ‘90’ shape for an aerial photograph. Old Tudorians who were at school in coronation year, then planted a commemorative red magnolia tree before joining staff and girls for a celebratory lunch. An afternoon tea party held outside was kick-started by the head girls cutting into a delicious Victoria sponge 90th birthday cake before the whole school tucked into cucumber sandwiches, cakes and cloudy lemonade. Tudor’s token Pembrokeshire corgi, Diggle, even managed to sneak a slice of cake!
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Chipping Norton Music Festival We were delighted to have 16 entries in the Chipping Norton Music Festival this year, including several in the instrumental categories. Despite not being a competitive music festival, we were thrilled that the students came back with many Highly Commended certificates. Many congratulations to Kitty Veale who entered the Piano Solo Intermediate Class, Solo Musical Theatre and Intermediate Strings class and returned with Highly Commended certificates in all three disciplines. She was also invited to sing in the final concert on the last night of the festival.
ENTRANT
CATEGORY
INSTRUMENT
Lian Dancer
Elementary G 3&4
Violin
Kitty Veale
Intermediate G 5&6
Violin
Grace Sale
Intermediate G 5&6
Cello
Sophie Simoes
Advanced G 7 or above
Violin
Lizzie Coombs
Advanced G 7 or above
Violin
Martha Prestidge
Advanced G 7 or above
Violin
Kitty Veale
Intermediate G 5&6
Piano
Tilly Dollar
Primary G 1&2
Alto sax
Mimi Newsome
Primary G 1&2
Alto sax
Poppy James
Intermediate G 5&6
Alto sax
Poppy James
Intermediate G 5&6
Clarinet
Amelia Veale
Intermediate G 5&6
Flute
Charisse Fung
Advanced G 7 and above
Flute
Kitty Veale
Solo singing 10-13 years
Singing
Kitty Veale
Solo musical theatre 10-13 years
Singing
Amelia Douglas
Solo musical theatre (14-16 years)
Singing
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The girls had the perfect weather for the first Aegon Fixture of 2016 against Alcester Grammar. The matches were closely fought between both teams, with Tudor being pipped at the final post.
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1st Aegon Tennis Fixture of 2016
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IIIs Climb a Mountian for Macmillan The IIIs travelled to Snowdonia in Wales in order to climb Mount Snowdon and raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support. The girls stayed at a youth hostel the night before to save their strength ready to tackle the mountain the next day. It took the climbers around three and a half hours to climb to the summit. Laura Barclay summed up the experience, “it was very exciting to get to the top because it looked so high up in the clouds although it was extremely cold! It was definitely worth it though because the view was amazing and I was very proud to raise lots of money for Cancer Support.�
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Going for Gold Duke of Edinburgh In the 60th Year of the award scheme, we celebrated with our largest ever Gold medal cohort. Eighteen Sixth Form girls took part in three fantastic expeditions on the rivers Wye and Severn to successfully complete their expedition section. In order to fulfil their voluntary service requirement, they participated in voluntary work at Banbury Health and Wellbeing Centre, an animal rescue centre and various charity shops around Banbury. The gold expeditions were not without their hardships and on the qualifying expedition the girls had to show true grit to endure some really cold weather, including snow on one day! Well done girls; we look forward to seeing you receive your awards at St James’s Palace in the near future.
The IIs went on an Adventure Day at Youlbury Scout Centre and were given four challenges to complete during the day. There was crate stacking, climbing jacobs ladder, taking a leap of faith, and going up the high all aboard totem pole. The girls were split into groups for the challenges and they had to use teamwork and their leadership skills to complete the tasks. There was lots of laughter, screaming and fun.
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IIs Adventure Day at Youlbury
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Head Girl:
Sophie Walker stressful. I learnt a lot about myself and how much I could take on, so it was a very positive experience for me. What did you learn from being Head Girl? What I massively learnt from being Head Girl was the need for responsibility and leadership that comes with the job. I hadn’t appreciated it was such a huge under-taking so I had to really step up but could ask the advice of previous Head Girls. What particular events and jobs associated with being Head Girl have stuck in your mind? Jobs that I will always remember will be the early Monday morning meetings with Miss Griffiths before Prayers, speaking at the open morning to a ballroom full of prospective parents who were keen to hear my opinion and cutting the cake with Rebekah for HM The Queen’s 90th Birthday.
What did it mean to you when asked to be Head Girl? I was incredibly grateful and happy to be asked, as I know there were others who could have done the job. To be chosen gave me great confidence in myself and justifies everything I have embraced during my time at Tudor. What are the highs and lows of the job? The highs for me were the PR events like the prep head lunch, open day and the OTA drinks in London. It was great to be able to talk to people about Tudor, share my favourite memories and enthuse about the best aspects of the school. A low was juggling my timetable especially as in the summer term I had exams to deal with as well as everything else; so at times it could be rather
Top tips for the job Plan your time well, especially near the end of term, as that is when you become most busy. More importantly, enjoy it as the time goes so quickly!
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Head Girl: April | 16
Rebekah Knox
What have you learnt from being Head Girl? Being Head Girl during the summer term taught me a lot, allowing me to gain confidence in so many different ways whether public speaking at an open morning or talking to prospective parents. I learnt to become more independent, how to lead as well as being team player, as well as a whole raft of organisational skills that will no doubt be useful in later life. What was it like being asked to be Head Girl? Being asked to be Head Girl has been the highlight of my Tudor experience. I loved expressing to people what I had gained from being at Tudor for six years. Any advice for future Head Girls? I would say there are going to be times when it's difficult and busy but take every opportunity, enjoy it and have fun!
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BBC Radio 2’s 500 Words Six years ago, Chris Evans had a dream: to get children excited about reading and writing. All children, no matter what their ability. 500 Words is now one of the most successful storywriting competitions for children in the world. Nearly half a million pupils have written a story, that’s over 215 MILLION words! This year Sophie Donald was told that, of over 123,400 entries, her story A Fork in the Road was one of the 4,500 selected to go to the Reading Agency for the second round of judging.
Brexit Alison Gamble, Head of History and Politics, welcomed John Colgrave and Caroline Stephens to speak to the Vs and Sixth Form about the EU referendum held on the 23rd of June this year. John Colgrave, spoke first, arguing that we should stay in Europe. He gave many compelling arguments, such as we should stay in because the EU has gifted us with a large amount of peace. Caroline Stephens supported the Brexit campaign. Drawing our attention to the fact that 60% of new legislation comes from the EU, she argued that if we leave we could take back control over our laws. The debate concluded with a vote and the majority voted to stay in the EU.
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April | 16
A Fork in the Road by Sophie Donald
Making decisions is always hard, especially when you make the wrong one. Playing hockey for England could have been the best decision of my life, but standing here at my mum’s funeral I know it was the worst. Thing that hurts me the most is the fact I had a choice. Hockey or looking after my mum. The choice seemed easy at the time; it was a chance of a lifetime. With all the support and effort I was bound to choose hockey but I spent too much time training. I didn’t spend enough time checking she was well, so I lost her forever. “I’m sorry this happened to your mother Daisy. She was a kind, lovely woman and did not deserve to die so young” the tall thin man whispered in my ear softly. I didn’t reply. Instead I stood still next to my dad, tears in his eyes. Dad split up with mum last year but I know it still hurts him. Before the funeral I felt lost in an everlasting daydream. I knew that people around me were getting on with their life, but in my head it was as silent as the dark shadow sitting next to me. I cut everyone out, but as the man spoke I realised that I had made a choice to do something; I could not just give it up. Mum supported my choice before she died; she wanted me to make her proud but most importantly to be happy.
I had quit the England team, so I couldn’t start that again. So I decided I would pay for a flight to go to Africa to teach hockey. When I got to Africa the kids were funny and ready to play as soon as I arrived. It made me sad to see small children sleeping under sheets in the road but it also made me feel so lucky for everything I had. I was teaching all the kids who turned up to play hockey but the playing area was tiny compared to England. I had big plans on creating a nice pitch for the kids to play on. They deserved much better. I spoke to my family and friends and told them about the pitch idea. I wanted to dedicate it to mum. I spoke to a local school and they offered to help. I was doing 10k runs, bake sales and the children were creating plays and dances for parents. I was very anxious that we would not raise enough but we got there. The pitch was amazing. I was thrilled at all the help and support we got. On my last day I walked over to the plate hanging daintily from a stone to the left of the pitch. As I read her name I thought of what she would be thinking there and then. I feel I know she’s proud.
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Wisteria in the walled garden
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May | 16
Vs GCSE Drama An audience of girls, parents and staff were treated to fantastic performances of adaptations of Sophocles’ ‘Antigone’ and Euripides’ ‘Medea’, all of which achieved top band marks in the GCSE drama assessments. A couple of girls also achieved full marks for this assessment, producing simply stunning performances which truly encapsulated their roles.
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LVI Examination performances Not to be outdone by their GCSE peers, the LVI drama cohort produced a stunning display of their acting skills in their AS examination performances, which were held in the drama studio in May. Thea Barden, Ollie Gough, Rebekah Knox and Anna Stallibrass mesmerised an appreciative audience with their take on Steven Berkoff’s ‘Metamorphosis’. The play was performed in an expressionistic style (well, the play does focus on a young man who turns into a beetle!) and this contrasted perfectly with a series of well-executed, more naturalistic monologues taken from a variety of plays including: Arthur Miller’s ‘The Crucible’, Oliver Lansley’s ‘Immaculate’, Gordon Steel’s ‘Like A Virgin’ and Liz Lochhead’s adaptation of Euripides’ ‘Medea’.
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Junior LAMDA Speech and Drama examinations
80 pupils from Todd – IVs took their LAMDA Speech and Drama examinations over two days in the Drama Studio; the majority took Group Acting, but many prepared for the Reading for Performance, Solo and Duologue Acting examinations. Two groups passed with a high Merit and ten groups with a Distinction; 16 pupils who took individual and Duologue examinations passed with a Distinction.
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Arts Showcase Drama pupils performed a variety of scenes, ranging from a play based on the life and writings of a 19 year old by Sasha White and Molly Maddan, to an exciting piece of absurdist drama by Eugene Ionesco. This was maturely portrayed by Isabel Saer, who reflected on her evening’s supper whilst her husband remained behind his newspaper, breaking the silence occasionally with the odd click of his tongue! Scarlett Cripps and Harriet Gough characterised two teenagers communicating through their bedroom mirror, one liked Chopin and boys and the other the Plastic Slugs rock band and horses!
Left: Maud Swanborough as Sandie in Topless
Flora Smiley and Helena Dobbs brought the classic novel Cranford to life in a scene where the merits of the train, the needs for a ‘follower’ and the news that a strange new visitor had arrived in town from India, certainly set tongues wagging. Lastly, Maud Swanborough portrayed an over-enthusiastic tour guide on a London bus; she interacted amusingly with the audience as she handed out miniature versions of Big Ben and a Yeoman Warder and then mistakenly at one point, her sandwiches!
Left: Isabel Saer as Mrs Smith and Lara MorrisMarsham as Mr Smith in The Bald Prima Donna
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Martha
Lottie’s
and the ESO
Essay Prize Commendation
Martha Prestidge is a youth member of the English Symphony Orchestra (ESO) and attends the Intermediate Orchestra courses as well as doing some work experience with the ESO to get a glimpse of what it is like to be part of an arts organisation. She shadowed the Orchestral Manager for the day at Dorchester Abbey where the ESO were playing as part of the English Music Festival.
May | 16
Cymbeline It is a pleasure to furnish Tudor girls with rare literary gems, and the RSC’s (Brexit-orientated) production of Shakespeare’s ‘Cymbeline’ was an opportunity not to be missed. The play was unexpected and had a modern twist, with singing and dancing to lighten the mood. The play, originally about a king, reversed the sexes and had a queen instead. The rotating set created a very alert, unpredictable atmosphere, and it was great to see a Shakespeare play with a happy ending!
Lottie McGrath (LVI) was commended for her entry in the Peterhouse College, Cambridge Vellacott History Prize. Her essay discussed what was derived from Stanley Kubrick’s ‘political black satire’ film Dr Strangelove: How I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb and focused on why twentieth-century society learned to love the atomic bomb. Lottie said, “The essay required independent research and I explored the value of nuclear diplomacy and the deterrent effect that nuclear bombs have on aggressors, as well as the role that popular culture has played to cause many to value, and even love a weapon of mass destruction.” The Cambridge college received over 250 entries from 175 different schools.
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IIs Bushcraft Outdoor Adventure at Cornbury Park The IIs thrived during a fantastic two-day outdoor adventure with the Bushcraft Company in the woods at nearby Cornbury Park. They created shelters, built and cooked bolognaise on their own camp fires, swam in the very cold lake, and put their first aid into practice on the staff who pretended
to be victims of an aircraft crash. Verity Redrup, who accompanied the girls, said: “The girls were brilliant, they didn’t complain and we were knee deep in mud. They had a sing-off around the camp fire, steaming spag bol for supper and then cooked breakfast the next day on the open fire.”
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Duke of Edinburgh Garden Party
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Wendy Griffiths and Kitty Wells, Director of Outdoor Education, attended a celebration of the 60th Anniversary of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award at Buckingham Palace. They were thrilled to meet members of the Royal Family as well as those who have been instrumental in the continued success of the Awards.
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Prepping for Silver Duke of Edinburgh The IVs completed their training and practice expeditions for the DofE Silver award, both on foot and in canoes. The canoe teams particularly ‘enjoyed’ the rescue test on a cold day at Draycott Water, while walking teams really got the hang of navigation in more challenging terrain.
A Taste of Bronze Duke of Edinburgh
The IIIs had their first experience of the DofE expedition programme and enjoyed some pleasant weather for their Bronze practice expedition. They are now all prepped and ready for their qualifying expeditions.
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Swimming Gala
The swim squad had the aim of breaking existing house gala and school records in their sights throughout the academic year and their continued dedication to training led to a marked improvement in their ability and for faster, close-run races on the day. Congratulations went to swim squad members Mia Berridge, Florence Guest and Isabella Mackie, who won their events and set new 40m records. Many members of the squad, notably Emily Reid, Katie Hurst, Bonnie Spencer and Tatty English, swam in the Individual Medley, as their continued development in training gave them the confidence to do so. In addition, Rose Lord won all of her events, setting two new senior 20 metre records and beating two 40 metre records.
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Unusually, the sun shone for the swimming gala and this blessing was reflected in the girls’ performances. The addition of a new 20m programme facilitated more opportunities for the girls to swim, resulting in the largest number of entrants from the houses and the best turn out for the seniors in many years. A particular mention must go to seniors Harriet Hope and Cara Chamberlain who swam in practically every race for their houses!
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Gala results: JUNIORS Sophie Donald 20m Breast stroke 17.32 Mia Berridge 40m Breast stroke 33.25 previously Z De Haldevang 34.49 (2002) Olivia Brounger 20m Back crawl 17.07 Florence Guest 40m Back crawl 32.74 previously I Gibbs 33.80 (2010) Isabella Mackie 20m Front Crawl 13.74
SENIORS Rose Lord 20m Breast stroke 15.60 Rose Lord 40m Breast stroke 33.92 previously S Argles 33.92 (2002) Harriet Hope 20m Back crawl 24.00 Rose Lord 20m Front Crawl 11.59 Rose Lord 40m Front Crawl 26.28 previously R Martin Smith 27.30 (2004)
INTERS Poppy James 20m Breast stroke 15.65 Indy Yorke 20m Back crawl 14.84 Ottie Dick 20m front crawl 12.35
The Junior competition was won by Stuart, the Intermediate by Lanc, and the Senior by Lanc, making Lanc the overall winners of the House Gala 2016.
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Aim Higher
Wisteria in the
War: what is it good for?
The wisteria in the walled garden remains a crowd pleaser, coming into full bloom just in time for Open Day and daily tennis lessons. Over 100 years old, and 80 metres wide, the wisteria’s colour and smell are second to none!
topics for discussion Walled Garden The Todds to IVs were asked to consider the topic of war including what are the effects of war and its legacy?
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A Level art by Tatiana Milliken
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Take Your Daughter to Work Girls in the IIIs worked across a wide variety of industries with their parents. Here are some of their comments on their experience:
“I got to understand what a property development company does and how many different types of activities take place, such as design, construction, marketing, sales and finance”. Molly Paul (Almacantar)
“I attended a directors’ meeting and saw how the stud book works. I found out about the history of Weatherby’s and had an introduction to their online banking system” Willow Weatherby (Weatherby’s Bank)
I enjoyed meeting people and trying out different jobs, such as checking tickets, welcoming VIPs and directing visitors. It was lovely to feel like I was doing something really useful and I even helped to lead The Great Dog Walk”. Molly Levene (Brand Events)
“I had no idea that so many people were involved in the shipment of horses from one country to another. I met trainers, vets and other flying staff and visited training yards in Newmarket to collect the horses’ passports.” Charlotte McEwan (L.G. Bloodstock)
“I enjoyed reading about the current cases, finding out more about the work of a trainee solicitor and meeting some of the trainees. I also found out more about how I could develop my career in law.” Grace Sale (MacFarlanes Solicitors)
“I loved the photography exhibition and the musical and theatre sections of the V and A.” Violet Blackburn (Victoria and Albert Museum)
“I enjoyed using the sewing machines, packing the boxes and practising the stitches, which will all help me with my textiles”. Alice Sitwell (Max Studio (UK) Ltd)
June | 16
“I enjoyed reading the magazines and answering questions on social marketing campaigns as this gave them some insight into the way girls of my age think and what engages us”. Anna Lord (Good Business)
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Frankie Dove Exam piece
GCSE Art Charisse Fung
Frankie Dove
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Honor Buscall
Alicia Horn Emilie Richmond-Watson June | 16
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Hannah Waters
A Level Art Cicely Best
Tilly Rigby
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Isabella Gibbs Tatiana Milliken Rila Xuan
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Tara O'Kelly
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GCSE Textiles Jasmine Clay
Lara Browning
Jasmine Clay
Molly Barry
Laura Tinney
Mary Eckert
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Camilla Goodall
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Alice Lindsell
Charlotte Brownhill
A Level Textiles Cicely Best
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Connie Sale
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Hermione Gee
Kitty Kimber
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Inspired by Venice Having visited Venice with the Art Department in March, the IVS GCSE group created oil paintings, etchings and pieces of ceramic work inspired by their visit. They also started some figure work and dressed up in Venice Carnival costumes. They will be using all their sketchbook research and photography work to compose a final painting for their GCSE portfolio.
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History of Art Lecture The History of Art department invited Alex Fielding, founder and director of The Bigger Picture from Art History Abroad to talk to the Vs. The topic of her talk was Renaissance Beauties in which she took the girls on a whistle stop tour of Italy and its many fabulous art works. These included Michelangelo’s frescos on the Sistine Chapel ceiling, Fra Angelico’s frescos in San Marco and Titian’s mesmerizing Venus of Urbino to name but a few. This was a truly inspirational talk which the girls thoroughly enjoyed.
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Art Hat Trick The LVI Fine Artists enjoyed a cultural evening in London seeing three major exhibitions, The Royal Academy Summer Show, the BP Portrait Awards and the Russian Art exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, stopping off for supper in Leicester Square. The girls returned full of ideas for their main pieces of work. At the National Portrait Gallery they met up with the LVI Historians who were looking at important historical figures, enabling them to visualise the people they read about.
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Young Art Oxford
Girls whose work was selected: Anya-Mae Crowley Florence Guest Bianca LeesJones Anusha Misriyon Baker Francesca Scott Ottilie Swan Polly Waters
This year, the Young Art Oxford 2016 theme was WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH. The Todds, IIs and IIIs in Art Club put pencil to paper and came up with some ideas of how to visualise such a theme. They soon started drawing bursting balloons and clown faces as well as girls pulling faces. Tudor Hall did not win this year but we did have seven girls selected to have their work put on display at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford; Francesca’s Scott’s image of a Scottish bagpiper was commended. The girls spent an enjoyable evening attending the exhibition in aid of Cancer Research UK as well as a pizza supper to celebrate their success.
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Lion King Dance Workshop The girls wiggled their backs and hips and stretched and lunged with enthusiasm and attitude and by the end of the hour session they had all managed to turn the Hall into the wild Savannah Plains of Africa.
Lip Sync
London Drinks
As the end of term entertainment for the girls, the staff held a lip sync dance competition, in aid of the school charity, Young Minds.
Over 50 Old Tudorians living and working in London joined staff and members of the Sixth Form at the Archer Street Bar, Soho, for summer drinks. It was great to catch up on their news and hear about their wide-ranging careers.
The girls were treated to an array of highly professional acts ranging from Bieber to Queen, and High School musical to Frozen. Despite the Senior Management Team putting on a decent attempt at Mark Ronson’s Uptown Funk, the star of the evening was Mr Stead with his ‘evolution of dance’, a hugely entertaining piece that charted dance styles from the 1950s to the present day. No one knew that he was hiding such an amazing talent! The staff band headlined the evening with a super set of songs that the girls all sang along with. The night drew to a close with a whole school disco; all in all a very successful evening. £450 was raised for the charity.
June | 16
Old Tudorian Sophie Malpass returned to school much to the delight of the Todds and IIs to share her choreography of the Lion King. The routine started slowly and gently, as it portrayed the mighty beasts waking up, and then the energy was injected and the intricate steps kicked in.
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Summer Dance Showcase The Summer Dance Showcase had a really upbeat and fun theme throughout the dance programme. The IIs’ dance opened the show with a diva inspired piece by Marina and the Diamonds entitled Primadonna. The girls had a lot of fun creating the choreography with Miss Williams and gave a fabulous performance. As well as their group piece, members of Todd dance also created duets and a trio which demonstrated the growth in confidence and love of Dance from this year group.
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There were a number of beautiful and powerful solo pieces produced by the girls and finally we saw a performance by Reaction entitled Feeling Good. This danced pushed the girls out of their comfort zone and into a more jazz style which included intricate steps to the music of Benny Goodman’s Sing, Sing, Sing. It was refreshing to see an up-beat piece from Reaction which yet again showed how diverse and talented the girls are in Dance at Tudor.
June | 16
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A Dream of ‘A Dream’! The drama department’s first outdoor production, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, delighted audiences on three successive days in June. The incredible cast, comprising junior girls from Todds, IIs and IIIs, completely mastered their roles and delivered a polished, colourful and very funny adaptation of Shakespeare’s play. The beautiful
Tudor grounds provided the perfect backdrop for the action – even the rain held off – and a comfortable setting for the audience’s picnic suppers. Everyone played their part in what was a wonderful experience. Alan Christopher and all the cast thoroughly deserved congratulations for such an entertaining and visually spectacular performance.
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Giffords Circus The Todds visited Giffords Circus and, after negotiating the incredibly muddy grounds, were treated to a funny, fast paced, completely breath-taking at times traditional circus show. They saw jugglers, acrobats, contortionists, and Tweedy the clown was as funny as ever. They were particularly impressed, and a little scared, when a horse jumped through a circle of fire. It was a fantastic evening.
Gap Fair The Gap Fair provided the LVI with a fantastic opportunity to discover the huge variety of offerings available. Guest speakers from The Oxford Media & Business School, The Orchards Cookery School, New Generation Ski School, Freckles (childcare & housekeeping agency) and the Nasio Trust (UK charity supporting disadvantaged children in Kenya) presented to the girls, demonstrating that the world is their oyster!
Business
Meets Languages Tudor’s IVs and students from local schools took part in a Business Meets Languages conference. Workshops included buying and selling, designing a chocolate bar and cracking a GCHQ code, all using foreign language skills. Students also had a taster lesson in Mandarin and learned about the importance of this language in the global economy. The conference concluded with a speech from a professional translator.
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The Mikado On a balmy June evening, Tudor welcomed the professional opera company Opera Anywhere, and their outstanding production of Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado, to the Japanese Garden. We were delighted that members of the Tudor Hall and Carrdus School choirs were able to join the chorus, an experience they are sure never to forget.
Junior MUNTH celebrities had been kidnapped by a terrorist group called “Teddy” and were also turned into teddies. The group demanded children to be made the head of the education system and the countries had to come up with a solution to this problem. Next in the General Assembly the delegates were presented with the second half to the crisis, where a scientist thought to have found the cure, was blown up during an experiment. Should the UN continue to search for a cure or should they give in to the terrorists’ demands? Although this was a new conference for many delegates, most enjoyed the experience and learnt the difficulties of international relations between countries!
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Junior MUNTH 2016 started off with some inspiring speeches from Molly Levene and Miss Griffiths; Molly giving an insight into her first MUN and Miss Griffiths speaking about the importance of public speaking in later life. Torture was the topic of discussion for this debate and, after each delegate had been put into a country, the day began with each country debating the strengths and weaknesses of their torture resolutions. This was followed by countries submitting amendments to their resolutions, for example Egypt suggested “that there should be a governing body for torture across the world to regulate its use”. After a short break, the delegates were faced with a crisis – several
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Rageh Omaar & Isabel Oakeshott Lectures To prime the girls for the two-day ‘Tudor Tribune’ team challenge, the girls and wider Tudor community were treated to two fabulous lectures. Broadcast journalist and writer Rageh Omaar spoke to the girls about his life as a journalist, discussing ways into the industry and how to stand out from the crowd. British political journalist and non-fiction author Isabel Oakeshott, who topically co-authored an unauthorised biography of David Cameron, reviewed her career, its ups and downs.
Tudor Tribune
Tudor Tribune was a whole school event whereby the girls worked in their vertical houses and were given two days to create four competing media platforms, containing their own original print journalism, photos and videos. They worked to deadlines delivering a news-led product based on over 80 fictional stories created by the staff. The staff bombarded the girls with emailed press releases, invitations to attend press conferences, voicemail messages, real life enactments and videos, keeping the girls on their toes as the stories evolved. The girls were tasked with managing their own teams and working in a chaotic environment. The deadline was brutal, as the flow of news continued right until the end of the project.
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The Todd Crest Award All Todds entered the bronze level Crest Award; a national science award run by the British Science Association encouraging children aged 11–14 to design and carry out their own experiments individually, create and interpret data and convert data into excel graphs including a percentage decrease graph representing 10 hours of work. They presented their projects in powerpoint and produced a marketing leaflet. On completion, the girls received a bronze level certificate from the British Science Organisation.
UVI RS Students The Green and White Army – the name given to Northern Irish supporters who were voted the best supporters in EURO 2016 #sweetcaroline, #willgriggsonfire (songs sung by the girls in Magaluf and at their Leaver’s Ball).
Annual RS Tradition – when the girls graduate to the ‘Philosophy Hall of Fame’ in the UVI, they get to wear Bob Dylan t-shirts (particularly appropriate as 2016 was Dylan’s 75th birthday).
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Big Boarding Sing To celebrate its Golden Anniversary, the Boarding Schools Association highlighted the benefits of a boarding school educationwith the launch of a ‘National Boarding Week’ campaign with special events on each day. Two girls from Tudor attended the Big Boarding Sing, which brought together the largest boarding choir ever in a 30-minute performance at Victoria Embankment Gardens Bandstand.
Pupils followed Dominic Peckham’s repertoire based on his ‘Circlesongs’ workshops, learning specially arranged music on the day with no advance prep needed. From Mozart to Motown, Folksong to Funk, the idea of the workshop/ performance combination was for children to connect through song and celebrate the unity and bond of singing together whilst developing vocal skills.
Songs included some of the following: Trilo – Scandinavian Calling Song Wayfaring Stranger – American Spiritual She Moved Through The Fair – Irish Folksong Till Oesterland – Swedish Folksong Grandma’s Hands – Dominic Peckham Azika Tale – Zimbabwe Wedding March Startin’ Somethin – Michael Jackson Medley
Boarding
Lara Morris-Marsham (IVs) and 10 friends:
Rosie Syminton (IIs) and 7 friends:
To celebrate ‘National Boarding Week’ and to spread the word of the huge benefits to children of attending a boarding school, Tudor launched its own ‘Boarding at its Best’ competition. Girls were offered the chance to feast with their dorm or friends on an enormous hamper full of goodies created by the school caterers, Sodexo. The girls had to submit three reasons why they love going to a boarding school. Needless to say, the lure of food whet everyone’s appetite and after receiving entries, Lara Morris-Marsham and Rosie Syminton were declared the winners with the following reasons:
2. Whenever we are upset, there is always support or a hug from a housemistress or fellow housemate 24/7. 3. We all love playing tennis on our amazing courts after a busy, hard working day, ready for a fresh morning swim at seven.
1. Being with all my boarder friends, having a laugh and having toast & hot chocolate in the evenings. 2. Our housemistress makes everyone happy and they go all out to make us have fun, e.g. pizza and movie nights. 3. Everyone is so kind to you, particularly when you’re upset and need a friend to comfort you and cry on their shoulder. The house is so supportive and homely and feels like one big sleep over.
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at its Best
1. We make friends for life because we treat them like sisters and rely on them like mothers – basically we are one big happy family.
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BSA’s Boarding Bake Off National Boarding Week continued with the Boarding Bake Off competition. Needless to say, Tudor embraced the initiative whole-heartedly. Skye Brooke (IVs) entered with her raspberry and lime chequerboard sponge filled and coated with Italian meringue buttercream, decorated with lime macaroons filled with raspberry buttercream. Skye received a Gold medal at the semi-finals before being crowned champion at the finals held at Eton's Dorney Lake.
Interview with Skye Brooke Did you cook your cake from scratch at the finals at Dorney Lake? Yes, Mrs Haggarty and I drove to Dorney Lake with Richie taking every single ingredient with us in the car. I was given 4 hours, broken up into two slots of two hours, to produce my cake. In between the two-hour slots, celebrity chef James Tanner demonstrated three recipes from his latest book including pancakes, pasta and a stir fry. We were also treated to the most delicious lunch which included salmon wraps. What was the judging process like? The winners from the 10 regional competitions were baking alongside me all day and many of them had fantastic looking cakes. When the four hours was up, we were asked to present our cakes together on one table. The four judges, all professional chefs, then looked at and
tasted our cakes. They gave out silver and gold medals, with 8 finalists winning silver and two, including myself, winning gold. I was then announced as the National Boarding Bake Off winner and I couldn’t believe my ears! What did you win? I won a hamper full of really unusual cooking utensils, a gold Kitchen Aid, icecream maker and a private lesson with a pastry chef. What made you decide to create your chosen cake? I love both textiles and cookery and so chose to create a visually bright cake with lots of different textures, patterns (my cake had a chequerboard interior) and tastes with the use of lime and raspberry.
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Riding Activity
Polo Success Tudor’s Polo Team had another successful season with one of the highlights being a 3-2 win over Stowe School. The team continues to practice at Kirtlington Polo Ground near Kidlington.
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The Thursday riding group worked hard all summer term on their jumping and cantering and, as a special treat, were taken on a long hack in the beautiful Warwickshire countryside. The girls rode through the village of Radway and then had the opportunity to canter through fields for most of the next hour which was truly exhilarating. The weather played its part and stayed dry, although the horses were plagued by flies. The girls and horses arrived back at the stables tired, but with smiles on their faces and already looking forward to the next term of riding. Many congratulations to Milly Ingham-Clark, Eliza Buscall, Grace Chism and Lucy Blood for a very productive riding year.
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Mixed Hockey Charli Price (Vs) and Serena Goodhart (UVI) were part of Banbury Hockey Club’s senior mixed team, which also included Pip DuncanJones, Director of Sport, and James Long, Hockey coach, that won the England Hockey Association’s national mixed team trophy. The semi-finals and final were played at Lee Valley which is the national hockey centre based within the Olympic Park. What an achievement for the girls to be crowned senior national champions at such a young age. Serena Goodhart wrote, “I can’t describe how hot it was on the day of the final, so playing on a water based pitch was definitely a relief. We went down 1-0 to Formby in the first minute of the match but within minutes one of our team scored a hat trick and we held our lead to eventually win 4-3! We were given a medal engraved with ‘Mixed Trophy Winners 2016’ and a trophy which Banbury Hockey Club hadn’t won since 2005”.
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Sarah Price Swimmer Sarah Price, double Olympian, former British and World record holder and double Commonwealth Gold medallist, told Todd of her journey to swimming gold and then ran a swimming training session with the Tudor Swim Squad and six Carrdus swimmers.
Arabella Roche, Iona Frisby, Fenella Redding, Elva King and Flora Bourdillon, all in the LVI, successfully completed their National Pool Lifeguard qualification with the Royal Lifesaving Society in June. The course comprised of physical training and theoretical classroom work and the girls trained across the school year during games lessons, teatimes and weekends covering lifeguarding and pool supervision principles, CPR, First aid and Pool rescue skills. The girls gained valuable lifeguard experience and put theory into practice when lifeguarding the new girls’ taster session. The girls hope to utilise their new skills at their local leisure facilities during the holidays and are more than aware that the RLSS NPLQ is not just a qualification, but a stepping stone into a career within the leisure industry.
For the second year running, Tudor won silver at the County Athletics Track & Field Cup, exceeding the team’s personal best team score. Each girl competed in two events, with individual performance being converted into points for the team. Outstanding individual performances in the junior competition included Tilly Dollar’s javelin throw of 18.85m and Isabella Mackie’s personal best in the 100m of 14.4 seconds. The inter competition saw a huge range of personal bests and impressive performances including Molly Levene’s 300m in 45.2 seconds and javelin throw of 21.10m. Carolina Ortiz recorded a high jump of 1.40m and a hurdles run of 14.4 seconds. Flora Smiley and Roseanne Watkins both scored 23 points apiece with their shot put efforts. The teams’ total score came to 312 points which placed Tudor in second place, narrowly behind the leaders. The team qualified for regional finals, coming third overall.
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National Pool Lifeguard qualification
County Athletics
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Sports Day
The sun finally shone through for Sports Day, held this year at North Oxfordshire Academy’s athletics track and field in Banbury. It was great to see so many girls competing for their houses and supporting one another in one of the sporting calendar’s most fun events. Some long-standing records were broken in both the track and field categories with notable performances from Thea Barden, who came first in all three of her events, Hannah Drewry, who set a new intermediate javelin record of 26.50m, Jenny Hannah, who gained a new personal best in the 1,500m of 5.19.56, and Molly Levene, who set a new personal best in the 800m of 2.41.34. The war paint was definitely out in force with house colours being painted on faces and legs! Lanc was victorious, winning the inter-house competition with a total of 838 points, 200 more than the 2nd place finisher.
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Results SPORTS DAY RECORDS BROKEN Mimi Newsome – Junior 75m Hurdles: 14.73 s Mia Berridge – Junior Discus: 16.70 m Tilly Dollar – Junior Javelin: 18.64 m Flora Smiley – Inter Shot Put: 8.42 m Thea Barden – Senior shot put: 7.56 m Hannah Drewry – Inter Javelin: 26.50 m SCHOOL RECORDS BROKEN Thea Barden – Senior discus: 16.18 m Hannah Drewry – Inter Javelin: 26.50 m JUNIOR COMPETITION Place 1st 2nd 3rd 4th
House Lanc Stuart Tudor York
Points 241 209 179 138
INTER COMPETITION House Lanc York Stuart Tudor
Points 291 252 239 204
SENIOR COMPETITION Place 1st 2nd 3rd 4th
House Lanc Tudor Stuart York
Points 306 228 170 130
OVERALL WINNERS OF SPORTS DAY Place 1st 2nd 3rd 4th
House Lanc Stuart Tudor York
Points 838 618 611 520
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Place 1st 2nd 3rd 4th
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Zanzibar beach
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NSEA Showjumping
On a glorious day in July, Tudor Hall hosted its first NSEA (National Schools Equestrian Association) showjumping event at Wickstead Horseplay, Highworth, Wiltshire. The event was well attended with over 150 entries between 5 classes from 50cms up to 90cms, and with a range of schools competing including prep and secondary schools.
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Tudor fielded one team in each of the 80 and 90 cms classes. The girls, Indy Yorke, Helena Yates and Annabel Beale managed a team 3rd in the 80 cm class and Indy Yorke, Helena Yates, Annabel Beale, Molly Maddan and Matilda Harvey won the 90 cms. Huge thanks to Luly Yorke for organising the event and to all those who helped: Caroline and Simon Beale, Roger and Cat Yates, Nell Harvey, Sophie Maddan and Sophie Scruton.
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Tanzania Expedition Ten students from the Vs took part in a truly wonderful and exciting trip to Tanzania for two weeks in July. The expedition first took girls and staff to the Morogoro Mountains where they helped to renovate a primary school for 270 students and 13 teachers which had no running water or electricity. The Tudor team camped in the grounds whilst they carried out the work; carpenters were employed with money raised by Tudor to put on two new roofs and fit new window frames and doors. The girls did a great job concreting and painting walls, building a garden and entertaining the school children who were all infectiously enthusiastic about having guests to stay and so appreciative of the work carried out. From the mountains, the team headed off on safari to the Mikumi National Park where animals were seen in abundance, and lions and elephants walked in front of the safari trucks. Crocodiles and hippos were seen in the pools of water and many zebras, giraffes, warthogs and deer species were spotted grazing on the stunning expanses of grassland.
The last part of the trip, took the group to the island of Zanzibar. After a rather chaotic and typically manic ferry trip to the island, the girls completed a four day scuba diving course and gained their PADI qualifications. Angel fish and octopus were a few of the species spotted in the azure blue sea. Biology Teacher Verity Redrup, who led the trip with Paul Carine, enthused: “The trip was a huge success. The girls managed each day’s budget, food and itinerary and all worked admirably well as a group to achieve this. The entire group became experts at haggling over prices with the locals to secure bargains, learnt to navigate around bustling towns and get on to local transport, all wearing the local requisite ‘baggy’ trousers in true Tudor style!”
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Tennis Round Up The tennis teams produced some fantastic results in both regular school fixtures as well as the Aegon Year 10 and Year 8 nationallyrun competitions. The IIs entered two teams of six into the Aegon competitions, playing some skilful tennis against strong opponents. The IVs’ Aegon teams played incredibly well and had some very close games, with the IVs’ C team winning their division and going through to the county playoff and narrowly missing out to St Helen’s and St Katherine’s.
School tennis went from strength to strength with the teams winning a high proportion of matches. Tudor has a great strength in depth for tennis teams, compared to most of the schools we compete against, and this has proved fruitful especially in the IIIs and upwards. Two senior girls qualified in Level One tennis coaching, benefitting them greatly as both players and as role models to the younger girls.
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Discover ARTiculation
Leavers’ Planters
Confidence in public speaking was ably demonstrated by girls participating in a range of debates and speaking competitions throughout the year. These included the annual ARTiculation Competition, held at Modern Art Oxford, and the new Discover ARTiculation Competition for 14 to 16 year olds. We were delighted that Violet Blackburn, the youngest of eight entries to reach the national final which was adjudicated by Lord Burlington at the University of Leeds, was highly commended for her presentation on photographer Alfred Eisentaedt’s image V-J Day in Time Square.
The 2016 Leavers and their families presented school with two beautiful lead planters, made by former parent Hugo Smith of the Bulbeck Foundry in Bury St Edmunds. Now standing proudly outside the library, the planters feature both the Tudor rose and a Welsh dragon!
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Mark Reading Summer Term 2016 Ashtons Academic Awards ART For achievement Hannah Waters For girls going on to Art Foundation courses Isabella Gibbs BIOLOGY The Marshall Cup for achievement The U6 Biology Cup for progress
Iona Cleave
Marina Bealby
BUSINESS STUDIES The Dolman Cup Anna Chambers for effort and achievement CHEMISTRY The Mary Moore Flask for progress
Lara Yorke
CLASSICS For effort and achievement Willa Ruthven COOKERY Leiths Certificate in Practical Cookery Tara O’Kelly Leiths Certificate in Food & Wine Isabella Gibbs Kitty Kimber Distinction Alice Lindsell Hannah Newton-Oakes Merit Molly Nicholson Matilda Rigby Merit Willa Ruthven Millicent Scott The Leiths Book Prize Hannah Newton-Oakes & Tilly Rigby The McAlpine Cookery Cup Kitty Kimber
DRAMA The Theatre Studies Cup for team effort and achievement ECONOMICS For achievement For effort
Lucy Chetwode, Flora Loder & Constance Sale
Amy Wang Rila Xuan
ENGLISH For effort and commitment Isabelle Cain & Lucy Trotter For achievement Georgina Woodward FRENCH For achievement
Lucy Chetwode
GEOGRAPHY The Geography Cup for achievement
Iona Cleave & Tatiana Milliken
HISTORY The Tanya Hagen Prize Megha Bawa for the most promising history student HISTORY OF ART For effort and progress Tara O’Kelly For achievement Hester FitzRoy Newdegate HUMANITIES For effort and achievement in RS, Politics & History Alice Tollemache
MATHEMATICS For effort The Dinkeldein Cup PHOTOGRAPHY For achievement
Lara Yorke Amy Wang
Bethan Thomas
POLITICS For commitment and achievement Katie Ross The Politics Cup Georgina Woodward for effort and achievement RELIGIOUS STUDIES For effort and achievement Charlotte Brownhill, Flora Loder & Hannah Waters SCIENCE The Science Cup for overall achievement
Megha Bawa
SPANISH For effort and commitment Alice Lindsell & Katie Ross The Senora Lane Cup Kitty Kimber TEXTILES The Textiles Cup
Hermione Gee
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For effort and achievement in English, History & Politics Lucinda Mills
ACADEMIC PE For commitment and achievement Serena Goodhart
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Ashtons Whole School Awards THE GURNEY CUP For contribution to life in Ashtons THE JOHNSON PRIZE For altruism THE VESTEY CUP For attitude and contribution to sport in Ashtons THE PHILLIPS CUP For contribution to the school community THE MARGARET BLYTH CUP For outstanding academic achievement THE BLAKEY CUP For contribution to the extra-curricular life of the school THE SNOWDEN CUP For effort in academic work THE NANETTE GODFREY AWARD For outstanding leadership
Katie Ross & Connie Sale
Anna Chambers
Lara Yorke
Hannah Waters
Iona Cleave & Georgina Woodward
Lucy Chetwode
Hester FitzRoy Newdegate
Serena Goodhart
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A Level textiles by Alice Lindsell
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A Level Results The UVI celebrated outstanding success in their A Level results, marking yet another year of excellence in academic and extracurricular achievements. Students have achieved 100% pass rate, with 38.9% of grades A*/A and 79.4% A*/A/B.
Edinburgh, Exeter and Newcastle to study subjects such as Law, Biomedical Science, History, English and Spanish whilst others go on to courses in the Arts across the UK and in the USA. We all feel privileged to have played a part in their journey.”
Wendy Griffiths, Headmistress, said, “We are thrilled with the results of our girls at A Level. They have worked extremely hard and I am very proud of what they have achieved as a consequence. At Tudor Hall we accept girls with diverse talents and it is wonderful to see them all exceed expectations, with nearly 40% of the girls achieving two or more grades at A or A*. This year we are particularly pleased with the success of Lucinda Mills who achieved three A*s in History, English and Politics and goes on to Bristol University to read History. It is uplifting to see our girls leave us as confident young women ready to embark on degree courses in universities including Bristol, Cambridge,
Georgina Woodward, 2016 Leaver, is going on to study Law at Cambridge University. She commented, “I am thrilled with my results. I got an A* and two As in Government and Politics, English Literature and History respectively. I also gained an A* in my Extended Project Qualification. I have really enjoyed my time at Tudor and the teachers are great and have been really encouraging. Without this support I wouldn’t have considered applying to Cambridge. Now I’m so excited to be going!” Congratulations to all our girls; we wish them well as they take up their places in Higher Education or begin their gap year.
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GCSE Results Our GCSE students celebrated outstanding results in August, with 100% A*–C grades including maths and English. Even more impressive is the average of 9 passes at Grade A*–C of which 64.2% were grades A*/A and 88.6% grades A*–B. Wendy Griffiths, Headmistress, said, “We never cease to be amazed by what our girls achieve through hard work and the support of a committed team of teachers. This year is no exception. Tudor Hall champions the individual strengths of our pupils and therefore today we are equally proud of all our girls as we know they have shown the tenacity and determination to succeed sometimes when they have found a subject challenging. We have a number of girls who have a string of A* grades, such as Greta Scott who achieved ten A*s in a broad range of subjects. We also have girls who have worked hard to achieve what seems like a less impressive set of grades but for them the achievement is stellar.”
Greta Scott said, “I was very relieved and excited to see my results. I am so pleased with them and feel so confident to start my A Levels in Politics, Latin, History and French.”
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2016 Leavers' Destinations
This photograph has been reproduced by kind permission of Gillman & Soame photographers and is available to purchase, along with other photographs, from their website (www.gsimagebank.co.uk/tudorhall)
SEPTEMBER 2016 Hermione Gee Isabella Gibbs Alice Lindsell Lucinda Mills Chelsea Monye Hannah Newton-Oakes Molly Nicholson Alice Tollemache Amy Wang Hannah Waters Georgina Woodward Rila Xuan Lara Yorke
Parsons New York Charles Cecil Florence Edinburgh, English Literature & Spanish Bristol, History Birmingham, Law Keele, Biomed Foundation ACM, Music Performance Exeter, Anthropology Warwick, Economics Manchester Metropolitan, Art Foundation Cambridge, Law Edinburgh, History of Art Bristol, Medicine
SEPTEMBER 2017 Marina Bealby Charlotte Brownhill Izzie Cain Anna Chambers Lucy Chetwode
Newcastle, Biological Sciences Bournemouth, Art Foundation Bristol, History of Art Oxford Brookes, Sociology Edinburgh, Sociology
Iona Cleave Hester FitzRoy Newdegate Isabella Fulford Serena Goodhart Flora Loder Tatiana Milliken Tara O’Kelly Katie Ross Willa Ruthven Sophie Simoes Lettie Smith Bethan Thomas Ella Ziegler
Edinburgh, Geography Edinburgh, History of Art Leeds, History of Art Newcastle, Geography Oxford Brookes, Drama/Film Studies Edinburgh, Geography Oxford Brookes, History of Art Bristol, Spanish & Italian Newcastle, History of Art York, Philosophy Edinburgh, Philosophy Leeds College of Art, Photography Oxford Brookes, Social Anthropology
POST A LEVEL APPLICATIONS Alexa Barrow Olivia Belbin Cicely Best Lara Horn Kitty Kimber Tilly Rigby Verity Taylor Lucy Trotter
TUDOR HALL Wykham Park, Banbury, Oxon OX16 9UR +44 (0)1295 263434