Bishop Otter College Guild Newsletter 2013 Welcome to the Bishop Otter College Guild Newsletter 2013

Thanks to a grant from the Bishop Otter Trustees, the lost windows from the Old Chapel have been restored under the supervision of the glass maker Clifford Durant, who has kept alive the arts of the Victorian stained glass artisan in his Horsham workshop. Among the windows is an image of St Hilda (right), first installed in 1905 as the students’ tribute to Sarah Trevor, who became the College’s first woman Principal in 1873, when the Bishop Otter re-opened as one of the country’s first colleges to train women for the teaching profession. St Hilda was a seventh century Abbess, famed for her wisdom and her teaching, so the window was intended as a considerable tribute to a woman who spearheaded the progress of women’s education in Britain.

See how you can help the University. A chance to double the value of your donation to the University. Please see inside back page for details. Bishop Otter College Guild

Vice-Presidents Dr Colin Greaves Professor Philip E D Robinson

Honorary Secretary Mr Marten Lougee 11 Meadow Close Cononley, Keighley West Yorkshire BD20 8LZ 01535 636487 07813393381 [email protected] skype: lobbyludd1

Honorary Treasurer Mr John Fletcher 6 Colley Rise Lyddington Oakham Rutland LE15 9LL Tel: 01572 821213

IT Support and Editor of Newsletter Mrs Rose Savage 14 Crouch Cross Lane Boxgrove Chichester PO18 OEH 01243 773336 [email protected]

Membership Secretary Mrs Hilary Chapman 60 Connaught Road Cromer Norfolk NR27 OBZ Tel: 01263 513711

From the Editor A very big “thank you” to all the Year Reps and others who have sent their news and articles to me in such good time, especially as it is so soon after Christmas. You will find that all the reunion information is included with this magazine, the Notes for Booking on page 7, and the booking forms on a separate insert. The timetable for the weekend is set out in Marten’s letter on page 5. May I wish you happy reading and look forward to seeing many of you at the reunion on 13th July.

3 Committee Meeting

All Year Representatives able to get to the Reunion are invited to the Committee Business Meeting at 9.30 a.m. in room H149.

Year Representatives

1944-46 Mrs Cynthia Aird, 1 Rosevine Road, West Wimbledon, London SW20 8RB 1947-49 Mrs Audrey Colam, 24 Burton Road, Dover, Kent CT16 2 ND 1948-50 Mrs Pat Life, 78 Elmstead Gardens, Worcester Park, Surrey KT4 7BE 1949-51 Mrs Josephine Sztyber, 8 Crofton, Lion Lane, Haslemere, Surrey GU27 1JE 1950-52 Miss June Blitz, 19 Marjoram Crescent, Cowplain, Portsmouth, Hampshire PO8 9BD 1951-53 Revd. Barbara Watson Hammond, 27 Maisemore Gardens, Emsworth, Hampshire PO10 7JU 1952-54 Mrs Trixie Barnden, 48 Folders Lane, Burgess Hill, West Sussex RH15 0DX 1953-55 Mrs Pamela Cahill, 50 Ridgeway, Hayes, Bromley, Kent BR2 7DE 1954-56 Miss Rosslyn Stenning, 7 Hurst Gardens, Hurstpierpoint, West Sussex, BN6 9ST 1955-57 Mrs Valerie Gabriel, Flat 1, 6 Dittons Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN21 1DN 1956-58 Mrs Lorna Edwards, 26 Queen’s Drive, Nuttall, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire NG16 1EG 1957-59 Mrs Pauline Moss, 3 Lathallan Drive, Polmont, Falkirk, Stirlingshire FK2 0PD 1958-60 Miss Muriel Warburton, 37a Oaklands Avenue, Weybridge, Surrey KT13 9SS 1959-61 Mrs Anne Walters, 1 Wayte Court, Ruddington, Nottinghamshire NG11 6NL 1960-63 Mrs Maureen Evershed-Martin, Mile End Cottage, Cherlton Fitzpaine, Crediton, Devon EX17 4JU 1961-64 Mrs Carolyn Keyzor, 83 Anmore Road, Denmead, Hampshire PO7 6NT 1962-65 Mr Marten Lougee, 11 Meadow Close, Cononley, Keighley, West Yorkshire BD20 8LZ 1963-66 Mr Jim Swain, The Cobbler’s, New Street, Somerton, Somerset TA11 7NT 1964-67 Mr Bob Norris, Exotter, 7 Ethelbert Road, Rochester, Kent ME1 3EU 1965-68 Mrs Jo Bird, Swansong, 70 Glade Road, Marlow, Buckinghamshire SL7 1DH 1966-69 Mr and Mrs Peter and Rose Scott, 23 Beamish Way, Maple Farm, Winslow, Buckinghamshire MK18 3EU 1970+ Mrs H Chapman, 60 Connaught Road, Cromer Norfolk NR27 0BZ 1980+ Mrs P Cahill, 50 Ridgeway, Hayes, Bromley, Kent BR2 7DE

Mrs Hilary Chapman sends newsletters to all those who no longer have an active year rep – most years between 1929-31 and 1946-48. As Membership Secretary it is helpful if you could let her know of changes of address or any deaths, so as to keep records up to date. If you have lost touch with former friends drop her a note and hopefully she will be able to put you in touch again.

4 From the Guild Secretary

Dear Friends

If all has gone according to plan, you should be reading your Guild Magazine in the first week of March. If not, sorry. Included in the Guild Magazine is a separate leaflet for you to book for this years Guild Weekend. Note, not just a day. You may notice also that the bed and breakfast rates have been reduced. It is important for you to book as SOON AS POSSIBLE as there are only a limited number of rooms because of the Goodwood Festival of Speed. At last July's General Meeting it was agreed that there would be some trial changes in 2013. It has been felt that Saturday was becoming rather a rush and that meeting friends was most important, bearing in mind we are all getting older (I will not dwell upon that).

1. An evening meal on Friday 12th July at 7.00 p.m. You will need to book this with College on your booking form. There will however be a minimum number of 20 people required for this to take place. If College do not get sufficient requests by for dinner by the middle of June they will inform anyone who has booked so that they can make alternative arrangements. After dinner some people will meet in College around 8.30 p.m for a drink and it would help if you contacted me directly about this, especially the year reps (all my contact details are on page 3 of this Newsletter)

2. On Saturday 13th July the timetable will be:

9.30 a.m. Business meeting especially for year reps and interested members 10.30 a.m. Guild Service 11.15 a.m. Coffee break 11.45 a.m. General meeting and news 1.00 p.m. Lunch

The rest of day can be spent looking at exhibits etc around our old college, look at the changes and most of all enjoy meeting with friends.

3. Sunday 14th July.

9.30 a.m. Holy Communion 10.30 a.m. Trundle Walk (around 12.15/12.30 p.m. at the top)

I will remind you that the Guild is run by a team of which I am the mouthpiece. Colin, Hilary, Rose, John, Barbara and Andy all play their part and you can always contact them if you wish to discuss any Guild matter.

Best wishes to you all and it will be wonderful to see you. If you cannot make it, for any reason whatsoever, we will think about you.

Marten Lougee

PS: Sadly we clash with the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the date of which was moved because of the German Grand Prix. I mention this because car travel will be very much slower for people arriving on the Saturday, so please take this into account when planning your journey.

5 Bishop Otter College Guild

Income and Expenditure Account for Year Ending 31st December 2012

Income Expenditure

2011 Balances at 1/1/12 2011 0.00 Cash 0.00 509.66 Year Rep's Expenses 467.06 318.39 Current Account 2186.00 25.48 Secretaries' Expenses 0.00 930.16 Deposit Accounts 930.64 0.00 Membership Sec. Exp. 50.00 1988.15 Investment Account 0.00 0.00 Treasurer's Expenses 32.39 3236.70 3116.64 535.14 549.45 240.00 SUBS & DONATIONS 265.00 0.00 Newsletters 0.00 129.24 Donations 0.00

Reunion July 2012 Reunion July 2010 6097.20 Receipts 297.00 5756.56 University of Chichester 0.00 Sale of badges 198.00 B.O.C. Chapel 185.00 396.00 Chapel Offering 370.00 198.00 Chosen Charity 185.00 6493.20 667.00 10.00 Refunds 0.00 29.45 Service sheets 0.00 6192.01 370.00

Bank Interest Balances at 31/12/12 0.48 Deposit Accounts 0.48 0.00 Cash 0.00 2.65 Investment Account 0.00 2186.00 Current Account 2198.55 3.13 0.48 930.64 Deposit Accounts 931.12 0.00 Investment Account 0.00 3116.64 3129.67

9973.03 TOTALS 4049.12 9973.03 4049.12

Checked & found correct – H Chapman

6 Notes for the Reunion Weekend 12th to 14th July 2013

Please note that all bookings for the weekend July 12th-14th and any requests to stay additional nights before or after the reunion will be handled by the University’s Conference Office. The booking form only covers the weekend; other nights depend on the availability of rooms. Conference Office direct line is: 01243 812120. Email: [email protected] Please complete the booking form which is enclosed separately with the Newsletter. 1. Notes on the weekend Please be aware that there will be some building works taking place around campus over the weekend of the reunion and certain areas may be cordoned off. 2. Residential Room Allocation and Key Collection: Please note on the booking form if there is anybody that you would like to be allocated near and the University will endeavour to do this for you. You will be able to collect your keys and meal tickets from the Accommodation Office, which is located on the ground floor of Bishop Andrewes. Check-in on Friday 12th or Saturday 13th July is from 3.00 p.m. and 9.00 p.m. If you are likely to arrive after the office has closed please let the University know and they will make arrangements for the keys to be handed to the Caretaker’s Lodge at the main entrance to the campus. The conference reception is open over the weekend from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Please telephone 01243 812120 if you are going to be delayed. 3. Meal Tickets: Vouchers for your meals will be sent out with the confirmation of reservation and receipt for payment. Please ensure that you bring these with you as they cannot be replaced. 4. Check-out: Rooms will need to be vacated by 10 a.m. on the day of departure. Please speak to the conference reception if you require for luggage to be put somewhere safe). Keys must be returned to the Conference Reception by 10 a.m. 5. Car Parking Restrictions: Parking space is limited on campus and cannot be guaranteed. Parking permits will be required for those staying overnight and for Friday. Parking is free during the day on Saturday and Sunday. Please put the permit on display in your car on arrival. 6. Times of Meals (All served in Otters Restaurant): Breakfast will be served between 7.30 a.m. and 9.00 a.m. (included in Bed and Breakfast Rate) Friday – Welcome Dinner will be at 7 p.m. – To be booked in advance Saturday – Morning Coffee and Biscuits – Cash service Saturday – Reunion Luncheon at 1 p.m.– To be booked in advance Saturday – Afternoon Tea and Biscuits – Cash service If any day visitors would like to join residents for a full-breakfast you can book in advance at the rate of £9.50 (including VAT). Please call the conference office on 01243 812120. 7. There will be coffee, tea and milk in the bedrooms for those staying overnight. 8. Bed and Breakfast Prices including VAT: Single Ensuite Rooms: £38.70 per person, per night. The bed and breakfast rate includes the accommodation and English breakfast. 9. Additional Nights: If you require any additional nights accommodation please put a note in with your booking form when you return it and the University will contact you and invoice you separately for these.

Telephone number for emergencies: In case of emergencies outside office hours: Telephone: 01243 793477. This is a direct line to the Duty Caretaker/Security at Bishop Otter Campus when Conference Reception is closed.

7 From the Vice-Chancellor

I am looking forward to welcoming you back to Bishop Otter on 13th July. This has been an ‘interesting’, and thankfully, successful year for the University of Chichester. The new financial arrangements for undergraduate students, introduced by the Government for the September 2012 entry, represented the most significant change to Higher Education funding since the 1962 Education Act. Moving the burden of tuition fees entirely to the student has sparked a national debate on the future of universities. Would students still want to go into Higher Education given the high level of debt involved? Would students take the cheaper option of studying at a Further Education College, a European university or an on-line degree provider? Would all UK universities survive in the hiatus that would follow? As the (then) smallest university in the country (Chichester has around 6000 full- and part-time students), with a widening participation intake from lower-income families (thought likely to be the group that would be most debt-averse) and a focus on liberal arts subjects (thought to be the subjects likely to be hit by a more instrumental approach linking gaining a degree to getting a job) we were thought to be particularly vulnerable in the new context. UCAS recently reported on the September 2012 entry – revealing that, indeed, entry to university was down nationally by 11% in England with 54,000 fewer students entering UK Higher Education in 2012 than had done so in 2011. I am however, delighted to report that Chichester, unlike most other universities, has recruited to target and that we saw no diminution to our intake in September 2012 and no reduction in the quality of intake in terms of A Level grades. Similarly, the signs are good for 2013 entry, with our applications up by around 10% on last year (against a national rise of 2%). I think it shows that as an organisation we are getting our message across about the advantages of studying in a small, supportive university with a long established tradition for education within a community ethos. As an ‘Ofsted Outstanding’ teacher training provider, we were even given additional teacher training numbers and all of these courses remain full. The University has also recently decided to become a sponsor for Primary and Secondary Schools who wish to take advantage of Academy status. All of this means we have continued to generate the healthy surplus that we need to support our capital developments. You will see as soon as you arrive that we are, once again this year, taking advantage of the window of opportunity afforded by the Summer- break, to upgrade our Campus. Last year we constructed a Sports Dome (a covered area the size of three tennis courts/netball pitches) and this is now in full and enthusiastic use by students and local teams. We also refurbished the ground floor of the Learning Resources Centre to provide a University Reception, a one-stop shop for students seeking help from student services, a Costa coffee outlet within an internet café and a suite of media production rooms. The new look Learning Resources Centre opened, on time, in September and has been a great success with both staff and students. This extensive refurbishment meant we had to close the Otter gallery for summer 2012 and put 300 works of art into a South London, climate-controlled, storage. However, 17 of the best pieces from our collection spent the down period in a special exhibition of Contemporary British Art in Horsham Museum where they were seen by thousands of visitors. This year, we are extending the front of the Chapel by integrating the covered walkway into the building itself (to provide a foyer, a social area and an office for the Chaplain). As part of the same project we are giving Chapel Courtyard a complete make-over. This will include a pergola with decking for al fresco dining outside the Otters Restaurant. With these changes, Chapel Courtyard will provide a cohesive central point of social exchange for the entire Campus community. I am afraid that this work will actually be under way when you meet, but we will work hard to reduce any inconvenience. You will still be able to use the Chapel. In fact, we are not as far advanced in the planned refurbishment of the Chapel as we had hoped this time last year– we are still trying to find the source of the leak in the roof (which has been a feature of the building since it opened). This problem may now require a ‘nuclear solution’ – removing the tiles and fitting a membrane over the entirety of the pitches – and we cannot undertake the work planned for the floor and the windows before this problem is resolved. Meanwhile, the Lurcat tapestry has been taken down and sent for professional restoration work and replaced by the hanging made by students for the opening of the Chapel in 1962. I hope that you will be fit and well enough to join us at the reunion this year – I look forward to greeting you in July and hope your weekend is a great success.

Professor Clive Behagg, Vice-Chancellor

8 From the President of the Students’ Union

The University of Chichester Students’ Union always strives to be the best it can be and it will always hold the interest of its students at heart. At the start of 2012 the Union staff set a Vision ‘The UCSU aims to be an Exceptional, Inspiring and Ambitious Students’ Union enabling the Students’ Experience to be the best on the south coast.’ With our attainable vision in hand we set out to have one of the best years as a union. The National Student Survey (NSS) had a question to do with Students’ unions for the first time ever. I am satisfied with the Students’ (Union, Association or Guild) responses; 78% agreed compared to the 66% national average that we, as a union, are 2nd out of 15 in our comparator group, 4th out of 65 as a Modern University and 18th out of 157 Universities in the Sector. Our events held in Mack and Zee saw 26,537 students through the doors enjoying a range of activities such as Club nights, Karaoke and even a little bit of Comedy. More than six hundred people attended the Graduation Ball, 650 attended Snow Ball and 1,600 attended Summer Ball. Overall, for the 2011/12 year we had an 81% attendance at all paid events. We had 20 student-led events run over the course of the year with individual teams and groups also hosting their own evenings with a spectrum of themes. We always pride ourselves with how well we engage with our students, especially when it comes to our activities. We have 28 Sports Teams with 597 people buying sports-fed cards and a record number of eight teams achieving BUCS success, winning their leagues and becoming one of only five institutions in the country to have both men’s and women’s football teams in the premiership south. We have 13 active societies and 194 volunteers including our executive committee and fresher’s crew. No course is more important than another – we value them all exactly the same. This is why we have a course representative for each course, and within each course and each strand if needed. We took time to train students, 148 to a Basic level and 7 to an Advanced level, as Course Representatives. We here, at the students’ union, always believe in what the students want and we will continue to lobby the university on the things that are the most important to our members.

Cee Cee Douglas, President

9 The Bishop Otter Olympians! – News from the Archives

Janet Carter – University Archivist, The Learning Resource Centre, University of Chichester, College Lane, Chichester. PO19 6PE.Tel.01243 816087. E-mail: [email protected]

Dear Readers Many of you will have enjoyed watching and perhaps even visited the Olympics in London during 2012. In preparation for the Olympic Games, the University played its part in both hosting a leg of the torch relay, and in the training and preparation of some of the Olympians. More about this later, but initially I thought perhaps it would be interesting to investigate the sporting traditions of Bishop Otter College from its beginnings. When the Bishop Otter College was established back in 1839, the teaching certificate course taught to the young men did not include any form of physical activity. However, the daily timetable allowed for a session of recreation to be between 3.30 and 5.00 p.m. Following the re-opening of the women’s training college in 1873, the daily session of recreation was extended to two hours, and students were encouraged to walk or take part in some form of physical activity. At around this time four tennis courts were marked out. In the photograph you can see the one in front of the Cloisters, whilst a further grass court and two hard courts were also made available. From this photograph c.1899 you will also see the croquet lawn to the South side of the Chapel. By the 1900s, the College had a well-established ‘Cycle Club’, as witnessed in the photograph taken in College Lane. Students at this time were also taking part in team games, one popular example being hockey. Hockey was played on a regular basis on the field below the Cloisters which was then linked to the Cloisters lawn by a bridge over the wall. With the expansion of the College, a changing curriculum and greater student numbers, more sports activities became available in the early 1900s. The ‘new hall’ built in 1901 was sometimes referred to as the ‘drill hall’ due to the fact that students were encouraged to participate in routine exercises. In the winter evenings students would also use the hall for dancing. By the 1920s sport became embedded in the daily routine, with teams in netball, badminton, rounders, tennis and hockey. In the season of 1926-27, the netball team won the Sussex and South Hampshire League for which they were presented with a Shield. On a lighter note, the following year the first year trainee teachers organised a ‘sports evening’. Events included the high jump, flat race, wheelbarrow race and three-legged race, whilst the staff and second years took part in an egg and spoon race. In 1929, the College organised a ‘Games Committee’, members were made up of the Principal, Physical Training Lecturer, the captains and vice-captains of the hockey, netball, badminton, tennis and rounders teams. It was part of the committee’s duties to award ‘Colours’ at the end of each season for each sport. ‘Colours’ could only be awarded to members of the 1st teams who had played in 75% of the matches; also a highly commended award was given to any member of the 1st and 2nd teams. In 1931cricket was added to the competitive games. The introduction of this sport was so popular that 70 students applied to join the Women’s Cricket Association. The following season opponents included; Littlehampton Ladies, Portsmouth Training College, Chichester High School, Royal West Sussex Hospital, Brighton Diocesan Training College and Petersfield Ladies. Much praise was given to the work of the groundsman and umpire, Mr. Chapple, seen here in the photograph on the right. Perhaps cricket was not the most successful team game for the College, as under the heading ‘Cricket’ in the 1936 edition of the College Magazine ... “Cricket? ah that is the game in which three people play and all the others wait on them!’ These were the remarks made by a foreign student at College and might be applied to College cricket where the scoring of runs is a lonely and painful business.”

10 In 1937 it was decided that the College uniform be changed. The new uniform would include ... ‘brown pleated shorts with a champagne coloured blouse of a specially woven material, and instead of the usual white sweater, a biscuit coloured cardigan. Both the blouse and the cardigan can be worn with an ordinary skirt, and the shorts quickly slipped on for teaching’. In the same year students could enjoy the voluntary exercise of ‘Keep fit’, which many ‘enthusiastically welcomed’. Keep fit was held after supper in the hall and, when the weather was warm, students would migrate to the front lawn. This larger outdoor space also allowed for national folk dancing to take place. The exercises proved so popular that in 1938 a demonstration was given as part of the entertainment at the Sussex Church Builders Fete, held in the Bishop’s Palace Garden. The size of the ‘drill hall’ was proving inadequate for the student numbers by the mid-1930s and so a new gymnasium was added to the south side of the College which was opened in 1939. During the war years sport was obviously limited, but even when the College moved to its temporary home at Bromley, team games still included netball and hockey with matches being competed against such opponents as Bromley High School, Tonbridge County School and Kings College. Back in Chichester in1947, table-tennis was introduced. Opponents in the first season included the Coldstream Guards and the Chichester Barracks. On the national scene, the College students were going to major sporting events to gain experience. In July 1950 a group of 17 1st year PTAs went to Wimbledon to see the ‘All England Tennis Championships’. The students reported that they had seen a thoroughly exciting match on Court No. 1 when Cronby and Brown beat Sidwell and McGregor. The following year, 1951, saw the first ‘all-women’s’ event to be held at Wembley Stadium. The game was to be hockey, and to mark the event arrangements were made for the 2nd year PEAs to be present for this great occasion. In the stadium the College’s spectators watched England versus Ireland, which England won 6-1. A new College Club was formed in ‘Vaulting’ in 1952. Uptake of membership was poor, but those who attended vaulted on a fortnightly basis throughout the winter months. The mid-1950s was a successful time for sport at Bishop Otter College. In the 1953 season the netball 1st won the Sussex County Netball Rally at Hove, and also the Inter College Rally. The following year, 1954, students J. Gates and Pat Springham were chosen to play for the Sussex Ladies Hockey teams and Pat Springham went on to be awarded the County Colours. At this time Physical education activities in the College included further visits to Wembley and Wimbledon, as well as a swimming course at Eastbourne, where Olympic Coach, Mr J. Madders, demonstrated the front crawl and breaststroke. In addition an athletics course was given to the College by Mr L Ward, the Chief Honorary Coach of the WAAA (Women’s Amateur Athletics Association). By 1960, Wednesday afternoons were set aside for games. At this time inter-hostel hockey and netball matches were supported with enthusiasm. Groundsman Mr. Hibbert, was highly praised for keeping the pitches in good condition. In the same year stoolball was made an official team game and along with badminton both were given their own colours. By the mid- to late 1960s the stoolball team were competing against local clubs that included the Bognor Training College, Graylingwell and St Richard’s Hospital. A second purpose-built gymnasium was added in 1962 and from the photograph you can see it being used for gymnastics.

11 When it came to cricket, the College installed some new cricket nets in the grounds in 1967. This new addition had caused some comments on the correct attire to be used whilst using the nets, and students were requested to wear ‘white shirt and grey flannels’. Around the same time a redgrapitch surface was added in the lower field which caused much comment. The photograph on the right shows the hockey team practicing on the new pitch. By 1969 the College had enough mixed students to be able to offer two male soccer and rugby teams, a male hockey team, plus the introduction of a basketball club, a lacrosse team and a swimming club. Finally, by the early 1970s the variety of activities had increased still further and students could also choose fencing, riding, climbing and sailing, and this was just the start of things to come. When the College became West Sussex Institute in 1978, sport was offered as a separate course as well as continuing to be offered as part of the teacher training programme. By the time of the Seoul Olympic Games in 1988, the Sports Department was involved in training and developing athletes and providing research. Olympians who have been involved with the University over the years have included Ben Ainsley and Shirley Robertson in yachting; boxer Amir Khan; and diver Pete Waterfield. In this last Olympic year of 2012, former student Saskia Clark, who qualified at the University in 2003 along with her colleague Hannah Mills gained a silver medal in sailing, whilst another former student Ben Quilter gained a bronze in the Judo Paralympics. If you were a member of a College sports club, or have any photographs or recollections that you would like to share, please get in contact and perhaps we can include them in next year’s newsletter.

Two Busy Years Marion Field (1954-56) 2011 was a very busy but enjoyable year for me. My sister and I went on two Caribbean cruises and one up the Danube. Both the Caribbean cruises were on the 'Thomson Dream' and I was running a series of workshops on 'Creative Writing' – a very odd title but it covers everything. Each workshop is for an hour a day on the six sea days as we cross the Atlantic. In March we flew to Jamaica, visited some islands and then crossed the Atlantic before visiting Gibraltar and flying home from Palma, and in December we flew to Tenerife and the six sea days started the cruise so I then had ten free days visiting islands, sunbathing and lazing generally. I have been invited on to the 'Thomson Dream' for some more workshops this year. The Danube cruise was not a working one and it was fine until we hit a sandbank and got stuck. We were taken off, wearing life jackets, on board a container with no seats and no shelter from the sun apart from umbrellas! Not pleasant and the compensation offered by Viking was poor. Unfortunately on the way home on 19th December we had to fly to Manchester where we missed the Gatwick flight and had to catch one four hours later, which upset me as I was due at W H Smith in Guildford at 11 a.m. to sign copies of my latest book “The Story of Guildford”. I finally managed to get there by 3 p.m. I was rather tired by the time I finally reached home. I had been working on the Guildford book for Phillimore Books for about eighteen months. I even took the manuscript to check while I was on my first cruise! On 26th November, just before I went on the cruise, there was a launch for the book at the History Centre in Woking. I did a short presentation and it was a lovely afternoon with about sixty people there. I had to get back into a 'working' mode after the Christmas holidays as I had an appointment to see my first publisher to discuss a new book! Great! I always like to have something on the go and am still teaching English privately every day as well. I enjoy it though. My latest cruise was in August 2012 - this time on the 'Thomson Spirit', a slightly smaller ship and a shorter cruise along the spectacular Norwegian fjords. The mountains and waterfalls are so beautiful that it is difficult to find appropriate words to describe them. It must be one of the loveliest places in the world. On this cruise there were only two 'sea days' as the ship sailed from Harwich across the North Sea to Bergen where the sun shone all day! It was obviously one of Bergen's five 'rain-free' days in the year! I gave two lectures and had had to enlist the help of a friend to put some photos on a memory stick to illustrate my talks. I was pleased with the result. I am gradually crawling into the twenty-first century! I was delighted to sell several of my books including the latest one, 'The Story of Guildford' which had been published at the end of 2011. This was my fifteenth book and I still can't believe it. I am now working on the next one which will incorporate some sketches to illustrate the history of the Christian Church over the past two thousand years.

12 More about Australia Mike Paige (1961 – 1964) As you are no doubt aware, Australia is a vast country. It is divided into six States and two territories. With the exception of Queensland, it has three levels of government: local, State/Territory and Federal. When I last checked, New South Wales had the largest population, closely followed by Victoria. I live in an area called the Northern Rivers (also known as the Far North Coast). Sydney, the capital city, is 780 kms away. Brisbane, capital of Queensland, is 230 kms. By road, the journey to Sydney, if one is lucky not to get held up too often by roadworks, takes 10 or 11 hours. Whilst the main national road, the Pacific Highway, is being made into a divided road, much of it is still two lanes and rather dangerous. Conversely, the road to Brisbane is now almost completely divided, in some areas being six lanes. It takes me, on a good day, two and a half hours to Brisbane CBD. We do have a train service, such as it is. From Central Station, Sydney, to Casino, it is an 11 hour trip. There is one day and one night service. From Casino to Goonellabah (9 kms east of Lismore) the journey by bus is 40 minutes. Those who can afford to do so, fly. We have two budget airlines: Jetstar, which is a subsidiary of Qantas, and Virgin Australia, owned by Branson. The main airports are Ballina (30 kms away) and Gold Coast (102 kms). The latter has a far greater choice of flights throughout the day and evening. Total flying time from Ballina is one hour forty and from Gold Coast, one and a half hours. Both airlines operate jet aircraft. There is also a small airport in Lismore, providing four flights a day to Sydney but only with a 36 seat turboprop Saab 340B. It is quite expensive. Where we can, depending on the fares, we fly from Ballina. It can cost as little as $69 for the single sector. However, that is with carry-on baggage only. My territory, as Commanding Officer of 20 Battalion Army Cadets, extends from the city of Taree in the south, to Murwillumbah in the north, which is only 30 kms from Queensland. Most trips are done in the evening, on the Pacific Highway. Taree is a six hour plus trip, Port Macquarie five hours, Coffs Harbour three hours, Grafton two hours and M'bah one and a half hours. Except for the two most southerly Units, where I get motel accommodation, I have to drive back to my Depot at Lismore, do the paperwork and clean the vehicle! The Far North Coast is a pleasant place to live and many teachers try to get there a few years prior to retirement.

Helping to Police the Olympic Games Marten Lougee (1962 – 65) Marten Lougee is a long standing member and former chairman of the British Transport Police's National Independent Advisory Group (NIAG). The group is made up of independent members of various communities who help to advise BTP, monitor what we are doing and act as a critical friend. Marten is normally based in the North East, but made himself available to BTP (at no cost!), from 4 to 9 August in London. "The Olympics were obviously a major event in which NIAG should be involved," said Marten. "There had been doom and gloom from certain people and sections of the media for some time – the Tube system would collapse, people would be stranded, major rioting, you name it, it was going to happen. Even Mitt Romney, Republican candidate for the US presidency, had a say just before the start of the Games, telling us we would not cope! "So on Saturday, 4 August I was walking out of Camden Tube station, gathering a pile of Tube maps and heading towards FHQ for my meeting with Sergeant Keith Johnson. There were two conference calls every day, at 10.30 and 16.00 hours, and I attended many of them. They were chaired by a Silver Commander and each Olympic venue was called to give a report, to be given information, and orders were checked for the day and evening events. "That Saturday was also a poignant day as it was a year since the shooting dead of Mark Duggan by a Metropolitan Police unit in Ferry Lane. This led to the Tottenham riots and there were concerns that this could cause problems. "I usually started at 10.00 hours and on some days was about after 19.00 hours. We, Sergeant Johnson and myself, visited the Working at Heights Team, based in Lambeth, where I met TIPS Ray Brewer and TIPS Elaine Silvestro. I was shown all the equipment which was packed into the van – it was amazing the gear they had, even a small cooker so they could be self sufficient. Their training had included York Minster (a fair height!) and used the carriages at the Keighley and Worth Valley railway. "I visited the FHQ Operations Room with its bank of monitors – the room was very similar to the one at the London Underground Network Operations Centre, where I was introduced to Oliver Monaghan, the senior operating officer. "Things ran smoothly and on Friday, 3 August, 4.4 million people used the Tube - a record that was, I believe, exceeded the following week. When the Marathon passed Embankment, I spoke to two officers from the Crime Reduction Unit performing uniform duties, PC Steve Cattle and PC Mitch Bateman - it was all hands to the pump. We met just one very unhappy couple (mother and son) at Earls Court. He had been "dipped" – his wallet had been taken from his left hand trouser pocket. They were advised what to do and it seemed to help that I was present. "As we passed through Green Park station, we heard that a woman with children had collapsed on a platform so we went to see how the medical response team from LU Area responded. She was pregnant, had two young children with a pram and spoke little English. The team decided that an ambulance was the best answer.

13 "We were out and about on the Tube, Docklands Light Railway, London Overground, the Javelin service and the North Greenwich cable car, aka The Emirates Airline, travelling at 8.9 mph. "A cup of tea with the Expo Search Dog Unit (Buddy and Max) proved fascinating - they were close to the ExCel Exhibition Centre. The dogs are always popular with the public. I wish that we saw more of them about. "Just before the Olympics, there had been a practice with the queuing system at London Bridge station. This had had a negative impact, especially with commuters who had wanted to go their usual ways and could not. My daughter was one of them, even though she did have a hospital pass to allow her to deviate. She decided it was easier to use Borough instead. "The atmosphere over the period I was in London was amazing. People seemed genuinely happy and relaxed. The grand plan worked. Officers from other forces seemed surprised. It was so different to what they were used to in their own areas. Officers were dealing with people who wanted to be helped, not arrested. Some officers said they wanted to join BTP, perhaps not realising it was hardly business as usual. One officer from Richmond (North Yorkshire Police) liked the work – the hustle and bustle, not a county beat! "I think Team GB getting three Gold Medals in 45 minutes on the first Saturday helped so much. The atmosphere out there was very positive and the media so enthusiastic. "Stephen Lawrence was murdered in a racist attack while waiting for a bus on the evening of 22 April 1993. Why do I mention that? If his murder had not happened, I would not have been in London with BTP, in fact NIAG may not have existed. I would not have seen or felt the wonderful atmosphere, an unrepeatable experience. Stephen was an excellent athlete especially at the 100 and 200 metre sprint. He would have enjoyed the Games. (Reproduced by kind permission of BTP Media Department)

The Murray Downland Trust (Registered Charity No 1040076) Sue Edwards (1971-1974) In May last year, I spent a very enjoyable – albeit somewhat damp! – day at the Weald & Downland Museum in Singleton, manning the Murray Downland Trust stall at an event being held there. During the course of the day, several people came and looked at the Trust display and I noticed that, for several of them, it was the picture and information about Betty Murray which excited most interest and provoked appreciative comments. However, people were unaware of the existence of the Trust and I decided that this tribute to Betty Murray should be brought to a wider audience – hence this article (part of which is taken from the most recent Trust newsletter). The Trust which bears her family name operates ‘for the public benefit, the preservation, protection, development and improvement of areas of land of botanical, zoological, ecological, archaeological, historical or landscape interest or beauty, by the acquisition by gift, purchase, or lease or management by arrangement of downland, grassland, fenland, woodlands, agricultural land, common land and any other land whatsoever’. It has set out its short- and medium-term objectives as managing small areas of chalk downland in Sussex and Hampshire, and so establishing a group or ‘chain’ of reserves. The five reserves currently under management are at Buriton Down (Hampshire); Under Beacon, the Devil’s Jumps, Heyshott Down and Heyshott Escarpment (West Sussex). All the reserves are within the South Downs National Park. Betty Murray was passionate about her natural surroundings. The Downs in all its moods excited and moved her. She possessed a keen eye for the beauty of landscapes and worked assiduously to preserve and protect them. Her strong aesthetic sense did not, however, lead her into promoting an adherence to the status quo and allowing Nature to take its course; rather, taking the avant-garde approach which she applied as much to her work at Bishop Otter College – as well as on numerous other bodies – she strove to keep rampant Nature at bay and to promote the natural attributes of native chalk downland, recognising the potential for the richness of flora and fauna which provides endless delight for the senses. The Down behind her Heyshott home was a constant source of delight and wonder. However, during the 1939- 1945 war years the Downs became forbidden territory, having been taken over by the army for the purpose of military training. Sandpits were used for the development and use of flame-throwers. Many areas of the Downs were ploughed up, consequently grazing declined and, eventually, the production of arable crops took over from the previously traditional practice of sheep-grazing.

14 The Downs at Heyshott were used as ranges, which resulted in some areas becoming threatened by developing tree seedlings, much to the consternation of Betty Murray and her brother, Kenneth (who visited, biennially, from his work as an archaeologist in Nigeria). To ensure that the inevitable was not permitted to happen, the two intrepid countryside rangers would choose propitious moments to venture into temporary army land and wage war on the encroaching trees and scrub! By the end of the Second World War, natural chalk downland had become an increasingly scarce commodity throughout the long stretch of the South Downs. As an active member of the Society of Sussex Downsmen from 1948 onwards, serving as one of its District Officers for forty years, Betty Murray spent many happy and energetic hours on the Downs, clearing scrub and protecting rights of way. She waymarked country footpaths and worked assiduously to help restore the Downs, particularly those at Heyshott, to their former open glory, ensuring that the habitat was suitable for re-colonisation by the beautiful chalk-loving flora in which she – and others – took such delight. There were many other claims on her intellect and time during this period, often to do with public enquiries; but one senses that she was never happier than when wielding an axe or attacking scrub. The Murray Downland Trust came into being in 1994, nearly twenty years after the agreement of a lease with the Cowdray Estate which established the reserves at Heyshott; and also at the Devil’s Jumps, leased from the West Dean Estate. Originally, Betty Murray chaired the advisory committee which was set up, under the auspices of the Society of Sussex Downsmen, to manage the reserves. This committee included several individuals who are, today, still involved with the Trust. After the Society decided that it could no longer justify the expense of supporting the Heyshott and Devil’s Jumps Reserves, it agreed to provide a sum of money to allow the formation of an independent group to do so, hence The Murray Downland Trust was formed: a fitting tribute to its new Patron and indefatigable champion of chalk downland. Today, the Trust continues to celebrate her vision and enlightened thinking, preserving and managing for a new generation the wonderful first-hand experience of exploring chalk downland, and providing oases of beauty and calm to promote the well-being of mind, body and spirit in our increasingly hectic lives. Membership of the Murray Downland Trust is open to all. Regular work parties actively manage the reserves and the Chairman, John Murray, follows firmly in his aunt’s footsteps and, just like her, has the scratches and scars to prove it. A website is in its infancy but it is intended to develop this during 2013. Anyone wishing to join the Trust, join in with a work party (you don’t need to be a member for this) or make a donation should contact John Murray at Upper Cranmore, Heyshott, West Sussex, GU29 0DL. Telephone 01730 812325. The next Open Day for the Trust will be held on 27th July, 2013, at Heyshott Down SSSI. Visitors will have the opportunity to see and hear about the conservation and restoration of this beautiful area of chalk downland, complete with its Bronze Age cemetery and intriguing cross dykes. Transport to the Reserve will be provided from the top of Cocking Hill at various times during the day (also back again!), between 11:30 and 15:30 - for which it is strongly advised that you book a place. The day has yet to be finalised but further details may be obtained from John Murray (01730 812325) or Sue and Mike Edwards (01730 810482). The pictures illustrating this article show Betty Murray in front of her Heyshott home; and a view down into Heyshott village from the Heyshott Escarpment Reserve, showing the remains of the lime quarry and its workings.

And finally - Fifty Years Ago (taken from the Guild Newsletter of 1963) Miss Murray reports that “the College is now up to full strength – nearly 450 students and 40 staff”. . . “With the greatly increased numbers we have been glad of all the new accommodation. We managed to seat nearly 500 for the Christmas dinner with its traditional carol singing” ... “This year there are 150 men to about 300 women students. We have for the first time a man as Senior student: a second year man produced A Sleep of Prisoners in the new Chapel in the Autumn; a first year man [Dave Smith] has founded a Brass Band and another a Gilbert and Sullivan Society [Godfrey Hurst]. But the old persists alongside the new: The Trundle walk and the First Year Drama Competition, the Harvest Festival and the Carol Service. The women are Rugger Club supporters and the men accompany the women up Bow Hill to help them out of the snow drifts, and College dances go with a swing”. John Butterworth, as the first male President of the Students Union wrote “I feel rather like an intruder trespassing on land previously trodden by members of the more ‘delicate species’ only”. “ ... the gentlemen students have made a valuable contribution to the production of the Coffee Bar. This is situated in the cellars below Miss Murray’s flat and we anticipate that it will be in use in the very near future”.

15 News of Otters (see also the Obituaries)

1929-1931 Hilda Smith (Fox), at 102, is our Senior old student. Although now in residential care she still keeps in touch with former college students who did their teaching practice in her infants class in Portslade. Her daughter, Deirdre, with her husband John, regularly visit from Canada where they have lived and taught since qualifying as teachers in the 1960s. Her son John and Val’s daughter, Nikki, married a Guardsman on 15th December 2012 with full ceremony.

1933-1935 Heather Flack (Turner) has recently had a fall, breaking both ankles, but as soon as she can stand and walk again she intends to return to the home she has shared with her daughter and family since emigrating to Canada about eight years ago. Definitely by her 98th birthday in February! Betty Wright (Budge) went to college in 1933 for “teacher training” having already obtained her BSc in zoology. In her younger days she sailed in Southampton Water and in 1931 watched Britain win the Schneider Trophy there. Married for 70 years she has one son, one daughter, a grandson and two great-grandsons. At 91 she reluctantly stopped driving her hippy style Volkswagon. Her sister, Joan, was in college from 1929-1931 and died in 1998.

1935-1937 Phyllis Moth (Elderfield) lives on the Isle of Wight but at 96 still has regular foreign holidays, Spain being a favoured destination.

1941-1942 Rita Reeve-Black has now completed walking the Herefordshire Trail and the Monnow and Wye Valley Walks – serious distances, the longest 150 miles. Her next goal is to travel the entire Welsh Railway network, main line, industrial and narrow gauge. She has made a start with the highest and probably most spectacular – the Snowdon Mountain Railway.

1946-1948 Gillian Owen (Isitt) lives in Scampton so frequently hears the Red Arrows overhead. Times away include visits to Chichester and the Festival Theatre with the group of Sussex-based friends from her year.

1947-1949 Audrey Colam (Mould) writes that “as the Year Representative of this group I am grateful to be in touch with 32 life members and to receive news from many of them about themselves and their college friends. We started as an intake of 120 students so now, all in our 80s, I consider that we are a good proportion of the original number. I am in regular contact with Doreen Ryan (Bycroft), my friend since the age of five, and Myrtle Williamson (Cass), a friend from my first days at BOC. We three, together with Barbara Chuter, who sadly died some years ago, walked to Westhampnett church twice each Sunday to sing in the choir and Myrtle introduced Doreen and myself to the activity of bell ringing at Chichester cathedral. These were two opportunities to make friends in the city beyond the college”. Sue Pickering (Stockford) reports that she and Pamela Connell (Bush), who both live in Alton, Hampshire, are well. Sue says she is going to stop abseiling. She did her last one in June 2012 on the Blade, a lovely new building in Reading. She went to the USA in October and had to beat a retreat from Hurricane Sandy. She saw Betty (Chris Kimbell) in July and they had lunch and good gossip. Chris Kimbell (Christopher) mentioned Sue’s visit. She said that, with the help of escorts she went to Las Palmas, Portugal and Cornwall last year and, above all, to her granddaughter’s most beautiful wedding on the one gorgeous day in early September. Jean Shibley (Rendell), writing from her home in Missouri, USA, says she spent January 2012 with her daughter, Laura, in O’Fallon, a metropolitan area quite different from small-town Unionville, where she herself lives, or the rural environment where her son, Jerry, lives. Her grandson, Ray, and his family visited her just before Christmas. His son, Trevor, was 16 months old and she says “of course great grandma thinks he is very special”. They were going to be back for Christmas, along with Cathy and her fiancé, Lynn. Laura and her family were with her for Thanksgiving. Jean says it is good to have family around at holiday time. Her life revolves around church activities and she is still President of the united Methodist Women. Her other interests are American Legion Auxiliary and Friends of the Library. Joan Foss (Penn) had a hip replacement last year and now has a promise of a new shoulder. She asks “where will it end? – sans eyes, sans teeth, sans everything?”. Celia Mason (Hayes) says the weather curtailed a lot of her activities last year but she is still doing keep fit and swimming. She is still in touch with Joan Jones (Hamriding) and Betty Thomas. Joan also wrote to say that 2012 had been a relatively calm, illness-free year, apart from injections for wet macular disease and preparing to have her first cataract operation early in 2013. Then, just at the most inconvenient time (pre Christmas) diverticulitis flared up and she was unable to go out and also had to go on a strict diet. She had recently spoken to Celia and Betty and said that Betty has mobility problems even after two hip operations.

16 Joan Maxwell (Collier) wrote that her daughter, Alison, also an ex BOC student, came over from the USA for the Olympics. They were clearing out the loft and found lots of Alison’s property, including her BOC art folder and some hand-made paper. She had studied Art as her main subject. To correct an item in last year’s newsletter, Jean says that Alison retired, not as a teacher, but as Director of Economic Development in Beverley Hills and immediately joined another City Council doing the same work four days a week at a fabulous hourly rate, and is able to visit her parents several times a year. Jean hopes that she can act as her “minder” again in 2013 when she goes on her choral trip to Bruges, Brussels and Ghent cathedrals. Apart from having arthritis and finding walking difficult, Joan is having treatment for macular degeneration which affects her ability to read the words on a score. She uses a magnifying glass for general reading but finds it tiresome. She still has annual contact with Audrey Shuker, Gina Harmes and Jo Mansfield. Margaret Hayden (Barker) says that, apart from the Diamond Jubilee, the Olympics and Paralympics last year, she was also celebrating the bi-centenary of the school where she had taught (Davison CE High School for Girls, Worthing). She wrote her memories of 45 years as a teacher, governor and Chair of Governors, working with five headteachers and still enjoying contact and events at the school. During the year she enjoyed short breaks in Torquay and Norfolk, theatre and concert going and says that family and friends keep her going. She is in touch with Joan Brogden (Sharpe) in Melbourne and says that she is very frail and has had several stays in hospital and nursing homes. Barbara Gomm (Freeland) reminds us that during our first year at college the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were married on 20th November 1947 and Prince Charles was born during our second year on 14th November 1948. She remembers many of us crowding round the radio in the Common Room to await the news of the royal birth. I myself clearly remember being in my room in New Hall and hearing people running past, shouting out the news.

1948-1950 Pat Life (Heath) still has the mobility problems which prevented her from attending the 2012 reunion. She is still maintaining her various activities at church and singing in two choirs. Her daughter, Vivien, has now taken up her position as British Ambassador to Denmark and is finding the work fascinating but is still on a steep learning curve (not least learning Danish). She meets many stimulating women – politicians, ambassadors. One of her daughters has just graduated from Sussex and the other is at Durham. Pat’s son, Richard, has set up his own company dealing with film for TV – new venture for him. Sheila Barnes (Shaw) sent news saying that she is facing a knee replacement. She had to admit that her husband, Stan, who is 88, can walk faster than she can. Their daughter, Jenny, is an Environmental Officer in Dorking and their son, Christopher, is an engineer in Plymouth. Their granddaughter, Philippa, has a degree in environmental hazards and their grandson, David, is a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and is being sponsored to take a degree at Southampton University. Eileen Handscombe (Kenwood) and Win Everitt (Humphreys) both sent Christmas greetings. Win is still living in her nursing home. Diana Jones (Woodall) has sent family news. Unfortunately Diana had a car crash so has decided not to continue driving. She is still giving talks on the Red Cross, delivering books to housebound people and undertaking various jobs at her Methodist church. She also enjoys playing social bridge. Her son, Steve, and his wife are keen sailors, with boats moored at Portsmouth. Steve’s daughter, Charlotte, hopes to go to university next year, and his son is a military policeman in Cyprus after serving in Afghanistan. Katy, Diana’s daughter, is working at Edinburgh University. One of Diana’s sons, Mike, lives in Winnipeg, where his son is undertaking sports sciences, another son, Trevor has happily started a second family. Diana has another son, Philip, living in Jutland and she hopes he won’t need the help of Pat’s daughter Vivien! The last time Phil and Vivien met they were babies. As Diana says “How time flies” June Stocking (Smith) sent news at Christmas. She laments the encroachment of arthritis, and increasing visits to the doctor. But she is still keeping as active as possible. Edith Layzell (Lever) sent Christmas greetings, but says she finds it difficult to write. Her family are being very supportive. Work on her house has been a drain on her energy but she hopes it is now completed.

1951-1953 Jill Potts (Davis) set the tone for our news this year, writing, ‘Many of our year have now hit the big 80, and the rest will be getting there soon. It just doesn’t seem possible.’ Jill and her husband thoroughly enjoyed all the celebrations arranged by their family, a week last Easter, and another in Lincolnshire. Thelma Cleaver (Brown) has moved house, rather traumatically, and has downsized a little, into a house with only one set of stairs instead of two. In the course of this, while ‘waiting’, she and her husband visited old haunts in Chichester. They recommend the George Bell House as a good place to stay. Thelma is a volunteer at the RHS garden at Hyde Hall, and works mainly in the Information Centre now. She has been the convenor for a Philosophy Group under the U3A for the last six years, and makes sure that everyone is involved in their meetings. Ella Hutt was delighted last June to get her long-awaited left replacement ankle in St Richard’s Hospital, and while there met fellow Otter, Pat Wilkins, (1953-55), not as a patient, but as one of the chaplains. Since then, however, Ella has been housebound while she makes a slow but steady recovery, well supported by many kind and practical friends, and visitors from far and near. Life, she says, is never dull.

17 Jo Slack (Abbott) and her husband live at Crawley and gravitate to Chichester several times a year to visit the city and the cathedral, and enjoy happy memories. One of her memories is of watching the artist, Hans Feibusch, at work painting his mural in the cathedral. She is great friends with Mollie Richards (Ames) who lives in Horsham, and also hears from Mary Wotton (Craig). Joy Ash wrote last year ‘I still see Mary Mountain who is well into her nineties now. We both attend the same National Trust group in Aylesbury. She is still the Miss Mountain I knew at College. Thinking of College I still think how fortunate we were to have gone to such an excellent place. I went to the Institute of Education in London, and almost a year at the Quaker College in Selly Oak before going to Pakistan, but I felt that BOC gave me so much’. Joy still enjoys travelling and is even hoping to stay in Emsworth this year. Barbara Watson Hammond (Thrush) continues as usual, though ‘slowing up’ is looming in the distance. She and Brian have discovered Halsway Manor, the National Centre for the Folk Arts, in Somerset, and have enjoyed their New Year House Party immensely. Blazing log fires were an obvious attraction, especially while others went walking in the Quantock hills – and the bar was open.

1952-1954 Eileen Canterbury (Allen) and husband went on a cruise to the Canaries over Christmas and the New Year where they were looking forward to a few dry days and warm weather. Enid Whiteman (Gulland) was sorry she didn’t manage to get to Sussex in 2012. She had a hip operation and then in August an unwelcome operation for cancer. The results have been good so far and she is making good recovery. Neil is recovering from weariness after all the housework and cooking. Elaine du Lieu is still involved with Christchurch, Oxford, and the Y.H.A. She keeps in touch with Jean Clare (Newberry). Shirley Glaysher (Ellis) spent her annual holiday with the family on the very wet Norfolk Broads. She visited Ann Morgan on her birthday and they went out for lunch. Shirley Crompton (Notley) I still keep in touch with my Primary School helping to present Open Book at two or three assemblies each month. This is a national scheme whereby bible stories are told to the children in an interesting and exciting way. We dramatise many of them, have puppets occasionally and make use of a computer and projector to show pictures etc. On our team we have a guitarist and we always include a song. The children respond well and we usually use some children in each session. They love dressing up and taking part! All good wishes. Angela Bellinaso (Chard) Very best wishes to you all. The snow has already arrived in my part of Italy, but fortunately in our area it has melted. However from our windows we have a beautiful view of the snow-clad mountains (1.3km) only 20 minutes drive from here. Margaret Harris (Hogsden) I spent a week in Bandol, France, where we spent time with our daughter and grand- daughters. Very hot weather, 34°c and very humid. Sorry I was unable to get to the 60th Anniversary. Chichester obviously had a lot of rain with the Campus waterlogged. I was without transport as Trevor and I were caught in a thunderstorm with torrential rain and a flood in Reigate. We had to be rescued by the fire-brigade and my Volvo estate car has been subsequently ‘written-off’. I have read with interest the 1952/54 Students' News and look forward to next year's Letter. I always enjoy reading it ... it brings back many happy memories of our student days. Best wishes. Margaret Heathcote (Birch) had a knee replacement in September and is now more mobile than she has been for four years. Trixie Barnden (Hibbert) I enjoyed a very interesting and energetic holiday in South Africa early in 2012 and celebrated Guy Fawkes day, my birthday, in Gran Canaria on safari in a very bumpy jeep. A novel way of getting the birthday bumps! Will my ski holiday in 2013 be my last? My ski holidays for the last few years have definitely been my last because falling down is easy but getting up again is quite another matter! A Happy Birthday to all those born in 1933 and 1934 – eighty years young and counting our blessings!

1953-1955 The group who meet up in London has kept up with our bi-monthly commitment, give-or-take on the attendance! Usually Pat Bertie, Paddy Sparke, Kathleen Young, Shirley Chapman, Margaret Rayner, Pam Thorpe, Joan Reedman, Dorren Johns, Daphne Leech and Peggy Batchelor are there. Sadly Peggy will no longer be with us (see obituary). It’s good hearing of holidays, interests and achievements, e.g. Margaret’s cruise on the Danube, Joan’s lost passport nightmare, Paddy’s new granddaughter, Doreen’s barge trips in France, Pat’s visit to the Edinburgh fringe to see her grandson, Kathleen’s experience of the Greek crisis when she visits her daughter, Daphne’s WI visits and painting group and Shirley and her work with her church. Elizabeth (Smith) has moved to a flat in Beckenham, very happy as it is right opposite a church, next door to New Beckenham station and on a bus route. Pam Cahill (Thorpe) can’t believe this is the year we celebrated 60 years of meeting up with each other! Where has the time gone? 2012 was definitely the year of the Jubilee and Paralympics. Peter and I went up on the Friday evening pre- Jubilee Pageant to see the ships moored in the Thames and smaller ships in St Katherine’s Dock. It was magical as the sun went down – pearly-grey sky, darker grey for the Thames and black for Tower Bridge – but white puffs of smoke crossing over all this as the last coal-burning tug was moored in the Pool. We went twice with the family to the Paralympics and were lucky enough to see David Weir (the wheelchair cyclist) win in the Velodrome and again at the Stadium. Such a marvellous atmosphere everywhere, Olympic Park, Underground and out in the streets; no litter and smiley faces everywhere.

18 Hilary Chapman (Robinson) writes to say it is 60 years since she first arrived in Chichester and 40 since she took over as Membership Secretary. It will make a difference now all the names are on a computerised database but she hopes and expects still to be marking off those who attend reunion with a small green dot and to be reuniting people with friends and contemporaries. Joyce West (Fry) enclosed two newspaper cuttings. The first one tells us that Joyce was chosen to represent Seaton at a special Diamond Jubilee service at Exeter Cathedral. Town councillors nominated her to attend the event, which took place on 27th May, in recognition of her dedicated community work. Her husband, Keith, accompanied her on that occasion. The second article, which includes a photograph, shows Joyce with the Chairman of the East Devon District Council, and the Mayor of Seaton, at a garden party, acting as one of the “meet and greeters”. Joyce thoroughly enjoyed both events. Age UK Devon also put her forward to carry the Olympic torch and, although shortlisted, she was not chosen for the actual event. Joyce says that Seaton has a wonderful community, which means they all work together to make an even better place to live. Jean Barnett (Hail) found her family fairly heavily involved in the Olympics, one member even Media Manager. Three of her grandchildren volunteered, and that included two from Australia, and one continued to help at the Paralympics. Jean saw Team GB get a gold medal at Greenwich and also went to the Beach Volleyball which, she said, was an amazing venue. Her family from Australia have been over and while they were here Rob got married. Jean Hinds was in Chichester earlier last year and said it was a lovely, nostalgic journey. Carol Dapp (Foster) spent Christmas with her family, including Richard who is back from Afghanistan. They are still baby- and mad-dog sitting! Billie Llewellyn (Le Huray) had an unexpected visit back to Bishop Otter College last year, staying with Marion Field (1954-1956), an old school friend and College daughter, and we sang “The Messiah” in the College chapel. Robert is now happily settled in Ashley House, Cirencester, a Bupa Care home. It was a great shock to all of them when he suddenly found himself requiring 24/7 nursing care. Billie gets to see him most days and her children are a great support, as is the wider family and the church congregation. Robert sends his best wishes to all who remember him. Unfortunately she is no longer able to get to the London get-togethers as she is still working – to pay the phenomenal Care Home fees! Mavis Ford (Sadler) writes from New South Wales that after a cold and wet winter they now have some warm weather, and that very hot weather (plus bushfires) is forecast for the summer. Her husband, Alan, is putting in an irrigation system on their postage-size front lawn – the back lawn already has one. She says that perhaps one day she may make it back to a reunion, or even to one of the get-togethers at Charing Cross! Theresa Gheall is still helping out part time as a support worker for the Disability Team at the University. She comments that Bishop Otter College is certainly changing!! Theresa was on the College staff and was liaison for the Guild for many years. Barbara Molony (Staples) says that 13th October 2012, a Saturday was, even at 1.36 a.m., the day they had been waiting for and when their hopes were granted and fears allayed. Mae gave birth, without complications, to their grandson, who raucously announced his arrival much to their surprise, Weldon’s delight and Mae’s relief. The baby has a fine head of hair and obviously an excellent pair of lungs. His 2½ year old sister, Altheya (or MoMo as she is more often called) has been very good and has now perfected the art of giving him a kiss just after he falls asleep with the obvious result! At home in Kent they have enjoyed an all-day trip on an old Essex barge. On another occasion they went to Rochester Cathedral to see a mosaic portrait of the Queen on her Jubilee, made up of colour photos sent in by contributors at the request of Southern Television. They found their Group’s contribution and then explored the surrounding gardens, even managing to “scrump” some delicious mulberries. Those who had eaten most were readily identified by the staining about their mouth and fingers.

1955-1957 A mystery solved! For many years Eileen Taney (Brown) has received an extra newsletter. A misread of a year on a reunion slip for 1984 allocated a married name and a new address to a Miss Brown (life member) of 1950-52 and that Year Rep would have been sent these details. Eileen, herself, had probably already updated her own year rep! Pauline (Painter) had Mavis Haggar (Fernée) and Eileen Harding (Broad) to stay with her. Marion Lovell went on a clay “human head” sculpture course in the Lake District and had a really enjoyable week. The Year Rep’s address led Anita Lanham (Sweetman) to tell her that she and Paul spent their honeymoon in Eastbourne 52 years ago. They have lived in the same house in Chandlers Ford, Hampshire, for 51 years. Their daughter, Jane, teaches part-time in Winchester. Anita keeps in touch with Margaret Child (Wilks) and Margaret Winslow (Beighton). Anita has joined a group for writing “life stories” at the local U3A. She and Paul spend a lot of time in France. Mary Wardrop (Wheeler) writes that her son, David, came over from Oregon, USA, for her birthday in April. Rosemarie Chapman’s (Hide) two eldest grandchildren are at University. Rosemarie and her husband, Geoff, went to Norway in March 2012 and saw the Northern Lights three times. They had a ride on a dog sledge with a musher and his eight dogs travelling over two frozen lakes – bumpy but exciting.

19 Kay Harcourt (Horsley) had her second hip replaced. She and Robin celebrated their Golden Wedding on 11th August. The family celebration was in July because in August their middle son, Robert, was in the USA. He has been seconded to the US Navy for two years and he and his wife and two sons flew out on 3rd August. Kay’s eldest son, Paul, is area Dean of Redbridge and all the local churches were very involved in the Olympics. Liz Care (Aston) moved to a new home in Havant two years ago and is having lots of building work done. She is still teaching ballroom and Latin American dancing. She, Jill Fudge (Bryant), Ann Hawke (Booth) and Chris Tweed (Hague) got to College reunion. Val Gabriel (Duckett) met Chris in Brighton in September for an enjoyable day together. Chris keeps in touch with Janet Case and Marion Whear (Clarke). Here is another of the photographs that Val sent, showing Jenny, Val, Eileen, Liz and K in March 1956. Shirley Born (Waites), Viv Mitchell and Kay meet each year when possible. Judith Price (Matthews) has a granddaughter, Flora Mary-Anne, born on New Year’s Eve 2011. Judith still sees her college “daughter” each month at a retired teachers’ group in Rugby. Val Edmands (Field), a great friend of Pam Michie (Latty) (see obituaries), attended Pam’s funeral, accompanied by her son.

1956-1958 Caroline Mercer (Boon) is delighted to announce the arrival of her first grandchild, Carmen, daughter of son, Simon, and his wife Monica. As usual in January they went on holiday to the Maldives but, unfortunately, it was not the relaxing break that they had hoped for as it coincided with the Chinese New Year so there were crowds everywhere. They’re hoping for a quieter time this year. Karl St Vincent (Hefford) is looking forward to a new grandchild in March, the second baby for son David and wife Emma. Anita Whale (Fay) was recovering from a busy time having daughter, Karen, and two young children with them for eight weeks after their return to England from Tunisia. They would all be joining her other daughter, Alison, and family for Christmas. Yvonne Kellaway (Wilkins) and Tony are still very active playing tennis, golf and doing lots of walking. They walked the South Downs Way in the summer and also took their twin grandsons camping in the caravan. They were fortunate enough to go to the Paralympics which they deemed “fantastic”. Jill Thompson has had a better year healthwise but is still limited as to what she is able to do. However, she was able to go to North Wales with “Doddie” Pickering (Dorothy Westerman) and the bell-ringing group. She is still the Secretary of the local Arthritis Research branch and did the usual Bring and Buy at the Christmas coffee morning – with help! She was looking forward to spending Christmas and New Year with “Doddie”. Bridget Bodewin (Durman) is delighted to say that Karl has finally retired! She is still doing testing for would-be entrants to a local school but they have had their usual year of travelling, having a trip to Washington, Oregon and California in February. They also made good use of the boat in July and August. Their final trip was to Tofino where they experienced a tsunami warning! Fortunately it did not materialise but they have now made sure they have everything to make them self-sufficient in their motor home for a few days, just in case of an emergency. Lorna Edwards (Ogley) is still continuing with all her activities and has also joined a French group at the U3A, which she is thoroughly enjoying. She had a very proud moment in May when her son, Richard, led the “60” formation for the flypast over Windsor Castle to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee. She has had cards from Evelyn Farquhar (Davison), Barbara Dougherty (Jones) and Sylvia Dodd (Claydon). They are all well and, with the help of tablets etc are keeping reasonably fit and active. Lorna also had a beautiful Christmas card from Mary Rose which she had painted, so hopefully her hands have improved since last year. Audry Falla (Martin) has had a busy year so was looking forward to a cruise to the Amazon and then to the Caribbean in January. Barbara Dougherty (Jones) is still on their Retired Teachers’ Association Committee in Rugby and also a local Board member for their local charity “Caring for Adults with learning difficulties”. She is still sorting out holiday plans for 2013 as they are hoping to visit Italy, France and Scotland as well as Devon to their holiday cottage, so is unsure as to whether she’ll be at the reunion.

20 1958-1960 Careth Paternoster (Osborne) and her husband spent a splendid week in Chichester in September, visiting old haunts. “Fishbourne Roman Palace is such an interesting place and I should have loved to have had a hand in digging there, but that was of course after our time”. They enjoyed a lecture on Roman Mosaics too. The Weald and Downland Museum was as fascinating as ever, even in the rain! “The Gridshell was new to us: it was well hidden in the woods” and they had never found it before. Its construction is on the same principle as the Wellington Bomber, so the mesh of lathes provides a space big enough for conservation work on the whole walls. They visited The Aviation Museum at Tangmere and its peaceful and moving garden of remembrance. They paid their first visit to the great Yew Forest in Kingley Vale, but didn't have sufficient time to visit the whole site. Boxgrove, Pagham and Bosham completed a refreshing time away. The Revd. Heather Howell (Shaw) says she would not have not have recognized herself in last year's picture in the Newsletter, but for the fact that she remembered the skirt she was wearing. She thinks that one of the students made skirts as a money-raising venture for Rag Week. She adds that her skirt had pockets in the hem and was very useful. Does anyone else remember anything about Rag Week? Muriel says her recollections of this are very hazy. She goes on to say “We have had a year of consolidation – slowly reducing clutter from combining two houses (4 toasters!). We even have a little space on bookshelves." Heather received PTO (permission to officiate) at the start of the year and so has been able to take some local services and a Lent Course. She joined U3A for table tennis and music appreciation. Terry has been busy with U3A – organizing courses and speakers. His work with HOMELINK charity helps local people into housing. It increased this year because of a campaign to raise an extra £40,000 and, in addition, the replacement of their paid Co-ordinator. There was not much time for bowls but time for holidays. They had had cold and wet visits to France and to Cornwall to see the Eden Project and Heligan – seeing friends en route. In between, they enjoyed a very hot and dry visit to Colorado, with their family, visiting Denver, the Rockies and a Rodeo. In Ashford, it has been a happy end to the year for their family with Carol obtaining a post with children's charity 'Place2Be', and Peter a post as Director of an English language school for Japanese. The house is showing its 77 years of age (as old as Terry). They have replaced the double glazing, the door locks, an outside light, and part of the roof. They have designed a tapered garden path to enhance the length of the garden. They are hoping to celebrate 50 years of marriage next year. Marion Harris (Cairns) writes that she and her husband, Doug, had a super trip on the Nile. Probably, it was more relaxed than usual as there were fewer tourists in evidence. This was because of the political situation. They also managed to stay with Thelma and Brian Bristow in Dartford and to spend a few days with Paddy Holmes (Appleyard) in Emsworth. They were thrilled by their trip to the Olympic Park, where they watched the men's hockey. Jackie Weddell (Lovell) says “I moved from a large five-bedroom house in a Worcestershire village to a small three- bedroom detached house on the south western outskirts of Salisbury. It is in a quiet part that still keeps its village atmosphere and I can walk into town or get on the bus a short walk from my front door. I could even live on the ground floor if it became necessary as it has a downstairs wet room as well as a bathroom upstairs. I miss the large kitchen my last house had but I don’t cook as much now as I did. I have found plenty to do here and am possibly too busy again! I help run a hand bell ringing group. Training the beginners is my speciality although I also ring with the adults. I still sing in a choir and do a lot of work in the church and circuit (deanery in Anglican speak I think). I also do voluntary work at Sarum College which used to be the Anglican theological college. I did join the University of the Third Age but haven’t found time to do much with them. I was unable to drive from April until October as I have trouble with my eye sight but thankfully after laser treatment it is now improved and I am driving again. It is a complication of long term insulin dependent diabetes but the local eye consultant is very good and keeps a careful watch on the condition. This was the main reason for my moving from the Midlands so that I would be near to one of my remaining sons. Keith lives in Salisbury. Mark lives in North London and I didn’t want to go there. Apart from the price of property in that area the traffic is terrible. It would have been nice to be nearer my grandchildren but they are growing up and have their own lives to lead. Joy Wallwin (King) writes few lines about herself. “After the death of my husband in 1986, I joined Warwickshire's Home Tuition service, and spent the next 19 years happily teaching pupils with a wide range of problems – and often helping their parents to cope, especially when there was a teenage pregnancy. Nowadays, my teaching is in the form of piano tuition and a little bit of maths coaching. I have four ladies for piano - they are a delight because they are doing something they have always wanted to do, so are really dedicated. I also keep my hand in on the organ, playing in a local village church, which I've done now since the early 70s, and occasionally elsewhere. I sing with a couple of local choirs, so there is always plenty to occupy me. My elder son, Chris, moved north of Aberdeen with his wife, son and two stepdaughters in 2002, so my holidays are now north of the border. My other son, Tim, and his wife live in the West Midlands, so I see them and the two grandchildren most weekends. Yvonne Pitt (Harris) lives half an hour's drive away. I shall be seeing her before Christmas. The new Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, was the Rector of Southam just a few years ago. He is a lovely man, with a lovely family, and was very popular when he was here. Susan Machell (Green) She and her husband went on a cruise this year. They called in at the Canary Islands, Madeira and Morocco. She says that there were 700 passengers on the Saga Sapphire Cruiser. On her birthday, she was served with Champagne in her room. They thoroughly enjoyed the trip and especially the sunshine!

21 Mary Haynes (Hall) was very happily married, but widowed in 1978. She won a Churchill Fellowship to travel in USA in 1970, looking at school libraries; and in the Comprehensive school in Cranleigh set up and became Head of her own Learning Resources Department, a very new thing in those days! She ended her career as a Chartered Academic Librarian at Godalming College. She graduated BA (OU) in 1979 and MA (Loughborough) in 1989. She helped to establish the Eckhart Society in 1986; it was international from the beginning, and recently celebrated its 25th Annual Conference. She travelled in five continents, the most exciting venture a solo journey to China in 1988. Mary has never moved from rural South West Surrey, and lives in peaceful and happy retirement in the small village of Shamley Green. She is permanently grateful for all the happiness and friendship of her time at Bishop Otter. Mary has also sent these photographs. The one above shows a group of students on Ann Boxall’s bed. Ann is seated to the left. She was Editor of the College Magazine, and this may possibly, but not probably, be an editorial meeting! Behind her, left, Sue (Butcher), right, Coral Pavitt (May), Elizabeth (Liz) Hall (Lydford) facing. The two behind and one in front of her are not yet recognised. Annette Hannaford is supported by Vivien Gear. The person on the right is not recognised. 1959-1961 – the late Sue (Butcher) and possibly others (perhaps Joan Bakewell??) The photo was taken by Mary who is shadowed on wall. The oil painting on the wall behind was painted by Ann Boxell. The photograph on the left is a rare picture of the Quad completely flooded in a summer cloudburst in 1960, and was taken by Mary. Liz Hall (Lydford) is her sister-in-law, and Fiona Babbings (van der Kiste) too has remained a dear friend over all the years; Heather Howell (Shaw) and Careth Paternoster (Osborne) never fail with Christmas cards, and Jill Macloughlin (also Osborne), previously a classmate, comes when she can to school reunions at Guildford. Having heard erroneously that Joss Hiller had died, it was a great delight to find her at the 150th Anniversary Reunion; thereafter they remained close friends until her actual death. Margaret Kinneburgh gives news of Oda Sander, who has been having a difficult time, of late, with health and family problems. Oda still takes an active part in community affairs in Germany. She runs two English classes and is involved with the Anglo-German Club. Oda occasionally sees Marion Tolmey who also has had health problem since her husband died. Margaret, herself, enjoyed a three day trip, flying to Kalgoorlie, where she revisited the Super Pit – a vast open-cast gold mine, and did a tour of the town, which had grown considerably since the early 80s. She then had lunch and flew on to Coober Pedy in the South Australian outback. There she had an underground room in the Desert Cave Hotel. Many of the houses are underground, enlarged from old mine shafts, to escape from the heat of summer and winter cold. This town is the largest producer of opal in the world. Many nationalities and eccentric characters have sought their fortunes there. Besides visiting a mine, she went into two underground churches: the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Anglican Catacomb Church. The Golf Course, which was voted one of the top ten most unique golf courses in the world, is the only golf club in the world with reciprocal playing rights with St. Andrews in Scotland. A sign says “Keep off the Grass”, but there isn't any! Mullock Heaps and mineshafts are numerous so that one has to be extremely careful, when walking around. She also saw the Dog Fence, which was erected to keep out dingoes and runs for 5,300 kms through three states. On the last day, she took off once more on the small Fokker plane, and flew over the colourful Painted Hills and low over the vast Lake Eyre basin, which covers one-sixth of all Australia – 1,140,000 sq km. Once it was an island, these days mostly dry, but because of the heavy rains and flooding in Queensland and New South Wales in the past two years it is full of water. Fish appear, even after many years of drought and the bird life and flora that appear in the spring are amazing, apparently. Lunch was at the tiny town of Birdsville in Queensland, then over the Flinders Ranges to Adelaide; a change of plane then Perth. In her Christmas Card to Muriel, she writes that the forecast for Perth is expected to reach 38oC, on Christmas Day but she hopes it would be a little less, where she lives.

1959-1961 Thank you to everyone who has been in touch with news and amendments to the list. Please will you all encourage members of our year, known to you, to pass on information and news so that the records can be kept up to date and a revision sent out again next year. We seem to have a good spread of contacts between us, so do ask yours to report their news and keep the network going. Email addresses are really useful as this is the best and quickest means of communication. These people have been in touch over Christmas. Perhaps some news next year please? Judy Alker (Ralph-Smith), Norah Luty (Goodwin), Margaret Bartlett (Blanchard), Sheila Pugh (Killick), Jean Handsaker (Tune), Julie Merry (Bounton), Hazel Tomlinson (Torode), and Heather West (Gallon).

22 Sincere apologies to Heather who is very much alive and well. She was down as deceased on the list. Don’t know how that happened. Will amend for next year. Jennie Buckland (Barnes) has a son, daughter and three grandchildren. The youngest has just started grammar school in Northern Ireland. She has been her husband’s carer for the last nine years since his stroke. Their daughter is a senior curator in the National Museum of Scotland. Her duties include lecturing at Edinburgh University and publishing academic works. An exacting and interesting job. Jennie still hears from Pat Garford (Terry) who lives in New Zealand. Sue Chitty (Corfmat) lives near Evesham and has found from the list that she is now close to Helen Brackenbury. She is hoping to meet up in the near future. She also has a friend in Farnsfield near Southwell in Nottinghamshire so a meeting could be arranged with Anne Walters (Sansom). Watch this space. Sue Clark (Curtis) and husband Roger celebrated their Golden wedding last August. They had a wonderful meal together with family and friends at a local garden centre. She saw Margaret Ellsmore quite recently at the cloisters cafe in Chichester Cathedral and they were able to catch up with each other’s news. Joan Connelly (Stephen) After retiring from full time teaching (as head of the Post-14 Department at St Josephs Special Needs School in Cranleigh) she worked for the Autistic Society as an Accreditation Team member. This involved travelling all over the country reviewing the autism practice in special schools, mainstream schools and outreach services. She has just stopped doing this because husband, Colin, has become increasingly disabled and she doesn't like leaving him for long periods of time. He still lectures on Science Faith issues – health permitting. She is still busy with voluntary activities – being the independent visitor at St Josephs which involves going in unannounced, observing practice and chatting to learners and staff, listening to problems and, if possible, acting as an arbitrator. She might become a Governor of the school. The family also keeps her busy. She has four children, Elizabeth (a teacher), Rachel (a writer), Tamzin (a nurse) and Daniel (another teacher) along with nine grandchildren ranging in age from 2 to 22 years old. Her eldest grandson is in Ooty, South India, teaching Geography at Hebron School and thinking about post graduate study when he returns. His sister has just started at Kent University studying astrophysics. The next two girls are heavily into singing and drama and love it if she can get to their 'shows'. One is singing at Glyndebourne in a Youth Opera production and the other is in a Youth Theatre production of 'The Lark' at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre. Then there are an academic and three potential sportsmen and a girly two year old. So she is a very fortunate (if sometimes harassed) grandmother. She would love to hear of news and views from fellow 'old' students and is looking forward to this edition of the Guild Newsletter. Her contact email is [email protected] not as listed on the sheet sent out earlier. Jackie Fern is well and happy to be retired. Pat Garford (Terry) was widowed for a second time this year but is trying to make the best of her life by keeping herself busy. She is a member of Probus, spends time in the gym three times a week and enjoys attending courses or helping out at Senior Net. For some years now she has enjoyed holidays in exotic places travelling with a small group of friends. In the past they have visited Iran and Iraq, Turkey, Jordan, India, Sri Lanka, Burma and this year Morocco. She didn't visit the Mediterranean part, but did a big circle of the rest of Morocco – imperial cities, Roman ruins, mountains, desert, gorges, kasbahs, oranges, olives, donkeys, barbary apes, argan oil, fossils in the Sahara and palmeries. She really enjoyed Fez but found Marrakesh was a bit mad. They got off the tourist trail and stayed in Riad's - bought food from the supermarket for a picnic lunch and stayed mainly in budget accommodation except for the super Riad in Fez. The roads were good – all paved, and they had an excellent driver and a 16-seater Mercedes coach – all modern, comfortable and spacious. As a complete contrast she spent Christmas in Australia with son Chris, daughter-in-law Jenny and her four grandsons aged 16, 11, six and two and a half. She flew back into Auckland on 15th January 2013, 50 years to the day that she first arrived in New Zealand. Time flies! She has been over to the UK three times in the last 20 years staying with Anne Walters (Sansom). They met up again four years ago in Tauranga on the Walters’ return to North Island after walking the Milford Track. Anne Fuller (Packham) retired about ten years ago, on the same day as her husband and they almost immediately started a round-the-world trip, which was an amazing experience. They hope to repeat it next year. She has three sons, two who live in England. One is a primary headteacher in Colchester (despite best efforts to discourage him!), the eldest is Head of School at the adult education service in Westminster and the youngest, who is currently working in Kuala Lumpur ... but is about to stop work and be the main carer for his first child whilst fulfilling an ambition to write a book!!! Anne travels a lot, especially since Nicholas moved to Kuala Lumpur and they have a house in France as well as their Surrey home. She sends greetings to all those members who remember her and can remember many of the names on the list. Bunty Hayward (Scarlett) together with husband Ray has been looking after her father-in- law, who was living with them. He became very ill a year ago, sadly passing away in August. She now has a three year-old grandson to keep her busy and enjoys looking after him one day a week. She writes that if only they had a tenth of his energy it would be easier! She is now hoping to travel to see the Northern Lights this winter. Fay Jeffery (Bradwell) and Bunty meet about once a month for lunch and a natter and she is also in contact with Sue Scott (Haddelsey). Brenda Jenkinson (Long) still sees Maureen Cook (Noble) and Sue Chitty (Corfmat). Sue used to live in St Albans so they know each other quite well although their paths did not cross at college. Brenda was Maureen's bridesmaid in 1965 and made her dress. She was married herself three days later. Maureen is still in touch with Diana Simons (Kennard).

23 Betty Jones (Prince) has had a memorable year. Together with her family she managed to get tickets for many Olympic events, including cycling, volleyball, the Women’s football final and the team equestrian event where they were privileged to witness GB win the gold medal plus the award ceremony. After two weeks respite they saw paralympic cycling and had two nights in the main stadium. Last Easter, with husband John and daughter Andrea and family, she returned to Mammoth, California, for a wonderful skiing holiday. On the way home they took the children to Disney. She regularly looks after her grandchildren, so for a much needed rest she and John managed to escape to the warmth of St Lucia in November. A welcome change from the weather in the UK. Pat Large (Ludlam) taught for 28 years in local primary schools and in the Chislehurst and Orpington areas. She enjoyed her time in teaching. She is married to Colin and they have lived in Hadlow for over 40 years. They are committed to the local church and organise many village activities including the local Seniors’ club, Historical Society and Gardeners. She thought that retirement would be quiet and peaceful but both she and Colin are kept very busy. Colin plays in a jazz band and in a brass band in the neighbouring village of East Peckham. He paints and is a keen yachtsman. After Pat had both knees replaced, he also does most of the gardening. They like to travel and spend part of the winter recharging their batteries in warmer climes usually Spain. Greece is also a favourite. They visit there in May or late September/October. They have three children, Janet who is a sister in the coronary care and ITU units at Eastbourne hospital, Philip who was a banker, until the collapse in the City, and is now working for Kent police as a finance officer. He has two children Thomas aged seven and Annabel three and a half. Gavin runs his own business, specialist picture hanging and lighting. He has three children, Caitlin 12½, and identical twins boys of 11½. Sam has just started at Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for boys and James has won a place at the Royal Ballet School. He is dancing in the ‘Nutcracker’ at the Royal Opera House. They see a lot of their grandchildren and find it great fun but exhausting! Heather Owen (Dommett) has recently moved into a bungalow after her husband had a stroke and retired. She still lives in the same village of Whimple, near Exeter. Val Pinkerton (Diston) has three granddaughters in New Zealand and went out to visit them on New Year’s Day. Her older son is getting married in April. Like many of us she thought it would never happen as he is 45. She is still in touch with Anne Lowton whose husband died a few years ago. She has remarried and is now Anne Davies. Her new husband is called Mike and they live in Canada. She also hears from June Cope (Valentine) from time to time. Jackie Poolman (George) retired at the end of 2004 after working in New South Wales, New Zealand and Sydney before heading to Perth in 1968 and sealing her fate by marrying the same year. She taught art until 1972 and then returned to teaching part time in 1984 as an English teacher in various state schools, transferring to the Catholic system in 1991 and staying at the same school in the Perth Hills until retirement at the end of 2004. Since then she has tutored both state and private students, primarily years 11 and 12. She writes that it is so special to work with young people and she has a number of Asian students who are most diligent. She made her last visit to the UK in September 2011; staying with Jackie (Fern) and had a wonderful few hours with Florence (Conaty) whom she hadn't seen for 50 years. Likewise Anne Luckhurst whom she stayed with for one night, prior to Anne making a trip down-under, and staying with Jackie for a few nights in return. She regularly stays with Eileen (Taylor), now called Lyn, each year when visiting her son and family in Sydney. Eileen is always busy with the local theatre, acting and directing, and they are about to welcome their 7th grandchild. Jackie has one son, (about to turn 40) married with a little daughter, nearly five, and misses the fact that they are so far away. They stay with her each Christmas and she usually make a trip east in the Easter holidays to help with her granddaughter. Together with Lyn (Eileen) she is planning a cruise in January 2014 to celebrate their 50th anniversary of arriving in Oz. She says that on each of her three return visits to the UK she has felt more and more like a visitor. She truly loves Australia and has seen most of it, except the north of her state and far north Queensland; would love to explore the former but it is so expensive because of distance. She has been to Alice and the Red Centre three times, and several years ago fulfilled a long cherished dream to take the Ghan from Adelaide to Darwin (three nights on the train). An update on Eileen's address is: 7 Mattes Way, Bomaderry, NSW 2541. Maureen Sutherland (Blake) moved house early last year and after eleven months now feels finally settled. She enjoys working as a tour guide, mainly in the Midlands close to her home in Warwick. You can read more at www.talksandwalks If ever you are in the area why not look her up. Anne Walters (Sansom) has once again had an exciting and eventful year. She continues to work hard as Lay Chair of Nottingham North Deanery, to support and challenge some of the poorest churches in the Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham, trying to help alleviate child poverty, lack of self esteem and deprivation. There are huge problems with unemployment, drug addiction, one-parent families, battered wives and debt but through it all our churches are beacons of God’s hope, a refuge and help, available for anyone. The main priority in the last few months has been the provision of food. Four food banks have been opened and two more are planned. Working on the Trussell Trust model which began in Salisbury, counsellors are on hand to assist with benefit claims, debt advice etc. In between she visits both her sons and their families. Last July she went with husband Allan to Bangkok to help Philip pack up and move to Bucharest where he is now head of Upper School at the British School. They spent the rest of the summer all together in the UK with the Chicago side of the family and had a wonderful week in the Lake District with all three grandchildren Alice 12, Max 9 and Ben three, who are excellent walkers. They have just had a wonderful snowy Christmas in Bucharest returning via Prague and staying in Wenceslas Square for the new year festivities. Next scheduled trip is in the spring to Chicago where Adrian is Professor of International Insolvency Law. It is a wonderful city to explore, with views from both the Willis and Handcock towers and walks along the shores of Lake Michigan and beyond in Wisconsin. They are also hoping to do more sightseeing and walking in the UK this year but Romania also beckons and promises to be a very interesting country with its painted monasteries and fortifications built by Vlad Tepes high in the Carpathian mountains. More time will be spent exploring there too.

24 1961-1964 This academic year will mark the 70th birthdays of most of the year group (except those who were already ‘mature’ in 1961!). The majority are retired, hopefully in good health, enjoying activities that they never had time for when they were working. Sadly, some of the year group have died over the years – Colin Bryan, Bob Dawkins, Oliver Dunn, Beth Hewlett, Sue Lashly, Sheila Sly, Godfrey Ridler, Maureen Kent and Jane Tilbee (who died only a few years after leaving College). Carolyn Keyzor (Morgan), our year rep, heard from several people in 2012, mainly in response to the 50th Anniversary Reunion photo of 2011. It would seem they had fun identifying people, but Audrey Thomson (Barker) says she found it ‘alarming’! Audrey Thomson (Barker) spends much of her time involved with her three little grandsons, and also with events at Church. Pat Harper (Hall) looks after her grandson full-time and admits that ‘having retired from teaching ten years ago, I find childminding, albeit one, very tiring’. Jean Hadden (Worboyes) hopes to come to a BOC Reunion one year, but in the meantime, is getting together with those pupils at her Grammar School who still keep in touch. She says it makes her feel old! Mike Paige lost his beloved wife, Ruth, last year. Ruth used to come to College Reunions with Mike, all the way from Australia. Mary Price (Oglesby) was the coach for the English National Women’s Lawn Bowls team for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. All six competitors got a medal, three bronze and three golds. Mary is unable to come to Reunions, because she says it is the busiest time of her year and in July, she will be ‘in the thick of it’. The photo shows Mary on the left, her assistant coach on the right, with the six members of the team between them – the three left hand ladies have bronze medals, and the three on the right have golds. David Manuel loved teaching and has recently and reluctantly retired from being an OfSTED schools inspector. With more time on his hands he is hoping to make contact again with former friends from college days. He joined the Guild towards the end of 2012. John Rolls manages to come to the Reunions each year, and also keeps in touch during the year. His greatest joy is singing – you may remember he is a counter tenor, and is therefore much sought after by choirs. He has sent this contribution for the magazine: Would jubileeve (sic) it? The chapel patio awash! The bricks squelched beneath us As we stepped gingerly across! 2012 was certainly a year to remember! “Long may she reign” we sang as we celebrated the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee ... it may well have been the underlying reason for so much flooding – long did it rain!, in fact all day on 14th July ... and ever after through the anonymous “summer” season. The rain did subside during the Olympic spectacle when our athletes excelled, and the Paralympics too. Weren’t we proud of such achievement. The summer, traditionally from June to August, had very brief appearances with high winds belated from March and a couple of heatwave shocks (I wore my shorts only once!). But exquisite moments of delight occurred at the Reunion when I met a long-lost peer in Rev Janet Craven (Cattell) and some other regular sojourners, memories of which will last at least until this coming July. Carolyn will bring any correspondence she has received from the year group to the Reunion on 13th July 2013. In the meantime, please write/e-mail with your news; she likes to keep in touch with as many people as possible. (Mrs. Carolyn Keyzor, 83 Anmore Road, Denmead, Hants PO7 6NT or better still [email protected].) If you have changed your address or e-mail address lately, please let Carolyn know. The Reunions are always enjoyable occasions, and it would be good to see more of the year group there. There is always lots of chatting and laughter during the day’s events. There are weekend activities for those who want to stay over, usually the chance to see a play at Chichester Festival Theatre (at the moment, undergoing a major refit) on the Friday or Saturday evening, and also a walk up Trundle on the Sunday morning, followed by a pub lunch. Why not give it go, you’d be most welcome (see the application form in this Guild Newsletter).

25 1962-1965 Marten Lougee thanks his year for the information and wonders if they have booked their visit yet for The Tour de France (Yorkshire) in July 2014, luckily one week before our July 2014 reunion!! The picture on the right shows members of the year on the steps of what was, in our day, the Dining Room at the 2012 reunion. Shown are: Starting at the front - Wendy Imeson, Gill Page (Wiseman), Aubrey Watson, Ann Plyming, Sue Carey, Eira Stannard, Stella Freeman-Smith, Jill Leggetter; behind them are Vivien Evans, Gill Page (Birch), Marten Lougee, Mandy Watson, Elly Noblet, Janet Bayly, Jill Holliman; behind them are Sue Philpott, Ro Martin, Claire Henderson, Mary Freestone, Sue Finnigan, Val Slocombe; and at the back Alan Palmer, Derek Olver, Pam O'Hara, Tim Lord, George Redgrave, Dave Pamphilon, Christine Boot, Peter Dyer, Roger Morris, Mike Sproule; and at the very back Mike Riggs and Derek Gray. Not in the picture Andreas Lowson. The photograph below shows a group on Sunday morning around the trig point on top of the Trundle. Janet Bayly (Doreen Cliff) still enjoys ministry within the Schorne Team. She and David went to Australia for a month this winter to see his family. Wonderful in Perth and they travelled into the Outback. Janet is training as a Spiritual Director this year and she is looking forward to this new area of learning and ministry. David retires this June so household chores will be heading his way. John and Rosemary Beyer (Bithell) are as busy as ever but creating more. They see their families a lot and are deep into attending school concerts and do not have to put any back stage work in. They did a cruise around the British Isles. Orkney especially, with its archaeology, was spectacular. September was sun seeking, Portsmouth to Barcelona, whilst this January was decorating and a new bathroom. Janet and David Austin say that The Heritage School which David and Janet started in Cyprus is thriving. The school has a new purpose-built campus. The new owner, Dr Kypros Kourris, has just over a thousand pupils. Amazing to think Janet started that school with six children in a Greek Taverna! The new Heritage School in Harare, Zimbabwe, built in 1998, has a roll of 1,340 children. The school is divided into three sections, infants two to seven years old, a junior department of seven to 12 year olds and a senior school of 12 to 18 year olds. The school now has nearly all Zimbabwean children. They feel privileged to have built an amazing school in Africa for African children. The school works to a British curriculum and has excellent results in Cambridge exams. Most children go on to college or university. The school is very strong in sports, especially rugby, cricket and swimming. The school enters music and art festivals every year and wins excellent awards. Two new infant classrooms have just been completed and an enormous examination centre which can sit 200 pupils at a time. It can also be let out for weddings and functions. David and Janet have a cottage within the grounds and go out twice a year for in-service and meetings (and a safari!). Their son Tom, his wife Lana and their new baby, Alicia, will go to live there permanently in August. Tom's wife Lana is a doctor. She will be hugely appreciated in Zimbabwe. Their older children will complete their education and go out to Harare in the holidays. David and Janet's daughter and family live in Dubai. Julian is heading the new Foremarke School and Lucy teaches at Repton, Dubai. David and Janet look back to their three years at BOC as the happiest years of their lives! They live for most of the year in Montcuq in the Lot region of France. Christine Boot enjoyed a week in the Dordogne, staying in the pilgrim village of Rocomadour. This region is rich in wildlife, black kites circling and even a beaver in the river. She has retired from her work at St Alban’s Abbey in order to make time for several elderly friends who now need help. After 10 years there she is missing the children and other volunteers but will continue with the playgroup at her own church. Graham Brooks and Anna will be in Ghana as usual for two months this January and March. They have a bungalow in Bethlehem, near Tema in Ghana. They have been married for 42 years. Graham met Anna when he was doing VSO work between 1967 and 1970. Sue Brown (Harford) in January was viewing the UK snow from Mallorca. They then headed off to Thailand in the company of Peter (1963-1966) and Elly Noblet (Gasking). Jim and Carol Buxton have had a difficult time in 2012 after it was discovered, by a blood test, that his prostate hormone level had nearly doubled in six months. He saw a urologist within a fortnight and then an operation and biopsy. Unfortunately this revealed a cancer so during the following week he had two scans, one skeletal and one internal. Both were clear but Jim went through a six-week course of radiotherapy over the Christmas period.

26 They think the French health service is the best in the world. The garden has not been finished as, unlike us, they had a severe drought in the summer months and nothing grew that was not watered. All the grass died and the locals refer to it as pain guillé (burnt toast). They hope to have a better 2013 and that Jim recovers completely (and so say all of us). Claire Edwards (Henderson) remembers 2012 for the saturated ground on her allotment. In June she bought a polytunnel, interesting and challenging. She continues to walk regularly and lead a few each year – south-east Wales offers such wonderful opportunities. She backpacks with a small group annually – 2012 was the High Dale Way in the Yorkshire Dales. 2013 will be the Southern Uplands Way (Scottish coast to coast) – 120 miles from Portpatrick to Moffat in early June (to be completed from Moffat to Cockburnspath in 2014). Her family live in Scotland, Southampton, St Albans and Cardiff, where Claire lived for 37 years. She has five grandchildren and another due in May. Vivien Evans sends greetings from her cottage at the edge of civilisation. Drive out of Pateley Bridge (in all directions except Harrogate) towards Otley, Grassington, Masham or Ripon and, after climbing steep hills (1 in 4) there are up to 12 miles of wild moorland to cross with only scattered settlements, isolated farms and the weather ... !!! The slugs have had a great time. She has had the loft boarded at last, but the cottage needs a new slate roof. She is still playing in the band but both she and Wendy have abandoned the Community Orchestra, it had become the Community Chat Time. She is still playing for services in Greenhow, a small church used by the lead miners which is used a few times a year. Gillian Feest (Endersby) is happily back from her last back-packing trip to Burma and Laos. If you enjoy hard but exciting travelling go to Burma quickly before the tourists arrive! She had Christmas at home in the UK for the first time in several years so she much enjoyed the festivities and the delight of the six grandchildren growing into and out of believing in Father Christmas. They are in Devon this year whilst her husband has a new hip, then perhaps off to Kashmir. Harry Gliddon and Terri (also ex-BOC) are “just jogging along” and have had a break in Barbados to see the sun. He sometimes sees Ceri Goodfellow (Marston) whose husband sadly died a few years ago. She is involved with the local Girl Guides and leading their fund raising efforts for a new Guide hut. Derek Gray and Mary continue to migrate between Kent and the west of Scotland a couple of times a year. The locals call them “the swallows” because they arrive when the weather improves and leave when it gets bad! Lambing, making silage and boating are their main activities there. The beauty and solitude are still a big draw but they are also involved in the local church, Agricultural Society and Camera Club. When in Kent (their home) they volunteer at the local heritage centre. Like so many retired people, they wonder how they found time to work. Ian and Mary Freestone (Banfield) – see the entry under 1963- 1966. Chris and Roz Howell (Harcourt-Vernon) have enjoyed being guides at Winchester Cathedral – the area has the Winchester Bible, Morley Library and Triforium so there is much history to learn. It is delightful to meet so many people from all over the world. They have also helped maintain the Dean Garnier garden at the cathedral. Chris broke a bone in his left foot and he was fitted with an air inflatable boot which made him look like someone from out space. This enabled him to travel to Vienna and Warsaw for his EU Froutex work. BA just drove him in a fork lift truck up to the aeroplane. Jill Holliman (Martin) says that in Somerset there have been serious floods, locals saying it is the worst in living memory. Three dry days helped a friend in a low-lying village who had been cut off for eight days before fresh supplies arrived by Environmental Agency boat. For Godfrey and Maureen Hurst (Murphy) this has not been a good year. Maureen was diagnosed as needing a new hip and after several consultations was given 11th April as the procedure date. It was actually done on 26th June by which time Maureen could hardly walk. (This was the reason why Godfrey could not play at the 2012 Guild Service.) The new hip is working well. Three days after they returned from Egypt in November, Godfrey became ill. He was rushed to their local hospital’s critical care unit. He had contracted either meningitis or encephalitis or both (meningoencephalitis). He was put into an induced coma for a couple of days and Maureen was warned that his chances of survival were not good, and if he did survive he would “never be the same again”. He is back home and, apart from feeling more tired than usual at evening time, and having some memory difficulties, we shall see ... and good luck Godfrey!! Martin (1961-64) and Wendy Imeson (Evans) said their summer break followed the same pattern as the rest of the year – it rained on every day but one. They managed to meet 28 family members and close friends. They treated themselves to a new three-piece suite in the Autumn. Problem, the settee could not be got in without removing the doors, opening up a little-used part of the house, the castors and ... . It has rained two days out of every three, the first frost was 31st August and the first snow on 27th October. Martin has had another “heart episode” and spent time in Harrogate hospital. Luckily Vivien volunteered to take some of his services so he could have a quieter time.

27 Trefor Jones (see obituaries). Jenny Knight (Clarke) sadly lost her husband, John, last July. She misses him dreadfully. Marten Lougee visited the Isle of Man and Croatia which was excellent. He spent six days working with British Transport Police at the London Olympics (see article) which was tiring but worthwhile. He was out also with officers before Christmas in Darlington, Doncaster and Leeds. He is doing as much as ever but stopping being Rotary President has helped (a bit!). He enjoys keeping in touch with the 62-65 year group and the other Guild commitments. He has had two cataract operations. Rosemary Martin (Jones) enjoyed catching up with so many old friends last July – a great day. Holidays in rain soaked France and sun scorched Corfu (44 degrees C). Old folks are taking much time, her mother is 98 and the in-laws 90 and all still at home. She sees Gill Page (Birch) and corresponds with Viv Sehner (Farcey) who has a large family and busy life in Germany. Sue Newstead (Shaw) lives in Hobart, Tasmania, in the oldest part of the town, away from the fires. However she knows several people who have lost their homes or suffered great losses. Sue had been away sailing and cycling for two weeks in January and she is now helping where she can. The strong winds have abated but there are two months (February and March) still to go with the hot weather. The main problem has been that they had two really good years of rain and the growth huge. Pam O’Hara (Bennett) writes “I attended the BOC reunion last summer on 14th July which was especially appalling weather but it was great to meet and chat with everyone and I drove home feeling pretty good. However the next morning I awoke with a pain in my stomach and I suspected food poisoning [but it was not]. Little did I know what was to come. I was taken to hospital by ambulance at 10 p.m. and had emergency surgery at 11 p.m. the next night following a day of being poked, prodded and scanned in various ways. I spent eight days in hospital, three months completely off work and then two months working reduced hours. For me the reunion day was more than just memorable!!” She has decided to retire, after supporting people with learning disabilities for the last 17 years, so 31st March beckons. That Dorset beach hut is going to be well used this summer! She is now fit so she will be spending more time at the Over 50s Health and Fun Club (depends what you call fun). She is looking forward to the 2015 reunion and hopes to see lots of the PE Wing there too (so be warned, ladies). Linda Oxlad (Edwards) says South Australia is free of bush fires (17th January) but with the very hot weather continuing (35-42 degrees C) this may not last. All capital cities in Australia are usually OK but large areas of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania have lost farmland, forests and National Parks. In the foothills of Adelaide there is only a slight risk. Lynn and Lindsey had a great European holiday in June and July and returned home to Helsinki. In March they are off to Canada to watch their 11 year old grandson play ice hockey for Australia at the Friendship Games. Lynn is pleased to say that she has had a good year healthwise – the first in five years without an operation. She hopes to make a reunion in 2014 or 2015. She had a Christmas card from Dave and Jan Richardson (Stamp). Her father, Ossie Edwards (ex-BOC), has at last decided at the age of 95 to move into a residential centre in the Hope Valley. Even though he has a walking frame he goes to the gym, plays indoor bowls, putting, eightball and walks around the beautiful grounds to keep fit. Gill Page (Birch) has busy times, as ever, as her four grandchildren (well, there will be by April) all live down south. Sue Petri (Potter) says that the family has recovered from that horrid ’flu virus which seemed to return several times – it certainly leaves you feeling very weak for some time. It has been a difficult year for a number of reasons. She has played little golf but if the weather improves ... . George Redgrave For his 70th birthday George visited Bayeaux and the Normandy beaches, a market in St Lo and Mont St Michel. On the way home they stopped in Longuerial, the Somme, to visit the cemetery where his Uncle Jim, who was killed on 28th August 1918, aged 18, is buried. “Their name liveth for evermore” (Ecclesiasticus 44 v 14). He has also been on a silent retreat – people fell about with laughter when he told them. Roger and Diana Revell (Stanhope) say that she is progressing very well and is now on six-monthly checks. Bob and June Self (Westmorland 63-66) had a wonderful time at the Calgary Stampede, an eye opener. It was amazing how a whole city got together and celebrated for 10 days. In February they went on a cruise to the Northern Lights with a ship that goes from Portsmouth so no dreadful airport hassle. He works tirelessly for the Southdowns National Park of which he is a trustee. Vivien Sehner (Farcey) and her husband, Herbert, who live in Bavaria, Germany, have retired. The farm is rented to two of their children who run it as a company and on a part-time basis (second job) as one is an engineer, the other a vet and mother of two small children. They have 150 cattle and a few hundred sheep. Herbert breeds and trains Border Collies for farm work. Viv is a keen vegetable, salad and fruit gardener, providing food for a number of mouths. They had five children so when everybody is about there can be 18 hungry people around the table! Dave and Biddy Smith (Hinton 1964-1967) are thoroughly enjoying their retirement in the tiny Minster town of Southwell in Nottinghamshire. they are members of a flourishing U3A and both contribute programmes to the Music Group. Although retired as a priest Bridget helps at their local church (Upton) and at Sacrista Prebend (the local retreat centre). They are still Associates of CSMV Wantage. Local cultural events, gardening, music, art and books fill most hours happily. Bridget does oil painting as a hobby and David is still a complete bookworm, except when walking the dog.

28 Anny Spilberg (Makin) continues to make slow progress. It will be six years on 5th April that she had the stroke on the ferry (this was reported in the Guild Newsletter). She is almost always cheerful and very resilient and tenacious in the face of her handicaps. She continues the daily walks on her own, at her own pace, and the people of Liss village keep an eye out for her. She still loves those pub lunches. On the television, many films, series and shows pass her by as she finds it hard to follow complicated plots. Michael and Anny venture to the Triangle Community Centre on a Saturday night for the monthly cinema show. Michael has managed a little time away with the support of the family. “We are safe and comfortable, but we take nothing for granted and are constantly aware of those enduring a less fortunate and happy time, and coping with far greater difficulties than we are”. That’s the sort of couple Anny and Mike are. Rick (1963-66) and Juliet Strappini (Affleck) say that Mondays see three little grandchildren to look after. Rick’s term of office as Constable of St Martin finishes at the end of the year now that he has completed three years in office. He will be able to help on Mondays! They visited the USA and Canada in October. The purpose of the trip was that the Parish of St Martin was invited to enter the international section of Canada in Bloom as they were awarded a gold medal in Britain in Bloom in 2011. The icing on the cake was that the small St Martin Parish won top prize for small towns including places as diverse as Japan and the Czech Republic. Juliet keeps busy helping as a volunteer at a disabled centre – she is also into creative embroidery and patchwork. Aubrey and Mandy Watson (Adkin) Mandy is still working two and a half days a week – so much work she could easily be full time but managing to say no, firmly. Aubrey is still very involved with the Golf Club, playing three days a week. Between them they are covering all their three grandchildren’s child minding so Jane can teach full time at the village school. Aubrey has got quite good at cooking child suppers and at homework. In April he is off to Turkey to play golf but at February half term they went to stay in Florida with Mandy’s sister. Barbara William’s (Rodgers) husband, Graham, died very suddenly of a heart attack last November. He was fit and healthy. Barbara is devastated.

1963-1966 This year we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the beginning of those memorable years at Bishop Otter. What an amazing autumn term to begin with in 1963. We soon realised how lucky we were to be experiencing the array of opportunities presented by this very special teacher training college and all this against the background of such international highs and lows. A group called The Beatles were in the ascendant and were kind enough to feature nightly in our crypt-like coffee bar. At the other end of the spectrum who will ever forget the tsunami of disbelief which swept through the dining hall during that evening meal with the news of President Kennedy’s assassination? This was a remarkable beginning to a life changing three years. How lucky we were to be there and how fortunate we still are to be in contact with so many former students and friends. Long may it continue! (JS) Angela Brombley (Rickard) This year I am invited to attend a June reunion in Wadebridge from the council estate we lived in during the Queen's Coronation. Should be interesting; probably won't recognise anybody except my sister!!!! Have looked out some old memorabilia, photos etc, one being my summer term report – "Works hard but could do better" was the general comment. Nothing changes. Still, I did look quite cute as the town's Fairy Queen that year. Would you recognise me from the photo I ask myself? Probably not. Great to have a chance to meet everyone again. A little while back Bernard and I were browsing in a Southampton Oxfam charity shop. He was looking for melodian music (if any of you have any you don't want he would be delighted to take it off your hands) when he came across a Bishop Otter Memorial College library copy of Verdi's Requiem. It has brought back some fond memories both of my time at Chichester and the 30 years of choral singing I have done whilst living in Botley. It now fills a special place amongst many other pieces of choral music here which have seen better days but mean a lot emotionally. Anne Bugden (Dodd) (Re Sept SW photos). Enjoyed looking at the photos and matching the names - very necessary in order to match my memories of the past – so you've all caught up with me I'm pleased to say! I could have found Geoff, Brian, Sid, Rose and Gina but needed help with the others! Glad you all had a good time. Ian Freestone (Ian and Mary were excellent hosts in Bristol for our annual South West gathering last September). As soon as Mary and I returned from the olive picking jaunt at Rose Harris’s villa in Puglia we were asked if we could meet immediate needs for the January term at Chengelo School, Zambia. We said yes ... the third stint in four years! We have been scurrying round to get organised now that Christmas/New Year are over. We have had to update some serious vaccinations ... (serious prices I mean, as we don’t get them on the NHS!) Kate, Jake and families are coming for this weekend to celebrate my birthday and we fly out on Tuesday evening from Heathrow. We are taking educational equipment as we get extra baggage allowance being volunteer workers! As things stand we should be back in mid April. This is the third stint in four years, and we still get excited and marvel at the thought that at our advanced age we can be useful/cut the mustard/enjoy unfettered teaching conditions!! If anyone is interested, the Chengelo Educational Trust has a website, and Chengelo School is on www.chengelo.sch.zm. The school was established in 1988 with the objective /vision to provide top class education and leadership training for Zambian children of potential in a clear Christian environment. It is a boarding school way out in the Zambian “bush”, with no distractions. The school comprises nursery, primary and secondary departments and currently enrols about 400 children. It runs a clinic, a training farm, an outdoor education/adventure centre and primary schooling for the children of 200 locally-employed manual staff (thus feeding about 2000 local people due to the “extended family” ethos among the locals). It’s more a mini welfare state really!

29 John Gaff I had a funny day in October! Chichester Stagecoach was short of drivers, so I went from Guildford to Chi and spent the day shuttling parents, graduates etc between BOC and the Festival Theatre for four Graduation Ceremonies. I went back and forth 54 times in the day! I gather there are now 7000 students at the Chi site. Following the decision to move to Chichester we arrived in Chi on 11th December and are still trying to get straight. I am still hopeless with practical/technical matters, but can manage to organise things still. (Remember, John organised all the transport at the Weymouth-Portland venue for the Summer Olympics.) We live within a mile of the BOC and often go up and down College Lane with its flood at the bottom. I drove the U7 (University of Chichester BOC to Bognor service) the other day for Stagecoach. If you visit Chi you may find me performing on the 60 to Midhurst and Bognor or on other local services – Witterings, Selsey and Tangmere. My son lives half a mile away and is even nearer to BOC. I also pass High Wyke (the former hostel) which now seems to be flats. Graylingwell is being converted to a large housing development – they are on Phase 2 and the former Military Police Barracks is undergoing the same treatment. Just getting used to being back and within a few weeks will be able to receive visitors. We have down sized from three to five bedrooms!! In fairness one bedroom is a fully fitted office and the other a Nursery. Liz Gill (Collings) Four years ago I, and husband Jim, took up cycling. Prior to this we had only cycled on old fold-up bikes which we keep on our boat, for trips to shops or mini rides in local area. My husband soon became really keen and lost four stone in two years, now quite a 'Wiggo' type figure, much to my delight! I've just this week progressed to a dropped bars road racing bike – I never thought I could manage but it's really exhilarating. So with the sailing, cycling and grand parenting we're keeping busy. Pam Godden (Gane) This year I’ve published the fourth (and almost certainly the last) in my Salem chapel series. You can see them on Amazon if you're interested. Claire Horder (Shipley) I was delighted when Rosemary Moss (Sweatman) contacted me about a year ago. Since then we have met up a couple of times and last time Ruth Gilman (Stotesbury) was there as well and we had a very pleasant lunch together, reminiscing and catching up on 50 years’ news. We hope to meet up again sometime. Beth Juniper (Salmon) I’ve been lucky, a week’s holiday in Norfolk with a friend (March – and the weather was beautiful!); ten wonderful days in Toronto and New York State (Niagara) with Andy and family to celebrate a nephew’s wedding; the opportunity to experience the amazing atmosphere of the Olympics with Pam (an old college friend), with whom I also spent a couple of wet but enjoyable days visiting old haunts in the Chichester area (there is never enough time when we’re there for reunions). I also met college friends (Angela (Sewell), Anne Ross and Pam (Gane)) in London in May. As well as the Resident’s Association, I am still involved with local church activities and have recently been licensed to help administer communion. The family are well, the children are growing fast and I love being able to help with childcare. I wish you a happy and healthy year in 2013 and look forward to hearing your news. Jan Mabbut (Miller) I moved from West Sussex to Somerset just over a year ago. In spring 2012 in a local magazine I read about a lady who had recently died in our village of Long Sutton. One thing I learnt about her was that she was renowned for organising Pantomimes in the village hall with one of the school masters, Jim Swain. Could there be more than one person called by that name? I had Jim's email address and all I knew was that he lived in the South West. I contacted him and then found out that he had been a Headmaster of my village for 12 years. The "Old School" is now a dwelling place. The New school has replaced it. This has led me to finding Jim's former deputy head , a lady of 84 who still lives in the village. Also a classroom assistant, whose husband was born in our house! It is fun now because I was included in the SW reunion at Ian Freestone's house. We are so enjoying our new life in Somerset under a thatched roof. We can see the flooded levels from our bedroom window. The field we camped in before our move, in our motor-home, flooded. We have exchanged our motor-home for a camper van and have already started exploring Devon and Cornwall. We are really looking forward to going further next year. This year has been busy taming our garden and adding an Aga to the house. Also we had the ridge and one side replaced on the thatch. I have learnt from Jim about Michael Morgan's art and been to his solo exhibition at Beer. I understand he is very poorly in health I am fortunate to have a studio adjoining our house and I have taken up my oil painting again. Two of my paintings were bought by the lady who now lives in the " Old School". I am working towards an exhibition in two years time called "Open Studios", Somerset Arts Weeks. Lynn Maylen (Virrels) Obviously looking forward to July hoping Keith (Vane) will make another fab cake. This year same as ever golf up and down! I still manage to win enough money to buy golf stuff! Bridge lessons still thriving – pays my golf fee! Yippee! Hubby Barrie is suffering from various cancers due to living in Africa as a young man. All clear. My parents of 87 and 92 years are leading a less active life which frustrates them. My son and wife are enjoying the challenges of parenthood. James, six years, is very sporty. Sophia, four years, is following her Mum in dance and gym. My daughter and husband are still looking to buy a house out of London! Sorry we missed out on Olympic tickets – just glued to TV. No luck tracing Gilly Duffin. I suppose our news nowadays very much centres around family – even though I am a round robin advocate at Christmas, I try not to boast about my wonderful family!!! HE! HE!! David Shepherd spent an excellent week of walking (and golf) in Arran – bit wet! and had an exciting time negotiating the floods in Yorkshire on the way back. Pleased to see Jan Mabbutt (Miller) has joined us – we went to the same primary school and lived in the same road many moons ago. Rosemary Wiggins (Thorell) Home from Brittany now (September). Had a super time watching Atlantic rollers and the surfers. Final few days with friends who have moved across, collecting eggs from their chickens, gazing at the Milky Way, eating and drinking far too much, but, hey, we've worked hard in our time!!

30 Gina Wilcox. Great to see everyone at the South West reunion in September! After a hectic few weeks with Poole Sports Council Sports Awards (I read the citations!), a Joint Twinning meeting for Poole and Cherbourg Twinning Associations (I’m Secretary!) and various other meetings, to which I try to get – enabling me to keep in touch with ‘blighty’ ... I left for the Bahamas on 5th October, knowing that the main plan was to take the boat (twin Volvo engines) to Miami for its major service. As the weather was not ideal, we left it until the last week in October and that is when Hurricane Sandy suddenly and unexpectedly took shape just off the Caribbean! Whoops! Determined to get back to the Bahamas before it struck, the journey across the Gulf Stream (about the same distance as the 60 miles from Poole to Cherbourg) and which usually takes three to four 4 hours, took nine hours of pounding! We holed up in Grand Bahama whilst the hurricane went through – not bad for us with our own power, lights, cooking etc etc, but very bad for the Island which had three days without power and severe flooding in the north. We then set off for Abaco, another pounding as the heavy seas were still coming in from the Atlantic and then met the worst seas off the Treasure Cay Bank, where we were within sight of ‘home’ ... 20 ft plus breaking seas ... so we were going up the green waves and surfing down the breaking seas, quite my most hairy sea experience!! Thanks to Neil’s excellent boating skills we arrived back safely - to find ONLY two inches of sea water in the house .... ah well! I’m told as we get older, we should continue to challenge ourselves ... no doubt Mother Nature has provided quite a few challenges this past year for all of us! My best wishes to you all for 2013 and the big reunion. Jim Swain In the summer I put together my first piece for dramatic performance since I stopped writing local pantos in the 90s. It was equally highbrow, namely a mummers play which we produced for our Diamond Jubilee street party. We must have done something right as we‘ve been asked to go on a tour of one stop. That’s to say a Wassail celebration taking place this weekend (January 2013). Productions from many years earlier led to meeting up with Jan Mabbut (Miller) for the first time since leaving BOC … see her news above. On Saturday 25th August our youngest daughter and vet, Alice, was married to a young farmer, James, in the delightful village of Wedmore, Somerset. The wedding and some of their recent experiences of life will have been featured on a Channel Four TV production in January entitled “First Time Farmers”. It was a surprise and pleasure to see Phil Carter at the wedding even if briefly. He and Helen have friends in Wedmore and were down that weekend. He’d heard what was happening and slipped subtly into the reception marquee during the welcoming of guests to pass on his good wishes and magnanimously turned down a glass of champagne. Our oldest daughter, Polly, was due to have her second child ten days or so after the wedding. We were not a little surprised when she produced Max rather quickly the morning before the wedding. She rolled up in her bridesmaid’s dress and one day old baby at the church. They breed them tough in the Wild West. Janet continues to teach. The September SW mini reunion was everything we look forward to. Our Bristolian hosts, Ian and Mary Freestone did a grand job and we were all most grateful. In late November I was very pleased to accept an invitation from Rose Harris to join her and Ian and Mary to fly down to her Villa Rosa (what else?) in Puglia, right on the heel of southern Italy. We were there till 1st December. The excuse was to help Rose carry out her annual olive harvest. All the other three had previous experience so I just did what I was told. Ian swarmed his way up trees and shook the olives down with great vigour like a new breed of Mediterranean monkey. (Is he really 70 something?) The rest of us raked the branches or filled up containers. We were a happy little band working away in temperatures of 17 to 20 degrees C and well aware that back in the UK everyone was getting very wet. We refused to be smug. We were smug, however when, after Rose’s harvest was in, the weather broke into a full day of violent electrical storms and high winds. Sadly, some neighbours were caught out with their harvesting. In the time the boss allowed us to take off we surveyed and sampled several very good but modestly priced restaurants and apart from the nearby Alberobello with its swathe of astonishing conical roofed houses called trulli (surely built for Hobbits), we explored delightful hill top towns such as Martina Franca, Ostuni and dazzlingly white Locorotondo. (I bet you can’t find another place name with five vowels, all of them Os.) Flopping times were spent in front of a grand log fire when many books were read and some wine consumed. BOC was frequently mentioned as were many of you.

News of Staff

Rev Doug Farnham is still active on the staff of St Paul’s Church, Chichester, regularly celebrating the mid-week Communion service. He is married to Jean (Wilson) 1950-1952.

31 R .I .P.

Obituaries ex-students

Iris Burton (Brixey) 1930-1932

Iris died in April 2012 at nearly 99. She was independent almost till the end. Her father was a headteacher. Two of her three sons were teachers (now retired) who married teachers whose children are now teaching. Her husband was a clergyman, a school governor who welcomed the opportunity to teach. Her mantra was “Teachers should be allowed to teach”.

Hilda Gooding (Kirby) 1935-1937

Hilda died in December 2011 aged 95 following a fall. She had lived in Bromham, Bedfordshire, for nearly 30 years, involved with the church and other local and fund-raising activities. Previously she and the family had spent time in Malaya, Barbados (18 years), Colombia (three years) and Aberdeen (11 years). Until recently she had spent many happy holidays in Greece where her doctor son lived and worked.

Peggy Jenkins (Batchelor) 1953-1955

Peggy died at the end of November 2012 of complications after a major operation. The group that meets in London every two months had seen her in September and she knew she was not going to make the next meeting owing to the operation. Perhaps she had an inkling too. She was an English main student and, as Pam Cahill writes “... although I was part of that group I had only got to know her better since our meetings in London”. She was a regular attender of the Reunions, supporting her friends Meg Cameron and Pat Paddy Sparke (Johnson). Though not an extrovert, she had a wicked sense of dry humour and was full of good sense. She will be missed.

32 R .I .P.

Obituaries ex-students

Gillian Aylott (Simmonds) 1953-1955

Gillian died on 18th January 2013. Gillian was the editor of this Newsletter for ten years and only handed over the reins two years ago. Gillian was a very special person and, in many ways, hadn’t changed since college. She had a wicked sense of humour. She was totally committed and consistent to friends, Bishop Otter Guild, her local community and school, her church and her Lord. She will be very much missed by all her friends

Pam Mitchie (Latty) 1955-1957

Sadly, on 30th June 2012, Pam Mitchie (Latty) died aged 74. She lived in Northumberland.

Trefor Jones 1962-1965

Very suddenly and unexpectedly Trefor Jones died on 11th January 2013. The Service of Thanksgiving was held at his local church on Wednesday 23rd January. It was a great pride to the family to see the church so full.

Obituary ex-Staff

Mary Evelyn Miller 1950-1977

Mary, former Lecturer at Bishop Otter College, passed peacefully away on 23rd October 2012, aged 95 years. She was the Education Lecturer for the Infant Group from 1950 to c.1977, and lived in the small cottage in College Lane for many years.

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33 University of Chichester Alumni Association

We are planning our first University of Chichester Alumni Association Reunion on the afternoon of Saturday 15 June 2013.

• Free event starting from 12 noon • Discover new developments • Bring your family • Meet old friends • Revisit old haunts

The afternoon will include a welcome from a member of the Chief Executive’s Team, afternoon tea, heritage tours of both campuses and tours given by our current student ambassadors. There will be a free bus service running between Bognor Regis and Bishop Otter Campus.

Make sure you are on our mailing list so that you receive your invitation. Email [email protected] or telephone 01243 812155 or 812175.

34 Your community, your University

Support your University With 5300 students and 950 staff, we are one of the smallest modern to improve the student universities in the country but also one Donating could of the most successful. We aim to be a not be easier experience of our socially responsible university that is future alumni. recognised internationally, significant You can donate by: nationally, important regionally and vital locally – not only in teaching and • Our JustGiving page students experience, but also in www.justgiving.com/universityof research, in our diverse communities chichester and in the public, private and voluntary sectors. • Texting CHIC05 and the amount you wish to donate As you will know education is one of to 70070 many areas where expenditure is rising more rapidly than income. Unlike more • Or contacting Ann Harley, established universities, the University Development Manager, of Chichester has no historical on Tel: +44 (0)1243 812175, endowment with which to support its Email: [email protected] community. The Development Fund provides the opportunity for alumni and friends to give to any part of the University. Our main aim is to ensure there are funds available to allow the flexibility to respond to the area of greatest need within the University. Equally important are donations to the specific causes which matter to you, whether related to your subject of study, or your campus. For more information about the Devolopment Fund, take a look at the Alumni web pages on www.chi.ac.uk/alumni.

If you give a single If you set up a monthly With Gift Aid, your donation of: payment plan of: donation will be worth:

£20.00 £1.67 £25.00 £50.00 £4.00 £62.50 £100.00 £8.00 £125.00 £250.00 £21.00 £312.50 This Newsletter has been kindly produced by the University of Chichester Marketing department at Please recycle after use no extra cost to the Bishop Otter College Guild.