The Eagle 2011

Eagle_cvr_spine:Layout 1 24/11/2011 10:02 Page 1 The Eagle 2011 Printed on sustainable and 40% recycled material recycled 40% and sustainable on Printed VOLUME 93 FOR MEMBERS OF ST JOHN’S COLLEGE The Eagle 2011 ST JOHN’S COLLEGE UN I V E R S I T Y OF CA M B RI D G E 725292 01284 Design. Cameron by Designed ST JOHN’S COLLEGE U N I V E R S I T Y O F C A M B R I D GE The Eagle 2011 Volume 93 ST JOHN’S COLLEGE U N I V E R S I T Y O F C A MB R I D G E THE EAGLE Published in the United Kingdom in 2011 by St John’s College, Cambridge St John’s College Cambridge CB2 1TP www.joh.cam.ac.uk Telephone: 01223 338700 Fax: 01223 338727 Email: [email protected] Registered charity number 1137428 First published in the United Kingdom in 1858 by St John’s College, Cambridge Designed and produced by Cameron Design: 01284 725292; www.cameronacademic.co.uk Printed by Reflex Litho Limited, Thetford. Photography by Nicola Coles, Ben Ealovega, Alice Hardy, The Telegraph, John Thompson and contributors. The Eagle is published annually by St John’s College, Cambridge, and is sent free of charge to members of St John’s College and other interested parties. Items to be considered for publication should be addressed to The Editor, The Eagle, Development Office, St John’s College, Cambridge, CB2 1TP, or sent by email to [email protected]. If you would like to submit Members’ News for publication in The Eagle, you can do so online at http://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/alumni/members-news-form. Page 2 www.joh.cam.ac.uk CONTENTS CONTENTS ST JOHN’S COLLEGE U N I V E R S I T Y O F C A MB R I D G E THE EAGLE Contents CONTENTS Page 4 www.joh.cam.ac.uk Contents THE EAGLE CONTENTS CONTENTS Articles Message from the Master .................................................................... 10 Message from the Senior Tutor ............................................................ 14 Message from the Development Director ............................................. 17 Dr Mark Nicholls and Malcolm Underwood: How Things Begin: Some College ‘Firsts’ ................................................................................19 Marc Feigen: Bishop Fisher Comes Home ................................................24 Dr Olga Kucherenko: Children at War......................................................28 Dr Martin Goodhand: Laminar Flow Compressors: Reducing the Environmental Impact of Aviation.............................................................33 Dr Jenny Barna: Thirty Years of Bioinformatics: Five Hundred Years for St John’s College – Reflections in the International Year of Chemistry 2011 ........................................................................................37 Dr Silas Brown: Adventures in Chinese.....................................................42 Dr Michael Arnheim: Five Centuries of Legal Thinking.............................46 Sumet Jumsai: S.31 ‘Bird Building’............................................................50 Dr Iain Gordon Brown: A Johnian Hog in Caledonia ................................53 Graham Harding: St John’s and the ‘Velcro of Memory’............................61 Commodore John Harris: The Lady Margaret Lodge .................................65 Professor Hugh Brogan: The Last Sprat .....................................................66 www.joh.cam.ac.uk Page 5 THE EAGLE Contents CONTENTS CONTENTS Caitlin Doherty and Concetta Scozarro: The Fowles Daunse ....................67 The Lady Margaret Boat Song .................................................................. 70 Music at St John’s Musician in Residence..............................................................................74 The Choir of St John’s College, Cambridge ...............................................78 The Gentlemen of St John's ......................................................................83 College Sports and Societies ..................................................................... 87 Fellows and Members’ News .................................................................. 133 Obituaries ............................................................................................. 157 Poetry ................................................................................................... 171 Book Reviews ....................................................................................... 175 Art and Photography Competition ........................................................... 201 Donors ................................................................................................. 207 Donors to the Library ............................................................................. 223 College Notes ....................................................................................... 227 Page 6 www.joh.cam.ac.uk ARTICLES ARTICLES ST JOHN’S COLLEGE U N I V E R S I T Y O F C A MB R I D G E THE EAGLE Articles Message from the Master Sitting down to write this message prompts me to reflect on the many events that have taken place in the College during the first half of our Quincentenary year. My strongest impression so far is that this anniversary is forging new and lasting links between the different communities that make up the Johnian family. So many of the celebratory activities during the year have brought together in new ways our students, staff, alumni and Fellows – and indeed on many occasions their families and friends – to emphasise yet again that St John’s is a very special institution indeed, whose whole is so much greater than the sum of its parts. It has given me enormous pleasure on many occasions during the year to watch ARTICLES long-standing friendships being renewed, and to see new interactions being developed between those who share the common bond of being members of the collection of like-minded and mutually supportive individuals that represents this unique and remarkable College. The Quincentenary celebrations began in February with a pair of spectacular performances of Haydn’s Creation (surely nothing could be more appropriate!) first in the College Chapel and then in London, at St John’s, Smith Square, which revealed in spectacular fashion the astonishing quality and versatility of our marvellous Choir. Both performances were packed out and both received rapturous responses and tremendous reviews in the press. The Choir also toured America at the end of the Lent term, a trip that generated standing ovations after every single concert, and culminated in a spectacular performance in New York that was followed by a splendid reception hosted by the Johnian Society of the USA. I was privileged to be present on this occasion and at a dinner the following day in Toronto, allowing me to thank in person a large number of our alumni who live in North America for their tremendous support of the College in so many different ways and with such infectious enthusiasm. And indeed last summer, my wife, Mary, and I made a ‘pre-anniversary tour’ to meet and express our gratitude to Johnians in Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong. Back in Cambridge, we celebrated the anniversary of our Foundation – 9 April – with a wonderful dinner that brought together members of the current community of the College, including as many Fellows, staff and students as we could pack into the Hall. On 27 April we were deeply honoured when HM the Queen and HRH the Duke of Edinburgh came to visit us to mark our Quincentenary year, spending nearly three hours with us just two days before their grandson’s wedding! After looking round First Court, including inspecting the newly restored remains of the Old Chapel, the Royal party lunched with Fellows and students Page 10 www.joh.cam.ac.uk Articles THE EAGLE in the splendour of the Combination Room. The Queen and Prince Philip then joined a Garden Party on the Backs, and talked to many of our current students, staff and Fellows who had gathered together on this historic occasion. On a perfect spring day, with a clear blue sky, it was a marvellous experience for us all, including the hundreds of scarlet-blazered flag-waving children from the College School who lined Second Court as the Queen and Prince Philip made their way to the Backs, and gave them a spectacular farewell at the end of a day that is surely etched into the memories of everyone who was present. Then came May Week, and the Quincentenary Ball. Rumours were rife about this event, particularly as wildly inaccurate stories about unlimited budgets and the names of those who had been booked to perform were circulating everywhere, including in the national press. But astonishingly, in the light of such ARTICLES publicity and high hopes, the event lived up to all expectations, not least with a firework display that was breathtaking even by Johnian standards, and the appearance of a veritable forest of daffodils in Second Court in honour of William Wordsworth. With many returning Johnians joining current members of the College, and again helped by glorious weather, a record number of people made it through to the survivors’ photograph after an unforgettable night. Then, with scarcely a break to catch our breath, we were into our first Quincentenary Week, during which more than a thousand Johnians and their guests enjoyed a vast array of events ranging from ghost walks and tours of the College kitchens (separate events I hasten to add) to lectures and discussions on topics including the best way to elect politicians and the experience of sailing single-handed around the world. As well as expressing

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