KING EDWARD’S SCHOOL BIRMINGHAM OLD EDWARDIANS GAZETTE 2017 In this issue... An extraordinary election Two Old Edwardians share their experiences of covering the US presidential election Go out and make a life Ashvir Sangha gives three pieces of advice to leavers From pupil to Chief Master John Claughton reminisces Issue 296 Contents 03 News A word from the Chairman 04 Letters to the Editor 04 Events: a year in pictures 06 Forthcoming OE events 07 School news 08 Features President Trump: an extraordinary election 10 Welcome Go out and make a life: Ashvir Sangha 12 As we begin to emerge from the dark days of winter, I hope that this edition of the Gazette will provide you with some interesting insights; with an eye both on the past and the future. Former Masters Last term, two of our Sixth Formers stood on the stage in Big School to present the viewpoints John Claughton reminisces 14 of the competing candidates for the US presidency. It was knockabout fun, but very few of us in the audience believed that there was more than one likely outcome to the real election. How wrong we were. As the Trump presidency begins to take shape, two Old Edwardians with their fingers very much on the pulse of US affairs – Tim Franks of the BBC World Service, and US Archives columnist for The Guardian Richard Wolffe – offer us their perspectives on what we can expect. As planning for our third exhibition on Old Edwardians and the First World War gets underway, Archive matters 16 we also look back at the Chronicles of 1917, as the death toll of Old Edwardians mounted even further following the severe losses suffered during the preceding year at the Battle of the Somme. The vibrancy of the KES community is exemplified by the diversity of the articles and updates Old Edwardians within this magazine and I hope you will enjoy catching up with news from your contemporaries and the School. Over the last few months I have had the pleasure of meeting a number of Old Careers focus: engineering 18 Edwardians at a range of events and have been struck by the obvious affection held for the School by its alumni. I look forward to meeting with more of you over the coming months Old Edwardians news in brief 20 when we will also be able to share our exciting plans for the next phase of the School’s Obituaries 23 development programme. Old Edwardian publications 30 ■ Dr Mark Fenton Chief Master and President of the OEA Tim Franks and Richard Wolffe write about covering the US election pg10 04 News News 05 A brief word from: Letters to The Chairman Wartime farm camp It is increasingly the Editor easy to write a Dear Editor, provide the food rations for the army of ‘Chairman’s column’ hop-pickers who came out from the Black about KES when One of the great features of KE school life in Country towards the end of the summer for so many Old the wartime years was the summer farm their hop-picking ‘holiday’. We collected their Edwardians are out camp. This was started at the beginning of ration books, made out the bulk orders and there doing things, the war by Mr MA Porter, a confirmed collected them from Tenbury shops before and so much is going bachelor and an excellent maths teacher, distribution to the families. Never any on at school. This bridge player and Scoutmaster. The camp arguments and they trusted us completely. time is no exception. was situated on the large farm of Mr GA Nott Many could not read or write and we were at Newnham Bridge, three miles from Tenbury usually addressed as ‘master’. It was a One of the biggest surprises last year was Wells. The centre was a fine, old, stone-built valuable introduction to a side of life to which Donald Trump, so naturally (like any other A short trip barn, large enough for 50 or so campers to sit we might never have been exposed. We also school?) we have world-class at trestle tables to eat, and up a rickety ladder acted as bushellers: going round the family perspectives from both sides of the through was the accommodation for MAP and the groups in the gardens with a huge sack, Atlantic in Tim Franks and Richard Wolffe. three or four masters accompanying. The called a ‘poke’, a basketwork bushel measure history, campers were accommodated, six to a tent, and a clipboard. The pickers stripped the Mr MA Porter in 1958 I look forward to seeing John Claughton’s in the orchard surrounding the barn, with hops off the bines into big sacking troughs. Former Master interview, and to Mark medieval latrine and wet-pit for our convenience. One of our recreations was swimming in a When the troughs were filled, we recorded the Fenton’s thoughts half-way through his pool created by MAP by damming the river number of filled bushels as we emptied them first year. and In 1944, at age 15, I was old enough to go. Teme. Only used under supervision and, into the poke. The pickers were paid on their I only signed on for two weeks and, apart of course, no swimming costumes. Another results, but we never had any arguments We have been blessed with a stream of modern from a brief bout of homesickness, I loved it. recreation was drinking cider in the Talbot other than a gentle reminder to, “shake her fascinating visitors to days of celebration, We were issued with train tickets from Snow Hotel bar in the village. We all thought we up, master”. and on 2 March Dr Fenton set his own The New Street school designed by Charles Barry Hill Station to Newnham Bridge. Everything were doing this without the knowledge of the bar very high with Lord Robert Winston was free and we were paid a few shillings a masters, but I think they just turned a blind I think the camp ended in 1946 when peace day for our labours; but that went into the eye to a rite of passage and it never seemed came, but there were many of us for whom it giving the seventh Tolkien Lecture. A lucky Dear Editor, Another visitor to the palace was a name that kitty for food and transport. Work was to get out of hand. If you volunteered, and was the high spot of the year. A rare bonus in audience spent an hour being persuaded, surprised and delighted me, Tolkien, as he ‘stooking’ cereal crops, apple and plum many did, you could be one of the cooks austerity wartime. willingly, of the myriad reasons we should My home is near to the village of Ombersley and I were pupils at Barry’s magnificent care about science, whilst sewing the picking, clearing ‘brash’ (bracken), and under the guidance of MAP himself. I had a in Worcestershire, and not far from Ombersley building in New Street – not at the same time! narrative together with art, music and ‘stocking’ out weeds around the orchards and go for a week and did a lot of veg peeling, Rear Admiral John Croydon (1947) Court, the house and estate of the Sandys Among the contents of the house are an literature. It struck me that this holistic hop-gardens. The next year I went for the full egg frying and joint roasting. We lived very Barony. I knew Richard and Patricia Hill, inscribed Roman ring and lead tablet, approach is embodied in the IB. Pretty seven weeks and added to the basic jobs well and food seemed abundant compared to A message from the Foundation Archivist, the late seventh Lord and Lady Sandys. reputedly bearing a curse created by dwarfs reassuring, really. was helping in the apple press, supplying home rationing. Alison Wheatley: There are no photographs upon those who stole them. It is claimed Unfortunately, they had no children, so the bottled juice to the new market for health of wartime farm camps in the School archive. these artefacts were Tolkien’s inspiration for A science theme continues with three title passed to a distant relative. He is a peer drinks in wartime. This was an old cider press By my final year, aged 17, I had learned to If you are able to fill the gap, by either The Lord of the Rings. I felt part of Tolkien’s very different branches being explored of Northern Ireland and lives with his family in and was operated by a couple of German drive at Catterick on an army course and so, donating images to the archive or lending scene again, since as a boy I lived in Hall by Old Edwardians. All engineering, Yorkshire; consequently, Ombersley Court POWs who taught us lots of rude words at camp, I became a member of the elite them to be digitised, please contact me on Green, close to Gracewell Road where but very different. Automotive at iconic now has no occupier. in German. hop-garden squad. Our main role was to tel: 0121 415 6151 or email: [email protected] Tolkien had lived, and I was familiar with Bentley, mechanical in the critical arena Sarehole Mill, the river Cole and adjoining of renewables and chemical (a little The uncertain future of the Court prompted bog or marsh. worryingly?) in whisky – it’s the sort of me to explore the Sandys Barony. I knew stuff that makes careers discussions there had been three creations of the title and My fascinating journey had taken me to Tudor inspirational.