IS '* 11-'. f, •..' / f »•-——'->"-..,.,, ^ ,^> f «i^. • ! ! #*"*-:-s; I ' : * ..••... «. •• • r ^ f*^ "'^"i'••"""• "«#sfe-»~- • • •" i ' ' '• •'", '• -»_ S:,~< ' • ' ] _•;_ • ' t • '•-''** ''!8 m i ' :; uC-^< - ••.'., • • •• • • % * ••• • • | • . :. H* -*»««., „ -^^«*—»-«^:r*?• '---• •- • THE PETERITE 1989-90 Photo: Yorkshire Evening Press LIGHTNING STRIKES QUEEN'S Chris Bullen examines the damage caused by a lightning strike on 9th May. As well as sending masonry crashing down, the lightning knocked out the School's internal and external telephone system and stopped the bells from ringing. Fortunately no-one was hurt. THE PETERITE 1989-1990 No. 407 Contents PAGE PAGE Review of the Year 2 Hockey 56 Prize List 6 Cross-Country 57 Results 7 Squash 58 Peterswalk '89 8 Oxford Cup 59 School Notes 10 Cricket 60 House Reports 16 Tennis 65 Bishop Trevor Huddleston 24 Boat Club 66 Interview 26 Swimming 68 Chapel 28 GIRLS' GAMES Combined Cadet Force 30 Hockey 69 Drama 32 Squash 71 Music 36 Cross-Country 73 Clubs and Activities 40 Swimming 73 Colour Section 43 Tennis 74 Poems and Pictures 47 Rounders 75 Archives 51 Travel 75 SPORT - BOYS' GAMES Old Peterite News 80 Rugby 52 Crossword 88 Editor: D. S. Newman Assistant Editors: Anthony Curtis, Simon Gildener, Matthew Williams Photographs: Matthew Sumpton, Matthew Gyles, Matthew Williams, Peter Midgley, Simon Gildener, R. H. Hubbard, J. C. Brown, I. H. Lancaster, Mr. F. Spencer, Mr. E. Thompson, Shepherd Construction Ltd., Yorkshire Evening Press. Cover Illustration by Adam Dean. Prints are available from the Headmaster's Secretary, price £2.50. Proceeds from the sale of this limited edition will be donated to the School's Amnesty International Group. 1 REVIEW OF THE YEAR Below we print extracts from the Headmaster's You will be expecting me to refer, as I did last year, Commemoration Speech: to Appeal '89. Our total now stands at over £525,000, with some as yet untapped possibilities which we hope Those of you who have attended several or more of will allow us to pass our new target of £600,000. Old these prizegiving occasions know of my reluctance to Peterites have been generous in their support, and I want report in great detail every match played, examination to pay a special tribute to our current parents for their passed or concert performed. Nevertheless this is an marvellous response which has been a huge important opportunity each year for me to give you at least encouragement to us as we have continued to plan and a sketch of the School's achievements and successes, a determine the development of the School's facilities. This taking of the temperature, an annual check-up of our year we have near at hand tangible proof of this health and fitness. generosity: the Chilman Building greatly enhancing our resources both educationally and aesthetically and opened by Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Kent two days Appeal '89 ago; and the Alcuin Library, a superb addition to our academic purposes, associated particularly and rightly with Old Peterites who gave magnificently to the Appeal and to be opened immediately after Prizegiving by Sir Peter Shepherd. There can be no one more fitted to carry out this task: as a Governor for nineteen years, as Chairman of the Board's Properties and Amenities Committee and as President of Appeal '89 the School owes him a great debt of thanks. Further work is planned for the months and years ahead: the development of the Grove Block as a Modern Languages Centre will start in the autumn, to be followed, hopefully soon after, by similar improvements to the Scott Block which is destined to become the centre for our Mathematics. The upgrading of the Methodist halls for music and drama lies ahead, and I hope that the continued success of Appeal '89 and careful management and control of our finances may allow this work to proceed in due Foundation course. To those of you who have given to the Appeal my wannest thanks; to those who have yet to give, a piece of relevant information — a new and updated donors' list will be published in the New Year. Academic Results C.C.F. Whatever else happens at St. Peter's and whatever else It is good to record that our Combined Cadet Force we achieve, our first task is an academic one: each pupil contingent continues to flourish in these voluntary, co­ taught stimulatingly and thoroughly with full intellectual educational and less militaristic times. Suffice it for me potential being realised. To our current educational to quote the concluding words of the Inspecting Officer's concerns I shall return later in my report, but a few report following our biennial parade and review last statistics deserve emphasis at this stage: a 90% A level February: pass rate last summer (which was a 12% improvement An effective and enthusiastic C.C.F. Commander on the previous year); thirteen places, some conditional on A level results, gained in last autumn's selection Bulcock and his team of officers are to be procedures at Oxford and Cambridge and sixty-seven out congratulated on running a very good contingent, of last summer's upper sixth leavers proceeding to degree one of the best in the north-east of England. courses. This I think speaks well of our academic achievements. Music We have had further fine music-making this year with Sport the Yorkshire Evening Press describing St. Peter's as 'a hotbed of musical talent'. There have been some thrilling events, not least the concert for the Duchess of Kent on Thursday. The Choral Society has among other pieces performed the Vivaldi Gloria and the Faur6 Requiem, and its pupil membership steadily and gratifyingly grows. We have also had some excellent professional visitors including the Demon Barbers, Yorkshire Classic Brass, the 'cellist loan Davies and the baritone Stephen Varcoe. But invidious though it sometimes is to mention individual names, I feel bound to list a few of our own exceptional instrumentalists, and Claire Altman, Antony Dunn, Martin Kershaw, Andrew Moxon and Tifanny Richards particularly come to mind. Turning to sport, I am glad that we are able to offer a rich variety of games and exercise, promoting physical well-being, healthy and enjoyable competition and individual self-confidence. If our cricket and rugby have not been as successful as in previous years there has been some compensation in excellence and enthusiasm achieved in other sports. Netball, girls' and boys' hockey, squash, tennis, cross-country all flourish, and I want to make special mention of our rowing under Ann Hodgson's overall guidance: both girls' and boys' fours have performed splendidly in many regattas, medals and trophies have been presented with the greatest regularity by myself in Saturday assemblies and only last Saturday we were successful in six events at the Leeds Regatta and won the Victor Ludorum Trophy for the best school, club or university taking part. I would also like to mention how we are particularly indebted to Joshua Rowe, with us from Australia in the upper sixth for just two terms, and his parents for their outstanding gift of a new and much- needed four. Finally, concerning sport, I should like to make mention of the Shuttleworth Cup (and what an imaginative leaving present Guy Shuttleworth requested) presented annually to the pupil whose contribution to School sport has been outstanding. Anshuman Mondal is a very worthy first recipient. 3 Highlights Distinguished Visitors A last comment to add to this review section of my report: one of the indications of a lively, interested and interesting School is the quality of its visitors. In this respect we have had a vintage year. Not only do we note the presence of our eminent guests today, but die list since last September includes Peter Gibson, surely England's most accomplished expert on stained glass, Dr. Oliver Taplin, giving us a preview of his fascinating Radio Four series on Odysseus, Colonel Blashford-Snell with his unique accounts of his life of adventure, Christopher Hill, eminent Old Peterite and our foremost historian of the seventeenth century, Richard Whiteley who gave a most comprehensive talk on the future of television, and not less than three Archbishops, Lord Coggan here for the 25th anniversary of Feed the Minds, the Archbishop of York who confirmed thirty of our Junior School and Senior School pupils, and Bishop Trevor Huddleston, two weeks before the Nelson Mandela Wembley event, giving an exceptional and inspirational sermon at one of our Sunday evensongs. The Staff I could mention much else: the Christmas Term production of My Fair Lady, the pupils who have secured I hope that I have said sufficient to show you that this R.A.F. flying scholarships, the Saturday evening debates, has been another very busy and successful year. Our the holiday expeditions to Europe and further afield, the achievements are only made possible by the dedication, community service regularly and quietly undertaken week skill and sheer hard work of the staff. This terminology by week, the art exhibition at the King's Manor put on embraces more than those who teach, and I include the by some of our sixth formers, and so on. These are all bursarial, administrative and secretarial staffs, our indicators of the liveliness, initiative, imagination and caterers, our cleaners and those who maintain our worthwhile activity of very many of our pupils. buildings and grounds. Many of them have worked for the School over a large number of years, and their loyalty Pursuing this theme I should like to refer to three particular occasions this year which showed the School at its most resourceful, fulfilled and happy. The first of my trio is the Great Egg Race with its nice blend of high technological skill and healthy inter-house spirit.