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The news review of OL Members of The Lancing Club – A FOCAL POINT FOR THE FUTURE – A LINK WITH THE PAST This is a new publication and a new look for communication from The Lancing Club to our members. THE CLUB will be published three times a year and replaces The Lancing Club Magazine.This is part of the process of updating The Lancing Club and by having three publications instead of one it will bring you more up-to-date and immediate news. One of the problems with the previous publication was that a lot of the news was almost 14 months out of date when you received it. We hope you enjoy rea t edition of THE CLUB and please keep it relevant by sending us your news.I would also like to welcome all our new OLs, who left at the end of last term, to The Old Lancing Club. I look forward to seeing you at our social reunions or sports events and please keep us up to date with your news as well through our various communication channels. Chairman – Andrew Farquharson
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CLUB THE CLUB AUTUMN 2014 – The news review of OL Members of The Lancing Club REVIEW T h e L a n c i n g C l u b lifting the lid on laughter Spitfire over Lancing… …it was good to see both regular faces and new! A FOCAL POINT FOR THE FUTURE – A LINK WITH THE PAST
Transcript
Page 1: The CLUB Review – Autumn 2014

CLUBTHECLUBAUTUMN 2014 – The news review of OL Members of The Lancing Club

RE

VIE

W

The

Lancing Club

lifting the lid on laughter

Spitfire over Lancing…

…it was good to see both regular faces and new!

A FOCAL POINT FOR THE FUTURE – A LINK WITH THE PAST

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your contactsPresident: Sir Tim Rice

Chairman: Andrew Farquharson [email protected]

Treasurer: David Rice [email protected]

Secretary: Anthony Phillips [email protected]

Past President: Rear Admiral Sir Robert Woodard, K.C.V.O

Vice Presidents: John Bell [email protected] Shute [email protected] Ventham [email protected] Capt. Graham Robinson, R.N. [email protected]

THE CLUB COMMITTEEElected 2012 Richard Black [email protected] Nick Evans [email protected] Tom Selmon [email protected] Williams [email protected]

Elected 2013Laura Burdekin [email protected] Mark Truman [email protected] Julia Benham-Hermetz [email protected]

Elected 2014 Nick Parker [email protected] Tom Robson [email protected]

Co-optedNeesha Gopal [email protected] Canon Bruce Hawkins Renjie Chen

EditorJohn Clifford [email protected]

SPORTS SECRETARIESSports Coordinator Nick Evans [email protected]

Cricket: Yosef Salameh [email protected]

Debating:Andrew Wagstaff

Eton Fives:Richard Black [email protected] Cox [email protected]

Football: Duncan Wilks [email protected] Secretary:Nick Taylor [email protected]: Charles Mackendrick [email protected]

Hockey (Men): Tom Phillips [email protected]

Ladies Sports & Hockey: Hannah Cobbold [email protected]

Real Tennis: Harvey Rawlings [email protected]

Rugby: Chris Callaway [email protected]

Sailing: Chris Foster

Shooting: Andrew Morley [email protected]

Squash: James Sweeney [email protected]

Tennis: Richard Rawlings [email protected]

Cross Country, Swimming and Water Polo: Vacant

If anyone is interested in organising these OL sports please contact Nick Evans [email protected]

All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without prior written permission of the The Lancing Club. No responsibility will be accepted for any errors or omissions, or comments expressed within the content. Views expressed in this publication are not necessarily the views of the The Lancing Club or the Committee. Any services or goods mentioned are not necessarily endorsed by the The Lancing Club or the Committee.

Various digital/download versions of THE CLUB Review are available at: www.thelancingclub.com/review

CLUBTHECLUB

The CLUB Review © 2014 The Lancing ClubPrinted by:Bd3 LtdOne Trident CourtOakcroft RoadChessingtonSurrey KT9 1BD

design: apropos-360.comFront cover: image of Spitfire ©Crown copyright, flickr.com

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e-letter

Chairman’s report

The first edition of our e-letter was sent out in September to members. This is also part of our communication plan and the e-letter will be published three times a year in between the hard copies of THE CLUB.

If you did not receive the e-letter by email then please send your details to [email protected] to ensure you receive future emails.

We welcome Dominic Oliver to Lancing College as the new headmaster. Dominic,

his wife Lydia and their two sons Nathaniel and Henry. I hope they settle in well to The Old Farmhouse down the drive and all that the College has to offer.

DOMINIC OLIVER

Club DinnerWe had a highly successful Club dinner on Halloween night at the House of Commons and it was good to see both regular faces and new. Please see main article.

Updating The Lancing ClubI have been charged as Chairman to update The Lancing Club and I hope that since my election in May you will have begun to see some of those changes.

Communication is probably the most important and you should have already had your first e-letter and now the first of the more frequent newsletter, THE CLUB, which you are reading.

Facebook is picking up use and the Club website is growing from its formative state.

Social Events is the next important task and you will read later that we have a newer, younger and two-thirds female team planning functions we hope you will enjoy.

It is essential we supply a balance representing all ages and both sexes.Funding has always been part of the Club’s function and we will

continue to support sports teams and social functions both in the UK and overseas and support the College where possible. However, this will only be done in a sustainable fashion and within our means thus helping both the beneficiaries and the Club. We are strong financially but that is only the result of historic careful planning and management.

Sport will continue to be a high focus and represents both a competitive and highly social part of the OL calendar.

Nick Evans is the Club’s sports coordinator and his energy, enthusiasm and joie de vivre is translated into the great activity that the sports clubs maintain.

Good College contact is essential and we both need to benefit from each other’s skills. Many colleges and schools have found themselves trying to run their alumni associations themselves and this is usually because contact with ‘Old’ pupils was virtually non-existent.

t

The Club facebook site is active and would welcome your likes and comments. So please get online and follow us through –

https://www.facebook.com/lancingclub?fref=ts

Welcome to the first edition of THE CLUB

This is a new publication and a new look for communication from The Lancing Club to our members. THE CLUB will be published three times a year and replaces The Lancing Club Magazine.

This is part of the process of updating The Lancing Club and by having three publications instead of one it will bring you more up-to-date and immediate news. One of the problems with the previous publication was that a lot of the news was almost 14 months out of date when you received it.

We hope you enjoy reading this first edition of THE CLUB and please keep it relevant by sending us your news.

I would also like to welcome all our new OLs, who left at the end of last term, to The Old Lancing Club. I look forward to seeing you at our social reunions or sports events and please keep us up to date with your news as well through our various communication channels.

Chairman – Andrew Farquharson

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The Lancing Club is one of the strongest alumni associations and this has been achieved through careful management and hard work over the years. Its independence has probably been it’s major strength and we will continue to use that positively for the benefit of the Club and the College.

Lancing Prep at WorthingWelcome also to Heather Beeby as the new head of Lancing Prep at Worthing.

This school is particularly poignant to me as it was my prep school whilst named Broadwater Manor House.

Attending Lancing prep school before joining the main college means that many pupils will complete 10 years under the Lancing umbrella before they become OLs. This makes the

Lancing Alumni even more important than it previously was and we recognise the greater connection.

Chairman – Andrew Farquharson

HEATHER BEEBY

RENJIE CHEN

n

n

New faces on events teamWe are delighted that Renjie Chen and Nick Parker have joined Neesha Gopal on the events team.

Renjie has always been a keen supporter and is well placed to assist with the events we so much rely on as a club.

Originally from Shanghai, China Renjie spent 2003-05 in Handford House then left Lancing to go to Oxford and studied mathematics for 4 years.

Post Oxford she worked for the Direct Line Group and HSBC where she is currently working.

Recently married Daniel Peters and enjoys travelling (particularly to taste food from different places).

Nick Parker has also joined the committee again. Nick is no stranger to hard work for The Lancing Club having been Secretary, Treasurer and committee member in the past.

One of Nick’s two daughters, Susannah was also at Lancing, Lancing runs through his blood and from an early age as he was also a Broadwater Manor House boy (Lancing Prep-Worthing now).NICK PARKER

Dates For Your DiaryThere is a wide selection of Events during the year for OLs, organised by the Club and the College. The Club, in addition, Sponsors selected College events.

Lancing Club Carol Service and Christmas Party 2014

Join us on Monday 15 December from 7pm for the Lancing Club Carol Service followed by drinks and nibbles!

Chelsea Old Church, Old Church Street, London SW3 5DQKindly hosted by The Revd Canon David Reindorp OL, Field’s 1966-71.Followed by a Christmas party at Petyt Hall, adjacent to the church.

Sunday 4 January 2015. Club reunion in Auckland, Sunday lunch, 12 noon. Venue TBC.

Thursday 8 January 2015. Club reunion in Sydney, drinks and dinner. Venue TBC.

Thursday 23 April 2015. Evelyn Waugh Lecture, Lancing College. Guest Speaker: Charles Moore

Wednesday 29 April 2015. Over 60s lunch at the Royal Thames Yacht Club, 60 Knightsbridge, SW1X 7LF, 12 noon. Guest Speaker: Jo Rice, Second’s 1960-64

Thursday, 14 May 2015 Summer reception/Garden party and AGM The Royal Overseas League, London.

Let’s hope for good weather.The ROSL as it is often known is just behind the Ritz and overlooks Green Park. It is one of the best and almost one of the only gardens in central London and in the middle of May it is quite a delightful place to be.

The AGM will be held inside and the room will act as a backup should the weather be inclement.

The dress code is smart casual so there is no compulsion to wear ties as formality is more relaxed here.

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The Lancing Club AGM & Reception 2014The Lancing Club AGM and Reception was held on board HQS WELLINGTON on 8th May 2014.AGMThe Club President Sir Tim Rice chaired the AGM at which some 24 Club members attended, some accompanied by their partners. Our Chairman Captain Graham Robinson had indicated that he was stepping down as Chairman after thirteen years in the role. Under the three year rule Phil Hellary retired at the end of his term as a Committee member. The President warmly thanked Graham Robinson for all his hard work and contribution over the period.

Andrew Farquharson was elected, as the new Chairman and the election of the Officers were Sir Tim Rice – President, David Rice – Hon.Treasurer and Anthony Phillips – Hon.Secretary. New members of the Committee elected were Nick Parker and Tom Robson.

The Chairman delivered his report for the year telling members about the Club’s activities and particularly its support for the College and the OL Sports Clubs. He referred to the proposals for updating the Club and the on-going discussions with the headmaster. The Treasurer reported on the financial year to 31st December 2013 and stated The Club was in good financial health. The accounts were approved at the meeting.

Under any other business it was proposed the Committee should consider increasing its donation for the Battle of Britain Commemoration day on 14th June at the College from the £1,000 previously requested to £2000 to pay for the Spitfire display in totality. (The Committee agreed this subsequently).ReceptionThe Reception on board HQS WELLINGTON is a delightful occasion and always well attended (free food and drink do help!). Both recent and older Club members were well represented. This year was a very significant occasion for it was the last time that the Headmaster Jonathan Gillespie and his wife Caroline would attend The Lancing Cub function. Outgoing Chairman Captain Graham Robinson thanked Jonathan and Caroline for their contribution to Lancing over the last 8 years and made a presentation to Jonathan of two books on the History of Hockey reflecting his keen interest in the game. A bouquet of flowers was presented to Caroline. Jonathan in response thanked the Club and its membership not only for the kind donations but also for its support to him and to the College during his Headmastership. He and Caroline would be sad to leave Lancing but he felt that after 8 years it was time to make a move. He would, of course, remain in touch with the school as his two sons, James and Alex, would continue to be pupils in Gibbs’ House.

A good time was had by all! Why not come to next year’s AGM and Reception? Anthony Philiips

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Battle of Britain Event at Lancing

14th June 2014

Some of us were lucky enough to be invited to this event at Lancing. The unveiling of a Memorial Plaque to the five Lancing men who flew in the Battle of Britain, three of who were lost in action.

We all gathered first for coffee outside the Megarry Room in amongst the artwork, which seems to be on permanent display. Here we picked up our name badges, met old friends and some of us were able to meet some of the families of the OLs we were there to commemorate. Great to see Ken Shearwood looking fit and well and not a day older than when most of us remember him at school.

Then into Chapel for a short but poignant service, led by the Chaplain, full choir and procession of banners, with a stirring address by a serving RAF Officer (Flight Lieutenant Andrew Wright – Helicopter Pilot from RAF Odiham) and ending with ‘ I vow to thee my Country’, the National Anthem and the Spitfire Prelude.

OLs and Special Guests were directed to the roof of the War Memorial Cloisters, while the rest of the school assembled on the lawns and gravel in front of Teme House. The roar of the Merlin engine announced the arrival of the Spitfire as it appeared suddenly from behind the Chapel. Then followed a tremendous display of close-quarter aerobatics, tight turns over the pavilion, loops and rolls-off-the-top, all in bright sunshine. The ‘Spirit of Kent’ Spitfire had flown from Biggin Hill. It was decked out in D-Day Stripes and looked and sounded exactly as it should. A final pass and waggle of wings and it was gone. A superb show and one which all of us will remember for quite a while: only the horses in the field were pleased to see it go.

Then there was a leisurely move to the War Memorial Cloisters for the unveiling ceremony. The earlier arrivals found a seat. Plenty of gold chain, gold braid, uniforms and gowns on show - the Lord Lieutenant (Mrs. Susan Pyper) in a big blue hat and wearing her Badge of Office. A few words of welcome from the headmaster, unveiling of the plaque by the Lord Lieutenant (on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen), a few words from the Chairman of the Battle of Britain Historical Society and the job was done. It was all recorded for Television and shown on BBC South News the following evening.

The rain started just as the drinks ended and we were then encouraged to move to the Megarry Room for Lunch. A really good display had been set up by our Archivist with pictures of the Five Pilots from their schooldays, mentions in the School Magazines of the day – and further stories of the post-war exploits of Stanley Vincent and Jeffery Quill.

A most ambitious and artistically presented lunch followed in the Megarry Room for members of the 1848 Society and Guests. Rev. Bruce Hawkins delivered the ‘Lancing Grace’ (with Bon Appetit doxology). At the end of Lunch we had two short presentations from Sarah Quill and Peter Vincent.

Sarah Quill told us that the last time she had visited Lancing was in 1960 with her father. Jeffery Quill was in Gibbs’ House from 1926-31. His interest in aviation was intensified during his time at Lancing, principally by the Flying Club at Shoreham Airport and the constant coming and going of aircraft. The RAF had been in existence for only eight years at that time. E.B.Gordon (Gordo) used to take a party of boys to see the RAF Display at Hendon each year – and Jeffery was determined to join the RAF, entering in 1931, aged 18. Five years later he was with Vickers Supermarine, test flying the new Spitfire. In 1940, Vickers were most reluctant to release him to the RAF – but he insisted it was necessary to gain first-hand experience of the Spitfire in combat. The Spirit of Kent Spitfire had come from the Heritage Hangar at Biggin Hill and had been flown by Clive Denman. Sarah finished by thanking John Pulmer of the Battle of Britain Historical Society for the idea of the Memorial Plaque, the headmaster and all who had made the day such a success.

Peter Vincent (Gibbs’ 1946-51) spoke to us of his father, Air Vice Marshal Stanley Vincent, who he described as a survivor. He joined the RFC at the age of 17. He survived an air duel with the Red Baron. He was the only pilot to have shot down enemy aircraft in both World Wars. He always got on well with those under his command – not so well with those above him. At the outbreak of World War II he was a Group Captain – and was airborne on September 15th, in charge of a group of Polish pilots. On that day, he emerged from cloud to meet head-on a group of six Dornier bombers flying in line ahead: he shot at all of them and was credited with at least four. Later in the war he was in charge of RAF operations in Burma.

Altogether a memorable Lancing occasion. Thanks go to John Pulmer of the Battle of Britain Historical Society and the Lancing Club for meeting the cost of the Spitfire Display. Angus Ross n

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The Lancing Club gathered at The Athenaeum Club which is in a delightful setting just off the Mall with a beautiful and secluded garden for

members and guests to enjoy. This was a lovely sunny day and those members that were able to climb the staircase certainly made use of the gardens in which to enjoy their drinks before lunch. As for the Athenaeum, it provides excellent facilities and the meal at this event was particularly good.

Over sixty OLs turned up, including one couple Nick and Margaret Birdsey, visiting from Australia, and what is amazing about these events is that one is quite likely to meet contemporaries that one hasn’t seen or heard of since leaving Lancing some fifty or sixty years ago and similarly some of the attendees have not had any contact with the Club since leaving.

Five former masters joined us – Robin Reeve, who was also our guest speaker, Ken Shearwood, Harry Guest who to my knowledge has not been heard of since leaving Lancing, Ron Balaam and Tom Aubrey. An amazing line up and three of them not looking that much different from how they did back when teaching. In addition, Dominic Oliver the new headmaster, was present.

Dominic introduced himself to us and by his manner it’s easy to see how confident and self-assured he is in terms of his agenda for Lancing. He has a programme to introduce ten boarding bursaries to the school to enable children who would not otherwise have been able to enjoy the benefits of a school like Lancing to do so. At the time, he had only just had three weeks in the school and certainly gave the impression that he was quickly finding his way around.

Our official guest speaker Robin Reeve, who would have taught many of us after 1960, and who later became Chairman of the Governors, gave us an amusing talk highlighting his time at Lancing from his starting point aged 27 encountering members of the Common Room dating back to the twenties and thirties and beyond. He described his rapport with those closest to him including Ken Shearwood and how the school changed and developed to 1980 when he left and went back to KCS Wimbledon, where he had started from but, this time, as headmaster. He also remembered the amusing tale of an XL History excursion first to Young’s Brewery in Wandsworth, which included lunch before moving on the Imperial War Museum. The day seemed to have been a success for the pupils apart from the time spent in the Museum! After KCS he returned to Lancing as a Governor and so overall was able to enlighten us of times in the 1960s right through to the current day in a very short period of time. This was an excellent day out for many who I’m sure will look forward to the next gathering amply fortified by plentiful supplies of wine sponsored by the Club.

John Hall

THE ATHENAEUM CLUB, LONDON, SW1

24th September 2014

Over 60s Lunch

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Annual Dinner

Halloween Night found us once again at the House of Commons – a superb venue for what proved to be another brilliant occasion – sponsored by Greg Barker MP, OL. Having survived the Security

inspection at the Cromwell Green entrance, we found our way to the Strangers Bar which filled quickly with faces both half-remembered and familiar too while the wine was freely available. It was a first chance for many of us to meet the new headmaster, Dominic Oliver – and to welcome Head Boy Ollie Hancock and Head Girl Dulcie Pearson.

We were a capacity crowd of 115 for Dinner in the Strangers’ Dining Room. Dinner had an appropriately English theme – Suffolk game pate, English Lamb and Pear Tart – but the wines were French – Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

Our new Club Chairman, Andrew Farquharson invited us to toast ‘The Queen’ and then introduced the headmaster, Dominic Oliver, in his first Autumn Term at Lancing – who started with a George Eliot quote “delicious Autumn … were I a bird I would fly about the earth seeking successive autumns.” He reminded us, in this Centenary Year of the outbreak of WW1, that 179 Lancing pupils had lost their lives in that conflict. The College holds a Remembrance Event each year but is looking at new ways to commemorate those who fell. Ten headmaster’s scholarships have been awarded this year as a ‘Living Memorial’. He had done some research too: 127 years ago (1877) was the year of the first Test Match between England and Australia, the first Wimbledon Tennis Tournament, a dead heat in the Oxford/Cambridge Boat race – and the year in which The Lancing Club was founded. Finishing with another quote (Walter Bagehot: “The ability to stay quiet is one of the conspicuous failings of mankind”) – he proposed the toast of “The Lancing Club”.

Andrew Farquharson thanked the headmaster and wished him well in his new role. Andrew explained that he now had taken on the job of leading the Lancing Club into the new Century. He thanked the Events Committee and in particular Neesha Gopal and Nick Parker for arranging the Dinner – and welcomed the newest member of the Committee Renjie Chen. Thanks too, to the College and a special welcome to Head Boy, Ollie Hancock and Head Girl, Dulcie Pearson. He then introduced our Guest Speaker – an Old Etonian – but hugely welcome to the Lancing Club Dinner.

Henry Blofeld OBE – so well-known a voice on Test Match Special – greeted us all (how else?) as his ‘dear old things’. He spoke warmly of so many friendships made through Cricket. It was mainly through friendship with Harry Brunjes (Chairman of Governors) and Sir Tim Rice (‘everybody’s favourite OL’) that he was here to speak. In 1962 he had visited Lancing and met Ken Shearwood, got to know him well and recognised him as a great man. He recalled that Ken had five first-class games of Cricket – Average 5; Caught 5; Stumped 5 – but was better known for his time with Pegasus Football. He sent his warmest wishes to Ken – now aged 93 – and we all joined in.

Henry told us that he had now spent 43 years in the Commentary Box. He described some of the greatest moments of those times with Brian Johnson and John Arlott. ‘Johners’ was the most extraordinarily funny man: he obtained the job with BBC Outside Broadcasts purely through the ‘old pals’ connection with Wynford Vaughan-Thomas: his first broadcast was of the explosion of a WW II bomb in St.James’s Park – which was done from the shelter of a Ladies’ Loo. He was dynamite in the Commentary Box – which was usually filled with suppressed giggles. At the age of 80, he was persuaded to go to India for the Bombay and Madras Test

31st October 2014

Matches – which he agreed under ‘No Curry’ terms. However he fell victim to the diet and claimed to have invented the ‘Boycott Curry’ (Got the runs but moving slowly). John Arlott had started life as a Hampshire Policeman – and his break came when India visited in 1946 – and he was the only commentator available who knew anything about Cricket. This was the very start of Test Match Special – where he was welcomed as ‘a vulgar voice but an interesting manner’. Lunch for John was always a ‘two-bottle’ affair – with six bottles of claret after lunch. After lunch one day at Lords – in ‘mellow’ form – the first-ever ‘streaker’ appeared. Trevor Bailey, commentating, got it slightly wrong and called him a ‘freaker’. John responded with “Yes – a freaker – not very shapely, masculine – seen its last Cricket for the day – a Policeman now holding his helmet over the offending weapon – 8000 in the Mound Stand, some of whom have never seen anything like it before”.

Henry said it had been a good evening – lots of fun – and he sat down to tremendous applause.

Club President Sir Tim Rice thanked Henry for his splendid contribution to the evening. He also thanked the Events Team who had organised the event. He then invited us all to join in the singing (words provided) of Triumphales, led by Andrew Farquharson – and the roof was duly raised. All over by 10:15pm, with time only for rushed farewells, before we made our way out through the eerie space of Westminster Hall to join the Halloween throngs outside.

Angus Ross n

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House of Commons, London, above the Strangers bar. Ruth Harper. flickr.com

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Another year of Lancing Old Boys Golf Society (‘LOBGS’) golf is complete. It has been a year of some highs, one or two lows and in general participation has been down on last year, which is of

concern. Details in brief follows. At the Halford Hewitt trial on 9th March scratch team captain Mark

Gurney was able to pick what looked on paper a strong side despite some recent high performers not being available. The first round draw for the tournament proper presented an eagerly anticipated tie at Deal against Winchester, a school of similar historic standing, on Thursday 10th April. It was a cold windy late afternoon match played in a gathering gloom in which Lancing, having suffered from some early putting difficulties, never managed to fully gain the upper hand. Despite some fine individual performances Winchester were able to take more of the big holes and the match was lost by 3½ matches to 1½ meaning an early exit for LOBGS for the first time in a number of years.

The next event in the calendar was the Spring Meeting at Worplesdon. The course was splendid as ever, the weather less so. The morning singles was completed in dry conditions but the heavens then opened and the small field unanimously agreed over lunch to take an early bath and the day

OL Golf

OL Football The Lancing Old Boys Football Club are two months into a new

season, they are unbeaten, they have seen a number of changes, a few new faces and as ever, there is a buzz of expectation for what

the season holds.The 2013/14 season saw the 1st XI, marshalled by the auditory skills of

talismanic captain Simon Wright, finish in second place in the Arthurian League Premier Division, reach the semi finals of the Arthur Dunn Cup and the quarter finals of the AFA Cup.

The 2nd XI plying their trade in the Arthurian League 2nd Division found themselves pulled into a relegation dog fight in the wet winter months. However, mercurial captain Jordan Sriharan, through a series of Churchillian team talks guided his team to a respectable mid table finish. The veterans team, available to any who admit they are over the age of 35

had a mildly disappointing season having won the Derrick Moore trophy the season before. Jon Carr, a sergeant at arms type rallied his greying warriors on a monthly basis to coax out the old skills. However, the team were not able to progress beyond the first round of the Surrey AFA trophy and came unstuck at the semi finals stage of the Derrick Moore cup.

The summer saw changes, long standing president and supporter of the club Neil Grainger made way for Martin Todd, a formidable midfield roamer in his time. Chairman Gaz Allen who oversaw some great changes in the club in his two years at the helm stepped aside to allow the ever thinking Duncan Wilks to continue to shape the clubs future. There are new captains, Sam Salameh for the ones and Mike Johnson for the twos, both being keepers, one could say both teams are surely in safe hands.On the social side the club enjoys an annual dinner held at the Radisson SAS in Portman Square in March of every year and a Christmas party, this year taking place at the Goat pub in Clapham Junction on the 13th December. Training takes place every Wednesday evening at 7.45pm, overseen by stalwart Nigel Bennett.

The football club benefits from a kind donation from the Lancing Club, which is used to, fund the travel of some of its younger members to and from football matches. Players from universities as far as Durham and Bath travel to London on a weekly basis to fly the LOBFC flag, all made possible by this funding.

LOBFC is always on the look out for more players, if you are interested please contact Chris Williams on [email protected] n

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OL TennisFormerly known as Lancing Old Boys’ Lawn Tennis Club (LOBLTC),

this is an active and sociable club which is always glad to welcome new members, usually playing on the excellent grass courts at

Lancing College. Regular matches are played versus The Old Carthusians, Grasshoppers LTC and Weald LTC. In the past, we have had annual matches with Oxford and Cambridge colleges where OL players have been students. We have also had fixtures with the Dieppe LTC, Public Schools’ Old Boys LTA, UCS, Ardingly and Hurstpierpoint Colleges. We should like to revive some of these fixtures and would be very pleased to hear from any OL tennis player who could suggest new opponents, as well as the match organiser. D’Abernon Cup

We participate each year in this public schools’ old boys’ lawn tennis competition. On 5/4/14 at Stoke Park, Oli Tritton and Mike Simpson successfully got through the first round. Oli Tritton, Mike Simpson, Robert Camping and Michael Savage lost narrowly in the last eight to UCS in a match played at the Roehampton National Tennis Centre on 13/7/14. Our D’Abernon Cup organiser is Harvey Rawlings on 01403 711 770.

FounderThe club was founded in 1947 by Rodney Townley, who ran it for fortysix years. His enthusiasm and care for OL tennis was exemplary. It was he who established the link with Dieppe LTC. Those who remember Rodney will recall extremely happy tennis times, filled with much fun and laughter. So keen was he on his tennis that in the latter

years when he was less mobile, he might have been seen on the tennis court with his walking stick as well as his tennis racket.

Since 1994, Richard Rawlings has been executive chairman. He will be retiring at the end of 2014, when his successor will be appointed. Also,

Peter Stotesbury, who has been our excellent Hon. Treasurer for at least 35 years, has asked to step down. Will any members who are interested in this position please contact our Hon. Secretary.

Hon. Secretary Richard Blackburn – [email protected], mobile 07973 264 699, Highgate Cottage, Balls Cross Road, Petworth, West Sussex GU28 9JN

We are always looking to add more players (male and female!) to our playing list. All standards are welcome so if you wish to join in, please contact our Hon Secretary Richard Blackburn on 07973 264 699 or email [email protected].

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came to its abbreviated end with Martin Slumbers lifting the President’s Cup and Captain’s prize after having used his local knowledge to good effect in registering a level par round and 38 stableford points.

The end of May saw the first of LOBGS’s ‘A’ team matches. ‘A’ teamers are generally 10-24 handicappers and LOBGS holds three such matches the first of which is against Sherborne at Littllehampton. This was a keenly contested 36-hole duel with Lancing gaining the upper hand in the morning 4ball and lunching 2½-1½ up but finding themselves reeled in during the course of the afternoon 4some and having to rely upon a magnificent finish from David Godfray and Mattie Rogerson enabling them to win the final two holes, half the last match and ensure an honourable 4–4 draw overall.

The ‘A’ match against Radley at Woking followed in June and this took a similar line. This time Lancing were 3-1 up at lunch but, after perhaps doing a little too well at Woking’s famous luncheon table, allowed victory to slip through their interlocking grip in the afternoon and the day finished again in a 4-4 draw. On consideration a fair result which would have been worse were it not for a further two points from dynamic duo Oliver Harries and Nick Muckerjee who won both their matches and extended their unbeaten run together to more than ten wins.

The Mellin (over 55’), Burles (over 65s) and Millard (over 75s) events at West Hill in July sees three pairs play scratch 4somes knockout in the Mellin with one pair in each of the other events playing scratch 4somes stableford qualifier. The standard of some of these more mature golfers continues at times to be almost Tom Watsonian and LOBGS once again faced competition from golfers of lower handicaps which, despite some valiant efforts, resulted in none of our teams progressing beyond their respective first rounds.

On to the Autumn Meeting in September once more at West Sussex. There was only a small field for this 36-hole guest event but nonetheless

the golf was of a high standard with the guests in particularly shining in the early autumn sun. Charles MacKendrick lifted the Maclister Trophy for the member with the most points in the morning but he was rightly sheepish in collecting the award as the best guest, Simon Street, who was not eligible had scored 9 points more! In the afternoon Simon continued his good form combining well with LOBGS member Trevor Phillips to win the afternoon 4some with a clear 4-point advantage.

The final few events of the year were played in perfect climatic conditions. In the Sussex Schools scratch 4somes competition at Walton Heath on 21st September the 6-man LOBGS team included a new titan, Laird Shepherd, who’d only departed the College a couple of months before. He and his partner Justin Higgo contributed a maximum two points and were the catalyst for a famous LOBGS victory allowing the team to lift the trophy in this 36-hole scratch event against teams from Brighton, Eastbourne and Hurst for the first time. More good news was to follow at the end of the month when the ‘A’ team was finally able to put Eastbourne to the sword 3-0 in this evening match at West Hill enabling them to claim the Lanbourne Trophy for the first time under a Coalition government!

The final event of the year was the Grafton Morrish held in Norfolk in the first week of October. Lancing had convincingly made it though the qualifying event at Knole Park in May but as in the Hewitt the 6-man scratch team were up against a tough opponent in Solihull in the first round at Hunstanton. Despite a battling performance from LOBGS the Midlanders were able to get the upper hand and eventually ran out winners by 2½-½.

Finally a note on the worrying trend of lower participation experienced both in 2013 and more so this year. The numbers for the two Society days were below average and the ‘A’ team match with Eastbourne was shrunk in size owing to the difficulty both team managers had raising a full team. Some of this is explainable as a few of our stalwart members were not in a position to play as much golf as they would have liked for various reasons. However this only provides part of the explanation and over the coming months the Society will be making every effort to understand the full reasons for the apparent fall in interest and we will also be looking at ways of improving communication both to existing members and to the wider OL population.

Hopefully you can see from this report that LOBGS continues to have a great deal to offer. So like an optimistic Bordeaux vigneron after a couple of damp harvests lets look forward to a more abundant crop in 2015.

OL FivesReport on the first half of the season 2014-2015

Lancing Eton fives players reach (or “ storm to “) Barber Cup semi-final ...... On Saturday 16th November The Lancing Eton Fives Club put out probably the strongest side in its history in the quarter-final match in

the Barber Cup, the knock-out competition for Old pupils clubs and pupils .Our ability to field our best players paid off handsomely. It was always

going to be a tight match, as the Old Cholmeleians our opponents are undergoing a renaissance. George Campbell and Will Betts at first pair and Doug Foster and Mylo Scurr at second pair won authoritatively 3-0. The third pair of Tom and Jamie Betts had a titanic struggle at 3rd pair – they were both short of match practice and came back magnificently from 0-2 down to level the game at 2-2. They had an opportunity at game ball in the fifth but in the end lost so narrowly to the experienced Old Cholmeleian pair. Overall result -2-1 in our favour.

Our top players are of the highest standard and we fully deserve our seeding of number 3 in the Eton Fives World …but we have plenty of matches for players of all standards.

We have a thriving club with an increasing membership. Several of our regular players are ladies. We play in Division 3 which gives playing opportunities for players of different standards. Fives is a very sociable game, played with a high level of court etiquette, and this on-court friendliness and respect is reflected in the post-match meet-ups in the nearby pub. We have quite a few non-league games, some during the week, some at week-ends. We play mainly in London and occasionally at Eton. There is also a Tuesday evening club run by Andrew Betts at Lancing College. Fives is also an inexpensive game to play and, thanks to the generosity of the OL Club, we are able to offer travelling expenses for those who need to come longer distances …so all OLs would be most welcome to come and play Eton Fives at one of these venues. If you are interested in playing, please contact me [email protected] mobile 07715 179280 home 01932 770325 or Andrew Betts for the Tuesday evening club nights; [email protected] .mobile 07752 298767

Richard Black

Page 12: The CLUB Review – Autumn 2014

Martin Slumbers

R&A Golf ChiefHOT on the heels of voting to admit women members for the first time in

its 260-year history, the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews has announced the appointment of a new chief executive.

Martin Slumbers will join the organisation next March 2015. Martin was in Sanderson’s from 1973-78.

After leaving Lancing he gained a BSc in Production Engineering and Economics from the University of Birmingham, he qualified as a chartered accountant with Price Waterhouse in London before embarking on a career in investment banking. Martin is also a member of the Governing Board of Lancing.

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Suffering the effects of a Cat. 4 hurricane in September (California), Brett Stocker (Olds 1972-76), sent us the following poem.

The Common Room…Second’s HouseRichard Hering (Second’s, 1959-63) recollects his time in Second’s House Common Room following its refurbishment.

The Common Room – Second’s House was the engine room without which the House could not have functioned. For a ‘New Man’ it was where the whole House foregathered on Sunday

evenings for Compline. A hymn was sung to the accompaniment of an ancient and battered pianola - labouring barely in tune and mournfully missing an odd note or three. It was nerve wracking when all eyes dwelt upon the term’s intake of New Men. All other boys seemed so much bigger and stronger. A fleeting moment when Mummy was missed. And the New Man was forever marked out by having to wear his bristly tickly Derby Tweed jacket - with all three buttons done up at all times. Detachable starched collars just had to be affixed to both the back and front studs. In some Houses it was taboo to fraternise with boys who were in more senior years. Failure to comply could earn you 36 lines - some in Greek or old English, or helpfully relating the date of the first Olympiad, and for reference these were viewable in a frame which glared ominously from the mantelpiece above the fire place.

This was the room where at the end of term the Loving Cup ceremony occurred. I can still enjoin OLs to flourish.

This was the room where during ‘Evening School’ the running footsteps of a prefect in the dorm above could be heard as he ran towards a miscreant he had chosen to beat. The victim would have been bent over one of those Great War iron bed relics with deeply sagging springs. (Is that why I now need an osteopath?)

This was the room where you ragged about or were chased around a large bank of desks in the centre of the room. This was the room with walls lined with creaking cubicles where you kept your work and personal belongings and sometimes a busty pin up poster. Mine sported Marianne Faithful. This was where you might listen to the Goon Show on your ‘trannie’ designed to impress your lesser colleagues. This is where you sat to read dodgy novels, such as Lady Chatterley’s Lover. Unexpurgated even. Topical as the obscenity charge was then being tried in the Courts. Oddly there was no sex education at Lancing. Except just during my last days when the headmaster had all the leavers in for a valedictory tea and a heart rending plea not to get the school’s name into trouble (never mind that of the girl).

The Common Room was where you told jokes or learnt to play racing demon (I remember Tim Rice’s lateral thinking made him a particularly difficult opponent), or bridge, or other less elegant card games. This was the through room where every Second’s House person brushed against another. It was where members of the Settle first engaged in the art of discipline with variable successes. It was the vital hub, bustling and noisy. It was where great life debates took place and continued in the School Dining Room. It was where you learnt to behave to fit in or have the corners knocked off you very quickly.

This was the room that made you a ‘Secundian’. It made or broke you as a Lancinian. For me it was a good time.

The picture of today’s Common Room made me think of a lounge for lounge lizards, iPad lounge lizards.

How, I wonder, will it function in another 55 years time?Floreat aeternum, nostra secunda domus. n

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CelebrationOL Nick Benge (Gibbs’1952-57) celebrated his

Golden Wedding Anniversary on the 4th April 2014.

Page 13: The CLUB Review – Autumn 2014

Necessity is widely believed to be the mother of Invention. If that is the case, and so far DNA tests have failed to prove otherwise, Necessity seems to me to be a bad mother. Not least because

Invention is a terrible name for a child. My name is Alex Horne. I am a former child. In fact, I was a pupil at

Lancing College in the gloriously grungy pre-internet years known now as the mid-nineties.

Eighteen years since I left the school (exactly half my life ago) I am now a comedian. My job is to tell jokes. But not just tell jokes, comedians today have to actually write their jokes too. Unlike musicians, I can’t survive on greatest hits. Once you’ve heard a joke, the magic’s gone. Jokes and comics thrive on the element of surprise. Despite the common phobias of speaking in public, heckling and motorway service station food, writing new jokes is definitely the hardest thing about stand up comedy.

And, yes, necessity is probably one of the things that most helps me conceive a joke. I go to Edinburgh every year with a new hour of comedy. About nine months before the festival, I magically find a seed of a show in my mind. I don’t know how it gets there, but there it is. It’s a tiny miracle.

Over the next three trimesters the idea grows, nurtured both by my imagination and the fact that I’ll be investing a month and several thousands of pounds in this thing being any good. And then August comes, out pops the comedy baby and hopefully people find it funny.

At this point, I’d like to head off on a brief tangent. This is an article for the Lancing magazine, after all, and I have already been far too self-indulgent (although navel-gazing is essentially what stand up is all about). So what influence did my schooling have on my career and this joke-writing process?

There are several questions people usually ask you if you’re a comedian: Would you like to hear a (usually racist/misogynistic/bad) joke? Are you funny? Have I heard of you? The answers to these are no, yes and almost certainly no, obviously.

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Where do jokes come from? By Alex Horne (Field’s 1991-96)

But we are also often asked to pin down the moment we first realised we were funny, when we knew we wanted to become comedians. To this I usually reply that one Christmas dinner, perhaps in 1987 or 1988, definitely after Maradona’s shenanigans in Mexico, I made my entire extended family laugh. I can’t remember what I said, but I can still feel the tingle of pride that I’d caused all these people to lose control of themselves.

That much is true. But it was in fact at Lancing that I learnt to write the things that could cause this reaction. My tutor was a man called Mr Arnold. Well, he was named Mr Arnold, but rarely called that. We called him Tommy. And Tommy was more than a tutor, he was my hero.

As well as taking pupils on real and metaphorical trips across the Classical world, Tommy ran a travel society called Eothen that I very much hope is still active. Sixth formers would gather twice a term, listen to someone describe assorted globe-hopping adventures, then bravely nibble exotic food and (I think I remember this correctly) gleefully quaff a glass or two of Tommy’s wine.

For some reason, I was appointed secretary of this debauched society that meant one of my two jobs (the other being to finish off any undrunk drink) was to write up the minutes of these meets. Encouraged by Tommy and, subsequently, by the laughter of my fellow members, I tried to make my minutes funny. I made them up. I teased teachers and even conjured up a joke or two. Unfortunately I have no record of what I actually said (and I’m sure they’d only cause me embarrassment now) but perhaps they lie in the Archives somewhere.

So that was my first experience of writing comedy. I tried to be funny to impress my peers. Two decades later and I have no choice about the matter. It’s my job. But recently what has helped me come up with material more than necessity is my children.

Six years ago I didn’t have any kids. My life was simple. I’d waltz around, barely even thinking about raisins or Peppa Pig or bedtimes. I didn’t have any responsibilities. I’d do enough gigs to get by and then spend any leftover cash on food, drink and more childless travel. It was brilliant.

Now three small boys depend on my jokes being funny. I have to write jokes so that they can eat. But I have less time to write jokes because I have to keep these three small boys alive. They are all consuming.

And yet, I now find I write far more jokes than in those simplistic, hedonistic, pre-toddler days. And they’re not all jokes about the kids, they’re just jokes that I’ve squeezed out of the few spare hours I now have, forced out of my tired mind and performed on five broken hours sleep a night.

So for me, necessity isn’t necessarily the mother of invention. She’s probably an aunt. She’s also the grandmother of bluffing and short-cuts. Lancing is certainly a relative of invention too – a stepfather perhaps. But quite weirdly, fatherhood is the mother of my invention. And my wife is definitely the mid-wife. She’s the one who calmly helps the jokes get out, who keeps me sane and the kids alive.

In conclusion then, my wife is the mother of my children, my children are the stepmothers of my invention, my invention is the thing that feeds my children, and I am going to go to bed now.

Two Musical OLsSteuart Bedford kindly visited Lancing to give the Headmaster’s Lecture on 18 November. Steuart has had a long distinguished musical career especially as a conductor and was heavily involved with the Aldeburgh Festival especially during the time of another OL, Sir Peter Pears.

Our photo shows Steuart with our own committee member Tom Robson who is a full time professional singer and our leader of the OL carol service in December.

Page 14: The CLUB Review – Autumn 2014

Archetype, or Tales from the Tardis

Earlier this year I was appointed as the Archivist at Lancing College, and I count myself

very fortunate to work in such a lovely environment. I forget the original wording of the job advert, but having been in the post for a few months now, I would want to word the advert slightly differently, to read something along the lines of:

“Wanted – Time Traveller, experienced in taking trips back to the past, whilst also having a thoughtful eye on the future. Must be able to work in the confined environment of a fully working TARDIS (The Archives Really Do Inspire Students) time machine, and must be ready for some exciting trips into other time zones.

Just like any Tardis, from the outside the Archives Office looks fairly unassuming and modest in size, but once inside it’s truly cavernous. Shelf after shelf, cabinets, drawers and back rooms, all reveal boxes and boxes of fascinating artefacts, each a unique journey in time, often lovingly conserved in acid-free tissue paper. The ceremony of carefully unwrapping the tissue to reveal the contents reminds me that my predecessor once said she thought it was like opening a new Christmas present every day. I would add that each present comes complete with its own time travel ticket, and from one day to the next I never know where I will be spending the day.

In my role as Archivist, or more accurately Time Traveller, I find myself looking both forwards and backwards in time, quite often several times a day, which made me a little giddy at first until I got the hang of it. One of the interesting things about the job is that when I open the post, look in one of the boxes or receive a visitor, I encounter unusual items from the past such as a sword, a WW1 aeroplane (yes that’s correct, not WWII) windscreen or a series of personal letters, and immediately I have to propel forwards into the future. I have to imagine a world where the owner of the item is perhaps no longer alive, or has become famous, and I have to assess and estimate just how interesting the artefact will be to future generations. It might be merely a hand written packing list of clothing to take off to boarding school, but will it one day be of interest that in 1953 it was stipulated that a boy needed three pairs of pants as part of his wardrobe? Already in 2014, people rarely print out their photos anymore, so an actual photograph of a football team might become even more fascinating in the future. Especially if, as in 1876, the entire football team at Lancing College happened to be filmed in the moment, all proudly wearing their football uniform, complete with hats.

Whilst we have more methods of recording newsworthy events than ever before, from my perspective as an Archivist, it’s a constant challenge to decide what should be kept and how it should be stored. My background in IT means that I keep an eye on digital methods of storing archives, though it’s hard to imagine a modern day event posted on Facebook being of similar interest in a century’s time. Every day brings new and interesting challenges, and life as the Archivist is proving to be very interesting.

Lesley Edwards

We attended 320 formal engagements during the year and a few other ones without the chain. Being invited to a garden party at the Palace would be near the top – so special and the weather

was glorious too. Welcoming and meeting Princess Anne to the River Centre in Tonbridge was special too, not just because it was the first time I’d met a member of the royal family, but to discover what an intelligent, charming, thoughtful and interested person she is. Playing Father Christmas at the Child Contact Centre; discovering lots of places in the borough we’d never been to. But probably the best was the opportunity to meet so many people and organisations that just give of themselves and their timeto help others and make their lives a little bit better.

The most unhappy and challenging day was visiting the emergency respite centres that the Council set up after the floods on Christmas Eve and meeting Tonbridge and Hildenborough residents who had been forced to leave their homes. It was such a cruel thing to happen at that time of year. Thankfully no one was physically hurt and all were found alternative accommodation somewhere.

An eventful year finally came to an end last month for Howard (Gibbs’ 1970-74) and Jane Rogers, when Howard handed over his chain of office.

The following were extracts from the Hamlet.

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I can honestly say that we never left an event thinking that it had been boring or a waste of our time.

We organised several fundraising events and are very grateful to everyone who supported them. These included a garden party at Hadlow College, a ‘Ringathon’, a karting evening at Buckmore Park, a Call My Bluff quiz again at Hadlow College, an evening at the Oast Theatre and a farewell gourmet dinner at the View Restaurant at K College.

The Ringathon was a sponsored event where I rang the bells at all the churches in the Borough. It took a full weekend to get round all the 19 towers and I was supported by nearly 40 other local bellringers. By the Sunday evening we were exhausted with rather sore hands, but we had managed to raise £5000 for the charities.

I do like carol singing and carol services, but I think that we overdid it last year! By the time we hurriedly escaped our last and 13th service we couldn’t face another ‘Hark the Herald’. And the real reason that we shot out was because the fire alarm went off as we were processing out of Tonbridge School chapel ! Oh I nearly forgot – we packed in a few Nativity plays too. It was quite a busy Christmas.

Would I be Mayor again if asked? Maybe, but certainly not for a while. It was an extraordinary experience but has taken over our lives for the pasttwo years, if you include the 60-odd engagements that I attended as Deputy Mayor. Jane was apprehensive about taking on the role of Mayoress, especially the prospect of having to wear formal hats to events! She has been a terrific support to me during the year and attended most of the engagements, even wearing the requisite headwear! We have probably spent more time together than we would normally have done and she’sbeen brilliant at the organising and planning side of the job. It’s very much been a team effort that we’ve both enjoyed

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Page 15: The CLUB Review – Autumn 2014

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ObituariesDe la MareJames de la Mare (Olds 1951-54) died May 2014 aged 76. He was the son of James Roy de la Mare (Olds 1919-23). He is survived by his brother Aidan (Olds 1954-58).

He was married on two occasions and had two sons from his first marriage, Nick and William, who both live in America. James’ life revolved around his homes in Minchinhampton and London and for many years he worked with London housing associations and trusts.

James was well known on the Lancing circuit and for some years served on the OL Club Committee. His sporting interest was shooting and he represented the OLs at Bisley on several occasions. He was a collector of vintage cars and had some twenty-one vehicles in his possession at the time of his death. He was for some years Secretary of the Brooklands Society.

He dabbled in politics and helped in the creation of the Monday Club in the1960s. He sat on a West London police/community liaison committee for many years and he was a member of the English Speaking Union for much of his life.

James was a pleasant and colourful character who will not be easily forgotten by people who knew him.

Green Nick (N.C.) Green (Teme 1960-64) died June 2014 aged 68 from a heart attack. After his time at Lancing he followed a career in the financial services industry. He died in retirement on the Costa Blanca in Spain leaving a widow Delia and a married daughter Sarah.

Naylor Robin Naylor (Gibbs’ 1945-49) died February 2014.His brother, Richard (Teme 1951-56), writes: My earliest memories of him are when, aged four-and -a-half, I joined him and our middle brother Hew to board at Orwell Park. The school had been evacuated from Suffolk (which remained untouched throughout the war) to the Welsh/Shropshire borders (where it didn’t). He and Hew were respectively 7 and 5 years older than I, but I had my uses. Hew (aged 10) would bowl endlessly, erratically and speedily at Robin (aged 12). I (aged 5) was the stump. His love of cricket was born then and it developed at Lancing.

During Robin’s time at Gibbs’, Christopher Chamberlain was invited to start Teme House. Although Christopher asked him to join him, Robin decided that his loyalties were with Gibbs’ (which is why I went to Teme). At school, he became Captain of football and cricket, as well as swimming for the school at the Bath Club tournament.

After Lancing, Robin did his National Service in the RASC, and was for a short period posted to the Suez Canal.

Robin’s working life started with Shell, but in his mid-twenties he moved to Toronto where he worked with Trans Canadian Airlines (now Air Canada). There he married Jean Meikle, whose father owned Winchester House Prep School in Brackley. Robin and Jean returned to England with their two daughters and he became a master at Winchester House.

Robin was never without a ball; indeed he started an impromptu game of cricket during his wedding reception. He also loved music and was quite an authority on jazz and Mozart.

So what was he like? Gentle, polite, courteous – certainly; wise, interested in others, generous – definitely; funny, original, companionable -uniquely.

I am certain that we should all have heroes in our lives. In February this year I lost one of mine.

With the centenary of the beginning of World War One as well this year, a small group of us, including OLs Richard and Harvey Rawlings, felt compelled to visit some of the War Graves, and

this seemed the appropriate time to do so.My husband Peter had so enjoyed his trip to Bayeux years ago with

Canon Bruce Hawkins, also an old Lancing pupil, that we asked him to take us to the Somme. His company is called Reveille and his battlefield tours have been conducted over 27 years.

We all met in Dover, boarded our minibus and travelled to Arras, through the beautiful, quiet French countryside. Here we had simple rooms in a Maison Diocesaine, where we enjoyed a superb meal on our first evening. After dinner each evening we watched films, looked at books, discussed issues of the war, and the day’s events. We all knew little about military history, and were grateful to be in the hands of a sympathetic expert.

In the Somme alone there are 180 war cemeteries. We saw a fraction of these in four days, but in each we were “introduced” to one of “the boys”, and a relevant poem or letter was read, or flowers were left, as requested by a grieving mother on a headstone. These moments were intensely moving.

The strongest impression left with us was the great beauty and tranquility of the cemeteries. Many of them were designed by Lutyens.

There are majestic memorials - vast moving pieces of sculpture - the great Thiepval memorial with over 72,000 names of the missing; the amazing Canadian Memorial by Walter Allward at Vimy Ridge, where 11,000 Canadian trees represent each fallen soldier to have died there with no known grave; the Australian Memorial which we saw on Anzac day and the Newfoundland Memorial Park where the site has been left as it was. Here Canadian students escort you round, re-telling the shocking story. Others were oasis of calm, lost in the cornfields. All were enclosed with flint walls with wrought iron gates, each cream headstone standing in the shadow of an English rose. At the very last cemetery it was a delight to meet two French gardeners who care full-time for those grounds. Grass is cut, flowers abound in tended beds. It was a privilege to learn about the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and Sir Fabian Ware, with his vision and their remarkable work.

The statistics overwhelm the senses - men, shells, horses, the sea of headstones, but the wonder is that today more people than ever go to pay their respects to the brave dead. These tours are illuminating and educational in showing the reality of history and should be a part of every school pupils’ syllabus.

Shea Rawlings – June 2014

Visit to The SommeI am writing this on the 70th anniversary of the D Day landings in Normandy – a good moment for reflection. ST JOHN’S ROAD TRENCH AT

BEAUMONT-HAMELMAISON DIOCESAINE AT ARRAS THE CANADIAN MEMORIAL

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Page 16: The CLUB Review – Autumn 2014

read the full story –

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AGM & Summer Reception


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