N E W S L E T T E R - Radley College

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adley achievements Academic ■ This year Radley, along with Eton, Winchester and St Paul’s, decided not to publish exam results until November, when appeals and remarks are completed. Nevertheless the raw results already show that the 2008 A Level candidates exceeded the previous record at A/B of 2007 (90.06%) and even more impressively 2 out of every 3 A Level papers was an A grade. 65 out of the 122 candidates achieved 3 A grades or more; 9 boys attained 5 A grades and 2 managed 6 A grades. A number of them gained marks in the top 10 for their respective subject nationally: Rory van Zwanenberg (Moulsford, g), Alex Rose (Thomas’s Clapham, c), Jonathan Lam (La Salle College, Hong Kong, b), Harry Devonshire (Twyford, a), Arthur Laidlaw (Dragon, h), James Curtis Hayward (Pilgrim’s, a) and Harry Kershaw (Twyford, d). ■ At GCSE Radleians came close to the 81% A*/A of 2007; especially notable was that large numbers of 5th Formers got A grade in AS French, and gained top marks in AS Maths modules, exams designed for 6th Formers. ■ The ISI Inspection of February 2008 accorded Radley the highest accolade, ‘outstanding’, in every category. It found Radley to be ‘markedly successful in the education it provides’, it commented on ‘the outstanding quality of academic achievement’, that the pupils’ ‘learning was excellent’, and that they were ‘welcoming, polite, articulate, full of enthusiasm and commitment’. The quality of their pastoral care was ‘outstanding’, as was the teaching which was ‘inspirational’. The firework Gaudy in July capped a year of great achievement at Radley. biography of Blair; Tony Baldry MP on Conservative Prospects; Sir John Nott on the Falklands war 25 years on. Across the year, guest speakers came to speak to the societies run by individual departments; notable was Lord Hurd on his specialism, ‘Sir Robert Peel’. ■ The annual 6.2 Conference with The School of St Helen and St Katharine in November (now in its 11th year) was a noted success. The topic was ‘The Challenge of China’ and a group of distinguished China experts talked about Maoist legacy and history, and future trends. Activities ■ The Wednesday Afternoon Activities scheme is well established. The 5th Formers continue to visit hospitals, teach in Primary Schools and deliver ‘Instant Muscle’ to elderly Radley Villagers. The Concert Parties visited over 20 residential homes Mrs J Gilbert across Oxford and Abingdon and hosted over 100 elderly local people in the Silk Hall concluding with rousing community singing led by Suzie-Louise Naylor. ■ A good deal of Charitable Activity has gone on this year, most notably the school sponsored walk back in September; over 600 walkers covered the 20 mile route for a range of charities raising well over £48,000 in the process. Common Room has led the way – Angus McChesney swam the Channel in c.12 hours and raised £60,000 for Leukaemia Research; Dr Tim Morris played all Bach’s Organ works in an 18 hour marathon and raised over £15,000; the Warden and Mrs McPhail ran the Paris marathon and Harry Hammond the London marathon for charity. But the boys were not outdone: Freddie Tapner (Ludgrove, f), Hugo Walker (The Elms, b) and John Crisp (Dragon, f) helped raise £150,000 by taking part in a challenge to ski every piste in Meribel dressed in Radley gowns. They succeeded and beat Eton. Radley’s charitable enterprises have raised £166,822 this year. ■ There has once again been a broad range of expeditions: the Shells invaded Normandy for the 18th year running; the rugby players toured New Zealand before the season began; the cricketers toured South Africa; the elite crews trained at Bagnoles, in Spain. The musicians visited Berlin and Leipzig, the artists and a selection of Theatre Studies students visited New York, the linguists visited Barcelona and Paris. Meanwhile a host of theatre visits, field trips, exhibition visits took place across the year. ■ It was the last Declamations for which Charles Hastings was at the helm. Arthur House OR judged it and it was a memorable morning. The 6.2 year group was especially strong and any of the finalists could have won. The winners were: Alex Rose (Thomas’s Clapham, c), 6.2; Hugo Walker (The Elms, b), 6.1; Alex Murison (Dragon, b), 5; Alex Donger (Dragon, j), R; Tommy Siman (Abingdon Prep, h), S. ■ It has been an impressive year for visiting speakers. The 6.2 Lecture cycle saw OR parents speaking – Rory Tapner and George Bailey – parents, like Sam Laidlaw, Chairman of Centrica, on Energy policy, and a host of others on a wide range of subjects. Oliver James on his best seller ‘Affluenza’; Charlie Mayfield OR on John Lewis; Dr Anthony Seldon on his acclaimed The sponsored walk 6 THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER
& activities in 2007/8 Angus McChesney’s sponsored channel swim ■ The CCF hosted a Biennial Inspection in October. The inspecting officers were much impressed by the enthusiasm and turnout of the boys, and the energy of the CCF officers. This was Richard Pollard’s last inspection, commander of the contingent for 23 years; it was also John Wylie’s last after 38 years of close involvement. George Stinton (Sandroyd, d) won the Royal Marines’ Commando Scholarship, Angus Dickson (Belhaven Hill, g) and Will Bromfield (Cothill, e) won Army Scholarships. ■ There has been much ‘activity’ on the development front at Radley; As well as the two new Socials, a Real Tennis Court has been opened and the Sports Centre upgraded. ■ Radleians once again built a house on Radley Road in Kerala. Arts ■ The very highest standards of Drama have been set this year by Director Robert Lowe. ‘West Side Story’ was an exceptional production with exemplary teamwork (Robert Lowe’s direction; Stephen Clarke’s music; Matt Hawksworth’s choreography; Matt Barker’s technical management) and some outstanding performances, notably Alex Rose (Thomas’s Clapham, c) as Tony, Theo Whitworth (Aldro, c) as Riff, Fred Rowe (Cothill, a) as Bernardo. The ensemble acting, and freshness and precision of the dance, made for an electric production. Equally, two talented 6th Form Theatre Studies groups developed strong, compelling work for their examination pieces – ‘Pillowman’ by 6.2 was memorable. The Removes put on an excellent ‘Scarlet Pimpernel’, the Shells ‘With Intent’ (6.1s directed), and the dons a most professional performance, Reza’s ‘Art’. The future is in safe hands – the Shells’ Haddon Cup was as good as it has ever been. Three Radleians have been selected for the National Youth Theatre: Rory Stallibrass (Milbourne Lodge, c) for the 3rd year; Ollie Mann (Bilton Grange, d); Max Bullen-Smith (Brambletye, e). ■ The Art Department has had another good year. The boys’ art has colonised public spaces across the school and the new socials. A number of boys are studying Art abroad in their GAP years and Nick Bethell (Bramcote, c) has gained a place at Leith School of Art and Design. Old Radleian Charlie Langton (Pinewood, g) had a one man show of his equine work at Tryon Gallery. The department has hosted six exhibitions this academic year, most notably the ‘Three Generations of Artists’ show of the Morris-Adams/Laidlaw family. ■ Music is stronger at Radley than ever. The Chapel Choir, supported by our Choristers, sing a wide range of choral music each Sunday in Chapel and to a very high standard. Their Mozart Requiem on November 11th was memorable. Two boys – Greg Williams (Norman Court, c) and Rory Stallibrass (Milbourne Lodge, c) – won Choral Awards to Cambridge. At the top of the school there is a rich seam of talent; C Social’s part song singers were exceptional, as have been the pianists Greg Williams and Jamie Brown (Caldicott, d). Greg Williams and Rory Robinson (Twyford, f) have competed in the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition. Concert highlights were the Berlin/Leipzig Concert, the Warden’s Music (over 100 performers) and the Piano Extravaganza (7 pianos, up to 21 performers at a time, 70 pianists in total). Winners of the Music Prizes were: Organ: Freddie Tapner (Ludgrove, f); Hudson String: Gregory Williams; Ferguson Singing: Theo Whitworth; Wharton Piano: Gregory Williams; Guitar: Alex Donger (Dragon, j); Woodwind Senior: Rory Robinson (Twyford, f); Woodwind Junior: Tom Bennett (Hall Grove, a); Brass Senior: Andrew Savill (King’s Hall, g); Brass Performance: Andrew Barrie (Horris Hill, e). Alaistair Hope-Morley in Kerala West Side Story THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 7
Page 1 and 2: Radley The N e w s l e t t e r The
Page 3 and 4: NEW sOCIALS The new school year saw
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Page 9 and 10: the Duke of EdinbuRgh’s Award Sch
Page 11 and 12: Brown (Caldicott, D Social) togethe

N E W S L E T T E R - Radley College

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