The Salopian no. 160 - Summer 2017

OLD SALOPIAN NEWS 59
Christopher Booker (Rt 1951-56)
celebrates 30 years living quietly and
happily in a delightful old rectory on
the Somerset Mendip hills, where he
enjoys occasional walks with his holiday
neighbour Richard Hudson, Housemaster
of Churchill’s. He continues to write a
weekly column in the Sunday Telegraph,
much annoying his readers by criticising
the way the Government is setting about
Brexit, and is now the only Salopian left
contributing ‘satirical’ material to Private
Eye. He is currently completing a learned
paper for the Global Warming Policy
Foundation provisionally entitled The
Great Global Warming Scare: A Case
Study in Groupthink (which should
annoy a few more people, especially if
they don’t read it). He has two sons, one
of whom runs a successful universityrelated
company in India, together
with his clever Indian wife who has
at last presented him with a beautiful
little grand-daughter. The other runs a
business called Lights of London, making
stylish lampshades in Bethnal Green.
Anthony Cordle (I 1953-57) After
35 years of marriage, my wife Miranda
passed away in August 2001. I was very
fortunate to remarry Cathy Buchanan,
whose South African husband Loggie
had also died. We live in Constantia
just outside Cape Town and the family
owns a private game reserve, Mount
Camdeboo which is two or three hours
north of Port Elizabeth in the Karoo.
It is run as a commercial business and
visitors are more than welcome (www.
mountcamdeboo.com). I visit London
two or three times a year to visit family
and friends.
Peter-John Robertson (Ch 1953-58)
has published For Lucy, a cycle of nine
poems, online with Edgeways Books
(http://www.edgewaysbooks.com/
index.html). His previous publications
are The Leavises on Fiction: an
Historic Partnership (Macmillan, 1981
& 1988) and Criticism & Creativity:
Essays on Literature (Brynmill, 1987). –
see Publications
Peter Vaughan-Davies (O 1953-58)
writes: No epoch-making events. My
wife Sheilagh retired as Coca-Cola HR
Manager. Our daughter Clare works
as a Marketing Manager in Dubai
and has two children (a boy and a
girl). Our other daughter Sophie is a
Consultant at St George’s Hospital,
London and has two boys. We are
both healthy and enjoying our various
retirement activities.
Robert Law (Ch 1954-59) neglected
to include his email address in the last
edition of The Salopian. He would
be delighted to receive news of his
contemporaries on ro.law@btinternet.com
Selby Whittingham (S 1955-59)
writes: We have just celebrated J.M.W.
Turner’s birthday (23rd April) with a
party, as we do every year. Among those
attending were curators from the Watts
Art Gallery, a visit to which we plan in
June with a number of Old Salopians. It
is commemorating the 200th anniversary
of the birth of G.F. Watts and has
launched a forum on museums devoted
to particular artists, on which I organised
a colloquium and tours in Paris in 1990.
The Watts Artists Village near Guildford
has undergone a transformation in recent
years. Also worth a visit is Turner’s villa
at Twickenham, Sandycombe Lodge,
reopening this summer after extensive
restoration. Its late owner benefitted from
the advice of Tony Rushton (OS and
Private Eye).
1960-69
Guy (a.k.a Nick) Faber (Ch 1956-61)
writes: I spent my working life as a
solicitor in Harrogate in North Yorkshire
until about a year ago when we
moved to North Oxford to be nearer
children in London and Cheltenham.
I’ve left most of my old mates and
acquaintances in Yorkshire so it would
be good to meet up occasionally with
any OSs based in or near Oxford
who might remember me (or indeed
who don’t!) for a coffee or pub lunch
somewhere in these parts. As my legal
career is more or less behind me, I
now spend much of my time writing
speeches for almost any important
occasion - weddings probably being
the most popular. Otherwise my
interests are largely of the sporting
variety - racing, football, rugby etc.
Mike Popham (M 1956-61) was made
a Life Member of the National Union of
Journalists on 9th March 2017. He also
continues as a committee member of
the UK branch of the Commonwealth
Journalists Association.
Charles Martell (O 1959-64)
Cheesemaker to HRH the Prince of
Wales and Royal Warrant Holder,
is in nomination as High Sheriff of
Gloucestershire 2018-2019 subject to
Her Majesty’s approval.
Stephen Wright (S 1960-64) celebrated
his 70th birthday in December 2016
with friends at the London Rowing
Club where he has been an active
member of the recreational squad since
1999. He retired from the Diplomatic
Service in 2007 with a knighthood in
the Order of St Michael and St George
after a career of 39 satisfying years
of diplomacy culminating as British
Ambassador to Spain. This also gave
him the opportunity to scull in Brussels,
Washington DC and outside Madrid.
Now he is observing with as much calm
as he can manage the dismantling of a
life’s work as we prepare to leave the EU.
Tim Cawkwell (Rt 1961-65) has
published his second cricket book, The
Tale of Two Terriers and the Somerset
Cat, about the contest for the cricket
county championship in 2017 which
was unprecedentedly exciting. (See
Publications)
Col. Robert Wilsey (M 1962-67) (See
Publications)
Darryl Walker (DB 1964-68) will be
holding an Exhibition of Paintings at
the Bear Steps Gallery, Shrewsbury
from Sunday 6th August – Saturday
19th August 2017 http://www.artpipedreams-online.co.uk/
John Ryle (DB 1965-69) stepped
down in 2017 after 16 years as Executive
Director of the Rift Valley Institute,
a research and public information
organisation established in Eastern Africa
by himself, Jok Madut Jok and Philip
Winter. He continues as Legrand Ramsey
Professor of Anthropology at Bard
College, NY. In 2016 he was a Fellow
at the Cullman Center at the New York
Public Library; in 2018 he will be George
Soros Chair at the Central European
University in Budapest.