Official Website: THEGATTONASSOCIATION.COM Newsletter Edition: Autumn 2011 T G A HE ATTON SSOCIATION Incorporating The Maitland Association, The Royal Albert Old Boy’s Association & The Royal Alexandra and Albert School Chairman: Phil Wade President: Ray Davies News Editor: Chas Bailey Contact E-Mail: [email protected] Newsletter Menu Website: THEGATTONASSOCIATION.COM VICE CHAIRMAN’S WELCOME. 1-2 Vice Chairman’s Welcome - COMMITTEE MEMBERS HEADMASTER’S LETTER 3 Hi everyone and welcome to this spooktacular edition of the newsletter! Phil is off on his jolly’s for a month and has left me PARTERRE RESTORED 4 in charge of the intro… JUST ANOTHER HISTORY LESSON To begin with I would like to send my sincere condolences to Memorable moments 5 the friends and families of some past pupils who sadly passed in Madrid away this year. David Ellis, Jamie Spanyol and Fredo Tripos, - Dates for your Diary our thoughts and prayers are with you. Gatton Park Memorial 6 David passed away in January after a short illness, he was in X Factor 8 Cornwall house and left in 1964. He couldn't settle when he left school, so at 18 he joined the army. His army career took OLD BOARDER 9 him to Germany where he settled and spent the rest of his life GATTON PARK - THE EARLY 10 there. He leaves behind a wife. YEARS 1949/1951 Jamie passed away in September following an illness. His fu- GOING BACK 14 neral was attended by many people including old school friends 2012 Reunion 16 and staff, the headmaster also attended. Jamie would often visit the School on founders day and take part in the Old GATTON ASSOCIATION SHOP 18 Scholars football match. Next founders day there will be a one minute silence for him. GATTON ASSOCIATION 19 ORDER FORM Fredo passed away in September following an illness. He worked as a Project Manager in the construction industry REGISTRATION FORM 20 working on luxury penthouses in London. He was in high spirits through his last few hours sur- rounded by family and friends. Fredo leaves behind a wife, son and new born baby. Rest in peace our Gatton brothers. In our memories and hearts you will live on forever. Its times like this that make you realise that we are not invincible, and should pick up the phone to our old friends and say ‘hi’ because the months and years are just flying by. To help keep you all in touch, we’ve got lots of exciting events filling up the calendar over the next year. The first one being Christmas drinks in November. We’ve decided to give ‘mini get togethers’ a go. So as well as having one main reunion, we hope to have smaller scale ones dotted around the country. The first one will be in London on 26th November at a Wetherspoons, so nice and cheap!) 1 PAGE 2 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION Venue: Montagu Pyke, 105-107 Charing Cross CCCCoooommmmmmmmiiiitttttttteeeeeeee MMMMeeeemmmmbbbbeeeerrrrssss Road, London, WC2H 0BP Time: 6pm till late Positions Name Nearest tube: Leicester Square or Tottenham Court Road President: Ray Davies If the November one is a success we will try to or- Vice President: Benny Jones ganise one in your area / nearest big town, so let Chairman: Phil Wade us know where you live! Please spread the word to your school friends - not everyone is on Facebook Vice Chair: Alicia Edwards or receives the newsletter, let’s do this together! Secretary: Peter Page What do you want from your next reunion? Please Treasurer: Peter Page tell us by answering these 10 quick fire questions: Membership Michelle Ellis http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/K5N96HH Secretary: Publicity Officers: Phil Wade Let us know and we can help adapt these events to Alicia Edwards your liking where possible – sadly making the main Board of Governors John Billingham reunion free is not an option as we are a charitable & Ex-Scholar: organisation trying to raise money. The Gatton Association is run voluntarily by ex-pupils and Archivist: Will Wilson staff, for ex-pupils and staff whilst supporting cur- Merchandising: Michelle Ellis rent Foundation Pupils, therefore comments like ‘I Events Alicia Edwards paid my school fees so the reunion should be free’ Co-ordinator: really aren’t relevant or helpful. We need to hire News Editor: Chas Bailey the school and its facilities for the reunion week- end; therefore we need to charge a small fee to E-Mail: [email protected] cover these hire costs. Besides, where else can you Phone: 020 8648 7274 get 2 nights accommodation, all meals Assist - News Editor: Andrew Bailey (breakfast, lunch and tea), dinner wine, and a fab disco all for only £103?! Just wanted to make that clear. August Reunion: plans are up and running, the dates have been released, the venue is booked, now all we need is YOU! Let’s make this the biggest and best reunion yet. Please let us know if you have any questions. Much has changed at the school over the years, so things like wheel chair access is not an issue anymore as the buildings been adjusted to suit everyone’s requirements. Children are welcome on the grounds during the day. Please do ask us if you have any concerns about anything, we are here to help and keep you updated. Sales of the film Going Back have been going well. We have managed to raise £96 in the last couple of months which is fantastic; however we still need to raise more in order to continue to support current and past pupils of the school. Please see the Going Back page which is further down in the newsletter with details on how to order your copy Alternatively, you are welcome to make a donation to the Gatton Association if you prefer. You can keep up to date on a more regular basis by joining us on Facebook and Friends Reunited by searching: Gatton Park – that’s us! Hope to see you in November, and if you can’t make that date, then I hope to see you in August 2012 for the big reunion! Alicia Edwards Pupil 1990 - 2000 2 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION PAGE 3 HEADMASTER’S LETTER It is the first term of a new school year and this has been another year when our pupil numbers have grown. We now have over 930 pupils including over 100 in our new Sixth Form. It always takes a while to establish a new sixth form but I am delighted that, in its second year, our Sixth Form has over 80 pupils in the Lower Sixth. With the new intake came a new dress code; our Sixth Formers now wear business dress and present a very good image of the school as they at- tend lessons in their new suits. We are already receiving applications for next year, not only from our own pupils but from external applicants so I am confident the Sixth Form will go from strength to strength. With a growing school comes the need to build more accommodation. During the Summer we completed the ground floor extension to Cornwall House which provides more living space, and a classroom that can be used for prep in the evening and lessons during the school day. All the boarding houses will have ground floor extensions by this time next year when the extension to Edinburgh will also have been completed. The increase in pupil numbers has put pressure on the dining room which has to provide up to 1100 meals at a time. In the Summer there was major development to expand the kitchens, add an extra servery and a covered waiting area for pupils. We can now serve 1100 at lunchtime, waiting times are reduced, and those pupils that do have to wait, can wait indoors. The other major project that is ongoing is to build new riding stables to replace the ones that are in very poor repair near the Bothy. The new stables will be behind the indoor riding school which will keep them away from the ‘traffic’ of golf buggies that the maintenance team use to get around the site. The horses are occasionally ‘spooked’ when the buggies go past, so the new lo- cation will improve safety. This year, on the morning of the Gatton Association AGM, we arranged for Old Scholars to have brunch in the Dining Room and then a tour of the School. The AGM followed on in the afternoon. The feedback on this was very positive and I think Old Scholars enjoyed being shown around by current pupils. At the end of the Summer we re-launched our website with a new up-to-date design that fits in with the school prospectus. The information on the website is mostly the same as before, includ- ing the Gatton Association area, but we now have the Headmaster’s Photo Diary on the homep- age. This is updated most days with photos I have taken as I go about the School, and gives an ‘alternative’ view on things. Why not take a look next time you are on the internet – it might prompt some memories of your old school! It is always a pleasure to welcome Old Scholars back when they visit the School and I would like to invite you, once again, to join us at 10.30am on Friday 11th November for the Remembrance Day Service. Please let Sally Herrtage know if you would like to attend so that a place can be reserved in Chapel. She can be contacted by phone on 01737 649041 or by email [email protected]. Old Scholars are also welcome to attend the Carol Service at the School – please contact Sally Herrtage nearer the time to confirm dates/times and to book your seat in Chapel. With my very best wishes Paul D Spencer Ellis 3 PAGE 4 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION Parterre Restored The view from Gatton Hall has been en- hanced by the restoration of the Parterre and the removal of the old tennis courts. Here is a view from the top of the steps outside the Ballroom. Just another history lesson…. in a moustache Year 9 pupils at the Royal Alexandra and Al- bert School turned up to their history lesson one Monday morning wearing flags, mous- taches, hats and scarves. Part of their homework had been to dress up to represent the countries that were the main protago- nists in the First World War. They then went to one of the school’s netball courts where a map of Europe had been drawn on the tarmac. Groups of pupils took up their positions on France, Britain, Germa- ny and Russia and moved in formation to ‘re- enact’ the key moves in the build-up to the First World War. Head of History, Henry Warnock-Smith ex- plains “We are studying the Schlieffen Plan that the Germans had before the First World War and learning how the failure of the Plan led to years of trench warfare. This kind of teaching can bring to life the events of the past and give pupils an idea of the thinking behind the key decisions that were made. The pupils were able to achieve knowledge of how ‘crowded’ Europe was at this time and how the clashing empires brought about the catastrophic events of the time.” Pupil Dan Bennett, who was dressed as a Russian, commented “This was a really fun way to learn and it felt very realistic.” 4 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION PAGE 5 Memorable Moments in Madrid In September pupils from the Roy- al Alexandra and Albert School be- came pupils for 5 days in Spain’s Real Colegio Alfonso XII which is housed in a UNESCO World Herit- age building near Madrid. The vis- it, organised by language teacher Rosa Mohammed Ali took place on 13-17 September as part of their GCSE Spanish course. As well as staying in the impres- sive building, the pupils had two hours of Spanish lessons each day at the school. Their itinerary in- cluded visits to the Real Madrid stadium, historic Segovia, Las Real Colegio Alfonso XII Ventas bullring and a local village to sample traditional tapas. They also attended a flamenco show and even had a flamenco danc- ing lesson. Miss Ali commented “We received a very warm welcome from the Spanish people and had some memorable experiences during our visit. The students enjoyed absorbing the language and the culture and gained an insight into Spanish life. We hope to continue running this trip in future to give other students an opportunity to enjoy this wonderful experience.” Dates for your Diary Remembrance Day Service Fri 11th Nov Contact Sally Herrtage 01737 649041 10.30 PTA Christmas Fair in Gatton Hall Sat 19 Nov 11-2 Carol Service tbc Contact Sally Herrtage End of School Term Fri 16th Dec 5 PAGE 6 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION Gatton Park Memorial Page On Sunday 25th September a memorial service was held in the chapel in memory of Francis Gobinet. It was a very special service given by Father Paul, with contributions from Francis’s sis- ter Mandy, friends JJ and Rob and Francis’s best friend from school, Jamie. It was a lovely turn out, with members of staff and school friends attending to remember Francis. After the service a tree was planted outside of Edinburgh house in his memory Mandy helping to plant Mr Cull helping to plant the tree the tree 6 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION PAGE 7 RRRReeeesssstttt iiiinnnn ppppeeeeaaaacccceeee oooouuuurrrr GGGGaaaattttttttoooonnnn bbbbrrrrooootttthhhheeeerrrrssss.... IIIInnnn oooouuuurrrr mmmmeeeemmmmoooorrrriiiieeeessss aaaannnndddd hhhheeeeaaaarrrrttttssss yyyyoooouuuu wwwwiiiillllllll lllliiiivvvveeee oooonnnn ffffoooorrrreeeevvvveeeerrrr.... FFFFrrrreeeeddddoooo TTTTrrrriiiippppoooossss JJJJaaaammmmiiiieeee SSSSppppaaaannnnyyyyoooollll FFFFrrrraaaannnncccciiiissss GGGGoooobbbbiiiinnnneeeetttt DDDDaaaavvvviiiidddd EEEElllllllliiiissss 7 PAGE 8 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION After a little update on Facebook, it turns out that a few of you have auditioned for X Factor in previous years. Here is Abigail’s account of her X Factor journey: Abigail on the morning of her big audition She caught glimpse of Dermot X Factor Audition. I went up there on the train on my own and was very nervous. I tried out in 2007 on the 6th audition day at the Emirates Stadium. They got us all to do filming as a big group saying 'I've got the X-Factor'. You had to wait ages to get seen. I was told to stand on an X and sing a verse and chorus to 2 producers in a tiny room that resonated little sound. I sang 'Carpenters-Superstar'. I was just told ‘No’ and that I was ‘too nervous’. Hardly anyone got through that day. When you see the rubbish ones get through to see the judges it's because they camped out for the opens. The judges have a day they see the good ones from the 1st auditions then a day they see the rubbish. Unfortunately I didn't try out at opens myself as my mum died between my audition and the day of the opens, I just didn't feel up to it and haven't tried again since. Not sure of I'd even try again as I know how they put the show together so many people get their hopes up and hardly anyone gets a proper chance and they seem to love humiliating people publicly when they are rubbish. Abigail Duke (was Brooker) Pupil 1986-1996 Gatton Hall 8 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION PAGE 9 Old Boarder Barbara Berryman from Albert House started at age 8 at Summer House Hi All I receive an edition of each and every newsletter and for years I have sat here reading it, welling up in the eyes, seeing the old uniform and hearing Cornwall House and the Dining Hall. Wow……I remember the days so well. So, I sit here and read them, but this time I thought I would email you and let you know my expe- rience. I attended the school from the age of 8 until I was 13, with my two sisters Sally Berryman and Patricia Berryman until my dad accepted redundancy from the Army. I’m now 32 with two lovely children and a loving partner. Reading the newsletter, it does not read like it is the same school. Horse riding….no……this was not one of our activities we could choose, I think the best we could do in my time, was any kind of music or sport, but nothing further than that. Unless you count the mid night feasts we would enjoy around 12.00 midnight, walking down the long corridors and see- ing those massive curtains by the stairs……thrilling scary and we all enjoyed it, even the member of staff would who supplied the movie for the night!!! In those times, no one had the worries of being different, such as I’m a day rider ….well I’m a night rider (as in day attendance and boarding). We just all knew we all boarded and that was that, most of us from an Army back ground too. When the school was on the news a while ago blowing their trumpet about the education level etc…….I was and I still am very proud to say that I attend The Royal Alexander and Albert School. I was in Albert House with Mrs Turner and her family as the head, I had some fantastic times and when I left I was amazed at the response I received. I never really knew that when I played the piano at 6AM, that I woke the rest of the house up J As much as I had a fantastic time in the school, educational, loving and supportive, I do not feel that if I attended now, that I would receive all those things. Horse riding, day attendance, not enough seats for all to have dinner………..why and how? Was the account balance really suffering that bad that the attention was put on how to earn more money……………Day riders would bring more in. The support and forever caring needed for those that board are sooooooo much different from the day riders and I believe that should stay and should never have changed, but that’s why you guys are there and I’m outside of the massive gates delivering head of customer care. I would agree that I am who I am today because of Gatton and the friends I boarded with….and please be proud of that, because I have a great life, the only regret I have is not keeping in touch with those when I left. The comments above are of no offence to be taken, just a point of view and we are all wise enough to take an opinion on the chin. I wonder if I would be able to visit the school at all? With my family. I’m not sure what I can do, but I know that if I revisited…..my emotions would fly high …….after all this is where I learnt how to make friends, first kiss, first win of a race, first detention!!!!! First lust over a teacher and wow….the first time I was told to get in a really cold outside pool, that was until the new one was built, which was inside of course!!!!!!!!! Well you might read my email and not act or you could but either way, I have enjoyed jotting a few things down, thanks for your reading time and allowing me to blubber on!!! Keep doing what you do Gatton, but just DON’T FORGET HOW YOU GOT THERE……WITH BOARD- ERS!!!!!!!! And believe me, we have it a lot harder emotionally and in other ways than day riders do.. XXXXXXXXXXXX From: Been away for a while Bee (Barbara Berryman) x 9 PAGE 10 THE GATTON ASSOCIATION Gatton Park – the early years 1949 1951 (Robert Hill (RAAS 1949-1959) Readers may recall two articles I wrote appearing in the Autumn 2009 and Spring 2010 editions of the Newsletter, “Gatton Park – the early years, 1949 – 1951”. I have since then come across a small cache of photographs relevant to what I wrote, and I submit them here, hoping them to be of interest – particularly to those of that era. These 5 photos are from Summer, 1950. Outside Gatton Hall “Summer 1950” - Photo 1 As any ex-RAAS bod will immediately tell, this was taken on the front lawn outside Gatton Hall. I’ve had it enlarged as much as possible, and apart from myself (far right at back), I can pick out the following from that lovely summer’s day in 1950: Kenny Button, David Childs, Anthony Fowler, Michael Andrew’s, John Griffiths, John Roxburgh and (I think) Maureen Cowling. There are several that I feel I should know, but with so many photographed from behind or facing away from the camera, more positive identifications are alas next to impossible. This view represents just some (certainly by no means all) of the 1949 -50 intakes. Outside Gatton Hall “Summer 1950” - Photo 2 Another immediately recognizable view, taken from the doorway of the former ‘ballroom’ which was then (1950) in use as our dining room. Here we are heading inwards at mid-day for lunch. As can be seen there are fewer of us here, and because I cannot spot myself, I presume I have already made it indoors. Heading the group is Stuart Hoare, with Eleanor Rice (heads turned away), along with others including Maureen Cowling, John Griffiths, John Roxburgh, Victor Paint- er (?), Susan Kirby, and Anthony Fowler; but with 61 years having since passed, I plead for- giveness for so many other names being no longer forthcoming Note how the circular ornamental pond is safety-fenced off – perhaps just temporarily, for maintenance by the two gardeners (pictured) – I cannot say that I recall that fenc- ing being at all a permanent feature. In the cen- tre of the pond it can be discerned the cherub statue fountain which was obviously not working that day. Recalling my previous utterance about the log booms across the lake, I have studied the photo intently and paradoxically there seems to be no signs of them in this view. They were located from the side of the lake nearest Gatton Hall, to the opposite bank, the line being roughly from where the centre gardener is standing, but then the Cedar tree in the central foreground may be concealing something. 10