Lift up your Hearts

The Harp of the human spirit never yields such sweet music, as when its framework is most shattered, and it strings are most torn. Then it is, when the world pronounces the instrument useless, and man would put it away as incapable or melody, that the finger of God delights in touching it, and draws from it a fine swell of harmony. Come night, come calamity, come affliction. God still says to His people as He said to the Jews, when expecting the irruption of the Assyrian, "ye shall have a song in the night."

Sermons of the Rev'd Henry Melvill 1837
'Songs in the Night'

The Evolution of Dormitories 1

Four poster beds were the order of the day at the East India College. The students lived in single rooms, which is why the windows in the Quad don't work with what became dormitories and are now increasigly again beig transformed into rooms. The registrar, The Rev'd Edward Lewton persuaded the College Council to buy new curtains for the four posters in May 1828. Eight dozen pairs were required to replace the worn out ones which had been there since the establishment of the college in 1805. In her book Population Malthus Patricia James describes life in the old college dorm.

'The students remained behind their curtains while man servants brought their bath-water, and female bed-makers, in winter, lit their fires; one, Mrs Draper, boasted that she could get twelve fires going in twenty minutes. She was a motherly and religious spinster [so her title must have been an honorific?], and listened to hear the bath water splashing to make sure her young gentlemen would not be late for chapel; the irreverent were pressed into piety, and saved from an imposition [fine] with the aid of a hot cup of coffee.'

Haileybury Week

Quentin Thomas, director of Music at Haileybury writes

Dear All,

HAILEYBURY WEEK celebrates its 2nd birthday this year. Still in its 'development stage', we're aiming to end every academic year in a blaze of glory, expanding each year until 2012 when Haileybury celebrates its 150th anniversary. This year, starting this week, we host numerous activities, delectable concerts, plays, recitals, the 70th anniversary of the Madrigals at Great Amwell, art installations, tennis, cricket, athletics… Haileybury Week 2011 will additionally feature our infamous Cabaret and the Tattoo (Marching of formidable Military Bands around the Quad) and a helpful brochure sent out around the Easter time. By 2012, we hope, in addition to 2011's endeavours to have a major pop-group band in Quad, a combined chorus and orchestra performance in Quad, commissioned music, fairground etc etc.

Bring friends, bring family… Please forward this to ANYONE you think might like to join us in our exciting venture.

For more information, do please consult the Arts & Events brochure / the display boards that will be put up around the campus - or the website

Hoping to see you at an event in the near future. 

With best wishes in the meantime,

Quentin Thomas

Director of Music

Tickets can be obtained online from the Haileybury Box Office or phone 01992 706 200

Public School Photographs

Hunting about on the internet for pictures to illustrate this blog I found Mark Draisley's pictures. He is a photographer who undertook a study of a number of public schools - including Haileybury - in the later 1980s. He writes of himself:

I began work on the British Public Schools project in my final year at Brighton Polytechnic by approaching Hurstpierpoint College to ask if I could photograph a day in the life of the school. From that moment on I was hooked on the subject. Fascinated by the history, architecture, and traditions of the independent school system, I decided to expand my study. With a publisher on board, the number of schools nationwide was increased to twenty-five over a five year period. Unfortunately, good timing was not on my side and the recession hit just as I was completing the study in 1990. The publishers pulled out due to the high expense of producing such a large volume and I was unable to bring a new company on board. With over 2000 medium format high quality colour transparencies, I believe that this is the largest such collection, undertaken by an individual, in the World. Hopefully the book will one day see the light of day as the images are now of historic interest due to recent modernization of many independent schools to bring them into line with the twenty-first Century, as well as, in many cases, the introduction of co-education into this once bastion of British masculinity.


His home page has a picture of Haileybury, and the pictures are here. 

Here is a picture from the site of the College Prefects. Younger readers will be shocked to discover that in those days there were only a few CPs and they had the great privilege of being allowed an umbrella. Beaks (teachers to you) carried brightly coloured golf umbrellas, while CPs affected plain black rolled city gents' brollies. If you are in this picture do be in touch to tell us the background. 

Careers Fair

Yesterday the Society organized a careers fair at Haileybury. I was enjoying being a parent at the Lower School production of Beauty and the Beast (which was fantastic!) but Oliver Ryder was on the spot and reports as follows:


'I've just returned from taking part in the inaugural Haileybury Society Careers Fair in Big School, which was brilliantly organised by Robin Bishop and his team. Although my friend and fellow clergyman Tim Horlock (Trev 85-90) and I weren't inundated with students passionate to hear about a career in the Church of England (!), they were certainly an inspiring and attentive group of young individuals full of confidence and hopefulness as they set sail on the next stage of their lives. It was a joy to return to the school on a sunny English summer's day and see what had and hadn't changed and to reflect on memories, both good and bad! I wasn't the most diligent student during my time at Haileybury but in the year's since I've been amazed at how God can redeem the past and use it for a better future. I pray that all the students will know this transforming love.' Oliver Ryder (Colvin 88-93)

The Rev'ds Oliver Ryder (left) and Tim Horlock (Tr 85) yesterday

Oliver has sent this note about himself: Rev'd Oliver Ryder (Colvin '88-'93); BA Hons, Art History, University of East Anglia; Diploma in Theology, Ridley Hall Theological College, Cambridge; Church of England Priest; currently final year curate in the gritty multicultural parish of Tollington, North London. After university I did a Graduate Training Scheme with Sotheby's auction house before spending five years working as a reporter for the Christian Charity Alpha International. My work with Alpha primarily involved interviewing people about their experiences of God. During that time I sensed a call to full time ordained Christian ministry and went to theological college. My main passion in life is to help people discover the love of God and that a relationship with him is the most exciting thing in the world and brings meaning, purpose and direction to everything else. 

He is about (1st September) to become Vicar of S Mark's Kensal Rise in London NW10 - a large and vibrant church and a big appointment - best wishes to him. He says OHs welcome!

Haileyburia

It is ten years since full co-education, and the first girls arrived as pupils in 1973. Women had a significant influence on Haileybury even when, as far as pupils were concerned, it was an all male institution. I shall try and post form time to time about some of these women. In my generation the history of the place and much of its ethos was caught by reading Molly Matthews' Haileybury Since Roman Times. Her daughter Imogen, also an historian of the school and a Housemaster's wife has kindly written what follows. 

Molly Matthews, who died two years ago, just one week short of her hundredth birthday, was an old style Housemaster's wife, who devoted her working life to Haileybury and made a considerable contribution to the school.  Edgar was already Housemaster of Batten when they married in 1932 and held that position until 1953.  Molly visited boys in the san (a frequent activity before the days of antibiotics and when epidemics often swept the school), watched them play games and entertained them to tea and supper. She had trained at R.A.D.A. and in those days, before girls had arrived at Haileybury, she played the female lead in a continual stream of school plays.  She also did the make-up for most school productions and created the Haileybury theatrical wardrobe, designing and making the historically correct period costumes, many of which still survive.  When Edgar retired he was asked to stay on for one year to run the fundraising for the Centenary Appeal.  Her contribution to this was to research and write 'Haileybury Since Roman Times', all the proceeds of which she gave to the Appeal.  She had taken her degree in History and English, specialising in Anglo-Saxon and her research for the Haileybury book led to her writing a series of learned books on surnames, place-names and the origins of our language, published in England, America and Japan. She loved Haileybury and Haileybury should be proud of her.

Tennis

This is a weekend on which many people think of Tennis. Haileybury now has lots of courts - on XX Acre as well as on Hailey Lane. The indoor tennis centre looks pretty strange from the outside (it is literally an inflatable building) but the partnership with Legends Tennis offers a facility which nurtures new talent.  One member of the Haileybury Council, Christine Janes, runner up at Wimbledon in 1961, is one of Britain's most distinguished tennis players. Enjoy the strawberries in the sunshine!