Issue 7 - Summer 2013

News from the heart of Downe
Summer Term 2013 Issue 7
Farewell to the Year of 2013
INSIDE:
DH LINKS
Entrepreneurs Day
page 10
Founder’s Weekend 2013
page 13
Wedding Album
page 25
Meet the team
Mia Bolt-Lawrence
Have you recently moved, changed your email address or phone number?
You can simply update your details online:
http://www.downehouse.net/foundation/update_details_form.asp
Or email us at:
foundation@downehouse.net
ICE
Update your details online
T I ON O
DA
FF
F OUN
Mia Bolt-Lawrence joined Downe House in
March 2013 as cover for Mrs Lucy O’Meara
while she is away on maternity leave.
Previously Mia worked for a local event
company, organising and supporting charity
fundraising teams and corporate music
events. As a member of the Foundation team
Mia is very much enjoying getting to know
the girls and the staff as well as the dynamics
of the school. She is quickly learning that
no two days are the same here at Downe!
Mia provides the administration support
that the department needs to continue to
move forward and grow. Since joining the
team, Mia has been busy collating replies
for the recent reunions, and she has found it
fascinating to learn what you have all been
up to since leaving Downe, and getting to
know the alumnae, girls and parents.
Magazine team:
Editor-in-chief Michelle Scott
Features Anna Renton-Green
Designer Satvinder Orton
Sub-editor Claire Powell
Cloisters
CONTENTS Cover story: Farewell to the Year of 2013
4-5
Palmer Society Evensong and Tea
6-7
Downe House Around the World
8
Year of 2003 Reunion
9
DH LINKS - Entrepreneurs Day
DHSA News
4
10-11
12
Founder’s Weekend 2013
13-15
Georgina Johnston’s Mongolian Adventure
16-17
Sarah Searight (DH 1956)
20
Jennifer Davies
20
Au revoir Alison and Rodney Gwatkin
21
Downe House Archives
22
Gap Year Fair 2013
22
In The Public Eye
23
National Success for Commando 23
Foundation Events
24
Wedding Album
25
13
25
Obituaries26-31
Staff Farewells and Updates
31
Dates for the Diary
32
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 3
f
arewell to the
year of 2013
On July 3rd 2013 we said farewell to the Upper Sixth. Our special guest at this year’s Prize Giving was DH alumna
Dr Rebecca Oldfield. We wish all the leavers the very best as they embark on the next phase of their lives and hope that
they will keep in touch with us all here at Downe House. Here’s to the Ten-Year Reunion in 2023!
4 CLOISTERS Issue 7
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 5
Palmer society
Evensong and Tea
E
lizabeth Palmer was one of Downe’s
remarkable pupils. There are, of course,
so many remarkable women amongst our
alumnae of the past one hundred years, but
Elizabeth is one who particularly stands out for
the quiet, constant and unwavering support
she gave to the School throughout her long life.
Elizabeth joined Downe in the Michaelmas
term of 1923 when she was fourteen. Her
father, Eustace Palmer was part of the Palmer
dynasty that owned the huge Huntley and
Palmer biscuit empire in Reading. He was
a friend of Miss Willis and this friendship
sparked a connection between the Palmer
family and Downe that exists to this day.
At School, Elizabeth was known as an
accomplished and generous musician.
She is frequently mentioned in magazine
reports as a stalwart member of the Music
Society, accompanying performances by
the school orchestra as well as coaching
and conducting the younger players.
She was also an active member of the
Debating and Historical Societies, reading
papers and debating subjects as diverse as
Trade Unions and the Conservative party.
Elizabeth joined the School Guide Company
on her arrival at School. This was an
extremely popular extra-curricular activity
and she worked her way up through the
ranks, eventually becoming a Guide Captain
after she left School, and returning to run
the 4th Company for several years. She also
gave talks to the girls, acted as secretary to
6 CLOISTERS Issue 7
Miss Willis, and helped to accommodate
the scores of Old Seniors who arrived
for Seniors’ Weekends over the years.
On Miss Willis’s retirement in 1946, Elizabeth
became Vice-Principal for Miss Medley,
remaining in post until 1948. This cannot
have been an easy change for the School,
which, in Miss Willis, had had only one
headmistress since its inception in 1907.
Elizabeth’s close links with staff, parents
and Old Seniors must have been a great
support to Miss Medley. Even after her own
retirement Elizabeth continued in her support
of the School, serving as a governor till 1964.
Her retirement was far from quiet. She lived
over the road at Fencewood House where she
regularly entertained School staff, some of
whom lived in one wing of Fencewood. But
she also travelled extensively and kept up
with a large network of friends from Downe.
Elizabeth (3rd from left) and her friends from School in 1924
Clare Risoe, who with her husband Paul,
was resident at Fencewood for a number
of years and became close friends with
Elizabeth wrote of her natural reserve and
modesty, preferring to let others take the
lead in conversation when in fact she was
hugely knowledgeable about a vast range
of subjects. She particularly loved travelling
and climbing, and became an accomplished
climber both in the European Alps and the
mountains of Wales. Clare particularly
remembers Elizabeth’s dedication to her
Russian Orthodox faith. She converted to
Orthodoxy in 1950 and was a member of
the Russian Convent of the Annunciation
in London. She worked on a translation of
The Art of Prayer: An Orthodox Anthology
from Russian into English that has
remained in print all over the world.
left a considerable legacy to the School in
recognition of her ‘exhilarating’ experience of
life as a schoolgirl at Downe, in appreciation
of Olive Willis’s educational aims and
unique character, and in recognition of
the friendships she made Downe that
remained strong until the end of her life.
Throughout her retirement, Elizabeth never
lost interest or connection with Downe,
frequently attending events at School and
lending quiet support to a range of School
activities. Clare Risoe wrote in her obituary,
“She followed the progress of the School
closely and was one of its most ardent
supporters”. And on her death, Elizabeth
An inaugural event was held in April this
year to acknowledge Elizabeth and the other
members of the Palmer Society whose legacies
and pledges are helping to ensure the future
of the School. Following a celebratory tea in
the dining room, an Evensong was held in the
School Chapel, led by the Chaplain, Father
Simon Thorn, and the Headmistress, Mrs
Elizabeth’s legacy is therefore a hugely
important one for Downe. Her belief in the
School and its future, and her generosity
in ensuring Downe’s continued, longterm development are of enormous
significance. It is in her memory that the
Palmer Society has been established: a
society to bring together like-minded Old
Seniors, former staff, and friends of the
School who have pledged gifts and legacies
that will help secure Downe’s future.
Emma McKendrick. We were also delighted
to welcome former Headmistress, Miss
Suzanne Farr, who read the Old Testament
lesson in the Service. Among the guests were
Old Seniors, former staff, and Mrs Davina
Palmer, who represented the Palmer family.
This event was the first of what will be a
yearly commemoration of Elizabeth Palmer’s
inspirational connection with Downe
House, and recognition of the continuing
interest in, and support of, the School
by the members of the Palmer Society.
For more information about joining the Palmer
Society and how to make gifts and pledges to
the future development of the School, please
see the details on the School website: http://
downehouse.net/foundation/palmer_society.
asp or contact foundation@downehouse.net
(Below) Miss Suzanne Farr - Headmistress
1978-1989
DH Around
The World
reunions in singapore and hong kong
It was such a pleasure to catch up
with the Downe House community in
Singapore on 17th April 2013. Bay@5 at
the Mandarin Oriental Hotel provided the
perfect setting for the drinks party. More
than 20 current parents, alumnae and
prospective families mixed together as
the sun set over the Singapore waterfront.
Just a few weeks later Mrs McKendrick
joined me for a four day action-packed visit
to Hong Kong. We were treated to some
wonderful hospitality by our Downe House
families. One of the highlights of our trip
was an evening spent with the alumnae
and former staff community now living and
working in the East. The Waterside Café at
the Island Shangri-La treated us to some
wonderful food as we chatted about the lives
of the alumnae since their Downe House
days. We hope to visit again in October 2014.
Mrs Michelle Scott
(Assistant Headmistress – Foundation)
8 CLOISTERS Issue 7
10 Year Reunion
Year of 2003
Following the success of the ten-year reunions
held in the past two years, the Foundation
Office team organised a reunion for the Year
of 2003 at The Landsdowne Club on 9th
May. There was a wonderful response from
the alumnae of that year and we had nearly
sixty Old Seniors – over two-thirds of the
original year group together for the evening.
In true Downe style, the roof was raised with
chatter and laughter so that people passing
in the street (four floors below) wondered
what on earth was going on. Whilst a
good number of the girls still see each
other regularly, there was a lot of catching
up between people who hadn’t seen each
other since leaving School, and, we suspect,
a good deal of impromptu networking!
We were delighted to see so many of our
alumnae and to hear first-hand about
their incredibly wide-ranging careers and
the fantastic experiences they have had
over the past ten years. Here’s to their
continued success and the next reunion!
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 9
entrepreneurs day
LOOK OUT !
The girls are coming
Move over Alan Sugar - there’s a whole new breed
of young female entrepreneurs headed for world
domination!
DH LINKS hosted its inaugural Entrepreneurs Day for
the Upper Fifth girls as part of their preparation for
Sixth Form. We welcomed business gurus alongside
four very successful young alumnae entrepreneurs for
a ‘Dragons’ Den’ style day. The winning team pitched a
website development idea for Lizzie Fane’s (DH 2004)
‘Third Year Abroad’ company.
Kate Finch, founder of ‘Juniors Pantry’ was our guest
speaker and, following the event she tweeted “Had the
most inspiring evening at @DowneFoundation 16 yr
old girls with fab business ideas and grt presentations
#lookoutthegirlsarecoming.”
Our entrepreneurs for the day were Lizzie Fane (DH
2004): ‘Third Year Abroad’, Harriot Pleydell-Bouverie
(DH 2003): ‘Mallow and Marsh’, Olivia Francis (DH
2004): ‘Hamilton and Hare’, Theodora Clarke (DH 2003):
‘Russian Art and Culture’.
10 CLOISTERS Issue 7
DH LINKS is a joint venture between the Foundation Office and the Careers Department, offering networking links
and a focal point for any current students or alumnae who want to share or receive careers-based knowledge,
guidance and information.
DH LINKS incorporates many different initiatives including:
•
•
•
•
•
A centrally-managed database for alumnae to fill in a personal profile including details about their own career paths; alumnae and current girls can gain access to this by filling in online forms and contacting the Foundation Office
Careers events at Downe House for current girls in the form of talks/workshops from alumnae about their career pathways, jobs and business ventures
Professional cluster groups/networking events in various locations for alumnae
DH LINKS group on social networks for professional information sharing and networking as a social platform
Internship offers and business advertising by alumnae for current girls, recent leavers and fellow alumnae
For more information, please contact Laura Ogilvie-Jones:
01635 204722 dhlinks@downehouse.net
LinkedIN - DH LINKS group
Twitter - DH LINKS groups
LinkedIn
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 11
News
Reunions in October 2013 for
Old Seniors who left between
1990 and 2000
SAVE THE DATE!
Drinks Party for DHSA members
1990 - 1995 Thursday 10th October 2013 - 7.00pm- 9.00pm
1995 – 2000 Thursday 17th October 2013 - 7.00pm – 9.00pm
The Troubadour
263 - 7 Old Brompton Road, London,
SW5 9JA
Please spread the word!
Invitations will be sent out in August
Tickets will be issued on a ‘first come,
first served basis’.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO REGISTER
YOUR INTEREST or NEED FURTHER
INFORMATION PLEASE EMAIL
CATHERINE PALMER
dhsareplies@gmail.com
Can you help to trace any of the following?
The DHSA would like to get in touch with the following Old Seniors or their relations/descendants.
Heather Barling (Craigmile DH1942)
Heather Galbraith (DH1947)
Angela Hepburn (Guthrie DH1955)
Margaret Lane (Ford DH1937)
Sonia Lindsay (DH1952)
Sarah Soames (DH1960)
We would be most grateful for any
information.
Please contact Mrs J Kingsland at
School Telephone: 01635 204774 or
Email: kingslandj@downehouse.net
The Retreat, a gorgeous 2 bedroom cottage, with
bathroom, kitchen and airy sitting room, is situated
in the grounds of Witherdens Hall and offers a
relaxing break in tranquil surroundings. Egyptian
cotton sheets, a spa bath, fluffy towelling robes,
organic bath oils and a magnet healing bed all add
up to a fabulously restful stay. Organic food can be
served to order using produce from the garden and
the local organic farm shop, or guests can prepare
food themselves. Holistic treatments and use of the
ChillSpace with far infra-red sauna, steam cabinet,
shiatsu massage chair are also available to guests. A
stay can be combined with one of the inspiring and
fun workshops and courses that are often running at
Witherdens Hall.
Louise Chester (Cox DH 1983)
Email: info@witherdenshall.co.uk |
http://www.witherdenshall.co.uk
12 CLOISTERS Issue 7
FOUN
ND
KE
R’S WEE
DE
Founder’s Weekend 2013
14 CLOISTERS Issue 7
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 15
Adventure on
the Mongolian Steppe
In August, Georgina Johnston (DH 2008) and her brother James, who is at Radley, are competing in the
Mongol Derby, the world’s longest horse race: 35 riders racing self-guided on semi-wild ponies for 1000km
across the Mongolian steppes, in order to raise money for the Radley Foundation Armed Forces Fund.
The Mongol Derby
The Longest Horse Race in the World
T
he Mongol Derby is a famously epic
1,000km horse race across the Mongolian
steppe. It is the longest and toughest
horse race in the world and it recreates
the ancient postal system established
by Chinggis Khaan in 1224. He used a
huge network of horse stations (known as
Morin Urtuus in Mongolian) to enable his
messengers to gallop from Khakhorin to the
Caspian Sea in a number of days. Chinggis
Khaan’s network has been revived in modern
times to create a unique and testing fundraising event that draws competitors from
all over the world. This summer, Downe
House alumna Georgina Johnston and her
brother James will join around thirty other
riders to undertake this gruelling challenge.
But what made them decide to choose
this particularly punishing race? There is
a rather alarming warning on the website
stating that, “By taking part in this race
you are greatly increasing your risk of
severe physical injury or even death.”
The Mongol Derby is clearly no picnic;
16 CLOISTERS Issue 7
in fact, it is a supremely dangerous race
that demands intense survival skills and
stamina alongside highly proficient riding
skills. The application procedure for the
race is incredibly thorough and includes
an interview and riding references to prove
that applicants are up to the challenge.
In addition, the race organisers stage a
trial run the day before the start of the
race, and if they don’t think a competitor
is up to it, they won’t be allowed to start
the following day. As yet, no competitors
have been banned from starting because
the entry regulations are so tough that
the organisers are already certain of riders’
ability when they accept them for the race.
It is an enormous undertaking, and Georgina
(who qualifies as a vet in July) admits to
being a little nervous, however she is also
very aware that this is the adventure of a
lifetime. “As with everything in life, there are
risks and we have to accept that. I believe it is
important to make the most of life and while
we’re prepared for worst case scenarios,
we are not unduly worried by them.”
A keen traveller, Georgina has never been
anywhere at all similar to Mongolia, so
the huge cultural differences and remote
landscapes will be a real eye-opener. The
nomadic herder culture of Mongolia, still
mostly untouched by Western influence, is
one of the things that she is most looking
forward to experiencing. Mongolian culture
is reputedly very welcoming to strangers and
the competitors stay in the herders’ camps
some nights and will experience the lifestyle
first-hand. Whilst the Johnston children
were been taught from a young age to try
lots of different foods (“however disgusting”)
and feel they can cope with that aspect of
Mongolian life, the language difference
may prove a barrier. Georgina admits that,
although she has been looking up some key
phrases in Mongolian, there is likely to be
a lot of sign language going on. Currently
her most useful Mongolian phrase is,“Please
could you help me catch my horse?”
The entire race is self-guided and, whilst
competitors are GPS tracked in case of
emergencies (and to prevent riders from
continuing into the night when their
horses are tired), they are simply given
the GPS coordinates for each station; it is
completely up to each rider which route
they take to reach their destination. If the
worse comes to the worst they can activate
their alarm devices and the support team
will come to rescue them, but that will
mean a disappointing disqualification,
something every rider wants to avoid.
So fitness, stamina and a cool head under
pressure are the key components for this
race – in addition, of course, to being a
superb rider. Georgina feels that the biggest
challenge will be the strain on her legs
from trotting and cantering ten hours a
day for the seven to eight days it will take
to complete the race. Her training regime
includes cycling and running to build up
leg muscles, building up cardio and core
strength and plenty of long-distance rides.
Both Georgina and James have been riding
from a young age and wanted a challenge
that would test their riding abilities and
survival skills to the extreme in a new and
strange environment. The opportunity to
combine it with fundraising also seemed to
make this the ideal challenge, particularly
as Georgina wants to specialise in Equine
Veterinary Medicine and James is considering
an Army career. Georgina says,“James and I
have very strong ties to the Armed Forces
through friends and family, making this is a
cause close to our hearts. We are all aware
of the tremendous courage that our troops
show on our behalf and the great debt of
gratitude we owe to them. It is therefore
a great privilege to be able to support the
Armed Forces Fund to ensure that the
children of our servicemen and women,
who are killed whilst in active service or
discharged as a result of wounds or injuries,
have access to the brilliant education
that Downe House and Radley can offer”.
We wish Georgina and James every
success in their exciting adventure, and
hope that plenty of alumnae will help
them to reach their target of raising
£2,000 for the Armed Forces Fund.
Georgina would be very grateful to
hear from anyone who is able to
offer sponsorship. Please contact her
through her website www.johnstonexpedition.co.uk for further details.
A venture such as this is a huge logistical and
financial challenge just to get competitors
to Mongolia. In order to cover the costs of
flights and equipment, Georgina and James
are looking for corporate sponsorship. They
can offer advertising space on their team
riding clothing, on their team websites, both
their internal pages on the Mongol Derby
website and also on their external website.
They can also offer the possibility overage.
The race attracts wide interest in equestrian
and adventure sports circles and there is
currently a series airing on Sky TV - ‘The Ride
- Race Across the Steppe’ – which follows
competitors on the Mongol Derby 2012.
To donate to Georgina and James’ ride,
please go to their Just Giving page:
h t t p : / / w w w. j u s t g i v i n g . c o m /
MongolDerby2013-ArmedForcesFund
You can learn more about the
Derby
on
the
official
website:
http://www.theadventurists.com/
the-adventures/mongol-derby
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 17
Chasing a well-travelled stone – Lapis Lazuli
by Sarah Searight (dh 1956)
Miss Barnsley taught the English A level course in my day (early 1950s) and it was she who unwittingly inspired the
chase of my title. And that led, after many years of travel, to a book I published 18 months ago (just out in a second
edition). The book is about the chase.
A
poem Miss B. introduced us to was
Robert Browning’s ‘The Bishop orders
his tomb in St Praxed’s church’. In the poem
the bad-tempered bishop, on his death bed,
is ordering his sons (should he as a good
Catholic have sons?) to go to one of his
vineyards (clearly a wealthy Bishop, hmm?)
and under the stone of the oil press they will
find a lump of lapis lazuli, “blue as the vein
o’er the Madonna’s breast” which he wants
placed between his knees on the tomb; it will
facilitate his access to heaven.
I’ve looked high and low for such a vein in
paintings of Madonnas, without success,
but I have found many a lump of lapis as I
travelled, sometimes as a journalist, latterly
as lecturer on Islamic art in the Middle East
and Central Asia, always as a hunter with an
eye out for this much-travelled stone.
The only good quality lapis originates in
remote north-eastern Afghanistan. The
blue colour comes from aluminium silicate;
it is often streaked with white calcite and
contains inclusions of ‘fool’s gold’ – iron
pyrites. From my first little lump given by
an uncle working in India, I’ve revered it for
that deep, sometimes almost purple colour.
But then, like the Bishop, I began to revere
it for its sanctity, especially when I realised,
in my travels round the Middle East and in
museums with antiquities from the region (eg
the British Museum), how the ancients had
revered it. Seven-thousand-year-old burials
18 CLOISTERS Issue 7
in Pakistan, four and a half thousand years
ago in Iran, southern Iraq and Syria and then
way up the Nile. There’s a tiny lapis woman
in the Ashmolean found by archaeologists
up river from Luxor in Egypt – first her finely
carved body in 1897 and then amazingly, ten
years later, her head, go and hunt for her in
the museum! Tutankhamun was of course
buried with lapis scarabs to placate the gods.
On into the Middle Ages and we find the
Muslim world where lapis was was used in
the form of amulets to protect the traveller;
I’ve acquired over the years several protective
medallions and rings carved with quotations
from the Qur’an, as well as a tiny trade bead
on the banks of the River Niger in Mali which
I reckon might have accompanied a Muslim
pilgrim perhaps from Afghanistan to Mecca
and from there across the Sahara to Mali.
Now we move to lapis ground to powder
and used as paint or pigment. The grinding
is hard work – I’ve tried it with an artist
neighbour – and it is preferably done by
slaves or apprentices (next best thing) or
devout monks. Why the monks? Celestial
stone for celestial beings: painted Buddhas
first, then Madonnas. I was travelling in
north-west China – Xinjiang – and came to
the amazing Buddhist Kizil caves (3rd -7th
century AD) – north of the great Taklamakan
desert and there on the great stone-carved
Buddha are faint traces of blue pigment
and all over the plastered walls swathes of
wonderful bright blue, as blue as the day it
was painted – lapis lazuli of course!
Then I began looking out for the colour
in medieval Europe and pursued it from
Armenian churches in Turkey (Armenian
merchants travelled all over the place), to
Constantinople/Istanbul, through the Balkans,
southern Italy, France and most amazingly to
some tiny remote churches in the mountains
of. And finally we come to early Renaissance
painting and those exquisite Madonnas. No
blue veins, but beautiful robes painted in the
purest lapis – oltramarino/ultramarine, ‘from
across the seas’. Go for the Wilton diptych
next time you’re in the National Gallery and
you’ll see what I mean.
The search has been for me an extraordinarily
illuminating and stimulating adventure. Miss
Barnsley also introduced us to Tennyson’s
‘Ulysses’ and his injunction to trek that
“untravelled world”; I strongly recommend
his advice!
Sarah’s book, Lapis Lazuli - In Pursuit of
a Celestial stone is available on Amazon
or from Sarah – sarah@searightlush.
com. £18.95 excl p&p.
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 19
Happy 70th Birthday to Ruth Norton (DH 1959)
who celebrated her birthday with a party of old friends from
Downe, some of whom had not seen each other for over 50 years!
Ruth wrote, that: “The party was given for me, as a
70th birthday present, by Nicola Hulbert’s daughter
(and my Godchild) Miranda McKinlay in her house
near Guildford. Miranda made us all so welcome
and gave us a simply delicious lunch and it was just
warm enough to have drinks in the garden! Everyone
much enjoyed meeting Miranda and her three boys
(the last time Julia Bourne had seen Miranda, she
was in her pram and most had never met her).”
Celebrating with Ruth were Nicola Hulbert
(Stobart), Jackie Shepherd-Cross (Roberts), Fenella
Evans-Tipping (Morrison), Joanna Tollemache
(Phillips), Gilly Walsh Kemmis (McCall) - who flew
all the way from Eire especially - Juliet Dunsmore
(Warburton), Julia Ball (Hill), Julia Bourne (Cleave)
and Sue Cobham (Townsend). They had a really
lovely day reminiscing on their days at Downe and
catching up on each other’s lives since leaving School.
Ruth says,
“We intend to do it again in another ten years time!” and we are sure they will!
The Jennifer Davies Cup
A new Music Award was created this year to acknowledge one of Downe’s
finest long-standing musicians, Miss Jennifer Davies (DH 1938).
Jennifer is one of the select few who received Music Colours during her
time at Downe and still very proudly wears her beautiful silver brooch.
She is currently very busy playing first violin with the Newbury Symphony
Orchestra, singing with the Church choir and playing Chamber Music.
This year the Jennifer Davies Cup was awarded to Lower Sixth student
Felicity Burton for her work with the Flute Quartet/Quintet. Felicity was
the ideal candidate for her outstanding commitment and involvement in
Chamber Music.
20 CLOISTERS Issue 7
Veyrines
Au revoir et bonne chance
A few farewell messages to
Alison Gwatkin…
Back in 1989, I was in the LIV and part
of a very long gallery dormitory. We were
having a great time, apple bobbing after
‘lights out’, when suddenly we heard the
clip clop of high heels coming along the
gallery. We were all on high alert, hearts
pounding. Fortunately, in order to access
our room, the staff had to walk to the
far end of the gallery. This gave us time
to slide the bucket of water and apples
under someone’s bed and then leap
under our covers and pretend we were
asleep. We all waited in silence, hoping
we’d got away with it.
There came a knock at the door and then
in strode Mrs Gwatkin. “Tessa Smith”,
she called. I gulped... how had she known
I’d been involved, and why just me?! I
sheepishly responded. Then to my great
relief, Mrs Gwatkin joyfully announced
that my nephew had been born. I couldn’t
have been more delighted ... doubly so! )
I really enjoyed Mrs Gwatkin as a
housemistress. She was warm, fair and
kind. I wish her much happiness in her
retirement.
Best wishes,Tessa Davies (Smith) at DH 1988-1995
Dear Mrs Gwatkin,
Dear Mrs Gwatkin,
I have such fond memories of my
Tedworth days, of which you were a
central part. They were very happy days.
I will always have deeply fond memories
of Downe House and in particular
Tedworth. I made lifelong friends there
and I will always remember Ebony
looking after me when I was homesick.
You may remember, you would bring me
in to your flat, I’d sit on the sofa, crying
a bit as Mum and Dad were living in
American and then Ebony would come
and sit by me, and try and jump up and
it would make me laugh. It was like she
always knew when someone was sad.
So sweet. And you were always kind in
understanding homesickness.
But of course Tedworth lives on in us all Tilly Forster, Tessa Brodrick and Isobel Abel
Smith (that were) are godmothers to my
children. I have a pot of (home-made) jam
in the fridge from Nina Large who visited
last week, and will wear a Sophie Cranston
dress creation to a wedding this weekend
- etc, etc!
I must confess, however, that I still
cringe horribly to remember the brace
of (unplucked!!) pheasants my mother
insisted you would like for your Christmas
gift each year - left dangling on your
front door, alongside all the beautifully
wrapped gifts and parcels!
I know Downe House will miss you, but I
wish you and your family all the best in
your retirement.
Katherine (Norman-Butler), (DH 1994)
It truly takes one hell of a Mother Hen to
nurture so many ‘good eggs’!
Thank you Mrs Gwatkin for taking care of
us as it we were your own.
Love and best wishes for a peaceful
retirement, Charlotte Gray and Alice
White (née Porter), (DH 1990-1996)
I hope you have a fantastic retirement.
Talk about well deserved!
Love, Miranda (Hart), (DH 1991) x
Celia and Holly (Mackie) wish Alison
Gwatkin all the best with her retirement.
I certainly remember my days at
Tedworth well.
With love and best wishes from the
hundreds of Downe House ‘girls’ you
have nurtured and supported over the
years.
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 21
downe house archives
Can you help?
The Archives at Downe are a fantastic resource and you will have seen in the pages of Cloisters just a very
small example of the wonderful photographs we hold.
However, we are always looking for ways to expand the collection, to identify individuals, and to fill in
the gaps for those decades for which we have very limited photographic records (in particular the 1960s,
1970s and 1980s).
Of greatest value are photos that are named and dated, so if you have any records of your own school days
(or those of relatives) that you would consider lending to us for digital copying, we would be most grateful.
We are also very interested in obtaining copies of ciné-film/video of School events, again that we might
borrow to be digitally copied.
Looking ahead, 2014 is the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. Downe will be curating an online exhibition of the School’s life
during the war years so we are also seeking any Downe memorabilia from this era to feature in the exhibition.
If you are able to help, please contact the archivist, Mrs Jennifer Kingsland at the school address, or contact her via email at
kingslandj@downehouse.net
Gap year
Fair 2013
It was lovely to see a number of DH
alumnae at this year’s Gap Year Fair.
Pictured from left to right: Henri Merriam,
Louisa Bradford, Emma McKendrick, Lucy
Speelman, Michelle Scott and Livs Andrew
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In The Public eye
BAFTA for ‘Made in Chelsea’
Award winning year for Clare
Love it or loathe it, ‘Made in Chelsea’
scooped the BAFTA for Best Reality and
Constructed Factual at the BAFTA awards in
May 2013.
Broadcaster and journalist Clare Balding
(DH 1988) has been awarded an OBE in
the Queen’s Birthday Honours list, just a
few weeks after she collected a special
BAFTA award to recognise her on-screen
contributions to the Olympic and Paralympic
games.
Pictured below are MIC cast members Louise
Thompson (DH 2008) and Rosie Fortescue
(DH 2008)
Born into a horse training family, she
became an amateur flat jockey. She joined
BBC Radio in 1994 and made her TV debut
the following year, becoming a familiar face
in horse racing coverage.
When she collected her special award from
BAFTA, Balding said that it was important to
stick to “the things that make your heart sing.
Don’t do something because you think it’ll
make you famous, do it because you love it.”
National success for Commando
Commando
represented the
South East in
the National
Company of the
Year Finals of
Young Enterprise
having already
won area, county
and regional
competitions
earlier this year.
On 1st July the
team had to face a
day of gruelling interviews with the six judges before delivering an excellent presentation
to a packed audience at Kensington Town Hall, London. The evening was hosted by Oli
Barrett of StartUp Britain and Steph McGovern, business presenter from BBC Breakfast.
As shown in the picture Commando did not miss the opportunity for a photo with special
guests SB.TV’s Jamal Edwards and Michael Acton Smith, Founder and CEO of Mind Candy
(Moshi Monsters), sporting Commando beanies!
More than 26,000 young people took part in this year’s Company programme running 2,000
real businesses across the UK, Channel Islands and Gibraltar, so we are immensely proud of
Commando who won the National Excellence in Marketing Award and were third overall.
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 23
foundation events
Downe House in Scotland
holding a lunch party for pre-1990 alumnae
at Culloden House Hotel in Inverness on
Tuesday 27th August. Some invitations have
already been sent out, but we are aware
that some address details for our alumnae
are not up-to-date, so if you live in the
Highlands and Islands, or within easy reach
of Inverness and are interested in joining us
for this event, please get in touch.
Regular readers of Cloisters will have noticed
that we are attempting to become more
global in our organisation of reunion events
for Old Seniors! We appreciate that travel
to events held in London is often prohibitive
and we are actively seeking to hold events
that will reach a wider circle of our alumnae.
After two very successful gatherings in
New Zealand at Christmas, we are now
turning our attention a little closer to home
to organise a gathering for alumnae living
in the northern part of Scotland. We are
We are also looking ahead to November to
organise a similar gathering in Edinburgh for
those alumnae in the south of Scotland and
the Borders, and would be delighted to hear
from you if you are interested in attending.
Email: foundation@downehouse.net
CREATIVE ARTS
SHOWCASE
Wednesday 25th and Thursday 26th
September 2013
7.30pm – 9.30pm
Performing Arts Centre, Downe House
Thursday 19th September 2013, 6.30pm - 9.30pm
Lansdowne Club, Mayfair, London
24 CLOISTERS Issue 7
For more information please contact
the Foundation Office
foundation@downehouse.net
01635 204719
Wedding album...
Something to celebrate
1
Louisa Marsh DH 2004
(now Mrs. Fitzherbert)
2
Rosie Priestley DH 2003
(now Mrs. Sydney-Smith)
3
Edwina Cazenove DH 2002
(now Mrs. Peters)
4
Annabel Watt DH 2004
(now Mrs. Jefferson)
Photographs courtesy of our Facebook friends
2
1
3
4
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 25
Obituary
Elizabeth Letitia Deverell (Duncan - DH 1946)
(13/12/1929 - 08/04/2013)
T
he Foundation Office received news in
April of the death of Elizabeth Deverell.
Her son John spoke at her funeral on 18th
April and we share his wonderful and
evocative remembrance of his mother.
“Sorry for a little lateness in starting this
service – in accordance with my mother’s
view that time is elastic. She likened
timekeeping to packing (much to my father’s
frustration, at times): if you can shut your
suitcase, it means you can get more into it.
Thank you to all of you for coming. That
some of you are here is testament to the
power of Facebook. My mother might have
been surprised by that. Thank you too for the
letters and emails which Virginia, my sister,
and I have received. Through your stories,
you remind us of the huge sense of fun
which my parents enjoyed, the many parties,
adventures at home and abroad, and general
zest for life.
My mother always said that the secret of a
good marriage was having the same length
in stirrup leathers. That’s not surprising
26 CLOISTERS Issue 7
in that my mother was six foot – not far
off my father’s height, as you see from
the photographs on the back of the order
of service. Despite my mother’s Scottish
ancestry, tallness ran in her family. My
grandfather – my mother’s father – referred
to his wife and three daughters as his “eight
yards of women”. I shan’t forget the four of
them standing tall and shoulder to shoulder,
heads held high, at my grandfather’s funeral
years ago.
My mother – as did my father – lived as a
child initially in Dorset. She was born in
Bovington camp. Whatever my mother’s
views about the colour of her blood, the
reality is that it ran pure British Army scarlet,
as the daughter, husband and mother of
soldiers. My mother was not given to tears
– indeed, she had strong views about tears,
as she and her generation did about many
things. But she did admit to crying when she
folded up my father’s Army uniforms for the
last time, after he embarked on ‘civvie street’.
My mother’s life was shaped in many ways
by my father’s. She followed the colours
faithfully and with much enjoyment for
many years, to live in various places round
the world, some exotic and some less so.
Home was wherever they found themselves.
Although the two families knew each other
in Dorset, she might never have married my
father if my grandmother hadn’t exhorted
her to write to him in hospital after he had
been wounded in a Mau Mau ambush when
he was soldiering in Africa. Much to her
surprise my father responded to her letter –
and the rest, as they say, is history.
For energy and pace of life my mother and
father were well matched. As the Spectator
Magazine wrote about my father after his
death, quoting Surtees, he “rode through life
as though he had a spare neck in his pocket”.
Keeping up with my father was a fairly fulltime business for my mother. Thus she selfdisparagingly described herself as, “more
a wife than a mother”. But that doesn’t do
justice to the love and support she showered
on us, her two children.
What about her other qualities? The virtue
she admired the most was courage – both
physical and moral courage - and in this she
set a good example. She sometimes quoted
to me, when she felt that I was being slow
in taking a stand about something, “All
it takes for evil to flourish is for good men
to do nothing.” And she strongly believed
in courage in personal adversity. As a poet
says, “Life is mostly froth and bubble;/ two
things stand like stone:/ kindness in another’s
trouble,/ courage in one’s own.” I also found
the following quote from Shakespeare’s Julius
Caesar amongst her things, scribbled by her
on a piece of notepaper from the American
Colony Hotel in Jerusalem, “Cowards die
many times before their deaths./ The valiant
never taste of death but once./ Of all the
wonders that I yet have heard/ it seems to me
most strange that men should fear, as/ seeing
that death, a necessary end,/ will come when
it will come.” She would certainly not have
been concerned about her ending.
And she had had her scrapes in the past.
About 20 years ago she broke her neck the
other side of almost the last hedge of the last
day of that hunting season - and ended up in
Yeovil hospital. It was an excuse for parties
on the ward with her many visitors, rather
than bewailing her fate. It was all in keeping
with her exhortation to “take a risk”, which
is how she responded – with a broad smile when people urged her to “take care”, as one
hears so often as an alternative to “goodbye”.
More recently, she and several friends, all
ladies of a certain age – including her sister
Janet - went on a riding safari in Kenya. They
were nicknamed “the galloping grannies”
after they had narrowly escaped a charging
elephant. It was left to their hardened guide
to do the worrying on their behalf – they
were having far too much enjoyment to be
frightened. “But you might have fallen off!”
he said. “But we didn’t!” they responded.
My mother was fiercely independent. The only
weed in which she was interested was the
one which might have the temerity to show
its face in her garden – until the government
banned smoking indoors. Whereupon she
took up smoking with a vengeance, offering
cigarettes to all visitors. Whether or not she
enjoyed smoking was of no importance.
Duty before pleasure, whether in support
of, or against, Her Majesty’s Government.
Similarly, she marched in public protest –
not once but several times - against plans
to ban foxhunting. And she was independent
and intrepid in her travelling, too. She and
my father travelled in China, the Soviet
Union and places such as Albania and Syria
– conversing with the locals and painting,
well off the beaten track, many years before
it became fashionable to go to those sorts
of places. As always, there were adventures
and narrow escapes from the clutches of
officialdom, recounted with gusto on their
return.
She had catholic tastes, enjoying the arts as
much as outdoor pursuits. Her favourite poem
was ‘The owl and the pussy cat’, powerful in
its simplicity. She enjoyed Lear’s painting as
much as his poetry. And she was a dedicated
subscriber to charity, baking, sewing, painting
and donating on behalf of causes both local
and beyond. Partly through her love for
sailing, she was sensitive to the stars. Her
favourite was Orion, the hunter, which she
observed brilliant in the sky in the nights
following my father’s fatal fall out hunting.
I also noted Orion high in the night sky, after
she had gone to hospital immediately before
her death. And she told us several times –
perhaps only partly in jest – that my father
would greet her on her arrival in heaven – as
she hoped, being a woman of strong religious
faith – with the words, “Hurry up, I’ve got
you Pegasus to ride, and it’s a fantastic meet
today, we need to get on with it!”
Horses of any sort, not just the winged
ones, were central to her life. She pinned up
in our tack room this quote from GBS, “Go
anywhere in England, where there are natural,
wholesome, contented and really nice people,
and what do you always find? That the
stables are the real centre of the household.”
But with her it might as well have been the
kitchen, where the piglets used to jostle her
beloved jack russells to get closer to the AGA.
As far as animals were concerned, life was
informal and inclusive. I remember guests
where we lived in Hampshire being taken
aback when they found themselves sharing
the swimming pool with her mandarin ducks.
She couldn’t see anything strange in the
ducks being allowed to enjoy the pool as
much as anyone else.
As a friend wrote in a letter about her, “a
full life, and a quick passing – who could
ask for more?” And, at the end of the day,
notwithstanding everything I’ve said, it’s
the simple concepts which are the most
powerful, and which mattered to her: love
and dedication to friends and family. Some
months ago, I read her this, by Kipling, which
she liked, and with which I end,
“If I were hanged on the
highest hill, mother O’mine,
O mother O’mine, I know whose
love would follow me still. Mother
O’mine, O mother O’mine./ If
I were drowned in the deepest
sea, mother O’mine, O mother
O’mine, I know whose tears
would come down to me. Mother
O’mine, mother O’mine./ If I were
damned of body and soul, I know
whose prayers would make me
whole. Mother O’mine,
O mother O’mine.
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 27
Obituary
Pamela Keily: A Dramatic Life
(1910 – 1984)
Acting as a profession was not something
as completely alien to the Keily family as
it may have been for other families in the
1920s. Sybil Thorndike was a distant cousin
and Pamela was taken to see her on tour
in Dublin at the age of seven. She did not
remember understanding the play but was
“instantly convinced that this was the life
for me!”
I
n 1926, Pamela Keily, then aged fifteen or
so, confessed to her sister’s godfather that
she wanted to become an actress when she
left school. It so happened that her sister’s
godfather was James Seaton, shortly to
become Bishop of Wakefield who at some
point earlier in his life had met the famous
Shakespearean actress, Ellen Terry. He told
the young Pamela that Ellen Terry had said to
him, “Now remember my profession comes
next!” In her Memoirs, Keily remembers that,
“this gave ambitions of a theatrical life an
added halo in a child’s mind”.
She was sent to Downe in 1924 after the
death of her grandparents and loved life at
School. Drama was a key part of School life
and Pamela was able to take part in many
plays that fuelled her ambition even further.
She remembers that “a degree of outlet was
given at school and the chance to indulge
imaginary temperamental extremes – totally
unjustified, but just because I was ‘going to
be an actress’.”
Her earliest reviews appear in the School
magazines of that period. In the summer
term of 1925 The Alcestis of Euripides was
produced for Parents’ Weekend. The reviewer
wrote of Pamela,“… P. Keily as the handmaid
repeated with understanding and restraint
some of the most beautiful lines in the play.”
In 1927, Mademoiselle Agobert produced
Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac in celebration
of Miss Willis’s birthday. Again, the School
magazine records the performance, “The
part of Roxane was played by P. Keily, who
made a very spirited and very French heroine,
in spite of difficulties over her accent.” From
this (and from her final examination results,
which were in Modern History, English and
Arithmetic) it may be deduced that modern
languages were not perhaps Pamela’s forté,
although it is entirely characteristic of her
tenacity and professionalism as an actress
that she should triumph in a role speaking a
language other than her own!
The name Pamela Keily has now faded
somewhat from public consciousness, but
in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, Pamela
worked tirelessly as Diocesan producer of
Religious Plays for the northern dioceses of
Manchester, Sheffield, Ripon and Wakefield
bringing religious drama to diverse and
wide-ranging audiences across the north of
England.
Pamela Keily as the Handmaiden (centre) in Euripides’ Alcestis, 27th June 1925
28 CLOISTERS Issue 7
Pamela was also an active member of the
School Debating Society, and clearly a steely
foe across a debating table if the magazine
report of Michaelmas 1926 is anything to
go by. As an example of her clever wit, the
report of her success in debating is worth
quoting in full:
The last meeting was, like the second,
occupied with a flippant subject: “Whether
the Mink-Monk is superior to the DinkDonk.” P. Keily’s speech, which was really
witty and humorous is printed here as an
example of the lighter side of debate, and it
is to be hoped that it will encourage many
people to join the Society... In spite of Miss
Willis’s definition of a Mink-Monk as a
mincing minx, and of a Dink-Donk as
a thinking, profound creature, P. Keily’s
conceptions of a superior and man-like
monkey, and of an opulent and respectable
monk in mink fur, triumphed, and the
motion was won.
(DH Magazine, Michaelmas 1926)
After leaving School, and much to her own
surprise, Pamela auditioned successfully for
RADA following advice from Sybil Thorndike.
The training was two years, after which she
started work as an understudy that led
eventually to a role at the Playhouse Theatre
in Charing Cross. When this production
closed, unemployment loomed depressingly
ahead until, by chance, an opportunity arose
at the Chelsea Palace.
Two supremely religious productions,
performed by amateurs, with meticulous
discipline and rare beauty in their
presentation used to happen from time
to time at the Chelsea Palace. A Joyous
Pageant of the Nativity was established
and had a tradition that rarely allowed of
newcomers. The Merry Masque for Easter
was considerably less well known and this
was how I got my chance. I was cast as a
lunatic shepherd boy, doubled with a court
jester at the marriage at Cana! Once into
The Merry Masque it became possible to
acquire a small part in the Joyous Pageant.
(Pamela Keily, Memoirs)
Pamela may not have realised it at the
time, but this experience was to be the
lead into the religious drama that would
occupy her professional (and personal) life
for the remainder of her career. It would
lead to associations with playwrights such
as T S Eliot and Dorothy L Sayers, as well
developing lifelong friendships with Downe
girls, past and present, including Anne Ridler.
Pamela returned to Downe many times after
she left RADA to assist with the production
of the School plays – coaching the girls
patiently and expertly, and seeing to the
detail of the staging. In the summer of 1932
she produced The Myth of Bacon, which had
been written especially for the School and
that depicted Bacon’s search for wisdom. She
returned in 1933 to produce Shakespeare’s
The Tempest, and again in 1934 for Prunella.
In 1936, the School staged a historical
play that had been the brainchild of the
Historical Society, researched by the girls
and written by Miss Rowntree. Named The
Powder Plot, it explored the events leading
up to the ill-fated gunpowder plot against
James I. Pamela not only produced this play
but took the principal role of Catesby.
It was during this period that she met
Albinia Willis (née Oldfield) who became
stage manager for the Shakespeare plays
that Pamela worked on at Downe. Albinia
left School in 1936 to start her studies at
Cambridge, and was contacted by Pamela
just before Christmas in 1937.
Pam was to be Stage Manager for this
production [Joyous Pageant of the Nativity],
but the Angel Gabriel, Martin Browne,
was called to the USA and asked Pam to
take his place. After much soul-searching
she agreed, but what to do about the stage
management? I was hardly experienced,
but she knew me, and I knew she would
not let me flounder and fail the production.
My mother demurred at letting me loose in
London. Pam reassured her that I would
be safe since the Pageant had to be out of
the theatre in time for the twice nightly
Variety to be in by 6pm. Pam certainly
needed a hand. Those archangelic wings
were monstrous – quite unsuited to female
anatomy. She suffered physical agony and
therefore psychological anxiety. So over
those six weeks of incredible experiences
for me … our friendship began.
(Albinia Oldfield – memories of Pamela Keily)
Miss Willis and the Seniors – Summer term, 1927 Pamela is on the left of the back row
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 29
being presented in a quite unexpected
and powerful way…. And Olive Willis, my
intellectual ex-Headmistress, could only say,
‘Don’t speak to me or I’ll start crying again’!”
Pamela (far left) in The Way of the Cross Dartington Hall, 1940
The role in the Joyous Pageant of the
Nativity led to a part in T S Eliot’s Murder
in the Cathedral, which toured to New
York and Boston. During the war Pamela
toured with the Pilgrim Players, bringing
“the restorative power of drama” to wartime conditions and evacuees, before being
approached by the Religious Drama Society
to write a report on the possibility of drama
being used in association with the churches
of Sheffield.
And so began Pamela’s new career as a fulltime adviser and producer of religious drama.
From the very beginning she had no doubt
that the medium of drama could be of use
to the church when used in the right way.
“The great thing was”, she remembered in
her memoirs, “to explain how exciting good
‘religious drama’ could be. The necessity was
to break down the conception of nativity
plays with angels in butter muslin and the
idea that ‘Thee and Thou’ was a language
essential to church performance. It was risky
but I seem to remember saying that all good
drama was religious since all life belonged
to God. No one ventured to contradict but,
had they done so, I would have tried to
explain that good theatre means a shared
experience of life”.
She directed plays for audiences of
steelworkers and prison inmates; she
performed in factories, docks, railway yards
and canteens; and she was mugged on
tour in Wales, fortunately without serious
injury. Albinia Willis recalls that “there were
privations: years of long train journeys in
the evening, cold stations, badly-ventilated
halls and probably only half a cast!” But in
spite of the continuing challenges, to which
anyone with any experience in theatre can
testify, there are always those wonderful
moments when everything goes right, and
the audience see what the director has
envisioned. One of these came with the
performance of R H Ward’s Holy Family
in London, which enjoyed immediate
success on its opening night. Pamela
commented that “The New Testament was
Pamela’s friendships with Albinia Willis
and Penelope Owen (néeDavidson) another
Old Senior, was to last many years and the
two of them saw as perhaps even Pamela’s
family did not, the extraordinary dedication
she gave to her work. Albinia feels that few
people “realised what Pam had achieved
[and] at what physical and spiritual cost in
breaking through to the steelworkers… Her
cultured background was against her, she
had a trained voice, she had never heard the
sort of language that was spat at her, but
she pressed on, with… her own courage and
faith”.
Kate Taylor in Wakefield Diocese: Celebrating
125 Years devotes several pages to Pamela’s
work and its influence within the Diocese.
She also provides a glimpse of Pamela’s
personality:
Keily was described as a ‘tall dramatic
woman with fine-drawn features’. It was
also said that she did not ‘quite fit into
our modern pattern’, she ‘had a bearing
that belongs to a forgotten aristocracy,
a spirituality that could be called oldfashioned, and a feeling for the theatre that
is of the boards themselves’. She was also said
to be ‘a woman of great talent, tremendous
devotion and enormous courage’.
In the years that followed, Pamela’s
‘experiments’ in Sheffield broadened to
include Leeds, Wakefield and Manchester.
The Pilgrim Players, Helmsley, 1941. Pamela is third from right.
30 CLOISTERS Issue 7
Taylor also writes of the effect of Pamela
and her work had on the clergy that she
encountered within the diocesan areas
she visited. One priest commented that “if
I owe anything to anybody in shaping who
I am and what I do… Pamela has claim to
one of the highest spots in my esteem and
gratitude”.
Pamela wrote her memoirs in 1983 and died
the following year. The book is small and
somehow rather fittingly unprepossessing; it
does exactly what its author intended when
she says in the opening chapter, “I had, most
particularly, tried to plan this haphazard and
all too incomplete account of a life-time
of religious drama, without centring it too
specifically on Pamela Keily.” The Memoirs
are not specifically autobiographical,
although one reads much between the
Staff farewells
lines about her vibrant character and
personality. Alan Ecclestone’s Preface to the
book summarises much more directly what
Pamela’s real achievements were:
What she did was to involve both players and
audiences in the drama of the Redemption
of the world, far beyond their consciousness
of it, yet touching at times the hidden springs
of their being, and bringing, if only for a
moment, the whole soul into activity… Like
a wise parent she taught others to find their
place in that community.
We are very grateful to Albinia Willis (Oldfield
– DH 1936) both for the original idea for this
article and for the contribution of her own
memories of Pamela that form a part of it.
Pamela Keily – Downe, 1924
Sources:
Keily, Pamela: Memoirs
Taylor, Kate: Wakefield Diocese: Celebrating
125 Years; Canterbury Press Norwich, 2012
Browne, Henzie and E. Martin: Pilgrim
Story; London, 1945
Willis, Albinia – memories of Pamela Keily
presented to the Downe House Archives
Dee Fallon Teacher of Drama (relocating to
Hong Kong/maternity leave)
Elinor Smith Teacher of Chemistry
(new post)
Arabella May Teacher of Spanish
(relocating to Australia)
Helen Smith Teacher of Art
(end of maternity cover)
Freya Morrissey ASHM – Hermitage
(off to complete a PGCE)
Akrivi Taousiani Teacher of Classics
(new post)
Asha Niven Teacher of PE (new post)
Peri Wragg ASHM – Aisholt (new post)
Alice Bellamy ASHM – York (getting
married!)
Judy Powell Teacher of Art and Ceramics
(retirement)
Alison Gwatkin Head of Veyrines
(retirement)
Graham Birchenough Teacher of French
(retirement..again…3rd time lucky!)
Claire Pringle Teacher of English (new post)
Rodney Gwatkin Administrator for Veyrines
(retirement)
The Downe House Foundation would like to
wish our departing colleagues all the best.
Thank you for all that you have done to
support the girls.
Anne Blaseby Teacher of Classics
(end of maternity cover)
Suzy Dixon Housemistress – AGN
(new post)
Maggie Prior Teacher of Food Technology
(retirement)
An update on former staff
member Rhiannon Bland (DH 2008 – 2012)
In January 2013, Rhiannon joined Golden Path Education as Head of Education in Hong Kong having worked as a Drama
teacher at Downe House for four years and the latter two years as Assistant Director of Drama.
Rhiannon was offered her new role as a result of working with her colleague Alice McKay who worked as a Speech and
Drama teacher at Downe House in 2008 and is now the Company Director of the very successful Golden Path Education.
Having studied Drama, English and Media in Education in Cardiff, Rhiannon now teaches a variety of the Trinity
Guildhall courses to 2 - to 18-year-olds throughout Hong Kong, such as Speech and Drama, Young Performers’, Speech
Communication Arts, Communication Skills and GESE. She also works with other teachers and manages Drama and English
projects in the local secondary schools, as well as working with a charitable company providing 16 -to 18-year-olds with an
insight into working life and interacting with English speakers.
Rhiannon thoroughly enjoyed her time teaching Drama at Downe House and has such fond memories learning from her
admirable colleagues and teaching and directing the talented girls.
Issue 7 CLOISTERS 31
Dates for the Diary
September 2013 - October 2013
THURSDAY, 19 SEPTEMBER – Class of 1988, 25 Year
Reunion, Lansdowne Club, London
Connect with us:
WEDNESDAY, 25 SEPTEMBER- Downe House Creative
Arts Showcase (gala evening), Performing Arts Centre
Join us on Facebook - ‘Downe House’
Alumnae
THURSDAY, 26 SEPTEMBER – Downe House Creative Arts
Showcase (open day/evening), Performing Arts Centre
Follow us on Twitter DH LINKS and/or DowneFoundation
THURSDAY, 3 OCTOBER – Downe House Past Parents’
Society Inaugural Dinner, The Lansdowne Club, London
WEDNESDAY, 10 OCTOBER – DHSA Drinks Party
(1990 – 1995), The Troubadour, London
WEDNESDAY, 17 OCTOBER – DHSA Drinks Party
(1995 – 2000), The Troubadour, London
SATURDAY, 19 OCTOBER – Gift Fair, Downe House
(10am – 2pm)
‘DH LINKS’ group
E: foundation@downehouse.net T:01635 204719
www.downehouse.net/foundation.asp
Have you visited our website?
For more information on events contact foundation@downehouse.net
or telephone 01635 204719
www.downehouse.net/foundation
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