JR RETURNS TO KASThe portrait of John Russell by Christopher Williams has returned to KAS...after an absence of over 70 years! JR was Head of KAS from 1901-1920. One of his best known statements that we still refer to today was “Our objective is to help train up our scholars in the way of the good life, to help to fit them for effective work in the world, for effective sympathy and for effective joy.” During WWII, the painting was moved off-site for safe keeping. Estelle Basden, his widow, took temporary custodianship of the painting, as agreed

with the school. On her death her niece Eileen took over care of the beloved painting and then finally passed it on to her nephew David Brimacombe. We were delighted to welcome David and his family to KAS for a handover ceremony to welcome the portrait back to school.

David and his family were touched to hear that YR9 students on the 2017 History Department Battlefields Trip visited the grave of Maurice Basden, Estelle’s brother and old Alfredian. Maurice served with the Royal Flying Corps and was killed in action during WWI. The KAS archive holds a poem written by Russell about Maurice, which the family had not seen before.

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A newsetter for King Alfred School alumni Summer 2018

Old Alfredians’

Summer Reception

Saturday 7th July

4pm – 6pm

Old Library

Old Alfredians most welcome

to join earlier for

KASTONBURY

Music festival

12-4pm on the field

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KAREN THOMASNEW LOWER SCHOOL HEADKaren Thomas has been welcomed to the post of Head of

Lower School following the retirement of David Weale. Educated at Cheltenham and then Goldsmiths, Karin spent 18 years working in schools in Hong Kong, most recently as Head of Kowloon Junior School. She has happily relocated to Britain as her two sons are now pursuing university careers here. She is overjoyed to have found a school like KAS as it represents all she holds dear in education.

Robert Lobatto, our Head, represented KAS and progressive education at an international conference in Qatar this year entitled WISE (World

Innovation Summit for Education). Members of the Qatar Foundation, who are considering setting up a progressive school, visited KAS last year and were so impressed they invited Robert to attend as their guest. The conference provided stimulating input and the opportunity to develop useful contacts with educationalists from a number of countries.

TEDxKingAlfredSchool SCHOOLSATURDAY 6TH OCTOBER 2018Instead of our annual education conference, the school has obtained a licence to run a TEDx youth event. This is a day of TED style talks, to be filmed and put on the TEDx website. The theme is ‘Transformations’. We are hoping the speeches (of either 6minutes, 12 minutes or 18 minutes) will be delivered by a mixture of our own students, parents, teachers and invited guests. Any Old Alfredian, who has always wanted to give a TED talk, please contact us if you want to join in that day.Contact editor on karac@kingalfredschool.org

HONORARY MEMBERS OF THE KING ALFRED SCHOOL SOCIETYThis year a new category of Society membership was instated to honour long-serving ex-members of staff. Forty have since accepted Honorary Membership. Some were entertained to a celebratory tea party before the AGM in February.

Recognise some favourite teachers in this list?Peter Andrews, Catherine Bazell, Silvia Beevers, Tom Bloch, Sue Boulton, Anna Broad, Francoise Burford, Julie Catesby, Stephen de Brett, Lindy Dumas, Juliette Fardon, Denise Gibbs, Eva Goodliff, Roy Greenfield, Bill Hall, Laszlo Horvath, Audrey Howorth, Jennie Ingram, Sheila Jaswon, Joe Keating, Patricia Kreling, Beth Levinsky, Keith Moore, Barbara Morris, Carol Morris, Androulla Nicholas, Mark Owen, John Peisley, Chris Potter, Christine Prowse, Brian Rance, Angela Ratner, Daniel Robinson, Sheelagh Stanley, Jeanette Sylvester, Jane Townsend, Miriam Umney, David Weale, Cathy Williams, Mike Young

SCHOOL NEWS

THE VILLAGE BOOKStephen de Brett is writing a book about The Village Project, starting from the earliest, pictured here, to the now annual ones of today. He wants to hear from Old Alfredians who have memories or photos they would like included. Don’t delay - the book is nearly complete. Get in touch through the editor karac@kingalfred.org.uk

EDITORIALI hope you enjoy this handful of news items it has been my pleasure to collate. Yet again I am standing in as Editor until such time as a full time alumni co-ordinator is appointed by the school. Do get in touch through me or the school if you have stories to share and remember to provide us with updated emails and addresses. We look forward to seeing you at the OA Reunion on Saturday July 7th at 4-6pm. KAStonbury, the school’s summer event, is that afternoon from 12-4pm. It’s a home-grown live music festival on the field with all profits going to the development of the Phoenix Theatre in Ivy Wood which is becoming more wonderful by the day. Do visit. Tickets at £10 are available on https://www.picatic.com/event15251755922269

Kara ContiPresident of the King Alfred School Society

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School Certificate passes, none in sciences. However, I went on to study physics at Oxford, do a PhD in fundamental particle physics at Imperial College and lecture for a short period at London University. Then, after raising a family of four children, I retrained as an economist and spent the rest of my working life in the Treasury and then as a consultant, travelling around the world advising on industry structure. During these years I met all manner of interesting people. Since retiring I became interested in Philosophy of Mind, and last year I was awarded another PhD, this time in Philosophy, and I published another book, my third, this time on the nature of mind. I am now returning to my first love, quantum mechanics, to find out where it has got to since I left. One of the nicest features of my retirement is the two or three days each year when I get together with the friends I made at KAS along with their spouses, in some beautiful location, and we share our thoughts and experiences.”

MARK ISAACS, SILVIA BEEVERS AND LUCY BABERAHAMSBrother and sister Mark Isaacs and Lucy Baberahams celebrated with “the loveliest school nurse of all time”, Silvia Beevers, at their gastropub, The Victoria Stakes, No.1 Muswell Hill. After posting news of this happy reunion, Silvia was contacted by over 70 Old Alfredians sending warm wishes and memories which made her very happy.

LAIL ARAD Lail, a busy singer-songwriter, has recently finished a 40-date tour across 8 countries, from Italy to India. She is currently recording her 3rd album and her new single will come out in June. This summer she will be playing London, as well as some UK festivals (Port Eliot, End of the Road). You can hear her songs on spotify, youtube, facebook etc.

JOBY HOLLIS WITH THE CURIOSITY ROVER MODEL, NASATwo years after completing a PhD in physics, Joby Hollis is now living in Los Angeles where he works at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. As a postdoctoral research fellow, he is part of the instrument team for the Mars 2020 rover, the follow-up to the Curiosity mission currently operating on Mars. The Mars 2020 rover is a nuclear-powered, car-sized robot that will be launched in two years time, carrying a dozen scientific instruments to search for signs of life on Mars. Joby is working on a special Raman spectrometer named SHERLOC, which is designed to detect trace organic compounds that could have been produced by living things in the past. In his spare time Joby is working to support LGBT+ diversity in science as part of the charity Pride in STEM, and will be celebrating the world’s first LGBT+STEM day on July 5th. Joby wants to thank all his science teachers at KAS once again, for encouraging his interest in physics and chemistry and for inspiring him to become a scientist. (Joby left KAS 2006)

PENELOPE ROWLATT“I went to KAS in 1946, when I was 10 years old and left six years later. My years at KAS were very happy years. I made some wonderful friends and spent very little time learning, leaving with 6

EROS VLAHOS Eros Vlahos left KAS after completed his GCSEs and went on to forge a successful TV and film career. Aged 13, Vlahos wrote and performed his own material at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. As a teenager he had a comedy show on Radio London. He has appeared on TV (Casualty) as well as in Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang and more recently Game of Thrones.

TOBY SAMS FRIEDMANToby Sams Friedman completed his A Levels in KAS in 2012 and went on to pursue a highly successful acting career, and recently stared in the highly successful drama Silent Witness.

POLLY FRAZER Now a Head teacher and mother of two, Polly has returned to KAS to be on Council and specifically the Education Committee, offering her educational expertise combined with her first hand knowledge of KAS.

JOSH JASWONJosh left his post in KAS Music department to take up a jazz music scholarship in Berlin.

GRACE DAVIDSONGrace has an international singing career and has worked with all the leading Baroque ensembles, including The Sixteen and Tenebrae. On Friday 29th June she returns to Hampstead Garden Suburb where she grew up to perform in Proms at St Jude’s with the Academy of Ancient Music.

OLI ROCKBERGEROli returned recently to KAS to give a masterclass. He is currently touring with Laura Mvula appearing at Hay Festival and Harrogate International Festival.

OLD ALFREDIAN NEWS

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IAN AITKEN 19/10/27 - 21/2/18

The distinguished former political editor of the Guardian died aged 90. His daughter Susie Aitken wrote in the Ham and High:

Aitken’s roots were uncompromisingly left-wing. He was conceived in Moscow in post revolutionary Russia where his parents, George and Agnes, had gone to support the cause. A member of the Communist party of Great Britain, George Aitken was later to join the International Brigade fighting in Spain, a role of which his only surviving son

VIRGIL HOWE 23/10/75 - 11/10/17

Virgil’s tragic and unexpected death due to cardiac arrest happened just weeks before his 42nd birthday. The musician was drummer for the band Little Barrie and was about to start a lengthy UK tour. He had just finished collaborating with his father, YES guitarist Steve Howe, on an instrumental album, NEXUS. Virgil enjoyed many happy years at KAS in the ‘80s and his parents were touched and thankful for the loyal support at his funeral from past teachers and fellow pupils. Virgil is survived by his parents Steve and Jan, his siblings, Dylan, Georgia and Stephanie, and his beloved daughter, Zuni.

“ a beautiful man and a colossal drummer “

IN MEMORIUM

MORE ARCHIVE NEWS

remained inordinately proud. Although Scottish and born in Airdrie, Aitken was brought up in Hampstead Garden Suburb at a time when its residents tended towards vegetarianism, Fabian pamphlets and open-toed sandals. As a pupil at the progressive King Alfred School, he met a future editor of Tribune, Dick Clements, who was to become a life long friend and whose mother, an American Tolstoyan anarchist, provided a hub for budding politicos including Ralph Miliband, father of David and Ed. Aitken started what he described as a “gloriously enjoyable lifetime in journalism” on the left wing newspaper Tribune in 1953, moving on to the Daily Express and thence to the Guardian, where he stayed for 30 years.

“chieftain among journalists”

MILLICENT FAWCETT

Millicent Fawcett, the suffragist, recently honoured with a statue in Parliament Square, the first woman to be so, was the guest speaker at the official opening of King Alfred School on 24th June 1898. This was fitting because one of the school’s key tenets was that girls should be educated equally with boys. Also she was the sister of the school’s first art mistress and Lady Superintendent, Elsie G. Rice, the wife of the first school head, Charles E. Rice4

BUST OF GEORGE EARLE

A sculpture of George Chester Earle, a distinguished teacher at KAS from 1903-1920, is now on display in the KAS archive. It was donated by his grand-daughter Loretta Earle in November 2017. The bronze bust was made by Montenegrin sculptor Yanko Brayovitch (1889-1948) and commissioned by Earle’s partner, Eleanor Farjeon. He was described as “the most inspiring teacher of English and of woodwork and indeed a combination of the two went on in the carpentry class. Keats and Shakespeare lines flew about with the wood shavings”.

OLD SCHOOL BELL

Old Alfredian Peter Lush returned one of KAS’s historic school bells in March 2018. Peter’s father Cecil served as the KAS architect for 27 years. He rescued the bell from a KAS skip - it was about to be sent for scrap since it was old and cracked. For many years the bell sat at the end of their garden, ringer still attached. When Peter’s father passed away, he thought that the school bell should come home to KAS. We were glad to receive it. The bell will be restored and displayed once a suitable place is found for it. Peter also has several albums of KAS photos from the 60s-70s including architectural developments such as the Arts & Science block.