Alleyn Club News
Looking back over 2014, some of the highlights for me included: • The inaugural networking meeting on Thursday 15 May of OAs in the Arts and Media held, courtesy of Mike Kennard (61-68), at the Concert Artistes, Association in Covent Garden, which was much enlivened by the contribution of the guest speaker, Sir Peter Bazalgette (62-71), Chair of Arts Council England • The successful move of lunch back to the Christison Hall on Founder’s Day which allowed the College caterers to lay on a superb buffet lunch • The 36th OA Reunion on Saturday 20 September when Terry Walsh’s span of 60 years at Dulwich was celebrated by the unveiling of a bust of him which is now on permanent display in the Lower Hall • The Annual Dinner when, for the third year running, the Great Hall was well-nigh packed to capacity thanks to the sterling work of James Thornton and his team of table champions who managed not only to fill the tables but to reduce the average age of attendees yet again An event I much regret not having been able to attend last year was the Annual Dinner of the OA Boat Club. Of all the fixed points in the Old Alleynian/Alleyn Club year, this relative newcomer (OABC celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2015) ticks all the boxes for the future health of OA clubs and societies, including the Alleyn Club itself: its membership is young and active, it retains close links with the College and makes old-stagers from the Alleyn Club like me feel completely at home in their company. Long may it continue thus! In four years the College will celebrate its 400th anniversary; in eight years the Alleyn Club will reach its 150th anniversary. With these important milestones in prospect and as preparations are being made for them, I believe it will be important for the Alleyn Club to be in younger hands than mine – I shall be 75 just after Easter. Therefore, I have indicated to the committee that I intend to stand down as Club Secretary at the end of the year. As a result the committee will seek to appoint an OA to succeed me in time for him to work alongside me during the autumn before taking over on 1 January 2016. A job description and details of how to apply can be found on page 7. It has been a great privilege to have been able to serve the Alleyn Club over the past 14 years and to have had the pleasure of meeting so many fellow OAs of all ages at events large and small in venues as familiar as the OAFC pavilion, as ancient as an Oxbridge college, as friendly as a country hotel or as rarefied as Christies’
boardroom in New York with Picassos worth millions of dollars hanging on the walls. Regardless of the event or venue, I have always known in advance that I could rely on being welcomed warmly and that the same, genuine warmth of welcome would be afforded my wife, Eileen, whenever she has been able to accompany me. Thank you, all, very much.
37th OA Reunion Saturday 3 October
For a variety of reasons, the Reunion will have a different format this year. Those who follow international rugby will know that the 2015 World Cup is being hosted by this country during the autumn. What many may not know is that the College’s fine new 1st XV pitch will be used as a training venue for international sides from abroad. As a result, the College 1st XV will be playing at home on just four occasions during the Michaelmas Term including Saturday 3 October when they will be pitted against Brighton College. The undoubted success of last year’s Reunion, when a number of ladies were invited to join OAs to mark the 60th anniversary of Terry Walsh’s arrival at Dulwich in September 1954, has led to the decision by the College to open this year’s event to OAs and their partners. However, because the official calendar of events for the Michaelmas Term will be particularly full, it has been decided to hold the Reunion immediately following an earlier function to which recent benefactors are to be invited. A modest charge of £10 per head will be made towards the costs of College hospitality for the afternoon. In order to support those involved in organising an expanding range of Alleyn Club activities we are working with the College to change the way in which we gather and share OA contact details. This is with the aim of making it easier for individual OAs and the sports clubs to make contact with the rest of the OA community, while providing peace of mind for those who wish their contact details to remain private to the College and Club. With this in mind, please take the time to complete the update form that accompanies the Yearbook . OA Database and Data Protection
Chris Field (51-59)
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