HaberAske Skylark 2007

The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School

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THE HABERDASHERS’ ASKE’S BOYS’ SCHOOLButterfly Lane, Elstree, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire WD6 3AF

Tel: 020 8266 1700 Fax: 020 8266 1800e-mail: [email protected] website: www.habsboys.org.uk

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...from the Headmaster

The arrival of a new edition of Skylark is always an event laden with both expectation andgratitude and I am privileged yet again to recommend it to you. Every year we enjoyreading its penetrative and professional insights, the articles and reports which illustratefond memories of the year past written in that inimitable Habs style. Its contents reflectour core aims: the fact that we challenge bright boys to achieve the highest standards, wedevelop a sense of community and shared values and that we support parents in preparingtheir sons for a fulfilled life. They reflect also the multiplicity of what happens here on adaily basis and on which this school is grounded: commitment to the fundamentalprinciples of academic excellence, extra-curricular vitality, magnificent surroundings andfacilities and the centrality of a strong and supportive sense of community.

Exceptional boys and exceptional teachers allow us to enjoy exceptional success and sowe remain amongst the very best boys’ schools in the UK. We were delighted withsplendid results for entrance at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. Thirty-five boyswere awarded places with the vast majority achieving offers at their first choiceuniversity. Last summer’s results were as uplifting as ever and the performances of theboys at ‘A’ level rewarded them with 91.4% A and B grades, and at GCSE they achieved89.4% A* – A grades.

No school can reach its potential without involving all its communities in its goals andaspirations. To that end, you will soon notice a significant improvement in the quality ofour communications with our external partners, both printed and digital. In due coursewe hope that all of us can work together to ensure we remain not only one of the bestschools in Britain, but perhaps one of the best schools in the world. And together, we willsomeday be able to offer the benefits of a Habs education not just to those who canafford it, but also to those who can benefit most without regard to financial constraints.

You will know that we have been as busy as ever with new initiatives in teaching andlearning, pastoral care and staff development. One fine example is the idyllic newcampus for our Pre-Prep school opening in September. The Prep School continues to build,in this and many other ways, on that magnificent achievement in becoming The SundayTimes Prep School of the Year.

I hope you enjoy what you read and ask you to join me in thanking all those pupils andstaff who have devoted so much time in making these pages come alive.

With warmest good wishes.

Peter HamiltonHeadmasterSummer 2007

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contentsperforming arts 4

events 15trips 27

originals 43prep 55

clubs and societies 67houses 76

CCF/SCS 83sport 93

common room 109

Cover photograph - ESU International Mace Final held in the chamber of the House of Lords May 2007.

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Smoke drifts down from the stage intothe audience, accompanied by suitablyominous thunder. Enter the three weirdsisters in horrible unison, their writhingsymbiosis at once both unsettling andexhilarating, and we are drawn into theunnatural realm of Macbeth, where‘Fair is foul, and foul is fair’…

It was a beginning that left us in little doubtthat we were in for a treat. The secondscene burst upon us, with impressive sword-fights all over the stage, choreographedlargely by the boys themselves. One wasimmediately struck, too, by the marvellouscostumes, again owing to the tirelesslycreative work of Simone Jones. Calm isrestored by the regal presence of Duncan,portrayed imperiously by Matthew Sherr,surrounded by his trusted lords. We hearhow ‘brave Macbeth’ has helped to quell therebellion. He is Scotland’s saviour – theking’s ‘valiant cousin’, a ‘worthy gentleman’.Fair praise indeed.

The witches - Josh Green, Niall Moore andNeil Joseph— their craggy, unrealappearance apparently achieved throughtheir own adept use of make-up—againalmost seeped out of the wonderfully bleakset - a set based around two mobilestaircases, one side of which changedbetween the labyrinthine interiors of acastle, revolving and shifting to reveal therocky domain of the witches. It is littlewonder Macbeth and Banquo were grippedby their prognostications: Macbeth is tobecome Thane of Cawdor and then King;and Banquo’s offspring will also attain thecrown. The seed is planted in Macbeth’smind by the witches, and William Cardozo-Boohan’s reaction to the prospect ofbecoming king admirably captured the birthof inner-conflict that is to consume him. Thecentral theme of the play is the destructionof the protagonist, his marriage and hiscountry through his—and his wife’s—ambition. Not satisfied with being Thane ofCawdor, he craves the Crown, and is tooeasily led by his equally covetous wife.The gradual triumph of Macbeth’s ambitionover his integrity during the following sceneswas so confidently handled that theaudience simply forgot they were watchingschool theatre. Macbeth might be anobvious choice for a senior school play, butthere was something about the texture ofthis production that lifted it far beyond ourexpectations. This was, of course, owing toa combination of intelligent direction,unstinting support from a dedicated crew,and, most importantly, the talent of the cast.The captivating interplay between Cardozo-Boohan and the mesmerising Daniel Barryas Lady Macbeth was exceptional. Herreaction to her husband’s letter (informingher both of the witches’ predictions and thebeginnings of their coming to fruition) isshockingly purposeful. Her ambition, in

contrast, is unscrupulous. Her invocation ofthe spirits to ‘unsex me here’ was, ofcourse, particularly provocative in thisproduction. Here we had a schoolboyplaying a woman–a difficult enoughtask–who is sacrificing her very sex tobecome something unnatural: ‘from thecrown to the toe.’ This, at least, is herintention. Barry’s performance throughoutthe play, to retain convincing embers offemininity in spite of the character’s desireto be rid of it, was astonishing. Hisunderstanding and articulation of oftenextremely difficult verse was equallyimpressive.

With the King and his entourage gathered atMacbeth’s castle, Cardozo-Boohan andBarry produced one of the most memorablescenes of the production. One of TimNorton’s many deft touches was to have thisscene take place before a veil, behind whichwas assembled the party in full celebration,in ignorance of the protagonist’s darkdeliberations unravelling before theaudience. Cardozo-Boohan fully capturedMacbeth’s vacillating between ambition andreluctance until the horror of the deedleaves him resolved to proceed no further. Itis only Lady Macbeth’s powers ofpersuasion that entice him to abjure hismisgivings. Barry was deliciouslymanipulative as Lady Macbeth, toying withher husband’s masculinity. Given thebrutality of the images she paints before hiseyes, it was remarkable that Barry managedto remain so seductive. The murder, whilenot actually seen, is ever-present in theaudience’s awareness, not least through thesustained use of blood-symbolismthroughout, together with the elementalpredominance of fire. Once Duncan hasbeen killed, Cardozo-Boohan and Barryagain showed great maturity in their

interplay: the former unbalanced, staggeringinto depravity, the latter possessing a coldrationality that is yet to crumble.The Porter scene that followed was anotherstriking display of young talent. HarryBresslaw captured the necessary vibrancyand honesty—necessary in that it providesrelief from the preceding murder, andcontrasts so effectively with the polishedmachinations of Lady Macbeth. But theporter can also be seen as gatekeeper tohell, for soon Macduff discovers themurdered King, heralding a new, unnaturaldawn across the nation.

This perversion of the natural order iscentral to the play, and is vividly brought tothe stage not only through well-chosenmusic—varying from the early English tocontemporary Japanese, focusing on tunepercussion, with much of the drummingpre-recorded by Peter Schaffer—and anappropriately eerie set, but also through theperformances. Cardozo-Boohan was at hisbest during the absorbing banquet scene.Having ordered the murder of Banquo (adifficult part, ably played by Etienne Ekpo-Utip and Alex Charles) whom he sees as athreat to his reign, both because of what hesuspects and what has been predicted forhis offspring, Macbeth is transfixed by thevision of his former friend, and even his wifeis unable to break the spell. The ghost is thevisual representation of his guilt, andCardozo-Boohan’s performance here wassplendidly angst-ridden, commanding ourattention as much during his silences as hisspeech. The scene ended with the stage intatters, mirroring the turmoil of both thenewly crowned Macbeth and his country.Such highly-charged moments neverbecame farcical, always sustaining anastonishing credibility and intensity that owea great deal to Norton’s ability to bring the

Macbeth - Senior School Play

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very best out of largely inexperienced boys. This was further in evidence during theextremely difficult scene between Malcolm(Alex Petrides) and Macduff (James Hunt).The lack of trust between these twohonourable men marks the paranoia thathas blighted Scotland as a consequence ofMacbeth’s reign. Malcolm feels compelled totest Macduff’s integrity, and does so in soequivocal and complex a manner that onemight have expected the scene to beglossed over. Petrides and Hunt did notdisappoint, skilfully conveying the complexdynamic and demonstrating a genuineunderstanding of the nuances andsuggestion of the language.

Perhaps the most touching episode in thiscompelling production was Lady Macbeth’ssleepwalking scene. Her cold determinationhas disintegrated together with hereloquence; she has lost her mind and hasbeen left, ironically, almost child-like in hermutterings. It was the culmination of amesmerising performance from Barry—

here, through his extraordinarysensitivity, generating a pathosthe audience, howeverreluctant, was compelled tofeel. The tenderness of thisscene, admirably enhanced byJosh Seymour and DanielMehaffey truly embraced thebreadth of the play’s emotionalregister. How easy it would befor a school production ofMacbeth to be simply gory andmelodramatic. Here we weregraced with a talented cast(even including a Year 10 boy, Elliot Ross)intelligently bringing to life a mostchallenging text through the (as ever)remarkable dedication and skill of TimNorton and his army of back-stage crew, toolarge in number to mention individually, butall richly deserving of the highest praise fora production that will live long in thememory.

Alex Keenlyside

Cast

1st Witch Josh Green

2nd Witch Niall Moore

3rd Witch Neil Joseph

Duncan, King of Scotland Matthew Sherr

Malcolm, his son Alex Petrides

Wounded Captain Max Herbert

Lennox, a Thane Matthew Slavin

Ross, a Thane Alex Woolf

Banquo, a Thane Etienne Ekpo-Utip

or Alex Charles

Macbeth, Thane of Glamis William Cardozo Boohan

Angus, a Thane Joel Ross

Lady Macbeth Daniel Barry

1st Messenger Alex Sherr

Fleance, Banquo’s Son Ed Penn

A Porter Harry Bresslaw

Macduff, Thane of Fife James Hunt

Donalbain Daniel Mehaffey

An Old Man Domonic Preston

1st Murderer Adam Hartnell

2nd Murderer Max Herbert

3rd Murderer Sam Briggs

4th Witch Joel Ross

1st Apparition Sagar Gupta

2nd Apparition Sam Heitlinger

3rd Apparition Aditya Iyer

Lady Macduff Neil Joseph

Macduff’s Son Elliott Ross

2nd Messenger Jonny Wiser

A Doctor Josh Seymour

A Gentlewoman Daniel Mehaffey

Mentieth, a Thane Ben Ashenden

Caithness, a Thane Channon Zhangaza

Seyton Jonny Wiser

Siward, Earl of Northumberland Sam Heitlinger

Young Siward, his Son Elliott Ross


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I guess it would hardly be inappropriate tocall last year’s senior school production ofMacbeth a hit, noting the large turnout andthe glowing reports from the audiences.While the asexual witches, the fanaticalLady Macbeth and of course thedeteriorated character of the titleprotagonist were the focus of a lot of thepraise, what supplemented the evocativeperformances was the work of thetechnical crew that began three monthsprevious to the beginning of performances.

After an initial meeting with Mr Norton, headof drama and director of the play, the‘techies’ realised that Haberdashers wasgoing to see something special…at leastfrom a technical perspective. Plans fordemanding pieces of set such as two tenfoot rotating staircases and an eight footdouble door were revealed as well as the useof fire and a complete medieval banquet.

The first week passed like a flash and thetimber arrived on site before we were evenready for it. To meet our deadlines we wereworking at all hours: before school, afterschool, lunchtimes, break times, freeperiods, late evenings, weekends and evena few days from half term. With Mr HughSilver’s guidance (the school’s maintechnician) even the smallest techies beganto wield power tools with varying degrees ofsuccess. After construction, all set had tobe sanded, painted and varnished. We soonlearnt that ‘Midnight Black’ had a naturalattraction to clothing, especially on the dayswe ran into Mr. Parr. Overall, approximatelyone and half months work was taken tocomplete both staircases, slightly overschedule, but nonetheless out of the way.One of the things we seemed to be worst atwas sticking to deadlines, being behindbefore the majority of the play had evencome together.

During early November the lighting andsound work began in earnest.Haberdashers is particularly lucky in thatwe have one of the best endowed dramadepartments in the country, butunfortunately that means more work ratherthan less. It was here that one understandsthe true meaning of manual labour. Suchwas our plight that at one point the ever-altruistic Mr Lempriere was enlisted to aidus by cramming as many lanterns into hiscar to avoid the six painstaking and all toofamiliar journeys across the quad.

The Audio Visual team had begun tocompile the sound effects using acombination of instrumental CD’s and pre-recorded percussion, courtesy of PeterSchaffer. The first stage for the lightingstarted with placing some of the 80lanterns on the various bars and grids onthe ceiling of the Hall using 40ft laddersand our favourite gadget, Spaceman (theschools version of a Cherry-picker).

Our schedule then becamemore focused on the actualproduction of the play whichwas becoming all the moreimportant with every passingday. Not only were wesupposed to be responsible foreverything technically, but wewere also now supposed tomake sure the actors knewwhat they had to do. This job wasassigned, primarily to Deputy StageManager, Dharmesh Nayee who, with allthe others ran the rehearsals during lunchand after school.

Aiding Mr Norton by documenting everymove the actors make and meticulouslydetailing their every action was one of thehardest things to do. The copy of the playwhich belonged to the technical crew isreferred to as “The Book” and it containsalmost everything that could be needed toperform a scene, from the points ofentrance and exit of actors to who wasconducting the scene changes, aswell as allthe technical information. In short, it becameour bible.

With an all-male cast of 36 strong, it was atpoints, mind boggling, to coordinate thisplay. In the smaller more intimate scenes,the director demanded several run-throughsto ensure the actors were visible, lit andheard. While for the larger battle scenes, themain priorities were to ensure that thepositioning of the actors was ‘natural’ and ofcourse that the fighting scenes were full ofenergy, passion and realism.

By the nights of the show, there is very littlepressure on the backstage teams. Our workis basically done by this time, and over thetotal 6 hours our 3 months of work isrevealed in all its glory. Anshul Bakhda tookthe reins of the lighting, Ben Kershawhandled the Audio and Dharmesh Nayee wasDeputy Stage Manager, following the play andinstructing actors and technicians alike.

In the wings Chirag Khagram, Amal Mavani,Jonathan Parr, Tom Solomons and HughSilver dealt directly with actors and goteverything on stage going. Raj Dattani was

in charge of Props whilst Matthew Anisfeldand Bharrathi Sarvananthan kept orderdown in the sub-stage. Harpal Chana wasthe “flyman” who is responsible for bringingsuspended pieces of set on and off stageusing a rope and pulley system.

It would be rather indulgent to claim that theplay pivoted on technical crew and it cannotbe denied that the cast led by WilliamCardozo-Boohan deserve much praise. Ourresident costume designer, Simone Jonesproduced outstanding “garments” thatclearly achieved the ideal ‘look’ of theproduction. Daniel Weiner, U6, was a mentorto all of us who were working on this play:his constant guidance and technicalassistance will always be appreciated.

Macbeth is now fading into the backgroundwith many other of the schoolsachievements for the academic year.Events like the senior school play are anopportunity for us all, even those who donot enjoy theatre, to appreciate the talentand courage many people have to go onstage and act. Those involved, both on andoff stage, demonstrate great commitment,enthusiasm and teamwork. Participating ina school production will allow you to learn,experience and appreciate the world oftheatre while gaining many very goodfriends. It is a manner in which one cangive back to the school community butsimultaneously gain so much in theprocess. Producing plays, especially insuch short period of time, with so manyother distractions, is by far the mostdemanding experience many peopleencounter in their school careers. For thosewho built Macbeth (as well as all otherplays) from theground upwards,the physical, mentaland even innerstrength required tocarry through thosefew months is notsomething manypeople can copewith, and for thatreason, it is aprivilege to work witheveryone who can.

Chirag Khagram andAnshul Bakhda Year 12

Macbeth (backstage)


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Wind in the Willows - Middle School Play

The sweltering heat of the drama studio inlast year’s production of Beowulf had led tothe quite inspired idea of taking this year’splay to a cooler and more open environment- the great outdoors. The result was aminimalist yet absolutely spellbinding setlocated in the verdure and trees besidesNorth Drive, comprising of few props andmuch being left up to the imagination; theeffect was nothing short of magical. A typeof theatre production called Promenade wasemployed whereby the audience stood forthe entirety of the production meanderingaround different parts of the set. From themoment the dynamic chorus lead theaudience to the first scene where a merryRat and Mole enjoy a picnic on a boat; thebeauty of the piece was well under way. Thecast comprising principally of Year 9’sexcelled in what are taxing roles; Rat was

played with diligence andeccentricity by a very capableArnie Burss and Jack Fingerplayed a lovable Badger. Thefluid and billowing movement ofa composed cast gave theaudience little time to thinkabout the impendingthunderstorms or their throbbingfeet. The wonderful Court Roomscene was illuminated by highlyhumorous exchanges betweenthe breathtaking ensembles,with Jack Aaron typicallyimpressing as a Magistrate. Another cameoworth noting came from Joe Gaus, whoarmed with a strong Birmingham accentnailed the character of a depressed horse.Finally the audiences enjoyed a splendidperformance by Josh Kaiser who

radiated confidence and the foolishness thatembodies Mr. Toad. The cast were fitted withabsolutely wonderful attire, Simone Jonesdoing a fantastic job dressing women andanimal alike. Mr. Cox must be lauded for themagnitude of his efforts, turning up oncountless weekends in the pouring rain forthe benefit of his cast along with theperennially supportive Mr. Silver. Thepremise of taking a production outdoors wasan audacious one, and given the typicallyhorrendous weather endured in the summer,the rain lashed down leading to slipperypaths and soggy audiences. The densecloud cover also led to premature nightfallwhich threatened to shroud some scenesnear the concluding stages of the play,however in what remains one of thetriumphs of the production, a make shiftlighting rig was created for the finale in theform of a small Volkswagen Polo covered ina black sheet. Nothing however could bringdown the audiences morale or the spirit ofthe highly impressive cast with tumultuousapplause greeting the end of the productionbe it in rain or in sunshine.

Sagar Gupta Year 12


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Medieval Mystery Plays - Junior School Play

The sight of a medieval peasantbowling a cricket ball across theplayground as I pulled into the schoolcar park established the innovativetone of this year’s ambitious JuniorSchool play. The audience was underthe expert, confident and vocalguidance of our medieval attendants(James Colenutt, Akash Mehta, NeelShah, Max Prais, Jack Mackensie andJoseph Meyers).

Our journey started in the Drama Studio forThe Creation and Fall of Man. The audiencewas a little bemused by unconventionalseating arrangements as we perched,somewhat precariously on tiered blocks inthe centre of the studio. The authoritativetones of Efe Uwaifo (God), regally enthronedatop the drama studio doors, commandedthe Garden of Eden into being. Efe conveyedmeaning through the lyrical rhythm of thecomplex language throughout the scene.Sahvan Karia played his part as God’s angelwith appropriate sobriety. In the prettykaleidoscope-coloured arbour, enhanced byHugh Silver’s skilful lighting effects, wewatched the two supine figures of Adam

and Eve (Zak Kay and CharlotteWickens) spring to life, clad appropriately -thanks to Simone Jones’ imaginativecostuming - in white body-stockings,charmingly recreated the beauty andwonder of Eden. These innocents were notto be left in Paradise for long however, asthe audience’s attention was captivated bythe first dramatic scene change. Swivellinground on our tiered boxes the contrast fromthe white delicacy of Eden to the all-too-realistic raucous yells and tortuoussquirming from the devils (John Sheddon,Jack Reitman, Jared Baker, Jake Leighton,Laura Katan and Harriet Lehain) wasstunning. As the devils emerged snarlingand hissing from the set, painted to recreatethe blood-red jaws of hell, a mostspectacular Satan (Eliot Cohen) treated theaudience to a lavish range of facial andvocal contortions during which hetransformed himself into a serpent andslithered and hissed his way through theaudience full of envy and spite up to Eden.

Eliot relished his snide sneers and asides asCharlotte conveyed Eve’s capitulation andensuing angst. The comic moment as Adam

immediately blamed Eve for his fall wasnot lost on the audience.Bewildered confusion wasskilfully conveyed by Zak andCharlotte, generating realsympathy as these two were castout of Paradise.

We were fortunate enough on thelast evening to have enough of adry spell to venture onto thehallowed turf of the Quad to watchthe Cain and Abel play directed byMatthew Wright. Harry Dobbsportrayal of the blue-eyed,generous-spirited younger son(Abel) contrasted skillfully and

comically with Richard Breislin’s eye-rolling,powerfully cynical Cain. The paucity ofCain’s offering of a handful of dusty straw toAbel’s choicest first-fruits led to the firstmurder as Richard pushed Harry’s arm uphis back, clubbed and killed him with theweaponry of the day – a bone! Efe’s angrytones as God challenged Cain onthe whereabouts of his brotherrang powerfully around the Quad.The evening’s entertainmentculminated in the Bourne Hall withthe Noah’s Flood play. The themeof strife and misery was somewhatalleviated by this final scene as theaudience was met with aspectacular set of a brightly-coloured wooden ark, completewith lace curtains, as the back-drop to a frieze of Noah’s familywhich burst into a finelychoreographed representation ofbustling humanity. Gabriel Navais

(Noah) maintained a firmly reassuring stagepresence throughout this play, reasoningwith his disgruntled, idle sons (MatthewPerlman, Noah Levy and Rickin Popat) whowere comically contrasted with theindustrious, purposeful daughters-in-law(Rebecca Heitlinger, Charlotte Samuelsonand Jyoe-un Lee). The highlight was the roleplayed by Madee Higson (Noah’s shrewishwife) and her entourage of gossips (AkshayKaria, Nikhil Joshi, Rachel Berkowitz andRuby Elliot) who, with priceless hair-flickingvanity, were far too preoccupied busy-bodying to go into the ark. The play closedwith a sense of genuine pathos as Navais,his speech punctuated with a poignant, ‘AhLord’, surrounded by the rest of the cast,stood to receive God’s blessing and promisefor a better future.

Nicki Heinen and her team’s innovativedirection of this seminal work gave the castand audience a charming, educationalexperience they will never forget.

K Pollock


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Battle of the Bands

Battle of the Bands is one of the cultural and social highlights of the academic year.Set over two days in February, it is easily one of the most eagerly awaited events inthe school calendar, and provides a welcome opportunity for members of both theboys’ and girls’ schools to get together to enjoy some great music.

This year was no exception, with an extremely high musical standard being demonstratedfrom both the headliners and supporting acts. The competition opened with a set from theYear 11 band “The Panacea”, playing songs by the ever-popular trio of the Kooks, Strokesand Arctic Monkeys. Whilst newcomers to the competition, they proved to be an energeticand technically able band, playing standard songs with both drive and panache. Howeverthey were perhaps slightly apprehensive on stage, and their potential was probably slightlyovershadowed by the superb stage presence of “Beauty and the Bentley”. Fronted by theirrepressible Alex Petrides (also a singer in the school’s Big-band), they opened their set witha version of the Fratellis’ “Creeping Up The Backstairs” taken at breakneck speed. Afterrelaxing the atmosphere with the Fray’s “How To Save a Life”, they successfully managed tobring the crowd to boiling point with a somewhat feral interpretation of Girls Aloud’s “LoveMachine”, complete with prominent cowbells and a dexterous drum solo from MichaelBentley (of the band’s namesake). After much surreptitious stage management from thetechnical team, the competition’s compare, the innately stylish Richard West, introduced theday’s headliners: “The Silhouettes”. Starting off their set with Muse’s fiendishly intricate“Butterflies and Hurricanes”, a risky and worthwhile venture. Peter Campbell’s graceful,Rachmaninovian piano solo receiving worthy plaudit from the audience. However it was theirtremendous interpretation of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Dani California” that really stole theshow, particularly showing off the band’s technical prowess and superb musicianship. Theirinterpretation of Automatic’s “Monster” was rather more of a visual showpiece than anauditory one, with a special guest-appearance from HABS’ ‘in-house ogre’, George Harnett.However, the band did succeed in finishing the concert with a powerful and driven renditionof Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life”, complete with a shining guitar solo from the outstandinglydexterous Stephen Moss.

The second day of Battle of theBands opened with a set from thelower-sixth band “AnotherDelivery”. Upon arrival on stage,they immediately kicked off theconcert with a rip-roaringinstrumental number, comprisingsongs by both Muse and the RedHot Chili Peppers. They then playedthe classic song “Layla” by EricClapton, demonstrating a goodmixture of both power and finesse,and finished off their set withanother Muse number, “Time isRunning Out”. Their outstandingbass player Tom Solomons,definitely deserves a mention forboth his superb technique andnatural ability to interact with thepositively effervescent crowd.

Much cheering heralded theinherently ‘metrosexual’ band, TBM,

Autumn Concert

The Autumn Concert is one of the moregood-humoured of Habs’ musicalevents, and it was the catchy themetune of James Bond, played by theWind Sinfonia, that demonstrated afeeling of enthusiasm and fun. Thiswas just the start of a huge variety ofmusical items performed at theAutumn Concert. Habs’ PercussionEnsemble is always lively, and theaudience tends to relish their momentsof participation, clapping at theinstruction of conductor, Jim Beryl. Incomplete contrast, Aaron Taylorseduced us with his beautiful andlyrical solo performance of a Romanceby Saint-Saëns, sensitivelyaccompanied by Richard West on thepiano. The Philomusica’s excellentchoice of the Grand March from Aïdawas inspired. Their firm, rhythmic holdwas accompanied by many tappingfeet in the audience, parents wereheard humming along to the tune! Thespectacular Big Band brought the firsthalf of the concert to a close. It wasobvious that the band had been verytightly rehearsed by Andrew Simm,and all sections played with panache.However it is worth pointing out anexceptional solo from the kit drummer,Peter Schaffer.

After a well-earned interval, the ConcertBand awoke the audiences’ senses with arather full-blooded performance of Wagner’sPrelude to Lohengrin. The Tritsch-TratschPolka by Strauss demonstrated tidyensemble playing in all sections, and thegentle lilt of the dance was well captured.The unaccompanied Chamber Choir wasalso assured and enjoyable, with a goodbalance shown throughout the different voicetypes. In particular, the Rutter was performedwith stylistic flair. The Year Seven Singershad patiently awaited their moment of glory,being a most well-behaved audience. Whenit came to their turn to perform, they reallylived up to Christopher Muhley’s descriptionof “the moment you have all been waitingfor”, performing with vibrant enthusiasm.What a fine start to their musical lives atHabs. The final item in the concert was theSymphony Orchestra, which demonstrated avery high musical standard indeed. The windplaying was particularly subtle, withthoughtful and considered intonationthroughout. A special mention should begiven to the principal oboe, Peter Campbell,for the warmth in his playing. The stringswere full-bodied, and the timpani held asecure pulse throughout the Finale, wellsupported by the brass section.

This concert was extremely enjoyable forthe audience and participants alike, andspecial thanks go to the music staff, sixth-form prefects, and contributors to therefreshments, who continue to enable theseconcerts to run smoothly.

Toby Young Year 12


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who arrived on stage dressed in a matching uniform of jeans, white shirts and black ties. They immediately built up a rapport with theaudience, with their first song, “But It’s Better If You do” receiving well-deserved commendations from the bustling crowd. They played asmooth and jazzy version of Maroon 5’s “Sunday Morning”, with some silky vocals from frontman Peter Garside, and delightful alto-saxplaying from Channon Zhangazha. Sadly though, due to lack of time the band’s last song (to be a Killers number) had to be cut. Padula,veterans of the competition, then immediately grasped the audience’s attention with a sharp and vivacious performance of the Killer’s classic“Jenny was a Friend of Mine”. Moreover, the surreal attire of frontman Max Herbert proved to be a talking point for several days after theevent, with members of the school discussing his ‘mechanical fortune-teller’ costume, as well questioning the meaning of the stigmata in hisleft hand. As well as bizarre, Padula were also musically very adept, with their own composition “Esteban” showing off the individualmembers of the band in extremely fine light. Their third song was the Strokes’ “Heart in a Cage”; a superb song which particularly showed offthe intricate and supportive playing of drummer Peter Schaffer, who maintained a steady beat and superb level of musicianship throughout. Theyfinally closed their set with a somewhat frenzied rendition of another of their own songs, the powerfully repetitive “Bamboozled”.

There was then just enough time for awards to be given: Best Overall Band was awarded to Padula, for their acute mix of showmanship andtechnical aptitude, Best Bass Player went (most deservedly) to the natural dexterity of Tom Solomons, Best Guitar Player went to StephenMoss for his display of obvious technique and potential, Best Drummer was awarded to Imhran Kassam for his display of virtuosity andstability, and finally Best Musicianship went to Peter Schaffer for his sympathetic and subtle playing. Overall, this year’s Battle of the Bandsproved a real hit with everybody. There was a consistently high standard of musicianship throughout the competition, with both days provinga showcase for some very exciting potential in the younger bands; potential which will hopefully develop and blossom over the next fewyears. Bring on Battle of the Bands 2008.

Toby Young Year 12

Keyboard Concert

Whilst the Keyboard Concert is not one of the best attended of the school’smusical events, it is without doubt a showcase of some great musical talent.March 6th was no exception, and though the atmosphere was relaxed, theperformers were genuinely concerned with the accuracy and musicality oftheir performances, two things which do not necessarily go hand in hand. So,at 7:30 Beethoven’s Sonata in E minor kicked off a programme filled witheverything from ‘Barrelhouse Blues’ to Schumann. As is usual, Chopin wasubiquitous, with many enchanting performances spread over the evening.However it was first Hugo Bax, and then James Rose, with his own Homage toOscar that brought the Steinway to life before the interval. Two particularlyspecial performances stood out in the second half: Leland Hui performing thesparkling Allegro Moderato from Mozart’s Sonata in C, and a superbperformance of Rachmaninov’s Prelude in G minor, played with flair andelegance by Raphael Rossler. In all, 25 performers stepped up alone on stage,and though there were mistakes, none detracted from the individualperformance, with all giving an account which both the performers themselvesand their teachers should feel extremely proud of.

John Mansell Year 12


The Spring Concert is one of themusical highlights of the academicyear, showcasing HABS’ SymphonyOrchestra and Chorus in a dazzlingprogramme of music; both traditionaland modern. This year was noexception, with contrasting works byBeethoven, Nielson and thecontemporary composer, Karl Jenkins.

The first half was given solely to thesymphony orchestra, which opened theconcert with a sparkling performance ofBeethoven’s Op.62 Coriolan overture. Theorchestra quickly established an atmosphere,demonstrating considerable flair and vigour.However, the bold and dramatic nature ofCoriolan does not show the full extent ofBeethoven’s style, and to prove this, JeromeWoodwark played Beethoven’s supremelyelegant Romance in G. Woodwark’s playingwas stylish and often witty, with an assured

sense of performance. The orchestra adoptedtheir newfound accompanying role withremarkable ease, providing a superblybalanced and sensitive backdrop to the sololine: the strings in particular offering luminoustextures and light, clean articulation. Nielson’ssparkling Aladdin Suite rounded off the firsthalf with a bang. The orchestra handled thispiece with the utmost dexterity, copingparticularly well with the sparse, but oftenenchanting textures of the Hindu Dance, andthe lithe brilliance of the African Dance; thesuite’s finale. One particularly memorablemoment was the entire Wind section vacatingtheir seats to play amongst the audience inNielson’s surreal depiction of a bustlingMoroccan marketplace.

Fully refreshed, the audience returned tohear a performance of Karl Jenkins’ hugelypopular 2001 score, The Armed Man (aMass for Peace). The Introduction, based on

a traditional French marching tune, built upbeautifully to an impressive climax, with abroad and majestic quality of sound arisingfrom the combined choir and orchestra. Aspellbinding Call to Prayers (Adhaan) wasintoned by Faadil Patel, showing a sinceritymatched only by the soprano line in thebeautifully expansive Kyrie. Ensuinghighlights included a powerful “Hymn BeforeAction”, a blazon fanfare for brass, entitled“Charge!”, and a hauntingly beautiful AgnusDei. A triumphant finale, “Better is Peace”,rounded off a highly enjoyable and thought-provoking performance of a modern classic.A huge thank you must, as always, go to MrMuhley and his unflappable team of musicstaff, for working tirelessly to make thisSpring Concert the memorable andenjoyable event it always turns out to be.

Toby Young Year 12

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Skylark 2007 Perfoming Arts

Spring Concert


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Skylark 2007 Perfoming Arts

String Concert

And so Thursday the 18th Januaryarrived and the Seldon Hall was filledwith parents, eager to watch theannual Strings Concert.

The evening kicked off with a String Quartetplaying Mozart’s Quartet in C major with anespecially strong rhythmic pulse fromMatthew Naughton on the cello. Anthony Koperformed two movements from Handel’sSonata in D, with sensitive and thoughtfulplaying being accompanied beautifully byLorely Rive. A rarely performed double bassduet was next on the line-up demonstratingthe true capabilities of the double basswhen not in an orchestra. Ben Cherkas andPeter Sienkowski worked togetherseamlessly to perform the Sonata in D Op. 3by Paxton. No stranger to the stage; JeromeWoodwark (previous HABS Young MusicianWinner) performed “Danse Espagnole” byGranados, giving a musically assuredperformance which was truly mesmerising.Jerome returned with Duncan Jenkins,Thomas Flint and Joe Evans to playMendelssohn’s “Canzonetta” Op.12. TheString Quartet performed a charminginterpretation with an excellent sense ofensemble. It is traditional for a stringteacher to conduct the Philomusica andSymphony Orchestra for this yearly SpringConcert and Bjørn Bantock, our residentcello teacher performed this year’s honours.To the delight of the audience, thePhilomusica walked on, dressed in cowboyattire. The orchestra delivered a spiritedinterpretation of “Hoe Down” by AaronCopland. The Symphony Orchestraresponded well to Bjørn’s conductingmethods and delivered an intense HebridesOverture (Mendelssohn), played with truemusical feeling. The orchestra thenproceeded to add neck ties, bandanas, hatsand accessories (such as swords) to theirflamboyantly multi-coloured shirts. Smokemachines and posters of skulls completedthe image of hilarity. A pirate (Bantock)returned, triumphantly wielding a parrot toconduct a suite from Pirates of theCaribbean, played with a true sense ofdirection and excellent musical style.

Thanks are due to all of the teaching andnon-teaching staff who made this stunningperformance possible.

Raphael Rosler Year 11

Summer Concert

Music was in the air as the audience filled the rather hot Bourne Hall on May10th. The proceedings got off to a flying start with a medley of Cole Porterclassics performed by Mr. West’s Concert Band, led by Oliver Martin. Therefollowed the String Quartet, armed with six string players and a flautist, toplay Mozart’s Flute Quartet in D major! This preceded the rarity of aBarbershop Quartet, performing the unmistakeable ‘Whiffenpoof Song,’ withvoices spread both musically and humorously to cover bass and sopranoranges alike! Just as the audience felt they could sit back and enjoy anevening of soothing music, the percussion ensembles returned to the stage ina display of both musicality and sheer brute force! The audience were treatedfirst to ‘Brazil,’ played by the younger part of the school’s percussion talent,with a large older contingent at hand to bang drums and shake maracas!They returned, enthused, to the stage to play the exciting ‘Reggaelia.’ Theywere, as always, conducted by the fantastic Jim Beryl, in his sporadic butinimitably enthusiastic manner. The first half was brought to an entertainingclose with Philomusica, playing ‘Belingrove Gardens’ and the ever-popular‘Pink Panther’ under the baton of Bjørn Bantok.

The interval, too, was alive with musical energy. As the audience moved to the BourneFoyer for drinks, Malcolm Pritchard’s Jazz band were already poised for theirperformance of ‘Chameleon,’ and other light jazzy numbers, which left the everyone inhigh spirits for the second half. It kicked off with the Wind Sinfonia in a masterfulrendition of the well-known favourites ‘Jurassic Park’ and ‘E.T.’ Mr. Simm then led theBig Band in a series of riveting pieces, including ‘Come by Me,’ which featurednumerous saxophone soloists, vocals from Alex Petrides, and a virtuosic pianoimprovisation from James Rose. The penultimate act was the more intimate, with one ofHabs’ Wind Quintets playing ‘The Entry of the Gladiators,’ known more affectionately tothe amused audience as the circus theme. The ensemble is coached by Delia Meehan,whose dedication to the music department over the last 24 years was recognised asPeter Cambell presented her with flowers to rapturous applause, and who will be sorelymissed by the music department on her retirement this summer. It was left to theorchestra to close the evening, and they did so in style, Mr. Muhley conducting Rossini’sunmistakable ‘William Tell’ Overture. Led, excellently as always, by Jerome Woodwark,the orchestra played the less well known opening of the work with care and panache.Starting with the expansive cello solo, the orchestral section is followed by aconversation between the solo flute, played by Aaron Taylor, over a beautiful cor anglaismelody, which was played superbly by Gregory Schey. The orchestra then burst into fullglory with the powerful ‘Lone Ranger’ tune that has made the piece so popular.

It was then inevitably time for the final bow for the Upper Sixth musicians leaving theschool this term. They will be missed by the music department, as will Mrs. Meehan, towhom we all send our best wishes in her retirement. A riotous encore of the LoneRanger music, complete with foot stomping, provided a rousing send-off, and as theUpper Sixth left for drinks in Aldenham House, a smile could be seen on the faces ofthe departing audience.

Aaron Taylor Year 10


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Wind Concert

Cathcart Young Composer of the Year – Toby Young

As soon as the Jazz Band took to the stage to open the Wind Band’sConcert for 2007, everyone watching the concert was enthralled.Exploring the world of Wind and Brass for ensembles, andinstruments, of all sizes, the audience were treated to music foreverything from brass dectet to bassoon duet, an exciting ‘welcomedance’ from the saxophone ensemble and Aaron Taylor’sperformance of Martin’s Flute Sonata accompanied by Mr. West, withthe first half culminating in the red-and-blue-lit Big Band’senthralling ‘Love is Here to Stay.’

The second half opened with the ever-popular ‘Mission Impossible,’ playedby the Wind Sinfonia, conducted by Mr. Simm, followed by the Wind Quintet,who are coached by Delia Meehan, playing movements from a MozartDivertimento, in what was her last Wind Bands’ Concert before retirement.When the Concert Band took the floor for the final act of the evening, alleyes were on the trumpet section for the Grand March from Verdi’s Aida.Following that, the presentation was made of two well-deserved prizes -The Wesley Woodage Brass Prize was awarded to Daniel Davies andNicolas Chen, and the Woodwind Prize to Peter Campbell. Theysubsequently performed an exhilarating Beatles Medley, representative ofthe musical talent at HABS, and enjoyed by young and old alike, expectedto bring the concert to a close.

However, that was not to be, as, to the delight of all involved, came Mr.Muhley’s shout of ‘encore.’ It seemed there was no question of what to play -the Band’s shout was unanimous - ‘The Stripper’. With the audience, andmost of the band members, in hysterics, and Mr. West dancing along, theenthusiastic performance was one reminiscent of the Concert Band Tour toItaly of 2006. With the bright yellow ‘Music Tour Fund’ collection bins setoutside after the concert, rumours are already flying about a possible tournext year. Barbados perhaps…?


This award is for young composers of secondary school age.Competitors were asked to write a symphonic piece to commemoratethe 150th anniversary of Elgar’s birth.

Toby’s piece entitled Love Sick immediately captured the judges’ imaginations.Head judge David Arnold commented “This piece is jocular and immediatelyappealing, an obvious winner right from the start. Toby has endeavoured tocelebrate not merely the life of Elgar, but also the geography associated with it,by including a stunning middle section that represents the hills of Worcester,the Malverns – Elgar’s beloved countryside.”

Toby also attends the Junior Academy at the Royal Academy of Music, wherehe studies composition. In addition he has shadowed Karl Jenkins working ona recording with Kiri Te Kanawa at Abbey Road and taken part inmasterclasses with Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Robert Saxon. Last year hewon both the Guardian BBC Proms Young Composer of the Year, after whichhis piece was broadcast on Radio 3, and the Hampstead and HighgateFestival Competition for Young Composers. Several of his compositions havebeen performed professionally and last year he received a commission fromthe London School of Economics.

Toby is also a talented bassoonist, pianist and singer. He was a member ofthe Finchley Children’s Music Group from the age of five and took part inproductions with the Royal Opera, English National Opera and at theBarbican and Royal Festival Hall.

Toby’s work was premiered at the Computacenter Cathcart Spring Prom held at theRoyal Albert Hall in May of this year. As part of his prize, Toby received two “fullyloaded” laptops – one for himself and one for his school, donated by Samsung.

J Gleeson


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Events


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Year 11 Physics in Action

For the second year in succession therewas an excellent response to this eventoffered by the Physics Department.Twelve teams of five boys were set adifficult practical challenge problem totackle by applying their understandingof Physics. The task was to trigger therelease of a ball-bearing with anelectrical remote control. This first ballbearing then caused the release of asecond ball bearing that itself triggeredthe lighting of a small torch bulb! Ruleswere dubiously interpreted, bent andbroken as the boys set about theproblem with enthusiasm and ingenuity.All teams were successful in completingparts of the problem in practice, andseveral managed the whole thing.Reliability of design was a factor thatsome groups overlooked to their costand they fell at the final testing hurdle.One group emerged victorious.

Congratulations go to Adrian Hogan, OliverSegal, Kandeeban Gopalakrishnan, Ben Lewyand Jonathan Constantinou for theirsuccessful electrical approach to the exercise.

The Physics department were delighted at theenthusiasm shown during the competitionand the creative thinking in evidence givesgreat encouragement for the future.

R. Kerr

Kevin Bakhurst Talks About BBC News 24

On the 1st of March, ex-Haberdasher Kevin Bakhurst returned to talk on behalfof the Science Society about his work as editor of BBC News 24. An eageraudience gathered expectantly in S17, including Mr. Bakhurst’s old A-level German teacher, Mr. Corrall.

The talk was a first for the Science Society, since the topic was slightly different to theirusual speeches. However, the scientific content became apparent almost immediately. Mr.Bakhurst began by explaining the progression of technology that the BBC has introducedto reach its global audience. It has not been long since only three television channelswere available, and the big news was that a fourth was being introduced. Since this timethe BBC has had to diversify its methods of communicating with the public. For example,they have branched out to the internet by providing a BBC website with a broad range ofnews and services. BBC News 24 is also being launched on the ‘3G’ phone networks inthe near future, so people will be able to watch the latest news anywhere on their mobilephones. Mr. Bakhurst was also able to tell us about the latest BBC technology to bereleased, the I Player, which allows users to select the news stories that they want towatch and which are of interest to them, at any time they choose.

Mr. Bakhurst also explained the process which breaking news has to go through to reachthe viewers. The whole process seemed very intense compared to our relatively relaxeddays at school. The public place a large amount of pressure on what is shown, so it isvital that it is impartial and does not offend anybody. When breaking news comes in tothe office, split second decisions must be made over what can or cannot be aired andwhat to say. It is hard for them to find the balance between telling the viewers the newsand not over speculating when details are limited. Mr. Bakhurst recalled his recentexperience of working during the Saddam Hussein execution. They were receivingpictures from the scene, and were faced with the problem of what and how much tocensor. However, if they failed to show any pictures, the audience would lose interest andswitch to another channel. They had to work with the images being released on a tensecond delay before being aired. Even with all this hard work to stop problems, 130complaints were received including some very profound and hurtful comments.

As questions were invited, the topic shifted to the conflicts between the BBC, Sky and theissues surrounding television licensing. The BBC will have to justify its acquisition of themoney received from television licensing when it comes under review in ten years time.However, the reach (people regularly exposed to it) of the BBC has decreased from almost100% to 78% in recent years. To be able to keep the license money this figure will haveto remain steady. This will be helped by the fact that Rupert Murdoch recently decided towithdraw Sky News from both Free View and Virgin. This leaves BBC as the only 24 hournews channel available to all. The rivalry and yet respect that the Sky and BBC newsteams have for each other was evident.

The end of the speech was greeted by applause from all. The society is very grateful toMr. Bakhurst for coming in and giving a very interesting speech. It is a credit to him thatso many pupils and members of the faculty came to listen.

Oliver Birch Year 12

Skylark 2007 Events


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Skylark 2007 Events

Young Researchers at the British Library

"How can people still believe in the biblical creation storiesin today's scientific age?"

"How can this complex universe have come into beingthrough chance?"

"Is there an adequate explanation for Planck Time?"

These are just some of the questions that the Young Researchers atthe British Library attempted to grapple with during their weeklymeetings. Two boys from L6 Strouts, Harry Jardine and Oliver Tenzertook part in this project at the British Library. Every week the boysattended meetings at the Library, during which they had theopportunity to explore many different sacred texts from Judaism,Christianity and Islam, hear lectures from academics specialising inthe restoration of sacred texts and discuss and debate the issuesarising from the use of these texts in today's society. Thirteen youngpeople from different schools took part in the project, whichencouraged interfaith dialogue between Jews, Christians, Muslimsand Atheists.

The theme of the meetings was whether the Creation stories found inthe texts have any place in today's scientific world. The YoungResearchers attempted to find answers to the big questions that thistheme raises. They did this by reading different sacred texts in detail,researching the views of different scholars and taking to the streetsto ask different people their opinions.

The Young Researchers, aided by the project's artistic director SaraHaq, produced a video, in which they ask many questions and statedifferent points of view. This video can be found at the end of theSacred exhibition at the British Library.

Harry was also asked to take part in the filming for the onlineresource, and will now be remembered for all time as the "JewishYoung Person". This online resource can be found in the learningsection of the British Library website.

On May 10th Harry, Oliver and their families and teachers wereinvited to a private view of the Sacred exhibition, during whichpresentations were made to all the young people. The British Librarywere thankful for the commitment and dedication that the YoungResearchers showed to their project.

On July 4th the Year 12 AS Religious Studies class visited theexhibition. The group had an introductory workshop, followed by atour of the exhibtion. They were also able to watch the YoungResearcher's video. The students were really impressed and amazedby the exhibition, which contains a wide variety of sacred texts,including early manuscripts and more recent texts.

J. Kingston

Daniel Tamman Talks About Film & Graphic Design

On Tuesday 14th ofNovember an ex-HABSboy (Daniel Tamman)came back to the schoolto talk to the Art A-levelstudents. After leavingschool Daniel went toUniversity inBournemouth to take adegree in Film andGraphic Design, andimmediately after leavingUniversity he joined asmall film and advertisingcompany based inLondon.

He stayed with this companyfor several years doing manyprojects with large brandsand multi nationalcompanies. He now lives in New York and is doing freelance workwith his own film company. His main line of work is commercials,specialising in audio and visual displays for international exhibitions.He showed us some of his work which was extremely complicatedbut spectacular none the less. We were shown videos from therelease of the Saab 9-5 which was originally shown at the famousNou Camp stadium in Barcelona. Daniel also produced a presentationfor the release of the Lockheed F-22 Raptor and his piece derésistance was a multi media show for The Pontiac motor car, whichwas exhibited at the three top motor shows in America (Detroit,Atlanta and San Francisco). This was shown on a display six screenswide on the first row, seventeen screens wide on the second row anda further six on the third, making the overall size 40 metres wide!

Most of his work revolved around multi-screen presentations and thetrick is to co-ordinate them all so that they produce one flowingimage. He also works in conjunction with a composer who writesoriginal music score for all his films. Daniel gave a very impressivepresentation and it gave us a fascinating insight into the world offilmmaking and video production. It was great and refreshing to seethat not all HABS pupils go on to just become doctors, accountants orworld famous comedians.

Marlon Biber Year 12

Mock French Presidential Election

The school’s mock French presidential election, organised by theModern Languages and Politics societies, saw a considerableturnout with some forty-four votes cast. Jamie Day took the partof right-wing reformer Nicolas Sarkozy, the Union for a PopularMovement’s candidate, while Jonathan Grunwald appeared asthe lovely Ségolène Royal of the Socialist Party. Each candidatewas allowed ten minutes to set out their stall and attack that ofthe opposition, before taking questions from the floor and finallydelivering a fifteen-second summary of their viewpoint. Theissues under discussion included immigration policy, law andorder, the economy, the future of the European Union and how tomodernise France’s large state sector in order to face themodern age. ‘Sarkozy’ also found himself defending his role inthe riots of November 2006, when many on the Left blamed hisallegedly provocative language for the violence of the disorders.Nevertheless, he seemed to allay his audience’s fears that hewas a tyrant in the making, prevailing by 30 votes to 14, or 68%to 32%, an even larger margin than his real-life triumph a fewdays later. Thanks must go to Mr Reid, the society members whoorganised the event and everybody who took the time to attendand vote.

Jamie Day Year 13


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Skylark 2007 Events

We were very lucky to have with us fourvery well qualified judges: Paul White; Headof Finance at Cardiff Pinnacle and YoungEnterprise Advisor; Gary Feingold; anentrepreneur who now providesconsultancy and advice; Aqil Sohail, an ex-HABS boy working at Price WaterhouseCoopers and Habs' very own Mr Trinder;economics teacher and head of YoungEnterprise.

The first idea presented was that of anonline website on which professional chesstournaments could be played. Being thefirst to go and clearly very enthusiasticabout his potential money-spinner,Vedantha Kumar inadvertently took rathermore than his allotted time, meaning thatthe four panel members were unable toask many questions. The main fearexpressed about the venture was that ofcheating. The proposed solution was theuse of software which would essentiallyspy on individuals’ screens, although thisraised serious issues about privacyinfringement.

The next proposal by Electrocise was thatof fitting dynamos onto gym equipment, sothat some of the energy expended whenexercising could be used to generateelectricity. This could then be stored by thegym and, if necessary, used to supply

some of the energy that it requires in itsevery day running. Their first year profitswere estimated to be somewhere in theregion of £5 million, although it was laterdiscovered that they simply couldn’t seethe decimal point when reading out thefigures! In effect, the idea was simply theinstallation of a dynamo into gymequipment. In this respect, Electrocisewould not be able to patent the idea, sinceneither the dynamo nor the gymequipment would belong to them. Thiswould surely leave the market open to anestablished firm which could exploit itsscale and drive Electrocise from theindustry. In fairness, however, this ideawas novel and was certainly not devoid of potential.

Next was Rent IT, who proposed supplyingindividuals and firms with IT equipmentwhich can be rented out and traded whennewer technology emerges. This seemedlike a relatively simple plan, though camerather unstuck when it was pointed outthat firms already have lucrative contractswith established companies, which arerelatively reliable and inexpensive. In thisrespect, it was deemed that demand forsuch services might well be non-existent.In any case, Rent IT would be a new firmto the industry and would struggle to gaina foothold in the market.

The final pitch came from Eco-hangers,who envisioned hangers made frombiodegradable material and which wouldnot harm the environment when thrownaway. The material used for the hangerscould then be sold as advertising space tovarious companies. Unfortunately, onemember of the group was left looking alittle sheepish after admitting that thehangers “had nothing to do with savingthe environment” – and to think that weall believed it to be a gimmick! This leftthe group hanging by a thread, whichproved to be as biodegradable as thehangers themselves, when it was pointedout that companies can advertise on theirown hangers. It appeared that themultitude of cheaper substitutes meantthat there was no market for ‘Eco-hangers’.

The judges then settled down to the hardtask of deciding which team should becrowned winner. After much discussion, itwas decided that Electrocise’s idea ofinstalling dynamos in gym equipment wasinnovative and had the potential to obtaina profit (despite it being significantly lessthan that first estimated!). All that’s leftnow is to see how Electrocise use themoney to start their business.

Sam Cherkas Year 12

European Youth Parliament

On the last Thursday before the end of the spring term, the Economics Society brought Dragon’s Den to Haberdashers’. The idea was to encourage entrepreneurship at Habs’ with a £100 prize for the winner.

HABS’ DRAGON’S DEN

A chilly wind blew across King Charles Streetas a group of eager, young Haberdasherpoliticians, gathered round the gleamingentrance to the Home Foreign Office. Despitethe somewhat gloomy and cold start to theday, the prospect of debating with fellowinstitutions, shedding light on apparently‘unsolvable’ European problems, all in theillustrious surroundings of Whitehall, wouldhave raised the spirits of even the mostdownhearted Habs boy and with the ranksbolstered by their counterparts from the Girl’sSchool the teams were ready to go.

The debating took place in two separatechambers, each with its own panel ofjudges. The grandeur of the surroundings didlittle to deter the two teams, whichfeverously began to debate issues such as

the construction of a trans-continentalpipeline, the benefits of a European ban onindoor smoking and greater research into thearts. Following an intense first round, thedebate noticed an exciting competitiondevelop between the Habs team and City ofLondon team; an outcome that would, for thetime being have to be accepted, as theappealing aroma of lunch began to set in,and minds slowly swept away from pipelinesand smoking bans to sandwiches and crisps.

With stomachs calmed and minds refocused,the teams began the final drive to eloquentlysmash home the concluding judgments andpoints. The competition provided ampleopportunity to demonstrate the faculty forquick thinking and flare, none more so, thanthe on following debate that was fully

conducted in French. The question posedwas on the alarmingly high levels of obesitywithin Europe and despite the light-heartednature of the debate, many of the schoolsshowed the excellent standards of Frenchattained by their pupils.

With the final speech delivered, andcountless ‘unsolvable’ problems, fully andtruly solved by the young minds of today, allthat remained was to thank Mr. Reid andMrs. Wooding for the unwavering energy putinto coaching the teams, and look forward toan even better and brighter future for theEuropean community.

Dmitri Fominykh Year 12


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Skylark 2007 Events

Therefore, on the first evening in October, anelite handful of ten Lower 6th Habs boys foundthemselves having an exquisite dinner in theHaberdasher’s Hall, enjoying the red wine andlistening intently to speeches given by some ofthe top city businessmen and women.

The second day was even more eventful. Withonly a brief stop at Pizza Express for lunch,each of us spent a day with the surveyingcompanies we were assigned to. We had theprivilege to meet the executive directors of thefirms, were shown around the offices and givenpresentations on the current works and someinformation regarding the future of thecompany. I was extremely fortunate to spendthe day with CB Richard Ellis, one of thebiggest chartered surveying companies, whichoperates in over 27 different countries aroundthe world. It felt surreal to

see a huge office complex being built whilststanding in the classy presentation room in thebuilding opposite, all in the very centre of thecity. Some others from our party even had aglimpse of the plans for the 2012 LondonOlympic stadium!

The amount of invaluable experience andinsight that we all gained during these two veryenjoyable and dynamic days was tremendous.

Fjodor Kempl Year 12

The Junior School Disco

The Junior School Disco is a highly anticipated event for all year 7sand 8s, and this year it exceeded all expectations, however optimisticthey were. One year 7 boy remarked, “I loved it; I’m so glad I came,because it was such a great time to socialise with the girls!"illustrating the amazing success of the event, a view which I am sureis synonymous with everyone who attended.

A professional DJ was hired for the event and many requests were made forpopular songs, further personalising the evening, almost tailoring it to suit ourneeds. There were many refreshments available, as a group of well intentioned6th form boys and girls served discounted soft drinks and juices by the cupful,with many varieties of sherbet and sweets to further energise our dancing. Theevening’s venue was the Bourne Hall, which proved to have plentiful capacityand atmosphere. The stage was used extensively by attendants, able to havetheir moment in the limelight. By the climax of the evening the floor was litteredwith glo-sticks, adorning the wooden planks like slithering multi-coloured glow-worms.

The disco, for many the highlight of the year, was a prodigious success, andmany new friendships sprouted. All year 7s and 8s are extremely grateful tothe organisers and the people who implemented it, namely Miss Rivlin andmany 6th Form volunteers.

Jacob Rabinowitz Year 7

The Monmouth Enterprise Initiative

The Monmouth Enterprise Initiative is a two day work experience programme run by the Haberdashers’ Company and its linkswithin the City of London, for students across the Haberdashers’ schools. The programme is designed for students to embarkon a journey into the exciting dimension of professional life and gain insight into the world of work at the very heart of theCity of London, with members of the Haberdashers’ Company. October 2006 was the first time this programme was run, andwas sponsored by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, together with the surveying industry. The itinerary for the twodays included a dinner at Haberdashers’ Hall with the senior members of the companies, a day shadowing importantcompany representatives, and a tour around the City of London, including a stop at the Bank of England.


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Skylark 2007 Events

Senior Citizens’ Christmas PartyThe Senior Citizens’ Party was notshort on excitement this year with itsfair share of fun and proverbial frolics.The lengthy planning by committees inthe Boys’ and Girls’ Schools hadculminated in a rich program ofexcitement and entertainment for theOld Folks and the volunteers. Arrivingpromptly volunteers from Year 11 andLower Sixth helped set up the PrevettHall, embellishing a plain schoolassembly hall into a spicy cauldron ofneat decoration and outstandingorganisation.

Throughout the morning, tireless preparationswere undertaken in order to provide theguests with a scrumptious festive feast. Thefinest mince pies, biscuits and sandwicheswere sure to be a delight to palettes of theguests. Raffle prizes and gifts were wrappedunder the direction of Santa Claus himself,Robert Daboul, and volunteers were given acrash course in the ancient artof Origami, which was sure to impress.

As afternoon began, the Senior Citizens arrived in their hoards adding the potent ingredient to alight this party. Each was accompanied totheir seats by a smart, young Haberdasher filled with attentive ears and a sociable disposition. Along with sharing fond memories of theirenriching yesteryears, the Senior Citizens had an opportunity to mingle and chat with people their own age. The program for the evening wasset to impress and with stirring delivery from hosts Sagar Gupta and Channon Zhanghaza, the audience were not left discontent. The richtalent the school had to offer was on show with Thomas Flint producing a heart warmingrendition of a Mozart classic, and Channon delivering a wonderful performance of ‘OrdinaryPeople’. The bingo event did not fail in sending a few hearts racing and the communal dancingprovided a stage for some delightful moments of affection. The raffle prizes and the handingout of gifts terminated a truly spectacular event that left the citizens well and truly ecstatic.

The fantastic efforts of Mrs. Gomez who despite being heavily pregnant managed to undertakethe lion share of the work as well as strong efforts from the committee meant that the eventwas undertaken with wonderful aplomb and can be deemed a rollicking success. Thanksmust also go to Mrs. Wilding from the Girls’ School, as well as Mr. Corrall, Mrs. McKenzie andMiss. Rivlin.

Sagar Gupta Year 12

Public Speaking

Last year I won the Orator of the Year competition. Next to2006 on the Brier Shield is now engraved the nameAlessandro Furlotti and for a full year I got used to the sightof the shield on my mantelpiece. But too soon came the timeto pass it on to the next worthy pupil who distinguishedhimself as a Public Speaker, the day when I was wrenchedfrom my long post exam rest period to school where I wasunexpectedly asked to chair the 2007 competition.

Behind me sat hopefuls. Akshay Kishen Karia, Oliver Anisfeld,Freddie Fulton, Aaron Taylor and Hassan Dinjer All of them werenervous, very nervous. They had to speak in front of judges andtheir peers into a microphone that projected their voices from thequad all the way around the school. I would have been nervous. Iwas nervous. One by one they spoke on the topic “The WholeWorld is a Stage.” Needless to say this produced some interestingresults. Akshay, poor boy, was lumped with going first. Hedelivered an excellent speech, along with Oliver the next speaker.They were all the more impressive considering that Akshay is inyear 8 and Oliver is in year 9, so I believe they are great talentsfor the future. Aaron was up next and thrilled us withcomparisons, and unforeseen subtleties, drawing inspiration from

the ever eloquent George W Bush. Freddie was equally good inthe measured and intelligent style that I have come to know fromhim. But Hassan, the last speaker, had obviously been biding histime. His speech was charismatic, entertaining…but all the sameintelligent. I say all this with the heaviest of hearts for it was hethat took my treasured shield away from me. But I know, Icouldn’t have passed it on to a person more deserving.

Alessandro Furlotti Year 11


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Skylark 2007 Events

RHA Social Skills Course

The normal school day is rigorously educational. Not a day passes withouthundreds of pupils learning facts and figures, studying religious concepts andhistorical truths, expressing themselves in poetry and analysing literature. The14th of June was not a normal school day for the Lower Sixth. The RHA SocialSkills course, organised by the General Studies Department, was a day forsixth formers to refine their soft skills. From registration until 4 P.M., the daywas structured with five sessions, each highlighting a different skill set.

Albeit slightly embarrassed at the thought of rehearsing dance steps, the studentsenjoyed a course on deportment. Most highly emphasised in this session was how oneshould sit, stand, and walk. While deceptively simple and seemingly obvious, thestudents learnt that sitting elegantly can be fiendishly difficult, especially for those usedto slouching. Led by a friendly and enthusiastic instructor, this session was one of themost enjoyable of the day.

The most entertaining part of a presentation by T.M. Lewin about dress was thedemonstration of how to, and how not to wear a suit. Examples from the audienceparticipated in the presentation and experienced some stern but constructive criticismby an expert from T.M. Lewin.

A reinvigorated and well appointed group of sixth formers entered the next session ofthe morning; Conversation Skills. This session taught the students how to act in a socialsetting. Beginning with the group suggesting examples of highly eloquent people(suggestions were as wide ranging as Christopher Hitchens to Sir Salman Rushdie) andending with advice on what topics one may begin a successful conversation with, thesession on conversation skills proved to be especially helpful for those wishing todevelop their networking skills.

The session on male grooming was met with some trepidation by those who did notknow the difference between toner and face wash, but in the ensuing forty minutes,everyone experienced the thrill of having their nails filed, faces well scrubbed and handssoftened by luxurious hand cream. A thoroughly enlightening session, which althoughseemed daunting, resulted in many gentlemen learning much about how best to takecare of their fragile sensitive skin.

In the Old Refectory, Rachel Holland explained the nuances of formal dress. Withexamples of white and black tie, a morning suit, and other assorted shirts, jackets, andties, a thorough instruction on how to tie a bow tie and what a stitched lapel meansabout the jacket’s quality was the first part of Rachel Holland’s session. Then a hands-on tutorial on how to polish shoes with a variety of brushes, and finally some luckymembers of the groups enjoyed a demonstration of meal time manners, during whichthey consumed many marshmallows with impeccable skill.

The fifth session was on elocution. One of the most important pieces of adviceconveyed during this session was how to speak clearly without being too loud or tooquiet. Exercises and stretches to ensure the students were not affecting their speechwith anxiety and stress were followed by limericks and poems. Only those with the mostdexterous of tongues could keep up with the instructor as the pace increased.

Unlike the schooling of some generations ago, soft skills are no longer taught in school.This is unfortunate because they are just as important today as ever. All of the sixthformers understood just how beneficial graciousness and politeness can be in aninterview setting, or just in day-to-day life. The day culminated with the pleasing sight ofone hundred boys sitting well, enunciating appropriately with correct inflection, andleaving with broad smiles. The lower sixth is very grateful to Mrs Pollock for organisingthe day, and the instructors from RHA.

Udayan Tripathi Year 12

Student Investor

The IFS Student Investor PortfolioChallenge is a nationwide competition,in which teams are given a virtual£100,000 to invest into FTSE 100companies over a four month periodwith the winning team earning an allexpenses paid trip to New York.

The competition began in November and ourteam, “starwars” consisting of Chiraag Amin,Robert Daboul, Fjodor Kempl and AjanthenGovi did not start well. However, we faredmuch better in December, and a change oftactics seemed to work. We decided toinvest heavily in SmallCap companies andour investments in PartyGaming, Pipex, DTZand Prudential helped us claim the prize forthe most improved team that month. Oursuccess continued for the rest of the onlinephase of the competition, converting our£100,000 into a tremendous £151,286.03an increase that most fund managers wouldbe pleased with. The value of our portfoliowas the highest in the competition, beatingover 7600 other teams nationwide. This sawus claim the prize the “Online Trader of theYear” award, with a reward of £150 perteam member in addition to qualification forthe Regional Finals in Birmingham.Unfortunately we were unable to progress tothe National Final.

All in all, the challenge was very enjoyabledue to the healthy competition betweenteams and the skills we enhanced over itscourse such as teamwork and generalfinancial awareness. Even though the trip toNew York eluded us, we felt that thechallenge complimented our study ofeconomics for AS and provided us with areal life application of our academicknowledge.

Thanks must go to Mrs. Shah and Mr.Trinder for their help during the competition.

Chiraag Amin Year 12


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Skylark 2007 Events

Target 2.0 Interest Rate Challenge

To the excitement of all the teamscompeting in this year’s Target 2.0competition, Target 2.0 2006-07, whichstretched from the Regional Heats inNovember to the National Final inMarch, coincided with perhaps themost interesting and uncertain periodof economic stability since monetarypolicy was placed under the auspicesof the Monetary Policy Committee(MPC) in 1997.

The competition itself began in November atthe Corus Hotel in Elstree where the HABSteam of Arjun Bhohi (captain), Amit Bhundia,Chris Stevens and Anraj Rayat defeated fiveother teams including Q.E. Boys and HABSGirls to earn a place in the Area Round. Thecompetition gives teams of students age 16-18 the chance to take on the role of theBank of England's Monetary MPC, assesseconomic conditions and the outlook forinflation and tell panels of judges whatinterest rate they would set to achieve theGovernment's inflation target of 2.0%. Withthe MPC having raised interests rates twoweeks prior to the Regional Heat, the HABSteam opted to hold rates at 5%, and withsuccess.

The Area Round, held in February in Luton,saw a much greater divergence of opinionon monetary policy. Against the backdrop ofincreasingly malign inflationary conditions,with inflation having been set to rise, wagepressures emerging on the supply-side anda strong Christmas for retailers, the HABSteam recommended a 0.25% rise in interestrates to 5.5%, whilst all six other competingteams opted to hold at 5.25%. Despite theteam’s somewhat hawkish outlook, thejudging panel, which included one of theBank's leading economists and one of itschief agents, awarded HABS the victory,commenting on the fantastic quality of HABSpresentation, the depth of the economicanalysis and the commendable level of

teamwork which the team had displayed.So, after five months of gruellingpreparation, and having battled through theregional and area rounds of the competition,the HABS Target 2.0 team of arrived at theBank of England early on Thursday 22ndMarch for the Target 2.0 National Final withhigh expectations and great excitement. Onarrival at the Bank the team wasimmediately led into the conference centre(used by the MPC as the location for pressannouncements) to conduct a quickrehearsal of the presentation. After initialworries about font compatibility, thepresentation was successfully installed onthe Bank’s system and the group began a“Parlour Tour” of the Bank itself. The “Parlour Tour” is exclusive only to“special” guests of the Bank, and as theteam was guided through the Bank’s opulentante-room, exquisite dining room and alongspiralling, marble staircases, it became clearwhy. One special highlight for the team wasbeing allowed to enter the Monetary PolicyCommittee’s (MPC) very own room, wheremonetary decisions are debated anddecided upon. Later, the team was given atour of one of the Bank’s three underground“vaults”. Having been shown the anti-frauddetails on the new £20 note whilst sittingwithin metres of a metal crate of £20 notesworth £4 million, each member of the teamwas allowed to hold a gold bullion worthover £150,000 and weighing two stone! Theday finished with a recruitment presentationgiven to the team by the Bank’s Head ofRecruitment.

The following morning, refreshed and readyto impress the judges following a convivialnight dining with Dr Wigley, the team arrivedat the Bank detecting a more intense andcompetitive atmosphere. Having been drawnfourth in the previous day’s draw, HABScould afford to sit back and watch Wilson’sSchool, Leeds Grammar and Peter Symonds’present their decisions in the morningbefore the four judges: Paul Tucker (MPC),Kate Barker (MPC), Gary Duncan (EconomicsEditor of the Times) and chair of the judging

panel, Sir John Gieve (member of the MPCand Deputy Governor of the Bank). Following a nervous lunch, HABS took thefloor and having given their presentation andanswered questions on inflationaryexpectations, real interest rates and thefuture prospects of the Euro zone, returnedto the audience pleased with theirperformance. At the end of all sixpresentations, Sir John Gieve, who chairedthe judging panel said, “We had six excellentpresentations, all of which showedimagination, enthusiasm and a realunderstanding of the economy. They wereclearly based on a lot of hard work”. The winners were Leeds Grammar whoopted to maintain rates at 5.25% andreceived the £10,000 first prize. HABS wereannounced as runners up, recommendingan interest rate of 5.5% and receiving the£5,000 second prize. In third place cameRGS Newcastle, who also recommended a5.25% interest rate, and received a prize of£2,000. In addition to these prizes, eachmember of the team received a bagcontaining an expensive PDA, presented bythe Governor Mervyn King. Finally, eachmember of the HABS team was personallycongratulated on their fantastic performanceby Sir John, who gave his sympathies to theteam as runners up for the secondsuccessive year, commending HABS inparticular for their “stock-market analysis”,“unique study of inflationary expectationsand real interest rates” and “spectaculargraphs”.

Target 2.0 has been an extraordinarilymemorable and valuable experience for allinvolved. Thanks must go to Mrs Shah forthe immense commitment and great adviceshe has given to the team throughout thecompetition. One can only hope that aftertwo successive second-places, next year willbe Habs’s year!

Arjun Bhohi Year 13


Staff Charity Concert in aid of Cancer Research

A large audience came to listen to thebiennial staff charity concert in theSeldon Hall on Monday June 25th . Thiswas the last time when such occasionswould be organized by Trevor Hyde. Heinitiated these concerts in 1995, and,as the first one was held only a fewweeks after his father (who had cancerin his body) died suddenly, he decidedthat the Cancer charity would be theappropriate recipient of any fundsraised. This year’s concert was the 7thand raised the largest amount ofmoney yet. Trevor Hyde sent a chequefor £2020:00 to Cancer Research (uk)at the end of June.

The evening started in a bright way with LynBird (and her dancing partner Peter Baldock)performing a Salsa to the music “I Love toLove”. Clearly Lyn loves to dance. This wasfollowed by three songs from Duncan Byrne(tenor) and Phillip Parr (piano). The first was“Is My Team Ploughing” with words from AShropshire Lad by A.E.Housman. Thesecond song was a traditional one “TheFoggy Dew” which has been subjected tomany formats in its long history. Duncan’sfine voice, and Phillip’s delicateaccompaniment, meant that it was a delightto listen to.

Ian Phillips and Barry Regelous brought acomplete change to the evening with ahark-back to the 1960’s. The audiencerecalled their childhood memories withvibrant versions of the Beatles “ComeTogether” and of “Mustang Sally”. Theevening continued with a monologue byPeter Briercliffe. He gave us a fine version ofthe old Stanley Holloway tale of “The Lionand Albert”. This tale recounts themisfortunes which befell a family outing tothe Blackpool Zoo, when the little boy Albertwanted to test the alleged ferocity of lions,leaving the family to haggle with theproprietor over financial recompense whenthe inevitable disaster happened.

Music returned when Trevor Hyde came tothe piano. He gave a performance of twovery different pieces. The first was theImpromptu in B flat by Franz Schubert,which takes the format of a Theme and Fivevariations. The second was “Honky Tonk”written by Billy Mayerl in the 1930’s, andwhich reflected the popularity of thesyncopated piano music of the time. Thiswilder side of music continued when AlMetcalfe gave his usual highly entertainingperformance. He started with his Elvisimpression, wooing the audience, with theintensity of his performance, and followedwith a Freddie Mercury performance. Aldoes not have his own natural moustachebut the audience was held riveted to seehow long his temporary attachment wouldremain in place. The first half came to aclose with a splendid performance by aformer member of staff Frank Hanbidge ofthe Robert Browning tale of “How They

Brought The Good News From Ghent ToAix”. Frank has long had the talent to holdhis audience completely engrossed with theunfolding drama. The performance showedthat retirement has not dampened his skillsin this area.

In a novel twist to the usual concert formatthe second half began with anotherperformance by Frank, when he turned thetale on its head and gave us the Sellar andYeatman version of the tale told as “HowThey Brought The Good News From Aix ToGhent”. Music returned with an excellentperformance on that rarely heardperformance instrument -- the recorder.Josee Beeson is an expert on theseinstruments: this expertise came to the forewith her performance on the TrebleRecorder for “A Summer Day” and on theTenor Recorder for “Tea for Two”. She wasaccompanied in both pieces by anotherdelicate performance from Phillip Parr onthe piano.

Laughter followed when John Fenn andMelvyn Bardou gave us a colourfulperformance of “La Bamba”. After thisTrevor Hyde had the opportunity to thankthe audience for their support of theCancer charity, and to thank the evening’scompère Mike Morrish for his livelyintroductions to the performers. Moreover itgave us time to settle back into our seatsfor a very funny (but worryingly possible?)scenario which Mike envisaged if thefounder of Easy Jet became involved inrunning schools in this

country. Easy Jet all too easily becametransformed into Easy School.

Music returned when the BeachED Boysperformed the 60’s song “Barbara Ann”. Thegroup combined the vocal talents of MelvynBardou, Duncan Byrne, John Fenn, NickHolmes, Jackie Mulchrone, Phillip Parr, andKeren Pollock. The last musical performanceof the evening came when Trevor Hydereturned to the piano with MalcolmPritchard. They started with 2 “Latin” duets(Mambo, and Cha Cha) by ChristopherNorton for 4 hands on one piano. Therefollowed a 2-piano duet of the old spiritual“Down By The Riverside” which Trevor hadarranged. They closed their performancewith the ever-popular music of Scott Joplin;the title “Strenuous Life” being a reflectionof our present lifestyle.

The evening closed in the format which hasbecome traditional in these concerts—acomedy sketch written by Stephen Wilson.Reflecting on the madness of modernbureaucracy in education “Form Filling andFrivolity” hit its targets, and delighted theaudience.

Now that Trevor has retired he expressed hishopes that the biennial concerts willcontinue, and looks forward to being in theaudience next time.

T. Hyde

Skylark 2007 Events

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Skylark 2007 Events

The GCSE, A/S and A Level Art Exhibition

Once again the Art department took over theBourne Exhibition Hall during May and Juneto present its GCSE, A/S and A Level show.It is one of the highlights of thedepartment’s year, being the culmination ofwhat is two years work for our pupils: manyhours of research, development andrefinement of visual ideas and creativetechnique.

This year’s show was a particularlyinteresting display of work, I feel, with notjust the usual range of media and styles butwith an intensity and depth to it aswell,which was evident in each of the three agegroups.

At GCSE Level I was struck by the fluenthandling, and balancing, of colour in muchof the painting including Kayhan Izmen’s‘Figure behind the Curtain’, where aconvincing effect of depth and space wasevoked in a piece clearly inspired by ReneMagritte. In Dominic Keen’s painting ‘TheSurfer’ the feel of spray, and the energy ofthe wave were powerfully suggestedthrough texture and colour. The tumblingwall of water, expressed through the vitalityof his brushwork, added to the vulnerability

of the figurecontained within thewave. The same pupilshowed his versatilityby producing animpressive ‘FauvistSelf-Portrait’, whichreminded me ofMatisse’s ‘Womanwith a Green Stripe’.

Similar qualities ofexperiment andenquiry could beseen in JoshCowan’s work,where a very

competent ‘Landscape with Beach Huts’ inan impressionist style contrasted with amixed-media piece incorporating a runningfigure and photographs of the natural andman-made world.

There were some impressive graphicimages created at GCSE level, too. I wasdrawn to Johan Bastianpillai’s repeat print ofGeorge Bush – where colour was cleverlyused to create balance and harmonyproducing a highly decorative effect. His Lifedrawings and prints were very impressivealso, showing a keen eye for observation butexpressive and intimate at the same time.Florian Culka’s ‘Vorticist Composition’, his

response to this year’s exam theme,‘Wraps’, was a tightly controlledcomposition, or structure, evokingarchitectural forms based on the work of anearly 20th Century painter Wyndham Lewis.Florian had seen his work earlier in the yearat Tate Britain. An intricate and harmoniouspiece which was dependent on line andpattern for it’s success.

Ceramics this year was well representedand again the boys had reached a high levelof technique, but with imagination and witaswell. The prizewinners this year, awardedat our Private View evening, were AlexBarnett and Tom Colville. Alex’s Surrealistinterpretation of a head was impressivelystructured, begging the question, ‘How didhe do that?’ While Tom’s head with a‘Verdigris’ inspired glaze particularly struckour guest speaker, Gary Tarn. A specialmention must go to Oliver Cohen whoseceramic ball-and –square completely fooledthe judges, who were convinced that theball was metallic!

Our Sixth Form contingent were a vivid andcommitted group of personalities whosework reflected real depth of interest,confident handling of materials and strongtechnical ability. As at GCSE there was arange of approaches and influences; fromAmerican Pop Art to the Europeanexpressionist tradition, from EdwardHopper’s introspective compositions toFrank Auerbach’s extravagant impastocanvasses.

Jack Lloyd-Jones’ work suggested astrongly introspective mood, taking in theearthy tones of umber, ochre and Prussianblue. His ‘Figure on a Platform’ was, for me,one of the highlights of the show, creating aconvincing evocation of a wet andshimmering surface.

I was impressed, too, by Peter Grant’sversatility of technique. His delicate self-portraits, rightly winning the prize at thislevel for drawing, were in surprising contrastto his exam piece, beautifully coloured, in astyle reminiscent of Patrick Caulfield orRichard Hamilton.

Akhil Bakhda must take great credit for thesheer scale of his painted canvas of theGuggenheim Museum in Bilbao. Such arichly textured surface, a tapestry of colour,a riot of brushmarks. Brilliant!Marlon Biber created two of the mosteffective prints at this level, images of theStatue of Liberty, which incorporated therepeated use of a miniaturised version ofthe statue. Clever.

Nick Vassiliou deserves a mention for hisgraphic image of a rushing crowd, createdas a response to the A/S Level exam theme,‘Freedom’. Nick created a highly effectiveand moody image which used tonalseparation for its effect.

Daniel Engelsman produced a startlingthree-dimensional work on the same theme.His ‘Falling Figure’ appeared to be almostripping through space, but defying gravity,frozen in time. Rather unsettling as a result.Sam Pinner assembled a mixed-mediadislay of work including an autobiographicalmusical arch, a finely observed graphicimage of his sister, and a three-part self-portrait, or triptych, with all kinds ofassembled collage, squirted paint, andmangled string. A visual equivalent of the‘Pinner laugh’, I felt.

Peter Garside and Yexi Tran’s work couldn’thave been more different, but both carriedthrough to a high level of technique. Peter,with an interest in photo-realism, creatingan illusion of reality in pencil and paint, andevoking a strong sense of isolation andvulnerability in his figures. Reminiscent ofHopper.

Yexi, by contrast, was more interested in thesurface qualities created by paint on canvasand the contrast of realism and abstraction.His Jackson Pollock pastiche set up amesmeric rhythm of line and colour whichwas entirely convincing. His self-portraitwork, which was reworked I don’t know howmany times, was a particularly hauntingpiece. It reminded me of Munch’s ‘Self-Portrait with a Cigarette’.


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Skylark 2007 Events

Mencap Funday

Bouncy castles, face painting, hundredsof volunteers, murals, candy floss…yesof course, the annual ‘Mencap Funday’had returned to HABS!

Unfortunately the weather of previous yearshad not pulled through, leaving myself andthe rest of the committee stuck at what todo. With the registration already set upoutside, all we could do was pray for therain to stop. However, God obviously wasn’tlistening to us and soon enough we had tobring all the tables that had been set upoutside, inside! Along with that we had tomove the arts and crafts, face painting,badge making and bouncy castle (to name a

few) into various classrooms around theschool. This certainly wasn’t what we werehoping for. We began to question how theday would run and hoped that our year oforganisation for ‘Mencap Funday’ had notgone to waste.

Volunteers started to arrive, as did thechildren and soon it was evident that therain would not stop the beauty of the day.Children were smiling, volunteers werelaughing and the general atmosphere was ofhappiness. How wrong we were to everquestion the outcome of such an amazingday. It is a day where all rules can bebroken. We can use the lift, bring animals in

classrooms, have a paddling pool in theAske Hall and of course walk on the ‘sacred’quad! It is a day like no other. A day of joyand excitement, where all volunteers leavewith a sense of pride and fulfilment

The day was a huge success which will beremembered by pupils, staff and visitingchildren for a long time. Thanks must go toDr. Perera and Mrs. Buckley for their superborganisation, whithout whom the day wouldnot have run smoothly. Similary mentionmust also go to Catlin Group LTD forsponsoring ‘Mencap Funday’

Oliver Tenzer Year 12

Neil Justice’s body of work showed Munch-like qualities, too, both in the themes of hiswork and the use of flowing line and colour.There was a strong sense of movement, anorganic quality, in Neil’s work that I liked. Hispiece inspired by Hopper created the samesense of anticipation, of something about tohappen, as the original artist.

Sean Tomlin rightly won a prize , awardedagain by Gary Tarn. Gary, a documentaryfilmmaker, was drawn to Sean’s exam piece.This was a mixed-media work incorporatingboth painting and film: to suggest the dreamsand aspirations of the hospitalised. Theimages on screen did in fact evoke the feelingof drifting between consciousness and sleep,as they melted from one scene to the nextand from the figurative to the abstract. Muchof Sean’s work had this dream-like quality: it

was a very exciting selection.At the top end, A Level, there were threecandidates. Aziz Ahsan, Max Herbert, andJonathan Hersom. Jonathan’s work playedwith the notions of abstraction andmovement. In his coursework Jonathanexplored the boundaries of the real and theabstract, the point at which one meets theother, through the work of Kandinsky, Kleeand Mondrian. His large canvas, which hewas re-working right up to the day of thePrivate View, had a freshness andexuberance that was extremely appealing. Itcaptured movement, as did his exam piece: afigure made from wire leaning forward, as ifcaptured on the edge of breaking throughsome unseen force field. ‘Boundaries’ wasthe theme for this.

Aziz, a meticulous researcher anddocumentor of ideas and concepts, wasinspired by the idea of colour in all his work.Colour balance, harmony, and purity. Theinfluences in his work are clearly apparentbut his striking self-portrait did go a stagefurther than just reproduce the Pop Arttrademarks. The rhythm of brushmarks withinparticular areas of colour was appealing andgave an energy and sense of motion to thecompleted composition. There was atremendous sense of conviction to this piece.

Finally, Max Herbert. A display which evolvedalmost organically across two wallscomprising of an array of figure work, bothpainted and drawn. Sometimes highlyintricate, as in the work of Escher or Ernst.More often, sweeping gestures in paintevoking the work of Max Beckmann or OttoDix with their layers of meaning andinterpretation. An interest in the contrastbetween what is hidden and what is revealed.This concern extended into a three-dimensional field in his installation piece,‘Boundaries’, where a small carved figurewas, to all intents and purposes, suspended intime and space within a darkened ‘tent’.Through the use of a digi-cam the figure wascaptured staring athis own image, intoinfinity. A very cleverevocation of depth,through illusion,which summonedup the video andinstallation work ofBill Viola and BruceNaumann.

S Todhunter


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Skylark 2007 Events

Work Placements: the experiences.

Every year, on the run-up to GCSEs,around 95% of students undertakework experience. Their aims are to geta taste for working life in “the realworld”; often with rewarding resultsand a useful insight into their possiblefuture employment.

When a thousand students were asked, in arecent investigation, whether on balancethey “enjoyed their work experience” ahealthy 80% responded positively. However,around 3% strongly disliked their experienceand for those unlucky few the ‘experience’only provided sleepless nights; indeed I wasone of them.

HABS students every year roll the dice ofwork experience, aided by capable staff, andmost find it highly useful if not downrightenjoyable. Boys will casually boast aboutwhere they have been, underlining theirability to manipulate family links for jobs orto create charming letters of application.Indeed, last year, there was much to boastabout with boys travelling to Comic relief,Innocent Smoothies, The National Lottery,the Metropolitan Police, a football agency,Saatchi & Saatchi, and even the office of theDeputy Prime Minister.

Not all were so lucky or ambitious however,with hordes of HABS boys setting out eachday to work alongside doctors, lawyers,dentists, architects, bankers, accountantsand, a rather worrying amount of boys, toprimary schools. Nonetheless some studentsmanaged to think out of the proverbial boxand plunged themselves into a field of workwhich, although not the most obviouschoice, yielded more of a ‘life experience’.

Matthew Slavin of Calverts was luckyenough for one week to become ‘JamesBond’. Having written to the Met Police,Matthew gained entry to a police trainingfacility in Colindale. In the course of hisweek he was introduced to Ken Livingstone,Sir Ian Blair as well as the head of thepolice force of Jamaica, Ghana, Trinidad andTobago, Sierra Leone and Bermuda. But thisweek was not purely based on glad-handingbig-shots with a grin; he also blew stuff up.After careful injections of ‘Habsboy charm’and steady persuasion towards the string-pullers of the Met Police he joined in withofficial firearms training. But the week ofaction did not end there; Slavin sat andcontrolled the entire CCTV and surveillancesystem of the Metropolitan police HQ,marshalled a gruelling fitness test for newrecruits for fun and took charge of a mockhostage negotiation with real internationalpolice chiefs! I believe Agent Slavin is nowworking undercover somewhere in Russia.

However not all experiences were asrewarding as my own for a glaring example.

Indeed as Slavin was defusing a nuclearweapon in Beijing I was standing drenchedin a warehouse so dingy that even Satanwould have felt uneasy in it. Standing thereI felt that I had applied to work in a brothel.

But indeed my ambitions had beenrespectable. I had started the day jubilantlyin anticipation; I was working for the DailyTelegraph. In fact I was to travel to One,Canary Wharf. This is the building circled byhelicopter in The Apprentice to dramaticorchestral music; the icon of London’sbusiness and commerce. My expectations ofthe week ahead were elevated further bythe idea of working for the Telegraph.Although technically a reader of the SundayTimes, this was still a huge step up from myprevious week of journalistic experience atHerts & Essex Newspapers Ltd; and anywaythe Times had said ‘no thanks’ because Iwas from a private school and a racialmajority, the relevance of which stillbemuses me.

In retrospect I should have been far morewary of the nightmare ahead of me when Iwas telephoned and informed not to wear asuit in case it got dirty. Perhaps all thewriters play a bit of touch rugby at lunch Ithought and pondered upon it no longer.

Having sat waiting outside the glass doorsof the offices on a remarkablyuncomfortable leather sofa for a whole hourI was contemplating a short nap; for I wasattracting absolutely no attention despitehaving introduced myself to the receptionistmore times than I would to a poorAlzheimer’s patient. Eventually three otherplacement students arrived; all of whichwere girls in pristine office wear. Sitting inmy shabby clothing I felt like I was there todo a bit of plumbing.

It was not long before I was walking throughthe buzzing hub of the writers’ floor. Therattle of coffee cups, chatter and phoneswhich rung so aggressively that I would bescared to touch them for fear of immediateparalysis. This was the centre of thejournalistic world in my eyes and the hourand a half journey was worth every secondto be walking through it; and to my utterdismay straight out of it. Recovering stillfrom the teasing glimpse of the writers’room I was led into a tight box of a roomwhich clearly had never meant provided withelectricity or heating and met my‘supervisor’ who to this day I understandhas the exact biological make up of agarden mole; with large glasses on. Hisname eludes me but it may well have beenMoley Moleson Mole the Mole. Hisresemblance and even attitude towards lifewas astonishingly accurate to a creaturewhich spends its days underground,occasionally surfacing in a mound of earth

to ruin someone’s hard work and happiness.Indeed he once told me, when we werediscussing the problem of asylum seekers,rather cryptically and mysteriously that heblamed “the long hoh summers we gohnowadays”; the meaning of which? Yourguess is as good as mine.

Mole’s department (his room) was in chargeof recording everything the telegraphpublished in a library; to the word. He setme to work by organising the past 60 yearsof Telegraph Sunday magazines intochronological order; which I completed asquickly as possible in the hope of moreresponsible jobs. My next job, after lunch,was to take the dozen or so boxes of thehundreds of dusty magazines I had just filedall morning and throw them away; excellent.

“We’re going for a walk” mumbled Moleafter I had sealed the last box with red tapereading “WASTE” with a tear of desperationin my eyes. As I stood in the elevator to theground floor with my supervisor who I nowrealised was no larger than two feet high Ipresumed he was taking me to London Zooso he could pick up some of his stuff.Instead we trudged headlong through whatcan only have been Hurricane Katrina takinga casual stroll over Central London for alaugh, towards an abandoned warehousetwenty minutes away from the high-riseelegance of Canary Wharf. At least I thoughtit was abandoned, walking over brokenglass, beer bottles, random planks of woodand the occasional passed-out drunk. I waswalking through what can only really bedescribed as a crime scene. I was at theTelegraph documents library, which I onlyknew thanks to some considerate graffitiartist who had created a makeshift sign onthe plastered wall. He also had supplied uswith an appropriately positioned arrowdirecting us towards a door which onlyopened with a violent kick upon a wornpatch underneath the broken handle.

The numerous and infinitely long and highshelves of past Telegraph issues hadcreated shady corridors of documents ofantiquity and I was certainly impressed.However the rest of my day was filled withfurther sifting through magazines with theexpectation of only throwing them awaylater. I was, by 5pm, as grubby as mysupervisor, and as motivated as slothtraining for the London Marathon. I decidedmy ‘experience’ with the Telegraph had tobe cut short and so having failed to findanyone to outline my minor distresses in theoffice who had any time for me I simplydecided to stay in bed the following morningand read the Times.

Ben Ashenden Year 12


Trips


Chambéry Exchange Classics trip to Rome and Sorrento

In the Easter holidays, a group of Year 8 Habs boys, along with girls from NorthLondon Collegiate School spent a week in Chambéry, a city situated in the foothillsof the French Alps. Throughout the journey there, we were all eagerly anticipatingmeeting our exchange partners and their families.

The day after our arrival in Chambéry on Tuesday, we went to school with our partners, andattended lessons including English and French. Afterwards, we spent an afternoon out withthe families, allowing us to fully engage with French culture. On Thursday, we travelled toLyon, the nearest major city, and visited Le Musée Lumière, the museum of cinema. Thiswas interesting, as we found out many facts about the history of film. We then took a cablecar to the Basilica and had a very informative guided tour of the old town.

Friday was probably the most enjoyable day of the trip. This was due to the exciting boat tripon Le Lac du Bourget (the largest natural lake in France), en route to the nut oil mill. Wewere able to stand at the back of the boat, enjoying the pleasant atmosphere and breath-taking view of the mountains. The pleasurable journey finally ended at the nut oil mill wherewe saw the process of oil-making. It was fascinating to see all the machines carrying outdifferent jobs simultaneously. We were fortunate enough to taste some hazelnut oil andwalnut oil which had been freshly made. All aware that the afternoon was to be spent inAnnecy, little did we know that the highlight of the trip was yet to come. Mrs Robson andMrs Childerstone treated us all to an hour on the pedaloes on Le Lac d’Annecy. This boatride soon turned into the odd collision of boats, which in turn became somewhat of a waterfight! When the time was up, we climbed out of the boats, drenched from head to toe, butnone of us regretted it, partly because the blistering heat soon dried us up. The rest of theafternoon was spent in the cobbled streets of Annecy. During the weekend, our families tookus out for some enjoyable activities, such as playing Quasar laser games and viewing magicshows. All in all, the trip was a great success and thanks must go to Mrs Robson and MrsChilderstone for organizing the trip and accompanying us.

Omar Ali and Alex McGeever Year 8

After an early start (get up at 2amand you’ll see for yourself), wewere on our way to Rome. MrWhiteman took us on a make-shifttour, passing the Pantheon. Thenext day, we met our tour guide,Richard, at the amazingly hugeColosseum. That night, MrWhiteman took us on an obviouslyplanned adventure around Rome(we missed the bus). On Monday,despite an educational visit to theVatican, a quick kick-aroundproved to be the highlight of theday. The same night, we went tothe Spanish Steps, where MrWhiteman explained theirsignificance from a guide bookwhich he apparently ‘wrotehimself’.

Tuesday, we went to Ostia, to break upour 3 hour coach journey to Sorrento.Despite our best efforts to exploreSorrento, the pouring rain would ensurewe quickly gave up. We invadedPompeii on Wednesday, and then,being the tough Englishmen we are,climbed Mt. Vesuvius in the hail andcold. That night, we re-tried exploringSorrento, but we (once again) gave up.After a half-hour boat ride to Capri, weexplored (ate ice-cream and pizza) andsaw a villa belonging to Tiberius (halfan hour to walk there, 3 minutes tolook around, half an hour to get back:completely worth it.) After a lengthydebate about the American languagewith an ice-cream seller, we returned toour hotel, being told to go to bedimmediately. On Friday, we went toHerculaneum and looked at somemosaic artifacts in the museum. Ourfinal full day in Italy over, we slept until6:30 the next morning, and withoutdelay, made our way to the airport.

Great thanks must go to Mr Whitemanfor organising the trip and to MrWhalley, Miss Leyshon, Mrs Butcher,Mr Dathan, and Mrs Jones for beingour group leaders.

Sam Healer Year 9

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Skylark 2007 Trips

Geography Field Trip

This year the Lower Sixth Geography fieldtrip went to the sand dunes at StudlandBay, located on the Isle of Purbeck.

Sunday 25th March arrived, with parentsdropping off bleary eyed children at 7.30 inthe morning, into the hands of the trustedGeography department. However, the tripdid not get off to the best of starts. Thenight before had been the night when BritishSummer Time started, and, as usual, oneperson forgot. Unfortunately this time it wasthe coach driver. While we waited anotherforty minutes for the coach driver to arrive,we started on the geography, with Mr Haylershowing us certain techniques we wouldneed, including how to sample the pH of thesoil and how to profile the site.

The coach finally arrived at 8.10 to cheersfrom the students and we all piled onto thecoach and set off. The journey consisted ofseveral activities, the majority of which wereoverruled by the need for sleep by mostpeople. When we arrived at Studland Bay,the group of about 30 students were splitinto two, with one group going on apreliminary visit to the dunes and the othergoing on a settlement study of thesurrounding area.

The preliminary dune visit was conducted inorder for the groups to decide what they

wanted to investigate the next day. Wewere shown several techniques that couldbe used, and walked inland from the shoreacross the dunes to get an idea of the areathat we were going to study. We thenwalked back to the coach for lunch, beforethe two groups swapped over and we wentoff in the mini-bus for the settlement study.

For the settlement study we observedseveral small villages and towns includingWorth Matravers, Kimmeridge andWareham, also passing Corfe Castle, apopular tourist attraction of the area.

After the day’s work, we travelled to ouraccommodation at an outdoor activitycentre. Once settled into our rooms wewere given some time for activities beforedinner. After dinner we were all shippedinto a room for our “evening study session”,where we were given a presentation aboutwhat we had to do the next day from MrYeabsley. Then we split up into smallergroups of five and had to decide whatfactors we were going to investigate thenext day, along with the equipment wewould need. The Session ended at 21.00and we were given the remainder of theevening to “amuse ourselves”.

The morning arrived, far too early for mostpeople, with a quick breakfast and then

straight off into the field. We got straight towork after being issued with our relevantequipment. We all chose our sites along thebeach and started. During the study we hadto profile the site, so that we could draw anaccurate diagram of it, test the soil pH, testthe soil moisture, measure the infiltrationrate of the soil, and also record the amountand type of vegetation cover across thedune. Once all of the information had beencollected we made our way back to thecoach, which for some people was the mostenjoyable and wettest part of the trip, due tothe fact that there was a large bog acrossthe path, which resulted in a couple of wetboots, and one entirely wet person!

Once again we piled onto the coach andmade our way back to HABS. Arefreshment stop was cancelled on thereturn journey due to the enthusiasm ofsome of the boys to make it back to makethe late coaches, so that they could gethome and write up their coursework!

Finally, thanks must go to the Geographydepartment staff for a successful,educational and enjoyable trip.

Michael Bentley Year 12


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In Easter 2007, eight boys from theAS level German class went toDüsseldorf in order to take part in awork experience arranged throughthe school. We arrived on Saturdaywhere we were met at the airport byour partners and their parents. Thiswas the first time we had met thembut they were very friendly andwelcomed us with open arms. Thatevening we all came together inorder to get to know our partnersbetter. Cultural differences quicklybecame apparent as we discoveredthat the Germans are far more willingto use bikes, as opposed to ourpreferred public transport, in order toget around.

On Sunday, we went to Bonn andCologne, where we were taken on a tourof these two cities and learnt about theirhistory. Although this was not the mainreason for our visit to Germany, it did giveus an insight into the culture and historyof the towns and allowed us to betterunderstand the large variety of culturesand atmospheres within Germany.

The following Monday would see us enterour respective institutions. Working in aforeign law firm gave me the opportunityto experience an exciting set ofcircumstances: the working atmosphereof a law firm, as well as the practises of

foreign firms. Although I only went tocourt on the first day it was a goodexperience and through the summaries Imade, in both German and English, I wasable to learn about many cases. Thisgreatly increased my understanding ofhow to argue a case and improved myGerman vastly. However, there were manyother work experience opportunities,including banking and medicalplacements.

On Friday, instead of working, we went tothe school with our partners. The Germansystem of schooling is very different to thatof the UK. German students start theirschool day an hour earlier but finish at1pm. This gives them extra time afterschool to meet friends or completehomework assignments. After work ourpartners planned activities for us, includinggoing to the cinema and football games.

All in all this was a very good experiencethat not only improved our German butgave us an insight into both the workingworld and increased my understanding ofthe German culture. I would recommendit for anybody who is planning on takingGerman as an A level, as the boost inconfidence that one receives throughliving and interacting with native speakersis unparalleled.

Dara Matiluko Year 12

Skylark 2007 Trips

German Work Experience

On the 8th October, Dr Sloan, MissRivlin and other members of staff tookYear 7 to Hastings, in Sussex. Mostclasses had been studying the Battle ofHastings before the trip and werelooking forward to visiting the sitewhere it took place, and PevenseyCastle. It was a beautiful, sunny day,perfect for the occasion. Our first stopwas Pevensey Castle, where WilliamDuke of Normandy landed his invadingarmy in September 1066.

When we arrived at Pevensey Castle, DrSloan told us that the ruins of the walls andthe moat around the castle were Roman;this meant that it was a good defensivecastle for William. We split up into twogroups. Whilst one of the groups went insidethe castle, the other walked around theremains of the walls and studied them withdetailed talks by Dr Sloan. Inside the castlewere the remains of a chapel, and there waseven a cannon, which we were told wouldnot have been there in 1066! We wereallowed to walk freely to the dungeons; amiserable, dark place which was a fewmetres below the castle.

After we had finished looking at PevenseyCastle and its grounds, we made our way tothe actual battlefield. We walked around inthe thick grass and acted as though wewere soldiers, standing on the top of the hillshouting "OOT OOT OOT!" The boys at thebottom of the hill, “William of Normandy'sarmy”, ran up the hill charging, and fallingthinking that we were being “killed”. Afterthis, Dr Sloan and Miss Rivlin gave uslectures on what happened in certain areasof the field. The battlefield was huge andno-one could imagine what it would havebeen like to have thousands of dead bodieslying on the ground.

The week after the trip, we were told that are-enactment of the Battle of Hastings wouldbe held there, just like the one we did,because it was the anniversary of the bloodthirsty war.

The History trip was a great day out and willalways be remembered. Thank you to DrSloan and Miss Rivlin who planned the tripand made it so enjoyable.

Rhys Jenkins Year 7

History Trip to Hastings


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Anyone who has experienced it willconfirm that Italian in Year 11 is achallenging, yet rewarding experience.We are pushed extremely hard by MrThompson, our teacher, in order toachieve what usually requires fouryears of teaching in other languages, injust two terms. The Italian exchangetherefore served as a welcome respite:a chance for others to explore this newand rather alien culture and a chancefor me to go home.

The exchange consisted of four boys andfive girls all from the “Liceo ScientificoCopernico” in the beautiful city of Bologna,in Northern Italy. We met our exchanges atthe airport which was called “Bologna Forlì”implying at least relative proximity but asalways with Ryanair this was far from thecase. My exchange, a girl named Giulia, didnot actually live in Bologna but in a smalltown called Crevalcore. The next day startedwith a classic Italian breakfast. MrThompson and I were true men, buying twocappuccini (yes, cappuccini notcappuccinos) with a lovely pastry, whereaseverybody else truly embraced Italian culturewith some sort of soft drink and a drycroissant. I was proud to be associated withthese fine men of the world.

A brief interlude is required here to explainan integral part of the trip. It was, in fact, acard game. Briscola is a traditional Italiangame played by the old men who shout atyoung people for walking funny andcomplain about everything. I know, mygrandfather was one of them. Itssignificance as an ice breaker should not beunderstated. Communication barriers werequickly brought down by the cards and oncethe games were in full flow, conversationwas easy and we all got to know each othermuch better.

In the afternoon, we had a tour aroundBologna where we saw many sites andlearnt many things. Bologna, for example, isnamed “La Città Rossa” or “The Red City”for two reasons. The city is in the Po valleyand therefore has little natural rock and sothe buildings are made of terracotta (literally“cooked earth”) bricks giving the whole citya red colour. Secondly, Bologna has alwaysbeen a centre for communist activity hencethe “Red” nomination. We learnt of BolognaUniversity, the best in Italy and one of themost respected in the world, and of La SalaBorsa, the former stock exchange that waslater used as a basketball court and saw theRoman ruins beneath it. We saw “Le trechiese” or “three churches” in SaintSteven’s square and saw the Basilica ofSaint Petronius, with its unfinished façade.The church of Saint Petronius itself wasinitially intended to be larger than St Peter’sBasilica in Rome, and whilst Catholic infaith, separate from the Catholic Church. Tostop this, Pope Pious IV built two buildings amere few metres from the edge of thechurch, preventing any sort of expansion. As

a permanent reminderof the disgracefulattitude of the Pope,the outside of thechurch has been leftunfinished. We alsosaw the famous twotowers of Bologna, butmore on that later on.

After this we went tothe market. This, for meat least, was dreadfullyboring. I have neverbeen one for shoppingand after it startedraining, spirits wereonly further dampened. However an icecream filled us up with glorious sugar andwith this new found energy we set off toAnna’s (Raph’s exchange) house for supper. Asupper of two types of pasta with bread,prosciutto cotto, bresaola… I nearly exploded.Raph actually did.

Saturday meant school, boring boringschool. After sitting “sans exchanges” in twoEnglish lessons explaining to separategroups “La vita inglese”, we all went ourseparate ways. I sat in physics and maths,comprehending nothing, enjoying nothing.The only highlight was a phone call from mygrandmother, prompting the teacher to turnaround with murder in her eyes and on hermind, demanding to know who it was. Iknew that if she’d thrown the chalk at me,she would have killed me. Tom, on the otherhand, couldn’t stop laughing. The highlightof Saturday was, without a doubt, the towersin Bologna. They were built by high societyaristocrats to show how large their fortunewas. The view from the top was spectacular,though getting there was a hassle.

The next day was rather exciting as I got togo home. Raph, Anna, Giulia and I all wentup to Fidenza and then to Salsomaggiore:my home town. We saw the sights and sawmy Nonna. In the meantime however,everyone else went to the beautiful churchon the top of the hill overlooking Bolognacalled San Luca, which I’m told was lovely. That evening we had, in my opinion, thebest meal of the trip. It was in a restaurantnext to a lake and consisted of tagliatellemade fresh, al ragù (or Bolognese to Englishpeople). The main course was the highlight.All we were given was crescentini: deepfried dough pockets, with an assortment ofhams and salami. That night I really didexplode. The food was, in short, amazing.Monday was also a memorable day.Bologna’s philharmonic academy is famousaround the world: Mozart had studied there,along with Wagner, Giuseppe Verdi and mypersonal favourite Giacomo Puccini. We sawold instruments, how Stradivari made hisviolins, but sadly not a violin made by thegreat man. Raph was the fortunate one. Heis not in the least modest, but he is afantastic pianist. So when we werepresented with a 400 year old organ that

had been played by Mozart, Mr Thompsonpersuaded the guide to let Raph play.Though for me a guided tour around themain Ducati factory was just as exciting. Wegot to see the production line, I repeat: theproduction line! We were also fortunateenough to see all of Loris Capirossi’sMotoGP bikes.

Tuesday was Venice, another dream cometrue. The city is a beautiful concoction;endless beauty with endless tourists andendless foreign gentlemen selling youhandbags for “Very good price, yes”. Thereis nowhere like it on earth and it is one ofthe few places that fulfils something emptyin your life. There is a mystique about theplace that cannot be expressed in words,yes there are canals, yes there are churchesbut there is that atmosphere that you canfeel coursing through you. As everyoneagreed, Venice was amazing.

Next, on to Florence, within that jewel ofTuscany lies some of the most amazingartwork in the world, with one of the mostbeautiful domed churches on the planet. Wedidn’t go to the Uffizi which was verydisappointing, but we did see the lessfamous, but in my opinion more beautiful,David by Donatello. There were twohighlights that day for me. One was fulfillingmy life-long ambition to walk across thePonte Vecchio, and the second was gettinglost with Philo whilst looking for a toilet andthen being told by a Chinese lady whospoke neither English nor Italian that we hadto pay her for the service.

That night was the end of school party for“Copernico”, where we all danced, Mitch dida chin-up, Tom did his stuff and Philo had adisturbing episode with a toilet. I can’t go into it…The trip ended with a big group hugwith one last big group hug and a final “CiaoRagazzi!” It was without question the besttrip I have ever been on, surpassing mygreatest expectations. Go to Italy. Now!

Alessandro Furlotti Year 11

Italy


Twenty-one boys were woken from deep sleepat 1am on Good Friday; however there wasnothing spiritual in that morning’s rising. Theprospect of a week’s skiing was not particularlyappealing at that early hour. Despite theirgrumbles and questions as to whether therereally was not a later flight, twenty-one sets ofparents seemed keen to have their young menaway for the week and so delivered them to theHabs car park for the journey to Gatwick andthen on to Vars in France.

Groans quickly turned to moans as the 5.30am flight was delayed and boys longed for theadditional sleep that could have been had,which resulted in Mr Long dishing out a seriesof fines to the disheartened skiers. Nonethelessthe plane finally arrived and the boys quicklyfound themselves treading on French soil.Unknown to them though was that a four and ahalf hour coach drive was still ahead. And as ifthat wasn’t enough, the boys weren’t allowedto eat on the coach! The series of windingroads with a kilometre drop on one sideresulted in a series of very sick boys. Morefines!

At last our destination: the Club Hotel Franou,where Mr Long and Co held a meeting tocelebrate our arrival at Vars. Then at last, themoment the boys had all been waiting for aswe were allowed to roam the shops of Vars andransack the food stores. After a very long andtiring day, twenty-one boys would findthemselves in a deep slumber. No time for finesthat night.

The next day we woke up to six days ofglorious sunshine and picture postcard blueskies. Boys of all abilities faced up to thechallenges of the Alps. Ski groups wereorganised and the fun began. One instructormade the mistake of trying to instruct: mutinywas struck and he was soon replaced by“Frederic” who became our hero for the week.

The boys did excellently ski-wise but disciplinenever quite achieved the same heights. Allboys clocked up more fines than air miles; itwould seem to the delight of the teachers.Someone suggested there may have been acompetition to see who could hand out themost fines. Surely not! There were no injuriesand every night activities were organised justin case the boys had any energy left …oh,and more fines. The Mr and Mrs Vars eventwas a great success with special praise goingto Jonathan Munger for bringing out hishitherto hidden female side to steal the show.Karaoke was another fun evening but themachine had failed to recover from a nightwith the Bedford Modern Boys.

After a hectic week, the boys were returned totheir parents. Memories are strong and clearbut to their enquiring, anxious questions,remains one simple reply; “what goes on tourstays on tour”.

I wonder whatever happened to all those fines?

Joseph Myers Year 7

Junior School Ski Trip

Strasbourg

We hastily arrived at the school inStrasbourg by about 3 o’clock thatafternoon, each of us experiencing amixture of feelings – one of which wasexcitement, another of which was a hopethat we didn’t have the one who neverwashed. (There’s always one who neverwashes). To cut a long story short, I hadthe good looking one, Andrew had the big,tall, rather effeminate but actually quitenice one, Daniel Engelsman had theunbelievably cool one, and Jeremy Juliushad the lazy one. Off we went, back homewith our exchanges for the weekend,wondering what was to happen to us overthe next couple of days.

My couple of days were actually quiteenjoyable. My guy, as well as being rathergood looking, was an excellent golfer, andso on the Saturday I played golf. That wasfun. Saturday evening was an opportunityto meet up with Daniel and Victor (the coolone) and a good evening was had. Sundaywas relaxed, involving cinema andrelaxation.

Monday soon came, and this was the firstday that we were able to see our ‘friends’that we had not seen for two days, anxiousto tell each other our frightening andexciting stories about how the Frenchpeople lived, washed and ate. MissaghNikbakht-Fini relayed stories of doingabsolutely nothing. Fjodor told us how heand his guy were actually good friends,and Andrew told us how his guy ‘wasn’t always expressive’.

During these days we met up with MrByrne: a nice chap, with a great accent,and a love for Alsatian wine. He eagerlytook us up churches, down museums,through caves, and thanks must go to himfor broadening our knowledge of Alsacethroughout the trip. Mr Byrne is a fountainof knowledge, through which spurts agenuine hope that we are educated. Ithank him for that.

Throughout the rest of the week, Igenerally went out with Victor (who neverworked); because my partner wassurprisingly studious, I went out withouthim generally. Andrew managed topersuade his unbelievably inexpressive guyto come out as well, and so we all happilywent off one night, and ended up in a barcalled “le Trou” – an experience whichhelped to loosen his tongue.

Many thanks must go to Jeremy Julius forproviding us with something to laugh atwhenever we were feeling down, and allthe exchange families who made us feelwelcome and organised a hectic scheduleof social events. Some of us have madefriendships that will last and that must bethe best sign of a successful exchange.

Joel Ross Year 12

A number of French A level studentsand Mr Byrne, an eager Frenchteacher, arrived at Elstree station ona very dreary morning in February,eagerly anticipating the Frenchexchange that was to be inStrasbourg for the next week.Andrew Hurwitz was slightly moreapprehensive as we stood on theplatform awaiting our train to takeus to the airport – in his exchange’snotes, young Pierre-Michel hadremarked (in French) that he was‘not always expressive’. Good luckwith that Andrew, good luck.

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Skylark 2007 Trips

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Senior School Ski TripLanzarote

Once again, we had a verysuccessful trip to Lanzarote forpre-season activities: warmweather, everyone training hard,sunbathing aplenty, and many newpersonal bests recorded. This yearwe were training alongside someWorld and Olympic champions,most notably, the entire Polishnational squad.

During our morning sessions, we had achance to improve and practice fieldevents, with extra help from the Year12 coaches, followed by various drillsin the evening sessions. We had sixhours between sessions to ourselves,when many events took place. Therewas the opportunity to try any of thewater sports at the resort, alongsidemany excursions and tournamentsorganised by the staff. There werevolleyball, football, diving and pooltournaments which took place inbetween the challenging bike rideacross volcanic ash, the art trip to theCésar Manrique Art foundation and agolf day where Mr Keenleyside wasapparently “just having an off-day”.There was also a chance to go to FireMountain, visit the caves, and barterfor various local, handmade products,as well as plenty of cheap things onoffer at the market.

The final day is always taken up by theinter-school Pentathlon Event. It startedat 12.00pm and finished at 5.00pm.Each team is made up of 8 studentsfrom the two schools (Habs Boys andHabs Girls this year). The scoringsystem is based on the ESAA scoringtable, so that all the team members areinvolved. Medals and prizes areawarded to the winning team and tothe best individual in each age group.

Special thanks must go to MrKeenleyside for organising a veryenjoyable trip and planning all ourexcursions.

Overall, it was a fantastic trip, andhopefully the start of a successfulseason on the track.

Ryan El-Idrissi Year 10

It was an early start for this year’s skitrip with everybody, well almosteverybody, arriving in the coach parkat 4:30am. As with all school tripsthere was a late-comer and on thisoccasion, the honour fell on RobbieIngham – Clark, who decided to gracethe trip with his presence at 5:15am.After what can only be described as amammoth of a journey via Gatwickand Turin, we arrived in the Frenchski resort of Montgenevre. We madeour way to our hotel which wasprimitive, at best, or as somepreferred to call it ‘French’.

The following day was our first day of skiing.Everyone was lined up to be asked their skiability before being split into the appropriategroups. Once again a pupil stood out fromthe crowd. This time it was because Robbiewas the only skier with a snowboard, but alsothe only snowboarder on the ski trip.Unsurprisingly he won “Snowboarder of theWeek”, which is no easy thing with such avast array of competitors for the title.

Our instructors for the week were a weirdbunch of under achievers, failed ski racersand madmen, but they all had one thing incommon: a passion for their sport and theirpupils. A prime example of one of theseinstructors was Carl. Carl, who was theinstructor of the advanced group, was aplayboy from Marseilles who obviously hadno idea of a concept called “health andsafety”. On most mornings during the firstrun of the day, he would ski to the edge of

the slope, stop at asign saying danger,smile back at thegroup like a five yearold with a chocolatebar, before goingstraight down avertical drop linedwith trees andconcealed boulders,the bobble on hishat bouncing on hishead as he brokethrough the trees.

Abilities on the tripranged from the amateurs, such as SimonOke, who was incidentally probably the mostimproved skier by the end of the week, to thelikes of the semi-professionals, such asAndrew Middleton, who laughed in the faceof knee deep powder and tree lined gullies.There were also some memorable wipe-outson the trip. One of the most spectacular wasperformed by Rishi Naidoo, who attempted todo a 360 degrees spin of a half pipe. He gotto about 3 degrees before realising that itwas nigh on impossible, and proceeded toland face first in the snow. Despite massivefalls and wipe-outs on the trip, including thebattering of instructors, there were no majorinjuries and no visits to the medical centre.

The skiing in Mongenevre can only bedescribed as fantastic; there was a large skiarea with a vast array of runs for all abilitiesand styles. On some of the free skiingsessions in the afternoon, many of us wentover to Italy to ski in the resort of Claviere.The “pistes” there were a lot less crowdedand many people preferred that side of themountain. Unfortunately we didn’t get achance to spend much time there.

The trip as a whole was a great success witha new Ski King, James Devlin, crowned, andeveryone having thoroughly enjoyedthemselves. We would greatly encouragepeople to go on future ski trips because theyare experiences one never forgets, andalways for the right reasons.

James Devlin Year 11


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Skylark 2007 Trips

Valencia Exchange

Day 1On the morning of the first day of February half-term fourteen boysand two teachers left Habs coach park to London Stansted airporten route to Valencia. During the flight we were all feeling excited yetnervous about meeting our hosts for the next five days. We landed inValencia on the evening of the 10th and immediately caught aglimpse of the Deportivo La Coru, a team coach outside the airport.We also were shocked at how warm it was, especially as it hadbeen snowing in London days before we left. Feeling a bit tired fromthe long journey, we boarded a coach which took us to the DonQuijote School, where we first met our host families. Each hostfamily took two of us back to their apartment where we would bestaying. The teachers, Mr Moss and Mr Bardou, then went to theirhotel which was a short distance from the school. We spent whatwas left of Saturday night getting to know our families and eating,what to us, was a late dinner. The Spanish eat at about 10pm!

Day 2We woke up early, eagerly anticipating our trip to “La ciudad de lasArtes y las Ciencias”. As we first entered the complex, we wereamazed by the remarkable architecture. The museum was incrediblymodern and some of the demonstrations reminded us of the days ofMr Lau in the chemistry department! These included ademonstration of liquid nitrogen being poured into a balloon at -196ºC! We then saw a film called “The Mystery of the Nile” in the“Hemisférico”, which was a hemispherical film screen. The enormityof the screen took us back by surprise but the film was nothingspecial. We then had time to explore the area while eating ourpacked lunches. It was nearing the end of the day but we hadenough time to see the aquarium where we observed a variety ofmarine life including dolphins, sharks and swordfish. The teacherswere also using their skills to chat up the locals (and we don’t meanthe dolphins!).

Day 3On Monday we all had to wake up very early to arrive at the DonQuijote school at 8.45am, where we would be for the next fourmornings for intensive Spanish lessons. We were greeted by ourSpanish tutors, Llorenç, Javi and Mariló. We were split up into twogroups of seven and would be spending approximately four hours inclass a day, with a short break to go to the cafeteria and have asnack in between. At the end of class, we went back to our familiesfor a quick lunch and then arrived at school again two hours later.We then took a bus to the medieval area of Valencia, where wevisited the “Lonja de Valencia”. This was a fascinating cathedral inboth its history and its architecture. We also managed to live up tothe Habs tradition of finding food wherever we were and when MilesColeman came back with a bright blue ice-cream (named “bluesky”) we were completely stunned, none more so than Miles himselfwhen he realised it was just coloured vanilla! After the ice-creambreak we made an arduous climb of 200 steps to the top of themain tower. When we reached the top we were greeted by aphenomenal view of the whole city. By the time we had reached thebottom, it was beginning to get dark, so we were given free time towalk around and have a snack. During this time, some of us sat

outside a café where we sampled the Spanish “cortado”- triplestrength Spanish coffee! Fully awake, we travelled back to our hosts’homes for dinner. To our surprise, some of us met some Americanand Italian students at our houses. This gave us someone else totalk to while we were desperately trying to feel tired.

Day 4

Waking up early as ever, we made our way to school for some moreclasses where we learnt more invaluable Spanish. After the lessons,the teachers surprised us by taking us to the beach on an unusuallyhot winter’s day. We caught a quick ride on the popular tramservice, which some of us used to travel to school every morning.When we arrived at the beach we set up a game of beach footballand enjoyed an hour’s exercise. Afterwards, we were given a fewhours of free time. Some of us spent it searching for ice-cream(Miles) and others spent their time differently…The rest of the day involved us visiting the port in Valencia where theAmerica’s Cup boat race is to take place. There were a lot ofinteractive games testing our sailing skills, where the naval officersamong us shone (Nakulkumar and Neeloy). We then trekked home invery sandy feet, where a hot shower awaited us.

Day 5As usual, we woke early for classes. During the break, we played aheated match of football which ran into extra time. Unfortunatelyextra time ran into class time. We returned to class, met by a groupof angry Spanish teachers. To our relief, Mr Moss was there to takethe blame. After class, we assembled outside the school and acoach took us to a Roman ruin called Sagunto. We had some fun,and some of us found something to eat, although it was quite adesolate area. We then returned to the medieval area where theteachers treated us to a grand feast of paella which was greatlyenjoyed. This was supplemented by chicken, cheese, melon etc. We

were so caught up by time that it suddenly got to midnight withoutus knowing. We quickly travelled back to our homes where therewas still some Valentine’s Day spirit in the air…

Day 6Leaving the houses for the last time, we thanked and said goodbye toour families. However, we still had to go to class! Afterwards, wegrabbed our lunch and our cases and boarded the coach to theairport. We spent a good relaxed hour in the departure lounge afterwhich, we got on the Easyjet flight back to Stansted. Most of us wereso tired that we slept during theflight. At the airport, werelocated our suitcases anddrove back to Habs where wewere reunited with our parents.We thoroughly enjoyed the tripand thanks must be given toboth Mr Bardou and Mr Mossfor organizing it.

Parav Pandya and JohanBastianpillai Year 10


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Mountaineering Club Trip to North WalesSalamanca

With the buzz of term-time having dissipated only a matter of hours earlier, aneerie silence was palpable as a small group of students began to descend on theHabs coach park. The six members of the Upper Sixth were joined by Mr Bardouas their five day quest to explore the culture and language of Spain began. Withthe space on the rather cramped minibus being divided roughly 50-50 betweenstudents and their numerous bags, the semi-conscious group set off towardsStansted, where they checked in to the fabulous luxury of Ryanair’s low costservice to the Spanish town of Valladolid. From there, the vast group totallingseven was quite embarrassed to see a 59-seater luxury bus waiting to take themthe 2 hours south-west to the destination of Salamanca, home to the World’ssecond oldest university. The students were divided into 3 groups, and taken totheir quarters, kindly provided by the lovely but apparently quite odd folk ofSalamanca. One family appeared to be accommodating so many foreign studentsthat they had sacrificed their own bedroom, whilst another evidently countedspherical rocks amongst their favourite ingredients for mashed potato.

Once settled, the group wasted no time in meeting up to sample typical Spanish culture byexploring the town’s famous Plaza Mayor, and then proceeding onwards to the aptly namedIrish Rover bar. It was from this vantage point that the group was able to witness RealMadrid’s home victory over Barcelona the following evening, although by that time thenumber of students had grown from 6 to 7, following Robert Mindell’s expert use of hissuperb Spanish to navigate his way on a bus to join the party. These same Spanish skillswould later come in handy for Robert to endear himself to the staff at the don Quijotelanguage school, and then to wow the lady at the tourist office with some slickcommunications. Helped by Mr Bardou’s “word of the day” feature and the Mabel’s expertlanguage teaching in the mornings, the group’s Spanish improved greatly throughout thedays they were there. The first full day in Spain was spent visiting Segovía, home of a hugelyimpressive Roman aqueduct, and Ávila, whose perimeter wall remains standing since 1090.Unfortunately, the group had to take Mr Bardou’s word that Segovía’s specialty dish: babypig, was to die for, and that word was later questioned when he awarded 5 rather dubious“Mr B stars” to an art exhibition which was less popular amongst the students.

It doesn’t look good for the group’s exam prospects after none of them managed to spot the“good luck” frog carved into the magnificent stone wall of the university without significantassistance. After an hour looking at Salamanca’s literary importance, the group just hadenough time to enjoy the diverse Salamanca nightlife, enabling Robert Mindell’s vocabulary todouble with the addition of a couple of new words. Finishing on a high, the party enjoyed aMexican meal on the final night with the Old Haberdasher who now runs the language school,and learnt the word “Chupitería” while enjoying a relaxing evening in the town’s leading club.After that, a sensational visit packed with all sorts of excitement came to an abrupt end whenmany wished it had continued for at least a few days. Thanks must go to Mr Bardou andcongratulations also to Robert Goldstein on surviving the attempt on his life made by thefateful mash. Maybe I should now take a lesson from Mr Mindell, and “cállame”.

Jamie Nove Year 13

A group of 18 boys, from Year 10 tothe Lower Sixth, wereaccompanied by Reverend Markby,Mr Hardman, Mr Roncarati and theSchool’s Bursar, Mr Gilbertson, toNorth Wales on the MountaineeringClub’s first expedition of theSchool year, which took place inNovember 2006.

The group was split in two on theSaturday of this weekend trip. Onegroup climbed Tryfan ("Three Tops" at915 metres) via the Heather Terracebefore traversing the scree slopes tofinish on Y Foel Goch ("The Red BareHill" at 805 metres). The other groupclimbed a Grade 2 scramble on theirway up Carnedd Dafydd ("David'sCairn" at 1040 metres). Having gainedthe ridge, the group climbed upCarnedd Llewelyn ("Llewelyn's Cairn"at 1064 metres) and Yr Elen ("The Hillof the Fawn" at 962 metres). Bothgroups were shot-blasted by horizontalhail, snow and rain.

The following day, the staff swappedthe groups over with one groupclimbing Foel Meirch (800 metres),whilst the other climbed Carnedd MoelSiabod (872 metres). The Sundaymorning brought clear blue skies, weakautumn sunshine and a hard frost, butby midday, the cold front arrived fromIreland, bringing with it more strongwind and double-helpings of hail andrain.

Despite the weather, a challenging, yetexhilarating weekend was enjoyed byall the group.

T Hardman


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Skylark 2007 Trips

Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award

As Spring beckoned, four groups ofHabs boys set off on a twenty-fivekilometre hike through the Chilternsto achieve the Duke of EdinburghBronze Award. The Award consistsof four sections: service, skills,physical recreation and expeditions.Having completed the practiceexpedition the previous October andthe other sections over the course ofthe year, this was the only remainingtask to do.

Each group required an aim for theirexpedition, and our group decided to visitvarious churches along the way, notingthe different architectural features. Wenavigated through green pastures andwooded forests which offered us apleasant backdrop to our walk.

Upon arrival at the campsite, our first taskwas to set up the tents. This proved to berather difficult for some groups! However,all the groups managed in the end. Thesecond task was to cook dinner; by theend of which it was only 7.00pm, and thesun had already set.

After a few hours of sleep, it was time forbreakfast. This was the final cookery taskof the trip. Some groups chose to makehot chocolate, others heated croissantsand one group attempted Honey andCamomile tea! Eager to reach ourdestination, we packed up our tents andleft the campsite promptly so that we couldembark upon the second leg of the walk.

Our arrival at Wigginton Station markedthe end of a challenging and enjoyabletrip, and the completion of the BronzeAward. We would like to thank MrsWijeratna for organizing the trip, togetherwith Mr Fielder and Mr Moss who guidedus on the day.

Robert Daboul and Arjun Dasgupta Year 12

Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award

Many people eagerly sign up for the Duke of Edinburgh scheme thinking itsAwards are easy to come by having heard the stories of blatant flouting of rulesby people in other Centres on their expeditions and activities. However, if thereis one person determined to make sure we at Habs earn our D of E awards, it isMrs Wijeratna (formerly known as Ms Cook). There was a real race this term tocomplete our Awards; cynics will read the four letter word ‘UCAS’ into this, myonly defence is perhaps that Mrs Wij was just trying to make it even harder forus. Our journey to the Surrey Hills was short, mixed with dread as we recalledour memories of the practice expedition and the weather forecast of heavy,unrelenting rain but also excitement at what would lie ahead.

We started off well, our bellies full and muscles relaxed by our sedentary life at Habs. Thesun was out and we walked with purpose, if not a sense of direction. Climbing a steep hillin the wrong direction led us having to make quick progress through thick bush andwoodland to recover our position and time targets. The leviathan efforts of the morningmeant we were much more tired in the afternoon and we ended up not reaching thecampsite until nightfall where we had to set up our tents and cook our dinner by only thedim glow of our torches. By morning we were rested physically but not before a longnight of heavy rain and storms had passed. Fortunately no weevils had found their wayinto our tents and bags this time around! Upon reaching the stately home of PolesdenLacy, the purpose of our expedition, we were greeted by a member of the home’s staff as“you filth” but I’m sure this was only in reference to our muddied clothing. Upon removingour shoes and trousers we were granted permission to enter the home where Jai becamevery interested in the history of the home, distracting the attendants so Jayan andThusagar could surreptitiously photograph various rooms in the home.

That evening was the highlight of the whole expedition; using wet wood, paper and aerosolswe struggled to light a fire. However, under the expert tuition of Mrs Wij we managed to lightand sustain a roaring bonfire, which lasted several hours and around which we sat talking andwarming not only our bodies but also our spirits for the final trek ahead, the following and finalday. On the third day our route was simple, following a single path for most of the way. Thatwas until we discovered that the path no longer existed, someone having built a house in theway. After re-routing around a golf course, we found ourselves in the most miserable weatherever, as if to compensate for our enjoying of the night before or perhaps Mrs Wij’s intentionthat our expedition be ‘challenging’ had been overheard by the man in the sky. Other thanthe occasional outburst into song by the whole group, the rest of the day passed slowly anduneventfully as we passed by ever larger homes rivalling the size of Polesden Lacy. Uponreaching the minibus there was little to do except sink back into the seats and sleep in therelief that the expedition had finished, and that we would soon be home with our SilverAwards completed at last!

Samil Shah Year 13


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Model United Nations

This year’s MUN has once again beenextremely successful for Habs. ModelUnited Nations is an organizationwhich has been running for almost aslong as the actual United Nations. It isa series of conferences where manythousands of students meet andattempt to deal with pressing issues,such as global warming and terrorism,whilst representing differentcountries. The delegates prepare andpresent resolutions dealing withparticular issues in committees, thenattempt to have them adopted anddebated in the General Assembly.Participation here combines multipleskills; sociability in lobbying forsupport, public speaking whendebating resolutions and diplomacy, insettling disputes and negotiatingcompromises. We traditionally takepart in two conferences in the UK:Royal Russell School and HaileyburySchool, and two abroad at St Andrews,Dublin and The Hague InternationalModel United Nations.

In October 2006 at the Royal RussellSchool, Habs represented the RussianFederation and Uzbekistan and Vishal Pateland Aziz Ashan chaired committees for thefirst time. Although there were concerns thatthis would deprive our delegations of two ofthe school’s most experienced MUNers, itsoon became clear that a new generation ofHabs boys were more than equal to thechallenges of their first conference. For thefirst time in the History of Habs’ MUN, agroup of Year 10 students participated.

Hasan Dindjer, Paul Hooper, Brett Bernsteinand Edward Schwitzer not only took part,but acquitted them with distinction. In factall bar one of the 24 man Habs teamreceived individual distinguished delegationawards-a record.

The year’s most prestigious conference isthe Hague International (THIMUN). It is oneof the oldest in the world and attracts over3,800 students from over 100 differentcountries. Only a handful of schools fromthe UK are selected for this conference,which has an extremely long waiting list,and Habs has had a strong enough recordto qualify for a place on it. Somewhatironically, in the month that the OldHaberdasher, Sacha Baron Cohen’s film“Borat: Cultural Learnings of America forMake Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan”was released, Habs were selected torepresent Kazakhstan. The delegation tookon the role with the appropriate andrestrained enthusiasm, which alwayscharacterize our approach to representingcontroversial Central Asian republics, andenjoyed great success on their trip to theNetherlands. For the first time, one of ourstudents, Jacob Turner, was chosen to playthe role of an advocate in the ModelInternational Court of Justice, a prestigioussubsidiary of THIMUN. Once again, manythanks to Mr Corrall for his mind expandingtour of Amsterdam.

The school’s reputation at this discipline isbuilt largely on the continued and consistentstrength over the years. Unlike many otherevents where the school competes againstothers, the coaching in MUN is done largelyby older pupils for younger ones, with eachyear passing on skills and knowledge to thenext. Haileybury, held in March, is theconference where many new, younger Habsstudents are first introduced to MUN. Thisyear, Aaron Taylor of the 4th year, andGeorge Harnett of the Upper 6th performedexceptionally well on their first conferences– Aaron winning a prestigious“Distinguished Delegate” award andshowing enormous promise for the future,and George having his first resolutionpassed on GA.

The St Andrew’s MUN in Dublin istraditionally the final conference of the yearand is held at Jury’s Hotel in Ballsbridge.This year we were representing Tanzania. Inthe past we have thrived on the high qualityof debate and the competitive atmosphere.This year was no exception. Arjun Bhohiwon the support of the General Assembly forhis resolution and Tanzania was deservedlyawarded one of the 3 coveted ‘outstandingdelegation’ awards. Nick Jardine and AlexCharles deserve particular mention for theirexcellent work in establishing diplomatic tieswith students from the Republic of Ireland.All the delegates who took part in MUN thisyear agreed it would not be possible withoutthe prolific and industrious endeavours ofthe effervescent Mr Simm. We would alsolike to thank Mr Corrall and Mr Pauletto.

Jacob Turner Year 13


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Skylark 2007 Trips

History trip to Budapest & Vienna

There was a smell like burning rubber.The Underground train came to a joltinghalt. An announcement indicated thatthe train would not be continuing on toour station. The doors opened and wemade for the exit and the ‘replacementbus service’, as most of us had donecountless times in London. However,once out on the platform, our eyes beganto sting. In no time we were all crying. Itwas just like a scene from one of MrSaddington’s lessons, except these werenot tears of laughter.

The station appeared to be filling up withpeople in various states of distress. There wasan atmosphere of agitation and anger amongstthe crowds of Hungarians we encountered.The cause of our ocular discomfort - tear gas -was becoming denser and Mr Simm decidedto lead us out of the station to somewherecalmer and easier on the eye. Unfortunatelythe scene as we left the station began to lookmore, rather than less ominous. Both sides ofthe station were flanked by heavily armouredriot police, wielding batons and firing both teargas and rubber bullets into a crowd ofprotestors. Cutting through the sound of shotsand explosions, the words, “Stand in single file,stick together and keep moving,” decisivelyannounced the voice of our leader, Mr Simm.We moved off quickly, away from the soundand fury of the clashing rioters and police andtowards the relative safety of our hostel.Meanwhile, Mr Simm, casting caution andgood sense to the wind, disappeared into theriotous melee, camera to the ready, in order toensure there would be adequate photographicdocumentation for future historians studyingthis truly historic moment. So began our visit toBudapest, on the first leg of the latest HistoryDepartment trip to Central Europe. Once morethe arrival of the History department in aEuropean city had coincided (or was theresomething more to it than that) with a majoroutbreak of public disorder.

It is rare that on a History Trip one sees echoesof the past in such a tangible and real way.The riots, which erupted in response to mediarevelations of government corruption,coincided with the celebrations which hadbeen organised to commemorate the 50thAnniversary of the Hungarian revolution. If theviolence and upheaval of 2006 paledalongside that of 1956, it added, nevertheless,to our appreciation of the events of that tragicOctober, when Soviet tanks crushed the hopesof so many Hungarians.

Along with our guide, Gabriel Fawcett, wevisited the displays of T34 tanks (hope this isright George), pieces of anti-tank artillery andother memorabilia, which was displayed inareas where the fighting during the Sovietinvasion had been most intense. We alsovisited the old Secret police HQ, which hasbeen reopened as a museum. The TV footageof the Show trials, in which the leaders of1956 were forced to incriminate themselves,together with the torture rooms, interrogationareas and alike were haunting. The impressionleft was one of ‘1984’, rather than 1956.

While we were in Budapest, we also examinedthe History of Hungary before and during theSecond World War. We focused particularly onthe History of Hungary’s Jewish minority.Hungary had been home to a large andcommercially successful community. Wevisited the largest synagogue in Europe; bothbeautiful and ornate. After visiting theMemorial to Raoul Wallenburg, the Swedishdiplomat who did so much to protect Jewsfrom deportation to Auschwitz (anddisappeared during the Soviet advance), wevisited the Holocaust Memorial Museum,which affected the group quite profoundly.Seeing the video footage of the workings ofAuschwitz upset many of us, and it wasmoving to see the effort that the Hungariancommunity has gone to in order to ensure thememory of its 600,000 dead Jews livesbeyond the grave.

However much fun History is, our eveningsgranted us the opportunity to absorb someHungarian culture. A dinner cruise on theDanube normally reserved for “rich Americans”allowed everybody to savour the delights ofHungarian Goulash and stuffed cabbageleaves whilst viewing the beautiful buildingsthat make up Buda on one side, and Pest onthe other; a fact that was repeatedly stressedby our Hungarian tour guide Tibor, still bitterabout the Treaty of Trianon (1920), which sawHungary lose 70% of its population. A visit to arestaurant on one of the other nightsintroduced those vegetarians amongst thegroup to a new type of vegetarian chickensoup.

Following our visit to Budapest, we made ourway to Austria, once a thriving cultural centreof Europe. Among the sites which we visited,was the site of one of Hitler’s rallies followingthe Anschluss as well St Stephens Cathedral inthe heart of Vienna’s picturesque shoppingarea. The evening could not have gone withouta celebratory dinner in honour of Gabriel, whohas now spent three consecutive birthdayswith HABS boys, and we look forward tospoiling his special day again next year. It wasevident in the historic Esterhazy wine cellar,turned restaurant, that the Austrians arecertainly fans of their meat, whereas weEnglish, in particular Dr Wigley, appear to havemore flowery tastes.


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Skylark 2007 Trips

Rather like Budapest, Vienna – the city ofFreud and Herzl, which has produced 3 JewishNobel Prize Winners in medicine providedanother tragic example of the dissolution of aonce vibrant Central European JewishCommunity. A Jewish community whichnumbered 200,000 Jews in 1938 now standsat a mere 10,000 today. During the tour ofVienna’s Jewish area, many students werestruck by the site of the former synagogue,which was destroyed in Kristallnacht. In itsplace is a Jewish community centre. Fourpillars have been erected outside in order togive a sense of the sheer size of themagnificent synagogue which once stoodthere. Throughout the time in the Jewishdistrict, one could not fail to notice the bronzeplaques on the ground outside the formerresidents of Jewish people. They listed thenames of those who were killed in theHolocaust. Perhaps strategically positionednearby the Jewish district is the formerheadquarters of the Gestapo, where suspectswould not have even been preserved thedignity of entering through the front door ifaccused. Rather ironically, after the war, theseoffices were used by Simon Wiesenthal toexpose and bring former Nazis to justice. Ahighlight of the Jewish district was the newlyopened exhibition of Adolf Frankl’s artwork.Frankl entered Auschwitz as a prisoner at justeighteen years of age. After his liberation heattempted to convey something of hisexperiences in a series of paintings, which wewere privileged to view and discuss with theartist’s son.

Building upon the emotion evoked by the tourof Vienna’s Jewish district, the following daywas spent visiting Mauthausen concentrationcamp. Mauthausen had a reputation for beinga very tough camp and scored a three (themaximum) on the Nazi brutality ratings of theirconcentration camps. Many prisoners weresimply worked to death using primitive tools inthe granite quarry. Carrying a twenty fivekilogram lump of granite up the 186 “stairs ofdeath” was a task dreaded by most prisoners.However, due to Nazi propaganda public

sympathy was not with them. The break out byfour hundred escaped Soviet prisoners soonencountered the fear and hostility of the localpeople. Those who were not hunted down andkilled were quickly returned to the camp.

We returned from the trip with an enhancedunderstanding of the history and culture ofthese two wonderful cities, and the ways thattheir histories continue to influence theirdevelopment. Thanks go to Mr Simm, MrSaddington, Dr Sloan and Dr Wigley for leadinga trip that we will never forget; the tear gas,after all, is still stinging our eyes.

Alex Newman and James Fox Year 12


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History Trip to New York & Washington

Skylark 2007 Trips

On Saturday 10th February a group of14 Sixth formers, Mr Simm, Mr Saddington, Mr & Mrs Briercliffedeparted Heathrow for New York’s JFKairport. The group mainly consisted ofLower Sixth pupils studying theAmerican Civil War. Jetlagged and cold,we crossed Midtown Manhattan on thisfirst evening and had a late dinner atJohn’s Pizzeria.

Next morning, we took a boat to the Statue ofLiberty and the Immigration Museum on EllisIsland. It was fascinating to see thepsychological tests that immigrantsencountered, and to view the statisticsshowing immigration figures and details oftheir countries of origin. If fact, Kiran PageSingh Lotay was so interested by themuseum that he almost missed the boat, andMr Simm had to run back into the buildingand find him. We returned to LowerManhattan for a tour led by theknowledgeable and eclectic TomChristiansen. The group wound its wayacross many historic districts; City Hall, ChinaTown, Little Italy and Greenwich Village.

Despite a large lunch in one of New York’sfinest delis, I felt an emptiness whilst lookingover the void in the New York skyline; that isGround Zero. It is hard to believe that thebuildings still standing around the site areonly half the height of the Twin Towers.Plans for the controversial redevelopmentof the site were explained to us, but wewere informed that it will be several yearsbefore any major building workscommence. Dinner that evening was atCarmine’s, a restaurant famous for itsenormous portions. Many have tried tofinish their supper at Carmine’s. Few haveever come close. Michael Moloney made aspirited attempt, but even he wasultimately defeated.

Monday morning consisted of atremendous walk to the Museum Mile.Unfortunately most were closed but luckilyour trip coincided with an exhibition ofSpanish Art at the Guggenheim Museum.Mr. Saddington shared some of hisextensive knowledge of European andAmerican architecture – notably the formpioneered by the Americans: the

skyscraper.After anafternoonindulging in afrenziedshopping spreeon Fifth Avenue,the group metup at the EmpireState Building toview the sunsetting over theManhattanskyline – one ofmy fondestmemories of ourtime in NewYork.

The following morning, we departed NewYork for Washington D.C. by coach. Wewere all aware from news reports that heavysnow was expected to fall over the comingdays. Fortunately, we only experienced ataster on our journey of what was to follow.We stopped in Philadelphia for several hoursto visit Independence Hall and view theLiberty Bell. It was very inspiring to be in theroom where the Declaration of Independencewas signed.

In Washington D.C., walking along the Mall,and viewing the Washington Monument andLincoln Memorial, inspired a sense ofnationalistic pride in Matthew Cohen.Michael Moloney and Mr Simm wereenthused by the glistening snow and an epicsnow fight, deadlier than Gettysburg erupted.Heavily outnumbered, but possibly moreskilful, the teachers lost – only after a valiantattack by Mr Simm on an unsuspecting BenAshenden. Mr Saddington had already fledthe battlefield by this stage! Later thatafternoon the group were treated to a tour ofthe East Wing of the White House. This issomething that can usually only beexperienced by US citizens, and it is thanksto Mr Simm, who made contact withCongressman Markey, that our names were

added to the very exclusive list. Mr Simm’sconnections also enabled us to be taken ona tour of the Pentagon, covering a mile ofthe building’s secretive interior. The tour wasled by an airman, who was part of the WhiteHouse honour guard. One of the invaluableskills which he had acquired whilst serving inWashington was the ability to conduct a tourwhilst walking backwards through thecorridors of the Pentagon. Energetic andenthusiastic interns from the office ofCongressman Markey also showed usaround the Capitol, providing a fascinatinginsight into the workings of US governmentand the impact of the Democrat party’srecent election success. We were able towitness the House in session and apassionate attack on the war in Iraq by aNew York Representative. Later on in theday we visited Arlington National Cemetery,an American military cemetery, wherePresident John F. Kennedy and his brotherRobert “Bobby” Kennedy are buried,overlooking a stunning view of Washington D.C.

One of the highlights of the trip was anevening at the house of Christopher Hitchens,a famous journalist who features in VanityFair, Slate, and The Atlantic. Mr Hitchensinvited us round for drinks (some members ofthe group took full advantage of this!) andanswered questions from the group aboutPresident Lincoln, Neoconservatism, the innerworkings of Washington politics, and thecurrent administration’s policies including thewar in Iraq. We are indebted to UdayanTripathi’s father for helping to set the evening up.

Our final evening in Washington was spentat ESPN zone, a place of little historicalsignificance, yet full of excitement. Mr Simm and Mr Saddington’s competitiveside was brought out in this games arcade,especially during a game of basketball. Theevening couldn’t end without a special thankyou to Mr Simm for organizing this fantastictrip, and so, as a mark of the group’sappreciation, a continuous “HAPPYBIRTHDAY MR APAS” message wasarranged to appear on the large LED screenoutside the building. There was no evidencethat it actually was Mr Simm’s birthday, butthis was our way of thanking him!

Returning from America left us with anunenviable 5 hour jetlag but also with fondmemories of the three cities we had visited,Mr Briercliffe’s sly snow fighting tactics andMr Saddington’s delightful discourse onmany varied topics; from the plight of theNative Americans to the bronze-facing ofLudwig Mies van der Rohe’s SeagramBuilding. I would like to thank Mr Simmwho organized the trip, along with MrSaddington, Mr Briercliffe and MrsBriercliffe who accompanied us, and thegroup, for making this such an incredibletrip – arguably the greatest one the HistoryDepartment has ever arranged!

Robert Daboul Year 12


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Skylark 2007 Trips

Art Trip to New York

The Art trip to New York started at an incredibly merciful10am. Boarding the coach, it was a quick trip to Heathrow butthen an unsurprising seven to eight hours flight to JFK airport.Despite being filled with over twenty movies and numerous TVshows to view, music to listen to, and games to play (courtesyof Virgin Atlantic), such a time did not feel any shorter.Unfortunately, once we had landed and passed theunwelcoming US customs (my face and fingerprint nowbelong to America), Aziz was detained by the US police,meaning that we had to depart for our hotel – the HotelBelleclaire – without him (he later rejoined the group), and ata time somewhat later than planned. Of course, since we hadonly two full days and three nights in which to visit a vastmetropolis, we could not sit around and enjoy the comfort ofour rooms but instead set out to visit the Empire StateBuilding, which felt very hollow and empty indeed when itsbounty of halls were not filled by thousands of tourists. Up onthe 102nd floor’s observation deck, New York looked evenbetter when lit by its own thousands of streetlamps and roomlights, despite the cold and windy nature of being outside atthat height. Soon we travelled downwards once more, insearch of the Heartland Brewery found at the base of theEmpire State Building, one very overdue dinner, and eventuallya nice comfy bed which would end what was, at the veryleast, a 22 hour day.

The next day started promptly, with the group being sent to an all-American diner across the road for breakfast, where pancakes, orangejuice and waffles were in great supply. Nonetheless we left early, inorder to fulfil our plan to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, theGuggenheim Museum, and the Whitney Museum, all in the same day.Walking through Central Park we sat outside the former for a fewminutes to draw, before entering the vast museum, yet with such littletime to wander around it, we could only get a glimpse of its collection,which spanned oriental art to European art and musical instrumentsfrom around the world. Soon, however, we were off once more – tothe Guggenheim museum. Unfortunately its beautiful architecture,both inside and outside, was marred by renovations that blocked itssweeping, spiralling curves from view. Although its exhibition onKandinsky was a definite delight, the temporary showing of one LucioFontana’s art was debatable in quality. The Italian artist took greatdelight in literally slashing and piercing his often giant metal canvases,but subsequently produced pieces which uneasily sat on the line thatseparated spontaneous and thoughtless destruction from a carefulquestioning on what art really entails. One of the more humorouspieces found within the Guggenheim, in that the artist wonderfullydisplayed the giant void between American and English culture, was“Snow White” found at the counter of the Museum shop – remember,this was just after noon. Once we had located the Whitney Museum,we were set free to hunt some lunch, and, as it was in our ownhands, it would come as no surprise that a local directed us to anunderground station, instead of the fast-food chain, when we askedfor the closest “Subway”. After lunch we met at the aforementionedWhitney Museum, where we were treated to a private viewing of itsentire Edward Hopper collection. Some hours later, we were at TimesSquare, which with its overwhelming array of people, let aloneelectronic adverts, was simply magnificent. As ideas for an interactiveart display, or something of that ilk utilising such billboards, crossedmy mind, we found ourselves at the Hard Rock Café. Unfortunately,three museums and the late night the previous day had taken theirtoll, and soon people were falling asleep at the tables. We skippeddessert, and returned to our hotel.

The next day was a bit more relaxing. After breakfast we headed forthe Statue of Liberty. Having handed over every pair of scissors wehad on us (the staff who collected them found it rather strange that anart group would carry them around), we boarded a ferry, and, once onthe site were given some free time to draw, or visit the Statue ofLiberty museum, which a handful of pupils decided to do. Havingarrived so early, it would appear that we were on the first tour of theday, but nonetheless the queue was long and time was short. Havingpaid to stow our bags, and gone through a metal detector (and also a

curious machine which blew air at you, in hope of detecting anychemical substances) we entered the base of the Statue of Liberty (aname which is apparently a shortening of “Liberty Enlightening theWorld”) under the leadership of a guide. The statue containednumerous artefacts – the original torch, covered with lights as thoughto make it light up at night; a replica of the Statue’s face and foot; andmore. However, once the guide had finished his speech, there was nottoo much time to study these sights – a meeting time had been set bythe teachers, and we were nearing it. Ironically the teachers themselveshad decided to tour the museum, meaning that our 11am ferry trip wasmissed, allowing us to buy a snack, or talk to the Alexandre GustaveEiffel found wondering the grounds and glad to talk to visitors, yetcareful in not speaking any French. Eventually the teachers arrived, andwe visited Ellis Island, and later Ground Zero, the surrounding area inwhich we had lunch. The main event of the day was visiting theMuseum of Modern Art (aka “MOMA”), which can only be described ashaving one of the most amazing collections of art in the world –Salvador Dali shared wall space with Picasso, Van Gogh, Hopper, whilstMatisse fought for attention in a room filled with Rousseau, Monet,Lichtenstein and Cézanne. It would not be impossible to spend a dayalone on one of the floors of MOMA, but sadly we only had a couple ofhours. Time continued unrelentless, and we soon found ourselves backin Times Square, where we were allowed about a half-hour for someretail therapy – the flagship Toys ‘R’ Us located there deserved a lookpurely for its size, being large enough to contain a rather impressiveFerris wheel. Dinner was no less impressive, being located in PlanetHollywood, where we were surrounded by costumes from the originalPlanet of the Apes, Star Wars, and memorabilia from Titanic, amongnumerous other films. The evening was specially highlighted by a shortvideo of the group (which was shown on the numerous TVs litteredaround), made by the restaurant staff, in celebration of the twobirthdays on that day. After the meal, some prizes were given out topeople who had worked especially hard during the day, and hadproduced some very good artwork.

Thursday, the last day of the trip, was much more focused on the“New York” aspect of the trip. Having cleared up our rooms and placedall our bags in one room, we left the hotel and travelled to TimesSquare once again where we were encouraged by Mr Keenleyside totake a series of photographs to capture the sights of American cultureat it’s best/worst! Then on to Macy’s, the world’s biggest departmentstore, to spend some of the left-over money that was burning a hole inour pockets. Many gladly took advantage of the 11% discountavailable to all foreigners, but some were still dissatisfied, so wesubsequently were given free time to pursue 5th Avenue, before finallyheading back to our hotel one last time. Waiting for the Year 12students to arrive, it was not long until we were on our way to JFKairport, and at about 8pm we were on our way back to England.Although we all definitely enjoyed the trip, it is unsurprising that wewere equally happy to return home, sleep a day or two, and lay off theburgers for a while. We would like to thank Mr Keenleyside fororganising the trip and Mr Todhunter and Miss Bird for helping tomake it such a success.

Greg Steckelmacher Year 10


42

Skylark 2007 Trips

Munich Exchange

On a cold Thursday morning in the middle of the Easter holidays,30 or so keen German scholars converged on Heathrow Terminal1, eager to begin their voyage of culture as soon as possible. MrCorrall’s arrival was met with hearty applause, and on that notethe mob proceeded through to the plane.

After a short, pleasant flight, the group disembarked with an air ofanticipation, as the German families looked upon them. Still unsure ofwhat was to come, no-one quite managed to muster up enoughcourage to leave the arrivals lounge for at least 10 minutes. Eventuallythough, the students were whisked off into different cars, managingnervous waves of farewell to one-another.

That evening was spent with the respective families, and providedample time to settle in and unpack. I began to befriend my Germancounterpart, and within an hour, it was clear that the life of a Germanteenager is quintessentially indifferent to ours; the boys played football(both real and video-game), and the girls hit the shops.

As the group gathered at the famous Odeonsplatz, the site of the1924 Putsch, on Friday morning, the students checked up on eachother and exchanged tales of their activities the previous day. MrCorrall, complete with entourage of Herr Kelz and Frau Achatz(teachers at Gisela Gymnasium), then explained to us the nature of thecity quiz that had been prepared. In groups of four, we set off, to learnmore about the key landmarks in the city. Amongst the funniestactivities were; requesting a Bavarian cheese from a stall owner,naturally in the unintelligible Bayerisch dialect, and also taking a photoof a dog with its owner. Two hours later, the befuddled group oftourists and natives alike returned to the square, handed in thequestion papers, and then split up to go back home with the Germans.

The weekend was designated for family bonding time, and so eachstudent experienced entirely different, yet exhilarating weekends.Excursions included skiing in the Bavarian Alps, sailing on Lake Chiem,and even driving into Austria for the day. Sunday was filled withslightly more lazy activities, with many small groups of friends gettingtogether, sunbathing, or playing football.

Monday brought with it a 7:00am start, horribly reminiscent of our ownschool day. The group met inside Gisela Gymnasium, as our exchangestraipsed off for their first school day of the new term. Frau Achatz, theheadmistress, gave us a brief welcome to Germany and expressedhow lovely it was to see us. Unfortunately, this fell on deaf ears, as itwas all in German. After a brief translation from Mr Corrall, everyonesmiled back, and then proceeded to their lessons. The whole morningwas spent in various classrooms, in the middle of large Germanstrangers. This provided a really interesting insight into German schoollife, despite the slight language barrier. At 1:15pm, the bell sounded,and once again the group dispersed throughout Munich for lunch andother after-school activities.

On Tuesday, the group converged once again on the Gymnasium, butto our tremendous relief, we stayed outside, before descending intothe U-Bahn (underground). After a short train journey, we began a longwalk up to the Allianz Arena Football Stadium, home to both Bayern

Munich and the lesser known 1860 Munich. The tour guide, with herAmerican-infused English accent then took us through the entirecomplex, from the top of the stands, a staggering 7 metres from thepitch, to the team changing rooms and training centre. It was a highlyinteresting day, especially for our football enthusiasts. In true touristfashion, the students then took to the shops, and spent an hugeamount of money on hats, footballs, and foam hands.

Wednesday again consisted of a group outing, with a packedschedule. It commenced with a long tram ride through the city, to therenowned German Museum. This contained artefacts from pre-warGermany, such as ships, cannons, and many smaller items. Thesewere all fascinating. The day concluded with the Bavaria Film Studios,where a normal, informative tour descended into a surreal film, inwhich several students were superimposed into a German sitcom. Thiswas exciting, albeit strange, and for those interested, the film is on theshared area.

Thursday was arguably the best day, as it involved an all-day longjourney to the Castle Neuschwanstein. The coach journey wasdominated by loud, antisocial music coming from the back few seats,causing Mr Corrall and others to miss out on their extra hour of sleep.The castle itself was a spectacular feat of engineering, and would havebeen even more so had it been finished. The patron, Ludwig II, diedsuddenly halfway through its creation, so was unable to, however itstill stands beautifully against the backdrop of the hills. The tour tookus through the grotto, the grand main hall, and many other, minorrooms, all lavishly decorated. The group then had free time for an houror so, enough to make a very leisurely descent to the coach and stopoff once or twice for refreshments. Reluctantly, we were then takenback on the coach, but seeing how much we were enjoying the day,Herr Corrall kindly let us stop off for half an hour at a local Church.Whilst he entered with the other teachers to appreciate the building,the students remained outside to play football and eat ice cream,having had enough culture for one day.

Friday was a mixed day, as the group was torn between the fun ofshopping in Marienplatz, and the sadness of going home the next day.This opportunity was taken to buy souvenirs both for one’s home andone’s exchange families. About three hours after arrival, we wereshepherded back onto the train and back to the Gymnasium. Thegroup then split up, a large number going off with their exchanges, buta small minority going inside the school to have a farewell footballgame with the Germans. The night gave time for one last chance tohave fun with our exchanges, some people going to parties, othersplaying Playstation.

Saturday was a very emotional day, as it finally dawned that we weregoing home. The blow was softened however by knowing it would onlybe a short two months before our new found German friends wouldcome to England. With heavy hearts, we waved goodbye to thefamilies, and climbed onto the plane, bringing a sad, yet expectant endto a really marvellous trip. Many thanks have to go to Frau Grieder andHerr Doe of the Girls school, Herr Corrall for supervising and takingcare of us, and last but not least, Mr Donaghey for organising everylast detail of the trip, and ensuring we all had a brilliant time.

Ben Jacobs Year 10


43

Skylark 2007 Trips

Originals

Greg Stekelmaker Year 10


Lola Kala – universe time

As the hidden cycle rotates behind closed eyesInclining toward time when all shall be right,And the once pure issue that faded to a hazy mist,Glows again with its perfect white radiance,Leaving a fine turquoise vapour shining open, upon the air,The other side remains a closed cavity,Poignant and unhopeful, not clasping at a prayer,And, marking its weighty feelingInhaled each breath with diffident reluctance.Well knowing it is, that among this air is carried a most wonderful curseIncomparable to its own distant echo of reverse.It brings a long, slow, gaping choke.That further obscures a half worn path.Complicating matter.When fed this lesser light; a sharper focus round it closedAnd the greater atrocity outside still knownMust restrain to say that these are dreams,And are only dreamt by some of these, and of those.Enchanted chance will not open worlds but close.As the woken dreamers flout the multifoliate rose.If the dreamers will wake when this question’s purity is dead and gone.And if a fear that still holds strong says our consciousness is wrongWill I dare have the weakness in my mind to softly tremor and dieAnd in turn defy the sun, earth, the sea and sky?

There is an urge, to step the lineThough this sickly-darkened throat is a love of mineBut, when dwelling in this busy, restless cave,Where man to hope becomes a knaveI ask chance, what chance is mine?What a light without lucidity is time.With quiet desperation I sing too.But beseech to you, be. Unashamedly do.Or we shall ever fabricate the resolveAnd fail this torture as endless time revolves,Remains veiled, and speciously unfolds.

Max Herbert year 13

The Morning After

Havoc had struck this destitute city. Everyone was suffering from severe trepidation. Theatmosphere was callous and merciless. No souls stirred. Black, oily smoke rose from therooftops of mutilated houses: houses where people once lived jovially. Now what were leftwere the ruins: piles of searing, sooty ash and rubble and violent, threatening flames thatlicked the ruptured pulverised walls. Everyone remained in the air raid shelter now that perilwas like an unexpected clump of tragedy. Silence had spread across the whole of Tyneside;when one heard a sound, it would be dejected sobbing. This wasn’t just an ordinarycatastrophe: lives has been lost, homes had been destroyed and most importantly, I gaspedat the sight of the bombed church. Where was God? Had Hitler taken him over as well?

An unpleasant mixture of despondency and fury gushed through my blood, making it bubble.

And then it happened: a sudden bolt of energy sent me darting as far away from home aspossible. I ran toward Germany. I was irate! I wanted that malevolent Hitler to feel theconsequences of his actions, and even though I knew I would have no success, and wouldprobably be killed, I remembered what my Dad had always told me, “When you die, lady, diewith pride an’ for England.”

Now was my turn to prove myself. My patriotic mind commanded me to run away. At first, Ifelt as free as an eagle. Somewhere behind all the stress were mixed feelings of peace andjubilance. But there was more: suddenly I wanted to be at home, safe and sound, where Icould fight this immense suffocation with my family. What I really felt was regret.

I heard air raid sirens. The familiar sounds of bombs being peppered on the alreadydamaged pavements. London was escaping from the frying pan only to find its way into thefire. I was experiencing panic. I hurried to the air raid shelter. But where was that? Half amile away. Oh dear. Could this be my day of judgement? Death was on its way.

Omar Ali Year 8

Nonsense

To each himself I would refrainhow eager making was to blame.Green thoughts that dance across the leadand up to Dr Dooley’s head.For each his own a boat afloatupon the stable mountain goat.Effected blood and window cleared,how so does stain the miser’s beard

And make him reach the highest shelffor fruit to eat all by himselfor cheese or meat or chocolate spreadto sit and smudge across his bedof flowers (not for sleeping in)Dooley does anoint his skinwhen icy grapes fly from afarhe puts his chin within a jar.

It’s stored high up in his pantryand the only word that rhymes is gantry.How I wish I cared some moreto sit and think, obey the lawset down by English teachers andold parents, take you by the handand lead you to the wondrous denwhere resides the golden pencil hen.

This hen has magic silver and strongand a sister, singing a weaker song,who, if you ask her nicely, willyour basket with her cloth eggs fill -so you’ll forever feast on eggsof cloth, the size of table legs.But eat too many, it’s too lateDooley’s chair you’ll contemplate…

Sam Gaus Year 11

Ramith Gunawardena Year 9

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Skylark 2007 Trips


45

Skylark 2007 Originals

Chemistry Poem about OIL

I started as a rock all green, Crushed under rocks I was hardly seen, Compressed and squeezed over much time, I started to turn into sticky black slime.

Above me was the big blue sea, Where humans really needed me, They sent down a pipe with a really big drill, They cracked the rock, I started to spill.

They gathered me up into machines, I was soon to become useful alkenes. The fractional distillator was big and tall, The huge scary heater warmed us all.

We heated and heated ‘till two sixty degrees, We split and slid down the tube with ease, My chain was too long, I had to be cracked, I was heated again until I snapped.

From octane to ethene I became, With hexane left over – a shorter alkane, But as ethene I could polymerise, Shifting my form, a new disguise.

With my friend, the other ethene, We joined and became a long polythene, A plastic bag at a local shop, My journey had finally come to a stop.

By Freddie Fulton and Johan Bastianpillai Year 10

Roulette

I'm thrown from side to sideAnd back again,My smooth metallic skinRicocheting off theShort, sharp ridges.I spin and twist erraticallyJust like the whirling floor beneath me.As it slows I start toLose momentum, and trickleTowards my final destination.

Many look on inAnticipation,Clutching sweat, breathing prayers,eyes go wide then squint.All have different hopes andExpectations, I'm tornBetween them.Low, high,Black, red,But I want none of those.

The black I find foreboding,The red too bright and harsh,The high's hard to maintain,The low fills me with shame.I try to steer myselfTowards where I wantTo be,Forsaking pressures and externalForces.Slowly, surely,I edge towards theZero.

Anon Year 9

She’s an Existentialist

I’ve loved this girl since I was small:She’s read Sartre since she could crawl.I pined for her all through my youth:She contemplates subjective truthShe’s reading books composed in FrenchShe claims she’s not the ubermenschThere must be something I have missed…‘Cause she’s an existentialist.

I know a girl who does not knowThe how, or why, or who, althoughShe claims my love has no meaningMaybe, she says, I’m just dreamingShe does not think that I exist…‘Cause she’s an existentialist.

‘Existence must precede essence’;It’s haunted all her adolescence.She says she’s got anxiety,She says there’s no identity;I don’t think that we will agree:She wonders what it is like, free.She just despairs and throws me out,And spurns my love, consumed with doubt;She shouts at me and shakes her fist…‘Cause she’s an existentialist.

I ought to say, there is a twist:I’m a deconstructionist.

Danny Kessler Year 12

Zachary Spiro Year 9


46


An Extract from Cassie’s Morning

Cassie was unique in that she was very open, a quality that many teachers hadfoolishly misdiagnosed as evidence of her ability to trust people. Cassie’sopenness was a result of the utter scope of the shock she was going through, andher bewilderment as to what to do with the gravity of what had happened to her.She did not know what else to do with herself, she feared that if she shut herselfoff, she would become an emotionless workhorse only able to cope with emotionsby letting them ricochet off her defences.

The French aural lesson went very well. Cassie loved French, she enjoyed the flirtatiousanecdotes spoken by Claude in his delicious accent. Claude, the bearded French assistantwas a stunning example of what happens when the French try harder to produce pretty men.His gruff manly exterior belied a soft interior. Claude cried during sad scenes in films, hismood was very temperamental, he would spend lessons in ecstatic bliss when the classanswered questions correctly, would be horrified if someone swore, and would be depressedif someone made a foolish mistake. Claude was a highly-strung, passionate man who hadbeen hurt badly by the news of Cassie’s father’s death.

Cassie’s day was coming to an end. It had been truly exhausting. The English lesson hadbeen typically engrossing and the French lesson engaging, but the counselling session hadupset her and her delicate composure. She had woken up fine in the morning, lethargic, butcapable of producing a smile when a friendly teacher passed her on a path or in a corridor.Angry with herself, angry with God and furious at the unnecessary nature of her loss, Cassiechoked down a scream, instead deciding to go up to the Library and curl up in a readingcorner. Now sobbing uncontrollably into the monochrome pages of Shalimar the Clown,Cassie was inconsolable. The librarians made an effort to speak to her, but she remainedsilent. Exasperated but sympathetic, they left her alone. She did not look up or turn the page,but after fifteen minutes the tears dried up.

The sky had darkened significantly. Cassie had descended to the Foyer and walked throughthe front doors. Looking out across the campus she saw the bright lights of square mathswindows, and the silhouette of the music school. From the middle of the seldom-visitedmusic school, a light was on and a solitary piano added the perfect accompaniment to theambience of Cassie’s evening. 5.20pm was drawing closer, and the second round ofcoaches would be leaving soon. Reluctantly she got up and began to walk again, stumbling alittle at first, but knowing with certainty that in time, she would regain her balance, but alsoknowing she would have to do it on her own.

Udayan Tripathi Year 12

Macbeth

An unearthly breeze swept over theScottish moors, muffling thesounds of despair as armourshattered and souls were pierced.The penetrating drizzlecontaminated every dry particlewith a depressing damp. As thegale increased in power thesinister clouds clothed the sky inan apocalyptic cloak. Hail torethrough the atmosphere explodingas it hit the slop like mud.

Ants scurried to their anthills, to avoidthe cascading ice-blocks and heather.Swallows performed a sequence ofmilitary manoeuvres to dodge thegunfire from above. Vultures circled theScotch corpses waiting for the war toend and the feast to begin.

Thunder exploded through thestratosphere with blaring booms and aresounding rumble. Zeus joined theconflict, bombarding the moor withviolent detonations. Trees, suicidal,throwing themselves into the fray,pulverised all beneath them.

The tempest dwindled, the cyclonedecelerated to a panting zephyr. Thesquall slowed to a patter that formedpools of mud. Low dark clouds formedan ominous eclipse. All that could beheard were the cries of men as theythrust their swords through flesh andbone. Disquieting ripples ran acrossthe mud, unnaturally flowing down to asingle point. Then that point bore agemstone: the largest yet most hideousjewel ever seen. It seemed to absorball of one’s hopes and fill one’s mindwith childhood fears. As the gemstonerose higher you could see that it wasgrasped by a cruel, wart-encased fist.The hand was followed by the true evil,the hag. Her head was clothed ingreasy, grey, knotted hair. One of hereyes sunk in; the other bulged out.After her heels rose out of the mud,she hovered above the slime.

The storm grew in intensity and when itwas at its zenith two more hags,indistinguishable from the first, aroseout of two corpses. They then startedto chant:

“When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?

When the hurlyburly's done, When the battle's lost and won.”

Jack Adler Year 7

Walpurgis Night

I spotted you through gaps in churning skinred lights flashing, screaming shakes the room,the sea of flesh parting, calling us in,nothing remains but some euphoric doom.‘The witches walk tonight’, you say, and smile,the scarlet sinning sets the room aglow,and people praying quietly all the while,promising they’ll never let you go.

And after this nothing can be the same,the morning breaks in, shafts of mocking lightto purify us all in the Lord’s name,for nothing that is beautiful is right.The solace in the dark we couldn’t findstill opens hopeful gaps inside my mind.

Josh Seymour Year 13


47


The Witches’ Wrath

The coal-black clouds billowed,infuriated by the wind, dissolvingthe doomed sky. Their darksilhouettes expanding andenveloping, stifling the air beneath.The heavens closed.

Timeless trees were ripped from theirroots with frightening force. In theensuing mayhem, debris was chaoticallyscattered, along with any order that hadonce been. An eerie expectance filledthe air. All life seemed to disappear intoa vacuum of fear, so empty yet evil. Analmost palpable sense of impendingdoom descended upon the land.

Silently and stealthily, a trio of distortedfigures emerged, morphinginconspicuously from the shatteredscenery. The devil’s representatives onEarth had come to stake their claim.Their penetrating presenceoverwhelming – as the world seemedto shrink against their forebodingshadows.

The pre-historic hags huddled inhatred, staring into the black hole thatwas their bubbling cauldron, itsbarbaric boiling a contrast to thewaning whirl of the malevolent squall.The evil concoction, malignantly rising– a potion unimaginable to the humanrace.

Each screeching sorceress the modelof wickedness: three gruesomegargoyles occupied with twisted sin,buckled and deformed. An unholytrinity. Combined together, they were adisfigured mass of malice.

“When shall we three meet again?”sneered the first, straining to be heardabove the increasingly imposingonslaught of blasts. “In thunder,lightning or rain?”

“When the hurlyburly’s done!” shriekedthe second, the shrill reply half muffledby the dark, spider-infested hair.“When the battle’s lost and won!”

“Where the place?” inquired the thirdof the deathly threesome.

“Upon the heath!” screamed the first.The trio seemed to stop time as theybuilt up to the final line, the deliveryline of the evil spell, dancing feverishlyaround their black hole. Theincantation produced a brilliant yetdestructive ray of dark light from thecauldron.

“And there to meet with Macbeth?”

Noah Levy Year 7

Virgil, Aeneid II, ll. 10 ff.

But if so great your longing is to knowOf our misfortune and to hear in briefAbout the final throes of Troy, althoughMy quaking mind has shrunk away with grief,I shall begin.

The years still taking course,By war fragmented, driven back by fate,The Argive kings, with Pallas’ skill, a horseOf mountainous proportions did create,They wove the ribs with timbered silver firAnd made believe the horse was just a giftTo make the voyage homewards easier:That is the rumour that was set adrift.They picked the choicest fighters of their kinAnd stealthily enclosed them in its flank,Enormous, lightless caverns deep within,And filled its womb with armoured men of rank.

In sight of Troy lies Tenedos, an isleWhich now is risky station – just a bay –For ships, but once was famed and wealthy whileThe kingdom did in Priam’s power stay.Once there they hid upon its barren shore;We thought that they had launched away and sailedWith haste, Mycenae-bound. All Troy, thereforeReleased from long felt suffering, exhaled;The gates are cast agape and through them fliesA joyous crowd of those who wish to standAnd see the Doric camps, and cast their eyesWith glee upon the now deserted strand.The band of Dolopes here, and here the siteWhere merciless Achilles had been based;The fleets were here, and here they used to fight!Some marvelled at the fatal gift of chasteMinerva, startled by the horse’s size;Thymoetes was the first to urge that weShould lead inside the city walls our prize(Perhaps he lied, or it was destiny)And place it high upon the citadelBut Capys, backed by those with sounder sense,Commanded us to hurl into the swellOr burn the suspect gift of Greek pretenceWith flames, or else to pierce and to exploreThe hollow hiding places of its womb.The populace was split, with all unsureRegarding which approach they should assume.

Leo Davidson Year 12

Alex Barnett Year 10

Oliver Fox Year 10

Florian Culka Year 11


48


Zach Goldie - An electric guitar stand

Chris Thom School - based Star Wars Club promotion

AS Product Design - Year 12

Graphics - Year 10

Sam McPhail – A collapsible Canoe paddle to fit into a rucksack

Elliott Mayer How safe do you feel - airline safety


49


Greg Steckelmacher promotional material and figurines based on Doctor Who Minimates

Antonio Castagno Bicycle training frame

Jonny Miller Cat feeding station

Toby Webber Mobile cricket stumpsVishal Singhal Dart board

Graphics - Year 10


50


Amar Shah – A pull along snailThe shell rotates

Keshal Patel – A pull along toy in theshape of a biplane the wheels makethe propellor go round

Systems and Control - Year 10

Sahil Patel – A long arm grab

Patrick Ray – A pull along Train theChimney goes up and down and themans head goes from side to side


51


Resistant Materials - Year 10

Serge Albohayre – A child's table top game

Suraj Malde – A child's table top game

Basil Letts – Stool and snooker cue holder

Adam Pack – A child's activity centre

Sebastian Schusman - A dog food dispenser

Miles Kaye – Water ski rack


52


Lower Sixth Art

This year's art class in the lower sixth form was one of the largest classes the Habs art department has ever seen, witheleven students in comparison to last year’s four. As well as the enlarged amount of mess in the art department, the size ofthis year’s class meant that the lower sixth also produced a large amount of high quality art-work in a variety of media fromcharcoal to calligraphy ink, used to a create a wide variety of pieces including a surrealist film, a wire statutue and a perspexhead. Despite the common themes of "Music and Movement" and "Freedom", the class produced work in an amazingly widevariety of styles, each personal to the student and inspired by their own personal tastes and opinions of why art is important.

Akhi

l Bak

hda

inspired by Frank Alba

Pete

r Ga

rsid

e

inspired by artist Edward Hopper

My art is importantto me because it isthe essence ofacademicism

My art is importantto me because I amgoing on to domedicine

My art is important tome because I enjoy itand it comes as a breakfrom everydayschoolwork M

arlo

n Bi

ber

inspired by "Banksy", a street artist


53


Dani

el E

ngel

sman

n

inspired by Elliot Erwitt

Jack

Llo

yd J

ones

inspired by Rene Magritte

Lower Sixth Art

My art is importantto me because ...Isaw it first, yeh!

My art is important tome because it helps meto see the world moreintensely, as opposedto just making prettythings.

My art is important tome because it’senjoyable Se

an T

omlin

inspired by many artists


54


Pete

r Gr

ant

inspired by Christian Boltanski

Sam

Pin

ner

inspired by Mario Testino

Yexi

Tra

n

inspired by Chuck Close

Lower Sixth Art

My art is importantto me because no-onemakes it like I do

My art is importantto me because itrepresents whatcan’t be understood

My art is importantbecause it isimportant to me


Prep


56

Skylark 2007 Prep

Preparatory School Report for the Academic Year 2006/2007We had a great start to the new academic year when the Prep received thenews that Haberdashers’ had won ‘The Sunday Times Independent PrepSchool of the Year’ award. This was the result of achieving consistently highmarks across the board, over several years, in the national Key Stage IIexaminations. The Prep School was also ranked top in the U.K. PrimarySchools’ Mathematical Challenge and the Under 11 Chess team retained theEnglish Primary Schools’ National Chess Title.

The Prep School was thrilled to win such a prestigious award which reflected thehard work of pupils; inspirational teaching by the staff and the tremendous support ofparents and governors.

Not wishing to rest on our laurels, another busy and exciting year ensued with manynew experiences being offered to the Prep boys – these included three new subjectsfor Year 6, Latin, Scuba Diving and Salsa dancing!

The Year 4 boys enjoyed a challenging activity weekend in Norfolk – for many thiswas their first taste of staying away from home and their experience will be goodpreparation in the future for the long awaited Year 6 Field Study week in Shropshire.

All the boys have enjoyed a fascinating array of workshops and day trips throughout the year including: a trip to the World Challenge Centre,Windsor Castle, Hampton Court, Regent’s Park Open Air Museum, Legoland, Woburn and Thorpe Park.

In addition to the many sports teams who represent the Prep, the first ever Prep Hockey Squad played against Berkhamsted resulting in awin for the ‘A’ team and a draw for the ‘B’ team. We think Mr Long will be pleased! The Under 9 Cricket Team were invited to Lords to helplaunch the Michael Vaughan cricket initiative across England. They appeared on Sky News!

Another highlight of the year was the visit of Dr. Nicholas Patrick – astronaut and family friend of one of our Year 2 boys. Dr. Patrick gave asensational presentation about his twelve day mission to the International Space Station in December 2006.

The artists in the Prep School have enjoyed using donations of old scrap wood and discarded wooden objects to create no fewer than ninetotem pole faces – an ingenious example of recycling – and a subject high on the agenda at our School Council meetings this year.

Music, as always, plays a major role in the Prep School and Mrs Meehan was determined we should experience one of Peter Churchill’ssinging workshops before she retired! This was a great success and enjoyed by all the boys and staff in the Prep!

It has been another vibrant and busy year in the Prep School. We are now waiting, with excited anticipation, for the opening of theHaberdashers’ Pre-Preparatory School in September 2007 when our current Year 1 Kingfishers will leave the Prep and start at the newschool in How Wood. They will be joined by 55 other boys aged 5 & 6. We will look forward to welcoming them, and their new friends back(when they reach the age of 7) to the Prep School in Butterfly Lane.

Y. Mercer Headteacher

Sentiment was high as the capacityaudience filled the Bourne Hall on theevening of 26th June. This was to be thelast Prep Summer Concert for DeliaMeehan, who retired after 24 years at thehelm of Prep music. It was StephanieCore, however, who took to the stage firstof all, to direct three recorder ensemblesin renditions of ‘Jazzamataz,’ ‘MovieBuster’ and Strauss’ ‘Roses from theSouth.’ This was followed by the JuniorChoir, and then a remarkable Year SixString Quartet, comprising RamanaCarthigesan and Nikhil Banerjee on violin,Max Spiro on viola and Thomas Senior onthe cello. More chamber works were tofollow: The fantastic Year Five trumpeterPaddy Sidwell played Charpentier’sPrelude to ‘Te Deum,’ and the Violin Duetof Paul Botje and Sol Paek performed theAllegro from Purcell’s ‘Sonata No. 2.’ Thecheerful Scott Tan then brought ‘Chim

Chim Cher-ee’ to life with great stage presence.

Two pieces from the Brass Ensembleshowed the promising future of HABSbrass music, before the Senior Choir tookto the stage with two numbers of theirown, ‘When the love comes triclin’ down,and ‘Motorway Cones’ from ‘The Journey.’Jim Beryl then introduced the preppercussion ensemble, in a lively ‘Rockaround the Clock;’ a change in volumeenjoyed by all! A surprise was to follow,when an assortment of ex-prep boystaught by Mrs. Meehan over the lastdecade, burst on stage as a percussionensemble to thank her for herunforgettable and inspirationalcommitment to music. They played anoriginal arrangement by Alistair Malloy ofthe Beatles’ favourite ‘When I’m sixty-four!’

The ever-expanding prep orchestra playedtwo numbers next, one from Offenbach’s‘Orpheus in the underground,’ and thenthe famous ‘Hymn to joy’ fromBeethoven’s Ninth Symphony. In amagnificent finale, the entirety of the PrepSchool crammed the Bourne Hall stage fora beautiful performance of John Rutter’s‘Look at the World,’ and an excitingrendition of Donnelly’s ‘Kazoo Concerto,’ inwhich the whole school, including the stafffilled the room with a selection ofclassics…on the kazoo!

Delia Meehan’s endless commitment andenthusiasm once again led to a thrillingPrep Summer Concert. With the exhilaratingencore, we bid her farewell, and will missher in her well-deserved retirement.


Prep Summer Concert


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Skylark 2007 Prep

Under 11 ‘ A’ Team Soccer ReportV Belmont - Won 4-2

The first match was eagerly anticipated byall the team, after our scheduled gameagainst Highgate was called off because ofthe weather.The match was played away, which gavesome advantage to our opponents.Nevertheless, our team was keen to make agood start and that’s exactly what happenedwith a goal coming in our first attack!Playing down the slope Jonny May wasfinding lots of space down the left and hisgood work led to goals by Ben Hickmet andYoni Stone.In the second half Belmont came back andeventually levelled the game at 2-2.It looked as though they might go on andwin, but our team withstood the pressureand in the final phase of the match began toexert their own.Eventually the hard work paid off and goalsfollowed – both to the pacy Hickmet. So thefinal score was 4-2 to Habs and the coachwas encouraged by the spirit shown by allthe players throughout the game.

V Forest – Won 3-0

Away again, this time on a Saturday, theteam travelled to Forest School in Essex.Playing across the pitch the teams werereduced in size but the idea remained thesame – we should use the full widthavailable and aim to attack down the wings.This the team did extremely well early onwith both Ben Hickmet and Jonny Mayputting in some teasing crosses.Unfortunately we were unable to convert thechances created, although Jamie Harrisonand Ben H. were only a fraction away onoccasions.Our defence was strong and Forest were notable to create much of their own until amistimed challenge from the industriousRory Cartmell resulted in a penalty kick. To

everyone on the Habs’ sides relief JonahLevy made a smart save and Forest wereunable to put away the rebound.In the second half Habs made their superiorpossession, and skill, count and goals fromJonny May, Ben Hickmet, and Ollie Karielsealed a comprehensive victory.

V Northwood – Won 4-1

Our first home game saw the team at fullstrength once again and in confident moodfollowing our first two matches. Northwoodwere not the strongest opponents, but theywere well organised and competitive and theymade it difficult by packing their defence. Inthe first half most of the play took place in ourvisitors half, with a string of chances beingcreated but only two being taken.Rory Cartmell and Yoni Stone were bothclose before Ben Hickmet and JamieHarrison scored. In the Second half thepattern remained roughly the same butNorthwood became slightly more ambitiousas the game wore on and they did get agoal back with their only real opportunity.However, Habs scored two further goals tomake the final score 4-1.

V Bedford Modern – Won 2-0

This game represented our most difficultchallenge yet against skillful and physicallyrobust opponents. Everyone had to be at hisbest and be prepared for a rough ride!On a difficult and energy sapping surfaceHabs started well and early on forced acorner or two. Bedford Modern slowly gotinto their stride, however, and they began todominate possession. Winning the battles inmidfield they exerted sustained pressure,winning a number of corners of their own.Our defence had to be alert, and strong, andthey were. With Douglas Fung coming intothe team at left back and Andrew Djaba onthe other side the Bedford Modern wingerstested our resolve but were rarely able to

work space down the flanks.In the middle Samir Atwal and Harry Mistrywere a great combination of strength andskill repelling attacks time and again. So athalf time the score was 0-0.Habs improved their attacking potential afterthe break and James Cohen and BenHickmet did well to retain possession upfront, spreading the ball effectively at timesto both Jonny May and Daniel Reuben.In Midfield, Ollie Kariel and Rory Cartmellplayed like men possessed and did a greatjob in tackling and carrying the ball forward.As time wore on it became clear that the‘first goal wins’ but which team that wouldbe was far from clear. The Ben Hickmetbroke clear in the centre circle and set offfor goal. There was a lot for him to do, buthe was ‘one-on-one’ with the keeper now!Fortunately he kept a clear head and as thegoalie came out he calmly slipped the ballthrough his legs. 1-0 to Habs!Bedford Modern came back immediatelyand made a determined effort to equalise,but again our team defended with greatspirit making last ditch tackles and repellingcorners.Late on, a great move developed throughmidfield, with James Cohen putting BenHickmet through on the right. With theBedford Modern defence stretched Benspotted Jonny May clear in the middle andadvancing on the penalty area. He put a‘slide rule’ pass into Jonny’s path and ourwinger did the rest, wrong footing thekeeper and slotting the ball inside his nearpost. Cue pandemonium!With the score 2-0 there was very little timefor our visitors to reply though Harry Mistryhad to make a memorable sliding tackle, onhis back, to prevent them pulling a goalback at the death.The final whistle blew and the cheers rangout as Habs celebrated a famous victory.

S TODHUNTER

This has been a very encouraging yearfor Prep School athletics. The teamwon both the Habs’ Junior meet andthe St Columba’s School’s Invitationfixture. Encouragingly there have beensome boys who have shown real pace,notably Sameer Atwal, Oliver Kariel,Zachery Adebayo-Oke and MiguelPerera, who as a quartet won theHertfordshire County title in the4x100m relay in a very fast time of59.1secs.

Athletics


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Skylark 2007 Prep

Spring TimeOne smiling sun,Two peeping primroses,

Three busy bees,All mean to me.

One bouncy bunny,

Two shiny snowdrops,

Three fast fish,All mean spring to me.

James Fenner Year 2

One blowing blossom,

Two fast fish,Three dancing daffodils,

All mean spring to me.

One dashing duck,Two animals awakening,

Three buzzing bees,


Nikhil Charda Year 2

One talking tulip,Two perfect primroses,

Thee cheeky chicks,


One stalking snowdrop,

Two blue blossom,Three bothering bees,


Matt Rosenfeld Year 2

A Spring PoemEverything is filled with cheer,That’s how we know that spring is here.

The wind has stopped blowing,And the leaves have started growing.

The birds are whistling a beautiful tune,They know their eggs will hatch soon.

There are pretty flowers everywhere,The butterflies roam without a care.

Armaan Bajaj Year 1

Cricket Cricket - U9 ‘A’ and ‘B’ In a season badly affected by the weather,the Under 9’s only managed two cricketmatches. Despite the lack of fixtures wemanaged to secure 3 wins and only 1 loss. Iwould like to commend the two captains,Edward Mort and Hugo Murphy and theboys who represented the school. Hopefullywe will have better luck in Year 5 and beable to report further successes! P Whitby & N Bowley

Cricket - U10 ‘A’ and ‘B’The A team has had a very successfulseason, losing only one match. The teamhas worked well as a unit displaying someaccurate bowling and solid batting, backedup by energetic fielding that showed goodoverall understanding of the game. MrsMinett, who has taken the ‘A’ team this year,has been impressed by their dedication andcommitment to the game. There are some

talented players amongst the team and Iwish them the best of luck next year.The B team has also had an excellent termagain losing only one match. They haveplayed with much enthusiasm and havemade a real improvement in their skills andappreciation of the game. I have beenimpressed by their dedication andcommitment to the game.M Brown

Cricket - U11 ‘A’The Captain of the ‘A’ team, RohanMandumula, has also been outstanding, notonly improving his own personalperformance in every match but he has alsoshown all the qualities we would hope tosee in a Captain. He has led his teamthrough thick and thin; he has encouragedthem throughout and he has set a shiningexample in cricket etiquette. Wecongratulate all the players in the ‘A’ team –

they have shown dedication andcommitment to the game of cricket – thereare undoubtedly some very talented playersleaving the Prep School and we shall be watching them as they move through the Main School Cricket teams. Good Luck boysY Mercer

Cricket - U11 ‘B’This has been a season of real success andencouraging development for the ‘B’ team.Led ably by Thomas Senior, a canny slowbowler and obdurate batsman, and with thevaluable contribution of four or five keyplayers, the team created a strong teamspirit, focus and will to win.No less than 17 boys played for the ‘B’sover the course of 7 matches, which isproof of the depth of ability and interestshown by this year group.S Todhunter


59

Skylark 2007 Prep

The Snow DayAs I opened my eyes,

To my surprise,

Everything was bright, as,

The ground was covered in white,

SNOW SNOW SNOW!

The trees sprinkled with snow,

Glistened in the rays of the sun,

As a robin landed, a heap of snow fell off,

And the robin slipped in the

SNOW SNOW SNOW!

As I gazed at the road, I saw amazing fruits,

Tracks by the milkfloats,

Footprints and paw prints,

From all that had passed my door in the early

morningSNOW SNOW SNOW!

Nikhil Shah Year 3

Frankenstein – ContinuedThe monster glared a twisted frown at Dr.Frankenstein. Then clumsily it stood up. DrFrankenstein could see his burning hatred of theearth coming from his large, yellow eyes. This hatredburned into Dr. Frankenstein.

He moved slowly, terribly towards the pine wood tree andsent it crashing towards Dr. Frankenstein, pinning him ontothe machine where the electricity engulfed him. The monstersent rubble onto Dr. Frankenstein who gave one last piercingscream. The monster roared a victory shout and then hedisappeared into the woods.Search party, after search party looked for the monster, butthere were still reports of missing cows, horses, hens andsheep. The monster grew even taller until he spent a night ina cleaning surrounded by oak trees. It was very dark, verycold and extremely strong. A lightening flash hit the monstercausing him to howl with pain. Soon enough anotherlightening flash hit him, followed shortly by another. Andthen….the monster lay dead on the front of the clearing.

Jacob Whitehead Year 4

WildernessThere is a flying fish in me…with wings to fly and flippersfor swimming as quick as a thunderbolt. I keep this fishbecause the wilderness gave it to me and the wildernesswill not let it go.

There is a horse in me…a black stallion glimmering in the sunlightwaiting to be unleashed with ferocious speed and agility. I keep thisstallion because the wilderness gave it to me and the wilderness willnot let it go.

There is a tiger in me…an orange and black sharp eyed, sharptoothed tiger with robust forearms to strike opponents down withone commanding strike. I keep this tiger because the wildernessgave it to me and the wilderness will not let it go.

There is a deer in me…horns stretching out like branches, earspricked up always listening to anything that moves or talks. I keepthis deer because the wilderness says so.

There is a rabbit in me…a cute rabbit that bounces around anddoesn’t trust anyone or anything. And I got this rabbit from thewilderness.

O, I got a zoo, I got a menagerie, inside my bone marrow, my brainand heart and the wilderness gave me these ingredients from God-knows-where.

Jake Krais Year 5

Jack FrostJack frost as cold as ice. We don't know if he's naughty or nice? He's cheeky and slick. And he can shoot ice in a flick. And nobody knows what he's like. And maybe he rides a bike. He's so so so cold. And he could be bold. He like's the colour grey. And he doesn't come out in the day.He goes round every house. And he's as quiet as a mouse.

Thomas Johnston Year 3


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Skylark 2007 Prep

A TAKE FROM TIMEIt was a hot, stifling day and Hannah Irving was extremely anxious, she was

generally anxious. She was that kind of person. Hannah had no physical flaws, she

had dark, tawny hair, evenly spread features and good clothes, but she was unsure

of herself, “too shy and lacking confidence” her school report said. Shame really. It

was a shame because in the past she had been a secure, friendly person. Her

family was the problem. They all had very loud, definite opinions and scorned all of

Hannah's ideas and efforts. Eventually they imprisoned Hannah behind bars of

silence and shyness, unintentionally. And Hannah knowing better than to speak of

her opinions withdrew all ideas and views. She also lost her friends because she

couldn't invite them round (they might be scared away by the scorn at any idea)

and was too scared to tell them why. Soon Hannah seemed to disappear into the

background.But this time she had a good reason for being nervous. The photographer was late!

She had been very excited about it. Photos were a real novelty! She'd be able to

show them to her friends and ... then she remembered she didn't have any friends.

She was pulled out of her misery by the stuttering chugs of a van. She checked it

was the photographer's and ran out the door, down the stairs and into the kitchen.

“They're here, they're here!” Hannah shouted.

“No need to make such a racket,” Gran reprimanded “as if you were three!”

Hannah shrank back miserable. Grandad went and opened the front door. Hannah

straightened out her hair and smoothed the creases in her dress. Murmurs of

conversation flickered into the kitchen.

The deckchairs were set out, Grandma and Mum were looking for the parasol and

Aunt Augusta was searching for her feathered hat. The photographers then began

to unload the camera. It was a huge brown box with something a little like the end

of a telescope poking out. It stood on a three-legged stand made of wood. The

photographers then stated to unload the innards, one standing examining the inside

of the camera shouting out equipment, the other unloading the related items.

Suddenly they stopped“What happened?! Grandad butted in.

“Well you see sir, there is a piece of equipment called a VW cloak missing and ...”

the boss explained, “Without it we can't take the photo.” Jim interrupted

“Well we can lend you a cloth” Grandad offered.

“We need a cloth with a silver coating because the silver filters out the extra light in

a unique way.”

Hannah had been following the conversation and had realised this was a golden

opportunity to break free of her forced silence and make herself count. One of her

hobbies was knitting and she knits slithers of silver into all her knitting as a king of

signature. But dare she announce her proposal and face the scorn and wrath. All of

a sudden a rush of courage seeped through her and she told the group her idea. At

the end of her speech Grandad was beetroot and Gran, Aunt Augusta and Mum

weren't looking at her.“Quiet Hannah, this is adult talk!” Grandad boomed.

“Ok then, send the photographers away!” she chuckled, drawing on her courage.

“Why you cheek-giving, lippy, insolent excuse for a ...” Grandad raged. Hannah

backed off and started to slip back to her prison when Jim saved her.

“She's right you know,” he retorted “here girl, go fetch that cloth.”

Hannah ran to her room, then opened the lid to her knitting box, plucked out the

cloth and raced back down.

That day was momentous for Hannah and she finally got her views heard and

Grandad always looked stern and angry in that picture.

Jonathan Davies 6MJ

Prep Artwork

Year 6 pupils were givena collection of old sepiaphotographs, of whichthe provenance wasunknown. The boys wereasked to write a storyabout what washappening in the picturethey were given...

Zachary Lande Year 5

Yoni Stone Year 6

Timi Alabi Year 2

Year 4 - Spring blossom paintings


61

Skylark 2007 Prep

SuddenlyLast Tuesday

Suddenly last Tuesday, at the remembrance service, I thought back to mytime in the trenches. Thick sticky mud squelched under my feet. People criedout in pain around me. Their blood covered and bandaged faces hid up theirwounds. Every time I saw a shell flying down from the sky I thought it mightbe my end. I remembered the fear. I could smell bloodshed like the taste ofmetal. Clouds of smoke choked my lungs. I was reliving my time in thetrenches in World War 1.

Seeing the white flare shoot up sent a shiver through my body. We all knew that wehad to queue up and go over the top of the trenches. All too soon it was my turn. Myfingers clogged with mud as I clawed up the side of the trench. I felt strangely free.

I remembered the chaos but I felt comforted by my comrades close by. We crawledthrough the barbed wire and slid through the mud. I got out of the barbed wire andmarched for about two metres before I heard German gunfire.

A rapid ear-splitting sound welcomed us to the German front line. The machine gunbullets sent soil flying into the air and onto our tin hats. I heard a cry that sounded likeAlbert. I looked to my left and saw him rolling in agony. As I got closer I could see abullet had pierced his chest. Warm blood spurted out of his jacket.

Realising I had to get him to a medic, I lifted him over my shoulder and felt a painwhich exploded throughout my body. I felt as though someone was hammering a knifeinto me. I had been shot. Somehow I managed to lug myself and Albert back to thesafety of the front line of the trenches.

I held him in my arms and tried to comfort him, whilst waiting for the medic. When Irealised that there was no hope, I felt useless and angry. He gasped his last words andhis body went limp. Albert had been my best friend. I felt warm tears run down myface. I was ashamed that I cried.

The next thing I recalled was going dizzy, remembering that I had been shot as well. Iwoke up in a nice comfy bed in hospital.

Years have passed without Albert but to this day I have never forgotten and never willforget him. On that Tuesday I ended my thoughts of the World War and felt the medal Ihad won, that day, for bravery, on my chest. The sound of the last post filled my ears. Iwalked off with my family, grateful that I had survived.

Benedict Jones 5CG

Trip to the World Challenge CentreThe Year 3 trip to the World Challenge Centre, Bushey, was aonce in a lifetime experience. The boys participated in anAdventure Quest, an action-packed outdoor challenge course.One aspect of the day was to set students on a mission ofhistoric or environmental significance. Missions included: Canthe team track down a lost Da Vinci relic or rescue the secretto slowing climate change? In addition they will learntcommunication, teamwork and problem solving, as they scaledthrough tree tops and worked together to save the day. On topof all this the boys learnt valuable skills such as teamwork,communication, and strategic thinking.

F Schwarz


62

Skylark 2007 Prep

The gravy was congealing. Daniel feltdisgusted looking at the meat on his plate.Every Friday, it was the same fatty roastlamb with squidgy, boiled potatoes. Just thethought of it made him feel sick!

"I'm not eating this!" Daniel screeched andhe shoved his plate away from him. It hit themetal candlestick with a clatter. Uncle Tomgot up. "Granny Sarah has worked hard tomake that food and you must eat it," hesaid.

"I'm not going to and you can't tell me whatto do!" he shouted back defiantly. "Yourmanners are appalling and you are veryrude!" Uncle Tom shouted and slammed hisfist on the table.

"Don't you criticise my child!" Elizabethexclaimed. "It's my job to tell him what heshould and shouldn't do."

Uncle Tom's face glowed red with anger. Hewas breathing heavily. "Well I'm his uncle!"He banged his fist on the table again. Theglass jumped. "He needs to know how tobehave." "Please just eat the food Daniel," saidGranny Sarah. She sighed. There were tearsin her eyes. "I work so hard to make dinnerevery week."

"No, I'm not eating that food!"

Granny Sarah undid her apron and placed itcarefully on her chair. She walked out of theroom and climbed the stairs wearily.Elizabeth glared at Uncle Tom. "Now lookwhat you've done," she said to her brotherand she slapped her napkin onto her sideplate.

"What do you mean? It's Daniel's fault forbeing rude and your fault for making himthat way," said Uncle Tom.

Elizabeth stood up. Her knuckled were whiteas she clutched the edge of the table. UncleTom stood up. They were almost head tohead.

"Please apologise and get her back," saidDaniel's father softly.

Grudgingly, Daniel left the table. He ranupstairs, said he was sorry and led GrannySarah downstairs. She put her apron on andsat down once again on her chair. Tompulled his plate back. When no-one waslooking, Daniel slipped his food to the dog.The family ate in silence.

Noah Halberstam Year 5

"A Family Disagreement" Life atHABS inYear 1At HABS our teacher was Mrs Adat.We were the first ever year 1. Atyear 1 the most important thing inschool was meeting Mrs. Adat. Inyear 1 the most important thingsare learning how to use adictionary, reading and writing. Ialso enjoyed colouring the size ofmy hand. The best book that I readwas the Lion King. At school welearnt to play football, rugby,cricket, how to throw and catch,cross country and swimming. In theplayground I also played footballand cricket and basketball. AtChristmas we sang a song aboutshopping for the mums and dads.We also have class assemblies. Welove year 1 at HABS!

By Ben Shwarzman

Scorpion Man "This is dreadful," the headmaster of StJohns Boarding School announced sadly inassembly.

Two more students had disappearedyesterday! Know one knows how but I havehunch. Yesterday Johnny said he and Adamwere going to go and check out theabandoned dOfffi. Surprisingly it was themthat disappeared. Tonight Kevan, Max and Iare going to go check it out. I hope wedon't disappear to ...

"Well, it's time to set off guys, Maxmouthed. We had to be careful. We didn'twant to get caught sneaking off at thedead of night. Especially by Mrs. Kind. Donot be fooled by the name. She would giveus at least two weeks worth of detentions!

We got out of the school and were at the gate of the dorm when we heard aneerie scream come from it. I was gettingworried and anxious and feeling dread atthe same time.

We walked in. the doors creaked open aswe walked in and shut so suddenly that Ifelt a shiver run down my spine. It was likea never ending darkness, the world of nolight!

Something stirred in the shadows. "Kev isthat you?" "I'm over here."

Suddenly a shrill voice that made the hairson the back of my neck stand on endsounded. "Welcome ... to my domain." Suddenly acreature leapt and I saw its face for thefirst time. It was all green and mouldy as ifit had never seen sunlight before. It lookedpart scorpion, part human, and had astinger coming out its backside!

The monster jumped on Kevan and as it'spincer-like stinger hit Kevan he started totransform into a monster! Suddenly more,but smaller creatures came charging atMax and myself From out of the blue. Orshould I say out of the black? Max and I

ran up the stairs to the upper floor. Themini creatures followed and soon we werebacked up against the banister, surroundedby monsters! It suddenly dawned on methat these smaller monsters must bepupils. Maybe if we could kill the leaderthey might be ok.

The leader of these monsters was now infront of us, readying itself to charge. "Dodge" I muttered out the corner of mymouth. It charged Max dodged left. Idodged right. It fell. It died!

As soon as it was dead all the othercreatures came back to life. As the studentsrejoiced and walked away triumphantly, onesmall boy knew what the scorpions stingmark on his back meant and dreaded themoment when his time came.

Varan Khullar Year 6


63

Skylark 2007 Prep

Schools in 2007(fhis essay is set in the year 2100)Introduction to schools 93 years ago in the year 2007, schools were very different from today. Teachers hadother restrictions on punishments and children had other behaviour-related restrictionsas well.

Pupils and teachers Pupils and teachers could not get away with things that they can now. For instancepupils cannot beat boring teachers and teachers could not kill unruly teachers. Theycould only sulk or tell them of by using sarcasm.

CurriculumThe curriculum in he old days was very different, pupils did not have to learn Hebrew,Arabic, Ancient Greek, or Ancient Egyptian. Instead they mostly learn French orGerman, linguistic subjects that are not used today. They also learnt algebra, a similarto subject to that of try con (tri-con) which is used today.

AgesPupils learn up to the age of 16 which is almost a sixth of their average life span. Westill learn up to a sixth of our life span but it is until the age of 52 as we haveprolonged life. They also had university which ends at 21 instead of94.

TransportTo get to school in 2007 they used a form of transport called a 'car'. A car was ametal shell with 4 wheels and a crude, toxic engine. In those days they did not haveteleports to get to school.

ConclusionThe schools in those days were very basic. The people's rights were restricted andconfined. No-one could commit a murder without being told off. It is very good thattechnology has advanced from the absurd methods 93 years ago.

Zubair Dhalla Year 6

Schoolsin 2007Schools back in 2007 are very differentfrom now. For instance they had to usethis ancient machine called a car, totravel to school. They still believeddragons and unicorns are only real instories! We can also tell our mind whereto go and, as if by magic we are there!

In 2007 we only had to do with onesmartboard per class! We, nowadays,have more than five. Whilst we areallowed Sony Vaio laptops any time wewant. they could only use tiny Delllaptops,and only during Information Technology.

Luncheon sessions there was only ameagre choice of twelve but now we canhave any sort of cuisine any time of theday. Then they sat at tables and all atetogether but now we can just take ourmeals to the playground and eat.

During their playtime they had to makedo with a tiny thirty by thirty metreplayground! We have in my school athree hundred by three hundred metreplayground! They used to play thisancient game called ‘football’ whichinvolved running around maniacally andkicking a rubber ball. What a barbaricsport!

They wore rather threadbare uniforms inthose days. White or blue shirt. blacktrousers, nave and white striped tie,jumper with logo knitted on it (optional)and a black blazer, what a peculiar sight!Now with our new ‘iT emperature ControlClothes’ we can keep ourselves at anytemperature we want.

They had a huge number of people ineach class, over 22! Nowadays we onlyhave 6. They also used to study ratherweak arithmetic. By the time they were inyear they had only started hardermultiplication whilst I had started algebra.

Our new and improved plumbing systemenabled us to have a good wash all thetime. Our new toilet system. the "Flusher3000" lets us watch TV whilst we we’reon the toilet seat.

Their games lessons were rather peculiar.they used to play "cricket" or the moreviolent game called "rugby"! Violence inschool, how terrible! Now I have givenyou an insight of schools in 2007. youcan obviously very below our highstandards.

Rohan Mandumula Year 6


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Skylark 2007 Prep

As I crunch slowly up the gravel driveway towards the new Haberdasher’s Pre-prep buildings, stillin progress, on a warm April afternoon I cannot help but feel slightly apprehensiveabout what awaits me. On either side of me there are various building tools anda number of wheel barrows at precarious angles, and ahead I can hearmetal clinking on stone. The prospect of confrontation with a gangof workmen on my unannounced, impromptu visit is anuncomfortable one.

Fortunately for me there are no confrontations to be hadtoday; the workmen are enjoying a day off and thesounds of metal work going on seem to beemanating from a nearby garden. The school,soon to be home to 64 boys known as ‘TheKingfishers’, is located in a verdantresidential area of How Wood, betweenSt.Albans and Radlett. The buildingsare situated 50 yards off a quiet cul-de-sac sheltered by tall trees onevery front. Although the site isnot as spacious asHaberdashers’ Elstreegrounds, they certainly rivaleach other on greenery.

The possibility of a Pre-prep building on theElstree grounds wasruled out due todifficulties withplanning permission.Permission wouldalmost certainly bedenied initially andan appeal and thesubsequentcompilation of amaster-plan couldtake as long as twoyears, with thebuilding processadding to thissignificantly. Theintended opening inSeptember 2007ruled out such anoption. Problems withundergoing plans tobuild new changingrooms next to the rugbypitches at Elstreedemonstrate just howarduous and difficultconstruction can be atHaberdashers.

For the last two years the Kingfishershave been situated in the upstairssection of the Preparatory School’srecent extension, known as ‘Treetops’. Thisbuilding has been used for a trial run to findout if a full Pre-prep school is viable. Thesuccess of this system has led to the purchase of anew site for the sole use of Kingfishers.

The site at How Wood is ideal because the main structure is inplace already, the remnants of the Homewood Preparatory schoolthat recently closed down as a result of falling demand. The tarmacarea that skirts the building has a large square missing on the end of theline of rooms that forms the main building, in which a small JCB squats. This isthe area on which, in an earlier meeting, Mr Gilbertson, the school’s Bursar informed methat some of the building’s brickwork had been laid straight onto tarmac, with no foundations

Pre-Preparatory School


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Skylark 2007 Prep

whatsoever. Every part of the building that does not meet acceptable standards is either being demolished and builtfrom scratch or else comprehensively refurbished. The main building has been gutted and new wiring, plumbing

and ceilings have been installed, along with replaced windows and doors. Further extensions will providespace for a reception, office, staffroom and toilet facilities.

The new site is a large financial investment by the Haberdashers’ company which will berecuperated from the school fees of the 64 Kingfishers. Fees currently stand at £9,000

per year.

For many this fee may seem to be a very high price to pay for theeducation of such young children, but this is a key stage in the

development of learning skills and the aim of the Pre-prep School isto provide the best possible introduction to school life. The school

teaches a broad and balanced curriculum which meets andexceeds the guidelines of the National Curriculum with

exciting trips to places of historic or scientific interest.Creative teaching techniques such as book days (the boys

dress up as characters from their favourite book) willhelp to simulate the imagination in an exciting and

enjoyable way. The boys will be appropriatelychallenged and encouraged to develop

independent thinking with the aim of stimulatinga genuine love of learning. The success of thetrial run indicates that the learningenvironment created for the Kingfishers iswell worth the money.

The creation of a positive learningenvironment is often highly dependent onthe selection of students. At the age of 5most children have received littleschooling if any, so the selection processmust be different to the usualexamination and interview format. Forthe Pre-prep school each candidate isinvited to attend the First RoundAssessment, and of these, 42 areinvited to return for a Second RoundAssessment with 32 places available.Precise details of the process are keptsecret but the candidates are assessedfor listening and interaction skills,application to the set task, all-roundknowledge of the world around them,

lively enquiring minds and a thirst forknowledge.

The staff are perhaps the most importantaspect of the creation of a positive learning

environment and the Kingfishers are wellprovided in this respect. Three current Prep

School teachers will transfer to the Pre-Prepschool to be joined by one other teacher currently

employed at another Independent School. All four arehighly trained in Key Stage 1 and the three currently

teaching in the Prep School have the advantage of havingworked already using the later stages of a curriculum that

is progressive from the age of 5 to 11. They will be able toapply this experience to their Pre-prep teaching. There will be

visits from specialist music and drama teachers twice a week anda number of opportunities for the Kingfishers to display their talents

to their parents and each other.

One of the most remarkable thing about the Haberdashers’ Aske’s Schools inElstree is their immensely diverse cultural demographic. This is set to continue in

the Pre-prep school with the boys who start in September coming from 21 differentfeeder schools and many different cultural and religious backgrounds. The Pre-prep School

is a welcome addition to the Haberdashers community and will help to ensure the success of theschool for many years to come.

Ed Morrison Year 12


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Skylark 2006 Prep

I wonder if you have ever asked an astronauta question. I wonder if you have ever heard anastronaut speak. I wonder if you have evenever met an astronaut. Well Haberdashers’Aske’s School for boys have. The whole of thePrep and year 7 and 8 listened to a lecturegiven by Dr. Nicholas Patrick, the fourth Britonto go into space.

He arrived at the school in his astronautuniform and after a brief introduction hestarted to talk, and the hall just went quiet.Every single boy there wanted to hear whatthe astronaut had experienced from the firsttime he experienced weightlessness to themoment he landed back on earth. Theslideshow he had made was incredible, therewere pictures of the shuttle, Discovery, takingoff, pictures of the crew eating and sleepingupside down, a video showing him messingaround with his comrades and, of course, apicture of the one thing that everyone wantedto know about, a toilet. Apparently the toilethas a sort of vacuum cleaner at the bottombut let’s not talk about that.

His mission was STS-116 Discovery whichmeant that he was part of the seven-membercrew on this 12-day repair mission. Discoveryalso delivered a new crew member and more

than two tons of equipment and supplies tothe station. Almost two tons of items no longerneeded on the station returned to Earth withSTS-116 Discovery. The mission was 12 days,20 hours and 45 minutes, a very long time!

He also talked about how he had wanted tobe an astronaut since he was five and I saw alot of nodding heads around the hall so Iguess he was not alone. I think at least one ofthose nodding heads will go on to become anastronaut and become maybe the first Briton,or human, to walk on Mars!

It was then time for questions and there wereA LOT of questions. What was the food like?Do you have to be able to fly a plane to be aspaceman? How much fuel was needed?What was the worst part? What was the bestpart? What would happen if you were ill?What happened to your sick? What didfloating feel like? How did they make thespace station in space? How fast did you go?They just went on…

Dr. Patrick answered every single questionwith long detailed answers so every boy leftcontent that they knew more about spacethan their parents, teachers and their brothersand sisters. So naturally we were very happy

and we all rushed up to shake his hand.

On the coach home the conversation was allabout space and Nicholas Patrick. Could wereally become an astronaut just like he did?Would we experience weightlessness too?Would we see earth through a portholewindow? Would we be orbiting the earth atseventeen thousand miles an hour? Imaginesleeping upside down! Eating upside downwould be so cool! This conversation wascarried through to the next day but this time itwas all over the school. We were just soamazed that we had met the fourth Briton togo into space.

I would just like to thank Dr. Nicholas Patrickfor coming to the school and not just inspiringme to put on my space helmet but everyonein the hall, including the teachers! I could saysomething like, “His speech was out of thisworld,” or something even more cliché but Ihave just decided to say thank you for tellingus about a subject we have always dreamtabout but never really thought about. It was avery big Discovery and one I, and everybodyelse who was there, will never, ever forget!

Harry Guild Year 7Winner of Review Writing Competition

Boys from the Prep School and Years 7 and8 from the Senior School were treated to aninspirational talk by British-born NASAastronaut Nicholas Patrick on 25th April.Many in the audience who left the roomdreaming of being astronauts themselves inthe future. Dr Patrick is a naturalcommunicator and he explained how hisinterest in Mathematics and Physics had ledto him to read Engineering at Trinity CollegeCambridge followed by a PhD at theMassachusetts Institute of Technology. Heapplied to the NASA training programmefollowing the success of a friend beingselected for the programme. He attendedastronaut training school for 18 monthsduring which time he experienced zerogravity by flying on NASA's 'vomit comet'aeroplane, the same as the one in whichProfessor Stephen Hawking has just flown.Much of Dr Patrick's training forweightlessness took place in the world'sbiggest swimming pool,over 60 metres long and 30 metres deep.The team-building for the shuttle crewincluded spending two weeks trekking in thedesert so that the team members could getto know each other's annoying habits,strengths and weakness. This was followedby a fortnight below the surface of theFlorida Keys in a model of the InternationalSpace Station to get the team used to livingin a small space. The main downside of theexperience was having to swim past a sharkto reach the outside loo.

Dr Patrick's role in the space mission was tocontrol the robot arm to fix a damaged solarpanel on the International Space Station.This was successfully completed but neededto include a space walk to give the arm a bitof kick to get it to fold up properly.

The photographs of the Earth from thespace shuttle were beautiful and Dr Patrickexplained that one of the highlights of themission was simply looking out of thewindow at an ever-changing world. Heexplained that because the Space Shuttle isonly 200 miles above the earth the viewfrom it is in three dimensions with cloudsand mountains reaching up into the sky. Thephotographs of the curvature of the earthcaught the audience's attention as itdemonstrated how thin the Earth'satmosphere is and demonstrated that one ofthe great benefits of space travel is that itenables us to view the Earth and realisehow we are all on the same small planetand how vulnerable the atmosphere is topollution, especially the Greenhouse Effect.

Dr Patrick was barraged with a range ofinteresting questions from the boys,including how do you eat a meal in zerogravity and toilet arrangements. The foodon the Space Station was described as OKbut one of the effects of being in space isto get the symptoms of a head cold so theastronauts do not have a good sense oftaste so strong curries are very popular.

Good table manners are also important asany crumbs will float around in zero gravityfor the rest of the mission.

At the end of the talk Dr Patrick presentedthe school with a photo montage of hisspace mission including views of the SpaceShuttle blasting off, Dr Patrick floating inzero gravity and a view from the spaceshuttle window. This was was received onbehalf of the school by Dr Patrick's Godsonwho attends the Prep School. Dr Patrickthen chatted with Abishek Banjeere-Shuklaand Arjun Metha, two sixth formers who, likehim, will be attending Trinity CollegeCambridge. Arjun will be readingMathematics and Abishek medicine.Perhaps they will be astronauts of thefuture. Dr Patrick has been interviewed onmany television programmes this week andwill be appearing on Blue Peter next week.

C. Glanville

reach for the stars

ASKING AN ASTRONAUT


Clubs and Societies


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Skylark 2007 Clubs and Societies

Debating

For years the Skylark debating reports have detailed a series of near misses in numerous finals, with great optimism for thefuture of this strong HABS tradition in which the school has firmly established itself. The season, this year, got off to a quickstart with the success of Debating Captain Jamie Susskind and Vice-Captain James Fox in the MPW competition, small yetcomprising of the strongest teams in London. Following further success in the JLGB competition, an unstoppable momentumwas initiated that has gathered pace throughout the year, taking with it almost every trophy in the schools circuit.

Jamie and James won the Cambridge Union competition opposing allowing women into combat roles in the army having also topped theteam tab. Despite the absence of Jamie, Ben Lewy, in the 5th form, teamed up with James to win the Oxford Union competition, opposingallowing UN peacekeeping troops to violate national borders in order to extradite war criminals for trial in the Hague. Ben also topped thespeakers tab; a remarkable achievement for a 5th former in a predominantly upper 6th competition. Following this, James and Jamie wonthe Durham Union competition, proposing making alcohol illegal (a rather ironic topic to be debated whilst having a hangover), Jamie takingbest speaker. The ‘big three’ had all been won by a single school in a single year for the first time.

The most prestigious competition, the ESU Schools Mace, is one that every debating team in the country aspires towards winning, inparticular. With over 800 schools initially entering, Jamie and James were delighted to win the England final, to go on to represent Englandagainst the other countries of the British Union in the International Final. To commemorate the 50th year of the competition, the Final washeld in the House of Lords; the first ever debate in parliament by non-parliamentarians, and it was televised on BBC Parliament. The teamwas unlucky not to win in this last debate of the season, and it was in fact the only trophy that HABS failed to win out of all of thecompetitions entered.

The success has rung true also for the younger boys, with Ed Schwitzer and Aaron Taylor bringing the International Competition for YoungDebaters Trophy to the Habs cabinet for the 2nd year running. Internationally, Jamie again was chosen to represent the England team in theWord School Debating Competition, this year in South Korea, and Ben travelled to Slovenia to represent England as well.

This whirlwind year has taken with it 8 competition titles, 3 best speaker awards and 12 trophies; an unprecedented achievement in thehistory of Schools Debating, and one that will unlikely be repeated for many years. The HABS name strikes fear into the heart of everydebater in the United Kingdom, as recognised by the facebook group “Habs boys rampage must be stopped”. Thanks go to Mrs Gleeson forall of her support, and we can only hope that these trophies grace the trophy cabinet in Aldenham House for many years to come.

James Fox Year 12

Silverware!

ICYD Competition

Mace Eastern Area Final

JLGB Competition


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Oxford Union Schools Competition

Cambridge Union Schools Competition

Durham Union Schools Competition

MPW London Schools Debate Challenge

Junior Debating Society

When I look back over the past yearand ask myself what has impressedme the most in this term ofunprecedented achievement across allsections of the school, I have only oneanswer. For the last year a group ofboys in the first two years of the schoolhave spent their Wednesday afternoonsin a stuffy English classroom learningto argue persuasively and debatetopical issues.

Not unsurprisingly, junior debating has beenovershadowed by the incredible success ofour senior teams on the National debatingcircuit, but this group of junior boys havebeen truly brilliant. Starting from a verynarrow base, they have all become terrificdebaters, and I have been hugely impressedboth by their efforts and by their talent.

Through debating topics ranging from ‘Thishouse would rather have a cat than a dog’

to ‘This house would have corporalpunishment in Schools’, they have donenothing but improve and impress, going sofar as to (almost) convince the deputationfrom the Worshipful Company ofHaberdashers, who were watching one oftheir debates, that private schools should beabolished.

They have achieved a standard of reasonthat far surpasses that which any of thesenior team had at that age, and thisdeserves recognition. This becomes evenmore impressive when you realise that theyhave stuck with debating despite having toput up with my (Incredibly negative) input foran entire year.

Thanks must also go to Aaron Taylor, thejoint organiser of the club who managed tocounteract my negative influences, keep theclub going during my inexplicable absencesand teach our young debaters exceptionally

well. Thanks must also go to Mrs Gleesonand Mrs Murray, the teachers in charge ofthe club for their support. I would also liketo thank all of the boys who attended ourafter school sessions, they were occasionallytiring, sometimes distressing, but alwayswitty, hilarious and interesting. The future ofHABS debating is safe.

Ben Lewy Year 11


Chapel Society

Chapel has enjoyed an eventful year!The summer term has been particularlybusy with the very successful RichMan/Poor Man lunch raising £170, andthe week long Fairtrade stall whichturned over £430 worth of Fairtradeproducts, a HABS record! Much praisemust go to the selling techniques ofthe volunteers who were moreentertaining than The Apprenticecandidates! I hope that we not onlyraised money but raised awarenessthroughout the school of issuesrelating to poverty, fair trade andclimate change.

On the 16th June, three boys wereConfirmed by the Bishop of Bedford at StAlbans Cathedral. This was a joyful andmoving service, well attended by the boys'families. We then had a further celebrationon Thursday morning to add the prayers andblessing of the Chapel community and toeat lots of cake!

The Chapel maintains a healthycongregation and is active in charity workand social events. There are a growingnumber of girls attending regularly; morethan 50 came to the Rich Man/Poor Manlunch. Their support and involvement isvery much appreciated and I hope this linkwill develop further.

I have greatly enjoyed my first year asChaplain and look forward to being more 'inthe know' next year!

Revd Markby


Junior Science Club

Junior Science Club has staged some fantastic experiments and demonstrationsover the course of the year, drawing in many attendees, particularly towards thebeginning of the year. This year Junior Science Club has successfully teamedscience with fun and although it would be unfair to draw comparisons to TVshow Brainiac , the dramatic impact on the first years surely reached similarstandards. Mr Whalley’s fanaticism when blowing things up was one examplewhere things really did hit the roof! This has however been combined with more‘mellow’ talks like that from Mr Hardman on Birdwatching.

Another fun session was run by the ever ebullient Mrs Letts who brought in her ‘specialbubble solution’! The organisers and first years alike had much fun making bubbles ofvarious sizes, although lots of practice and the correct ‘flicking’ technique was required.

Mr Kingdon also gave many informative talks about both crystal growing and ‘fruitbatteries’. Both practicals proved difficult to perfect but the many crystal samples were asource of fascination to the first years. The fruit batteries, however, proved to be rathertemperamental!

Thanks must also be extended to Mrs Jones whose enthusiasm in running Junior ScienceClub is unwavering and all of the other teachers who gave talks and contributed to therunning of the club.

Matthew Rajan Year 12

Life Drawing Modern Language Society

This year has been an eventful one for theModern language society. It started out withthe formation of a brand new committeeconsisting of Joel Ross, Myles Anderson,Channon Zhangazha, Josh Green, AndrewHurwitz and myself, thus incorporating twomembers for each language. This year therewas plenty to do, with weekly languageclinics for some of the more dedicated year7 & 8 boys, all hoping to improve theirknowledge of French, German or Spanish.Just before Christmas, the society held a‘sell out’ foreign food fiesta, where boys hadthe opportunity to try the seasonal dishes ofmany European countries as well as somedelicious Russian items. Whilst the boysgorged themselves with the food on offer,the members of the committee and Fred,our French assistant, gave excitingpresentations on various seasonal festivitiesin Europe. Later in the year, the teamdrafted in the irreplaceable Robert Daboulwho added some much neededorganisational and administrative skills tothe proceedings, which proved vital for theInter-house Modern Languages quiz. Thiswas a first for the Modern language societyand went without a hitch thanks to anentertaining performance from Joel Rossplaying the part of MC, supported byRobert’s impressive PowerPointpresentation. It only remains for me to thankeveryone in the team that has put in somuch effort throughout the year, and MrThackwaray, Mrs Gomez, and all of the otherteachers that have helped with the society,for all their efforts to make it a success.

Robin Tuck Year 12

70 Akhil Bakhda Year 12

On Thursday 11th January, GCSE and A-Level art students were fortunate enoughto spend a session on nude life drawing witha tutor from the Royal Academy of Arts, aspart of their outreach programme.

It was a great experience, as Paul, the tutor,prepared to lead us through a variety ofmedia to experiment with, and introduce usto different approaches to drawing. Thesession was energetic and high-spirited aswe attempted to put various tasks such as‘try to find form, not shape’ into practice,and produced a collection of impressivestudies by the end of it. The workshop wasvery enjoyable, and thanks must go to Paul -who inspired us to be even more creativewith crumbly sticks of charcoal - andFrancesca, for being an excellent model.

Yexi Tran Year 12


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Chess

The school chess team has had asuccessful season. We left last seasonas a team bursting with hugepotential, but never quite fulfilling it.This year, however, the team hasmanaged to win almost everycompetition it has been entered forand many talented youngsters havealso come to the fore, showing hugepromise for future seasons.

We started off the season with the MillfieldInternational Schools Tournament, inSomerset. We fielded two teams of twelve,competing against teams from all aroundthe UK, as well as Ireland. It has alwaysbeen a tough competition, with manyEngland International players forming partsof the squads. After the first day, our teamswere separated, with the first teamqualifying for the Championship event, andthe second team, one of the youngest teamsthere, qualifying for the Intermediate event.Overcoming some tough competition andafter some very tense matches, both teamscame away with winning trophies in theirrespective sections. This is a HABS first,although this was the third successive timethe HABS team has won the Championshipsection, and so was ever more pleasing.

The next major tournament the teamcompeted in was the UK Schools Rapid Playtournament in Birmingham. The U-14 teamcame out victorious, with a number of theteam getting ‘Best Board’ prizes. A fewweeks later, the U-18 team played in the

older age group for the same event, hopingto match that feat. It was a close runcontest between HABS and Nottingham HighSchool, but unfortunately our loss to themproved decisive, and we ended up“Runners-Up”. However, the team still cameout with a number of board prizes, and wehave built a solid platform to build upon inthe competition next year.

Despite the team’s relative success in othersuch tournaments, the main goal thisseason was to win the ECF National SchoolsTournament, the Champions League ofschool chess. We entered two teams fromthe main school, the majority of which werelower school pupils. The first challenge wasto win our regional championships. The firstteam came out winners while the secondteam were runners-up. This allowed the Ateam to progress into the Championshipssection, while the B team qualified for thePlate Tournament. In the Championshipsection, the A team followed their six nilvictory over Queen Elizabeth Barnet School,with another whitewash againstWestminster. The next game was againstRGS Guildford, where a win would secure asemi-final place. Nearly every game went tothe wire, however luck deserted the teamwhen it really mattered, and we lost by threepoints. This was a crushing blow to our titleaspirations; and everything we have workedso hard for over the years. However, weremain hopeful for next year especially asmany of our younger players are improvingat such a fast rate. Meanwhile, the B Team

suffered a similar fate in the Platecompetition in the quarter finals, endingtheir hopes of winning the Plate competition.

The team will be sorry to see Akash Jainleave next academic year, and his absencewill be a huge loss. Akash is currently theBritish champion for his age group, and hasbeen the most consistent and successfulplayer in the team with an 89% successrate. We wish him luck for the future andthere is no doubt that he will continue to beat the top of his age group for quite a fewyears to come. We also will be sad to seeMithun Kailavasan of Year 13, leave forUniversity next year. An England player,Mithun has been a core of the team for hisentire time at the school, and hiscontribution to the school’s chess has beenremarkable. He is hugely respected withinthe squad and will be sorely missed.

The team has, however, got some things tolook forward to. As we continue to matureas chess players, we will remain a strongteam, and under the leadership of MrBarnes, we hope to achieve our objective ofwinning the ECF Schools Tournament. Manythanks must go to Mr Barnes for taking usaround the country, giving up numerousweekends, and being with the team everystep of the way. We would also like to thankMr Jackson for his dedication to training thesquad, which has been extremelyinformative and insightful.

Vedantha Kumar Year 12


Hindu Assembly

Hindu Assembly takes place every Thursday, with the enthusiasm of the juniorboys motivating our committee to give them entertaining, but informativeassemblies. We started this year focusing on the fundamentals and origins ofHinduism. During this period we presented assemblies on India. The 15thAugust is the Independence of India, consequently we explained the partitionbetween India and Pakistan and also the history of independence.Furthermore, the Year 11 boys did various assemblies on topics such as“Mahatma Gandhi”, “The Caste System” and “The Vedas”.

We were very fortunate to have Mr Solanki talk to us about volunteering in the ruralareas of India, where our help was much needed. When things were put intoperspective, we realised how we take for granted so many of the luxuries we have. As aresult, many people were interested in the project, and donationswere made towards it.

The main reason why everyweek was a success was due tothe support of Ms Pindoria andMr. Wright, without whom itwould have been impossible tocarry out the assemblies, andkeep under control the 150-200boys that come to the assemblyevery week.

Shailraj Parikh Year 12

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Politics Society

In a year that has seen a supposedincrease in political apathy, the HABSPolitics Society has bucked the nationaltrend, offering the school community aseries of events and speakers, whichhave stimulated debate and interest inmany issues.

The committee started their term of officewith a Question Time meeting, in the sameformat as the BBC television programme.There was a good balance of thetraditionally unrelenting right-wing HABSopinion, and some rather more moderateparticipants, debating issues such as givingaid to Israel, the renewal of trident, and NHSresource allocation.

After the traditional barrage of invitations toall UK citizens with any connection to theBritish political process, we were fortunateenough to host some very interestingspeakers. Peter Hulme-Cross, GLA memberof the One-London Group, a party who brokeoff of UKIP, spoke to us about how he gotinto Politics as a career, and gave us asummary of the working of the GLA. Someweeks later, Brian Coleman came to HABS,himself the chairman of the GLA came andspoke in more detail about the Assembly.Political Haberdashers were most definitelywell versed by now in the Greater LondonAssembly, and its complete inability to holdMayor Ken to account.

The Conservative Friends of Israel came tospeak about both why they support theState of Israel, their views about generaldomestic political issues (including a veryconfident assertion of future Conservativeelectoral glory under David Cameron) andthe opportunity to shadow a ConservativePPC in his campaigning and canvassing thatsummer.

Politics Society has also had the pleasure ofbeing affiliated to events with othersocieties. With the Languages Department amock French Presidential electionmasterfully performed by Jamie Day asSarkozy and Jonny Grunwald as Royalenjoyed a large turnout. Radical Societyhave also welcomed some rather moreradical speakers to come and offer asomewhat different political opinion to theBourgeoisie they so detest.

This year has proven to be another successfulone for this prestigious society. In a year thatcould see a General Election, we hope thatnext year’s committee will strive to ensure thecontinuing success of political interest inHABS and build upon the momentumachieved by this year’s hard work.

James Fox Year 12

Economics Society

This year’s Economic Society has beenquite a revelation. Led by ChairmanSam Cherkas, the society has beencompetent and efficient in all respects.As usual the traditional duties had tobe taken care of first, with our noticeboard being a high priority! Allmembers had an input in the bi-weeklyeconomics newsletter, in which recentarticles of relevance were chosen andprinted to keep students around theschool up to date with the latesteconomics news.

No economics society can be completewithout the presentation of speakers andthis year was no exception as, throughpersonal contacts and parental connections,we managed to secure the services of twoprominent economists. The first, DrJonathan Haskel, member of theCompetition Commission, gave an excellenttalk on the mobile phone market,informative and interesting, and crucially,pitched at a manageable level consideringthe economics knowledge of the audience.The second, Dr Nico Nicolau from TanakaBusiness School of Imperial College, isalready a well-renowned economist despitehis young age, having published papers onvarious topics. He spoke about thefoundations of entrepreneurship, helpfullytaking the audience step by step throughthe seemingly daunting process of startingup a business.

This years weekly meetings have been thebreeding ground for the birth of innovativenew ideas and one such is the introductionof a totally new competition at Habs, our

very ownDragon’s Den.Our impressiveline up ofjudges includedexperiencedentrepreneursand economists.The prize of£100 was in theend awarded toShailraj Parikhand Rikki Shah,after defeatingsome tough competition. Their brilliantbusiness plan exploited two issues at theforefront of everyone’s mind nowadays:environment and exercise, combining thetwo to come up with ‘Electrocise’ aningenious idea involving the incorporation ofa dynamo into exercise bikes to help providegyms with clean electricity whilst theircustomers gained fitness.

A final mention must go to one of the HABS‘IFS Student Investor Challenge’ teams,Starwars, who managed to secure a firstplace finish in the online stock markettrading game. This was by no means aneasy feat considering the sheer number ofteams nationwide that participated, althoughas a society we can claim no credit for thissuccess but we shall follow theirsubsequent progress with interest.

Thanks must go to Mrs Shah for all the timeand support she has given us this year andwe await next year’s society withanticipation.

Martin Cheung Year 12



Jewish Assembly

My Co-Chairman Harry Jardine and Ihave been very pleased with theprogram of Jewish Assemblies thisyear, and have strived to expand therange of speakers beyond what hadgone before. We encouraged studentsfrom within Habs' to deliverassemblies on subjects thatconcerned them, and aimed to inviteyoung and vibrant speakers who couldconnect with one segment of theaudience, while still accommodatingthe intellectual thirst of the othersegment by staging moreacademically oriented assemblies.Assemblies have covered a broadspectrum of topics, from medicalethics to scientific advances in Israel,and from the meaning of 'JewishIdentity' to the Socialist trend inJudaism.

The most important assembly of the yearwas, as it is every year, the HolocaustRemembrance Assembly, which, as Yom

HaShoah (the Jewish HolocaustRemembrance Day) fell in the Easterholidays, was held slightly later thanusual. Thanks must go to all the hardwork put in by the six speakers, wholearned their parts and attendedrehearsals diligently, and all those whocame to the assemblyand behaved withappropriate respect.Modesty does notpermit extending mythanks to the scriptwriter.

Thanks must also goto Mr. Corrall and Dr.Alvarez for their helpand support, and toall those who cameto a JewishAssembly this year.


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Jewish SocietyThe HABS Jewish Society hasflourished this school year, under theguidance of chairmen Martyn Cukierand James Fox, and their enthusiasticcommittee members from Years 11 and12. The Jewish Society continues to beone of the most active societies atHABS, balancing and engaging with thereligious, cultural and political featuresof the Jewish community at the school.J-Soc has been privileged to organisethe daily “minyan” (a quorum of ten ormore, post-barmitzvah Jewish boys)needed to conduct “minchah,” theafternoon prayer service every lunchtime of the school year. Anothersuccessful event maintained by theJewish Society this year was theweekly “Nosh and Learn” sessionsevery Tuesday lunchtime. This activityinvolved different out-of-schoolspeakers, bringing ordered kosher foodsuch as Shwarma, Chicken wings,burgers and chips, to lead a discussionon contentious moral, cultural, andreligious issues. The popularity of Noshand Learn has grown enormously overthe year, with good publicity and arenewed interest in Jewish Identity atHABS resulting in unprecedentedattendance figures, often reachingthirty or more.

In addition to these regular activities, anexceptional “Chanukah Burger Bash” wasorganised in the autumn term, which sawnearly 150 pupils from the boys’ schoolfeasting on burgers, chips and customarydonuts in the newly built Aske Hall building, tothe sounds of traditional Jewish and Yiddishmusic. Next on the calendar was the joyous

festival of “Purim” where the Jewish Societyprovided free “Hamantaschen” (traditionalpastries) and members donned fancy dressoutfits, as is customary for the festival.

The year was rounded off with a “YomHa’atzmaut” party, celebrating the 58th yearof Israel’s Independence together with thegirls’ school. Hard work and excellentplanning enabled the society to invite adelegation of eight Israeli teenagers to givea short presentation on the significance ofIsrael for them, as well as leading thesociety in “Rikudei-Am,” Israeli Dance thathas underpinned the cultural aspect of IsraeliSociety since its independence in 1948.

The society has been honoured to inviteseveral prestigious speakers to address usthis year, Robyn Lee an official from theIsraeli Embassy, gave a fascinating talk onthe current climate in the Middle East andthe existential threats faced by the Jewish

State. Joan Salter, a Holocaust Survivorspoke movingly on her and her family’sexperiences and then fielded the questionsof several HABS boys in attendance.Additionally, in conjunction with the RadicalSociety, J-Soc welcomed Eric Lee, from theUS socialist party, who gave an alternativeinsight into socialist viewpoints on theMiddle East.

As ever, J-soc has built on previoussuccesses and can proudly look back onanother year of non-stop activity. HABS J-Soc rightly holds a reputation for being oneof, if not, the most active of school JewishSocieties in the country, always seeking toharness the enthusiasm and commitment ofthe school’s substantial Jewish population.We are certain that this vitality will continue,and look forward to hearing of J-Soc’s manyfuture achievements.

Martyn Cukier Year 12


Jain Assembly

Over the past six years that I’vebeen at HABS, one thing that hasnot ceased to amaze me is theimmense ethnic diversity that canbe seen in the audience atreligious assemblies and inparticular at Jain assembly.Religious assemblies have always,in my opinion, allowed us all tolearn about each other’s faiths in a“hands-on” way that the moreacademically based RS lessonscould never quite do.

Each week our audience has pupils ofmany different backgrounds continuallyoffering their opinions in discussionswhich have greatly developed our viewson Jainism in the modern world. Ouraim this year has been to spread theword of Lord Mahavir through theteaching of Jain principles and how onecan, and why one should, apply them intheir careers at HABS and indeedthroughout the rest of their lives.

I knew from the start of the year that,with the help of our dedicatedcommittee, I would be able to lead Jainsociety in the right direction. Indeedwith the immense support from ChiragShah, the boundless knowledge ofRonak Maroo, the innovative voice ofAnjul Haria, the keen wit of RushabShah and the sharp door-keeping skillsof Rajan Shah, I knew we were going tohave a fantastic year!

The highlight of the year most certainlyhad to be Dr Wigley in his Oscar-worthyperformance in the winter term play. Ishall never forget how, at the play’sclimax he declared “in the name ofjustice and of Jainism, you must stop!”Indeed his brilliant acting skillsreminded me how lucky we are to havehim at our school and how the Jainsociety has been luckier still to havehim as our mentor.

Finally I must say that I’m extremelyproud to have been part of Jainassembly 2006-2007 and I wish nextyear’s committee the best of luck andfurther success.

Rikesh Shah Year 12

Muslim Assembly

This year has been a momentous year for all those who - it could be said - ‘religiously’attended the Muslim assemblies. There was a transition period from the superb oldcommittee led by Mo Kazmi to the new committee headed by myself. After years ofbeing located in the music school, it was decided that due to the influx in attendanceover recent years, the weekly Muslim assemblies had to be relocated. The committeebelieved that many of their faithful attendees would decide to participate in otherassemblies after Muslim assembly was moved upstairs. However, the numbersremained high and the quality of the assemblies delivered by boys of all ages has beenphenomenal this year. One notable speaker was Thariq Ruwaisdeen. His eloquentsermons on Yusuf Islam and Malcolm X, to name but a few, were breathtaking andinspiring. Over the course of the year we had also invited a few non-pupils to speak inthe assemblies, one was a former HABS pupil, Abbas Kanani. He was warmly receivedand spoke fluently in front of a near full capacity crowd in the common room. Fromwhat I have seen during my year in charge, promising times lie ahead for the Muslimcommunity.

Special thanks must be given to Mr Kerr for overlooking the Muslim assemblies afterthe departure of Mr Bryant. He has done an extremely good job of keeping theassemblies under control and must be thanked for the time he takes out of his day tosupervise the proceedings.

Salim Kassam Year 12

Science Society

This year has been both exciting and educational, as one has come to expect fromthe School’s Science Society. The society is a long established school institution,and this year, the sixth form committee has successfully organized a wide rangingprogram of scientific talks; these have been invaluable in promoting anenthusiasm for science of the boys, and in some cases teachers too, throughoutthe school.

The year began with an exhilarating talk to a packed Aske Hall by the military. Half of thequad was cordoned off in preparation for the bomb disposal demonstration, complete withspecialist, robotic equipment for the boys to see. The talk was entertaining for all present,and admirably delivered by an ex-Habs officer. It was extraordinary to see from his photos,that only a few years previously he had been playing rugby with Mr. Holmes, instead ofdealing with explosives for the army. The delight on the boys’ faces was evident as therobotic equipment was taken outside into the middle of the school and driven around, quite aspectacle on an otherwise ordinary Thursday afternoon.

The year carried on in this vein, and unfortunately the society was to blame for setting offthe school fire alarm with what can only be described as an explosive chemistry talk in theNew Year. As the number of attendees fell after the initial crowds in the Aske Hall, the fewboys who attended a speech on testicular cancer in S17 were amazed, as can only beexpected from a speech from one of Europe’s leading professors, and lecturers in this field.

The conclusion of the speeches for the year came from the editor of BBC News 24 KevinBakhurst after being delayed from speaking earlier by the snow. Kevin’s speech was perhapsnot what regulars at ‘SciSoc’ talks have come to expect, but his experience and views on themedia, and the impact that technology has had on it were fascinating. He spoke fluently aswell about some current affairs in the media, which he has dealt with in his work, such asthe Iraq War, and the problems associated with twenty four hour media coverage that arisefrom situations like this. Notable audience members included Mr Bakhurst’s old German A-level teacher Mr Corrall.

Looking towards next year, a new committee has been chosen to take over, and it seems tobe a great challenge that they face to live up to their current counterparts. Already however,students can look forward to a talk from Hugh Oram, Chief Fire Officer on the day of theBuncefield explosion, which had such a dramatic effect on the local skyline. Plans for aquestion-answer session from current students about applying and studying science atuniversity are also in place, which will be of particular relevance to the sixth formers about togo through the university application process.

Finally, thanks and congratulations must go to Miss Pindoria, for all the hard work she haskindly donated to the society, and without whom, none of this would be possible.

Oliver Birch Year 12


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Radical Society

This academic year saw the emergence of Radical Society, which derives its nameas a combination of the Radical societies of the late eighteenth and earlynineteenth centuries, and from Mr Hamilton's mention of Habs Boys' "ability toleave radically exciting footprints" in an end of term letter, as we were an exampleof the "many new initiatives" mentioned in that letter. The establishment ofRadSoc, as it has come to be known, was a long-overdue development in Habs'history that finally gave representation to the widespread Marxist tendency amongupper middle class youths who live in North West London and its environs. Itstarted haltingly, with various teachers pulling their support at the last moment,but once Mr Briercliffe had agreed to attach his name to the Society, we were ableto start concentrating on the struggle for a Marxist utopia. The year's programbegan with an address from Eric Lee, the Socialist and Trade Unionist, which ischronicled elsewhere in this journal. RadSoc cunningly manipulated the bourgeoisPolitics Society and Jewish Society for publicity purposes, and was rewarded witha healthy attendance.

From that beginning, RadSoc went from strength to strength. Chris Marsden, NationalSecretary of the Soicalist Equality Party, came straight from campaigning in Scotland todeliver a speech advocating and clarifying Trotskyism as opposed to Stalinism. Wefurthermore organised student discussions, wherein pupils would vent their problems withschool life, while a sporting prefect would have the opportunity to defend the administration'sstance, before being lynched. The society also courted addresses from teachers such asone-time stalwart of the Communist Party, Dr St John, who believes, and tried to convinceus, that "Toryism is the True Radicalism". Our aims for next year include involving more fromstudents from the lower years, representing Communism in a Mock Election (if a GeneralElection is called), and the disintegration of institutionalised segregation between theteaching and learning classes (e.g. toilets, dining room, common room).

While some disparage and deride our struggle, dubbing us "Champagne Communists" (and Imust admit that I have been known to succumb to the temptation of the odd flute of DomPérignon), we repudiate these aspersions with anobservation that many will already have remarked tothemselves: that Habs is very much the Odessa St. Paulrealschule of Elstree. We march on, dauntless, againstthe myriad hurdles of the petty bourgeois establishment,with our hammers and sickles flashing proudly from ourlapels, the metaphorical red flag held high above oureventual martyred dead, and the (admittedly hushed) cryof "Workers of the world, unite!" on our lips. We shallnot rest from mental fight before the abolition of classboundaries and complete emancipation of the workingclasses have been achieved, or we leave the school.


Lifesaving Club

HABS Lifesaving Club hascontinued to grow in numbers andexperience with recruits of all agesreceiving awards.

The Life Support (Land based First Aid)has proved successful with DipeshGopal and Vishal Chohan receiving LifeSupport 2 and 3. Adam Cobb andBhavesh Gopal were awarded LifeSupport 1 and will soon continue ontothe more challenging Life Support 3.

The Lifesaving (Pool based) itself hasallowed Bhavesh Gopal and BenjaminSilverblatt to obtain Lifesaving 3 andVishal Chohan to obtain BronzeMedallion, Award of Merit.

Unfortunately this summer sees Dr.Alvarez and Keith Davies retire after 25years service each to Lifesaving Club.We welcome Mr. Stiff to help train thenew lifesavers in years to come. Wealso thank Dr. Clayton for running andorganising the club.

Dipesh Gopal Year 13

Junior School Book Club

The inaugural meeting of the Junior School Drop-In book club was a great success. Under the leadership of Mrs Murrayseveral enthusiastic members of the Junior school met to discuss how they were going to structure Haberdashers’ FirstJunior Book Club.

There were many excellent ideas put forward and it was decided that due to the many different clubs and societies operating eachlunchtime, we would meet on a different day each term to give everyone the chance to attend. We would also discuss different thingseach meeting relating to our chosen book, ranging from the type of cover that the book shouldhave, who would play the characters if it was made into a film, what we thought of theplot and other related topics.

In the first meeting we came up with the idea of approaching the teachers to see whatwas their favourite book when they were eleven, we even found out that one Englishteacher didn’t like to read when he/she was 11! Mrs Murray set us the task of finding thefavourite books of as many teachers as we could and the person who found out the mostwill win a prize.

Book club is lots of fun and as it is a drop-in club you can come as often as you like. Weneed members from year 7 and 8 so if you would like to join us just come to E16 onMonday lunchtimes – and bring your favourite book!

Jack Lewy Year 7


Houses

Sam Pinner and Neil Joseph


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Skylark 2007 Houses

This year has been an unbridledsuccess…for other houses. But here atCalverts we have maintained ourdiligence to putting out full teams on aregular basis and most importantlyenjoying what we do. I’m very proudthat when I frequent the inter-housecompetitions, there is very little to bedone because the Calvert’s boys are sowilling to do it themselves. This wasevident at Senior Athletics where wehad full attendance in every event. Anyhouse captain will tell you the hardshipand toil of getting the Sixth Form to doany sort of house event in the closingweeks of school, but lo and behold wehad everyone. I must thank Sam Gausfor his organisation of the Calvertswebsite, it is by far the best by a long way.

There is much promise in the lower years ofCalverts and all their charity work must berecognised. Well done to Joe Gaus, Jeevan

Dhillon, Sameer Agrawal, Marcus Chaplin,Andrew Shipley, Oliver Goldstein and ofcourse my charity officials who led them,the wonderful Ben Grabiner and MichaelMoloney. The winner of the Wilcock Cupthis year for best overall contribution toCalverts House is Aadil Hakim. Long has theCalverts Trophy cupboard (I’m not even surewe have one) been depleted of awards, butfrom 2007 onwards there is a new cupdedicated for the contribution to the schooland house community.

I must thank my Deputy, Mo Kazmi, forwithout him the house would have implodedin an administrative mess. He has been likea strong sedative for my worries andstresses with the house. To Oliver Marcuseas House Recorder, thank you for doing allthe unseen backstage efforts. I must thankDom Sidoli and William Cardozo-Boohan forall their good intentions towards the House. Inaturally wish good luck to the new Calverts“Dream Team” of Mr.Fenn, Mrs Jones and

Oliver Birch as House Captain with hisDeputy Channon Zhangazha.

To be in Calverts is the greatest bit of luck Ihave ever been graced with. I merely tickeda box completely oblivious to thesignificance that it would cause in my life. Igot to meet Mr.Hayler and will never forgetthe impact he has had on my time here.Everyone has their favourite teacher; he hasbeen mine. Such humility and dedication tohis profession as well as his passion issomething I think we at Calverts should tryand strive for in our own lives. WithMr.Hayler leaving this year, it marks the endof a Calvert’s era that will never beforgotten. If I leave Calverts knowing onlyone thing it is this phrase, “Carlsberg don’tmake Houses, but if they did, it wouldprobably be just like Calverts.”

James Hunt Year 13

CALVERTS


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Skylark 2007 Houses

2006-2007 was an extremely activeyear for Hendersons, with a new set ofHouse Prefects at the helm under theguidance of Alexander Charles andKristian Parry as House Captain andVice-Captain respectively. As ever,Hendersons achieved a good deal ofsuccess in key inter-house events:rugby; hockey; athletics; chess; bridgeand debating. Sporting success in theMiddle School and Sixth Form remainsa major feature of House life, withmany of the senior boys contributingsignificantly to school sports teams atthe various representative ages.

We are also proud of many individualaccolades achieved by members of theHouse. Thomas Robson (10H) continues tobe a strong competitor in school swimmingand is set to train with the England TalentSquad, perhaps with a hopeful eye on the2012 Olympic Games! In a similar vain, weare delighted to heap praise on two brothers

in Hendersons, David (9H) and James (7H)Lawrence, who have both representedEngland at international chess tournamentsthis year; David in Poland and James inGermany. In debating, James Fox (L6H) hasachieved remarkable success in winning allmajor debating competitions in Englandalongside Jamie Susskind (U6), the SchoolCaptain. The pair performed particularlystrongly at an international event held in theunique and beautiful surroundings of theHouse of Lords; both no doubt, are set toreturn to the Lower House in the yearsahead! News of Kristian Parry’s success asa top cadet in the CCF is particularlynoteworthy, as it records the remarkableachievements of a senior member of theHouse. Kristian has received three notableawards this year; for outstanding service asan air cadet he received a commendationfrom Air Commodore G Mould; for being oneof six top air cadets, Kristian was awardedthe Geoffrey de Havilland Flying FoundationMedal, and thirdly, his most prestigious

award, was a scholarship to fund thecompletion of his private pilot’s licence,presented by the Guild of Air Pilots and AirNavigators. All these awards are in additionto his earlier success in achieving a RAFScholarship to train as a Pilot in due course.

House charity events continue to be wellsupported by all boys, but particularly bymembers of the Junior House. Our thanksgo to Stephen Moss (U6) who helpedorganise various events throughout the yearin aid of The Hornsey Trust, who work insupport of children with cerebral palsy.

My final thanks are extended to all HousePrefects and Tutors who work tirelessly onbehalf of the boys in Hendersons to ensurethat each boy has the opportunity to takepart in the many diverse activities that theschool has to offer. We look forward to manynew challenges in the year ahead.

M Lloyd-Williams

HENDERSONS


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Skylark 2007 Houses

JOBLINGS

Joblings has a rich history that isenriched further by the closely-knittogetherness that has been thehallmark of what the house personifies.Performances this year have not beenof the strongest or highest quality, butthe effort that has gone into nearlyevery event has been of the higheststandard. Although, admittedly, winningis important, Joblings are very proud topromote the ‘taking part’ issue veryseriously indeed, and with that awillingness not to take one’s self tooseriously in the process. However, nextyear will hopefully be a turning pointand we can embark on the road togreatness, brushing aside the likes ofRussels and Strouts, and laughing inthe face of adversity. That is the plan.

Moreover, although the year as a whole hasnot been the most successful one forJoblings, various performances andhighlights give us plenty of cause for

optimism – inter-house events have beenpariticipated in competitively, and a numberof wins in these events has shown that wedo possess the skill and ability to go all theway in the Crossman shield. Behaviour hasbeen a downfall in terms of our work andconduct, but with all the incredibly intelligentpeople that have the green blood ofJoblings, it is very easy to becomefrustrated with the ones who pull themdown with the less impressive ‘effort’grades in reports. However, next year is anew year, and Joblings will be pushing on allfronts for all shields.

Mr.Swallow and Mr.Dathan have, as alwaysdone an excellent job in the handling andrunning of house affairs, but that would nothave been possible without the help of thisyear’s house officials, ably lead by EtieneEkpo-Utip. Feeling is running high in thehouse that we are due a good year, andalthough this year may not have been theone, a foundation has most definitely been

laid. Etiene and his colleagues will be sorelymissed for all their skills that they brought toJoblings house, and the whole of the houseis extremely grateful to them for their hardwork. We wish them the best of luck at theirchosen universities.

The new year 7 Joblings boys have beenlively and enthusiastic, and they clearly havethe biggest personalities in the whole yeargroup, which clearly bodes well for a futureof debating and public speaking, skills whichJoblings are traditionally strong in. Thanksmust go to David Dinkin for mentoring themably and professionally, and we look forwardto Akshith Kaza having the samecommitment for the new year 7 Joblingsboys, and, whilst we never aim tobrainwash, we do try to show them that theonly way is indeed the Joblings way.

Joel Ross Year 12


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Skylark 2007 Houses

This has been yet another successfulyear for Meadows. The team this yearwas keen to emulate the successes of2006 where we won the Crossman andDunton Shields. Sports competitions are,of course, where the vast majority ofinter-house events take place, and thisyear has been wonderful for the House,with many victories, and several boysshowing great potential for the future.

Our extraordinarily tight-knit andtalented year 8 group were once againsuccessful this year, notably winningboth the A and B hockey competitions.The inter-house rugby competition was ascene of similar success for the Year 8s,who narrowly won a “Golden Try” finish,after having scored in the final fewseconds to level the scores. Surprisingly,due to the absence of several keyswimmers, Meadows did not perform aswell in the Inter-House Swimming Gala,an event which the House hasdominated for the last few years.

Holding almost the entirety of the Under-19team, including next year’s captain, GregSchey, the Senior Waterpolo team did notdisappoint, destroying all competition andbarely conceding on their way to victory inthe final. The inaugural inter-house footballcompetition, reinstituted this year after

several false starts under the previous PEadministration, was a notable success forMeadows. The year 9 final was won, with aterrific 3-2 victory over Strouts, but even thiswas outdone by a nail-biting 7-6 penaltyfinish, once again over Strouts in the year10/11 final. Debating success finally camefor the pair Jacob Turner and Vishal Patel inthe Senior Final against Russells. Ben Lewy,one of the school’s brightest young debatingprospects filled in well during one of theopening rounds, and has shown greatpotential for future years. The stalwart of year9, Matthew Worby performed well once againthis year in his debating competition, and wasunlucky along with the rest of his team, tocome third.

The Meadows House Officials this year havebeen excellent. Matthew Sherr has ablymanaged the Year 7s and Lewis Jacques hasbrought his exemplary organisational skills tothe Duties, seamlessly filling in for my manyenforced absences! Vishal Patel has broughthis not insignificant intellectual weight to thesector of Assemblies and Debating.

The triumvirate of the Meadows CharityCommittee, Robert Goldstein, Kartik Kumarand Zeus Kanji have raised a lot of moneywith events including cookie sales, and theBattle of the Bands competition.

The incoming Upper 6th year is one of thestrongest that Meadows has had in recentyears, with talent in both the academicsphere, as well as on the sports field. Thiswas recognised in the selection of Prefectsand School and Vice captain - which went toAlex Petrides and Duncan Jenkinsrespectively, both in Meadows. The House willbe captained by Ben Ashenden next year, andthe outgoing team wish him great success.

However, this year has not been one withoutsome regret for Meadows. The loss of theinspirational Mr John Fenn to the debilitatingdisease Calvertus Ridiculousus (knowncommonly as Calverts) has been aparticularly sad one. In his few years at thehouse, in the Deputy Housemaster position,Mr Fenn has moulded the house together yetmore, instilling the lower years particularlywith a great sense of pride and camaraderie.We must, of course, begrudgingly wish himluck in the future with his new House, andeagerly anticipate the arrival of our newDeputy-Housemaster, Mr Simm. Thanks mustgo, as always, to Mr Bagguley, for hisexcellent support and organisation of thehouse for yet another year, and also to all themany meadows form teachers, and indeedhouse members, who have all helped tomake this year an extremely enjoyable one.


MEADOWS


Having led the way in the reform ofHouse websites and recording systems,kept ourselves in the running for all fourHouse shields and continued an annualcharity event which has raised over£7000, it is little wonder that Russellshas been looked upon with envy byevery other house this past year.

Many outstanding individual and teamperformances have helped us to thiscommanding position. Our renownedstrength on the hockey field has comethrough once again, with the Russells Year10 hockey team disposing of Joblings ontheir way to a fantastic victory, the Year 8team cruising to victory in their competitiontoo, and the Senior team securing yetanother triumph in wonderful fashion. Allthree teams went on to face the staffhockey team and had it not been for somedubious officiating, it is likely that each teamwould have secured further success! Therehave been other notable performances too,in a range of other sports. The Year 8

badminton team, for example, valiantlyfought their way to victory, whilst the Year10/11 water polo team, ably led by RandalCliff, achieved another terrific inter-housesuccess. Special mention must be given toour new intake of 7R, all of whom havecontributed exceptionally to the Russells andthe school in general, winning their inter-house hockey and badminton competitionsand in the process, showing a promisewhich bodes remarkably well for the futureof Russells’.

A crucial factor in these victories, alongsidethe raucous enthusiasm and passion withwhich Russells has now becomesynonymous, has been the role of mydedicated and loyal House officials. As manyof the boys in the House will agree, we havea superb system in the ‘Russells’Greenhouse’ where teams of senior officialsare responsible for the development of eachteam in each inter-house competition; theroles of Nigel Tao, Tom Weir and Alec Zetterhave been crucial in this respect, and I

thank them on behalf of the House for theinvaluable time and effort they have given tocoach the younger boys. Alec, in particular,must be thanked again for this dedicationand commitment to maintaining our Housewebsite, as must Jai Sharda, who has beentireless and utterly dependable in his role asVice-Captain.

Finally, we are all indebted to the hard-work,commitment and passion of ourHousemaster Mr Hardman, and his deputyMr Todhunter, who have both been apleasure to work with. Their devotion toRussells is truly extraordinary.

It has been an absolute privilege to lead thiswonderful House; I leave its running in thecapable hands of Sam Cherkas and histeam, and wish them the best of luck andevery success for next year.

Arjun Bhohi Year 13

RUSSELLS

Skylark 2007 Houses

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Skylark 2007 Houses

What do you think of when you think ofStrouts? The word itself conjures upvisions of rainbows, butterflies, longwalks in the park and rivers flowingwith chocolate. It’s such a powerful yetgentle name; Strouts, it’s a cool breezeon a hot summer’s day, it caresses yougently when you feel blue, it lifts youup where you belong, in the clouds,looking down on the world ofmediocrity below you. The dream team,the super squad, the golden army, theGryffindor of HABS, Strouts has beenon the march all year, working togetherto achieve the high standards that weall yearn for.

We’ve been holding high positions in all fourshields throughout year, and have worked,competed and raved with as much spirit asability. Crucial to our success in winningboth the Crossman and Dunton shields thisyear has been the way the House has reallycome together, and interaction between the

year groups has really helped us progress. Ithas been great to see the sheercommitment shown by everyone and interms of spirit and enthusiasm the boyshave really stood out from other Houses. Attimes this has made me well-up with greatbig tears of pride, which I have had noshame in letting roll down my cheeks, forStrouts is a cause I am not afraid to cry for.No other House can compete with the greatcombination of good humour, determination,love and devilishly good looks that thegolden boys have to offer.

It is not right for no mention to go to theengines that run this machine of a House, inMrs. Wijeratna and Dr Clayton, two of themost approachable and caring Heads ofHouse that have ever graced the school.These two great leaders have been core inproviding support to the whole House fromthe House Officials, to the tiniest Year 7 boy,ensuring that everyone is looked after andeveryone shares the joy of victory when it

comes around. We also cannot forget thoseHouse Officials who have put in so muchwork over the past year, adding up House-points, organising teams, supporting theyoung whippersnappers on the sports field -it has been a great honour to work witheach and every one of them. Lastly a greatdeal of thanks must go to every boy withinthe golden army, without you there is noHouse, there is no fun, and there is nowinning or losing.

For those of us that are leaving, Strouts hasbeen more than just a House and this yearhas been a supreme example of whatStrouts has always stood for since we’vebeen at the school; enthusiasm anddetermination. Arun Kumarathas and histeam of Officials will no doubt lead Stroutsto continued success next year and I wishhim all the very best.

Nick Jardine Year 13

STROUTS


CCF / SCS


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Skylark 2007 CCF

CCF

This has been another year of challenge and achievement for the CCF. We have again had a record number of applications tojoin the CCF and our complement is 320 Cadets. Camps are thriving as never before. The Tri-Service Adventure Training Campto Northumberland, in April, saw 50 Cadets successfully complete a Duke of Edinburgh Bronze expedition and a further 6completed their Silver expedition. In July, 60 Cadets travelled to Cyprus for a very successful Army Summer Camp hosted bythe 2nd Battalion, the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. During our stay at Nightingale Barracks, we were fortunate to be able tomeet up with a number of our Old Boys’, including Henry Waterfield, who is currently completing his Gap Year Commission.

Our Old Boys’ reunions continue to thrive. In September we hosted a dinner for the 2003 Year at the Army and Navy Club in Pall Mall and inJuly over 100 old boys’ joined us at the RAF Club in Piccadilly to say farewell to our SSI David Tremaine, who departs in December. Theannual dinner at the Tower of London, attended by members of the Upper Sixth, saw fine speeches from Jeremy Leong (Navy), Jacob Turner(Army) and Kristian Parry (RAF), who regaled us with anecdotes and fond memories of the past year.

I would like to take this opportunity to pay particular tribute to Kristian Parry’s exceptional career in the Cadets. In Year 11, he organised anexpedition to Mongolia and after a terrific year as the RAF Section leader, Kristian was awarded not only a Royal Air Force Scholarship tobecome a Pilot, but also received an award from the RAF for being an Outstanding Cadet. His distinguished contribution was given furtherrecognition through the award of a Scholarship by The Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators, which will enable Kristian to complete his pilot’slicence over the summer. Finally, in July, Kristian was presented with the De Haviland Medal as one of the top six Cadets in the country.

This year sees the departure from the school of two of our most respected Officers: Lieutenant Marcus Tillotson and Sub-Lieutenant MatthewWright. Such is his professionalism and military bearing of Lieutenant Marcus Tillotson that he has often been taken for a regular officer. Wewill miss his self-deprecating sense of humour and his urbanity. We will also miss Matthew, as much for his skills as his learning and goodfellowship. We wish him every success as he moves on to take an MA in Creative Writing at London University.

It is also a pleasure to welcome two new Officers to the RAF Section: Flying Officer Phillip Stiff and Flying Officer Peter Thackrey. Phillip is anOld Haberdasher, a hockey specialist and a young man whose drive and energy redefines the concept of enthusiasm. Peter has given up acareer as a broadcast journalist in Moscow to become a teacher. He is an exceptionally gifted young man who takes the vocation of schoolmastering very seriously and is on his way to becoming the new Mr Chips. Finally, after a brief period in the wilderness, Lieutenant MichaelYeabsley has rejoined the Army Section in which he has served both as Cadet and Officer. We all appreciate his many talents and hiscompanionship and hope he will stay for many years to come.

Lastly, Major Jeremy Lamb, one of our old boys, a Fusilier Officer and a Company Commander with the PWRR, has received the MilitaryCross for conspicuous gallantry under fire. His squadron of Warriors (armed personnel carriers) were ambushed and communications weredisabled. He went from vehicle to vehicle under fire to communicate orders and lead his soldiers to safety. As Contingent Commander I wouldlike to extend our congratulations to him for this honour.

N Saddington


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Army

This year the army section has gonefrom strength to strength. Perhaps atestament to the army section’s strengthis its popularity amongst potential newrecruits in the 4th year. With an intakeof around 40 year 10 boys, the challengeto the officers was always going to be atough one. The army camp in thesummer was a great start to the year,with those who attended showingimpressive spirit and discipline whenparticipating in the competitions onoffer. Habs prevailed against otherschools in the Assault Course, as wellas the Orienteering exercise, withparticularly fine efforts from Tom Weirand Oliver Ilott in the latter. Probably thebest moment from the summer campwas the final battle-craft exercise,where the entire section simulated anattack on three enemy positions, usingblank ammunition. Our display broughttears (of joy) to the eyes of the hardenedIraq veteran Sgt. Edney, the school’sregular army liaison.

One of the highlights of the year is theAmpthill field day in the first term, which isdesigned and run by the lower 6th.Combined with the Navy section, groups aredropped off at various points around theAmpthill training area, and expected to findtheir own way to the campsite with only theaid of a map and compass. Avoiding beingshouted at by angry farmers for unwittinglytrespassing on their land in the middle of thenight is a must and thankfully somethingwhich this year was avoided!

This year, the contingent’s summer campwill be abroad, in Cyprus with the RoyalRegiment of Fusiliers, the regiment to whichthe school’s army section is attached. Thecadets attending the week-long camp willbe issued desert camouflage gear to matchthe soldiers on the army base, makingthem, as far as we know, the only Britishschool to have this kit.

For the first time in Habs CCF history, a“passing out parade” was held this year,where the NCOs were formally thanked fortheir contribution, and parents were invitedto watch. This occasion was enjoyed by all,and special thanks must go to MajorSaddington for having initiated andorganised it. Thanks must go to all theteachers involved in the army section andMr Tremaine whose help has beeninvaluable



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CCF Summer Camp to Alexandra Barracks, Dhekelia, Cyprus

The burst of excitement and energythat accompanies the end of the schoolyear was still visible in all of the 60odd faces that were impatientlyrushing around the check-in hall atHeathrow. At last the long-awaited CCFtrip to Cyprus was under way and formany of us it was a well deservedbreak after an arduous few weeks ofGCSEs and AS levels. However, the tripto Cyprus was going to be far from aholiday!

We first felt the searing heat when westepped off the cool, air-conditionedaeroplane into thirty degree heat, with hotwinds blowing across the emptiness thatwas the Larnaca Airport runway. In arrivalswe met 2nd Lieutenant Dan Hughes, whowas tasked with organising our camp. Theforecast showing temperatures unlikely tochange much during our ten day stay, werealised we would have to get used to theheat and continued on our journey to thebarracks.

Our coach pulled up in front of a large,white building with a terracotta roof. Oncewe had been given a very short brief aboutthe accommodation we were allowed to goexplore what would be home for the nextten days. The rooms were small, eachindividual room housing up to eight peoplein bunk-beds and had one large cupboardbetween two people. The biggest problemwas that there were only four showercubicles between the 60 cadets, and ofthose four, one was temperamental, andanother was lacking a shower curtain. Therewas also the problem of the heat: air-conditioning had obviously not beeninvented at the time when the trooptransport house was built. The rooms wouldeasily reach around thirty five degreesduring the day (even those rooms whichwere permanently shaded) and aroundtwenty five during the night. Colour Sergeant

Tremaine’s advice on bringing talcumpowder to avoid prickly heat was found topossibly the best piece of advice we couldhave had.

Friday saw platoon two taking part in a setof activities involving a round-robincomprising a stint on an obstacle course,leadership tasks and section drillmanoeuvres followed by a trip to the beach.The other platoon went to the ranges andfired SA80s at targets at varying distances.After dinner on Friday evening we left forthe Troodos Mountains, where there was aBritish Army listening post stationed and asmall base. We spent the duration of theweekend hiking through the mountains,following various footpaths. The views werefantastic and at certain points, it was veryeasy to see the coast at almost 20-30 milesaway. After a particularly early wake-up callon the Sunday morning, we all took part inan hour of physical fitness training. Later,there was a football tournament, whereby ateam made up of the 6th formers provedtheir superiority, taking apart the staff team(3-2).

For Wednesday and Thursday of the trip, weall took part in a 24 hour exercise, whichinvolved the 6th formers taking charge oftheir groups and leading them through ahost of difficult battle-craftmanoeuvres, involving blankammunition being fired fromSA80’s, Mini-me’s andM249 machine guns. Oncethe sun had set we weremarched off to differentpositions where a platoonharbour was set up for thenight. There was to be sentryduty, whereby six cadets at atime would stay up for anhour and guard the corners ofour camp in case of an attack.The night yielded a large fire-

fight between the two platoons of theHaberdashers’ Company and soldiers of the2nd Battalion of the Royal Regiment ofFusiliers in the early hours of the morning.Trip wires were being set off as we tried toescape from our attack and reach our saferendezvous point whilst firing large amountsof rounds at the enemy.

On the final day, there was a drillcompetition between each of the sixsections, where each had to display theirmarching skills that had been refined duringthe free time we had during the trip, led bytheir respective 6th form Colour Sergeant incommand. The training and practice hadpaid off, with a fantastic display from everycadet, which greatly impressed theattending Major and Regimental SergeantMajor.

Overall the trip was a fantastic success andthanks must go not only to all theHaberdashers’ CCF staff who helped inorganising and implementing such a brilliantcamp, but to the Soldiers in Cyprus whogave up their time to teach us new skillsand provide I expect one of the best campsHabs have ever attended.

Adem Aljo Year 12


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Royal Air Force

The RAF section has thrived this year and has sent cadets training all overthe country. The most recent field day involved training at RAF Honington forthe senior cadets in the section, the home of the Royal Air Force Regiment.Experienced instructors from the regiment took us though a whole night’straining in field-craft and camp-craft which left us with only two or threehours sleep, apart from Flying Officer West who was fast asleep by 10pm.We have also been flying at RAF Benson in Oxfordshire where many cadetshad their first go at flying the RAF’s basic trainer, the Grob Tutor and earlierin the year the section ventured to an adventurous training centre inHarpenden for raft building and a high ropes course.

Many cadets this year have attended Otterburn camp during the Easter holiday whichis a camp run annually by the CCF, enabling cadets to get their first taste of adventuretraining. Looking towards the summer, cadets will be attending the RAF summercamp which is to be held at RAF Cosford whilst others will be completing their glidingscholarship or going on Army, Navy or Royal Air Force run courses which train cadetsin a variety of skills from diving and power boating to rifle training andmountaineering.

The inter-flight competition for 2007 draws to a close and all cadets are lookingforward to the final parade to find out which flight has won the prestigious TalbotTrophy. This parade is also when the Upper Sixth SeniorNCOs say their farewells andhand the section over to thecurrent Lower Sixth Cadets. Iwould like to thank SquadronLeader Bass, Flying OfficersWest and Whiteman and PilotOfficers Thackery and Stiff forall their enthusiasm and hardwork this year as well as to wishall the NCOs that I have run thesection alongside this year thevery best for the future.

Kristian Parry Year 13

Royal Navy

The CCF Navy section has continued toflourish this year. The October field day sawthe annual trip to Ampthill where the Lower6th showed their skills in organising thetreacherous night trekking and personalleadership tasks the following day. TheUpper 6th once again reprised their roles as“catchers” in the night exercise, pittedagainst a joint group of Army and Navy Year10s. Moving into winter we tried somethingnew, Navy cadets learning battle-craft fromthe Army, while the intricacies of sailingwere instilled into Army cadets. A furtherjoint exercise between the Navy and RAFsections was planned; a night-exercise totest the leadership and battle-craft skills ofthe cadets, that would’ve culminated with amock attack lead by Lower 6th cadets. Thiswas however postponed indefinitely by theuntimely arrival of two days of continuousrain. In Easter the Navy section journeyed toPortsmouth with various activities takingplace. Year 10s took part in a historical tourof the Navy including a visit to HMS Victory,flagship of Admiral Nelson; and also to HMSManchester, an active Navy Destroyer.Meanwhile the Year 11s were given theirfirst taste of yachting and power-boating,with many visiting the Isle of Wight. HMSCollingwood became the Lower sixths homefor the day, completing Practical LeadershipTasks as well as the Navy’s confidencecourse. Sailing has particularly been a focalpoint this year, from a week-long course insummer for incoming cadets to the weekendsummer field day we have been able toprovide as many opportunities as possible tosail, often with Mr Wright leading the way.With the year having drawn to a close, I canhonestly say that it has been an amazingyear with many highlights, culminating in theinaugural CCF Passing out Parade. Many ofthe achievements this year could not havebeen reached without the support of thestaff Officers and the Upper 6th SeniorCadets and we hope the CCF section willcontinue to prosper in the years to come.

Jeremy Leong Year 13

Royal Navy Field Day trip to Portsmouth

On March 22nd, the entire Navy CCFSection made its way down to HMSExcellent, a Naval base inPortsmouth. That evening the cadetsfamiliarised themselves with HMSBristol, which they stayed on boardfor the night, in huge mess deckswith triple bunk beds. The followingmorning, year 10 accompanied by SLtClayton and Mr Whalley visited amodern working ship, the destroyerHMS Manchester. They then had theopportunity to compare it to Nelson'sship HMS Victory and try outsimulators at the Action Stations activity centre.

Year 11 put their sailing skills to the test, as theynavigated their way across The Solent with the help ofLtCdr Hardman, SSI Tremaine and Slt Wright.Congratulations to Jerome Woodwark who skippered hisown fox terrier yacht and to Mr Delpechs crew who werethe only ones to reach the Isle of Wight (although theywere in the only fast launching motor boat!).

While year 11 were finding their sea-legs, Lt Leyshonand Mrs Blagg the took the L6 to Confidence course atHMS Collingwood. They also has their leadership andteamwork skills tested during several Physical Leadership tasks. Thanks goes to our AreaInstructor Chief Gary Aldridge for putting the boys through their paces.

L Leyshon


AV and Lighting

What is SCS?

If boys between years 10 and 12 do not wish to take part in CCF, they have the opportunity to involve themselves in aSchool and Community Service. These are mostly staff run and may take place either on the school campus orsomewhere within the local community. Boys may choose one of a huge range of SCS options at the start of eachschool year, though it is not limited to what the school offers – if a student has close ties with a local charitableorganization, for example, they can elect to arrange their SCS work independently. Generally, SCS activities take placeon a Friday during the final 40 minutes of the school day, though it may be at any time during the week. It is oftenthrough students’ work in the School and Community Service programme that close links between the school and thevarious charities, community projects and even schools are formed.

FLASH! BANG! The school has had anexciting year with many major eventstaking place requiring the assistanceof the Audio Visual and LightingDepartments. The major event of theautumn term was, of course, theSenior School production of Macbethwhich, while containing a fairly‘simple’ set (in comparison to theelaborate ‘Ticket of Leave Man’), itadopted a rather complex lighting andsound design, creating a verypowerful juxtaposition between theunadorned set and the emotiveperformances. Work for ‘Battle of theBands’ started in January in time for

event in mid February. It required avery different lighting design: onethat was less subtle and morevisually exciting. Needless to say itwent extremely well, raising a largesum of money for charity.

The Junior School play saw the inclusion ofhell, Eden and Noah’s Ark; all of whichrequired very different lighting and sound tohighlight the differences between the ratherdiverse locations.

As well as the plays there were alsonumerous school concerts and charityevents, for example ‘Unplugged on the

Quad’, and the impressive Spring Concert,the former requiring much technicalexpertise from the boys of A/V SCS and thelatter requiring some artful lighting, all ofwhich has helped made the year eventfuland most certainly entertaining for theentire school.

As well as school concerts, the A/V teamhas put in huge hours this year in makingsure the technical aspect of schoolassemblies, speeches and almost everyschool event has gone smoothly.

Anshul Bakhda Year 12

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Princess Alexandra Home

Every Friday afternoon, six boys rangingfrom Year 10 to the Lower Sixth visit thePrincess Alexandra Home. This is a carehome in Stanmore for the elderly run byJewish Care, although not all of theresidents are Jewish. On a typicalafternoon, some of boys play a game ofScrabble with some of the residents,while the others will engage inconversation with the others. Thefiercely contested Scrabble is eagerlyanticipated by the residents and it isalways a bonus when there is enoughtime to finish an entire game!

On certain occasions, the boys have broughtmusical instruments with them, and residentshave particularly enjoyed hearing them play.Flute and clarinet recitals have always beengreeted with much acclaim. The boys alsoorganised a ‘sing-along’ on Field Day,complete with a live guitar accompaniment!

The boys find the experience a worthwhileand meaningful one and the residents alwayslook forward to their weekly visit. There is alot to learn from the older generation, whohave lived through events that we can nowonly read about in History books!

Thanks go to Mr Pauletto for being theteacher-in-charge and to Mrs Nelson fordriving the mini-bus.

Sam Heitlinger Year 10

SCS

Penniwells Riding for the Disabled

Penniwells this year has been enjoyedthoroughly by all the boys who have takenpart. The group is led by Miss Pindoria on aMonday after school. The main bulk of thework is leading the children on horsebackand shovelling the horse waste. After a yearof Penniwells we are all able to throw bailsof hay like we’d been doing it for years - itis certainly not a soft SCS option! Penniwellshas 13 active horses and ponies, all ofwhich are fully trained for this unique anddemanding work. Most of the disabled ridersare children and many have stayed withPenniwells right through to adulthood. Asthere are only two paid employees atPenniwells, the help of people such as ourSCS group has been vital to the scheme’ssuccess. Thanks go to Miss Pindoria fororganizing our trips there each week.

Scott MacDonald Year 12


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Leavesden

Heath House

This year has been a rewarding one forthose boys on Heath House SCS. We visitthe home for the elderly in Bushey on aweekly basis and over the three terms of theyear, much has been learnt in understandingwhat activities are most suitable for theresidents, which they are most able toparticipate in, and which they most enjoy.This learning curve has been a satisfyingone though; we soon learned that activitiesrequiring a great deal of interaction, orspecific knowledge worked less well thanthose of a simpler nature. Thus far, we haveengaged in numerous different quizzes andgames, but also found that sometimes theresidents preferred simply to chat.Participating in Heath House has helpedenormously in developing a sense ofresponsibility, and people skills; visiting theresidents on a weekly basis has been notonly gratifying but has enabled us toempathise with some of the difficulties andproblems faced by them, and adjust ourbehaviour accordingly. It has been a greatlyenjoyable year for us, and we would hope, asimilarly enjoyable one for the residents ofHeath House. Many thanks must go to Dr.Pyburn for accompanying us on our weeklyvisits and assisting us, wherever help wasneeded.

Hasan Dindjer Year 10

Hill House

Every Friday, two boys, accompanied byDr. Perera, go to Hill House. This is anursing home where we spend up to anhour talking to some of the residents.Each week they look forward to ourtime immensely as some of them areunable to otherwise embark onexcursions beyond the grounds of thehome. During our weekly visits, theresidents tell us about their week andtalk to us about current events andanything particularly special they haveplanned.

One of the residents is an avid film-watcherand sometimes we are able to join him inwatching a recent release. We are alsosometimes able to play games like airhockey to diversify the atmosphere. Oneresident is also an avid Man Unitedsupporter and his passion for them has ledto many an enjoyable conversation abouttheir prospects of securing the treble!Although it can often be very difficult toestablish a rapport at first, once this barrierhas been passed the time spent with theoccupants proves to be rewarding for allinvolved.

Thanks go to Dr. Perera for organizing thetrip each week.

Matthew Rajan Year 12

On Wednesday 14th March, 24 Year 6 children at Leavesden Green PrimarySchool in Watford were treated to an afternoon of physics as part of NationalScience Week. Aseem Ghaghda in Year 11 and Richard Berman in Year 10,both members of the Leavesden Green SCS group, ran the event with the helpof Mr Fielder.

A task which was recently undertaken was to construct an electromagnet capable ofholding a steel ball bearing. When the power supply for the electromagnet was switchedoff, the ball had to travel down a pipe and then cause a switch to close, making a lightbulb flash. The more daring groups used two pipes and two balls rather than just one,with a see-saw in between. When the ball from the first pipe landed on the see-saw, asecond ball on the other side was pushed through the next pipe.

As the children rushed into the hall, they were met with an assortment of equipment –most of which were unfamiliar to them. Twenty-four sets of eager and somewhatbemused eyes watched a demonstration of the task in hand. Once briefed on how tomake electromagnets and how to use clamp stands and lab jacks, the eight teams weregiven a set of equipment, and began building their devices. Weird and wonderfuldesigns of switches and see-saws were seen, some of which were more successfulthan others.

As the last few minutes approached, the tension in the hall mounted, with groupsfrantically adding last minute improvements in a desperate struggle to make the lightbulb flash. Most teams experienced frustration when their device worked perfectlyduring one run, but failed during the next practice attempt. It was vital that it workedwhen they were to be judged by their teacher. As the final whistle blew the teamsreluctantly retreated from the task and waited to be judged. Most teams performedsuccessfully during their final run, scoring between seven and nine out of ten, with onegroup gaining a convincing full marks. The group has done similar physics workshops and tutorials for Leavesden Greenthroughout the year, and thanks must go to Mr. Fielder for his organisation and trainingof us.

Richard Berman Year 10

John Grooms

For four pupils of the school,Friday afternoons have been metwith a sense of anticipation, asSCS John Grooms has beckonedupon us. As the convoy meet in thesurroundings of the Maths’Corridor, our weekly voyagebegins. A short car journey throughthe leafy suburbs, accompanied byDr. Nolland, leads us to ourdestination in the heart ofBorehamwood – the John GroomsCentre.

The John Grooms centre provides ahome for handicapped people, andduring our visits we undertooknumerous activities, as well as makingmany friends. These activities rangedfrom the formidable ‘Who Wants To BeA Millionaire’ to a range of excercises,and the unforgettable Karaoke. Whileevery visit provided an opportunity tolearn more, there were somehighlights. These include ArrashYassaee’s soulful rendition of an R.E.M.classic, and Fahad Sarwar’s agileperformance of the dance floor classic‘The Worm’. However the true highlightwas the satisfaction earned by helpingthe John Grooms Centre and itsmembers.

The year has been thoroughlyenjoyable, while also providing aninsight into life at John Grooms. Onbehalf of all of the SCS John Groomsmembers I would like to thank Dr.Nolland for his continuous commitmentin making our Friday afternoons moreproductive and enjoyable.

Fahad Sarwar Year 12


Recycling

Over the past year I have seen therecycling team go from strength tostrength, overcoming obstacles as ifthey never even existed. The passionwith which one goes about theirbusiness is astounding, making sureevery piece of paper is accounted forand then placed into the much bigger‘paper only’ big bins. Fridays are nowsomething to look forward to, with allthe members of the team making surethey keep themselves happy andenjoyable to be around, and as a result,I do enjoy being around them. It is ourjob each week to collect all recyclablesset aside by the various schooldepartments, and set them aside in thelarge recycling bins. Mr Barnes is aninspirational leader when it comes torecycling, and for that, we thank him.

Joel Ross Year 12

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Skylark 2007 SCS

This year, four individualsaccompanied by Mr. Jones have beentravelling to Sunrise Senior LivingHome in Elstree, each Friday afternoonas a part of our SCS. The experiencehas been extremely memorable aseach of us has unequivocally improvedour communication and interpersonalskills. More importantly, unique bondshave been established between theelderly people and the helpers. Theresidents have had pleasant memoriesof our visits and enjoyed our weeklymeetings immensely. Theirappreciation was visible through theirbright smiles at the end of eachsession and such responses have ledto much satisfaction and fulfilment.

Many of us were privileged enough to gain avaluable, personal insight into many of thepeople’s lives who we spoke to.

Enthralling accounts of their past experiencesgenerated much awe and interest. Forexample, one man who achieved an OBE onhis work on ballistic missiles provided aninspiration for several individuals. Although,there were many inspiring stories told ourempathy was also put to the test, calling onthe need for our caring attitude would beillustrated when speaking with those who hadparticipated in the war and lost many friendsand family members.

On behalf of Jamie Everitt, Bhavin Shah,Aaron Jesuthasan and Nikhil Sharma, wewould like to thank Mr. Jones for his timeand effort in enabling us to gain such avaluable insight into the lives of manypeople within Sunrise Senior Living Home.The satisfaction earned and skills developedhave made this year’s SCS well worthwhile.

Nikhil Sharma Year 12

Water Polo

This year has been a successful onefor the Water Polo SCS group. Withthe addition of one more fifth formpupil, we have been able to runextensive coaching sessions for thejunior boys and share school matchofficiating duties.

Furthermore, Daniel Munger, MaxJackson and Chris Jackson have gainedASA match secretary and timekeepingqualifications with Alex Parker and Aaron Winsloe to hopefully follow suitafter exams.

At the end of the summer term, theschool is holding a UKCC CoachingCourse (Level 1) which makesHaberdasher’s one of very few venues inthe country to stage such a course. Theboys that will be taking part in this areOliver Inow, Greg Schey, Nick Jardine,Alex Parker, Aaron Winsloe, Max Jackson,Chris Jackson and Daniel Munger.

One further success to note is theachievement of Alex Charles and OliverInow who will both be involved in theofficiating of the ASA National Finals andthe European Championships, which areto be held in Manchester.

These great achievements by all the boysin the SCS Water Polo group would nothave been possible without the copiousamounts of energy and time that hasbeen put in by Mr. Hyde and HABS WaterPolo SCS will sorely miss him.

Oliver Inow Year 12

Sunrise Senior Living

The Wilsmere House

From September through to July our SCSgroup has made weekly visits to thisresidential care home in Harrow Weald.

During the course of the year, we havedeveloped close relationships with the residents,such as one man who fought in WWII in the FarEast, and would often reminisce about hisexperience there, an other whose experiencesare not too similar to our own lifestyles- he isvery keen on physics and maths and lovesplaying the piano, particularly jazz. Field daysprovided us with the opportunity to spend moretime with them and also to teach other residentsin the care home how to use the computer andplay games such as Solitaire. However, thevisits were also emotionally challenging, aspeople in the care home are very ill and sowhen one of the residents, who you haveformed a strong bond with, passes away it canbe very difficult. Such a thing happened duringour stay, and the man who passed away was agreat author and an enthusiastic supporter ofCeltic FC; he will be sorely missed.

James Lok and Vishnu Wagjiani Year 12


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Lincolnsfield Children’s Centre

On Friday June 29th, Mr Barnes led agroup of 14 boys to LincolnsfieldChildren’s centre. The site, in Bushey,was previously used in the SecondWorld War as sleeping quarters forsoldiers, but has had many ownerssince, including a Tibetan BuddhistMonk whose Buddha motif wallpaperstill adorned the walls.

Upon the boys’ arrival, it was clear that theplace had fallen into dilapidation, with thegarden area overgrown and used as adumping ground. The goal is to turn thesite into a historical replica of what mighthave been found there during the SecondWorld War, with the garden serving as a‘dig for victory’ style farm, where visitingchildren can help sow seeds and waterplants. The place was however in no fitstate to serve these purposes, and it was

the job of the boys totear down the wallpaper,apply a fresh coat ofpaint, and do the sort ofgardening that would give even AlanTitchmarsh a run for his money.

The first half of the labour-intensive daywas focused on stripping away theprevious owner’s wallpaper, and, outside,slashing away the tall, thick weeds whichchose to occupy the garden. As these jobswere completed, attention turned topainting the now bare walls, and clearingaway the huge amounts of litter to befound in the garden. A compost heap wasalso started, using the foliage which hadbeen cut away earlier.

The work was tough in places but fun andextremely rewarding – at the end of theday, the transformation the site hadundergone was remarkable, and it is nowin a far better condition to suit the needsof the Children’s Centre. Thanks must goto Mr. Barnes and Mr. Hails for organizingthe visit. Further thanks to the team at thecentre for their help and enthusiasm, andwe wish them the best of luck for thefuture of this project.

Oliver Fox Year 12


Sport


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Skylark 2007 Sport

The 2006 first XV season contained both success and victoryin equal measure. The season started with a superb win overHampton school in the Daily Mail Cup, with a powerfulforwards base providing opportunities for our backline tostrike. This was followed up with a strong victory over QEboys. A run of defeats followed due to playing a number ofvery strong sides, combined with unfortunate injuries to afew key players. However our strong team spirit neverwavered and a superb win against Mill Hill was just rewardfor the effort put in by the whole squad. The battling winagainst Latymer Upper was one of the most positive resultsof the season. However the undoubted highlight of theseason was our excellent victory in the final game of theseason in front of a large crowd against Merchant Taylors.

The core of the team remained a constant throughout most of theseason, contributing to the strong sense of camaraderie within theteam. The strength of our forward pack was pivotal to our winningperformances, despite lacking in pure physical size it was very rarelyout muscled and was strong all season in both the loose and at setplays. The front row of James Hunt, Kailash Morjaria and MichaelMoloney, always hungry for the ball, proved towers of strength in thetight, allowing the athleticism of the second row of Robin Tuck andBen Ashenden to be used around the pitch and to provide solidlineout ball. Our hugely combative backrow featured Robbie Phillipsfighting for every inch of turf, Kwaku Afrifa turning small gaps intogaping holes with every forward thrusting run and Alex Short flyinground like a small tank tackling the opposition deep into the ground.The backline was ably marshaled by the half back pairing of RobertClements, expelling the ball from the forward pack with accuracyand speed, combining with the metronomic boot of Gavin Bakerproviding crucial points. The strong tackling centre pairing of OscarDodd and Alex Cook were solid in the midfield making somememorable hits and try saving tackles and Etiene Ekpo-Utip providedspeed and guile on the wing. Unfortunate injuries to Jacob Turnerand Alex Petrides early in the season sadly robbed us of their talentsfor the majority of our games. The true strength of our squadthroughout the pitch is not reflected in our results and had we had agreater degree of luck the results could easily have been morefavourable.

On behalf of the whole squad I would like to thank the coachingteam of Mr. Metcalfe and Mr. Matthews, and wish the squad thebest of luck for next years season.

Tom Weir Year 13

Considering that at one stage of the season our figures stoodat played six, won one, lost five, it can be described as agreat achievement that following our last game our statisticsstood at played twelve, won six, lost six. This stands as proofof the grit and determination shown by a sometimes troubled2nd XV this season. Amongst these twelve glorious battlessome stand out as being more memorable than others. Inparticular, our final two victories against Bedford Modernand rivals Merchant Taylor’s proved to be the perfect way formany of us to end our last season at the school.

With injury playing a key part in the shaping of the season therehave been numerous cameo roles played by several members ofboth the upper and lower sixth, however those who playedconsistently all season deserve to be mentioned here. In the frontrow, Harry Jardine proved to be a strong base for the scrum, whilstOli Inow proved he could run like a raging bull, ripping throughopposing defences. Mo Kazmi and Duncan Jenkins both providedstrength and power at lock and were vital in the lineout. In the backrow, the pace of Oli Birch and Sam Ruback allowed us to operatewith quick ball from the rucks, and defend with excellent capacity,whilst the sheer brute force of Tobias Stedman allowed him tosimply blast through the opposition from the back of the scrum.

In the backs, Richard Jeffcote had another scintillating season atscrum half, quite simply setting the field alight with his superb breakaways and having an eye for a gap. Joe Evans proved to be a verycoy stand-off, unafraid of taking the ball into the tackle himself. Inthe centres, Laurence Wicks was hard and direct whilst flair wasadded with the speed and super running lines of Matt Soffair. Theback three, were constantly changing due to injury but SamHussein, Louris Pirroni and Michael Bentley deserve mention asbeing probably those who played the most rugby for the team, doinga solid job in the process. Finally, special mention must go to JaiSharda, who managed to play every single position, forwards andbacks, in the course of the season. Jai you are the ultimate rugbyplayer, we salute you!

Of course thanks must go to Mr Bagguley, Mr Matthews and MrMetcalf for coaching during games, advice during training andsupport during matches. Although the season may not have been assuccessful as previous ones, it was truly a pleasure to captain agroup of boys who demonstrated nothing less than a commitmentand love for the game.

Nick Jardine Year 13

1st XV Rugby 2nd XV Rugby


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Skylark 2007 Sport

U16 Rugby U15 Rugby

The athletic ability of this year’s group was agreat attribute and their raw potential wasboosted by enthusiasm and good humour. We had a superb presence in the lineoutthrough Max Jackson and the ball he wonmeant our speedy outside backs could scoremany points. Excellent wins against local rivalsQEB, St Benedict’s and Watford Grammarwere balanced by our less confidentperformances against more positive sides inMerchant Taylors, St Albans and Mill Hill.Three matches stand out as great highlightsof the season. The performance for our victoryover Berkhamstead was an outstandingdisplay of hard running from our centres andhuge defence in the final few minutes. Equallyimpressive to the coach was our performanceaway at Bedford Modern, where for fiftyminutes we played to our strengths andlooked to deserve a draw until the home teamwas pushed to bring on, legitimately, the threestars of their 1st XV and force a result!However, for sheer excitement and a greatreminder for spectators and players alike ofhow thrilling schoolboy rugby can be, thematch against RGS Guilford had skills,mistakes, tries and tactical changes galore.The sight of Ashish Patel crashing over thetryline in the final seconds to secure a 38-36win was a fitting end to an exhausting matchon the main pitch.

The team improved over the season under theleadership of Luke Tullo and all players hadmoments of success. Jamie Yates becamemore assertive at scrum-half, Tristan Minallwas brave and tackled outstandingly atfullback and Ed Clayton provided some terrificloose forward hits and learnt not to annoyreferees! Our front row was competitive. If wehad been more consistent and ruthless in ourmental approach to the matches we lost thenbetter results would have followed but, overall,this was an impressive effort to develop asplayers and enjoy the season. Our thanks goto Dr Lexton for his support and to thegroundsmen for providing fine surfaces.

C Bass

For the U15’s this season has been one ofsuccess and development. We started inSeptember as a group of boys, lacking inconfidence after a poor U14 season with just 1win in 10 games. However, the change incoach and a few new players meant that wecould start with a clean slate. Our first gamewas in just the second week of term against astrong QE side. Our lack of preparationshowed as we were beaten despite a goodperformance. This seemed to emerge as apattern as we recorded defeats against St.Albans and St. Benedict’s and we won just onegame in our first 4 – a comfortable 39 – 0 winagainst Vyners School in the 1st round of thedaily mail cup.

From here things started to brighten We wenton to win IN the second round of the Daily mailcup, 22 – 12 against KES Chelmsford. Fromhere things simply got better and better, werecorded 8 wins in a row including crushingvictories against Bedford Modern and Tiffin. Ontop of this we proceeded to the fifth round ofthe daily mail cup after wins against StIgnatius (29 – 15) and Hampton (27 – 10).The victory against Hampton came after wehad been 10 – 0 down after 20 minutes. Weshowed teamwork, desire and commitment towork together and pull off a sensational win.Unfortunately we fell at the next hurdle whenwe came across a very strong St. Pauls sideand despite a brilliant performance we wentdown 22- 10. However we bounced back witha crushing victory over local rivals MerchantTaylors on the last day of the season.

All season long we could rely on our forwardswho worked well as a unit to provide good ballfor the Backs, with Shiv Pabari, BranavanRudran, Shaneel Karia, Nick Robson andDanny Cheung all consistently putting in bigperformances. Our Lineout was a successthanks to the accurate throwing of AlexKazanjian. The service from Basil Letts andAndy Middleton was crisp and accurate andmeant that Our outside Backs, SujaneSivavsubramanium, Kaz Ong in the center andthe two wingers Nico Pirroni and AntonioCastagno, were able to create opportunities inattack and we knew we were in safe handswhen the conversions came aroundas ourkicker, Mirav Vyas was accurate all seasonlong. Our Full Back Alex Barnett was solidwhen called upon at the back. Our top tryscorer Andrew Mushin was a monster atnumber 8 and could always be relied upon toput in the big performances.

Finally a huge thank you must go to MrMatthews who’s fresh attitude in trainingbrought us all forward as players anddeveloped our attitude towards the game. Helead us through the success while keeping usdown to earth and his time and Effort reallypaid off when you see our results. I have beenhonoured to captain this side and I lookforward to the 2007 rugby season.

Jonathan Miller Year 10

U14 Rugby

We started off the season with a new coach Mr. Stiff and a few new boys who had just joined the school. Firstly we played a difficult Q.E team.Due to lack of fitness and injuries to some of our key players, we began the season with some heavy defeats.With getting used to the new team and the new coach we all trained hard and despite a courageous effort by Luke Crispin and the rest of theteam, we were unable to defeat St Albans.

Our first victory of the season came against Watford, who we had never played before. With a slim lead at half time, an inspirational talk from Mr.Stiff spurred us on to victory with some amazing individual tries from the likes of Tosin Oshineymi. All of the team’s morale was up and we playedReigate who we had beat easily last year but they were very physical but as soon as Joe McCormick had come on from a hand injury he hadchanged the match instantly and we had a deserved win afterwards.

After a long half term break, combined with the determination of a strong St.Georges side, we were unable to defeat them. The season finished with a home game against local rivals MT’s. We went into the game determined not to let them win and some aggressivedefense and big hits in the centers from Dan Lehmann and Myles Houghton forced them onto the back foot. Despite Mr Stiff disallowing 4 HABStries we still managed to win 32-5! This win let us finish the season on a high and we hope to carry this onto next year and rival the success ofthe U15’s!

Scott Spurling Year 9


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U13 A Rugby

The U13A's have experienced a mixedseason this year with many ups and downsalong the way. The highs included the cupgame against a very strong Latymer Upper ,and the lows were though dark eveningstraining in the cold and wet on the astro. This has been a pivotal season for thisdeveloping team. After just one season ofschool Rugby, in year 7, many of these boyshad not touched a rugby ball for 9 monthsand only 3 training sessions at the beginningof this term, played their first game of theseason against a strong Northwood school. Afine performance saw them win withindication that the team had real promise.Although the team only saw 3 more victoriesduring the season, the development of squadhas been tremendous. Looking over last yearsfixtures, the team have closed the gap onmany of their rivals, and season lost narrowlyto St Albans, St Benidicts and Latymer Upper,all of which had heavy defeats against lastyear. It was good to see the team makeprogress in Middlesex cup, eventually loosingto a very strong Oratory school in the semifinals.

So overall, the Habs U13A's season has hadits thrills and disappointments this season butbeating many teams that had thrashed uslast year. Thanks go out especially to MrDathan for his tireless work in training and inprayer, Mr Long for his wise words of wisdomand last but maybe not least, top coachSammy Ross.

Particular individual performances that shouldbe mentioned come from Sam Steinert,Freddy Ross and Lewis Stock.

To finish my report I would like to end on aquote that I feel really sums up the attitude ofthe team and really reflects our season as awhole. This quote came from the back of myhomework diary"Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. Themost certain way to succeed is always to tryone more time"

Tom Dean Year 8

U13 B Rugby

Under the captaincy of Paras Shah, the U13B XV have had a very enjoyable season.Despite some disappointing results, theperformance and spirit of the squad was thetrue marker of success. Fixtures againstBelmont, St Albans and Latymer Upperhighlighted the boys’ determination and abilityto compete at a high level, losing narrowly bya couple of points. A notable performancewas against St Georges; an accumulation ofsolid defence, smooth back line running andhandling and flair from the scrum half sawthe team comfortably winning 5-32. Overall, avery enjoyable season with the U13 B XV; ateam with determination and a greatatmosphere.

K Long

U12 Rugby

This season the U12 HABS rugby team haven’t had a great year in terms of results, but theprogress of the team has been amazing. We started off with a minimum of players from theprep, and playing people who had never played the sport before. The first game of the seasonwas a very tough one against St. Georges. They weren’t particularly good but they had a bigchild who tore us to pieces. We ended up on the wrong side of a heavy 27-5 scorline. The nextmatch ended up in the same fashion. Poor tackling on their big second row cost us the game.We lost 35-10. Our final match of the first term brought forward Latymer Upper. They were thesame size as us so there was no excuse for a very poor finishing as we dropped 4 balls righton their line. Our missed chances came back to haunt us, as we were beaten 19-7.

We had a long term break, to reflect on why it wasn’t going right. We all new that we hadfantastic pace in the backs with Darius Price, Efosa Uiafo and Greg Harrington-Green. We justdidn’t use them enough and our tackling needed to be improved. The departure of ourassistant coach Sammy Ross was met by the arrival of another class coach, but this time fromthe southern hemisphere. After a few training sessions with Mr. Kennedy and the U15’s coachMr. Matthews, things started to come together. Just as we were looking forward to a realphysical game with our rivals, Q.E.B, the game was cancelled due to a bad pitch. We thentravelled to a “Harry Potter” like scenery, Haileybury boarding school. Their main intake is atyear 9 so we had to play against the year 8’s. They really got stuck into us, and were reallyphysical and, in the first half we couldn’t handle their physicality, but in the second we cameout with a new belief. We scored almost straight from the kick-off, and showed them that wemeant business. Unfortunately we couldn’t add to that, even tough we were camped on theirline. After a few bizarre decisions by the referee to insure the win, we were beaten 12-5.

Then came our best performance so far this season by a mile. It was against BerkhamstedSchool. We all believed we could win, but after 10 minutes we were behind 12-0. After aninspiring team talk behind the posts by Mr. Kennedy, we charged back up and scored throughDarius Price, the pace of our winger was too much for them. With less than 10 minutes to go,a missed tackle let the slip in, under the posts, to make it 22-19 to them. Then we got a luckybreak, their kicker missed the conversion from under the posts. We knew there were only afew minutes left so we gave it our all. Some great rucking from our forwards made themconcede a penalty. I decided not to go for the corner and quickly tap it. I charged under theposts, was tackled and held up. Then the reinforcements came. The forwards drove over and Imanaged to put the ball down. There was a bit of aggro from their players, but the ref sorted itout. The final whistle finally blew and we had won, 26-22. Our first win so far, but hopefullyplenty more to come.

Robert Lynch Year 7


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1st XI Hockey

In terms of our results, it was an extremely unlucky season.We played 18, won 5, drew 1 and lost the rest. These figuresdo not convey an accurate sense of how well the teamperformed, largely because 7 of the games we lost were byjust one goal.

After suffering defeats to exceptional outfits early in the season,our first win came just before half term against a strong Dr.Channellors’ side. This victory attests to the team’s strength ofcharacter and morale, despite the previously unfavourable results.We maintained this spell of good form over half term, returning toschool to beat Kimbolton and Windsor. Unfortunately, the winningstreak came to an end abruptly, and aside from an easy victoryover Berkhamsted, it did not resume until the penultimate matchduring the annual Bath Hockey Festival. We triumphed over WestBuckland School. There were some notable individual performancesthat must not be overlooked. Lawrence Fisher in goal on manyoccasions preserved our dignity and often kept us in contentionduring close matches. Hemang Majeethia (Vice Captain) and OliverBirch were sound in the centre of defence, thwarting many anopposition offensive. Ellis Savva, Tom Zhang, Shahan Huq andJoshua Newman were also regular defenders. In the midfield, JoelRoss’s astounding ability to maintain possession contrasted wellwith Max Herbert’s curious combination of ‘no nonsense’ defenceand remarkably skilled attack. In the centre of midfield, AmishPatel’s passing complemented Lawrence Wicks’ exceptional workrate and confrontational style of play. Up front, Amit Bhundiaundermined defences with darting runs down the right flank,feeding our two antithetical strikers. Richard Jeffcote houndeddefences and scored some spectacular goals, frequently more aptfor baseball than hockey, whilst Alec Zetter (top scorer) habituallyprovided a crucial touch to a powerfully struck shot.

Mr. Long must be thanked for the huge amount of time and efforthe invested in the Hockey Club this year. He made playing hockeynot only very competitive, but at the same time great fun. In myeyes, an unbeatable combination.

Alex Cook Year 13

2nd XI Hockey

At the beginning of the season Dr Stiff asked for two thingsfrom the 2nd XI. That we would play with consistency andwith a never say die fighting spirit. As our results showed wewere fantastically consistent, with wins and drawsoutnumbering our losses over the course of the season.

With a bit more luck, and games that were 5 minutes shorter ourseason would have been considerably more successful. Some specialmentions must go to certain members of the team, the energetic andbattling Anuj Shah and Shalil Solanki kept us in a vast number ofgames, whilst top scorer Anraj Rayat provided some much neededgoals. The ever changing defensive line-up, forced through injury andpromotion of a number of our players to the first XI, was often all toodependent on the agility and reflexes of goalkeeper Harry Waltonpreventing the opposition blazing another shot into the roof of thenet. A good deal of the lower sixth made hugely importantcontributions throughout the season and helped contribute to a greatteam spirit that carried through the whole season. The highlight ofthe season belongs to Dipesh Gopal, whose cunning use of a HanibalLector face mask at short corners was so utterly terrifying to theopposition it surely stopped many a goal. I would like to wish theteam the best of luck at emulating our success next year, and onbehalf of the team would like to thank Dr Stiff for coaching us withgood humour throughout the season and Mr Swallow for umpiringmany of our games.

Tom Weir Year 13

Hockey Results 2007Team Played Won Drawn Lost Abandoned/

Cancelled1st XI 18 4 2 11 12nd XI 10 0 5 3 2Under 16 A 11 7 1 3 0Under a6 B 5 1 2 1 1Under 15 A 13 7 0 5 1Under 15 B 9 6 0 2 1Under 14 A 9 5 1 3 0Under 14 B 7 3 3 1 0Under 13 A 4 0 0 4 0Under 13 B 4 1 1 2 0


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U16 B Hockey

The U16B had a disappointing seasonin results but not in performances. Wedominated nearly all our matches butcould never seem to make that finalball or actually get the ball into thegoal which is quite importantunfortunately.

The first half to the term was ratherlacklustre although we ended it unbeaten.The Second half of term was rather moreproductive; Out of the 5 games we playedwe won 2, drew 2 and lost one. Althoughseemingly a good record, the whole teamknows in their heart of hearts that wecould've won all our matches even thoughwe were regularly playing senior XI teams.The highlight of the season was a 2-1 winagainst St.Albans a team who we had lost3-1 against the year before.. I would like tothank Mr.McIntosh for coaching us and forrefereeing our matches.

Tom Francies Year 11

U16 A Hockey

This season has been a mixture of ups and ups for the U16 A side. Our overall tally saw us winning seven games, drawingtwo and losing just one.

Beating Watford in the county cup thanks to typically heroic defending by Milin raja and Luke Tullo combined with a “wonder goal” by DanielMehaffey (Mr Keenlysides words not mine) was a victory well deserved. We then decided to kick into gear and recorded five straight victories afterthat, not losing again that season. Our first win was against Hitchin which saw us finally combine the attacking skills of Andrew Dallal and WilliamGallimore, the latter being made man of the match. Bancrofts were the next team on our hit list and we won 3-0 which was an incredibly flaccidBancrofts side lucky to not be punished by some wayward HABS finishing, however three good goals meant a good victory. Our best victory of theseason was against Dr Challoners who were definitely not an U16, not just in the metaphorical sense but in the physical sense that they weremuch older than us. A first XI shirt being worn by their forward tipped us off as did the fact we recognised none of their players from the previousyear. However justice was done with some great attacking play and very good goals from Anthony Pieri the midfield rock/shooting extraordinaireand skilful Andrew. Our next victory was against a non descript Windsor side more versed in the art of rugby than hockey, judging on some of theirtackles, goals from Daniel and Tom Francies saw them off. Our team this year has been a great success with three players already been called upto the first XI and many more deserved to be. Players such as Tharun, Hemel, Oliver and Hasit have never stolen the headlines, yet without themour team would have fallen apart. Lastly I must mention Sameer Kassam who’s performance in goal have been stoic all season and he will sorelybe missed next year. Many thanks to Mr A.K for nurturing this side and for doing a great job in making us all reach our fullest potential.

Daniel Mehaffey Year 11


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U15 A Hockey

This year the u15 A's have had a mixedseason of highs and lows, winning 7and losing 5 games.

The team has bonded well and we have allhad a lot of fun. Our main highlight was ourwin against Aldenham, where we didn’thave a squad keeper so keen defenderBranavan Rundran put on the kit and filledin. He wasted no time letting the oppositionforward know he was there by sliding out atevery possible opportunity. We also recordeda thumping 9-0 victory over Berkhamsteadwhere forward Antonio Castagno scored 4goals. In every game we owed a lot to ourgoalkeeper, Daniel Korn who pulled off somefantastic saves. He was however helped bythe determination of Jonny Miller, defensivebrilliance of Alex Cheng and explosive speedof Danny Cheung at the back. In the middlewe had the trickery of Sahil shah, work rateof Mirav Vyas, tackling of Tom Coleville,passing of Sahil Patel and Sujane. Over allwe scored over 30 goals we were constantlyimproving. I would also like to thank MrYeabsley for his coaching and refereeing ona sat morning.

U15 B Hockey

The U15B team had a convincingseason, only losing one game andplaying fluent hockey throughout.

Top scorer Hamza Zahid was ablyassisted by Ben Jacobs and AmirKahn from midfield. OliverAbrahams made many importantsaves in goal and kept us ahead insome of the tighter games. Theseason proved very enjoyable as theteam improved and many keyplayers got their opportunity to playfor the A’s. We hope to continue ourdevelopment next year and press foran unbeaten season.

Basil Letts Year 10

U14 A Hockey

The season started with tight losses toAldenham and Watford Grammar, and then acredible 3rd place finish in the County Cupwhich was hosted by Habs. Then we hit ourbest form of the season winning 6-0 9-0 9-0 4-1 2-1 to some rather good teamsincluding Harrow, St Albans andBerkhampsted. However we came up againstthe best teams we had faced in the later partof the season losing our last few games. Thiswas a succesful season for the U14 A Teamgoing from strength to strength and we hopeto use this season as a good platform for aneven better season next year.

Joe McCormick Year 9

U14 B Hockey

The U14B’s had a very successful seasonthis year, and lost only to one side duringthe season. We were unbeaten in our first 5matches, against Aldenham, St. Albans,Windsor, Harrow and Haileybury, until welost to St. Albans in our second match of theseason against them, when they providedour only really tough opposition throughoutthe year. The team was characterized bygood passing and teamwork, and we scoredsome very well worked goals. The highlightof our year was when we smashedHaileybury 6-0 away. So much was ourdominance in that game that the keeper

only had to touch the ball once. Anotherhighlight of the year included beating localrivals Merchant Tailors’ 3-0. Thanks go toMr Thackrey for coaching us through a verysuccessful year.

Greg Nelson Year 9

U13 A Hockey

The Season got of to a bad start with a 5-0loss against Watford grammar which slightlyset the tone for the coming season attitudeaside. Consequently we lost to St Albans 2-0. A tight game against Aldenham leading toa last minute defeat gave us the spur weneeded. A 5-0 convincing win over apreviously victorious St Albans raised thehope in team, maybe we could continuewith this lucky break and pull off a brilliantchange of fortunes with one much to go.Unfortunately this didn’t happen and an 8-0defeat against Dr Challoners confirmed this.On the whole the season had many ups anddowns but mainly downs.

Ashley Sivarajah Year 8

U13 B Hockey

The U13B hockey season was verysuccessful. We went to a very strongWatford grammar school and lost dismally2-0. The next Saturday we put our lossbehind us and we had to win. We had atough match, playing one of our rivals StAlbans. We got of to a very good starthaving most of the territory. Two greatmoves on the right wing by Nick Maison andWill Snowdon allowed Kishan Ragunathan toscore two goals in quick succession. Thematch ended with a 2-0 win to Habs. Wewere playing an inexperienced Aldenhamside, James Walker and Kishan Ragunathanhitting the post twice in three minutes. Butthem our luck turned, a Freddie Ross crosswas swept into the back of the goal byKishan Ragunathan. 2-0 to Habs. Against StAlbans Habs got off to a very poor startconceding a very silly goal on the first 10minutes. But then a well worked goal camefrom Freddie Ross with a great pass fromAlex Briggs. The game ended 1-1. Our

defence has played perfectly andsolidly apart from one slip up (LukeIlott, James Colnutt, and PrassanaJothibal). In all, Habs playedexceedingly well with a supportingcaptain Alex Briggs.

Kishan Ragunathan Year 8


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After an incredibly warm April, adisappointing May and the wettestJune in living memory, the 2007 CricketSeason was certainly a mixed oneweather wise. Of the 16 drawn games,most were the result of raininterruptions while 38 games (16 morethan last year) were abandoned orcancelled altogether. Despite thefrustrations caused by the bad weather,123 games (only one fewer than in2006) were played and, although thenumber of victories enjoyed by theCricket Club was down by 10% on lastseason’s exceptional results, the 2007season will still be remembered as avery good one, with many highlightsand outstanding performances, bothteam and individual.

Congratulations go to the U15A and U13Ateams and their coaches, Ian Matthews andAndy Simm, who won the HertfordshireSchools County Cup Competitions for theirrespective age groups. On a predictablyrain affected afternoon at Berkhamsted,when really the finals should not have goneahead, the U15s defeated Hitchin School byjust two runs in a desperately close finish.In poor conditions, runs were hard to comeby and Habs could muster only 74 from 20overs. In reply, Hitchin made solid progressand, with 3 overs remaining, required just 9runs to win. A combination of tight bowlingand excellent fielding, however, yielded only7 runs as Habs scrambled to an unlikelyvictory. The U13 final was also a lowscoring affair as Habs dismissed MonkswalkSchool from Welwyn Garden City for 86.Despite losing star batsman, NishanthSelvakumar (more of whom later), early,Akash Kadiwar (32*) held the inningstogether and Habs eased to victory by 5wickets with 2 overs to spare.

Commiserations go to the U14A team whichalso reached the final (the first time all threeteams have made it to this stage in thesame season) but unfortunately lost to StAlbans School, a side they had defeatedearlier in the season. Paul Marx stood downas coach of this team after nearly 20 yearsdedicated service to U14 cricket inparticular. He deserves many thanks for allhe has achieved and will be sorely missed.

An inconsistent 1st XI often struggled topost sufficiently high totals, passing 200on only two occasions. The team enjoyeda season of mixed results as aconsequence but still won more gamesthan it lost. Of course it was always goingto be a hard act to follow, let alone repeat,the record-breaking achievements of lastyear’s outstanding team and, with 6players having departed, the 2007 sidehad a somewhat inexperienced look aboutit. We were also denied the services ofGavin Baker, a member of the MiddlesexCricket Academy with aspirations to play ata higher level, for most of the season, butnot before he became the most successfulbatsman in Habs Cricket history, his totalaggregate of 2458 runs for the XI since hisdebut in 2003 eclipsing the previous recordof 2391 set by Dean Wilson between 1996and 1998. With exams also taking theirinevitable toll, this has providedopportunities for players from younger agegroups to represent Habs at 1st XI level. Allof them have made useful contributions,particularly 13 year old off-spinner TomEdrich, grandson of the great W.J. (Bill)Edrich.

Captain Ajay Soni led by example, scoring579 runs at an average of 41.35, includinghis maiden century for the XI in the tourvictory against Exeter CC. Although,perhaps, never quite at his best with theball, he still took 20 wickets and in additionhe was the leading fielder with 13 catches.He was well supported by Matthew Soffair(356 runs) with the bat and new boy AsadHusain (20 wickets, including the only 5wicket haul of the season against UCS) withthe ball. All-rounder Lewis Jenkins (152runs, 19 wickets) also performed well attimes while the spinners, Amit Bhundia andTom Edrich, captured 26 wickets betweenthem. The third spinner, Amish Parekh, wasinjured for much of the season but showedwhat he can do in the limited opportunitiesavailable to him. Wicket-keeper Alex Cook,in his final season in the XI, was as tidy asever behind the stumps, performingparticularly well once the pressure of A levelexams was relieved, while others to impresson occasions included Kailash Morjaria,Hemang Majeethia and another youngster,Kushal Patel.

With coach Michael Yeabsley at the helm fora second stint, highlights of the seasonincluded a third successive triumph over theMCC and victories against Berkhamsted andour Australian visitors, King’s Parramattafrom Sydney, while the most disappointingresult was probably the last ball defeat by StAlbans in a game we really should havewon. The weather also played a significantpart in the outcome of several matches,notably against Bedford Modern and ExeterSchool where the loss of the toss provedcrucial, although it did come to our aid inthe game against a strong Watford side.

In total 24 boys represented the 1st XI thisseason, a far greater number than usual,but it does mean that there is plenty ofexperience to call upon in 2008. Beforethat the team has a major tour to Singaporeand Malaysia to look forward to during theOctober half term.

The statistics tell us that this was anothersuccessful season for the 2nd XI: we won 5games, were in winning positions in afurther two abandoned games, and lost justtwice. Given the extremely high standardsof recent seasons, however, this one isperhaps best described as a transitionalseason. Two factors prevented us fromdeveloping anything like the momentum wemanaged in previous years: the very poorweather which resulted in many gamesbeing cancelled, and the fact that many keyplayers were either injured or moved up tothe 1st XI to compensate for the variousabsences in that team. However, thissituation did have its advantages: firstly,boys who in a ‘normal’ year would not haveplayed at 1st XI level managed to gain somevaluable experience and, secondly, we wereable to take advantage of the impressivedepth of talent in the senior school, callingon players who had started the season inthe 3rd or 4th XIs and discovering someexciting talent for the future. The bestvictories were against St Albans in an ill-tempered fixture, against Berkhamsted in agame we looked like losing, and againstBancroft’s with a severely weakened sidewhich performed brilliantly. Of the individualplayers, mention must be made of RichardJeffcote who, in his third year in the side,captained well and batted very effectively inthe middle order and Hasit Mehta, one ofour younger members, who topped thebatting averages, scoring two very assuredhalf-centuries, and took 14 wickets with hisleft-arm spin. He will be missed next year.Many thanks, however, go to all the boys formaking this another very enjoyable season.

Cricket


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The 3rd XI also enjoyed a highly successful season, remainingunbeaten in all 8 matches, winning 7 of them and only being denieda 100% record by rain in a one-sided match at John Lyon School.The tremendous spirit within the side was evident from early on andthe team was led impressively by captain Buster Stonham. Aconsistently strong bowling line-up, supported by excellent fielding,was a regular feature of the team’s play. Opening bowlers RishiPatel and Sukhdeep Sohal did much of the damage in the earlygames and were ably assisted by the skipper, Arjun Niranjan andDaniel Mehaffey. Batsmen Mithun Kailavasan, Arjun Dasgupta andAmarjeet Johal (leading run scorer of the season) consistentlyproduced technically good batting performances, with theaggressive, free-scoring Ravi Pandya and wicket keeper DmitriFominykh helping out when needed. Fielding was also top notch,with very few dropped catches throughout the season – manyplayers even prepared to take a cherry on the thigh in order to savethe extra run. With a number of the team still eligible to play nextseason the prospects for the 3rd XI look very bright indeed. Mentionshould also be made of the 4th XI, which won its game against StAlbans for the second year running.

The U15A’s were a well drilled, cohesive and effective unit,demonstrating excellent team spirit on the field, particularly after ademoralising early defeat by Berkhamsted (a team coached byformer Habs cricket coach Ben Mahoney), and they were wellrewarded for their efforts. In addition to success in the County Cup,other notable victories included those against St Albans, Watford andBancroft’s while the game with QEB ended in a tie. Captain BasilLetts, wicket-keeper Jonny Miller and leading bowler Seb Schusman(once he had recovered from injury) all represented the 1st XI onvarious occasions (Basil also played for Hertfordshire U15s) and willbe aiming for regular places in the team next season. Othermembers of the squad can also look forward to pushing theircredentials in senior cricket in 2008.

2007 proved to be a very successful season for the U15B’s, as theywent on to win 6 of their 7 games. The boys played with a keencompetitive spirit but always found time to enjoy themselves alongthe way. Branavan Rudran deserves recognition for his captaincywhich, although frenetic, was highly effective. The batsmen oftenfound runs hard to come by but Nick Robson, Sahil Shah, JoeDavies and Gajern Kailavasan certainly did their averages no harm.Shiv Pabari began life as a threatening seam bowler who could bat abit, but actually ended the season being more effective with the batin his hands. Shahid Makhani, Vishal Singal, Daiyaan Ghani and thecaptain often proved too much for the opposition to handle whenbowling and they managed to restrict four of the sides to totalsbelow 100, which resulted in big wins against QEB, Berkhamsted,Watford and Mill Hill. However, given coach Mr McIntosh’s personalhistory it was perhaps more pleasing to see the side rally hard towin in the final over against St Albans. Many congratulations go toall of the boys who played this year and we look forward to seeingmany of them progress through to the senior sides.

Despite losing in the County Final, the U14A’s still enjoyed asuccessful season, achieving victory in 11 of their 15 matches,including excellent wins against Berkhamsted, Bedford Modern, MillHill, St Albans and Watford (twice!). Tom Edrich and Kushal Patelwere the ‘stars’ of the side; both played for the 1st XI and also forMiddlesex U14s. Other leading performers were Ben Cherkas andAthman Sivakumar, while wicket-keeper Hugh Brannan improvedthroughout the term, but all members of the squad can be proud oftheir contribution to the overall success.

The influence of Twenty/20 cricket and the aggressive batting of thecurrent Australian side could be seen in the performances of thisyear's U14B team. When the boys batted on flat pitches or againstweak bowling, they scored very quickly indeed, plundering 263-5against John Lyon School, 240 against Berkhamsted, 285-2 againstBedford Modern and 222 for 3 against Watford, with all these totalsachieved in less than 30 overs. The plunderer-in-chief was ScottSpurling who totalled over 400 runs in the five games whichhe played for the side, including unbeaten scores of 139, 105 and98. Joe McCormick, Craig Waterman and Aadil Hakim eachsupported with scores of over fifty in various resounding wins. Theleading wicket takers were Harshil Shah and Shanil Patel whilecongratulations must also go to Pavan Surrepedei, who captainedthe side with maturity and skill throughout the season, and to NickilSubbiah and Aneesh Misra for being the two most improved players.The most pleasing of the victories, however, was against St. Albanswhen the side showed great character to turn around a score of 35-6 to reach 118 all out, Subbiah's huge six over mid-off silencing thesledging of the crowing opposition. Tight fielding and the bestbowling display of the season restricted St Albans to a score of 72,Arjun Sofat taking 5 wickets. Unfortunately the side reserved theirtwo weakest performances for games against the strongestopponents, Mill Hill and Q.E.B, both resulting in defeats. The teamwas therefore unable to repeat the unbeaten seasons of the pasttwo years. Nevertheless the overall playing record shows there isgreat potential, skill and enthusiasm in this side, which hopefully willdevelop further in seasons to come.

The best supported team, the U13A’s, was also the most successful,winning 13 of its 14 matches, the vast majority by heavy margins,and only denied a 100% record by the weather. At half term a shorttour to Devon was organised by Doug Yeabsley and included anotable victory against Blundells School. All the players deservemention, particularly Akash Kadiwar and Rikin Shah, but pride ofplace must go to Nishanth Selvakumar, who captained the side, keptwicket and scored the small matter of 1048 runs at an average of149.71, a truly remarkable achievement. He reached three figureson no fewer than four occasions, including scores of 202 not outagainst St Albans (believed to be the highest ever by a Habsbatsman at any level) and 151 not out against QEB. He alsorepresented Middlesex at U13 level and was a member of the Southof England Training Squad.

The U13B’s also had a successful if frustrating season with 4victories, 3 cancellations and 1 game abandoned as a draw. Theteam was sensitively led by Alex Briggs, whose decisive captaincywas respected by all. A narrow victory over QEB was achieved afterBen Peacock and Kushal Malde retrieved a situation of 28-6 but theother victories were much more clear-cut. Ben Peacock was thehighest run scorer, closely followed by Charlie Rubin, who made asavage 73 against Kingswood High School, and Neel Shah. Thebowling, however, was the strength of the side with eight or ninebowlers fighting for team places. Leg-spinner Anand Dhamechawas the highest wicket-taker with 11 victims, although pace bowlersKushal Shah and Kushal Malde both produced match-winning spellsas St Albans were bowled out for 22 and Berkhamsted subsidedafter a strong start. The boys should be commended for theirexcellent team spirit: it was just a shame that the poor weatherrobbed them of the chance to show their talents more often.


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Devon Tour 2007

This year’s Devon Tour party was perhaps the youngest and most inexperienced ever with only 6 ‘old hands’ to show the 7newcomers the ropes. It was, however, one of the more helpful and united groups to visit Doug Yeabsley’s ‘villa’ atBranscombe.

Much of the credit for this goes to Ajay Soni, who not only led the side on and off the field but was also, by some margin, the leading runscorer with two fifties and his maiden century for the 1st XI against Exeter CC.

In the opening game of the tour against Exeter School at Sidmouth CC the toss proved crucial. Unfortunately Soni called incorrectly andHabs were invited to bat first on a wet wicket and slow outfield. After 20 overs the score was 55 for 1 and, although Lewis Jenkins (27)and Soni (64) put on 70 for the 2nd wicket, the later batsmen found it difficult to raise the tempo and Habs eventually reached 135 for 9in the allotted 40 overs. In reply our opponents lost their best batsman with the score on 11, bowled by Hemang Majeethia who hadflown back specially from Marbella in order to join the tour, but thereafter some wayward bowling and several fielding lapses proved costlyas Exeter cruised to victory with 6 wickets and nearly 10 overs to spare.

The next day against Exeter CC, Habs again batted first and on this occasion Kushal Patel (35) joined Soni in a 2nd wicket partnership of74. Matthew Soffair (37) then featured in a 4th wicket partnership with his captain worth 97, which really got the innings going and justbefore the end Soni (102) completed an excellent first century for the 1st XI. The final total of 236 for 6 was the highest of the seasonand, once Exeter’s Aussie opener was caught behind of the 4th ball of the reply, the result was never really in doubt. Wickets wereshared around, with Thusagar Sri Satkunasingham (3 for 21) the most successful bowler, as Exeter succumbed for 141.

After a rest day spent competing in a series of games organised by coach Michael Yeabsley, we came up against a Devon U16 XI in thethird match of the tour at Axminster CC. Always a tough fixture, Habs rose to the challenge and competed well in the field, restricting ouropponents to 208 for 4 off 50 overs. It might have been even better if the Devon opening batsman had been given out stumped on 49 –he went on to reach 97 not out. Once again we lost an early wicket but while Soni (52) was at the crease there was always a chance.When he was caught, however, Habs fell further behind the run rate and it was left to the rain to save us, the match abandoned as adraw.

Many thanks once again to Doug and Jackie Yeabsley for their hospitality and for all they do to make these tours such a success. Stayingat the ‘villa’ is quite an experience but this year’s tourists coped extremely well and can now look forward to spending the October halfterm in warmer climes in Singapore and Malaysia.

S Charlwood

CRICKET CLUB RESULTS

Team Played Won Drawn Lost Abandoned/Cancelled

1st XI 21 8 8 5 2

2nd XI 9 5 2 2 5

3rd XI 8 7 1 0 1

4th XI 1 1 0 0 1

U15A 14 9 1 4 4

U15B 7 6 0 1 3

U14A 15 11 1 3 3

U14B 8 6 0 2 3

U13A 14 13 1 0 4

U13B 5 4 1 0 3

U13 Tour 2 1 0 1 1

U12A 10 6 2 2 3

U12B 4 3 0 1 4

U12C 2 1 0 1 1

Staff XI 3 3 0 0 0

Totals 123 84 16 22 38

NBAn abandoned game is one in which no ball is bowled. The list of draws includes games that started but were later abandoned.

The U15A, U14A and U13A results include HSCA County Cup matches.

Finally what of cricket in Year 7? The U12A team was not as strong aslast year but still won 6 of its 10 games and lost only twice, on oneoccasion narrowly to a touring St Joseph’s side from Ipswich, led byanother former Habs cricket coach Mark Patterson. Captained byRonak Shah, other players to feature consistently were Maanal Akhaney,Rhys Jenkins, Luke Minett and James Lawrence, and with victories overBerkhamsted, Bedford Modern and St Albans, amongst others, there ispromise for the future. Meanwhile the U12B’s, with Aditya Modi andAmar Vaghela to the fore, were successful in 3 out of 4 games, in aprogramme curtailed by the weather. The enthusiasm for the gameshown by the boys at this level, whether they are in the A, B or U12Csquads, is most encouraging and hopefully they will benefit from furthercoaching during the winter.

Of course Habs Cricket Club could not function without the huge input ofa number of people and this is a good time to thank once again the stafffor the time and effort they give to coach and umpire the various teams,the ground staff (particularly our new Head Groundsman, DannyBeckley), the scorers, the caterers etc. Doug Yeabsley deserves specialthanks for all the work he continues to do with all age groups throughoutthe year. Thank you also to parents and friends who watch from theboundary; your support is always welcome and much appreciated. Maythe Cricket Club as a whole go from strength to strength?!

S Charlwood


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1st XI Football

As expected, the 2006-2007 campaign got offto a flying start with a 6-0 demolition of a poorSt. Edwards side. Striker Josh Hearne continuedwhere he left off last season, scoring a hat-trick,one short of the four he scored in thecorresponding fixture last season. David Dinkinadded two to the tally, and Myles Andersoncompleted the rout with a debut goal. Poorweather meant the next fixture was to be thefirst group game of the Crusader Cup against aweak Immanuel College side. Habs strolled to acomfortable 6 -1 victory with Anderson, Dinkinand Hearne adding to their totals for the season.The game saw a rare goal from both EdMorrision and Louis Law, in addition to a superbmidfield performance from Daniel Needleman.

The team then battled to two more victories inthe group stages of the cup, meaning wefinished top of the group with maximum points.With confidence high and a settled squad, theteam then produced arguably their finestperformance of the season, beating RadleyCollege 6-1. Dinkin, Hearne and Andersonscored two goals each, with the latter finishing aflowing move with a pinpoint header.

A tough test then came in the form of HighateSchool. Having gone behind and hitting thewoodwork on numerous occasions the teamwere convinced it wasn’t to be a sixth win out ofsix, however the persistence and quality paidoff, as we won the game 4 2. The outstandingEtiene Ekpo-Utip scored his first of the seasonfrom the penalty spot.

The following Wednesday, Habs’ lost their 100%record after an entertaining 3-3 draw withAylesbury Grammar, in which Gavin Bakerproduced a fine performance which included apenalty save. The team once again went behindin the next fixture against Old Habs’, howeverthe opponents tiring legs cost them dear, as the1st XI went on to win 9 3. Nick Vassiliou scoredhis first of the season, whilst Hearne added fourto his tally.

Bromsgrove School provided us with ourCrusader Cup quarter final match, and due tothe unplayable condition of the Habs’ pitch, theteam were forced to take the two and a halfhour trip to the Midlands. The circumstancescost the team, and as a result Habs’ wereknocked out of the cup, losing 1-0.

With two fixtures being cancelled following this,the lack of match practice and training saw theteam fall to their second defeat of the season,5-0 to a strong St. Pauls’ side. The team thenfaced a UCS side in which was both the mosteagerly anticipated game of the season and thefinal game of the season. Habs’ produced abattling performance and came from behind towin 3-2.

Overall, the season must be classed as asuccess with 8 wins and a draw out of 11games. Thanks must go to Mr.Ward who hasput a lot of time into coaching the team andorganising the fixtures.

David Dinkin Year 13

2nd XI Football

Consistency has been a key element lacking for the Habs 2nd XI football team this season.Unavailability for selection combined with injuries and promotions to the 1st XI meant that aregular full strength side was not able to be put out for the majority of the season. However,each side that has been put out has played high quality football, with plenty of attackinggusto with 3 goals being put past St. Edward's School, Radley College and 5 being put pastAylesbury Grammar School. The latter of these three games was an unfortunate yet pulsating5-6 loss to Aylesbury Grammar School. The team has had Dmitri Fominykh in goal for theseason whilst Sam Cherkas and Joe Burn have been the most regular members in the fullback position. In addition, the centre back pairing of Vice Captain Sam Ruback and JamesTobias have provided stability and leadership to the defence. In addition a mention must goto Chris Stevens, who performed to a great level, when playing at either full back or centreback. The 2nd XI midfield has had over 12 players competing in the department for 4positions. The most regular have been tireless midfielder Joe Evans, the versatile AdamHartnell, pacey winger Doug Gilmour, the passionate Alex Short and the dominating KwakuAfrifa. The pace of Lakshman Ruthirapathy has caused defences many problems, incombination with the skilful Darshan Patel and the committed Adam Preston who have allprovided the firepower upfront for the season. Goals came from all over the team withKwaku Afrifa and Laksman Ruthirapathy leading the charts with 4 and 3 respectively. Manythanks must be directed towards Mr. Hails who has been always willing to offer advice to hisplayers to improve their performances. This has resulted in a highly motivated squad ofplayers who were keen to win and help to contribute towards a satisfactory and enjoyableseason.

Kwaku Afrifa Year 13


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U16 A Football

This year, the under 16-A team have had unprecedented success,winning 6 games out of 8. In our first season as a side this is aparticularly impressive record, and thanks must go to the coachingstaff: Mr. Simm our worthy manager, and Mr. ‘tinker’ Thompson, thebackseat second in command. The season began against aparticularly unimpressive St Edwards side who, despite gifting usseveral gilt edge opportunities, we only managed to batter them 2-0.The next game was against a far superior Berkhamstead side. Habsraced into an early lead with a trademark Oli Coates run and finish.Despite constant probing a tense half ended 1-0 to Habs. Shortlyinto the second half, Berkhamstead equalized. With five minutes togo, and the score locked at 1-1, Simon Tankel stepped up to theoccasion and unleashed a thunderbolt into the top right had cornerfrom just outside the box. The following Wednesday Habs suffered abelow par defeat to a decent Bedford Modern side, wasting aplethora of chances at one end and superstar Tristan Minall pullingoff a host of saves at the other. Then Habs faced Radley College.Habs were two down at half time despite the superhuman efforts ofSimon Tankel, while Tristan conceded his second pass back of theseason. The second half was a different story as Habs came outinspired by the stirring words of Mr. Simm. Oli Coates netted twice,one a goal from the touchline and almost too good to be true. It wasas he later confessed a cross. An inferior Highgate team were thenbattered 4-1 under the guidance of the brilliant Mr. Thompson.Rabinowitz looked assured throughout and Rumford scored asplendid goal, his solitary effort of the campaign. After thecontroversy of Gallimore’s arrival to the football team, he hadimmediate effect netting a winner in an otherwise dour matchagainst Bedford when we were missing the heroic captain JonathanGraham and the beastly presence of James Grant. Aylesbury wereon the receiving end of a spirited 4-3 defeat and all in all, a greatwin by Habs would not have been possible without the incrediblesaves from the goalkeeper. More recently, St. Paul’s were put to thesword in a second half performance that would have left the BrazilTeam of 1970 dead on the ground. The defence were solidthroughout, as the captain led his troops, with Anto Rumford andSammy Conway turning in rock like performances and LewisJenkins fully demonstrating his credentials as the Lee Young-Pyo ofthe side. The game also included a rival to Tankels goal vs.Berkhamstead for goal of the season. James Grant, as usual, swunghis left foot at a floated corner, which instead of flying 40 yards overthe bar as is usually the case, rocketed into the top corner. Thismatch showed the huge progress the team had made, competingwell and moving the ball well. Special mention must go to the show-boat header by James Tan in the dying minutes of the St. Paul’sgame. Similarly, Tristan Minall must get a mention, despite thecaptains best efforts to ruin his clean sheets, after, states Tristan, “Elcapitano managed to score two consecutive own goals.” Tristan,although rarely troubled, pulled off save after save to keep the teamin many a game.

Jonny Graham Year 11

U16 B Football

This season the U16 B’s have had a mixed set of results despite anumber of injuries; winning two, drawing one and losing three.Our season got off to a flyer, with an emphatic 6-0 victory over StEdward’s, with 6 different goal scorers. The highlight being SamCramer’s spectacular 40-yard strike. However our fortune didn’t last,losing the next two games 1-0 and 2-0 against strong Radley andBerkhamsted sides. However we were able to bounce back with atightly fought 3-3 draw against Bedford School. Superb finishing andpace provided David Laing with two goals, equalising in the lastminute, and a coolly slotted penalty from Janak Vyas. Our secondwin of the season then came with a deserved 2-0 victory overAylesbury Grammar, goals coming from Janak Vyas and StephenLingam, Ankith Patel being prevented only by the woodwork. Thedefence of Sachin Galaiya, Alex Sherr, Ajay Johal and myself puttingin a sterling defensive performance to keep the team a clean sheet.With morale high, we went into our crucial game against St Paul’sconfident, despite a number of vital absentees, drafting in a few keyplayers from the A’s. Despite a dogged midfield performance fromthe likes of Janak Vyas, David Laing, Daniel Shemtov and SimonOke, we lost the game 3-0, feeling rather hard done by. With ourfinal game against UCS looming, we were keen to end the seasonon a high. However, things got off to a bad start after a superb freekick was curled into the top corner by their striker minutes into thegame. After a penalty miss from Janak Vyas, and a few dodgyrefeering decisions to put it lightly, we equalised through a tap infrom Daniel Greane. Moments later, Stephen Lingam rounded thekeeper to make it 2-1, giving us the lead as we went into the break.However, our fortune didn’t last in the second half. Another freekickwas whipped in, despite Alex Sherr’s best efforts on the line, and hethen scored a supposed “own goal”, while chasing to clear the balloff the line. Although the ball was CLEARLY not over the line, thereferee seemed to think this was the only chance his team couldwin. No doubt the decision will be questioned throughoutgenerations to come. Despite a gung ho attack plan in the closingminutes, we weren’t able to equalise, with Ankith somehow missingan open goal late on.

Thanks must go to Dr Sloane(and his hat) for his “inspirational” teamtalks, and the whole squad for putting in 110% throughout theseason.

Sam Moodey Year 11


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Swimming

Once again an extremely successful year in the pool. After competing in six galas, the Herts. Panagraphic League titlewent to the Senior and Junior teams. Both won convincingly over St Albans, the Intermediate team finished fourth. Theyear 7 team also won their league.

The National Schools relays were held in Harrogate this year and the U16 team of Randal Cliff, Adam Maxwell, Alex Parker and Kelvin Wongqualified for both the freestyle and medley relays. The team finished 8th and 10th respectively in the finals.

Edward Allchorne was selected for the Watford & District team in the Herts. School Champs. Having won his event he has now beenselected for the Herts. County Schools team competing in the Division 10 finals on May 18th 07.

Thanks must go to all the swimmers who have contributed to Habs. success this season and to Mr Stiff for his team managing skills

James Allchorne Year 13

Water Polo

Water Polo this year has been very successful with the more senior teams reaching the Finals of their respectivecompetitions.

The U19 Water Polo Team had successes in various matches, with highlight victories over Harrow and City of London, resulting in the teamqualifying for the Regional Finals held at Charterhouse School. Despite our solid performance throughout the year, it was disappointing to bedefeated by three strong teams in this competition. The team was able to come out of this and put up a solid fight in the Hepworth Trophycoming in second place. Special mention must go to our captain and mean machine in the hole, Tobias Stedman who always posed a threatto the opposing goal with his unstoppable power shot, to Nick Jardine who always gave a solid performance in defence and never let theteam down. The success at this level was reflected in the achievements of Oliver Inow, Greg Schey and Tobias Stedman all who representedMiddlesex County. This is a great accomplishment and shows the strength of the squad.

However, we must highlight the junior members of the squad; Alex Parker, Daniel Munger, Max Jackson, Chris Jackson and Aaron Winsloe allwho represented the school at U19 level, playing a year above their age group. Due to injuries of some of our players, they were required toplay several fixtures each weak. Their enthusiasm, skill and energy that they brought to the team is great credit to them and shows thepotential for greater success next year for HABS Water Polo. However, their greatest success came in their own age group, were they reachedthe National Finals. Despite coming 4th behind some very strong Northern sides, this is a fantastic success for the U16’s and reflects theirabilities in the sport. Special mention here must go to the speed demons Alex Parker and Randal Cliff who were partnered by Aaron Winsloeand James Devlin all who always posed a serious threat on goal and shared the majority of the attacking play. However, it is not all aboutscoring goals but preventing them and the defensive stalwarts that are Max and Chris Jackson, Daniel Munger and Luke Tullo in goal alldeserve particular mention. We look forward to next year where hopefully with a commitment to hard training we can have great success inthe more senior teams.

The junior teams also deserve mention with great successes from the U13 and U14 squads both having some great victories. The strength ofthese squads reflects potential for the future and especially for Tom Dean and Max Jenkins both who represented the U16’s at the NationalFinals. The fact that they were playing above their age group is great credit to them and hopefully they can go on to achieve great successesin their own age groups.

None of these achievementswould have been possiblewithout the vast amount of timeand energy that has been put inby Mr. Hyde. His commitmentand passion for the sport issomething that we will sorelymiss next year and we wish hima happy retirement.

Oliver Inow Year 12


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Basketball

Basketball has continued to enjoy anincreasingly prominent role withinHABS sport on the back of anothersuccessful on-court campaign.

At the top level, the senior squad enjoyeda comprehensive victory over Immanuelbefore the winning-streak that has lastedover a year came to an end in a veryclose one point defeat to Westfield. Manyof the senior squad are moving on andthanks must go to James Tobias andSam Ruback in particular for their stellarplay and contributions to HABSbasketball. The development of AaronWinsloe and Simon Oke bodes well forfuture years. The U-15 and U-16 teamshave shown great commitment in trainingthroughout the year and despite resultsnot always going their way this year, theirdevelopment as players is promising forthe future. Most promisingly, however,has been the development and results ofour U-14 and U-13 teams this year. Theadded attention to development of theyounger years recently appears to havepaid off with the U-14 team attaining 3rdplace in the Watford and District Rallywhilst the U-13s managed to hold offopposition from 9 other sides to win theirtournament. Both sides have put togetherwinning displays in individual matches aswell and if their commitment to trainingand matches continues, the future ofHABS basketball looks bright.

Huge thanks must go to Mr Kingdon andMr Jenkins for the time and effort theyhave continued to put in this year inorganising and coaching the teams.

James Tobias Year 13

Badminton

Badminton has continued to flourish this year with large numbers of boysplaying the sport both at recreational and competitive level. The first challengeof the term was the Hertfordshire Schools Squad Trials: Akash Jhunjhunwalawas successful in being selected for the Under 17 Squad; Sahil Shah and AlexGomar were selected for the Under 15 Squad; Nigel Tao was selected forHertfordshire Senior Squad. These players have all represented Hertfordshire atdifferent levels this season.

Once again there has been enormous interest in Badminton especially amongst the juniorboys. It is very encouraging to see such enthusiasm. Forty-six boys in the first two yearswere selected for the School Under 13 Squad. A further fifty boys were selected to jointhe Under 15 and Under 18 Squads. These boys have trained regularly on Mondays andWednesdays after school; the boys have made progress in skill and in levels of fitness.

The Junior School Badminton Tournament was held on Open Day. Twenty-seven boys tookpart. Akash Kadiwar won the event beating Tej Malde in the final. Losing semi-finalistswere Kishan Ragunathan and Venkatesh Surandran. We have performed strongly in aseries of fixtures against St. Albans and Hitchin Schools. We have been successful innew fixtures against Harrow School and Immanuel. We look forward to these two schoolsbeing a regular feature of our fixture programme.

Thirty-one boys entered the first round of the Hertfordshire Schools BadmintonAssociation Tournaments and the boys did very well. All the boys won points for theSchool. In the Under 18 Tournament Akash Jhunjhunwala reached the Doubles Semi-finals and the Singles quarter-finals. Suraj Pabari won the Plate Singles and the PlateDoubles partnered by Anjul Haria. The school retained the Under 18 trophy they won lastyear and achieved third place in the Under 13 competition. On the 6th December we took part in the Watford and Hertsmere SSP Inter-SchoolsTournament held at Watford Girls’ School. In the Under 16 group we won 13 games andlost 2. The Under 13s won all of their 20 games. These performances assured us victoryshields in both tournaments. In the subsequent Regional rounds the opposition wastougher. Although we won many games we lost matches against Colchester RoyalGrammar (Under 14) and against The Deanes School (Under 16).

Our thanks go again to Bob Welsh who has worked so hard with the boys to improve theirskills.

A Herzmark


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Tennis

Tennis Competitions in 2007 included thesenior Youll Cup (Eton – to be played) theU15/14 Thomas Bowl Cup (Eton – to beplayed), the U13 John Barrett Cup (Eton – tobe played), BSTA U15 (x2 teams), BSTA U13(x2 teams), U15, U14 and U13 Districtleague; as well as the block of school‘friendly’ fixtures and the County PairsTournaments! Habs now hold the record forentering the most teams into competitionswithin Hertfordshire!

The BSTA squads played some outstandingtennis this season, narrowly missing out onqualifications. However, our strength indepth at U15,U14 and U13 level wasevident at District level, winning all agegroups in the Herts League. The promisingjunior squads enjoyed a successful season.The U12s represented the U13 Districtteam, playing extremely well considering theage gap.

Inter House Tennis also proved to be verysuccessful. Six boys from each house foryears 7 to 10 played doubles, resulting in afinals day. The level of tennis throughout theage groups and pairings was veryencouraging. The competition also allowedthe boys to officiate and record their ownresults which was much appreciated!

Amarshi, Anuj10J2Rajani, Neel10S3Cheung, Alex10R3Pack, Adam10H1Pandya, Parave10S3

Hughes, Alex9HBRoberts, Tom9MAEdwards, Dom9MASoo, James 9HA

Jacobs, Ben10H1Silverblatt, Ben10R3Taylor, Aaron10J1Ross, Elliott10J2Abrams, Oliver10R2Zender, Joe10C2Manasseh,

Joshua 10H3Harris, James9SAWatts, Alex 9CBWaterman,Craig 9SBSelvakumar,Shiv 9JASpector, Andrew9CAAdat, R 9MA

Chotai, Rishi 8STho, Jonathan8CAnandarajah,Brendan 8CMalde, Tej 8C

Ruben, C 8SWard, G 8SMason, N 8JRagunthan,Kishan 8HRoss, Freddie8JYu, Alvin 8REdwards, Chris8M

Tailjard, F 7MAlmond, E 7MBamford, J 7MRose, D 7RShah, J 7RUwaifo, E 7RDoegar, R 7CJoshi, N 7CVaghela, A 7CKaye, D 7S

TENNIS CLUB RESULTS

Cross Country

This year’s squad has had a strong season with impressive individual and teamperformances. The season began with a 7.2 km race at Wimbledon Common. Thiswas very early on in the season, and so, with little prior training, the length of therace proved a great challenge for all involved, with the best senior performance avery creditable 17th from Ollie Illot.

Notable matches include HABS’ veryown Goater Cup, a relay race aroundAldenham Reservoir which involved onerunner from each year, in which our ‘Ateam’ did well to finish 5th behind someof the best cross country schools insouthern England. In the Watford andDistrict race Harry Walton displayedimmense natural talent to finish 2nd inthe senior race, with Sam Cherkas in4th. There were also strongperformances from Ollie Illot and JamieEveritt in the year 11 race. One of thetoughest races of the season was the HertsCountry Championships in St Abans. Thebest runners from the area braved the coldand gave up their Saturday lie in to run avery long and hilly course, with SamCherkas and John Mansell just missing outon finishing in the top 12 to represent thesenior Hertfordshire team.

Special mention must also go to some ofthe runners from the younger years. Darius

Price (year 7), always attended training and gained very high positions in numerousraces, Nishanth Selvakumar (year 8) andJames Edmunds (year 9) who also led theirrespective year groups with great ability.Special thanks must go to Mr Cox forrunning training, organising and taking us tomatches and making the season altogethera very enjoyable one.

Sam Cherkas Year 13

P2W0L2

P3W2L1

P4W1D1L2

P4W4L0

P3W2L1

P2W1L1

P4W3D1L0


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Athletics

After the success of the 2006 athletics season where Habswere able to make a big impact in the National SchoolsCompetition, 2007 proved to be a little disappointing. Thecurrent year has not been without success but earlyindications were that potentially we could make it throughto the highest level again for the second successive yearparticularly when the Under16 team scored the 5th highesttotal in the country in the first round of the English SchoolsTrack and Field Cup. Unfortunately they were unable toimprove in the Regional round and finished fifth with a totalsome 20 points short of that required to make the Nationalfinal. The Under 14’s were also unable to improve on theirfirst round score and found the competition very tough intheir regional final of the same competition.

The early season meet at Harrow school was a new fixture andalthough Habs were not at full strength encouragingly the Under 17team were able to gain second place, the Under15’s fourth and amuch depleted Under19’s fifth out of 8 schools. The seniorscontinued with their dominance of the Watford and District under 20trophy and although not outright winners, this year we share thetrophy with St Michaels, this is now the ninth year in successionHabs have held the title. During May the Under 16 team were ableto establish themselves with a clear lead in the Herts League table,the Under 14’s were in the top four in their league and the Under13 and 15 teams enjoyed winning success in the first of their twofriendly fixtures.

After the half term break the Regional Round of the Track and FieldCup followed almost immediately and although results did not go toplan both the Under 14 and 16 teams were able to continue in theirattempts to secure a place in the Herts league final at the beginningof July with renewed determination. For the latter team qualificationwas never in doubt and they ran out winners of the A league bysome thirty points and thus qualified for the final as one of the clearfavourites for the overall title. For the Under 14 team qualificationproved tougher and going into their last fixture had to contend withthe two teams directly below them in the league table and with oneor two key team members missing it was a task beyond them andthey failed to reach the final missing out by just 10 points.

The league final itself was a very close competition for the Under 16team who after completing their programme on the track trailed in7th place out of 8 teams, but as with many Habs teams we areparticularly strong on the field and winning 3 out of the 7 fieldevents and gaining 2nd in another two saw them snatch the titlefrom Nicholas Breakspear by a single point. It would have beenunderstandable if the team had been demoralised at the halfwaypoint, but to their credit it just served to spur them on to gainsuccess.

An indication of the strength in depth of athletic talent at Habs canbe judged by our performance in the main Watford DistrictChampionships where an athlete is allowed to perform in only oneevent. The Year 7 team remained unbeaten and capped their seasonby winning the district title, as did the Year 10’s and the Year 9’sfinished second to a very strong Queens school team from Bushey,and although the Year 8 team finished 6th, 5 more points would

have put them 3rd. Overall Habs continued to contest for the overalltitle but this year had to settle for 2nd behind Queens who werevictors by 12 points.

Individually this season has seen some performances of the highestlevel. Pride of place must go to James Edmunds who finished 4th inthe Under 15 boys pole vault whilst representing Hertfordshire in theEnglish Schools National Champs at Birmingham on July 13th and14th. In very wet conditions he equalled his personal best and onlymissed third place on count back. James Grant who competed twoyears ago in the same event was also competing again but now inthe Under 17 competition and in the same difficult conditions.Making a tactical judgement he attempted a height which wouldhave given him a real medal chance and despite going close on twooccasions he had to settle for ninth clearing the same height asseveral other competitors but losing out on count back. To have twocompetitors in the county team shows that this difficult event isgoing from strength to strength at Habs. Both these athletes werealso selected to represent the County in the South East SchoolsMulti Events Championships at the end of June.

The school can boast four other county schools champions, DariusPrice ( High Jump), Greg Harrington Green ( 70m Hurdles) andJoseph Bamford ( Javelin) from the Under 13 age group and KazOng in the U17 100m Hurdles. Darius has broken the school year 7High Jump record twice during the season and equalled the polevault as well. He is currently ranked in the top ten in the country forhigh jump at Under 13 level. Kaz likewise improved the school U16sprint hurdles record and despite his diminutive stature stillcontinues to show real potential as a hurdler.

The schools youngest athletes in the Prep school had a verysuccessful season winning both inter schools meets against strongopposition such as St Columbas, Bedford Modern, Bedford, StMartins, Lochinver House, Bridgewater and Highgate. The 4 x100mRelay team won the Hertfordshire County title. The team of OliverKariel, ZacheryAdebayo-Oke, Miguel Perera and Sameer Atwalrecorded a fine time of 58.9 sec and two of these boys will be ableto compete again next year. Sameer also gained 2nd in the 100mand 3rd in the high jump, Zachery gained 2nd in the Year 5 80mand Rory Cartmell gained 3rd in the 600m. In the I.A.P.S. champsJonah Levy came 2nd in the U12 Discus and went on to representthe Eastern Area in the NationalChampionships in Birminghamwhere he finished a creditable6th. Zachery Adebayo-Okefinished 2nd in the U11 100m inthe area champs and DanielReuben finished 2nd in the U11800m at the same meet. There isa wealth of athletic talent in thePrep and now with some of theseboys moving up into the mainschool to join with the very strongyear 7 team from 2007, hopefullyjunior athletics will be able tomake a real impact at bothnational and county level in 2008.

S.Lowe


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Skylark 2007 Drama

Common Room


This has been another very busy year inthe life of the Common Room. A newinitiative back in September saw a teambuilding day where all the staffassociated with each pastoral Houseorganised a specific activity together.

Joblings House, which I have beenassociated with during my time at Habs,organised a day out on a long boat onthe Grand Union Canal! – under therelaxed guidance of John Swallow thestaff took it in turns to navigate this hugevessel down a narrow stretch of thecanal, mooring up to enjoy an excellentpicnic lunch. Such times together, whichprovide an opportunity for relaxedconversation and laughter, are extremelyprecious and in their own way, thoroughly worthwhile.

Sadly, we say our farewells to a numberof colleagues this year.

Paul Hayler joined the school in 1969immediately after graduating fromNottingham University. A geologist by training,he is an outstanding professional and a fineschoolmaster. Paul taught Geology for 26years before transferring his considerableexperience and abilities to Geography. He hasthe ‘David Bellamy touch’ to bring thelandscape alive to his pupils.

His strong principles and considerablepowers of leadership made him a naturalchoice for Housemaster of Calverts, a post hehas held since 1976. Paul also gave 32 yearsof service to the RAF section of the CCF andhas been involved in the running of numerousschool societies and charitable enterprises.

Above all Paul is utterly selfless in devotinghis time and energy to making life better forother people.

Delia Meehan has taught at Habs for 24years. Throughout this time she has been a

dedicated and inspirational oboeteacher who has produced many fineplayers. For the last 20 years Deliahas also taught class music to boys inthe Prep School. She has directedrecorder ensembles, conductedchoirs but most notably under herconductorship the Prep SchoolOrchestra has blossomed into one ofover 70 players. It was fitting thatthis was witnessed by anappreciative audience at theBarbican concert in 2006.

Delia will be fondly remembered byall as an outstanding teacher who has

always been keen to share her love of music.

Trevor Hyde joined the Maths department in1989 having already gained 23 years ofteaching experience in schools in Ealing.Outside of the department, Trevor’s mainpassion is Water Polo and he was thedriving force behind the sport’s popularityand our school teams’ successes. Trevorwas also the Team Manager of the EnglishSchools Water Polo Team from 1990 until2002.

He has done a wonderful job organising theStaff Charity Concert on a biennial basis –this year it raised an amazing £2,000 forCancer Research.

Malcolm Gilbertson, our Bursar, retired fromHabs this term after more than a decade ofoutstanding service to the school. As well ashis absolute command of the multi-facettedbursarial role, he has introduced many boysand colleagues alike to the intense beauty ofthe mountains of England and Walesthrough his passion for outdoor pursuits. Wewelcomed Shaun Wilson this term to Habsas Malcolm’s successor.

On behalf of the Common Room we wishthese colleagues many years of happy andfulfilling retirement.

Matthew Wright leaves the Englishdepartment to pursue a full time MA inCreative Writing at Birbeck College, havingjoined us in April 2005. In his time here hehas been a committed member of theCommon Room Committee, helped launch‘Skylight’ and overseen the creativemagazine ‘Scribe’. He has also been avalued member of the CCF Navy section.

Marcus Tillotson left us at the end of Mayafter four years in the Chemistry departmentto pursue personal interests. Marcuscontributed to school sport and to the CCFArmy section.

Within the Modern Languages departmentFred Chaveneau, our French assistant, isleaving Habs after two years here. He hasbeen a real asset to the school and hasinspired many boys to continue to developtheir spoken French. We wish him well ashe embarks on a teacher training course at

the London Institute.

Our congratulations to Lara Leyshon inthe Biology department who marriedMark, in early July, to become Mrs LaraDickson. Also in the same departmentcongratulations to Hilde Allen on thebirth of her second daughter, Hannah,who arrived slightly prematurely justafter the end of term and had to bedelivered by Hilde’s husband!

Elena McBride returns to Habs toprovide maternity cover for Hilde duringthe Autumn Term.

Other new arrivals and our congratulationsgo to Robert and Kathy Whiteman on thebirth of their second child Anna back inOctober, to Su and Alex Wijeratna on thebirth of their daughter Sylvie Grace in May,to Andrew and Florence Pawlowicz on thebirth of their son Gabriel in June, to Richardand Claudine West on the birth of their sonRohan Luca in July and to Ryan and SamMcIntosh on the birth of their daughterLauren Grace in September.

Our best wishes also go to Adrian Jacksonin the Physics department who marriedHairong Yu in December and ourcongratulations go to Melvin Bardou andDebbie Rivlin who have recently announcedtheir engagement and to Sarah Harkus whoalso became engaged shortly afterwards toTim Lane. We wish them all every possiblehappiness together.

Within the Economics department ourcongratulations go to John Wigley who willbe publishing his ‘History of the School’during the Autumn Term.

In the Prep School we say farewell toFrances Schwartz who leaves after twoyears distinguished service in the PrepSchool. Frances is to take up a post atWestminster Under School. The new Pre-Prep will be opening in September and wewish everyone involved in this exciting new

SECRETARY’S NOTES

Skylark 2007 Common Room

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Afternoon Tea with Girls School Staff

Joblings day out on a long boat

Red Nose Day ladies fun run


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venture every possible success.Our best wishes go to Andrew Pawlowiczour ICT Support Director who leaves us thisterm to become ICT Director at WycombeAbbey, to Liz Warren our school nurse wholeaves us after four years and also to SusanScripture our Print Room Supervisor wholeaves us to pursue a career in media sales.

As Skylark goes to press it is with greatsadness that we have learned of the deathof Simon Munting, our teacher of guitar forthe past 18 years. He had recently beenadmitted to Barnet General Hospital after atwo year battle with cancer. Our sincerecondolences go to his wife Hazel and sonDaniel.

Back in November 2006 many staff of theschool attended the funeral of Ruth Jerred,a devoted wife to Ken and loyal friend of theschool.

Our congratulations go to John Fennappointed Calverts Housemaster succeedingPaul Hayler, to Michele Jones and AndrewSimm appointed Deputy Housemasters ofCalverts and Meadows respectively, to KevinLong appointed to the new post of DeputyDirector of Sport and to Joanna Kingstonappointed Gifted and Talented Co-ordinator.

At the end of the Autumn Term Mike Lextoncompleted his two year tenure as CommonRoom Chairman – a post which he carriedout with his usual high level of commitmentand integrity. His successor is Chris Muhleywho has brought a huge amount of energyand enthusiasm to the post. One of his newinitiatives was to organise a Joint Girls andBoys School Staff social which took place onthe croquet lawn one afternoon in early Julyand despite some unpredictable weatherwas a great success.

Another new initiative this year has been forthe school to recognise the many years ofservice that staff have given to Habs and toacknowledge this the headmaster presenteda bottle of champagne to Mike Lexton andAlan Bagguley for their 30 years service, toPeter Barry for 25 years service, and toRichard Mussett and Peter Roberts from theGrounds staff for 20 years service.

It is this combination of professionalintegrity, fellowship and support fromcolleagues within the Common Room thatmakes working at Habs such a rewardingexperience.

N Holmes

Delia Meehan Malcolm Gilbertson Shaun Wilson

New Staff


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Interview with Mr. HydeWith the end of yet another school year, Habs has to unfortunately wish Mr.Hydefarewell as he enters the golden years of his life and spends his time pursuingfiner things. Over his devoted Haberdashers career, he has through his cheerful,friendly and somewhat unorthodox teaching methods become one of the mostsought after maths teachers, and has developed close friendships with many ofthe pupils. He has worked tirelessly to improve and widen the school’s extracurricular activities: leading the school’s water polo teams to countlesssuccesses, helping students to earn officiating honours as well as setting up thebiannual Staff Charity Concert: one of the highlights of the school calendar.However it would be the humble surroundings of Mr. Hyde’s M04 room that wouldsee the great story that is Mr. Hyde unravel:

Mr Hyde, we understand yourillustrious teaching career, started inthe public schools of Ealing, what werethe differences you noticed when youjoined Habs?When I came here, it was like going back intime, almost as if I was back at the schoolwhere I started teaching, in 1965. I left thestate sector to come here, freed up fromadmin and bureaucracy and just got downto the job of teaching. As well as getting onwith academic and extra curricular activities,which was great because in the state sectorthey had died out, partly for politicalreasons: the Thatcher years and the 1980’sdestroyed teachers unions and teacherswillingness to volunteer.

During your many years of teachingyou have built up the reputation ofbeing the connoisseur of the Englishyouth water polo academy and inter-school competitions, what in fact wereyour contributions? In about 1970s I founded, with anothercolleague, what was called the Sports WaterPolo League. I had been coaching waterpolo at the school I was teaching at, anddecided to search for a competitive leagueand found that there wasn’t one. There wereothers with the same objective and wedecided to put our ideas forward andformed a league that flourished. But wedidn’t have the funding, or the time toexpand it into a national league, which waswhat I would have liked to have seen. Soonafter that I was asked to take over schoolswater polo by a board running aninvestigation into organisational sport. It wasa purely voluntary post and I became thefirst organiser of schools water polochampionships, and this is now their 31styear. I was on the national executive for 25years, and ran the swimming, diving, waterpolo, relays and had the responsibility for allschool competitions. I did that for 25 yearsand retired in 2001.

What are your fondest memories ofyour water polo career?The tours were certainly very special. Wetoured Australia and New Zealand with theHabs teams, but I was also fortunateenough to lead the England schools teamsto the multinational schools international inSouth Africa, as well as playing teams inAustralia and Zimbabwe.

And are you looking to stay involvedwith water polo? At the moment I’m concentrating more onofficiating, as table official and time keeper.I’ve been doing it with a few boys duringSCS time and they will hopefully movethrough the ranks so as to be considered forthe Olympics in 2012.

So then an abatement of yourinvolvement should leave you withplenty of time for retirement plans?Oh yes, it gives me a chance to do moremusic. As well as being a mathematician,I’m also a pianist and when I was teachingin Ealing, I used to play in a large amateurdramatic society theatre, in West London. Iplayed in the pit orchestra there anddefinitely wouldn’t mind getting back to thatsort of thing.

So staying active…Oh yes, travel definitely, I have some plansalready. A boat trip around Spitsbergen: aNorwegian island, which just brakes into theArctic Circle, primarily looking for polarbears, arctic foxes, ice bergs: just remotequiet and cold. As well as going on a hikingholiday to the Peak District with a fewfriends who’ve also retired. Then going tothe other end of the world: the Antarctic.Starting from the Patagonian Ice Fields inArgentina, going down to Ushuaia: the mostsoutherly town in the world, then getting ona boat which will take us out through theBeagle channel up to the Falkland Islands,South Georgia islands, and the AntarcticPeninsula and finally, back round past Cape

Horn to Ushuaia again. Primarily for the wildlife and vast spaces which will allow me topursue my interests in photography.Hopefully if the conditions are not toodisastrous there will also be the opportunity,if we want to sleep out over night and goback on an ice flow.

A stark contrast to teaching youngHabs Boys, in the modest surroundingof M04 at Habs!Well, we should live our lives to the full andtry to get as many experiences as we can. Iwent down to South Africa last summer, inthe Namibian deserts and Botswana,camping in safari. The range oftemperatures there was so different to whatwe experience here that it really shows theamazing differences that occur within ourplanet.

So then following in the footsteps of SirRanulph Fiennes?Hopefully yes, I enjoy variety: unless I’m veryill, I don’t go to sleep on the same day I getup. If there was a safe way we could stayactive for 24 hours a day and still live to be100, I would immediately grab it. I wouldmuch rather do more things, than just goingto bed. Even in teaching there is no way Iwould want to be teaching academic work,marking and doing more academic work allthe time, because I would not keep goingthe hours I am at the moment. It’s thevariety of a mixture of sport, someadministration, preparation and marking thatvaries my school life. But to do the samestuff, day in day out, no way.

An excellent creed, you’ve also beeninvolved in the school staff charityconcert, how did it come about?I had the idea in 1995, which was when Idid the first one. The staff put on plays onalternate years, and I thought the barrenyears in between would be the perfect slotfor the concert.


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And the reasons behind it?Well, the staff here have a very wide talentbase which is not seen by the students andtheir parents: something I thought was agreat loss not only to parents and pupils butfor the school community as a whole. Theidea was actually to do this for the schoolcharity, but just before it took place myfather died, so the headmaster said that hewould understand if I withdrew, but I justasked to do it for Cancer Research, and heaccepted it and we moved from there.

Indeed one of the aims of the schoolsis to develop a strong sense ofcommunity: will you be leaving withfond memories of the teaching staffand students?Yes, I’ve always got on well with mycolleagues and hold no long term grudgesagainst pupils. In fact I’m still in contact withguys I taught 40 odd years ago, we meet upand go for a drink now and again. I alsokeep in contact with people from swimming

teams I ran in 1960s as well as playingcards with old boys, so yes my teachingcareer has left me with many friendships.

I’m sure you would also be well awareof the jovial banter enjoyed around theschool, any fond memories regardingthe Habs tradition?I’ve always given as good as I get, andenjoyed every minute of it. I did give a bittoo much once though and got called up tothe headmaster’s office [chuckling],probably not quite appropriate for me torepeat it just yet.

What will you miss most about Habs? Teaching, I wouldn’t have done it for 42years, if I didn’t enjoy it so much. I enjoyevery aspect of school life, the sports, thetrips, just the company really. In fact it tookmy a long, long while for me to decide toretire, as I wanted to stay on until I was 65,but I’m only pulling out a few months earlier,so it’s not too bad.

Any last words of wisdom?I lead my life to the full, there’s 24 hours ina day, make as much use of every hour asyou can. Do varied things, but that meansgiving as much as taking: organise things,volunteer for new experiences and helpfuture generations.

Wise words indeed, thanks for yourtime sir it’s been a pleasure listening![Laughing] Excellent I just need to get you tostart listening during our maths lessons now!

PhotographyAs a musician I’ve always had an interest inthe arts, but unfortunately I can’t draw, orpaint or write fluent essays with flowinglanguage, but I’ve always enjoyed theconcept of photography. I was also fortunateenough to get gear and film cheap as myfather worked an overnight shift in a filmproducing warehouse:

Dmitri Fominyky Year 12

Akaroa

Cheetah Park, Otjikondo, Namibia

Etosha National Park, Namibia


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Young Gannets on Isle of Noss, Shetland Island

Dune 45 by Sossusvlei, Namibia

Lake Hawea


Paul Hayler leaves Haberdashers’ after 38years of unstinting loyalty and service to theschool, yet extraordinarily, his arrival here in1969 was entirely serendipitous. A Geologistby training and freshly graduated fromNottingham university, he was activelyconsidering much more lucrative jobs inmining or retailing but purely by chance hadspotted an advert in the local newspaper.

As all Mr Hayler’s pupils will know, Paul is aninveterate gambler – on anything. And on thishot July day his gamble would pay offhandsomely. The Head of Geography at thetime was a young visionary by the name ofJohn Rolfe, supported by an equally ambitiousheadmaster, Dr Tom Taylor. John had led hisdepartment to the point where it had becomeone of the most forward looking in the countryand now he was searching for someone with

a science background to join his team,someone to specialise in physical systemsand Geology. Always a shrewd judge ofcharacter, John recognised that in Paul theyhad found that very person.

Dr Taylor’s decision to appoint Paul, with noexperience or qualifications, was remarkablyfar sighted. Paul loved teaching, and he wouldjust as quickly fall in love with the school,going on to become one of Haberdashers’most outstanding and loyal schoolmasters. Hisunderstanding and enthusiasm for his subjectwere quickly apparent. Geology is a broadscience, encompassing elements ofchemistry, physics and biology, and Paulquickly showed that he had an outstandingability to bring the natural world to life.

This remarkable talent was recently publiclyrecognised in 2006, when former pupil,Robert Holdsworth, now Professor ofStructural Geology at Durham University, wasawarded the prestigious Aberconway Medalby the Royal Geological Society. At thepresentation Robert spoke warmly and atlength of ‘my geology teacher, Paul Hayler,who passed on so much enthusiasm and, byintroducing me to the geology of the CrossFell Inlier over five days in 1978, completelytransformed my life.’

Field trips to Paul are like butter is to bread. Itis inconceivable to him that

anyone should try and teach about theirplanet without asking their pupils to trampover it, look at it, knock bits off it, and get theirhands (very) dirty. Boys have scrambled upsteep cliffs, got muddy, found things, takenthings home, and made endless plaster castsof strange fossils. Life was always lived on theedge when you were in the field with MrHayler. Fast moving tides and crumbling cliffswere just minor local difficulties. Learning hadnever been so much fun, nor so complete.

The trip dearest to Paul’s heart was anexpedition with a small group of A Levelstudents to the North East of Scotland,panning for gold. After a five hundred milejourney, and some initial searching, they didindeed strike lucky. After finding a tiny nuggetof gold that had been washed down from themountains, glinting in the river bed, gold fevertook the little party by storm. Spending up toeighteen hours a day knee deep in freezingwater, they eventually returned homeexhausted, but triumphant - and just a littlericher, more in experience than money.

Like all outstanding practitioners Paul is thecomplete schoolmaster. He has brought farmore to the life of Haberdashers’ than justhis subject. When not studying rocks andfossils he has been the enthusiastic master-in-charge of the hugely popular Stamp andCoin Club. Anyone who knows Paul will beaware that he has a very keen sense of

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Haberdashers’ on a dark winter’s evening can be a lonely place. Long after schoolis over, traverse the quad and your footsteps will echo harshly as if trying to catchthe fleeting memory of larking students. But look up at the Aske Building and thereyou will almost certainly see a light still shining brightly. That will be Mr Hayler,hard at work in the Geography office, his light a metaphorical beacon for the mostdedicated and hard working schoolmaster it has been my privilege to know.

Mr. Hayler

With David Masters, Tim Foinette, George Mortimer and Jason

Hughes, June 1987 A Level Geology set 1985-87

Fieldwork at Kirtlington Quarry, Oxford,February 1977

With John Rolfe and Michael Morrish, winning the Worldwise Quiz in 1995

Alex Hall, Nick Amis and Neil Dabrowski


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profit and a good eye for the market, andwhen it comes to buying and selling, he’s asharp operator. Such talents are wellrespected by the boys at Haberdashers’,and it was frequently standing room onlywhen the weekly stamp and coin auctionwas held. Trips to exhibitions soon followed,and such was the quality of their work, thatthe club won a bronze model for theirshowing at the renowned internationalStampex Exhibition in 1981.This remarkable man also holds the Queen’sCommission. Flight Lieutenant Hayler, VRTRAF, was first persuaded to join the CCF byformer colleague Barry Goater, but ended upspending 32 years with the unit - a quiteremarkable achievement. It was my privilegeto serve with Paul for many years, and Iwitnessed at first hand not only hisextraordinary energy and dedication, butalso his talented leadership of the boys. ToPaul the CCF was a boys’ club, a hugelyimportant institution that gave them theopportunity to understand the delicate art ofleadership, and the chance to experiencesome real responsibility. A very good shot,Paul also used his RAF training to tutormany boys to marksmanship standard onthe school’s rifle range.

It was Bruce McGowan, Tom Taylor’ssuccessor, who later gave us Mr Hayler theHousemaster. Paul was a surprisinglyreluctant recruit to this important position, butback in 1976 the Headmaster had the powerto choose whosoever he wanted, and hewanted Paul, and no was not an acceptableanswer. It was a wise choice. With his talentto inspire and his utterly selfless devotion toall the boys in his care, Paul is a Housemasterof the highest possible order. Whenever youtalk to parents of boys in Calverts the

conversation will quickly turn to Mr Hayler,what he has done for their son, how helpfulhe has been, and how understanding in adifficult situation. Paul has willingly spentcountless hours at school, during evenings,weekends, and holidays, personally helpingindividual pupils to succeed – not justacademically, but as a whole person. He hasdone it quietly, without fuss, and without onceseeking recognition. No one has put so muchof themselves into the job of being aschoolmaster than Paul. Telephone calls andemails continue long into the evening,sometimes picking up the pieces of a majordisaster, sometimes to congratulate, or simplyto encourage a reluctant learner. Paul hasbeen intensely loyal to his House, and couldbe counted on to step in and support any boyin trouble whatever the situation he had justfound himself in. Widely admired by pupilspast and present, he maintains a largefollowing of old boys who regularly enjoycorresponding with him, and who hold him indeepest respect.

Charity and Calverts have, of course, beensynonymous for many years. Many thousandsof pounds have been raised by Calverts boysunder Paul’s leadership, to the direct andimmediate benefit of a great number ofpeople throughout the world. It is noexaggeration to say that Paul’s reach hasbecome global.

Paul’s philosophy is underpinned by hisChristian principles and an utterly selflessdevotion to others. He lives life by a strictmoral code. A man of massive inner strengthyet a gentle outer touch, he is not to beunderestimated. With no time for pomposity orwindow dressing, he prefers honesty anddirect action, and will not shrink from firmness

or punishment if he feels that will be to theultimate good of the individual. One major event in Paul’s professional life willserve to highlight this great inner strength.Paul was dealt a major blow in mid career, ablow that would have had devastatingconsequences for any lesser person. When theNational Curriculum was announced in the midnineteen nineties, Geology was not included inthe list of core subjects. To Paul it was clearthat the writing was on the wall for his life as ateacher. But with typical resourcefulness anddetermination he fought back. He applied forand was awarded a Fawcett Scholarship,allowing him to work for one day a week awayfrom Haberdashers’ at UCL, studying for an ALevel in Geography. Putting many of his pupilsto shame, Paul passed the exam with flyingcolours, achieving an exceptionally high gradeA in just a fraction of the recommended time.Armed with this new qualification, Paul hasgone on to become one of the department’smost enthusiastic and successful Geographyteachers; as successful an adaptation to achanging environment as any of thepalaeontological species he has enjoyedstudying.

Paul is a schoolmaster of the highest orderand an acute observer of others. A friend toeveryone he meets, he gives everything butasks nothing. He is a great listener, awonderful confidant, and a giver of wisecouncil.

If you measure the height of a man by theeffect that his work has had on the successand happiness of others, then Mr Haylermust surely walk amongst the tallest.

M Day

Fieldwork at Kirtlington Quarry, Oxford, February 1977

Flying Officer Hayler with Pilot Officer Day and Flight

Lieutenant Talbot, RAF Brize Norton, July 1983


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To the great loss of the school and particularly CalvertsHouse Mr Hayler is retiring at the end of year after 25 orso years of fabulous service to the school. An ardenthousemaster and winsome school statesmen Mr. Haylerhas excelled as a Geography teacher.

What Do you Consider to be the Best part of being ahousemaster? There are so many best parts, they would have to includewatching all the inter-House events, I like all the eventsbecause they reveal so much about the character of thecompetitors as well as their ability. Two boys of equal abilityfinish very close to each other in the 100m and in the discusbut when it comes to cross country one of them will dig thatlittle bit deeper into his resources. On the same theme someboys are much better as individual players while others onlybring out something special when they are representing ateam. I also enjoy seeing the way in which some boysimprove their standards so much over the years, rising froma rather ordinary tenth place in House javelin to become thebest in the school three years later. It is especially rewardingto see a boy excel who didn't think he was special at all,Every concert and play I watch, every exam I invigilate, everylesson I take, every Mencap Funday I attend, every debate Ihear argued etc I am always conscious of the Calverts boyswho are there, and I'm just a little ashamed to say that I dothink of them as "my boys", I even enjoy finding their lostproperty - now that really is sad!

What is the Worst Part of being a housemaster? The worst part is working with those boys who really are

struggling at school and who don't seem to be making any progress despite their struggles. Those who just can't get to grips with languages,or can't break into the cricket team, or can't concentrate. Both the boys and their parents have such faith in us too put right any problems. It isnow clear to me that the best way forward is to make the most use of the talents you have been given. You may want to be the captain ofrugby but if your skills are in chess that's what you should develop; just play the rugby for fun.

On your trips with the Geography department, what do you enjoy most about the trips? All the residential Geography Field work is enjoyable, so much so that despite the fact that we usually run them in holiday time we always takemore teachers than we need because they all want to go. While the pupils are all working in the evening on the residential trips theysometimes think we have gone to the pub. The truth is that we spend most of the time talking about the work we are going to be doing withthe pupils next day, but we also enjoy just being able to chat with each other in a way that is almost impossible at school because its so busyduring the day. We all enjoy the trips because it is so often the very thing that drew us into the subject in the first place, everyone rememberssomething they did on a field trip, including a few things they shouldn't have done.

What will you remember most about you r time at Habs? There are certain things you will never ever forget, In teaching they are often the things you just "got way with". Driving a minibus along amotorway that hadn't been completed was memorable. The M40 was under construction but heavy driving snow had obscured all the notices.The access road seemed a bit bumpy and it did seem odd to have a dump truck parked in the fast lane but we did 6 miles before comingback onto the A road through a farm, I got a lot of jibes from the boys about that! Letting 6th form boys use a flame thrower to clear weedswhilst on SCS "Estate Group" was also interesting, the school owned some old second world war flame throwers and we decided to clear theweeds on the North Drive. They shot flames that went right across the road in one sweep but both the boys and I only worried about possiblydamaging cars, the fact that we were handling lethal weapons was not considered! We also used a device called an autoscythe for clearing theundergrowth. Again of wartime design it had toothed blades that shot backwards and forwards cutting any weeds or branches up to an inchacross. The engine powered the wheels and the blades at the same time so when you let out the clutch it moved forwards and the bladesstarted cutting. There was no guard of any description on the blades. Even the boys respected that machine and were instinctively careful of it.Is there anyone out there who remembers it? I remember a boy call PK who really loved using it.

There are less exciting memorable events too. Meeting Princess Margaret, meeting the Queen, taking cadets on the millennium camp with 2000cadets in ten quite enormous 200 man tents, no one got any sleep but it was a wonderful event. I wouldn't have missed them for the world.

Sagar Gupta Year 12

Interview with Mr. Hayler


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Skylark 2007

The Skylark Team

Alex NewmanEditor

Alex Petrides Assistant Editor

Dmitri FominykhAssistant Editor

Sam PinnerDesign

Neil JosephDesign

Duncan Jenkins CCF

Leo DavidsonOriginals

Peter GrantOriginals / Art

Chirag KhagramPerforming Arts / Drama

Toby YoungPerforming Arts / Music

Oliver FoxSCS

James FoxEvents

Oliver TenzerPrep

Robert DaboulTrips

Matthew RajanClubs & Societies

Satyam BhagwananiEvents

Oliver InowSport

Arun KumarathasSport

Matthew SlavinPhotographer

Marlon BiberPhotographer

J GleesonStaff Editor

Skylark pg 118 & 119:Layout 1 10/10/07 17:18 Page 1

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THE HABERDASHERS’ ASKE’S BOYS’ SCHOOLButterfly Lane, Elstree, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire WD6 3AF

Tel: 020 8266 1700 Fax: 020 8266 1800e-mail: [email protected] website: www.habsboys.org.uk

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...from the Headmaster

The arrival of a new edition of Skylark is always an event laden with both expectation andgratitude and I am privileged yet again to recommend it to you. Every year we enjoyreading its penetrative and professional insights, the articles and reports which illustratefond memories of the year past written in that inimitable Habs style. Its contents reflectour core aims: the fact that we challenge bright boys to achieve the highest standards, wedevelop a sense of community and shared values and that we support parents in preparingtheir sons for a fulfilled life. They reflect also the multiplicity of what happens here on adaily basis and on which this school is grounded: commitment to the fundamentalprinciples of academic excellence, extra-curricular vitality, magnificent surroundings andfacilities and the centrality of a strong and supportive sense of community.

Exceptional boys and exceptional teachers allow us to enjoy exceptional success and sowe remain amongst the very best boys’ schools in the UK. We were delighted withsplendid results for entrance at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. Thirty-five boyswere awarded places with the vast majority achieving offers at their first choiceuniversity. Last summer’s results were as uplifting as ever and the performances of theboys at ‘A’ level rewarded them with 91.4% A and B grades, and at GCSE they achieved89.4% A* – A grades.

No school can reach its potential without involving all its communities in its goals andaspirations. To that end, you will soon notice a significant improvement in the quality ofour communications with our external partners, both printed and digital. In due coursewe hope that all of us can work together to ensure we remain not only one of the bestschools in Britain, but perhaps one of the best schools in the world. And together, we willsomeday be able to offer the benefits of a Habs education not just to those who canafford it, but also to those who can benefit most without regard to financial constraints.

You will know that we have been as busy as ever with new initiatives in teaching andlearning, pastoral care and staff development. One fine example is the idyllic newcampus for our Pre-Prep school opening in September. The Prep School continues to build,in this and many other ways, on that magnificent achievement in becoming The SundayTimes Prep School of the Year.

I hope you enjoy what you read and ask you to join me in thanking all those pupils andstaff who have devoted so much time in making these pages come alive.

With warmest good wishes.

Peter HamiltonHeadmasterSummer 2007

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The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School

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HaberAske Skylark 2007

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