Unfortunately, due to an important change in the College schedule and a need for the facilities, we have to reschedule the event to the following day, Friday May 19th 2017. We understand that this is quite short notice and do apologise if this clashes with any of your plans.
It was fantastic to hear that James Lasis (Du. 2012-14) has joined the Rotherham Titans as second rower from National One Side Loughborough Students, having previously been on the books at Premiership Side Harlequins.
Our Deputy Headmaster, Steve Marshall-Taylor, and Housemaster of Ryle, Graham Kennedy are swimming the English Channel for MNDA.
The Joanna Seldon Creative Writing Speech Day Prize has been launched this year in memory of Dr Joanna Seldon, wife of Anthony Seldon ex-Headmaster (1997-2006) of Brighton College.
Having both experienced the transition from Brighton College to university, OB sisters Kate (Sel. 2011-14) and Emma (Sel. 2012-16) Appleby contacted Alex Patton, Head of Sixth Form, as they both felt that it would be beneficial to speak to our current U6th pupils in chapel about the importance of well-being, especially before leaving school and entering the world of university and work.
Following the introduction of our Law Conference in 2016, this year's conference took place on Thursday 4th May, which was attended by our current Sixth Form pupils and those from local state schools.
John David Shallow has died aged 89. He was born on June 4 1927 at Brighton College, where his father, George, was serving as a housemaster and his mother, Phyllis, was the daughter of the Headmaster, Canon William Dawson.
Our 2017 Medical Conference brought together a fantastic spread of medical professionals, two of whom are currently studying Medicine.
Su Wijeratna (née Cook) studied geography at Birmingham University after leaving Brighton College. She began her teaching career at Epsom College before moving to Eastbourne College where she became a regular visitor to Brighton, finding herself as Elizabeth Cody’s opposite number at several fixtures.
Teacher of Biology, Teacher of Chemistry, Teacher of Maths, Teacher of ISTD Tap, Teacher of Mandarin.
There are also support vacancies available in the Maintenance Department and Accounts.
Malcolm McVittie recently wrote a letter to the Head Master, describing his father’s experiences after leaving school. This letter recounted a story of bravery and perseverance.
Brighton College pupils have achieved wonderful success both within and outside the classroom this term and one exceptional example is the 1st XV rugby team, captained by Marcus Smith (Upper Sixth, Leconfield), who are unbeaten in 24 matches. They have been victorious against strong rugby schools including St John's Leatherhead, Dulwich and Hurstpierpoint to become the first college unbeaten side since 1981/2.
Dear Old Brightonians,
This has been a year in which once again the focus has been on creating an environment where every child feels valued for who he or she is. That’s not always easy amidst the maelstrom of hormonal change that bedevils teenagers (and no doubt drives one or two parents to distraction).
The Head Master Richard Cairns, and staff of Brighton College were given a warm welcome to Hong Kong by the community of pupils, parents and alumni at the Brighton College Dinner on 10th December at the Renaissance Harbour View Hotel.
You may remember that last time we delved into the wonders of the Brighton College minute book, the Council (now the Board of Governors) decided they would persuade Phoenix to pay for Anti-Aircraft and Bombardment Insurance for the College.
I am writing to inform you that I will be stepping down as chairman of the Board of Governors of Brighton College at the end of this Michaelmas term. I will have been in office for thirteen years. During this period, it has been my great good fortune to see Brighton College rise, both in pupil numbers and in their achievements, to the position of one of the outstanding schools in the land.
Dear Old Brightonians,
I am very sorry to be writing to let you know that Dr Joanna Seldon died on Tuesday 6 December after a long illness that she faced with much dignity and courage. She died peacefully, surrounded by her family, who have supported her throughout with great love.
We are absolutely delighted to have been able to catch up with so many of our very missed OBs studying in London at our annual OB London Universities Dinner, which took place last Friday. Joined by a few favourites from the Common Room and our newest team member, Veronika, we returned to the Emin Room at the 34 Mayfair in London. It was a fantastic evening and we are very much looking forward to seeing them all again soon. To see if you have a reunion coming up soon, or if you would like to find out more about our OB events programme, please visit our events page here. Alternatively, please contact Veronika at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The 2014/2015 Fourth Form pupils and their families were each assigned one name from the Roll of Honour as part of our Lest We Forget Project. Their task was to discover all they could: where each was born, where he lived, when he was at Brighton College, and how and where he died.
We have made a special short feature film to celebrate hosting the England Rugby team last month. It also highlights the philosophy of the Brighton College Rugby Club, which is going from strength to strength at the moment. Record numbers of boys are opting to play the sport and the A teams are excelling nationally. I truly believe that Rugby Union at any level can help boys to fulfil their potential in life.
Much of the pleasure found in an archive is making connections and understanding histories, but the membership card for the Brighton College Elephant Club (BCEC) has had me flummoxed for weeks.
We are seeking to appoint an enthusiastic gap year student to join our successful and busy school. An ability to coach girls’ games would be an advantage.
On the 5th October 1916, the Governors of Brighton College met to discuss the usual issues important people discuss.
Ryan Manyika (Sc. 2002-2007) surprised Director of Rugby, Nick Bouy, with a visit to the College to watch the 1st XV match this weekend.
Dear Old Brightonians,
I am writing to report some wonderful GCSE results. Incredibly, out of 2,080 exams sat, every single one was a C or better, with the most common grade being an A*.
Brighton College pupils achieved more than 500 A* and As at ‘A’ level, securing some of the best results in the country:
Dear Old Brightonians,
With 505 grades at A* or A, 117 at grade B, 20 at grade C and 2 at grade D, our delightful outgoing Upper Sixth pupils are today celebrating a stellar end to their time here. Remarkably, 110 sixth formers secured A* and A grades in every single subject, with at least a dozen really wonderful characters pushing up from D grade predictions a year ago to a terrific set of B grades today.
Many names have strong associations with Brighton College. They are woven into the fabric of the school through plaques, memorials and the names of buildings. One example is Williams, from which our second-oldest girl’s house takes its name. Peggy Williams was born in Chichester House in 1896, and, rather amazingly, was able to attend the opening of ‘her’ house in 1990. Much of Peggy’s long life was connected to the school, as she married Reverend A J Williams, College Chaplain and Housemaster of Wilsons (a now extinct house).
A warm welcome to our newest members of the Old Brightonians; our leavers of 2016.
On Thursday 30th June we celebrated at the College with a service for our leavers, and after the traditional leavers photographs on the lawn the College then celebrated with a Graduation Ceremony for Upper 6th Leavers.
We are trying to find out the names of old 1st team captains for rugby, football and cricket in order to find out which houses they belonged to at school.
We are delighted to welcome the leavers of Brighton College Abu Dhabi to the Old Brightonians this year.
About six months ago, our maintenance team asked me to take a look at a large sign stored in their workshop.
The OB office is sad to report the death of Mrs Margaret Ridler, who died peacefully at home on Wednesday 22 June, aged 86.
On Friday 17th June we gathered to remember the 976 Old Brightonians who served in the Great War and in particular the 149 who died, never to return.
The phrase "one picture is worth a thousand words" suggests that an image can more lucidly communicate a complex idea or experience. Perhaps overused, the idiom has lost some resonance over the years. However, I would argue my experiences in recent weeks, while searching for images linked to our roll of honour, have brought home the truth behind the phrase. In fact, three photographs had such a profound emotional impact, I felt the need to share them here.
Would you like to be part of the Entrepreneurship Programme during the coming academic year? The programme consists of a series of lectures and a House competition with a £10,000 prize pot for the three Houses with the best idea and business plan. Your time could be spent: advising a House group on how to develop their ideas and business plan; delivering a lecture or more informal talk, or joining a bank of Entrepreneurs whose expertise could be called on as necessary.
Gordon Smith attended Brighton College from 1946-52. Upon graduating, he studied at Trinity College, Oxford, where he read English. He went on to work in various educational institutions, including Brighton College, where he was House Master of Aldrich from 1963-1967 and then Head Master of the Junior School from 1970-80. He is now retired but still maintains close ties to the College and has been an active member of the Old Brightonians, having been captain of the OB cricket club. We were very interested to hear of Gordon’s time at the College, both as an ex-pupil and staff member!
Bill Blackshaw, who was Headmaster of the college from 1971 to 1987 died peacefully at home in Rottingdean on Friday 27 May. He had a huge impact on the school during his 16 years of headship, increasing numbers markedly, introducing co-education in the Sixth Form and overseeing the greatest building programme of the post-war era.
We are sad to report the death of Keren Burton, the recently retired head of Girls Games at Brighton College Prep School. A funeral service will be held at Woodvale Crematorium (North) on Thursday May 26th 2016, at 11am.
On Thursday 12th May, we welcomed the Pioneers Club at the College, which is for Old Brightonians aged 60 and over. The ages of those who attended spanned from an Old Brightonian who left in 1940 to one who left in 1973!
This week being National Gardening Week, I thought it would be nice to consider how the school’s gardens have changed over the years.
Many of you may remember Martin Jones as the College's Head of History. Others may also recollect him as our Librarian, our Honorary Archivist, and author of the brilliant school history - Brighton College: 1845-1995. As an expert on all things Brighton College, he has been a wonderful help since I started this time last year. He regularly keeps in touch, and recently sent me some fascinating observations from his travels in India …
Every week, I receive a fascinating enquiry from a researcher, a member of the public or an Old Brightonian – sometimes all three. In early February, Julia Webb from the National Portrait Gallery got in touch to learn more about silhouette-artist extraordinaire, Hubert Leslie.
It might be small but there's room for two!
This week's post was written by Karen Scanlon, who volunteers at the archive. She was helping to catalogue our collection of uniform, when a picture on the wall caught her attention...
Brighton College Bangkok opened in September 2016 and shares the aims and ethos of Brighton College UK, England’s top co-educational school.
While searching through the Brightonians this week, I stumbled across a short, but fascinating, article written by the Jazz Appreciation Society, in 1962.
One of the joys of sorting through the archive at Brighton College has been discovering documents that haven’t been seen for years – sometimes, these can be ‘hiding’ in places one least expects.
The North family bestowed a great favour on the College in June 2015 when they arranged for the medals of Lister Durrell Wickham to be donated to the College. Head Master Richard Cairns was delighted to meet with the Phillipson family and to receive the medals, which are now on display in the College Chapel. After serving at Gallipoli Lister had been home ill, and had married his sweetheart musician Marguerite Dickensen.
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