I must have been one of the youngest to attend the Pyrland Pelican
Open Day but it was still 30 years, give or take a month, since I last made
my way up that sweeping drive to the school - although this time there
was no trunk in tow.
During refreshments we all enjoyed a look at an exhibition of archive
material on display in the old Chapel (the sports hall of my day is now used
for school services). On display were the old honours boards which once
hung proudly in the dining room (now the school library, and meals are
now served directly from the kitchens in the old back passage, and eaten
in what was Mr Walters and Mr homsen's maths room). On the boards
were many familiar names - Forknall, McDermott (didn't remember him
being Head Boy), Dumpleton, Whiting and many more. We were then entertained to an enjoyable concert in the old sports
hall (now the arts and music hall) and featuring pupils of all ages and comprising a number of acts including a soloist and
a rock band! I couldn't help but notice as we passed, that the old swimming pool Ben Goldman had lovingly built had had
something of a make-over. hose pre-breakfast swims with the swimming team still happen apparently.
After a fine lunch, and a speech from the current head - Justin Chippendale - a Woodard old boy of my era - we were shown
around the old place. My chaperone was one Francis Barnsley, who joined Pyrland in my second term in 1981. He even
remembered my cricketing exploits and an essay I'd written about Oliver Twist!
So much had changed - Dunster gone, many dorms turned
into smaller bedrooms; the quad bell has been replaced by
an electric bell; the grass tennis courts have gone; the outside
cricket nets have gone to be replaced by the pre-prep school.
But so little had changed as well - Ben Goldman's old room,
the school houses, the back passage, the laundry room, the old
sports hall, the arts room, the cricket pitch, the livestock living
out on the front, the basement where we cleaned our shoes,
and so I could go on.
Afterwards, there was tea
in the inner quad and a
chance to catch up with
others from my time at
Pyrland - Roger Trafford, Mark Irons, John Reeves, and a fleeting visit from Patrick Scanlan
who had ventured over from Kings. It was an excellent trip down memory lane. What
was clear was that the ethos and experience that Pyrland gave to me and many others
30 years ago is still very much in existence today, and that was so refreshing to see when
so much else around us is changing.
Alastair Milburn, Pyrland Hall, 1980-1982
Pyrland Pelican Open Day
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