The 92nd Annual Dinner took place on Saturday 17th November from 6:30 pm for 7:30 pm until 11:30 pm in the Oldfield Hall, King Charles I School, hosted by President Keith Weston.
Old Carolians Association's flagship social event moves back to the School
After two successful special Annual Dinners at the Town Hall, the Association moved back to the School for this year's event. That was not the only change – the tables were arranged quite differently this time around (East to West instead of North to South). Perhaps a feng shui expert had been consulted. In any event, it worked, a good time was had by all, and the one thing that hadn't changed at all was the menu, which has probably been the same for the past 92 Dinners!
President Keith Weston chaired the Dinner only eight days after having been elected at the Annual General Meeting. Past President Graham Wyer said grace and a toast to the School and the Association was proposed by Cllr Frank Baillie, Chairman of Wyre Forest District Council, who took the opportunity to make a spirited and entertaining defence of the profession of accountancy (honestly!), denigrated in my speech at last year's Dinner, while casting doubts on the sanity of the entire Broadfield family (something always being questioned, anyway!).
The headmaster, Alan Brooks, replied and gave his review of the School year, saying that the length of speeches had always been an issue – in 1939, it was reported that 'the organisers of the Dinner should make it clear that so many lengthy orations were not wanted'. He promised to keep it short and did so. The contents can be found elsewhere in the Magazine, but it had been a successful time and 65 pupils had gone on to University, the best year since 1996. The old and new schools are difficult to compare, but he could not resist contrasting the report from John Drake in 1951 – fifty years before: "[O]ur sixth form remains weak in numbers and for the Advanced papers in Mathematics and Science we only entered one candidate". Grammar School intake was sixty each year. Nowadays, 270 have to be accommodated. He said that the Sixth Formers were enjoying their new centre and also made good use of the Rose Garden – at the end of the previous term, they had their own barbecue there, just like the OCs. At GCSE, the pupils also got their best-ever results.
He paid tribute to the Association and the Foundation Trusts, which had made major contributions to School development – they had taken delivery of a brand new minibus – blue apart from the bit that was eaten by the school gatepost.
There had been lots of electronic hardware – computers, digital cameras, digital video cameras, multimedia projectors, laser printers, electronic keyboards, overhead projectors, cassette recorders and lots of software. A really interesting buy had been a new greenhouse for the new GNVQ Land & Environment course. They were setting up a new course that was vocationally slanted to cultivation and sales, and had also successfully bid for finance from the European Social Fund to deliver enhanced provision for those pupils who find school less exciting.
He saw great importance in the election of Martin Humphries as Chairman of Governors, and he described him as having a very important mission – to be cognisant of the School's past, but also active for its future. He believed a good job would be done, with what was best for the School being the focus.
The President replied to the toast on behalf of the Association. Our photograph shows him in full flow. He was delighted to welcome to the Committee the first-ever lady member, Davina Bason, and reminisced in traditional fashion about Taff, Jake, Joe, Chike and Henry Oldnall, before his chosen 'assassin', Doug Wall, reported that he claimed to be the only man ever to sleep with the President! He admitted that it was when they shared a room on a rugby tour together. My knowledge of rugby tours would lead me to suggest that neither of them would have known much about it.
Graham Wyer played 'God Save the Queen' and 'Auld Lang Syne' beautifully – again, a major break with tradition. After the formalities, the President relaxed with his contemporaries.
This year, we were able to welcome more young people than had been the case previously, it is hoped demonstrating that the Association's 'Way Forward' policy is beginning to bear fruit. Among them were School Head Boy Richard Smith, fresh from his role as the coach driver in the School's production of Willy Russell's play Our Day Out; Head Girl Amy Fairhurst; and Duncan Groves, who left the School in 1997 and had flown in from San Diego only the previous day especially for the Dinner.
Also present were the two newest members of the Association, who joined only the week before the Dinner and who were organising a reunion for their year group – Joanne Knight and Lisa Harrison (Broomfield), both of whom left the School in 1986. Joanne and Lisa intend to return next year with more friends of their age. Joanne had such a good time that she bought her brother Stephen his membership as a Christmas present!