HM Blog

11th July

You have arrived in this place on this morning from somewhere different. Maybe a train ride, maybe courtesy of Salisbury Reds. Perhaps you have braved the traffic queues in your parents’ car, a quick period of mayhem on the basketball court, registration and now you are somewhere completely at odds with all of that. Peace punctuated by words and by music. Serenity amidst the tumult, time and space to think, to reflect and to worship. A different world. But I wonder what you will take away when you walk back out through the North Porch Door and return across that diagonal path to school?

9th July

This time last year I thought that I had paid my last visit to Great Yews, that extraordinary piece of ancient woodland anchored in the Longford Estate some way to the south of Odstock. Now, those contorted evergreens are another year older and I have just returned from another two camping trips towards the close of another Summer Term at Bishop’s. For the uninitiated, we take each Year 7 tutor group of 32 boys for an overnight wild camp – walking them the 14 miles there and back, cooking over open camp fires and scaring them witless in the woods after dark. It’s immense fun, it’s been happening for generations and it is the stuff of legends. Old boys from decades back still recall their experiences, and friendships forged at Great Yews often last a lifetime.

2nd July

Sir Cecil Herbert Edward Chubb, Baronet, was born in Shrewton on 14th April 1876, eldest son of Alfred and Mary Chubb. Alfred – known as Fred – was the village saddler and harness maker, as was his father before him. Cecil Chubb, his son, was no slouch – after school he progressed to Christ’s College Cambridge where he was awarded a double first in Science and Law, and he went on to wealth and fortune. Well – so what – a bright boy who did very well, but otherwise nothing to mark Cecil out as worthy of future comment. Except for two accidents of fate that is.

8th May

The media has been flooded with histories and, almost unbelievably, some first-hand accounts of that day in May 1945 when the war was finally over after nearly 6 long years. The testimonies suggest that the day began in some confusion, as though the radio broadcasts from the BBC and others had relayed the news that Nazi Germany had surrendered it was not entirely clear what would come next. Churchill’s oration gave certainty to the outcome of the conflict and the church bells ringing confirmed it too but there was not a spontaneous outbreak of euphoria. Relief, certainly, some jubilation but also weariness and an awareness that many were feeling loss of property and of loved ones. The fighting may have been over but the damage, the wounds, would take a long time to heal. I am sure that there will be plenty of local memories which will be documented in the pages of the Salisbury Journal and elsewhere that will echo those emotions.

27th March

For those of you (and there are a few) who spend some of their lives inhabiting another planet, this school has an intimate connection with the Bishops of Salisbury. Just over 130 years ago, Bishop John Wordsworth (the 67th Bishop) decided to set up a school here, in the Cathedral Close; the school was even based in the Bishop’s Palace (now the home of the Cathedral School) for the first few months of its life. With that heritage and lineage it is no surprise that the connection between the Bishop’s office and the Bishop’s School is strong and persistent.

3rd February

If I was to say the word pilgrim – what would come into your mind? A hooded, cloaked figure with a staff pacing towards a distant landmark perhaps. A barefooted worshipper walking slowly along a dry, dusty road as the sun sets? The cliches come flooding in for us all. Yes, to go on a pilgrimage is to make a journey with a purpose, usually to a shrine or other sacred place – but no, the images often don’t quite fit. Pilgrims are in the news at the moment (not for all the best reasons) as two of the largest migrations of human kind take place. The Chinese making their way home for new year and back again – some nine billion journeys between different provinces and international trips, and India’s Kumbh Mela where 400 million pilgrims travel to bathe in the River Ganges.

29th January

I received this letter from the Bill Browne of the Salisbury Education Partnership this morning – it speaks volumes about the real commitment of a generation of sixth form students from Bishop’s to a good cause – and their determination to make a difference in their local city. Long may it be so…

27th January

Bishop’s boys and girls taking History at either GCSE or A Level can see and appreciate that History is real – its not just something for textbooks and films, and its not just something that happens to other people. History is before us, and the lessons of History are there for us all to read and learn from, to shock us from our complacency and warn us of what can happen if we take our freedoms for granted.

23rd January

Every holiday I always try to read a book – and this one was no exception. I thought I’d better top up my knowledge and understanding of evolutionary theory – not by studying The Descent of Man or the Origin of The Species, but by looking through the eyes of a modern day Darwinian Scholar – Richard Dawkins. Dawkins was for 10+ years Chair of Public Understanding of Science at Oxford, a renowned Evolutionary Biologist and a worthy successor to Darwin in the 21st century. Put to one side his outspoken views on God just for the moment, and you can read and fully appreciate the quality of scientific perception and the clarity of communication. When I was younger I read two of his other books, the ‘Selfish Gene’ and ‘The Blind Watchmaker’ and I would recommend both to any of you who hope to study Biology at university.