The Old Brutonian Association

The 2010 London Lunch

email@oldBrutonians.com — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 09:33:00 GMT

The 2010 OBA London Lunch will be on Friday 3rd December 2010 at Stationers' Hall. Watch this space for details nearer the day.

Monthly reunion in Bristol

email@oldBrutonians.com — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 13:57:00 GMT

There is a very informal reunion of Old Brutonians held at lunchtime on the first Thursday of each month at The Angel in Long Ashton.

There are usually six or seven OBs of various ages and they are always keen to see more OBs there.

The Angel is a historic village pub dating from 1485, surrounded by farmland, next to a 600 year old church, and yet it is ideally situated less than one mile from Bristol city centre and its business heartland and fifteen minutes drive from Bristol Airport. Fifteen minutes walk away is the newly developed waterfront.

There is a map here

Sophie Parr

email@oldBrutonians.com — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 10:47:00 GMT

The very sad news has reached us that Sophie Parr, who was at Kings from 1999 to 2003, the daughter of Malcolm and Rosie Parr, died on December 13th, aged just 24 after a short illness.

Those who knew Sophie will mourn the sudden loss of such a vibrant and cheerful personaliity. No doubt, the thoughts of all will be with her family at this time.

The funeral was at St Marys, Bruton on Tuesday, December 29th.

Please follow this link: http://www.thisisdorset.co.uk/westerngazette/castlecary/Sophie-loses-cancer-battle/article-1709621-detail/article.html

More mad dogs and Englishmen....

email@oldBrutonians.com — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:40:00 GMT

Tom Heal

Will Smith

Two more Old Brutonians doing something daft and brave are Tom Heal and Will Smith who left Bruton in 2006 and who aim to be the youngest ever team to take part in the Woodvale Transatlantic rowing race.

The Woodvale starts on December 6th (so they just have time for the London Lunch) and goes east to west from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua. It is completely unaided once the race begins and covers some 2930 miles, taking between 50 and 70 days.

They are rowing to raise money for the Special Boat Service Association (SBSA) and hope to raise at least £75,000 for the trip and funds for their charity.

Go to their web site to learn more about this challenge and to see how you can help.

Good luck to Tom and Will

Sgt. Ben Ross

email@oldBrutonians.com — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:23:00 GMT

We report the death in action in Afghanistan of Ben Ross, Old Brutonian. Ben was at Hazlegrove between 1983 and 1988 and in Old House from 1988 to 1993.

Sergeant Ross, (34), is survived by Sheena, a serving Royal Military Policewoman.

He was born in Bangor, Wales, and grew up in Dubai. He was educated at Hazlegrove Prep School and then at Kings School, Bruton, in Somerset.

He went on to join the Army in 1996 and joined The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, serving with them in Germany, Canada, Poland, in the Balkans and as a Phase One instructor.

Sergeant Ross transferred to the Royal Military Police in 2003 and was subsequently posted to Weapons Intelligence Section in Northern Ireland.

He deployed on Operation TELIC 4, completed the Close Protection Course and deployed to 177 Support Platoon, 6 Royal Military Police in Northern Ireland. Having moved back to the Close Protection Unit as an instructor he was then deployed to Iraq as part of the Close Protection Team for the British Ambassador to Iraq.

He has served on various other tours including Operation TELIC a second time, Operation HERRICK (Afghanistan) and in Sudan. In December 2008 he was posted to 173 Provost Company 3 Royal Military Police in order to deploy on Operation HERRICK 10.

There, he was a team leader within the Police Mentoring Company. His role was to mentor, train and advise the Afghan Uniformed Police on security, policing and law enforcement, a role he relished.

Officer Commanding 173 Provost Company, Major Adam Quantrell, described Sgt Ross as a professional, a veteran of many tours with a warrior attitude and spirit, fiercely determined yet compassionate and patient.

He said: "A wise man once said that a truly great man is somebody that doesn’t remind you of anyone else.

"Ben Ross stood alone in this respect; utterly competent and truly professional. Dedication, sacrifice, and leadership were his mantras and they are the best words in which to describe him.

"He was a giant among men and I am blessed for having him under command and the Company is blessed for having served with him."

Company Sergeant Major, Warrant Officer (Class 2) Sean Kimber said: "For all the qualities that you ascribe to Ben, and there would be many that all his mates could think of, I believe impressive is the one that simply sums Ben up.

"Impressive as a soldier, who could always be relied on by both his commanders and those that he commanded; in many ways he was my ‘go to’ man. Ben fell in the manner that he performed as a soldier; by leading the way and not shying away from the difficult situations he was confronted with.

"In many ways Ben as a person was more impressive. His composed nature meant that he always had time for people; rank was neither here nor there for Ben when it came to assisting those that needed his calm words of advice or his experienced hands to help.

"It will be hard not having Ben around, especially at such an early stage of the tour, however it will be offset by the fact that I and the rest of the Company knew such an excellent bloke."

8 Platoon Commander, Captain John Steele said of him: "He will be deeply missed and never forgotten. I extend my most sincere sympathy to his family and friends."

And 8 Platoon Second in Command, Staff Sergeant Dan Stephens, said: "I relied on Ben hugely and he never failed to deliver. His keen eye, sharp style and forthright manner belied an immensely loyal and devoted Soldier, a professional and outstanding Military Policeman and a compassionate and understanding man."

Mad Dogs and Englishmen....

email@oldBrutonians.com — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 21:01:00 GMT

Never mind dogs; you can guarantee that at any time, there is bound to be and Englishman (and probably an Old Brutonian) doing something completely mad somewhere in the world.

You can read elsewhere about André Zlattinger and Mount Everest but you will not yet know much about another intrepid OB. By the time you come to read about him in the Old Brutonian, Chris (known as Billy) Gammon will be part of the way across the Indian Ocean with two other Englishman and a New Zealander in a very small boat. They are rowing some 5,800 kilometres (as the shark swims) from Perth to Mauritius to raise funds and awareness for research into prostate cancer. They aim to be the first crew ever to row across the Indian Ocean but as this has now become a race, there will be some stiff competition.

Successful arrival in Mauritius will undoubtedly result in a much bigger write-up in next year’s Old Brutonian but in the meantime, you can support Billy by going to the crew’s web site – where you may also make a donation to his cause at www.rowingforprostate.com.

Old Brutonian on Everest....

email@oldBrutonians.com — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 08:00:00 GMT

This is André Zlattinger who was in Priory House 1985-1989. He is the only Old Brutonian to have reached the summit of Mount Everest, a feat he achieved at 8 am on 22nd May, 2008.

He will be giving a talk at the London Rowing Club on Putney Embankment on Wednesday 12th November at 7.30 pm. Tickets are only £7 and all proceeds are going to the Royal Marsden Hospital Cancer Campaign. All Old Brutonians are encouraged to attend.

There will be further talks in the new year

A new novel by Lewis Crofts (Old Brutonian)

email@oldBrutonians.com — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 23:44:00 GMT

AVAILABLE FROM THE OBA SHOP £10

Book Description
The Pornographer of Vienna tells the life story of Egon
Schiele, the infamous Austrian painter famed for his sexually explicit
portraits of the underbelly of Viennese life in the dying years of the
Habsburg empire. Crofts recounts how Schiele is persecuted by his family,
imprisoned by the Habsburg authorities and forced into poverty by an
unappreciative art world. Schiele finally finds acclaim with those who had
earlier shunned him, before dying tragically a few days short of the end of
the Great War. This novel inspired by Schiele's twisted and perverse life
charts the ascent and demise of Austria's most decadent and most
misunderstood painter.

Synopsis
Based on and inspired by the the short and intense life of the famous Austrian painter, Egon Schiele, this is a brilliantly imagined novel which will enlighten and delight anyone interested in his mesmerizing art. Schiele is portrayed here as a young hedonist with a burning talent, reflected in the raw, provocative sexuality of his paintings and drawings. Crofts stays true to historical context and his characters' life stories while also imagining what might have been. The story of Schiele's creative genius is told in the context of portraying his city, Vienna, before World War I, and providing a startling insight into the lives of artists in the Austro-Hungarian Empire at that time.

A rogues gallery of the 2005 London Lunch and of the inaugural Australian Lunch!

email@oldBrutonians.com — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 12:23:11 GMT

Our Image Gallery has been updated to include a rogues' gallery of the 2005 London Lunch and of the inaugural Australian Lunch!