PERSONALIA
Sam Chidley ( 00-09 ) was awarded his hundredth cap for Birkenhead Park RUFC where he plays at scrum-half . The club was promoted to National League Three earlier this year in a ‘ winner-takes-all ’ clash with Penrith .
Emma Clark ( 94-05 ) completed the London Marathon in April 2017 , running to raise funds for Tenovus Cancer Care , a Wales-based cancer charity . She finished the race in 5 hours 2 minutes and raised over a £ 1000 for the charity .
Alexandra Dariescu ( 01-02 ) returned to school in October 2016 to perform Mozart ’ s Piano Concerto in D Minor accompanied by an orchestra of students and local musicians . She has also released a new CD ; the second volume of complete preludes by Shostakovich and Szymanowski as part of her trilogy project . Her CD : Tchaikovsky ’ s Nutcracker Suite with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra received rave reviews and was shortlisted for Disc of Year on Radio România Muzical . She made her debut with the Romanian Radio Orchestra and Cristian Macelaru at Sala Radio in March . Also on debut , she played the live soundtrack of Brief Encounter with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Dirk Brossé at the Southbank Centre in February . As well as a concert tour to Japan , she has performed and given interviews in the UK for BBC Radio Three . For more news and dates of her future concerts , please visit the website : www . alexandradariscu . com .
Ben Dawes ( 01-10 ) is now married ( see marriage announcement earlier in the magazine ). He met his wife , Lotti , at church in Bath while both were studying at the university . They now live in Cologne in Germany where Ben works for Dyson .
Jilly Dickinson ( 05-09 ) graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University in 2012 with a first class honours BSc in Animal Behaviour . She is now working as an RSPCA Inspector .
Sophie Duncan ( 05-12 ) completed her PGCE and started her first teaching job at a primary school in Skipton , North Yorkshire in September .
Kyle Edmund ( 02-06 ), the South African-born British tennis player and a Davis Cup champion , continues his quest to move up the rankings . He is already a top 50 player and the British number 2 behind Andy Murray . Kyle got through to the second round at this year ’ s Wimbledon making his Centre Court debut against 15th seed Gael Monfils . Despite a promising start by Kyle , the match ended in defeat against an ultimately more experienced opponent . Kyle was pleased that he got to play his own game and learnt a lot from the match . He also enjoyed the experience of playing on one of the biggest courts in the world .
Tom Fuller ( 08-15 ) competed in the 125-mile Devizes to Westminster ( DW ) canoe race in April 2017 . The gruelling race took Tom and his team mate 25 hours , 24 minutes and one second exactly of non-stop paddling through the night ! The pair finished an impressive 64th out of 200 boats after only six months of training . The race , which starts in Devizes , Wiltshire , and finishes opposite the Houses of Parliament in London , has been held annually over the Easter Weekend since 1948 . It is a severe test of skill , physical and mental stamina and planning which produces a memorable sense of achievement for those successfully completing it . Tom is a secondyear Systems Engineering student at Loughborough University . He is also a cadet in the University Officers ’ Training Corp ( UOTC ), which is how he got involved in the DW race . Following his experience , Tom hopes to go on to select and train next year ’ s DW team and support them through the challenge .
Rebekah Hesmondhalgh ( 12-14 ) is studying Theatre and Performance Studies at Warwick University . In February 2017 , she directed her first professional show , Stephen Sondheim ’ s musical Follies , at the Warwick Arts Centre . She has been able to do this and a variety of other theatre projects whilst at university and although she has her sights set on a career in teaching , she would love to return to directing at some point in the future . She credits the setting up of the Musical Theatre Society during her time at Pocklington School for igniting her passion for theatre directing .
Emma Huddlestone ( 07-16 ) has done a Cert TEFL course and has been teaching and travelling in Thailand . She started a university course in hospitality management at Stenden University in The Netherlands in September 2017 .
George Hobson ( 03-14 ) continues to perform as a magician at corporate and private events all across the UK . In summer 2016 he was flown to Le Mans in France for a second consecutive year to perform at a prestigious 24-hour Aston Martin Racing event attended by a number of VIPs and celebrities . In 2017 he plans to perform magic on board cruise ships . For more information , see his website www . georgehobson . co . uk .
James Hopwood ( 95-04 ) is the agricultural director of Ibbotson Produce potato growers near
Tadcaster and an agri-business consultant to East- Riding based Wholecrop Marketing .
Amy Jones ( 03-08 ) qualified as a solicitor in September 2015 and has been working as a property lawyer at a global corporate law firm , Pinsent Masons LLP , in Birmingham since . She got married in Polzeath , Cornwall in June 2017 to her partner Josh who works in Sports Marketing .
Adelle Kama ( 09-16 ) took a gap year after completing her A-levels at Pocklington . She volunteered with sustainable development charity Raleigh International and took part in an environmental project in Borneo . The project in Sabah was to build a bridge to improve access around the Danum Valley Conservation Area .
Tom Kay ( 97-07 ) has been offered the role of Stanhope in Journeys End for Mesh Theatre Company who are taking the play to Belgium ( Ypres ) in October 2017 , marking the centenary of the battle that was fought there . It is to be performed in the old gunpowder store .
Amy Laverack ( 01-08 ) is general manager at the family butchers and bakery business A . Laverack and Son of Holme on Spalding Moor , which has been trading for over 150 years . The firm known in the area for its sausage rolls , has been expanding over the last year to meet demand for its products . As well as two retail outlets , the company also has a thriving wholesale business . It employs over 35 local people and sources meat from local farms , butchering everything on site and priding themselves on the quality and provenance of their meat .
Juliet May ( 05-12 ) is going from strength to strength in her chosen sport of Ironman ( 2.4 mile swim , 112 mile bike followed by a 26.2 mile marathon ). She participated in the Barcelona Ironman in October 2016 and won her age group ( F18-24 ). She finished in a personal best time of 11 hours and 2 minutes , beating her nearest rival by 20 minutes and qualifying for the World Championships at Kona , Hawaii in October 2017 . So far her training for Kona is going really well and she is aiming for a place in the top three at the event ( based on her current PB , she would have finished fifth at last year ’ s Championships !). As a second year medical student , Juliet is also working hard to raise funds and sponsorship to enable her to take part in the Championships which are entirely self-funded . Team GB does not cover the Ironman distance currently , although she did take part in the British Triathlon December 2016 Campaign ‘ Join British Triathlon ’, including a promotional video featured on their website . If anyone would like to discuss sponsorship
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