No. 139 The Trusty Servant
OW News
Ten Sen Men The Hon Nigel Bruce( D, 34-39) Professor Sir Bryan Thwaites( C, 41-42) W E Prescott( C, 38-42) J H B Irving( K, 38-42) Dr E J Feuchtwanger( A, 39-43) Dr J R Scott( Coll, 38-43) Revd A D StJ Hurst( Coll, 38-43) J K B Illingworth( Coll, 38-43) A R Longley( C, 39-43) The Venerable Michael Harford( E, 39-43)
Appointments Richard Fuller( H, 73-77) has been appointed to the Board of Stewards of the Jockey Club.
Awards Stephen Willmer( C, 77-82) was appointed OBE in the 2024 New Year Honours, for services to Defence and International Diplomacy.
Ben Cairns( C, 77-81) was appointed OBE in the 2024 King’ s Birthday Honours, for services to charity and the voluntary sector.
Shehan Hettiaratchy( Coll, 83-87) was appointed OBE in the 2025 New Year Honours for services to the UK’ s Emergency Health Response overseas.
Academic News Yang Wern Ooi( Coll, 81-85; CoRo, 01-03) has recently been appointed as Senior Lecturer, Head of Clinical and Communication Skills at Queen Mary Medical School in Malta from May 25.
Medical News Arpan Mehta( F, 99-04) has been awarded the 51 st Croon Medal, given annually for research within the last five years. In related news, Arpan is a joint recipient of grants from the WoodNext Foundation totalling over £ 1 million to support his research into understanding how mutations in particular protein kinases cause human diseases. More details can be found on the University of Dundee website or at wincollsoc. org / news
Parliamentary News Fred Thomas( B, 05-10) was elected as a Labour MP in the 4 th July 2024 General Election. He holds the seat of Plymouth Moor View, with a majority of 5,604.
In the House of Lords on 11 th December, during the debate( 2 nd hearing) on the House of Lords( Hereditary Peers) Bill, three OW Peers spoke: Lord Northbrook( A, 67-72); Lord Magan of Castletown( K, 59-63); Viscount Eccles( H, 44-49).
On 25 th March 2025, as the same Bill was being debated during its Committee Stage, a party of Wykehamists headed by the Warden and Second Master, and including 12 pupils, was welcomed to the House of Lords by Viscount Younger of Leckie( F, 69-74). They were joined later by other Old Wykehamists for the OW Parliamentarians Dinner:
The Bishop of Winchester; Viscount Eccles( H, 44-49); Lord Hannay of Chiswick( B, 49-54); Lord Jay of Ewelme( C, 59-64); Lord Grantchester( B, 64-68); Sir John Whittingdale MP( A, 73-77); Lord Ashcombe.( Lord Northbrook was speaking again in the debate.)
Obiter Dicta TS 135 carried the news that: Piers Litherland( A, 69-74) has been leading a team of archaeologists in Egypt that has discovered a 3,500-year-old tomb in a necropolis near the Valley of the Kings and in Luxor. The recently uncovered tomb,‘ probably belonged to one of the royal wives or princesses during the period of Thutmosid rule’. As many readers will be aware, in February Piers announced that the tomb had actually belonged to Pharaoh Thutmose II. Moreover, the tomb appeared to have been deliberately emptied following ancient flooding and the team had identified the possible site of the second Thutmose II tomb.
William Paton( G, 89-94) writes:
In a glut at the end of 2022, I received a PhD in History of Art at the University of Aberdeen, was made a Deputy Lieutenant of Aberdeenshire, and became a member of The Royal Company of Archers, The King’ s Bodyguard for Scotland. In addition, I became a member of the Club of Deir a small dining club representing the landed, professional and agricultural circles of Aberdeenshire.
At the time of writing, one fifth of the members of the Club of Deir are OWs. Of the 15 members, the OWs are: Geordie Burnett-Stuart( K, 61-65); William Paton; John Don( H, 53-58).
OW Military Guild The OW Military Guild has been created. Membership is open to Old Wykehamists serving in or retired from the Armed Forces. Its two main objectives are to support current Wykehamists considering a military career and as a forum within which to network. Membership will be managed through the Clubs and Societies pages on the Win Coll Soc website, which will also give instructions on how to apply for membership.
Oli Wettern( G, 06-11) will be the Guild’ s first OC.
OW Pilots’ Group Paul Smiddy( K, 67-71) writes: Are there any Old Wok pilots out there? Of military, civil, GA or retired status? Paul Smiddy would be happy to host an initial lunch or dinner at the RAF Club,
14