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NEWS OF OLD BRUTONIANS
BIRTHS
BLACKMORE, (Nee Ashton) to
Dominique (W92/94) and John a
daughter, Emily on October 7th, 2004
BLANNING, to Tim (O55/60) and
Nicky a daughter Lucy in November
2004, sister for Tom
DAVIS, to Mark (L75/78) and his wife a
second son Max in 2004
GRAHAM to Tresham (O87/92) and
Stephanie a daughter, Lea, on 16th
June, 2004
JOHNSON to Tim (P78/82) and Clare a
daughter, Madeleine Francis, on 7th
June, 2004, a sister for Benedict
KEAN, to Richard (B92/97) and Clare a
daughter Rosie Ella Reece on
November 5th, 2004
MILES to John (N81/86) and his wife a
daughter Georgia Anne Avice on June
28th, 2004
OULTON to Alex (N86/91) and Noriko
on October 13th, 2004 a son, Leo,
brother for Hannah
PILCHER to Lyster (N85/90) and Kate,
a daughter Josie Blossom on
December 13th, 2004, sister for Harriet
and Annabel
STREVENS to James (N86/91) and
Sophie, a son, Henry
ZLATTINGER to Andre (P86/89) and
Ruth, a son, Fredrick Ronald on March
22nd 2004
ENGAGEMENTS
Charles WATSON (O80/85) son of
Major David WATSON (N57/60) to
Susannah Gilmour
Alan WILLIAMS (B92/97) to Kelly
Holmes in October 2004
MARRIAGES
D. Roger CHILDERLEY (O50/53) to
Doreen Margaret Chandler on April
10th, 2003 at Poole Court, Yate, Bristol
Richard KEAN (B92/97) to Clare on
July 26th, 2003
Edward MATSON (L79/84) to Vivienne
Lumsden of Kenya on March 6th,
2004
Timothy McCALLUM (O90/95) to
Fiona in July 2004
Anna OBOLENSKAYA (A98/00) to
Andrew Jones in York on November
19th, 2004
Timothy STYLES (B92/97) to Angela on
September 2004
DEATHS
BERNAYS, Nick (O59/64) on April 15th,
2004
BOWRING, Lt Col Peter Terence
(O41/46) on March 5th, 2005
GAIT, Major John E H (N27/30) on
March 17th, 2005 in Cambridge
PRIDIE, Mark (O55/59) on July 21st,
2004 whilst swimming off Cape Cod,
Massachusetts
SIMPSON, Lt Cdr C F Peter MBE
(O42/45) in Bath June 2004
SOMERVILLE, Alderman James R
(O40/45) on January 21st, 2005
WILSON, Wing Cmdr L Douglas
(N30/34) on June 6th, 2004
Honorary Member
John NEAL (Staff 1954 – 1986;
Housemaster, New House 1964 –
1979) on Christmas Eve 2004.
JOHN R. NEAL MBE
John Neal’s funeral took place on January 11th, 2005 at
Hereford Crematorium. In addition to Peter and Margaret
Neal (John’s brother and sister-in-law) and other family
members, several Brutonians were able to be present.
Peter Canning (O53/57), a former President of the OBA,
attended with his wife, Diana, whose father, Geoffrey
Sale, had appointed John to the School in 1954. Former
colleagues of John’s were represented by the Reverend
Martin Barber, John Bishton, Gerald Cooper, David
Hindley, Colin Jones (with his wife Pam) and Colin
Juneman, the current President of the School Common
Room. They were accompanied by Mike Barnfield who
was in New House under John from 1969 until 1974 and
who currently serves on the Committee of the Friends of
King’s School, the organisation of which John had been
both Secretary and Treasurer. Also among the
congregation was Mrs Rose Dowell (with her husband
Sid) who cleaned not only in New House for many years
but also for John while he was living at Westfield, Bruton;
as John became increasingly infirm, she and Sid offered
him very loyal support. The service, from the Book of
Common Prayer, was conducted by the Reverend
Prebendary James Butterworth, who also gave the
address:
When we were talking about John, preparing for this
service, Margaret said to me that John lived the life of a
monk.
OBITUARIES
I know that what she meant included particularly the
elements of unselfishness, of love for God and of concern
for one’s neighbour; and, at the heart, an intense,
incomprehensible simplicity which demanded very little
and was content with very little, too.
Of course, alongside this went a life of God directedness,
which was unselfconscious. T S Eliot talks of the “secret to
himself” which may dwell at the heart of a man’s life and I
suspect that this privacy of temperament and almost
cryptic self-dealing was John’s characteristic and may, of
course, have frustrated those who tried to get closer in
order to do more for him. What is also worth noting at this
moment is the immense and loving patience which Peter
showed to him all along; and though their differences of
temperament are obvious, their devotion to one another
was the cement that bound them.
John’s background was immensely important in
moulding the man. Like many of his generation, he was
interrupted in his education by the war and trained as a
navigator in the RAF, and then went up to Cambridge in
1946 to complete his academic study of modern languages.
He started teaching at Oakham in Rutland, and after a
short time, moved to King’s School, Bruton, which was the
scene of so many experiences and gifts. Eventually, he was
head of German, housemaster of New House and
Commanding Officer of the CCF, for which he was awarded
the M.B.E.
Retirement meant that he became involved with the CAB
in Yeovil, where, again, he rose to become Deputy Manager.
OLD BRUTONIAN ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER 2005 27