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The Year
2007
St Catherine’s College . Oxford

Master and Fellows 2007
M A S T E R
Professor Roger W Ainsworth,
MA, DPhil, FRAeS
F E L L O W S
John R Ockendon, MA, DPhil, FRS
Official Fellow
University Lecturer in Mathematics
(Leave M07)
Ian W Craig, MA (PhD Liv)
Fellow by Special Election in Human
Sciences
Professor of Genetics
Sudhir Anand, MA, DPhil
Tutor in Economics
Harold Hindley Fellow
Professor of Economics
(Leave M07)
Richard J Parish, MA, DPhil (BA Newc)
Tutor in French
Philip Spencer Fellow
Professor of French
Jose F Harris, MA (PhD Camb), FBA
Wolfson Fellow
Professor of Modern History
Fram E Dinshaw, MA, DPhil
Official Fellow
Finance Bursar
Peter D Battle, MA, DPhil
Tutor in Inorganic Chemistry
Unilever Fellow
Professor of Inorganic Chemistry
Vice-Master
Revd Colin P Thompson, MA, DPhil
Tutor in Spanish
(Leave M07-H08)
A Gervase Rosser, MA (PhD Lond)
Tutor in History of Art
Librarian
John S Foord, MA (PhD Camb)
Tutor in Physical Chemistry
Professor of Chemistry
Michael J Spence, MA, DPhil (LLB
Syd) Tutor in Law
Head of the Social Science Division
(Leave M07-T08)
Robert A Leese, MA (PhD Durh)
Fellow by Special Election in
Mathematics
Director of the Smith Institute
Louise L Fawcett, MA, DPhil
Tutor in Politics
Wilfrid Knapp Fellow
Senior Tutor
Susan Cooper, MA (PhD Calif)
Professor of Experimental Physics
Helen J Mardon, MA, DPhil
(BSc Sus)
Tutor in Medical Studies
Professor of Reproductive Science
Kobe Officer
Peter R Franklin, MA (BA, PhD York)
Tutor in Music
Professor of Music (Leave T08)
John Charles Smith, MA
Tutor in French Linguistics
Tutor for Admissions
Penny A Handford, MA (BSc, PhD
Soton)
Tutor in Biochemistry
Professor of Biochemistry
(Leave M07-T08)
Timothy Cook, MA, DPhil
Fellow by Special Election
Richard I Todd, MA, DPhil
Tutor in Material Sciences
Goldsmiths Fellow
Marc Lackenby, MA (PhD Camb)
Tutor in Pure Mathematics
Leathersellers’ Fellow
Professor of Mathematics
EPSRC Advanced Research Fellow
(Leave M07-T08)
Duncan C-M Wu, MA, DPhil
Tutor in English
Professor of English
M07 only
Marc E Mulholland, MA (BA, MA,
PhD Belf)
Tutor in Modern History
Dean
Gavin Lowe, MA, DPhil
Tutor in Computer Science
Richard M Berry, MA, DPhil
Tutor in Physics
Angela R McLean, MA (PhD Lond)
Tutor in Zoology
Professor of Mathematical Biology
(Leave M07-T08)
Ashok I Handa, MA (MBBS Lond),
FRCS
Fellow by Special Election in Medicine
Tutor for Graduates
James L Bennett, MA (BA Reading)
Fellow by Special Election
Home Bursar
David J Womersley, MA (PhD Camb)
Warton Professor of English Literature
Richard J Carwardine, MA, DPhil
Rhodes Professor of American History
Cressida E Chappell, MA (BA, MA
Hull)
Fellow by Special Election
Academic Registrar
Secretary to the Governing Body
David R H Gillespie, MA, DPhil
Tutor in Engineering
Rolls-Royce Fellow
Tarun Ramadorai, MA (BA Williams,
MPhil Camb, PhD Harv)
Tutor in Management Studies
M07 only
(Leave M07)
Peter P Edwards, MA (BSc, PhD
Salf), FRS
Professor of Inorganic Chemistry
Alexis J D Tadié (Lic, Maîtrise Paris-IV
Sorbonne, Doctorate Paris-X Nanterre)
Fellow by Special Election
Director of Maison Française d'Oxford
Marius S Kwint, DPhil (MA Aberd)
Fellow by Special Election in History
of Art
Patrick S Grant, MA, DPhil (BEng
Nott)
Cookson Professor of Materials
Justine N Pila (BA, LLB, PhD Melb)
Tutor in Law
Bart B van Es (BA, MPhil, PhD Camb)
Tutor in English
(Leave M07)
Michael Sheppard, MA, DPhil
Fellow by Special Election
Julia M Powles, BA, DPhil
Fellow by Special Election in Human
Sciences
Eric Descheemaeker, (Lic,
Maîtrise, DEA Paris-I Panthéon-
Sorbonne, LLM Lond)
Fellow by Special Election in Law
Patrick S Bullard, MA, MSt, DPhil
(MPhil Dubl)
Junior Research Fellow in English
Rank Research Fellow
Jorge Quintanilla, (Lic Salamanca,
PhD Brist)
Atlas Research Fellow in Condensed
Matter Theory
Tommaso Pizzari, (BSc Aberd, PhD
Shef)
Tutor in Zoology
Byron W Byrne, MA, DPhil (BCom,
BEng Western Australia)
Tutor in Engineering
W (Bill) I F David, MA, DPhil
Fellow by Special Election in Physics
Helen J Scott, MA, BCL, MPhil, DPhil
(BA, LLB Cape Town)
Tutor in Law
(Leave M07)
Andrew M Barry, (BA Camb, DPhil
Sus)
Tutor in Geography
Reader in Geography
Thomas W Pickles, BA, MSt, DPhil
Fellow by Special Election in Modern
History
Philip M Ligrani, (BS Texas, MS,
PhD Stanford)
Donald Schultz Professor of
Turbomachinery
Thomas P Witelski (BS Cooper
Union, PhD CalTech)
Tutor in Mathematics
Professor of Applied Mathematics
Richard M Bailey, (BSc Leics, MSc,
PhD Lond)
Tutor in Geography
Gaia Scerif, (BSc St And, PhD Lond)
Fellow by Special Election in
Psychology
Karl Sternberg, MA
Fellow by Special Election
Christoph Reisinger, (PhD
Heidelberg)
Tutor in Mathematics
Giandomenico Iannetti, (MD, PhD
La Sapienza Rome)
Fellow by Special Election in
Medicine

Contents
CONTENTS
Master’s Report 2
College Life The work of the Admissions Office 6
Benefactors’ Day 8
OXIP one year on 9
Postcards to the Master 10
Patrick Stewart’s Inaugural Lecture 12
Introducing the work of Black Oxford 15
The Nick Young Award 17
Finals Results 2007 19
Graduate Degrees and Diplomas 21
Sports Review 23
Student Perspectives Kate Stinson 25
Justin Puleo 26
Tomasz Mazur 27
Anna Avramenko 28
Wallace Watson Award 29
Emilie’s Charities – update 31
Alumni News Colin Smith and Andy Hodge 32
Bill Ritchie 34
Sir John Elvidge 36
Jane Platt 37
Desmond Brown 38
William Woodruff 40
News in brief 42
Boston reunion 45
Development Office & the College time capsule clue 46
College Events List 2008 46
Catz Fellows Peter Franklin 48
Gaia Scerif 51
Ceri Peach 53
Alexis Tadié 56
John Charles Smith 58
Gazette Donald Hill 59
Peter Schlechtriem 59
Jack Lankester 60
Lord Garden 63
Obituaries 66
Admissions 2007 70
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/1

MESSAGES
Master’s Report
A message from Professor Roger Ainsworth, Master of St Catherine’s
I WOULD LIKE TO BEGIN MY SIXTH REPORT as Master of
St Catherine’s by paying tribute to the work of all our
staff, Fellows and Officers. Those of you close to the
action know from personal experience how important
every cog in the machine is, especially in a relatively small
institution such as ours. As I write this, I am only too
conscious that lack of space prevents me from
mentioning by name all those whose efforts ensure that
every aspect of College life runs smoothly.
This year we allow two Fellows to retire gracefully from
holding major College offices. As Dean, Henry Bennet-
Clark has given service beyond the call of duty in coming
out of retirement to take on decanal and welfare roles –
we are very grateful for his service. Colin Thompson,
Senior Tutor, also retires from office. Colin could not have
carried out his complex duties with more diligence and
commitment. He has helped many students over his four
years of office, and made my life, and that of other
officers, much easier because we knew that he would
deal with every issue expertly.
Two Tutors of immense experience have also retired this
year: Ceri Peach (Geography) and Bruce Henning
(Psychology). Between them, they have clocked up
seventy-two years of service for College, have
contributed much to this community, and are
remembered with great affection by generations of Catz
students. Professor Chris Graham also retires after a
distinguished research career in Zoology. Other Fellows
on the move include Berta Joncus, Lance Miller, who will
concentrate his activities in his Department, and Nick
Roberts, who moves to a permanent post at Durham. We
wish them well for their future careers.
During the last academic year there have been a large
number of new additions to the Fellowship – possibly a
record-breaking number. New Tutorial Fellows include Tim
Bayne in Philosophy, Gaia Scerif in Psychology, Christoph
Reisinger in Mathematics, and Richard Bailey in
Geography. Phil Ligrani took up the Donald Schultz Chair
in Turbomachinery, becoming a Professorial Fellow, and
Andrew Wheeler became the Rolls-Royce Industrial
Fellow, further strengthening our interests in the field of
aero-engine research. Karl Sternberg, Giandomenico
Iannetti, and Robert Mabro were made Fellows by Special
Election and, in their different ways, give excellent service
to College.
I am pleased to report that it has been a good year for
external recognition of the work of students and Fellows
alike. I can not mention them all but, at the
undergraduate level, Materials Science has performed
particularly well, with University Prizes awarded to
Benjamin Britton (Ironmongers Company Award),
Matthew Brooke-Hitching (Green Prize for the Best
Those of you
close to the
action know
from personal
experience
how important
every cog in
the machine is,
especially in a
relatively small
institution
such as ours.
2 /A MESSAGE FROM THE MASTER

MESSAGES
National Graduate in Ceramics), Michael Rogers (QinetiQ
Prize) and Femi Fadugba (Armourers Rolls-Royce Prize).
Languages also feature, with the Dudbridge Prize for
outstanding performance in Classical Chinese going to
Dewi Goulden, and Tim Motz, whose father and greatuncle
were both College members, winning the Pusey and
Ellerton Prize in Biblical Hebrew. Aleks Reinhardt took the
Degussa Company prize in Chemistry, and Dora Steel the
Wronker prize in Medicine. At the graduate level, Lucy
Hannington took the Pickering Prize for the Best Overall
Performance in Medicine and Surgery.
Those afforded public recognition for their achievements
from amongst the Fellowship include Peter Battle, who
was awarded a medal by the Royal Society of Chemistry
for his work in Solid State Chemistry. In May, John Charles
(JC) Smith was made a Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Palmes
Adadémiques for his services to the French Language and
French culture. Helen Mardon was nominated for an
award which acknowledges the achievements of ‘an
exceptional woman who shows bravery, compassion and
strives to make the world a better place’ by the Women
of the Year Lunch and Assembly, and Ceri Peach was
honoured by the Association of American Geographers
for his outstanding contribution to the advancement of
the discipline. From the ranks of former Masters,
Raymond Plant was awarded an honorary doctorate from
York University for his work in Philosophy and Peter
Williams was made Chancellor of Leicester University.
One of the least enjoyable tasks of this report is to
speak of those who have died during the year. We were
deeply saddened to learn of the death of Air Marshal
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/3

MESSAGES
Over the past
twelve months
the College
has hosted a
range of highly
successful and
enjoyable
events,
including a
Benefactors’
Day, a
fundraising All
Sports Dinner
and what is
perhaps the
largest Gaudy
that we have
ever
organised.
The Lord Garden, in August. Tim Garden (1962, Physics),
who was elected to an Honorary Fellowship at St
Catherine’s in 1994, had retained close links with Catz
and was a member of the College’s Rowing Society. He
supported Catz in many, many ways, and will be much
missed. In November we mourned the death of Jack
Lankester, Emeritus Fellow and University Surveyor, who
was closely involved with the construction of our
magnificent buildings. It is also with sadness that I
report the death of Peter Schlechtriem from Albert
Ludwig University, Freiburg, who was a Visiting Fellow at
St Catherine’s College in Hilary Term 2001.
It is with no little pleasure, however, that I report that
Catz alumni continue to achieve great things. To
mention but a few noteworthy examples of success: Bill
Ritchie (1971, Law) received an MBE in the Queen’s
New Year’s Honours List for his Services to the
Environment and Sustainable Development of the
Highlands and Islands, and Shaun Johnson (1982,
Social Studies), the Chief Executive of the Mandela
Rhodes Foundation in Cape Town, received awards and
international critical acclaim for his debut novel, The
Native Commissioner. In America, David Nersessian
(1999, Law (DPhil)) has been appointed Executive
Director of the Program on the Legal Profession at
Harvard Law School – a programme whose mission is to
‘increase understanding of the structures and norms of
the legal profession in the United States and around
the world’. Out on the water, Colin Smith (2003,
Geography) and Andy Hodge (2004, Water Science
Policy) – who both rowed with winning Oxford crews
while at Catz – continue to achieve success at the same
time as they submit themselves to a gruelling training
regime in their quest for Olympic glory next year.
The Cameron Mackintosh Visiting Professorship has
proved to be a most constructive strategic move for
College and we attract many envious glances from the
rest of the University in having it based here. This year’s
Professor, Patrick Stewart, further strengthened the
Professoriate. His inaugural lecture in April, ‘Are You
Anybody?’, attracted a large, diverse audience. Some
came to hear about his Hollywood years as Captain Jean
Luc Picard in Star Trek, whilst many others wanted to
hear about his current activities with the Royal
Shakespeare Company. Such was his skill that he left both
portions of this disparate audience deeply satisfied.
The Cameron Mackintosh Lecture is just one opportunity
that College has had to open its doors to alumni and
friends. Over the past twelve months the College has
hosted a range of highly successful and enjoyable events,
including a Benefactors’ Day, a fundraising All Sports
Dinner and what is perhaps the largest Gaudy that we
have ever organised. As part of the University’s first
Alumni Weekend programme, alumni from other Halls and
Colleges were offered guided tours of the College.
Working in conjunction with the Oxford Preservation
Trust, Catz also participated in an ‘open doors’ scheme
that encouraged local people to explore their city and
visit places not normally open to the public. Away from
Oxford, the London Party was a wonderful occasion – I
was particularly delighted to see so many younger alumni
present, and hope that next year’s party will be equally
well attended.
4 /A MESSAGE FROM THE MASTER

MESSAGES
I have recently returned from a rapid tour of Yale,
Princeton, Berkeley, Stanford and UCLA. I was there in
my role as Chair of this University’s Building and
Estates Subcommittee (BESC), looking with others at
the way these institutions plan strategically for the
future – how they manage all aspects of their building
programmes, and how they fund them. I learnt much of
use from the BESC standpoint, but it was also extremely
useful from a College point of view. Having observed at
close quarters what is going on across the Atlantic, my
view is that our facilities – library, Hall, lecture theatre,
seminar rooms, student accommodation – compare
extremely well. Nevertheless, we need to work to
incorporate together our academic and facility plans. To
give but one example, we need to think about future
student workspace in the library. We have a real gem in
our Wolfson Library, and, as technology continues to
develop, we need to consider the likely future
requirements of this workspace, and do everything we
can to ensure it remains a place where our students
find it stimulating, convenient and attractive to work.
In May 2008 the University will be launching a
Campaign of Campaigns to raise funds to help secure
our future. We will be part of this, launching our own
campaign in April 2008 to celebrate our fiftieth year in
2012. We have examined our needs – securing the
future of the tutorial system, foundation and graduate
scholarships, student support funds, continuing
refurbishment and upgrading of the fabric, building our
endowment – and these will be the targets for our
campaign. We have travelled a long way since our
founders contemplated the building of this College and
community more than fifty years ago. Their execution
of those plans has given us a marvellous legacy. We
have remained true to their founding ideals. Now it is
time to look forward – to plan for our next half century
and, with your help, realise our ambitions.
We have
travelled a long
way since our
founders
contemplated
the building of
this College
and community
more than fifty
years ago.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/5

COLLEGE LIFE
The work of the Admissio
Lindsay Campbell, Deputy Academic Registrar 2006-07,
writes about the work of the College’s Admissions Office.
IT IS AMAZING HOW MANY MISCONCEPTIONS persist
about Oxford University. As an Admissions Officer at St
Catherine’s, it has been an important part of my job to
help dispel the myths that still surround the Oxford
application process. The Admissions Office’s work is at
the heart of the College’s original mission to attract
top-calibre students, regardless of background, to
study at Oxford. The hectic fortnight of interviews in
December draws an assortment of the brightest
student talent from across the country and beyond
and, despite the intensity of the administrative load at
this time (these are weeks that strike fear into the
heart of every Admissions Officer!) it is marvellous to
have the opportunity to catch a glimpse of the
individuals behind the application forms. Equally
rewarding is being on the other end of a telephone
when an individual learns that his or her perseverance
and determination has secured a place at College and
access to an Oxford education – a potentially lifetransforming
moment.
The Office’s constant interaction with schools, colleges
and potential students also helps it – and those who
work in it – to question existing procedures and
assumptions and to explore new ways of adapting to the
needs of students, schools and families. Feedback from
visitors to Catz who have participated in events such as a
Study Day organised by the English Department in June
this year, suggests that time is well spent building
relationships between schools and their pupils. These
relationships help those concerned to make an informed
choice about higher education and, crucially, encourage
students to aim as high as possible when considering
their next step after school. Visitors to St Catherine’s are
often surprised by what they find at the end of Manor
Road – by the green and open spaces that greet them
and by the fact that, against stiff competition from other
Colleges, Catz succeeds in expressing its individuality. As
one potential undergraduate put it, ‘the design had
retained a traditional ‘Oxford’ style, without feeling
oppressive or restrictive.’
J C Smith addressing
students at a College
Open Day and (below)
Catz students answering
questions from visitors.
6 /THE WORK OF THE ADMISSIONS OFFICE

COLLEGE LIFE
ns Office
It is a sign of the affectionate regard in which current students hold St
Catherine’s that they are so willing to participate in our projects. They give
generously of their time, welcoming visitors to the College and supporting a
range of Catz initiatives, from interview fortnight to Open Days and school
visits.
This year, supported by the University’s Student Access
team, Catz launched a pilot e-mentoring project, which
involves undergraduate students chatting online with
sixth-formers who are about to make decisions about
which A-level subjects to take, what degrees to
consider and, of course, how best to complete tricky
application forms. Many sixth-formers do not have
experience within their family of studying at university
and we hope that, by providing such an introduction to
the College, we can foster interest in St Catherine’s and
provide an accessible, practical and up-to-the-minute
advice and support service.
Amar Radia (2005, PPE) – Last year I was one of a group
of students who acted as hosts during Admissions
fortnight. The JCR was transformed and a help-desk,
manned by students from 8.45am to 10.00pm, set up.
We kept all the information we might need at our
fingertips, and were there to help and assist applicants in
any way possible. Our priority was to make them feel at
ease – by providing tea and biscuits and playing DVDs –
and help solve any problems that might pop up.
Applicants often find it easy to talk informally to
undergraduate students who have recently been through
this testing process. They can ask us questions about the
admissions process without feeling like they are being
silly, and can also ask about student and College life.
Charlotte Nolan (2006, Modern History) – Over the past
year I’ve been involved in several of the admissions
activities, most notably assisting at Open Days and
participating in several school visits. From the outside,
Oxford University (even for those familiar with the
collegiate system) can be quite a complicated and
confusing system, so bringing people into the Catz
environment has proved to be a really beneficial process.
Open Days and school visits offer a varied programme of
events, with potential applicants sampling the best of
Catz cuisine by eating lunch in Hall, and mingling with
students (who are ready to answer an inexhaustible
stream of questions) in the JCR.
It has made it
seem much
more accessible
than I had
thought
previously.
Also, I now
understand
that the
admissions
process is
designed to let
candidates
show
themselves at
their best.
Comment from one
potential student after
attending an Open Day.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/7

COLLEGE LIFE
Benefactors’ Day
ON SATURDAY 19 MAY over two hundred alumni and
their partners came back to College to celebrate the
success of the Catz Campaign and see for themselves
what had been achieved with their donations. After
drinks in the SCR and the opportunity to catch up with
old friends over lunch in Hall, guests moved to the
Bernard Sunley Lecture Theatre for a series of lively
and stimulating talks. First to speak was Nick
Lykiardopulo (1977, PPE), who recounted the victory of
his boat, Aera, in the Sydney Hobart Yacht race in
January 2005. Accompanied by breathtaking photos,
After lunch in
Hall... guests
moved to the
Bernard Sunley
Lecture
Theatre for
a series of
lively and
stimulating
talks.
Nick’s talk brought to life the
extreme challenges faced by
all who participate in one of
the world’s toughest and
most prestigious races. Nick’s
talk was followed by an
account by third-year medical
student Rachel Brettell of her
travels in Mongolia. Rachel
was one of the 2006 winners
of the Wallace Watson Travel
Award, and her account of
her travels through a still
remote part of the world
drew many questions from an
interested audience. The final
talk, delivered by Catz Fellow,
geographer Dr Richard Bailey, focused on his use of a
technique known as ‘luminescence dating’ to help date
an African skull that is providing important insights into
the ‘missing link’ of human evolution.
The afternoon ended with tea in Hall (which offered yet
another chance for friendships to be renewed), and an
opportunity to admire at close-hand the award-winning
buildings in the new quad.
I was very impressed with
the way in which the
more recent buildings
now contribute to a
greater and organic
whole which still remains
consistent with Arne
Jacobsen’s original ethos.
John Clark (1965, Law)
8 /BENEFACTORS’ DAY

COLLEGE LIFE
An update on Oxford Investment Partners (OXIP)
OXIP – THE INVESTMENT OFFICE created in May 2006 by achieved at a volatility, or measure of absolute risk, half
St Catherine’s, Christ Church and Balliol – is nearly that of the equity indices.
eighteen months old. The firm’s objective is to provide a
comprehensive one-stop solution to the challenges of Diversification is a sine qua non for OXIP, but our biggest
running an endowment portfolio in the twenty-first challenge is finding diversification at the right price. We
century. Our intention has been to emulate the best US have consistently thought most assets were overvalued
endowments, such as Harvard and Yale, by creating a
for this stage of the cycle, and we were concerned that
OXIP
powerful investment office, with substantial research and
monitoring capacity, embedded in a structure which
clearly aligns interests between OXIP and its clients. Since
inception, assets under management have doubled to
over £200 million. £150 million of this belongs to Oxford
colleges, but the firm also manages money for three
external charity clients as well as a number of ‘expert’
private individuals who invest via OXIP Diversified, a Jersey
unauthorised unit trust, which now stands at £30 million.
OXIP’s performance since inception shows that its
strategy of diversification by both asset type and
manager skill can preserve capital in falling markets
while still participating in gains when they rise. Since
investing in May 2006, Catz is on course to meeting its
investment objective of inflation +5% per year over five
year rolling periods. On an annualised basis the portfolio
is up 6.9% to 30 September compared with 7.1% for the
College’s benchmark, and 8.5% for World Equities (in £
terms). At this early stage these figures do not include
any gains from our unquoted investments which are still
valued at cost. More importantly this result has been
many investors’ past performance appeared heroic
because they had deployed a lot of debt in a bull
market. We survived the summer’s liquidity crisis
unscathed by exposure to structured products or subprime
debt. We also passed on the opportunity to
commit to large private equity firms, by investing in
managers who specialise in distressed assets and
emerging markets. We eschewed UK property yields at
5% and below, and invested in property firms focused on
Europe and opportunistic restructurings. This cautious
approach to valuations has characterised all our
investments. Looking ahead we feel confident that the
College’s portfolio is better placed than it has ever been
to capture stable risk-adjusted returns.
Fram Dinshaw (Finance Bursar and Non-Executive
Director), Karl Sternberg (Chief Investment Officer), Paul
Berriman (Modern History, 1985, Executive Director).
(If you would like to know more about any aspect of
OXIP please contact our Chief Operating Officer, Paul
Martin, on 01865 988155)
Diversification
is a sine qua
non for OXIP,
but our biggest
challenge is
finding
diversification
at the right
price.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/9

COLLEGE LIFE
Postcards to the Master
This year, over forty students who organised
expeditions to different parts of the world –
many undertaking charitable work once they had
reached their destination – were supported by a
range of College Travel Awards. Postcards arrived
on the Master’s desk from, amongst other
countries, Kenya, Japan, Guatemala, Thailand,
China, Bulgaria, Uganda, the Netherlands and the
Galapagos islands. Here is a small selection from
the many cards he received…
10/POSTCARDS TO THE MASTER

COLLEGE LIFE
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/11

COLLEGE LIFE
Patrick Stewart's inaugural speech
In his inaugural lecture as Cameron Mackintosh Visiting Professor of Contemporary Theatre,
which took place on 23 April 2007, the celebrated actor and director talked about his life and
work, giving a fascinating insight into his career.
This is an edited version of that lecture. For the full text, please go to www.stcatz.ox.ac.uk
WHEN I WAS THIRTEEN I SAT IN THE ESSOLDO CINEMA,
Dewsbury watching an electrifying Gregory Peck in John
Huston’s film of Moby Dick. Peck’s towering performance
personified, for this impressionable teenager, all that
great acting, Hollywood glamour and movie stardom
seemed to be. Once Ahab had gone down the whale,
waving his arm for the world to follow him, and Ishmael
was safely floating on his coffin, I sat in the emptying
cinema, watching until the very last credit rolled. Then,
dazed with what I had seen, walked out into the West
Riding darkness, overwhelmed with emotions and with a
deep longing in my heart for which I had no name.
Waiting for my bus I was filled with confusion and awe.
What did it feel like, I agonised, to be an actor of such
distinction, gravity and gorgeousness. How cruelly aware
I was of the distance that separated this enthusiastic,
Yorkshire, working-class, amateur thespian from Oscarwinner
Gregory Peck.
passionately haranguing a bunch of tough looking sailors
while skilfully manoeuvring on one good leg, and one
fake whale-bone leg. The scene ends and the director
calls cut. I lunge for the specially designed chair that
enables me to rest between takes. Then a hand
touches my arm.
Now let me invite you to leap forward with me. It is
1988. I am aboard a mock-up of the Pequod, in a huge
water-filled tank beside the ocean in Victoria, Australia.
Iron-grey locks frame my ravaged face and I am
12/PATRICK STEWART'S INAUGURAL SPEECH

COLLEGE LIFE
A figure leans over me and murmurs, ‘You see, Patrick, you’ve got Ahab’s voice. I never
found the voice.’
Greg had been modest, charming, warm and encouraging from the day he had agreed
to meet with me to talk about the role. He had even asked if he could be in the
movie and play Father Maple. I went to watch him work the day that we were
shooting the sermon and, in take after take, he was awesome. But even so, he asked
me in a tea break if I had any thoughts about what he was doing. Did I have any
suggestions? And the wide gap of time, space and credibility that separated
Dewsbury from Hollywood simply disappeared.
When I was twelve my English teacher, Cecil Dormand, distributed to my class copies of
The Merchant of Venice. ‘Act I, scene iii’, he instructed. ‘Stewart, you’re Shylock. Read
it.’ And I did. And that morning in Room Eight at Mirfield Secondary Modern School, I
read Shakespeare aloud for the first time. In fact, Shakespeare came into my life at a
very early stage. My eldest brother, Geoffrey, sixteen years my senior, was in the RAF
during the later years of the war, and there made friends with another airman who
loved Shakespeare, and who introduced him to the plays. When he came home on
leave, he would read me bedtime stories – King Lear, Macbeth, Hamlet. I was three,
four years old and I hardly understood a word of it. But even though I did not
understand much, I know that I loved the sounds. Later, when I heard Shakespeare on
the Home Service, it was the sounds the language made that, more than anything,
drew me in. The sounds drew me in then and still draw me in today, along with an
intuitive sense of who Shakespeare’s people are, and how they feel. From the moment
I first read Othello, around the age of fourteen, I understood the Moor and longed to
act him. I felt this man inside me – I eventually played Othello eight years ago. Having
failed to find a producer here, I persuaded the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington DC
to mount what became known as the photo-negative Othello: Othello as a white
British mercenary in an African-American Venice and Cyprus.
In 1986 I visited the United States doing a series of Master-classes, lectures and
Shakespeare workshops. One evening, unknown to me, there was a very experienced
Hollywood producer in the audience. The next day I got a call from my agent saying
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/13

COLLEGE LIFE
that I had been invited to Paramount studios to meet
with Gene Roddenbury, the creator of the original Star
Trek series. Months later, I was called back to Los
Angeles for another meeting with Gene, his fellow
producers and the casting director. Finally, in March
1987, I was called back one more time, now for a full
audition. When it was done, I followed my practice with
all auditions, and just erased it, forgetting that it had
ever happened. I bought a pile of English newspapers
and went to a favourite coffee shop for a late
breakfast. I sat in there for over two hours, unaware
that my agent was trying to find me. The studio had
called him before I drove off the lot, saying I was cast,
and wanting to make the deal. In the end he found me
and insisted that we meet for lunch to talk it over. Of
course, I was excited, puzzled, flattered and, when he
began reciting dollars, my head began to spin. The
thrill subsided, however, when I learned that all this
was conditional on me signing a six-year contract with
no get-out on my side…
Eighteen years passed while I lived in California, and
every corner of my life was touched by it. Four years
ago I re-located and, after a somewhat discouraging
start, I feel myself once more to be an English
actor. The past year, in fact, has been the
culmination of a long-held LA fantasy. When
unable to sleep, I would
indulge in a secret
fantasy. I would be
driving from my
Cotswold cottage to the
theatre in Stratford. It would be raining gently, but
And here is
the very heart
of my
fantasy...
the human
truth and
sheer gobstopping
sexiness
that is
Shakespeare.
the landscape would be green and burgeoning. On the
passenger seat, a copy of the play I was going to
rehearse. Before long I would be crossing the Clopton
Bridge and, glancing to my left, I would see the edifice
of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and a glow would
spread through my body. This was my building, my
home, the only site of my deepest, most longed-for
ambitions since I was a teenager.
Last year it all came true. Technically, the house I bought
is several miles to the east of what is thought of as the
Cotswolds. But it is beautiful and, unlike my early years at
the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, and thanks to the M40,
the Stratford Road is quiet and driveable once more.
There are scenes along that road far more enchanting
than anything Southern California can offer. Better than
Beverly Hills. Better than Sunset Boulevard. And, at the
theatre, performing Antony and Cleopatra and rehearsing
and performing The Tempest, with two fine directors and
a group of actors committed to the work and full of
talent, creativity, limitless energy, affection and good
humour. And all of them, like me, thrilled to be there,
thrilled every day to be hurling themselves against that
greatness that is William Shakespeare.
And here is the very heart of my fantasy. The
inspiration, the richness and beauty, the awesome
complexities, the humanity, the images, the
recognisable and utterly alluring evil, the romance
and courage, the human truth
and sheer gob-stopping
sexiness that is
Shakespeare.
14/PATRICK STEWART'S INAUGURAL SPEECH

COLLEGE LIFE
Black Oxford: Untold Stories
LAUNCHED IN OCTOBER 2006 at Oxford University’s
Natural History Museum, Black Oxford is the first black
heritage project of its type in the United Kingdom. The
venture, which was originally funded by the Heritage
Lottery Fund, celebrates the lives and achievements of
black scholars at Oxford University from the nineteenth
century to the present day. The untold stories of men
and women such as Alain Locke, the first black Rhodes
Scholar (Hertford College, 1907), and Ania Moore, who
graduated from St Hugh’s College in 1935, are brought
to life during a two hour guided walking tour of the
City.
In addition to drawing attention to the considerable
contributions made, in so many fields, by black Scholars
(many of whom had overcome significant hardships in
order to be able to study at Oxford), the tour also
celebrates the role played by black men and women
during the First and Second World Wars, and considers
the experiences in Britain of the ‘Windrush generation’.
The tour includes specific mention of two alumni from
St Catherine’s, Sir Grantley Adams (1919, Law) and Dr
Eric Williams (1932, PPE), both of whom have left a
lasting political legacy in the West Indies.
In partnership with Ruskin College, Black Oxford has
launched an accredited tour-guiding course, which
hopes to train local members of the community to
become guides for this project. This unique
scheme will offer individuals the opportunity to
gain in-depth knowledge about black British,
African-American and Caribbean history, as well
as offering practical training for potential tour
guides.
Black Oxford: Untold Stories, which was shortlisted
for a National Lottery Award in the Best
Heritage Project category, is the brainchild of
Pamela Roberts. Pamela is the founder and
Executive Director of Artistry Events, a social
enterprise that was
established to
develop and deliver
arts and media
projects that will both
educate and entertain
diverse audiences.
For more information
about Black Oxford and
its work, please visit
www.blackoxford.net,
email
info@blackoxford.net,
or telephone 01494
538769.
Black Oxford is proud to have
as one of its patrons the
daughter of Eric Williams,
Erica Williams Connell.
Below: Pamela Roberts,
founder and Executive
Director of Artistry Events.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/15

COLLEGE LIFE
Dr Eric Williams & Sir Grantley Adams
Dr Eric Williams
Sir Grantley Adams
(Picture courtesy of the Barbados
Government Information Service)
Dr Eric Williams (1932, PPE)
Eric Williams was a renowned Caribbean historian and the
first Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, who served
from 1956 until his death in 1981. Born in 1911, he
attended Queen’s Royal College, Port of Spain, before
winning a scholarship in 1932 that enabled him to come
and study at Oxford. In 1938 Eric Williams received his
doctorate for a thesis entitled The Economic Aspect of the
West Indian Slave Trade and Slavery. After working for
several years at Howard University, Washington, DC, Eric
Williams returned to Trinidad in 1948 as Deputy Chairman
of the Anglo-American Caribbean Commission’s Research
Council. In 1955 his political career began in earnest when
he founded the People’s National Movement Party. In
1998, the Eric Williams Memorial Collection at the
University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago –
which contains over 7000 volumes, in addition to Williams’
correspondence and speeches and research notes – was
inaugurated by former US Secretary of State, Colin Powell.
A series of lectures, entitled the Eric Williams Memorial
Lecture Series, was held in London in April 2007 to
commemorate the 200th anniversary of the abolition of
the transatlantic slave trade. The inaugural lecture was
delivered by Jamaican-born scholar, Colin Palmer, the
Dodge Professor of History at Princeton University, who has
recently published a critically acclaimed account of the life
of Trinidad and Tobago’s first Prime Minister, Eric Williams
and the Making of the Modern Caribbean.
Sir Grantley Adams (1919, Law)
Born in 1898, Grantley Adams was educated at Harrison
Academy, Barbados, before he came to Oxford in 1919 to
read Law. While a student, he became Secretary of the
Justinian Law Society, JCR President and President of the St
Catherine’s Debating Society. Grantley Adams left Oxford in
1923 and was called to the Bar at Gray’s Inn, London. In
1925 he returned to Barbados, where he became the
island’s leading Labour politician. Adams served as Leader
of the Barbados Labour Party, was President of the
Barbados Workers’ Union, and became the first Premier of
Barbados and the first and only Prime Minister of the West
Indies Federation. In 1952 he was made a Companion in the
Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George and
in 1966 he led his country to independence. He is
honoured today as a National Hero of Barbados and
remembered as a man who worked tirelessly to establish
social justice across all ethnic and economic classes.
16/DR ERIC WILLIAMS & SIR GRANTLEY ADAMS

Nick Young Award
Sam Forsdike, 2006 winner of the Nick Young Award, shares his
experiences working with the Arts and Features department at ITV
‘I NEED YOU TO CALL JOHNNY DEPP’S AGENT and then see if
you can get hold of Britney or Madonna.’ I have done a few
work placements in my time, and first tasks usually involve
trying to work out how the photocopier works and what
exactly is meant by ‘a dash of milk’. Trying to get hold of
Britney Spears qualifies, in work-experience speak, as being
thrown in the deep end – on the Nick Young Award Scheme,
it barely constitutes dipping your toes in the water.
Every year a student from Catz is offered a three-month
internship with the Arts and Features department at ITV
as part of the Nick Young Award.
This programme was set up in
1982 by the family of Nick Young,
a former Catz student and ITV
employee who, tragically, died in a
road accident.
The scheme offers a unique
opportunity to gain experience in
an industry that is notorious for its
difficulty in gaining a point of
entrance – there are virtually no
graduate schemes and very few
openings available for those seeking their first job in this
sector. The industry operates largely on a policy of
offering employment only to those with experience in
this field, and it is not hard to see that this creates a
vicious circle in which it seems impossible to get the
experience necessary to be eligible for a much-coveted
job!
Comedian Russell Brand
The Nick Young Award is different for so many reasons.
at the South Bank Show
For a start, it runs for three months, time enough to get
Awards.
settled, feel part of a team, learn new
skills and demonstrate both your
natural aptitude and what you have
learnt. Secondly, the grant that comes
with the award (when most
placements only offer expenses if you
are lucky) is a welcome help when
living and working in London. Thirdly,
and most importantly, you never feel
like you are the work-experience
person.
During my three months I was part
The South Bank Show Awards, © ITV Productions Ltd, 2007
of a small team that put together a
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/17

COLLEGE LIFE
live award show that was
broadcast on ITV1. Officially, and
rather loosely, my job title was
‘researcher’. More accurately it
would probably be a hybrid of
producer, events manager, scriptwriter
and agony aunt. My work
involved booking guests for the
award show, organising the venue,
entertainment, bands, goody-bags
and food for 400 guests,
researching biographies and notes
for all the nominees, writing the
script for the show and dealing with
outrageous demands from celebrity
divas.
Given that the ceremony is recorded
live, the day itself was a long adrenaline-pumping blur
of frantic nerves and excitement. Armed with my radio
ear-piece I rushed about sorting out the million and one
last minute problems for which no one had planned.
The event itself was a huge success. I had to overcome
any vestige of being star-struck as I helped to
chaperone, escort and massage the ego of a whole
array of personalities from the arts world including
Russell Brand, Victoria Wood, The Who, Ken Russell,
Michael Sheen, Paul Greengrass, Sir Andrew Lloyd
Webber and Claudia Schiffer. At the after-show party I
enjoyed an impromptu jamming session with Amy
Winehouse and Jamie Cullum and spent the night
drinking with the Royle Family.
Lord Bragg, Domus
Fellow of St Catherine's,
at the award ceremony.
The South Bank Show Awards,
© ITV Productions Ltd, 2007
Winning the Nick Young Award gave me the
opportunity to complete a work placement that offers
unrivalled experience: I gained invaluable technical
expertise and insight into the world of television as
well as learning to deal with high-pressured situations
and responsibilities. Crucially for this industry, I made
a number of important contacts.
I was fortunate enough to be offered a job after the
internship and I have now transferred to another
department in order to learn and develop new skills.
To pursue a career in television I would normally be
expected to be a ‘runner’ for at least a year, doing
menial tasks for little pay. The Nick Young Award
has allowed me to fast-track this route and I am
now one of the youngest researchers in the
industry.
I would not change places for a second with any of my
friends who have gone to work in highly profitable jobs
in banking and consultancy. I never wake up wishing I
did not have to go into work, and I do a job that has the
scope for unlimited creativity and individuality, in which I
get to write and make programmes that reach millions of
people. Working in the media also offers unrivalled
perks, with tickets to premieres and opening nights, the
chance to travel the world and discover new things, and
the opportunity to meet some of the most intelligent,
artistic and craziest people in their fields.
If I have not yet managed to persuade you of the worth
of the Nick Young Award, here’s the clincher: the only
person you have to make a cup of tea for is yourself.
18/NICK YOUNG AWARD

COLLEGE LIFE
Finals Results 2007
UNDERGRADUATES
Biological Sciences
Nancy Burns
Joseph Fletcher
Hiren Naik
Sophie Owen
Aristotelis Papoutes
Penelope Sellers
James Smith
II (i)
I
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
I
II (i)
Chemistry (MChem)
James Backshall II (i)
Patrick Durkin II (i)
Lydia Hutchinson II (ii)
Emily Muir
II (ii)
Tom Rees
II (ii)
David Royse
II (i)
Philip Scott
I
Chase Winters II (i)
Economics &
Management
Adam Hyslop
Vadim Varvarin
II (i)
II (i)
Engineering & Computer
Science (MEng)
Witold Czartoryski II (ii)
Engineering Science
(MEng)
David Adams
Paul Beynon
Peter Bracewell
Tamer El Barbary
Roddy Prayag
Owen Price
Henry Townshend
Alasdair Walker
II (i)
I
I
II (ii)
II (i)
II (i)
I
II (i)
English Language &
Literature
Federico Fernandez-Armesto I
Eleanor Fretwell II (i)
Peter Goult
II (i)
Laurence Harvey II (i)
Kane Moore
II (i)
Jennifer Pick
II (i)
Paul Russell
II (i)
Fine Art (BFA)
Aglaé Bassens
Christian Braime
Geography
Jonathan Blackledge
Charles Bremner
Nicholas Brodie
Zara Chidoub
Lucy Gough
Oliver Phillips
Melissa Rigby
Fleur-Estelle Shaw
History of Art
Jack Farthing
Human Sciences
Amy Beaumont
Claire Palmer
Louise Park
Theodore Raymond
Jessica Watson
Ziqi Wu
Law
Basil Al-Jafari
Maria Banks
Matthew Chinery
David Craddock
Rachel Harriott
Richard Hill
Alexandra Kendall
I
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
I
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (ii)
I
I
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
I
II (i)
I
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
Liam Murphy
Ying Yi Soh
Kai Sun
Sophie Townsend
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
Law with Law Studies in
Europe
Theo Bruening II (i)
Dominique Riley II (i)
Materials Science (MEng)
Benjamin Britton II (i)
Matthew Brooke-Hitching II (i)
Alastair Ross
III
Sumer Singh
II (i)
Mathematics (BA)
Jack Adkins
Guy Bedford
Sheng Pu Chen
Bu Ke Qian
Michael Tran
Mathematics (MMath)
Joynay Bhurtah
Nathaniel Korda
Mathematics &
Philosophy (BA)
Rosalie Hooke
Mathematics &
Statistics (BA)
Cheuk Yen Lam
Mathematics &
Statistics (MMath)
Mo Qiao
Medicine
Rachel Brettell
Daniel Hammersley
Clare Shakespeare
II (ii)
I
II (ii)
II (ii)
II (i)
I
I
II (i)
I
II (ii)
I
II (i)
II (i)
Dora Steel
Rowan Wathes
Modern History
Daniel Binnington
Alex Dwiar
Thomas Fenton
Jack Gillions
Edward Goodman
Arthur Kadish
Christopher McCloskey
Connal Parr
Elizabeth Pitcher
Christopher Stanley
Modern History &
Politics
Elizabeth MacDonald
Modern Languages
Petra Kwan
Simon Maharaj
Pablo de Orellana
Brais Outes Leon
Victoria Philpott
Laura Pierce
Luke Reeve-Tucker
I
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
I
II (i)
I
I
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
Modern Languages &
Linguistics
Claire Hackney II (i)
John Ramsay
II (i)
James Sutherland II (i)
Molecular & Cellular
Biochemistry (MBioch)
Steven Cuss
I
Alison Hole
I
William Sankey II (i)
Zico Yung
II (i)
Music
Catherine Groom
David Mathews
Alice Newton
Grace Shortland
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
II (i)
Philosophy, Politics &
Economics
Anna Avramenko II (i)
Michael Davidson I
Christopher Hanges II (i)
Kester Keating
I
Faizal Patel
II (i)
Isabel Summers II (i)
Caroline Wilkey II (i)
Physics (BA)
Catherine Brough
Alexander Dutton
Daniel Massey
Jean-Luc Stevens
Physics (MPhys)
Christopher Bull
Wolf Goetze
Kamalchetan Marwaha
Matthew Powell
Francis Yeung
Kelvin Yuen
II (i)
II (ii)
II (i)
III
II (i)
I
II (i)
II (ii)
II (ii)
II (ii)
Physiological Sciences
Faye Cadman II (ii)
Michelle Edye II (i)
Psychology, Philosophy
& Physiology
Vishal Kapadia II (i)
Kathryn Law
I
SCHOLARSHIPS AND
EXHIBITIONS
Scholars
Peter Babkevich (Physics),
College Scholar
Guy Bedford (Mathematics),
College Scholar
Paul Beynon (Engineering
Science), College Scholar
Christopher Boedihardjo
(Mathematics), Kaye Scholar
Peter Bracewell (Engineering
Science), College Scholar
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/19

COLLEGE LIFE
Alexander Burtenshaw
(Engineering Science), ATV
Scholar
Luke Cartey (Computer
Science), College Scholar
Edmund Chan (Medicine),
College Scholar
Nicholas Cowle (Mathematics
& Computer Science), Baker
Scholar
Steven Cuss (Molecular &
Cellular Biochemistry), Rose
Scholar
Felix Flicker (Physics), College
Scholar
Dewi Goulden (Oriental
Studies), College Scholar
Wei Hao Gu (Materials
Science), ATV Scholar
Alison Hole (Molecular &
Cellular Biochemistry),
Sembal Scholar
Rebecca Lewin (History of
Art), Clothworkers Scholar
Leo Masson (Engineering,
Economics & Management),
ATV Scholar
Mandish Muker (Engineering,
Economics & Management),
Geoffrey Griffith Scholar
Theresa Page (Modern
Languages), Brook Scholar
Xiang Pan (Mathematics &
Computer Science), College
Scholar
John Pearson (Mathematics),
Clothworkers Scholar
Amar Radia (Philosophy,
Politics & Economics), Philip
Fothergill Scholar
Aleks Reinhardt (Chemistry),
F M Brewer Scholar
Peter Roberts (Physics),
College Scholar
Katherine Rundell (English
Language & Literature),
Goldsworthy Scholar
Simon Shenton (Chemistry),
ATV Scholar
Henry Townshend
(Engineering Science),
College Scholar
Michael Tran (Mathematics),
College Scholar
Jo Tyabji (English Language &
Literature), Goldsworthy
Scholar
Rose Wilkinson (English
Language & Literature),
College Scholar
Hanna Winiarska (Chemistry),
College Scholar
Caroline Woffindale
(Experimental Psychology),
College Scholar
Matthew Woolgar (Modern
History), Garret Scholar
Russell Woolley (Chemistry),
College Scholar
Yun Zhe Zhang (Mathematics),
College Scholar
Exhibitioners
Nicholas Antoniou, College
Exhibitioner (Engineering
Science)
Sanjoy Bhattacharyya, College
Exhibitioner (Medicine)
Sarah Bowe, College
Exhibitioner (Molecular &
Cellular Biochemistry)
Darius Bradbury, College
Exhibitioner (Computer
Science)
Thomas Gatten, College
Exhibitioner (Human Sciences)
Admas Haile, College
Exhibitioner (Medicine)
Lewys Jones, College
Exhibitioner (Materials Science)
Christopher Knowles, College
Exhibitioner (Law)
Andrew Robertson, College
Exhibitioner (Medicine)
PRIZES AND AWARDS
University Prizes
Undergraduates
Armourers Rolls-Royce
Prize for Outstanding
Marks in Prelims
Femi Fadugba (Materials
Science)
Degussa Company Prize
for Performance in Part IA
Aleks Reinhardt (Chemistry)
Dudbridge Prize for
Outstanding Performance
in Classical Chinese in
Prelims
Dewi Goulden (Oriental
Studies)
IoM3 A T Green Annual
Prize for Best National
Graduate in Ceramics
Nomination
Matthew Brooke-Hitching
(Materials Science)
Ironmongers' Company
Award for the Best Part II
Talk
Benjamin Britton (Materials
Science)
Practical Work in Part B
Commendation
Catherine Brough (Physics)
Pusey and Ellerton Junior
Prize for performance in
Biblical Hebrew in Prelims
Tim Motz (European & Middle
Eastern Languages)
QinetiQ Prize for Best
Third-Year Team Design
Project
Michael Rogers (Materials
Science)
Wronker Grant for
Excellent Performance in
Finals
Dora Steel (Medicine)
Graduates
Pickering Prize for the
Best Overall Performance
in Medicine and Surgery
Lucy Hanington (Clinical
Medicine)
Rupert Cross Prize in
Evidence
Malcolm Birdling (Law)
Winter Williams European
Business Regulation Prize
Patricio Smart (Law)
College Prizes
The Bailey Prize for
debating is yet to be awarded.
The Burton Prize for the
best academic performance
during the year in an area
covering Psychology,
Sociology, Geography and
Human Sciences was awarded
to Kathryn Law (Psychology,
Philosophy & Physiology) and
Zara Chidoub (Geography).
The Cochrane Evidence-
Based Medicine Prize for
the best essay on an aspect
of evidence-based practice or
the critical appraisal of a topic
by a graduate student in
clinical medicine was awarded
to Werner Neuhausser
(Clinical Medicine).
The Frank Allen Bullock
Prize for the best piece of
creative or critical writing was
awarded to Joseph Crawford
(English Language &
Literature).
The Gardner Prize for
outstanding contribution to
the life of the College was
awarded to Benjamin Britton
(Materials Science).
The Harold Bailey Prize for
Asian Studies was awarded to
Tim Motz (European & Middle
Eastern languages).
The Hart Prize for the best
essay on an historical subject
by a first or second year
undergraduate was awarded
to Christopher Stanley
(Modern History).
The Katritzky Prize for the
best performance in Chemistry
Part I was awarded to
Benjamin Ayers (Chemistry).
Leask Music Scholarships
were awarded to Thomas
Foster (Music), Katherine
Higgon (Chemistry) and
Duncan Strachan (Music).
The Michael Atiyah Prize
in Mathematics for the best
mathematics essay or project
written by a St Catherine’s
undergraduate in his or her
second year reading for a
degree in Mathematics or joint
school with Mathematics is
yet to be awarded.
The Nick Young Award was
awarded to Alex Dwiar
(Modern History).
The Rose Prize for the best
academic performance during
the year in Biological Sciences
was awarded to Joseph
Fletcher (Biological Sciences)
and Penelope Sellers
(Biological Sciences).
The Rupert Katritzky Prize
is awarded for the best
performance in the Final
Honour School in Modern
History was awarded to
Edward Goodman (Modern
History).
The Smith Award for
Services to Drama within the
College was awarded to
Chanya Button (English
Language & Literature).
The Smith Award for Services
to Music within the College
was awarded to Alice Newton
(Music) and David Matthews
(Music).
The Stuart Craig Award
given to an outstanding
student who has gained
distinction in a university or
national sport, or cultural or
musical activities was awarded
to Jonathan Blackledge
(Geography).
The Thomas Jefferson
Prize given to the North
American student who has
contributed most to the
College academically, socially
or culturally ‘in the spirit of
20/GRADUATE DEGREES & DIPLOMAS

COLLEGE LIFE
Thomas Jefferson’ was
awarded to Kaitlin Walsh
(Modern Languages).
College Travel Awards
Wallace Watson Award
Witold Czartoryski
(Engineering & Computer
Science)
Tim Motz (European & Middle
Eastern Languages)
Emilie Harris Award
Thomas Foster (Music)
Duncan Strachan (Music)
Philip Fothergill Award
Thomas Gatten (Human
Sciences)
Bullock Travel Award
Anthony Calland (Modern
Languages & Modern History)
Bullock Career Award
Rebecca Lewin (History of Art)
Raymond Hodgkin Award
Lucien Georgeson (Modern
Languages)
Pat Knapp Travel Award
Maria McPhee (Medicine)
Antony Edwards Travel
Award
Jennifer Mullin (Clinical
Medicine)
James Fowler (European &
Middle Eastern Languages)
Nicola Atkins (Modern
History)
College Travel Awards
Triska Abdul-Ahmid (Oriental
Studies)
Sofie Ahmad (Modern History)
Alexander Ball (English
Language & Literature)
Christopher Bull (Physics)
April Dunham (Materials
Science)
Michelle Edye (Physiological
Sciences)
Sophie Foxen (Medicine)
Peter Goult (English
Language & Literature)
Stephanie Hardwick (English
Language & Literature)
Rosemary Hinton (Medicine)
Lewys Jones (Materials
Science)
Elizabeth Kays (Chemistry)
Craig Leaper (Clinical
Medicine)
Carly Leighton (Geography)
Tomasz Mazur (Computing)
David Mitchell (Geography)
Aiofe Nic Charthaigh (Area &
Development Studies)
Emily Nixon (Geography & the
Environment)
Eileen Nugent (Physics)
Jane Rooney (Law with Law
Studies in Europe)
Tomo Sandeman (Geography)
Sarbjit Sandhu (Economics &
Management)
Julie Scrase (Fine Art)
Alistair Seddon (Geography &
the Environment)
Matthew Sims (Clinical
Medicine)
Anisha Sodha (Clinical
Medicine)
Jo Tyabji (English Language &
Literature)
Evan Wang (Materials
Science)
Jessica Watson (Human
Sciences)
Hanna Winiarska (Chemistry)
David Workman (English
Language & Literature)
Graduate Degrees & Diplomas
During 2006-2007 leave to supplicate for the DPhil was granted to the following:
Nicholas Attfield (Music)*
Appropriating Bruckner: Symphonic Reception, Hermeneutics,
and Performance
David Bass (Zoology)*
Biodiversity, Evolution, and Ecology of the Novel Protozoan
Phylum Cercozoa
Paul Bonnet (Engineering Science)
The Development of Multi-Axis Real-Time Substructure Testing
Conor Carville (English Language & Literature)*
The Ends of Ireland: Subjectivity, History and Nationalism in
Contemporary Irish Cultural Criticism
Meng Chen (Chemistry)
Polyelectrolyte brushes grown from solid surfaces: Synthesis,
Structure and lubrication properties
Frances Colles (Zoology)
Population Structure and Dynamics of Campylobacter
Populations Carried by Wild Birds and Chickens Reared in a
Free Range Woodland Environment
Thomas Gray (Chemistry)*
Electrochemical and Optical Sensing of Anoins
Kin Leong Ho (Engineering Science)
Loop Closing Detection in SLAM Using Scene Appearances
Sugata Kaviraj (Physics)
On the Star Formation History of Early-Type Galaxies
Oliver King (Materials)
Studies on the Electrodeposition of Calcium Phosphate
Coating for Orthopaedic Applications and the Potential
Incorporation of Apatite Coated Liposomes
Chun-Te Lee (Mathematics)
Multi-Soliton Solution of the Two-Mode KdV Equations
Rashid Mbaziira (Geography & the Environment)
The Nile Basin Initiative: Towards a Regime of Cooperation
Alistair McEwan (Computing)
Concurrent Program Development
James Morauta (Philosophy)*
Evaluating Intentions
Yukiyo Nishida (Educational Studies)
The Challenge of Multiage Primary Schooling in Public
Education: Case Studies in Australia, Canada and the USA
Iris Oren (Physiology, Anatomy & Genetics)*
Synaptic Mechanisms Underlying Cholinergically-Induced Fast
Hippocampal Network Oscillations in Vitro
Jayne Smith-Palmer (Physics)
Studies Onminus End Directed Myosin Motors
James Thomson (Chemistry)*
B-Amino Acid Organcatalysis
Matthew Tredwell (Chemistry)*
Electrophilic Fluorodesilylation of Chiral Allysilanes
Sander Van Kasteren (Chemistry)
Novel Probes for the In Vivo Visualisation of Cerebral
Inflammation
Check Chiu Wai (Engineering Science)
On Curvilinear Structures in Mammography Image Analysis
and Registration
Hao Wang (Chemistry)
Surface and Electrochemical Studies of CVD Diamond Thin Films
Hongzhi Wang (Materials)
Perovskite Based Ceramic Nanocomposites
Miles Waring (Materials)
The Electrical and Structural Properties of Lanthanum-Doped
Lead Zirconate Titanate
Robert Whannel (Chemistry)*
New Group 4 Complexes with Di-Amide Class Ligands
Stephen Winter (Politics & International Relations)
A Justified Claim? Reparation, Historical Injustice and the Case
of American Slavery
* indicates previous graduate of the College
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/21

COLLEGE LIFE
The following were successful in other
examinations:
Myanthi Amarasinghe, MSc (C) Research in Psychology
John Anderson, MPhil Economics
Francisco Balsemão, MJuris
Roheet Bantval Rao, MSc (C) Integrated Immunology †
Fabrizio Barzanti, MJuris †
Malcolm Birdling, BCL †
Gemma Bowes, MSc (C) Forced Migration
Jaroslav Broz, MJuris
Karan Chandhiok, BCL
Christina Chen, MPhil Law †
Cho-Chun Cheng, MSc (C) Financial Economics †
Fungayi Chinaka, MSc (C) Diagnostic Imaging
Ben Coren, MSt English †
Paul De Cates, 2nd BM
Jessica Feinstein, MSt History of Art & Visual Culture
Tommy Fennelly, MSc (C) Mathematical Modelling &
Scientific Computing †
Chrissie Fong, MPhil English Studies
Christina Fuhr, MSc (C) Sociology
Robert Ghenchev, MSc (C) Financial Economics
Iliya Grozdanov, MJuris
Lucy Hanington, 2nd BM †
Gwenyth Hardiman, MSc (C) Material Anthropology &
Museum Ethnography
Indrani Hazra, BCL †
Knut-Fredrik Hustad, MJuris
Ante Kusurin, MSc (C) Water Science, Policy & Management
Dantes Leung, BCL
Lasma Liede, MJuris †
Chao Mbogo, MSc (C) Computer Science
Hye Young Min, MSc (C) Research in Psychology
Anthony Mullin, MSc (C) Research in Psychology
Werner Neuhausser, 2nd BM
Aoife Nic Charthaigh, MSc (C) Forced Migration*
Emily Nixon, MSc (C) Environmental Change & Management
Charalampos Psarras, MJuris
Ubaidullah Qazi, MPhil General Linguistics & Comparative
Philology
Teresa Queiros, BCL †
Saif Rahman, MBA
Scott Ralston, BCL †
Gazal Rawal, BCL
Adam Romero, MSc (C) Water Science, Policy & Management
Alexander Russell, MPhil Modern European History *†
Maria Sanchez-Marin Melero, MBA
Abhishek Sharma, MBA
Sudhanshu Shekhar, MSc (C) Integrated Immunology
Laura Silva Castaneda, MSc (C) Latin American Studies
Lieke Sjerps, MJuris
Patricio Smart, MJuris
Kate Stinson, MPhil International Relations
Shinjiro Takeda, MBA
Heiko Thienenkamp, MBA
Thomas Vale, 2nd BM*
Tom Ville, MJuris
Jeremy Vooght, MSt English †
Amber Walker, MSc (R) Engineering Science
Daniel Wamweru, MSc (C) Applied Statistics
Jin Wang, MSc (C) Applied Statistics
Matthew Williams, MSt Musicology
Trevor Wood, MSc (C) Mathematical Modelling & Scientific
Computing *†
Minhong Yi, Certificate in Diplomatic Studies
Amer Zakaria, MSc (C) Water Science, Policy & Management
* indicates previous graduate of the College
† indicates candidates adjudged worthy of distinction by the Examiners
Graduate Scholars
Rachel Brettell, Glaxo Scholarship (Clinical Medicine)
Georgina Worthington, Glaxo Scholarship (Clinical
Medicine)
Roham Alvandi, College Scholarship (Arts) (Politics &
International Relations)
Jessica Harm, College Scholarship (Sciences) (Zoology)
Montree Sawangphruk, College Scholarship (Sciences)
(Chemistry)
David Szwer, Poole Scholarship (Physics)
Elin Abraham, Light Senior Scholarship (Chemistry)
Joseph Crawford, Light Senior Scholarship (English
Language & Literature)
Richard Huzzey, Light Senior Scholarship (History)
Rajeka Lazarus, Light Senior Scholarship (Clinical Medicine)
Marwa Sharafeldin, Light Senior Scholarship (Socio-Legal
Studies)
Stephen Galsworthy, Leatherseller’s Company
Scholarship (Mathematics)
Tomasz Mazur, Leatherseller’s Company Scholarship
(Computer Science)
John McTague, College Scholarship (Arts) (English
Language & Literature)
Julie Collet, Light Senior Scholarship (Zoology)
Kaitlin Walsh, Light Senior Scholarship (Modern Languages)
Errata
The following are corrections to the list of those granted
leave to supplicate for the DPhil during 2005–2006:
Alasdair Leslie (Clinical Medicine)
The Mechanisms and Consequences of CTL Escape on HIV
Evolution and Immune Control
Laura Zambreanu (Human Anatomy & Genetics)
Central Sensitization and its Relevance to Chronic Pain: FMRI
Studies in Humans
Rebecca Nicholls (Materials)
Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy of Fullrene Materials
Benjamin Parsons (Music)
Taking Stock of the Apprentice: Contextual Rereadings of
Pierre Boulez's Early Career, 1945–1952
22/GRADUATE DEGREES AND DIPLOMAS

COLLEGE LIFE
Sports Review
In athletics and cross country Jonathan Blackledge
has excelled once more. During his three years in Oxford,
Jonathan has been awarded a total of six Blues. He was
Blackwell’s Scholar for Sport, has led the Oxford team in
the Varsity Match and, this year, for the second year
running, was named University Sportsman of the Year.
League 1 and the mixed badminton team also won its
league. Matt Charles and Matt Brooke Hitching also
played for the University, with the latter gaining a Blue.
Jonathan Blackledge
receiving the University's
Sportsman of the Year
Award for the second
year.
Above right: The victorious
Catz tennis team.
Below: Tim Weir in
action.
In swimming, Harriet Pierce was captain of the
Women’s team, and Sean Renfer has gained a Blue as
well as earning a half-Blue in triathalon. Sean also
competed in cross country against Cambridge.
Despite protestations that she is ‘rubbish at pistol
shooting’, Penny Sellers has achieved yet another Blue
in modern pentathlon.
In hockey, Catz women’s team reached the semi-finals
of cuppers, and Frances Furnivall has represented
Oxford this season.
In tennis, Tim Weir has brought yet more successes
for Oxford, with the University’s Tennis Club gaining
promotion to the Premier Division in the British
Universities Sports Association (BUSA). Alex Iltchev was
awarded a half-Blue in tennis, and it was under his
captaincy that the St Catherine’s team – which
included Luke Reeve-Tucker, Vadim Vavarin, Lucas
Szlachcic, Matt Brooke Hitching and Tim Weir, won
Tennis Cuppers. The ladies’ badminton first team won
Alex Iltchev was captain of Oxford’s second team in
squash, and was awarded a half Blue. Jess Watson,
who played on the successful Varsity winning side, was
awarded a full Blue.
Faye Cadman was awarded a Blue for gymnastics,
came eighth in the BUSA competition and won Varsity.
She has also been president of the Women’s Blues
Sports Committee – a distinguished and important role
in university sport.
In rowing Catz once more had two men in the Blue
Boat in this year’s Boat Race: the stroke, Ante Kusurin,
and the cox, Nick Brodie (who will also serve as Oxford
University Boat Club’s President in the coming year).
Anthony Mullin was in the Isis crew and Dane Van den
Akker was the reserve cox for the Boat Race.
In rugby, Jamie Menzies played for the University
Whippets, while Sean Mackenzie was a member of the
winning team in the under-21Varsity Match that took
place at Twickenham.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/23

COLLEGE LIFE
In football, Owen Price captained the Oxford University
association football team, who this year won the BUSA
league and secured promotion. Matt Robinson also played
in the Varsity Match, and was awarded a Blue. Catz
Second XI had a very successful season, winning both
Cuppers (beating Worcester in a final that saw captain,
Ryan Magee score a hat-trick) and the league. Special
mention must go to Finalists Luke Reeve-Tucker, Jimbo
Sutherland, John Ramsey, Rich Hill and Dave Craddock,
all of whom played in the final – they have contributed
greatly to sport at Catz during their time here.
Daniel Binnington was president of the University’s
pool and snooker club.
Other Catz students who have been awarded Blues and
half-Blues during the past academic year include Martin
Bishop (cross country), Noah Smith (basketball), Alice
Kelly (netball), David Royse (sailing), David Longworth
(archery and lacrosse) and Peter Goult (athletics).
Catz Second XI celebrate
their win over Worcester
College.
24/ERIC WILLIAMS LECTURE SERIES

STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
Kate Stinson
(2005, International Relations (MPhil))
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE was my ‘home away from
home’ for two years. As a Canadian living and studying
abroad for the first time, I was excited by the
opportunity to join the Catz community, and delighted
at the way in which I was instantly welcomed and
embraced by the College. I was an active member of
the Middle Common Room during my time at Catz, and
was thrilled with the opportunity to engage with, and
learn from, fellow graduate students from around the
world – many of whom were at the cutting edge of
their fields – in both academic and social contexts.
My research interests lie in the general field of
international law and human rights, and my degree at
Catz allowed me to pursue this passion. At the end of
my first year, I was delighted to have my interest and
aptitude in this field recognised with a Light Senior
Scholarship. My research examined the design of
International Criminal Tribunals and their ability to bring
justice to the divided societies that they are meant to
assist. As part of this undertaking, I performed an indepth
examination of the Special Court for Sierra
Leone, conducting fieldwork in Freetown during
summer 2006. The opportunity to apply my academic
abilities to concrete issues was one of the most
enriching experiences of my degree and, as a direct
result of my research, I was offered an internship
position with the Special Court during summer the next
year. The time I spent in Sierra Leone has reinforced my
deep interest in human rights law and my commitment
to fight and work for the causes in which I believe –
the legal protection and support of those in need.
In addition to my academic endeavours, Catz also
provided the opportunity for me to pursue athletic
challenges, and I was actively engaged in the relatively
new sport of women’s boxing throughout my time at
Oxford. Boxing has taught me courage and tenacity,
and has fostered dedication, determination, and the
ability to overcome obstacles. I competed as an
amateur boxer, representing Oxford on the Blues squad,
achieving British Universities Sports Association gold
and silver medals, and competing twice in the annual
Varsity Match (women competed for the first time in
Varsity boxing in 2005). In recognition of my
achievements in the Varsity Match and in national
competitions, I had the honour and privilege of being
awarded an Extraordinary Full Blue. I also had the
opportunity to serve as Co-Captain of the Oxford
Amateur Boxing Club during the 2006-07 season,
helping to secure an Oxford victory against Cambridge
in the historic hundredth Varsity Boxing Match, held at
York Hall in London.
Kate Stinson, who was
awarded an Extraordinary
Full Blue in recognition of
her achievements in the
Varsity Match and in
national competitions.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2006/25

STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
Justin Puleo
(2004, Visiting Student, 2005, Integrated Immunology)
WHILE A VISITING STUDENT at St Catherine’s College, I
conducted research into malaria at the Churchill Hospital,
and was introduced to the famous Oxford tutorial system
by debating medical ethics and philosophy with Brendan
McLaughlin. My experience was so fulfilling that, even
before I left, I had begun to make plans to come back to
Oxford.
Upon completing my Bachelor’s at Harvard in Health Policy
in 2005, I matriculated in Oxford for the MSc in Integrated
Immunology. The small, diverse, group of eleven students
on the course included representatives from four
continents and counted two Rhodes scholars (of which I
was privileged to be one) among its ranks. In addition to
succeeding in all my exams, I earned a Full Blue on the
Basketball team, beat Cambridge, won Blades in the Catz
Men’s First Boat at Summer Eights, and volunteered with
the Kids Enjoy Exercise Now charity for children and young
adults with special needs. Very few Universities provide
such a high level of all-around education as Oxford does,
and, while at Catz, I took full advantage of its many
opportunities.
I then learned that possibilities for students extend far
beyond Oxford, when my supervisor, Professor William
James, sponsored me to present my research at the Young
European Scientist Meeting in Porto, Portugal, where I
won second prize in the HIV/Immunology division. This
success was not only a fine way to finish off my time at
Oxford, but also motivated me to continue in the field of
HIV research. I took a job at Duke University Human
Vaccine Institute, but not before I convinced my parents
that I needed to see India, as I was already half way
there, being in London (I originally planned to attend a
WHO conference in Bangladesh but the rule that no
students were allowed to observe the proceedings
changed my plans somewhat).
I spent a few months working at Duke, in my home state
of North Carolina, before being sent to rural East Africa to
help set up vaccine trials in Moshi, Tanzania. Witnessing
the human cost of the HIV pandemic there, combined
with the poverty I saw on my trip to India, has fuelled my
desire to become a medical doctor who focuses on global
health. It is very likely that, had I not had the experiences
I did at Catz and in Oxford, my
career would be taking a
much more insular
direction. That, I believe
is the power of an Oxford
education, and I have St
Catherine’s College to
thank for allowing me to
see a bigger picture.
Justin Puleo (right) in
the lab at Moshi and
(below) at the summit
of Mt Kilimanjaro.
26/JUSTIN PULEO

STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
Tomasz Mazur
(2003, Mathematics and Computer Science, 2006, Computing)
IT ALL STARTED ON CHRISTMAS EVE in December 2002.
As I decorated my Christmas tree, a postman brought me
a letter. Inside it I found an offer for a place at St
Catherine’s College to read Mathematics and Computer
Science. I have now completed my undergraduate course
(with a distinction) and am a graduate student at Catz.
Life at Catz is full of opportunities. Being part of a very
talented and creative community, each student can
pursue academic excellence while also aiming for
personal development. In my second year as an
undergraduate, thanks to a College recommendation, I
received a scholarship from the Misys Foundation. This
charitable organisation, which was founded in 1997 by
the global software company Misys plc, aims to help
academic establishments with IT-related education,
through the provision of funds for university
scholarships and the purchase of computer equipment.
St Catherine’s is privileged to be one of only four
Oxford colleges to be beneficiaries of the Foundation.
As a graduate student, I have received a scholarship
from the Leathersellers’ Company. The organisation,
founded in 1444, is one of the ancient Livery
Companies of the City of London. Once an authority
controlling the sale of leather within the City, today
the company promotes British leather trade and
supports charity and education. Every year St
Catherine’s College nominates two of its students –
who must be graduates of European universities
reading for a research degree in the sciences – to
receive the scholarship.
There are many opportunities to become involved in
College life, and no interest that could not be
developed at Catz. From sports to music and drama, the
possibilities are endless. In addition, for aspiring
managers and leaders, there is a wealth of committee
positions for which one can stand. In April 2006 I was
elected President of the Middle Common Room. While it
is an honour to represent such a large and diverse
graduate community, it also
puts one’s leadership skills
to a real test. I hope that I
will be able to share the
knowledge and experience I
have gained while in Office
with future MCR
committees.
Working with students as a College Lecturer and doing
scientific research at the same time has already proved
to be very rewarding for me, and I see a future career
for myself in academia – if Catz offers me another
opportunity to follow the life-path I have set for
myself, I shall not think twice!
If Catz offers me another
opportunity to follow the lifepath
I have set for myself,
I shall not think twice!
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/27

STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
Anna Avramenko
(2004, PPE)
I VIVIDLY REMEMBER THE DAY I arrived at St Catz. I was directing a few shorts that I had written myself. I was
very excited about commencing my degree in PPE, and able to create the first of my own films thanks to the
also about all the extra-curricular activities I had read long three-month summer break the University offers.
about in the Freshers' guide. The teaching in all fields The long vacations also afforded me a good
fulfilled my expectations, with lectures and tutorials opportunity to gain valuable work experience and
equally excellent. I was, however, most inspired by contacts on a film set in London.
Philosophy, which led me to
choose it as the subject in
which I specialised chiefly
with, within the bipartite
course, Economics as my
second specialised subject.
The diversity of topics
studied and the difference in
I have left St Catherine’s with
the strong belief that the
whole Oxford experience will be
invaluable to me in the future.
The structure of the
academic year at Oxford gave
me the time I needed to
delve further into my
interests in film. This meant
that within the
stimulating yet
skills needed to approach the two subjects was
extremely demanding three years of the
something I found to be very stimulating: on a daily PPE degree I was able to think seriously
basis, each course provided a refreshing change from about my aspiration to become a
the other.
feature-film director. I decided to follow
this goal and now, after finishing my
Away from my academic studies, I was able to
studies at Oxford, am taking a gap year
experience many different roles within the two spheres in which I aim to gain the workexperience
and knowledge of films
of film and theatre while at Oxford. I had a wonderful
opportunity to act in a new play entitled The Virgin necessary to succeed in securing a
Student, and also helped to produce a play by David place at a film school in the following
Hare at the Old Fire Station Theatre. My involvement academic year. I have left St
with this latter project introduced me to the practical Catherine’s with the strong belief that
side of working in the realm of theatre and film. Within the whole Oxford experience – and of
the world of film-making itself, I worked as a
course the good friends I made during my time there –
camerawoman for a short student feature, before will be invaluable to me in the future.
28/ ANNA AVRAMENKO

STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
Teddy Watson
writes about the Wallace Watson Award Lectures 2006
WE SET OUT LOOKING LIKE LADYBIRDS from Mars, each
person carrying around fifty kilos. We made it down
the glacier and, as we walked alongside the rivers of
melting water, a lush valley formed in front of us. It
was wonderful and deeply strange to have a desert of
ice and rocks behind us and this green haven in front.
We were exhausted, but started to feel optimistic
again, until we realised that we had to traverse one of
the streams to make it to our destination. We took off
our boots and trousers and started to cross one by
one, on rocks, in an ice-cold torrent. We made it, and
felt good once again. Soon we were to realise that
the first crossing had only served as an appetiser.
In front of us we had a forty-five-metre wide river: it
was deeper and the current was much stronger. I
remember thinking, ‘you are going to do this, you are
going to this’ as I stood out there without feeling my
legs anymore, praying that I would not slip on the
slippery stones. There was no way we could have
struggled against the river if we had slipped with fifty
kilos of heavy equipment attached to our backs. We
finally made it over and joked that this would be great
stuff for the lecture. Our smiles disappeared soon
again though; we were now trapped on an island with
an even wider river to cross in front of us. Another
sixty metres of pure hell with water reaching up to
where a relatively tall guy like my brother would say,
‘Ooh, it is really cold!’
So Christian Toennesen, a graduate
student, described the end of his
expedition to Greenland at the Wallace
Watson Award lectures in February 2007. He had just
come off the ice cap having bagged five summits (two
of which were previously unclimbed) in the arctic
mountaineering expedition for which he had won the
Award. From the peaks, his team had ‘enjoyed
unspoiled views over the enormous ice cap, glaciers,
the ocean, icebergs and mountains’. It was, he said, ‘a
sight so unbelievable that it forces you to shut up and
let your ears be filled by the purest sound of silence
you could ever imagine.’ Christian said he had learned
‘that life is not a given, it is a privilege. Going to
remote regions, going mountaineering,
going beyond the normal, all serve the
same basic purpose: celebrating life.’
Soon we were
to realise that
the first
crossing had
only served as
an appetiser.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/29

STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
It is a cliché
that travel
broadens the
mind, but it is
probably true.
This is clearly what Rachel Brettell,
an undergraduate medical
student, did on her journey
through Mongolia. She described
in her Wallace Watson Award
lecture how she had had ‘quite
literally, the adventure of a
lifetime’:
We often [pitched our
tents] in pitch black,
howling winds or torrential
rain, but to wake up to the
vast and stunning
Mongolian countryside,
with not another soul in
sight, every morning, really
was incredible. The scenery
is ever changing – from
desert, to alpine forest, to
snow-capped mountains. The
country is vast, and the
emptiness is awe-inspiring.
Whilst the Mongolian scenery is amazing, they say
that it is really the people that make a place.
Mongolians move from ger to ger where they are fed,
watered and given a bed for the night before moving
on. No host expects payment – we would invariably be
treated like honoured guests. We sampled goat’s face
– an unusual delicacy – washed down with airag
(week-old fermented mare’s milk, and the Mongolian
tipple of choice!).
It is a cliché that travel broadens the mind, but it is
probably true. I was never an unwilling adventurous
traveller, but I was probably an unlikely adventurous
traveller. I have always known there are incredible
places out there, but I now know that there are
incredible places that I want to see. I have always
known that there are extraordinary things to do out
there, but I now know that there are extraordinary
things I can do.
Sitting on a dirt track, on the border of Kazakhstan,
unable to get a border permit because it was Nadaam
and naturally the whole province had shut down for a
fortnight, nine days since I had had a shower, over a
week since I had seen fresh fruit, a good eight hours
since we had last seen our driver who had gone off to
fix the car, again, it started to rain. I wasn’t sure I
could do it. But this is the wonderful thing about this
incredible Award – you know you can because so
many people have done it before you. And you know
you can because there is a whole bunch of people you
do not want to let down, most notably yourself. And
you know you can because, earlier that year, when I
sat in [a] lecture theatre and they announced my
name, a panel of people believed I could. That is a
remarkable motivator, and countless times it reminded
me why I really did want to push myself that little bit
further. My experience was undoubtedly all the richer
for those little pushes.
There is little I can add!
30/WALLACE WATSON AWARD

STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
Emilie’s Charities
THE MISSION OF EMILIE’S CHARITIES is to give children and young people in poorer
areas of the world a better start in life and hope for a better future. In 2006, the
charity continued its involvement with projects that were begun in 2005, as well as
extending its remit to help even more children. It now sponsors children in South
America, Africa, Nepal and Russia and, in the past year alone, has been able to offer
support to an additional four children in Bolivia and five in Ecuador. Catz alumnus
Darren Chadwick, who was in the same year as Emilie at College, has designed and
developed a website for Emilie’s Charities which gives details of specific projects
currently being supported by the charity. For more information, please go to
www.emiliescharities.org.uk.
Emilie’s Charities was founded by the family and friends of Catz student Emilie
Harris following her tragic death in 2004.
Right: Emilie Harris with
children at an orphanage
in South America.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/31

ALUMNI NEWS
Colin Smith & Andy
Colin Smith (2003, Geography) writes about the challenges he and Andy Hodge (2004, Water Science Policy)
face as they prepare for the 2008 Olympics
ANDY AND I TRAIN THREE TIMES EVERY DAY, with one day
off every six to ten weeks. It is a punishing lifestyle and
one that demands – in addition to the physiological and
technical ability that rowing requires – immense mental
fortitude. It is always hard to get out of bed in the
morning, not because we do not want to, but because our
bodies are always sore and tired from training. Almost half
of our forty-nine week season is spent abroad on training
camps or at competitions. It would be impossible to
continue doing this if we were not motivated by big hopes
and dreams, and if we did not have a tremendous
community of friends and supporters behind us. Catz
provided both of these things for Andy and me.
whole College takes in the achievements of individuals,
that separates Catz from every other college.
Training for the Olympics requires us to push our minds
and bodies to do things that are far outside the ‘comfort
zone’. Every stroke we take (and there can be ten
thousand on a hard day) requires us to strive for
something better, to get more out of ourselves than we
have ever done before. It does not matter if we believe
that the Chinese have some revolutionary way of training;
it does not matter if we know that the American crews will
be physically much stronger than ours. They only give out
the medals to the fastest crews!
When I first came to Catz, I did not understand why it had
such a good academic and sporting reputation. It does not
have the best library, computer facilities or gym, nor even
the biggest sports grounds. Yet you only have to walk
around the corridors of the College, look at the posters
that line the walls and listen to what the students have to
say in Hall to realise that this is a College that is striving
for success in every respect. It is the infectious enthusiasm
for people to do well and aim high, both during and after
their time at St Catherine’s, and the enormous pride the
Catz is also rare in that it encourages a rounded education.
The College gave us an enormous amount of support –
albeit often through gritted teeth – when we rowed for
the University and for Great Britain, and we were often
surprised by the poor support given by other colleges to
some of our fellow-rowers. In a world where university
graduates are increasingly talented, and top positions are
filled by people with skills and experiences far beyond the
remits of their job, Oxford needs to be encouraging its
students to aim ever higher. Andy and I agree that Catz is
32/COLIN SMITH AND ANDY HODGE
© John Batty, johnbatty_66@hotmail.com

ALUMNI NEWS
Hodge
© John Batty, johnbatty_66@hotmail.com
one of the colleges that is a real leader in this respect,
and it is an enormous credit to the College that it will
support people who – in academia and other areas – are at
the very top of their fields.
Andy and I dared to dream big dreams, and Catz was there to
back us. It was hard for us to contribute to College life, yet we
always received messages of support, good will and
congratulations from the College, and continue to do so.
Professors Ceri Peach and Roger Ainsworth were particularly
supportive, always willing to stick their necks on the line to
give us the chance to achieve big things. The enthusiasm,
pride, dedication and unconditional support shown by so many
people was an invaluable asset for us, and will remain a strong
source of motivation for us through the dark winter training
sessions and long into our next professional careers. We are
both so proud to have St Catherine’s College on our CVs.
© John Batty, johnbatty_66@hotmail.com
Andy and I dared to dream big
dreams, and Catz was there to
back us.
Andy Hodge (right), who was a member of the winning
Boat Race crew in 2005, is a double World Champion in
rowing and eight-times World Cup winner as strokeman of
the GB men’s coxless four. Colin Smith (left), who rowed in
the winning Oxford Blue Boat in 2006, is a two-time World
Cup winner and bronze medallist in the GB men’s coxless
pair at this year’s World Championships in Munich. Both
gained Olympic qualification at the 2007 World
Championships in Munich.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/33

ALUMNI NEWS
Bill Ritchie MBE (1971, Law)
OPPORTUNITIES ARE SCARCE in the Scottish highlands
where Bill Ritchie has lived since 1974, but he has
grabbed those that came along with characteristic zeal.
He is a passionate advocate for communities that wish
to control their own land resources and reverse the
Highland Clearances, which emptied glens of people
and created, in the words of the ecologist Frank Fraser
Darling, ‘a wet desert’. However, while many crofts,
including Bill’s, are squashed down on the rocky
coastline, they retain a diversity of habitats including
wetlands and woodland. Recognising the value of the
woodlands in particular, Bill campaigned for crofters to
have the legal right to manage woods on their land.
The Crofter Forestry Act was passed in 1991 and as a
Crofters Commissioner he worked to ensure real agency
support for crofter forestry, which led to a major
expansion of native woodland planting by crofters
across the Highlands and Islands.
In the early 1990s, Bill was the architect of a campaign
that changed Scottish history. Fifteen or so years after
he became a crofter, the owner of the croft land in
Assynt, beef tycoon Edmund Vestey, sold 21,000 acres
to a Swedish property speculator, who promptly went
into receivership. The crofters formed the Assynt
Crofters Trust, which set out to buy the land for
themselves. Bill ran the campaign and, with the help of
journalists, orchestrated a groundswell of popular
support for the crofters which not only helped them to
raise the money they needed to buy the land, but also
created a political imperative for land reform in
Scotland. In 1993, the Assynt Crofters became the first
Highland community to buy their land. By 1996 all
political parties in Scotland were laying out land reform
proposals. After devolution, and before the end of its
first term in 2003, the new Scottish Parliament passed
the Land Reform (Scotland) Act, which gave all crofting
communities an absolute right, and all other rural
communities conditional rights, to buy their land.
Bill has travelled
the globe,
campaigning
to defend
indigenous
peoples’ rights
and supporting
communities
whose forest
lands are under
threat.
34/BILL RITCHIE MBE

ALUMNI NEWS
These provisions created a new opportunity for Bill
when the Vestey family put more land on the market in
2004. Bill went into overdrive and, by the first
anniversary of the enactment of the new law, it had
been tried and tested: a new community company,
Assynt Foundation, had been formed, with Bill as vicechair
and treasurer, £3 million had been raised and
44,400 acres of land, including the iconic mountain of
Suilven, belonged to the people of Assynt.
Bill has travelled the globe, campaigning to defend
indigenous peoples’ rights and supporting communities
whose forest lands are under threat. He was awarded
an MBE in the New Year’s Honours List 2007 for
‘Services to the Environment and Sustainable
Development of the Highlands and Islands’.
Upper right:
Suilven in snow.
Right: Hunters in Assynt.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/35

ALUMNI NEWS
Sir John Elvidge (1969, English)
AS PERMANENT SECRETARY to the Scottish Executive
since 2003, I have the opportunity to be at the heart
of one of the most fundamental changes currently
taking place in the constitutional and political
development of the United Kingdom. The role of the
Permanent Secretary is a richly complex one anywhere
in Britain’s central government structures – the factor
which distinguishes my experience from that of other
Permanent Secretaries is the constitutional and political
context in which I work. Devolution in Scotland is, in
these terms, still in its infancy. I think of my role as
helping shape a new system of government.
One feature of this new system of government is the
absence of single-party majorities. The past eight years
have enabled me to work within the UK’s only
sustained experience of central government by
coalition. My focus has been on ensuring that the
organisation delivers against the formal Partnership
Agreement which the coalition parties, Scottish Labour
and Scottish Liberal Democrats, entered into at the
beginning of each four year fixed-term Parliament, and
on providing an equal service to both parties.
requires my colleagues to evolve a very different model
of the way in which legislation is developed to maximise
support for it both within and beyond the Parliament.
The new minority government is committed to further
constitutional change, with the objective of restoring
independence to Scotland. Revising the working
relationships with the UK Government, which is opposed
to this objective, is another fresh dimension to my
working life, and is one which is both assisted, and made
more complex, by my role as part of the collective
leadership of the Civil Service of the United Kingdom.
While participation in the top leadership team for the
UK’s Civil Service and driving enhancements of the
capacity of the nation’s civil servants form a distinct
part of my responsibilities, these important aspects of
my job may be eclipsed by the new SNP Government’s
desire that I lead the creation of a separate Scottish
Civil Service. My role might appear characterised by
instability, but I believe that, if government is one’s
business, creating a new system of government is the
highest form of professional challenge.
I believe that,
if government
is one’s
business,
creating a new
system of
government is
the highest
form of
professional
challenge.
Since May 2007 there has been a different model of
government, with the Scottish Nationalist Party
governing with less than 40% of the Parliamentary
seats. The Scottish Parliament has passed more than
twenty pieces of primary legislation each year since
Devolution, and the new make-up of the government
36/SIR JOHN ELVIDGE

ALUMNI NEWS
Jane Platt (1975, Modern Languages)
JANE PLATT, CHIEF EXECUTIVE of National Savings and
Investments (NS&I), has been fascinated by all aspects
of the world of finance and investments since the days
when, as a schoolgirl, she would spend evenings
discussing investing with her father. Today she is one
of the City’s most powerful women – the former Chief
Executive of Barclays Stockbrokers, and a former
Executive in Reuters, she now presides over an
organisation that looks after £81 billion worth of
savings and investments on behalf of over 27 million
customers. NS&I is one of the biggest financial service
providers in Britain and Jane, who has been in her
present post since September 2006, is keen to spread
the message that National Savings and Investments, an
Executive Agency of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, is
not just about Premium Bonds, it is also about –
amongst other things – inflation-beating savings and
tax-efficient ISAs!
When asked about the aims and challenges that face
her during the next years of her tenure, Jane talks with
animation of plans to consolidate and expand NS&I’s
brand image through simplification and diversification
of the products and services it offers its customers. In
addition to maintaining a professional and dedicated
level of customer care for existing investors, Jane hopes
that NS&I will be able to widen its customer base
through various sponsorship programmes. For example,
NS&I is a long standing supporter of classical music and
is the sole sponsor of the BBC Proms in the Park events
which take place in September every year. Proms in the
Park is widely regarded as a British institution and is a
sell-out event which reaches well beyond NS&I’s
traditional audience. Her current challenge is to put
NS&I’s new strategy (which, launched on 1 April 2007,
is all about improving customer experience, delivering a
consistent level of finance to the Government and
maximising sustainable profitability in the form of
improving value for the taxpayer) in place.
Jane, who read Modern Languages at Catz, describes
her role at NS&I as ‘huge and challenging’ and one
that gives her the opportunity to work with a talented
team of people in a unique environment. Having
worked in the world of finance and investments for
over twenty years, she has seen considerable changes
in a workplace that was once a traditionally male
preserve. While the number of women in control of
FTSE 100 companies is still very small, they now occupy
a higher percentage of non- executive positions in such
companies than ever before. The pace of change has
been very fast and Jane believes that even greater
assimilation and acceptance will occur as more women
realise their potential and show what they can achieve.
What others may chose to see as a ‘glass ceiling’, she
prefers to view as an ‘enormous challenge’ – one that
she herself is playing no small part in overcoming.
...even greater
assimilation
and accept -
ance will occur
as more
women realise
their potential
and show what
they can
achieve.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2006/37

ALUMNI NEWS
Desmond Brown (1978, Visiting Student)
I CAME TO ST CATHERINE’S in 1978 as a visiting student
from Tulane University, and spent an enjoyable year
doing PPE with Wilfrid Knapp. On my return to the US I
decided to go to medical school. There I had two loves,
‘tropical medicine’ – a term used for diseases of the
developing world – and orthopaedics, the treatment of
bone and joint problems. In the end I trained as an
orthopaedic surgeon, specialising in paediatric
orthopaedics.
Two shadows fall over daily life in Cambodia: the
glorious, distant past, when Cambodian kings built the
fabulous temples of Angkor Wat, whose ruins lie a few
kilometres from the hospital; and the recent, tragic past
of the Khmer Rouge. Very few doctors survived the ‘Pol
Pot time’, and Cambodia remains an impoverished
country with few resources for health care.
Above: Desmond Brown
(second from right) and
his surgical team.
A few years ago I joined the medical faculty of Boston
University. Our hospital is the ‘safety net’ for Boston,
and many of our patients are recent immigrants
without insurance. Caring for these patients revived my
interest in tropical medicine and, through Health
Volunteers Overseas, I arranged to visit the Angkor
Hospital for Children in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
38/DESMOND BROWN

ALUMNI NEWS
Our small
hospital is
prospering,
and is an
important
training centre
for nurses and
paediatricians
in Cambodia.
There is peace
in Cambodia,
and the hope
of a better
future.
Right: A mother and her
child in a Cambodian
hospital.
Left: the realities of life
in Cambodia.
The problems I saw in Cambodian children would
challenge the best surgeons in Boston. There were
chronic bone infections, children walking on untreated
club feet, severe scoliosis from poliomyelitis, hips
destroyed by tuberculosis, blast injuries from land
mines and unexploded ordinance, and many broken
bones and dislocations treated unsuccessfully by the
kru khmer, the traditional healers of Cambodia. I also
found dedicated and energetic young Cambodian
doctors, grateful for the opportunity to learn.
We worked in the single operating theatre, tried to
avoid the mosquitoes, and did our best with the
instruments that were available. The nurses and
anaesthetists were excellent, and we carried out a busy
schedule of procedures for three weeks. I learned, with
difficulty, how to say no to children with problems I
could not treat, with inadequate equipment, during a
short stay. I received the gratitude of many parents and
children, and I learned far more than I taught.
I have returned to Cambodia twice since then, and plan
to return annually as long as I am able. Our small
hospital is prospering, and is an important training
centre for nurses and paediatricians in Cambodia. There
is peace in Cambodia, and the hope of a better future.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/39

ALUMNI NEWS
The historian and writer
William Woodruff (1938, PPE)
recalls his experiences of University life in Oxford in the 1930s
In Oxford, I
began a new
life. I was not
only free to
think, I was
expected to
think...
I FIRST SAW OXFORD in September 1936, when I
was on my way to take up a scholarship at the
Catholic Workers’ College in Walton Well Road,
North Oxford. I wore a brand-new suit and
squeaky shoes, which I had just obtained from a
‘fence’ in Bow. The College, I discovered, was a
working men’s hostel with a chapel in the
basement and a pub next door. Father Leo O’Hea
was the principal. Everybody in the Labour
movement knew O’Hea. I had met him a year
before at meetings in the East End. He was the
most formidable person I had ever met. His
authority seemed to crackle on his clothes.
How a Lancashire boy came to be in London’s East End is
a tale in itself. Workless in the North, I had migrated to
London at the age of sixteen where I found work as a
labourer in an iron foundry in Bow. The job was ill-paid
and uncertain, but in the days of mass unemployment, it
was a job.
At the Catholic Workers’ College I joined a student body of
eight men and two women. Each of them had been
awarded a scholarship to come to Oxford. I shared a room
with Jimmy Foggerty, a miner from Durham. ‘The purpose
of your being here,’ O’Hea told us on our first day, ‘is
leadership. You are for me a spark in the clod. To help
those from whom you sprang is your first commitment.
You are being given a wonderful opportunity to improve
your education. Make the most of it.’ I needed to make
the most of it. My schooling – apart from some night
school – had ended when I was thirteen.
In Oxford, I began a new life. I was not only free to think, I
was expected to think. I had come a long way from the
steam and heat and crash of the foundry floor to listen to
the best brains Oxford had to offer. I thrived. I’d railed
against privilege from soap boxes in the East End, now I
was benefiting from it. Yet there was something very odd
about our relations with the University. While giving us
everything to help our education, the University disowned
us, denying us the wearing of cap and gown. We workingclass
students often had our legitimacy challenged by
college servants. O’Hea’s advice was to forget the
legitimacy argument and take advantage of what the
University had to offer. ‘It’s a beginning,’ he said.
In 1938 I sat for the University’s Diploma in Economics
and Political Science. I emerged with distinction.
Encouraged by tutors, I petitioned the University to allow
40/WILLIAM WOODRUFF

ALUMNI NEWS
me to proceed to a degree in Modern Greats. The
And so the months came and went while I struggled with
Education Department of the LCC (London County Council) one subject after another. I happened to be with Dean
had promised to create a senior adult scholarship,
Kendrick when we learned that I had finally met the
provided the University would accept me. The University University’s demands. ‘Well, done, Woodruff,’ he
did. It waived the entrance examination, Responsions, congratulated me, ‘very well done. I was sure you’d come
however, it insisted that I should take Pass Moderations at a cropper. That’s what I told the Master. Now it’s on to
the end of my first year. But how could I possibly pass your degree. Nothing to stop you.’
examinations that (among other papers) included an
ancient and a modern language?
Kendrick was far too wise not to realise that in 1938-
1939 we were all living through one political crisis
Having joined St Catherine’s in St Aldates, I turned to after another. Although I had spent my summers
Dean W G Kendrick for help. While he didn’t think much of studying in Belgium and Germany, I didn’t believe that
my chances, he advised me to take French and Political the world would be set on fire again. I had not allowed
Economy in Hilary Term, and
Latin, Constitutional Law and
History in Trinity. If he thought
that I was attempting the
impossible, he never said so. I
took pleasure in the fact that I
was now a legitimate
undergraduate and that the
LCC stood behind me.
...I had come a long way from
the steam and heat and
crash of the foundry floor
to listen to the best brains
Oxford had to offer.
for the fanaticism of Hitler.
In June 1940 I volunteered
for national service. I
fought in North Africa, Italy
and on the Anzio
beachhead. My ambition to
graduate from Oxford had to
be put aside. For me it was a
long war. I next saw Oxford
in 1946.
Wilfred Kendrew was my Tutor in Latin. Help with French
came from a Miss Hugo, who was almost blind. Sixty-ish, William Woodruff is an Emeritus Graduate Research
she lived with her brother in a rambling house beyond Fellow at the University of Florida in Gainseville. After the
Magdalen Bridge. As a teacher of French, she was
end of the Second World War, his academic career took
devastating. Daily, I felt the lashing of her Gallic tongue. If him to Harvard, Princeton and the universities of Illinois,
I did well, she would clap. If I did very well, she would give Melbourne and Florida. In addition to his academic work,
me a cup of tea. (I didn’t dare do badly.) She was thrilled he is the author of several novels and two
with the challenge the University had set me. She kept at internationally-acclaimed autobiographical works The
me so much that I wondered how I was going to pay her. Road to Nab End and Beyond Nab End.
‘It has all been arranged,’ she assured me.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/41

ALUMNI NEWS
News in brief
Simon Crisp (1972, Modern Languages)
Simon Crisp is co-editor of The Gospel of John in the
Byzantine Tradition (Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft: 2007)
the first edition of any part of the Greek New
Testament to be produced entirely by electronic means.
Helen Battersby (née White) (1980, Modern
Languages)
Helen Battersby is still living on the South Coast with
Mike and her two children. Having obtained distinctions
in coaching qualifications, she is now working as an
Executive Performance Coach with InsideOut®
(www.insideout.biz). She would love to hear from any
old friends, and can be contacted by emailing
helenbattersby@insideout.biz.
Andrew McNeil (1961, Modern History)
Andrew McNeil retired as the Head of Parliamentary and
Media Affairs at the Chamber of Shipping, the trade
association for UK ship-owners, in 2002. Since then, he
has acted as a volunteer at the East Finchley Advice
Service and, since 2004, has been Chair of the Finchley &
Golders Green Constituency Labour Party. In 2006 he was
elected a Councillor for East Finchley in the London
Borough of Barnet, and he is also a Local Authority
Governor of Christ’s College Finchley (a boys’
comprehensive), and Trustee of Barnet Carers’ Centre. He
contributes a weekly ‘blog’ to the Hendon Times website
and remains very close to his son and daughter, Rupert
and Emma, both of whom are St Catherine’s alumni.
Shaun Johnson (1982, Social Studies)
Shaun Johnson, the founding Chief Executive of the
Mandela Rhodes Foundation in Cape Town, has won a
series of awards for his debut novel, The Native
Commissioner (Penguin: 2006). The novel, which tells
the story of Sam Jameson’s attempt to piece together
the life of the father he never really knew – the
Commissioner of the novel’s title and a kind and
sensitive man brought to despair by the reality of
apartheid in 1950s South Africa – has been awarded
the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize 2007: Best Book in
Africa. The book has also received the M-Net Literary
Award 2007 for English, and the Nielsen Booksellers’
Choice Award 2007.
Andrew Coats (1976, Physiological Sciences)
In 2006, Andrew Coats was appointed Deputy Vice-
Chancellor of the University of Sydney.
David Rudkin (1957, Literæ Humaniores)
David Rudkin has been appointed to an Honorary
Professorship at the University of Wales. The past
twelve months have also seen the publication of his
eleventh published title, a monograph for the British
Film Institute on the 1932 Carl Dreyer film Vampyr (Film
Classics Series: 2005).
42/NEWS IN BRIEF

ALUMNI NEWS
Paul Brooks (1985, Physics)
Following fifteen years working at the UK’s Defence
Research Agency – now known as QinetiQ – Paul
Brooks has decided to try working for a smaller
company and is now director of business development
and sales for Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL), the
world’s leading provider of small satellite missions. This
follows leading two particular successes in QinetiQ –
the TopSat remote sensing spacecraft and the Zephyr
Solar Powered UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle). Paul and
Sue (University, 1985) now have two children, Abi, ten,
and James, six.
William Marshall (1963, Biochemistry)
Forty years after graduating in Biochemistry (under
Lloyd Stocken’s tutelage), William Marshall is still
working in the discipline, and has just signed off the
revisions for new editions of two books on clinical
biochemistry and metabolic medicine. He spent most of
his career at King’s College Hospital and King’s College,
London, retiring as Reader in Clinical Biochemistry. His
interest in medical education led to many appointments
as an external examiner, and he has worked with Catz
Fellow Ashok Handa on the Graduate Entry Medicine
course. Since leaving King’s, he has been working parttime
as a consultant and Clinical Director of Pathology
at the London Clinic, a leading London independent
hospital, and was recently elected Honorary Secretary
of the Institute of Biology.
Richard Cox (1951, English)
Richard Cox was re-elected as a member of the States
(Parliament) of Alderney in November 2006 and
continues as a member of the Guernsey Overseas Aid
Commission. In July 2007 his twelfth novel, Island of
Ghosts, was published.
David Roughley (1978, Engineering Science)
David Roughley is now CEO of the Forum of Private
Business (FPB) in Knutsford, Cheshire, an institution
which has just celebrated its thirtieth birthday.
Kate Hughes (née Noble) (1992, Geography) and
Bernard Hughes (1992, Music)
On 25 September 2007, Matilda Gertrude, a sister for
Pen, was born to Kate and Bernard Hughes.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/43

ALUMNI NEWS
Dev Lahiri (1975, Modern History)
Dev Lahiri is the second person in the world – and the
first in India – on whom surgeons have performed a
pioneering operation in which an ICD (Implantable
Cardioverter Defibrillator) was implanted in an area below
the rib cage through an incision made in the abdomen.
Having survived several near-death experiences, he plans
to share his experience of battling with a life-threatening
heart condition with cardiac patients across the globe.
Speaking in The Times of India, Dev Lahiri – who is now
back at work as Principal of Welhams’ Boys School,
Dehradun, and has even resumed horse-riding – shared
his message that sufferers like him should never lose
hope, ‘I’d just like to say to all out there who might be
losing hope, it’s only just begun.”
Tom Leach (1997, Modern Languages)
Tom Leach’s company has now expanded throughout
Poland, beyond Kraków to Warsaw, Poznan, Gdansk,
Katowice, Lódz, Wroclaw and Torun, providing
consultancy and advisory services for foreign investors
in the Polish Real Estate Market. Any Catz alumni who
are planning to visit Poland are welcome to get in
touch with Tom via his company website,
www.leachandlang.com.
Charles Green (1998, Visiting Student)
Charles Green is now working as a freelance proofreader,
writer and editor. His article on ‘The Science of
Ergonomics’ appeared in What’s Up? Annapolis and he
recently presented a paper on ‘Classical Greek and
Italian elements of Prometheus Unbound’ for the 2007
Hawaii International Conference on Arts and
Humanities.
David Mabberley (1967, Botany)
On 2 January 2007 the civil-partnership ceremony of
David Mabberley and Andrew Drummond took place at
the British Consulate General in Sydney. The witnesses
were David’s children, Laura and Marcus.
44/NEWS IN BRIEF

ALUMNI NEWS
Boston Reunion
In early October, more than thirty Catz alumni –
representing cohorts from Society days to the
twenty-first century – gathered for cocktails and
dinner at Boston’s charming and idiosyncratic Club of
Odd Volumes. In addition to catching up with old
friends and making new ones, those present had the
opportunity to hear the latest news from St
Catherine’s from the Master, Roger Ainsworth, and
Emeritus Fellow Wilfrid Knapp.
The next opportunity for alumni living in America to
come together will be at a dinner and reception in
New York in April. This will coincide with the
University’s North American Reunion, which is taking
place on 4 and 5 April 2008. For more details, please
check the College’s website, or contact a member of
the Development Office.
Catz alumni enjoying a
reception at the Club of
Odd Volumes in Boston.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/45

ALUMNI NEWS
Development
Office
Contact details:
Guy Lawrenson
Development Officer
Telephone: 01865 281585
Fax: 01865 271705
Email: Guy.Lawrenson@stcatz.ox.ac.uk
Franca Potts
Development Officer
Telephone: 01865 281596
Fax: 01865 271705
Email: Franca.Potts@stcatz.ox.ac.uk
Bethan Williams
Publications Officer
Telephone: 01865 271760
Email: Bethan.Williams@stcatz.ox.ac.uk
Megan Parry
Master’s PA
Telephone: 01865 271762
Email: Megan.Parry@stcatz.ox.ac.uk
Please visit www.stcatz.ox.ac.uk
to update your contact details.
The College time capsule
The College Enigmatist offers the next clue (in a series of fifty) to the contents of the time capsule
buried under St Catherine’s College:
A good hiding…
Previous clues:
1. Two thirds of my number is one and a half times what I am.
2. Pooh in 1927, true of us today?
3. Do they belong to longevity?
4. The first 6000 flowers
College events 2008
Thursday 14 February
Bullock event
Wednesday 20 February
Wallace Watson Award lectures
Thursday 21 February
Foundation Scholars Drinks
Wednesday 27 February to Saturday 1 March Torpids
Saturday 1 March
Degree day
Saturday 8 March
Lunch for first-year students and their parents
Saturday 15 March
PPE dinner
Saturday 29 March
Oxford v Cambridge boat race
Friday 4 April to Saturday 5 April
New York reunion
Friday 11 April
Inter-collegiate golf tournament
Thursday 24 April
Foundation Scholars dinner
Monday 12 May
London party at the RAF Club, Piccadilly
Saturday 17 May
Degree day
Wednesday 21 May to Saturday 24 May Eights week
Saturday 7 June
Degree day
Saturday 28 June Gaudy for matriculands 1996-2002
Saturday 14 June
Garden party for second year students
and their parents
Saturday 12 July
Degree day
Friday 19 September to Sunday 21 September Oxford alumni weekend
46/DEVELOPMENT OFFICE

ALUMNI NEWS
London Party 2008 – RAF Club,
Piccadilly
This year the London Party will take place at the RAF Club in Piccadilly. We will be
holding a smart, evening drinks reception for all our London alumni and any
other alumni who would like to attend. Invitations will only be sent out to
those who live in the London area. If you live outside this area, but would still
like to attend this event, please contact the Development Office directly.
If you have any enquiries regarding events or would like to attend any
of the events listed, please contact Franca Potts in the Development
Office. For a regularly updated list of forthcoming events, please
go to www.stcatz.ox.ac.uk.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/47

CATZ FELLOWS
Peter Franklin
Tutor in Music, Professor of Music,
on Seeing Through Music
The Elgar story
is certainly
relevant to my
own work on
latenineteenthcentury
symphonies
and operas...
MUSICOLOGY IS AN ILL-FATED DISCIPLINE – perhaps an odd thing to say when it can inspire involuntary
rapture in strangers. ‘How lovely!’, some exclaim, as eyes close upon a vision of Mozart and angelic choirs.
One hates to tell them that its practice and practitioners can be as down-to-earth as those of supposedly
more worldly fields, or that one’s day is spent doing the thousand things that deprive academics of quality
time for communing with the celestial spheres. There is, however, rarely a chance to respond before the
question follows, ‘What do you play?’ Thinking of Elgar, who sold his violin in order to buy a billiard-table
(less effete and more gentlemanly, he thought), a silly answer comes to mind. But my purpose is to try to
explain what musicologists do do… a glimpse of my own recent preoccupations must suffice.
Musicians’ anxieties about appearing too ‘musical’ in overtaken by such things at the end of his life in the
Britain in the early twentieth century, open up the 1930s – for good reasons as well as bad.
wider issue of music as a complex form of cultural
practice whose study will involve listening, but also as The modernist take-over spawned tendentious
much reading and historical research as other
evolutionary histories that replaced confusing
Humanities subjects (that performance and
simultaneity with musical styles succeeding one
composition also occupy undergraduate Music students another in an inevitable march of historical ‘progress’.
is what can make them seem unduly sensitive while Wagner’s Tristan becomes a ‘precursor’ of atonality
actually multi-tasking in multi-locations). The Elgar and Gustav Mahler a ‘forerunner’ of Schoenberg. The
story is certainly relevant to my own work on latenineteenth-century
symphonies and operas and their and Mahler (and Elgar, come to that) raises the spectre
fact that audiences have gone on listening to Wagner
eclipse by more abstruse forms of modernism – the of irrelevant or even pernicious popularity, and the
kind that involved maths and mysticism but also
slippery slope to mass culture in whose seductively
billiard-room-hostile abstraction and concert-disrupting dangerous realm my more recent objects of study
dissonance. Elgar’s lush tonal language seemed
reside: Hollywood movies and their music. Like much
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/49

CATZ FELLOWS
popular culture, these have simply been air-brushed
out of standard histories of ‘twentieth-century music’.
Hollywood movies, we are told, are not serious, although
they may be seriously bad: manipulative, titillating,
mindless escapism, which is possibly not so far from
where my Mozart-and-angels types had music (swap
manipulation for elevation?). This revealing paradox makes
it worth probing into what it was that a post-romantic
version of ‘classical music’ was stooping to in 1930s films
like King Kong or Gone with the Wind (I own up to having
recently published on both). Perhaps it was something not
so many worlds away from what Mahler and Elgar, and
even Wagner, were up to (the way in which ‘pure’ or socalled
‘absolute’ music was widely described in protocinematically
visual terms is a study in its own right). We
are not dealing simply with a neat continuation of tonal
symphonic music in Hollywood that might allow us to
airbrush out the angry attacks of musical modernism in
the 1930s and ’40s. But where film studies used to avoid
music, the narrative role of music in mass-entertainment
cinema is increasingly under interdisciplinary scrutiny. Of
interest to ‘New Musicology’ (American feminists, cultural
critics and post-structuralists coined that variously
mocking or celebratory term) is the way in which trashy
Hollywood movies can sometimes figure music rather as
they figure women: as Beauty, sometimes sentimentally
sweet, but more often in troublesome and transgressive
moods that inspire violence.
Soft-focus heroines’ association with ‘love themes’
provide too pat an image of Hollywood women’s music.
Think of Bette Davis shooting her composer-lover in
Hollywood
movies, we are
told, are not
serious,
although they
may be
seriously bad:
manipulative,
titillating,
mindless
escapism,
which is
possibly not so
far from where
my Mozartand-angels
types had
music.
Deception (scored by Korngold in 1947); of Joan
Crawford in Humoresque (also 1947) walking into the
sea, to her death, as her ‘art’-devoted violinist lover
plays the Liebestod on the radio; or of innocent Joan
Fontaine walking into Rebecca’s bedroom in Hitchcock’s
version of the du Maurier novel. That was a bedroom
to die for (and perhaps in), and awash with the dead
Rebecca’s music of openly transgressive passion (eerily
lit by an electronic Novachord). But Hollywood did not
only do women. Rebecca is du Maurier’s femme fatale
as born of a certain kind of male fantasy, coloured by
late nineteenth-century obsessions and hang-ups.
These also gave birth to those operatic women typically
destined for horrible ends. Almost as horrible as that of
Marion Crane in Psycho, whose early demise (well, she
had stolen the money hadn’t she?) left the rest of
Hitchcock’s 1960 horror masterpiece to her crazy killer
Norman Bates, whose inner music was appropriately
dark, dissonant and modernist.
The book that has emerged from recent conference
papers, some read in Minneapolis and New York, will, I
hope, be called Seeing Through Music. To do that with
even-handed sympathy, both historical and cultural, is
the aim. So let me apologise to the Mozartians, the
angelic and the mathematical (mystical or otherwise)
and return to finalists’ essays and arrangements in the
Music House. The arrival of a second grand piano,
thanks to opera singer Heather Harper’s donation, has
certainly left no room for a billiard table. Just one or
two incongruous bits of ecclesiastical furniture to
relocate and Alan Bullock, whose bust still lurks behind
it all, might be able to see his Mozart in a new light…
50/ PETER FRANKLIN

CATZ FELLOWS
Gaia Scerif, Tutor in Psychology
Understanding the development of attentional difficulties
across a variety of developmental disorders
GAIA SCERIF BECAME increasingly interested in
the cognitive and neural processes underlying the
development of attention – and those underlying
attentional difficulties – when she read for a PhD
at the Institute of Child Health, University College
London. After a spell as a Visiting Fellow at the
Sackler Institute of Developmental
Psychobiology, Cornell University, and as a
Lecturer in the School of Psychology at the
University of Nottingham, she came to St
Catherine’s in October 2006 as a Tutor in
Psychology.
In the first decade of the new millennium, common
questions have brought together researchers from
such diverse fields as molecular genetics,
neuroscience and cognitive psychology. Can the
function of specific genes be linked to distinct
cognitive processes? What are the ethical and
practical implications of newly emerging
relationships between genes and cognition? Within
this context, disorders of known genetic origin have
provided a unique window into the role played by
the implicated genes in affected cognitive outcomes.
However, it is becoming increasingly clear that, even
in disorders associated with a single gene, mapping
between genes and cognition needs to consider
how these relationships unfold over time – weaker
cognitive functions in adults are not necessarily
problematic for younger individuals with the same
genetic disorder, and vice versa. It is, therefore,
crucial to chart increasing difficulties or
developmental improvements from very early in life.
This holds both from a scientific point of view, as a
way of unfolding the complexities of gene-cognition
relationships, and, in much more applied terms, as a
route to earlier and more effective intervention
programmes.
Following this broad framework, I investigate
cognitive development in young children with
fragile X syndrome, a monogenic disorder that is
the most common cause of inherited learning
difficulties. Adults and school children with fragile
X syndrome have striking difficulties with
inattention and hyperactivity. Increasing rates of
early diagnosis mean that it has become crucial to
understand the developmental trajectories of
attention early in life in order to identify when and
what interventions would be most beneficial, and
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/51

CATZ FELLOWS
Comparing
young children
with super -
ficially similar
global
difficulties in
attention will,
hopefully, shed
more light on
the unique
needs of each
group.
to understand the consequences of impairments in
auditory and visual attention for complex
multimodal environments like the classroom. A
four-year longitudinal project supported by the
Wellcome Trust funds a postdoctoral and a
graduate researcher (Justin Cowan and Victoria
Cole) and sees us working in collaboration with
researchers based in London and at McGill
University. We will be charting the developmental
trajectories of attention in children with fragile X
syndrome and in those who develop typically.
While difficulties with attention are striking in
individuals with fragile X syndrome, children and
adults with many other developmental disorders
also struggle due to hyperactivity and inattention.
The Economic and Social Research Council, the
Williams Syndrome Foundation, the Down
Syndrome Educational Trust and the Fragile X
Society, have awarded a DPhil studentship which
we aim to use to help assess the influence of
attentional difficulties or strengths on basic literacy
and numeracy skills, following toddlers and young
children over a three year period, as they move
through pre-school and primary school. Comparing
young children with superficially similar global
difficulties in attention will, hopefully, shed more
light on the unique needs of each group. This
project is lead by a new DPhil student, Ann Steele,
who is also based at St Catherine’s, and who will
be visiting families and children at home and
school to collect information on attention, basic
numeracy and literacy.
Despite their relatively low prevalence, Down
syndrome, fragile X syndrome and Williams
syndrome have attracted much interest because of
their unusual profiles of strengths and weaknesses.
In contrast, sex chromosomal trisomies are
extremely frequent, affecting approximately 1 in
1000 female and 1 in 500 male births. However,
the cognitive strengths and weaknesses associated
with carrying an additional sex chromosome remain
elusive. An exciting new project funded by BDF
Newlife, the UK’s leading child health and research
charity, which supports children with chromosomal
abnormalities, brings together colleagues in
developmental psychology and clinical genetics
from across the country. By quantifying the
prevalence, nature and range of specific learning
and adaptive difficulties in children and adolescents
with an additional sex chromosome, we aim to
inform pre-natal counselling on outcomes, and
signpost the way to early and appropriately
targeted interventions for young children at risk of
developmental difficulties.
Developmental disorders of known genetic origin
continue to provide insights into relationships
between genes and cognition, but they have also
revealed their complexity. A key step in
understanding how these two levels of description
relate to each other involves exploring the
intermediate level of description, systems
neuroscience. Support from the John Fell OUP
Research Fund will help a postdoctoral researcher,
52/ GAIA SCERIF

CATZ FELLOWS
Duncan Astle, study the neural correlates of
attention development. Duncan will combine two
child-friendly and non-invasive techniques that can
uncover the temporal dynamics of attentional
processes, electroencephalography (EEG) and
magnetoencephalography (MEG), at the new
Oxford Neurodevelopmental Magneto -
encephalography Unit based at the Warneford
Hospital. These techniques will allow us to gather
information about the processes underlying
cognitive control in typically and atypically
developing children, integrating cognitive, systems
neuroscience and genetics. This remains a daunting
enterprise, but one that is increasingly within
reach, as we uncover the molecular and cellular
processes involved in systems cognitive
neuroscience, and as cognitive processes can be
studied at earlier and earlier ages, and throughout
the course of development.
Ceri Peach
Tutor in Geography, Professor
of Social Geography
I WAS ONLY TWENTY SIX WHEN, IN 1965, I was
appointed Lecturer in Geography at St Catherine’s – a
post that I held jointly with a lectureship at Keble and a
Faculty Lectureship in the University. Having previously
been an undergraduate and graduate student at
Merton, I found the move from the oldest to the
newest college to be liberating. When I arrived, Catz
was still being built, the yew hedges in the quad were
only knee-high, the Fellows were newly appointed and
the drive was underway to make the College great.
Catz took four Geographers a year in those days –
today we take between ten and twelve! In 1990 I was
given a personal Chair by the University and the
College appointed its second Fellow in Geography.
Teaching and research at St Catherine’s, and in the
University, has been a wonderfully fulfilling life’s work,
one where you never step in the same river twice –
students change and one’s subject undergoes a
paradigmatic shift.
My main field of research is migration and the
segregation of minority ethnic and religious groups in
Britain, America and Western Europe. A sabbatical leave
spent in the Demography Department at the Australian
National University transformed my understanding of
the relationship between the spatial patterns of
I disproved the
‘triple meltingpot
theory’ of
American
assimilation
which, based
on data
collected in
New Haven,
argued that
while national
ethnic identity
in America
would
dissolve...
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/53

CATZ FELLOWS
residential segregation and led me to investigate ethnic
intermarriage as an index of social interaction. In my
next sabbatical, at Yale, I disproved the ‘triple meltingpot
theory’ of American assimilation which, based on
data collected in New Haven, argued that while national
ethnic identity in America would dissolve, it would do so
within maintained religious boundaries: Catholic,
Protestant and Jewish. My own research proved that,
while the so-called ‘Protestant pot’ seemed plausible, a
‘Catholic pot’ seemed rather unlikely. As the Irish were
residentially mixed with the British, Scandinavians and
Germans, and separated from the Poles and Italians,
this suggested an ‘old European’ rather than a
‘Protestant’ melting pot. There was, in fact, a white
melting pot which began with the ‘old’ Europeans and
into which Poles, Italians and, to an extent, Jewish
populations, were added as time went on.
a golden star – he never missed a tutorial, never failed
to produce an essay, took a good degree and
demonstrated that athletes at a high level are more
conscious of time planning, and more efficient in
meeting commitments, than many others with far less
pressure on them.
As the incumbent of several College Offices I have been
exposed to new and unexpected challenges. As
Domestic Bursar, I negotiated with Craig Klafter and the
then JCR President, Peter Mandelson, over charges. It
was during my tenure as Senior Tutor that women were
first admitted to the College. As Finance Bursar, I
wrestled with the bursars of other Colleges to justify
our fee level and later, when Acting Master, I fought for
the University’s support of the College’s Kobe Institute
in Japan.
Later research projects involved focusing on housing
tenure and segregation in Britain and the United
States. Most recently I have been working on
continuing issues of segregation in Britain, and have
also begun to examine the growth of the Muslim
population in Europe (and particularly in Britain). This
has developed into a large scale study of the impact of
Muslim mosques, Sikh temples and Hindu mandirs on
the cultural landscape of Britain, which I will continue
to work on in my retirement.
Away from my research, I have maintained a keen
interest in rowing. Catz has had a strong stream of
oarsmen – many of whom I have had the privilege to
teach. Sir Matthew Pinsent (Geography, 1989) remains
My career has been an exciting and a full one. I am
grateful for the opportunities it has offered me to
teach – and be taught by – my students, and also for
the fellowship of my colleagues.
Away from my research, I have
maintained a keen interest in
rowing. Catz has had a strong
stream of oarsmen – many of
whom I have had the privilege to
teach...
54/CERI PEACH

CATZ FELLOWS
Awaiting new pic on
monday
IN HIS TEACHING CERI combined humanity and a keen
sense of humour with an absolute desire to push the
minds of those he taught. My abiding memory of Ceri's
teaching was his demonstration of the 'walk' of young
men in Harlem in front of a hundred captivated firstyear
students as yet unfamiliar with both Oxford
professors and the American ghetto. I feel privileged to
have been taught by Ceri. He epitomises everything
that is right about the Oxford tutorial system in which
he believes so passionately.
Matthew D’Arcy (2000, Geography)
MY MEMORIES OF PROFESSOR CERI PEACH are fond,
numerous and rich. He was always keen to know each
one of his students as an individual, to emphasise the
fact that life continues beyond work, and was humble
in his desire to gain knowledge to satisfy his
extraordinary intelligence. I remember his love for
quantifiable figures and any essay that spoke of the
wonders of the index of dissimilarity, his obvious
tendency to recommend the reading of articles that
happened to be written by former students, and his
subtle way of fighting the corner for anything antipost-modern.
Of course there were also those ‘Ceriantics’
which we all grew to love: as third-years we
ended a group meeting very promptly because Ceri
needed to save a dubiously parked car from certain
clamping! When I think of Ceri, I have only genuinely
happy memories of an outstanding tutor, a
distinguished yet highly approachable professor, and a
dear friend.
Hannah Lunn (2003, Geography)
I feel privileged
to have been
taught by Ceri.
He epitomises
everything that
is right about
the Oxford
tutorial system
in which he
believes so
passionately.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2006/55

COLLEGE CATZ FELLOWS LIFE
Alexis Tadié
An interview with the Fellow by Special Election
and Director of the Maison Française
Tell me about the Maison Française
The Maison Française (MF), which came into
being shortly after the end of the Second World
War, is a French research centre funded by the
French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is
recognised by Oxford University as an associated
institution, and is the only European institute of
its type in Britain. The MF seeks to contribute to
Franco-British research in the fields of literature,
the humanities and social sciences through the
work of its staff, students and visiting lecturers
and speakers. Working in tandem with the
French National Centre for Scientific Research
(CNRS), the Institute also provides a base in
Oxford – and access to University facilities and
resources – for academics who hold grants or
scholarships from the CNRS.
The fields of ‘literature, the humanities
and social sciences’ are, by definition,
broad. Does research undertaken at the
MF concentrate upon any particular
areas?
There are three main research programmes
currently running at the MF. The History of
Science programme is particularly well
established, and researchers have forged
successful links with faculties and
departments at Oxford University. The
programme entitled ‘Modernity and Nation’
seeks to bring together French and British
academics working in the fields of history,
literature and philosophy in the seventeenth
and eighteenth centuries. Finally, ‘Nation and
Globalisation’, brings together several
activities, including a European Research
Group on European democracy.
You mention that the research
undertaken at the MF involves
collaboration with faculties and
departments at the University. How else
does the MF seek to participate in and
contribute to the academic community
here in Oxford?
Many activities, including lectures and seminars,
are organised around the three research areas.
In addition, a series of lectures and conferences
that are not necessarily related to the main
research projects take place at the MF
throughout the year. Every term, the Maison
plays host to a French writer. Recent authors in
residence have included the Caribbean writers
Patrick Chamoiseau and Edouard Glissant. The
MF also helps to host and organise three of the
sub-faculty of French’s seminars in Mediaeval
French, Early Modern French and Modern
French.
Once a term we organise a European lecture, where the
guest speaker is someone from the European political world...
56/ALEX TADIÉ

CATZ FELLOWS
The MF is, naturally, well known here in
Oxford. How well known is it in France?
I’m pleased to say that the MF is becoming
increasingly well known across the Channel.
The Maison has made a concerted effort to
promote itself in France, with real success.
Once a term we organise a European lecture,
where the guest speaker is someone from
the European political world – past speakers
have included Pascal Lamy and Neil Kinnock.
We also try to make sure that we do not
invite the same people twice to the MF, so
that more and more academics and writers
have the opportunity to come and work at
here in Oxford.
Your career has taken some interesting
turns before your appointment as Director
of the MF – tell us how you ended up in
Syria.
In 1996 I was working in Paris, and felt that I
wanted to do something different, so applied
to the Diplomatic Service for a post as a
cultural attaché. I mentioned in my
application form that I could speak Arabic,
and one day I got a phone call asking me to
go to Damascus! Syria was a fabulous place
full of immense natural and archaeological
beauty. The people were wonderful and the
atmosphere then was not as strained as it is
now – at the time, Syria was seeking further
integration with Europe. I worked to set up
collaborations between France and Syria in
the fields of art, literature and media. On one
memorable occasion, I even organised a rock
concert in a Palestinian camp!
From Syria to Summertown! How did you
become Director of the MF?
I was a young French lecteur in Oxford in
1983-4 and I even did some teaching for St
Catherine’s that year; it was there that I met
and became friends with Richard Parish
(Professor of French and Philip Spencer
Fellow). I was honoured to be asked to come
back as a Visiting Fellow at St Catherine’s in
1996. Richard and I always kept in touch
after I left Oxford and it was Richard who
asked me if I was considering applying for
the directorship. I became Director of the MF
in 2003. I have never been the sort of person
who thinks, ‘in five years, I want to be here’,
things just happen! I love being in Oxford. It
is a very beautiful place and the combination
of intellectual stimulation and the general
friendliness of a collegiate university makes it
a very special one too. I am particularly proud
to have been elected to a Fellowship at St
Catherine’s.
As Director of the MF, you must only
have limited time for personal research.
What, when you have the opportunity,
are your particular research interests?
My own research focuses mainly on
eighteenth-century literature, and the history
of ideas. As part of my National Service I
lived in India and taught at the University in
New Delhi. I have a keen interest in postcolonial
studies, Kipling and contemporary
Indian writing. My current project, however,
is a book about the English philosopher and
essayist, Francis Bacon.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/57

CATZ FELLOWS
John Charles Smith
Tutor in French Linguistics
ON TUESDAY 29 MAY 2007, in a ceremony
that took place in the gardens of the
Master’s Lodgings, John Charles (JC) Smith
was made a Chevalier dans l’Ordre des
Palmes Académiques by the attaché for the
French language at the Institut Français du
Royaume-Uni, Mr Nicolas Marques. Over fifty
colleagues and friends were present to watch
the presentation of the award, which was
created by Napoléon in 1808, and is the
second oldest French ‘order of chivalry’ after
the Légion d’Honneur. The Ordre des Palmes
Académiques honours those associated with
education and, especially, university life.
JC Smith has been a Fellow at St Catherine’s
since 1997. His main field of interest is
historical morphosyntax, and he has
published widely on agreement,
refunctionalisation, deixis and the evolution
of case and pronoun systems. He is Deputy
Director of the University’s new Research
Centre for Romance Linguistics, as well as
Secretary of the International Society for
Historical Linguistics, and is currently coediting
the Cambridge History of the
Romance Languages.
After expressing his pleasure at being in
Oxford to present this award for service to
the French language and French culture, Mr
Marques spoke at length about JC’s academic
achievements. In addition to being ‘un grand
spécialiste des langues romanes – français,
espagnol, italien, catalan’, JC is also, he said,
both, ‘un remarquable professeur’ and ‘un
homme remarquable’.
Left: Nicholas Marques
(left) and JC Smith in the
garden of the Master’s
Lodgings.
58/ JOHN CHARLES SMITH

GAZETTE
Donald Hill (1954, PPE)
The College would
like to record its
gratitude to Mrs E
Lorraine Hill, the
widow of St
Catherine’s
alumnus Donald
Arthur Hill, who
has established a
charitable
remainder trust in memory of her husband.
This generous gift will provide substantial
support to the College in areas where such
help is most needed.
– serving on several committees – of the
International Association for the Promotion of
Intellectual Property, and was among the first
group of members to receive an Award of
Merit. While his career took him to many
parts of the world, his favourite place was
Peter Schlechtriem
Visiting Fellow (Christensen Fellow and
Heather Grierson Professor of Law) 2001
the property at Otty Lake near Ottawa which
became the retirement home for him and his
wife of forty-seven years, Lorraine. Donald
Hill was a man of great intellect and kindness,
a fine pianist and a dedicated, life-long
member of the United Church of Canada.
Donald Hill, who came to Oxford in 1954 to
read PPE, always retained fond memories of
his time in Oxford and enjoyed the
opportunity that it gave him to meet so many
fellow students from Commonwealth
countries. Pursuing a career in the field of
intellectual property law, Donald Hill was
both a lawyer and a trademark agent. He
was, for many years, a senior partner at
Smart and Biggar, Featherstonhaugh and Co
in Ottawa, Canada. He was an active member
PROFESSOR PETER SCHLECHTRIEM, whose
death followed a battle with cancer, was born
in 1933 in Jena, Germany. He studied at the
University of Chicago and also at the
University of Freiburg, from where he
graduated with a doctorate in 1964. In 1970,
a year before he moved to work at the
University of Heidelberg, he obtained a
postdoctoral qualification from the University
of Freiburg.
In 1977 Professor Schlechtriem was offered,
and accepted, a Chair at the University of
Freiburg. He was also Co-director at the
Institute for Foreign and International Private
Law until his retirement in 2000. In Hilary
2001 he came to St Catherine’s as a
Christensen Fellow, and as the Heather
Grierson Professor of Law. An outstanding
scholar and a wonderful man, his death has
left an enormous hole in the study of private
law and comparative law in Europe.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/59

GAZETTE
Jack Lankester
Emeritus Fellow Derek Davies and his wife Margaret, the College
Archivist, remember Founding Fellow Jack Lankester
Jack’s family came from the Isle of Man, and that
was where he went to school and embarked on
an architectural training. From his earliest days
he had been interested in designing things, but
being eighteen when the Second World War
broke out was not conducive to building a career.
He was commissioned into the Royal Engineers,
and saw active service with the Indian Army in
Burma, where he was particularly concerned
with solving transport problems.
On his return to England he acquired a further
qualification in town planning, and worked in both Wales
and Lancashire. But he found this work insufficiently
creative, and in answer to an advertisement he applied
for the post of Surveyor to the University of Oxford. In
those days the main university offices, from Vicechancellor
downwards, were perceived as less than full
time. But this was soon to change, and Jack quickly
detached himself and his office from the University Chest
and established what became a wholly separate and very
busy department at the Malthouse in Tidmarsh Lane, a
building which he had refashioned and where he had a
most elegant office. He enjoyed the challenge of making
older university buildings suit new purposes, and he was
also much involved in the choice of architects for new
university buildings. With this in mind he built up a
portfolio of architects whose work he admired, and he
formed the view that a nucleus of the best architects in
Europe at that time existed in Copenhagen. So when
Council’s Committee for the Choice of Architects took
the view that the new buildings for St Catherine’s
should make a significant contribution to the
architecture of the University, it was not surprising that
the only continental country which he visited was
Denmark.
The University asked Jack to adapt or design many of
its buildings himself. One of his favourites was the
Institute of Education in Norham Gardens. But the most
demanding challenge was the creation of the semiunderground
reading room in the Radcliffe Science
Library, rightly known as the Lankester Room. Other
major works include his contributions to the new
accommodation at Green College and Linacre College.
Back at St Catherine’s, while Holscher – Jacobsen’s
senior assistant – chose a layout for the Alan Bullock
and Mary Sunley buildings, Jack was their effective
designer both inside and out. It was fortunate that his
views were so respected both in Oxford and beyond; it
became crucial at the time when steps had to be taken
to secure the integrity of Jacobsen’s concept of the
College, which was achieved through the granting of
Grade I listed status.
60/ JACK LANKESTER

GAZETTE
Jack quickly
detached
himself and his
office from the
University
Chest and
established
what became a
wholly
separate and
very busy
department at
the Malthouse
in Tidmarsh
Lane...
His talent for design extended to furniture, especially
chairs. The Mary Sunley building contains examples of
these, and with the permission of the University he
established a furniture design business, making the
prototypes himself. Visitors to his own home were
always impressed by the elegance and craftsmanship of
the furniture he both designed and made for it.
He was Surveyor to the University for thirty years. Nor
was his retirement idle, for he occupied his time in
mastering French to a level at which he published
translations.
When his first wife died at a comparatively young age
he mastered the art of cordon bleu cookery, and
entertained his many friends with its results. They were
delighted when he presently married Sue Buttar, who
had been Alan Bullock’s secretary in the crucial years
of the foundation of the College. She had taken a
break in Australia after the excitement of the College’s
foundation was over, but responded to a summons
back to Oxford to become Jack’s secretary at the
Malthouse.
Jack’s portrait hangs among those of the Founding
Fellows in the library, and the College has every reason
to remember him with gratitude and affection. St
Catherine’s owes so much to him, for without his
inspired suggestion that its founders should look at the
work of Arne Jacobsen, the College would look much
less notable and be a very different place.
Jack Lankester died in November 2007.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/61

GAZETTE
Wilfrid Knapp, Emeritus Fellow,
delivered the following tribute at
Jack Lankester’s funeral...
JACK WAS A FRIEND. We shared much, we
had respect and affection for each other and
I feel his loss deeply. I speak now for the
Master and Fellows of St Catherine’s College.
Jack was an architect of St Catherine’s. The
ground had been prepared for him by
Susannah [Lankester]. She was Sue Buttar
then and she raised the money to build St
Catherine’s. She had a lot of help from Alan
Bullock, but it was her unremitting effort that
left no possible source of funds unexplored.
We did not foresee what a great team she
and Jack would become. We love them both.
In the quaint way of Oxford, where we call
men and women who lecture ‘Readers’, Jack’s
position was that of Surveyor to the
University. I am sure that he did a lot of
surveying, though I never came across him
peering through a theodolite. Surveyor, yes,
but above all, architect. In that capacity he
worked with Arne Jacobsen to build the
College. It is not surprising that they worked
so well together. Jack could be a builder, but
he had an architect’s vision. He saw what
Jacobsen was about: they shared the
demanding task of sacrificing no standards of
design or workmanship while still meeting
the demands of economy. He spoke a clear
and lucid English when Jacobsen chose not
to, and he continued, lovingly, to describe
this great building (Grade I listed) to visitors
to the College after Jacobsen had gone.
Following the whimsy of Oxford, Alan Bullock
suggested that Jack should be elected a
Professorial Fellow of St Catherine’s. A professor
he could have been, though he was not.
Fellow he certainly was, one of a fellowship,
loyal and devoted to his College and his
colleagues. He was not without guile, but he
was open and honest, totally without malice.
He added to the College by designing the
Mary Sunley and the Alan Bullock buildings,
and we almost forgot that he was the
University Surveyor – a post that he held for
thirty years. We lost count of the fact that he
designed more buildings for the University
than any of his predecessors. His style
permeated them all – always a light,
inventive and graceful organisation of space,
designed for the practical needs of those
who would use them. Of course, Alan Bullock
knew what he was doing, designing furniture
as well as buildings – and Alan wrote of ‘the
unique contribution he has made to Oxford’s
success in coming to terms with modern
architecture, and equally to the renovation
and maintenance of older buildings.’
Architects are often prey to a professional
vice, wanting their constructions to be a sort
of self-advertisement. Not Jack. He remained
at the centre of humanity and humanity gets
old. Men and women grow out of youthful
exuberance, mature achievement, but they
still need places to live. So with his other
hand – his third hand it must have been – he
organised housing for them. The
establishment and the growth of the Anchor
Housing Association owed more to Jack than
to any other single person. By 1985 it was
providing housing for 17,000 tenants and he
was chairman of the complementary
Guardian Housing Association, responsible for
1400 flats on fifty estates.
He was a lovely man. He was gifted with that
great quality, a sense of humour, full of glee
and mirth. I never heard Jack guffaw –
perhaps he did, but not in my company. His
eyes twinkled, and his chuckle and his
laughter bubbled up and spread across his
face. It was like marmalade bubbling in the
preserving pan – warm, golden, full of
promise.
We shall miss him, though he will be always
with us. May God rest his soul.
62/ JACK LANKESTER

GAZETTE
Air Marshal Lord Garden
Rigorous MoD planner, thinktank analyst and Liberal
Democrat defence spokesman, by Jonathan Fryer
DEFENCE ANALYSTS ARE RARELY GIFTED with the ability to expound their views in terms accessible to
the general public, but Tim Garden, who has died from cancer at the age of 63, was a notable exception.
Following the US-led invasion of Iraq, he became the pundit of preference for a number of TV and radio
stations at home and abroad, as well as a regular commentator both in newspapers and online.
Charles Kennedy, then leading the Liberal Democrats
and coming under heavy fire from both Labour and
Conservative MPs for his opposition to the launching of
the Iraq war, shrewdly nominated Tim for the House of
Lords, where he took his seat as Baron Garden of
Hampstead in 2004. The party thus gained a significant
voice which was listened to with respect and attention.
Long before entering politics, Tim had in fact
established himself on both sides of the Atlantic as an
authority on security issues and international relations,
not least when he was director of the Royal Institute of
International Affairs (Chatham House) in London during
1997-98, and as a visiting professor at King’s College
London and Indiana University.
Tim was born in Worcester and attended King’s school
in that city. His father was an electrical engineer and
Tim was the first member of the family to go to
university. He read physics at St Catherine’s College,
Oxford (which later made him an honorary fellow),
demonstrating an early love of flying by being a
member of the Oxford University Air Squadron. In his
second year, he met a fellow undergraduate, Susan
Button, who became his wife after graduation, when
they were both aged 21. By then Tim had joined the
RAF, but he realised only a fortnight before the
wedding that he should have obtained his commanding
officer’s permission before making the arrangements.
The officer concerned was not amused.
Tim flew Canberra light bombers in Germany before
becoming a flying instructor on Jet Provosts. Later, he
commanded a jet flying training unit, a Vulcan bomber
squadron (responsible for delivering Britain’s nuclear
deterrent in those pre-Trident days) and a helicopter base.
In the early 1980s, he took time out from active service
to do a postgraduate degree in international relations
at Magdalene College, Cambridge. Some air force
colleagues viewed all this university education as
suspect, but it enabled him to go on to become director
of defence studies for the RAF, lecturing on strategic
studies in the UK and internationally, and writing his
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/63

GAZETTE
Though
intellectually
rigorous, he
was immensely
gregarious.
Even after his
elevation to
the peerage,
he would
bounce up to
strangers and
say, “Hi! I’m
Tim Garden!”
book Can Deterrence Last? (1984). From 1985 to 1987,
he was station commander at RAF Odiham in
Hampshire, where he flew Chinook helicopters and the
Aerospatiale Puma.
The next six years were spent working in the Ministry
of Defence in London, including a period as assistant
chief of the air staff. He published a second book at
this time – The Technology Trap: Science and the
Military (1989). His final appointment at the MoD was
as assistant chief of the defence staff (programmes), a
role that gave him responsibility for long-term planning
for all three armed services, about which he developed
forthright opinions.
After a period as commander of the Royal College of
Defence Studies, he retired from the air force in 1996,
with the rank of air marshal (and a knighthood,
awarded in 1994). As one of his colleagues later
commented, “Tim had to leave the air force early, as
the service wasn’t big enough for him.” Tim had other
interests to pursue. Having become fascinated by
computing, he set himself up as a website consultant,
before taking over at Chatham House. His own website
and weblog on foreign and security issues developed
into something he specially valued.
The worlds of thinktanks and academe offered a more
diverse and sometimes more stimulating arena for social
interaction and debate, though Tim always enjoyed
tackling some of his more reactionary fellow servicemen
head on. He caused a stir at one Fleet Air Arm annual
Taranto/Falklands dinner after his retirement, when he
expounded loudly on the benefits of immigration,
silencing one red-faced diner with the parry, “Besides,
who’s going to pay for your pension?”
He could be a stimulating companion at the big table at
the predominantly conservative Beefsteak Club, of which
he was a member, as well as the more predictable
National Liberal Club. He was truly a man of many parts.
When Tim first became involved with the Liberal
Democrats early in the new millennium, both locally in
Camden and nationally, many people wrongly assumed
that because of his military background, he would be on
the conservative wing of the party, whereas actually he
was an impassioned radical – a Guardian-reading member
of the Fabian Society, with a taste for bright red ties.
Though intellectually rigorous, he was immensely
gregarious. Even after his elevation to the peerage, he
would bounce up to strangers and say, “Hi! I’m Tim
Garden!” He found some of the formality of the upper
house disconcerting, declaring that people’s reluctance
to use first names there made him feel like he was back
at school.
His informality helped make him popular with
Americans, though he was sometimes highly critical of
what he openly called the “hyper-power”. For a while,
he also questioned whether Nato should continue to
exist. He was a firm advocate of European integration
and of a proper European security and armaments
policy, in recognition of which President Chirac
appointed him a Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur
in 2003.
64/ AIR MARSHAL LORD GARDEN

GAZETTE
Tim was not just a keen European, but a true
internationalist. For the final three years of his life, he was
president of the British group of Liberal International, in
which capacity he chaired a packed and emotional fringe
meeting on Israel/Palestine at last September’s Liberal
Democrat conference in Brighton, keeping a cool head
when some present were losing theirs.
He maintained a deep interest in the Middle East and
was a member of the Anglo-Jordanian Society. In 2000,
he advised the Palestinian Authority on negotiations
with Israel, under the auspices of the Adam Smith
Institute. But his fairness and integrity meant that he
was respected on all sides in that tortuous situation,
and he got a warm reception when he supported his
wife Sue when she stood as LibDem parliamentary
candidate in the 2005 general election in Finchley and
Golders Green, which has one of the largest Jewish
populations in Britain.
The party soon understood what an asset they had
acquired in Tim. He became a key figure in the
parliamentary foreign affairs team, and got elected to
several party committees and policy working groups. All
the while, he continued to write articles prolifically, to
travel giving lectures, and to be interviewed any time
there was a major development in Iraq or Afghanistan,
or when the issue of replacing Trident came to the fore.
Earlier this year, he started to feel tired, but a hospital
check-up revealed that the problem was not
exhaustion, but pancreatic cancer, which was rapidly
spreading to other organs. He remained in hospital for
about a fortnight, before returning home to spend his
final weeks in the care of his family. He is survived by
Sue and his two daughters.
Richard Norton-Taylor writes: Tim Garden was the
epitome of the – not so new – generation of highranking
military figures who belied a commonly held
presumption that they had a one-dimensional, even
blinkered, approach to the world around them.
He would always ask the right questions, which the
government would invariably sidestep, about the
consequences of its defence and security policies, or its
reluctance to confront urgent problems. But he never
indulged in histrionics or partisan point-scoring for the
sake of it. Far from it. Indeed, he was, in many ways,
the ultimate, quietly spoken, rationalist. For a journalist
writing on military, security, and foreign policy issues,
and how they marry, or don’t marry up, he was a
trusted source and invaluable sounding board. You could
always rely on him to point you in the right direction.
When I met him for the first time after he was
appointed a Liberal Democrat spokesman on defence,
he remarked that one of the things he had been told
as a newcomer by elderly peers was that membership
of the House of Lords added 10 years to your life. It is
a tragedy that his membership there was cut so short.
He will be seriously missed, in that place and much
further afield.
Timothy Garden, defence expert and Liberal
Democrat peer, born April 23 1944;
died August 9, 2007
He would
always ask the
right
questions,
which the
government
would
invariably
sidestep,
about the
consequences
of its defence
and security
policies...
Reproduced by
permission of The
Guardian. Copyright
Guardian News & Media
Ltd 2007.
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/65

GAZETTE
Obituaries 2007
ALAN BARKER (1971, Physics)
If, in 1971, Catz had instituted a pentathlon
with events in the loudness of quad-facing
speakers, the ferocity of drag-shots on the barfootie
table, length of service at the JCR bar,
luxuriance of hair and infectiousness of
laughter, Alan Barker would have reigned
supreme. Underpinning these diverse attributes
were Alan’s academic excellence, his profound
humanity and his granite integrity.
Alan decided late during the ‘milk-round’ to
reject the blandishments of industry and to
pursue, instead, a career in medicine. This had
been a long-standing, but rarely-expressed,
ambition. After gaining a good Second in
Physics, he moved to Guy’s Hospital in London.
Those familiar with Alan’s legerdemain with
anything electronic forecast a glittering future in
surgery but his priorities lay elsewhere, with him
favouring instead the broader community of
general practice. After qualifying in 1979, Alan
moved to the South Coast. He married Wendy in
1984 and subsequently became senior partner
of a large, highly-respected practice in
Newhaven.
Not only was Alan a devoted family man, he
also made an outstanding and selfless
contribution to his local community. He climbed
Kilimanjaro on behalf of SCOPE and regularly
volunteered to accompany charitable cycling
expeditions as a medical officer. On a recent trip
to Cambodia his presence was, literally, lifesaving.
His stamina on a bicycle and on a tennis
court, like his appearance, defied the passage
of time.
Alan Barker is survived by his wife, a son and
daughter, and many, many friends. He is sorely
missed.
PHILIP BOOTH (1955, English)
Philip Booth read English at St Catherine’s,
where he was an active member of the Boat
Club and a founder member of the Beer & Blade
Dining Club. He then spent a year working in
Freetown at the University of Sierra Leone
before returning to Oxford to take a Diploma in
Education. Emigrating to Canada in the mid-
1960s, he taught in the Montreal area (St
Bruno) for many years, where he was also
extremely active in theatre and local radio.
Sadly, he had to take early retirement in the
early 1990s as the early stages of Alzheimer’s
disease began to take their toll. During 2006,
Philip took up residence in a home which
offered specialist care as his condition
worsened. He died on Sunday 7 October 2007
and is survived by his widow, Mary – whom he
met whilst working in Sierra Leone – and three
children.
GEORGE EASTER (1958, Theology)
George Easter was born in 1921 in Niagara Falls,
New York. While in school he played the French
horn, ran in cross country races and attained the
rank of Eagle Scout. He graduated from Oberlin
College, where he developed a strong interest in
social outreach programmes, particularly those
serving minorities and disadvantaged people.
Following theological study at Yale Divinity
School and graduation from the Episcopal
Divinity School in Cambridge, MA, he was
ordained in western New York State in 1944.
In an ordained ministry spanning sixty-three
years, Fr Easter served as a cathedral canon in
St Louis, and later in Albany, New York, and
pursued graduate studies in England, at St
Augustine’s College in Canterbury, and at St
Catherine’s College, where he obtained a Master
of Letters degree. In the United States he
taught Christian Ethics at Philadelphia Divinity
School and Philosophy and Psychology at Paul
Smith’s College. He also served in many parishes
in Britain and America, working in Oxford, St
Louis, Buffalo, New York, Massena, Albany, Lake
Placid, Saranac Lake, Plattsburgh, Champlain,
Bronxville, Potsdam and several other parishes in
the Diocese of Albany.
During his various parish postings, Fr Easter was
active in community events, and helped to
organise and secure funding for the Massena
Arts Council, the Chateaugay Arts Council and
numerous other community organisations. He
66/ O B I T U A R I E S

GAZETTE
enjoyed meeting people from all walks of life,
and worked to include minority and immigrant
families in the various parishes where he served.
An able public speaker, he loved to teach
children parables from the Bible and Sunday
School songs. He also enjoyed explaining
philosophy and theology to parishioners and
students, and took great pleasure in seeing
them come to understand new ideas. He loved
to travel, loved the outdoors and sailing, and
was an avid gardener.
George Easter died on 31 July 2007. His second
wife, Peggy, had predeceased him. He is
survived by three children from his first
marriage, to Ruth Eaton, and three stepsons
from his marriage to Peggy.
STEVEN GATRELL
(Visiting Student – 1986, Modern History)
Albert Steven Gatrell was born on 20 April 1920
in Eldorado, Kansas, and graduated from Lost
Creek High School, West Virginia, in 1938. In July
1940 he joined the US Army Air Corps and served
as a weather forecaster in England, France and
Germany during the Second World War. During
his enlistment he received a Bachelor of Arts
degree in History from the University of Illinois,
and began his Master’s degree studies at Florida
State University in Tallahassee and at the
Territorial College of Guam.
Upon retirement from the United States Air
Force in 1963 he settled in Morgantown and
completed a Master’s degree and PhD (in
History) at Western Virginia University. In 1986
he came to St Catherine’s as a Visiting Student
and studied Modern History.
Steven Gatrell taught History at Morgantown
High School from 1964 until 1970. During this
time he helped sponsor Key Club and Junior
Achievement initiatives. He then transferred to
Fairmont State College where he taught until his
retirement as Professor Emeritus in 1985. He
also helped found the Phi Alpha Theta Academic
Honorary.
A member of the Boy Scouts of America since
1932, Steven Gatrell was awarded, amongst
other honours, the Distinguished Eagle Scout
Award (conferred upon those who have gained
the highest status of fame or eminence in their
life’s work) and the Silver Beaver Award (the
highest honour awarded to a volunteer on the
local level). In 2002 he received his seventyyear
pin. In the previous year, Secretary of State
Joe Manchin had conferred upon him the honour
of Distinguished and Dedicated Mountaineer.
Albert Steven Gatrell died on 2 April 2007. His
wife, Winnifred, had predeceased him. He is
survived by four daughters, eight grandchildren
and two great-grandchildren.
ALEX GRAHAM (1996, Modern Languages)
Alex Graham was born on 24 February 1977 in
the British Military Hospital in Berlin, where his
father was serving with the Royal Air Force. He
attended local British Service schools before
going to board at Stamford School in 1987.
While at Stamford, Alex joined the Combined
Cadet Force (CCF), where he rose to the rank of
Flight-Sergeant. In his final year at school, he
was in charge of the RAF element of the CCF.
Alex, who was captain of the school’s second
hockey team, gained the Gold Award in the
Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme, and was
also involved in the Young Enterprise scheme.
After a gap year, he came to St Catherine’s to
study Russian and Linguistics in September
1996. He had found school studies relatively
easy (and had often been found reading a book
hidden inside a schoolbook by the end of
supervised homework sessions), so having to
work hard at university came as rather a shock.
His year in Russia was spent at Yaroslavl, where
he made many friends. He graduated in 2000.
In 2002, Alex joined Autobusiness in Stamford
where he quickly established a reputation as a
highly respected automotive journalist and trade
analyst. While working at Autobusiness, Alex
met Sarah Mackenzie (their Marketing Manager)
who would become his wife. In February 2005,
Alex left Autobusiness in order to set up his own
business, SupplyBase, in which, on a freelance
basis, he carried on doing the same type of
work as he had at Autobusiness.
Early in 2006 Alex discovered three lumps in the
left side of his neck, which were eventually
discovered to be secondary tumours. He was
diagnosed with lung cancer in July 2006. Alex,
who fought against the cancer, and never
accepted that he was terminally ill, died on 24
September 2006. His knowledge of, and interest
in, world affairs, his intellectual skills and his
sense of humour meant that he was an
intriguing person to have known. He is sorely
missed by his family and many friends.
GRANT HENRY LATHE (1947, Biochemistry)
Grant Lathe MSc, PhD, MDCM, FRCPath was a
pioneer in Clinical Biochemistry and a man with
a strong social conscience. A Canadian national,
he was born in British Columbia in 1913. He
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/67

GAZETTE
studied Biochemistry and then Medicine at
McGill University and, while still a student,
undertook the difficult journey to China during
the Sino-Japanese war. In 1941 he joined the
Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, was posted
to England, and saw active service in Italy,
where he accompanied the forward Casualty-
Clearing Station on the advance from Naples,
reaching Rome in June 1944.
After completing a DPhil at Oxford University
(accredited by McGill) he became Consultant
Chemical Pathologist at Queen Charlotte’s
Hospital in London. Here he studied conjugation
of the blood pigment bilirubin and its
importance in neonatal jaundice. This led to the
invention of the separation technique of gel
filtration (still widely used), for which he and C
R J Ruthven later received the John Scott Award
(one of the oldest science prizes in the USA). In
1957 he was appointed Professor of Chemical
Pathology at the University of Leeds. His
inaugural lecture on ‘Defective Molecules as a
Cause of Disease’ foreshadowed the later
emergence of molecular medicine. Over the next
twenty years he built up a large department
which encompassed many novel ideas in Clinical
Biochemistry, research and teaching.
His singular gift to his students, colleagues and
children was his ability to listen carefully before
offering insightful comments with a smile. He
was also a man of contradictions: at first a
Christian, he became a staunch atheist in later
life; a vocal pacifist (who participated in the first
Aldermaston march), he volunteered for military
service when he considered it necessary.
Strikingly energetic in his later years, he still
attended scientific meetings and flew to Canada
each summer to visit his family. His ninetieth
birthday was celebrated with his children in
Reykjavík, Iceland. He died at home in Leeds on
2 July 2007. He is survived by four children, ten
grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
MARTIN MOLYNEUX (1947, Theology)
Martin Molyneux was born on 30 April 1923 at
Westhoughton, Bolton, and educated at Wigan
Grammar School. His tertiary education was
completed at the Universities of Manchester,
Oxford and Fribourg.
Prior to being received into the Catholic Church
in August 1954, he was an assistant to
Orientalist Paul Kahle from the Deutsche
Forschungsgemeinschaft. Later, he was the
Librarian for Oxford University’s Department of
Italian Studies. He studied for the priesthood at
the Salesianum, Fribourg, Switzerland.
Following Ordination in July 1965, he returned
to the Diocese of Lancaster as Assistant Priest
at the Cathedral. From there he moved to the
Beda College in Rome, as Lecturer in Dogmatic
Theology, Dean of Studies and finally, in 1976,
Vice-Rector. Fr Martin returned to Lancaster in
1986 to be Parish Priest of St Joseph’s before
moving to his final parish of St Thomas,
Claughton (1987-1999). After a very happy
ministry there Mgr Molyneux retired to Boarbank
Hall in 1999 where he had the wonderful care
of the Augustinian Sisters of Boarbank Hall.
Writing about Martin Molyneux, the Bishop of
Shrewsbury, Martin Noble, said, ‘Martin was a
true gentleman, excellent priest and loyal
friend… though never less than the scholar, he
was – perhaps much to his surprise – equally
effective in pastoral ministry and was deeply
admired by his Claughton parishioners. Naturally
reserved, he nevertheless rejoiced in good
company and in sharing what he considered the
worthwhile things of life – literature and music,
wine and smoked salmon.’
Martin Molyneux died on 22 November 2006.
BRIAN OVERALL (PPE, 1953)
Brian Overall was one of the many mature
students who came up to St Catherine’s Society
in the 1950s. He was a gregarious member of
the JCR and a leading light of the College’s
debating society.
Brian was born in Manchester. After leaving
school, he worked as a librarian at the
Manchester Evening News before studying for a
diploma at Fircroft College of Adult Education in
Birmingham, whose slogan was, ‘You can
change your life in a year’. It certainly changed
Brian’s. He was one of thirty mature students
across the country awarded government
scholarships to go to university. Before he could
qualify for Oxford, he had to take a crash course
in Latin.
After Oxford, he returned to Manchester and
lectured for the Workers’ Educational
Association. He moved to London in 1966,
taking a second degree at Birkbeck College. He
taught economics at what is now the South
Bank University and lectured to British soldiers
in Germany, Hong Kong and Singapore. The
least military of men, he took a wry pride in his
honorary rank of lieutenant-colonel.
68/ O B I T U A R I E S

GAZETTE
After his first marriage (celebrated with beer
and sausages in his Abingdon Road digs) ended
in divorce, he remarried. He and his second wife
Vivika lived together in a small mansion flat in
Kensington High Street for four decades. Brian
cultivated a taste for fine wines and a talent for
cooking. He cherished his connection with St
Catherine’s and seldom missed a reunion.
Ironically for so articulate a man, he died of
Alzheimer’s disease in June 2007.
THOMAS ANTHONY SHAFTO (1947, English)
Tony Shafto’s place in the annals of St
Catherine’s is assured on the strength of his
coxing the 1949 first Eight to six bumps – a feat
watched by the second and third Eights that
year. He was born in Penang, in the Straits of
Malacca, and came up to the Society to read
English straight from Alleyne’s Grammar School
in Stone, Staffordshire. After going down he was
called up for National Service and as a secondlieutenant
saw action with the North
Staffordshire Regiment in the Korean War.
After returning to civilian life, Tony worked in
insurance for ten years before switching to
teaching, first at the Staffordshire College of
Commerce, and then at Dudley Teacher Training
College and Lanchester Polytechnic. Drawn to
distance learning, Tom worked for the Open
University and Worker’s Educational Association
and, over a period of thirty years, published
numerous textbooks and correspondence
courses. During this time, he acquired a BSc in
Economics, which was followed by a doctorate.
After ‘retirement’, Tony Shafto taught part-time
at Warwick and Coventry Universities and, until
he moved to Devon, was involved in distance
learning with Durham University Business School.
There he continued to write until shortly before
his death, from cancer, in November 2006.
Tony Shafto’s wife predeceased him. He is
survived by two daughters.
ROBERT ZELL (1948, Theology)
Robert Loran Zell was born in Albany, New York,
on June 9, 1922, the youngest of the four
children of Jon and Martha Zell. Robert was a
graduate of Carroll and of Nashotah House,
Wisconsin, and of Union Seminary, New York,
and was also an ordained minister in the
Episcopal Church.
Robert spent several years in England. He was a
Fulbright Scholar and held Master’s degrees in
Theology from the Universities of Oxford and
Cambridge. While in England, he also assisted at
an Anglican Church in Northolt, London. On 17
April 1968, in Oxford, he married Josephine May
Howe.
In the 1960s, as a Catholic layman, he was
Assistant Professor of Theology at Marquette
University. He was later employed by the
Wisconsin Department of Health and Social
Services in Milwaukee and Madison. In his
spiritual journey, Robert joined the Greek
Orthodox Church in 1988. He and Josey (div.
2003) retired to San Diego in 1999.
Robert Zell died in San Diego, California, on 12
June 2007. He is survived by a son and
daughter, and by six grandchildren.
St Catherine’s welcomes obituaries of alumni
and friends of the College, reserving the right
to edit them where necessary.
NOTIFICATIONS
Peter Akehurst (1947, Theology)
George Balassa (1941, Chemistry)
Henry Boodell (MCR Steward)
Ian Bowles (1961, Physiological Sciences)
Hugh Douglas (1953, Geography)
Rob Flood (1993, Chemistry)
Robin Grist (1961, Education)
Harold Hall (1949, Geography)
Margaret Hess
Anne Jarvis
Robert Jones (1948, Theology)
Sydney Laycock (1948, Engineering
Science)
John Lever (1962, Chemistry)
Bertie Lewis (1954, Theology)
Philip Long (1936, Bodleian Prog)
Jack Lord (1941, Modern History)
Duncan Macrae-Gibson (1951, English)
Fuyuhiko Maki (Kobe Institue, Japan)
Margaret McCloghry
Donald Mofford (1953, Anthropology)
Michael Noon (1967, Engineering Science)
Christopher Phillips (1974, PPE)
Edward Short (1936, Theology)
William Skaife d’Ingerthorpe (1949,
Theology)
Simon Standley (1962, Geology)
Leonard Taylor (1938, Modern History)
Ullrich Trendelenburg (1954, Medicine)
Colin Whitehead (1949, Physics and
Mathematics)
Richard Witcomb (1965, Engineering
Science)
Harry Wolbers (1970, Politics)
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/69

GAZETTE
Admissions 2007
UNDERGRADUATES
Biological Sciences
Felicity Bedford – Hills Road Sixth Form College, Cambridge
Roberta Fisher – John Kyrle High School, Ross on Wye
Sebastian Gnan – European School Munich, Germany
Dorothea Hill – Wycombe Abbey School, High Wycombe
James Iles – King’s School, Worcester
Ragav Sawhney – Vyners School, Middlesex
Zoe Stanyon – Broxbourne School, Hertfordshire
Paul Wilkinson – Hampton School, Middlesex
Chemistry
Edward Beake – Hampton School, Middlesex
Hannah Buckley – Stroud High School, Gloucestershire
Claire Carpenter – Leicester Grammar School
Simon Cassidy – Cowbridge School, South Glamorgan
Felix Chan – German Swiss International School, Hong Kong
Aileen Frost – Stowmarket High School, Suffolk
Alice Gatland – Worthing Sixth Form College, West Sussex
Wojciech Kaluza – Liceum Ogolnoksztalcace nr 4, Sosnowiec, Poland
Jeremy – Brentwood School, Essex
Michelle Savage – Pates Grammar School, Cheltenham
Computer Science
Peter McCurrach – Bishop Luffa School, Chichester
Toby Smyth – Richard Huish College, Taunton
Marcin Ulinski – Spo∏eczne Liceum Ogólnokszta∏càce im Jam
Saheba Digvijay Sinhji – Poland
Economics & Management
Mary Intsiful – Sacred Heart of Mary Girls’ School, Upminster
Henry Shek – Harrow School, Middlesex
Engineering Science
Liam Dempsey – Guiseley School, Leeds
Alexander Dibb – Westminster School, London
Matthew Passman – Bancroft’s School, Woodford Green
Edward Porter – Radley College, Abingdon
Samuel Rushworth – Bishop Wordsworth School, Salisbury
Gavin Sillitto – Stewarts Melville College, Edinburgh
Joshua Sutherland – Exeter School, Devon
Mark Weston – Perse School, Cambridge
English Language & Literature
Caroline Bird – Mander Portman Woodward, London
Maximilian Bryant – Westminster School, London
Aleksandra Chadzynski – St Paul’s Girls’ School, London
Lucy Hartley – Ripon Grammar School, North Yorkshire
Bryony Hope – Camden School for Girls, London
Christopher Pearson – King Edward VI Camp Hill School for
Boys, Birmingham
Stephanie Pope – West Bridgford School, Nottingham
Sarah Readman – Bishop Luffa School, Chichester
Experimental Psychology
Meghan Hardman – Clitheroe Royal Grammar School, Lancashire
Emma Kilford – Friary County High School, Lichfield
Fine Art
Stephen Bochonek – Prince Henry’s Grammar School, Otley
Joyce Kalema – William Morris Academy, London
Geoffrey Tibbs – Winchester College, Hampshire
Geography
Jenny Casswell – Tunbridge Wells Girls’ Grammar School, Kent
Max Grandison – St Paul’s School, London
Hannah Hammond – Bolton School Girls’ Division, Lancashire
Rhodri James – Dyffryn Tas School, Carmarthenshire
Holly Jones – Camden School for Girls, London
Kary Lau – Headington School, Oxford
Thomas Monteath – Hereford Sixth Form College
Zoe Thomas – Wycombe High School, Buckinghamshire
Hitomi Yokoyama – Woldingham School, Surrey
History
Sebastian Bicen – Dame Alice Owen’s School, Hertfordshire
Joshua Brinkers – Peter Symonds College, Winchester
David Bull – Norwich School
Lydia Forte – St Paul’s Girls’ School, London
Laura Gray – Sydenham High School, London
Sophie Herlihy – Portsmouth Grammar School, Hampshire
Ross Hughes – Halesowen College, West Midlands
Lindsay Weare – Honiton Community College, Devon
History & Modern Languages
Audrey Ariss – Westminster School, London
History & Politics
Kirsten Elliott – James Allens Girls’ School, London
Thomas Haynes – Lincoln Minster School
Victoria O’Brien – Wycombe High School, Buckinghamshire
History of Art
Eloise Maxwell – Henley College, Oxfordshire
Eva Tausig – South Hampstead High School, London
Emma Thorneycroft – Westminster School, London
Human Sciences
Kirsty Bell – Earlston High School, Berwickshire
Tanya Bird – Worcester Sixth Form College
Aisha Mirza – Seven Kings High School, Ilford
Melba Mwanje – St Francis Xavier VI Form College, London
Anna Ockwell – Royal High School, Bath
Clare Wilcockson – St Bernards Convent School, Slough
Law
Ruth Campbell – Madras College, St Andrews
Amy Carr – Hereford Sixth Form College
Paul Fisher – Whitchurch High School, Cardiff
Kathryn Hernandez – Bury Grammar School for Girls, Lancashire
Robert Moore – West Buckland School, Devon
Lucy Tester – Henley College, Oxfordshire
Charlie Thompson – Dauntsey’s School, Devizes
Alexandria Winstanley – Lymm High School, Cheshire
Materials Science
Joe Bennett – Reeds School, Cobham
Timothy Butler – Bishop Wordsworth School, Salisbury
Tarik Saif – High Storrs School, Sheffield
Cheuk Tung Wong – Canford School, Wimborne
Mathematics
Amanda Adjepong – St Peter’s School, York
Luke Harris – Sir Thomas Rich’s School, Gloucester
Ivan Lam – Dulwich College, London
Zubin Siganporia – St Olave’s Grammar School, Orpington
John Zhang – Sidcot School, North Somerset
Mathematics & Philosophy
Amy Bellamy – Gorseinon College, Swansea
Samuel Boaden – Bacup & Rawtenstall Grammar School, Lancashire
Mathematics & Statistics
Timothy Chu – Abingdon School, Oxfordshire
70/ADMISSIONS 2007

GAZETTE
Medicine
James Demery – Llanishen High School, Cardiff
Nicholas Denny – Oundle School, Northamptonshire
Jonathan Fee – Down High School, Northern Ireland
Katrina Fordwor – Crompton House School, Oldham
Isobel Neville – Prior Park College, Bath
Kamal Patel – Gorseinon College, Swansea
Modern Languages
Caroline Barker – King Edward VI College, Totnes
Timothy Beyer – Harrow School, Middlesex
Harry Forman Hardy – Harrow School, Middlesex
Luiza Grizzelle – Latymer Upper School, London
Mary Heath – Grey Coat Hospital School, London
Helena Moore – Lady Eleanor Holles School, Middlesex
Eleanor Mortimer – Farlingaye High School, Woodbridge
Modern Languages & Linguistics
Felix Grovit – Westminster School, London
Nicholas Gurung – Charterhouse, Godalming
Sophie Roberts – St Olave’s Grammar School, Orpington
Molecular & Cellular Biochemistry
Charlotte Heads – St Peter’s School, York
Rachel Moore – King Edward VI College, Stourbridge
Christopher Powell – Aquinas College, Stockport
Kate Stuart – St Mary’s School, Cambridge
Music
Naomi Bath – Dr Challoner’s High School, Amersham
Hilary Cornwell – Leeds Girls’ High School
David Merriman – Gorseinon College, Swansea
Anna Wardell – Hills Road Sixth Form College, Cambridge
Oriental Studies
Marta Krzeminska – II Liceum Ogólnoksztalcace im Stefana
Batorego, Poland
Nathan Letore – Lycee d’Etat International de Ferney Voltaire, France
Abdullahi Mohammed – Isleworth and Syon School, Middlesex
Philosophy, Politics & Economics
Mark Blundell – Wycliffe College, Gloucestershire
Stefana Bosse – American Community School, Middlesex
Ann Don Bosco – Wallington High School for Girls, Surrey
Peter Kiln – Richard Hale School, Hertford
Alan MacNaughton – Northgate High School, Ipswich
Benita Mahtani – Henrietta Barnett School, London
Nadeem Nanjuwany – Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School, Elstree
Rossa O’Keeffe-O’Donovan – Dame Alice Owen’s School,
Hertfordshire
Katarina Punovuori – American School of Warsaw, Poland
Physics
Chaos Chhapi – Leicester Grammar School
Christopher Cody – Plymouth College, Devon
Geoffrey Evans – Bedford School
Pascal Jerome – Sutton Grammar School for Boys, Surrey
Alun Perkins – John of Gaunt School, Trowbridge
Scott Riseborough – Olchfa School, Swansea
Jade Ryan – John Henry Newman School, Stevenage
Xiao Yi Tan – Kingswood School, Bath
Physiological Sciences
Will Darwin – Hereford Sixth Form College
Rupinder Ghatrora – Morley High School, Leeds
Catherine Wherity – Bournemouth School for Girls, Dorset
Psychology, Philosophy & Physiology
Olivia Mackintosh – Headington School, Oxford
Ceridwen Williams – Eirias High School, Colwyn Bay
GRADUATES
Roham Alvandi, BA University of Sidney, Australia; MA Tufts
University, USA; MPhil St Antony’s College, Oxford, DPhil Politics &
International Relations
Sara Arezoo, BEng Sheffield Hallam University, DPhil Engineering
Science
Stephen Attree, BA St Catherine’s, MSt Medieval & Modern
Languages *
Mariam Azeez, BSc Lahore University of Management Sciences,
Pakistan, MSc (C) Financial Economics
Khalida Azhigulova, LLB Kazakh Humanitarian & Law University,
Kazakhstan, MJuris Law
Tiffany Bayliss, BA Princeton University, USA, MSt Film Aesthetics
Guy Bedford, BA St Catherine’s, MSc (C) Mathematical Modelling
& Scientific Computing *
Malcolm Birdling, BA, LLB Victoria University of Wellington, New
Zealand; BCL St Catherine’s, MPhil Law *
Hannah Boyd, BA Royal Holloway, University of London, MSt History
Nicola Brandt, BA John Cabot University, Rome, MSt History of
Art & Visual Culture
Rachel Brettell, BA St Catherine’s, 2nd BM Clinical Medicine *
Benjamin Britton, MEng St Catherine’s, DPhil Materials *
Nicholas Brodie, BA St Catherine’s, MSc (C) Drylands Science &
Management *
Ruth Busby, BA University of Brighton, MSt History of Art &
Visual Culture
Kai-Hsuan Chang, BSc Tunghai University, Taiwan; MSc National
Central University, Taiwan, DPhil Chemistry
Razan Charara, BSc American University of Beirut, Lebanon, MSc
(C) Mathematical & Computational Finance
Eftihia Chatzistefanidi, BA University of Patras, Greece, MSt
Film Aesthetics
Tong Cheng, BA University of Sunderland, MSt Film Aesthetics
Chung Hyun Cho, BA Chung-Ang University, South Korea, MSc
(C) Evidence-Based Social Work
Zoe Christodoulou, BSc University of East Anglia, DPhil Clinical
Medicine
Gertrude Cloyd, MA Smith College, USA, MSc (C) Science &
Medicine Athletic Performance
Ion Codreanu, MD State University of Medicine & Pharmacy,
Moldova; PhD University of Medicine & Pharmacy, Romania, MSc
(C) Diagnostic Imaging (part-time)
Serryth Colbert, MB BCh, BAO National University of Galway,
Ireland; BDS University College Cork, Ireland, MSc (C) Evidence-
Based Health Care (part-time)
Danielle Connolly, BA School of Oriental & African Studies,
London, MSc (C) African Studies
Cristina Crichton, Lic, Mag University of Chile, MSt Theology
Colin Cunnington, MBChB University of Manchester, DPhil
Clinical Medicine
Aqeela Datoo, BSc Mercer University, USA, MSc (C) Educational
Studies
Mark Davies, BSc, MSc University of Manchester, MBA
Management Studies
Rebeca de Buen Kalman, BSc National University of Mexico,
MSc (C) Water Science, Policy & Management
Nicholas Douglas, BMedSc, MBChB Otago University, New
Zealand, MSc (C) Global Health Science
Alessandra Durand, BA Stanford University, USA, MPhil Latin
American Studies
Nadiya Figueroa, BA Stanford University, USA; MA University of
the West Indies, Jamaica, MPhil Development Studies
Christina Fuhr, BA Liverpool John Moores University; MA Leiden
University, Netherlands; MSc St Catherine’s, DPhil Sociology *
Rachel Garrett, BSc University of Cardiff; MSc Green College,
Oxford, 1st BM (Graduate Entry) Clinical Medicine *
Keith Geary, BA College of St Mark & St John; BSc University of
London; MEd University of Keele; Dipl University of Oxford, MSc (C)
English Local History (part-time)
ST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2007/71

GAZETTE
Pippa Gilchrist, BA University of Warwick, MSc (C) Latin
American Studies
Adam Goodfellow, BA University of Durham, MSt European
Archaeology
Matthew Goodro, BS, MS University of Utah, USA, DPhil
Engineering Science
William Gregory, BA Gettysburg College, USA; VS St Catherine’s,
MSc (C) Global Governance and Diplomacy
Colin Groshong, BA University of Pennsylvania, USA, MPhil
Politics (Comparative Government)
Christoph Haase, Diplom Technical University Dresden, Germany,
DPhil Computing
Jessica Harm, BSc University of Washington, USA; Linacre
College, Oxford, DPhil Zoology
Jennifer Hayden, BA William Paterson University, USA, MSc (C)
Nature, Society & Environmental Policy
Martin Herink, BA Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada, MSt Film
Aesthetics
Jan Herzog, Diplom Humboldt University, Germany, MSc (C)
Diagnostic Imaging
Sally Ho, BSS, LLB, PCLL University of Hong Kong, BCL Law
Daniel Hudson, BSc University of York, DPhil Materials
Francesco Iodice, Laurea University of Siena, Italy; DLS
Worcester College, Oxford, MJuris Law
Karthik Kaushik, BCom University of Delhi, India, MBA
Management Studies
Tahsina Khan, MEng Imperial College, London, DPhil Materials
Maneesh Khattri, BE Karnataka National Institute of Technology,
India; MSc Twente University, Netherlands, DPhil Computing
Aleks Kissinger, BSc University of Tulsa, USA; VS St Catherine’s,
MSc (C) Mathematics & the Foundation of Computer Science
Carlos Lam, BEng Hong Kong Polytechnic University; MSc Imperial
College, London, DPhil Engineering Science
Keith Lam, LLB, PCLL University of Hong Kong, BCL Law
Connie Lee, BSS, LLB, PCLL University of Hong Kong, BCL Law
Stephen Lew, BS Carnegie Mellon University, USA; MSt Harris
Manchester, Oxford, DPhil Geography & the Environment
Ernest Lim, LLB National University of Singapore; LLM Harvard
University, USA, BCL Law
Li Lin, BA Sun Yat-Sen University, China, MSc (C) Financial
Economics
Sensen Lin, BSc Tsinghua University, China, MSc (C)
Mathematical & Computational Finance
Maureen Liu, LLB, PCLL University of Hong Kong, BCL Law
Yu Ping Luk, BA, BCom University of Melbourne, Australia; MPhil
University of Hong Kong, DPhil History
Nicole Malone, BEcon, LLB University of Adelaide, Australia, BCL
Law
Marius Mann, Diplom University of Konstanz, Germany; DrJuris
University of Heidelberg, Germany, MJuris Law
Christopher McCloskey, BA St Catherine’s, MSt Medieval
History *
John McTague, BA, MSt Mansfield College, Oxford, DPhil English
Language & Literature
Christopher Metcalf, MA University of Edinburgh, MPhil Oriental
Studies (Cuneiform Studies)
Anthony Mullin, BA Boston University, USA; MSc St Catherine’s,
MSc (C) Criminology & Criminal Justice *
Peter Myall, BA University of Nottingham, MSt Musicology
Laura Newton, LLB University of Durham, BCL Law
Daniel Nicolae, Zwischenprüfung Humbolt University, Berlin; MSc
University of Edinburgh, MSt Jewish Studies
Aoife O’Driscoll, BA University College Cork, Ireland; MPhil Trinity
College Dublin, Ireland, MSt English
Minori Ohyama, BA Aoyama Gakuin University, Japan, MBA
Management Studies
Simon Owens, LLB, LLM University of Bristol, BCL Law
Danae Papaioannou, BSc, MSc University of Warwick, MSc (C)
Biology (Integrated Bioscience)
Rachel Rowe, BA Merton College, Oxford; Dipl Oxford Brookes
University, DPhil Clinical Medicine
Jan Ruger, Diplom Fachhochschule Wiesbaden, Germany, MBA
Management Studies
Suzanne Ryan, BSc, PhD University of Nottingham, 1st BM
(Graduate Entry) Clinical Medicine
Clare Shakespeare, BA St Catherine’s, 2nd BM Clinical Medicine
Marwa Sharafeldin, MSc London School of Economics, DPhil Law
Dong Myung Shin, BSc, MSc Yonsei University, South Korea,
DPhil Chemistry
Tetsuya Shinohara, BA Kansai University, Japan, MBA
Management Studies
Henry Shum, MMathPhys University of Warwick, DPhil
Mathematics
Holly Sitsapesan, BA Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge, 2nd
BM Clinical Medicine
Adrian Smith, MBBS King’s College London; MSc London School
of Tropical Medicine, DPhil Clinical Medicine
Kazumasa Soga, BA Nagoya University, Japan; LLM Stockholm
University, Sweden; PhD University of London, MSt Legal Research
Roberta Sottocornola, Laurea University of Milan, DPhil Clinical
Medicine
Ann Steele, BSc University of Manchester; MSc Jesus College,
Oxford, DPhil Experimental Psychology
Imran Sultan, LLB University of Coventry, BCL Law
David Szwer, MNSci Robinson College, Cambridge; Linacre
College, Oxford, DPhil Physics
Bassel Tarbush, BA University College London; VS St Catherine’s,
MPhil Economics
Laura Vittetoe, BA University of West Florida, USA, MSt English
Alasdair Walker, MEng St Catherine’s, DPhil Engineering
Science
Martin Walsh, BSc St Mary’s University College Twickenham, MSc
(C) Science & Medicine Athletic Performance
Keiko Watanabe, DDS Kyushu University, Japan, DPhil
Pharmacology
Emily Webster, BA University of British Columbia, Canada, MSc
(C) Social Anthropology
Johanna Wiese, Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris, France; MA
University of St Andrews, MPhil Migration Studies
Sebastian Wolf, LLM, DrJuris Martin Luther University of Halle-
Wittenberg, Germany, MJuris Law
Georgina Worthington, BA Wadham College, Oxford, 2nd BM
Clinical Medicine
Hao Zhang, BSc Wuhan University, China, MSc (R) Materials
Yan Zhu, BA Fudan University, China, MSc (C) Sociology
VISITING GRADUATE STUDENTS
Nurzhan Dzhumabaev, BSc Bishkek Humanities University,
Kyrgyzstan; MSc Central European University, Hungary
ADMITTED TO THE FELLOWSHIP
Dr Giandomenico Iannetti to a Fellowship by Special Election in
Medicine
Dr Timothy J Bayne to a Tutorial Fellowship in Philosophy
Mr Robert E Mabro to a Fellowship by Special Election
Dr Andrew P S Wheeler to a Fellowship by Special Election in
Engineering and Rolls-Royce Industrial Fellowship
Dr Kirsten E Shepherd-Barr to a Tutorial Fellowship in English
Dr Angela B Brueggemann to a Fellowship by Special Election
in Biological Sciences
Dr Robert J Whittaker to a Junior Research Fellowship in
Mathematics
Dr James E Thomson to a Junior Research Fellowship in
Chemistry
Dr Maja H Spener to a Junior Research Fellowship in Philosophy
Dr Nicholas W J Attfield to a Fellowship by Special Election in
Music and British Academy Postdoctoral Research Fellowship
* indicates graduate of the College
72/ADMISSIONS 2007

Master and Fellows 2007
Timothy Bayne, (BA Otago, PhD
Arizona)
Tutor in Philosophy
Robert E Mabro, CBE, MA (BEng
Alexandria, MSc Lond)
Fellow by Special Election
Andrew P S Wheeler, MEng (PhD
Camb)
Fellow by Special Election in
Engineering
Rolls-Royce Industrial Fellow
Kirsten E Shepherd-Barr, MA,
DPhil (BA Yale)
Tutor in English
Angela B Brueggemann, DPhil
(BSc St Olaf, MSc Iowa)
Fellow by Special Election in
Biological Sciences
Robert J Whittaker (BA, PhD Camb)
Junior Research Fellow in Mathematics
James E Thomson, MChem, DPhil
Junior Research Fellow in Chemistry
Maja H Spener, BA (MPhil, PhD Lond)
Junior Research Fellow in Philosophy
Nicholas W J Attfield, MSt, DPhil
(BMus Lond)
Fellow by Special Election in Music
Nichols Research Fellow
British Academy Postdoctoral
Research Fellow
H O N O R A R Y F E L L O W S
Leonard G Wolfson, The Rt Hon
Lord Wolfson
Laurie E Baragwanath, BPhil, MA
(BA Melb)
Professor Sir John W Cornforth,
Kt, CBE, DPhil (MSc Sydney), FRS
Hilda Y Bullock, The Lady Bullock,
MA
Professor Sir Brian E F Fender,
Kt, CMG, MA (BSc, PhD Lond)
Ruth Wolfson, Lady Wolfson
Professor Sir James L Gowans,
Kt, CBE, MA, DPhil, FRCP, FRS
Sir Austin E Bide, Kt, BSc, FRSC
The Rt Hon Sir Patrick Nairne,
GCB, MC, MA
Benazir Bhutto, BA
Sir Cameron A Mackintosh, Kt
Sir Michael F Atiyah, OM, Kt, MA
(PhD Camb), FRS, FRSE
John Birt, Lord Birt of Liverpool, MA
Tom Phillips, CBE, MA, RA, RE
Professor Sir Geoffrey Allen, Kt,
(BSc, PhD Leeds), FRS, FREng, FRSC,
FInstP, FIMMM
Professor Sir (Eric) Brian Smith,
Kt, MA, DSc (PhD Liv), FRSC
Tan Sri Dato’ Seri A P
Arumugam, AP, CEng, FIEE, FRAeS,
FIMarEST, FinstD, PSM, SSAP, SIMP,
DSAP, DIMP
Peter Mandelson, MA
Sir John E Walker, Kt, MA, DPhil,
FRS
Professor Noam Chomsky (PhD
Penn)
Sir Nicholas H Stern, DPhil (BA
Camb), FBA
Raymond Plant, The Rt Hon Lord
Plant of Highfield, MA (BA Lond,
PhD Hull)
Professor David J Daniell, MA
(BA, MA Tübingen, PhD Lond)
Professor Nicanor Parra (Lic Chile)
Masaki Orita (LLB Tokyo)
Sir (Francis) Humphrey Potts,
BCL, MA
Professor Joseph E Stiglitz (PhD
MIT), FBA
Sir Peter M Williams, CBE, MA
(PhD Camb), FREng, FRS
Sir (Maurice) Victor Blank, MA
(Anthony) David Yates, MA
Professor Ah med Zewail (BS, MS
Alexandria, PhD Penn)
Michael Billington, BA
Professor Alan Katritzky, DPhil, FRS
Professor C N Ramachandra Rao,
MSc Banaras, PhD Purdue, DSc
Mysore, FRS
E M E R I T U S F E L L O W S
Wilfrid F Knapp, MA
Lloyd A Stocken, MA, DPhil, DSc
Ernest L French, FHCIMA
Professor John B Goodenough,
MA (PhD Chicago)
John Ch Simopoulos, BPhil, MA,
Dean of Degrees
Professor Jack R Pole, MA (MA
Camb, PhD Princeton), FBA, FRHistS
Professor D Michael Sullivan,
MA, DLitt (BA Lond, MA, LittD Camb,
PhD Harvard)
Professor George A Holmes, MA
(MA, PhD Camb), FBA
Professor John O Bayley, CBE, MA,
FBA
Professor Donald H Perkins, CBE,
MA (PhD Lond), FRS
John W Martin, MA, DPhil (MA,
PhD, ScD Camb)
J Derek Davies, BCL, MA (LLB
Wales)
Professor Peter G M Dickson,
MA, DPhil, DLitt, FBA
Bruce R Tolley, MA, DPhil (MA
Victoria, Wellington)
Barrie E Juniper, MA, DPhil,
Secretary for Alumni
Henry C Bennet-Clark, MA (PhD
Camb)
Professor Daniel W Howe, MA
(PhD Berkeley)
Stephen J Sondheim (BA Williams)
Sir Ian McKellen (BA Camb)
Sir Alan Ayckbourn, CBE
Michael V Codron, MA, CBE
Sir Peter L Shaffer, CBE (BA
Camb), FRSL
Lord Attenborough, CBE
Sir Richard C H Eyre, CBE (BA
Camb)
Thelma M B Holt, CBE
Dame Diana Rigg, DBE
Nicholas R Hytner (MA Camb)
Stephen D Daldry (BA Sheff)
Professor Malcolm L H Green, MA
(PhD Lond), FRS
Sir Timothy M B Rice
Professor Terence V Jones, MA,
DPhil
Professor Gilliane C Sills, MA
(PhD Lond)
Patrick Marber, BA
Phyllida Lloyd, BA Birm
G Ceri K Peach, MA, DPhil
G Bruce Henning, MA (BA Toronto,
PhD Penn)
D O M U S F E L L O W S
Sir Patrick Sergeant
Lord Bragg
Vee Meng Shaw
Bruce G Smith
Keith Clark
Anthony W Henfrey
Michael P Ullmann
Roushan Arumugam
Usha Q Arumugam
Nadia Q Arumugam
Simon F A Clark
V I S I T I N G F E L L O W S
* Professor David Baum,
Wisconsin, H08
Professor Christian Belin,
Montpellier-III Paul-Valéry, H08
Professor David Carnegie,
Victoria, Wellington, T07
* Professor Patricia Thane,
London, T08
* Christensen Fellow
R E S E A R C H A S S O C I A T E S
Roger Gundle, BM, BCh, DPhil (MA
Camb), FRCS (Eng), FRCS (Orth)
Patrick E McSharry, DPhil (BA, MSc
Dub)
Walter Doralt, (Mgr, PhD Vienna)
Photograph by Lucy Rowland

DESIGNED AND PRODUCED BY BASELINE ARTS LTD
FRONT COVER PHOTOGRAPH BY TIM MONGER GODFREY
BACK COVER (CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE LEFT) CATHERINE
GROOM, PETER HEDGES AND HENRY BENNET-CLARK
EDITED BY BETHAN WILLIAMS
St Catherine’s College . Oxford
Development Office
St Catherine's College
Oxford OX1 3UJ
UK
Telephone: 01865 281596/281585
e-mail alumni@stcatz.ox.ac.uk
www.stcatz.ox.ac.uk
www.stcatz.ox.ac.uk