Foundation Office & Lancing Society

Dear OLs, colleagues and parents, January brought the sad news that Nigel Ventham (Field’s 1945–1949) had died at the grand age of 91. Nigel showed a life-long gratitude to the College through his many distinguished years of service. In the eulogy at his memorial service, it was said, “At school he was to quietly excel in everything he did.” So true, in his life as well. I remember meeting Nigel when I started in this role in 2005 and his kind and generous counsel was always a source of great support for me over the last 18 years. You can read more about Nigel on page 54 in the obituary section.

‘Everything you can imagine is real’, a quote from Pablo Picasso which struck a chord with Professor Alan ‘Graham’ Collier, (former Head of Art 1954–1960) as he felt it encompassed so much of what Lancing offered to its pupils.

Graham died in early December 2022 at the wonderful age of 99. His family are donating a bench to be located outside the Art School inscribed with this quote in his memory. Graham’s obituary can be found on page 55.

Picasso’s quote is more than apt for two of our Foundationers, one has just had confirmation of winning the Morehead-Cain Scholarship, the most prestigious scholarship to a US College, and the other has won a travel award to go to teach English in Peru in July. These are extraordinary achievements and a real validation for the work of our transformational bursary programme.

Finally, I can say without hesitation, that I am looking forward to a summer full of events. The Evelyn Waugh Lecture and the Oldest OLs Day are back in the calendar after an absence of three long years. We are delighted to have Oliver Soden (Teme 2003–2008) as the guest speaker for our Evelyn Waugh Lecture (see below for more details).

Next term we will be revealing more about our exciting plans for the College’s 175th anniversary starting in September

Evelyn Waugh Lecture and Annual Foundation Dinner – 20 April 2023

Oliver Soden (Teme 2003–2008) is a writer and broadcaster, and the critically acclaimed author of Michael Tippett: The Biography (2019); Jeoffry: The Poet’s Cat (2020); and Masquerade: The Lives of Noël Coward (2023).

Masquerade, the first biography of Noël Coward in nearly thirty years, was published on 16 March 2023. A review on 4 March in The Telegraph said, ‘What a pleasure it is to read a book into which so much labour, and so much affection, have evidently gone. But the labour is never flaunted and the affection is mingled with the same sophisticated irony that made Coward such a giant of the theatre. This is the biography –truthful, sympathetic and thorough – that Coward deserves.’ and running through to June 2024. We hope many members of our community will come together to help us celebrate 175 years of Lancing and look forward to its future.

Oliver’s writing – on art, music and literature – has appeared in The Guardian, The Spectator, London Review of Books, Times Literary Supplement, and Literary Review; he is a frequent guest speaker on BBC Radio 3, and has been interviewed for the Six O’Clock News (BBC Radio 4) and for Times Radio and ABC Radio National. He is Chair of the Michael Tippett Musical Foundation and has worked on award-winning television documentaries such as Janet Baker: In Her Own Words and for BBC Radio 3’s long-running programme Private Passions. After Lancing, Oliver went on to Clare College, Cambridge, where he took a double first in English. Born in 1990, he grew up in Bath and Sussex, and lives in London.

My best wishes, as always,

CATHERINE REEVE Foundation Director