This year’s OP Summer Reunion coincided nicely with the inaugural Pocklington Festival. Organised by the recently relaunched Friends of Pocklington School committee, the addition of the Festival created an excellent whole school community event with something for everyone alongside the traditional OP reunions, lunch, tours, archive visits, cricket and tennis.

Once the cricket was underway, School Archivist, Angie Edwards, and Doc Dyson (Former teacher, 88-18) hosted archive visits in the Library and Archive room with a record number of OPs calling in to browse and reminisce, while Sheena McNamee, External Relations Director, took the 2013 leavers on a tour of the school as part of their 10-year reunion celebration.

A roast dinner was on the menu for the OP lunch with several year groups booking tables to mark their special leaving anniversary or just to catch up. These included the 1973 leavers led by Iain Biglin (70-73) (and Adrian White (66-73) who sadly was unable to attend on the day) who were celebrating 50 years since leaving school and the 1971 leavers led by Duncan Williams (64-71). Our most senior OPs attending were David Richardson (46-53), founder of the biennial Dinosaur Club Luncheon, and David Wood (47-54), whose nephew, Lewis Wilson (14-16), was playing in the OP cricket match.

At lunch, Toby Seth, Headmaster, and Joan Gough (née Sawyer, 75-77), OP President, welcomed everyone to the school and thanked them for coming before the campus tours started in the afternoon. A welcome addition to this year’s tours were the Sixth Form prefect tour leaders, who did an excellent job of guiding OPs around the school with lots of interesting stories and experiences shared along the way!

Meanwhile, up on the astroturf courts, the Edmund-Loten mixed doubles tournament was underway with eight pairs taking part in what proved to be a challenging afternoon of tennis with the strong wind!

Out on Fentons school field, the Pocklington Festival was in full flow, with entertainment from the swing band, several pupil soloists, and a classic rendition of ‘Happy Hour’ by Trevor Loten (70-80) and the staff band amongst other rousing numbers! Other activities included an inflatable assault course, bouncy castle, welly wanging, and more. The stocks proved popular with the opportunity to throw a wet sponge at both the Headmaster and the OP President who were both good sports! Craft and food stalls were also available including a barbeque and a candy floss stall.

For OPs returning from school tours or playing sport, the day finished with afternoon tea in the dining hall and a final wander around the Festival before guests departed having enjoyed an excellent day at their alma mater!

Thank you to everyone for coming and see you next year! Date to be announced soon!

Click here for the OP Cricket results and report 

Click here to read the Edmund-Loten Tennis results and report 

Here are some quotes from guests attending the event:

“What a huge success OP Sunday was again this year – welcoming, relaxed, lively and well-attended.”

“Thanks for a great Reunion Day. I thoroughly enjoyed it…”

“My warmest thanks and congratulations to you and the team and to all the catering staff who gave us that magnificent lunch.”

“It was so interesting to meet up with so many from my year group and see how much and how little we had all changed.”

“Chatting today and sharing memories of events, school plays and just the rhythm and flavour of life at the school, let alone some of the more ‘colourful’ characters (staff and pupils) was very special.”

“Many thanks for organising the tour for us, we all had a great day. Extra thanks to the poor Sixth Form students who had to look after us as our group kept diverting all over the place!”

“It was a great visit and I promise not to wait another 50 years before coming back again!”

The prefects were the perfect tour guides – friendly, confident, unhurried and so patient with the torrent of elderly reminiscing that flourished around them.”