Booking now open for the 2023 reunion lunch

On Sunday, 8th October at Colwall Park Hotel, Worcestershire

The long awaited 2023 reunion event has been arranged for Sunday, 8th October, when all old boys, girls and former staff are invited to attend a 3-course lunch at the Colwall park Hotel on the West side of the Malvern Hills in Worcestershire.

We are pleased to announce that the Association’s President, Lord Timothy Boswell, will open the post-lunch speeches, and we are delighted that Lord Robin Janvrin, formerly the Private Secretary for the late Queen Elizabeth II, has also agreed to speak.

This is the same venue as the successful 2019 lunch attended by over 90 former pupils and staff plus some spouses/partners and guests.

See all the photos of the event here and read the report on the day by Galen Bartholomew by clicking here.  The terrible Covid pandemic prevented another reunion taking place until this year, so this is a long-awaited event which is expected to be very popular.     Association members have already had an early opportunity to purchase tickets and we can now open-up bookings to all others.

The cost of tickets are as follows :-

  • Association Members and their guests – £35 per person.
  • Non-members and their guests – £50 per person.
  • Membership (£40 lifetime subscription) and lunch booked together – £ 75 for one place, £110 for two places.

There is a limit of 100 places for this sit-down lunch, so it’s best to book early to avoid disappointment.

For further details on how to book places and make payment, contact Rod Hawnt, Chairman of the Wells House School Association – wells.house.assoc@gmail.com

 

Where is the missing Head Boys Board ?

Chaps and Lassies,
Many of you may remember the Head Boy boards hanging in the dining room at the school.  At the sale of the school contents I was lucky enough to acquire the one with my name on it covering the period 1957-77, and I am also the custodian of the last board (1978-91) which was acquired by the Hallmark family. There are two other older boards (1903-20 and 1921-38) hanging in Clive’s Fruit Farm cafe, where we hold the Association committee meetings.That makes just one board (1939-57) missing. At the next reunion, which will hopefully take place in late 2022 (subject to progress in further minimisation of the risks from Covid) it would be great if we could show all five boards at the event.So, does anyone know the whereabouts of the missing Head Boys Board ?
I would love to see a photo of said item and also hear from the owner, particularly if he/she is a former pupil.
Many thanks, Rod Hawnt, (Chairman of the Wells House School Association).  Contact me at :- wells.house.assoc@gmail.com

New book published by Nick Elliott (1959-62)

Dear Reader,

The Code started life as a novella, a short prequel to introduce my protagonist, Angus McKinnon. But as can happen, the plot began to be dictated by the characters and a complete novel has emerged. Here’s the “blurb” to give you an idea of what it’s all about. The book is now available on Amazon in paperback and e-book format:

https://amzn.to/3vi6ygI

A spy swap in the Syrian desert, a pirate attack in the Sulu Sea, a devastating confrontation in the Balkans …

Beirut 1963: Kim Philby defects to Moscow. As he boards his Soviet escape ship, unnoticed, a young ship’s officer, passes him on the quayside. Valdis Ozols is disenchanted, idealistic and susceptible. And two men are waiting for him.

Drawn into the shadowy world of espionage and a lifetime of deception and danger, Valdis reaches his lowest ebb in the harsh surroundings of a post-Soviet prison – until a ship’s bosun and fellow inmate, Angus McKinnon, becomes the Latvian’s trusted friend and confidante.

Together, the two men must break out and thwart a plan to annihilate a war-torn Balkan city. In doing so, an impossible choice must be made between the murder of tens of thousands of innocent citizens and the horrific killing of a young woman.

The Code spans the Cold War and beyond, from the Cuban missile crisis to the dawn of the Millennium.

And it introduces us to marine investigator, Angus McKinnon and how he becomes entangled in the world of life-and-death espionage before confronting further hazardous assignments in Sea of Gold, Dark Ocean and Black Reef.

E-book and paperback editions: https://amzn.to/3vi6ygI

“Nick Elliott delivers in spades when it comes to fast-paced, intelligent, international thrillers. You feel, smell and touch every authentically crafted location; you’re expertly drawn into a maze of shadows and sinister organizations and characters where nothing is what it seems. This really is thriller writing of the highest calibre.”

Craig Russell, award-winning author of the critically acclaimed Jan Fabel and Lennox crime thrillers.

I hope you enjoy reading this fourth thriller in the Angus McKinnon series as much as I have in writing it.

With best wishes,

Nick

https://nickelliott.org/

Carol Unwin (1959-63)

From Guy Unwin :

Carol Unwin a former Wells House Boy (1959-63) known as Barrell has sadly passed away at his home in Bideford.

Carol was a popular and well known character to many.   Life had presented him with many challenges after a motor racing accident when he was 19.   He embraced life and had a very kindly nature to all he met.   He had his own way off doing things and will be sadly missed.

Association membership now open

The new Association committee met for the first time via Zoom on 25th March 2021, which was much later than had been hoped due to the Covid crisis preventing face-to-face meetings.    The main items to report are :-

  1. Galen Bartholomew was elected Treasurer of the Association
  2. A bank account had been opened with Lloyds Bank, ready to receive subscriptions from 1st April 2021
  3. The life-time membership subscription was set at £40
  4. Emails and letters would be dispatched in May inviting prospective members to join-up
  5. The next re-union event which had provisionally been planned for September 2021, would now be postponed until May, 2022 at the earliest