Author: dean
It was while on my travels visiting Old Sedberghians around York that I found myself at the house of fellow Old Luptonian Peter Addyman. I was at School with his son, but I was meeting Peter for the first time.
What I like about such visits is that I never know quite what to expect. Except that, in my experience, every Sedberghian has a story to tell, and every story is interesting. I was certainly not disappointed and ended up staying far longer than expected as he told me how his time at Sedbergh led to the founding of one of the most successful and influential museums in the world, that of the Jorvik Viking Museum.
In a few words I will try to tell the story and do justice to this remarkable man.
Peter entered Lupton house in 1953. He made the mistake (his words) of mentioning he was keen on archaeology for which he got quite a ribbing. However, once the other boys in the junior dayroom realised he was serious they mentioned that there was a chap in the senior dayroom who was also interested in this field. Thus, he was introduced to Gavin Simpson (L51-55) and their archaeological partnership began.
It wasn’t long before Gavin discovered what he thought to be a Roman settlement at Underbank Farm, just outside of Sedbergh to the north of the Kirkby Stephen road. Peter disagreed, thinking it to be mediaeval. They therefore approached the farmer and asked if they could undertake an archaeological dig.
What is fascinating about this story is that they didn’t receive any outside help and they didn’t ask permission from their housemaster, so the whole dig, lasting months, was conducted in their spare time unbeknown to anyone at the School, and using a chicken shed as their field office.
It was an incredible undertaking and professionally recorded, as evidenced by the write up years later in the Yorkshire Archaeological Journal. And Peter was right, it was mediaeval.
At the time, news of the dig found its way into a local journal, The Dalesman, and soon afterwards Peter was summoned from his Latin lesson to the Headmaster’s Office whereupon he found Michael Thornely talking to two distinguished gentlemen. John Hirst, an inspector for the Ministry of Works and Prof Beresford, who later wrote ‘The Lost Villages of England’ had heard of the dig and wanted to see it. Michael Thornely, recognising that something quite special was happening, asked if he could come along.
So Peter and Gavin took them down to Underbank Farm. Peter crawled into the chicken coop as the hens scattered to retrieve the site plans from their ‘office’. The inspectors were suitably impressed and told them to carry on the good work. It was the seal of approval they needed, and they never looked back.
Both Peter and Gavin went on to study archaeology at university with Peter being awarded an archaeological scholarship to Peterhouse at Cambridge. Both later became professors in this discipline.
It was some years later that Peter was approached by York City Council to head up an archaeological team. At the time there was great concern that archaeological sites were being lost through redevelopment without being properly recorded.
One of the plans was to redevelop the centre of York City on the site of an old sugar mill. As it happened Barclays Bank, which lay adjacent to the site, had previously asked Peter to advise them when they extended an underground vault. It was during this work that Peter discovered something invaluable. Fifteen or so feet down lay the preserved remains of Viking York.
He therefore asked York City Council to demolish the mill three years early such that a proper archaeological dig could be undertaken. They agreed. Soon Peter’s team were unearthing Viking artefacts which have been preserved in the anaerobic mud.
It was one thing finding these artefacts, but they had to be preserved. Peter therefore set about creating a preservation laboratory which is now recognised as one of the best in the country, on a par with that of the British Museum.
All this cost money and during the dig, which lasted several years, a fundraising campaign was established. It was through this exposure that Peter received a call from an entrepreneur in Cumbria who had 70 car showrooms. This entrepreneur helped Peter monetise the dig by charging people to view the site. However, this was only a temporary solution, and the question remained what would happen to the site once the dig was complete. It was felt that it was too important to simply destroy.
This is where Peter’s genius came to the fore. He had the idea of recreating the streets using the original artefacts which had been preserved. The entrepreneur, through his connections, designed small cars for people to sit in such that they would be shown around the streets making it easier to bring people’s attention to where it needed to go. These cars would later do 75,000 miles each before they were retired.
Peter wanted visitors to have an immersive experience. They recreated the street sounds which were played through speakers. He invited a top perfumier from Liverpool to recreate the smells of rotting vegetables and excrement. The perfumier did say that this was a most unusual assignment.
The redevelopment of the city was therefore built over the museum and the site itself was preserved. The immersive experience, the unique method of being shown around, and the fact that it was in situ, brought the museum vibrancy and authenticity which was world-class. It set a new standard and the format has since been copied all over the world.
The museum opened in 1984. I was there, I visited it with my mother when I was home from university. It is still a fond memory, something that my mother and I spoke about often when she was still alive. We are two of the 25 million people who have now visited the Jorvik Viking Museum over its 40-year history. It is an astonishing place, conceived by an astonishing man, and its legacy is felt throughout the world.
Peter, it was a great privilege to meet you, to meet the person who has brought so much joy and understanding to so many people over the years, while preserving our history and our heritage.
Jan van der Velde
It was a great pleasure to meet up with Old Sedberghian leavers from 1980 and 1981 at the London Steakhouse on 9th February. As with every cohort of Sedberghians, life has taken these men in many different directions after leaving school, but the years melted away and the old stories of our time at Sedbergh soon started to be retold. As with all these stories they are probably nothing like the truth, having been embellished over the years (certainly mine are!) but they are all the more entertaining for it.
Although, as a 1982 leaver and therefore a junior, I was somewhat daunted to sit amongst these people I once looked up to (I still do of course); they welcomed me into their fold. For five hours the room was filled with conversation, laughter, and shouts of ‘please pass the wine’. It was a grand day and much fun.
Thank you to Bob (Rob Varley) Peters, from Travel Counsellors who kindly sponsored the event, and to James Robertson (E 87-93) at the London Steakhouse who gave us the familiar warm welcome that is always extended to visiting OS.
Throughout 2024 we will be hosting reunions for many year groups to celebrate all things Sedbergh. We look forward to meeting many more OS at these intimate events.
Jan van der Velde
As our global community grows it has been heartening to see how the values and traditions of Sedbergh School have been embraced by the new Sedbergh institutions across the world.
Since news last autumn of the collaboration between EQuest Education Group, Vietnam and Sedbergh School International Limited we have been delighted to welcome many of the senior staff from Sedbergh School Vietnam to Sedbergh to share the ethos that makes our community and our educational approach so special.
Jo Evans, the newly appointed Headteacher of Sedbergh School Ho Chi Minh City, has visited the school frequently through the spring, meeting with staff from across the school to inform her approach developing the new school in Vietnam. As part of her induction to all things Sedbergh, Jo has been involved in many of the milestone events throughout the term, including the Wilson Run. Development Office staff have been delighted to meet with Jo on several of her visits, to discuss the importance of alumni engagement, showcase highlights from the archive collection, and to outline the very important role that philanthropy has played creating the beautiful and well-resourced school that our pupils enjoy.
As term came to a close, we were delighted to host Jannie Hoang Anh Nguyen, Managing Director of Sedbergh Vietnam and Hong Thi Nguyen, Academic Operations Manager of Sedbergh Vietnam. Jannie and Hong undertook a ‘deep dive’ into Sedbergh culture during the final week of term, witnessing the Wilson Run, meeting with key staff and kindly dropping in to the department to spend some time with the Development Office team. Jannie and Hong were thoughtful in their approach to the visit, asking pertinent questions and exploring in detail what makes Sedbergh so special. We were delighted to welcome them to the Old Sedberghian community and give them each an OS scarf as a memento of their visit. Jannie also took a replica of the Casterton School uniform from the 1820’s as inspiration for the new kindergarten uniform. We look forward to collaborating with our Vietnam colleagues as they move forward with this exciting venture.
This weekend is the final opportunity to sponsor the upcoming History of Sedbergh School 1525 – 2025. The book will be launched at Old Sedberghian weekend in October, however a special opportunity is available now for ‘sponsors’ of the book.
It was the wish of author, Michael Raw, that book sales would contribute to a Roger Lupton Scholarship opportunity. Following the early death of his father, Michael’s life was transformed by the opportunity to attend Haberdasher’s Aske School on a Scholarship. Michael knew first hand the tremendous value that these scholarship opportunities offer to young people. The School has honoured Michael’s wish through a book sponsorship scheme.
Sponsor’s names will appear in the book, and a contribution will be made in their name towards a Roger Lupton Scholarship in honour of Michael Raw. Easter Monday, 1st April is the last opportunity to sponsor the book in this way as all sponsors names will be delivered to the publishers next week for inclusion in the opening pages of the book.
The link to sponsor the book is HERE.
The Wilson Run is stuff of legend. The School may have provided a few famous sporting faces, boys and girls, over the years, but ask them all which medal they would all truly want!? The unanimous answer would be the winner’s medal in The Wilson Run.
I last ran it in 1991. Until last week.
A few old lads got up early and ran the course before the main event The Wilson Run with over 200 pupils taking part in the afternoon.
My full back from 1989-1991 Woody Barlow (L 86-91) and our legendary pal Jimmy Gawthorpe (W 85-91) had another crack. The photo above is of Woody and me at Cautley back in 1991, alongside Woody and me at Cautley in 2024!
Watch a video of us on the Wilson Run course:
Happy then and happy now.
It was the most wonderful day seeing old friends with their families celebrating the School’s most famous annual event.
The concert in the evening celebrating all the runners was special. Singing The Long Run and finishing with our famous School song ‘Winder’ had me digging deep into my memory bank!
Special place Sedbergh. Tough place Sedbergh. Happy place Sedbergh.
Will Greenwood
OS Olivia (L 18-20) is at Murray Edwards College, Cambridge studying an MPhil in Real Estate Finance.
We are delighted to share that Olivia played blues netball for Cambridge against Oxford in the recent 2024 Varsity Match at Iffley Road, Oxford and was awarded a Full Blue.
Congratulations from us all at the OS Club!
IN MEMORY OF TIM PROUDMAN (W 1979)
A year ago we reported on two Winderian friends, Mark Adams (W 1974-1979) and Tim Proudman (W 1979) who had developed a love of running and had completed marathons on every continent except the Antarctic.
In November 2021, Tim, a Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon living in Australia, had been diagnosed with a brain tumour. Having undergone surgery the prognosis was that the tumour was extremely aggressive and the outlook poor.
However, this did not deter him and on 12th March 2023 Tim and Mark attempted the Antarctic Marathon, with Tim completing it in 6 hours, 5 minutes, and achieving his lifetime goal of running on all continents. A tremendous achievement and a victory for the sport of running itself.
On 22nd February 2024 Tim finally succumbed to his illness.
As I wrote a year ago, I remember Tim from my schooldays as a kind and generous man. He once went out of his way to congratulate me on my reading in Chapel when I was still relatively new to the School. He was in the sixth form and might even have been a School Prefect. It meant much at the time, and I have never forgotten it.
In later life that kindness and humanity continued in abundance with his voluntary work providing reconstructive surgery in Bhutan.
Tim was an extraordinary individual who had a lifelong love of Sedbergh and of running. We hold him high in our thoughts and with the greatest of respect, while we offer our sincere condolences to his family and friends. In particular to Mark Adams who shared so many marathons with Tim across the world.
Jan van der Velde
You can read a eulogy written by Tim’s colleague Richard Harries here:
Congratulations to OS Revd. Olivia Haines (R 04-06) and her husband Barry. They appeared on BBC1’s ‘Pointless’ on 5th and 6th February and after a tense final round walked away with the prize pot of £6,500.
Read more HERE.
It was fantastic to have OS Imo Boddy (Robertson, 2015-17) back in Sedbergh on 6th March and visit us at the OS Club. She will attempt to break the National Three Peaks record starting on 15th May 2024. Good luck!
Watch Imo’s video HERE.
Congratulations and the very best of luck to former Sedbergh Rifle Club Captain 2022, now OS shooter, Sarah Rorison (R 15-02) as she tours South Africa with the GB U21 rifle team. Sarah has been shooting since 2007 starting as a young cadet at Sedbergh. Since then she has been selected for UK U17s, Athelings and GB U19s. Currently she is studying Biology at the University of Sheffield and represents the county of Lancashire.