Where Are They Now?
[ See also: OBs in the Military ]
- Alan Dunn (OH 1978-81)
- Anthony Gifford (NC 1933-38)
- Ian Blessley (W 1993-98)
- Jeremy Eyre (W 1947-52)
- James Frost (P 1989-94)
- Hugh Morris (W 1976-82)
Alan Dunn OH, 1978-81
We recently received this letter from Alan Dunn, written on 6th June 2011.
Dear Old Blundellian Club,
I thought I would write after reading about the theme for this year’s OB Day, and after reading the December 10, 2010, Friends of Blundell’s in America newsletter, which I enjoyed very much.
After Blundell’s I went to the South Devon Technical College in Torquay and on to Leicester University where I graduated with a degree in History. I moved to the US in the late 1980s after visiting on a student exchange program.
I have worked in law enforcement in California for the last twenty years as a communications dispatcher and police officer. I am now based in a city in the Bay Area of northern California assigned to the Special Victims Unit.
I am still in contact with Richard Hughes (Petergate 1978-83) who is a Devon and Cornwall police officer. In June 2002, Richard took me out for the day in his traffic car and we visited Blundell’s – on the way there he had a puncture so we were temporarily delayed while he jacked up the car and we replaced the flat tire!
I’m married to Veronica and we have three young boys. We spend time camping and hiking in southern Utah during summer vacations.
I visited Ted Crowe a couple of times at his home in Sampford Peverell in the 1990s, had tea with him and chatted about students from Old House. Ted was a wonderful man and I was very sad to hear of his death. When I think of Blundell’s, Ted Crowe’s kindness as a housemaster in OH is often in my thoughts.
Cheers!
Alan
Anthony Aubrey Kenward Gifford, OAM NC, 1933-38
OB Anthony Gifford (Tony), NC 1933-38, celebrated his 90th birthday on the 19th January 2011. He is living in Palm Beach, Sydney, Australia, with his wife Bunny who is 92. Tony played in the First V’s Team at Blundell’s. At cricket he played for Kent Second XI being an excellent spin bowler, where he met many England stars.
As reported in OB News he was awarded the Order of Australia Medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours on 30th June 2010, for services to sport and the community.
Tony served as an officer with The Gharwal Rifles in World War 2. Unfortunately he was very badly injured in a military traffic accident whilst serving in Cyprus. Due to the severity of his injuries he was invalided out of The Army. In 1948 he emigrated to Australia where he took up a teaching appointment in Launceston Church Grammar School Tasmania followed by another teaching appointment in South Australia Saint Peter’s College Adelaide where one of his students was Donald Bradman’s son. 
Finally he was appointed at Knox Grammar School in Wahroonga New South Wales, where he stayed for 32 years. While with Knox Grammar he started Australian youth cricket becoming the Founder & Secretary of the Australian School Cricket Council from 1966 to 1981. He was awarded the Certificate of Distinguished Services for services to Australian Cricket, by Jack Clark the Chairman of “Cricket Australia” in 2010. Tony coached and managed Under 19 Cricket visiting every Test playing country with Under 19 teams.
In the field of sport Tony was Treasurer of Schools Rugby and was awarded Life Membership of the Australian Rugby Football Schools Union.
For 10 years Tony was the Secretary of the New South Wales Palm Beach Branch of the Liberal Party of Australia and received the Distinguished Long Service Award for services to the Liberal Party in December 2010.
In celebration of his 90th birthday we salute a great Blundellian!
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Ian Blessley Westlake, 1993-98
The Heart of Borneo Project 2010
My name is Ian Blessley (Westlake 1993-98). I am the Base Camp Manager, Medical Officer and one of the scientists on The Heart of Borneo Project (HoBP) 2010 – a large multidisciplinary expedition heading deep into the unexplored mountains of Borneo’s rainforest interior for 12 weeks this Winter.
We are supported by a number of highly respected partners, including the Natural History Museum, British Council, Prince’s Rainforests Project, WWF, and the Royal Geographical Society which has identified us as the expedition to watch this year by awarding us the prestigious Neville Shulman Challenge Award.
About the project
HoBP 2010 will be the first annual expedition and is designed to combine exploration, research, professional development and education by sending a vibrant and international team of explorers, scientists, engineers and filmmakers into one of the final frontiers of the natural world.
This is a multimedia expedition and has been designed with maximum publicity in mind to create awareness and promote our education project. We are working with the Natural History Museum in London, ARKive, the British Council in Indonesia, and WWF to create and promote an interactive educational platform that will grow each year, and will use satellite technology to upload short and entertaining videos with a conservation theme weekly from the jungle. Our team is young and engaging: something which will encourage children and young adults to become involved with the project.
Our research area is one of the last bastions of undisturbed habitat in Borneo’s unique but highly threatened rainforests. It has never before been explored, but it is likely that species such as the clouded leopard, proboscis monkey, and the sun bear inhabit the region. Indeed, if there is anywhere in Kalimantan where the almost extinct Sumatran rhinoceros is still to be found, it is here. Our research will be used by the WWF and the Wildlife Conservation Society to help protect this fragile ecosystem from logging and mining activity which is encroaching on the area.
If you would like further information please contact me via email at i.blessley@heartofborneo.org.
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Jeremy Eyre Westlake, 1947-52
From Barra to Amsterdam
Article written 14 years ago by Jeremy Eyre (W 1947-52). Click the photos for larger versions.
I had wanted to take a voyage on a Tall Ship since 1992, when we entertained Boris, Tony, Iordan and Iordan from the beautiful Bulgarian ship “kaliakra” – or even since 1984, when Raymond and Peter came from the enormous Polish “Dar Mlodziezy”. 
The Sail Training Association had a stand at Vittoria Dock in 1992, and I became a member soon afterwards. An opportunity to sail in one of the schooners didn’t occur, however, until June 1995, when the ideal trip presented itself – to the Western Isles. Several of us arrived at Greenock one Saturday lunchtime wondering what lay in store for us aboard the “Malcolm Miller”; it proved to be a memorable week in almost too calm sailing conditions (just before the hot spell reached England).
Our Watch Officer, and Leader, gave thoughtful leadership throughout the week and a good insight into how to sail a 300-ton schooner. The traditional way of making you feel at home is to send you “over the mast” on the first afternoon. While this is not compulsory, most people do it, and it helps to bond you into your group, or watch of 13, and to give confidence in handling the square-sails later in the week.
We were very fortunate in the places we visited: Campbeltown, Port Askaig (a tiny village on Islay), Castlebay (Barra) and Tobermory, before returning to Oban. It was unusual to make so many calls, but there was so little wind, early in the week, that we only did one night-passage, it being uneconomical to “motor” every night. Altogether, a wonderful trip.
I decided that I wanted to make a second voyage in different weather conditions, and so, as soon as the 1996 sailing programme came out, 
I applied to go on the “shakedown” trip from Teesside to Weymouth last February. This is the voyage that delivers the ship (again “Malcolm Miller”, “Sir Winston Churchill” being involved in voyages around the Canary Islands) from refit to the first operational port of the season. Our Captain for both voyages, Bob Stephenson, told me in January (at the reunion at Shell-Mex House, London) that the ship would in fact be sailing from Sunderland.
Friends kindly dropped me off, midday Sunday, on an old coaling jetty-but within sight of Roker Park! Little did we know that we would still be there on Wednesday evening, there having been a violent storm the previous week which had torn off one of the lock-gates and blocked our exit to the R. Wear!
The extra two days in harbour in fact enabled us to get a more thorough training than previously in tacking ship, bracing the yards etc. Some of us even managed to visit the new marina at Hartlepool, as well as avidly watching efforts to remove the offending lock-gate-a giant carne had to be brought in from near London!
At last we were away on a brilliantly clear night; later, at about 0700, I found myself, unexpectedly, on the upper yard, releasing the ties on the square topsail, ready for it to be set. I was under the able guidance of Michael (“Muppet”) Hodgson of Sunderland, who had been working on the refit and knew his way about the rigging. Having been an “upperyardman” in name, during the National Service, I was now one in reality!
We were extremely fortunate, on this trip, that the permanent crew of five (the Engineer had also been on my other trip) made great efforts to achieve the original voyage-plan, despite the delay. We had a night in Amsterdam – a quiet drink in the Rembrandtplein, rather than the Seedijk) and Cherbourg (with the turn of the month, “La Biere de Mars” was now on sale). Our voyage ended with a very pleasant evening at the Royal Dorset Yacht Club, Weymouth.
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James Frost Petergate, 1989-94
James and his wife Ann run a vineyard at their home, Quinta de Sant’Ana, in Portugal. Previously owned by her parents, Gustav and Paula von Fürstenberg, the Quinta lies approximately 35 km north of Lisbon, and 12 km inland from the Atlantic. The sea exerts a considerable influence upon the local climate, making it a relatively cool region.
Sant'Ana are one of a few producers who are bucking an old trend of wine production in the region - that is, they are concentrating their efforts on quality rather than quantity.
If you would like to read further about James and Ann's venture, please visit the WineAnorak website.
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Hugh Morris Westlake, 1976-82
The wheel turned full circle for Hugh when he returned to Blundell's on 3rd July 2009 to give away the prizes and offer advice to pupils and parents. Despite reminders that another Old Blundellian, Myles Wickstead, had delivered an amusing and erudite address at Speech Day 2008, Hugh was unruffled. 
After orchestrating the movements of a variety of England cricket captains and coaches over the last year and enduring many press conferences, speaking to a benign audience at Blundell's Speech Day must have seemed easy.
Hugh had a very distinguished sporting career at Blundell's, representing the 1st XI for three years and making his first class debut for Glamorgan while still at school. He was also a formidable 1st XV performer and a good squash player. Despite a huge sporting commitment, Hugh found the time to pass A levels and collect a degree at Cardiff. The captaincy of Glamorgan and England cricket caps followed. Hugh now holds the title of Managing Director of English Cricket and we wish him well during a difficult period as well as thanking him for sparing the time to give away the prizes during an Ashes year.
OB Dan Parr, 33, has won the men's section of the