The latest OV News straight to your inbox |
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OV's Goldie Crew Triumphant Win |
Congratulations to OV Luke Beever (S 15-22 and Old Hawfordian) and his Goldie Crew, who took an incredible 19 length win against Oxford's Isis crew in the Men’s Reserve Race in the annual Oxford-Cambridge University Boat Race - one of the world’s oldest amateur sporting events!
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Despite repeated warnings to Oxford off the start, Goldie broke away decisively on the Fulham Bend and dominated the remainder of the course, winning by an astonishing 58 seconds. Overall, the results from the day’s racing brought the records to 49-31 in favour of Cambridge Women and 89-81 in favour of Cambridge Men. |
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Sticking with rowing but in much sunnier climes, OVs Alice Baker (Ca 15-22 and Old St Alban’s) and Milly Short (W 14-21 and Old Hawfordian) kindly shared this photo from the 2026 Big Ten Rowing Invitational in Sacramento, USA, a two-day women's collegiate regatta, where they were competing with and against the top US nationally ranked crews! |
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Although racing for different teams and on separate boards so didn't directly race against each other, it's great to see them both performing at such a high level in the same competition. |
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From King’s to Cutting-Edge Chemistry: Careers Talk with OV Dr Jonathan Cox |
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Thank you to OV Dr Jonathan Cox (W 80-83), who kindly returned to King’s this month to speak with pupils from across the year groups about his career in Chemistry and the options they too might have in the sector.
Jonathan is currently a lecturer in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Bath. Prior to that, he had undertaken both his BSc and PhD in Chemistry at Durham University before moving to Cambridge where he was a postdoctoral research assistant in the Chemistry Department. Onwards to the MRC Centre for Protein Engineering, where, with 2018 Nobel Prizewinner Sir Greg Winter, Jonathan cloned human antibody genes for therapeutic antibodies. At Bath, amongst other things, Jonathan invented a colourful educational magnetic model of DNA, and discovered various tricks that sharks use to detect scent. The shark work is on display at the Natural History Museum, London. |
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Jonathan’s talk, including his time at King’s, was orchestrated to link throughout to chemistry, which the attending Chemists hugely enjoyed.
Following his presentation, the pupils asked a variety of questions, both about Jonathan’s own work and also about working in the sector generally and options open to scientists. Jonathan was very impressed by the pupils’ questions and enthusiasm.
Jonathan then had a brief walk around the site with Head of Alumni Relations, Hannah Sparrey, to see King’s as it is today (he especially liked the Matthew Armstrong Library facilities), before heading back to the station for his return train to Bath. |
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We are grateful to Jonathan for his time inspiring future King’s scientists. |
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OV Simon’s Stroll Down Memory Lane |
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It was a real pleasure to welcome OV Simon Lusty MBE (Ch 66-76 and Old St Alban’s) back to King’s this month, for the first time in decades. It was clear that Simon had made the most of his time at King’s as he looked back with great fondness and very vivid memories, the majority of which were not related to actual schoolwork and are also not for publication (as many former boarders will understand)! |
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During his visit, Simon retraced his steps to many familiar spaces, from Choir House to the Science Block, Michael Baker Boathouse and CCF facilities. He also visited King’s St Alban’s, where he began boarding aged eight. Remembering everything from study-room antics to rowing adventures, speaking of his visit, Simon said, "Thank you so much for showing me around the school and for letting me in to see rooms and spaces that I knew many years ago. The school is both similar and yet very different from the time I was there. It struck me that the school continues to be a fabulous place for an education and the changes made have modernised it immensely.”
You can read all about Simon's visit, and some of his memories, on the school website by clicking HERE |
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Get Noticed Before You Graduate: New LinkedIn Opportunity |
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If you’re in your penultimate year at university, this is a great time to start building your professional presence. The Alumni Office is launching a new LinkedIn profile feature to help you do just that.
Simply submit your LinkedIn profile link along with a short summary of the roles or industries you’re interested in for when you have graduated. Selected profiles will be regularly featured across our Old Vigornians LinkedIn group, helping you gain visibility within the OV community.
This is a valuable opportunity to showcase your skills and
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ambitions, make connections, and get on the radar of OVs who may be able to offer advice, mentorship, or career opportunities.
Who can apply?
If you’re currently in your penultimate year at Uni, have an active LinkedIn profile and are a member of the Old Vigornians LinkedIn group, you’re eligible to take part.
Is there a deadline? No, this is an onging profile opportunity.
What to submit via email to alumni@ksw.org.uk:
A link to your LinkedIn profile A summary (100–150 words) outlining your career interests and the kinds of roles you’re seeking A photo of you to accompany. We encourage you to ensure your LinkedIn profile is up to date and reflects your strengths, experiences, and aspirations clearly. How it works:
Submissions will be reviewed and featured regularly in the OV LinkedIn group. If you’re not already a member of the OV Group on LinkedIn, you can request to join it HERE |
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Congratulations to all the OVs and Hon OVs who ran the TCS London Marathon at the weekend.
Especially lovely to hear from OV Phil Malsbury (Br 82-89) who was on his fifth marathon (fourth in London, the other being New York!).
Before the race, Philip explained, “I am taking on the TCS London Marathon in memory of my wonderful father. I have run every single day in his memory as running has become by way of staying close to him. Running 26.2 miles is never easy, but running in memory of someone so deeply loved gives every mile a profound meaning.” |
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Having now completed the marathon, Phil thought the organisation, the crowds and the support were all amazing, as is the medal. However, his hip/groin began hurting in mile 6, so it was more of a trial to complete than he had anticipated, walking and jogging intermittently for the final 20 miles. A final push meant finishing on a high with a sprint across the finish line, though!
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Congratulations also to OV Lara Vafiadis (Os 06-08), who, despite sore knees, still managed to finish her marathon, which she was running to raise money and awareness for Prostate Cancer UK in memory of her much-loved father. Lara added, “That was interesting. Two men ran under two hours - they had finished before I had even started! Insane atmosphere, random strangers shouting my name and the Prostate Cancer UK showing up in the biggest way to support their runners. Can categorically say my knees are made for rowing not running, but what a day!”
Lara’s focus now returns very sharply to her next challenge that begins in June: attempting a world first with an unsupported, continent-to-continent rowing crossing of the Indian Ocean by a mixed crew. Brain Waves is also aiming to raise £500,000 for two charities: Race Against Dementia and Rock 2 Recovery UK CIC, as well as studying plastic pollution in remote ocean regions. If you are interested in supporting the Brain Waves crew, please contact alumni@ksw.org.uk |
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Many OVs will recall the annual King’s music tours. This year, the King’s musicians headed to Holland where the musicians sang and played their way around a collection of stunning churches, along with some sightseeing (and snowball fights!). |
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Their final concert was at The English Reformed Church in Amsterdam, which included a surprise visit from OV Ella Haines Messenger (S 14-21), who is currently studying for her Master’s in Social Influence at the University of Amsterdam. Ella had incredibly fond memories of her own music tours with King’s, having visited Paris (2016) and Malta (2020).
Back in Worcester, for The Worcester Festival Choral Society’s final concert of the season the 140-strong choir performed Mendelssohn’s oratorio Elijah, accompanied by a professional orchestra. The choir included many King’s connections: current and former parents, OVs and Hon OVs, and current staff, including Headmaster Ben Charles. |
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A special treat for this concert was the tenor soloist and former King’s chorister, OV Dom Lee (W 6-13). Dom added, “Performing in the magnificent surroundings of Worcester Cathedral again was a full-circle moment for me. It has been 13 years since I was last there singing Les Misérables on King's Day, and I am incredibly grateful for the musical doors that King's opened for me back then. It has been wonderful to reflect on how the choirs, shows, concerts, and orchestras, and all the other opportunities available to me, have shaped a professional career that has led me all the way to the Opera Studio at the Nationaltheater Mannheim in Germany. It was particularly special to share the stage with a current chorister, Darcy B. Long may it continue!” |
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And finally, OV Dr David Newsholme (Os 93-03), Director of Music at Canterbury Cathedral, had the honour of conducting for the installation of Sarah Mullally as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury in March; the first woman to hold the position in the Church of England's 1,400-year history. The service took place on the Feast of the Annunciation, with music performed by the Canterbury Cathedral Choir, featuring anthems including a piece by British composer Joanna Marsh. |
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More congratulations are called for, this time for OVs Jimmy Graham (Os 06-17) and Archie Connor (Os 10-17), who both recently completed the 110Km Ultra X Spring Trail through the South Downs National Park, which included over 7,000ft of elevation.
Jimmy explained the 'why': "What inspired us was that we’ve done ultra marathons before but never entered a race, and this was the longest distance either of us had done continuously so we just wanted to push ourselves more. "The thing that kept us going was our competitiveness against each other, there’s no way either one of us would let the other complete it as we wouldn’t hear the end of it! It’s our “healthy” internal competitiveness between us that kept us going and we plan to do many more!" |
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Get Ready to Rewind… VigFest is Going Full 80s! |
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The OV summer party, VigFest, is throwing it back to the 1980s this year! With a live DJ, and plenty of space in the School Gardens to "throw some shapes", this year’s VigFest is set to be "totally radical". Also a great opportunity to gather your OV friends for a long overdue catch-up! |
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Get booking for the event of the summer : 📅 Saturday 11 July 2026 ⌚️6.30pm – late 📍School Gardens 🎫£25 per person, including a Welcome Drink and two course buffet
For more details and to grab your ticket visit the Vigornian Hub HERE |
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OVs' World Record Attempt |
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You may have seen in the local news that OVs and brothers Alfie (S 10-17 and Old Hawfordian) and Joe Pritchard (Os 12-19 and Old Hawfordian) are preparing to embark on an incredible journey: to set a new (unofficial) world record for the fastest two-man continuous relay from John O’Groats to Land’s End, covering around 1360Km. They hope to complete the run in under eight days, starting on 18 May. |
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By doing this challenge, Alife and Joe aim to raise at least £20,000 for Help for Heroes charity, which supports veterans across the UK.
This is the fifth charity Alfie and Joe have supported through extreme challenges, including Alfie’s triple Iron Man for Oddballs and Joe’s 24 hour treadmill run in aid of My Name'5 Doddie Foundation. They also give 25% of profits from their co-founded clothing company Mile-Pie to charity. Please join us in wishing Alfie and Joe all the best for this upcoming, epic challenge! |
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Can you, or someone in your professional network, help with any of the following careers support requests from current students and OVs? If so, please email alumni@ksw.org.uk – your support would be hugely appreciated:
Current Lower Sixth (Year 12) pupil looking for work experience during the first two weeks of August in Finance, Banking, and/or Accountancy, ideally within an hour of Worcester or easily accessible by train. OV Henry White (Os 16-23 and Old St Alban's), currently at Exeter University, is looking to connect with any OVs (or their contacts) that are in Ship Broking. OV Daniel Day (Os 15-22 and Old St Alban's) is currently studying International Business with French at Birmingham University. He's about to finish his year's placement in France and before he starts his final year in September, he is looking to gain some valuable work experience. His key areas of interest are accounting, finance, marketing, and management of operations. Ideally 1-2 weeks any time from mid-May to mid-June, in Worcester, Birmingham or London. If any OVs can help, you can contact Daniel directly through LinkedIn (he's in the OV group) or email alumni@ksw.org.uk in the first instance to be connected Please contact the Alumni Office if you can help! |
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Beyond King’s: April's OV Professional of the Month |
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This month we have OVs George Blakeway (H 76-86 and Old St Alban’s) and Nick Clark (H 88-90) contending for Beyond King's OV Professional of the Month!
You can read about Nick and George's careers below, then vote for your OV Professional of the Month via this form linked HERE, or via the poll in the Old Vigornians' LinkedIn Group. If you're on LinkedIn but not yet a member of the Group, you can request to join it HERE
Nominate yourself or others for May's OV Professional of the Month
We're inviting OVs to nominate themselves or fellow OVs to be featured on LinkedIn, the School website HERE, and the OV e-newsletter. Your feature will then be put forward for voting at the end of the month via the e-newsletter and the Old Vigornians' LinkedIn group to be nominated as OV Professional of the Month. A great opportunity to showcase your career trajectory since leaving King's and inspire current and future OVs.
Each OV Professional of the Month will then be entered into the running for OV Professional of the Year, which will be announced in the summer.
You will need to submit a short bio to include highlights of your time at King's, which A-levels you took, any further education beyond King's, a précis of your career to date and an accompanying photo. You can either get touch via LinkedIn or email alumni@ksw.org.uk for more details, or to submit your own nomination or nominate another OV!
The aim of Beyond King's remains to showcase the diversity of the OV network and inspire all those in our Vigornian Community.
Get in touch to celebrate your career, no matter which stage you're at! |
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OV George Blakeway (H 76-86 and Old St Alban’s) |
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During his time at King’s, George took full advantage of the sporting opportunities, putting his skills to Captaining the 1st XV, playing in the Tennis 1st VI, and being a loyal member of the late Marc Roberts’ (Hon OV) Tigers XI! This while managing his responsibilities as Head of House and a member of the CCF, not forgetting his A-levels in English, Geography and Economics.
After King’s, Loughborough University called, where George read Management. A short career as an Army Officer followed, after which he built commercial experience with Mobil, Gulf Oil and Coca-Cola while playing semi-professional rugby with Worcester Warriors.
George moved into Learning & Development as Director of Training at an international consultancy. |
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In 2002, George took the entrepreneurial plunge and founded The Fruitful Group, an organisation specialising in performance improvement predominantly focusing on team performance, leadership and management. As George explains, “Time spent in the military, professional sport, and industry, has led to a fascination with how teams develop performance and gain competitive advantage.”
George has successfully turned this fascination into a flourishing business, working with a diverse spectrum of clients including the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, International Hotel Group, HSBC, Netflix, Sky, Sodexo, Reckitt and The McLaren F1 team.
Not one to rest on his laurels, George continues to push his personal limits and competed in the 2019/2020 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race on the yacht Ha Long Bay. The team finished this 7,000 mile leg (London to Uruguay) on the podium in a very credible third place! |
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Nick was very busy during his formative Sixth Form years at King’s: alongside his A-levels, Nick was involved in Athletics, Fencing, Rowing, Cycling and Canoeing; he was also a School Prefect.
The University of Bath to read Civil and Structural Engineering followed King’s. Nick’s subsequent career trajectory has been the development and implementation of energy management services and asset finance within the UK, Europe and wider global markets. He has worked across privately owned, PE backed and PLC businesses and led global and household names including Feilo Sylvania, Aurora, and eEnergy. Nick is currently Group CEO of CED Group where he has completed a restructure, significantly grown profitability and expanded into new markets, prior to undertaking and delivering an upcoming exit strategy for the owners.
Nick has recently added his talents as Chairman and Strategic Advisor |
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to Fluxion, a Change Management Consultancy helping organisations and companies on their transformation journey, using his expertise to solve problems and deliver real outcomes for the business, whether it’s utilising technology for greater impact, or value creation for equity-backed businesses.
In addition to his ‘day job’, Nick is highly dedicated to supporting King’s School Worcester. He currently serves as Chair of the King’s School Worcester Charitable Trust, where he leads an outstanding group of Trustees. Together, they oversee strategic growth planning and manage investments, ensuring that the school’s bursaries continue to flourish. The Trust’s success is made possible by the generosity of OVs and friends of the school, whose donations ensure its ongoing achievements. |
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Vote for April'sBeyond King’s: OV Professional of the Month |
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Remember to vote for your April's OV Professional of the Month via this form HERE, or via the poll in the Old Vigornians' LinkedIn Group. If you're on LinkedIn but not yet a member of the Group, you can request to join it HERE |
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Reunions and Events: dates for your diary! |
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BOOKING OPEN
VigFest 80s Night- Saturday 11 July 2026
The School Gardens will welcome OVs from across the generations for an evening celebrating the 80s!
Grab your tickets on the Vigornian Hub HERE
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BOOKING OPEN The 123rd Annual OV Dinner - Saturday 19 September 2026
Bring your OV friends together for an evening of food and friendship in memory-filled College Hall. Open to all OVs from across the eras, with a special focus on those celebrating milestone year reunions - we're looking at you, the Years of 2006, 1996, 1986, 1981, 1976 and 1966! Book now via the Vigornian Hub HERE |
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Five Year Reunion for the Year of 2021 - Saturday 3 October 2026
Official invitations will be emailed closer to the date, so make sure we have your current email address! More details on the Vigornian Hub HERE
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SAVE THE DATE: London Drinks 2027 - Thursday 4 February 2027
Following another great London Drinks in 2026, we're ready for 2027's event! Grab your tickets now HERE |
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Get in Touch |
Don't forget to get in touch if you too have news you would like to share with the OV community: alumni@ksw.org.uk or on 01905 721737. |
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