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Past and present pupils alike are tuning in eagerly to the BBC’s The Great British Bake Off to find out if Old Elizabethan Richard Burr can continue his successful run in the show.

In last week’s quarter-final, Richard (OE 1987-1994) was named ‘star baker’ for the fourth time – a feat never before achieved in the history of the show, according to co-presenter Mel Giedroyc.

He has already progressed through eight rounds of the fifth series of the prime-time cooking programme and seen eight of the original 12 contestants eliminated.

Now he will be hoping for further success in the semi-final on Wednesday 1st October. He must demonstrate his skills in patisserie – the theme for the semi-final – and, if he reaches the final on 8th October, in tackling a demanding trio of specialised baking challenges.

Richard went to St Paul’s C of E Primary School in Mill Hill before coming to QE during the headmastership of Eamonn Harris.

He enjoyed baking with his mother as a small child and then as a teenager had a Saturday job washing up in a local bakery as a teenager, which further fired his enthusiasm for baking.

A family man, Richard is the fourth generation to work in his family’s building business. Married to Sarah and with two daughters, he does most of the family cooking and enjoys baking with his wife. He especially enjoys bread and pastry-making, while making the girls’ birthday cakes are highlights of the family’s year.

Richard has long been a keen fan of The Great British Bake Off. “We watch it every year and really enjoy it,” he told the BBC. “After last year I had quite a few friends and family say ‘you should go on Bake Off’, so I put my money where my mouth was and here I am.”

A keen fisher, diver and cyclist, he also grows his own vegetables and volunteers for the National Wildlife Trust. He is teaching his daughters eco-friendly ways to help animals by building homes for hedgehogs to hibernate in.

In 2012, Richard gained a first class degree from Birkbeck College, London: a BSc in Biodiversity and Conservation. He achieved this part time, whilst at the same time manning the family building firm and perfecting his baking skills.

Old Elizabethan Richard Burr is now widely being tipped as the favourite to win the BBC’s The Great British Bake Off after an impressive showing in the semi-final.

Richard (OE 1987-1994) was named ‘star baker’ for an unprecedented fifth time after impressing the judges with superb filo pastry and exemplary fondant fancies. This was all the more impressive since he admitted only ever using shop-bought filo pastry at home.

His performance in ‘Patisserie Week’ resulted in him progressing triumphantly through to the final on Wednesday 8th October. Only three of the original 12 contestants now remain. The final will require the three to tackle a demanding trio of specialised baking challenges.

Richard, 38, went to St Paul’s C of E Primary School in Mill Hill before coming to QE when Eamonn Harris was Headmaster.

He traces his love of baking back to the time he spent baking with his mother as a small child. Then as a teenager he had a Saturday job washing up in a local bakery as a teenager, which further fired his enthusiasm.

Richard is the fourth generation to work in his family’s building business. Judge Paul Hollywood said his experience as a builder could be seen in his baking: “Whether Richard’s mixing up plaster, cement, dough or pastry, he knows about consistency. It’s like working a cement mixer. That’s why he does so well.”

Married to Sarah and with two daughters, he does most of the family cooking and enjoys baking with his wife. He especially enjoys bread and pastry-making, while making the girls’ birthday cakes are highlights of the family’s year.

Richard has long been a keen fan of The Great British Bake Off. “We watch it every year and really enjoy it,” he told the BBC. “After last year I had quite a few friends and family say ‘you should go on Bake Off’, so I put my money where my mouth was and here I am.”

A keen fisherman, diver and cyclist, he also grows his own vegetables and volunteers for the National Wildlife Trust. He is teaching his daughters eco-friendly ways to help animals by building homes for hedgehogs to hibernate in.

Richard told the School that he is quite proud of the first-class BSc degree in Biodiversity and Conversation that he gained in 2012 from Birkbeck College, London, studying part-time.

Year 13 student Koji Takahashi’s reasoned argument on the benefits of continuing to map the Earth’s surface won him a place on the shortlist of a Cambridge University geography competition.

Entrants to the Trinity College Geography Essay Competition were invited to consider whether, given the extent to which continental land masses have been explored, anything significant remains to be mapped.

“Koji presented a piece of well-researched and reasoned argument, and is to be congratulated on his achievement,” said Head of Geography at QE, Guy Boyes. “He made use of elements studied in class, including population, resources, physical landscapes and frozen wilderness as well as drawing on his own interests in conservation and preservation.” 

Koji’s essay was one of only 15 to make it through for final consideration for the top prize. Dr Nick Cutler, Director of Studies in Geography at Trinity College, wrote to Koji thanking him for his entry. He stated that the overall quality of the essays submitted was “extremely high”.

“Most essays presented a rather traditional view of cartography and concentrated on physical features such as ocean ridges or tropical rainforests,” wrote Dr Cutler, the competition adjudicator. “The best essays were distinguished by a broader view that encompassed thematic as well as topographic mapping.”

In addition to questioning whether certain regions such as Central and South America and the polar regions are already sufficiently mapped, Koji addressed the issue of the dynamic physical properties of the earth – such as islands which emerge following volcanic eruptions.

He also discussed climate change and the demands of a growing world population on the planet, arguing that increased mapping is required to monitor and manage resources.

After completing his A-levels, Koji is planning to undertake a gap year involving some travelling, but linked to conservation. He is considering applying to Cambridge, with the intention of taking up a place in 2016.

Former QE pupil Richard Burr was a runner-up after reaching the final of the BBC’s The Great British Bake Off.

Richard (OE 1987-1994) impressed the judges once again, with celebrity chef and baker Paul Hollywood praising the “unbelievable” flavours of his final creation – a spectacular pièce montée cake modelled on a windmill. This final ‘bake’ was required to contain elements of cake, biscuit and choux pastry, and took inspiration from Mill Hill, the area of north London that Richard and his family call home.

Only three of the original 12 contestants reached the final. Richard was the front-runner during the latter stages of the competition, having been named ‘star baker’ an unprecedented five times.

In the end, however, first prize went to retired GP surgery manager Nancy Birtwhistle. Judge Mary Berry praised her “quiet determination”, while Paul Hollywood said of her: “Everything joined together for the final.”

Speaking after the result was announced, Richard, 38, said: “I think the greatest lesson I have taken out is [that] if you want to do something, just crack on and do it: if you don’t just open the door, you will never find out.”

Kushal Patel has been selected to train with the Middlesex County Cricket Club Academy. Kushal, who is in Year 12, has already played for the county’s Second XI, U17 and U15 sides.

He has been the School’s top scorer for the last two seasons and has been playing for QE’s First XI since he was in Year 9 – a rare achievement. Kushal started playing with Middlesex as an U10. At 16, he is at the very bottom of the age range at which the county selects Academy players.

He has already enjoyed some first-class coaching from former Middlesex, Surrey and England batsman Mark Ramprakash (pictured with Kushal below), who is one of only 25 players in the history of the sport to have scored 100 first-class centuries, and who was batting coach for the England Lions in India in 2012.

“The Academy only select six or seven young players each season, so Kushal’s selection is a great achievement,” said School PE teacher Jonathan Morgan. “He has been one of our stand-out players for a couple of years and the coaching he will receive as part of this élite group will only improve his game.”

Kushal will now train four times a week at the county’s Finchley site over the winter, before taking part in competitive matches against the other counties’ Second XI sides next summer.

He is currently studying A-level Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Geography and Economics & Business and is hoping in the future to combine cricket at the highest-possible level with university studies.

Other current members of the Academy include 18-year-old Sebastian Feszczur-Hatchett, a QE old boy who is a left-arm seam bowler.