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The School paid warm tribute last month to QE teacher and Old Elizabethan James Clarke, who died suddenly in January.

A memorial service in Barnet parish church drew many dozens of OEs and former staff, while there was a very good attendance for a School concert given in his honour on the same day, where the audience included James’ mother and other family members. In the congregation for the service at St John the Baptist were senior current QE leaders; former staff; James’ former PE & Games department colleagues; and the 2025 School Captain, Simardeep Sahota, and current First XV, representing the student body.

After 12 years in the PE department, James (OE 1999–2004) had left his position as Head of Rugby last summer to take up a role in Bermudan rugby.

In his tribute, the Headmaster said: “James meant much to so many Elizabethans.

“Talk to anyone who taught him from 1999 and they will refer to an enthusiastic, committed spirit. He saw the world as a QE boy, from Normandy to ski trips, and when the ‘end of week awards’ took place on those trips, he was a persistent winner.  Why? Because he was involved and he was fun, embracing every opportunity, and working fantastically with others.

“James was an inspiring and supportive teacher, whose work in the classroom and on the sports field left an indelible mark on generations of pupils. A brilliant and respected Head of Rugby, he shared his plain enthusiasm for the game and the opportunities it presents to young people and their development.

“James wasn’t just a member of staff, of course, but an Old Elizabethan – a much loved and admired member of our alumni community.

“He was at home at Queen Elizabeth’s and his intuitive understanding and deep sense of connection helped make the School a more welcoming place to those following in his footsteps. Today, we are united in thankfulness for his life, and in sorrow at his loss.”

The scheduled Choral and Chamber Charity Concert, which was dedicated to James upon news of his death and was also held at the church, raised money for the RFU’s Rugby United initiative. It featured a performance of World in Union, the Rugby Union World Cup anthem, by the Chamber Choir and Chamber Orchestra. Click below to watch an impromptu recording of the performance. The concert alone raised £696, with others donating several hundred pounds through a dedicated JustGiving page. The Barbershop group also sang The Road Home by Stephen Paulus (as they had done earlier at the memorial service) and the Chamber Choir and musicians combined again for Fauré’s Requiem.

At the memorial service, the Junior String Quartet played as the opening music Beethoven’s String Quartet Op.18 No.4 in C minor, movement I, Allegro ma no tanto. This was the piece that won them the Junior category of the National Pro Corda Chamber Music competition this term.

In another great example of OEs working together, Ross McKenzie (1995–2002) and Jerome Singh (OE 2004–2011) have jointly founded a digital A-level platform called Politics Online.

“Since June 2024, we have effectively written a full course textbook from scratch, with integrated and regularly updated current affairs examples, but we didn’t actually make the QE connection until we were having lunch during the winter!” says Jerome. They are now looking forward to putting MS Teams to the test at their Easter revision session, which has some 2,000 students booked in.

Ross is formerly Head of Politics and currently Digital Lead at St Columba’s College, St Albans, while Jerome is currently working at Forest School, and will be heading to Japan as a founding Assistant Principal at North London Collegiate School (Kobe).

Jerome takes up the story: “The idea was originally Ross’s – a common problem for Politics teachers is the manner in which physical textbooks very quickly go out of date. An online textbook with weekly updates would definitely plug that gap.

“I came on board with particular responsibility for global politics, with Ross running the US politics section, and two other non-OE teachers covering the UK material.”

With everything initially built online, it was only when they had their first in-person meeting in December that they discovered their QE connection.

“When discussing where we had grown up, Ross mentioned that he lived in Barnet – I asked which school he went to… and we made the connection! Although we did not overlap at QE, we shared a lot of common experiences of teachers, memories of quirks and traditions, and an appreciation of how the School has shaped us as students and teachers.”

The Politics Online ecosystem has evolved over the months and now includes:

• Weekly newsletters pitched at Key Stage 5, KS4 and KS3 going out to schools nationally;
• A national current affairs quiz league;
• Revision sessions at schools;
• Online sessions, such as that at Easter.

Ross has done the bulk of the work with website, legal and financial infrastructure, while Jerome’s focus has been website design, branding and logos, as well as outreach to schools.

The platform is currently self-funded and is already turning a profit.

The plan is to launch the online textbook in April after the Easter revision session on a yearly subscription model. “That should significantly boost revenue,” says Jerome. “From there, we hope to add a lot more video content to the website, and to build a platform which teachers and students can use for tests, revision, and everyday lessons. We have a few hundred schools and a few thousand students engaging with our products in some form, and the feedback so far has been overwhelmingly positive!”

Mev Armon left QE’s CCF fighting fit as he started a new role with Hertfordshire constabulary.

The Headmaster says: “For more than a generation, Mev has been an inspiring, supportive and charismatic teacher and colleague. His service to our cadets has been immense, and he has been something of a legend as a form tutor. We wish him all the best as he continues his public service in a new role.”

Captain Armon (formerly Major Armon) leaves after 30 years in the Biology department and 23 years with the Combined Cadet Force. The CCF contingent held a special parade in the Main Hall, where they honoured his service.

The parade was also a celebration of those cadets gaining a promotion. With more than 50 cadets attending, it was an indication of the CCF’s current strength. “That strength is due in no small part to Mev’s dedication over the years,” Mr Enright said.

QE is one of very few state schools to have a CCF. After the celebrations, Mr Armon spoke of how the CCF develops key skills such as leadership, teamwork and resilience, transforming boys into young men who are – in the words of the School’s vision – confident, able and responsible. He will continue to be an occasional volunteer with the QE CCF.

Among those wishing him well were a large number of Old Elizabethans. Here is a selection of these comments:

• Abhinav Vepa (2003–2010): “I always looked forward to your classes and CCF because you made us all laugh a lot with your great sense of humour! Good luck in the new role. Thanks for everything you offered to me, CCF, and the School.”
• Kiran Patel (2000–2007): “I had the privilege of being taught Science or Biology in almost every year during my time at QE by Mr A: Mev Armon, your contributions to your students’ development have been immense, and have inspired and encouraged so many of us particularly in the study of the sciences and medicine, not to mention CCF. “
• Anirudh Bandaru (2009–2016): “Mev Armon is the best! His teachings stuck with me when I deployed on operations, and I wouldn’t have joined the Army if it wasn’t for Sir’s encouragement and mentorship.”
• Ben Swart (1994–2001): ” I have core memories of that smile, of many conversations with him as our form tutor, and of the funkiest car alarm I could ever remember.”
• Kartik Gohil (2004–2011): “You were the heart and soul of the CCF.”

Click on the thumbnails to view the images below.

It is just two years since Sudhamshu Gummadavelly and Ashwin Sridhar won the Elizabethan Union Dinner Debate as sixth-formers in the School’s 450th anniversary year.

Now the young alumni, who both left the School in 2023, have repeated the feat, successfully opposing the motion – This House believes social media is harming our democracy – which was proposed by Year 13’s Saim Khan and Zaki Mustafa.

The motion generated extensive debate, with many boys contributing from the floor to this, the 58th annual debate. A relaxed, convivial evening, it gives senior boys an opportunity to experience the sort of occasion they may later encounter at university and beyond.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “This was a very high-quality debate from both teams, with many judicious, thoughtful contributions also coming from the floor. With contributors proving responsive to the points made by others, it made for an intellectually exciting discussion.

“Our thanks go to all those involved, particularly our returning OEs, who I am sure enjoyed the opportunity to relive past glories as a winning team once again!

The debate was chaired by Year 13’s Rohan Kumar, with the toasts at dinner presided over by 2024’s Chanakya Seetharam, also of Year 13.

Here is a summary of points made during the debate:

Saim (proposing) stated that fake news reached 1,500 people six times faster than true news in a study and pointed out the centralised control of social media channels by figures such as Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg.

Ashwin (opposing) gave examples of social media being used to expose truth in the face of state oppression and propaganda and its use in giving a voice to the voiceless, citing the #MeToo movement.

Zaki (proposing) waxed historical, pointing to the story of Emperor Nero blaming everyone else when Rome burned in AD64, the salient point being that he was able to control the flow of information and thus turn people against each other. In like fashion, social media gives a platform to neo-Nazis and other extremists peddling misinformation and hate, such as those behind the January 6th riots in the US, and is not infrequently misused by national actors, such as China and Russia. Far from being neutral, it is the platforms which decide which material goes viral and who is silenced. Social media is purposely addictive and – with anger generating clicks – divisive.

Sudhamshu (opposing) countered that misinformation was entirely possible without social media, suggesting, in fact, that the proposers had promulgated misinformation in their speeches! The power of social media, he said, is that it is a conversation – two-way communication, able to be answered. In a world without social media, people would be less able to challenge politicians directly and governments would find it easier to control the populace.

Points and questions from the floor included:

• Is more free speech necessarily good? Much of the debate online is lazy and low quality.
• The tone online is often argumentative, which provokes people to reinforce their own views, leading to entrenchment and retreat to separate groups.
• Social media is used to organise violence, such as mosque attacks and attacks by the English Defence League.
• Counter examples were given of social media exposing corruption, particularly in developing countries.
• With algorithms driving social media, what you see is determined for you.
• Echo chambers were not a side effect, but the driving purpose of social media – pushing your own beliefs back at you.
• On social media you can publicly comment on and critique things. By contrast, if you send an email or letter to a newspaper, its staff will decide whether to publish it.
• Head of English Robert Hyland asked: “Who guards the guards?” Traditional media has editorial boards and regulators, but social media does not. However, his caveat was that perhaps the proposers were living in the past, harking back to what democracy used to be. Does it not evolve, with social media showing the robustness of that evolution?

The end result of the debate was a vote of 40% in favour of the motion, with 58% against, and 2% abstaining. Thus, the narrow lead for the proposition at the outset of the debate was overturned.

Earlier, a three-course dinner, with a vegetarian option was served.

• Click on the thumbnails to view the images.

QE has become only the second state school nationally – and the first in the south of England – to be accredited by the Royal College of Organists.

A rare and prestigious accolade, the accreditation represents the establishment of a more formal partnership between the college and the School, following growing links over the past two years.

It comes as the School consolidates its commitment to the instrument with the announcement that Year 9’s Zach Fernandes (pictured top) has been awarded an organ scholarship under the partnership established between QE and Barnet’s St John the Baptist Church last year.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “This accreditation is a significant honour for our School. It was awarded only after the RCO’s senior management team carefully considered our application and recognised our commitment to effective teaching and learning in pursuit of high standards in organ-playing and choral directing.

“It places us in some exalted company: only 16 other institutions have been awarded accreditation, and they include specialist music organisations, alongside some of the country’s leading public schools, such as Eton, Rugby and City of London School.

“My congratulations go to Zach on his scholarship. I hope he will enjoy it and get a great deal out of the opportunities it presents to him,” Mr Enright added.

Links between the RCO and QE have been growing since the college supplied the School with a Viscount Chorum 40-S electric organ at the start of last academic year under its Organs in Schools programme for state schools. RCO Chief Executive Sir Andrew Parmley and regional director Simon Williams also came on a visit to Queen’s Road. QE pupils are due to play at an RCO Young Performers concert at St Lawrence Jewry next Guildhall Church in the City of London on 23 September.

Last spring, the School’s organ scholarship scheme with the parish church was launched. It gave the first Organ Scholars, Joel Swedensky and Noah Morley, opportunities to play the organ at church services and to rehearse the church choir, alongside their involvement in extra-curricular music at QE. The scholarships include an honorarium. With Joel now in Year 13 and thus leaving this summer, Zach has been appointed as his replacement.

Noah, who is in Year 11, continues in his role. “It’s been an amazing first year as an Organ Scholar,” he wrote. “Learning new skills each week alongside singing with the choir has been wonderful.”

“The past 12 months have been filled with a wealth of musical experiences, from accompaniment, improvisation, psalmody, choral conducting and even the mechanics of organ, taking a look inside the currently dismantled instrument at St John’s [pictured].”

One specific highlight had been William Mathias’ setting of the traditional carol, Sir Christèmas, on Christmas Eve.

“A huge thank you to Patryk Korczak [St John’s director of music] for his invaluable lessons; and to the QE Music department and the Headmaster for offering this opportunity and their ongoing support.

“My first year opened so many doors, and I can’t wait to see what this year brings.”

Two Old Elizabethans have won Organ Scholarships from Cambridge in the 21st century – Drew Sellis (OE 2013-2020) and Peter Yarde Martin (OE 2002-2007), who is now a peripatetic Music teacher at the School.