Viewing archives for Alumni

Samuel Akpan’s efforts to build a career in sports have received a major boost with his securing of a long internship at the Premier League.

Sam (OE 2011–2018) won an 18-month placement at the world’s most-watched sports league, where he will spend six months each in three departments.

And he is not the only Old Elizabethan at the Premier League: Piers Martin (1987–1994), son of Chairman of Governors Barrie Martin, is currently the league’s Head of Leadership and Academy Workforce Development.

“The Premier League is probably the best possible place to learn about the complete system of élite football – so I am very much excited by the future,” said Sam.

“The first department I was assigned to was within the football development team, which Piers is a senior figure on – focusing primarily on supporting and developing non-coaching staff off the field, such as academy managers and heads of operation. I certainly wasn’t expecting to meet an OE at the Premier League, but it is a very small world!

“I’m really enjoying supporting the operational element of organising events, working with the digital learning systems and helping contribute to the efficiency of all the different programmes being run. Having an input and being able to offer value to help academy staff is an amazing honour, and it has been very surreal even to visit Arsenal’s youth academy in Hale End.”

Samuel, who graduated in Politics & International Studies from Warwick last year, started making his mark while still a student in fields including social enterprise, sport and anti-racism work at the university. He was named among Future Leaders magazine’s 2021–2022 Top 150 of the most outstanding Black university students in Britain.

As to his future career path, Sam is maintaining a flexible position: “I want to take these 18 months to focus on developing my best skills and understand what this looks like within football, and sport generally.”

The photo shows Sam speaking at the Premier League’s recent Mentor Summit at Villa Park in Birmingham.

Old Elizabethan Max Curtis had some reassuring advice for any sixth-formers stressing about making the right career decisions.

Max (OE 1991–1998), a corporate communications expert, visited the School to speak to a select group of sixth-formers.

Reflecting afterwards on his visit, he recognised that the Sixth Form years were often a difficult time in young people’s academic lives during which they are being asked to “make make seemingly career-defining decisions about their future. Hopefully, I was able to provide some reassurance that you don’t need to have it all ‘sussed out’. In fact, there are advantages to retaining flexibility and taking opportunities as they arise.”

After leaving QE in 1998, Max read Social and Political Sciences at Cambridge and then took his Diploma in Law at City, University of London.

He has forged a 20-year career in internal and external communications and public affairs, with a background that spans UK Government, FTSE 100 companies, consultancy and the not-for-profit sector. He has spent the last five years as Corporate Affairs Director for MTVH, a housing association with 57,000 homes across the country. Previously, he worked in communications for the Department for Transport, and before that, for Tesco. His focus is on getting teams and organisations to work together to achieve their potential.

Max thanked the School for the warm welcome he received: “It was great to be back,” he said. During his visit, he found time to take a look through the 1998 QE Year Book.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “We were delighted to see Max, and my thanks go to him for speaking to our students about his career.”

For his part, Max encouraged other OEs to follow his lead and get in touch with the Headmaster to arrange similar visits.

Nine Old Elizabethan friends whose careers have taken very different paths found time to pass on tips to young pupils when they met up for a reunion at the School.

All but one of the group from the Class of 2016 (those who started at QE in 2009) were from Broughton House, and so they duly enjoyed the opportunity to talk to the young Broughtonians of today.

They also seized the chance to meet up with some of their old teachers and to marvel at the changes to the School campus since they left.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “It was good to learn that this group still retains great affection for their alma mater and to see that friendships formed at QE really do stand the test of time, even with some of this group having left before Year 13 (including one of their number, Brian Yoon, moving to South Korea as early as Year 9).”

The visit was arranged after one of the group, Alexander Ng, contacted Headmaster Neil Enright.

First stop was a trip down memory lane with a visit to 7B’s form time, where Languages teacher Marie-Jo Jacquin is still the form tutor, just as she was in their day back in 2009.

They then did a careers ‘speed-dating’ workshop in which they introduced their roles and industries, and the key skills and routes into it, to small groups of Year 8 boys. The group included doctors, engineers, a lawyer and a representative of the film industry. There was an opportunity for the boys to ask questions of the visitors.

As well as being taken on a tour of the campus, the group also caught up with some familiar faces, including: the Headmaster; Deputy Head (Pastoral) David Ryan; Sarah Westcott Assistant Head (Pupil Progress); Mathematics teacher & Head of Academic Administration Wendy Fung, and Head of Physics Jonathan Brooke.

The nine were:

• Three medical doctors: Alexander Ng, who went to UCL and is now at Barnet Hospital; David Hao, and Michael Yeung (Cambridge);
• Two engineers: mechanical engineer Lampojan Raveenthiranathan, who studied at UCL and now works for a company which designs and manufactures components for military aircraft ejector seats, and civil engineer Roderick Lee;
• Brian Yoon, who works in finance;
• Prahlad Patel, who studied Actuarial Science at City University, but is now in the film industry and has been working on Season 5 of Netflix’s The Crown, digitally refining the images;
• Lawyer Meer Gala-Shah;
• David Dubinsky, who read Physics & Astronomy at Durham.

Eight of the group were from Broughton, with odd man out Michael Yeung, of Leicester House, made an honorary Broughtonian for the day.

Old Elizabethan Priyan Shah and his family are so passionate about education that they have set up their own awards scheme to encourage the pupils of today.

Together with his parents, Dhiru and Rami, Priyan (OE 1991–1998) visited the School to present DVS Foundation Awards to ten sixth-formers.

The awards seek to promote a virtuous circle of motivation and success, together with kindness. And they are only one facet of the family’s philanthropic work: the foundation’s focus is on education, food insecurity and healthcare, in both the UK and East Africa.

Headmaster Neil Enright thanked Priyan and his parents for their visit, during which they addressed the whole of the current Year 13: “We are really grateful to the family for their generosity in awarding each of our ten prize winners a £100 Amazon voucher, and I know that the whole year group are, in turn, grateful for the great advice Priyan passed on to them.”

Priyan read Accounting & Finance at the University of Kent at Canterbury and then completed a postgraduate degree at the LSE. His father established the family’s commercial property investment business, DVS Property, in 1985. The company specialises in UK institutional real estate investment across sectors including logistics, automotive, out-of-town retail and supermarkets, as well as holding occupational assets that include student accommodation and hotels.

Having been part of the business throughout his career, Priyan today runs the company with his brothers, Julan and Prag. He is also actively involved in the running of the foundation, which was set up in 2012 to formalise the family’s giving.

Introducing its work in a special assembly, he explained that the foundation supports other organisations as well as operating its own programmes. These  include not only the awards programme, which was launched in 2021, but also its WhyOhYou personal development programme. QE plans to get involved in WhyOhYou during the autumn.

“Focusing on the individual (the name is a play on words for ‘YOU’), the programme is a five-week personal development journey that provides youth aged 15–18 with the space and tools to explore who they are, what they want and how to achieve it,” said Priyan, who is a member of the School’s philanthropic 450 Club. WhyOhYou is run by Rupal Shah (no relation), who was recruited by the foundation approximately four years ago, and by Priyan’s wife, Asmi, who has worked at EY for over ten years as an actuary and supports the global firm’s mentoring programme.

The Headmaster added: “I look forward to working with the foundation through WhyOhYou in the coming months: my thanks go to Rupal Shah for her work coordinating the scheme.”

The awards, set out below, cover a number of academic subjects, as well as extra-curricular activities.

Priyan and Asmi have a daughter and baby son. Priyan enjoys travelling and hiking. A long-time racquet sports enthusiast, he continues to play tennis and badminton.

Old Elizabethan Sajjad Dar spoke to QE geographers about the powerful lessons he learned while volunteering at Eleonas refugee camp in Greece.

Sajjad (OE 2009–2016), who graduated in Human Geography from Durham University, highlighted how media portrayals often create negative perceptions of refugees, often showing them either as a threat or as merely passive receivers of aid.

He set out in his talk to make a case for an alternative view, highlighting the fact that, for example, refugees were generally better at organising workshops than the volunteer helpers working in the camp.

Emily Parry, Head of Geography, said: “I am very grateful to Sajjad for giving an inspiring and engaging talk that so powerfully illustrated why Human Geography is a fascinating and important area of study.”

After completing his MA in Human Geography at Durham, Sajjad took an MSc in Spatial Planning at UCL, which he finished last year. He is currently working as a planning officer for the London Borough of Newham.

His talk, which was entitled The Power of Representation, centred on his dissertation, which compared media representations of refugees with his own experience of volunteering at the refugee camp and was entitled Navigating everyday life at camp Eleonas.

The camp in Athens hosts refugees from Syria, Senegal and Somalia. Sajjad’s work in a small school there focused on helping young refugees with Key Stage 1-level studies and on teaching English speaking, literacy and comprehension at a higher level.

Corresponding to the dissertation’s title, in his talk he considered how refugees live their lives in the camp and “what we can learn about their life from this”.

His aim, he said, was to “unveil narratives that are often not shown by the general media”. How refugees are represented is very important, he averred. Sajjad noted that ‘flooding’ metaphors are often used in reference to refugees, implying that they present a problem which is “overwhelming and uncontrollable”.

He added: “Whoever has the power to define an object has a lot of power over that object, with the object in this case being refugees.”

Sajjad also talked about his degree studies and the career he has recently started. He reflected, in particular, on the field trip he took to Jerusalem in the fourth year of his MA and discussed the differing senses of place in the various religious quarters of the city.

While at Durham, he was also his college’s representative for the COCO charity, which works globally with the aim of providing “sustainable sources of quality education to children living in poor and marginalised communities”.

The lunchtime talk was open to boys studying Geography in Years 10 and 12.

Old Elizabethans helped 50 boys battle it out in a Galactic Challenge at the School that saw all three teams secure multi-billion pound contracts for an imagined settlement in space.

The pupils from Years 7–9 (and from across tutor groups) formed aerospace ‘companies’ to participate in the space industry simulation challenge, competing against not only each other but also the clock. Their target was to design a space station for 100 years hence, when space travel might be commonplace. The remit was for a tourist resort that would orbit Mars.

Lending their expertise and experience on the day were four 2017 leavers: Aadil Kara, Neelesh Ravichandran and Harikesan Baskaran and Suchira Peiris. Aadil, Neelesh and Harikesan all got through to the national stages of the UK Space Design Competition (Galactic Challenge’s ‘big brother’ for older pupils) when they were in Year 13, with Aadil going on to reach international level.

Jonathan Brooke, Head of Physics, has been impressed by how the OEs have sustained their commitment to STEM outreach throughout their undergraduate studies and beyond: “It’s even more impressive to see this commitment continue as they move into challenging careers and post-graduate study,” he said.

“They were the driving force behind digital Galactic Challenge competitions that were a welcome diversion to our boys during lockdown, and it was an honour and a pleasure to welcome them back to the School to host an in-person competition.”

Mr Brooke was also thanked the Year 12 boys who helped on the day. “Without them, the event could not have run so smoothly.”

The challenge has two main objectives: to help foster pupils’ interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), and to help them develop so-called ‘soft skills’, such as team-working, communication, and the ability to solve complex problems.

Aadil, who studied Physics at Imperial College London and now works as a data analyst for the Civil Service, said: “It was a joy to see the teams rise to the challenge, and to work productively in a way that rivals some professional teams!”

Harikesan, who is working towards a Master’s in Engineering for International Development at UCL, added: “The boys engaged within and outside their teams to produce some truly amazing designs. The fact that all teams won contracts is a testament to the quality of work produced across the board. Everyone really was a winner today!”

Neelesh now works as a technical analyst at Credit Suisse, having read Electrical & Electronic Engineering at Imperial College London. He said: “A brilliant amalgamation of strategy, engineering, science and public speaking skills – the Galactic Challenge was a joy to help with.”

Suchira left QE to read Politics and International Studies at the University of Warwick, before securing a role as a consulting data analyst at the Information Lab. He said: “As a volunteer it was inspiring to see how engaged and active the students were in the competition, the out-of-the-box thinking, novel problem-solving and, in nearly every case, a board-worthy presentation!”

All four OEs commented on how much they had enjoyed being back at the School in person, observing that much had changed there in the past five years.

The three ‘companies’, Astrodyne Delta, Infinity Airspace and Solaris Flight Systems, were given a Request for Proposal (RFP) reflecting a typical design brief in the space engineering industry. They were asked to bid on a range of design modules: from the design of the command centre, to the power & energy generation, and the operations of the resort facility itself.

After trailing team Astrodyne Delta through the early stages of the competition, Solaris Flight Systems came through in the final stage to secure victory by the tightest of margins, winning contracts worth £320bn, against Astrodyne Delta’s £315bn. Infinity Airspace were not too far behind, on £300bn, with all three impressing the judges and securing contracts.

The judging panel comprised: Jenny Lyons, Director of Education at the Galactic Challenge; Alison Ahearn, Deputy Director of Education at the Galactic Challenge and Principal Teaching Fellow at Imperial College London; Headmaster Neil Enright; Gillian Ridge, Head of Biology; Tamara Rakviashvili, Science Technician, and Science teachers Bryn Evans, and J Murphy.

The designs were assessed in three stages over the day. Stages 1 and 2 were presented during the day to peers and judges, while Stage 3 was presented at the end of the day to parents, peers and the judging panel.

This year’s leavers may have missed out on a few things because of the pandemic, but they enjoyed one opportunity not open to their predecessors: their own Valediction ceremony.

With their A-level examinations now behind them, all of Year 13 gathered in the Shearly Hall together with parents, teachers and guests for the inaugural event, which brought a mix of fun and the formal to their QE farewell.

As well as a small gift for all the leavers presented by Guest of Honour Robert (‘Judge’) Rinder (OE 1989–1994), the ceremony included prize-giving, with awards bestowed for: all the curriculum subjects; ‘contribution & responsibility’; ‘leadership & involvement’, and for extra-curricular activities ranging from chess to drama.

In his speech, Headmaster Neil Enright told the sixth-formers: “Today, we thank you for your fantastic contribution to the life of the School; congratulate you on the completion of your A-levels; wish you the very best for your bright futures; but also repeat our hope that this is not the end of your relationship with QE – merely the beginning of a different phase.

“Circumstances have been such that your year group has missed out on a number of opportunities and experiences due to the pandemic, not least your GCSEs and the full-throated celebration of those deserved results. I hope that today goes a little way to compensate for the loss of some of the School-based social events you may ordinarily have enjoyed.

“I hope in the years to come that you will come back and see us; tell us about your adventures and careers; and, more importantly, tell those following in your footsteps through the School. That you will show them and their families the great variety of things that an OE can do and an Elizabethan can be.”

Mr Enright also thanked parents for their “huge support, both moral and financial, over the years”.

In his vote of thanks, the 2021 School Captain, Siddhant Kansal, reflected on how he and his peers had changed since they arrived at the School in September 2015. Over the intervening years, most had grown “about 2ft taller” and would now be completely unrecognisable as the same boys.

“One thing that never changed, however, is the fact that all of us stood together the whole time and always looked out for each other,” said Siddhant.

He also paid tribute to Simon Walker, the group’s Head of Year from Year 10 onwards, who is leaving QE at the end of term. “I think I speak for most people when I say that the day he became head of our year was the most terrifying day of our lives…Four years later, we are still terrified, but also grateful for all that he did for us.”

Mr Walker was the afternoon’s Master of Ceremonies. After the speeches and presentations were finished, he invited the leavers and parents on to the Stapylton Field at the front of the School for afternoon tea in the sunshine.

The ceremony was accompanied by music performed by some of the School’s leading musicians. After vocalist and guitarist Aadarsh Khimasia entertained the audience before the ceremony started, the Trumpet Ensemble then performed the processional, Henry Purcell’s Trumpet Tune. Music award-winner saxophonist Conor Parker-Delves enjoyed his swansong as a QE musician, leading a quintet as they played a piece of his own composition, Cherry Fizz, during a musical interlude. The recessional music, played by the Saxophone Ensemble, was Karen Street’s All in Good Time, followed by Coldplay’s Paradise. The Jazz Band played while tea was served.

The ceremony also featured a thoughtful and entertaining address by the Guest of Honour, Robert Rinder, who reflected on how his own experiences at QE had contributed to his varied and successful career, calling upon the Class of 2022 to hold onto those QE values of love of learning, hard work, and service.

Founder’s Day 2022 has been acclaimed as a resounding success, with large numbers of old boys among the crowds and the entire QE community giving generously, easily outstripping the fundraising target.

The first in-person Founder’s Day since before the pandemic proved a considerable draw, with large numbers coming along to enjoy the fun and family atmosphere at the afternoon fete organised by the Friends of Queen Elizabeth’s. The formal aspects of the day – which this year included a memorial service for former Headmaster Eamonn Harris (1984–1999) – also ran smoothly, as the School marked its rich traditions in style.

Founder’s Day is always the biggest fundraiser in the School calendar, and this year was no exception. As of today, total takings stand at £32,392.04, some 62 per cent higher than the £20,000 target.

Current Headmaster Neil Enright said: “It was a very happy occasion and a great celebration of the School’s 449th birthday enjoyed by all parts of our community. I was particularly pleased to see so many Old Elizabethans – more than I can remember on similar occasions in the past – returning to their School.

“My thanks go to all the boys, staff and volunteers who worked so hard to make the day a great success on this important day for the School and for FQE. I also wish to express my gratitude to everyone who donated money: once again, the Elizabethan community has done us proud!”

After the morning Thanksgiving Service in Chipping Barnet Parish Church attended by Year 7 boys, their families and staff, pupils and teachers walked to the School for the traditional Roll Call and reading of the School Chronicle (an annually updated account of QE’s history) in front of Main Building.

After that, as the fete began on Stapylton Field, the memorial service for Mr Harris commenced in The Friends’ Recital Hall, which was officially opened last month. Mr Harris died in late 2019 and the memorial service was postponed from the early days of the pandemic.

The service featured music played by pupils including pieces by Brahms and Henryk Wieniawski.

After a welcome from Mr Enright, Chairman of Governors Barrie Martin MBE read Wordsworth’s A Poet! He hath put his heart to school.

There were tributes from two teachers who worked under Mr Harris: Eric Houston, a QE teacher from 1976 who was Second Master from 1999–2010, and Dr John Marincowitz, who went on to become his successor, serving as Headmaster from 1999 until his retirement in 2011.

“It was lovely to welcome back so many former pupils and members of staff for the Eamonn Harris memorial, alongside members of Eamonn’s family and friends,” said Mr Enright. “It was fitting that the re-arranged memorial took place on Founder’s Day. The current format of bringing everyone together for reflection and celebration on the third Saturday in June was reinstated by him.”

The fete, which took the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee as its theme, featured an array of food stalls, as well as attractions to suit all tastes, including Indian dancers, performances from School musicians and renditions of Shakespearean monologues from Year 8 dramatists.

The £32,392.04 total raised includes money collected at the fete, as well as sponsorship funds from the inter-House Music and The Voice concert challenge on Friday and online donations via the main Founder’s Day JustGiving page.

The afternoon also saw the playing of the Stanley Busby Memorial Cricket Match – an annual  Founder’s Day fixture for Old Elizabethans and current senior pupils – on Third Field at the rear of the School.

During the morning, the guest speaker at the service was Michael Stewart CBE (OE 1978–1985) whose career has been in in national security-related jobs, with a particular focus on counter-terrorism. He is currently the Director of Prevent, one of the four pillars of the UK’s counter-terrorist strategy.

In an entertaining address, he wove together examples from popular culture, social media, the natural world, his career and the School. His theme was that “appearances can be deceiving” – but only for a short time, since the truth comes out eventually. The School may look very similar to how it did in his day as you walk up to the Main Building, he pointed out to the congregation, but it is a place transformed and so much better. He noted the crucial role Eamonn Harris had played in this.

Other VIP guests included: the Mayor of the London Borough of Barnet, Cllr Alison Moore; the Representative Deputy Lieutenant of the London Borough of Barnet, Martin Russell, and the Headteacher of Queen Elizabeth’s Girls’ School, Violet Walker.

Old Elizabethans present during the day spanned all generations. Among them were a group of 17 celebrating 50 years since leaving in 1972; they have been meeting up with each other on Founder’s Day since the turn of the millennium. There was also a visit from Sir Lucian Grainge (OE 1971–1978), chairman and chief executive officer of the global music company, Universal Music Group, and his brother Justin Grainge (OE 1976–81).

Opportunity beckons for the QE community to come together to celebrate and to raise funds for future facilities on one of the most important occasions in the School year – Founder’s Day.

For the first time in three years, the day’s events, including the popular afternoon fete, are being held live and in-person. Founder’s Day takes place this Saturday, 18th June.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “It is wonderful that we can meet each other physically again after the pandemic-affected years. Founder’s Day is the School’s biggest individual fundraiser, so, as well as being a splendid occasion of celebration and community, it is the source of much-needed funds that will be used to enhance facilities and opportunities for current boys and those who will enter our doors in future years.”

Those unable to attend in person can still make what will be a valued donation, however large or small through the School’s JustGiving page, which has been retained for this purpose, Mr Enright added.

This year’s events starts tomorrow, Friday, with an inter-House Music and The Voice Challenge which will be live-streamed. Each house will have an hour to put on a concert which must feature not just music but also a vocal element. The challenge is for each house to raise as much sponsorship as possible, and the School has created online giving pages for each house, listed below, along with the times of the performances.

Money raised from this will be divided between the School’s planned Robert Dudley Studio – a 104-seat drama and spoken-word studio – and the cost of commissioning a piece of music for next year’s QE 450^th anniversary celebrations.

“The music challenge promises to provide a plenitude of high-quality performances which display the boys’ creativity alongside their musical talent. More broadly, the Founder’s Day events themselves provide pageantry, fun, fellowship and a celebration of all that is great and good about the Elizabethan community,” said Mr Enright.

Founder’s Day itself will commence on Saturday morning with the traditional church service for Year 7 and invited guests at Chipping Barnet Parish Church. This will be followed by the Roll Call and reading of the School Chronicle, in front of the School’s Main Building.

The Friends of Queen Elizabeth’s (FQE) Fete will feature food and drink for all tastes, as well as stalls and games. It is promised that some members of staff will be found in somewhat less dignified circumstances than usual – stuck in the stocks!

There will be music to enjoy, as well as Shakespearean monologues delivered by Year 8 dramatists. The afternoon will also feature the Stanley Busby Memorial Cricket Match, played annually on Founder’s Day by Old Elizabethans and current senior pupils.

On an equally celebratory yet more reflective note, there will be a service for those who wish to honour the memory of Eamonn Harris (Headmaster 1984-1999). Mr Harris died in late 2019: a memorial service planned in 2020 had to be called off because of the pandemic.

“Eamonn was one of the most significant figures in QE recent history,” says Mr Enright. “He raised the stature of the School enormously, laying the foundations for our current success, and it was also under his leadership that the FQE, as we know it today, was born.”

The day is scheduled to come to a conclusion at 4.30pm. “My thanks go to all those involved who have worked so hard to bring everything together for what, I am sure, will be a great celebration,” said Mr Enright.

“By coming to the fete, or sponsoring the music challenge, you are supporting the FQE charity, which, in turn, benefits generations of pupils. Your contributions enable us to develop facilities and provide transformational opportunities to young people which we could not achieve based on our state funding alone.

“We appeal to you to give generously and trust you will thoroughly enjoy the events. Rest assured that we are most grateful for all support and donations, large and small,” added Mr Enright.

Details of the concert timings for the Music and The Voice Challenge are as follows. Each link is a click through to a House-specific sponsorship page:

9.15am Broughton
10.15am Harrisons’
11.15am Leicester
12.15pm Pearce
1.45pm Stapylton
2.45pm Underne 

Old Elizabethan rugby professional Biyi Alo has received his call-up to England’s 35-man squad, ahead of this month’s international against the Barbarians and the summer tour to Australia.

Biyi (OE 2005–2010), a tighthead prop with Wasps, has this week been taking part in an England training camp at Teddington, with head coach Eddie Jones’ players preparing for the fixture at Twickenham on Sunday 19^th June.

His selection comes as QE’s PE department look back on a busy and largely successful rugby season and report that five current senior players have been selected at county and professional club level.

Head of Rugby James Clarke said: “Our heartfelt congratulations go to Biyi on his England call-up, the first for an Elizabethan in some years. He has built a very solid career, firstly with Saracens and Worcester, and now with Wasps.

“I would also like to thank all the players who have represented the School in rugby this year. We played 150 matches across 21 different teams and amassed 73 wins, as well as a number of draws. A special mention goes to our joint top try-scorers, Isa Sheikh, of Year 7, and Shaun Lee, of Year 9, with 18 tries each. After much debate, we have put together our QE Rugby Team of the Year for 2021/22, featuring the best players from across the year groups – I congratulate everyone who is featured.”

Having played football until the age of ten, Biyi found himself having to get to grips with rugby for the first time when he joined Year 7 at QE. Asked by Talking Rugby Union journalist Chris Heal how he felt about that, he said: “‘Of course I enjoyed it. It was an interesting experience and a challenging one to play a game I didn’t grow up with.

“At first, I wasn’t great at rugby, but I stuck at it. At that age, you are just chucking the ball about and just messing about. That element drew me to the sport – as did the physical side of it, as I was quite a big 11 year-old – but I really started to enjoy it.”

He stayed at QE for five years, climbing through the rugby ranks, before moving on to Haileybury and then studying for a degree in Sports Science, Sport Development and Sport Management at Loughborough University.

He has also released some hip-hop songs, under the name ‘Biyi’ and explained to Rugby Pass website his motivation: “I struggled a little before I started music. Everything came to that point where I needed an outlet and the music came then because mental health, especially in young males and black young males in this country, is something which I am glad there has been more light shone on it recently because it is very important and sometimes it can get swept under the carpet in the world we live in, where sportsmen are these tough guys and if you are having any struggles it is, ‘Get over it’. But the effect that that has on the mind and lifestyle is massive…Whenever I get a message from a complete stranger who says a song really resonates with them, it really makes it worthwhile.”

QE currently has five promising players who, like Biyi before them, have won county honours and have caught the eye of professional clubs: Victor Angelov, of Year 12, (Middlesex/London Irish Developing Player Programme); Taro Niimura, of Year 11, (Hertfordshire/Saracens DPP); Ashley Nwapa, Year 11, (Hertfordshire/Saracens DPP); Theo Moses, of Year 10 (Hertfordshire/Saracens DPP), and Aaron Rodrigo of Year 10 (Hertfordshire/Saracens DPP & Middlesex/London Irish DPP).

The QE team of the year’s ’starting XV’ have won tickets to a Premiership rugby match next season, as part of the School’s deal with Inspiresport, who also sponsored this year’s QE Sevens tournament.

The team’s forwards are: Simardeep Sahota, U14; Aashir Irfan, U13; Soham Bhatnagar, U12; David Hirtopanu, U15; Nnanna Okore, U18; Edward Muscat, U14; Theo Moses, U15, and Aaron Rodrigo, U15.

The backs are: Taro Niimura, U16; Thomas Young, U13; Esa Aslam, U12; Ubayd Uddin, U15; Isa Sheikh, U12; Andrew Mbogol, U16, and Ubaidah Rahman, U14.

The reserves are: Timi Banjo, U14; Kailun Zhou, U15; Sabbir Hossain, U16; Alexandre Lee, U18; Shaun Lee, U14; Victor Varbanov, U13; John Chum, U15, and James Conway, U15.

• For some clips of Biyi Alo in action, see this new video.