Once a Pilgrim, always a Pilgrim

We love keeping in touch with our Alumni and as a school that’s 95 years old, we’ve got plenty. We’ve seen pupils grow from small boys into kind, thoughtful and interesting young men. We’re proud of every single one.  We have an active Alumni network and encourage all leavers to sign up to the Pilgrims’ Alumni Newsletter.  
 
Many Old Pilgrims acknowledge the positive part Pilgrims’ still plays in their lives and they love coming back to school to talk to the boys and tell us what they’re up to.  What’s better than hearing stories from ‘olden days’ even if it feels like yesterday.      

ALUMNI@PILGRIMS-SCHOOL.CO.UK

Old Pilgrim in ‘The World’s Toughest Row’

We were delighted to receive news of Old Pilgrim and former Quirister, Robert Cross (right), who has recently tackled the mammoth challenge of rowing across the Atlantic Ocean. 

Robert came to Pilgrims’ from a London day school in 2006 and was a Quirister in his final year. He left Pilgrims’ as a Music Scholar to go to Shrewsbury School.

With friends Robert Treasure and Charles Newman, Robert was one of a trio called TEAMV3NTURE. The three teammates met at Sandhurst in 2019 and all are serving British Army officers: Cross in the Welsh Guards, Treasure in The Rifles and Newman in the Royal Artillery. ‘The World’s Toughest Row’ is a more than 3,000 mile race across the Atlantic from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua.

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A Short Story

Old Pilgrims’ swap Choristers’ Cassocks for American Football pads and helmets. We asked ex-Director of Sport and Housemaster, Andrew Short to update us on his sons (OPs) and his new life in Saudi.

Barney (OP 2020) and Hugo (OP 2022) have swapped their cassocks for helmets as members of the NFL Academy programme playing American Football, based in Loughborough. Since 2019, this NFL initiative replicates an American High School programme, with players seeking a route onward to the College system. The players effectively board and do their A-levels at Loughborough College, with all sporting aspects – field practice, weights, speed sessions – taking place over the road at the University.  

It all started when a school friend of Barney’s suggested he come down to Solent Seahawks in Southampton to play, because he’s ‘quite big’. Now immersed in this world, Barney announced he’d like to trial for the NFL Academy. Not really knowing what we were letting ourselves in for, we made the journey to Loughborough in March 2024 for him to take part in a trial, or ‘combine’ as it’s known. He transferred his A-level studies from Peter Symonds to Loughborough and, four terms later, completed his studies with excellent results. He has remained for a final year to gain more playing time and work towards a College place.

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Jon Snow talks about being a Chorister

Former Choristers from 1995-96 visit Pilgrims’ 

It is always wonderful to welcome former Choristers back to the school who left in 95/96. Some of these Old Pilgrims’ (OP) we’ve seen recently, some not since they left in 95/96. They all joined us with rich and interesting stories of their time both during and after Pilgrims’. Tales of pipe climbing, ‘pig’ tables and previous masters brought their childhood antics back to life. 

  • Stephen Barton, a Grammy winning composer based in London and  Los Angeles.  He recently commissioned the Choristers for an exciting project (yet to be released) and has previously recorded with them at Abbey Road Studios. 
  • Chris Hill is a composer, producer, songwriter and session bassist for Van Morrison and Jamie Cullum, amongst others, and might be recognised as the son of the choral singing teacher, Hilary Jones, and former Choirmaster David Hill.  
  • Peter Milmer had been back recently for an Old Boys event but was full of joy to be reliving tales of his youth amongst friends.  Peter followed his passion for medicine and is currently a practising GP in the West Country.   
  • Some years after leaving Pilgrims’ Jules Knight joined with another former Pilgrim, Ollie Baines, to form Blake, a vocal group that, amongst their accolades, recorded a number one album in the UK Classical Album Chart.  Jules has since pursued a career in acting.  
  • Nat Lippiett left Pilgrims’ and went to The Westgate School in Winchester. He’s worked at the BBC and  ITN he is now an Executive Producer with credits to his name, such as Harry and Meghan: An African Journey and David Bowie: Starman. 
  • Gavin McCormick, bitten by the Classics bug at Pilgrims’, has gone on to teach in London and is author of the Classics blog Ad Astra Per Mundum.  
  • Former Head Chorister, Richard Collins, saw his name on the leadership board in the Cathedral for the first time.  Now Head of Programming at Royal Northern College of Music, Richard has worked in a variety of areas within the music industry since leaving education. 

1995 was clearly a vintage year when lasting and inspiring friendships were made. 

 

 

Pilgrims

Alan Howarth Pilgrim 1952-57 

“I was at The Pilgrims’ School between 1952 and 1957. Humphrey Salwey was the Headmaster, always elegant even when wearing bicycle clips. He and his wife, Lorna,  were a strong team, who made Pilgrims’ one of the country’s outstanding prep schools.

It was a good school to go to if you had academic aptitude and motivation. I was coached as a batsman with the same thoroughness as I was taught Latin and Greek. The teacher who, for me, was outstanding was W.A.Stephen (nicknamed Inky Stephen), who taught history.

Even those of us who were not Choristers spent many hours in Winchester Cathedral; Stanford in B flat and Stekel’s Remember Now Thy Creator , live in my musical memory.

I still treasure very affectionate memories of those days. I owe to Pilgrims’ a solid foundation of learning.” 

Aims, Purpose and Values

We suit boys who’ll make the most of the opportunities we offer, whilst also contributing to the school community. While founded on a Christian ethos, we welcome boys of all faiths and none and we aim to foster the character of every single Pilgrim.

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Headmaster’s Welcome

I came to Pilgrims’ as a boy. I came back as a teacher, and now I'm very proud to be Headmaster. Like I did, boys arrive not entirely sure of themselves and leave, 9 years later, with a particular kind of confidence. Not the loud kind, not the performed, but the kind that comes from having been genuinely stretched across many different things. That’s what we’re doing here. Not producing specialists. Not selecting for one talent and building everything else around it.

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