A series of online events which began in Autumn and Winter of 2020/2021, MTS Together takes its name from our Summer 2020 fundraising campaign which raised over £160,000 for bursaries and other projects at Merchant Taylors' School. The primary aim of the campaign was to raise money to ensure families affected by COVID-19 were able to remain at Merchant Taylors'; hence MTS Together. The events series is now about bringing the entire Merchant Taylors' community together virtually in a time when gathering physically is not possible.
All of the contributors in the series are giving their time and expertise voluntarily and there is no charge to join the live events or to view the recordings. However, if you would like to donate, please click on the make a donation link.
Past Events in the MTS Together Series:
Fit for the Future
2022/23 OMT Society President, Andy Rose (1977), takes a look at the future through the eyes of three expert speakers. Clara Barby CBE, Senior Partner at Just Climate, reflects on ambitions to achieve maximum climate action impact for minimum cost. Parent of two MTS pupils, Dr Matthew Williams, who is a Consultant Clinical Oncologist specialising in adult brain tumours, illustrates the importance of governance in all forms in the future of healthcare. While Economist, Varun Paul (2003), Director for Central Bank Digital Currencies and Financial Market Infrastructure at Fireblocks, explains the importance of embracing Blockchain rather than focusing on Crypto.
Dr John Kittmer: Our Man in Athens
John Kittmer read classics at Cambridge and Oxford, and modern Greek at King’s College London, where he gained a PhD for a thesis on the poet Yannis Ritsos. In 1991-92, he held a college lectureship at Brasenose College Oxford, teaching Honour Mods and Greats in classical languages and literature. In 1993, he joined the fast stream of the then Employment Department in London. From 1998-2004, he worked for the Foreign Office in Brussels and London. From 2004-2012, he transferred to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (with a secondment to the Cabinet Office in the middle of this). In 2008-10, he was the Principal Private Secretary of the Secretary of State. From 2012-17, he returned to the Foreign Office: first as Ambassador to Greece, then as Director of Overseas Territories.
In this talk, Dr Kittmer shares his thoughts of the essential skills necessary to aquire to excel in a career in the civil service as well as how his love of Ancient Greek and his Classics background equiped him to work in some of the most dynamic areas of modern politics.
Baker/King Reunion
In the Summer of 2021, Sixth Form student, Harry Bridgewater, had a Zoom call with two Merchant Taylors' School Rugby legends, Bobby King (1942-1947) and Mr Douglas Baker (1943-1949). In this video you can gain an understanding of what life was like at school in the 1940s as well as a discussion of rugby and sport during that time.
Jerry Gore (1974-1979): Life on the Edge
Lightening strikes, broken bones, type 1 diabetes, just some of the challenges that Jerry Gore has faced while pursuing his passion for mountaineering and outdoor sports. In this fabulous talk, Jerry Gore (OMT 1974-1979), gives his thoughts about what it takes to succeed, even in the most testing of situations, as well as why he set up the charity Action4Diabetes, supporting young people with Type1 diabetes in South East Asia. To find out more about Action4Diabetes, click on this link https://action4diabetes.org/.
50 Years of Phab
Matthew Whalley (1979) and Nick Feingold (2010) share their memories of volunteering at Phab week as this year's team make their final preparations for Phab week 2022.
The Work of the RNLI
Adam Forrest (OMT 1988-1993) has been a volunteer with the RNLI for over 23 years and in that time has taken on most launch and on shore roles, from helmsman to launch authority. In self-effacing style, Adam outlines the dedication and characteristics needed to save lives at sea.
1620: The Mayflower Journey
On the 401st anniversary of the Mayflower crossing, George English (OMT 1959-1964) illustrated the story of the Mayflower passengers and the conditions that led to their travelling across the Atlantic when the odds of survival were so slim.
MTS Together 2020/2021
A look back at the series this year focusing on school memories of our OMT speakers.
"In the Thick of It" with Sir Alan Duncan
In his recently published diaries, Sir Alan Duncan (1970-1975) offers a view of what it was like to be a minister in the Cameron and May governments during the four years leading up to Brexit as well as opinions on some of the key characters during such turbulent times.
In this recording, Sir Alan answers questions from the audience and two Lower 6th form boys on topics ranging from spags to the runway on St Helena.
Hope for the Future? CoP26 and the Climate Emergency
To mark Earth Day, we were proud to host OMTs Richard Nash (1993-2000) and Alex Bassett (2008-2013) for a discussion about the forthcoming conference in Glasgow and what the aims might be.
In this talk, Richard is a technical lead on governance at WWF and makes compelling arguments illustrating the urgency of reducing emissions, Alex is part of the team delivering the conference for the UK Government.
The US UK relationship in the Biden Johnson era
As the new administration in DC settles in and the UK moves past the endless Brexit dramas what will the relationship between these two crucial allies look like?
In this recording, current OMT Society President and CEO of BritishAmerican Business, Duncan Edwards (OMT 1977-1981) discusses what the policy priorities will be for both sides, where they will find agreement and where they will find friction.
Seeking Wild: Expedition to Senja
If a trip to Norway sounds no more adventurous than just hopping on a flight from London Luton and rocking up at the first hostel, think again. James Tillotson (2015-2020) and Bert Edwards (2013-2020) made this entirely unsupported trip in some very unforgiving terrain, camping in the wild at low temperatures and requiring great resourcefulness. Furthermore, the travel window to Norway was open for only a very short period and even then, passage was only possible via a route passing through Copenhagen, Oslo and Tromso. Take note, this was during the Summer of 2020, when most of us were making no more exciting a trip than to the Co-Op for strawberry shoelaces! Click on the image below to watch a recording of their fascinating expedition.
Jason Solomons: Seen Any Good Films Lately?
Film critic, journalist and writer Jason Solomons (1983-1988) returned to Merchant Taylors' School "virtually" to talk about his time at Merchant Taylors' School, his love of film and where it all began.
Upper 6th form boys, Samuel Stewart and Will Taylor expertly interview Jason in this fascinating MTS Together event, exploring everything from Jason's favourite film to evaluating European cinema to his tip for best film at the Oscars 2021.
Philip Simon: From the Lun to Lockdown
Philip Simon is a standup comedian and writer who has performed at the Edinburgh Festival, in pantomime, touring as the voice of Daddy Pig and as part of the production team for TV shows such as Mock the Week and Task Master. The pandemic has caused restrictions on Philip's usual work and now he combines podcasts, home-schooling and a daily comedy show for children.
In this MTS Together talk, Philip reminisces about his time as a Merchant Taylors' School boy and how he has forged a successful career in the comedy world.
Writing a Wrong: Art Theft as Inspiration
CEO and Merchant Taylors' School Governor, James Twining (1984-1991) has written a series of successful thrillers featuring retired international art thief, Tom Kirk. In this talk, James talks about some of the audacious art thefts of globally renowned paintings, jewellery and even gold coins which gave inspiration to his novels.
A recording of his talk can be found below.
Re-run the fun: my life as Pat Sharp
DJ and TV presenter Pat Sharp (1975 - 1978) and author, writer and journalist Darren Richman (1996 - 2003) joined forces to create Re-run the fun: my life as Pat Sharp a spoof biography placing Pat at the heart of popular culture from the 1980's onwards. It's a hilarious book which is the perfect antidote to 2020.
Darren interviewed Pat for the last MTS Together event before Christmas and you can view the recording below.
A Guide to Mindfulness with Dr Afrosa Ahmed
Dr Ahmed, CEO of Mindfuldoc, GP and mother spoke about the benefits of being aware and present in the moment and perfectly illustrated this with an exercise in visualising tasting a lemon. Her talk was followed with questions and then a 20 minute practice.
Further details can be found on her website https://www.mindfuldoc.org/ and a recording of the talk can be found below.
The House of Lords: Dispelling the Myths
Former OMT President, Lord Faulkner of Worcester spoke on the subject of the House of Lords,covering myths from the composition of the Lords and how proceedings have been altered in response to social distance measures from digital voting to "hybrid debates".
U6th form pupil, Joe Morgan was the question moderator and we had very interesting discussion about the virtues of Hereditary peers and whether it is important for ministers to follow the code of conduct.
A recording of the event can be found below.
Gone but not Forgotten: Remembering the Fallen
As part of our virtual act of Remembrance on Armistice Day, OMTs Paul Collins (1959) and David Ellis (1993) presented some of the stories of OMTs who fought and died in WW1, from Jack Raphael to the 5th Leicestershires, to the story of actor Lionel Mackinder. Paul and David have spent the last six years researching the history of all 311 OMTs who died by delving into all of the obituaries printed in the Taylorian, as well as other public records.
Paul has compiled all of the tributes into a printed document which can be viewed in the OMT library and by appointment at school.
A recording of the event can be found below
Merchant Taylors' School: A Clarendon School
This was the first in our series of online events and it aired on the 22nd October 2020.
After being challenged in 2017 as to why Merchant Taylors' School was included in the Clarendon Commission's school report of 1861, Chris Hirst (OMT 1965) went back to the school's roots in 1561 under Head Master Mulcaster to show why it was included in the great nine schools of England.
In this fascinating talk, Chris compares the school to other contemporaries such as St Paul's and Charterhouse and discusses how decisions taken in the late 19th Century led the school to move out of London to the Sandy Lodge site that it enjoys today.
A copy of the recording can be found below.