The Flagpole

Monday 27 November - 7.00pm

Advances In Medical Imaging

This talk will look at some of the recent advances in medical imaging, in both research and clinical work and will have examples from some of the leading centres in the UK.

Dr Amy McDowell is a research physicist, using cutting edge MRI techniques to investigate childhood diseases at Great Ormond Street Hospital and University College, London.

Dr David Towey is a clinical physicist at Northampton General Hospital, optimising diagnostic and therapeutic radio-isotope techniques in clinical practice

The lecture will be held in the Sixth Form Lecture Theatre and there will be a chance to chat with David and Amy after the talk. All parents and pupils are welcome.

Gill Smith
Head of Science

Tuesday 28 November, 6.30pm - 7.30pm - Theatre

Do you have a son or daughter planning got go to university in 2018? If so then it is likely they will be applying for student finance to support them through their studies, whether to pay for tuition fees or to support their living expenses, or both. 

This evening presentation will aim to equip you with all the advice you need for supporting your son/daughter through this process, as well as informing you of the role that you might need to play. A Student Funding Advisor from the University of Warwick will be leading the presentation and will cover tuition and maintenance loan systems, other forms of financial support and will also give parents some guidance on student costs and budgeting. 

The students will receive a similar presentation on Thursday 16 November so there is no need for them to attend the evening event - this is for parents to be informed. 

We do hope that you will be able to attend what promises to be a very informative evening. Please click here to advise your availability to attend.

Jacqui Quinney
Head of Careers and UCAS Co-ordinator

Sunday 3 December 2.00pm - 4.30pm

Meet Santa and his special guest, Thunder the reindeer at the Princethorpe Christmas Fair, Sunday 3 December 2.00pm - 4.30pm.

There will be an excellent array of artisan products and gifts for the discerning shopper and plenty of activities for all ages, including the ever popular bottle tombola and a children’s Christmas craft room. Visit our Beer and Bratwurst or Mulled Wine stalls to keep your energy levels up while you browse and there’ll be plenty of cake and hot drinks to keep you warm. Keep your eyes peeled, there may be a few extra surprises too!

As always, our raffle offers a great selection of prizes including the the main cash prize of £250. Our apologies that this amount was incorrectly stated as £350 in the recent letter posted out to parents.

Envelopes containing completed tickets and payments should be marked “FAO Anne O’Rourke, PTA treasurer” and dropped into the PTA post box in the student hub. Cheques should be made out to "Princethorpe College PTA". If you require further tickets they are available from the student hub and can also be purchased at the Fair.

Please don’t forget to send in your donations of bottles, chocolate and secondhand books. They will all be gratefully received.

Help Needed
The Fair is our biggest fundraiser and we greatly appreciate any help, even if you can only spare half an hour. If you would like to know more, or volunteer, please email pta@princethorpe.co.uk.

Make a date in your diary now so you don’t miss this special Christmas treat for all the family.

Judith McCoy
PTA Secretary

Wednesday 6 December 2017 at 7.00pm in the College Theatre

The Music Department extends a warm invitation to all parents and friends to join us in a Christmas celebration of music and poetry.

This will be an informal evening offering pupils the opportunity to perform a range of out of the ordinary Christmas pieces.  Pupils from the GCSE music group, LAMDA lessons, as well as individual music recitals and the popular Jazz Band, Choir and our Vocalize group will be taking part in the evening.  Please feel free to enter into the spirit of the occasion by wearing a Christmas jumper or similarly festive outfit.  There will be an award for the finest example of Christmas knitwear!

This promises to be an enjoyable and memorable introduction to the festive period. If you would like to join us then please note that due to our restrictions on numbers this will be a ticket only event. To apply for and print tickets please click here and complete your details.

We hope that you will partake in a little festive mulled wine and mince pies following the performance in the beautifully restored Roundhouse. Please note that tickets are free of charge.

With thanks for your continuing support.

Gil Cowlishaw
Director of Music

Monday 18 December at 7.00pm

Parents and friends of the College are invited to a special Carol Service in the College Chapel on Monday 18 December at 7.00pm.

The service will follow the traditional form, with the College Choir leading our singing. Seasonal refreshments will be offered after the service in the Sixth Form Centre.

Due to the popularity of this event, seats must be reserved in advance. You will understand that the Chapel can only hold a finite number of people and for health and safety reasons we need to limit numbers. Seats are available on a first come first served basis.  Please click here to reserve places. Please reply by Wednesday 13 December 2017.

Mary Benham
Chaplaincy Co-ordinator

Wednesday 13 December 2017 at 7.30pm

At our last meeting we discussed Holding by Graham Norton.  We all agreed that this book was a pleasant surprise.  The narrative is relatively undemanding but it evokes small town Irish life very compellingly.  On one level it is a murder mystery, but it explores the lives of the characters with some sensitivity and achieves pathos at times.  We all found it a rewarding read and would recommend it to others.

Our next meeting will be in the library at 7.30pm on Wednesday 13 December.  We will be discussing The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley, a first novel which has had superbly positive reviews, “A masterful excursion in terror”.  As such, it will be something new for us. Please come along whether or not you have read this book.  We always welcome new faces and are keen to hear of others’ reading interests, and we guarantee you a warm welcome.

Chris Kerrigan
Head of English 

Wednesday 21 March 2018 - 7.30pm

Sixth Form Lecture Theatre

Followed by wine and light refreshments in the Atrium

Vincent Van Gogh created dozens of memorable images of women during his brief painting career: peasant women in the fields; the prostitute with whom he lived for a while; café owners; his postman-friend’s wife rocking a cradle in Arles; the wife of a warder in the St Remy asylum where he lived for a year, and finally, Doctor Gachet’s daughter in Auvers-sur-Oise where he committed suicide in July 1890.

This slide-illustrated talk will examine these striking, colourful and unconventional images of the women he knew and it will also focus on the most important woman in his life and art… someone he met only three times. It is to this little-known woman that all who love Van Gogh are immeasurably indebted. All will be revealed!

Tickets may also be purchased at the door, (adults £5.00, children free) but advance notice helps catering, please. Princethorpe, Crackley Hall and Crescent School pupils free of charge. Please complete the booking form here. We are happy to receive provisional bookings by e-mail, please, to alexdarkes@princethorpe.co.uk. 

Wednesday 16 May 2018 - 7.30pm

Sixth Form Lecture Theatre

Followed by wine and light refreshments in the Atrium

From 8 March until 9 September 2018, the first solo exhibition of Picasso’s work at Tate Modern, London, will be held. Entitled The EY Exhibition Picasso 1932-Love, Fame, Tragedy, it will focus on one year in the prolific artist’s life when he was passionately absorbed in his love for Marie-Thérèse Walter, his young mistress, also an inspirational muse. Picasso created dozens of images of her blond, sensual beauty in different media during a time often called his ‘year of wonders’ when the artist was at the height of his powers.

For the first time since they were created over just five days, Nude, Green Leaves and Bust, Nude in a Black Armchair and The Mirror will be shown together with around a hundred other sensational works.

This slide-illustrated talk will examine Picasso’s relationship with Marie-Thérèse, its impact on his long-suffering wife, Olga, and its tragic outcome.

Tickets may also be purchased at the door; but advance notice helps catering, please. Princethorpe, Crackley Hall and Crescent School pupils free of charge. Please complete the booking form here. We are happy to receive provisional bookings by e-mail, please, to alexdarkes@princethorpe.co.uk.

Tuesday 3 July 2018 at 7.30pm in the Chapel

Followed by refreshments in the Atrium

Once again, Tim Campain, Director of Music at Warwick Road United Reformed Church, Coventry, will play a wide variety of pieces from various genres on the renowned Princethorpe Binns’ organ of 1901.

Tickets may also be purchased at the door; but advance notice helps catering, please. Princethorpe, Crackley Hall and Crescent School pupils free of charge. Please complete the booking form here. We are happy to receive provisional bookings by e-mail, please, to alexdarkes@princethorpe.co.uk