The TRUSTY
SERVANT
NO.122
NOVEMBER 2016
The Headmaster replies:
Dr Timothy Hands speaks to the Editor,
Tim Giddings:
1. Three weeks into your first Short
Half, what are your initial
impressions of the School?
That’s a simple question: it’s fantastic.
Why? 1, the houses; 2, the beauty; 3, the
accumulated traditions. It’s unique and
I’m loving it.
2. What first drew you to schoolmastering?
My father was a headmaster. My
mother was a teacher. My sister was a
teacher. There was even an ancestor who
was schoolmaster on HMS Victory in
Napoleonic times. So the simple answer is
genes.
3. Having left the madding crowd of
Oxford to come to the heart of
Wessex, would you describe
yourself as a Boldwood, a Troy or an
Oak?
Well I’m no second Troy: the man
was a philanderer, and Mrs H wouldn’t
approve. Boldwood and Oak, however,
are both fixated on one woman; Mrs H
might be flattered. Hardy, on the other
hand, could never make his mind up
about what he felt about either gent:
Boldwood is first to be executed and then
pardoned; and in the American serial
version of the novel Oak becomes a
churchwarden. By contrast, I’m pretty
sure of my destiny: I’m in Winchester, and
very happy about it.
4. From Div to compulsory Latin,
Winchester is known for its
traditional curriculum. Can this
ethos continue when Japanese and
computer-programming might be
more useful in the global talent race?
The school of which I was last
Headmaster had an even more traditional
curriculum. Draw your own conclusions –
and perhaps see if Ladbrokes will offer
you odds.
5. How much do you think we should
be aiming at shaping the whole
character of the men rather than
just the intellect? Will Happiness
hours be appearing in the
curriculum?
The answer to your second question
is ‘unlikely’. The answer to your first
question can best be expressed in the
words of the editors of The Wykehamist in
1910: ‘Some of us will hope that the
incoming chairman of the Headmasters’
Conference and the incoming headmaster
of Winchester will have no doubts
whatsoever as to the value of boardingschool education in the formation of
character. Some will remember the words
with which Lord Selborne finished his
reply Ad Portas in 1910: “Of the three –
muscles, brain and character – the
greatest is character”.’
6. Which sport will see you pacing the
side-lines on New Field most
enthusiastically?
I don’t pace the side-lines. I like to
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