Recorded on site, Poet Laureate Sir John Betjeman tells us why St Michael’s College was so important....
John Betjeman talks about SMC
News
Reunion 2021 and Magazine
Reunions Updates from the 2021 reunion and the SMC Society Magazine...
Lucian Nethsingha 1936-2021
UPDATE Sept 21: Memorial Recital recording and tributes It is with great sadness that we report the death on Friday 12th February 2021 of Lucian Nethsingha, a former organist and choir master at St Michael’s. Lucian had been in poor health for a while, and latterly had been in a hospice in Cambridge.Born in Colombo, Ceylon, in...
Barbara Wiggins
It is with sadness that we bring the news that Barbara Wiggins has died aged 91. Along with her late husband Neville, Barbara was a great supporter of St Michael’s in so many ways, not least in sending their two sons, Leander and Tarquin to SMC. Our condolences of course go to the...
The making of an English organ builder: John Nicholson of Worcester
Michael Anderson writes: Dr James Berrow, has written a fine biography of John Nicholson, 19th Century organ builder of Worcester, containing a lot of interesting references to Ouseley, not only as regards the St Michael’s organ, but also regarding his role as organ adviser in the area. Jim has asked me to bring this...
Boys’ Paper
Have you seen the new Boys’ Paper collection? See under “Archive’ on the menu. These were published termly under the editorship of John Gray...
Music Concerts 21
A list of this year’s concerts SMC_Music_21...
Earliest BBC Broadcast from SMC
The earliest broadcast that can be found in the BBC Archive is listed in Radio Times as being at 8.15pm on Thursday July 13th 1939. “A programme from the Library The Rev. Canon E. H. Fellowes , D.Mus., will take listeners on a tour of the Library, and tell them of the musical treasures...
Magazine Archive
We are establishing an extensive on-line archive of SMC Magazines. Look under ‘Archive’ to see how far we have got, and keep coming back as we add more. Do you have any copies that you could scan as a pdf, for us to share?...
Celebrity Visitors
Do you remember occasions when the College played host to ‘celebrities’? John Craven, for example, in 1974, for BBC Radio 4’s ‘4th Dimension’ Listen again to the programme: 1970 – 1979...
Sir Sydney Nicholson, Fellow
A former Fellow of SMC, founder of the School of English Church Music, a young Sir Sydney can now be seen in a colourised photo, taken whilst he was at Carlisle Cathedral, prior to him taking up residence near Tenbury during the early 1940’s. https://twitter.com/recordedcm/status/1379386350026248196?s=20 You can read more about Sir Sydney’s life and...
Music for the Season
At this time of year, you might like to reflect on Lent/Holy Week/Easter along with the Choir of St Michael’s, via this broadcast made in 1964....
Hamish Preston 1929-2021
It is with sadness that we report the death in January 2021 of Hamish Preston (SMC 1938-44). Hamish was a chorister at SMC, where the daily singing of the liturgy was to make a lifelong impression on him. Much of his focus in later life revolved around developing thought and compassion on the...
Something festive…
Here’s a blast from the past – something festive from 1978 from the Choir’s archive, from our friends at the Archive of Recorded Music. A Worcestershire Carol – Choir of SMC...
Sir John Sykes 1942-2020
Sir Francis John Badcock Sykes, 10th Baronet 1942-2020 Sir John Sykes, 10th Baronet, has died at the age of 78. He was an Old Boy of St Michael’s from 1952-1955 Peerage news reported: Francis John Badcock Sykes was born 7 June, 1942, son of Sir Francis Godfrey Sykes, 9th Baronet , by his...