the chronicle easter 2010 - amazon web...

If you like what you see

in The Chronicle, please

feel free to come along

and join us on a Friday

lunchtime, in J2

Nirvana‟s Nevermind.

Oasis‟ (What’s The Story)

Morning Glory? The

Beatles‟ With The Beatles.

All albums that avoided

what is known as „second

album syndrome‟. We

didn‟t want to end up with

„second newspaper

syndrome‟. Or even „sequel

syndrome‟. So, after 12

weeks of toil to get our

next issue together, we‟ve

done it.

We started the term by

reshuffling the „backroom

team‟. The student

newspaper should be run

by the students, and, as

such, we began to take on

a few of Miss Needham‟s

roles. And that‟s where I

came in. For those of you

who don‟t know, my name

is Adam Mills, and I‟ve

taken on most of the jobs

associated with the Editor.

It‟s a mammoth

job, so we set up

a smaller „senior

team‟, who help

make all the big

decisions.

As a big, 35-

strong team,

we have

worked very

hard to get

The Chronicle

back to its previous

standard, and we believe

we‟ve done this with Issue

#2. It‟s not exactly been

easy, but the hard work

the boys have all put in is

brilliant.

So what's in this term‟s

issue? We discuss some of

the major events that have

happened across the globe

- Haiti, the recession, the

upcoming general

election, and Max‟s views

on TV talent (completely

different to mine, I‟d just

like to add).

Within school, we discuss

the drama production,

the Sport Relief week

held by Year

12, the Ski

Trip, music

events, the

Spelling

Bee, and

Sequel Syndrome

The Chronicle

T h e H i t c h i n B o y s ’ S c h o o l N e w s p a p e r

Want to join The Chronicle?

School Report.

We‟ve also got a

piece on the end

of Year 11, the

start of our serial

story, a bit on

Rhythms, an interview

with the Spanish

assistant, our regular

Head Boy column, and a

good old fashioned Agony

Aunt (who is an actual

woman!). Phew.

I‟d like to say a big thank

you to those who have

helped out. All those who

have contributed have

been credited on the next

page, but all 35 of you

been brilliant.

We‟ve already started to

think about the summer,

and we have some great

ideas for what we want to

do over the next term.

Keep looking at the

Learning Platform to see

regular updates on what

The Chronicle team are

doing, and we‟ll see you in

the summer!

Adam

Flicked through the paper,

and decided you like what

you see? Want to be part

of a growing team, all

enthusiastic about

journalism?

The Chronicle is still

looking for budding

writers, photographers and

reviewers, all of which will

have the opportunity to be

published online, and even

in print!

If you think this sounds

good, you can drop us a

line at our email address -

which is at the bottom of

each page - or just pop

along to one of our

meetings, held every

Friday in J2.

Or, if you see one of the

boys with their badges,

just let them know!

Volume 2, Issue 2

Easter 2010

The Head Boy Speaks 2

Music Competition 3

Spring Concert 3

BBC School Report 4

Spelling Bee 4

Dad‟s Army 5

Ski Trip 2010 6

Voice of Hitchin Youth 6

Sport Relief 7

Dan Roro 8

Tamara 8

Rhythms 2010 9

Haiti 10

TV Talent 11

2010 Election 12

Recession 13

Year 11 14

Nabraska 15

Agony Aunt Sarah 16

Inside this issue:

Got feedback? Even an article? Email us at [email protected]


The Chronicle

Editors

Adam Mills

Miss Needham

Deputy Editors

Theo Johnson

Max Reiser

News Editor

Jamie Burton

Reporters

Lewis Copper

Charley Gaidoni

Julian Greenbank

Josh Massey

Dan Rawlings

Peter Saville

Edgar Titterton

Sarah Wingfield

Photography

Cameron Mulvey

Jonny Woodhead

Contributors

Martin Coard

Edd Goater

Will Pearce

George Spary

Joe Wilmot

With Thanks To

Mrs Hope

Mrs Tanner

i4c Publicity

Picture Credits

Page 3 - Chris Christodoulou

& James Schouten

Page 4 - The Times Online

Pages 7, 9, 10, 12 & 13 - BBC

Page 8 - Bramble Tye

Page 9 - ROTW

Page 11 - ITV & ABC

All other pictures courtesy of

The Chronicle Photography

Team

accepted the offer to be

one of the five judges.

While this seemed a good

idea at the time of asking,

by Saturday afternoon I

realised that my complete

lack of dancing knowledge

might well be exposed.

As it happened, this lack of

knowledge was discovered

on the night, as I praised

moves such as “the twirly

thing, the robot thing and

the jumpy thing”, but I

hope that this added to the

general humour of the

evening and that I didn‟t

offend anybody who

actually knew what they

were talking about.

The evening as a whole

was a massive success and

I am sure that the photos

and videos that were taken

on the night will soon

become common

knowledge. A DVD of the

event costing £6.00 is

currently being produced.

The next time I write will

probably be after the

marathon of exams which

will take up the lives of

Years 11, 12 and 13 at the

start of the summer. With

so much riding on these

exams, I hope that my

final piece is an optimistic

one!

To view Alex’s ongoing

monthly columns, visit the

Learning Platform, and

click ‘Chronicle’. It can be

found in the ‘Head Boy

Speaks’ section.

without doubt an event

that signals the end of an

era. I was lucky enough to

be allowed by the

governors to form an

interview panel, composed

of the senior prefect team,

to speak to each candidate

for an hour before their

main interview with the

governors. This proved to

be very interesting and I

hope that the governors

who observed the

discussions were able to

gain a useful insight.

Students from the rest of

the school were able to

take part in discussions on

the first day of

interviewing and all of the

candidates that I spoke to

were impressed, not only

with the conduct of all of

the students they spoke to,

but also with the fact that

so much trust was placed

in us for the event.

I am sure that it has

already been mentioned in

The Chronicle, but on

Saturday evening I

participated in the “HBS

Strictly Come Dancing”

fundraiser event for World

Challenge. As someone

who was able to take part

in last year‟s expedition

(and also because it

sounded hilarious), I

By Alex Coles

Alex is currently Head Boy

of the school, and writes a

regular column for us.

Incredibly, after only

writing one piece, it is time

for what may end up being

my penultimate column.

Perhaps my point that time

has flown by is best proven

by the fact that the

process for choosing next

year‟s Head Boy has

already begun.

Looking at the calendar, I

only have about two

months until I go on study

leave, which is the kind of

unofficial end of my time at

Hitchin Boys‟, though

Founders‟ Day, the official

last day, is still quite a way

off. When I was selected

as Head Boy, about a year

ago, I had lots of grand

schemes and plans for how

the senior prefect team

would improve the school.

At what seems to be the

“beginning of the end”, I

hope that we will be able

to push a few of these

schemes through.

The most important thing

that has occurred since I

last wrote was the

announcement of Mr

Wadsworth‟s retirement –

The Head Boy Speaks

“...I got goose bumps,

and realised that this

had just written my

article for me.”

By Charley Gaidoni

The school music

competition took place on

the 1st and 2nd of March

2010. Boys had to bring in

their instruments and

perform to the judges, Mr

Wadsworth, Mr Chambers

from HGS, and Ms

Hetherington, who gave

the boys marks out of 25.

The performers didn‟t have

to play solo - they could

play in groups or with an

accompaniment on CD or

piano.

During normal lessons,

boys could, instead of

going to their timetabled

period, come and listen to

the competition with their

teachers. On stage, there

was music and listening in

the hall, but backstage,

Mrs Parker was busy telling

the boys when to come on

and what to do. The end of

period bell went off in

some of the boys

performances, so they had

to concentrate really hard!

There were lots of different

types of music like jazz

and classical. All the

performers were put in

different group types:

woodwind, brass, string

and percussion. The

awards were given out at

the school concert on the

15th of March 2010. Thank

you to all who took part

and for playing so well. Not

forgetting our judges and

Mrs Parker - without them,

this event would not have

been possible.

Music Competition

By Adam Mills

There was a moment,

halfway through the

second half of the Spring

Concert, that this article

completely turned on its

head. I was expecting to

have to write an article

being constructive whilst

trying not to show that I

didn‟t enjoy it. Instead, my

first ever school concert

experience was blown

apart by the man to the

right, James Schouten.

And yes, that is a picture

from Facebook, and not

one I have taken. I‟m not

that good.

Having decided to go to

the concert this year so I

could support Damian, I

sat down and realized that

this could be a mistake. As

good as Swing Band,

String Orchestra and

Classical Guitar Group are,

I really wasn‟t in the mood

for slow,

boring,

unknown

songs.

Clarinet

Group

followed,

and I have to

say, they were

very good, but it

still wasn‟t

exactly my cup

of tea. We went

through plenty

of different

instruments and

genres, but they

seemed so

familiar. I realised that it

was only because I had

been in Room 15 most of

the day, so had heard the

rehearsals over and over

again.

Money Money Money was

slowed down to within an

inch of its life, and I can‟t

say I enjoyed it at the

time. But then Sweet Child

Of Mine came on - and I

hate Guns ‘n’ Roses with a

passion. And having 12

electric guitars playing

along didn‟t exactly make

it any better. It was,

however, our first

introduction to James.

The second half started

with choirs, and then

Damian came on and we

all started cheering. Sad,

we know, but we were

It Ain’t Over Till It’s Over there to support

him! (He did well,

for anyone

interested). Jamie

Stockbridge

followed, and that

was good too. We

had Michael on

piano, Daniel on

violin, and then

James returned.

Singing Old Man River, I

got goose bumps, and

realized that this had just

written my article for me.

Looking round, I noticed

that actually, he had

reduced five women and a

man to tears. It was

standing ovation stuff.

We had a couple of songs

at the end, but James just

blew everything out of the

water. In hindsight, I

actually really enjoyed the

evening. It was a good

night, where I could say I

was proud of my school.

Even Mr. Wadsworth got

very emotional. But the

night really did belong to

James. Chatting to some of

the parents at the end,

they felt the same. It just

proves that HBS really is a

breeding ground for talent.


“...plagued by

„plagiarise‟. How can

you spell a word you‟ve

never even heard of?”

BBC School Report Goes Live!

By Miss Needham

Having fought off the

whole of the year group

with their superb spelling

skills, four Year 7s

travelled to the unlikely

location of Stevenage to

fend off competition from 9

other local schools in the

2010 Times Spelling Bee.

Imagine a cross between a

slick television quiz show

and a school play, and you

get a feel for the event.

Perched against

professional-looking

podiums at the front of the

screen, the teams fielded

spellings from the rather

glamorous Spellmaster.

The words started off

pretty easy, but players

were eliminated as the

level of challenge

increased. Our boys

battled on through the first

round, gaining an

impressive number of

points. But after the break,

numbers dwindled as the

teams found themselves

felled by „feminism‟, cut

down by

„contemporaneous‟,

delayed by „diaphanous‟,

obstructed by

„octogenarian‟, baffled by

„budgerigar‟ and, finally,

plagued by „plagiarise‟.

How can you even spell a

word you‟ve never even

heard of?

HBS put up a good fight,

and reached an impressive

5th place, with Hitchin Girls‟

School performing very

well to reach 2nd. But the

winning team was the

mighty Lochinver House

School, in a class of their

own, who left their humble

competition without words.

We‟ll get them next year.

2010 Spelling Bee

By Josh Massey

On Wednesday 10th and

Thursday 11th of March, a

group of 19 others and I

set up on a project - BBC

School Report. The idea

behind it is to get school

children in Years 7-9

involved in making the

news. Each school has to

produce its own news

bulletin and post it onto

their school website by

4:00 pm. A real deadline!

The news bulletin must be

made by the children

themselves, that includes

manning the cameras,

presenting

and even

editing.

On

Wednesday

we set up the

stage and all

the technical

equipment

provided by

Absolute A.V.S.

Thursday. The big day. We

started off in the morning

writing all the stories that

we needed for our bulletin.

At 9.15 our weatherman

Calum took part in a world

record attempt: the most

people to record a

temperature at the same

time, around the world.

Over 250 schools took

part, and we now hold that

world record! After that we

started on rehearsals and

then onto filming. We had

lots of takes to get it right

but it was worth it,

producing a brilliant news

bulletin at the end of the

day!

To see the full 10 minute

video, visit http://

www.hbs.herts.sch.uk/

pages/curriculum/

bbc_report_yt.jsp


“The show must go on,

however, and the

acting of the lads was

superb.”

Dad’s Army: The Review

By Julian Greenbank

We started with plans to

perform Oh What A Lovely

War, which has sketches

based in WWI. Mr Burnett

was our director, but in

November, disaster struck!

He left, and so the job fell

to Mrs. Sexton. But some

of the boys left, and soon

enough we had too small a

cast to

perform Oh

What A

Lovely War.

Miss said

she‟d try

and find

something

else.

After Christmas, the cast

met up to see what play

Mrs. Sexton had chosen –

Dad’s Army. At that point

we all cheered. After that

day, I got told endlessly

that we wouldn‟t pull the

play off because we didn‟t

have enough time. Mainly

by my sister.

And so we got to work.

First were auditions. When

I told everyone that we

were doing Dad’s Army,

everyone thought I would

be Pike – a whiny, soppy,

mummy‟s boy.

I got Pike.

Pretty soon, the

end of term had

arrived, so our

performances

began. Monday

was the dress

rehearsal in front of

Whitehill School, and it

was awful. Not a single

laugh from the audience;

lines were forgotten; and

we rushed the end because

the boys didn‟t want to be

seen in their dresses.

Wednesday. Opening

night. By this time, I didn‟t

think it would be good.

Afterwards however I

thought very differently.

Everyone remembered

their lines and everything

went perfectly. On

Thursday, we were all

determined to repeat this.

We had some problems,

but we pulled it off. Now,

the last night is always the

best. The atmosphere was

fantastic, the audience

were great and we

remembered our lines.

Best night of my acting

career!

By Max Reiser

So how do you

turn a classic

BBC TV show

into an

adaptation fit

for a school

stage? Well, after a show

change, less than 4 weeks

of practice and only a week

on the stage, the boys at

HBS showed us how.

In the second week of

January, the boys had to

change the production – 3

months work suddenly

down the drain. But they

kept their chins up, and

soldiered on, and

suddenly, Dad’s Army was

a reality.

But how can episodes from

a TV show become a

production for a show?!

Well, it didn‟t really. It was

a show of

three acts –

so three

episodes.

Simple? Not

at all.

A cast of 20,

and a production team of

the same, had to learn

something completely new

in under a month – not to

mention having to re-

develop the stage and

create something that they

could be proud of.

Opening night fell on a

Wednesday – with frankly

quite a poor audience of

less than 20. The show

must go on, however, and

the acting of the lads was

superb. Caius Constable,

who played Captain

Mainwaring, portrayed the

character to a remarkable

resemblance, and Tom

Murrell played Sergeant

Wilson, putting his own

stamp on the role and

adding something else.

Both Markian Mysko Von

Schultze and Bilal Awan

gave some of the best

comic performances the

HBS stage has seen –

Bilal‟s Morris dancing had

the place in fits. The fact

the second and third acts

had women in them should

have been a problem for

Mrs Sexton, but the boys

were more than willing to

jump at wearing a nice pair

of tights and a lovely

blonde wig.

A great first night for the

show, and due to what

happened in January, a

sterling performance from

everyone involved. Let‟s

hope 2011 brings slightly

less drama off the stage!


Dad’s Army: Backstage

By Cameron Mulvey

I went on the school ski

trip during February half

term, where we went to

Pila, in Italy. We left at 6

o‟clock in the evening on

the first Saturday of half

term. We all got on the

coach, travelled down to

the ferry, and then went

across to France. I was

really tired, so got some

sleep, and we eventually

arrived in the evening,

after watching Cool

Runnings and some Top

Gear.

After some more sleep, we

went to pick up our boots

and skis to make sure we

had them all for Monday. It

had taken us over 12 hours

to travel so far, and

everyone

was

knackered

now. We

finally got to

the hotel,

unpacked,

ate and then

went to bed,

ready for the

big day.

After so much sleep the

previous two days, I woke

up quite early, got

dressed, and headed

downstairs to get some

breakfast. Once everyone

had woken up, we went

and got our ski passes,

travelled to the slopes, and

collected all our kit. Then

we got on the gondola – I

didn‟t like it, especially

when we

saw a

cable car

buried in

the snow

having

fallen off!

Relief

kicked in

when we

got to the

top, and

that‟s when we all met the

instructor.

I learned a lot, and by the

afternoon was ready to try

some slopes by myself.

Jamie and I tried some red

and blue runs, I was so

happy – I didn‟t fall over

once! What made it even

better was that Jamie did!

Each day seemed to go like

this, and I really enjoyed

it. We did things during the

evenings, like swimming,

bowling, and we had a

disco with the other

schools. I really enjoyed

my week away, and really

want to go back!

citizenship and leadership

in young people.

This week‟s meeting was

different as we had a

representative from the

organisation Jump. Jump

wants to create a system

of high wires in the Dell

that would be for use of

the whole community. It

would offer services for the

wider community as well

as those with disabilities

and other community

groups.

By Peter Saville

The Voice of Hitchin Youth

is an organisation run by

you, and aims to tackle the

issues that the youth face

everyday.

Such issues can vary

widely, from inadequate

youth facilities in our area

to taking down an out of

date billboard. We also try

to foster a sense of civic

pride among young people

and try to encourage and

nurture a sense of

However there are various

obstacles in the way of this

project. The site that they

are trying to build on was

dedicated as a bird

sanctuary many years ago

but this hasn‟t been

reinforced.

To find out more about

Jump and the project in

the Dell go to

www.jumpcommunity.org.

uk

Ski Trip 2010

Voice of Hitchin Youth

“I didn‟t fall over once!

What made it even

better was that Jamie

did!”


http://www.jumpcommunity.org.uk

http://www.jumpcommunity.org.uk

“I was forced to endure

a day of wearing the

green and gold of

Australia and had to

accept the likes of

Warne and Ponting as

legends, rather than

abuse them.”

By Jamie Burton

During the week starting

the 15th March, it wasn't

just Smithy who did his bit

for charity. To be fair, we

didn't get to meet stars

such as Freddie Flintoff,

Andy Murray and Becks but

thanks to a concerted

effort from 12/13Ta, HBS

were able to contribute a

very respectful amount of

money towards the

nationwide fund-raiser.

The money was raised

through a selection of

activities, starting on

Wednesday and Thursday

when pupils took part in

the classic penalty shoot-

out challenge with

participants given three

attempts to beat the

keeper. However, only a

rare few managed a clean

sweep, which must be

attributed to our Goliaths

in goal, Sam Swanton and

Ed Farthing. Even the

powerhouse that is Mr

Bajak couldn't smash his

way past Sam with a fairly

mediocre two out of six.

Then on Friday, the Sixth

Form helped out with a

non-uniform day. Some of

us took part in the Shirt of

Hurt where they had to

wear the shirt of the team

they most despised which

caused a lot of pain. As a

huge England cricket fan, I

was forced to endure a day

of wearing the green and

gold of Australia

and had to

accept the likes

of Warne and

Ponting as

legends, rather

than abuse

them.

Elsewhere,

Manchester

United and

Liverpool fans

were swapping

all over the

place, while in

the rugby world the English

and Welsh had to put their

rivalry on hold and I'm

sure the experience has

scarred people for life.

The last event of the week

involved yours truly

hosting A Question of

Sport Relief, although I'm

not sure that Sue Barker

has anything to worry

about. After a fiercely

contested competition, the

ingeniously named E=Mc

Hammer² (with team

members; Jack Colman,

Joe Hamilton, Dalvinder

Gill, Gabriel Brooker and

Mitchell Bateman-Foley)

took the spoils by just one

point with an impressive

twenty out of twenty-five.

This tight finish was a

great way to round off a

successful week.

Sport Relief, which

alternates with Comic

Relief, is now in its third

year and on the night, over

£29 million was

raised. On the

Sunday, people

took to the

streets in their

thousands to

run the Sport

Relief Mile. This

year the slogan

was 'Rise to

the Challenge' and was

encapsulated by incredible

feats of endurance.

Comedian Eddie Izzard ran

an unbelievable 43

marathons in 51 days, The

One Show presenter

Christine Bleakley water-

skied across the English

Channel and a group of

celebrities, led by David

Walliams, completed the

Million Pound Bike Ride

cycling all the way from

John O'Groats to Lands'

End. Entertainment on the

night included James

Corden 'coaching' the

world's best, a Match of

the Day Masterchef and a

special episode of Ashes to

Ashes, not forgetting

performances from the

likes of Cheryl Cole, Robbie

Williams and Susan Boyle.

The school raised enough

money to buy 40 malaria

nets, which will save 40

lives. The money raised

with mainly go to helping

fight disease and poverty

overseas or tackling causes

closer to home such as

helping out young carers

and funding community

projects to keep young

people off the streets and

out of trouble.

Sport Relief


“...hold a dazzling act

for the language pupils

in years 7 and 8.”


Comic Makes Us Roar-Ro By Edgar Titterton

On the 9th February, Dan

Roro, a French comic

actor, came to

Hitchin Boys‟ School

to hold a dazzling

act for the language

pupils in years 7 and

8.

His flashy, funny

and fantastic act

gave the pupils not

only an entertaining

afternoon, but a

chance to further

develop their French

abilities.

Born in France, Dan was

educated in France,

England and India, and at

the age of 16 he decided to

become an actor, and

started his class act.

Making his entrance riding

a unicycle, he displayed a

fantastic ability to balance

plates and even footballs

on top of sticks and blew

the audience away. His

simple French allowed us

to understand his jokes

and join in the fun.

Finally his ability to project

his voice with a puppet

through ventriloquism was

a surprising act which

made for an excellent end

to his performance.

As a class we gave

his act 10 out of 10

due to his sheer skill

and charisma, and we

would recommend

any school to invite

him for an afternoon

of learning and

laughs.

Dan Roro was

featured in the BBC

School Report the

boys produced. View

the report at http://

www.hbs.herts.sch.uk/

pages/curriculum/

bbc_report_yt.jsp

What was the most

important thing in

Spanish history?

Hay muchísimas cosas que

considero muy importantes

en la historia española. Si

he de elegir una creo que

seria el descubrimiento de

America de Cristóbal Colón

en 1942.

What is the most

important building in

Spain?

Como buena gallega que

soy, no puedo responder

otra cosa que no sea la

Catedral de Santiago de

Compostela (proclamada

Patrimonio de la

Humanidad por la UNESCO

en 1985).

What do you think of

English food?

Me encantan los postres

Where did you live

before you came to the

UK?

Vivía en Vigo, la ciudad

más grande de Galicia en

España

What is the most

important day in your

calendar?

El día más importante en

mi calendario es el 15 de

agosto ya que es el

aniversario de boda de mis

padres y la fiesta grande

de mi ciudad. Por lo que lo

celebramos por todo lo

alto.

What is the most

popular thing on TV?

Ahora mismo creo que en

España lo más popular que

hay es Gran Hermano. Yo

no lo sigo pero mis amigas

me hablan mucho de el.

ingleses, pero hablando de

comida prefiero la

española.

Do you have boys’

schools in Spain?

No, en España las escuelas

son mixtas.

Can you translate this?

Send your answers to our

email address, and you

could win a prize!

Tamara: Spanish Assistant

“Over the years the

event has evolved and

is now held in the

grounds of the Hitchin

Priory with over 120

acts appearing on 7

stages with over

25,000 people in

attendance over the

two days.”

From the Rhythms 2010

Organisers

Rhythms of the World is a

registered charity,

operated entirely by

volunteers. The event,

originally organised by the

local Oxfam campaigns

group, has been in Hitchin

Town Centre since 1992.

Over the years the event

has evolved and is now

held in the grounds of the

Hitchin Priory with over

120 acts appearing on 7

stages with over 25,000

people in attendance over

the two days.

This year,

Rhythms will be

taking over

Hitchin Priory

on the 24th and

25th July.

Rhythms is

more than a

music festival.

It is a year-

round

community

activity, which

has the unique

capacity to

involve people

of all ages,

races, abilities and

backgrounds. Our dream is

for Rhythms to become an

example, of national

importance, of what can be

achieved in a spirit of

community co-operation.

Which is where

you come in. We

need your help!

To run this

event, we need

hundreds of

volunteers. Most

are for over 18s,

but we have

some roles for

the under 18s as

well. Whether you‟d like to

be a runner, and help the

acts; an email co-

ordinator, to help the

communication between

the community; a Green

Team volunteer, helping

keep the venues clean and

tidy; a parking co-

ordinator, to allow the

ticket holders to park their

vehicles safely; a „clicker‟,

and help monitor how

many are in attendance; or

even a helper on the ticket

gate. We have

roles to suit your

abilities, and

hopefully your

abilities suit our

roles.

Large

corporations in

the UK tend to

look to volunteer

experience, so

working with the Rhythms

team over the weekend

could help boost your CV.

You‟ll make friends, help

make a difference, and this

could even lead to you

getting a foothold in the

music industry.

Volunteering

does have its

perks. Some of

the roles include

free tickets to

the event, and

can lead to

further offers

with years to

come.

Hitchin Boys‟

have been

involved in the

events for a

number of

years, with

banners and

dream-catchers being

created and displayed

throughout Hitchin.

If you would like to get

involved, know any more

about these opportunities,

or discuss whether your

skills and interests will fit

into our teams at this

year’s Rhythms of the

World festival, please feel

free to contact either

Alison Watt or Jo

Winstanley on 07834

363626, or email

[email protected]

Rhythms Of The World 2010


“Money doesn‟t,

however, bring back a

life, but it can help

support those who

most need it”

By Adam Mills

The other day, I was off ill,

sat at home with a big bag

of crisps and some water,

and thought I had it bad. A

headache and I was

throwing up. Then the

news came on, and

everything changed.

The 150,000 deaths that

keep rising. The thousands

of injuries caused by the

rubble. The hundreds of

thousands of lives that

have been destroyed by

the mass devastation to

the country. And the

millions upon millions of

people who are witnessing

Haiti, a tiny country in the

Caribbean, struggle to

cope with the current

Apolocalyptic-like

conditions they are living

in.

At the time of writing, it

has been two weeks since

the 7.0 magnitude

earthquake hit the island.

It struck slightly to the

west of Haiti‟s capital, Port

-au-Prince, and has

flattened most of the

infrastructure in the area.

It is just another problem

for the Haitian people to

deal with.

Haiti is one of the poorest

nations in the world. After

coming out of dictatorship

in the late 1980‟s, debt has

crippled the country.

Having already cancelled

$1.2b of national debt last

year, a further $1b

remains, and for

a country with

little wealth, this

can prove to be

very hard. This

figure will rise

and rise after the

earthquake,

leaving the country in an

even worse economical

state than it currently is.

The wage an average

Haitian earns in a day is

less than $4. In the UK,

this is less than what a

teenager can earn in an

hour.

I felt compelled after

watching the heartbreak

on the news to donate to

the aid funds. The money

so far given to Haiti is over

$100m, but millions more

will be needed to help the

Haitians in bringing life

back to their beloved

country.

With the whole world's

eyes watching, there are

billions of people who could

donate their pocket change

to the cause. Haiti is one of

the poorest nations in the

world, and with bodies

littering the streets,

disease will hit the nation

hard, unless we as a world

act fast.

Look at the picture above.

It may seem like a grieving

mother, but look deeper.

This picture just sums up

the situation. The rubble

across the streets; the

large slabs of concrete

coating what could

become an even

worse scenario. And

resting on the top

are two bodies, just

lying in the baking

sun. People walking

past looking at

them, seemingly

without a care in the

world. The reason being,

this is the scene on every

street corner. This is what

encounters every single

Haitian on every single

street.

We need to unite. We need

to come together, and

support the people in need.

We need to join with our

enemies, and become a

united front, in order to

eradicate this scene of

horror. Please please

please donate in some

form - a penny is still a

penny.

Money doesn‟t, however,

bring back a life, but it can

help support those who

most need it. As a school,

we raised over £500

through donations, but we

can still do more for the

relief effort. Pots and

boxes appeared in the 6th

Form Common Room

within days, and we raised

well over £100 from people

just dropping loose change

into them. This is all it

takes, as every penny

counts. £2 can give a

family of Haitians a much

needed meal. £5 can help

the 1.5m people homeless

buy a tent.

If you do one good deed

this year, make sure it is

to donate to the Haiti

appeal. Thank you very

much.

Visit www.oxfam.org.uk or

www.dec.org.uk to donate.

Haiti Hurts


“...a few acts which

don‟t sound like they‟re

mangling a cat.”

By Max Reiser

TV Talent. We‟ve all seen

it. In our current culture

there‟s simply no escaping

from it. We‟re surrounded

by endless lists of acts of

various varieties and of

various levels of talent.

What I want to know is,

why? Why is the general

public constantly exposed

to these people, most of

whom are completely

deluded into thinking they

have some form of talent

which is worthwhile

enough to share

with the world.

The list is huge,

and includes

such fantastic

failures as the

Chawner sisters,

cheerfully known

as “Fat Chance”,

who have

appeared on The

X Factor three

times in recent

years trying to

show that they

can sing, or the

“holistic vocal coach” Ariel

Burdett – so utterly

convinced of her skill that

she tried to shout Simon

Cowell, the man behind

this sea of trash, into

letting her get through the

audition.

However, it can‟t be

said that all of these

performers are awful.

Through the cascade of

terrible acts shine a few

(and I must emphasise

the word few) acts

which don‟t sound like

they‟re mangling a cat.

Unfortunately, thanks to

these few, TV talent shows

have monopolised our

entertainment industry:

until 2009, and the

revolutionary „Rage

Factor‟, X Factor winners

had held the Christmas

number one spot for five

years running. Our most

watched clips on YouTube

are all of Britain’s Got

Talent or The X Factor. A

massive 15% of all

television viewings in 2009

were watching

a TV talent

show. To put

that into

perspective,

around 1.7%

percent goes

on music

channels. And

in 2010 the

biggest selling

records are set

to be from

these artists

again.

It staggers me to think

that this can come to be

when some of the people

who appear on these

shows – and worse, get

the public behind them –

are so completely

unburdened by any form of

talent. The most

recent of these

acts is John and

Edward Grimes,

“Jedward”, who

came second in

the latest X

Factor. They

seemed to rely

more on their hair

and outrageous

costumes than on

any musical talent

to get them

through. And I

can‟t help but wonder if

they were being voted

through purely so we could

keep watching their horrific

butchering of songs such

as the “Ghostbusters”

theme, or Queen‟s “Under

Pressure.” I can only hope

that they disappear from

the public eye before they

can do more harm to

classic songs.

In my opinion, it‟s about

time shows like The X

Factor go the way of Big

Brother – realise that

they‟ve run their course,

and go to the great editing

room in the sky. Because

they‟re putting us through

hell.

TV Talent - Or The Lack Of It


“Will experience or

fresh ideas ultimately

bring about the change

that so many aspects

of Britain seem to be in

need of?”

By Theo Johnson

A general election will

occur in early May 2010,

but what does this mean

for the country, for

students and for our daily

lives?

Although it doesn‟t seem

relevant to us, today's

students, the party that

wins this general election

will most likely oversee our

transition into the adult

world and will therefore

play a huge part in our

lives and our future. Those

under the age of 18 may

not be able to vote, but

that certainly doesn't mean

that we shouldn't have

political views and

knowledge about politics.

To combat the negative

effects of today's low

voting turnout, it is

important that today's

young people are politically

aware and active, so that

when the time comes that

they can vote, they know

why they should vote and

will have formed their own

opinions on who to vote

for.

The result of the

upcoming general

election may seem

to be a foregone

conclusion.

Electoral pundits,

opinion polls and

members of the

public all seem to

be suggesting that

David Cameron's

Conservative party

is headed for a

landslide victory

over Gordon

Brown's 'out-of-

touch' Labour

party.

However, it can't

be assumed that

victory will come easy for

the Conservatives.

Cameron's persona and

charisma, which have won

him so much support thus

far, are beginning to wear

away and expose his

inexperience.

Despite the general gain

for the Conservatives,

support for Labour has

recently begun to rise

again, perhaps due to the

fact that the country

seems to be

coming out of the

recession and

many people are

accrediting this to

Gordon Brown.

The question to

ask here is: who

will be better for

the country? Will

experience or

fresh ideas

ultimately bring

about the change

that so many

aspects of Britain

seem to be in

need of?

Another issue

relating to the general

election is the right-wing

fringe parties, such as

UKIP and the BNP. Their

recent gains in votes are

especially worrying for

many people in the case of

the BNP, as they are a

very extreme party who

are widely seen as being

racist; therefore most

people agree that they

would have very negative

effects on the country.

Despite this view of them,

however, they are

definitely beginning to gain

more votes, perhaps due

to a public dissatisfied with

Labour's immigration

policies and issues to do

with EU membership and

the Lisbon Treaty.

To view the full version of

this article, visit the



found in the ‘Views’

section.

The 2010 Election


“we have ended the

phase of becoming

poor, now we have to

enjoy being poor.”

By Jamie Burton

Remember Northern Rock?

It seems all but a distant

memory when people were

queuing for hours,

desperately trying to

recuperate any money

they could before the

doomed bank went

bankrupt. In the eyes of

many people, this was the

event that shifted the news

of rapid economic decline

into the public domain. A

damaging secret that the

world of business had

somehow kept under

wraps for some time had

finally spiralled out of

control. It was also around

the time of these events

that one term in particular,

infamously, became

common knowledge

overnight. That term was

'recession'.

Despite the majority of the

population not actually

knowing what it meant

(usually defined as two

consecutive quarters of

economic decline),

everybody knew of this

term and the

consequences of this was

that the country was now

poor and it wouldn't be

ending any time soon.

This period also caused

bankers to become the

most hated

profession

in Britain,

even more

unpopular

than traffic

wardens

and tax

collectors

put

together.

So why

when the

latest figures, announced

in the middle of January,

meant that we were out of

recession, wasn't the

population and especially

financial experts rejoicing?

The main reason for the

lack of celebration was that

even though it said we are

now out of recession, we

are only just out by the

skin of our teeth. The

numbers showed a growth

of the British economy in

the last three months of

2009 was...wait for

it...0.1%.

Optimists may point out

that it is a vast

improvement but doom-

mongers like me would beg

to differ. In a quarter

comprising of the festive

period where the public

should be opening their

wallets and businesses,

especially in retail, should

be raking in huge profits, a

growth of 0.1% is hardly

something to be shouting

from the rooftops about.

More importantly this

minuscule growth won't

lead to a change of

financial fortunes for the

people, it means anything

but. Dara O'Braian,

presenter of the topical

panel show Mock the

Week, summed it up

perfectly when saying,

“...we have ended the

phase of becoming poor,

now we have to enjoy

being poor.”

I don't want to be the

bearer of further bad news

but unfortunately this so

called “growth” doesn't

signal the beginning of a

much desired spending

spree. It indicates the

continuation of budgets,

compromise, tightening of

belts and purse strings and

even more painstaking

saving.

But I urge you not to feel

glum over these miserable

prospects; you are

forgetting one crucial

factor. Just remember we

have good old Gordon.

Are We Really Out Of Recession?


“...the time of Year 7,

school still felt as it

usually does - as

stressful and as

strenuous as ever. But

I do miss the innocence

of those days...”

By Dan Rawlings

Despite the depressive

sounding title, this piece of

writing is not about an

actual end to anything.

This piece of writing is near

enough a stream of

consciousness of what is

running through my head

as I near the end of my

time of compulsory

education at Hitchin Boys‟

School.

Although I do plan to stay

on to continue my

education at Hitchin Boys‟

in Sixth Form, I can‟t help

but think to myself that

this is the end of being a

full time student at the

school, and as my dark

blue blazer with the crest

of the school embedded

upon it now grows old and

more tattered by the day,

and my blue striped tie

begins to count down the

days until it will never be

knotted again, I become

more anxious to the fact

that I am not guaranteed a

chance of walking back

through J Block come

September. I can only

hope that I reach the

necessary standards to be

allowed a place back in the

school.

As I walk out of my final

lesson of the day, I usually

find myself

in a trance

by the

building,

taking in

every

concept of

it. It is only

now that I

can truly

appreciate

the

amazing

beauty of the building. I

tend to look across the

school field, looking at the

middle in particular. I look

here because it is there

that I remember my first

realisation that I was now

at “big school” back on my

first ever day in Year 7.

Although, at the time of

Year 7, school still felt as it

usually does - as stressful

and as strenuous as ever.

But I do miss the

innocence of those days,

where the most worrying

aspect of a school day was

what excuse I was going to

give to my teachers about

why the homework was

only half done. I miss the

fact that GCSEs seemed a

lifetime away and that it

seemed at that time that

they were never going to

happen.

But now as I sit here on a

cold winters night, with

only the majority

of four months

left in my final

year at school,

the stresses of

exams and the

lack of sleep due

to the „fun‟

aspects of

revision now

seem to be my

only constant

companion. I

can‟t help but miss the

school already, knowing

that one era of my life is

now ending, and a new

one is slowly but painfully

being brought into

existence.

The reason why I decided

to write this is for a few

reasons. One, to let my

anger out onto my

keyboard, to make it

realise the stresses that I

am now facing, but also to

make the reader of this

article realise that although

coming to school seems to

be the worst possible

scenario right now, school

will be missed. Because

school is where your

friends are; where an

almost seemingly endless

library of information is;

where the summer

lunchtimes consisting of

football on the field are;

the times when you tripped

over in J Block and got

laughed at by your peers;

the times where you told

all your friends about the

new girl you met.

Hitchin Boys‟ School is not

only a place where you

learn, but it makes you

into a man. I wish I had

realised these thoughts

before now.

Year 11: The End Is Nigh


To view the full version of

this chapter, visit the



found in the ‘Reviews’

section.

“The house that James

Penly was staying in

was alight with glowing

lanterns and laden with

ornate maroon rugs...”

By Lewis Copper

Lewis is our serial story

writer, and is the author of

our sci-fi novel ‘Nabraska’.

Chapter One: The Island

The island had always been

the best place to visit

during the long hot

summers when the rest of

the world was only just

coping in the sweltering

Nabraskan sunlight. Vast

beaches stretched for miles

and green, sweet-smelling

meadows filled with rare

animals and insects

and ran from the

Amber Halls of Lords

all the way to Jubilee

city. Water gargled

from the many

springs at the

islands summit and

rushed down the

Golden Mountains

feeding every town,

city and village it

met. To the east the

silhouette of Tewa-

Franson - the great capital

of the Island lingered on

the red and yellow painted

horizon, the island was

vast and beautiful,

especially at the end of a

summer‟s day.

The house that James

Penly was staying in was

alight with glowing

lanterns and laden with

ornate maroon rugs, posh

ivory chairs and priceless

antiques. Several portraits

hung on the walls and tins

of food were stacked

carefully on a kitchen

shelf. In this house

everything had a place.

She had green wise eyes,

and her long brown hair,

that had obviously been

dyed, hung down to her

waist. Her skin was heavily

tanned and she was

extremely small but she

was still young in her own

way. Auntie had always

been smart - she would

read every book and article

she could get her hands on

and listened to every

documentary she could on

the old radio in the kitchen

since Auntie did not have a

television. In fact hardly

anyone in Nabraska had a

television.

He was sat on his bed in

his large square bedroom

and was surrounded by tall

oak bookcases, shelves

filled with scrolls and

parchments that Auntie

had collected. The teak

wardrobe did not match

the rest of the furniture

and instead of housing his

clothes it was housing

Auntie‟s. Auntie had

thousands of clothes; it

was amazing how she fit so

many clothes under one

roof!

James was a muscular boy

of around sixteen; he was

tall and looked older than

he actually was. James had

muddy brown hair and

serious green eyes, he was

sporty, but he was also

terribly intelligent. So

intelligent that he had

already been asked to join

the Helms Men, a great

honour to any person of

Nabraska was to join the

Helms Men something he

had dreamed of all his life,

to sail the Magnus Ocean

and the Inner sea with the

Helms Men a team of the

most brilliant sea-farers

and explorers the world

had ever seen.

“I have been thinking” said

Auntie, who was also in the

bedroom. “You have never

been anywhere exciting

have you?” James shook

his head.

“Well...I would like to take

you around the continents;

I want to show you

the world.”

“All in summer

break!” James raised

an eyebrow and

grinned, he thought

she must be joking

but the serious look

upon her face told

him otherwise.

“As much of it as I

can show you in the

holiday...there is not

much to see. We‟ll

do one continent at a time,

and stop at only the best

places”

“I‟m not sure, why should I

go? I‟m fine here.” He

queried.

“Because you‟ve never

even ventured off this tiny

island, and there is so

much more to Explore. Just

think about it.” Auntie

looked at him; she gave

him one of her sweet

smiles. He couldn‟t really

say no to Auntie and

besides he would be able

to see the rest of

Nabraska.

“Fine, I‟ll come.” James

tried to think of something

cool to say. “I mean

there‟s nothing else to do

on this wretched island so

I might as well tag along”

Nabraska


All names have been

changed to protect

anonymity.

I have always had

this thing for older

women and there is this girl that I like,

but I just don’t know what to do! She is

in Year 11, and she teaches me piano,

and I have a photo of her on my phone

(I don’t think she realises that though!)

The problem is I think I am too small for

her. – Joe, Year 7

I will attempt this response with a generous

degree of empathy and understanding

(pause) - OK, I just can‟t, what a freak! All I

can say, with regards to your „problem‟, you

will certainly be considerably smaller than

what she is used to. Maybe even in several

other vital departments! Good luck though!

At the moment we are having our

GCSE’s constantly hammered into us,

but I don’t see the point in really

working that hard for them, as I find all

my subjects easy and universities don’t

care about them anyway! – Alex, Year

11

I totally understand where you are coming

from, regarding the mounting pressure you

are probably enduring, however despite

what you may think GCSE‟s are very

important and do affect your university

options. I will admit that they don‟t really

have a huge impact on your university

application, but if you are considering

medicine then they are absolutely vital! My

honest advice to you would be, that

however easy you may find your GCSE‟s,

the work load for A Level gets much tougher

and it really pays to be used to revision!

I have only recently started at this

school, as I had to move here a few

months ago. I am finding it really

difficult to fit in and can’t seem to gel

with anyone. What can I do? – Sam,

Year 9

I really appreciate where you are coming

from on this, as I have experienced similar

issues! It is always very hard coming to

anywhere new and harder still, to find the

right group of friends. I would suggest that

you walk into school every day and be

yourself; you have had friends before, so

there are obviously things that people like

about you. It will take a bit of time and you

need to try and be willing to talk to new

people, but trust me, you will make friends!

Do you have a question for Auntie Sarah?

Send an email to her at the address at the

bottom of each page!

Auntie Sarah


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