Old Princethorpians

Age: 44

When were you at Princethorpe
I was at Princethorpe forever: from 1975 to 1984. I started with the last year of St Bede's. I was the smallest kid in school two years running. In my first month, there was a competition to see who could throw me the furthest. Eamon O'Brien won. 13 feet.

What are you doing now?
I live in Hong Kong. I am a journalist and owner of a media company.

What was the school like in your day?
Hogwarts, with priests. 

How did Princethorpe affect the person you are today?
I was plonked into Princethorpe, aged 9, when my parents divorced. For many years I held the distinction of being the boarder whose family lived closest to college. But I kept that quiet. On paper it should have been a disaster. I was a chronically nervous and had a bad stutter. I hadn't a clue what a Catholic was and had never knowingly met an Irishman. Well, about 10 minutes after my parents departed, the school became my foster family.

Princethorpe absorbed me. I felt safe. A few years ago, I reported on the failed Saffron Revolution in Rangoon, Burma. The uprising was brutally suppressed. A reporter got executed outside our hotel and things got scary and all the Western journalists crammed into a single hotel room for safety and everyone started looking out for each other and watching each others' backs. And I remember thinking: "Wow, this is just like Princethorpe".

What advice would you give to your teenage self?
I'm not sure the advice-from-old-farts really works. Teenagers need to be listened to and feel their ideas are respected. I would ask: "What do you enjoy doing?" And then after 10 minutes I'd say: "Great, do more of that thing." If I was serious about helping,  I'd check back in a month: "How's that thing going? What do you need?"

Who or what has been the greatest influence on your life?
Without a doubt - Chris O'Neil. Chris was a sixth former and prefect of the breakfast table I was assigned to when I was in the third year.  He wore this famous black velvet jacket, listened to Pink Floyd, read Kurt Vonnegut, knew the plot of 2001. Ideas spilled out of him with. He remains one of cleverest, warmest, funniest and most enthusiastic people I've ever met.  I lost touch with Chris the day he left Princethorpe. I mean, he was a sixthformer so it wasn't like we hung out. But if you are reading this Chris - thanks. You switched my brain on.

What keeps you awake at night?
I could tell you, but then Joseph Ruddy would have to arrest me.

What has been your proudest moment/greatest achievement so far?
I live a quite episodic life. It's been a jumble. I tend to do something intensely for a few years and then take a few years off and go nomadic.  Last year, in Spring, I cycled 3,000 kilometers from Bangkok to Singapore and in Summer I set up my first magazine as owner. I have also launched magazines in Singapore, Shanghai and London. I used to write features for Esquire, Time and GQ magazines back when they paid proper money. Probably, I am most proud of a series of stories I wrote in the late 1990's in Bangkok, China and Cambodia.  I was quite broke but it was honest. I hope there is more honesty to come but it's hard to do. It's hard to say "Hey, listen to this: I'm a bit of a w*****".

If you had to have one last meal, what would it be?
Sweet tea and a jam sandwich served by the great Betty Waddups. In attendance - StJohn White, Sybil Roberson, Caspar Davies, Greg Deeley and Rick Relton. It would be styled by Brother Luis and supervised by Mr O'Grady with a running commentary provided by John Beauchamp.

If you could be anywhere right now, where would it be and who would be with you?
I like where I am now.  I have been lucky.

Lasting memories of Princethorpe:
Some fourth-year boarders were arrested for shop lifting. Father Clarkson was furious and was reaching for the axe. But then something magical happened. He called a school assembly and announced: "There is no such thing as a bad boy". The wayward fourth-years would suffer a bunch of punishments (including washing up the school's dishes for a term) but he would not trash their lives over one mistake. Three years later one of the culprits became deputy head boy and two others became house prefects. But this isn't a story about mercy. Or Father Clarkson playing Spencer Tracey playing Father Flaganan in the movie Boy's Town. It went to the heart of everything. It told every boy in the school that the school cared. That forgiveness was real. Months later, after supper one night, Boss publicly congratulated the culprits for taking their punishment well.  The group-cheer than went up was the loudest, most raucous and most heartfelt, I have ever been part of. That is my lasting memory of Princethorpe.

Favorite teachers
Moira Weir, Pat Weir, Barbara Skiffington, Lou Skiffington, Mr Reynaud (Rose's Dad).

Are you in touch with any other Old Princethorpians, if so whom?
Absolutely. Caspar Davies, Greg Deeley, Sybil Roberson (I visited her in LA a couple of times) and my sister, Rebecca Hilditch to name a few. I got Ade Faschade on Facebook. StJohn White is my oldest friend in the world. We meet whenever we can, and babble away like a dial-up internet connection.

There's also been a few randoms over the years. I ran into Alex Anjanko - reinvented as a policeman -  in Manchester in 1986. Met Clare Leddy in 1991, being a nurse in Hong Kong. And when I was editor-in-chief of Penthouse magazine in 1997 I hired an old Princethorpian to be my art director. I hadn't known him at school and he didn't know much about the job. But nor did I. I just thought  - well, his CV says he's from Princethorpe so he'll be alright. And you know what? He was.