Support for a Family

Charlie Colchester (1963, A) and his three brothers, Nicholas ‘Nico’ (1960, A), Marcus (1966, A), and Jonty (1969, A) all benefited from the War Memorial Fund during their Radley careers.

Their father, Halsey Colchester, was a captain in the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry before serving with the Parachute Regiment and later as an SAS officer, seeing action at the Falaise Pocket in 1944 as well as in Egypt and the Middle East.

On their mother’s side, their grandfather, Sir Charles Medhurst, was Air Chief Marshal in charge of all the Allied Air Forces in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and Africa from 1944 to 1948, and their uncle, Flying Officer Richard Medhurst, was killed aged 19 near Arnhem, Netherlands, in 1944.

Following in the footsteps of earlier family members, Charlie and his brothers attended Radley before forging careers in journalism, finance, international policy and social justice and action. Charlie reflects upon the value of Radley in his education.

Radley has played a big part in the education of my family over three generations. That continuum is, of itself, evidence that Radley must have been doing something right!
I was one of four boys who, one after the other, came to Radley (all in A Social!) from the Dragon Prep School, went on to the same Oxford college – Magdalen. In my opinion, Radley is a superlative academic institution when it comes to preparing its pupils for future academic challenges. This has been true for me, my brothers and my son, Alexander (1994, E).

Radley provided us with a quite exceptional variety of facilities and opportunities for a wealth of extra-curricular activities. These include all kinds of sport, music, drama, art and hobbies. The facilities are world-class, and the grounds, buildings and pitches are second to none.

Life at Radley in the 1960s, 70s and 80s was pretty robust, and certainly a challenge at times. But this was mitigated by the sense of camaraderie – we shouldered through together. Aided by a raft of co-curricular activities, supportive staff and strong friendships, life was extremely fulfilling. Like so many traditional institutions, Radley had – and still has – myriad little regulations and peculiarities which defined life at the school. Some may perceive these as positively irksome, but for my part I relished and even gloried in them.

My own bumptiousness made the start of my Radley career a somewhat rocky, but once I started applying myself to the manifold opportunities available to me, I never looked back. I became a passionate oarsman, prefect, artist, actor, orator, member of the choir, and Combined Cadet Force, where I was delighted to be awarded the Green Jackets Sword of Honour.

When I became Senior Prefect in 1968, I recommended to Warden Silk that boy-on-boy corporal punishment should be disallowed. He agreed immediately and it stopped at Radley from that day. It is generally reckoned that Warden Silk’s time at Radley marked a step change and a generational shift at Radley, reflecting the rapid social and educational changes of that time. It was truly excellent to be part of that development.

The financial support given to me and my brothers by the War Memorial Fund contributed to making our education at Radley possible. I will never be able to adequately thank those responsible for this wonderful generosity. I sincerely hope that each of our careers have been a credit to the College but, more importantly, of value to society at large. For all the blessings and privileges I have received, I am deeply grateful.

Charlie Colchester (1963, A)

	Nico Colchester, who sadly died aged only 49, became a highly regarded financial journalist, rising to become Foreign Editor of the Financial Times, Deputy Editor of the Economist and Managing Director of the Economist Intelligence Unit.
	After pursuing business in the Middle East, Charlie, moved to the voluntary sector. He has co-founded and helped to establish various charitable organisations at home and abroad, including CARE, a social action and educational charity.
	Marcus achieved a PhD in Social Anthropology from Oxford and was the founder, and now Senior Policy Advisor, of the Forest Peoples Programme. He is one of the world’s leading authorities on Indigenous People Groups.
	After Oxford, Jonty set up a cooperative decorating business with John Lister (1967, A) which became Shipton Mill before moving into banking where he prospered at Rothschild and Credit Suisse.