Early Life at Leckhampton

From the beginning, Leckhampton’s postgraduate community enjoyed the quiet and spaciousness of the site. The first resident, Domestic Bursar John Roach, recalled that “in those early days it seemed like family living in a handsome country house with the advantage of a more varied and interesting community than a normal family would provide.”

The first student residents were an international group – from Canada, New Zealand, the United States and India – and they were keen to make a success of the new institution. One of the Canadians, John Earnshaw, says, “I think we created a rather unexpected lobby group of foreigners who set out to establish instant traditions by our rather brash ‘student power’. In a strange un-Canadian way, we initiated a common Sunday Tea and we suggested that some modern paintings be purchased to update the environment, and the College obliged, even letting Peter (Barnard) make the selection and invite the artists to tea. We started monthly meetings of the Stephen Hales Society (a name given by Archie Clark-Kennedy, then the College’s most senior Fellow)”.

The house was filled with music, with the first Warden of Leckhampton, Christopher Longuet-Higgens playing the piano each evening on his return from his laboratory. John Earnshaw played the trombone, Brian Gregory practiced bassoon and the residents would gather around the upright piano in the drawing room to sing.

It was thought that residents would be out of the house in the middle of the day so from the beginning only breakfast and twice-weekly dinners were provided, cooked by Mrs Rowe who, along with her husband was resident housekeeper-cook. The North American contingent organised barbecue dinners (although they had difficulty locating the foreign cut of meat known as ‘spare ribs’).

By 1965, the students held the first May Ball at Leckhampton. Eddie Pal says, “I must say the Leckhampton Ball was a more intimate, romantic and memorable experience as it was a perfect setting for such an event, with the garden and the country house atmosphere, straight out of an English novel. I remember the fee was something like five guineas a head for which we were able to provide live music unlimited champagne and a sumptuous feast that included a suckling pig or two, prepared by the amiable College Chef Frank Curtis.”