A magnet for the College’s creative community...
Fundraising is now complete and work on this ambitious project has commenced with a projected opening November 2017. £10.9m has been raised by the generosity of parents and OWs and £3m has been funded by the College.
The vibrant Cultural Quarter will open up a myriad of possibilities, embracing the benefits of an holistic education and providing a cultural laboratory where students can experiment, create, perform and engage with their peers. It will be home to the new Performing Arts Centre – housing the Performance Auditorium and Cultural Living Room – set within a beautiful landscape including gardens, walkways, and a central ‘plaza’ that will become both a cultural and social hub for the College.
The designs that have been developed by Architects Studio Seilern have been awarded the winner in the ‘Best Building in Education’ category at the World Architecture Festival in November 2015 and is included as one of the best 27 buildings on the planet.
A state-of-the-art performance space – part concert hall, part theatre, part opera house – where we can put on large-scale concerts, musicals and plays, and a multi-performance and exhibition space where activities will be driven by the students.
Imagine the possibilities… Ballet with a live orchestra; joint events with the local music community and with our partner schools; visiting orchestras; rock concerts and much more. It will also release much needed space in our current theatre for additional dance and rehearsal facilities, and will become the building where the entire College can come together. The Cultural Living Room will become another vibrant social hub for the campus where creative arts, events, exhibitions and student life are allowed to occur spontaneously.
To show our appreciation of your support we have provided a number of opportunities to name elements of projects and programmes. By doing this we remind the wider community how essential philanthropic support is to the College.
Theatre seats are £500, flagstones in the Cultural Plaza £1,000 and trees are £1,500. There are also opportunities to name various areas of the new complex.
Driven to Crime: True Stories of Wrongdoing in Motor Racing is the debut novel by Crispian Besley (Bn 77), inspired by his life-long interest in cars and passion for motor racing. In his novel, Besley investigates misdemeanours at all levels, from drivers, designers and mechanics to team owners, entrants and sponsors. People lie, cheat, steal […]
For hundreds of years, drums were used on the battlefield to signal commands and orders, and drummers have been part of Wellington College CCF for over a century. During the 1950s there was an active Corps of Drums, but in 1960 this was subsumed into the general CCF Band, which itself disbanded in 1980, the […]
Fair Shot Cafe, London, was set up to provide young adults with learning disabilities, such as autism and Down’s syndrome, the opportunity to train as baristas and cafe assistants before helping them to find jobs in the mainstream hospitality sector. The rate of unemployment among young adults with learning disabilities is very high, and so […]
Waterloo Hall, Wellington College from 6.30pm
The Wellington Community invite you to join a festive wreath making workshop run by Toni from Easely Does It, an inclusive art workshop provider. She will help you to create your very own traditional large, luxury wreath using a variety of beautiful live foliage and other elements like dried orange slices, dried chillies, cinnamon sticks, assorted pinecones, imitation berries, ribbons and bells.
All equipment needed will be provided, so all you will need to do is turn up and get creative! The wreaths will last right the way through the Christmas period so they can be admired by all.
Book your place »Library Moral Room, Wellington College
The Wellington Community Book Club is a small, friendly group of bookworms who meet regularly to debate the meeting’s highlighted books, discuss what they’re currently perusing, and share their love of reading!
For their November meeting, the group have chosen to read ‘Beyond Black’ by Hilary Mantel and ‘Small Things like these’ by Claire Keegan. The Claire Keegan book is a small but poignant novel which has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize and one of our members suggested reading a Hilary Mantel novel in homage to the great writer.
The next meeting will be held in the Library Moral Room on Wednesday 30th November; drinks and light bites will be provided.
The group always welcomes new members, even if you haven’t had a chance to read the books! If you would be interested in joining, please email community@wellingtoncollege.org.uk for more information.
Online, via Zoom
On Tuesday 17th January, between 6.00 – 7.00pm, this virtual seminar will follow the ‘Life of Service’ of our namesake, the 1st Duke of Wellington, and his devotion to three Sovereigns and to his country.
By way of the story and many illustrations, the seminar captures The Great Duke’s life from his birth in 1769 to his funeral in 1852. We follow his successful military campaigns in India, the Peninsula, and Waterloo, and then his later life as a politician and statesman. His fondness for the company of beautiful, intelligent, women is not forgotten. Following his state funeral and burial in St Paul’s Cathedral, the speakers will explore Queen Victoria’s reflections about him from her journal.
The seminar will take just over an hour, including time for questions, and will be delivered by two experienced guides from the duke’s country home at Stratfield Saye, Hampshire.
Book your place »