Leadership Awards & Movember Fundraising

Congratulations to Form VI pupils Hughie Casey, Gabriel Murphy and John-Jack Beglan O’Connell who were presented with Leadership Awards at an assembly yesterday. Hughie and Gabriel coordinated an amazing Movember fundraising campaign over the past five weeks, helping to raise over €5000 and awareness for men’s mental and physical health. The boys set themselves a series of challenges including an inter-house football tournament, chilli eating contests, ice-cold swims and a mammoth 60km run undertaken by John-Jack over a single day – the 60km representing the 60 men who die by suicide each hour around the globe. Congratulations to the boys for their fine achievements and for galvanising the school around their campaign.

If anyone would still like to donate to the boy’s campaign, they can do so by clicking here.

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Christmas Jumper Day

Well done to the Pupils’ Council who organised a Christmas Jumper Day in aid of Focus Ireland – a Dublin based homelessness charity. Lots of pupils and staff got involved and have raised over €300 for this wonderful charity.

Christmas Jumper Day '23
Christmas Jumper Day '23
9 photos
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Wellbeing Poster Competition

Congratulations to the winners of our recent Wellbeing Poster competition, held by both the Art and SPHE Departments. Pupils were challenged to create a poster promoting positive mental health and wellbeing. There were lots of very super entries and three prizes were awarded at both junior and senior level. The College is always focused on the wellbeing of the pupils and it will be fantastic to see the pupils work hanging in classrooms and in the boarding houses reminding us all of the importance of wellbeing.

The winner of the senior category was Georgia Goodbody while the junior category was won by Amy Anne Newell. Congratulations to all who took part. The winning and runner up posters can be viewed in the gallery below.

Winners

Senior
1st – Georgia Goodbody
2nd – Hal Somerville
3rd – Bibiire Oke-Osanyintolu
Junior
1st – Amy Anne Newell
2nd- Sasha Foster
3rd – Mario Esteban
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The Whiteheaded Boy

Drama continued to find its feet post-pandemic (when only modest productions found their way to the BSR stage, such as Michael Frayn’s Matchbox Theatre and a part of Waiting for Godot). Last year’s excellent Blithe Spirit was followed this November by another cleverly-plotted piece of stagecraft, Lennox Robinson’s The Whiteheaded Boy. First produced in the significant year 1916, it tells the story of the Geoghegan family: the youngest son, Denis, is his widowed mother’s favourite, and all the other siblings suffer by comparison. When – yet again – he fails his TCD exams, the oldest brother, George, decides Denis must leave and go to Canada. Trouble ensues, a trouble that gradually cranks up over the first two Acts, and culminates in the third.

One of the features of the play is the series of stage directions which amount to opinionated commentary, and so the decision was taken to have an actor voice these: Cheuk Yin Wong confidently came onto the stage at the start, introducing and commenting on the three women who had taken their positions after setting out rugs – Mrs Geoghegan, the mother of the family (Phoebe Landseer), her daughter Kate (Clodagh Walsh) and her crocked old maid Hannah (Melina Paulsen). He then headed off to man the PA system, his disembodied voice guiding the audience to their amusement. Four of Mrs Geoghegan’s other children followed soon after: Jane (Bibiire Oke-Osanyintolu), Baby (Emilia Hager), Peter (Euan Flanagan) and the effective head of the family George (Hal Somerville). Any production depends on those playing these parts to delineate their distinctive characters clearly, and present a strong sense of the family dynamic, and all these performers managed that well.

They were gradually joined by the Aunt Ellen (Sofia Gill Torrejon), Jane’s intended Donough (JJ Beglan O’Connell), and the final ‘child’, the feckless charmer Denis (Aran Murphy), the white-headed boy himself, as well as his fiancée Delia Duffy (Henrike Tertilt). All three were new to the Columban stage: one of the cheering things about drama here is the willingness of pupils to step forward and volunteer themselves to perform to an audience of their peers.

The second Act saw the delayed arrival of Delia’s father John Duffy, a recognisable ‘type’ in rural Ireland, with his fingers in every pie, dealing not just with his business interests but his daughter’s romantic ones. Naoise Murray was most effective in this role, giving the production a boost of energy with his stage presence: both he and Phoebe Landseer have performed in several productions across the years, and in their final one they showed how important such experience is.

The final Act saw everything come together, and it was evident on all three nights that the audiences appreciated the pleasure of this: there are no dramatic events in this play, but instead the words provide the satisfaction. Credit is also due to Calvin She for his patient prompting: he was a busy man leading up to the public performances, but happily scarcely used on the nights themselves. Just as the play itself comes to a satisfying conclusion after its confusions and conflicts, so did the production come together to provide pleasure for the audiences, and a happy sense of achievement for the actors.

Cast

  • Our Guide and Opinionated Commentator: Cheuk Yin Wong
  • Hannah, a slow-moving maid: Melina Paulsen
  • Mrs Geoghegan, a widow with six adult children: Phoebe Landseer
  • Kate, her oldest daughter. Now 36, so little chance of marriage: Clodagh Walsh
  • Jane, another daughter. Nice and quiet: Bibiire Oke-Osanyintolu
  • Donough Brosnan, Jane’s intended for the last three years: JJ Beglan O’Connell
  • Baby, yet another Geoghegan lass. Full of notions: Emilia Hager
  • Aunt Ellen, Mrs Geoghegan’s sister-in-law. A bit cranky and full of schemes: Sofia Gill Torrejon
  • George, the oldest Geoghegan son, and now the head of the family: Hal Somerville
  • Peter, the classic neglected middle son. Nothing much one way or the other: Euan Flanagan
  • Denis, the youngest of all the Geoghegans, and his mother’s unashamed favourite. The ‘white-headed boy’: Aran Murphy
  • Delia Duffy, his fiancée. Not as simple as she looks: Henrike Tertilt
  • John Duffy, her father, and one of the solidest men in Ballycolman. His wife died some years ago. On every Committee going: Naoise Murray

Costume, Set and Lighting: Mr R. Swift
Lighting & Sound Operation: Mr J. Girdham
Props: Ms D. Cullen
Hair and Make-up: Molly Mann and Liberty Jacquier-Kende
Production Assistant and Prompts: Calvin She

With thanks to Humphrey Jones, Gerry Pullman, Ted Sherwood, Elaine Healy, Form 2 Artistic Performance, and The Performance Corporation.

Directed and Produced by Mr R. Swift & Mr J. Girdham

Senior Play 2023
Senior Play 2023
48 photos
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The Senior Play 2023

The Whiteheaded Boy by Lennox Robinson is a favourite on the Irish theatre scene. First produced in the significant year 1916, it tells the story of the Geoghegan family: the youngest son, Denis, is his widowed mother’s favourite, and all the other siblings suffer by comparison. When he – yet again – fails his TCD exams, the oldest brother, George, decides Denis must leave and go to Canada. Trouble ensues.

The first performance is tonight, Friday, at 7.00pm in the Big Schoolroom, the second and final one tomorrow at the same time. Parents are welcome at either.

Cast

Our Guide and Opinionated Commentator.

Cheuk Yin Wong

Hannah, a slow-moving maid.

Melina Paulsen

Mrs Geoghegan, a widow with six adult children.

Phoebe Landseer

Kate, her oldest daughter. Now 36, so little chance of marriage.

Clodagh Walsh

Jane, another daughter. Nice and quiet. 

Bibiire Oke-Osanyintolu

Donough Brosnan, Jane’s intended for the last three years.

JJ Beglan O’Connell

Baby, yet another Geoghegan lass. Full of notions.

Emilia Hager

Aunt Ellen, Mrs Geoghegan’s sister-in-law. A bit cranky and full of schemes.

Sofia Gill Torrejon

George, the oldest Geoghegan son, and now the head of the family.

Hal Somerville

Peter, the classic neglected middle son. Nothing much one way or the other.

Euan Flanagan

Denis, the youngest of all the Geoghegans, and his mother’s unashamed favourite.   The ‘white-headed boy’.

Aran Murphy

Delia Duffy, his fiancée. Not as simple as she looks.

Henrike Tertilt

John Duffy, her father, and one of the solidest men in Ballycolman. His wife died some years ago. On every Committee going.

Naoise Murray

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Team Hope Christmas Shoebox Appeal 2023

It’s that time of the year again – the Team Hope Christmas Shoebox Appeal aims to collect and deliver wrapped and packed shoeboxes, full of toys and essentials, for some of the poorest children in the world. To date, over 2 million such boxes have been handed directly to children all around the world and the College are delighted to have a long-standing relationship with this wonderful charity.

Last year, our Transition Year pupils (ably assisted by Mr Paul Cron) filled over 200 boxes while also volunteering at the Team Hope warehouse, packing additional boxes and loading lorries destined for Eastern Europe and beyond. We hope to top that figure this year but need your help.

Over the half term, we would greatly appreciate if you could make up a box/boxes or collect some fillers for the boxes or even empty shoeboxes and bring them back to school after the break. All completed boxes or fillers can be brought to the collection point in Gwynn or left in the staff common room. You can also donate online via the Team Hope website.

Five simple steps to follow:

Get a shoebox, wrap the box and lid separately with Christmas paper (we have already wrapped 150 boxes, so if if this is too much hassle fill one of our boxes)

Decide to whom you want to give your gift (boy or girl) and what age: 2-4, 5-9, or 10-14.

Fill the box = use our 4 W’s as a guide (Wash, Write, Wear, Wow – more details below)

Close the box with an elastic band – please don’t seal with tape as the contents of each box have to be checked to comply with regulations.

Please include the €4 for transport in your leaflet envelope either on top of the gifts or taped to the inside of the lid.

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Form I & II Plays

The first drama productions of the year took place last Sunday night as our youngest actors took to the BSR stage for the annual Form I & II plays. Many of the young cast members were “threading the boards” for the first time and these short plays tend to serve as great stepping stones to greater dramatic challenges in the months or perhaps years ahead.

This year’s Form I play was a medieval comedy called ‘A Good Knight’s Work’ by Allan Mackey. The young cast were full of energy on the night as three brave knights battled each other, fire-breathing dragons and a bloodthirsty executioner for the hand of the fair princess. There were plenty of laughs and the odd groan at the brilliant terrible puns.

The Form II play was an adaptation of the Oscar Wilde short story’ The Canterville Ghost’. Once again there were plenty of laughs as Sir Simon, the 300 year old ghost haunting Canterville Castle, grows increasingly exasperated at the new American owners who refuse to be frightened by him and his ghostly companions.

Well done to all the pupils involved (listed below) and to the staff (Mr Stewart, Mr Boobbyer, Mr Jones and Mr O’Shaughnessy) for directing.

Form I CastForm II Cast
Chamberlain – Georgia DobbsMr Otis – Finn
Servant – Henry van den BerghMrs Otis – Giacomo Borrilo
Trumpeter – Hugo BellewWashington – Wilfred Hui
Lord Lilly – Seán HennessyVirginia – Alice Hutchon
Lady Lilly – Laurence SunStars – Jason Otolorin
Lord Fitzroy – Max HeidenfeldStripes – Elijah Kim
Lady Fitzroy – Mena SweetmanSir Simon – Harry Casey
King Ferd – Christabella Osereme LynchThe Spirit – Claire Higgins
Queen Maud – Oyindamola OniThe Skeleton – Merida Zhang
Princess Adeline – Maureen DengNarrators: Finn Breatnach, Amy-Anne Newell and Divyaansh Bhardwaj
Executioner – Andrea Beggy
Magician – Charlie Dunleavy
Sir Blufus – Ivor Guinness
Sir Angus – Winnifred Cawley-Comerford
Sir Richard Trueheart – Eric Wang
Form I & II Plays 2023
Form I & II Plays 2023
26 photos
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Transition Year Half Term News

The first eight weeks of Transition Year 2023-2024 have been typically hectic. In the classroom, the pupils continue to expand their knowledge and skills across a wide range of subjects and most recently received their Junior Cycle results. While we place a strong emphasis on academic progression in TY at St. Columba’s, there is still plenty of opportunity to explore interests beyond the classroom.

So far this term, the Transition Year pupils have welcomed Stephen Kiernan (motivational speaker), Alex Hibbert (Arctic explorer), John Lonergan (former Governor of Mountjoy), Fiona Boobbyer (expert on human trafficking) and Stephen Conway from Team Hope’s Christmas Shoebox Appeal. Visiting speakers are a great way of expanding the worldview of the pupils and we’re enormously grateful for all those who come and speak with our pupils.

There have also been several expeditions, with a visit to Flynn Park for outdoor activities an early highlight. They’ve also visited the Seán O’Casey Theatre to see ‘Bullied’, an excellent play on the theme, which was a Bullying Awareness Week activity. More recently, the TY biologists visited Dublin Zoo for an evolution workshop and, of course, had a chance to see the impressive animals there and explore the conservation work taking place there.

Charitable work is always at the core of our programme and we’ve been delighted to help fundraise for the Hope Foundation and Team Hope. The Transition Year pupils also organised a ‘Colour Run’ to help raise more funds for the Hope Foundation – it was a brilliant, colourful event and will surely cement itself in the College calendar.

The annual TY House Speech competition also took place. There was a high standard overall. Rebekah Fitzgerald Hollywood and Safia Walker were equal second, the clear winner being Grace Koch with her account of her great-grandmother, Freda Ulman Teitelbaum – you can read her speech here.

This week, the Transition Year pupils are completing their Community Involvement placement. This new addition to the TY programme sees every pupil work with a charitable or not-for-profit organisation, gaining valuable insight into teach charity but also building their knowledge of the world of work.

There’s been time for some fun activities too and most recently the TY pupils honed their pumpkin carving skills.

Well done to Ms Lynch and her team for putting together and coordinating the complex machine that is the Transition Year.

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Open Day 2023 – Saturday October 7th

Prospective pupils and their parents are warmly invited to attend our Open Morning on Saturday, October 7th 2023 with an opportunity to explore the College’s wonderful campus and facilities. Visitors will receive a pupil-led tour through the College and will have the opportunity to speak with teaching staff along the way. The tours will visit the Chapel, the College Library and Science Block, and see activities taking place like choir practice, House speech practice, artwork, science experiments and sports sessions.

The Open Morning begins at 10.00am and ends at 1.00pm, and visitors are welcome at any time, though we advise not arriving after 12pm, since there is not then enough time for a tour.

Just drive into the school, and you will be met at the car parks by Transition Year pupils, who will greet you and then guide you to the reception point, Whispering House.

No booking is required, but any advance queries about admissions to the College should go to our Admissions Officer, Mrs Amanda Morris.

Please note: If you can’t make this event, a second open event – our Open Evening – takes place in May so look out for details of this event on our website and social media accounts.

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Annual Admissions Notice 2024-2025 Entry

Notice concerning the admission process to St. Columba’s College, for entry in 2024.

Please be advised that, according to the admissions policy of the College, drawn up according to Department of  Education guidelines, the timeline is as follows:

● The school will accept applications for day places on October 2nd 2023.

● The school will allow three weeks for applications to be received, the last date being October 23rd. 

● Parents will be notified of the result of their application, in writing, by November 10th. 

● Parents of children who have received offers will have three weeks to accept the place.

Full details on the admissions process & current admission status can be found here.

Please find the College’s Admissions Policy here.

Admissions Notice:

Please find the application form here.

Annual Admissions Notice 2024Download
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Warden Gibbs Memorial

On the afternoon of Saturday 17th June a memorial service was held in the College Chapel for former Warden David Gibbs. Mr Gibbs was Warden from 1974 to 1988, and died in June 2020 (he was born in 1926) when pandemic restrictions meant that such a service was not possible.

A considerable gathering came to the Chapel, consisting of family, friends, former colleagues, and current and former Fellows, to remember a man who had an enormous impact on the life of the College. That was made clear in an address given by Mr Ninian Falkiner which described Mr Gibbs’s early life, and then the deep influence he had on St Columba’s. Another angle was given by Mr Shazad Contractor, who had been a pupil at St Paul’s School, Darjeeling from 1962 to 1968 (Mr Gibbs was Rector of that School from 1964 to 1972). He made it clear how affectionately those Indian pupils regarded Mr Gibbs by reading out tributes from some of them.

Thomas Gibbs, grandson, read the first lesson, and the Warden the second. The choir (Soloist: Emily McCarthy) sang ‘The Cloud’s Veil’, and the prayers were led by former Whitechurch Rector Canon Horace McKinley and former Chaplain, Reverend Michael Heaney. The Chaplain, Reverend Daniel Owen conducted the service and said the final prayers, as all present went down to Whispering House for tea and continued reminiscences of a most remarkable man.

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Trinity Term Art Report

It has been a very busy term in the Art Department. First up the Senior Art prizes were awarded with Antonia Ladanyi winning the Earl of Meath Art Prize, Senior. Ellen Beven won the Craft Prize, Senior and Calvin She won the Photography Prize, Senior. We also want to congratulate Jamie Green for taking up an offer for September from the Manchester School of Art.

Junior Cycle pupils, having completed their projects embarked on a sculpture project highlighting some of the environmental issues that we face and this work has been exhibited around the College.

Form VI carried out their practical art exam- a five hour window in which to demonstrate their skill and talent. It was a challenging and stressful day for them. TY pupils exhibited their Architectural Drawings at a Nationwide ‘Architects in Schools‘ exhibition at the Lexicon Library In Dun Laoghaire. Form I and II continued to work on craft projects such as clay modelling and lino printing.

In the week leading up to St. Columba’s Day senior pupils had the opportunity to meet with the designer and artist Serena Kitt to talk about creating a portfolio and applying to Art College. This was supported by a trip to the BIFE for their end-of-year portfolio show for those pupils interested in compiling a portfolio in the next year or two. 

TY pupils exhibited their portraits in the Whispering House and an exhibition showcasing a selection of pupil work from Form I-VI was on display in the Sports Hall for St. Columba’s Day.

There was a trip to the Lavina Fontana exhibition at the NGI and a guided tour of the Casino Marino for Form V. Below, Lily Boyle and Jesse Reynolds write reports on those expeditions.

National Gallery of Ireland by Lily Boyle, Form V

On Tuesday, May 30th, the Form V art pupils went on a trip to see the Mannerist paintings of Lavinia Fontana in the National Gallery. Lavinia Fontana was born in Bologna in the middle 1500s and she was best known for her attention to detail, especially in the fabrics she painted. We had a tour of all of her works on display in the gallery and we developed a deeper insight into her compositing and the story behind her work. We learnt that Fontana was managed by her husband Gian Paolo Zappi, all the while having eleven children. One thing I found particularly interesting was how Fontana combined the interest and/or professions of her clients into their paintings eg, a horoscope globe into an astrologer’s portrait or into her self-portrait she included a piano. Lastly, something I found truly interesting, was the classical and biblical allusions in some of her work, including the love affair of Aphrodite and Mars and Judith slaying Holofernes. I thoroughly enjoyed the trip and found learning about Lavinia Fontana enlightening and it has inspired me to dig deeper into other Renaissance and Mannerist artists.

Casino at Marino by Jesse Reynolds, Form V

After visiting the gallery, we went to see the architectural gem – The Casino at Marino. The Casino was designed by Sir William Chambers as a summer house for James Cauldield, the first earl of Charlemont. It is a great example of an eighteenth-century neo-classical building. Our tour guide told us that the egg and spear design throughout the casino represents life and death and that the lions surrounding the building were originally supposed to be water fountains; however, they ran out of money. The Casino was designed to look small on the outside when in reality it is much larger than it seems on the inside. The classic Greek columns elongate the building and deceive the mind into thinking the building is small. The Casino has been recently restored by the Office of Public Works and it now stands as a perfect example of Chambers’ work and the cultural aspirations of the Irish ruling classes.

Seeing the building in person really helped to understand the architectural innovations and how effective the deception was. We had a great day out. 

Below is an album of photos and pieces of work from this term in Art.

Trinity Term Art '23
Trinity Term Art '23
34 photos

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Trips Week 2023

‘Trips Week’ takes place every year as the Junior & Leaving Certificate examinations take place; those not sitting examinations leave the campus on various trips to bookend their year and give those sitting examinations free run of the campus in that first week. There are a range of trips organised, including long-running trips to the Burren and Achill, as well as a fantastic junior tour to Spain (Madrid & Segovia) and several day trips to nearby attractions.

The traditional Form V trip to the Burren hasn’t taken place in full in recent years. The trip is designed to provide time for Geography and Biology fieldwork but there is also plenty of time to explore the wonderous outdoor scenery of the Burren National Park including Mullughmore, Lahinch Beach and the Cliffs of Moher. Meanwhile, our Transition Year pupils travelled to Achill for their traditional end-of-year outdoor adventure. There was time for hiking, coasteering, surfing, kayaking and plenty of fun.

Our younger pupils, those in Forms I & II, either travelled on the junior cultural trip to Madrid & Segovia or participated in a number of day trips in Dublin and neighbouring counties.

Below, find an album of photos from across the trips.

Trips Week 2023
Trips Week 2023
59 photos

 

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Transition Year Update

You might imagine things slow down for Transition Year pupils at this time of the year but it is the opposite in fact. As the year draws to a close, the pupils continue to develop their knowledge and skills and we reflect on and celebrate their achievements in a range of academic and extracurricular endeavours.

Away from the classroom this term there was a 50km hike along the Wicklow Way (pictured), a visit to the School Summit careers fair, a trip to Nowlan Park in Kilkenny for a hurling match, a visiting speaker from DePaul, volunteering with The Hope Foundation, sailing in Dun Laoghaire, the Viking Splash tour, a forensics workshop and a TV production workshop in Maynooth; all over six short weeks.

Recently, four major events focused on the Transition Year pupils’ academic achievements. Shannon Walker Kinsellawon the TY Academic Prize with her project on ‘fear’, judged by former SCC teacher Alan Cox. Clodagh Walsh won the Alyn Stacey Cup at the TY Modern Language Evening while, at the TY English Evening, ‘Premier Awards’ for English were presented to Aeladh Bradley-Brady, Cajetan Cardona, Carlotta Castagna, Amber Cotton, Ava Fagan, Emilia Hager, Manuela Nassief, Melina Paulsen, Shannon Walker Kinsella, Clodagh Walsh, Alison Wang and Johanna zu Solms. (Click here for a full report on the TY English Evening on the College website). The remaining academic prizes were awarded last night at the final Transition Year Awards & Prizes event with full details here.

Two other prizes were awarded last night also. Elliot Warnock was presented with the Spirit of Transition Year award, for embodying the philosophy of TY, and Ciara Finn was presented with the Transition Year Award for Outstanding Resilience.

It has been a bumper year for our Transition Year pupils and huge credit and thanks must go to Ms Lynch and her predecessor Ms Kilfeather for their extraordinary work in building and maintaining such a vibrant, rich and varied programme.

Transition Year 2022-2023
Transition Year 2022-2023
70 photos

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Leadership Awards 2023

Congratulations to the following pupils who were presented with Leadership Awards this morning. These awards aim to recognise pupil leaders across all Forms. Their leadership may have been on the sports field, in formal positions in their houses or simply through the acts of kindness they’ve shown throughout the year. Well done to everyone – all were extremely well deserved.

Form I – Jan-Christian Dijkstra, Harry Casey, Eloise Droulliard, Cora Wheatley, Amy-Anne Newell and Alannah Starbuck

Form II – Pia Mulholland, Alice McCarthy and Jack-Francis McKeon

Form III – Ryan Ovenden, Safia Walker, Oscar Ryan and Naoise Bradley-Brady.

Form IV – Hedley Butler

Form V – Cheuk Yin Wong, Raicheal Murray and Hughie Casey

Form VI – Solomon Babajide, Marco Trolese, Monty Walsh, Isabel Warnock and Georgiana Clare.

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Voices of Poetry 2023

Voices of Poetry has been going for many years: a unique event, it provides a punctuation point at a particular part of the school year: Sixth Form have finished classes, the Sports Day is over, and ahead are the St Columba’s Day weekend, the public exams, the excitement of trips week, and finally the school exams. For 45 minutes we pause in the middle of all this activity and listen in the BSR to voices in different languages, both pupils and staff speaking in a darkened hushed auditorium lit by a single spotlight. The event celebrates the great diversity of the College population, and, appropriately, this year it was Pentecost, with its associations with speaking in many tongues.

On Sunday evening, a group of three foreign languages started us off, linked tenuously by their first letter. Chinese (Mandarin) was spoken musically by Coco Xu, and she was followed by Czech – Phoebe Landseer, with a piece by 1984 Nobel winner Jaroslav Seifert – and Catalan (Tomas Rosa Echevarria). The rhythm of the evening was that then we reverted to English for three poems: Mr Kirwan was at the event for the first time, reading Thomas Hardy, followed by two Second Formers: Lexi Hunter with ‘Prayer’ by Carol Ann Duffy and Elizabeth Coffey with ‘The Great Blasket Island’ by Julie O’Callaghan, which you can hear the poet herself read here.

Romance languages formed the next cluster: French from Hugo Laurenceau and Ebah Assebian, Spanish from Eugenia Garcia and Olivia Valderrama, and Italian from Anna Luisa Sanminiatelli. Back to English: Mr Swift read the ever-excellent and amusing Billy Collins’s ‘Another Reason Why I Don’t Keep a Gun in the House’, followed by two more Second Formers, with both Jack-Francis McKeon (‘Earth Summit’ by Oliver Tearle) and James Breatnach (the famous ‘Lake Isle of Innisfree by W.B. Yeats) reading confidently.

An extremely eclectic group came next: Yoruba from Bibiire Oke-Osanyintolu, Irish from Naoise Murray, Ancient Greek from Edvard Zujest and Arabic from Anna-Cecilia Corti. You could hardly find languages with less in common, but all of them marked by a very different and beautiful music.

A First Former and the Warden followed: Harry Casey read his own work ‘Farewell’ and then the Warden recited one of the poems he learned years ago, Walter de la Mare’s dramatic and evocative ‘The Travellers’.

The final foreign-language group was from countries close to each other: German (Hannah Bergmann), Danish (Melina Paulsen), Ukrainian (Anhelina Khliebnykova) and Polish (Aleksander Kierski). The last of these was ‘Clouds’ by the 1996 Nobel Laureate, Wisława Szymborska, and Mr Girdham read out the English translation first.

The evening came to a close with Nikolai Foster representing Sixth Form and leavers with Berton Braley’s ‘The Will to Win’, some advice for those whose time at the school is not yet coming to an end. Then Mr McCarthy, whose time is, recited Langston Hughes’s ‘Life is Fine’.

We ended with Junior Poetry Prize winner Giacomo Borillo’s touching ‘The Beautiful Beach’, thinking of his grandfather who died a year ago. That reflective note was the right one on which to end, a recognition of how poetry can console us and express what truly matters to us.

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Open Evening, Thursday 18th May 2023

We are delighted to host an Open Evening for prospective pupils and their parents will take place on the evening of Thursday 18th May, from 6.30pm to 8.30pm.

This will be an opportunity for pupils seeking entry in 2024, 2025 or 2026 at any age to see around the College with their parents. There will be a reception, followed by introductory talks, and then short tours given by Junior pupils.

If you would like to come to the Open Evening, please contact us via email – admissions@stcolumbas.ie – or phone 01-4906791.

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Memorial Service: Warden Gibbs

On Saturday 17th June at 2.00pm a service in memory of former Warden, D.S. Gibbs, will be held in the Chapel.
David Gibbs was Warden of the College from 1974 to 1988, a time of great changes in the College, which he successfully implemented. He died on June 21st 2020, but pandemic restrictions meant that a proper memorial service was delayed. All Old Columbans and friends of the College are most welcome to attend the service; further details will be given here in due course.
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