Over-60s Lunch at St George's Hill Lawn Tennis Club: A Thought-provoking Afternoon

We were delighted to welcome a wonderful group of our over-60s community to a relaxed and enjoyable lunch at the beautiful St George's Hill Lawn Tennis Club. With the weather on our side, guests enjoyed drinks out on the terrace before sitting down to a delicious meal in great company. A big thank you goes to Peter Jamieson (Blackwater 1960-63) for helping orchestrate the event.

We were honoured to hear from our guest speaker, John Ryley (Blackwater 1975–80), former head of Sky News. In a candid and reflective keynote speech, John spoke about the value of failure in shaping resilience, leadership, and journalistic integrity. Drawing on his own career, he shared three pivotal lessons, from underestimating the impact of the Eric Cantona incident, to narrowly missing out on landmark interviews with Vladimir Putin and Prince Andrew, and reflecting on the media’s inconsistent focus on climate change. His powerful message encouraged us all to embrace mistakes, learn from them, and continue to grow, with courage, humility, and curiosity.

Thank you to everyone who joined us. Please keep an eye out for next year’s date; we’d love to welcome even more of you.