Posts

Day 6 - IOM 2019 The last day for our boys began well and with unexpected energy. The routine ritual of an Isle of Man morning was completed with bank, breakfast and room check and so we were whisked of to St Thomas’ for our practice, returning to our normal routine after yesterday’s ‘break’ of only one practice. Yet again the boys performed and practiced well and effectively. After the practice many boys ventured into Douglas town centre due to improved weather. Some of our boys, however, simply returned to the hotel to relax and to write late postcards if they were one of the less organised individuals in the boys’ section. Lunch of jacket potatoes and ice cream followed and so the boys returned to rooms to pack and prepare for the beach in a hope to fully exploit the rare sunny weather we have had this week. The practice at tonight’s church St Matthew’s was completed thoroughly yet quickly due to the anticipation of the approaching beach visit. Eventually the transport rol
Day 5 - IOM 2019 We awoke to improved weather: the wind had been replaced by a cloudy sunny sky on the Douglas coastline. The boys completed the routine morning schedule and so as per usual enjoyed an array of food available for breakfast, tried to find Jesus in Mr Walmsley’s bank card game, tidied their rooms for Mrs Stockdale’s ruthless inspection, and set off to St German Cathedral in Peel for our only practice of the day, much to the boys’ delight. A thorough and efficient practice prepared us for this evening’s service and afterwards off we went back to the hotel for lunch, which was spaghetti carbonara or salad. After this the boys split for the day’s two different activities. The Head Choristers and Team Leaders returned to rooms and got ready for the venture centre, a trip destined to be wet and muddy. The junior boys alongside the remaining senior boys got ready to depart to Ramsay for the scheduled trip to go on pedalos. The senior boys arrived and quickly got suite
Day 4 - IOM 2019 Usually this is the time of the week when tiredness kicks in! However, you wouldn’t have thought the boys had been here for 3 days already as they all had room check, breakfast and bank and arrived at the St Thomas’ practice with great punctuality. After a shortened practice and break, with no free time in town to follow due to the unforgiving winds of the Douglas coast, we came back to the hotel to a lunch of chicken nuggets and chips, a favourite within the boy ranks for some reason, and got packed and ready for the practice in St Lupus Malew and the subsequent trip to the Peel swimming pool to burn of energy. It is safe to say the trip was successful as the boys got dressed and drearily returned to the coaches fully expended of all prior energy, with still a service to go in the evening. The evening meal was devoured as always, with balsamic vinegar on melon a heated topic of discussion on the dinner table. This was followed by either salmon, hot pot or vege
Day 3 - IOM  2019   Sunday is always a very tiring day for the younger ones. The day started with a normal get up but unusually we got into our ‘smarts’ (Sunday Clothes), had breakfast and headed to St Thomas’. The practice was thorough and efficient, and the morning service went well. The Sunday roast for lunch was delightful, coming with a variety of veg and Yorkshires. The meat was beef, with a red wine gravy. In the afternoon we headed to Laxey Wheel and the coal mines. A lot of the young boys, and in particular Fin Ratcliffe, proved their intelligence with previous background knowledge. The views were magnificent from the high standing structure and there were some beautiful streams and tributaries. We then proceeded further north to Ramsey and were invited in by the smell of the infamous Ramsey Tea. The wonderful Ladies provided a brilliant platter and the boys tucked in. Once stuffed with hot dogs, sausage rolls, sandwiches and many a cake, we regrettably had to sin
Day 2 - IOM 2019 The first full day of our Isle of Man course got off to a good start with an all you can eat buffet, room-check, and a new and improved banking system courtesy of Mr Walmsley and Mr Ranson, after which we were on our way to our morning St Thomas’ practice. After a very productive and high-class practice as proclaimed by Mr Catterall, the boys spent their first lot of money on the sweets, drinks and souvenirs kindly put on by the parishioners of St Thomas’. The second part of the practice saw some of our younger choristers shine with Shaun Tallentire, Charles Cassidy, Harry Jones, Michael Corrick-Pollard and Jacob Mason showing great potential in solo work. After free time spent either in town, in the lounge or revising for some of our boys, we had our impressive two-course lunch and got packed and prepared for rafting in Ramsay. We arrived in Ramsay and almost immediately split into teams, got organised and started to build our rafts consisting of rope, barrels
Image
Day 1 ... IOM 2019 The Isle Of Man course started today, and the boys were clearly excited at 9 o’clock in the morning. We set off from Broughton and we made our way to Liverpool. The excitement continued to build the nearer we got. As we boarded the boat and waved goodbye, the trip had finally begun. As the older boys of the group sat down to revise, the younger boys went to watch a film and chill out. The crossing was very smooth (unlike past years) and it was a good time to relax before the week of fun began. As we arrived in Douglas, the boys received a warm welcome from the volunteers of St Thomas’s, who brought the boys to the Hydro Hotel. The boys were treated to some lovely allergy proof brownies courtesy of someone’s birthday (Thomas W). As per usual, it was a race to the room as whoever got there first got the bed of their choice. Once fully unpacked, the boys and the staff took off to the TT course, to have a look at what will be taking place in a couple wee