His brief return for the Mozart Requiem performance in June served to reinforce this feeling, and the fact that pupils were asking him for details about the day’s itinerary, made him feel very much at home!
 
Jonathan’s time at WBS (how many years?) is first and foremost distinguished by his skill as an English specialist. There isn’t much that he doesn’t know about writing, writers and semantics (most pupils who were fortunate enough to be taught by him will be well-versed on the meaning of ‘semantic fields’).
 
While we’re on fields, he was also a very keen cricketer and not only coached cricket during his time at WBS, but also played regularly. Jonathan was also a Housemaster of the Grenville, Head of English and – latterly – Head of Sixth Form: all roles he carried out with his usual good-humour, empathy and keen listening skills. He also organised and supported several trips to far-flung places such as India, New York, and Kenya.
 
One would think that all the above would have kept Jonathan more than busy (he is also a father to three children, Madeleine, Catherine and Jamie, all of whom attended WBS and were successful in their own right). However, he still found the energy to direct numerous productions, most of which would not have looked out of place on a West End stage (‘Macbeth’ and ‘An Inspector Calls’ being my all-time favourites!). His vision of what he could do was never hampered by budgets, time or resources: he pooled what he had, gave generously with his time and – quite simply – transformed the acting lives of the children in his care.
 
Added to this was his extraordinary performance in WBS’s very own production of ‘Art’ directed by Kathy Kettle and also starring the then Headmaster, John Vick and the Deputy Head, David Hymer. Again, this was polished and professional, highlighting his innate ability on stage. This, along with writing and singing, could have been a very tangible career option but, luckily for us, Jonathan decided to make the classroom his stage. Jonathan’s perfect pitch made him an asset to senior and chapel choirs, as well as charity performances for the School (footage still available!). He also presided over and masterminded many of the School’s quiz nights, again using his natural ability as a thespian.

I could go on, but there is a word limit and rather than eulogise, I’d like to conclude by alluding to his fondness for euphemisms. Despite being a very private man, Jonathan was – during his time at WBS – very much centre stage (in an understated way). When he was searching for jobs closer to his wife, Sian, who worked in the Prep School and acted as a sage to a huge number of pupils, he was determined to retain a sense of humour. This ability to be silly without causing offense is one of Jonathan’s trademarks, and has already been missed by staff and pupils alike.

So, I am sure that he would want me to end with the acronym: NOMFUP which -to garner the meaning of – you’ll have to ask him. To all of us at WBS, especially those who worked closely with him, it sums up what he came to represent: Notoriously Optimistic Marvellously Funny Understanding and Practically Perfect!