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Matt King
STAFF FAREWELLS
Head of Government and Politics
Iwould like to thank those colleagues, past and present, who contributed to this valete. It
has been exceptionally difficult to cover all the critical points and many contributions that Matt made during his time at Oundle and I hope this gives you a flavour of the exceptionally well loved, capable and hardworking colleague, friend and teacher he has been.
Matt moved to Ardingly at Easter to take on a Housemaster role with his wife, Genny, and daughter, Lilac. Matt joined Oundle as a Sports Fellow in 2007, when he had yet to lose his ‘puppy fat’, but fitted in well with Gareth Terrett and his colleagues in the Sports department. He rapidly built strong relationships and connections with pupils and staff alike. Matt, right up until his departure, was always happy to get involved and was a true all-rounder on the sports field. For many years he led the Badgers (staff cricket) team and always knew exactly where to place colleagues for the best outcome – I will of course never know why I ended up as slip for several games! The list of sporting achievements go on and on, including running football, coaching rugby, coaching cricket, supporting international sport tours, running/supporting the Ramblers cricket tours, staff football and facilitating the inter-House football. On the note of running football, Matt always had such passion for the game and how the boys performed was of great significance to him. Nonetheless, he always maintained they must enjoy the game and the experience too. This nurturing approach enabled them to give their best and largely have very successful seasons. As Master In Charge, he genuinely cared about progress and results across the whole club: all abilities, all levels and all age groups.
Matt was quite reserved socially
and was renowned for avoiding the night out. Nonetheless, he did manage a night out in Peterborough in his early days dressed as a nun, with the costume being borrowed from the Housemistress Viv Nunn (now Gascoine), for whom Matt worked in Dryden for his first year. Matt spent the remainder of his time (nine years) in School House, firstly as Deputy Housemaster and finally as a Tutor. I know Matt hugely benefited from and enjoyed working with Adam and Viv during his time at Oundle. Matt’s Third Form Field Weekends are famous in School House - including a walk, theme park trip and watching a game of football, normally up north somewhere.
Even with the religious themed night outs, Matt was a strong supporter of the Common Room, becoming a member of the committee for several years, running the squash ladder (something sporty I think?) and playing an important part as an informal mentor for those new colleagues. It is of course worth mentioning his time spent in the Talbot Hotel, where he knew all the staff and his coffee and toast order (with jam) was almost ready waiting on his arrival. I loved receiving the
email with just the words ‘P3, Talbot?’ and the fact we had shared timetables to enable maximum use of our free time.
Academically, Matt dabbled in several subjects during his time at Oundle. Initially Geography and R.S., then on the departure of Douglas Robb, Matt landed himself a Politics job at the School. He worked under the watchful eye of John Gillings and I think secretly supported his trench building project. On his departure, Matt took over as Head of Politics. During this time Matt enhanced the results of the department and the uptake rocketed. I always used to love working next door to his classroom and the several colouring-in jokes he would inflict on me each teaching day, dragging me in to discuss environmentalism or telling the pupils I support the Green Party; his humour and approach to teaching were fantastically engaging. Matt was a master of his subject and passionate in what he taught. Mind you, his handwriting was terrible, worse than a doctor’s, and I am genuinely surprised pupils did as well as they did, being unable to read any feedback he wrote.
Matt was destined to be a bachelor, with a set of crinkled shirts, no kitchen washing-up routine and a ‘faulty iron’, but Genny managed to further shape and mould this excellent teacher into a family man. They ‘got together’ in April of 2013, getting engaged just six months later and marrying in the Christmas of 2014. I have so very much enjoyed being the third in their marriage and I know many of us have enjoyed watching Lilac grow up and seeing the close-knit family they have become. They have been a true Oundle couple.
Importantly, in a busy school such as Oundle, is his sense of humour. There are just too many funny stories and memories to include them all, but a few that will forever live in the
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THE OLD OUNDELIAN 2017 –2018