Harrow School

Harrow School is a British public school, located in Harrow on the Hill, in North West London. It was founded in 1572 under a Royal Charter granted by Elizabeth I to John Lyon, a local yeoman, for the provision of education to local boys (Lyon was particular about keeping Harrow single-sex, a tradition that is still maintained). Harrow currently has approximately 850 pupils spread across 11 houses, all of whom board full-time at a cost of £23,625 per year. The majority of boarding houses were constructed in Victorian times, when the number of boys increased dramatically and the school began to resemble something similar to the current institution in terms of size and uniform.

Harrow Buildings

Old Schools

This is the oldest school building, built when the school was founded in 1572, and later extended. It contains the Old Speech Room Gallery, the Fourth Form Room and, appropriately, the History Department.

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Old Speech Room Gallery & Museum

Harrow possesses a varied collection of art and antiquities including Egyptian and Greek antiquities, English watercolours, Modern British paintings, some sculpture, printed books and natural history. These are displayed in the Old Speech Room, which is a chamber that was built in 1819-1821 as a venue for the boys to practice public speaking. It is open to the public most afternoons during term time. Some of the highlights of the collection are on permanent display, and there is also a programme of temporary exhibitions, which boys who belong to the Old Speech Room Gallery Arts Society help to look after under the watchful eye of the curator, Mrs Leder. The current exhibitions are Books for Bibliophiles and Masterly Photographs, a display of photos by Harrow masters.

Related Topics:
Egypt - Greek - Natural history - 1819 - 1821

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Fourth Form Room

This was the room where all lessons were originally taught. It is wood paneled and the original benches are still in place, as are many other fittings. The panels are covered in names, engraved by boys. There are even the names of famous OHs including Winston Churchill and Lord Byron. Today this tradition is continued formally on boards within each house. The room is very recognisable as it features in many films, for example the Charms classroom in the first Harry Potter film.

Related Topics:
Winston Churchill - Lord Byron - Harry Potter

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Speech Room

Speech Room is used on every Monday of term for the Headmaster to address all 800 boys and masters for notices or announcements. It is also used for some large audience lectures, concerts and the Shakespeare play owing to its resemblance to The Globe. Again it features in many films such as the school drama Goodbye Mr Chips

Related Topics:
Shakespeare - The Globe

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War Memorial

The primary purpose of this building is a monument to OHs who have died in wars. Its walls are carved with the names of them. It is used on Remembrance Sunday. Downstairs there are rooms for the Monitors, the Phil and the Guild. Upstairs there are three rooms- the Beak's Room, the OH Room, and the Fitch Room.

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The Beaks Room

This is for Master's meetings and as a place for masters to meet at break every day.

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The OH Room

So called as the walls are decorated with paintings of previous Harrow Headmasters, this is used for lectures and in the morning Thought for the Day, the alternative to morning Chapel for non-Christians.

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The Fitch Room

This room was paid for by the mother of Alex Fitch, an OH who died in the great war, on the condition that a light for his portrait would always be left on. This has been the case ever since save during the blackout in the Second World War. It is very ornate, with paneling, and a floor taken from the deck of a ship.

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Chapel

The school chapel is an entirely separate building to St. Mary's, the church on the top of the hill. It is used for services on every day of the week; there is compulsory attendance for Church of England boys on either Tuesday and Thursday or Wednesday and Friday depending on House and everyone attends on Sundays. On all days there is a Eucharist in the crypt chapel.

Related Topics:
Church of England - Eucharist

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Vaughan Library

Recently refurbished in 1999, the Vaughan has an extensive collection classified by the Dewey Decimal System, in addition to fiction and biography sections. Boys and beaks can borrow and request books as in any other library. There are also IT facilities and periodicals available. The Vaughan also serves as a prize ordering service for boys who have won a school prize (they select a book, DVD or CD).

Related Topics:
1999 - Dewey Decimal System

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Shepherd-Churchill

This is the central dining room. It was built in 1970 and makes 3000 meals a day for boys and staff. There is a separate staff dining room. The exterior noticeboards display information on sports and societies.

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Ryan Theatre

The theatre seats 300 people. Around 12 productions are put on by the school every year, and other outside companies put on performances. The average Harrow performance runs for 2 nights with the major Rattigan Society production running for 3. There are 4 dressing rooms, and the stage has a thrust that may be raised or lowered to create an orchestra pit. The current Head of Drama is Martin Tyrell.

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