Putney Park School

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After arriving by coach in the town centre, we headed straight for Shakespeare’s birthplace, where we were entertained by a mime artist dressed as the great playwright. For a January day, the weather turned out to be glorious and we took the opportunity to visit New Place, the property which Shakespeare was able to buy as a result of the profits he had made from his plays. Another walk took us to Stratford Parish Church, where he and his family are buried. His gravestone had an inscription warning that anyone who tried to move his bones would be cursed.

Then it was on to the theatre where we lunched and took our seats. The play began with the battle between the rival households of Montague and Capulet, represented as a knife fight between two Mafiosi-style gangs. The rest of the play continued this theme, but although it provided a striking opening, the rather disappointing acting and lack of chemistry between Romeo and Juliet, made it a challenge to keep our attention. However, it did inspire Year 9 to write some powerful reviews castigating the Royal Shakespeare Company for failing in their calling to bring his plays to life and inspire young people with a love of great literature.

N Bainbridge
Head of English

A Metaphor Poem

A Metaphor Poem - ‘Mrs Mann’

She is a heron
Tall, sleek and proud.
She is a glacé cherry
Sweet but subtle.
She is a George Harrison song:
The sun in the black velvet sky.
She is a candle that never goes out.
A flame that turns the surrounding flicking flames into bright, glowing stars.
She is my necklace; the heart on the end.

Lily
Year 7 - 13 Jan 2009

Gallery