Devonport High School For Boys - Alumni & Archives

17/07/2026

It’s Alumni Newsletter time! It’s a long one - so grab a cuppa and get comfy 😀

DHSB Alumni Newsletter

10/07/2026

We were saddened today to hear of the tragic death of politician Ann Widdecombe. Her father James Murray Widdecombe CB OBE attended DHSB in the 1920s, before going on to become Head of Naval Supplies & Transport at the Ministry of Defence.
In 2000 DHSB invited Ann to be our Guest of Honour at our annual Speech Day celebration event in the Guildhall. Sadly, at short notice, due to parliamentary commitments, Ann was unable to attend. Councillor, and alumnus, John Mahony kindly stepped in instead. Rest in Peace Ann, our thoughts are with your family and friends at this very sad and difficult time.
(Photograph from the agency Ann was with).

15/05/2026

It was a pleasure to welcome Plymouth Tree People to DHSB as part of the annual Plymouth Urban Tree Festival. Part one of their event took place in Stoke Damerel Church before crossing Paradise Road to DHSB.

Local historian Richard Fisher told the assembled group about the history of the military hospital before it became the school we know today. Richard had certainly done his homework!

I was delighted to see three alumni in the group. Peter Fielding (1955 - 1972), Chris Hunt and Dave Curnow. Chris and Dave started as Peter was leaving in 1972!

It was lovely to meet Jane Farnborough too. She was a Science Technician at DHSB from 1998 until retiring in 2020. Jane was delighted to see one of her bird boxes on a tree - she told me how she made it from a microscope box!

Martyn Butt told me all about his dad David, who started at DHSB in 1944 - spending his first year in Penzance as the school had been evacuated there in 1941. David wrote in his memoirs of the boys racing frogs in Penzance, and lowering notes on pieces of string from their windows, to girls passing by down below 😀. David was a Plant Pathologist and was awarded an OBE in 1993. David sadly passed away in 2019.

We were very generously offered a grand piano too by one of the visitors, Chris Brown. All in all it was an eventful event 😀

29/04/2026

Rest in Peace Charlie ❤️. I posted about Charlie’s 100th birthday a few months ago which you may remember seeing. It is with great sadness, I’m sorry # to say that he passed away earlier this month. Such was the affection for Charlie that even Plymouth Argyle paid their respects during last Saturday’s football match. Our condolences to Charlie’s family and friends at this very sad time. #

28/04/2026

On Saturday I was delighted to welcome back some of our 2006 leavers - Harrison Nash, Ian Miller, Andrew Walker, Dominic Wu, Craig Britzman, James Goss, Chris Hodgett and Harry Andrews. The sun shone and they had a great time touring the school, reminiscing and sharing memories. It was the first time some of them had seen each other for 20 years! We got our steps in touring six blocks and earned our nostalgic lunch! A delicious pasty and pink finger from Brimbles! An added bonus was Miss Davidson serendipitously coming by - just as I was lining them up for a photo 😀Harry brought along his fantastic 2006 Yearbook to look at and the 2000 and 2004 whole school photos were studied closely!

A lot happened during their years at DHSB - a large multi-role Sports Hall was built (a space finally large enough to hold whole school assemblies), lunch went from being served in a dining hall (which no longer exists, in an area now part of our astroturf) to the construction and opening of Gibbons refectory (renamed Refuel), and the replacement of the old Air Training Corps hut with a new squadron drill hall ‘Ingle.’ The Jervis building was extended for the benefit of Music and an exercise suite was established in the basement of E Block. A new bridge leading to the entrance of E Block was also added, leading to the reception area and school library.

My visitors were surprised to see the changes in F Block, their Common Room, now the Sixth Form Centre. They told me that when they were there, all they had was a piano, chairs down one side, and the opposite side, with nothing else - not even tables. They managed to procure, from various sources, a television, DVD player, pool table and a table football game! They even held a ‘crazy tie’ day to raise money for Christmas decorations!

The chairs laid out on opposite sides was deliberate - Year 12 on one side, and Year 13 on the other - with absolutely no mixing 😀

They just missed out on the refurbishment of the Sixth Form Centre - it was ready for business in the autumn of 2006 - adding a new outside staircase, a mezzanine floor, kitchenette (now Refuel 6) and an open-out stage. And I believe the sixth formers do indeed mix nowadays 😀

I was told there used to be two graves in the school, does anyone else know anything about this?

A big thank you to Harrison for approaching me to host his reunion and a big thank you to my colleague Paul Scott for coming along to help. And double House points awarded to Harry as he came to the recent 130th Anniversary too!

If you would like your own year/class reunion at the school please get in touch - [email protected]

27/03/2026

My manifestation has paid off! Looking forward to welcoming our alumni back to school tomorrow! Safe travels everyone 😀

20/03/2026

It was a beautiful day at DHSB today! I’m manifesting good weather for the 130th Anniversary Event 😀. Just over a week to go! It’s not too late to buy a ticket but be quick! Link here:
https://www.dhsbalumni.com/product-page/dhsb-130th-anniversary-celebration-event

14/03/2026

It’s Alumni Newsletter time! Only TWO weeks to go until our 130th Anniversary Event - it’s not too late to get a ticket but be quick! I’m looking forward to meeting you. Details of the event, and more, here!
Grab a cuppa and have a read!

DHSB Alumni Newsletter

16/01/2026

Happy 130th Birthday DHSB! Today is Founder’s Day - on this day in 1896 Alonzo J Rider finally fulfilled his long held dream of owning his own school. He’d purchased a defunct school at the top of Albert Rd for £5000, just before Christmas in 1895, and only three short weeks later he welcomed his first students. The rest is history as they say!

We will be celebrating this milestone with a reunion event, for all former pupils and staff, at 12.30pm on the 28th March. Please join us! Tickets include a delicious buffet lunch, an opportunity to tour the school and a talk by former DHSB student and now DHSB History teacher, Dave Riggs. Full details and tickets here:

https://www.dhsbalumni.com/product-page/dhsb-130th-anniversary-celebration-event

A big thank you to everyone who has already bought tickets. You are coming from Norfolk, Surrey, Yorkshire, Weymouth, Lancashire, Essex, Hampshire, Buckinghamshire, County Durham, Middlesex, Cardiff, London, Kent, Sussex, Merseyside and Plymouth!

Photos show our original school on Albert Road (demolished approximately 25 years ago, apartments stand there now), our founder Alonzo J Rider and photos from our 125th anniversary event to give you a flavour of what to expect - including our own DHSB IPA 😄
Please share!