A Cambridge Legacy Begins...

For Colin, the family’s Cambridge journey started before he was even born. His father, a Royal Artillery Instructor at the Cambridge Officer Training Corps (OTC) in the late 1930s, had strong ties to Clare College through Major Harold Taylor, a fellow at the college who later became Vice-Chancellor of Keele University. “It had to be Clare for me,” Colin recalls with certainty. His father’s influence and his own admiration for the college’s traditions meant that choosing Clare was inevitable.

Arriving in 1964, Colin’s life at Clare was a mix of intense study, some short spells of military service, and memorable social moments. He fondly remembers his first room in Old Court, directly above the Porters’ Lodge, with a magnificent view of King’s College Chapel. Despite his background as a military officer in Libya, life at Clare felt somewhat restrictive as he could no longer stay out late. “It was cold, there were hardly any young ladies, and I had to study!” he laughs. But the strict rules didn’t prevent Colin from forming lifelong friendships and enjoying the camaraderie of college life. Whether it was sneaking friends into his room after curfew or navigating the fine line between fun and discipline, Colin’s Clare days were filled with colourful anecdotes.

One of Colin’s favourite memories captures the spirit of adventure that seems to run through the family. He recalls a late-night climb into the college with his younger brother, Nigel, another engineer who came to Clare in 1967. “We’d left the Bath Arms rather late and had to climb in,” Colin remembers. As they scaled the Queens’ Road gate, Colin used his arms to support himself along a narrow ledge.

However, when Nigel tried to follow, he didn’t realise Colin had taken his weight with his arms – and ended up clinging to the pillar, four feet above the water below! “Fortunately, I was sober enough to grab him and pull him to safety,” Colin laughs.

Academically, the Mechanical Sciences degree (as Engineering was known then) was rigorous. Colin recalls the full-on schedule with lectures starting at 9:05 a.m. and practical work interspersed throughout the week, including Saturdays. Despite the heavy workload, he managed to participate in rugby and rowing, even captaining the 2nd XV rugby team and winning an oar in the 1966 Lents race. Clare instilled in him not just engineering knowledge, but also confidence, leadership, and a lasting sense of tolerance.

After graduating from Clare with an engineering degree, Colin’s career took him from serving in the Army to engineering construction, much of his work involved leading workshops and overseeing weapons development. His time at Clare gave him not only technical knowledge but also the confidence and authority to thrive in high-pressure environments.

Following in Her Father's Footsteps...

For Philippa, Colin’s daughter, Clare was a natural choice, influenced by her father’s love for the college. “My dad brought us to Clare a few times to look around and to take out a punt when I was a teenager.  He was clearly very fond of the place and used to tell us tales of his escapades here.  If I was going to come to Cambridge to study then there was never any doubt in my mind that I would apply to Clare!” she says. However, her decision to study engineering surprised even her father. “Girls didn’t often study engineering back then, but I’d always been interested in the practical side of maths and physics, and he shouldn’t really have been surprised given that he’d made me take an interest in the inner workings of a car since early childhood.”

Philippa’s time at Clare was marked by both academic dedication and a vibrant social life. She recalls living in the top of M staircase during her first year, moving to what was then ‘The Colony’ in her second, and then enjoying a prime spot above the Old Court Porters' Lodge in her final year. The friendships she made during those years remain strong, and she keeps in touch with many of her peers from Clare.

One of Philippa’s most memorable contributions to college life was her involvement in organizing events in the college bar. “We came up with the name Clare Cellars and it really took off, with packed events going on into the small hours on a Sunday night,” she recalls, juggling this with early morning rowing outings and lectures.

The balance of work and play was something Philippa mastered, and her memories of Clare are filled with funny moments, such as the time a tray of jam doughnuts revived flagging partygoers at a college event.

After graduation, Philippa embarked on a career in data analysis before founding her own software company. The problem-solving and logical thinking skills she developed through her engineering studies proved invaluable. “Studying engineering at Clare gave me the self-motivation to succeed on my own terms,” she says.