{"id":14511,"date":"2025-04-24T07:53:22","date_gmt":"2025-04-24T07:53:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.reading.ac.uk\/connected\/?p=14511"},"modified":"2025-04-28T12:07:29","modified_gmt":"2025-04-28T12:07:29","slug":"time-travelling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.reading.ac.uk\/connected\/2025\/04\/24\/time-travelling\/","title":{"rendered":"Time Travelling"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n

“It felt like time travel; where had the previous 50 years gone?” was how Richard Woodward felt on reuniting with his fellow Reading graduates half a century after leaving the University.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was in October 1968 when Richard began studying physics at the University of Reading \u2013 he remained here for six years, undertaking a PhD, and made strong friendships during his time here.<\/p>\n

\"Students
Students outside ‘A Block’<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

He recalled: \u201cI didn\u2019t get a place in halls in my first year so I ended up in digs on New Road, off Redlands Road. I also missed Freshers\u2019 Week, so it wasn\u2019t the best start!\u201d In his second year, Richard moved to Whiteknights Hall, where he stayed for three years before moving to Sibley Hall.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cWhiteknights was a traditional single sex hall with formal dinners at 7pm each night, where everyone was required to wear their undergraduate gown.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cThe rooms were laid out in groups of eight with an open communal area in the middle, which was a focal point for meeting fellow students.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cThis is where I met Dave Callis, Dave Messer, Neil Fleming, Andy Kirton and Pete Spall. Lesley Messer (n\u00e9e Wilson) and Jenny Kirton (n\u00e9e Cutts), who lived in Wessex and Bridges Hall, also became part of the A Block community,\u201d Richard shared.<\/p>\n

Andy recalled: \u201cI met Jenny at the beginning of the first term during Freshers\u2019 Week, when the so-called \u2018gentlemen\u2019 of Whiteknights Hall were invited to a social evening by the \u2018ladies\u2019 of Bridges Hall.\u201d Lesley was Dave\u2019s girlfriend, and both couples went on to get married giving this friendship group two #UoRLoveStories!<\/p>\n

\"RichardRichard added: \u201cWe all enjoyed our time at Reading with lots of fond memories. In particular, Andy and Jenny remember the formal hall dances and the Vice-Chancellor\u2019s Ball at the end of the summer term, which went on all night.<\/p>\n

“I was also part of the Reading University Society of Change Ringers \u2013 which is the practice of ringing a set of tuned bells in the bell tower of a church in continually varying order \u2013 alongside Pete Spall which I enjoyed. While Dave Messer was an enthusiastic member of the rowing club.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dave Messer reflected on how lucky the group had been to be at Reading during the early 1970s. He said: \u201cIt was a different world in terms of financial student support, pressure to succeed in exams, and seeking employment after graduation.\u201d<\/p>\n

The reunion<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Richard shared that Neil and Andy had kept in touch over the years, while others exchanged Christmas cards. When Neil suggested it was about time they had a reunion, Richard was only too happy to be a part of it.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cWe weren\u2019t able to contact everyone that used to meet in the communal area, but those of us who had kept in touch arranged to meet at a hotel in Reading for an evening meal on 17 April 2024. The following morning we went for a nostalgic stroll around Whiteknights Campus.<\/p>\n

\n

“This was the first time we had all been together since the early 1970s.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cWe all felt comfortable in each other\u2019s company even though there was this enormous chasm between then and now \u2013 during which we had led our lives, had families and careers, and were now enjoying retirement. So a considerable amount of the conversation was focused on catching up on each other\u2019s lives over the past 50 years!<\/p>\n

\"Richard\u201cAs well as much laughter and reminiscing about our University days, we observed how many things we take for granted today \u2013 like the internet, social media and mobile phones \u2013 these things would have seemed like science fiction in the early 1970s.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, reuniting almost felt like time travel; where had the previous 50 years gone?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was lovely to see the campus again, but we were sad to see that Whiteknights Hall had gone. We recognised many of the 1960s buildings that still remain \u2013 although physics is no longer taught at Reading, Pete and I had a brief look around the JJ Thomson building, while the Faculty of Letters building [now Edith Morley] and the Library brought back memories for Neil and Andy, despite looking a bit different now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finding lost friends<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Since meeting up, the group have been trying \u2013 with the help of the University of Reading Alumni Team \u2013 to get in touch with other friends from their time at University. So far they\u2019ve made contact with Keith Darwood (history), Brian Capper (physiology and biochemistry of farm animals), Jeff Gennings (physiology and biochemistry) and Mike O\u2019Neil (history).<\/p>\n

If anyone remembers socialising in the top floor communal area, in A Block of Whiteknights Hall during the late 1960s and early 1970s, this group of alumni would be delighted to hear from you.<\/p>\n

Please email alumni@reading.ac.uk<\/a> if you would like to be put back in touch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“It felt like time travel; where had the previous 50 years gone?” was how Richard Woodward felt on reuniting with his fellow Reading graduates half a century after leaving the University. It was in October 1968 when Richard began studying physics at the University of Reading \u2013 he remained here for six years, undertaking a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":225,"featured_media":11681,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[5],"tags":[185,195,186,189],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nTime Travelling - Connected<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\""It felt like time travel; where had the previous 50 years gone?" was how Richard Woodward felt reuniting with his fellow Reading graduates.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sites.reading.ac.uk\/connected\/2025\/04\/24\/time-travelling\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Time Travelling - Connected\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\""It felt like time travel; 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