SOME of Marlwood School's (and its predecessor, Thornbury Grammar School) most successful Old Boys and Girls revisited their alma mater on Saturday to help launch a year of celebrations marking 400 years of top flight education.

The roots of today's modern Marlwood School go back to the founding of Thornbury Grammar School (TGS) in 1606 and events and reunions of all kinds are planned throughout the current year.

In the Marlwood drama hall on Saturday evening, a panel of past pupils, all of them distinguished in some way, gave a resume of their achievements to a capacity audience of pupils, staff (teaching and non teaching) parents, governors, friends of the school and council and primary School representatives.

Organising team member David Goldring said; "This was no traditional speech night. We heard the realities behind the successes. For some, success started at school and just carried onto in adult life. But others found their careers accelerated as a result of decisions and achievements made during early adulthood."

Contributors from both TGS and Marlwood days (and a few who made the transition between the two) spoke warmly of the secure basis for their subsequent lives that the school provided, despite difficult times en route. The bullying that can seem to cripple young lives now was not unknown then; nor were doubts about future potential.

What was very clear was the value in the lives of each panellist of the role of teachers who believed in them as people, gave them confidence and created opportunities for talents to flourish.

Martin Holloway, son of the late Keith Holloway, formerly head of geography at both TGS and Marlwood, was first speaker. Martin is manager of Bristol District Postal Services, controlling a £34million budget. His degree qualification was not immediately useful when he graduated and he had to be content with some time spent with domestic refuse collection before his rapid rise through the Post Office ranks.

Former England rugby captain, local farmer and chairman of Aust Parish Council, John Pullin, also spoke of the merits of patience, getting the right grounding in the relevant skills and his surprise at the willingness of current internationals to give up their team places before being displaced by better players. John would still be playing for England, if they would have him.

Mark Wheeler is among the top three of the country's playwrights whose work is used in schools and gained his grounding in plays and musicals he wrote himself before a "proper drama teacher", Barbie Davies, was appointed at Marlwood. Still earning a good income from royalties, Mark is a very successful drama teacher in Southampton, in spite of failing his A levels.

His contemporary Peter Ayton - now Professor of Psychology at City University, London - told how his own career emerged slowly during his post graduate years, taking many twists and turns and showing the benefits of doggedly sticking to the passion that drives you, even though it might seem to have no immediate employment prospects.

David Harrison, managing director of prestigious ornamental plastering company Hales and Howe, said his own degree in Marine Biology had provided no employment prospects and he, too, had to be content with a variety of make-do jobs early-on.

He spoke with force on the folly of expecting so many young people to pursue further education at the expense of work-based education in skill areas that Schools can no longer offer:

Helen Cross - now a reader in the University of London, and a consultant paediatric neurologist at Great Ormond Street Hospital - found success in just about everything she tackled at school. However, she said, it would be quite wrong to think that people like her did not need to strive - her quest for success involved much hard work and many sacrifices.

Former parent, PTA committee member and governor Don Bond spoke of the school from a different perspective - the support provided to him and his family by the pastoral system. It was something too easily overlooked in these times of league tables when success was measured only in terms of exam passes.

The final contribution really did make the audience sit-up. Professional opera singer mezzosoprano Kate Radmilovich provided a finale to remember with a bravura performance of Bizet's Carmen.

Chairman of governors Mervyn Darville thanked everyone for making the event so enjoyable and new governor Les Slater spoke of the establishment of a curriculum development fund to which people were invited to contribute.