'The Record' is the correct name for what I have always thought of as the school 'magazine', though none of those in my possession bear that title. I understand present day editions do.

	Recently I re-read the nine school magazines I have, in order to check some event dates. I cannot believe how poor they were! The format never changed, the prose is turgid, the articles either sycophantic or elitist. It is as if they thought that, by changing the cover (and Heaven knows that needed doing!), they had improved it. By 1959 it was difficult to identify the year! The contents don't reflect the school I went to, which was lively and innovative. The only publication of any merit was Colin Tyson's excellent booklet 'The Arms in Big School', published in 1953 to celebrate the Coronation. Never judge a book by its cover!

More recent issues of 'The Record' have come my way and they contrast sharply, and favourably, with those of my era. As their covers suggest they are quite 'funky' and reflect very different relationships between the groups that make up the modern Aston school community. Hearty congratulations to all concerned!

In his senior years at Aston, Ian McDonnell (1959) was a member of the team that ran the school library under the guidance - by then benevolent! - of Harry Tyson. Harry gave Ian a number of documents that were 'surplus to requirements' - presumably because they were duplicates. Until October 2006 these had lain in Ian's loft, which he then decided to clear!

There he found copies of the 'The Record' for 1927, 1930 and 1941ca.:

1910	1920s	1930s	War time	Post War

Thanks, Ian!

Since working in the school's Archive Centre I have found an edition of 'The Record' dated 1910, and described as 'Volume 2, number 2'. Then there is a long gap until the March, 1926 edition, which is described as 'Volume 1, number 1, New series'. After that there is an almost complete run, even during World War II. Copies are missing for 1928 and 1930.