Message from the Master

I don’t think any of us who enjoyed the 675th Anniversary Campaign launch dinner in July will ever forget the Hall looking so magical, with light and video projections on the ceilings and walls transforming the space. Recent alumna Sam Elbahja’s reading of her spoken word poem, The Wishing Well, brought a lump to my throat.

Don’t worry if you missed the launch, there are still many more events to participate in through this historic year. There are other magical memories stored and celebrated in A Trinity Hall Treasury and our excellent 1350 souvenirs. I look forward to seeing many of you at the events ahead, or at reunions, and am deeply grateful for all the support so many of you are offering to College in this special year.

Philanthropy is enabling a new way for us to support undergraduates, by offering summer research placements with our Fellows. Our Fellows have to bid to have an intern (it’s very popular!) and students have to apply. We piloted the scheme last year, and it’s been very successful. Undergraduates don’t often get the chance to start exploring the world of research in this way and as a research-led university, I’m glad we can offer alternatives to corporate summer internships, wonderful as they can be too.

Summer was magnificent, the gardens bursting into life and students bursting onto the lawn early this year, then retreating for a cold patch before the warm weather and post-exam celebrations took over, culminating in the rite of passage that is graduation and the graduands’ dinner. I also enjoyed an afternoon of great pride and shared frustration at football Cuppers. Trinity Hall’s men’s team was in the final for the first time since 1984, losing in a penalty shootout. The team was valiant and as I think they say, ‘left everything on the pitch’. I also must commend our Boat Club for their incredible May Bumps’ performances. THBC W1 is the first women’s crew to end the Mays in one of the top two positions since 1983, a reminder that our triumphs are shared with those who came before us.

As this edition of Front Court highlights, our students’ and Fellows’ achievements are as impressive as ever. Professor Hatice Gunes, Head of the Affective Intelligence and Robotics Laboratory and shortlisted nominee for the Sony Women in Technology Award with Nature 2025, presented at the United Nations AI for Good Global Summit, driving technological innovation forward. I also enjoyed hearing from Tyr Hogsander and his team. Tyr finds time outside his studies and Riviera Racing to serve as the JCR President, one of the many students who help make Trinity Hall what it is by engaging in College governance. We’re very grateful to them all, as they help us navigate the next 675 years.