The first virtual William of Durham Annual Recognition Day took place on Saturday, 23 May 2020. This is an occasion at which we recognise those members of Univ who have pledged a legacy to the College, and those who are considering this special form of giving.

Normally, the day includes a luncheon in College and a performance by the Univ Players. Due to the lockdown, an online version of the event took place this year via video conferencing.

Old Members and friends of the College from around the world attended – including several people from across the pond. We were thrilled that so many were able to join us – and a few people mentioned that the virtual platform had allowed them to attend for the first time.

“Thank you very much for putting together Saturday’s event, which I greatly enjoyed.”
Dr Felix Böcking (1999, Oriental Studies)

“Many thanks to all concerned for a very successful Virtual William of Durham Day. It must have been a lot of hard work, but it was well worth it!”
Rev Dr Brian Creak (1960, Geography)

“An excellent event, and good but sad to see Ivor and Jill with their rather moving farewell at the end. They will be missed.”
Jonathan Mance (1961, Law)

“I thought the event an excellent innovation and an excellent way to keep in touch. My congratulations and thanks to all who contributed to this professional, interesting and seamless presentation.”
Julian Mathias (1961, Law)

“Thank you for arranging the Zoom meeting today for the William of Durham Club. I thought it was excellent and enjoyed all elements of the programme. I hope you might consider broadcasting future events for those of us who are not able to attend in person.”
Nigel Miller (1982, Chemistry)

“Saturday was truly excellent. Well done to all concerned.”
Nick Perry (1974, Maths & Philosophy)

The Master gave a College report, followed by talks on “Building new communities which unite rather than divide generations” by Professor Sarah Harper, CBE, BA, MA, DPhil, Univ Supernumerary Fellow in Gerontology, Clore Professor of Gerontology at Oxford, and the Founding Director of the Oxford Institute of Population Ageing. She was appointed CBE in 2018 for services to Demography. The second talk was on “SARS coronavirus 2 – is it really going away and could it come back?” by Professor Peter Simmonds, BM, PhD, FRCPath, FRS, Univ Supernumerary Fellow in Medicine and Professor of Virology at Oxford.

The event closed with a message and farewell from The Master and Lady Crewe.

If you would like to know more about leaving a legacy to Univ in your will, or about any other form of giving, please email: Development@univ.ox.ac.uk or visit our Give Back to Univ page.

Published: 9 June 2020

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