Salesian College was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

voluntary-aided A voluntary aided school (VA school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a religious organisation), contributes to building costs and has a substantial influence in the running of the school. In mo ...

school for boys aged 11 to 16 (previously 11 to 18, until it had to jettison its Sixth Form). It was founded in 1895 in

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batter ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, by the religious order of the

Salesians of Don Bosco The Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB), formally known as the Society of Saint Francis de Sales (), is a religious congregation of men in the Catholic Church, founded in the late 19th century by Italian priest Saint John Bosco to help poor children du ...

, who arrived in Battersea in 1887 as part of Don Bosco's dream to establish a Salesian presence in Great Britain and the British Empire, with its missionary potential. The College aimed to provide an education loosely based on the

principles A principle is a proposition or value that is a guide for behavior or evaluation. In law, it is a rule that has to be or usually is to be followed. It can be desirably followed, or it can be an inevitable consequence of something, such as the la ...

of St John Bosco, founder of the

History

At the end of August 2011 Salesian College and the John Paul II School, both in Wandsworth Borough, merged to create a new school - St John Bosco College. This opened on 1 September 2011 and occupied the Wimbledon site of the former John Paul II School. St John Bosco College moved to the old Surrey Lane site when the new buildings were completed in 2015. In the meantime, it has served as the location of BBC3 sitcom Bad Education and art studios of the Association for Cultural Advancement through Visual Art (ACAVA).

Notable former pupils

Brian Curtin Brian Curtin (b. 1951/52) is a former barrister and Irish circuit court judge, who was tried for possessing images of child pornography. After the case collapsed, the question of whether Curtin could continue as a judge became the focus of politi ...

, former Irish judge. *

Kevin Day Kevin Day (born 3 May 1961 in London) is a British stand up comedian, comedy writer and sports presenter. He came to prominence in the British alternative comedy stand up scene of the late eighties and early nineties, playing clubs like The Comed ...

, comedy writer and sports presenter. * Brian J. Dooley, human rights activist. * Andrew Grima, jewellery designer. * Sir Alfred Hitchcock, KBE, film director; only spent one week there (as a boarder in 1908). * Bryan Marshall, actor. * Mgr Nicholas Morrish, Regional Vicar of

Opus Dei Opus Dei, formally known as the Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei ( la, Praelatura Sanctae Crucis et Operis Dei), is an institution of the Catholic Church whose members seek personal Christian holiness and strive to imbue their work an ...

for Great Britain since 1998. * Lord O'Donnell, GCB, former Cabinet Secretary. *

Jim Reid-Anderson James Reid-Anderson (born 12 April 1959) is a British businessman who was formerly the President (corporate title), president, chairman, and chief executive officer (CEO) of Six Flags Entertainment Corporation. Before working for Six Flags, And ...

, Chairman, President & CEO of

Six Flags Six Flags Entertainment Corporation is an American amusement park corporation, headquartered in Arlington, Texas. It has properties in Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Six Flags owns the most theme parks and waterparks combined of any amu ...

. * Yuri "Aggro" Santos, Brazilian-born rapper. * Joseph Spence, Master of Dulwich College *

Catherine Tate Catherine Jane Ford (born 5 December 1969), known professionally as Catherine Tate, is an English actress, comedian and writer. She has won numerous awards for her work on the BBC sketch comedy series '' The Catherine Tate Show'' (2004–2007) ...

, comedian, actress, personality. *

Danny Thompson Daniel Henry Edward Thompson (born 4 April 1939) is an English multi-instrumentalist best known as a double bassist. He has had a long musical career playing with a large variety of other musicians, particularly Richard Thompson and John Mart ...

, writer. *

Patrick Wilde Patrick Wilde is an English playwright, screenwriter, actor, and director for television, film and theatre. Early work Most of Wilde's early work was centred on the classics. He played Hamlet, Mark Antony for ATC and Amnon in Tirso de Molina's ...

, playwright and screenwriter. *

Martin McDonagh Martin Faranan McDonagh (; born 26 March 1970) is a British-Irish playwright, screenwriter, producer, and director. Born and brought up in London, he is the son of Irish parents. He is known as one of the most acclaimed modern playwrights whose ...

, playwright, screenwriter, and producer.

References

External links

Salesian College websiteSalesians of Don Bosco UKSaint John Bosco School websiteGraham Wilmer Salesian abuse victim
{{authority control Salesian secondary schools Boys' schools in London Educational institutions established in 1895 Defunct schools in the London Borough of Wandsworth Defunct Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Southwark 1895 establishments in England Educational institutions disestablished in 2011 2011 disestablishments in England Buildings and structures in Battersea