St John's College is one of the recognised colleges of

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

. The college was established in 1909 as a

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theological college and became a full constituent college of the university in 1919. The college consists of John's Hall for students studying on any university course and Cranmer Hall (with its own master or warden), an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

theological college A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and Christian theology, theology, generally to prepare them for ordinatio ...

in the

open evangelical An open evangelical attempts to uphold Evangelicalism, evangelical doctrines, morality, and spirituality, while also being Inclusive theology, inclusive of others. It is a term which is commonly used in the United Kingdom in reference to both indivi ...

tradition. All part time and distance learning postgraduate students reading for theology are automatically assigned to St John's. Started as a men's college, it was the first Church of England theological college to train men and women together, where it subsequently became mixed. St John's is Durham's second smallest college only to St Chad's. Being an independent college, St John's is financially and constitutionally independent of the university and has a greater degree of administrative independence than the other, "maintained", colleges. However, to maintain its status as a recognised college, the university council must approve the appointment of its principal and be notified of changes to its constitution. The college has a reputation for being religious due to it being the only college in Durham authorised to train people to priesthood. The college is also strictly traditional and Johnians hold their own matriculation ceremony in their 12th-century chapel, in addition to the university wide matriculation at the

Cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

; members of St John's are also required to wear gowns for weekly formal dinners, and still say grace in

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

. St John's is the only college in Durham to not charge its students to attend formals. Students also get £75 credit for laundry, the only college to offer this. The college chapel (Church of St Mary the Less) is also the final resting place of Dame Elizabeth Bowes. She had ten children and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother was descended from her third son, George Bowes.

History

Founded as a

theological college in 1909, the members of the initial College Council were: The college became a full constituent college of the university in 1919. In 1958 it was divided into Cranmer Hall theological college and the non-theological John's Hall. The halls have always held to a broadly evangelical tradition. In 1973 St John's became the first Durham undergraduate male college to admit female students, though Cranmer Hall had been admitting women for theological education since 1966. St John's was the first Church of England theological college to have both a lay person and a woman as principal ( Ruth Etchells). The college has an advowson (a right to appoint clergy to a parish) over four

benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

s: Chester-le-Street and Stranton in the Diocese of Durham and jointly with other avowees the benefices of Doddington with Benwick and Wimblington, and St Mark with St Paul, Darlington. Previously, the patron had complete power to appoint the new priest, however that power is now exercised jointly with the local bishop and parish.

Buildings

The college is formed from a number of Georgian houses on the Bailey between

Durham Cathedral Durham Cathedral, formally the , is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Durham, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Durham and is the Mother Church#Cathedral, mother church of the diocese of Durham. It also contains the ...

and the River Wear. The main house is Haughton House, named after Haughton Castle in Northumberland, the seat of the family of William Donaldson Cruddas who were early benefactors of the college and other Christian churches and charities in the north east of England. The houses which make up Cranmer Hall were once owned by the Bowes-Lyon family (the late Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother's family). The majority of the college buildings are

grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

, with parts of 3 and 4 South Bailey grade II* listed. Before coming into the possession of St John's, Linton House, no 1 South Bailey, was the main property of St. Chad's College. It is said to have much earlier origins, with the frontage seen today added to an existing timber-framed building after the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660. No 2 South Bailey has distinctive circular "blind" windows which were revealed during a re-rendering in the 1980s. This enabled Martin Roberts, then Durham City's conservation officer, to date the building precisely to the late 17th century. The illogically interconnected nature of many of the college buildings regularly results in visitors becoming lost. The similarly unusual nature of college stairways, one of which disappears into a solid wall, adds an element of Escher to the architecture. The college chapel, dedicated to St Mary and known as St Mary the Less, is of Norman origin and was rebuilt in the 1840s and re-ordered at the turn of the 21st century. It became the college chapel in 1919, before which it had been the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of the South Bailey. It is still a

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

in the

Parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of St Oswald. The chapel is also used by the local Greek Orthodox congregation.

Student life

Owing to its small population, Johnians tend to know one another regardless of year, course or accommodation (all of the first years and the majority of finalists live in college; the second years are required to find their own accommodation). Elected Freshers Reps are generally well known throughout college thereby giving new Johnians more opportunities for one-on-one interaction, providing a more solid foundation in their first few weeks than in the larger colleges. St John's participates in a number of sports such as cross country running, mixed lacrosse, rowing, men's football, badminton, hockey and rugby among others. St John's College Boat Club was founded in 1910 and operates out of two boathouses on the River Wear. The college's theatre company, Bailey Theatre Company, is ratified by Durham Student Theatre and is open to any member of the university. Their 2019 performance of Alan Ayckbourn's "Family Circles", produced in collaboration with St. Chad's, featured a cast and production team formed entirely from first-year students. Other performances include

Sarah Kane Sarah Kane (3 February 1971 – 20 February 1999) was an English playwright, screenwriter and theatre director. She is known for her plays that deal with themes of redemptive love, sexual desire, pain, torture—both physical and psychological ...

's '' 4.48 Psychosis'' in the Epiphany term of 2009 and Arthur Miller's ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote ...

'' in the Michaelmas term of 2008. The company also puts on an annual Shakespeare performance after university examinations in the summer. This traditionally involves an outdoor performance on Library Lawn, though the college's newly refurbished amphitheatre was used in 2019. In 2008, the society's performance of

Christopher Marlowe Christopher Marlowe ( ; Baptism, baptised 26 February 156430 May 1593), also known as Kit Marlowe, was an English playwright, poet, and translator of the Elizabethan era. Marlowe is among the most famous of the English Renaissance theatre, Eli ...

's '' Doctor Faustus'' won the Durham Student Theatre Award for Best Play. John's Music Society, founded in 2012, is the governing body for music within college. It regularly puts on large-scale concerts and helps students set up new musical ensembles as well as organising socials and concert trips for its members. The society is also responsible for organising popular open mic nights and the annual JMS barbecue.

List of principals

* 1909–1911 Sidney Nowell Rostron * 1911–1919 Dawson Dawson-Walker * 1919–1945 Charles Steel Wallis * 1945–1953 Ronald Williams * 1954–1955 G.J. Cumming (acting) * 1954–1969 Jim P. Hickinbotham * 1970–1978 John C. P. Cockerton * 1978–1988 Ruth Etchells * 1988–1992 Anthony Thiselton * 1992–1999 David V. Day * 1999–2006 Stephen Sykes * 2006–2023 David Wilkinson * 2023–present Jolyon Mitchell

Notable alumni

File:Douglas Davies.jpg, Douglas Davies, academic File:Nick Ramsay 2011.jpg, Nick Ramsay, conservative politician File:Mobilising Faith Communities in Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict (15862086073).jpg,

Justin Welby Justin Portal Welby (born 6 January 1956) is an Anglican bishop who served as the 105th archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England from 2013 to 2025. After an 11-year career in the oil industry, Welby trained for ordination at St John ...

, the former

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

File:SteveCroft Consecration.JPG, Steven Croft, bishop of Oxford

John's Hall

* Richard Adams, pioneer of fair trade and founder of Traidcraft * Norman Aspin – High Commissioner to Malta * James Bell, Bishop of Knaresborough, area Bishop for Ripon * Richard Blackburn,

Bishop of Warrington __NOTOC__ The Bishop of Warrington is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Liverpool, in the Province of York, England. The title takes its name after the town of Warrington in Cheshire; the current b ...

* Mark Bryant, Bishop of Jarrow * Douglas Davies, theologian * Gavin Hewitt - special correspondent for

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

* Ben Howlett - Conservative MP for

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2015 - 2017 * Andrew Macrae (judge) - Vice President of the Court of Appeal of Hong Kong * Alice Oseman - author ('' Heartstopper'', ''Solitaire'') * Jack Plumley, Sir Herbert Thompson Professor of Egyptology, Cambridge; trained for ordination at St John's college before the theological college was split off into Cranmer Hall * Nick Ramsay MS, Conservative former Senedd Member for Monmouth and Shadow Finance Minister * Rachel Schofield – journalist and

presenter

Cranmer Hall

Both

* Michael Beasley, Bishop of Bath and Wells * Chris Edmondson, former Bishop of Bolton * Robert Paterson, former Bishop of Sodor and Man * Geoff Pearson, Bishop of Lancaster * John Saxbee, former

Bishop of Lincoln The Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary (diocesan bishop) of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury. The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of Nort ...

* Richard Turnbull, Principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford *

, former

Gallery

File:St Johns Durham.JPG, Haughton House File:Durham 08.jpg, St. Mary the Less college chapel File:St. John's College, Durham - geograph.org.uk - 938906.jpg, St. John's viewed from the South Bailey File:Durham Regatta Womens Eights.jpg, St. John's College Boat Club racing