A fascinating piece of school history has been uncovered in Skipwith, as a time capsule hidden in 1963 has been found. The capsule, contained in an unsuspecting dried milk tin, was concealed in the fireplace in the main entrance to Skipwith building and placed there in 1963 by students John Barham (65B) and John Culme (64B) - both now in their 70s. The location of the capsule was finally revealed when John Barham attended our Old Viking Open House Tour in January and shared the secret he has been keeping for over 60 years! Remarkably, according to John, the pair also hid two more time capsules around the Skipwith building which have yet to be found.

Letter addressed to the finder of the capsule

Hidden in the capsule was a letter addressed to the finder, written by John Culme under the alias "Gerald Del'Haye". Dated 2:40pm on 29th November 1963, the letter expresses concern over the survival of the capsule as a school dance was approaching where the fire would be lit below the hiding spot of the time capsule. The letter also explains the postcard enclosed in the capsule which depicts a photo of Edwardian actress, dancer and singer, Gabrielle Ray - a name that Culme states "shall never die". When we contacted John Barham after finding the capsule, he recalled how he and Culme would often visit Culme's house in Kingston and visit a shop in London to buy postcards. This particular postcard was part of Culme's fascination with Gabrielle Ray - so much so that, during their time at the College, Barham and Culme took a trip to Goring to visit her family home! As Ray would have been in her 80s when the two were schoolboys, Barham admits he never really understood his friends obsession with the long-retired star. 

Postcard of Gabrielle Ray

The time capsule also contained a range of documents that capture a snapshot of life at Shiplake College in its early days. These included the rules of the library, a chapel timetable, and an English exam that John Barham had completed that day. A booklet containing the full Elvis Presley song list was also in the capsule, a gift from school friend John Osborne who owned every Elvis Presley record. As founders of the school's film society, Culme and Barham also included a film distribution catalogue. Film society would hold screenings in the Great Hall where students would pay two shillings and sixpence to watch a film of the societies choosing. Barham still recalls his impressive ability to change a film reel in 28 seconds!

Other documents found in the capsule including Full Elvis Presley Songlist, Film Distribution Catalogue and The Library Rules

The most mysterious of the contents of the capsule is a half-deciphered code that John Barham has since attempted to solve with no success. Please feel free to have a crack at it and let us know if you can work out the message!

Undeciphered code

To provide a bit of context into the world outside Shiplake, the boys also included two pages of the Daily Mail, dated a week before the time capsule was hidden. These documents and pieces of history from the time beg the question of what would you add to a time capsule hidden in 2025?

Two pages of The Daily Mail, dated 22 November 1963

While this remarkable discovery has been uncovered, at least two more time capsules remain hidden in the College. These snippets of history enclosed in a milk tin make you wonder what other treasures might still be waiting to be found?

The documents were enclosed in a cigar tin with "Good Luck Go As Far As You Can" engraved on the lid. This was then stored in a dried milk tin.

The smallest note in the capsule hinting there is still more to be found...