Jonathan Hall

Born in 1937, Jonathan Hall grew up in an academic environment which was to shape his whole life. His parents owned and ran Arnold Lodge, a preparatory school in Leamington Spa. Despite his own largely unrewarding school days, a spell of teaching at Arnold Lodge made him realise that its future lay with him. Taking the reins at the age of only 25, he ran the school for almost thirty years, retiring early in 1991 when he was diagnosed with a brain turmour. Under his leadership, pupil numbers increased from 50 to 400, and on a visit to the school, the then Education Secretary Margaret Thatcher said: “I know that our inspectorate hold this school in very high regard and it is of a very high reputation.”

In 2000 he published his autobiography No End in Sight, which topped the bestseller list at Waterstone’s in his home town.