Going to school at Gordonstoun was the best time of my life

Arctic storms, fighting fires and lunching with the Duke of Edinburgh. By the age of 17 I had done all of the above, thanks to my secondary school, Gordonstoun, currently the focus of a documentary on SkyOne. For those who know it, these activities come as no surprise. For those who don’t, there’s always an air of incredulity when I mention them.

The main building at Gordonstoun

Make no mistake, as someone who was accepted into the school on a scholarship and a bursary, I know how lucky I was, but having been there for 5 years does mean that many of the unusual things I did or was exposed to has become normal for me. Trips on board the school boat for example, completely normal.

Having the Queen, Zara Philips, Prince Philip and Prince Edward (among other well known alumni) to visit whilst I was at school, again, completely normal.

Joining the school’s fire service was, you guessed it, completely normal (however, the only fire I ever fought was at an open day demonstration).

Student firefighter

This all makes it sound very “posh” to use the Daily Mail’s favourite adjective when describing Gordonstoun. But having been there, although there is admittedly a “posh” accent or two and some strange traditions (the head boy and girl are allowed to keep a goat for example), the people – from staff to students – are very down to earth.

The school had a boat, yes, but this boat served a purpose. Living in a small enclosed space for a week for example has meant that I have learned how to accept or at least tolerate those I might not have otherwise seen eye to eye with.

Not only this, but living in a boarding house with 60 other girls means that moving into halls was second nature to me. I didn’t struggle with homesickness and the idea of being away from home in a shared space was not a new one. I’m glad though that I didn’t have these things to worry about, because I have been so used to a small community.

Even though St Andrews is quite a small university it was a huge leap up and I did feel quite alone, going from having so many people that knew all about me to hardly knowing anyone.

Very cold on watch in the Arctic

As well as this though, cheesy as it is, but the motto “there is more in you” has stayed with me.

But it’s more than just the literal meaning, for example, “there is always more sick in you” (very true as I discovered on Raisin… thanks Dad!)

It means that you can always push yourself to do more, you can always find the courage to go out of your comfort zone and try something new. And actually this is quite comforting. Knowing that you’re doing something that you’re uncomfortable with in order to better yourself makes the difficult thing more manageable.

This and the fact that having been on exchange to a school in Canada for a term, where for the first half all I did was cry and wish I was at home, means that I know that often things get better. Or at least they can’t be bad forever. This really helped me settle in at university. Initially I didn’t enjoy it too much because I missed my school and my friends, but these things don’t last forever and new friends can always be made.

The fire station

I do know though that the friends I made at school will stay with me forever. That’s probably one of the things that made my time there so enjoyable. We’ve been through a lot together, we’ve quite literally grown up together.

I miss being able to be quite so weird with them. St Andrews is great for being full of weird and wonderful people too but maybe its because its only my first year or I just had an exceptional year group in my boarding house, but I think some of the things we got up to at school are still very different and strange to those who didn’t go there.

weird bunch of people…

Again, this makes it sound very exclusive, and I suppose with the issue of school fees and private education it is.

This is a bit of a sticky topic, but it is just frustrating for someone who went to a school that values openness and humility towards others (having such an international cohort of students and valuing service to the community) that there are those who continue to stereotype the school which I loved so much without properly trying to understand it or look past a beautiful old building or fancy school uniform… we only wore it on special occasions anyway.

In a way then, I’m glad there’s a documentary out, perhaps it will change perceptions, perhaps not. But I’m more than content with my experiences there and I know I’m well set up to take on the challenges of uni life at St Andrews and all the wacky things that come with it.