BOAT RACE: 25th NYC Dinner 1958

The 25th ("Silver Anniversary") Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race Dinner was held at the Harvard Club of New York City, on April 11, 1958.

It was chaired by C. F. Martineau (Univ., Oxford), who proposed both toasts, to the President of the United States and H.M. the Queen.

The speaker was John Peck, C.M.G. (Oxford), Director General of British Information Services.

He was introduced by Peter Greig (Cambridge).

The Committee was composed of seven Oxford men and four Cambridge men.

Total attendance was 120 men - all Oxford or Cambridge alums, no spouses or guests - which is the capacity of the Biddle Room.

Quentin Keith prepared the menu card, and invented various Oxford and Cambridge college specialties out of the Harvard Club dinner fare, for example:

• Olives Oriel
• Trinity Celery
• Oxbridge Beef
• Worcester Saucisse
• Broccoli a la Balliol
• Queens' Peaches
• Creme Pembroke
• Demi-Tasse Tomquadrivium
• Haricot Madeleine (presumed ref. to Magdalen College Oxford or Magdalene College Cambridge)
• Gravy Grantchester is an early (1950s) television murder-mystery series set in Cambridge, an early rough draft, so to speak, of the more sophisticated Inspector Morse.
• Potatoes Pierremaison seems to refer to a meal that Rumpole of the Bailey had at Maison Pierre. But this reference is the one I am least sure of.

Assistance/corrections/elaborations humbly sought on the menu references. Email john@cityeconomist.com.

BOAT RACE: 17th NYC BRD 1949 - Speakers and Menu

This is the first of the menus that I have in my possession, thanks to Quentin Keith (Kings, Cambridge), who passed on to me the earliest menu provided here and many others.

His granddaughter was accepted at Oriel College, Oxford to study physics in 1995.

Other estates that may have early menus among their papers might be those of Committee members in 1949 or 1955.

The Committee list in 1949 was much shorter than in 1955 and the only overlap is Louis B. Warren:
Lawrence C. Hill (BNC, Oxford)
Leslie A. Hyam (Trinity, Cambridge)
John C. Jenkins (Corpus Christi, Cambridge)
James B. Orrick (New College, Oxford)
H. Gregory Thomas (Corpus Christi, Cambridge)
R. A. van der Straeten (Pembroke, Cambridge)
Louis B. Warren (Trinity, Oxford)
John A. Wells (Balliol, Oxford)
H. N. Wilcox (St. John's, Oxford)


The 1955 Committee was:
L. A. Astley-Bell (Pembroke, Cambridge)
Charles G. Bolte (New College, Oxford)
Candler Cobb (Oriel, Oxford)
Bruce F. E. Harvey (BNC, Oxford) - Chairman of the dinner before Denis Woodfield, who preceded me.
Cedric R. Lane (Pembroke, Cambridge)
Malcolm A. MacIntyre (BNC, Oxford)
John M. Martin (Hertford, Oxford)
C. F. Martineau (Univ., Oxford)
V. J. D. Stavridi (Ch.Ch., Oxford)
John Treadwell (Ch.Ch., Oxford) [He died in 1968 or 1969]
Louis B. Warren (Trinity, Oxford)
Hobart G. Weekes (Exeter, Oxford)
G. N. T. Widdrington (SEH, Oxford)
Rivington Winant (Balliol, Oxford)

I have a complete file of dinner menus except for the following years:

1933-1948, 1950-53, 1972, 1977-78.