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‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’ (1886) by Thomas Hardy Arguably Hardy’s greatest work, The Mayor of Casterbridge is the tragic story of Michael Henchard, a man who rises to civic...
As part of our ongoing drive to support the wellbeing of staff and aid recruitment and retention to Bushey Meads School and the Bushey St James Trust in September 2018 we opened...
Every year, Bushey Meads School hosts a ‘Secondary School Experience Week’ for the Year 6 students in the Bushey St James Trust. During this week, the students spend a week at...
Normally at this time of year we offer a Secondary School Experience Week to all the Year 6 students in our Multi Academy Trust, irrespective of whether or not they are intending...
The final three books in the Carnegie Shortlist demonstrate the range of content that is considered the best of the newest children’s literature. While Black Flamingo offers an...
During this lockdown period many of our usual events have understandably not been able to take place. Despite this many of our key leaders have continued to make outstanding...
Our Year 11 students did not have the planned finish to their time of their Key Stage 3 and 4 education at Bushey Meads that we had wanted to give them but we do hope they have...
We have had numerous messages of support from parents and carers during this challenging period in the life of our school. Although we have all experienced difficulties and know...
It has been great to see the arts in the news for positive reasons this week. As Covid-19 caused the closure of so many live music venues and theatres, the government...
‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’ (1886) by Thomas Hardy
Arguably Hardy’s greatest work, The Mayor of Casterbridge is the tragic story of Michael Henchard, a man who rises to civic prominence but is haunted by his past. The first chapter features one of the most shocking events in Victorian literature, while the psychological mind games and dramatic plot twists in this story about the protagonist’s rise and fall, will keep your attention throughout.
I first came across this story as a child, when I walked into the living room to find it empty (very unusual in my home) and the television showing a man trying to sell his wife at a fair. I was fascinated and shocked in equal measure, having no idea what was happening or why. Fast forward to my GCSE years and my English teacher placed ‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’ on my desk. We began reading and I was hit with the sudden recognition that this was the scene that I’d witnessed on the television some years before. Finally, I got to find out what happened next and so began my love of Thomas Hardy!
