OB, parent, governor and now President of the Old Bristolians’ Society, Romesh Vaitilingam has enjoyed a lifelong connection with BGS spanning more than five decades. We caught up with Romesh to hear more about his time at school, the teachers and friendships that shaped him, and why the BGS community continues to mean so much to him today.

Who am I?

I started at BGS aged 11 in what was then called the third form (equivalent to today’s year 7). I was the first of six members of the Vaitilingam family who have been through BGS: my brothers Adam and Joe followed two and six years later; my children Cara and Marco in the late 2000s; and my niece Chloe for two years of sixth form in 2023. In 1973, when I joined, the school was boys only; when I left at the end of 1979, a handful of brave girls had come into the sixth form; my brother Joe was in one of the early mixed cohorts in the third form; and by the time of the next generation, the school had become fully co-educational.

After leaving school, I studied philosophy, politics and economics at St John’s College, Oxford, and since then have had a varied career in and around publishing, journalism, higher education and public policy. For most of that time, I’ve worked as an independent writer and consultant, mainly focused on economics, with current clients including the London School of Economics, the Centre for Economic Policy Research, the University of Chicago and an initiative I launched early in the pandemic called the Economics Observatory (https://www.economicsobservatory.com/).

Earlier this year, I moved to London after nearly three decades back in Bristol. During that time, I reconnected with school not just as a parent and former pupil, but also as a member of the board of governors from 2011 to 2024, including the last eight years as chair. I am honoured now to take on the role of OBs president for 2026/27.

Favourite teacher?

I remember so many inspirational teachers that it is hard to pick just one, so let me mention a few who really stood out: Roland Clare, who taught us English in the sixth form, directed us in a memorable production of ‘The Winter’s Tale’, and whose last class included my daughter Cara; Drahuna Teplicova, who first taught us Russian in the fifth form and then her true subject of economics in the sixth form, and has been a long-time friend; and Richard Hofton, who taught us English, history and religious education in my first year at school, and then 19th century European history in the sixth form.

Best memory of school?

Again, I have so many great memories from my time at BGS – of classes, sports fixtures, drama productions, school trips and much more. But most of all, I have great memories of the friendships made, many of which have lasted for decades – as a wise person said to me recently, you can’t make new old friends. In one’s teenage years, I don’t think we appreciate what we’re getting from our school experiences and the wide range of relationships developed – and it’s only in retrospect that it becomes clear how valuable and foundational to one’s later life they are.

Are you still in touch with OBs from your year?

I am still in touch with many friends from school days, a couple of whom had children at BGS the same time as mine – so that has been a particularly rewarding cross-generational friendship. David Pillinger and Alcuin Wilkie are two people I’ve now been friends with for over 50 years, and from time to time we take trips together, most recently a few days in northern Italy, skiing by the Matterhorn and then exploring Turin, the driving force of 19th century Italian unification, which David and I had studied with Mr Hofton.

Why BGS for your children?

Even on returning to Bristol in the late 1990s just before our eldest was born, I had never imagined sending my children to BGS. But around their early junior school years, it became clear that it was a good fit for Cara and Marco.

They both had a great experience at school: like so many generations of BGS pupils, the quality of the academic experience assumed, but with so much more to enjoy and learn from in the co-curricular activities of music, sport and so on, and the many friendships developed. It was a particular pleasure at the latest OBs annual dinner to reconnect with several of Cara’s friends whose cohort were marking ten years since they left school.

Why is the OB Society important?

The Society is a great way for former pupils, staff and parents both to stay connected with the school and old friends, and to meet fellow OBs and the wider BGS family, both older and younger.

But it’s also highly valuable for supporting the school’s continued ambition to provide a top quality educational experience to as many youngsters as possible regardless of their background – and to support current and former pupils exploring professional opportunities. I am particularly proud to have organised a series of seven annual careers events for lower sixth formers, each time inviting back 30-40 OBs from diverse worlds of work to talk to the pupils and share experiences.

What does being president mean to you?

Back in the early 1970s, I was fortunate enough to have been encouraged by my primary school headmaster to take the BGS entrance exam, and then to be awarded what was called a governors’ scholarship – a free place without which I would not have attended the school and all the positive experiences that followed from that. Having benefited so much from my over half a century of connection with BGS, I am delighted to take on one last role for the school and its alumni as president of the OBs – or POTOB, as my son Marco suggests I style myself!

I am looking forward to seeing pupils, staff and friends old and new at OBs events over the coming year, both back at school like the annual dinner and at reunions elsewhere, especially the annual London drinks reception. I am looking forward to supporting the head, Jaideep Barot, in his inspiring leadership of BGS as we approach the 500th anniversary of the school’s foundation. And I am looking forward to encouraging all members of the BGS family who have the means in the collective philanthropic efforts of the school’s 500 campaign to provide more opportunities for bright and motivated children in and around Bristol.