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It was a celebration but a poignant one when pupils past and present, teachers and headmaster gathered to celebrate Newtown School Waterford, A History 1798/1998 yesterday. The author, Maurice J. Wigham, a former principal of the school, had passed away just a few weeks before the publication of the book, which marks the 200th birthday of the school. Nonetheless, there was a quiet sense of celebration in one of Ireland's oldest schools. Roy Foster, whose book on Yeats recently won the James Tait Black award, travelled over from Oxford university, where he is currently the Carroll Professor of Irish History, to do the honours at the party. He is a past pupil of the school himself and, unlike many who would rather put their school days well behind them, has many pleasant memories. "Newtown is a great Irish institution. The Quaker ethos gives a peculiar and interesting contribution both to the school and to Irish society - a diversity, pluralism and radicalism. I think that contribution is very obvious when you look at some of the great dynasties that went there, that are quite apart from its fine academic record - Stephen and Simon Pearce, the potters; Nicholas Mosse, the potter and his brother, the painter Paul Mosse; the Allens of Ballymaloe. They are emblematic of a style that Newtown contributed to Irish life."

Foster also pointed out the symbolism in the fact that the school was founded in 1798, a particularly resonant year at the moment. From the start, boys and girls were educated together and the Quakerism has evolved into a multi-denominational ethic. Other past pupils include singer Sinead O'Connor; artist Alwyn Gillespie; the Irish rugby international Nick Popplewell; the late UN diplomat Erskine Childers; author Ian Gibson; Victor Bewley of cafe fame; and RTE sports presenter Roy Willoughby.