The 180th OEA Dinner took place in London last Friday, 2 October 2026, at the wonderful Oriental Club, bringing together 30 guests from across our community.

It was particularly special to welcome our new OEA President, Lyndon Trott OBE (6722), to his first London dinner in the role. We were also delighted to have such a broad range of ages represented, from 18 to 86, highlighting the strength and continuity of the OEA community across generations.

The Principal, Jenny Palmer (8989), gave an interesting update on Elizabeth College, sharing news and developments from the College. She also proudly showed the first copy of Exile: The Evacuation of Elizabeth College, written by Bruce Parker (4747), which was a particularly special.

Our Guest of Honour was Keith Le Page (6010), who gave a fascinating and entertaining speech reflecting on his remarkable career. In Keith’s own words, it involved a lot of "watching paint dry".

Keith left College in 1975 with a scholarship to Oxford University, where he studied Physics at Exeter College. He subsequently joined ICI as an Operational Research Scientist in the Paints Division, Dulux, beginning a long and varied career spanning Purchasing, Marketing, Planning and Business Management. His career also took him to Singapore, where he became the first Business Development Manager and later General Manager for Car Repair paints. In his final ten years before retirement, Keith returned to the scientific world as Head of ICI Paints Research and also served as President of the Paint Research Association for five years.

Beyond his professional career, Keith has been Chairman of the Guernsey Society for more than 20 years, a role he continues today. He lives in Cookham, Berkshire, where he is Chairman of Cookham Twinning and serves on the management committee of the Stanley Spencer Gallery.

A wonderful evening, excellent food, and, most importantly, a great opportunity to bring so many members and friends of our community together.

Thank you to everyone who joined us and helped make the 180th OEA Dinner such a memorable occasion.