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Week 15
On Monday Christmas meals were held in three sittings: Pringle followed by the Chalmers Houses at lunchtime, and the Senior School in the evening. Rock bands at junior and senior levels performed at all the meals, and the traditional speeches (or banter) by the Head Boy and the Headmaster were given at the evening meal.
Term ended after the Carol Service – full as ever – on Tuesday evening.
Happy Christmas to all our readers!
Week 14
 Three concerts took place in the Memorial Hall this week: on Tuesday, Pringle gave its termly concert, on Friday the main school concert of the term (pictured left) included all major ensembles, and on Sunday the Community Choir of parents and local residents performed a Christmas Concert including carols to a large audience. Carols were performed in local old people's homes on Thursday by a group of Chapel Choir members. Almost every team in the school played rugby against Stewart's-Melville on Saturday, and the Basketball and Curling teams were in action in fixtures in their respective cup competitions. The Headmaster awarded more sports colours, and Arts Honours for contributions to music and to drama in Tuesday's assembly.
Week 13
On Monday, the Second Form went on a history trip to Stirling and Bannockburn. The main event of the week was the senior production of Singin' in the Rain, staged jointly with St George's. This was hugely successful, and the theatre was absolutely packed for each of the three performances. Costumes, lighting, and rain effects were all superbly done, as were the dance numbers in particular.
Week 12
Returning after the leave weekend, we were honoured to have a visit from the distinguished author Alexander McCall Smith. He gave the whole school a highly amusing talk in assembly, referring to his work as a novelist, and then conducted a creative writing workshop for a group of interested boys. The end of the week saw the first snowfall of the year, and led to the cancellation of home rugby fixtures on Saturday, though by the end of that day it had all melted. Many parents and visitors attended the annual Advent Carol Service on Sunday evening.
Week 11
Members of the Sixth Form took part in personal profiling seminars in an attempt to find out more about their potential future aims. The 1st XV won a convincing victory in the latest round of the Scottish Schools' Cup against Belmont House. The younger year groups in the school started on a season of exams; this year, exams for Pringle are being conducted in normal lessons rather than in a specially dedicated exam week as in the past. School finished on Friday lunchtime for this term's only weekend leave, and pupils were able to take home this year's edition of The Merchistonian magazine which was published earlier in the week.
Week 10
 This year's School Christmas Card was released for sale: follow the link for details. Mr Meadows, Headmaster of Mowden Hall School, spoke in Tuesday's assembly, reflecting on what individuals might be remembered for after their death. Fifth and Sixth Form pupils studying English went on a trip to see Cat on Hot Tin Roof on Thursday evening at the Lyceum Theatre. Sunday morning's service was an Act of Remembrance at which members of all nationalities represented at the School took a part, along with representatives pf the Merchistonian Club, Governors, and Merchistonian War Veterans.
Week 9
At Tuesday's assembly, the Headmaster introduced the latest additions to the range of ties worn by pupils, including some to be worn by academic award holders. Two boys spoke at this assembly about their recent trip to Russia. The main event of the week was on Saturday evening: over 1000 people, including pupils, parents and guests, attended the annual Fireworks and Bonfire in ther Arena. The previous evening a group of staff and pupils attended an Ambassador Drinks Party in Perthshire. The 1st XV won their postponed match against Hawick in the Cup competition. Three teams in different age groups took part in, and won, debates at other schools during the week.
Week 8
 HMI published their exceptionally good report on the School's care provision, carried out at school last Summer Term.
Boys returned from the break on Monday evening to a week of mixed weather, ranging from very wet to very warm and sunny! Two girls from St George's came to assembly on Tuesday to talk about a pupil newspaper which it is hoped to run with contributions from St George's, Merchiston and Edinburgh Academy. We won that day's 1st and 2nd XV matches against Culford School's touring sides, and a group of swimmers took part in local Championships that day. Other sports fixtures were Squash and Fives matches; Saturday's rugby fixtures benefited from one of the periods of good weather this week, and produced varied results against opposition from a variety of sources including The Edinburgh Academy, whose 1st team were narrowly defeated. (See Sports Results)
Pringle boys entertained staff and other visitors to a Hallowe'en party on Thursday.
Saturday was the only Information Morning of the term, and this included practical activities such as computing for prospective pupils, while parents looked around the School. Social events towards the end of the week included a Sixth Form House Gathering, Chalmers Houses Parents' Dinner, Chalmers East disco.
Week 6
The final week of the first half of term saw quite a lot of rain, resulting in the cancellation of the expected rugby fixture for this year's Cup Squad at Hawick. Fortunately, most of the scheduled filming for the promotional DVD was indoors, and thus unaffected. Sixth Form biologists went on a Field Trip on Tuesday, and another group of Lower Sixth were on Work Experience placements.
Trips over the half-term
break include the 1st XV travelling to Ipswich for the annual tournament there, and a Sixth Form History trip visiting Moscow and St Petersburg.
Week 5
 The appointments were announced this week of Mr Robin Silk to be Head of Sixth Form and Housemaster of Rogerson West from January. Taking over Robin's present post of Housemaster of Rogerson East will be Mr Javier Palacios, whom many will remember spent a term and a half here last year when he was on exchange from his current school in Argentina. On Sunday, a large number of parents and visitors joined the whole School for our annual Harvest Thanksgiving Service, at which the Rev Norman Drummond (Merchistonian and current parent) preached about harvesting the results of the way we treat each other.
Week 4
On Wednesday, the whole school attended a concert by visiting pupils from Lindisfarne College and Hastings Girls High School, both in New Zealand. This involved traditional Maori greetings and dances as well as a variety of music by their wind and jazz bands. On Thursday, the school hosted an American Colleges day, at which pupils from other schools as well as our own Sixth Form met representatives from the US.
Week 3
 The new library electronic system is now up and running, with 12,000 books on its system. Mrs Williams is pictured scanning a book to be loaned. Boys in Shell and some from years above were involved in Wednesday's CCF Review at school. The Former Headmaster of Worksop College visited at the beginning of the week, meeting some boys and preaching in assembly. Pringle departed for their weekend leave on Friday lunchtime, provoking jealousy from the rest of the school! The first of this year's Duke of Edinburgh Award Expeditions also departed to attempt their Silver Certificates.
Week 2
The first full week of term saw the first of the year's House Gatherings where all members of a year group share a meal with tutors and the Headmaster. On Friday evening, two Merchistonians who spent last year doing Gap Years returned to school to talk to this year's Upper Sixth about their experiences. The Third Form spent the day out of school on a Geography Field Trip. A visiting camera crew filmed activities around the school on Thursday and Friday for a DVD which is intended to complement or replace the current prospectus in due course. Many boys, including almost the entire Fourth Form, travelled by train to Ampleforth on Saturday to play rugby; this is the most distant venue for multiple fixtures, and was a long day out for those involved!
Week 1
School began for the new academic year on Thursday, with a full school assembly followed by the traditional 'handshaking ceremony' where boys and staff formally greet each other. The school is running on an 8-day cycle timetable for the first time this year, and this started immediately with lessons after break. The weekend saw the first round of house-based activities, with boys in Pringle and Chalmers West finding many things to do to try to avoid being homesick! The Memorial Hall was very full for the well-attended first whole-school service of term on Sunday morning.
Summer Holidays
Over the course of the summer, work at school has included the electronic cataloguing of books in the Spawforth Library and the launch of this all-new website! The Biology labs have undergone a complete renovation, which completes the programme of upgrading the Science Facilities in Gibson House. Various summer courses, musical and sporting, used the School's facilities during the break.
 During the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, our own theatre group 'Ready Aye Ready Productions' restaged 2003's school production of Guys and Dolls, and succeeded in getting good audiences, some days approaching 200 strong. The cast included a few of last year's leavers, who returned to replay their original parts.
Away from Merchiston, this year's Fiji Project team completed their intended renovation of the fabric of a village school and as ever, had a great experience doing so in a different culture. Meanwhile, the unbeaten 1st XI Cricket team enjoyed a more luxurious trip to Barbados. 30 junior boys went to Rua Fiola for outdoor island adventure, and even more adventurous were those who went to the Indian Himalayas on a trekking expedition
At the end of the holidays the GCSE and A Level Results were released, bringing good news for the pupils and the School, with a fantastic 78% A and B Rate in the A Levels.
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