Lyricist and author Sir Tim Rice was guest of honour at his alma mater Aldwickbury School in Harpenden to celebrate the opening of a new hall complex, the culmination of an eight-year building project

The hall is named after former headmaster Brian Chidell, a noted music lover, whom many former pupils remember taking them to various concerts in his old Ford. Chidell was also one of the founders of the Harpenden Light Operatic Society.

A new dining room forming part of the complex has been named after the other founding headmaster, Kenneth Castle. He was the headmaster of a school called Lea House, which was on the site of the current Lea Court in Harpenden, before buying Aldwickbury in 1948 with Chidell.