The new polymer £50 banknote issued by the Bank of England on 23 June 2021 features one of Sherborne School’s most distinguished alumni, Alan Turing OBE, PhD, FRS (1912-1954). The date chosen for the banknote’s release is Alan Turing’s birthday.
The banknote features a photograph of Alan Turing taken in 1951 when he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society. It also features the ACE computing machine and technical drawings for the Bombe machine which he designed, his birthdate in binary code, and a quote from an interview he gave in 1949 – ‘This is only a foretaste of what is to come, and only the shadow of what is going to be.’
The Bank of England has generously presented Sherborne School with a limited-edition print of the artwork for the banknote signed by Sarah John, Chief Cashier and Director of Notes at the Bank of England.
Alan Turing certainly knew the value of money. When the General Strike in May 1926 stopped the trains running, to make sure he arrived in time for his first day at school Alan, then aged 13, cycled the 65 miles (104 km) from Southampton docks to Westcott House in Sherborne. He immediately sent his parents an itemised account of his expenses on the journey, including for the ferry from St Malo to Southampton and his cycle ride from Southampton to Sherborne:
Porter – 6 pence.
Breakfast – 1 shilling 6 pence.
Registration – 4 shillings.
Berth – 1 shilling.
Ticket – 14 shillings.
Map – 3 shillings.
Bike repairs – 6 pence.
Apple – 2 pence.
Pedal repair – 6 pence.
The original of this letter is held in the King’s College Archives, University of Cambridge, ref. AMT/K/1/17
Find out more about Alan Turing’s time at Sherborne School
Posted 19 June 2021 by Sherborne School Archives.
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