Students at St John's College at the University of Queensland no longer have any excuse for being late for lectures.
The 292 College members will be reminded each hour their College has the only clock tower at any University in Queensland, and one of only a handful in Australian universities.
Queensland Premier Peter Beattie, Brisbane builder Sir John Pidgeon and College Fellow and benefactor Robert Cripps will open $1.7 million worth of extensions to St John's College, College Road St Lucia on Sunday, August 8.
The extensions include the French Gothic style clock tower (known as the John Cripps tower), a residential block for 18 postgraduate students (Hall Paterson Court), a common room (the Valmai Pidgeon Room) and additional administrative space.
Mr Beattie and Sir John will be installed as honorary College Fellows at a College chapel service at 3.15pm, which Mr Beattie will also address. The new buildings will be opened and dedicated at a service at about 4.10pm in front of the College at which University Vice-Chancellor Professor John Hay will also speak.
College Warden Dr John Morgan said the specially-lit copper-spired tower featured wood-fired bricks from Warwick, Helidon sandstone hewn by St John's Cathedral stonemasons, and wrought iron gates made by Brisbane blacksmiths.
"The tower has four Belgian bells operated by a Swiss movement. They gently chime the hours, and three times a day at 8am, 1pm and 9pm peal the full Westminster chimes," he said. "We didn't dare set the clocks any earlier in case students complained!
"Robert Cripps has funded the building named after his late brother, John, who helped Robert continue the family tradition of charitable works. The Cripps are major benefactors to universities - especially Cambridge University. Robert and John gave us our first postgraduate accommodation block in 1987 and underwrote our first master plan.
"The weather vane on top of this building comes from the demolished stables at Henham Hall, home of the Rous family, the Earls of Stradbroke. South-east Queensland landmarks Stradbroke Island, Rous Channel and Dunwich, as well as the Stradbroke Handicap are associated with this family's name. The Cripps children spent their childhood holidays at the Stradbroke's former summer house so the weather vane on the building would have had special significance for John."
Mr Beattie is an old Johnian (1971-74) and former president of St John's Students Club (1974).
Sir John Pidgeon's firm FA Pidgeon and Son has been associated with $7 million worth of capital works at the College during Dr Morgan's term as Warden in the past 12 years, as well as major University projects such as the Michie and Hartley Teakle Buildings. The St John's College complex is the last major project to be completed by the 73-year-old firm.
Dr Morgan said St John's and Emmanuel Colleges were the equal oldest colleges at UQ. St John's opened in 1912 at Kangaroo Point, a year after the University welcomed its first students, then moved to St Lucia in 1955-56. It has produced 18 Rhodes scholars, more than any other University college.
Hall Paterson Court, which will also feature an art and architecture studio, is named after one of those Rhodes scholars, Fred Paterson, Australia's only Communist Parliamentarian. Paterson is the subject of a major Ross Fitzgerald biography. The building is also dedicated to another St John's Rhodes scholar, Lord Robert Hall, who became economics advisor to the British Government and principal of Hertford College, Oxford University. The Valmai Pidgeon room honours Sir John's sister and will feature a grandfather clock donated by Miss Pidgeon.
As well as the clock tower, the College also has a full miniature peal of bells in its chapel.
Further information: Dr John Morgan, telephone 3842 6600.
