Whilst the club "formally" came into existence on the 1st of January in 1977, records show OBs representing the school as far back as 1907
in the Public School's Veteran's Trophy. However, rifle shooting was a significant sport at the school
throughout the late 1800s.
Cadet Corps started being formed in 1860, following Secretary of State Jonathan Peel authorising the formation of
volunteer rifle corps in 1859. Post Crimean War Britain realised that with war breaking out between France and the
Austrian Empire in 1858, it might need a larger military preparedness.
The National Rifle Association (NRA) was founded in 1859, and in 1860 Queen Victoria inaugurated the first
Imperial Meeting, in order to encourage marksmanship, firing the first shot on Wimbledon Common.
The prize money for her ‘Queen’s Prize’ was then £250 (worth about £38,000 today), and still is £250 today.
Winners receive an NRA gold HM medal, a gold badge and the right to the honorary post nominal
‘GM’ (Gold Medal) for the remainder of their life.
In 1910 Old Bedfordian P. R. Radice GM SM (left School in 1907) won the Sovereign’s Prize (King's Prize). He also had won the Silver Medal that year as winner of the King’s Prize 2nd stage.
In 2011 O.B. Lt-Col Rupert Riley RA SB (79-89) came 2nd in the Queen’s Prize Final, winning a Silver Badge. The School shot in cadet shooting competitions against other schools, on Wimbledon Common in 1889, the last year that the Imperial Meeting was shot on the Common, it moving to Bisley the following year.
The OBs are recorded as winning the Public School Veterans Match in 1909.
The School had gone through a golden era of marksmanship for the time, with names that we still recognise today. Indeed the School House Match trophy, the Doig Cup, was named after Capt R.O.M. Doig.
Today, all members in living memory were at Bedford School from 1960s - 2020s, or their parents were.
This has been a second golden era for School shooting and hence Bedfordians Rifle Club shooting. This recent era was largely thanks to the Mr Tim J Elliott, a French teacher and the Master in Charge of Shooting, at the School from 1966 to 1987.
During that time, Tim developed the School Rifle Club into the best 0.22 schools team in the country winning the Country Life Magazine School Cadet national competition repeatedly.
He also developed the School Rifle Club into a formidable full-bore team, both at cadet level and civilian, producing an annual supply of young international shots.
Indeed the School Rifle Club is recognised even today amongst pupils from other sports as being the most
consistently successful sport that Bedford School fielded, and the most active and successful Old Bedfordians sport
with the widest age range of active members.
Many of our Club members have gone on to represent their county and country, and almost every year we have at least one member in an international team at home or overseas.
Today as a club we are starting to gather excellent shots in younger OB members that having been trained by O.B. and teacher Maj. Peter Lumley-Wood (84-89), Chemistry teacher, Master in charge of Shooting, OIC CCF, who since his arrival in 2011 has built up the School Rifle Club to a vibrant and successful club. So much so that the School now regularly beats the OB team shoulder to shoulder in the annual 0.22 match, a feat that wasn’t achieved since the 1960’s.