From Chemistry Lessons to Penguin Lessons

An air of excitement and nostalgia filled the Plaza Cinema in Truro recently as members of the Truro School community gathered for a special screening of The Penguin Lessons—a moving film inspired by the bestselling memoir of former teacher Tom Michell (Mr Mike Thompson, Head of Chemistry 1980-2006). The event brought together current students, staff, alumni, and old colleagues, creating a joyful reunion with a deeply personal connection to the story.

Mike with his former students Matt Mullaly CO86 and Alex Jessel CO85

Set against the backdrop of 1970s Argentina, The Penguin Lessons tells the true tale of Mike’s unexpected friendship with a rescued penguin he names Juan Salvador, and the lessons in loyalty, compassion, and grief that followed. The screening itself was met with laughter, tears, and a round of applause for Mike. Students and alumni alike left the cinema inspired—not just by the film, but by the reminder that even the smallest acts of kindness can ripple into unexpected journeys.

But for the Truro School audience, this wasn’t just a story—it was the story of someone they knew, someone who had once sat in the same staff room they worked in and taught in the very classrooms they learnt in.

Before and after the screening, the audience had the rare treat of hearing from Mike himself, who spoke warmly and candidly about how a simple act of kindness—rescuing Juan Salvador from an oil slick on a beach—set in motion a life-changing experience. Mike recounted how the experience, first told to his children as a bedtime story, eventually became a published memoir that touched readers across the world: first by being used as reading material in the South Korean curriculum, and then adapted into a film starring BAFTA winning and Oscar nominated Steve Coogan and directed by Oscar nominated Peter Cattaneo MBE.

Among those in the audience were many of Mike’s former colleagues (those in attendance listed below) and Old Truronians who remembered him as a Chemistry teacher and Housemaster.

Dr Peter Allen, Head of Physics 1981 – 2012

Marc Gregory, Teacher of Geography 1983 – 2009

Ann Weeks, Teacher of English, History and Head of Sixth Form & Senior Mistress 1981 – 1997

Jane Rainbow, Teacher of History, Head of IT and Head of Sixth Form 1990 – 2018

Simon Price, Deputy Head 1990 – 2010

Penny Price, Assistant to Head’s Secretary 1997 – 2010

Dennis Keam, Head of DT 1962 – 1998

Bob George – Teacher of Physics (dates unknown)

David Still – Teacher of Business Studies, Economics and Politics 1990 – 2005

Anita Firth – Deputy Head & Teacher of Maths 2005-2013

The evening closed with warm conversations and photo opportunities, as guests lingered to reflect on a shared moment of pride in the legacy of a teacher whose story has now reached far beyond the school gates.

“I’m sat here with Alex Jessel CO85, we were 17 when you taught us. It’s 40 years since we were at School and the power of tonight has been immense for me, and Alex. What I want to say is that as 57 year old men, and having been young boys, we both love all that you do and all that you have done tonight. From my point of view I couldn’t have coped with the knowledge that you will have had at 23 years old. There’s a story inside all of us and you have been brave enough to tell your story to the world at a time that suited you and your family, and I just want to say thank you.”
– Matt Mullaly CO86 (during the Q & A)