Miss Eleanor Plumer was Principal between 1940 and 1953, and was instrumental in St Anne’s Society achieving full collegiate status within the University.

Dr Marjorie Reeves’ College history records Miss Plumer was:

an educationalist of broad social interests and she had a phenomenal memory for people. Furthermore she was a Field Marshal’s daughter with a grasp of strategy and tactics that made her a successful campaigner.

Alongside these considerable attributes may also be placed her incredible generosity to St Anne’s during her lifetime, and on her death: her bequest continues to fund ‘Herbert Plumer Bursaries’ benefiting students at the College today.

It is, therefore, especially appropriate that Miss Plumer should be commemorated by this Society.

Ann Spokes Symonds (1944) remembers Eleanor Plumer:

I first met Eleanor Plumer in the summer of 1944 when, as Principal, she interviewed me in her office at Musgrave House.  On returning from four years in the USA I had applied for entrance to what was then called St Anne’s Society.  For the whole time that I was At St Anne’s I lived at home in Charlbury Road.  In those days my parents were supposed to report me to college if I arrived back late in the evenings.  I do not remember that they ever did.

Miss Plumer was always friendly and welcoming and gave me the impression of being an affable owl. She was a well-loved Principal and her name is a worthy one to be given to the Plumer Society.

I remember that when I was President of the St Anne’s Debating Society I always had to obtain permission from the Principal if we debated against a men’s college. On one occasion she queried the motion for debate which was ‘Refined rakes make the best husbands’.  She seemed doubtful about this and asked whether any of us could have had any experience of this.  I told her feebly that I thought some people had.

Miss Plumer was always willing to tell stories about herself.  She spent the long vacations during the 1939-45 war working as a munitions factory hand in Cowley.  Here the women of her gang, so she said, found her ‘socially puzzling’.  Asked by them if she was a member of the University she replied that she was ‘just in the office’ and when asked her name replied ‘just call me Nell’. This was typical of her. She never user her title ‘the Honourable Eleanor Plumer’ unless she had to.  Her father was Field Marshal, 1st Viscount Plumer, and his arms are, of course, those of the college.

Once she told me that she had rather an embarrassing experience concerning a film preview. She served on the British board of Film Censors which gave a rating to particular films before they could be shown in cinemas. The films were usually put on in London in the mornings. She wondered why one was to take place in the evening but thought no more about it until she turned up. It was a wet night and she wore gum boots and an old mac. To her horror she found, on arrival, that it was a premiere and everyone was there in evening dress.

Elegant film stars were arriving glittering with jewellery. She had thought that perhaps it would be better to go home but, on the other hand she wanted to see the film and decided to face it. Everyone had their names announced on arrival. Eleanor plucked up courage and gave her name as ‘The Honourable Eleanor Plumer’. She explained that that seemed all right as an excuse for her eccentric dress.