The Chalet School and Richenda Quiz

Answer: Chinese ceramics

Chinese ceramics are the reason why Richenda is sent to the Chalet School in the first place. Her widowed father has a room full of valuable Chinese ceramics he has collected, and catches Richenda holding a vase. He has repeatedly warned her not to go into the room, even hitting her with a cane for disobedience.

However, Richenda cannot resist the allure of the room as she loves the porcelain so much. This turns out to be the final straw and Professor Fry has Richenda removed from her current school, which he thinks is below par, and sent to the Chalet School, which he learned about through the father of another pupil, Amy Dunne. Richenda is furious and goes to school determined to hate it, brushing off the other girls' attempts at friendliness.

Answer: Quaker

Rosamund Lilley, who is looking after Richenda, finds this out when she asks Richenda which Prayers she will be attending. As she is a Quaker and her nanny takes her to Church of England services, Richenda goes with the Protestants for Prayers. The school service reminds her of Quaker Meetings, which she has occasionally attended with her father. Richenda is in the same dormitory as Betty Landon, Jo Scott and Len and Con Maynard, among others, and the girls tease her about her lack of German. Miss Dene puts her in Vb for now and she likes Miss Ferrars, her form teacher, and resolves to do well at school just to spite her father.

Answer: Ricki

When Richenda writes home to her best friend, Sue Mason - who is also due to join the Chalet School, though she doesn't know this - she mentions that the Maynard triplets gave her the nickname of Ricki as they thought her name was too long. She rejects Richy and Shendy, but accepts Con's suggestion of Ricki, although she still signs her letters to her father with her real name.

The other girls (and Joey Maynard) call her Ricki from then on.

Answer: She is homesick and misses her mother.

Richenda goes to her form room to write a letter to her nanny and finds Odette Mercier crying her eyes out. Richenda tries talking to her but her French is still very basic, so she asks Mary-Lou Trelawney, the Head Girl, for help. Richenda feels defensive when Odette calls the Chalet School a 'terrible place', but cannot understand why.

It is later revealed that Odette and her mother are very close as her father died when she was a baby, and she has few relatives. Odette has never been to school before and her mother has a dodgy heart, and Simone de Bersac - a friend of Odette's mother and former Chalet School pupil - was desperate for her to let Odette go to school for this reason.

When the form go on a walk, Richenda and Len keep Odette company and try to keep her mind off things.

Answer: A thunderstorm and flood

In typical Chalet School style, while Richenda's form are on a walk with Miss Wilmot, Miss Ferrars and Miss Moore supervising, a thunderstorm breaks out and they are all forced to rush to a nearby barn for shelter. Some of the weaker girls fall behind, but they all manage to get inside and wait for the storm to calm down.

When it gets lighter, the party leave the barn, only to find that a stream has overflowed and flooded a bridge. Miss Wilmot tests the bridge and manages to get across it and back, but the current is strong and she suggests that the bigger girls, such as Joan Baker, help the smaller and weaker girls across.

She herself goes back and forth helping several girls across the bridge, including Richenda. Dr Maynard and Dr Graves drive by and give the party a lift back to the school.

Answer: No

In a staff meeting, Miss Dene tells the teachers that she received a letter from Professor Fry insisting that Richenda not be allowed to have a half-term and be made to work instead. Miss Annersley writes back explaining that none of the teachers will be at school during half-term and he replies that he expects the domestic staff to look after Richenda, though they will also be on leave during half-term.

The staff are disgusted at this. Fortunately, Joey Maynard steps in and offers to have Richenda stay with her, as she and Jack are due to go to England and she wants to spend time with the triplets before that. Miss Dene informs Professor Fry of this and he writes back saying Richenda is not to have any treats. Miss Ferrars notices Richenda's work is deteriorating and asks her if anything is wrong, and Richenda confides in her that she is upset about spending the entire half-term working. Miss Ferrars reassures her that that would be against school policy, and that she would be going to stay with the Maynards.

Answer: A statuette of St Maurice

Richenda spends the weekend with the Maynards. Joey is ill and has to spend a couple of days in bed, so Jack takes the girls for a trip to Interlaken, as he has to go there on business. On Sunday, Jack takes the triplets, Cecil, Felix and Felicity, out while Richenda stays at home with Joey and explains about her family situation, after Joey notices the way she talks about her father. Joey sympathises with Richenda, but also tells her that her stilted letters home to her father are reinforcing his impression that she hasn't reformed. Richenda writes a longer letter home and Joey resolves to confront Professor Fry. On Monday, she and Jack take the girls to the Valais to make up for them missing the half-term trip; she has given Richenda spending money and as thanks, Richenda buys her a statuette of St Maurice (Joey buys handkerchiefs for the girls and apricot liqueur for Jack, and Len buys Jack the cigarettes).

Answer: A portable typewriter

Joey tells the triplets that she won't be around for their birthday as she is ill and is hoping to see a surgeon friend of Jack's while they are in England and Jack sorts out some business with the two Sanatoria. Madge will be looking after Cecil and the twins.

The triplets are disappointed but have a celebration of their own. Con's present is a portable typewriter, though Joey warns her that it will have to go back to Freudesheim if her writing distracts her from her schoolwork. Joey has surgery for an unspecified problem and writes to the triplets to let them know she is recovering well.

Answer: An American boy squirts chemicals in her eyes.

Richenda and several other girls are sent to Herr von Francius, the school's dentist, for a check-up. While they are in the waiting room, Junior van Allen, an obnoxious little American boy, makes nasty comments about the girls and pulls Ros Lilley's hair. Richenda shouts at him to leave her alone and he squirts some liquid into her eyes, leaving her screaming in agony. Miss Wilmot and Miss Ferrars restrain Junior and take his water pistol, and Miss Wilmot discovers to her horror that it contains chemicals, which Junior confessed he found in the hotel garage. Mary-Lou refuses to let Junior's mother leave until they get to the bottom of the matter, and Herr von Francius takes Richenda to the eye hospital. Matron furiously tells Junior's mother that this is her fault for not disciplining him properly.

The school notify Professor Fry and Nanny, and both of them drop everything and fly out to Switzerland at once. Miss Ferrars takes them in hand and takes them to the hospital. A shaken Professor Fry goes to visit Richenda, who is under heavy sedation.

Herr Fincke, the ophthalmologist, says that Richenda has not gone blind, but will need to wear glasses. When Richenda wakes up, Professor Fry offers to give her a Chinese vase as a Christmas present. He also has some harsh words with the van Allens.

Answer: She isn't in the play

Richenda was originally supposed to appear in the Christmas play, which was written by Joey, but has to drop out due to her health; she is very shaky and in a lot of pain, so once her eye is better, she and her father go to stay in a chalet in the southern canton of Ticino while she recovers. Joey then invites the Frys and Nanny to stay with her for a few days and takes Richenda to see the play, as her friends are in it.

She now wears glasses because of the damage to her eyes. Len plays a herald in a medieval scene, and the play also features Tudor and Victorian scenes. Verity-Ann Carey and Lesley Malcolm play Mary and Joseph. Later, Richenda tells Joey that Professor Fry has offered to teach her about ceramics, as he realises they are not so different after all. What she does not know is that Joey had spoken to her father while she and Jack were in England.