With leaves crunching beneath our feet, it seems appropriate to huddle away in the library and put some much-needed hours on coursework. In reality, there’s been so much going on recently that the “work-to-do” list is growing by the day.

Here at Sutton Bonington we have around six formal dinners a year with the majority in the first 12-week term. With three formals in four weeks I’ve had to go against all my principles and actually get the ironing board out.

For more freshers than you might think, the opening formal represents their first black-tie event and it’s nice to be able to pass on some of the more interesting traditions that make this campus so special. After the customary speeches and a little too much red wine, everyone retires to the bar for a night spent dancing very badly to songs that always include Don’t Stop Believing and the Baywatch theme tune.

For the first time this year the School of Biosciences (which includes the Agriculture and Crop Science divisions) hosted a cocktail party for first year students and the Student’s Union, and comedy hypnotist Alan Bates provided the night’s entertainment.

I’ve always been a bit of a sceptic when it comes to this sort of thing, but my doubts evaporated as soon as a good friend started playing an imaginary piano on stage. It would be bad form of me to reveal all of his material, but I can tell you that being dragged on to stage by a girl who was absolutely convinced that I was part of her lost flock of sheep was a notable high point. I hope we can get him to come back next year.

More traditional comedy nights take place every month, with a line-up of three travelling comics making the journey down to “the farm” this term. Juggler-come-comic Steve Royle headlined this month with an inspired and hilarious set that saw the audience used as instruments in an animal-noise version of Good King Wenceslas. The faces he can pull while juggling three full-size guitars will stay with me forever.

On the rugby pitch progress has been much improved with three good wins on the trot. My mother will also be pleased to know that, six weeks into the season, I have now washed my rugby kit for the first time.

Between all the fun there has been time to squeeze in the odd assignment with projects on soil erosion and fungal diseases due in next week. Second year really does up the game compared with the first, and good time management is critical to make sure that you get all the work done.

The fact that my year-long term on the Student’s Union has just come to an end might help me fit everything in, as I hand over responsibilities to our team of capable replacements. It’s been a privilege to get so involved with the campus and its community and I know that I will miss it.

I also put my serious Agrics hat on for an interview with our regional TV network – BBC East Midlands. As part of a mini-series they are doing on local agriculture, they interviewed a few of us about young people entering the industry. A few clips made it ont o the evening news, complete with a nice shot of me stumbling over a knoll while trying to concentrate on a walking interview. Embarrassment aside, it’s really good to see that the general media are interested in an industry that’s fundamentally important to everyone, especially so with the challenges that we will all face in the future.

Back at home it’s been good to hear that we’ve been making solid progress with all the winter cereals drilled, bar 40 acres of sugar beet that is still in the ground. The combinable harvest already seems such a distant memory that I’m sure the next seven months at university will fly by.

• You can find out what Michael has been up to by following the College Calendar blog at www.fwi.co.uk/college-calendar

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