Post by Les on Dec 12, 2017 2:45:40 GMT
Maidstone I remember it well:
Sorry to the non Oldborough boys and girls
Boo Jones, Dave Stubberfield, Hugh Shannon and Stan Edwards – All you guys must be a tad older than me – my years at Oldborough were ’63 – ’69 but Hugh has come exceptionally close to all or most of the teachers I remember there (may have been similar years).
The only ones
I don’t recognise are, from Boo - Mr Martin or from Dave Stubberfield - Mr McMasters.
Do you recall Mr & Mrs Saunders? Mr S taught in the ‘canteen classrooms’ though I never had him as a teacher whilst his wife Ooh.. La.. La...! Mrs Saunders with her, short, jet black hair, extremely attractive with a wonderful figure & always smelt delightful. She was of French origin and had that slightly husky, soft spoken voice, with that very French accent (Would be referred to as ‘Well Fit’ these days!) Did a lot for us adolescent boys without her even realising (Only hope her hubby didn’t either). Was it not Mr Saunders who dealt with all of the Tuck Shop stocking, staffing and finances?
Jack Houghton putting in that, even then, archaic phone system that ‘blew-up’ and sent the whole school into darkness. Nicknamed ’thee’ because after explaining or teaching something, instead of, You See? As a question to establish if we understood, he would just say... thee? I know years later looking at the friends reunited site this same nickname exists with much hilarity. You can imagine us boys, behind shielded hands, would just keep repeating thee, at various times during the lesson to much stifled sniggering.
I started off with Jonnie Ray for History but quickly changed to my favourite teacher of all time Brian Scragg – spoke with him just a year ago and exchanged a couple of emails. He took us on the Lake District trips with Peter Castell each summer. I remember Mr Gadd – what an enormous man he was or so he seemed but he left soon after my starting. Tony (or Terry?) Roberts left which disappointed me and was replaced by Frank Tyce. I remember a lot of us waiting anxiously each week for the football team sheets to appear on the notice boards in the gym area identifying those selected to play in the forthcoming matches – quite a tidy
set of teams we had then in the various years.
The sideburns and blackboard rubber, incidents were by that tyrant Ray Grainger - horrible little arse of a man who wasn’t happy unless he was inflicting some pain on to a poor un-suspecting individual just because they couldn’t sing in tune! And hence-forth made their lives, a misery.
I remember in ’64 we had boxing championships in the main hall (only year it happened) where I was matched at against Lloyd Stephenson who had done a lot of boxing at Westree club (I don’t know if any of the boys here remember him at all) and I have to say that I got soundly beaten – the best bout though was at fly weight between Robbie Burden and Dennis (Benji) Mace which I think resulted in a win for Benji. Cracking fight, though.
Remember the Historical scenes depicted in glass cabinets on the walls of the top corridor – All made by pupils in Art under Wally Brooks – possibly your years, guy’s - (outside Bill Green’s classroom - 1st one in the corridor with much blood and gore depicted!) The Vikings Raiding and Marauding English villages then in another, The Romans, then Cave Man Britain with pre-historic dinosaurs etc, they all captured my imagination. And then, at the end of the corridor, hung on the stairwell wall, that massive art mural that was nearly as large as the stair-well height.
Jake Dixon (Rural Science), with his very deep voice, singing the Good King Wenceslas part at each Carol Concert (me doing the ‘page’ solo for a couple of years). The plays that we put on – one covered by Southern TV at the time (‘Androcles and the Lion’ I think it was in 64/5).
We put on ‘Charley’s Aunt’, ‘Happiest Days’
and ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’ – Not that I had too much to do with them all – Not very big parts – always been my problem!
Morning assembly’s where the concertina doors of the upstairs ‘small hall’ would be opened with the railing in front and one of us would read the day’s lesson from the main stage. Mr Fuller taking proceedings with Grainger on piano and the school orchestra ready with their rendition.
Receiving ‘colours’ for our sporting prowess/achievement
to sew on to our blazers I became quite adept at sewing. Got hauled up for mis-arranging the colours I had received to form SHAG BF on my jacket, the inference of the first set of letter’s was objected to by a number of staff and I was told to change it, this became SAHG BF
I got the cane from AJN Fuller, though I regarded him as a wonderful head and was really disappointed when he got replaced in my later years by Taylor. My own stupid fault really, I was on a trip to London Zoo (I think it was) in my 3rd/4th year, and I got hold of the coach(bus) microphone and loudspeaker and thought it really clever of me to broadcast this very suggestive verse that I knew,
which had much sexual innuendo (as you would at 14 or 15) just to have a laugh. It finished with the lines....
Now if you listened carefully,
A dentist you will find,
It was not what you were thinking,
It’s just your dirty mind!
(Stupid lttle git I must have been!)
Overall, I thought the school was brilliant with generally, good teachers who usually went above and beyond the call – Great Sport
with matches against all schools whether it be football, hockey, tennis, badminton, basketball, athletics (field & track). I too recall ‘Pirates’ on the wet days in the gym – on one such day Philip (Pip) Moses jumped down from that 20ft ledge to avoid being caught and broke his ankle in the process – We all thought ‘Top Man’ for braving that! (Quite deluded we were, obviously, where getting caught was not an option, and breaking your ankle to get away gave you serious ‘street-cred’)
With lunchtimes an incredible 1hr 20mins long, practicing Javelin and Discus on the Top Terrace at those lunch-times (how dangerous that was, now, looking back). And also with the long jump and triple jump and high jump pits all there as well.
The orchard between the swimming pool /top terrace and playing field’s
– Cross-Country races
up Tea Saucer and Bottle-scew Hill in Boughton Monchelsea
Academically, the school was great as well taking us to ‘O’ levels in all subjects with many field trips and visits to places like Kneller Hall, (Military School of music in Twickenham) for the musically inclined (I tried) as well as Royal Albert Hall. I managed to go on to A levels and professional qualification as an accountant so the place couldn’t have been that bad.
Chess matches against the MGS and occasionally winning against those higher intelligent beings!
All in all, could have done a lot worse and has resulted in many fond memories of the times and mates that have lasted till today and enjoyed at various re-unions we have.
Any other Oldborough’ites with any memories?
Blimey that was a long one Steve