owt70 rtf

OLD WYVES' TALES 70
FOR WYVERNIANS 1919-76
EDITED BY DENNIS J DUGGAN, ROCK COTTAGE, BROOK STREET,
WELSHPOOL, MONTGOMERYSHIRE. SY21 7NA
TEL 01938 555574 07985 405365 www.wyvernians.org.uk
JULY 2011
FROM KEITH M BOAT 1939-46 I enjoy reading OWT, but there aren't many of
my contemporaries left. I'm well over retirement age, but still have a stall on
Leicester Market because it's a way of life for me. Also I found that complete
retirement was not satisfactory - I missed the people. I have never attended a CBS
reunion because, believe it or not, I can't bring myself to go into Age Concern. I just
don'r feel old enough! Perhaps next year?
OBITUARIES Dr Arnold Burrows sent me the following information on April
12th. 'The current Evington Echo contains the following entry. We have to report the
death of Brian Thompson, a Methodist Local Preacher and a loyal and active member
of Mayflower since 1960. He served the church in many ways, and preached in all
the surrounding churches over the years. We thank God for his life and witness, and
we shall miss him.' (Brian was my form master in 1 alpha, 1959. Incredibly we met
again on the Ocean Majesty in 2002, during a cruise to Iceland. We shared a table at
lunch, and Brian spotted my Wyvernians sweat shirt - Ed)
Chris Jinks contacted me on July 2nd: 'The following notice appeared in the Deaths
column of the Leicester Mercury dated June 30th. 'Letts, Donald Gibson (Don)
Dearly beloved husband of the late Sheila, loving father of Anne and David, father-inlaw
of Ian and Stephanie, much loved grandpa of Sam, Amy, Ben, Liz and Michael
and good friend to the late Barbara, passed away peacefully on Saturday 25th June
2011 at Devonshire Court aged 94 years. Thanksgiving service at St Luke's church,
Thurnby, on Wednesday July 6th at 2.30pm, followed by cremation at Gilroes.' (Don
was a keen supporter of Wyvernians, and the last reunion he was able to attend was
in 2006. I always had a soft spot for Don, because it was he who recommended my
wife Stephanie be made an Honorary Wyvernian. On the quiet I think she is very
proud of that - Ed)
Peter Markham (1946-51) May 2011
John Simms (1940-47) May 2011
FROM DENNIS BIGGS 1949-56 First of all I would like to thank you and your
team for the excellent arrangements for the March 2011 Reunion. I attended for the
first time and was so pleased to meet up again with four former classmates. It was so
good to chat over old times, and of course the time passed so quickly to cover the
intervening 60 years or so since we first attended City Boys' School. I now have the
chance to maintain these initial contacts by E. Mail in the coming months, and already
look forward to next year's gathering. The organisation was faultless, and in
particular I enjoyed Tony Baxter's reminiscences of his school adventures and
experiences.
It was a pity we seem to have lost contact with so many former classmates. I realise
that some have scattered to the four corners of the world, and that some have sadly
passed away, but I have been wondering how it might be possible to locate others who
may still be living in the Leicester area. I wonder if an advert in the Leicester
Mercury before the next reunion ,with a list of names of Where are they now? might
bring some positive results
It was good to wander around the school building, and recall being in various
classrooms. The meal in the former gym was very good, and it brought to mind the
time I got a punishment from the Head Boy, Hardy, in my first weeks at school for
crossing the gym in outdoor shoes, rather going over the first floor corridor to get to
the dining hall. I did not do it again. Incidentally I did not look to see if the old dining
hall is still standing. I recall former pupil Peter Newton painting some quite good
murals in there. I met Peter at Birmingham University some time in the early 60s. Has
anybody had any contact with him?
The Great Hall brought back particular memories of music lessons with Bill Sykes.
He quickly recognised that I was tone deaf, and told me to stand at the back of the
choir and mime. However, I remember many of the songs, from Handel's Semele
Where'er You Walk, The Ash Grove, and from Jerusalem to The Camptown Races.
Later I recall Mr Gimson and Mr.Remington introducing us to more classical music,
which I appreciated in later years and have since become a member of the Barbican
Arts Centre in London to enjoy classical music concerts.
One subject which fascinates me is how some of the teachers were able to keep their
tempers without a torrent of swear words which would be common today. The worst I
can recall is hearing someone being called a bl.**dy fool. In fact I can truthfully state
that I did not hear or learn any swearing whilst at school, which is in great contrast to
today's youth when foul language is common on the streets and in the media. I am so
pleased that I am of a generation which was not tainted by such crude language. It
was a great shock to me when I became an apprentice in an engineering factory, and
had to hear such language. I suppose this shows how sheltered we were in those days,
and how our parents and teachers taught us good manners and behaviour. I wish that
those days would return for today's generation, but once the genie is out of the bottle,
that is it!.
I wonder how many of our teachers are still with us? Cliff Dunkeley and Bob Gregory
are still in touch with Mr. Brushe, and I have arranged to join them when they next
visit him. I would like to know if any other former masters could be contacted in a
similar way. Does anyone have such details, and would it be possible to contact
them? I realise that it is too late in most cases, but having missed 10 years or so of
contacts with the Old Boys' Association, I would like to catch up where possible.
(Dennis, it would be appreciated for late comers such as I to have a list of teachers
who are still around , and details of others who have passed on to classrooms in the
sky. I think that you would have the best overview of this.)
I will let you have some more memories and musings at a later date, but finally I
would like to say how impressed I was with the pedestrianisation of the area around
Humberstone Gate, the Clock Tower and the High Street. It came as a pleasant
surprise after an absence from Leicester of over 50 years to see these changes, and it
reminded me very much of German cities with similar pedestrianised shopping areas.
There is a lot which London could learn from such city planning in my opinion. It was
disappointing to see the disappearance of the Bell Hotel, The White Hart and other
buildings to make way for the -in my opinion - hideous new Shopping Centre, but
thank goodness our old school has survived.!
With my best wishes to you and thanks again for all your hard work and dedication to
keeping the memories of the City Boys' Grammar School alive.
FROM GEORGE S MAY 1932-37 Many thanks for OWT69. In 1981 I moved to
Wootton Bassett and joined the local Probus Club. In 1985 I became the 7th
President, and two years later Peter Jinks became the 9th. I was very surprised to find
that Peter had also been at City Boys (1933-38 I think) but we don't remember
meeting each other. Peter was a TAG (Telegraphist Air Gunner) in the Fleet Air
Arm, flying mainly in Swordfish. Post WW2 he became headmaster of a school in
Swindon.
FROM JOHN SMITH 1951-56 (I am printing the first episode of John's CBS
memories later in this issue, but there is one section I feel warrants an item of its
own. I was never taught by OFT 'Bob' Roberts, but like everyone else I was aware of
his problems in maintaining discipline. Over the course of 69 OWT's we have come
to learn more about OFT's life, his achievments as a mathematician and his
experiences in the Great War. Somewhere in the back issues of OWT is a sad account
of how this special man ended his days. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but everyone
concerned should be ashamed at the way Mr Roberts was treated - Ed)
Although I was never in one of Bob Roberts' maths classes, my classmates and I had a
pretty good idea what it would be like. You could hear the hullabaloo all over the
school. In retrospect, not a happy tale. I recall we were having a maths lesson with
Remmo Remington when we heard Bob having trouble in a neighbouring classroom.
Remmo set aside what he was doing and in his quiet, rather lugubrious way, told us
that Mr Roberts was most unfortunate to have such indignity thrust upon him. He told
us that Mr Roberts was one of the finest mathematicians in Leicestershire, and had the
misfortune to suffer from shell-shock during the First World War. The effects had
continued to trouble his life. At the time it struck a chord with us, and the sounds of
him being played up lost much of their attraction. I suppose we eventually forgot
about it, and in due course accepted the noisy outbursts as part of normal school life.
Much later, probably when I was in my late forties or thereabouts, I chanced upon the
obituary of OFT Roberts, MC, in the local paper. I learned that as a young army
officer in the trenches he had been decorated for bravery, his gallant actions having
been to go out into the mud, squalor and danger of no-man's-land at night, littered as
it was with shell craters, unexploded ammunition, corpses and parts of corpses, for the
sole, selfless purpose of bringing in his wounded. I reflected on the unfeeling, callous
stupidity to which we had subjected one of our nation's former heroes, probably in his
time very little older than we were in the 1950's, a man we should have revered. I
came to the realisation that, by association, I as much as anyone else had been a truly
guilty party. I am not ashamed to say that I wept.
FROM LES OSWIN 1935-39 I enjoyed OWT69, and was most interested to hear
from Dick Lawrence, aka Harry (1934-39) I don't recall the name, but I was in the
alpha stream so maybe Dick was in the 'A' stream. Perhaps Dick will remember some
of the names? Don Gregory, Phil Lockton, W R (Bill) Snow, Dick Leech, Rowley,
Garner, Most, Skirrow, James, Scholey, Stallard etc. I'm still in touch with Bill Snow
after 72 years! All those names are on my school photo dated May 1938, and I would
expect Dick to be on there. I also have the July 1935 photo, and Dick is no doubt on
that too.
What a privilege to read the contribution from George S May (1932-37) and see the
reference to my late brother, Jimmy Oswin. During the couple of years Jimmy and I
shared at CBS I would have met George, as well as Alec Pye, Jack Smedley, JFCH
etc, but I will query Joe Lester - wasn't it Fred? I knew his younger brother, Eric, who
was in our year. I was also kept in touch with George's class reunion, which was
featured in the Leicester Mercury a few years ago, and visited Ken Preston at his
Wigston home. By an absolute coincidence, after my brother Jim died I was given a
copy of JFCH's book Scholarship Boy, and it is still in my bookcase.
I was most interested to read about George's WW2 activities, and I'm sure many OWT
readers like to know what Old Boys got up to during the hostilities. It is probably
well-known that brother Jim landed on JUNO Beach on D-Day; he was attached to
the Canadians as a Royal Corps of Signals Wireless Operator. Me? I trained as a
Wireless Intercept Operator in Douglas, IOM, and recently had an article printed in
one of their newspapers. It described how, in 1944, I became involved in erecting a
special aerial on top of the tower of a hotel in Douglas. This was to allow us to
receive live transmissions from the Japanese units, and learn how to intercept their
messages accurately - but that's another story.
FROM ALAN MERCER 1959-63 (TEACHER) Here are two secrets from the
staffroom. A regular trick played on new staff took place during exams. The
invigilator would enter his version of the answers, without putting a name at the top.
The answers started off in a way quite plausible for the age group, then descended in
standard as the script went on. Occasionally a member of staff would complete a
good entry, and the hoax would not be discovered until the end, when the new
member of staff found he had an extra script.
At Elbow Lane a popular diversion was a shove ha'penny league. Some preferred the
slate board, others the wooden version. Cecil Chas Howard was always near the top.
Another excellent player was a young French teacher. He confessed to wasting so
much time on the game at Oxford that he ended up with a 4th class degree (That was
before they brought in 2.1 and 2.2's.
FROM MICK STOKES 1957-62 Re mentions of Nguyen Thuan, I attended his
wedding though did not know him well. The invitation came about because our
wives-to-be had been on the same training course to become nurses. I remember little
of the wedding, except it is the only one I have attended where alcohol was
forbidden. This was because of their religion, but I do not recall which one that was.
Thankfully the ceremony and reception did not go on for too long, so we were able to
get to the pub without suffering too many withdrawal symptoms!
FROM BRUCE GIBSON 1959-65 I am making my way through all the old
newsletters and was surprised, shocked and relieved to find not what I had expected -
old boys saying how jolly things were, and what a success they had made of their
lives - but that other boys woke up in a cold sweat at the thought of Wardle, Sykes
and co. I was often kicked out of class (literally) by the latter and sent to t'other end
of t'gym during so-called French lessons, which placed you in dangerously close
proximity to Wally's office.
I thought I was the only boy who had problems, but reading our editor's account of his
days at CBS was like a breath of fresh air. I don't usually join things, but in the case
of Wyvernians I do not feel such an outsider as I thought I would.
FROM JOHN SMITH 1951-56 I attended my first Wyvernians reunion this year,
thank you to the organising team. After reading OWT it was quite heartening to
realise that our editor, though perhaps 'no better than he should have been' whilst at
the school, has retained and built up such an interest in it that he has become our de
facto leader. My attitude to CBS was much the same as his. I did not much like it,
and (in the early days) only attended because there seemed no lawful alternative and,
later, because it presented opportunities to indulge in slightly rebellious behaviour.
I did not absent myself very often, but Wednesday afternoons occasionally found me
still at home after lunch, having succumbed to bellyache. Coincidentally our first
period on Wednesday afternoons was biology, hosted by Mr Willan, and usually
beginning with a test. I was not much of a one for biology tests, or any other tests for
that matter, and Flo, was not, as others have implied, easily pleased. One memory
concerns his unfortunate tendency to ask questions which some of us could not
answer correctly. Having failed he would roar, 'Look at your thundering notebook,
boy.' Another way of diminishing one's self-esteem was to hold up some pathetic
attempt to portray a given item of anatomy. Grasping it by finger and thumb at arm's
length he would regard it with utter disgust, as if it was something he had found in the
lavatory, and proclaim, 'My eight-year-old son could present a better diagram of the
alimentary canal than this!' I have one further story about Flo, but I'll save it for
later. It's a real beaut, undoubtedly my favourite CBS memory.
I found some of the items in OWT69 (The other 68 are just as good - Ed) to be
captivating. I was reminded of events and people I had forgotten, about things I knew
about only remotely and have learned things of which I knew nothing at all. I had
forgotten about the huts on Lee Circle, which was also a lorry park, but now recall
they were part of the wartime and post-war civic restaurants. In our hands they were
the operations centre for Johnny Jeeves' French classes, n'est ce pas?
The Green Wyvern Yachting Club was rather a closed book so far as I was
concerned. I was aware of it, but that's about all. I formed the impression that only a
chosen few were invited to take part in its mysterious watery meanderings, and that in
all probability I would not be acceptable matelot material.
Mention of Elbow Lane came as quite a surprise. During my later years at CBS the
younger of my two sisters attended Gateway Girls at Elbow Lane, that was until they
were forcibly melded into Alderman Newton Girls and moved to the Glenfield Road
area. I suppose that CBS took over a year or three after my departure (I spent one
year at Lee Circle, 1959-60. My second and third years were at Elbow Lane 1960-62,
then it was back to Humberstone Gate - Ed) Elbow Lane does mean a lot to me
though, as I joined the 1(F) Squadron of the Air Training Corps and our HQ was close
by. Perhaps it was partly because of my passion for the ATC that my school
performance, including homework, suffered. Fellow cadets who were also CBS
pupils included Moggy Morris, Dave Knight, John Layton, Graham Smart (two years
my senior) and Derek Fitzsimmons (two years my junior) The last two went on to
have lengthy and distinguished careers as pilots in the Royal Air Force.
Dancing? (Dennis Biggs, OWT69) And with girls? Why was I not informed? I did
not take up dancing lessons until a year or two after leaving school, then had to pay
for them myself. Thoroughly enjoyed it though, and still do. Mind you, proximity to
girls and the (usually vain) hope of what might, by some stretch of the imagination,
follow rather than the dancing as such, were the main attractions then. I don't chase
girls any more, but am still rock 'n 'rolling at 70. Life's not all bad, is it?
Since writing the above, I have had a few days to reflect on my attitude vis a vis City
Boys. I had thought I wasn't enamoured of the experience, but now realise I
harboured a jaundiced and substantially false opinion. In fact, I felt immensely proud
to be a pupil. I regarded City Boys as the best of the Leicester grammar schools by a
long chalk. Interaction with fellow pupils, particularly my classmates, was for the
most part harmonious. My opinions of the teachers varied, but I think that any
negative feelings were coloured by my own perception of what they thought of me
and my performance, which sad too relate was often inferior.
I did rather well in 1B, but when I became an 'old sweat' in 3 Alpha events took a turn
for the worse. I have pondered on the likely reasons, and wondered whether the
change to long trousers was a factor. I now realise that is too near the truth to be
funny. The change must indeed have been connected to the trouser department, and
the run-up to puberty and its side-effects was at the root of the matter. In short, it was
not the school that was my bete noir, rather it was the fact of my being schooled. I
resented being in captivity, of not being in control of my own life. Along with others,
I suppose I became a rebel without a cause. I wasn't outstandingly rebellious, but
sufficiently so to attract a slight reputation for not being completely on-side. Would I
have behaved differently had I realised what was going on in my psyche? I don't
know, but another question arises. Would I have been better behaved or, mule-like,
dug in my heels and become a pain in the butt.
I immediately felt affiliated to my first form master, Basher Brewin. I liked him. The
first time we met was in the playground, where 1B waited to be led into the chemmy
lab by Basher. I suppose many of us were considering the possibility of somehow
acquiring enough know-how to make a bomb. Basher walked along the line and
paused when he got to me, probably surprised to encounter someone as short as
himself. 'What's your name?' he grated. 'Smith, J, sir,' said I. 'What does the J stand
for? Joe?' Thus I became Joe to some of my fellow incarcarees, and it was adopted
almost without exception amongst my ATC chums - some of whom still use it.
All in all I had an enjoyable first year, helped by my inherent tendencies to pay
attention and obey, which belatedly I now realise led to harmony and fruitfulness
between pupil and teacher. I particularly enjoyed woodwork, though came bottom of
the class. I could not saw straight, nor knock in a nail straight, but I was at least
enthusiastic. Our teacher was a nice chap called Mr Crocker. He was not overcritical,
nor did he seem to expect too much from our inexpert hands. He was helpful
to those who showed aptitude, and quite rightly, but did not abandon hope of
cultivating some improvement in the rest of us.
.Next step was metalwork, again with Mr Crocker. Having discovered an ability to
cope adequately I remained interested and at first tried hard. But by then a
mischevious streak was setting in, and I found attractive diversions. For instance, I
might give the bellows surreptitious extra strokes ro create a flare up. And there was
a small bench grinder with a trick of its own, though whether Mr Crocker was aware I
don't know. If one held onto the metal frame of the face guard with one hand, and to
another boy with the other, and that second boy held the hand of a third, and that boy
did the same with a fourth, who touched the metal workbench, then all involved
received an electric shock. I suppose it was 240V, but the amperage must have been
low as no one was electrocuted. Would not be allowed these days. Health & Safety.
Say no more.
From 3 Alpha on, German lessons featured prominently in the daily grind. Teachers
of the language seemed to attract more than a little of our interest and attention. Poor
Harry Hantusch, for example. How dispiriting it must have been to have to preface
every lesson by wiping the blackboard clean of swastikas, and the exhortation to Sieg
Heil. I thought that was a bit over the top (obviously I did not say so for fear of being
called a wimp, or whatever we called such creatures in those days).
And poor Mr Baum, who had a Gemanic-sounding name but managed to live with it.
His chief misfortune, apart from having us as clients, was inadequate eyesight. Cruel
as we were, we took advantage of that by throwing paper darts each time he turned to
write on the blackboard. But nothing wrong with his hearing. He could hear them
swishing round the room and berated us, though in an ineffectual and half-hearted
way. On one occasion the effect of his displeasure was completely lost, as he gave
vent with a paper dart lodged on his shoulder.
Mr Nockles was OK, and did his job effectively and with a modicum of good humour
and friendliness.
Possibly the most memorable teacher of German was Mr Brushe. Unaccountably he
was not (so far as I know) saddled with the nickname of Hair Brushe. Perhaps such
an attempt would have been suicidal. He certainly had what we would now call
presence. Mr Brushe's very progress along a corridor was remarkable. His gait was
swift, his stride long and expressive of purpose. His tawny moustache bristled
energetically, his gown ballooned out in the slipstream and his auburn hair bounced in
time with his footsteps. His entry into the classroom was sudden, but not entirely
without warning. It was usual to have a lookout, who would nervously whisper, 'Here
he is...'' before dashing to his own desk. Invariably, Mr Brushe's first words would
be, 'Right, Deutches Leben, Zweiter Teil,' unless of course we were still struggling
with Erster Teil, or been dragged kicking and screaming (metaphorically, of course)
as far as Dritter Teil. His next shouted sentence was, 'Come on, you should have your
text books in front of you already, you know why we're here.' Mr Brushe did not have
a short fuse, he had a nitro-glycerine percussion cap. It could set off a furious
explosion at the slightest jerk (of which there were many amongst us) Perhaps
proximity fuse would be a better analogy. One had only to get anyewhere near him
and...
AND FINALLY... Mention of Elbow lane made me realise how little I remember of
the place, though my second and third years were spent there. The outside toilets; the
L-shaped playground; the hall/gym on the first floor; the lovely garden, where we
were allowed to sit in summer; the Dryad factory across the road; a row of old
terraced houses opposite the main entrance - and that's about it. But where did we eat
our school dinners? Did we have one, or two sittings? I think we should have more
reminiscencies about Elbow Lane, after all it was part of CBS history from 1960-65.
The building was demolished many years ago, last time I looked it was a car park..
Please send some memories for OWT.
Dennis J Duggan
July 11th 2011

OLD WYVES' TALES 69

OLD WYVES' TALES 69

FOR WYVERNIANS 1919-76

EDITED BY DENNIS J DUGGAN, ROCK COTTAGE, BROOK STREET,

WELSHPOOL, MONTGOMERYSHIRE. SY21 7NA

TEL 01938 555574 / 07985 405365 www.wyvernians.org.uk

APRIL 2011

REUNION MARCH 2011 We have now completed the incredible total of fourteen

consecutive reunions! The continued success of our annual get-togethers is a constant

source of wonder to many, yet interest shows no sign of waning. We had over eighty

people this year, most partaking of lunch. Numbers were slightly up on 2010 As we

never change the format of the reunions, the organising team (me, Stephanie, Brian

Screaton, Frank Smith, John Offord) have the routine off to a fine art. It takes quite a

while to unload everything and carry it upstairs. Panoramic photographs and copies

of The Wyvernian are put in date order, various items are pinned up or laid on tables.

The honesty bar is set up, nibbles put on the tables, the PA system tested, name

badges sorted. We begin at 9.15am ready for the official start at 11am, though the

first arrivals turn up well before that. This year we were ready in record time, so had

a chance to chat and take stock before the visitors began to flood in. Tony Baxter's

talk was standing room only, the Age Concern lunch excellent, and the AGM went

without a hitch. Although we had not done any canvassing, Brian and I were

unanimously voted in for a 15th term as Secretary and Treasurer! All too soon it was

time to pack up, and in a few months we will begin to arrange next year's reunion.

It was pointed out that what we do must be unique. Annual reunions for all ex-pupils

of a school from 1919-1976, not just a particular year. Use of Clarence House, which

holds so many memories for us and is still basically recognisable as our old school.

Old Wyves' Tales, which has grown from a small newsletter to a huge history file.

Andy Marlow's forthcoming book on the history of CBS. The large collection of

memorabilia. And not least the enthusiasm shown by so many Old Boys and former

teachers. Thank you all. The reunions will continue so long as we have the use of

Clarence House, and there are enough of us left to turn up and reminisce.

FROM DENNIS BIGGS 1949-56 I have been perusing the back numbers of

OWT, and they make fascinating and enjoyable reading. It was particularly interesting

to read some personal details of the teaching staff, of which I was completely

unaware, and I think it is a great pity we did not have a more personal contact with

our teachers. But I suppose that was impossible given the numbers of pupils to

teachers, and the prevailing attitude of 'us and them'. I regret I did not have time to

get to know some of the teachers better, such as Messrs Franey, Gould, Brushe,

Gimson, Whitbread etc, who were so inspiring and motivating. The only teachers I

knew on a more personal level were Messrs Smith and Kaye, who helped me when I

was Captain of the 2nd Eleven Cricket team. I marvel at the detailed recollections of

many of my contemporaries. One of my more vivid memories was of the Queen's

Coronation in 1953, which I have not seen mentioned. The city centre was highly

decorated with garlands and flags for the occasion, and we were each given a book,

Ratae, about the history of Leicester, which unfortunately I have lost in the

intervening years. I recall watching the ceremony on a neighbour's TV (in black and

white of course) and that the weather was pretty damp and miserable. I do remember

that we had a street party and bonfire, which was great fun, as all the neighbours and

children were in high spirits. The best street party of all was, however, at the end of

the war in 1945 when people really let their hair down. I lived in Wansbeck Gardens,

Humberstone, and there were two other City Boys pupils living in the same small

street, namely John Measures (a couple of years older than me) and Alec

Downes, two years my Junior. I would love to contact them again after such a long

time if they are members (Regrettably they are not - Ed)

I recall we visited the Royal Stratford Memorial Theatre, and think we saw Romeo

and Juliet with Dorothy Tutin. However I did go there on several other occasions in

later years, and may have my memories mixed up. The theatre has now been rebuilt,

so I look forward to a further visit in the near future. I remember seeing the school

play, King Lear, with a classmate, Tom Williams, in the main role who was brilliant. I

am convinced he could have been a professional actor, and greatly admired his ability

to take on this demanding role and learn all his lines.

We all seemed to be keen on jazz music in those days, and a few of the class bought

instruments and learned to play. I remember Trevor Adcock with a trombone, and

Graham Morton with drums or bass. We also had a violin virtuoso in our class - Lakin

(sorry I can't remember his first name) who played on several occasions to a school

audience. I wonder whether he became a professional musican. I spent most of my

evenings listening to the music of Ted Heath on the radio, Humphrey Littleton and

many other American jazz players. This was of course after a nightly session of Dick

Barton, Special Agent. After coming to live in London in the mid 60s I visited

Ronnie Scott's Club frequently, and was able to hear many of my heroes in person. I

have good memories of classmates such as John Hill, Peter Partner, John Tilbury

amongst others, whose names I have not seen mentioned.

The school dances at the Lancaster Hall were good fun, as were the classes where we

learned the rudimentary steps of ballroom dancing. I do not remember from which

school the girls came, but dancing was something I enjoyed and once a week I went to

extra classes at the Embassy Dance Club across the road from the school. It was an

enjoyable social skill, which stood me in good stead at university and during later

years on my travels around the world, and even today I enjoy dancing. I am grateful

to the ratepayers of Leicester for the free education I received at CBS, and for the

annual grants and payment of my tuition fees during my university education, and I

am annoyed that today's students do not receive the same support for their further

education. I am sure I have repaid the costs of my education many times over in the

high level of taxes during my working life, and I feel strongly that students should not

have to face crippling levels of debt on finishing their courses.

When I left school, my father insisted that I got an experience of the 'real world'

before going to University, so I took a four-year apprenticeship with the engineering

company A A Jones and Shipman, on Narborough Road South. I suppose that time

could be considered as gap years in today's parlance, but it meant I was much more

mature when I did go to Birmingham University in 1961. It also gave me the

opportunity to save and buy a car, which was a great asset in those days. I am sorry

that I have lost complete contact with the school and former classmates in the

intervening years, and I look forward to renewing acquaintances at the 2011 reunion.

FROM BERNARD CAPP 1955-62 The reunion invitation reminded me that the

last issue of OWT included a query from someone about Sambo McNulty, a maths

teacher who was my form master in 3 alpha in 1956-7. He left the school soon after,

and made the very unusual move to become a teacher at Ellesmere Road Secondary

Modern School, Leicester. He explained he thought there was more scope for ‘real’

teaching there. Presumably he meant that it was less bound by the GCE syllabus and

the like. I bumped into him in 1961 or 1962, and he was still teaching there.

FROM ERIK (ROGER) BELLAMY 1958-64 (Episode 3 of Erik's memories of

CBS - Ed) Having submitted memories of my time in 1 alpha, I have again put mouse

to mat and committed my experiences in 3 alpha to hard drive. (Mouse to mat doesn't

have quite the same ring as pen to paper)

Having survived the first year, my progress was from 1 alpha to 3 alpha (Amazing

eh?) We were still in the Lee Circle huts. I can't remember the name of our form

master, but my most outstanding academic memory was being put into the tender care

of Basher Brewin for maths. He adopted a totally different technique to Ken Witts,

who had nurtured us the previous year. To continue the gardening analogy, Ken

nurtured us, Basher force-grew his pupils. He did not suffer fools or leadswingers

gladly, and retribution came on swift wings - or should I say knuckles-ontop-

of-the-head? But there was another side to this 4ft 10" firebrand. If he could see

you were genuinely struggling his whole demeanour changed, and he would gently -

almost kindly - explain where you were going wrong. His personal crusade was with

units. If you had a question which involved units, be they gallons, pounds, feet etc,

and gave the answer as fifteen he would immediately yell, 'Fifteen what? Monkeys?'

accompanied by a re-arrangement of your hair style with his bony knuckles

emphasising each syllable. The only similarity between Basher and Ken was their

amazing ability to draw perfect circles on the blackboard. Was this skill restricted to

maths teachers? Wag Pace's attempts at the spherical shape of the earth was

laughable in comparison. In fact we did laugh... aren't kids cruel sometimes?

In 3 alpha, Dr Burrows introduced us to the delights of organic chemistry. An

outstanding memory of the practical side of this subject was the chemical reaction

which produced a bright-red diazo-aniline dye. We made this in large quantities, and

dyed white fabric red. Its permanence was proved by washing the fabric in Omo

(Anyone remember Omo?) That was fairly interesting, but not as interesting as our

own investigations into the dye's long-lasting qualities. I can't recall the victim's

name, it might have been a small lad called Iggy Smith. He put up a valiant struggle,

but could not prevent his hands being plunged up to the wrists in the strongest

concoction of the dye we could muster. It worked a treat, and the poor lad had to try

and conceal the vermilion stain for the best part of a week, when it began to wear off.

I don't know the COSSH (what's that? - Ed) position on the matter (Did COSSH exist

in those days?) but his hands survived. And as a bonus it did deter the boy from

picking his nose for a week.

About that period I discovered the delights of the Norfolk Broads, with the Green

Wyvern Yachting Club. For those who don't know, the GWYC was an amalgamation

of CBS and Alderman Newtons. Their blazers were green, our badge was a Wyvern.

Simple. I recall the club was organised by Chas Howard. For some of us the trip to

the Broads was a body-cram into the leather interior of his Jag, which could cruise

effortlessly at 80mph. A motoring miracle for those days. The fleet consisted of a

number of hired yachts, plus a beautiful craft owned by Chas and named Vanessa.

Each boat was crewed by a skipper and first mate, usually 6th formers, plus a

sprinkling of 4th and 5th formers with experience from previuous years. Finally there

was a motley collection og 3rd, 2nd and 1st years as winch-fodder and ballast. To

keep costs to a mimimum the yachts carried as many people as possible, and this

involved some unfortunates sleeping on the floor of the centre aisle. But that was one

step up from those who drew the short straws; they had to sleep in the damp and

smelly forepeak alongside the stowed - and often wet - sails.

The day's sailing usually involved an unofficial race to the next mooring. Our

school's competitive spirit spurred us on to any means possible to obtain maximum

speed from our craft. Not only did this imvolve setting every sail on the boat, but also

blamkets and tea towels to act as spinnakers. The last resort was to remove the

internal doors and bed boards for use as paddles. Loss of equipment incurred a

financial penalty from the hirers, so when my pal Keith Roberts managed to empty all

the cutlery over the side with the washing up water, desperate measures were called

for. He was persuaded, albeit reluctantly, to strip to his underpants before being

dangled over the side whilst held by the heels. He ferreted about in the thick black

ooze for thew knives and forks. The experience must have had a profound effect on

Keith, because that night he sat up in bed, still fast asleep, screaming repeatedly,

'Spoons... don't forget the spoons,' at the top of his voice. This caused pandemonium

amongst the rudely awakened and confused crew. A few thought it was some sort of

emergency, and in their rush to abandon ship tripped over the aisle sleepers. Some

jumped onto the bank, and some into other boats, which started further panic. Keith

slept through it all. Needless to say, he was not Mr Popular next morning, and kept a

low peofile for the rest of the trip.

If anyone else has memories of the Green Wyverns I would love to hear them,

especially any enlightenment on the subsequent sinking of Vanessa (Keith assures me

he was in no way involved with that incident (I seem to recall the sinking of Vanessa

has been covered in a former issue of OWT, if anyone has the dedication to read the

back issues - Ed)

FROM RAY MACHIN 1950-55 I was very appreciative of the article by Dennis

Biggs in OWT68. To me, it summed up most of my recollections of our old school,

but unfortunately our aims are being eroded big time. Best wishes to all my old

chums.

FROM KEITH WRIGHT 1948-54 Thank you for OWT 68. I was particularly

interested to read the item from Mike Turner, though regrettably am unable to help in

his search for photographs. When at school he had the distinction of a personal

mention in the Headmaster's report at speech day, having bowled R R Pedley out first

ball in the Staff versus Pupil match. It was game of Pedley to mention this, remarking

that Turner was a very suitable name for Mike! Despite the temptation to alliterate, I

used pupil rather than student, as I seem to recall that you became a student only on

entry to tertiary education in those days. Now it seems that progress in education is

such that secondary schools have students. Many years later I approached Mike,

when he was secretary of Leicestershire CC, on behalf of my son, to ask for the

annual accounts of the Club, which being in the public domain presented no

difficulty, as we had erroneously thought could be the case. Should Mike read this he

might like to know that my son's dissertation on the Management and Finances of a

County Cricket Club (actually Derbyshire) in a chapter in which he compared the

accounts of Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Worcestershire, went towards earning him

a Diploma in Management Studies (DMS) - a poor man's MBA.

FROM MIKE TURNER 1946-50 I can assure you that I will be very happy for

you to publish Keith Wright's cricket story. However I must admit that although the

story reminded me of a happy cricket memory, I can also confirm that I played against

R R Pedley sometime after I had left the school and he was the highest scorer in the

opposition team. I personally had a lot of support for my sporting activities at the

school, and I still have the bat presented to me as 'The School's Outstanding

Cricketer ' at my last Speech Day at the DeMontfort Hall. In my school leavers

autograph book, apart from R.R. Pedley's autograph and best wishes, I also have

signatures of all the teaching staff at that time. R Beaumont wrote 'With happy

memories of spinning cricket balls' and J.E.Wardle wrote 'May your life be straighter

than your bowling' !! I had a special affection for J E Wardle, as he used to give me

threepence ' for a bag of chips ' whenever I bowled him out in the nets ! Happy days!

FROM DICK LAWRENCE 1934-39 Thank you for OWT68. On every occasion

I avidly seek a contribution from a former schoolmate from the years of my

attendance at City Boys (1934-39) but am invariably disappointed! The consequences

of advancing years I suppose, although it would be interesting to hear if anybody

remembers me - I was known as Harry Lawrence!!!!

FROM GEORGE S MAY 1932-37 Born in 1921, I went to Thurnby C of E

School and gained a scholarship to CBS in September 1932. Because I was below the

average age of the form I was able to stay on until the end of the autumn term of

1937, and thus had one term in 6th form science. From Thurnby and Bushby the

following went to CBS: Roy Fielding, Arthur Fowl, Alec|Sherriff, Peter and Julian

Pawley, Pat Urquhart and myself. From Houghton-On-The-Hill there was C P

Davies, and from Billesdon, Humphrey(?) Wadkins.

The masters I recall are: Smith (Chemistry) Kearney (Science) Fisher (Religious

Instruction) H J Trump (History) Jeeves (French) Copley (German) Standing

(English) Miss O'Driscoll (Elocution) Carter (Geography) A G Carpenter (Maths)

R W Crammer (Headmaster)

Names from my form 5A: Joe Lester, Alec Pye, Jack Smedley, John F C Harrison,

Jimmy Oswin, Lancaster, Ken Preston, A Hurst, A Hirst, F Philp, Jack Sowden.

John F C Harrison went to Cambridge and became Professor of History at the

University of Sussex. He wrote a book, Scholarship Boy, published by Rivers Oram

Press in 1995. H J Trump, history master after WW2, moved away and much later

published a book on the history of Teignmouth, published by Philimore.

During the summer of 1937 our form (and perhaps others in year 5) had to take an

aptitude test as part of an investigation by the City of Leicester Education

Committee. In my case, it said I should be a scientific instrument maker, but there

were very few openings in Leicester for that kind of work. However, because I was

very keen on building my own short-wave radio receivers, and belonged to the Radio

Society of Great Britain, I was asked to fill in a questionnaire organised by a branch

of the Admiralty (DSIR?) In due course, in the autumn of 1940, I received a letter

from the Admiralty saying that my name had been put forward for work in a

government establishment. If I was interested, I should attend for interview at the

Admiralty, London. This I did, and was interviewed by Mr F Brundrett (Later Sir

Frederick) He offered me a job in the radio department of the Royal Aircraft

Establishment, Farnborough. I went there on 19th March 1941, as a result of

receiving a telegram on the 18th saying report to RAE tomorrow!

During WW2 I worked on airborne radio equipment, and particularly radio

interference from the then new RADAR sets. Not only in aircraft, but also in the

Fighter Direction Ships used off the beach head in June 1944, and on various landbased

radios that caused problems. Post WW2 I had a lot to do with the design of the

airborne equipment for the UK Directional Sonabuoy system in Firefly, Sunderland,

Shackleton and Gannet aircraft. I had to go to Patuxent River, Maryland, as part of

the team to demonstrate to the US Navy the UK Directional Sonabuoy. Much later

we did a lot of investagatory work on the problems of aircraft communicating via

satellites, both military and civil. Also during WW2 I did quite a lot of flying in

connection with the development of the MONICA tail-warning device in Lancaster,

Halifax and Wellington bombers.

Typical of the Scientific Civil Service, after becoming a Chief Experimental Officer

there was a desire to rationalise the number of grades, and thus I became a Principal

Scientific Officer, even though I was a Chartered Engineer by that time.

OBITUARY Brian Thompson, former teacher, passed away March 2011

FROM DAVID WIGNALL 1945-50 I have been re-reading the December Old

Wyves Tales and am prompted to comment, whether of interest to others I do not

know. On the matter of masters' nicknames, I would mention Mr Willan was known

as Tokyo Joe, Mr Wardle as The Count. He was known for using a City Boys school

tie round his waist to hold up his trousers rather than using a belt, and Mr Nockels as

Fat Arthur. Schoolboys are not known for their kindness in these matters. There was

an occasion during a German lesson with Mr N, during which German to English took

a back seat for a good portion of the lesson, when one of our number translated

whatever German word was on offer to English as Mardy. The proceedings were

halted for a time while the meaning of this word was explained to Mr N.

May I tell you now of two 'it’s a small world' coincidences. Firstly that the deputy

headmaster for at least part of my sojourn at CBS had been, in his younger days, a

teacher at Avenue Road School in Leicester, and one of his pupils during that period

was my mother. The other concerns a fellow pupil, Barry Scarborough. We started at

CBS at the same time and were in the same forms, 1 Alpha, 3 Alpha, 4 Alpha and 5

Alpha, although he was a year older than me. He left school a year earlier than I did,

but when I left and went for an interview with a firm of accountants, who should

come into the room where I was waiting but the said BS. Eventually he left work for

his spell of National Service, and a year or so later so did I. I was eventually posted

to RAF Watnall, between Nottingham and Ilkeston, and guess who was there! If you

said BS you can have top marks, in fact for part of our time at Watnall we ended up in

the same hut.

On the matter of a Staffordshire holiday camp, this was known as Shooting Butts and

I also went there for a two-week holiday, during which I remember we were told we

would not under any circumstances be going into Cannock, the nearest town, due to

there having been a number of polio illnesses diagnosed, and this was of course

before the discovery/invention/designing of anti-polio vaccines, so there was at that

time a lot of worry about the possibility of contracting the very serious illness.

FROM LAURIE FORD 1962-66 I noted in Old Wives 65 lots of references to Flo

Willan. I have strong and not too pleasant memories of Flo. I remember well the

tests referred to. I always thought the arrangement whereby the unlucky ones with the

lowest marks had to sit at the front was suspect, as those at the back with top marks

usually stayed there as it was easier to use crib sheets undetected! I also had the

unpleasant experience of being belted on the back for the heinous crime of not folding

my arms. Not surprisingly I failed biology (twice) at Northampton, which was where

I moved to 2/3 of the way through the fourth year.

A few memories about other teachers:- Bill Sykes: I think Paul Wheatley summed up

some of our lessons with Bill perfectly in the last 'Old Wyves'..

Wally Wardle: Those terrifying words 'I'm waiting'

Bill Gates: Bill joined around '64 or 65 and taught English. Was my form master in

the 3rd year, and always seemd very fair. He was from Leeds, and always happy to

debate the merits of City against Leeds (who were then a very strong outfit) He also

looked after the badminton club, of which I was a team member. Wonder where he is

now?

Geoff Elliot: Another of the Yorkshire mafia. From Sheffield, taught French and

started Rugby at City Boys.

Bunny Hutchinson: let's just say woodwork and I did not get on. I think I probably

split more wood than he had budgeted for.

Charlie Varley: inexplicably thought some of my art was quite good. I think he was

probably the only one!!

Tony Baxter: taught me Maths in the 4th year. Had it not been for him I would never

have passed Maths 'O' level, as at Northampton my maths teacher was - lets just say

not very good.

Ding Dong Bell: met with him on my last day before moving to Northampton.

Obviously had marginal impact upon him, as he thought I was going to Southampton.

I think my only other contact with him was when given the form that allowed me to

get a colours tie (for badminton).

Other miscellaneous Elbow Lane Memories: Record club: spent many a lunchtime in

the hall listening to the 45's. Some tracks heard again years later can take me back to

those lunchtimes. Though I do seem to remember that for a while the record club was

closed down, and when reopened you needed a pass to be allowed in.

2nd form yard: excellent facility for use of 2B only. Our own yard.

After-school football: played many a long game after school in the yard. Always

played better there than at Grace Road. Obviously a better player on tarmac. I was

never in any danger of getting into any City Boys football team.

Lunchtime handball: with benches as goals. A surprisingly well-stocked library. The

crocodile walk from Humberstone Gate to Elbow Lane.

Vestry Street swimming baths, with a sadistic instructor who pushed you in the water

whether you were ready or not. One such belly flopper put me off diving almost for

life.

FIFTY YEARS AGO Alan Pykett (1959-66) spotted this item on the Mr Leicester

Page of The Leicester Mercury dated March 30th. The son of an ambassador, and

grandson of a former Prime Minister of Indo-China, is now a pupil at the City of

Leicester Boys' Grammar School. Nguyen Van Thuan is a fourth-former, and he is

living with a Leicester family with two boys who are also at the school. Mr E J W

Bell, the school's headmaster, got to know the boy's grandfather, the former Premier

Mr Pham Huy Luc, in England just after the war. The ex-Premier came to England

frequently after this, and visited Leicester and the school. Earlier this year his son-inlaw,

who was being sent as Vietnamese charge d'affaires to the Ivory Coast, wrote to

Mr Bell saying he would like his 14-year-old son to come to Leicester. 'I think it is

rather an honour for the school, and for Leicestar, that he should coime here,' said Mr

Bell (Nguyen Van Thuan has been mentioned in passing a couple of times in OWT,.

Personally I have no recollection of him - Ed)

FROM JOHN HAMES 1959-64 I am semi-retired nowadays, and enjoying some

well-earned leisure time. Whenever I pass by our old school I think about the good

old days. I'm sure most of the pupils enjoyed their time there, even learning a thing or

two which stood them in good stead later on. Happy days. I still remember most of

the words of the school song, including the latin chorus, and can still picture Bill

Sykes playing it on the organ. Sometimes I sing it in my bathroom, with my dulcet

tones reverberating round the suburb of Evington.

AND FINALLY... Once again my stock of items for OWT is completely used up. I

am happy to produce the newsletter so long as you keep me supplied with articles. It

is up to you, the members. Even I am running out of things to say in my little endpieces!

I had a bus pass, valid for the corporation fleet but not Midland Red. The

passes were renewed each year, I think at the end of the summer term. The majority

of conductors (remember them?) only gave the passes a cursory glance as they passed

down the bus, but the occasional officious one asked that it be removed from the

wallet for closer scrunity. To me the Midland Red buses, with their plush moquette

seats and posh interiors, seemed exotic compared to the mundane Leylands and

AEC's of the corporation fleet. The latter's ticket machines had a row of six(?)

levers, being filled with tickets of different denominations. The Midland Red

conductors dialled in the fare, then turned a handle to produce the tickets. When

paying for a ticket one did not ask for a tuppeny one, or a threepenny one etc. The

standard phrase was, two please, or three please, that being the amount in old

pennies. It was rumoured that the passes were not valid after 5pm, so if you left

school late, either because of detention or some other form of activity, there was

always a frisson of concern (at least in my case) if you did not have the fare available

in case a jobsworth conductor decided to be awkward. Now the wheel has come full

circle, and once again I have a bus pass!

Dennis J Duggan 1959-64

April 11th 2011.