Newsletter of The Old
Thorntonians Association (Clapham)
“Education is the leading of human souls to what is best, and making what is best out of them.” John Ruskin (1819-1900)
No
16 April 2011
The Association’s fourth AGM was held at Lambeth
Academy, Elms Road, SW4, on Saturday 19 March; 11 members were present.. The main items discussed or reported were:
●
Jimmy
Hill OBE was re-elected as President for a further year. The other Committee members elected to serve until 31 March 2012 are:
Chairman: (Vacancy)
Vice-Chairman: Brian Bloice
Secretary: Ted Hayward
Treasurer: Terry Lawlor
Entry-year representatives:
1930s/1940s: Brian Robinson
1950s: Chris Bishop
1960s: Peter Greenwood
1970s/1980s: (Vacancy).
Co-opted: Mike Surridge (as local representative);
Jeff Green (as past Chairman)
●
The
statement of account for the year ended 31 December 2010, prepared by Terry
Lawlor and examined by Robin Garrett, was adopted (copy attached).
●
The
following changes to the Constitution were agreed, on the recommendation of the
Management Committee:
|
a. that the Constitution be amended to allow for the appointment of a
Vice-President b.
that the Membership section be amended as follows: Para 3.: add (after “…with the school.”) The
Management Committee may at its discretion decline to accept applications for
membership, including subsequent renewals Para 5.: add
(after…”accepted its terms.”) All members must conduct themselves in a way
that does not bring the Association into disrepute. These
revisions have been incorporated in the online version. If you wish to have an updated paper copy please contact Ted Hayward. |
●
Review
of Association’s aims, work and funding:
to be progressed by the Committee over the coming months
Lambeth Academy’s
initial presentation of the Association’s award will be made at its “Foundation
Year Celebration” to be held on Saturday 2 July 2011. (Further details of the award, including the similar presentation
already made by Lambeth College, were given in issue 15)
Membership
Chichester High School for
Boys
OTs who were evacuated to
Chichester during WW2 – and perhaps others – might like to know that Roger
Wardale, an Old Cicestrian, has written a history of the school. Entitled Chi High 1928-1958 it’s a
limited edition, priced at £12, including postage, and may be ordered from
Roger at: 4 Trinity Way, Bognor Regis, PO21 5RQ; cheque only, payable to “Mr R
Wardale”. Ted Hayward has obtained a
library/reference copy for the Association and will bring it to the next and
subsequent reunions. The book has a
number of references to HTS in, predictably, the “1938-45” chapter; he has a
copy of these relevant extracts and would be glad to forward them to any members
who might be interested but don’t wish to commit to buying the book itself.
Other news: the High School plans to hold an “open day”
on 22 September 2011, to which OTs are cordially invited. No further information is available about
the event at the time of writing, but evacuee Les Garrett (1938-42) has kindly
agreed to act as the Association’s contact for anyone wishing to attend.
Contact him at: 14 Sarisbury Close,
Felpham, Bognor Regis, PO22 8JN; 01243
828904.
Graham Worley (1930-2009)
The Editor has received the following enquiry from
Robert Worley (who has recently become an Associate member): “My elder brother,
Graham, was a pupil at Henry Thornton and Chichester High School during the War
– 1940-45 – after which he returned to Alleyns School, Dulwich. He became the youngest QC in Ontario. Does anyone by chance remember him?” If you do, please contact Ted Hayward, who
will be glad to pass on any relevant information to Robert; he’s also posted an
appeal on the website Guest Book page.
R
G J Wood (Bob, Woody – 1946-54). Here’s the fuller report
mentioned in the February newsletter.
The attached sheet lists Bob’s
main HTS and subsequent higher education achievements, as recorded in The
Thorntonian and obtained from other relevant sources; and three OTs – all of
whom were at the school from 1946 until 1951 – have contributed the following
recollections.
John
Else: My memories include our efforts in the school
lacrosse team and repairing and recycling the pre-war sticks so that there were
enough to go round. Equipment was very
difficult to obtain and Bob as goalkeeper needed protection in addition to the
body pad. As he was unable to acquire a
“box”, as favoured by cricketers, he fashioned one from a brass pot and on at
least one occasion the “dong” of hard rubber ball on metal signalled its
effectiveness. Most of our games were
against older and more experienced teams, and it was only Bob's outstanding
goalkeeping that kept the scores to a reasonable level. I know that his ambition was to be a
physicist and I expect that to have been achieved.
We did meet once after
school times. I happened to be cycling
through Oxford one Sunday when a figure stepped out in front of me, attracting
my attention by flourishing an umbrella . It was Woody, newly installed in his
college and most welcoming. In fact, he
gave me a visiting card with a request to call when next passing. Regrettably, I didn't pass that way for
several years. From the mid-70s I was
often in the Oxford science laboratories and various nuclear sites and always
half-expected to see or hear of him.
Norman de Ville: …he was the most gifted, multi-talented
pupil in my year and we were together in the Fifth. We played in the school lacrosse team, and also appeared in the
1950 school play Antigone, in which he was King Creon and I a humble
soldier. I last saw him at a bus stop
in Brixton in about 1957, when he told me that he was a physicist In view of his Master’s at Oxford I never
doubted this and always imagined that he had achieved a grand position .
Eric Wilson: He came from a poor home located near the
church behind Clapham Common tube
station. The family was several
in number in a residence that could be described as “cramped”. The front door opened on to the street. There was no front garden, garage or carport.
We were swimming at
Hampton Court when he got into difficulties, midstream of a tributary of the
Thames. I swam to the shore and raised
the alarm. A man removed his shoes and
dived in to Woody. He got him to wrap his arms around his (the rescuer’s)
neck. He then deployed breaststroke to
get Woody to safety. I vividly recall
this incident: it may have been in the
summer of 1948.
Another story comes to
mind. We went camping in Surrey with a
two-man tent and a couple of airgun pistols that belonged to Woody. We approached a farmer who let us camp on
his property but incurred the ire of the farm manager, Karl. He mainly spoke in German and Woody and I
came to the conclusion that he once was a guard at a prison camp! When he drove away, we used to fire shots at
his van!
Jack
Douglas Bailey (1945-50):
died 17 March 2011. House
Captain (Cook); Captain,. Football First XI; prefect; member, Sketch Club;
contributor to magazine. Son Sean
writes that Jack, the eldest of three children, was evacuated during the war to
Shropshire and returned to London to attend HTS, “an experience he often spoke
about with great fondness over the years”. He adds: “Dad was a keen sportsman,
playing football and boxing to a high standard … and even skiing, which was
very unusual for a young man in the 1950s”.
Geoff
Sloan (1948-53) writes: I was amused by Tim Gee’s recollection of the
production of The Devil’s Disciple [issue 14,
November 2010].
I
played the hangman, and what happened was that the rope, which had been
attached to the gallows with a piece of cotton for safety reasons, broke away
when I took it to place the noose around Roger Smith’s neck.
I
made a loop at the top end of the rope and threaded it onto the horizontal part
of the gallows, which meant that the noose was now about 2½ ft above where it
should have been.
I
remember having to put my left arm round Roger’s waist and lift him so that I
could put the noose over his head with my right hand.
Luckily,
the cast member who announced Roger’s reprieve (it may have been Tom Phillips)
entered on cue, as my left arm was becoming tired. Had he been late, the final outcome might not have been what
Bernard Shaw intended!
Ron
Hercock (1935-40) on his comparatively short time at
Chichester: The
school was evacuated on (I believe) 1 September 1939; most schools did,
although war was not declared until the 3rd. I didn’t at that time go with the school as
I had volunteered for service with the ARP.
However, a week or so later the government decided that no one under the
age of 16 was to be allowed to be involved with anything like that. My brother (23) said I should go back to
school and take my exams, and he made all the arrangements.
I
joined the school at a small village named Pagham, about six miles from Bognor
Regis and a little farther from Chichester.
There was no place where we could have any teaching, and so we had
none. I was billeted over a mile from
the village itself and therefore had little to do with anyone from the school
except for one other lad from the school billeted with me. His name was Fritz Horn; I believe his
family had escaped from Germany in about 1933.
We
were moved to Chichester in January 1940.
I was placed with a couple who had a boy of nine, so a 15-year-old
wasn’t really to their liking. After a
couple of months I asked for permission
to go back to the farm worker and his family in Pagham. It was granted,
and I used to cycle to the school from there.
I took the exams in May and then went home to London.
[My
understanding is that] CHSB didn’t want our school to be on their site. They gave our staff details of their use of
the classrooms and facilities with the offer that HTS could use any they didn’t
need. I don’t know how true that was,
but I do recall that I was doing German and my tuition in the whole year
consisted of 13 half-hour lessons given in our lunch-breaks. Strangely, I failed the exam!
From Jim
Humphrey (1950-7): I can remember my first day at Henry Thornton. It seemed such a long walk from South Side,
past the bike sheds and South Lodge, along past the fives court and lovely
lawn, then to the playground (parade ground) to stand in groups outside the
Head Master’s study. Thank goodness it
was a dry day. We all looked
resplendent in our new uniforms, with some wearing long trousers for the first
time.
Eventually
we were sorted into various classes and into Houses. I was placed in 1B under Mr Cooper, and into Macaulay House. Over the following weeks there were many
masters who were friendly, stern or aggressive, but we respected all of
them. Solly May used to fly along the
corridors with his gown flying out behind, like a marauding bat; *another master would teach from the window
sill – he used to perch on it as he passed out his wisdom; Mr Phillips, a
quiet, white-haired gentleman, who eventually got his own lab at the side of
the school for his Biology classes; , plus the “mad professor” type, Mr
Hofmann. [*From my own recollection – my years were the same as Jim’s – this
would have been Mr J I Morris, a small, bespectacled chap who taught English.
See also Valete item on page 4. Ed].
I joined
the ATC when I reached the appropriate age and loved the whole time with
gliding at Detling, camps at RAF Halton, the link trainer, at which I became
fairly efficient, and eventually reaching the rank of Flt-Sergeant. It was here that I became friendly with Stan
Hill, a friendship that lasts to
this day. I ran dances for the ATC: they
were held in the main hall, where we raised a few bob to spend on the ATC
activities. Quite a number of the
students brought along their girl friends to enjoy the beat.
I can
remember the day when sweet rationing ended and staff from Batger’s, the confectionery
factory next door, came around with bags of Silmos lollies for every boy.
I recall
the time I took part in John Galsworthy’s play Strife, in which I played
an old, bent, chapel-going Welshman –and got good reviews too! Donald
Durbridge played the lead, but he didn’t stay at the school for long.
My boxing
experience at the hands of Mr Bramble was a once-only affair, with me flying
off with all fists at the sound of the bell against a much taller and
experienced boy, David Enoch, who
waited for the flurry to finish, then with one punch ended my boxing career. Stan Hill took on
Sammy Paton (who now owns a golf course), and lasted even less time than I did,
ending with a KO in about 90 seconds.
I can
remember with a certain amount of glee the day the school closed, as someone
(who shall remain nameless) had created a huge amount of sulphur dioxide, which
literally stank the school out.
I wonder
if there are brown rings still on the ceiling of the Chemistry Lab, where one
used to stick a burning taper in to bubbles of gas and Teepol, with the flames
floating to the ceiling, and leaving a circular burn mark. Poor Mr
Howells, often rushed off his feet keeping the more adventurous of us under
control.
I enjoyed
my time at HTS, but never really shone in any aspect of school life, eventually
leaving after six months in the Upper VI to join the Meteorology Office at RAF
Hendon, and later at RAF Waddington where the huge Delta wing Avro Vulcan was
based.
I now live
in Australia with four children and nine grandchildren, in the most beautiful
if fire-prone area of the Dandenongs in Victoria.
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Jim Humphrey concludes his
mémoir with an appeal for any information about the following:
Arthur Homshaw, aka Bomb Head, who
lived at Herne Hill and later married a lovely girl called Pat, and Graeme ‘Wally’ Sutton who I believe
lived towards Clapham South; Tony
Quintiliani, who lived near Lambert Road, Brixton; and Peter Schiefelbein, who was not at the school very long. There was also the impeccable and very
correct Polish lad, Skarplik, who
when introduced to any young lady would click his heels together.
From the Pages of The
Thorntonian
Autumn
1958: DR.
E. AUFRICHT AND MR. J. I. MORRIS
It
is with regret that we say goodbye to two of our senior members of staff, Dr.
E. Aufricht and Mr. J .I. Morris.
Dr.
E. Aufricht, a Doctor of Laws of Vienna University, came to the School in 1948
to take charge of the teaching of German.
His interests have not been limited to his class work, for he has taken
a quiet yet important part in out-of-school activities. A keen philatelist, he has given the Stamp
Club valuable advice; and the Chess Club, too, are grateful for his
encouragement and support. Dr. Aufricht’s
cheerful good temper, despite the increasing ill health which has enforced his
early retirement, will be missed by both Staff and Boys. We wish him a happy and long retirement.
Mr.
J. I. Morris, M.A (Oxon.), came to the School in September, 1952, as Senior
English Master, and immediately began to play a vital role in the life of the
School. The Dramatic Society has
flourished under his direction. Two of
its most successful productions, “Strife” and “Julius Caesar”, were produced by
Mr. Morris. The Society’s stage
equipment has been transformed and multiplied largely as a result of his
determination that the School should have a worthwhile stage. The School magazine has been
refurbished. Mr. Morris’s efforts to
spread to us his interest in film was regrettably foiled by rising costs which
the Film Society was incapable of meeting.
Certainly we shall miss his drive and energy, to which we owe the
excellence of our Library, along with so much else. We wish him success in his new post as Senior English Master at the Stationers’ Company’s School.
J.R.C[arr]
A
more extensive selection of extracts will feature in the next issue. Ed.
______________________________________________________________________________
The Editor welcomes contributions
for future issues. Please post or
e-mail them to Ted Hayward, 31 Linfields, Little Chalfont, Amersham, HP7
9QH; ted.hayward@btinternet.com
Association President: Jimmy Hill OBE Website: www.oldthorntoniansclapham.org.uk
R G J WOOD
(BOB) 10.8.35-14.8.92
HENRY THORNTON
SCHOOL
Attendance:
1946-54
Captain of School: 1952-3
Prefect
Flight-Sergeant (and senior NCO), 1351 Squadron,
ATC
House Captain, Clarkson
Major County Scholarship: 1954
Form prizes:
IIA, IIIA, IVA
GCE prize (7 “O” levels): 1951
Subject prizes (English Literature and
German): 1951
Four “A” level passes in VIS: 1953.
*W D Evans prize:
1953
Lacrosse team; awarded colours: 1951
Co-editor of and contributor to The Thorntonian:
·
“Woes of an ex-Juvenile Delinquent” (poem, Spring 1950 issue)
·
Suggested update of lyrics of second verse of
school song (Autumn 1952)
·
Short biography of Thomas Clarkson (Autumn 1952)
#School productions:
·
a Aunt
Gertrud in “Einer Muss Heiraten”, Dr Aufricht’s adaptation of an old
comedy (Autumn, 1950)
·
b. King
Creon in “Antigone” (15-16 March 1951)
·
c. Lord
Duberley in “Heir-at-Law”, by George Colman the younger (Easter, 1952)
·
d.
Journalist in Sullivan’s “Cox and Box” at concert (17 July 1954)
As VA pupil: Voice of
“robot” (English, French and German) in Science Conversazione: July 1950
OXFORD UNIVERSITY
BA degree, Physics (New College): 1956
MA (Oxon):
1963
Notes
*Head Master, 1927-51
#Relevant extracts from
reviews:
a. “As
the scheming aunt whose plan goes but slightly agley, Wood was excellent, and
thoroughly merited the applause which the audience unstintingly gave him. If he can check a slight tendency to
over-act, he should develop into a comic actor of no small stature.”
b. “Smith and Wood must be named as the stars of
a well-picked cast… Wood we remembered
from last summer, but the family tyrant, comic Aunt Gertrud, had become the
iron-hard tyrant, tragic King Creon. He
showed us that he could be as angry now as he was funny before. His powerful voice was used to advantage in
a good portrayal of the gradual loss of grandeur by an unsensitive [sic]
character.”
c. “The
suddenly elevated Lord Duberley was in the robust care of Wood, who was at his
best when taking the audience into his confidence.”
d. “The
comedy came over admirably and the performance with its zest and pace delighted
the packed Hall.”
Compiled by Ted Hayward, March 2010
www.oldthorntoniansclapham.org.uk