King edwards VII school.

[Dreb48]

Apology accepted. You wouldn't have enjoyed having to sit outside the Headmasters room which is what I nearly threatened you with.

I was just ruminating about change in attitudes in our time there. There were some masters who obviously were less stuffy than others.

I remember one English lesson a pupil called John Cooke aka 'Bols' being allowed to write the words to ' Poetry in Motion ' by Johnny Tillotson on the board and then having the mickey taken out of it. This was a huge success so he allowed Bols to bring his Beatles ' Please Please Me ' album in the following lesson to be played in class. Can't remember which master it was though.

Can any of you recall the final assembly one year when the same John Cooke and a n other played Nutrocker by BBumble and Fats Dominos Blueberry Hill on the piano ? Nat and Flinky nearly choked on their gowns.

Yes it sure was a different world back then

[Richard B]

I recall the tragic death of Mark Baker mentionned earlier though it was shortly after I had left maybe around 1969/70. His dad was a Doctor and our Family GP for many years when we lived in Wadsley. His surgery was on the corner of Wadsey Lane & Marlcliffe Road. I seem to recall the press reporting at the time that Mark couldn't handle the pressure of doing O levels in 4 years (instead of 5 everywhere else in Sheffield at the time) and consequently questionning the wisdom of "fast tracking" us "bright" guys. Don't think it changed anything though. Marks sister Sharon later married one of my classmates Mick Fleming.

 

I recall many of the staff mentionned in this thread. There were some real characters amongst them, though no doubt some of the practices of that time would be totally out of order in todays schools. Though I didn't enjoy it at the time, looking back I have no regrets. Have lived in France for over 30 years now so Fanny Adams French lessons were useful after all. I lived in fear of his ear tweeking, head bashing and finger rapping with a wooden ruler, all painful aids to irregular verb conjugation!!

[hillsbro]

Hi RichardB - the deaths index shows a Mark Neil Baker who died in March 1970, aged 17. His father would have been Dr Percy Baker, who I think was killed along with his wife Gladys in the Dan-Air Flight 1008 crash at Tenerife in 1980.

 

I saw Gordon "Fanny" Adam about four years ago, still going strong at 82. He actually remembered me, and he was intrigued by the fact that I still remembered the French nonsense "practice sentence" that he taught us. It includes all the different 'e' sounds - “J’étais aux Champs-Elysées, prendre le thé, et puis danser”..

[PaulSH]

Hi Dreb

 

Hang on a minute. Philip, yes, pay attention boy - we had a long exchange from the KES website a few years back, prompted by you saying something about Julian Peckett adopting hippy ways [or summat] - as if!

 

Dreb - If you ever come across Frank C again give him my best. John Burgin, now then... John was one of 5 boys in the 59 intake from Stradbroke Juniors. Him, me, Sid Siddal, Peter Blackledge and Bob [baggy] Wright, all brought up on Stradbroke estate. John had street cred by the shedload - even at junior school, where he was "Ted" after his uncle [?] who played for United. He was a great guy, a gentle giant but handy for sorting out the pondlife who bullied smaller or younger boys. There was also a story that he once stuck one on Nat which I heard only after leaving KES so was never able to verify it. I think he had a younger bro who also made it to KES.

 

In your leaving photo you look like an Esquire regular! I went a couple of times but preferred Club 60 [till it shut] and the Mojo. We often used to go in AHN [Tony] Blackburn's Bond 3 wheeler. Generally could get 6 in it. The Sportsman on Burngreave Road was handy for half time refreshment. Pity that Pete Stringfellow turned into a parody of Paul Raymond.

 

---------- Post added 03-10-2013 at 00:37 ----------

 

Can any of you recall the final assembly one year when the same John Cooke and a n other played Nutrocker by BBumble and Fats Dominos Blueberry Hill on the piano ? Nat and Flinky nearly choked on their gowns.

Yes it sure was a different world back then

 

Hi Dreb

 

Sure can- they [whoever] played it very well. There was another final assembly [or was it the same one?] when someone sang Be Bop a Lula which was quite excellent.

The guy who encouraged us to bring records in [and explain to the rest of the class why they were any good] was Willie Scobie. He kicked off himself with Verklarte Nacht by Schoenberg - which was quite challenging. Jim Saunders played us Dave Brubeck's Unsquare Dance [i think it was], which wasn't my thing at the time [any more than Schoenberg] but must have stuck.

[hillsbro]

...Hang on a minute. Philip, yes, pay attention boy - we had a long exchange from the KES website a few years back....

 

I know - but at that time I didn't know who you were! Did you know that Baggi [his spelling] Wright had died? Don Nicolson told me a year or so ago. Stradbroke Junior seems to have sent quite a number of emissaries to KES; there were also the Shaddock brothers, a biit younger than us.

 

I never knew that Anthony Harold Nesbit Blackburn had a 3-wheeler. I remember he did at one time have a Triumph Vitesse which he proudly parked at Castle Dyke.

[Dreb48]

Hi Paul.

I'd forgotten that John Burgin was called Ted. Of course now you've reminded me I can't believe how I forgot it!

Was big mates with Sid in and out of school for some time but then lost touch, as you do.

Others I hung around with were Pete Warburton, Roger Taylor, Graham Hathaway, Paul Harrison. There's loads actually. If I look back at some of those photos and feel like half the school were 'mates'.

Did go to the Mojo on a couple of occasions to see Spencer Davis but, living at Totley, it was a bit of a haul on the bus. No 3 wheeler luxury for us!

Hi Philip

On your leaving photo I see youre there with Chris Hobson. He was another larger than life character. Do you know what happened to him?

Sorry about Baggi Wright. Really nice lad.

[hillsbro]

Hi Philip, on your leaving photo I see youre there with Chris Hobson. He was another larger than life character.

Yes - maybe a bit too large...

Do you know what happened to him?

No and don't care much.. Does that sound too nasty?.

Sorry about Baggi Wright. Really nice lad.

Yes - my best friend in 2(4). His cousin David was in the year below, and is on the same photo as Chris Hobson and me - I think he went to work for Post Office Telephones. Two more KES cousins were Graham Hathaway and Alan Chittenden - I did the family tree a few years ago. Chittenden is a Kent surname and Alan's ancestors were Ramsgate fishermen. Alan now lives near Holmfirth.

 

Another classmate who died fairly recently was John Ramsden.

[Dreb48]

Probably ' nail on head ' there Philip.

If you look at the photo of 1(3) where Chris has got his hands on Paul Jeffries shoulders, it sums him up really.

When you realise how many are of our contemporaries are now ' absent friends' it's a sobering thought. Too many names mentioned in this thread alone.

Probably time I got out more instead of spending hours on History and Expats !

[strangerthe6]

I recall the tragic death of Mark Baker mentionned earlier though it was shortly after I had left maybe around 1969/70. His dad was a Doctor and our Family GP for many years when we lived in Wadsley. His surgery was on the corner of Wadsey Lane & Marlcliffe Road. I seem to recall the press reporting at the time that Mark couldn't handle the pressure of doing O levels in 4 years (instead of 5 everywhere else in Sheffield at the time) and consequently questionning the wisdom of "fast tracking" us "bright" guys. Don't think it changed anything though. Marks sister Sharon later married one of my classmates Mick Fleming.

 

I recall many of the staff mentionned in this thread. There were some real characters amongst them, though no doubt some of the practices of that time would be totally out of order in todays schools. Though I didn't enjoy it at the time, looking back I have no regrets. Have lived in France for over 30 years now so Fanny Adams French lessons were useful after all. I lived in fear of his ear tweeking, head bashing and finger rapping with a wooden ruler, all painful aids to irregular verb conjugation!!

 

 

I was in the year below Mark at school. I knew him very, very slightly, he was a friend of my friends brother! If I remember correctly he was known as "Mini" Baker as there was another Baker in the school, presumably older and/or bigger! I can't remember any press reports but it was accepted at the time that the pressure of school work/exams was the reason he did what he did. Ironically many of his classmates thought he was cleverer than them and more likely to pass his exams with flying colours. It's very sad that despite outside appearances you can never know what's inside a persons head.

[Morts]

The item about John Ramsden broughtback more memories. The school used to hold mock elections whenever there was a General Election. I recall Roy Galley's name as well as a Conservative candidate. Despite that, I think it was the Independant that won but can't recall his name.