Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

I was reading a weekly email newsletter this morning and there was a mention of Neil Paknadel, to which my immediate reaction was "I know that name!!" Does anyone else remember him?

Actually, I can't really claim to know Neil; I just remember chatting to him and someone else at the Mansion House on my last St Matthew's Day in the UVI. It's an unusual name and it's obviously stayed in my memory, though I'd forgotten about it until this morning. I doubt there are too many people with that name so I'm assuming it's the same person. Anyway, apparently he now works at Marylebone Library and is interested in words and languages (the newsletter was the World Wide Words newsletter, which I can highly recommend to anyone who is interested in words and their derivations, especially slang and idioms).

The name rings a definite bell with me but I'm struggling to remember why!

Neil was in Thorn A with me (and a few others!) in the early 70s. Fearsomely intelligent, short, bright eyed Jewish guy. He could talk the hind leg off a fieldfull of donkeys! He knew a lot about a lot of things, scientific, technical, philosophical. I married in to the Jewish community for some 18 years - my two eldest children were raised Jewish - and I the memory of Neil became a sort of touchstone. I remember in the 2nd form, during divinity with John Robson, Neil would start the lesson pouring over his "Know your Judaism" correspondence course, but would pretty soon be drawn into freewheeling debate, which John's lessons usually morphed into. John Sealtiel, Ba.A, Mid.B, was the only other Jew I can remember but he didn't practice at all, that I recall. Anyway, Neil: I expect he shone in some high academic institution: his brain was bigger than he was, which explains why he schlepped around mountainous piles of books - they weren't really books, they were a cunningly disguised receptacle for that part of his grey matter that didn't fit into his head. If you read this, Neil: hello! Hope you're well!

Good to hear from you Julian. Does anyone else remember Neil Paknadel in the very first stage preformance of Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - in the Prep Hall about 1970? Appropriately, as the only jewish member of the cast, Neil played the Pharoah! - very well indeed. I must add though that Pharoah was played again in 1977 in the Theatre by Duncan McCowan - who was more of an Elivis lookalike and soundalike. Happy days. jds

Neil Paknadel was a third former in LHB when I joined CH in 1969; he used to hang around with Tod Ramos. I saw him on University Challenge in the mid 70's. Someone told me at the time that Neil's Grandfather invented Marmite - isn't it extraordinary what you can remember once prompted?

bap wrote:- isn't it extraordinary what you can remember once prompted?

Speaking of which, I've just remembered a trip which was something to do with Tod Ramos - and possibly organised by Nick Plumley - to a farm, where I spent a merry week or two creosoting gates, avoiding bad-tempered bulls and watching lambs being born. That has only just come back to me.

Does anyone else remember Neil Paknadel in the very first stage preformance of Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - in the Prep Hall about 1970
I was a "Second Treble" in that production; I think JDS was the Producer / Director - we certainly held some of the reheasals in his LHB study. My next stage appearance was in Lamb B's production of Arnold Wesker's Chips With Everything, also in the Prep School hall, produced and directed by Paul <forget surname - sorry> a heavy metal fan who played Hawkwind's Silver Machine very loud and very often in the study next to mine. Halcyon days