Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

My only experience of corporal punishment was 6 whacks with a Dunlop Greenflash trainer, delivered by my junior housemaster Bob Sillett, for being overheard saying "It's not f**king funny". I was commenting on someone else who Bob had just "slippered", when someone was laughing at him and thinking it was funny. Rough justice I thought at the time, but Bob was in a bit of bad mood!
I don't blame him at all (much!) - I think a school with the threat of decent punishments helps keep the kids knowing who's in charge.

I remember those Dunlops (3 cracks when caught smoking) and his cricket boot which was saved for more serious offences (6 cracks when caught spitting out a kamikaze fly beside the path outside lhb day room). Sillett wasn't a terrible housemaster but wasn't always consistent!

My most fearful experience of punishment was being sent to Handsford with 2 others after being caught writing BBB on a train during a trip to London (possibly when we sold programmes for the Lord mayor's show) can't remember who my co-defendants were. We were bricking it and he asked what punishment we thought should be administered. "I think you should send us to London for 3cdays to scrub trains" I piped out. "Hmm" he replied, "gated to house for 3 months seems more suitable than a school funded holiday" he replied. 3 sighs of breath ensued.
I panicked again when he congratulated me on winning '5 minutes with' about 6 weeks later. "Well done but should you be here?" he asked. I disappeared promptly, missed the after party and never heard any more on the subject

On the off topic subject of ale I can confirm Old Speckled Hen is still produced by Greene King under the name Morlands and is available regularly, served on the wood (as all good real ale should be) in my pub "The North Star" in Steventon, Oxfordshire. Any OB who makes themselves known there is welcome to a free pint on me. (Or glass of wine/g&t etc)
I no longer produce nor sell dark room attic home brew nor science lab ethanol and orange I'm afraid!

Dover wrote: ↑Tue Oct 19, 2021 4:31 am
I no longer produce nor sell dark room attic home brew nor science lab ethanol and orange I'm afraid!

Would have been worth comparing that with my so-claimed ginger beer - the earlier rasberry cocktail was so lethally horribleI had to abandon it. Long before your time.
Did you ever get ordered to ben dover?

sejintenej wrote: ↑Sun Oct 24, 2021 4:50 pm
Did you ever get ordered to ben dover?

Regularly! I had many nicknames based on my name Robin Over (Mr R Over according to my bank card) as well as being a bit of a naughty boy and a regular target for thrashing by a large bunch of the teaching staff I was also unlucky enough to be in school during the most prolific period in the career of the infamous Ben Dover of cheesy porn fame. Rover, Clover etc etc were all overshadowed by the moniker Dover for many years