Letter to Head Master

This section was setup in August 2018 in order to move the existing related discussions from other sections into this new section to group them together, and separate from the other CH-related topics.

Moderator: Moderators

User avatar
Mid A 15
Button Grecian
Posts: 3172
Joined: Thu May 19, 2005 1:38 pm
Real Name: Claude Rains
Location: The Patio Of England (Kent)

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by Mid A 15 »

A quick search of 'Ian Haydens' has revealed two born in 1943 and one in 1946.

The 1946 one was Ian T (Trevor) Hayden and I believe he passed away in 2011.

Do the initials I T H ring any bells with anyone?
Ma A, Mid A 65 -72
Katharine
Button Grecian
Posts: 3285
Joined: Mon Dec 26, 2005 10:44 pm
Real Name: Katharine Dobson
Location: Gwynedd

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by Katharine »

robert totterdell wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 11:26 am Hayden does not appear in the Blue Book '72 - 73.

Burr no longer appears in it for '75 - 76. It is believed that he was removed with a god reference for striking a boy.

The Rev Atkinson is in it for '72 - '73 along with Rev Robson as senior Chaplain. They are both still there in '78 - '79.'s.

I believe a formal complaint was made by a nurse or matron with regards to his driving at speed. Oddly an incident happened concerning Burr in his white Morris Traveler which he had tuned up and it go faster than the 80 on the speedometer. It must have been towards the end of the time he had it. I was doing, along with someone else (John Talbot(?)) one of Plumley's Verrio guide tour things. We had stopped at the statue to look back at the Dinning Hall and I was explaining some architectural crap about how different buildings had been designed to reflect various period of architecture when Burr screamed through the East Arch and nearly hit someone. One of the people on the tour was an OB from Hertford - I remember as she told me off for being rude about their uniform at that time. She said she would make a formal complaint about the master (who of course I happily named. Don't know if she did or not. I seem to remember that the tips were good at the end though! I guess we were supposed to and them in but we never did.
My husband knew PPdeWB as a volunteer on the Ffestiniog Railway, this would have been in the 60s, I never met the man. John always referred to him by the initials, and has confirmed it is the same person from a house photo. Many of his stories revolved round his reckless driving, and he was in fact asked to leave the Railway after one prank too many, including committing offences that would nowadays have to be reported to the Rail Accident Investigation Board, such as uncoupling a train. As far as John knows there was never any suggestion of anything of a sexual nature, just high jinks that went too far.
Katharine Dobson (Hills) 6.14, 1959 - 1965
Ajarn Philip
Button Grecian
Posts: 1902
Joined: Sat Jul 14, 2007 7:30 pm
Real Name: AP

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by Ajarn Philip »

On the subject of Burr and his car, I seem to recall a phenomenon known as "Potty driving", which I think involved Burr zigzagging (deliberately) his way up the Avenue. I don't think I ever witnessed it myself.

Further to previous posts, Rev Atkinson was housemaster of Mid B in c.73-75 (I left in 75, I don't know how much longer he stayed at Mid B).
AMP
Deputy Grecian
Posts: 279
Joined: Wed Nov 14, 2018 12:15 pm
Real Name: Amp

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by AMP »

Rev Atkinson was a MaA house tutor 80 -5.

Not sure how long before that though.

Unusual for a Housemaster to then go back to being a tutor, but maybe less stress.

And Housemasters tended to do at least 10 years on average, some more.

I think Jones? may have been MidB Housemaster in 1980?

Jeffers PeA
Dennison PeB
Carrington ThA
Higgins ThB
Lorimer MidA
Jones? MidB
? ColA
Hailey ColB
Vincent Smth LaA
McCall LaB
Martin BaA
Goodall BaB
Shippen MaA
Waller MaB
Hall LHA
Sillett LHB
Ajarn Philip
Button Grecian
Posts: 1902
Joined: Sat Jul 14, 2007 7:30 pm
Real Name: AP

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by Ajarn Philip »

Impressive memory, AMP!
Yes, I also noted Atkinson's 'demotion'. Mid B had some disciplinary problems while he was there, but whether or not that is relevant I have no idea.
richardb
Forum Moderator
Posts: 886
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2005 2:23 pm
Real Name: Richard Bloomfield
Location: Tyne and Wear

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by richardb »

AMP wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 3:16 pm Rev Atkinson was a MaA house tutor 80 -5.

Not sure how long before that though.

Unusual for a Housemaster to then go back to being a tutor, but maybe less stress.

And Housemasters tended to do at least 10 years on average, some more.

I think Jones? may have been MidB Housemaster in 1980?

Jeffers PeA
Dennison PeB
Carrington ThA
Higgins ThB
Lorimer MidA
Jones? MidB
? ColA
Hailey ColB
Vincent Smth LaA
McCall LaB
Martin BaA
Goodall BaB
Shippen MaA
Waller MaB
Hall LHA
Sillett LHB
Which of these were junior houses?
Ajarn Philip
Button Grecian
Posts: 1902
Joined: Sat Jul 14, 2007 7:30 pm
Real Name: AP

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by Ajarn Philip »

Junior: Barnes, Maine, Leigh Hunt
User avatar
Mid A 15
Button Grecian
Posts: 3172
Joined: Thu May 19, 2005 1:38 pm
Real Name: Claude Rains
Location: The Patio Of England (Kent)

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by Mid A 15 »

Ajarn Philip wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 3:59 pm Junior: Barnes, Maine, Leigh Hunt
That was the case during 'our' time but my understanding is that they changed it later (eighties maybe when the girls came) so that, for example, Maine B was the junior house and Maine A the senior. Later still ( when they built the Grecians houses maybe) I believe they reverted to all through houses once more.
Ma A, Mid A 65 -72
misfit82
2nd Former
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2018 5:11 pm
Real Name: DCC
Location: Woodstock, Oxon
Contact:

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by misfit82 »

AMP wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 3:16 pm
? ColA
Either Brotherton or JM (formerly MJ) Williams
Ba A / Col B 1975 - 1982
cstegerlewis
Deputy Grecian
Posts: 336
Joined: Tue Oct 04, 2005 5:17 pm
Real Name: Craig Steger-Lewis
Location: Tring UK

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by cstegerlewis »

Going back to Burr’s boat, the only time I ever was aware of Burr (I don’t think I actually met him) was him bringing The Empress of Blandings to moor next to Scout summer camp near Bosworth; it would have been July 84, end of my third form, and was memorable to me as Webb also turned up despite leaving the school earlier in the year. Burr took some patrols on day trips on the boat, but I didn’t go, I think it must have been as some of us were doing a 12 mile overnight expedition for our explorer badge.

As I have previously said, it appears I was in the middle of all of this but (luckily) was never a victim of any of the perpetrators (or anyone else who has not been arrested/charged yet) but all power to all involved to get recognition/counselling support and dare I dream for some compensation for you as well?
Craig Steger-Lewis
Ba.B 25, Mid B 25, Mid A42
1982-1989
AMP
Deputy Grecian
Posts: 279
Joined: Wed Nov 14, 2018 12:15 pm
Real Name: Amp

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by AMP »

misfit82 wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 8:29 pm
AMP wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 3:16 pm
? ColA
Either Brotherton or JM (formerly MJ) Williams
Thank you!

Yes, taffy Williams who changed round his initials not to clash with Joe Williams LHB House Tutor

Brotherton was Jeffers' predecessor (I think)
Otter
GE (Great Erasmus)
Posts: 182
Joined: Mon Aug 20, 2018 5:17 pm
Real Name: Stephen O'Rourke
Location: East Anglia

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by Otter »

Mid A 15 wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 4:06 pm
Ajarn Philip wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 3:59 pm Junior: Barnes, Maine, Leigh Hunt
That was the case during 'our' time but my understanding is that they changed it later (eighties maybe when the girls came) so that, for example, Maine B was the junior house and Maine A the senior. Later still ( when they built the Grecians houses maybe) I believe they reverted to all through houses once more.
Yes this is how it was, for boys, when I was there in the mid-late 90s. All the girls’ houses were all-through houses.

For boys, B was junior, A was senior. The only exception was Middleton, where both A and B were seniors only. Generally when you began UF you transferred from your B house to the adjoining A house, but obviously some were selected to go to either of the Mids - how they chose who, I don’t know.

Then at the start of the 00-01 year the boys houses went All Through, 2nd form to Grecians and later to Deps once the Grecians’ Houses were built. It was odd for those just starting as LE, having waited 2 years to be at the top of the house only to find themselves less than halfway up the pecking order.

I would add that I had an exceptional housemaster who later “stepped down” to being general part-time house staff at a different house. It wasn’t due to performance, conduct or stress: he took on additional academic teaching duties which took up more time and he didn’t want to compromise the house so stepped down voluntarily.
AMP
Deputy Grecian
Posts: 279
Joined: Wed Nov 14, 2018 12:15 pm
Real Name: Amp

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by AMP »

Thank you Otter, didn't know about the "all through".

20 years out of date...😦

How are house (rugby) teams put together u12, u13 etc if fewer pupils on each year?

Sorry, am going a bit off topic, although an up to date knowledge of house layouts is useful to have.
Otter
GE (Great Erasmus)
Posts: 182
Joined: Mon Aug 20, 2018 5:17 pm
Real Name: Stephen O'Rourke
Location: East Anglia

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by Otter »

AMP wrote: Sun Jul 21, 2019 10:33 am How are house (rugby) teams put together u12, u13 etc if fewer pupils on each year?
As far as I can remember, the whole house (A+B) formed one team. Not 100% sure though.
robert totterdell
GE (Great Erasmus)
Posts: 139
Joined: Mon Jun 25, 2018 4:58 pm
Real Name: Mr Robert G S Totterdell

Re: Letter to Head Master

Post by robert totterdell »

Hi Bob

Thanks for this - but I thought he had one named after his parents prep school? Anyway I have found two people who remember Burr from the boats at Napton. One was a former landlord of The Folly (a good pub right next to the canal and the flight of locks - Napton Flight). He remembers Burr because he threw him out with a number of 'boys' who Burr was trying to buy drinks for (alcoholic). He said that the laws were just being toughened up so I guess early 1990's, and he would have done and had in the past but he was concerned as there were 4 pubs in Napton (slight overkill given it's size) and Southam police had targeted the village and Long Itchington (which is about the same size with 6 pubs). He remembers that it was the first time he ejected non-locals for this and Burr got quite angry insisting that if he (Burr) said the boys were over 18, then they were as he was a teacher and not just a pub landlord. He says it was his first difficult incident (it apparently got a lot worse with the the local young farmers). There were other adults with Burr and they all went to the Crown on the hill (now shut). His wife gave him a hard time as it would have been good money and the Crown served them and it was good money. Never saw Burr again for several years apparently they stuck with the Crown as The Bridge also refused to serve them.

The other person is a true Boater and has lived his entire life on boats. He remembers Burr as 'pompous and aggressive' in his attitude and looked down on permanent boaters. His real memory is just that there were always lots of people on the boat, some young, who had a good time but were 'bl**dy (he used another word) noisy'.

That's it for a local search - most landlords have moved on and I was lucky that the old landlord at The Folly just happened to be in the pub when I was asking.

Just for info
Rob
Post Reply