Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

How many of the Inter House Trophies are still competed for I wonder?
The Blue for December 1950 lists House by House as many as 27.These include various different sports and activities including Cricket Cup, Relay Cup, Medley Relay, Coleridge Trophy ( I forget what this was for), Hay Cup (Shooting). House Singing Shield, Chess Shield. Wilkinson Cup.(I believe that this was an academic award) and Swimming Cup.
I suppose things changed somewhat when the Girls' School arrived in 1985.
Coleridge 'A' also had The Briscoe Cup which had been donated by the parent (s) of T.W.P. Briscoe
who had been killed in Burma in World War 2. and was to be awarded to any particular Col. 'A' Old Blue who had contributed particularly well to the House. I believe that Andrew Joanes, House captain was the first recipient in 1950. Where is it now?
Chris Bartlett

Wasn't there a pancake race cup, which was some antlers?

jhopgood wrote:Wasn't there a pancake race cup, which was some antlers?

Yes, the Colonel Pussfoot-Smythe Trophy.

As for the Coleridge Trophy, which was rather more official: At a prizegiving, Seaman once said, with his tongue in his cheek, that it was 'awarded on principles you all know'. He knew as well as we did that no one knew what these principles were. The next term a notice went up explaining them. It had to do mainly with how many academic prizes boys in a particular house had won. There may have been other contributory factors, I forget. But I do remember that a persistent rumour was scotched by the last sentence: "No points are deducted for demerit". (It was often said that points were deducted for detentions.) The trophy itself was (is?) a bronze of Coleridge, Lamb and Leigh Hunt huddled together, and can be seen here (not very clearly, in front of the boy in front of the matron): viewtopic.php?f=55&t=2654

There was also a Gym Cup (won by Lamb B, always, largely because no one else wanted to win it) and a PT Cup (which, curiously, people did want to win). I can't remember whether there were separate cups for seniors and juniors in these activities, or whether the performances were aggregated. The cricket and rugby cups did both have senior and junior versions. There was also some kind of trophy (I forget what) for Art.

What happened to the various trophies from Hertford? Hockey had an inter-house shield, most other sports had cups of various sizes. Needlework had the famous bookends - reputedly made from Queen Victoria's piano, though which bit I don't know.

And who could forget the Hertford Tableau Competition. Oh my word...if Angela was there when it was a feature I would give a lot to read her description but I think it was a happily short lived later experiment. I feel faint...

The Coleridge Trophy is definitely still competed for, and currently resides with Maine B (well deserved - this House has by far the cleverest boys IMHO! ).

Sadly I've never heard mention of the Colonel Pussfoot-Smythe Trophy for pancake racing. What a tragedy that such a colourful-sounding tradition has been allowed to lapse - somebody ought to find those antlers!

Was there not also the Brigardier Wellard-Lucke wooden spoon, for Poker ?

Generally, the playing of cards was frowned upon in my day - Particularly poker !

Actually, in Ba B in the 40s cards were played quite a lot.
Canasta, Besique, Racing Demon, Whist.
I have forgotton how to play the first two.
Yes, Poker came later ---- Much !
Table Tennis, on those long tables, became an entirely different game ---- Long Smashes !!

NEILL THE NOTORIOUS wrote:Actually, in Ba B in the 40s cards were played quite a lot.
Canasta, Besique, Racing Demon, Whist.
I have forgotton how to play the first two.
Yes, Poker came later ---- Much !
Table Tennis, on those long tables, became an entirely different game ---- Long Smashes !!

Ba B in the 60's had lost Racing Demon, but I remember the other card games.
Table tennis on Saturday nights included everyone, playing and then running to join the queue at the other end.
There were various board games, similar to Battleships, depending who got what for Xmas.

My DD is a great Racing Demon player and she's joined Barnes B - You never know ...!

Col A had pretty competitive snooker (but never a ranked player ) and table tennis played on those long, relatively narrow tables. No card games that I was ever aware of.

jhopgood wrote:

NEILL THE NOTORIOUS wrote:Actually, in Ba B in the 40s cards were played quite a lot.
Canasta, Besique, Racing Demon, Whist.
I have forgotton how to play the first two.
Yes, Poker came later ---- Much !
Table Tennis, on those long tables, became an entirely different game ---- Long Smashes !!

Ba B in the 60's had lost Racing Demon, but I remember the other card games.
Table tennis on Saturday nights included everyone, playing and then running to join the queue at the other end.
There were various board games, similar to Battleships, depending who got what for Xmas.

When I started in Ba B I remember games of "Risk" that lasted for ages and watching Robin Howland and others playing Mahjong (much too complicated to let 11 year old squits play).

sejintenej wrote:Col A had pretty competitive snooker (but never a ranked player ) and table tennis played on those long, relatively narrow tables. No card games that I was ever aware of.

I think ColA had card games in my time - poker springs (or shuffles) to mind.

We played solo whist and canasta quite a lot.

There was also a curious game which we called Chinese Knackers, but may go under other names too. It started usually with eight people, and involved everyone rhythmically slapping the table and their knees while individual players (according to a strict plan) called out numbers assigned to each player. Thus on one particular slap of the table you called out your own number and on the next slap, that of another player. (Thus 'two-seven' on two consecutive taps of the table -- left and right -- which was followed by a handclap and two slaps on the knees). The other player (in this case 'seven') then had to do the same at the next correct point in the cycle (i.e. the tabletop slaps), thus he might for example call 'seven-four'. You were 'out' if you got the rhythm wrong, or called out numbers at the wrong point, or called the number of a player who had already exited, or called the two numbers in the wrong order, or failed to respond when your number was called. When there were only two players left, it got quite fast and required good nerves and co-ordination.

Another more intellectual game was played between two people (but worked better if there was a referee). Each player chose a five-letter word with no two letters the same. Each player would then seek to find the other player's word. It went like this: player A, for example, chose MITRE. Player B would then offer another word, say PICKS, and player A would reply "One". I.e. one letter (in this case 'I') matched. In this way it is possible, by elimination, to find the other player's word. The referee was needed because it is all to easy to give a wrong answer, and that screws up the whole process.