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From:
Ron Dolman, 26/9/01
Your Staff List was a real memory jogger and what a pity that it only covered the years up to 1954.
The names certainly brought back memories:-
N.S.Mercer was the kindest of men but us boys all trembled when we were sent to his study for the ultimate punishment - the cane. It had to be something quite serious to be sent to Mr Mercer.
I remember that we only ever had one school outing and that was when it was arranged that 4B would have a day trip to Windsor. Of course by that time we were nearing the end of our education at D.C.S. and none of us had any vestige left of the school uniform - not even the tie. Mr Mercer was horrified to think that we would perhaps be on show to some Etonians and insisted that we should go along to his study and go through his "lost and found" to see if we could be outfitted in school colours to some degree. We ended up looking worse than if we hadn't bothered - school caps perched on our heads like peas on a
drum, blazers with cuffs ending halfway up our arms and not buttoning across the chest.
A real Fred Karno's army !!
Miss V.R.Davis took us for music and was so sincere in her love for the classics that one could not help but be affected .
Mrs M.T.Parker was our English teacher and was a real sweetie with a racy sense of humour. She made all of our lessons fun and her reading list was a joy.
Mrs F.M.Raines was,I believe the Domestic Science teacher but I am not too certain about that.
Mr E.Thomas was a Welshman with a very fiery temper especially when someone electrocuted his specimen tadpoles by putting battery electrodes in the
water. Nevertheless he did his best with the poor students that he had to work with.
I was never taught by Mrs S.A.Martinez ( I think that she took French) nor Mr F.H.Baker but although verging on the stout side he was always impeccably dressed and invariably wore a rose in his button hole. In those days all the male teachers at least wore a tie and it would be no bad thing if present day teachers took a little more care with their appearance. It's some times difficult to separate the pupils from the staff these days.
Mr G.P.Cole was our teacher of woodwork and where would we be today without our grounding in mortise and tenon joints and basic tool handling.
Miss B.G.Brooker. Barbara Brooker came to the school in 1948 ( I think straight from Art College) and became the heart throb for all the raging
male hormones that were unleashed. She treated all the boys gently and always had a kind word for everyone and managed to keep control of her classes at the same time without bruising any egos.
Mr W.S.Oldland was my form master in 2B in 1947 and his claim to fame was the double cupboard under the blackboard where he kept his collection of canes all neatly arranged according to thickness. He had the unenviable job of handing out punishment to pupils who were sent along to him by the other teachers.
You entered his class room in great trepidation which was made worse when he opened up the double doors of his cupboard with a great flourish and then told you to select the instrument of your punishment !!
In 1948 and 1949 I was in Form 3B under Mr B.Brooke.
I have a photo somewhere of the 3B members and can send it if you have some interest.
By the way, in or around 1955 or 1956 Mr Hoskins arranged a reunion for the class of 1950 in a room above a pub in Kings Cross. Do you still have reunions ? .
Looking again at the Staff list I see the name of Mrs J.E.Murfitt who took form 1S for shorthand in our first year. I was a total failure in this subject and came bottom of the class - end of shorthand lessons.
Mr A.G.Oak took us for P.T. (as it was called in those days) and swimming lessons at the Municipal Baths. His favourite expression was "kick that boy in" when one of us showed some hesitation in entering the water.
Mme.D.V.Comet took us for French and although she was at the school for only a year she taught us to speak with an authentic French accent.
Ron Dolman
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