by Colin Tustin (1951-56)
Colin Tustin (1951-56) reminisces:
– Tumbling Bay. In summer the whole form walked down the canal towpath at Hythe Bridge Street and then under the railway bridge to the area where we were taken across the river by a rather disgruntled boatman in his punt.
On getting across, the first thing to check was the water temperature which was written on a small blackboard in the changing huts. The highest temperature I can recall was 57 degrees Fahrenheit, which was pretty cold, but we had to get in anyway.
The non-swimmers were taught how to swim in the shallow end while the swimmers used the deep end to practise diving for a metal plate which was thrown in to be recovered from the bottom of the pool.
Although Tumbling Bay was used during the school term, the swimming sports took place at Longbridges off the Isis towpath at Donnington.
– Who remembers Mr Lee (Flea) and his “Lambaster”, a curved piece of metal about a foot long which was used to rap your knuckles. He was also an expert shot at throwing his wooden blackboard cleaner at anyone who was not paying attention in his class.
– Changing into vest and shorts to be weighed and measured by Tiny Rowlands in the Geography Hut, the results going on the school report.
– Each form being lined up in the playground for cap parade, and anyone without his cap would be put in detention.
– Going to see ‘Julius Caesar’ in the Ritz cinema and having to write an essay on it afterwards. Also seeing the Queen’s Coronation film in glorious technicolor.
– Freddy Lay giving the school an extra halfday holiday in January 1954 because Headington United were playing Stockport in an FA Cup match on a Thursday afternoon.
– Reference Jim Fleetwood’s comment in Newsletter 6 – Nosmo was the commonly used name for the school caretaker, certainly while I was at the school.