Archived News/Activities - Page 58 - November 2009 - |
Richard Thomas (JRGS 1957-64) reports the death of Fifties alumnus Bob Phillis... |
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I
was sorry to hear the news that Sir Robert Phillis (JRGS
1957-61) passed away on 22nd of December at the age of 64.
He had been suffering from cancer, which had initially led to
his early retirement. Bob is pictured left at the recent
Ruskin Reunion, held in Shirley during early-September. Richard "Tom" Thomas, Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Dec 2009 Email.
Paul Graham (JRGS 1959-66) adds: And here, shown
right, is the funeral notice published in the 30 December issue of
The Guardian. Click on the thumbnail to view a larger version. |
Mike Blamire (JRGS 1956-57) has scanned some scrapbook pages... |
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I recently came across this
scrapbook. The pages I have scanned contain signatures and best
wishes from others in my class at JRGS. I believe I was in
Class/form 1L; my memory may have failed me.
Mike Blamire, Belleville, Ontario, Canada, November 2009 Email |
Terence Morris (JRCS 1942-50) recalls the literary inclinations of Mr. McLeod... |
Reading through the Christmas 1936 issue
of the School Magazine that was recently put
online, I noted a
piece written by A. W. MacLeod, then headmaster who had succeeded
Mr. Field. In it he talks at length about an early 19th Century
explorer, Charles Waterton. In 1943 McLeod gave me a copy of Waterton’s
Wanderings in South America, published in the Everyman edition. I
still have it, with his name inscribed on the flyleaf in his inimitable
handwriting. I suspect he could have been reading it around 1936! Before
he arrived at Ruskin he taught at Ingram Road School in Thornton Heath
and at Woodside School (do either still exist?). At Woodside he became a
friend of a fellow teacher, D. H Lawrence of Lady Chatterley
fame. Terence Morris, Hampshire, November 2009 Email
Mel Lambert|Webmaster
adds: Can anybody help out with some direction here? What
would we like to see made available? While I'm willing to scan the
website for chronological information and gather together data into
rough shape, pressure of work prevents me from donating too much time to
the project.
Addiscombe Grammar School Terence Morris replies: It is interesting that Peter Oxlade has come up with the same suggestion that I made in my earlier email, namely that Croydon Council had thoughts about using a site in Shirley that later became the Ashburton School (to be initially headed by our own Mr. Manning)?
Mike Etheridge
(JRGS 1963-65) adds: Woodside School still exists. My
one memory of visiting this school as a junior engineer was to arrange
for the installation of trace heating to prevent icing of water pipes in
the children's outside toilets. More recently, I visited Ingram
School in about 1994 with a colleague from Croydon Council to look
into electrical overloading problems. In 2001 Ingram school was sold to
an Asian group and extensively refurbished. The refurbishment contract
was managed by a firm of surveyors/quantity surveyors, The Potter
Raper group, based in Beckenham. D. H. Lawrence also taught at
Davidson school.
Tony Childs (1947-53) adds:
Although it is unlikely that he would remember me, I well remember Terry
Morris at school. One of his main claims to fame was that it was due to
him that, unlike every other school in Croydon, we had to go into school
when we were taking public exams (School Certificate and then A-Levels).
Earlier, he had had the privilege of not going into school but was
spotted delivering a political speech outside the Town Hall. I also
remember Gerald Southgate - another political animal - who was our form
prefect. |
Paul Graham (JRGS 1959-66) reports on the sad death of teacher Anthony Crowe... |
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I
saw the attached Death Notice in Friday’s Guardian for
one our favourite teachers. He was aged 74. Paul Graham, Iver, Bucks, November 2009 Email
Grant Harrison (JRGS 1959-66)
adds:
I think Anthony Crowe,
pictured right from the 1960 school photograph, made a big
impression on all of us. I remember when a boy called, I think, Sengupta
- I might have that wrong - was going to join the class and we all made
childish remarks about his name. Anthony suitably admonished us and
we all felt a little ashamed of ourselves.
John Byford (JRGS 1959-66)
adds:
Good to read Grant's recollections of
Mr. Crowe; he was a fair and honest schoolteacher. He also taught us
English literature and introduced us to the poems of DH Lawrence
(perhaps the short stories as well), probably the first time many of us
had had someone with the flair to convey grown-up enthusiasm for poetry.
I have also received addition background information from John Ward, who runs a past pupils’ website for St. Joseph’s, Blackpool, which school Mr. Crowe attended before going up to St Catherine’s, Cambridge.
As can be seen
from the document shown
above left, Anthony J. Crowe took three A-Levels at St
Joseph’s College, Blackpool. The second document,
shown right, is a section from The
Times dated June 18th 1956, which states that A. J. B. Crowe, of St Catherine’s
College, formerly of St Joseph’s College, took a respectable
2/1 in the second part of the Cambridge English Tripos. Click on either
thumbnail to view a full-sized version.
Derek Charlwood (JRGS 1958-64) adds:
I was taught English by Anthony
Crowe for one year and his encouragement of use of descriptive
narrative has stayed with me all my life. The comment above about the
quality of staff, and how it stood so many in good stead set me
thinking.
Paul Graham adds: Late last year,
I wrote to Anthony Crowe's widow Judith to offer our condolences, and
recalled
fond memories of his teaching at the school from January 1960 until July
1963, when he left for Homerton College, Cambridge. I mentioned that he
is remembered and hugely respected.
Judith Crowe replied as follows: "Dear Paul, many months
ago you sent me a message after seeing the notice of Tony's death in
The Guardian. I am very sorry that I have taken so long to get back
to you. I couldn't do it at the time, but so appreciated hearing from
you about what you remember of his teaching and his activities at John
Ruskin. |
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