George Dickson 1936 – 2019

Late on January 27 2019 my wife received an email informing us that George Dickson had died. G.H.Dickson joined Mill Hill School in the autumn of 1949. He was immediately recognised as one of the most ebullient and sociable recruits to Scrutton House. He was the life and soul of any gathering, as well as a talented sportsman.

In those days the standard of Fives play in the school left much to be desired. George and I undertook to raise the standard by intensive recruitment and training. Our work paid almost instant dividends. In 1952 we won both the junior and the senior house Fives competition with the same team in the same calendar year.

When I became captain of Fives I had no hesitation appointing George my Honorary Secretary. The school team was never better than average. But by dint of hard training and discipline we sometimes beat more gifted teams like Harrow and Aldenham. The Fives team had a good life. We travelled to away matches in a six-seater hired vehicle, often without an accompanying teacher. On the way back we would persuade the driver to stop at a pub.

George was most at home on the rugby field. He established himself as the first XV fly half and learned to dominate play. Despite hard practice his kicking was never better than average. But ball in hand he was a star. He developed a long and accurate pass, often putting his inside centre in space. As a result Colin Evitt scored a hatful of tries. George developed a most convincing dummy, sending wing forwards spinning in the wrong direction. On one occasion I swear I saw the ball actually leave his hands, then magically return to his grasp. George and I formed a triumvirate with the late Rob Stanners. We organised a whole range of activities for School House such as debates, stage plays, musical evenings and a Goon Show. George always maintained that he was less academically gifted than some of us, so he had to work harder to keep up. He certainly did keep up. He won an entry scholarship to Saint Mary’s medical school and became a distinguished surgeon. When he retired from the Worthing General Hospital, they paid him the compliment of naming a new surgical ward after him.

A few years ago I noticed George’s hands begin to tremble. In due course Parkinson’s was diagnosed. Towards the end George was a full time wheelchair user. His most distressing symptom was the weakness of his voice. A great conversationalist was out of the game.

My most vivid memory of George Dickson was as captain of Scrutton in the final of the house rugby competition against a Winterstoke team brimming with school first and second XV players. By this stage of the term Top Field was muddy. George devised a strategy of letting the opponents have the ball as often as we could. If necessary at scrums we might kick our ball through their pack. Our wing forwards would charge as their half backs juggled the greasy ball. Against all the odds we won the most precious sporting prize.