The Almondburian: November 2022

The ALMONDBURIAN

THE MAGAZINE OF THE OLD ALMONDBURIANS’ SOCIETY

(Opposite):

Trolleybus No 631 at the turning circle in Northgate, Almondbury. The story of how a small group of pupils from King James’s Grammar School saved this trolleybus from the breaker’s yard in 1964 is told on page 38.

The ALMONDBURIAN

Editor: Roger Dowling November 2022

The magazine of The Old Almondburians’ Society

A word from your Chairman

WALTER RALEIGH

SUMMER is usually a time when the Society is less active with fewer meetings and lots of holidays away. However, this year seems a little different and so I have a number of items to tell you about.

First of all, on behalf of the Society we must send our sympathies to King Charles and all the Royal family for the sad loss of our Queen on 8th September.

Our own Royal Correspondent Christopher Mann was very busily involved in the preparations for the funeral and on page 12 you can share some of his many memories of Her Majesty.

In the last magazine we mentioned that we had contacted the Yorkshire Archaeological Society regarding ownership of the Royal Charter. Our President, Ian Rimmer received a response

which was not very encouraging saying they had considered our proposal but had decided to refuse a change of ownership. However, a few days later I received an email from Sylvia Thomas, one of those involved at the YAS. She said she had spoken to Robert Clegg, the archivist at the West Yorkshire Archive Service, who is involved in cataloguing our School archives. Robert told her our main concern was not taking back ownership of the Royal Charter but gaining access to it for events in School. Ms Thomas said this was not a problem and told Robert we could have the Royal Charter any time we wanted and they would wave the necessity for expensive insurance, provided we promised to treat it with the reverence it both needs and deserves. We agreed and were delighted with this resolution to the problem.

I soon had an opportunity to put this new willingness to be more pragmatic to the test. As part of the English Heritage Weekend School was again open to the public on 17th September and on view for all visitors to see was the Royal

Charter, in pride of place in the ODH. May I publically thank Robert Clegg because without his involvement this simply would not have taken place. As you might imagine we hope to do the same at the Annual Dinner when the Royal Charter will be on view for all members to see.

Staying with the Heritage Weekend may I once again thank Ian Rimmer for allowing the Society to open School up for this event. Similarly, I should like to thank Abbi Terry, one of the Assistant Heads in School, for her part in getting students prepared to show visitors round our old School as guides. As usual they were wonderful ambassadors and were a delight to work with in this project. The number of visitors was a little down on previous years but there was probably a degree of uncertainty about the event as many of local buildings such as the Jubilee Tower on Castle Hill were closed by Kirklees as part of the respect by the council for the Queen’s death.

Ian and his team had planned for the official opening of the New Block on 17th September. This has been a pro -

Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting of the Society will be held in the ODH at School on Monday, 9th January, 2023 at 6.00 p.m. For those who wish to join the meeting by Zoom, the details are given below.

Meeting ID: 739 6718 4858

Passcode: 3DEWC2

Nominations for office on the Executive Committee are required by the Secretary in advance of this date, so that the election of officers can take place at the Annual General Meeting in accordance with Rule 7.

All members are urged to make every effort to attend the Annual General Meeting.

Andrew Haigh, Secretary

We can now have the Royal Charter for exhibition whenever we want it.

tracted event as School has had to find a date suitable for so many guests involved in the project. Unfortunately, at the last minute Kirklees officers contacted Ian and requested the event be again postponed because of the period of mourning for the late Queen. I am sure Ian and his team will eventually find another date and I hope to report back with photographs of the event. We wish him ‘good luck’ with that one!

A new builder has now been found to erect the seating area in the Big Tree

Membership

Yard after the last one doubled the cost because of inflation. He has promised to have it in place for November so visitors to the school over the Founders’ Weekend can have a look at it. See article on page 7.

And finally, may I send belated birthday wishes to the legend who is Jack Taylor. I visited Jack recently and his humour and sharpness in conversation are as they always were. He was making preparations for his 90th birthday:see our special feature on page 26 n

ANDREW HAIGH

APOLOGIES are due to two Old Almondburians who joined the Society in March after attending the Annual Dinner in November, but whom we omitted to welcome as new members of the Society in the last issue of The Almondburian: Anthony Burrie (1961-66) of Slaithwaite and Michael Storry (1961-68) of Holme.

After leaving school, Michael Storry worked for Huddersfield Passenger Transport, which became Metro, Kirklees, before moving to Blackpool Transport as Commercial Officer. Having received his Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) qualification, he moved to Leeds Western Health Authority and worked at Leeds General Infirmary First Wave Trust as Assistant Director of Finance. He later became the last Di -

rector of West Yorkshire Central Services, responsible for Primary Care payment, monitoring and support for general practitioners, opticians, pharmacists and dentists. Michael is married to Dot from Preston and has a son, William and daughter-in-law Niamh. His main interests are reading, history and, in particular, travel; he loves India especially.

In addition to the obituaries on page 55, we have been saddened to learn of the death on 9th February this year of David Brudnell Tomlinson (195763), resident in Preston.

Please remember that subscriptions for 2022-2023 fell due on 1st September. The vast majority of our members now pay their subscription by standing order, which makes life easy. If you are one of the few who do not pay by standing order and you have already sent

your £10.00 subscription for this year, thank you very much for being so efficient!

If you do not pay by standing order and you haven’t recently made a payment for this year, then you will receive a letter with this magazine pointing out that your subscription is not up-to-date. In this event, please send your payment without

delay. As I mentioned above, it does make life much easier if you pay by standing order so, if you can complete the updated standing order mandate that accompanies the letter and return it in the envelope provided, that would be even better! Alternatively, you may renew online, using PayPal or a debit or credit card, by visiting oas.org.uk/membership.php. n

Difficulty: medium

Each row, column and 3 x 3 box must contain the digits 1 to 9

Old Almondburians’ Society Calendar

FOUNDERS’ DAY SERVICE

Friday, 25th November 2022: see page 18

ANNUAL DINNER

Saturday, 26th November 2022: see page16

BADMINTON/TENNIS: see page 54

Dates of Executive Committee Meetings, 2022

Executive Committee meetings are usually held in the ODH at School at 6 pm on the first Monday of the month. A Zoom link is also available, so that more distant members of the Society can be involved. Any member of the Society who would like to attend one of these meetings, either in person or virtually, will be made most welcome on the following dates:

Monday, 7th November Monday, 5th December

If you would like to join us via Zoom and you do not already receive login details, then please e-mail the secretary at andrew.haigh@oas.org.uk to request them.

1. Display cabinet for trophies

THE KJS sports teams have been particularly successful this year, winning nine Kirklees school trophies. This presented a problem: the School needed more space to display them all. The School teams deserved a large cabinet in a more prominent position so visitors could also see the trophies. Specifically, the School needed a large display cabinet, at a cost of over £1,000 and sought financial help from the OAS. We have been very happy to contribute £500 to the PE department’s own fundraising efforts and the cabinet (right) is now in position.

2. New ‘Big Tree’ seating project

WE reported in the July issue of The Almondburian that a new ‘Big Tree’ sapling – a yew– has been generously donated by the parents of former KJS Head Girl Evelyn Surman as their contribution to Newnham College’s ‘Global Tree Planting Project’. The sapling (right) is now in position and it is hoped to complete the stone seating around its base by the date of the OAS Dinner. The cost will be up to £7,000 and we should like to thank OAS members who have contributed to the project fund. Donations can still be made on our website at www.oas.org.uk/donate.php.You can also contribute by BACS: our account number (‘The Old Almondburians’ Society’) is 00814458, sort code 5361-07. Please give your full name and mark your donation ‘Big Tree’. Alternatively, if donating by cheque please complete the form below and enclose it with your contribution.

To: Andrew Haigh, R D Haigh & Co, Oakhill Road, Brighouse, West Yorkshire HD6 1SN

Name Address Tel Email

Big Tree Seating Project

From the study

It’s getting ever harder to analyse GCSE results as the key measures depend on the results from other schools, reports Ian Rimmer. But broadly speaking things are on the up.

CAST your mind back three years to the heady days when nobody except a small number of scientists had heard of coronavirus. A time when a late AugustThursday morning saw flocks of anxious young adults gathering outside school front doors, nervously awaiting confirmation or otherwise of the success of their 5-year secondary school endeavours.

Having had service suspended for a couple of years, many schools were anticipating getting back to their old ways. Unfortunately, owing to further building work at King James’s over the summer, we were unable to do that this year, falling back once again on electronic means of communicating the news.This often happens at post-16 level and may well become the norm for 11-16 schools in future, as the world increasingly relies on remote communication meth ods.

This was my 30th such results day, and they don’t get any easier. The interruptions to the GCSE course, which led to exam boards giving some prior notification of likely topics to the students, made this stranger than ever. And then we also knew the much-pub licised higher performance of the last couple of years, owing to the enforced implementation of teacher-assessed grades, would be pegged back approximately half-way to 2019

standards, when GCSE exams were last taken; the remainder of that recalibration will take place next year.

But don’t be lured into thinking the students this year had it easy. Quite the contrary; they have had significant interruptions to their studies, as well as their emotional well-being in their formative years, the like of which I and most readers will never have witnessed in the slightest. As such, they fully deserve a little ‘help’.

Given the return to semi-normality, you may be expecting my usual summary of how well King James’s School did this year. Well, sadly, that may have to wait for a later edition, for the key measures by which a school is judged nowadays depend entirely on results from other schools.We are now in the era of relative performance in a ‘zero-sum’ game. If one school does better than another, then the latter’s performance, no matter how well they have actually done, will be recorded (and rather unhelpfully reported), as a ‘below average’. Schools can’t all be good nowadays. Even if every school outperformed national expectations, a proportion would still be graded

‘Well below average’ and another set ‘Below average’. I have yet to fathom how such a system can be good for morale in an industry which often struggles to recruit.

For what it is worth, I can offer you the latest projections (based on one company’s own data) about how our figures look in the end.

The percentages for 2017-22, in so far as you can compare for all the reasons stated

above, are listed in Table 1.‘Progress 8’ results (a headline indicator of school performance) are shown om Table 2 overleaf. Some areas are performing more strongly than others but, broadly speaking, things are on the up; and long may that continue!

School Performance Measures (%)

2017 - 2022

So, what of the further building work to which I alluded earlier. “I thought that was all over”, I hear you call. One final element of the expansion project had to be postponed owing to delays to the new block and the running of GCSE exams; the PE changing rooms. A larger student population requires more changing room space, so they are being extended and upgraded; a move that will benefit not only students, but also OAS sporting groups that utilise school facilities. Meanwhile we have also been successful

with two Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) bids; it is fairly unusual to be successful with one, but to win two bids is a unique event. Our outdated heating system gets a well-overdue upgrade and some of the external fabric, which is now bearing the scars of time, gets replaced.

With more work comes more disruption though, a state to which we have become rather too accustomed over recent years. I look forward to normality, whatever that is! n

The Almondburian Poets

THISpoem, unusually erudite for a second-former, appeared in The Almondburian in December 1942. We shall never know why D Hardy was especially inspired to compose a poem evoking the memory of John Oxenham; perhaps it was no more that he had noticed that Oxenham had recently died and felt that a suitable tribute should appear in his school magazine. The reference to sand appears in Oxenham’s seminal book The Coil of Carne describing the view from the House of Carne: ‘As far as eye can reach--sand, nothing but sand, overpowering by reason of its immensity, a very Sahara of the coast.’

John Oxenham was in fact the pen-name of the journalist, author and poet William Arthur Dunkerley; as a journalist he also used the name Julian Ross. Born in Manchester in 1852, he later moved to Ealing, where he was deacon and teacher at the Ealing Congregational Church from the 1880s. In 1922 he moved to Worthing in Sussex, where he became the town’s mayor.

In addition to his poetry, Oxenham wrote over 40 novels and short stories, one of the most successful in its day being A Mystery of the Underground (1897), a murder story about a serial killer on the District Line of the London Underground. It led to complaints from the railway company that is was ‘too realistic’, and had led a reduction of passengers on Tuesdays, the days on which the murderer always struck.

A S-A-N-D-Y ODE

(with apologies to John Oxenham)

Yes, it’s sand in the barracks and sand in the houses, Sand in your caps and sand in your blouses, Sand in your ears and sand in your nose, Sand in your pockets and sand in your clothes, Sand in your stockings and sand in your nails, Sand in the washtubs and sand in the pails, There’s sand in the pots and sand in the pans, Sand in the water and sand in the cans, Sand in the jam and sand in the bread, You can’t get rid of it, even in bed, There’s sand in your watches and sand in the store, Sand overhead and sand on the floor,

Wherever you go there’s always some sand.

There’s sand everywhere in this sandy old land.

There’s sand in the pound notes that sometimes you spend, But this sandy old poem is now at its end.

D Hardy (2 alpha)

l We know relatively little about Moldgreen-born Derrick Hardy apart from the fact that he attended Almondbury Grammar School from 1941-49. He was clearly an able pupil, achieving four Credits and five Passes in his 1946 School Certificate. Sadly, he left School three years later, having failed his Higher School Certificate.

My memories of HM The Queen

CHRISTOPHER MANN MVO (1958-1966)

The nation was saddened by the death of HM Queen Elizabeth II on 8th September. We invited our own ‘royal correspondent’ to share his personal memories of a much-loved monarch.

AS I pen these lines, some of my colleagues at the College of Arms in London (home of the royal heralds who, under the direction of the Earl Marshal, the Duke of Norfolk, are intimately involved in the organisation of major state occasions) are still recovering from the rigours of the Queen’s state funeral, which was a great spectacle. In reply to my letter congratulating the Earl Marshal on its success, the Duke wrote “I think we have gone some way to regain our national pride.”

It has been my privilege to attend the State Opening of Parliament on several occasions and garden parties at Buckingham Palace, where the Queen always greeted countless people. I have also enjoyed very many more informal encounters with the Queen during more than forty years. Here are a few of my stories of meeting a remarkable woman with a perfect complexion, beautiful blue eyes and a winning smile, who had an amazing wit and captivating laugh.

Christopher Mann left King James’s as Captain of Siddon and an Associate of the London College of Music to study modern history at King’s College London. A fortuitous meeting with one of the ‘great and the good’ propelled him into a career as a hugely successful fund raiser. His organisational skills also earned him the respect and encouragement of the Royal Family. He is a Freeman of the City of London and in the New Year Honours of 2021 Her late Majesty The Queen appointed him a Member of the Royal Victorian Order for services to the Royal Household.

Back in 1978, I organised an evening reception at Cumberland Lodge (a former royal residence in the heart of Windsor Great Park), transfused into an educational foundation through the wisdom of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, later the Queen Mother. It was for kind friends, whose generosity has sustained the foundation’s work and the Queen Mother was the guest of honour. Other guests were bidden before Her Majesty’s arrival. A City banker and his wife got completely lost in the maze of private roads in the park and their chauffeur telephoned the Lodge on the car’s phone (no mobiles in those days) seeking help. I rushed to rescue his employer only to find the rather haughty wife speaking through the car window to a lady in a headscarf walking her dogs. She concluded her directions with the words ‘you will find my mother there.’ The car sped off and the Queen and I exchanged salutations and a laugh.

Twenty years later, Cumberland Lodge celebrated its

golden jubilee. Again I organised the celebratory reception which was attended by the Queen and Princess Margaret. Having planted a tree towards the end of their visit, the Queen indicated to me that she must leave to fulfil another engagement. Her Majesty and the Princess were doing a carshare and the Queen asked me to inform Princess Margaret that the sisters should leave. The Princess instructed me to inform the Queen that she was still planting her tree: The Queen’s response was ‘that’s my sister for you’ and we both had a good chuckle.

My Hertfordshire home is close to St Paul’s Walden Bury where the Queen Mother was born, spent much of her childhood and to which she always returned throughout her long life. Her Majesty was baptised in nearby All Saints’ Church and, following the Queen Mother’s death, it was decided to erect a memorial in the churchyard. It was dedicated in 2005 and the Queen was pleased to be present. It was my honour to accompany her throughout her visit and she insisted on meeting the three hundred guests – all generous donors to the memorial – and the Queen con-

Christopher Mann with HM The Queen at the dedication of The Queen Mother Memorial at St Paul’s Walden Church, Hertfordshire in April 2005

Cumberland Lodge, June 2007: catching up with The Queen

gratulated me for remembering their names!

For several years, there was an annual drinks party at the Goring Hotel in London, to remember the Queen Mother and raise funds for the Castle of Mey, her Scottish retreat. Members of the royal family always attended and the Queen joined the party sometimes. One year, I was chatting with Sir Geoffrey Shakerley, a celebrated photographer close to the royal family, on the terrace of the hotel, leading to the garden. Quite suddenly, a small gate opened and an elderly lady found herself on the lawn with no one to greet her. She was the Queen. Geoffrey and I rushed to her side and we all laughed as she teasingly remarked ‘I thought I had come on the wrong day’!

On the eve of the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton (now the Prince and Princess ofWales) my friend Lady Elizabeth Anson (a cousin of the Queen) hosted a glamorous evening at a London hotel for the entire royal family and visiting royalty overseas. I was involved in the arrangements and was invited to attend. I found myself offering a bow to most of the guests because they were either Majesties or Royal Highnesses!

The Queen mislaid her spectacles and I led a search party before presenting them to their owner. The Queen was hugely grateful and I venture to suggest that, had she been anyone else, she would have given me a peck on the cheek! Later in the evening, we exchanged a mutual grimace as one of Her Majesty’s

cousins helped himself to a more than generous helping of chocolate mousse.

Finally, a memory linked to the School. My friend Lady Elizabeth invited many of her friends and clients, including myself, to a glittering evening at St James’s Palace to mark the fiftieth anniversary of her party planning business. The Queen had long been her number one client and attended, again with most members of the royal family. I found myself talking to Raine, Countess Spencer (who as Countess of Dartmouth, had opened the ’new buildings’ in May 1963; she subsequently married Earl Spencer, father of Diana, Princess ofWales). Raine introduced me to a fellow guest, as she had done in the past, as ‘this young man is from Huddersfield; he went to my family’s school, King James’s in Almondbury.’ Suddenly Raine paused her monologue and descended into a deep curtsey. I looked to my right and there was the Queen. Her Majesty had a brief word with us and rather quickly carried on her way. I don’t think that the Queen and Raine were best buddies!

I dare to hope that Old Almondburians may have enjoyed reading these few cherished anecdotes. n

Annual Dinner 2022

Saturday, 26th November

Get your tickets NOW!

FOLLOWING the great success of last year’s event, we’re looking forward to another Old Almondburians’ Society Dinner on Saturday, 26th November .

The principal speakers will be Jacqueline Hart OBE (1976-81) and Prof Edward Royle (1955-62).

The ticket price this year is £32.50 and an application form for tickets is included with this issue of the magazine. Alternatively, you can purchase tickets online at www.oas.org.uk/buy -

dinner.php. Please be aware that when the Annual Dinner is held at the School places are limited, so early applications are recommended.

If you’re quick, there’s still time to stage a re-union of your year at the Dinner and such occasions are always enjoyable. So those with a special anniversary this year – members of the classes of 1947, 1952, 1962, 1972, 1982, 1992, 1997, 2002 or 2012 for example – will be particularly welcome!

GUEST SPEAKERS

Professor Edward Royle (KJGS 1955-62)

EDWARD ROYLE read History at Cambridge, remaining there to complete his PhD in 1968 and then to become a fellow of Selwyn College. In 1972 he moved to the history department at York where he remained until retirement in 2004. He is now Emeritus Professor at York and has published widely on the social and religious history of Britain since the eighteenth century.

Jackie Hart OBE (née Chilvers) (KJS 1976-81)

JACKIE HART graduated in Social and Economic History at Nottingham University.On leaving university she joined the Civil Service and in due course became Head of HR for UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) in 2013. When the new Department for International Trade (DIT) was formed in 2016 she took on her present role as HR Deputy Director.

Who will be at the Dinner?

As we go to press, these are just a few of the many Almondburians we’re expecting this year.

Surname Initials From To Travelling From

Battye Andrew 1979 1982 Almondbury

Beattie Karen Linda 1979 1981 Holmfirth

Dowling Roger 1952 1959 Lymm, Cheshire

Haigh Andrew Mark 1977 1983 Almondbury

Hanson Darren 1979 1981 Dalton

Hart OBE Jacqueline 1976 1981 London

Hodgson Gary 1979 1983 Lepton

Honeywell Ruth J 1979 1981 Godmanstone, Dorset

Jepson Roger 1962 1969 Netherthong Lee David Malcolm 1946 1951 Birkby

Makin N Christopher 1954 1961 Mirfield

Milnes Graeme 1957 1965 Cardiff

Orme Les 1961 1968 Shepley

Pollard David 1957 1964 Winchester

Raleigh Walter Ex-staff

Rimmer Ian Staff

Royle Prof Edward 1955 1962 Royal Leamington Spa

Searby Richard 1976 1979 Lepton

Sharman Robin 1976 1981 Kirkburton

Sharp John Franklin 1951 1958 Leighton Buzzard

Smart Dawn Allison 1976 1981 Penrith

Smart Andy Guest Penrith

Storry Michael 1961 1968 Holme

Sykes Stuart Taylor Dennis 1961 1969 Chesterfield

Teale Richard 1961 1968 Thongsbridge

The scene at last year’s successful Centenary Dinner.

Founders’ Day 2022

Friday, 25th November

FOLLOWING the success of last year’s Friday-afternoon Founders’ Day Service, this year’s Service will be held on the afternoon of Friday, 25th November at All Hallows’ Church, Almondbury.

The arrangements on the day are that the procession, accompanied byYear 7, 8 and 9 Student Council, the Head Boy and the Head Girl will leave School from 1.20 pm. The service will start at 1.45 pm. We’re delighted to announce that the Address will be given by John Hargreaves (right) and there will be music provided by a pianist and a cellist. The service is expected to finish at 2.30 pm. n

Address

JOHN HARGREAVES

John Hargreaves taught at KJS from 1971-90. He was Head of Religious Education from 1974-80 and Head of History from 1979-90.

He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and Vice-President of the Halifax Antiquarian Society.

The author of numerous books, John has lectured extensively on aspects of local history and has received three Yorkshire History Prize awards.

He is a Methodist Local Preacher and a member of the Halifax urban renaissance town team.

Last year’s ‘new-style’ Founders’ Day service

Back to the drawing board

Roger Sykes (1946-1953) revisits some of his favourite drawings

CYCLING down the high road from the moors was always exciting. From Buckstones Moss and past the Roman Road and Pole Moor through Outlane and then slowing down for Ainley Top, with wonderful views all the way. Next stop was to rest, sitting on the grass near the prominent entrance gate to the Fixby Golf course, the West Lodge, shown here in a sketch for the Huddersfield Examiner ‘In and About’ column. It enjoys one of the finest views in the West Riding.The Lodge is something of a rarity for the district and it is good that it has survived the construction of the M62 nearby!

The final stage for me was the very steep descent from Upper Edge down into Elland. How we trusted a pair of brake blocks!

At Ainley Top the local diversion was to ride over to one of the two nearby bridges, with trolley buses passing underneath. These days there is only the merged single tunnel under the M62 on the main road from Huddersfield down to Elland.

l Norris Bonser adds:Today the two cottages on either side of the central gateway are no longer in use and the gateway no longer leads to Fixby Hall. The path has been engulfed by a wood, and now leads to a radio/internet mast  at the top of the hill behind.The position where Roger made his sketch is now in the middle of a very busy road which was widened and raised many years back. Several trees have grown since Roger’s day and it is therefore sadly no longer possible to replicate his view.

West Lodge, Fixby Golf Course

TRAVEL

Old boys in Malta

JOHN ASPINALL (1956 - 1961)

With Covid restrictions starting to ease, Europe is again bracing itself against the arrival of undesirable visitors from abroad. Amongst them, earlier this year, were our four intrepid travellers from the Class of ’56.

WE finally made our trip to Malta at the third attempt. Last year’s four days in Filey via lunch in York was very enjoyable and provided an excellent minor reunion of OAS pals from Whitley Bay, Harrogate, Brighton and Huddersfield.

After a couple of discussions it became clear that there would only be four of us this

year: Mike Hellawell, Mike Gibson, John Linton, and myself, and the destination would be Malta. Mike H had done all the groundwork with a travel agent three years ago so it was just an update required with Jet 2. Simple. No, is it ever? We agreed quite quickly on the dates: 18th - 25th May, with a 6.00 am flight from Leeds-Bradford airport. Yes, 6.00 am; more of that later. At the time

Sliema

St Julian’s Bay Valletta

we were negotiating the arrangements, little did we realise that Huddersfield Town Football Club would affect our timetable. Shortly after we had set the dates, Town progressed beyond the third round of the FA Cup, so our ever-optimistic Mike G suggested that the chosen dates were perfect:Town would be in the Cup Final the week before we went and in the Championship play-off for the Premier League the weekend after our return.

He got the dates right, but unfortunately not the result. Mike G travelled up from Brighton on the Monday and we all watched Town’s match with Luton in the evening. A day at leisure on the Tuesday (this sounds like an itinerary from a travel brochure) and then the start of ‘The Longest Day’.

Mike G had stayed at my house and we were up and away at 2.00 am on theWednes-

day morning to collect my pals and off to Leeds-Bradford airport.We dropped the car off at Sentinel car park and when the lady asked me where we were going I couldn’t remember! It must have been the silly o’clock start; it couldn’t have been age-related – or could it? Thank goodness we booked the fast track to by-pass the queues to the baggage check which probably saved us at least an hour and a half.The flight was fine and we arrived in Malta with time to book in to the hotel, the Azur Hotel in Sliema, and have lunch.

There has to be some advantage in starting so early: an afternoon of getting our bearings, a few beers and a decent meal at Georgio’s, one of the many waterfront bar/cafés in Sliema with a buzzing atmosphere and good food.. Incidentally, the ‘few beers’ were enjoyed at a bar called Changes which I had vis-

Georgio’s restaurant in Sliema: John Aspinall, John Linton, Mike Hellawell and Mike Gibson

ited a few times during previous holidays in Malta.The owner, Joey, is an avid collector of soccer club scarves, including that of Huddersfield Town. He has hundreds all fixed to the ceiling or walls.

After an excellent breakfast at our hotel, we booked a couple of trips at reception and then decided we’d take a look at Valletta.We went across the creek in a small ferry before catching a buggy up to the city centre. It is a lovely short boat trip of about ten minutes and well worth the €1.50 fare.

We had a leisurely stroll around Valletta, soaking up the atmosphere and ambience. It was a pleasant mixture of tourists and the hustle and bustle of a working city. We stopped at a street-side café for lunch before walking down to the keyside of the Grand Harbour and then up to Barrakka Gardens to witness the four o’clock gun salute.

For our evening meal, we found a proper restaurant with white table cloths and it turned out to be more special than normal as Mike G received some good news from home. After two years of suffering a growing problem in his right hip, his 8-year-old grandson had been given the all clear to resume playing soccer. Mike was a little overcome by this welcome news and insisted on buying us a drink to celebrate. Cheers Mike!

The following day was to be our almost customary ‘Hop on – Hop Off’ bus adventure around the island. We have experienced this enjoyable way of exploring the surrounding areas of the main location of the holiday

on two or three of our previous cultural exchanges. Unfortunately, we got it slightly wrong this time.We set off from our hotel too late, caught the bus and stopped in Mdina for a very enjoyable lunch but it took too long, resulting in a drawn-out last leg back to the hotel: from Mdina the bus goes up to the north of the island and back down the east coast. It stops at several places to drop off and pick up passengers and as a result takes a long time. The two Mikes and the other John decided to visit the catacombs in Mdina but I didn’t fancy it, having seen catacombs elewhere, so I travelled back on my own.

I also wished to get back to the hotel to complete our room exchange. John and I share a room and we had complained the day before that we didn’t think the extra £68 each we had paid for a room upgrade was worth it.We’d had a meeting with a very polite and considerate ‘Operations Manager/Rooms Division’, a gentle giant nearly 2m tall. He was Dutch, possibly of Eastern European origin, and explained in very good English why our ‘deluxe’ room cost more: it faced the sun and we had a lovely view of the creek.We had seen the rooms of our less-fortunate travelling companions and they didn’t get much sun, and the view was not good

Barrakka Gardens: the four o’clock gun salute

though otherwise the size and facilities were the same. One peculiarity was the decor in both rooms. The ceiling and a couple of the walls were bare, i.e. neither plastered nor decorated. Our obliging manager explained that it was the modern style, antique or barbaric or something. A bit like the ‘distressed’ finish to furniture I suppose. “You must have spent some time in England to be able to speak such good English,” we commented. “Never been to England,” he replied. “I used to watch a lot of BBCTV, mainly Only Fools and Horses and Eastenders”. Anyway, the result was that he agreed to move us to a better room when one became available the next day.We went to look and yes, it was a satisfactory outcome.

But I digress. When John, and the two Mikes arrived back from the bus trip we decided we couldn’t be bothered looking for a different restaurant so went to Georgio's again. This time, however, Mike G finally got his wish, He’d been rabbiting on that Malta’s most popular dish was rabbit stew. John L joined him but Mike H and I settled for something more traditional.

Part of the ‘Hop on’ deal was to go on a Valletta harbour cruise and we chose this on

the Saturday morning, which turned out to be yet another glorious sunny day. (Last year we had walked around Scarborough Harbour when it was just as sunny, but maybe 10°C cooler, and enjoyed viewing the trawlers, pleasure crafts and the adjacent candy floss stalls with all their childhood memories for us).With due respect to Scarborough,Valletta Harbour is splendid. It consists of the Grand Harbour, and several Creeks. The Creeks vary in purpose from leisure to commerce and are steeped in history. It’s not surprising that Malta was such a strategic ally of ours during the SecondWorld War. The dockyards are possibly not as busy as in years gone by, but remain very impressive. Valletta Waterfront shows the leisure side, but the yacht basins – although boasting a few large yachts – do not have the number I recall four years ago. The cruise offered a commentary in English and Italian, and explained a lot of the history of the island and the creeks.

We dined lunchtime and evening at The Smokehouse, another bar/café on the waterfront. My ribeye steak was memorably succulent.

We opted for a local bus ride to St. Julian’s Bay on the Sunday. It is on the north side of Sliema only a short journey around the promontory by bus and is walkable by the inland direct route. Mike H enjoyed his honeymoon there – several years ago!We walked

Mike Gibson and John Aspinall with St Julian’s Bay in the background.

for a while around the promenade and stopped for coffee at a lovely Italian café overlooking the bay. After walking another short distance, we came across an English style pub where we decided to have a beer and lunch. Much to our astonishment the sandwiches were €2.50 each (at least half the price we had been paying elsewhere) and were very tasty! After watching the final Premier League matches on a dodgy streaming TV in a bar in the evening, we ate again at Georgio’s: the food was very good.

I had arranged to meet old friends Alan and Marie, who now live in Valletta, on the Monday lunchtime. John and Mike H decided to come with me and we went across on the ferry. John L left his manbag in a shop, but dashed back and retrieved it before we had to embark the ferry. Mike G preferred a couple of hours at the very impressive swimming pool which was across the road from our hotel: we had free access as part of the Hotel deal. I met up with the other two after lunch, had a walk around Valletta and then back to join Mike G at the pool.

We decided to dine at a waterfront restaurant that evening. John L left his bag again in a bar on the way to the restaurant but Mike H had spotted it and surreptitiously hidden it from John until we arrived at the restaurant. We all had a chuckle until Mike G realised he’d left his gilet in the same bar. He also

showed a fine burst of speed for a septuagenerian.We do have fun!The food was good but the service was slow. We should have gone to Georgio’s!

Tuesday, the penultimate day, was a day at leisure, as the tourist adverts say, and we all did our own thing. I walked over to the north coast of Sliema, stopping at shops on the way, and joined the others for time at the swimming pool, simply enjoying the sunshine, followed by packing. At lunchtime we ate at The Smokehouse and enjoyed the Maltese version of tapas. In the evening we tried the IlMerril restaurant in Sliema that had been recommended by Joe and his pals in the Changes bar earlier in the holiday – it was well worth it. Mike G and John L had a ‘hoppertunity’ (sorry!) to order rabbit something or other again and once again thoroughly enjoyed their choice. I had the largest rack of spare ribs I’ve ever seen or had before.

We had an uneventful return journey to Leeds-Bradford thank goodness, ending another excellent Class of ’56 holiday on the very enjoyable island of Malta. n

Valetta waterfront

Just before this issue of The Almondburian went to press, we were deeply saddened to learn of the death of John Linton.This article is published in his memory; an obituary appears on page 56.

S P OT T E D

b y A l m o n d b u r i a n s

What do you do about poo?

When you haven’t got a loo. You could bury it under the ground

Or pile it all up in a mound. An earth closet out in the shed

Doesn’t appeal when you’re tucked up in bed. A chamber pot’s better than nowt

(But take care where you empty it out). The stuff was once piled on a midden

In a corner of the garden, well hidden, Whilst the rest of us held our noses Mum shovelled it onto the roses.

WE HAVE A DIPLOMER TO PROVE IT

Mourners dismayed to discover 15mile queue actually for Qantas check-in at Heathrow

Tens of thousands of mourners who thought they were lined up to see the Queen’s coffin at Westminster Hall have been told it’s actually just the check-in queue for Qantas at London Heathrow.

The queue, which stretches from Heathrow Terminal 3, across the west London suburbs of Chiswick, Hammersmith and Chelsea, all the way back to the Houses of Parliament and Buckingham Palace, is a normal part of the Qantas check-in procedure, officials said.

One couple, who had been waiting for over 14 hours to see the Queen lying in state, said they were devastated when they got to the front of the queue and were asked for their boarding pass. “We were hoping to pay our respects to Her Majesty, but instead we were given seating options for QF2 to Singapore,” Doris and Ronald Springer from Reading said. “What’s worse, we were told minutes later the flight had been cancelled”.

FROM THE SOCIAL MEDIA NEWSROOM

Dad pinched a bit for his beans

And there’s nothing quite like it for greens. It may give offence to your neighbour

But gives rhubarb a wonderful avour.

On the whole though, when doing ablutions

I’m grateful for modern solutions.

Thank goodness for water and drains; It’s bliss to be joined to the mains!

I’ll forfeit the joys of al fresco

And buy all my rhubarb at Tesco.

(Social media)

GROCER’S APOSTROPHE

Spotters: James Clayton, Dave Bush, John Bradley

Have you spotted anything in print or on social media that has amused you or given you food for thought? If it’s worth sharing, send it to us at spotters@oas.org.uk.

A TASTY MAEL

THE PROBLEM OF POO

Happy 90th birthday, Jack

I joined the School when it was still a grammar school in 1959. Previously I had taught at Royds Hall Grammar School which was about to become a secondary modern school, and I was interviewed by Harry Taylor who was headmaster at that time. In fact, it was Harry who later introduced me to his leisurely Sunday afternoon ‘Almondbury Casuals’ cricket team, for which we both played for several years on lovely rural cricket grounds around Yorkshire.

Harry was the ideal figurehead for a school like King James’s Grammar School, though he didn’t suffer fools gladly.When you visited his study to discuss a problem, his usual approach was to put his feet up on his desk, listen carefully and then give a carefully measured judgement on the best way forward. I think he was almost revered by the pupils.

When I first arrived at the School I was quite young and I soon noticed that many of the staff were much older than I! Indeed, some - like Harry Gledhill, Walter Haigh, Fred Hudson, George Beach

and Frank Anderson - had been at the School for many years. I think that was good, as it gave the School a solid foundation which is very important for pupils.

We didn’t have as many staff meetings in the early years. The main staff meeting was on the day before the start of the autumn term, when Harry and Fred Hudson would analyse the previous summer’s GCE results. The staff meetings were much less formal than they were later in my career. George Beach, who was slightly eccentric, would invariably be 15 minutes late, discreetly tap on the window and then climb in to join the meeting hoping not to be noticed. Harry Gledhill always used to sit under the clock and would often nod off to sleep. On one occasion someone moved the hands forward by a couple of hours and when he woke up Harry was quite shocked to find that two hours of his life had just disappeared. After I had completed my first 100 terms the School was kind enough to recognise this by presenting me with a beautiful silver salver at a presentation (no doubt organised by

Former head of Biology JACK TAYLOR – the second-longest-serving teacher in the School’s history –was 90 in August.We invited him to look back on his career.

lifelong colleague and friend, Dave Bush?) in the School assembly. In addition to an article in the Huddersfield Examiner, I was completely taken aback when a kitchen lady wheeled a trolley into the assembly hall, bearing a large iced cake decorated by ‘One Hundred Terms’ and figures of cricketers.

KJGS staff in 1967

(Back row l to r): Y M Etchevest, L Mallinson, R Wearing, R Beever, S Wroe, J E Kenyon, M P James, Mrs H M Hebblethwaite, C Hindley, A C Brown, C H Gill, K L W Ireland, R G Walker

(Front row l to r): W Western, J P Toomey, G W Chapman, D A Bush, F S Hudson, H Taylor (headmaster), J Taylor (ringed), P H Heywood, F J Bareham, G L Beach, W I Haigh

I think I was quite a strict teacher – I relied very much on my firm voice! I think pupils benefited by knowing the parameters within which they were expected to behave.

Around 1960 I took over from Walter Haigh as Fenay housemaster; I think Harry Taylor had decided that some incumbents had been there for some time and that the house system needed revitalising. I remember that Walter had what he called his ‘Black Book’ and would tell pupils that if their names went into his Black Book they would be in deep trouble! I remained Fenay housemaster until I retired many years later.

There were a lot of school clubs in those days. I became aware that there was a stamp club at the time, and Wilfred Western was in charge. I thought I ought to get involved and suggested that I might support him running the stamp club. Wilfred was somewhat brusque and said “Well, if you're interested, you can have it!” In due course it became the Philatelic Society and it really did thrive and flourish for quite a number of years.We built up the School’s collection of mint stamps,

commemorative stamps and first day covers, and I kept this going until the late 1970s.Then, I couldn’t really find anyone to take it over, so I think it then lapsed. But the collection that we built up is now kept by the School, and I should imagine it is gaining in value.

Sporting memories

Being a keen cricketer, I was also keen to become involved in School cricket and Harry Taylor was equally keen that I should do so: his eldest son Richard was in the sixth form and he too was a very keen cricketer. I did a little bit of cricket coaching and became involved in House Cricket, though I couldn’t get very involved with the School First XI as their matches on a Saturday afternoon clashed with my playing commitments at Kirkburton Cricket Club. Of course, after retirement I was for many years chairman of the Old Almondburians Cricket Club and played with them for many years.

I have fond memories of School sports days, originally on the cricket field and lat-

continued on page 30

From: Angela Melling and Bob Williams

Congratulations on your 90th birthday, Jack. It was July 1997 and the end-of-year assembly had been arranged to include a celebration of Jack’s retirement. From behind the closed doors of the Sports Hall, a combined gathering of pupils and staff eagerly awaited Jack’s arrival. Such was Jack’s popularity, even the Kitchen staff turned out, lining the balcony and ready to lead the singing. As Jack neared, the ‘PLAY’ button was pressed and the strains of the introduction to the most well-known song by Jack’s favourite artist, Tina Turner, began. With perfect timing, just as the chorus was about to start, Jack arrived, the doors were flung open and 500+ excited voices erupted into,“You’re simply the best, Better than all the rest, Better than anyone, Anyone I’ve ever met”. Deafening cheers and a sea of arms swaying welcomed the man of the moment. Those words still ring true today, we’re proud to call you our friend.

From: Dave Bush

Congratulations, Jack, on reaching 90 not out. A wonderful colleague for the whole of my teaching career and my dearest friend.

A very early memory of Jack involves his beloved game of cricket. It was in my very early days at KJGS during a staff versus pupils cricket match. I’m sure this would not be possible under modern health and safety rules.

Jack came on to bowl from the Arkenley Lane End. He began pacing out his run which went on and on much to the amusement of the spectators who clapped and cheered. (The whole school was allowed out to watch). He disappeared down the banking which separates the school field from Arkenley Lane. To great applause he reap- peared. His long loping stride took him quickly to the square where everyone expected him to slow down. No way ! A whirl of the arm, a blur of red and stumps shattered. What a moment!

From: Pat Reid

Happy birthday, Jack.

You were a great colleague, and it was such a pleasure to work with you. I remember your sense of fun.

One incident: we were watching an end of term inter-house cricket match when a French Assistant asked about the length of a cricket match.

“They can go on for five days” was your reply.

“Oh, but I have booked a flight for tomorrow” she said, with concern. I hope your celebrations give you lasting pleasure.

From: Keith Crawshaw

From: Walter Raleigh

First of all, may I wish you a very happy birthday Jack and hope you had some wonderful celebrations with Judith and the rest of your family.

I had the privilege of working with Jack for almost 20 years so it is difficult choosing a story from amongst what must be hundreds.

My anecdote is about what a gentleman he is but how he changed his persona when he laced up his boots before a football match. He could safely be described as ‘old school’ when talking of the way he played as a centre-half. Bob Field organised staff football matches every Wednesday and we played most of the local schools. One week we were play ing Moorend High School and in their team was a lad who was a supply teacher called John Butterworth. John, or ‘Buts’ as he was known by everyone, sometimes played for us when on supply so we all knew him well. After a few minutes Jack took him out just below the knee and after he had recov- ered consciousness cried out to Jack, “Hell Jack we’re not playing for the Town Hall steps”. We all burst out laughing and after that for years to come when Jack scythed somebody down, which he invariably did, we all shouted over to him Buts’ eternal phrase.

“Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Congratulations on your 90th Birthday!”

If you were looking for someone to make such an announcement then Jack Taylor would be an ideal choice. Indeed had you been around at the time of the Royal Proclamation about the School Charter Jack would probably have been given the job. Jack, your distinctive and precise voice delivering the results from the cricket pavilion on Sports Day and from the control table at the Swimming Gala, with suitable references to your own house, Fenay, will be memorable for many former pupils of KJGS. Having supported me with the marking and scoring at a number of OAS Quiz Evenings, your later recorded listing of items for a memory round entitled “The Biology Lab Revisited” provided a challenging and entertaining reminder of former lessons. As an after dinner speaker for numerous organisations at different times over the years, your enthusiasm for the role and appropriate humour have been greatly appreciated by so many with stories about the “Two Ton Thames Trader” and “The Four Ages of a Cricketer” being two of my favourites.

From: Martin Sellens

Happy birthday Jack, and thank you. You are an unforgettable inspiration. Jack's teaching style was traditionally didactic. He gave precise instructions as to where on the page the dates and title should go, and lessons focussed on the accurate transfer of information from the text book to the exercise book. It sounds dull, but Jack’s exposition somehow made it entertaining and informative. Furthermore, any lack of engagement, particularly in practical classes, would provoke an attention-restoring impact of metre rule on table top; just to check our adrenaline levels were topped up.

Some practical classes might have fallen foul of 21st century sensitivities. One such involved dissecting a sheep’s eye. One class-mate’s attempt to penetrate the fibrous capsule by stabbing it with a scalpel resulted in a dramatic squirt of fluid and admonishment by Jack, addressing him loudly and memorably as ‘butcher Booth’, a moniker he was stuck with thenceforth.

We collected frogs on one occasion from a mill dam on Sharp Lane. Jack expertly despatched them by pithing, a process that involved inserting a mounted needle through the foramen magnum into the brain, stirring it round, then redirecting it down the spinal canal. The image of the unfortunate amphibian terminally impaled on the instrument of its demise, spreadeagled and surprised, was the stuff of nightmares for my classmates. We couldn't bare to watch, but did so with horrified fascination. Then I suppose Jack must have demonstrated a sciatic gastrocnemius preparation to illustrate neuromuscular stimulation.

Jack found humour everywhere and I stole one of his best jokes to enliven my own lectures on mammalian reproduction, though I couldn’t replicate his peerless timing or unique intonation. Noting that the tube that carries spermatozoa from the testis to the urethra is called the ‘vas deferens’ Jack observed wryly that this explained the vas deferens (vast difference.…geddit?) between males and females.

From: Bob Field Memories of Jack Taylor - a legend in his own lab!

football pitch and playing cricket. Gentleman Jack would always pick up the opposing centre forward after having given him

I worked with Jack between 1973 and 1989 and always appreciated his company and companionship - in school, on the

one of his special tackles.We shared a common sense of humour and I recall many hours reminiscing about the latest episode

of Sergeant Bilko which was our favourite TV programme at the time. Jack was not averse to pulling the leg of colleagues, especially Roger L’Amie. The last grammar school intake had one Asian

pupil in 2A called Khalid Ismael. Roger was not the best with names and Jack convinced him that there were two Asian pupils

kat abolic Function’.

in that class, one called Khalid, one called Ismael. Much to Jack’s amusement, Roger claimed he couldn’t tell them apart!

I am sure lots of pupils in Jack’s classes did not appreciate his sense of humour. In Biology, Jack taught the Catabolic Function by dictating notes to the class.When revising their notes at some later date, the pupils would have read ‘the Kitty

number of times but we always laughed. It was the way he told them. Jack was a one off, a great colleague, friend and teacher.

Jack's deadpan delivery made him one of the best after dinner speakers I have ever heard: he could tell, the same joke a

From: Martin Priestley

My memories:

1. Individual accent, whether contrived or not!; 2. Big, powerful booming voice; 3. A stickler for the way we must set out our work: what line of the page in our exercise book; whether the margin was to be used; whether something was all in capitals; whether it was underlined; etc. It was a bad idea to depart from what he wanted.; 4. Had a metre rule which he would (terrifyingly) smash down on the bench. I never saw him lay a finger on any pupil: the metre rule provided just enough fear so that classroom discipline was effortless; 5. And of course I looked forward to his classes because he was so very very funny…

Quick-fire questions on parts of the human body (3rd year) would invariably lead to answers that most of us had never heard of. Jack would set someone up: “So where’s your pituitary gland, Parker?” “By my liver, Sir?” “Hey, Laddie, you’re in need of surgery. Report for a medical check-up at half three!”

We had Jack after morning break in the 3rd year.  When we were studying nutrition he might ask what if anything we’d eaten during that break.  “Rowe?” [Richard Rowe, shortest boy in the class.] “A Kit-Kat, Sir.” “Smallwood?” [Dave Smallwood, 5’6’’ when he was in the 1st year, tallest boy in the class.] “An apple, Sir.” Jack: “Hey, Rowe, see what an apple could do for you!”

Continued from page 27

er on the all-weather surface nearer the School. On one occasion, Harry Gledhill was tasked with timing the 100 yards race and recorded a winning time of 3 minutes 55, 56, 57 seconds, having inadvertently forgotten to switch his stop-watch off. On another occasion, Mr Walker, then a Geography master, was measuring distances in the Throwing the Cricket Ball event. He was not a strong disciplinarian and as he was about to make a vital measurement a group of ‘saboteurs’ launched a volley of cricket balls in his direction, creating absolute chaos.

The major changes in the 1970s

I was, of course, at the School in the 1970s when Kirklees, in its wisdom, decided to convert the School into one of three Sixth Form Colleges. I was on a number of ‘panel’ meetings leading up to the reorganisation and the recurring theme was that there would not be enough students to support three sixth form colleges.This proved to be true, and after a couple of years the School became a coeducational 13-18 comprehensive and then, a few years before I retired, the 11-16 com-

prehensive it is today. Of course, the latter change was very unsettling for the staff and a number of the grammar school teachers didn't like the prospect of losing their advanced level teaching.Those who stayed, like myself, obviously had to adjust to the new situation.

Second-longest-serving teacher

Of course, I went on well beyond 100 terms, and eventually completed 38 years.The head at that time, Clive Watkins, pointed out that I was the second-longest- serving teacher in the history of King James’s Grammar School.The longest serving was Rev Samuel Brook, who was headmaster from 1727 to 1771. My final retirement in 1997 was recognised, again in a school assembly, in conjunction with the retirement of Pat Reid. I entered the hall to an accompaniment of Tina Turner’s rendition of “Simply the Best”. In addition to presentations, my wife presented me an inscribed wrist watch.

My Science Department colleagues recognised my retirement with an informal pub lunch and their presentation to me of a gardening encyclopaedia.

I subsequently shared a Presentation Dinner, attended by the majority of colleagues, again with Pat Reid, at the Durker Roods Hotel, Meltham. In addition to the speeches, I was presented with a pair of hiking boots, a rucksack, framed paintings of the Dales and a number of books.

Following the formal dinner, my wife and family, organised an ‘Open House’

OAS Dinner 1997: Jack is presented with the ‘Order of the Boot’. Also pictured from left): Mrs C Watkins; Mrs J Taylor; Mrs D Bush; D Bush (behind camera); Mrs Jessica Taylor

Film debut: Jack is the presenter of the special video produced to mark the School’s 400th anniversary in 2008

at our home. In addition to teaching colleagues, I was pleased to welcome a number of the School’s ancillary staff.

In the November of the same year, at the traditional Old Almondburians’ Society Dinner at the former McAlpine Stadium, I was presented with a cheque in recognition of my service to the School. The dinner was extremely well attended and the calibre of the speeches contributed to a most convivial evening.

Life after retirement

Shortly after my retirement I was asked by the School if I would agree to the naming of a newly created House, namely ‘Taylor House’, along with a ‘Bush House’. Unfortunately, after readily agreeing, after a time, due to internal reorganisation, the School reverted to the traditional four houses.

Later, I was invited to become a School Governor, when I served two periods consecutively of four years. For a time I was Chair of the Curriculum Committee. I am pleased to relate that my period as Governor coincided with head teacher Robert Lamb’s considerable input into the School’s continued success.

Immediately on retirement, my wife and I became members at Yorkshire County Cricket Club and over many years we watched games at Headingley and Scarborough. We were fortunate to see my former pupil Ryan Sidebottom in his heyday on many occasions.

I also used my new found spare time to

enrol at the local college to study Computer Science and Spanish Conversation . Whilst I obtained a ‘Driving Licence’ certificate in computers, I found greater satisfaction in successfully ordering a round of drinks in the native tongue whilst on holiday in Spain.

One year into my retirement, in 1998 I was honoured to be invited by the acting Head to the annual School Presentation Evening at the Town Hall. After presenting certificates and prizes to all the successful students I addressed the assembled school and parents, bringing back memories of so many previous Presentation Evenings.

On retiring as a Governor at the School, I helped with reading on Friday afternoons at the Barkisland Junior School. I found the experience at junior level extremely rewarding after a teaching career at secondary level.

At this time also, I returned toSchool on several occasions to referee and umpire School and House games. A former teaching colleague Bob Field, whilst teaching at Greenhead College, invited me to referee Wednesday afternoon soccer matches at the School. In addition, former pupil Martin Tunnacliffe, Head of PE at Shelley High School, asked me to referee after school matches.When I was also approached by Huddersfield New College, unfortunately I had

to decline owing to time constraints.

I maintained my membership of the OAS Executive Committee until my mideighties. In 2008 I was delighted to make my film debut by becoming the presenter of the special video produced to mark the School’s 400th anniversary.

I continued to play cricket with the OACC into my early seventies. However, I was disappointed not to emulate Doug Thorpe of Cartworth Moor CC who continued playing into his mid-eighties.Throughout the occupation of the Arkenley ground I was chair of the Cricket Club.

Retirement activities

My major past times in retirement have been gardening and walking. After ten years we down-sized our house to a detached bungalow, and what we thought at the time was a smaller garden. With the aid of a gardener who maintains our lawns we continue to keep the garden in shape.

My wife and I have walked in many locations in England and whilst on vacations abroad. We particularly enjoyed walking in

Party time: Jack celebrates his 90th birthday with (clockwise from front): Neil (son, back to camera), Jack, Alan, (son-in-law), Alison (step-daughter), Angela (daughter-in-law), Harry, grandson.

the Rockies whilst visiting my sister on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Whilst restricted in active participation in sport, we have supported Halifax RLFC home and away. At home I enjoy watching rugby union onTV. During the summer months, with the sad demise of cricket at Arkenley, I have enjoyed watching cricket at Elland CC,especially since having played there on many occasions in years gone by.

Throughout retirement we have taken the utmost delight in watching and participating as our grandchildren grew. From graduates, undergraduates, secondary school and currently junior school we have shared their successes.

Whilst in retirement, I continued for many years with my many after-dinner speaking engagements. My invitations have varied from Sports Clubs and Probus to the local Dental Association. I derived the most enjoyment and satisfaction when speaking at the many Almondburian functions I attended over the years. I retired from this pastime when distant venues and late conclusions prevented me from further participation.

Over the last decade of retirement I attended twice weekly P.E classes at the gym of my local leisure centre as an aid in recovery from a heart attack.The classes were organised by CREW (Cardiac Rehabilitation through Exercise and Walking) and I made many new friends there.

My continuing interest in the success of the School and the OAS are great incentives for a long and happy retirement. n

Farnley Lines

So how are you both?” “I hope this finds you in good health.”

“Old age not catching up with you yet?”. I sometimes feel like replying, “Do you really want to know? If you have half an hour to spare, I’ll give you a full breakdown of my and Margaret’s recent medical history.”

I can sense, Dear Reader, that you are already puzzling as to where this article is heading. So out with it! I have been diagnosed with prostate cancer. My doctor, Romily Rees, daughter of Old Almondburian Michael Hardcastle MBE (KJGS 1944-51), discovered a high ‘prostatespecific antigen’ count in a blood sample.

‘Urgent’ appointment at Bridgend Hospital. MRI scan and a full bone scan. The latter revealed “no spread and therefore no cause for concern on this front.” I share all this with you so that I can urge all our male members to have a test even if they have no symptoms. I am fortunate in having a much-appreciated OA doctor friend who has been a constant source of comfort and advice. He has always urged his patients to “listen to their bodies”: such precious words. He must remain anonymous but he will recognise himself.The Big C inevitably casts a cloud. I have had a biopsy and await results. I remain positive and optimistic.

Spanish travels

To more cheerful news! Many Old Almondburians will know our close ties

DAVE BUSH

with Spain. After two years of waiting thanks to Covid these were further strengthened by the marriage of our grandson, Jordi to Nuria.They both live and teach in Barcelona but Nuria is a proud Gallega – that is, she hails from Galicia in the northwest corner of Spain – and it was to there that I travelled for a glorious celebration. Sadly mobility problems prevented Margaret accompanying me.

An indication of the lavishness of the occasion was that there was present a polpeiro, a specialist in the preparation of an octopus which he plunged wriggling into boiling water. Nearby was a jamonero whose job was to carve thin slices of Iberian ham off a huge shank; quite an art I was assured. Jordi had asked that I make a speech which I did with some trepidation.Where has my confidence of yesteryear gone? I spoke each sentence

in Spanish and then in English. Secretly tutored by one of Nuria’s friends I delivered a short section in Gallego, a cross between Spanish and Portuguese.The locals insist it is not a dialect but a separate language. It was well received as was the whole speech apparently. I had my reservations.

Exclusive: sex in Porthcawl

To preserve a balance, I should mention grand-daughter, Anna who, as I mentioned in the July issue, now writes for the weekend edition of the i newspaper. I now open it with a feeling of foreboding. One article concerned sex and the over sixties. I asked if a note could be added stating that ‘no grandparents have been consulted in the writing of this article’. A few weeks later appeared another expressing the delights of sex in the open air and a guide to same. In the same edition Anna had produced a list of 30 secret beaches and had included Pink Bay, the most westerly of Porthcawl’s seven bays and reached only by a long walk. I emailed her to inform I had been down to

Pink Bay and found it crowded with i readers. I retreated inland and practically tripped over couples coupling in the dunes. Whatever will come next?

The death of Queen Elizabeth II

We were fortunate that two days after the death of the Queen, Anna spent the weekend with us in South Wales. She described in detail the atmosphere in the offices of a major newspaper and how she felt it was the most surreal day of her life (see panel opposite). She did not leave work until after 10.00 pm; the company did provide taxis home for those who needed them. Meanwhile her partner, Max, a civil servant, apparently had an even more demanding day but sadly cannot reveal any details. I should add that he’s a very clever lad, our Max. First class honours and other qualifications. We predict a rapid rise up the civil service tree.

Martin pays a visit

Train of thought. I have not infrequently been asked who was the most able pupil I have ever taught. Rather than list one I have always selected three: I have a photo of them taken at the 2008 celebratory dinner; Bryan Hopkinson (1967-74), Ruth Ainley (1979-84) and Martin Priestley (1962-70).Two of the three have now visited Porthcawl: Bryan and Martin. (So come on down, Ruth!)

Martin called in at the beginning of June. He sat three ‘A’ levels at the end of his second year in the Sixth and gained three As. This was in the days when an A was somewhat of a rarity. He stayed for a third year, continued on page 36

Head down: grand-daughter Anna in the the i newsroom (see story opposite)

All in a day’s work

IT wasn’t until about 10.30 pm, when I was in a taxi back from the office, that it sunk in. The Queen’s death was being sombrely discussed over the car radio and her picture was on every rain-splattered bus stop that we passed. “This has been the most surreal day of my life,” I suddenly thought.

I’m a feature writer on the Saturday edition of the i newspaper iweekend, and the day had started like any other Thursday in the office. I had arrived into work at 10.00 am, collecting a coffee from the café outside, and settled down to write the piece I was working on for that Saturday. By 11.00 am I had a hint of something strange going on. Around me, staff were disappearing into meeting rooms and I could have sworn others were speaking in hushed tones. Eventually my editor pulled me aside and said we were ramping up preparations for the Queen’s death. We discussed it as though she might pass away in a few weeks’ time, but no sooner had I gone back to my desk, the large TV screens dotted around our office walls showed the nowfamous note being passed around parliament.

From that point on, we were in limbo. I was tasked with preparing picture spreads of the Queen just in case she did die, but at the same time, I had to continue with my normal

workload so that we’d have full pages either way. I felt frenzied juggling the two, not knowing which version of the paper we’d end up with.

When the news of her passing broke at 18.30, the time I usually head home, there was a momentary stillness in the office before it became frenetic. Phones rang, people dashed from one end of the office to the other, others frantically tapped at keyboards. My own work was a blur of writing reflections on the Queen’s life, doing picture captions, updating up-in-the-air TV schedules, and generally jumping from task to task to help out with the following day’s paper. Around 8.00 pm, 20 takeaway pizzas arrived –  I didn’t realise I hadn’t eaten all day until I smelt them – and we all shovelled down slices and continued working until the paper was finally sent to the printers just after 10.00 pm.

Back in my flat, I collapsed on the sofa, both tired and wired, knowing that I’d have to be in early and do it all again tomorrow.

Anna Bonet

Coninued from page 34 took three more ‘A’ Levels , including Latin, and achieved three more As. Six As in total, surely a record which will never be broken. He went up to New College, Oxford to study History followed by a PGCE at London University Institute of Education.

Spending a lovely afternoon in our garden we skipped our delightful way down Nostalgia Avenue and Memory Lane.We exchanged memories of past Latin lessons and I mentioned my Latin assistant, the delightfully eccentric Jim Kempster. One stood out. Jim insisted on putting XXII on his house door and the post Office insisted on not delivering his post; I believe the GPO won.

I always re-read our superb magazine a number of times – such a precious link –and select the article which impressed me most The July edition’s was the obituaries. They reminded me of Matthew 5:15 in which he advises against ‘hiding one’s light under a bushel’. I interpret this as not letting others know about our beliefs and talents. This thought was prompted by the very fine obituaries to Christine Hazle and Andrew Krasinski. They were my colleagues for more than twenty years.

I never knew anything about Christine’s artistic talents, her master’s degree taken while teaching full time and her rich life outside the classroom.

I should love to have heard first hand about Andrew’s early life when, at a very young age, he escaped Poland in 1939 just before the Nazi invasion and his travels with his parents in Europe before coming to England. I was completely un-

aware of his great interest in Geology and his expertise in calligraphy.

Perhaps we should encourage other Old Almondburians to write about their passions before it’s too late. How about a ‘Hobbies Corner’? On a personal note, I wonder how many birdwatchers are out there.

So as the years roll on, ‘carpe diem’ (not ‘fish of the day’ as one radio comedy programme translated it). That’s one of the great rewards of teaching; the opportunity to encourage young people to make full use of their time and talents.

Let’s vary our traditional ending a little.

Floreant schola et discipuli sui

Time flies: Dave Bush and Martin Priestley share some nostalgic memories

CROSSWORD by Hérisson

Entries to the Editor (address/email: back cover) by 30th January 2023. Prize: 12 months’ free OAS membership

l The winner of Crossword by Hérisson (July 2022) was Dennis Taylor (1961-69)

ACROSS

1. Individual dancing a tango ran into someone not wanted. (7,3,5)

9. Alternative names for navigate back in stormy sea. (7)

10. Cornish permit? Gulp! (7)

11. Set fire to explosive. Clot is blown away. (6)

12. God exists! Twice! (4)

13. Garland from relaxation? Not sure. (3)

15. Big soldier insect. (5)

18. Typify record – one to Scrooge, shortly. (9)

19. Fibre, upon processing, becomes drug. (9)

20. Lets out lets, heading off. (5)

21. High temperature in Idaho today. (3)

22. “Ladies’ Fingers” from not bad artist. (4)

23. Revises, incorporating 100 decrees. (6)

27. First, I nail it badly. (7)

28. Measure serious score. (7)

29. Choose inert black compound to give heat after retirement. (8,7)

DOWN

1. Rife, indicated by dangerous practice. (7,4,4)

2. Precipitation in speech, as a rule. (5)

3. Attack, playing some tennis. (5)

4. Revolution for Laos, too. (4)

5. Former pupil jams fixations. (10)

6. Former PM rejoicing with Ruby, maybe. (9)

7. Praises Saul, Ella and I, in error. (9)

8. Showing fear, like a blank page, (2,5,2,1,5)

14. Sick queen providing hat, rising to film man. (10)

16. Bordeaux found here, in quite a variety, holding abstainer at first. (9)

17. Stir retro assembly for a gunman, maybe. (9)

24. Setter, perhaps, with degree and creed. (5)

25. Nothing like cheese! (5)

26. Plant penned by Father Brown. (4)

Author: Jules Verne

Book: Journey to the Centre of the Earth

FROM ACROSS THE POND

A Yorkshireman in America

CHARLIE STARKEY (1968 - 1975)

Things often look different when viewed from afar.We invite our man in the US to give us his personal perspective on some of the issues and questions of the day

QHere in the UK we’ve just experienced the hottest summer on record. How’s it been over in the States and how does it compare with your memories of Huddersfield weather?

Charlie’s view

Geographically speaking, Great Britain consists of a small clump of islands separated – by more than mere distance –from mainland Europe.Through canny use of naval power, piracy, and plun der, a succession of Britannic rulers created a vast empire which, at its peak, held dominion over a quarter of the planet and its peoples. De scribing the nation's ex panding global reach, in 1773 Earl

George Macartney employed the glowing phrase “this vast empire on which the sun never sets”, yet at its epi centre poor old Albion was likely regarded by its lumendeprived inhabitants as the land on which the sun never shone. Did we pale, spotty Britons seek to colonise the world just to escape the awful weather? “Rule

Britannia, Britannia rules the waves” went the jingoistic refrain, but our formerViking King Canute famously demonstrated that attempting to control the elements was beyond the power of mere mortals... and weather forecasters.

BBC weatherpersons are often ridiculed for the wild inaccuracy of their forecasts. Lately, television meteorologists have been accused of scaremongering and causing public consternation by using the term ‘climate change’ to explain newsworthy, extreme atmospheric events. Like it or not, they’re only telling it like it is.The odds are forever stacked against forecasters because the UK is subject to the largely unpredictable whims of intersecting ocean currents, and maritime and continental winds. It’s a bit like figuring out who has right of way at a yellow box junction.

As a child of the late twentieth century, I remember a time when Oderesfelt was a soot-blackened, thriving northern metropolis where sunshine was considered an ex-

pensive luxury that only wealthy southern counties could afford.The sun made a brief appearance in 1966 to celebrate England’s World Cup victory at Wembley and the release of the Beatles’ Revolver LP. (Products of their damp heritage, it felt almost natural for the Beatles to compose titles such as Rain, Here Comes the Sun, and Good Day Sunshine).

Partly due to the town’s topography and latitude it always seemed to be overcast or drizzly, and on any given day a brolly or paca-mac was a necessary fashion accessory.This was especially true for day trippers planning a visit to the seaside. ‘Bracing’ was what grownups liked to call a typically windy day in Bridlington spent squatting in rickety deckchairs with knotted hankies on their heads, eating sugary doughnuts, and watching seagulls divebomb unattended children. When the weather was abysmal the whole family could always go down the pub, which is how as a nation we survived two World Wars and the Thatcher years.

Huddersfield, that sprawling conurbation in the scenic Wapentake of Agbrigg, has experienced its share of extreme weather. History records that, on a particularly stormy day circa 1960, the screams of children accompanied the unusually strong winds that tore the roof off Deighton Junior School’s classroom annexe. Fortunately, the only injury was to a teacher’s pride, when Miss Booth got stuck halfway while climbing through a window during the subsequent evacuation. Old codgers may well remember the freak storm of July 1968 that visited our town: the sky suddenly grew dark, then torrential rain and hail descended, smashing greenhouses, cold frames, and car windows, leaving behind piles of hailstones several feet deep. If that wasn't sufficiently ex-

citing, the following March powerful wintry gusts demolished the Emley Moor transmitter mast. Its sturdy, reinforced concrete replacement, completed in 1970, still stands proud atop the moors and can be seen for miles around. On a clear day, at least.

When it’s grey and rainy we get depressed. It’s the Human Condition. Sunshine lifts the spirits, is a mood enhancer, helps our bodies manufacture Vitamin D, and cooks our pasty white skin to a healthy shade of tomato red. Cliff Richard and friends famously commandeered a London double-decker to Europe to escape the rain, singing a few corny tunes along the way. (“We're going where the sun shines brightly, we're going where the sea is blue.”) It’s no wonder that, by the mid-’60s, as passenger flights to warmer climes became more accessible, Brits in their thousands champed at the bit to climb aboard wily en-

trepreneur Freddie Laker's popular budget airline and sample some of that Mediterranean sun. Inevitably, when Laker's transatlantic Skytrain venture began to soar, British Airways and several other established competitors who were feeling the pinch successfully conspired to drive the interloper out of business. Fred got the last laugh, though. Knighted in 1978, Sir Freddie successfully filed an antitrust lawsuit against the major airlines and won millions in lost revenue.

My own inaugural aerial adventure took the form a fortnight’s package holiday to Majorca, trepidatiously undertaken with college friends on a past-its-prime Dan-Air prop plane. Once boarded, the crate spent the first three hours of its journey on the runway undergoing ‘emergency engine maintenance’ before whisking us up into a lightning storm. Miraculously, we survived both the ordeal of the flight and the shock of seeing our accommodation. Once outside the Hotel BonaVida lobby, however, we soon adjusted to the

daily novelty of being bathed in warm breezes and sunshine.The sun cast an almost ethereal glow on the town of Arenal's whitewashed cottages and hotels del sol, and sent us back to London with boastworthy golden tans.

For those unable to flee Cool Britannia, the changing seasons continued to offer their own particular attributes.

l Spring: damp.

l Summer: damp.

l Autumn: still damp.

l Winter: damp and freezing cold.

Yorkshire winters were particularly bitter because of the all-pervasive dampness that ate into your bones. My cat Maxie never complained, though. She had a fur coat.The rest of us were required to wrap up warm, put another shilling in the meter and turn the gas oven up to Regulo 9.

If whining about the weather was an Olympic sport Britons would be the gold medal holders. It’s always ‘too’ something or other. “It's too cold”, “too windy”, “too rainy”, “too earthquakey”, “too pints and a packet of crisps”, but rarely “too darned hot”. The first real Huddersfield summer scorcher I can think of was the major drought of 1976. Sprawled on the town centre Piazza steps with fellow sweat-soaked Polytechnic art students, exhausted after doing not very much (come on, we were art students), we would bask in the afternoon rays while thirstily anticipating opening time. Enjoyable as this pursuit was, we nevertheless felt that something was a bit ‘off’. Nearby, inside the modern concrete-and-glass brutalist masterpiece known as Queensgate Marketplace (now Grade II-listed) the unrelenting sun melted chocolate bars

Weather casualty: Emley Moor mast in 1968

in their wrappers and transformed ice cream into a warm beverage. As it happens ’76 was merely a dry run, not to be repeated until 2018, and barely four years later here we are again. Always topical, in 2022 weather talk turned tropical. Coningsby in Lincolnshire boasted a record July high temperature of 104.5°F (40.3°C), while by comparison Huddersfield only managed a paltry 100°F (37.7°C).

Eagle-eyed readers may have noted the deliberate use of the Fahrenheit scale.That’s because my adoptive home, the United States, vanguard of innovation and modernity, stubbornly continues to blow raspberries at the rest of the world by choosing not to adopt the metric standard.Well, what would you expect from a country that can’t spell ‘colour’ or pronounce ‘lieutenant’? Kilos and kilometres are shunned here while even third world countries such as Canada and Australia list petrol prices by the litre. However, we must thank an ingenious American, Willis Haviland Carrier, for coming up with the concept of modern air conditioning and a prolific African-American inventor named Frederick McKinley Jones for developing mobile refrigeration technology.Air conditioning sys-

inventor Frederick McKinley Jones developed mobile refrigeration technology in the US

tems made living in hot climates bearable and by the 1950s automobile manufacturers were offering AC as a factory-installed option.With these useful innovations came the unpleasant discovery that the chlorofluorocarbon coolants used by said devices were also (a) potent greenhouse gases and (b) gouging a massive hole in the earth’s ozone layer.The ensuing panic led to an international ban on CFCs production in 1987. If you think our current climate problems aren’t bad enough, imagine adding saturation by UV radiation to the mix.

Long before I set foot in America, reading Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn novels and watching Hollywood films with titles like The Long Hot Summer and In The Heat Of The Night had vividly conjured up exotic images of that faraway place. Neither literature nor motion pictures could have prepared me for the real thing. A newcomer to New Jersey soon learns that summer temperatures in the high 80°s F are commonplace. The sultry heat can be annoying enough for humans, without taking into account the presence of another resident that benefits from the seasonal humidity. Colloquially nicknamedThe New Jersey State Bird, it’s the mosquito.

NJ is home to several species, any of which can carry the West Nile Virus, dengue fever, encephalitis, Zika, and other illnesses. Persistently bent on exsanguinating both man and beast, these little blighters became my primary nemeses after I moved into my first

New Jersey property, a ramshackle 1920s fixer-upper farmhouse with equally ramshackle bug protection screens in its windows. Indoors or out, morning and night, those pesky bloodsuckers never let up, testing the patience of the most committed Buddhist. Swatting them away does no good at all and in retaliation for the maddeningly itchy lumps inflicted by the females of the species (the males don't bite) only their violent slaughter will provide satisfaction. Meanwhile inYorkshire screens aren’t really necessary, unwelcome intruders being limited to flies, wasps, and the occasional burglar.We were taught that the purpose of windows was for letting in fresh air and for spying on neighbours through net curtains. Oh, and to get an accurate weather report.

When broadcast TV was king, by timehonoured tradition American viewers would tune into the last six minutes of local news broadcasts to catch the day's sporting results, closely followed by the weather report which was often presented by a comely lass with a winning smile.The BBC equivalent was Michael Fish. Deftly manoeuvring his magnetic clouds and arrows around the studio's weather map, each evening he was tasked to

explain to the public how tomorrow could definitively deliver a fifty-fifty chance of either clouds or more clouds. In October 1987 Michael predicted that the approach of a particularly threatening Atlantic storm would not impact Great Britain. It did, causing widespread damage and multiple deaths. Notwithstanding that minor faux pas, his tenure at the BBC lasted 30 years. May 1982 saw the launch of TheWeather Channel in the U.S.Thrilling pluviophiles and heliophiles alike, within a decade it was carried by almost every cable TV provider in the country. (A UK sister channel didn’t fare so well, only lasting a couple of years.) Initially the channel simply focused on national and regional forecasting but it wasn’t long before producers felt the need to jazz up the broadcasts with state-of-the-art graphics and specials, sometimes airing appropriately-themed movies like The Perfect Storm. TWC presenters such as Jim Cantore unexpectedly achieved celebrity status – and high ratings – by recklessly placing themselves in harm’s way on camera. Reporting live from disasters and danger zones (hurricanes, tornadoes, forest fires), they could be seen leaning into 100 mph winds while dodging airborne debris and holding onto their toupees.

Hurricane Sandy got nonstop media coverage when it swamped the northeast in 2012, flooding New York City subway stations and transportation tunnels into Manhattan. Hurricane Ida caused more flash floods, deaths, and damage in 2021, sweep-

Storm - what storm? BBC forecaster Michael Fish in 1987

ing through New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. Last year brought more violent storms to parts of New Jersey, producing flooding and the occasional tornado, but this summer our parched lawns cooked under sustained temperatures in the high 90s° F (45°C). Even so, we fared better than Mississippi and California in the flood and fire stakes.Those who’d been paying attention to scientists concluded that human activity was screwing up the climate, so I resolved to reduce my carbon footprint.

A switch to telecommuting significantly reduced work-related travel to short strolls from the iMac to the kitchen and/or the wine cellar. (Okay, it’s not a wine cellar, just a basement with a few bottles of red and a six pack of Belgian ales.) I also realised that I might cut my water usage by being less fastidious about daily showering. And anyway, why would I want to loofah away my skin’s essential microbiome? Showers are more efficient than baths at sloughing scalps but they were a rarity growing up. For most kids Sunday night was Bath Night, the weekly ritual before school on Monday. Of course, by Tuesday we already needed another scrub.

Then I concluded having a grass lawn wasn’t much helping the declining bee population. To my chagrin I found the white clover I planted in its place was listed as an invasive weed in NJ – but try telling that to the hundreds of honeybees visiting every day. The new flora thrived until this summer when the usually hardy groundcover gasped in dismay, crisped up, and withered. Bummer. A sustained drought sets in motion a chain of events that has negative consequences

for crops, animals, and even insects.The skies seemed noticeably quieter in my neighbourhood this season and birdsong didn’t return to its usual volume until mid-September. We all take water on demand for granted until standpipes start to appear on street corners.

Back in Blighty, by the 1980s the regional water authorities were in trouble, thanks to decades of underfunding, declining quality, environmental accidents (such as the Camelford poisoning disaster) and ageing subterranean pipes. Coming under pressure to comply with EU quality rules, in 1989 the reigning Conservative government’s solution was to opt for privatisation. This was about as effective – and popular – as their later decision to privatise British Rail.The resulting glut of new agencies promised to implement infrastructure repairs but in the main failed to invest nearly enough to fix the nation's leaky Victorian-era systems. A massive amount of water, possibly three billion litres per year, continues to be lost while company profits soar and private shareholders reap the benefits. Few believed then that clean, safe-todrink water would soon prove to be a finite commodity, almost as indispensable as beer.

The Industrial Revolution has made living more comfortable for many but burning fossil fuels comes with a high price tag. Some climate researchers are predicting that we have already passed the point of no return and that the next generation will face a more extreme and hostile world than the one you and I enjoyed. Not to worry, though, we’re British! Keep Calm and Carry On and we’ll leave it for someone else to fix. n

Few believed that clean, safe-to-drink water would become a finite commodity

TRANSPORT

The day we bought a trolleybus

DAVID BEACH (1958 - 1966)

When Huddersfield abandoned its superb trolleybus fleet in the 1960s, three KJGS pupils decided it was time for direct action.This is the remarkable story of how they managed to save trolleybus 631 from the breaker’s yard.

IN 1963/4, it became apparent that Huddersfield’s trolleybuses were heading to the scrapyard. In the absence of any pro-active adults, my fellow Almondburians Stephen Lockwood and John Trevor Longbottom (both aged 15) started putting pocket money on one side to rescue a trolleybus, and I, one year older, joined in shortly afterwards. I should really have been working hard towards my ‘A’ levels, a point my parents [George Beach was KJGS Head of Maths at the time] made on numerous occasions. I fear they were flogging a dead horse and my pathetic ‘A’ level grades caused them and probably KJGS much embarrassment.

Before long Michael Storry and Norman Hinchliffe also became deeply involved and a contingent from Huddersfield New College showed an interest in our activities, though inter-school rivalry was a factor until we had all moved on. By 1968 we had evolved into a society with around 125 members, organising events and trips of all sorts.

Our initial plan was to acquire No 549: a few words on the detailed design of the trolleybuses over that period might help to explain our choice.

The pre-war Huddersfield trolleybuses [Nos 401-540] had three windows at the front of the upper deck. Some gained new bodywork with two-front

DAVID BEACH

DAVID spent four years at Goldsmiths' College, where he gained his B.Ed, and enjoyed 37years teaching junior [8-13] science and maths in a boys' boarding prep school near Newbury.

There he built a large model railway, with associated tramway, and was swimming teacher, stage manager, and pocket money supremo! In his last ten years he was the Estates Bursar. “Thus I achieved great job satisfaction, if not the heady heights of academia my parents wished for me,” he says modestly.

He married his colleague Audrey in 1980 and they retired to Minehead in 2007. There he raises funds for trolleybus preservation, sells tickets at Minehead Station and chairs the local National Trust support group for whom he organises socials, coach trips and talks.

windows upstairs but all had been withdrawn by 1963 when the Marsden route was converted to diesel buses. In 1947 similar vehicles [Nos 541-592] arrived, but with a more ‘upright’ frontal appearance. Eventually most of these were fitted with new bodywork, again with two rather than three upper deck front windows. The travelling public probably thought they were new buses. By April 1964 only seven 3-window trolleybuses survived, of which Nos 541, 542, 544 and 547 were withdrawn af -

ter the Crosland Hill to Birkby service was converted to diesel. Nos 549, 588 and 590 were due to be withdrawn when the Almondbury service followed suit a year later. Nos 541 and 544 retained the original destination blind equipment, but we were not yet ready to preserve either as we lacked the funds, the experience, the support, and somewhere to put one. So we started raising funds for No 549, a slightly updated vehicle which was due to survive another year.

In April 1964 we organised a fund-

Trolleybus No 631, pictured at its present home at Sandtoft Trolleybus Museum near Doncaster

raising tour, in No 549, of the remaining trolleybus routes, which The Huddersfield Examiner sent a reporter to record. However, by then the National Trolleybus Association had submitted a £25 offer to buy No 541. The Corporation did not accept this offer which was probably well below scrap value, but instead generously presented the vehicle to the NTA who still own it.

It would have been foolish to rescue No 549 as well as No 541, as they were largely identical. Thus, we announced that we would not be preserving No 549 after all. Hence the Huddersfield Examiner published a large photograph of the three of us under the headline ‘549 will not be saved’ .

Actually this was a relief. We had no

need now to make an early purchase of a trolleybus and we resolved to obtain one of a 1951 batch of Roe bodied vehicles. When this also went wrong we set our sights on No 631, one of the last batch of trolleybuses dating from 1959, which was thought to be in better condition than the others. In 1968 our tender of £125was accepted and No 631 was ours.

Four of our members also purchased a trolleybus at the closure: No 619 dating from 1956. These preserved trolleybuses have had a variety of adventures after 1968 and I have had personal involvement with all three.

After 1964 No 541 was housed for some time in the Midlands, ran a tour in Wolverhampton before that system

‘549 will not be saved’: KJGS schoolboys Stephen Lockwood, John Trevor Longbottom and David Beach pose in front of the trolleybus they subsequently decided not to buy.

140 years of public transport in Huddersfield

HUDDERSFIELD CorporationTramways commenced a tramway service in 1883, initially using steam locomotives pulling unpowered tramcars. The system was built to the unusual gauge of 4 ft 7¾ in (1,416 mm) with the thought that coal trucks from the main line railway might be taken onto the tramway for local distribution,  but the lines were never connected. As the system was expanded, the first fully electric trams began operating in February 1901.

The decision to introduce trolleybuses was taken in 1931/32, by which date successful trolleybus systems were already in operation in Bradford and Wolverhampton. The Tramways Committee, faced with the potential cost of relaying the tram track on

the Almondbury route, decided that this was the ideal starting point and the opening ceremony took place on 4th December 1933 when two trolleybuses carried a civic party over the new route.

In the ensuing years, the system was greatly expanded. At its peak in the 1950s its route mileage was 37 miles, carrying 60m passengers per annum using a fleet of 140 trolleybuses.

But it couldn’t last. In the 1960s trolleybuses started to go out of fashion and Huddersfield Council decided (by a single vote and contrary to the wishes of most citizens) to gradually replace the town’s trolleybuses with motorbuses.

Trolleybus No 1 in Northgate, Almondbury

closed, and returned to Huddersfield in 1968 to tour the remaining routes. It is still owned by the National Trolleybus Association and is currently at the Sandtoft Trolleybus Museum near Doncaster which was established in 1969. I helped to fund its restoration and still sponsor its upkeep.

In the autumn of 1968 we towed No 631 to run tours in Reading and Bournemouth. For these events Huddersfield Corporation Transport kindly lent me a uniform so I could look the part! Subsequently No 631 then occupied a space in a Viaduct Street archway, before moving to Sandtoft, which currently houses around 50 trolleybuses including the trio from Huddersfield which have been located there at different times since then. No 631 was indeed in good condition and is one of the most regular op-

Sadly, the trolleybus era finally came to an end on 13th July 1968.

erating trolleybuses, where it has now spent over fifty years, five times as long as it ran in Huddersfield.

No 619 spent some time at Meltham, and in January 1969 was towed to Middlesbrough to operate a tour over their trolleybus routes. After storage elsewhere it also found its way to Sandtoft.

As time went by there seemed to be less virtue in small groups owning trolleybuses, and 619 and 631 both now belong to the British Trolleybus Society. They are in good condition and sometimes operate around the overhead wiring of the museum’s circuits on open days. Both the British Trolleybus Society (which owns twelve trolleybuses) and the Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft have excellent web sites.

For completeness it is also worth mentioning that in the late 1960s a

Opposite page top: Trolleybus No 631in all its glory in special livery to mark the Diamond Jubilee of HM the Queen in 2012 (Photo: Stewart David)

Bottom:

The three restored Huddersfield trolleybuses, Nos 619, 631 and 541 at Sandtoft (Photo: Andrew Haigh).

pre-war Huddersfield trolleybus [No 470] was rescued from Epsom Racecourse, where it had spent many years as a mobile gentleman’s toilet, being dragged out onto the racecourse for the Derby. [urinals downstairs, WCs upstairs]. Its owners were unable to keep it in a protected environment, and when it eventually collapsed the bodywork was scrapped. The chassis survives at Sandtoft.

Of the three teenagers in the Huddersfield Examiner photo, Trevor Longbottom dropped out of the trolleybus preservation scene soon after No 631 was rescued, and I lost contact with him. Stephen Lockwood went on to work in the Passenger Transport Industry, and has published at least seven books about trolleybuses around the country including a major volume Huddersfield - the trolleybus years which contains a chapter I wrote about my experience as a student conductor on the trolleybuses in 1966/7/8. I continue

to be in touch with Michael Storry, who helps to support No 619 and No 631, and Norman Hinchliffe who continues to help maintain the overhead wiring at Sandtoft.

For myself, I help to fund all three Huddersfield vehicles, and continue to work to fundraise for the British Trolleybus Society, of which I am a trustee. I can also report that the model railway room at the school where I spent my life teaching until 2007 still sports a colour poster of No 631!

It is to be hoped that one day these vehicles, representing a type of ecofriendly transport which should never have been rendered obsolete in the UK, will be of sufficient historic value that it will no longer be necessary for enthusiastic individuals to go on dipping into their own pockets. Most of those who grew up with these vehicles are now in their seventies and eighties and cannot be expected to go on supporting them for ever. n

l TheSandtoft Trolleybus Museum near Doncaster is home to the world’s largest collection of historic trolleybuses. The Old Almondburians’ Society organised a visit there in 2016 and a video can be seen at www.oas.org.uk/videopage.php .

HUDDERSFIELD - the trolleybus years

This handsome 232-page A4 book by Stephen Lockwood with contributions by David Beach and Philip Jenkinson is packed with information and photographs (many in colour) about Huddersfield’s much-admired trolleybus fleet.

Publisher: Adam Gordon

Thank you, ‘Jock’ Anderson

JOHN BRADLEY (1950 - 1957)

I have always admired the writing of writer, diplomat and politician Harold Nicolson - and for this I have to thank English master ‘Jock’ Anderson

In the fourth and fifth forms at Almondbury Grammar School I was undecided whether to move into the sixth form in the science stream or the arts stream.

I was fortunate in having a wonderful English teacher, Frank Anderson, always called ‘Jock’ on account of his Scottish origins (and perhaps because ‘Jock Anderson’ was a character in the daily radio serial Dick Barton – Special Agent that was hugely popular in the 1950s).

I was having great difficulty at the time in comprehending the concept of the essay, once defined by Samuel Johnson as ‘a loose sally of the mind’. Jock Anderson also took this as his definition.

I am told by my wife, an English teacher and poet of long and varied experience that in educational circles the

essay can now be any short, written work in any format: descriptive, demonstrative, explanatory, didactic, expository, discursive etc. Johnson’s succinct definition has been lost to the current educational establishment, ‘discursive’ being the only category that agrees with ‘a loose sally of the mind’.

Jock saw me as a potential member of the arts stream. Under his outwardly stern exterior he was a sensitive and supportive man. He worked very hard to show me what an essay should consist of, in the tradition of Samuel Johnson.

One day he made a brilliant suggestion. He said, “Go to the public library and read Harold Nicolson’s column in The Observer.” This was in 1954.

I followed this instruction and was inspired by Nicolson’s breadth of knowl-

JOHN BRADLEY lives in Frankston in the state of Victoria, Australia. He left King James’s Grammar School to study Chemical Engineering at UMIST from 1957-60.

Harold Nicolson (1886-1968)

edge, erudition and style, and have since read everything I could find of his writings.

Here I digress. I love making connections. Stimulated by the ex tract from Gorden Kaye’s ‘sort of autobi ography’ René and Me in the July issue of Almondburian, I took out my own copy to refresh my memory of René Artois and there, in chapter 6, Gorden is explaining that he was lazy at school and in later life read all the wrong books. “I feel I should be reading Macaulay and Harold Nicolson and those kinds of people, but I don’t”.

I should like to think that Jock Ander son had made the same suggestion to Gorden as he had to me: Gorden was two years behind me at school.

Harold Nicolson’s son Nigel edited many of his father’s diaries and letters. According to Nigel, his father was a most sympathetic person. He was generous, affable to the young and shy, with a capacity for pity. But he was not always charitable. He knew that he belonged to an élite – an élite more of intelligence and achievement than of birth. He tended to feel that people outside that élite had something wrong with them: businessmen for example, the humbler type of schoolmaster or clergyman, most women, actors, most Americans, Jews, all coloured people and the great mass

of the middle and working classes. But with people whose tastes he shared and who stimulated him, he was ‘the most entrancing companion’. who would aerate the conversation by the quickness and unexpectedness of his turns of phrase.

When, for example, an earnest American reporter asked him whether he and Vita Sackville-West had ever collaborated on anything he replied pokerfaced “Yes, we have two sons.” So here are a few examples of Nicolson’s writings which I hope fellow readers might enjoy. Some may, indeed, still have particular relevance today.

The Conservative Party (February 17th1939)

It seems astonishing to me that something so venerable, so stolid in its way, so large, should display such apt dexterity. There are moments when I hold my breath in amazement, as when one watches a huge sea-lion catch (without the slightest change of expression) a ping-pong ball upon its nose. It is only when the sea-lion misses the ball that they allow themselves a soft click of irritation.

The strength of the expert Conservative is that he is always right. Had Central Office existed in 1530 (and I expect it did) it would have affirmed that the sun went round the earth, and that Copernicus and Galileo were irresponsible

and ignorant hotheads; and withal unpatriotic, effeminate, highbrow and blinded by the scientific point of view. Galileo’s recantation would have been printed on the front page of The Times accompanied by a leading article in which triumph and forgiveness would have been inextricably combined. His ‘eppur si muove’would have appeared, three days later, in a short paragraph inserted below the auctioneers’ announcements.

The fall of Mussolini (August 13th1943)

The other day, in a garden near my home, we held the village fête. Notices in red and blue chalk indicating with crude arrows where one should go.

As I strolled from booth to booth, I came upon three targets, bearing in black charcoal the semblances of Hitler, Mus-

solini and Tojo sketched upon large sheets of paper pinned to boards. For the sum of 2d one could hire six darts wherewith to assail the enemies of mankind.

Hitler and Tojo, when I got there, were already riddled by the pinholes of expended darts. The Duce was practically untouched.

“You have not” I remarked to the man who ran the show, “done well with Mussolini.” “No” he answered, “they prefer Hitler and the Jap. Now that Musso’s down and out they say, “It hardly seems fair somehow.”

Once again, I stood amazed by the unerring instinct of the British people.

Transport Command (November 16th1945)

Passengers by RAF Transport Command are provided in advance with an illustrated booklet couched in endearing terms. This slim little volume is designed to prepare the traveller for the cruelties and humiliations which are about to be imposed upon him. He is reminded that the days of luxury are still far distant, and he must brace himself to what, with outrageous euphemism, is described as ‘austerity travel’; and he is exhorted in unctuous terms to regard Transport Command not as his persecutor, but as his loving friend.

It is evident that this pamphlet is designed to create among the passengers a boy-scout feeling and to inspire them with that team spirit which can alone enable them to face the ardours upon which they are engaged. The convivial tone of this exhortation does in fact create a community spirit which carries the pas-

Benito Mussolini (1883-1945) was Prime Minister of Italy from 1922-1943. He was executed by Italian partisans in 1945.

sengers through the first three or four days of frustration.

But as fruitless dawn succeeds to fruitless dawn the team spirit wears thinner and thinner, and the passengers come to realize that they are regarded by their tormentors, not as a team, but as a chain gang. The plaint rises to heaven from the aerodromes and the intendant internment camps of Europe, Asia and Africa that: ‘Never in the long history of human transport has so much unnecessary suffering been imposed upon so many by so few.’

The English Sense of Humour and other essays. (1968)

‘The value of every story’, remarked Dr. Johnson,‘depends on its being true. A story is a picture, either of an individual, or of life in general. If it be false, it is a picture of nothing.’

This precept should, I feel, be inscribed in lapidary letters on the flyleaf of every biographer’s notebook. A pure biography should furnish its readers with information, encouragement, and comfort, if I may again quote Dr Johnson, ‘the parallel circumstances and kindred images to which we readily conform our minds’.

It should remind the reader that great men and women also have passed through phases of doubt, discouragement and self-

abasement; that, perhaps on the very eve of their noblest achievements, they have been assailed with diffidence, or have resigned themselves to the fact that their vitality is ebbing, their zest has gone, their memory has become unreliable, and their willpower decayed.

But I am convinced that a pure biography can only be written about a person whom the writer and the reader can fundamentally respect. Does this imply a return to hagiography? No it implies only that the intending biographer should be as cautious in his choice of subject as in the method he pursues’

So, that is Harold Nicolson: diplomat, parliamentarian, biographer, historian, novelist, lecturer and educator, Governor of the BBC, radio broadcaster, journalist and columnist, confidante of the great and powerful, gardener and joint creator of Sissinghurst, husband and father. But above all he was a supremely civilized man.

I shall be forever indebted to Jock Anderson for introducing him to me. n

Notorious for the discomfiture of its aircraft, RAF Transport Command controlled all transport aircraft of the air force during Word War 2.

Badminton/Tennis

ANDREW HAIGH

andrew.haigh@oas.org.uk

THE Old Almondburians were once again grateful for the use of the facilities of Longley Tennis Club on a Thursday evening during the summerand what a splendid summer it was. We started to play tennis on Thursday, 5th May and did so every Thursday thereafter, with the exception of two weeks when most people were away on holiday. In all that time, there was only one week when we were forced onto the indoor court by inclement weather.

We usually return to playing badminton at School during the first week in September. However, this year the changing rooms in the sports hall were being extended and refurbished to accommodate the increased numbers on roll at the School and the work wasn’t due to be completed until week commencing 26th September. As a result, our tennis season was extended by three weeks this year, necessitating the use of floodlights.

Those who have played tennis this summer are: David Parry, Andrew Haigh, Neil

Gledhill, Robin Merchant, Sally Starbuck, Mark Sykes, Eleanor Haigh, Charlotte Haigh and Mike Bamford.

The badminton season started belatedly on Thursday, 29th September and we were delighted to find that the newly extended and refurbished changing rooms attracted no fewer than eleven people to play. From 6th October, Kirkburton Badminton Club have returned after a number of years away to share the sports hall and play matches on two of the courts.We play on the other two courts every Thursday during term time from 7:30 p.m. – 9: 30 p.m. Do come along and join us, try out the newly refurbished changing rooms, showers and toilets and afterwards join us in the Conservative Club for refreshments.

Those who have played badminton so far this season are: David Parry, Andrew Haigh, Ian Daffern, Robin Merchant, Catherine Livesey, Emily Murphy, Nicky Murphy, Matthew Booth, Tom Gledhill, Florrie Gledhill and Eleanor Haigh. n

Left: A good turnout on the first day of the new badminton season Right: The newly extended and refurbished changing rooms

Obituaries

Peter (Sid) Sykes (KJGS 1959-1964)

Former accountancy partner who was a keen OAS football, cricket and golf player

No one remembers where the nickname ‘Sid’ came from but among his friends it stuck with him throughout his life. It just seemed appropriate given his demeanour and dry sense of humour (a typical Yorkshireman).

Peter Sykes arrived at King James’s Grammar School in 1959 in the era of Harry Taylor’s headship. He achieved moderate academic success and excelled at sport - particularly football and cricket, playing regularly for his house (Siddon) and school teams.

In 1964 he left school to take employment in the finance sector with HMRC Taxes. He moved on from there to local chartered accountants Simpson and Wood where he later became a partner and remained for all his career. Much was said at his funeral eulogy about his helpfulness to other staff and his reputation for being tight with his and the company’s money; staff had to wait until he went on holiday to buy a new stapler! In the 2000s he took his financial abilities to a new level as a parttime assistant to on-course ‘bookie’ Tony Lockwood.

Peter signed on for the Old Almondburians’ football team in 1965 and played regularly in the 1st and 2nd teams until 1980. He was well known as a tenacious midfield player, sometimes letting aggression get the better of him. In one game, as a substitute on

the touch line, he was highly critical of the referee’s running of the game. When called on as a replacement player his criticism escalated, so much so that he was sent off before he had even touched the ball! His criticism also extended to Huddersfield Town, though only occasionally attending matches, his tactical genius was always able to expose their shortcomings.

Alongside football, Peter was an equally competitive player in the summer game – cricket. In the 1960s he played for Taxes in the Huddersfield Association League. In the 1970s he joined Lockwood in the Huddersfield District League where he played alongside several other Almondburians. He

took many wickets bowling medium pacers off a hostile fast run-up. It was his batting that was memorable though, if he stayed in he scored runs, spoiling many a bowler’s reputation by repeatedly clearing the boundaries. Rain interruptions to matches were never a problem to him, out came the playing cards and loose change.

In later life, golf took over from football and cricket as his sporting interest, first at Outlane where he became club secretary, then at Crosland Heath. He also competed in OAS Gothard Cup events at Woodsome Hall. Together

with golf, his competitive energies were satisfied by playing darts and dominoes for Almondbury Conservative Club over a period of 30 years.

Finally, to the main love of his life, his family. Peter met Linda in 1969 and they were married in 1973. They lived all their life in Kirkheaton, where they brought up their children Darren and Laura.

Peter Sykes, born 24th May 1948, died 12th May 2022 aged 73.

Memories of Peter collected by Richard Teale in conversation with Doug Norris, Jez Whitehead,Tony Lockwood and Eric Abbott.

John Michael Linton (KJGS 1956 - 1963)

Engineer who was a founder member of the group of Old Boys who toured Europe

John Linton started his school life at the same time as fellow Old Almondburian Mike Gibson in January 1951 at Stile Common School, Newsome. With birthdays after the start of the autumn term, they were in the group of four not allowed to start school until after Christmas! They shared the headmaster’s overriding enthusiasm for sport, which included nurturing the already obvious talent of fellow-pupil, the late England international footballer Trevor Cherry who was a year younger. They also endured the weekly elocution lessons delivered by the headmaster’s wife – which had a very modest impact on most of the class.

A highlight of the summer term was the annual Primrose Hill Free Treat: organised games and free sandwiches. In a very recent conversation John and Mike recalled how the 1953 Free Treat was substantially

upgraded to enable them to celebrate the Coronation. They all had to dress up and parade through the streets in order to qualify for a free a customised mug – a valuable addition to family crockery.

In Autumn 1956 they were two of the

four Stile Commoners along with David Reilly and Peter Hoyle who went to Almondbury Grammar School, travelling on the No 20 trolley bus into town and the No 33 from Byram Street to the Almondbury terminus.

After a couple of years, John’s family moved to Oakes and he drew several of his school soccer-playing pals into going to Oakes Youth Club two evenings a week, where he first exhibited his talent and enthusiasm for dancing. They were busy Saturdays, playing for the School in the morning and Oakes in the afternoon, finished off by going to the cinema in the evenings, with, or hoping to meet , a girlfriend – memorably shared teenage years.

In 1963 John went with John Aspinall, Mike Hellawell and Colin Ainley (another Stile Commoner pal who went to Royds Hall School) to the Isle of Man for two weeks. It was quite an adventure at the time, travelling by train to Liverpool, and taking a ferry across the water. They stayed on the top floor of a boarding house in Douglas. There wasn’t a lift, but they were only 18 so it wasn’t a problem. Little did they know that nearly 50 years later the four of them would all be going on holiday with Mike Gibson and Peter Fisher to Paramé in France, the first of

nine holidays together.

The group all went their separate ways a couple of years after leaving School. John went to University in Sheffield and became a structural engineer. Unfortunately his marriage ended in divorce but in 2000 he met Marjorie and they became partners sharing a variety of social interests. John was a keen musician and played bass cornet for Oughtibridge Brass Band near Sheffield, as well as fulfilling several administrative positions for the band. Marjorie and John also enjoyed dancing and were members of a Modern Vivejibe group in Holmfirth. They also attended many drama events at the Lawrence Batley Theatre, and pantomimes at Marsden, both inspired by their friendship with Mike Hellawell.

The 1996 Old Almondburians’ School Dinner was a pivotal event in the lives of several of our peer group. A major effort by two of John’s classmates, Roger Morgan and Robin Prescott, reunited some 25 of the Class of ’56 in a 40th anniversary celebration at the annual dinner. It was a memorable reunion. A smaller group consisting of John, the late Garry Hirst, Mike Hellawell, John Aspinall, Peter Fisher, Roger Morgan, Colin Ainley (travelling from Harrogate) and Mike Gibson (travelling from Brighton) continued to attend the annual dinners and several started meeting for drinks in the King’s Head at Huddersfield Railway Station. In 2011 they realised that it was 50 years since most of them had been on the School trip to Parame/St Malo, immedi-

Palma in July 2017: (l to r)

Mike Gibson, Peter Fisher, John Aspinall, John Linton, Colin Ainley, Mike Hellawell

ately after their ‘O’ levels. This inspired the idea of a ‘Paramé reunion visit’ in 2012 and, as it turned out, the annual shared holidays recorded in subsequent issues of The Almondburian.

John was an ever-present member of the group which met in the King’s Head, enjoyed an annual Christmas lunch, and shared annual holidays to Nice, Malaga, Viareggio, Palma, Alicante, Torre el Greco, Filey (yes, Filey!) and then Malta this year. The trip to Filey was a stand-in for not being able to go abroad during the Covid restrictions. In between, John and John Aspinall went to Wembley in 2017 to meet Mike Gibson and Mike Hellawell to watch Huddersfield Town beat Reading in the Championship play-off and contributed to the explosion noise which greeted the winning ‘Schindler penalty’

The travellers effectively missed two years during the Covid restrictions but

started weekly Zoom meetings as an imaginative replacement. These were joined by two more members of the Class of ’56: Geoffrey Butters and Peter Tracey. It was usual for six or seven of us to enjoy a couple of hours of banter, mainly about sport, health and politics. We had a Zoom meeting on the Monday evening just four days before John died. There was no indication of impending terminal ill-health at all. John’s participation was as vigorous as usual which made the news of his death a huge shock.

John, who left a son, Adam, was a valued member of our core group of the Class of ’56 and, we're absolutely sure, of many more beyond our group. He will be sorely missed.

Michael Gibson and John Aspinall John Michael Linton: born 3rd October 1945, died 24th September 2022 aged 76.

We are sorry to report, as we go to press, that another member of the group, Peter Fisher, has also died. An obituary will appear in the next issue of The Almondburian.

Michael Pogson (KJGS 1954-1961)

We were sorry to learn of the death in September 2022 of Michael Pogson , at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.

Son of a weaver, Michael lived most of his life in Dalton. He attended King James’s Grammar School from 1954-61 and went on to study at Leeds University from 1961-64.

For the last four years, Michael was a resident of Thornhill Nursing Home, Edgerton.

He was brother to the late Margaret

McKenzie (née Emmerson) and the late Gerald Pogson; loving uncle to the late Paul McKenzie, Geoffrey Pogson, and the late Caroline Cosgrove (née Pogson); beloved great uncle to Alex & James McKenzie and Jeremy, Oliver, Raymond & Grace Cosgrove. The funeral service was at Wakefield Crigglestone Crematorium on 11th October. Michael Pogson, born 17th March 1942, died 17th September 2022 aged 80.

Four great OAS publications

A History of King James’s Grammar School is the official history of the School covering the period 15471963. The author of this 284 page hardback full of reminiscences and anecdotes was historian and former KJGS pupil Gerald Hinchliffe.

£10 plus P & P

Morning Assembly gives a fascinating and often humorous account of former Headmaster Harry Taylor’s life and includes, in facsimile form, 100 prayers –ancient and modern – which he assembled over the years for use in School assemblies.

£10 plus P & P

An Illustrated History of King James’s School in Almondbury was originally published to mark the 400th anniversary of the Charter in 2008. A full colour hardback recording 400 years of history, packed with illustrations throughout.

£10 plus P & P

No beating about the Bush is the final year diary of former deputy head Dave Bush, who retired in 1996. A detailed day-today account of life at King James’s School with detailed and often amusing accounts of the ups and downs of school life.

£15 plus P & P

If you prefer to pay by cheque, please make it payable to the Old Almondburians’ Society and post it to Andrew Haigh, R D Haigh & Co, Oakhill Road, Brighouse, West Yorkshire HD6 1SN.

A HISTORY OF KING JAMES’S GRAMMAR SCHOOL IN ALMONDBURY

GERALD HINCHLIFFE, B.A., M.Ed.

Chairman

WALTER RALEIGH

15 Thorpe Lane, Almondbury HD5 8TA Tel: 01484 308452

Email: walter.raleigh@oas.org.uk

Secretary

ANDREW HAIGH

2 Arkenley Lane, Almondbury HD4 6SQ Tel: 01484 432105

Email: andrew.haigh@oas.org.uk

Treasurer

KEITH CRAWSHAW

5 Benomley Drive, Almondbury HD5 8LX Tel: 01484 533658

Email: keith.crawshaw@oas.org.uk

Media Editor

ROGER DOWLING

Orchard House, Oughtrington Lane, Lymm, Cheshire WA13 0RD

Tel: 01925 756390/07815 601447

Email: almondburian@oas.org.uk

Assistant Media Editor

RICHARD TEALE

The Sycamores, 239 Huddersfield Road, Thongsbridge, Holmfirth HD9 3TT Tel: 07810 313315.

Email: richard.teale@oas.org.uk

KJS Representative

ABBIGAIL TERRY

King James’s School, St Helen’s Gate, Almondbury HD4 6SG Tel: 01484 412990

Email: abbi.terry@oas.org.uk

Website: www.oas.org.uk

The Almondburian is distributed to OAS members free of charge. Price to non-members: £3.00