Cifford Jones - 62-63?
During my time


Down to Clifford's latest anecdotes

Was I there 62-63?? Jones I was there when I arrived for the first term at Kings. Fowler, Gay, Saunders, Sherring and Shoemark were all in Lower Vc when I arrived in that class.

Peter Thomas, Miss Gibson, Alan Rosser, Jet Harris, “Tommy” Thompson were staff & teachers.

I remember a rather good looking girl in the egg sorting and grading building down in the chicken farm.

Martin Bain hit a shoulder high hockey ball in the tennis courts during a hockey practice and virtually knocked me out!!! Gordon Shearing and Brian Saunders were not amused.

Richard Jones III appeared in my last year?? When did Henry IV Part 1 go to the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham as part of a Youth Festival of Plays?? That was my last term, I had returned after running away the previous term and worked for the Post Office over Christmas.

I remember Clem probably in my second year possibly when I graduated to Upper Vc, then 5B and a vague one term final recollection of 5A???

These are the staff and teachers I remember, plus a girlfriend I had in the village (can’t remember her name) and a passing interest in Pat Winn.


I’ve been down memory lane in the attendance register:

John Bingham always tried to beat me on cross country running, I stayed with him at his home in Weymouth, and in fact I had a holiday with him.

Michael Gentleman (a very good rugby player)

Keith Gay, I spoke to him a couple of years ago and he was living near Swindon, well more towards Trowbridge and retired. His family had sold their farm land for the western development of Swindon. I remember visiting him a number of times at the family farm in Eastleaze(?) or with our respective wife’s and children later on. My son broke their loo just as we were saying goodbye one visit the bowl shattered completely flooding the floor.

Robinson Shoemark. I visited him in Dorset on my travels. I remember his Dad had died or left soon after he left school.

Mike Jones 1. He was a friend after school and knew the set of friends that my first wife belonged to because his family had a holiday home at Felpham nr Bognor Regis, where I was born.

Fowler Was in Lower Vc when I got there, maybe he didn’t get to Upper Vc good mate of Sherrings.

Brian Saunders I saw him once in Bristol in the yard which was in the middle of his family business, Holmes Sand & Gravel it was called. He nudged me hard at school in the great hall and said “that’s you mate, well done” when I had just won the elocution cup on my last term, for my efforts as co lead in Henry IV Part I.

That reminds me what happened to Taylor I & II who lived near Weston Super Mare. Taylor I(Dick) was Prince Hal, Martin Bain was in it (he’s in the only picture on our web site at the back) was the King. Coussins I & II were the girls. The other boy lying down I recognize him but can’t think of his name. I’ve got some photo’s of that play in a loft in my property in ...

Gordon Sherring. Visited him once in Enfield.

Mike Watkin I saw a few times at Epsom where his parents lived then at Mod bury in Devon where was married and had kids. He was into Surfing, selling the boards at a shop in Plymouth.

Henley (had leg braces) I used to cycle to somewhere near Brize Norton to have tea with him and his Mum & Dad. Guess what the attraction was - his sister!

Martin Bain (he went to work for Birds Eye at Walton on Thames.)

Bhatt. I gave him a pasting and bullying me in the whole school stopped!

Cartwright, Emmett, Everitt, Fewings, Fletcher

Grigg He was in 104 dormitory in my first term with Brian Saunders and Keith Gay. They consumed my tuck box in one week!!!

Sorry to hear that Pete Gupwell has died

Hampson He ran away with me.

Hobhouse. Slept above me in dormitory 54.

The IGs [Manos & Pano Ignatiadis] of course.

Lippiat, Middleton, Mercer, Montague, Noble.

Papworth He was a prefect, so was Jones I, Fletcher, Van der Weff, Prestaige, and Pullen? (Or was he a Community Point fanatic, virtually spent all his time down the chicken farm.)

Perkins, Prestaige, Pugh

Pullen I kept in tough with Dave Pullen because he lived in Farnham and I went to live there. Lost touch with him in the 70’s.

Reda Kippy and I were firm friends for a while until we took him to see Buckingham Palace and as a Anglo Egyptian (from USA) he couldn’t understand why it wasn’t white!!

Rice Evans I can see him in some of the sports pics.

Rudland. He was a mate of sorts....

Sainsbury. Any relation to the Supermarket family? I know the Crawfords were from the biscuit manufacturers.

Semsarilar. I used to be his lookout for smoking at the back of the little summer house up from the tennis courts. He couldn’t pronounce Vauxhall Viva he said, "Wauxhall Weewa."

“Smudger” Smith from Wales.

Soleymani, Sparke, Speigal

Spragg When I dropped into the school late one evening in 1967 Spragg was Head Boy and the school was in chaos, discipline had gone and the boys were at loggerheads with Mosey and some of the teachers at up and left.. We went into the den under the Ships staircase where the prefects room was, I was full of the fact I had just become a Dad at 19!! My son is 40 next year when I’m 60!!*

St Auybyn, Swan, Tilllet

Tingley Was it Tillet or Tingley that had a 3 wheeler that we rolled over on the drive. His dad, a vicar was totally unamused.

Tomkinson, Townsend.

Van der Werf I found him in the woods with Sandra Winn and Pat – she looked at me so sheepishly!! I think Fletcher made up the foursome.

Wilson.

I remember Winter and he’s down as 1964!

* I went back to the school on a few occasions, once when the [religious cult] ... were in possession of the school building and one of their elders walked around with me and asked loads of questions about how things worked especially as the swimming pool was a stagent puddle! Another time the developers were in and the whole place was a building sight with familiar parts being ripped apart and finally a couple of times when residents were in possession of their new homes and it was difficult to capture the old atmosphere.

Back to Top


I ran away from Kings School the term that the play was on, Henry IV Part 1 (1964). I played Hotspur and one Sunday Robinson Shoemark suggested I go to The Old New Inn at Bourton on the Water on my bike (the one I had adopted for that term – one or two were usually dumped in the shed from previous terms) and meet with his parents as he was on Exeat, day out only.

I took Peter with me and we had a little too much to drink!!! Back at school and waiting in the Great Hall to go to tea, Brian Saunders was behind me in the line and kept propping me up as I was swaying a lot!!! After tea I tried to sober up with Peter who was just the worse for wear with Brian and Gordon Sherring with some other friends “Sammy” Samsarilar and Robbie was back by this time.

Later in church I was told that a Prefect was reporting me to Winn, the headmaster and I would probably be hauled up before the school at assembly the next morning. My thoughts turned to "Smudger" Smith who had been suspended the previous term and sent home by Mosey in disgrace. No, I thought I’m going home and telling my parents myself. So I got hold of Peter Hampson and we left after lights out and walked up to the A40, through the village and to The Top Road Café.

I arrived home in Bognor Regis with Peter at 11am on Monday via Oxford, London, underground to Enfield - to a girl friend to get some money, and was rejected by her parents; underground to Covent Garden; Chichester, walked towards Selsey, jumped on the bus going to Chichester and found my current girlfriend, who was on her way to school at the convent in Bognor Regis; borrowed the bus fare and got home.

Back to Top


Re Andrew Tillett's comments about the Bedstead family and the chicken farm (UD09/09). I remember the buxom daughter VERY well, we broke a few eggs together on many occasions when I was her latest conquest. I seem to recall that she was a bit older than all of us and enjoyed the attraction she was to the boys, which gave her the upper hand and a very wide choice. I faired very well until she (can't remember her name) found out I was seeing her best friend in the village most evenings.

It was a case of getting out of prep or disappearing altogether. Across the yard at the back (with the round building in the middle) sneaking through to the swimming pool under the cover of darkness down the path passed the concrete tennis courts where Michael Bain hit a hockey ball during a match with the stick right over his head and partly knocked me out as it hit my head! Down passed the famous chicken farm through the undergrowth on an old path and come out on the lane that forked off by the Village War Memorial. Over the wall and sat on the permanently open five bar gate and await my date.

Sometimes she was there waiting for me and we would have a cuddle in the bushes. Well that’s my story and I'm sticking to it. Occasional she would babysitting in the row of cottages, set back from the road through the village between the schools main gate and the junction for turning up towards the A40. Those meetings are unprintable but I used to compare notes with one or two mates to see how I was getting on breaking out from puberty! Getting back was the worst. Sometimes it was best to just walk in the master’s entrance at the back by Dick's workshop and go the shortest route to my dorm 54 then 60. Hobhouse was in the top bunk then and I had that strange Cypriot we mentioned some news ago above me in 60. I had enough street cred for my mates to say I was in the loo or somewhere when 'lights out' came.


Back to Top

My classmates were Brian Saunders, Gordon Sherring, Keith Gay, Sammy Semsarilla and Shoemark.


The building in my time, early sixties:

Ground Floor

Large Stairs (by Church Hall)  Ships Stairs

Church Hall                                         Cloakroom with Lockers

Office                                                  Library (6th Form)

Library                                                 VA Classroom

Great Hall                                           Great Hall

Nursery 1                                            Upper VC Classroom

Nursery 2                                            Lower VC Classroom

Nursery 3                                            Staff Room

Linen Room                                         Linen Room

Nursery Dining Room                         ?

Cellar                                                  Food Store (Old battery Room when House was on DC

                                                            electric generated where ruins still remain down by the

                                                            river).

Store                                                    Boiler Room (Old boiler Room for housing totally

                                                            inadequate heating system, but better than nothing).

Kitchen, Scullery, Pantry and Larder used as was for the school.

Drying Room and room next door were Showers for after Sports.

Workshop                                            Art Classroom and Alan Rossers class ?

Common Room                                   VB Classroom

Bedroom XLVII & XLVI                                    Locker Rooms

First Floor

Ballroom                                             Dormitory 54

Library                                                 Headmasters Study

Dining Room                                       Dining Room

Scullery                                               Servery

Staff Flat                                              Staff Flat (Headmasters Flat) Mr Winn

Guest Room                                        Dormitory 60

Bedroom VIIIa & b                              Peter Thomas Bedroom

Bedroom X                                          Dormitory 55

Bedroom XI                                         Tuck Parcel Scrutiny room/Secretary’s office

Bedroom IX                                         Dormitory  56 

Bedroom VII                                        Washroom

Bedroom I, III and IV                           Staff Bedrooms?

Staff Room                                          Sick Bay

 

 

Second Floor

Bedrooms XVI to XVIII were junior dormitories

Bedrooms XIX , XX, XXI, XXII and XXIII were further junior dormitories with Bathrooms and wash rooms next to them as shown.

The Staff Flat was the “2nd floor” up for the headmasters flat below

All other bedrooms on the other side were for staff.  Margaret Gibson and Stan were up there?

The stairs opposite bedroom XVII were the main (old back stairs for staff & servants) for boys to get up to there dorms. 


Back to Top

My first Dorm was Bedroom XVII with Keith Gay, Brian Saunders, me and Robinson Shoemark. All in a line as listed with Keith by the window.

The Staff Flat was the next floor up for the headmasters flat with his lovely daughters. I got to know one of them but competition was overwhelming Van der Warf (spelling?)was in the running and I’ll remember the other some other time.

We were discouraged from using Ships Stairs or the stairs from the back of the Great Hall unless directed by a master or prefect.

The old Stable Block had the junior class rooms down there IVA and IVB. One was the Science classroom as well. Peter Thomas kept his Lagonda or was it a Jaguar in the building behind the clock tower in the back yard.


Back to Top

"Opposite the end of "Bedroom XI" was a cupboard with a felt door that had our tuck in it that was for 'tuck tea.' Outside of which is where the evening urn used to be on a low table along with supper (usually bread, spread and marmalade or meat spread.) "Bedroom XI" itself was where we opened our tuck parcels under the scrutiny (for contraband) of the Duty Master.

Bedroom XI was the school secretaries office, I believe you have her listed as Joan Hawkins in the Attendance file for my era. When I ran away with Hampson she phoned my home to speak to my parents and of course they weren't there and I answered the phone to her. She kindly put me through to Mr Winn!!! My father was in London working as usual and my Mother had to come back from Switzerland. Hey Ho.

Tuck was in the cupboard with the padded door which was left open as we filed past the Duty Master who checked we had house shoes on, as he stood by the door to the dining room facing down the corridor towards the stairs to the Great Hall. I used to come up the back stairs (Silver Stairs) into the Scullery and have a staff meal while listening to Stan's radio tuned into Radio London or Radio Caroline.

Have look at the stairs leading up to Bedroom I and the Staff Room (Sick bay with 3 beds in it? Thats where Pat Winn came through Sick bay late one night when I was in a bed in Sick Bay I said " Hello ....... and she said "What are you doing here, are you Ok?" I had met her a couple of times on parents visits and she knew me on nodding terms but remembered me seeing both her and her sister in the woods with more senior boys as I said earlier.


Back to Top

[ KS Directory ]

| Home |