William Torbitt School Website for Former Pupils and Staff

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229 memories, showing 155 to 165

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Memory No. 79
From:
Patricia Winder
(@WT 1952>58)

Does anyone remember the after school Rock and Roll Club?
I used to go Ballroom Dancing with Brenda Collins at the Cinema in Chadwell Heath, any excuse to dance!
Greasy Crisps are a fond memory, what about Susan Bailey's Dad's greengrocer shop, and the bakery where they sold Mini Hovis loaves?
Susan Bailey and I had the privelege of serving ice cream to fellow students, and also getting Mrs Bidgood's shopping.
Did I ever work...then again, was I ever in School?

Memory No. 78
From:
Peter Young
(@WT 1952>1958)

Oh dear, now Roy Tyzak has admitted to being one side in the "Sherbert incident", I suppose I should admit to being the other. I thought Mr Cowan blamed me entirely, since I was called to his room to explain my behaviour. But who was the boy in the middle?

Memory No. 77
From:
Andrew Mortlock
(@WT 1962>1969)

I too remember the football team of 1968-69, it made Mr Cowan immensely proud to have both trophy cabinets filled, one with the League Cup and one with the King's Cup which was presented after the final by Ken Ashton.

Memory No. 76
From:
Janet Crawford
(@WT 1964<68)

We had an Australian teacher I believe was Mr Schiefer in yr 2, while he was out of the classroom a group of us made quite a lot of noise, when he returned he got out his slipper and wanted to know who the culprits were. I was the only girl amongst 4/5 boys and saved them from the slipper as girls were not to have that sort of punishment. Needless to say I was in the boys good books for quite some time.
Mr Eagland smoking his pipe.
Having snow fights with the teachers, they were up on the roof throwing snow down on us.
Mrs Bidgood making me sing Once in Royal Davids City in front of the whole school (how embrassing)
Being in the school production 'The King ang I' and having to run out of the back of the stage down the steps through the school and back to the entrance of the hall. (how fit I must have been)
Have many more fond and happy memories.

Memory No. 75
From:
Joan Hay
(@WT 1945>51)

Playing 'marbles' all the way to school and under the subway.

Memory No. 74
From:
Jane Huntley
(@WT 1963>1969)

What about the fantastic football team we had in 1968/69. A man from FIFA presented the school with a pennant and told us we were the only school in the country to receive it. The football team had won every game in the season. The players I remember most were Grant Fulcher and Barry Pinder.

Memory No. 73
From:
Richard Sherman
(@WT 1978)

Miss Gubbins class. She told the class that she practiced the occult. None of us belived her, anyway our teacher was strange, she came in with some substance that she wiped on a girls hand in our class, telling us that this would prove her power. Sure enough the next day the girl had chicken pox!

Memory No. 72
From:
ROY TYZACK
(@WT 1952 - 1958)

I have many good memories of the school but I particularly remember playing Colonel Pride of Oliver Cromwell's army in the 1958 School play. I was terrified that I would forget my lines and 'pawed' over the script day and night. Mr. Cowan told me off in rehearsals for referring to my 'Lieu' tenant instead of my 'Lef' tenant (played by Roderick Sewell). We had to give the impression that we were walking down the steps of a trap door into a cellar and we had a large square of wood on the Left side of the stage next to the side curtains which was lifted up toward the audience whilst we walked behind it gradually bending our knees to give the impression of going down stairs. On the dress rehearsal, whilst a cast member was crawling under the curtains, it caught on his costume, pulling the curtains down on top of him and knocking the 'trap door' lid over, leaving actor and curtains in a heap and the audience in hysterics.

One boy had to announce a piece of music by Shubert and whilst I stood one side of him and another boy stood the other side, we kept saying "SHUBERT, SHERBERT, SHUBERT SHERBERT" and, inevitably, when his big moment came he took a deep breath, thought hard and announced the piece of music by ... SHERBERT. If that was you, I hope you have forgiven us !

I vividly remember the maypole at the rear of the school and dancing round it on special occasions hanging onto the brightly coloured ribbons.

Does anyone remember the day that Delin's (or Denil's) stores caught fire opposite the school and we all watched the drama out of the window despite being told to face the front! and who was it who threw the handful of gravel at someone on the Eastern Avenue at 'home time' which unfortnately smashed the windscreen on my dads Ford Prefect, having just picked me up from school ? Loads and loads of memories ..... Congrtaulations to everyone involved in this site ... good work (you get a little stick on Gold star)

Memory No. 71
From:
Barbara Nicholls
(@WT )

For Barbara's Wartime Memories - Click here

I went to William Torbitt from the opening day at nine years of age and my sister started her schooldays on the first day of the school’s history at five years old. Previously I had been at Downshall where I had to walk from Ramsgill Drive four times daily ( no school lunches then) so to be at the new school so close by was great.

I loved the school and the teachers and especially the Headmaster –Mr.G.P.Train. I felt he was very strict but very fair and I could listen to him easily as his voice, to me, was good, clear and held my attention. I think my first teacher was a lady but I clearly remember the teacher in the scholarship class – Mr. Clark I think. He was very strict but treated everyone the same however well they did academically. One instance I shall never forget was one of the boys (Sullivan I think) stuttered very badly and was constantly ridiculed. One day Mr. Clark sent him out of the room on some pretext and then told the rest of us that the next person who took the mickey out of this boy, or laughed at him, would be punished. When this boy returned he was asked to read to the class! He nearly passed out with horror but Mr. Clark cajoled him and encouraged him and after a while he was very good. It took a long time but eventually he was cured of the stammering all the time and passed the scholarship and went on to a good career I believe. When you ‘grow up’ you realize what a time the poor fellow had and how commendable it was that the teacher bothered to help one boy so much when he had such a lot of children to teach (bigger classes then than now of course).

[Also see Laura Nicholls' Memories below]

Memory No. 70
From:

(@WT )

For Wartime Memories - Click here

Memory No. 69
From:
Laura Nicholls
(@WT )

I started school at 5 years old on the day that William Torbitt opened in1937.

My memory is not my best asset, but I have always clearly remembered the rocking horse and lots of other sparkling new toys. We always had free milk in the mornings in a special size bottle (one third of a pint I think) which we drank with a straw. There was no choice, we had to drink it because it was thought to be necessary for growing children particularly for the calcium for our bone growth. I have a newspaper cutting showing the outside of the school and some of us drinking our milk when the school opened.

I also have a vivid memory of us all lined up in the downstairs corridor with our luggage labels pinned to us with our names on ready to be sent out of the area when war broke out. My sister, Barbara, who is four years older than me, was at the William Torbitt school having been transferred from Downshall Junior school, Seven Kings to the Torbitt when it opened, so we were together for the evacuation.

We were sent to 355 Felixstowe Road, Ipswich, Suffolk but were there for less than a year because I suppose it was realized that the area was just as likely a bombing target being near Felixstowe as Newbury Park was near London! I remember going to Nacton Road school and Uncle and Auntie Chips and their family (their surname was Chipperfield) - they were our foster parents for that time, but not much academic detail. Uncle Chips used to tell us the most fantastic stories, especially when we went for walks on the Heath. He was such a dear, whereas Auntie Chips I remember as being very, very strict. The one and only time I played truant from school was her fault as I was too scared to go into school late, so I sat outside on the field - but that is another story!!

We have always had a soft spot for the William Torbitt school as there has always been some of the family's children attending. My niece had a daughter at the school. I was there to see the Junior plays in March 1997 and Sophie played the part of an evacuee. The William Torbitt school has always enjoyed a good reputation and I hope it always will.

Later on the Aldborough Hatch Community Centre was formed and met for different classes in the school in the evenings. I was one of the Aldborough Entertainers Concert Party (tap dancing and joining in some sketches) and we met and rehearsed in the main hall. We did a lot of charity shows within the school building and some at other venues for old folks' clubs etc. - just for the fun of it!!