Dear Alumni,
I hope you are all keeping well. My apologies as it has been a long time since my previous Newsletter. You will find that they are like buses though and the next one is well into production 😀. In fact if you have visited DHSB or contacted me and you are not in this edition, you will be in the next one.
It's been a great year and the highlights are always when I meet any alumni. I love hearing your memories as we walk around the school. Some of them I will share with you here. I also have another fantastic piece written by Barrington Cross for you. See my previous newsletter for his first piece which was based on his late brother Tony’s recollections, and the background to this piece, which are his own DHSB memories.
Barrington Cross - 'Vignettes'
I was delighted to speak to Janet, the granddaughter of our fourth headmaster HAT Simmonds in 2023. I believe he was our youngest one ever - only 37 years old when he took up the post in 1933. However, this accolade has now passed to our current headteacher, Dan Roberts, who was 36 years old when he took up the helm in 2015. HATS was born in 1896 - the same year that Alonzo J Rider founded DHSB! He was responsible for introducing the school blazer and the silver and green striped tie which is familiar to many of you. HATS, as he was affectionately known, had 7 children - 4 of which attended DHSB. I have been in contact with his son Richard - more about that in due course. Janet told me that her grandfather's ashes are scattered by an oak tree in Trent Park (Enfield), in front of Trent House, and there is a plaque to his memory there.
It was lovely to meet Gregor Andrusz when he visited us. He started at DHSB in 1953. Gregor told me how the teachers always wore their black gowns and called the boys by their surnames. He said it was a disciplinary offence not to wear your school cap and they were not allowed to wear long trousers until the 3rd year (Year 9 in today’s money 🙂). He has a memory of ‘Tuggy’s Tuck Shop’ where the boys could go to buy their cigarettes - sometimes buying just a single one!
You may remember I mentioned a few of the staff nicknames in my previous newsletter, Gregor has shared a few more with me: Elmer Whitfeld, Bungy Williams, ‘Slouch’ and ‘Piper’ – on account of always smoking a pipe.
Gregor also remembered the sign declaring ‘Waste Not Want Not’ on the wall of the refectory and the big aluminium bath which was the swill bin, although he generally went home for lunch.
David Ackroyd attended DHSB from 1953 to 1959 and he visited us too. He told me how the caretakers would let the boys watch football with them on their TVs. He particularly remembers watching the FA Cup Finals of 1957, 1958 and 1959 there. Hard to imagine a time now when every home did not have its own TV.
David also confessed to me that when he was put on litter duty for punishment he would half fill the bag from the school bins! One after school detention for you David! There’s no statute of limitations at DHSB 🙂
David became a social worker and took early retirement. His retirement wasn’t much of a rest though as he started investigating complaints into social care and undertook work for CAFCASS (Child and Family Court Advisory and Support Service).
David’s brother Francis, 3 years his junior, also attended DHSB. He trained as a teacher before becoming a Minister in a Congregational Church, spending many years in Tottenham, London. At one point he was working in Southern Rhodesia and wasn't allowed back in after going to Africa and ‘fraternising with Africans.’ Francis is now living in the UK and is also retired.
I had a lovely visit from long serving school Governor, and former School Captain Tom Orchard too. He brought his friends, brothers John and Peter Stuckey with him. They attended DHSB 1956 to 1963 and 1959 to 1967 respectively. They shared memories of dances at DHSG - where headmaster Doc Cresswell ensured there was absolutely no bodily contact - and watching Bridget Bardot films at the Film Society! 🙂
They shared with me fond memories of playing bridge games, starting at 8.00am and continuing all day – just being handed from student to student!
They remembered the varied and amusing members of staff. Wilf Nash made them run up and down the bank 6 times at the Scott Memorial. Wilf Nash’s lessons and exercising often crop up in my conversations with alumni.
They also told me that the female toilets at the bottom of E Block was the location of the school dentist in its previous life - female toilets not being needed in the 1950s 😀
John became a manager with Lloyds Private Banking, starting in Plymouth and finishing in Nottingham. Peter became a consultant engineer, working all over the world. He has been settled in Hong Kong now though for the last 45 years - pop in and say hello if you're there!
Peter graduated from Cambridge University. He recalls headteacher Dr Cresswell, saying to him ‘oh no, you have to be good to go there Stuckey.’ Peter must surely have been very good then 😀
My next visit was from Peter Cooke and Sheila Davies. Peter started at DHSB in 1954, as did his good friend, Sheila's husband Colin. Sadly Colin passed away in 2014. As well as being a former DHSB student, Colin taught here for a period. Sheila had a very precious photo album of Colin’s containing DHSB photos which she has kindly donated to our archives. You can see some of them in the gallery here. Please get in touch if you can identify anyone in the photos.
Colin taught chemistry and geography here from 1966 to 1968. He also gave instruction in sailing and boat maintenance to the students, along with John Collinette who taught physics. Some of you may remember them.
Further along in Colin’s career he spent 14 years as Professor of Chemistry at the Memorial University in Newfoundland. During this time he took a two year sabbatical to complete a PHD in Kansas.
Colin eventually returned to Plymouth with a new role, one which involved training teachers how to use computers. Margaret Thatcher had set up a program to get computers into schools. We can't imagine life without them now!
Colin then set up his own software business - tailoring software to assist businesses to get online.
Sheila was particularly delighted to visit the school - she has fond memories of attending a dance here with Colin as a teenager.
Ted Attewell came in for a visit. He taught maths for 40 years here, 1960 - 2000. He was a Senior Master for 20 of those years, Head of Upper School, Careers Officer and looked after the school Scout Troop, among other responsibilities. He recalls an amusing anecdote regarding teacher Bert ‘Bunny’ Warren. Mr Warren lived on Crownhill Road and caught the number 27 bus to school every day. One day, Mr Warren wasn't at the bus stop when the bus pulled in so the driver got off the bus and knocked on Mr Warren’s door to ask if he was going to work that day! Different times! Mr Warren was one of our teachers who was with our evacuated students in Penzance. It was a pleasure to meet his children, Anne and Peter, at our 125th anniversary event in 2021.
Ted had a very enjoyable visit to DHSB. He reminisced with some of his former colleagues who were delighted to catch up with him. At one point, whilst sat in a corner of the staff room, Ted recalled there being much excitement in that spot when a mouse was spotted by students there - the current staff room was previously Ted’s form room.
A while ago I spotted a vintage DHSB mug on EBay - as always I can't resist buying these artefacts. I could see that it was located in the midlands so I felt it really was my duty to bring it home 😀. I asked the seller, Andrew Hobbs, if he knew the history of the mug. It turns out that he attended DHSB (1988 - 1995), as did his dad (Paul) in the 1950s and his grandad (Jack) in the 1930s! As if that wasn't an exciting enough discovery for me, Andrew told me that his dad also taught briefly at DHSB! What good value this mug turned out to be! You can buy your own DHSB mug (ceramic or a travel) and other merchandise in our online 'Alumni' shop - DHSB Alumni Shop
I called Paul and we arranged for me to visit. Paul started at DHSB in 1955, returning to teach maths for a term in 1967, which he enjoyed immensely. Teachers he remembers are ‘Whipper’ Way, whose hobby was mending watches, and he insisted that the cricket score was on the black board when he came in, ‘Taffy’ Radler who taught Latin, ‘Slouch’ Vanstone who taught history and he says moaned constantly about the building, Laddie Adams,who ran card games in the staff room, Des Tamlin, Percy Wayne, Mr Quartermain (woodwork) and Mr Osborn who replaced him. He also remembers the music teacher Mr Crump who was a very successful cricketer - he liked to bowl in the gangway of the music room which at that time was in the basement of E Block. Another teacher, Nick Vosper played rugby for Plymouth Albion, as did, he says, teachers Wilf Nash and Mr Lovell. Other teachers he remembers are Mr Poole (physics), Mr Lunnon (geography), Doug Barkell (maths), Mr Cross (geography), ‘Wiggy’ Berry and Eric Warne who he said had a big personality.
Paul remembers how Dr Cresswell made a point of teaching the first years to get to know them. He also inspected all the classes, whilst wearing his robe, lined up on the playground, making sure their hair wasn't too long. If they had a quiff they were ordered to ‘get a haircut!’ I'm told that in those days it wasn't unusual for the teachers to wear their black robes as their normal daily attire.
Jennifer Stone has also been in contact. Her father, John Stone, started at DHSB in approximately 1913. She told me that he enjoyed his school days. John would've gone to DHSB at our original location in Albert Road. After leaving school he was accepted at Sandhurst. He served with the South Devon Lancashire Regiment on D Day and went to Burma in 1945/6, as well as other postings. He also commanded the Devon, Cornwall and Somerset Light Infantry at Exeter in the 1950s.
John passed away in 1980 but he always treasured his school sports cups and his rugby cap. I had the pleasure of meeting Jenny as she kindly donated these items to our archives. He was the proud recipient of cups for cross country, hurdles and two for ‘Victor Ludorum’ – (‘the winner of the games’ – for us non-Latin speaking people 😀)
Arthur Thorning wrote to me about his uncle, Cyril Daniel, who was born in 1898 and attended DHSB. He remembers being told by his uncle that he was given the day off school in 1913 to see the famous battleship HMS Warspite launch at Devonport. Cyril served in the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the RAF in WW1 as a pilot of RE8 Aeroplanes in France on Artillery Observation duties.
Arthur attended DHSB too. See the gallery below for Arthur's class photo - Mr Vanstone was the form master. Arthur told me they were a good cohort with 5 going to Oxford and 6 to Cambridge. Arthur himself studied Engineering Science at Trinity College, Oxford (BA Honours and MA), going on to be an aeronautical engineer. He also held a private pilot's licence for 40 years. His family had a timber yard on the creek (adjacent to E Block). Arthur is an aviation history enthusiast and has even written some books – the first one being ‘The Dambuster Who Cracked The Dam.’ Arthur kindly sent me a fantastic image taken from Parsonage Field in 1859 where you can clearly see DHSB – surrounded mainly by fields.
Fun Arthur fact! He still drives the Daimler car which his dad purchased in London in 1959 as Plymouth did not have one available to buy. Photo below shows the car outside of the family home - the solitary house opposite the DHSB bottom gate. Arthur really didn't have far to get to school!
I've been asked if I can put a shout out to a couple of alumni. Please let me know if you know of their whereabouts and I'll pass on the information. Rob Hodges is trying to find John Hocking. They both joined DHSB in 1965. Rob knows that John became a Design Technology teacher at Plymouth College but has since lost track of him.
Glen Waugh is looking for his classmate, Peter Probst. They left DHSB in 1970 and both went to Loughborough to study – Peter to do Design Technology and Glen was a PE student.
My grateful thanks to everyone who has visited DHSB, shared their memories or donated DHSB memorabilia to us.
Finally a big thank you to everyone who donated to our Crowdfunder in the summer - it was much appreciated. We're looking forward to using the updated and upgraded fitness suite.
If you have any memories to share or would like to visit the school just get in touch, by mail, email alumni@dhsb.org or leave a message with DHSB on 01752 208787. Please note that I only work part time so may not be able to get back to you the same day.
Take care.
Best wishes,
Beverley Kinsella
Alumni Engagement & Archives
(Aerial photo credit - Stephen Johnson)
