As a teacher at a grammar school that had very traditional standards I insisted on growing my hair long and sporting a fairly luxuriant beard. It was expected that I wear a tie, so mine were wide, 'kipper' ties, my shirts were a little loud and had big, rounded collars, and, instead of a sports jacket, I wore something in black leather.
Despite this, the older staff at the school were understanding and Gill and I made good friends with some of the younger staff.
These mild feelings of rebellion weren't just directed at the school. Ludlow itself was stuffy. There was an 'in' group of landed gentry who had family going back years and we felt slightly excluded. There was money in the area too. The head girl drove to school in the sort of car which none of the staff could afford.
As we moved into our second year in Ludlow we became increasingly close to two fellow teachers....
....Hilary, who taught biology, and with whom I had organised joint biology-geology 'A' level field trips, and Tony, who taught Spanish and French. We had the pleasure, and some amusement, in watching their relationship develop, though sadly we left before they married.
It was probably Hilary who took this photo, at a party at her house in Raven Lane, Ludlow. I remember it vividly as one of those parties which we both thoroughly enjoyed. However, by that time we knew that we wouldn't be staying in Ludlow.
Greetings "Sir". Good to see you are still with us. It was fun being in your class. Hugo.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear from you, Hugo. It's always such a pleasure to know that I left an impression and an honour to think that someone found enjoyment in my class. it may not come out in the blog but I did very much enjoy the teaching at Ludlow. Hope this finds you well and that life has been good to you. Jon
ReplyDeleteJust checking in again. Still alive and kicking in West Wales. I understand Hilary and Tony now own / run some rental cottages in mid to west Wales, so not too far away from my long term roots. I have been lucky enough to update the cars a bit. The old Rover 100 that I used to charge around in, has long gone. These days slightly better chariots are available, the most recent being a Dodge Viper. I ended up in the disco /nightclub business and also property rental, which provides for the odd bacon sandwich. 40 years of hard work have paid off, but the bones complain these days, especially when rain is forecast. Getting old is cruel. If you ever use facebook, you can find me as HugoBrett. Look for a photo of me in the Viper!! Regards for now, Hugo.
ReplyDeleteThanks for getting in touch again, Hugo, and it's good to hear you're doing ok. Ludlow now seems ages ago, with a lot of water under the bridge since then, but we saw Hilary and Tony just a few weeks ago when they drove up from Wales to visit us in Scotland. Take care of those complaining bones. Jon
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