Ties

From the time I became one of the more senior members of staff at the English schools I taught in, I felt the need to wear a suit to work, and since men's suits were expected to be dark, boring colours I used to cheer myself up with brightly-colours ties, often bought by Mrs MW from the local Oxfam shop.

So here I am at Chalvedon School in Basildon New Town with my form tutor group, I think in 1979 just before I left to go to The Park School in Rayleigh, Essex.

By the time I moved schools again, to The Plume in Maldon, my collection of brightly-coloured ties were becoming quite legendary, to the extent that, in 1988, for a reason I cannot recall, a colleague, Bernard Kerr, did a sketch which reflected....

....both my geography teaching and my taste in neckwear.

These thoughts are occasioned by a search of my wardrobe I've just carried out for an errant scarf, needed because the temperature outside isn't going to reach 10C today, when I found a little hanger which used to be jammed with ties, with just three on it: a black tie, HM Coastguard issue but kept for funerals, my Clan Gunn tie to celebrate my mother, who was a keen member of that tribe, and, for old times sakes, one of the ties I used to wear to school.