Experiences on the wrong side of school discipline in the 1950s...

I was at Arnold Grammar School, Blackpool 1951-1956. At that time it was a fee paying Public School for boys, but, fortunately for my parents I was granted free admission having passed my 11+ exam.

In line with other local Public Schools, such as Rossall near Fleetwood, and Stoneyhurst near Clitheroe, Arnold was a Rugby School.

The majority of scholars were Boarders. To keep the boarders out of mischief  at weekends we had Saturday Morning School. So, with Rugby on a Saturday Afternoon, there was not much time left for yourselves.

The headmaster at the time was Frank Holdgate, whilst Peter Purves of Blue Peter fame was in my class and I was just a year or so behind Jimmy Armfield, Blackpool & England's famous footballer. It seems strange that an England World Cup Footballer came from a Rugby School!

Discipline was taken for granted, and infringements, although often relatively small issues, were taken seriously by the establishment.

I was in line for a number of these “small” disciplinary actions.!

Probably the worst was when, on one occasion, I realised that I had left my pumps, (trainers), at home and I was due to attend a P.E. Lesson. (Physical Education).

A detention would arise if I attended a lesson without my kit. I enquired of my adjoining classroom to see if anyone could lend me a pair of trainers. Alas, no one had any with them, but a pair were hanging in a bag belonging to a boy who was out of the room. I decided to borrow them.

“Tell Brian that I have borrowed his pumps” I said. Unfortunately, no one did (!) and, when Brian returned, and saw his pumps were missing, he reported it to his class teacher who, in turn, sent a message to the PE Teacher in charge. 

This was Buddha Neale, who immediately carried out a kit inspection. Your name had to mark every item of clothing, including shoes, so my misdemeanour was soon spotted.

“Report to the headmaster” was my instruction, “and give him this note.”

“So, you have stolen someone's belongings!” said the Head.

“No Sir”, I replied, “I just borrowed them.”

“You stole them boy!”

“No sir. I told several boys in his class”.

The Head persisted. “If you did not have his permission, then you stole them”. “You will be caned with three strokes”

I tried to argue only to move on to four strokes, then five!. I stopped whilst I was losing.

Another teacher, as witness, was called. It was very painful and the ridges persisted on my backside for a week or so.

On another occasion I was called before a master. “Wiseman” he said, “I saw you on Lytham Rd last weekend and you were eating an Ice Cream. You know that Arnold Boys are not expected to do such vulgar things. You will take a Saturday Afternoon Detention”.

Another time it was “Wiseman. My wife and I passed you in the street at weekend and you greeted us, but you were not wearing a cap. That being the case you could not raise your cap to my lady.

That constitutes very bad manners! You will take a detention and write, 200 times:-

“It is unseemly and unbecoming to act in an ungentlemanly manner”.

Another day I kicked a tennis ball (pretending it to be a football)  out of bounds and into the schools neighbours garden. You were supposed to go round, quite a trek, and ring their doorbell and wait and.....  Needless to say it was much quicker just to “shin” over the wall, retrieve the ball, and carry on with the game.

Unfortunately I was spotted and the wall scaling earned me another Saturday Afternoon detention.

Now Arnold was solely a Rugby School, so when I advised our Ex Fylde Rugby Teacher, that I had started up my own local Football Team, and preferred not to play rugby, he was not best pleased.

“Boy, he said. You will play neither for the next two weeks as you now have two weeks Saturday Afternoon Detentions”.

In my first week at school, our Music Teacher made us all sing “AAAAHHH” whilst going round the class and putting his ear to your mouth. When he got to me he said “You boy! Close it! and don't ever open it until I tell you.”

In three years he never did!

Prefects were allowed to administer mild punishments, like a pump on the backside, or an instruction to brew them a tea, or clean their private study. We tried to stay well clear.

There were of course some masters with a sense of humour.

For example Freddie Liston, who taught Maths, made Algebra more understandable by not using “X” “Y” “Z”. Instead he used “Pip”, “Squeak” and “Wilfred”.

Bert Watts would allow “One Funny” per lesson, but beware if you tried two.

Lunchtime Activities 

No one went home for lunch. There were two sittings. During Sitting No 1, the non-eating half had to go on a compulsory Crocodile Walk round the neighbourhood. This entailed a long line of boys, walking in pairs and monitored, led and checked by Prefects.

I lived on the next road to school and if my mother spotted the Crocodile walking down our road she would leave a biscuit or an apple or similar tucked besides a gate post. This was fine until others cottoned on and it was bad luck if I were towards the rear of the walkers!

The School playing fields were also adjacent to our back garden, and I soon removed a couple of boards from the garden fence so I could gain evening admission to the field to join the Borders playing Football.

Army Cadet Camp 

We had Army Cadets at School known as CCF (Combined Cadet Force), and one year we went to a Summer Camp in Scotland. We did “Wide Games”, stalking the enemy, stripping a gun, rifle practice, night navigation etc. The address was Cultybraggan, near Crieff, near Comrie, Perth, Perthshire.

At the camp, a friend and I used our 'Wednesday Leave Pass' to visit the Main Line Railway Station at Perth. Trainspotting was a big pastime in those days.

Boys on Perth platform advised us that Dundee station was a better option for both quantity and quality of locomotives. With this news, needless to say, we were on the first train to Dundee. Our 'Ian Allen Train Books' contained all the names and numbers, ready to be underlined.

Of course, we reported back at our Cadet Camp very late, hours after our pass had expired, to receive an inevitable punishment.

We were told: “You are Confined to Barracks for the rest of the week”, plus “you will also Blanco officers belts” and “clean officers boots.”

We duly visited the school's stores and drew a rather excessive amount of “Blanco” and “Boot Polish”. So now, as a sideline, and having a surplus of cleaning equipment, we offered to clean anyone's equipment for a fee. 3 pence for a belt and 2 pence for a pair of boots. 

This was profitable but time consuming, so we hit upon the idea of subcontracting out our “boots and belts” business. We allowed other boys to do the work for 2 pence per belt and 1 pence per pair of boots. The store master never queried our fairly excessive demands for materials. With the profit, we purchased a large supply of “Woodbine Cigarettes”, hoping to sell them on the train on the way home at a penny each. 

We got word of a kit inspection on the last evening, looking for stolen hat badges. With a dozen different cadet units in camp there was quite a demand for “opposition” cap badges.

We hid our cigarette hoard under our palliasses (straw mattresses), then spent the evening in the NAAFI, (Cafe/Bar). Unfortunately my partner in crime, a well built soul, slept on the cigarettes, flattening many, so our week's earnings were much diluted!

But, Luckily we were not caught.

One of my own personal adages has always been “You can't have fun unless you have discipline”.

So....Mustn't Grumble!!