Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

The original topic and talk of School Sergeant reminds me of the so-called School Marshall we had in the 1990s. I think his name might have been Smith but I could be completely mistaken. To be honest I'm not sure what his role was except standing outside Dining Hall most of the day, making sure pup...

May I ask, out of interest, whether or not you were ever offered alcohol by Masters or frequented the Grecians Club? If I have misunderstood you I apologise in advance but I sense a disapproval of alcohol at CH regardless of any link to abuse. Is this revisionism in the light of terrible events or ...

Agree that all of that seems sensible measured approach now. Back in the day though, the accepted standards were very different - and I seem to recall parents literally signed over parental responsibility to the school, pretty much unconditionally. So more freedom (for good and ill) for the staff.....

I disagree with some of Graham’s words, “A clip round the ear, even a hard one, does not do this. The ear drum is housed within some of the densest bone in the human body, It requires direct, forceful contact. A hard fall can do it, as can very loud music (because of excessive vibration), but it te...

Maybe I'm misreading things here but there appear to be two sets of arguments that are not in conflict. A light introduction to alcohol - a beer or two watching tv or during a group meal - with 17-18 year olds is deemed to be ok by most, so long as parental consent is obtained. Drinking to the point...

You seem to be referring to a case that was brought against Durrant and of which he was subsequently cleared by a jury, which seems irrelevant to bring up (?) Well, no, I deliberately didn't mention the case because of the fact that he was acquitted. I referred to comments that he made himself duri...

You seem to be referring to a case that was brought against Durrant and of which he was subsequently cleared by a jury, which seems irrelevant to bring up (?) Well, no, I deliberately didn't mention the case because of the fact that he was acquitted. I referred to comments that he made himself duri...

Given by what sounds like a successful career post CH for Mr Durrant teaching and stewarding children, would you say that your own career as a barrister has left you less accommodating of the idea of rehabilitation rather than punishment...? If, by a successful post-CH career, you are referring to ...

By the way, why is the CH Unofficial website suddenly getting lots of ads for exotic eastern ladies looking for husbands? Do they suspect that the English boarding school turns out loads of repressed, inhibited chaps who would welcome a bit of oriental fun and games? I'm no expert, but I've always ...

The teachers had too much to do to look after children properly. Corporal punishment and other forms of violence were used as a quick fix. Bullying was used by the boys as a means of control (and as a general hobby because there were some troubled children). A fair amount of this site discusses bul...

After it landed, for some reason I went into the garden and stared at the moon. Next time you do this, perhaps worth thinking about what was left behind (https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2019/3/22/18236125/apollo-moon-poop-mars-science). My 6 year old daughter thinks this is the best thing ev...

I wonder how many pupils knew about the actual abuse as distinct from the notion that Dobbie had favourites. I cant answer this question but my guess would be that it was a relatively small number. I think he was universally seen as weird, but in a funny rather than dangerous way. I can look back o...

The devil's in the details here, surely. On the one hand the Higginses may said something as relatively harmless as "I always got on well with him and found him a sympathetic listener". The other extreme would be a blind refusal to even entertain the idea that Dobbie (as a man of the clot...

Peter Higgins was still teaching Chemistry in the 1990's when I was there, and Sheila Higgins was teaching religious studies.

Probably worth pointing out here that Mrs Higgins was a participant at least one Medieval History trip to Albi in the mid-90's that was co-led by Husband and Dobbie.

DazedandConfused wrote: ↑Sat May 04, 2019 4:14 pm
Am I right that Pattison was a very keen cyclist?

Yep, that's my recollection. Aston Villa fan and keen cyclist. I think he even led cycling tours with pupils and old blues.