"More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

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LHA
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"More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by LHA »

Has anyone read this (published 1996 and seemingly forgotten)? Jeepers. Clearly the abuse of children at Christs Hospital goes back a lot further than even the earliest of the recent convictions. Apparently Buck "accepted responsibility" in his 1980 birthday celebration at the school, whatever that means.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by richardb »

I think that there is a clue in the title of the book.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by TMF »

For what it is worth - OUP's Oxford Latin Dictionary talks about Buck and the manner of his departure from CH.

http://www.oxfordscholarlyeditions.com/ ... uction.pdf

Another learned eccentric who read the proofs of the dictionary was A. H. Buck (1900–87), according to OUP convention not named in the Publisher’s Note because he worked in the Press’s Printing House. Buck was taken on after being sacked from Christ’s Hospital, where he had taught both Peter Glare and E. J. Kenney. One of his colleagues remembered him as a man learned in Latin and Greek, and also in cricket and rugby, from whose reader’s cubbyhole oaths could be heard as he encountered foolish errors in the proofs he was reading: a man ‘whose favourite word rhymed with his surname’.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by richardb »

I came across an old thread on here the other day with the title "Expelled".

One of the subjects that came up was pupils, ahem, fraternising with the pupils of the opposite sex. Of even of the same sex.

The teenage pupils were left in no doubt that they would be expelled.

Contrast that with the staff who were supposed to know better. They were allowed to resign and given references to help them get jobs, even where the conduct concerned broke the criminal law.

No wonder we all ended up seriously bucked up.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by bakunin »

This is part of why I'm so pissed off with Poulton in particular. Several friends were instantly expelled from CH by Poulton for being caught having sex, and treated to patronising sermons about it. The entire school even had to endure one cringe inducing lecture in Big School where he talked about being a "dried up old stick", but sorry, the boyfriend/girlfriend hand-holding had to stop because it was disrespectful, showy and flaunting (or something along those lines, he definitely said the stick thing). Yet with his "soft touch" he let teachers get away with things that are actually extremely evil, so much worse than harmless consensual sex between teenagers that it boggles the mind. In reality preserving reputation was a far greater priority than the well being of children.

So pompous, sanctimonious, and condescending, but at the time I had no idea his words were so hollow, his values so superficial. What an a***hole. I suppose I should trust my gut feeling more...
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by marty »

bakunin wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 2:43 am This is part of why I'm so pissed off with Poulton in particular. Several friends were instantly expelled from CH by Poulton for being caught having sex, and treated to patronising sermons about it. The entire school even had to endure one cringe inducing lecture in Big School where he talked about being a "dried up old stick"
I so remember this. As you say, so incredibly hypocritical of him knowing what he did (or didn't do).

Do as I say, not as I do.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by J.R. »

Sounds like I'm going off topic but wait...

I'm a great admirer of Holly Walsh, comedienne, author and OB. I have NEVER heard her talk about her Horsham days. I'd love to sit down and have a drink and chat with her about her recollections of coeducational days at CH.

I bet it'd be a real eye opener.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by DazedandConfused »

J.R. wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 9:43 am Sounds like I'm going off topic but wait...

I'm a great admirer of Holly Walsh, comedienne, author and OB. I have NEVER heard her talk about her Horsham days. I'd love to sit down and have a drink and chat with her about her recollections of coeducational days at CH.

I bet it'd be a real eye opener.
She made my life fairly miserable at school, I’ve struggled to watch anything with her in it because of that. I did hear her on Radio 4 once talking about CH but I can’t remember which program it was.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by J.R. »

DazedandConfused wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 5:27 pm
J.R. wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 9:43 am Sounds like I'm going off topic but wait...

I'm a great admirer of Holly Walsh, comedienne, author and OB. I have NEVER heard her talk about her Horsham days. I'd love to sit down and have a drink and chat with her about her recollections of coeducational days at CH.

I bet it'd be a real eye opener.
She made my life fairly miserable at school, I’ve struggled to watch anything with her in it because of that. I did hear her on Radio 4 once talking about CH but I can’t remember which program it was.


I do appreciate that people in the comedy profession can be very self opinionated and 'up' themselves, (and I have met a few), so I just assume she must have found your Achilles heel and capitalised on it.

You can always console yourself with the fact that after CH, she attempted the stupid yearly event 'Who can fly the furthest off Bognor pier !', and then ended up with broken bones.
John Rutley. Prep B & Coleridge B. 1958-1963.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by DazedandConfused »

J.R. wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 6:05 pm
DazedandConfused wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 5:27 pm
J.R. wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 9:43 am Sounds like I'm going off topic but wait...

I'm a great admirer of Holly Walsh, comedienne, author and OB. I have NEVER heard her talk about her Horsham days. I'd love to sit down and have a drink and chat with her about her recollections of coeducational days at CH.

I bet it'd be a real eye opener.
She made my life fairly miserable at school, I’ve struggled to watch anything with her in it because of that. I did hear her on Radio 4 once talking about CH but I can’t remember which program it was.


I do appreciate that people in the comedy profession can be very self opinionated and 'up' themselves, (and I have met a few), so I just assume she must have found your Achilles heel and capitalised on it.

You can always console yourself with the fact that after CH, she attempted the stupid yearly event 'Who can fly the furthest off Bognor pier !', and then ended up with broken bones.
I didn’t know that!

She wasn’t the ringleader but she was part of a particularly snidey group of girls who travelled as a pack and took quite a dislike to me. It’s interesting, I would never have predicted a career in the spotlight for her.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by J.R. »

Cambridge Uni as well, so I believe, so she must have had something going for her.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by TheThreekings »

marty wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 9:23 am
bakunin wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 2:43 am This is part of why I'm so pissed off with Poulton in particular. Several friends were instantly expelled from CH by Poulton for being caught having sex, and treated to patronising sermons about it. The entire school even had to endure one cringe inducing lecture in Big School where he talked about being a "dried up old stick"
I so remember this. As you say, so incredibly hypocritical of him knowing what he did (or didn't do).

Do as I say, not as I do.
CH used to take out an advert in the BBC Proms Guide each year (along with lots of other schools trying to big-up their music departments) - not sure if they still do.

A couple of years after leaving I noticed that the picture of CH musicians in the advert focused on a string quartet, one of whose members was one of the recipients of summary expulsion mentioned above. I did send a note to CH at the time suggesting this was not really appropriate. No comment received back, though the following year's advert had a different pic.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by J.R. »

TheThreekings wrote: Fri Aug 17, 2018 10:29 am
marty wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 9:23 am
bakunin wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 2:43 am This is part of why I'm so pissed off with Poulton in particular. Several friends were instantly expelled from CH by Poulton for being caught having sex, and treated to patronising sermons about it. The entire school even had to endure one cringe inducing lecture in Big School where he talked about being a "dried up old stick"
I so remember this. As you say, so incredibly hypocritical of him knowing what he did (or didn't do).

Do as I say, not as I do.
CH used to take out an advert in the BBC Proms Guide each year (along with lots of other schools trying to big-up their music departments) - not sure if they still do.

A couple of years after leaving I noticed that the picture of CH musicians in the advert focused on a string quartet, one of whose members was one of the recipients of summary expulsion mentioned above. I did send a note to CH at the time suggesting this was not really appropriate. No comment received back, though the following year's advert had a different pic.

No surprise there, then !!
John Rutley. Prep B & Coleridge B. 1958-1963.
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by Pe.A »

bakunin wrote: Thu Aug 16, 2018 2:43 am This is part of why I'm so pissed off with Poulton in particular. Several friends were instantly expelled from CH by Poulton for being caught having sex, and treated to patronising sermons about it. The entire school even had to endure one cringe inducing lecture in Big School where he talked about being a "dried up old stick", but sorry, the boyfriend/girlfriend hand-holding had to stop because it was disrespectful, showy and flaunting (or something along those lines, he definitely said the stick thing). Yet with his "soft touch" he let teachers get away with things that are actually extremely evil, so much worse than harmless consensual sex between teenagers that it boggles the mind. In reality preserving reputation was a far greater priority than the well being of children.

So pompous, sanctimonious, and condescending, but at the time I had no idea his words were so hollow, his values so superficial. What an a***hole. I suppose I should trust my gut feeling more...
Having said that though, considering the girls had only been there a short time, can you imagine if one of them had fallen pregnant...? The rules werent perfect, but the potential alternatives would have been worse. Surely...?
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Re: "More than a Brother" A H Buck and Edmund Blunden

Post by bakunin »

Pe.A wrote: Sat Apr 06, 2019 1:21 pm Having said that though, considering the girls had only been there a short time, can you imagine if one of them had fallen pregnant...? The rules werent perfect, but the potential alternatives would have been worse. Surely...?
I don't know what the ideal solution is, but in general I believe one should be more lenient towards children than towards adults. I'm not surprised at this policy, it was pretty standard for boarding schools at the time. What I am appalled by is Poulton's leniency towards the much worse crimes committed by adults.
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