Forest Fields Grammar School School Play 1968


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I have over 30 black and white photos of the Forest Fields Grammar school production 'The Mikado' from 1968 which one of the school's teachers gave to me many years ago.

There are pictures of people taken during the rehearsals and during the play itself.
I went to the school myself but I was not involved in the play. I don't want to throw them away so if anyone wants them they are most welcome to them.

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They did Mikado when I was there, 56-62. I painted the scenery screens.

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  • 2 months later...

Hello, I attended FFGS from 62-69 and took a very active part in this production [as "repetiteur" and a 'little maid". ] I would love some photos. I have no photos of my teen years or school years [for reason I will not go into]. This is the first time I have replied to a site of this kind so don't know where we go from here. Also I now live in Australia which may complicate things but I still have relatives in Nottm and UK.

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Hi Baba , welcome to the site .

Sorry I can't help on this subject but you've done the hard part by making a first post , so don't be afraid to add your memories from the many threads on this site . There are already a number of contributors from Australia so no problem there .

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Baba, welcome to Nottstalgia, it's here for all of us who have memories of Nottingham and want to share or just enjoy reading others recollections, but once you start browsing the Forum you will want to join in.

Gerron an start posting!

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  • 3 weeks later...

Radio Nottingham were looking for people who attended Forest Fields school . There are some pictures here .

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.614485021939921.1073741907.313752532013173&type=1

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I was at Forest Fields from 1966 to 1970. Started at the building Stanley Road but move to the 'new' building in Carlton in the latter years. I was not in the play described above but should think I know some that were. I believe my father attended the Stanley road building when it was High Pavement in the late 1920's. I recall him saying they were all allowed out of class to watch the R101 fly over.

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  • 10 months later...

I had a copy of the programme somewhere. I'll get in the loft and have a look tomorrow.

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For any other former pupil at FFGS, I absolutely detested every single second of my time there. Total waste of time.

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For any other former pupil at FFGS, I absolutely detested every single second of my time there. Total waste of time.

I'm with you on that. I never settled and dropped out when I was 15. I hated it but being honest I don't think it was all the schools fault as I was more interested in girls and motor bikes.

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  • 8 months later...

Baba,

I was there 1961-6 so I probably knew you.

Have you checked out the facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/16949509780/ ?

There's loads of photos on there including some from The Mikado production in 1968

Also have a look on FriendsReunited http://www.friendsreunited.co.uk/ there's interesting stuff there too.

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Hi, I joined in 1967 and went to see the Mikado with John Slack in the starring role. I have created a facebook page for the school so would love to scan the photos and put them on there. We have 190 members, a lot of whome are from that era

Paul Case

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  • 5 months later...

Baba,

I was there 1961-6 so I probably knew you.

Have you checked out the facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/16949509780/ ?

There's loads of photos on there including some from The Mikado production in 1968

Also have a look on FriendsReunited http://www.friendsreunited.co.uk/ there's interesting stuff there too.

Hi,

I was there from 1961 to 1966 too before moving to Australia.

My nickname was Chooch, which came with me from Berridge. I was in the same year as Heather Burbridge, Tich Thompson, Sharon Maguire, Maureen Airy, Paul Bakyjsa (spelling?), Brian Smith, Andy Leonard, David Hallam, and many others.

Had a great time at that school but could have done without Latin.

Stewart Hase

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  • 1 year later...

Hi there, I was in the Mikado, but only in the chorus. G&S was very popular at that time. I was very happy until we moved to Carlton road site which unsettled me and wrecked my A leveĺs. Several of my cousins were at the school called Hicking. I remember lots of names, including Chris Haslam and Glyn Bailey. Spencer twins, Eric Dombrovski, chap called Palmer, Gail Terry and her friend a Linda Morley.

Do you remember going for filled cobs at lunchtime from the shop over the road, and penny pop from bottom of Berridge road? I was good at French, but not much else. Do you remember Oliver Barnett and Mr Day. Mr Posen?

Boring speech days and hard seats at the Albert hall.....

I have had a successful life, retire in a couple of weeks. It's was bit sad when visiting the old building a few years ago. Think it was derelict. 

Bye

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Mr Day was there teaching French when I was in attendance. 57-62. I detested the place, especially OB. He was a JP as well as being headmaster, and very often was absent from school in order to attend his judicial duties. I once questioned the worthiness of this at the school Debating Society on was immediately clamped down, and my card was marked from then on. 

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  • 1 year later...
On 12/22/2014 at 9:31 PM, FLY2 said:

For any other former pupil at FFGS, I absolutely detested every single second of my time there. Total waste of time.

I was there 1967-1972.  A very unhappy time at that school, although the education has served me well

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  • 11 months later...

 

FFGS!

 

Ollie Barnet, Mrs. Fosterjohn, "Doris" Day, yes, yes.  And all wore gowns!

 

But what about Dr. Roberts?

 

My time was 1955 to 1959 and well remember the roar of helpless laughter when, at the end of term when we were all a little boisterous and each had been given testimonials to present to prospective employers, in a vain effort to get quiet in assembly,  Dr. Roberts thundered "Boys found causing trouble in assembly will have their testimonials removed!" 

 

A moment's stunned silence followed and then total mayhem as everyone, staff included, burst into helpless laughter. 

 

And Ollie Barnet JP?  Because I tripped up the stairs on to the Albert Hall stage on speech day and fell over as he tried to hand me my prize (heaven only knows what it was and what it was for), to bursts of laughter from and the assembled pupils in the seats below, Ollie glared at me for spoiling a solemn school ceremony and snarled "Always the clown, I should have known".

 

Ah, school days... the happiest days of our lives ???

 

If so, many must have had some pretty dismal lives since then.

 

Fortunately I soon learned to come nearly last in cross country running to avoid being picked to run for the school, and also how to avoid the muddiest bits of the Melbourne Road rugby pitch on a Wednesday afternoon. But can anyone remember what were our house names at FFGS  if you were there between 55 and 59?  And did we have a school motto?

 

I do remember however that there always seemed to be an Ollie-phant in the room. (Sorry...no I'm not.)

 

Nonetheless, I wait in fevered anticipation to hear from anyone who remembers anything of those halcyon days.

 

The Prunestone Kid

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I attended FFGS from 1961-6 and found headmaster Oliver Barnett a bit of an enigma. He had a fearsome reputation with the cane and certainly favoured girls over boys. He had little time for underachievers and always struck me as cold and extremely serious.

Yet before becoming a headteacher he taught Maths and Latin and I have read several accounts from older former pupils that he is remembered with affection as an outstanding teacher.

He was extremely proud of FFGS which he certainly regarded as “his school”and following his retirement in 1965 the school was never the same.

It would seem then that after becoming headteacher he modified his style into what he thought a head should be. Discipline and respect were very much his values which certainly rubbed off on me and many many others who attended that establishment.
I would have very much liked to experience his softer side but his stiff upper lip approach meant it was never on display as head apart from the day he retired when he was clearly moved by tributes he received particularly from Lord Mayor William Derbyshire who attended the school that afternoon.

BTW the school motto was Pulcherrima sequimini which I guess was Oliver's creation. Google translates it as “beautiful follow” but I remember him saying on several occasions that it meant “seek beauty”. I think he was trying to say “think positive” but that's just my take on it.

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8 hours ago, letsavagoo said:

House names when I was there 1966 - 1970 were

Rufford (red and my house) Welbeck (green) Annesley (dark blue) Clumber (light blue).

I was in Annesley 1961-6. The house master was Head of Physics Brian aka Bomber Smith. Super bloke. He also used to help PE master Ian Gibson with rugby. I hated it. Did you know Ian Gibson was an excellent centre/ winger for Leicester Tigers in the 1960s? IIRC he had short curly blonde hair and was a Loughborough graduate. He was also pretty handy with the plimsoll if you forgot your kit.

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  • 10 months later...

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