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I was at Fairham from 65 to 73. Fleming house. If you do the maths and notice I was there 8 years. When my fifth year spectacularly failed en masse to achieve the five O levels required to go on to ta

Attended Fairham Comp'  September 1960 to July 1964.  Managed to keep my head down for the 4 years. Escaped the floggings though.  Made my first and last theatrical appearance having a two word bit pa

This is the photo I mentioned. I think I grabbed it from Friends Reunited. I had no involvement with the Penny Farthing; it was a few years before my time.   The location is still reco

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Nice to see something about the opening rarther than its closure thumbsup I went there the following year in 1959 and can still remember all the fuss with regard to the uniform. Mum and Dad went through hell and high water to make sure I had one even though money was very tight back then.

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Just stumbled across this thread whilst randomly Googling 'Fairham Comp'. I went to Fairham between 1978 and 1983 so much of the above is well before my time but it's still brought back some memories. The likes of Chris Perry, Mike Byrne, Tac Naylor, Mr Smart and Mr Kisby were all there during my time. Stan Bullard was also there and used to give extra reading classes for kids who were falling behind a bit. Another few names to throw in to the mix who I'd always assumed had been there for some time - Henry Fielding (English teacher and Elliot House Master, a really top bloke), John Mills (History teacher, later Hunt House Master - think he may have gone on to become the last Head Teacher before the school closed?). Barry Taylor (History, General Studies and a big Notts County fan), Mr Renton (aka the blackboard rubber chucker who could hit a kids head at the back of the class with almost 100% accuracy!), Mr Grenville the school librarian (an 'unusual' old fella who allegedly had pet names for everything including his typewriter 'Rupert'......) Funny how these things stick in your mind all these years! :)

I live in Cheshire these days but always drive by the old school when I nip down to see my parents. They still live in the house on Thistledown Road where I grew up and it conjures up memories of 'hedge-hopping' (or being thrown over hedges after school!). 'Smokers Alley' is still there too - the entrance to the garages at the bottom of Thistledown where smokers could have a sneaky chuff at dinner time out of sight of the teachers on yard duty. The school itself is a really sad sight these days - why did they close it a few years ago if they were going to take this long to demolish it? I would love to go on a tour of the old place before it finally gets pulled down. I bet it's quite spooky.

PS. Look at the date of the newspaper report posted above. Then look at the date it was posted. Now THAT is spooky! :)

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PS. Look at the date of the newspaper report posted above. Then look at the date it was posted. Now THAT is spooky! :)

Me who posted it, and I hadn't noticed the coincidence. I've had that piece lying around for a couple of weeks before I got round to posting it, and I could say I was waiting for the anniversary, but......

I left in 73, but a lot of those names you mention were there in my time. Chris Perry (who can still be occasionally seen in Nottm city centre and he doesn't appear to have aged in the last 40 years); Mike Byrne passed away unexpectedly many years ago; Smart was my house master in Fleming House, a really good bloke who also, I believe, passed away earlier than might have been expected; Naylor is perhaps best left forgotten; and Kisby taught me History for several years. I've never heard anyone say a bad thing about Fielding although I was never taught by him. Grenville the librarian I'd forgotten about …..a perfect example of a genuine eccentric.

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Thanks both. I have been reading nottstalgia.com for a few years now but never got round to posting until recently. Lymm is a fantastic village and a lovely place to live. I have no less than 8 pubs and numerous restaurants all within a 2 minute walk from my front door! Some of my 'illustrious' neighbours include Ian Brown from the Stone Roses, Chris Bisson from Emmerdale / East is East and errrrr Matthew Corbett of Sooty and Sweep fame! I love living here but still get back to Nottingham at least once a month to catch up with family, friends and footy (still a Meadow Lane regular of over 35 years!) Never forget my roots....

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  • 3 months later...

hi, I moved to Clifton,( bridge farm lane) from bell street ,meadows. I found it a difficult move from TBS to Fairham comp, what used to unnerve me was those black gowns they used to wear. I went to the reunion they held just befor they shut the place saw some of my old mates alan Curtis , alan towel, amongst others. One golden rule that was at the top of the list was you don,t walk on thee grass and the grass used to grow right up to the walkway unlike the later years, god help you if you got spotted!! I must have pi---- in a vicar,s garden at some point in time in my young life because I was picked out to be in Elliot house! Christ!! what an experience that was !! the house master was the sadistic fred rydell now passed away so I heard. he was a mean hombre, he took English he seemed to get a big buzz out of making life at the school as miserable as possible for every one, I let a firework off in the playground ,it was after school and I was just inside the main gates play ground side and fred copped me he frog marched me to his study , on the way there he picked up doc chapman the French teacher. when we got his study he told me to take the bottom half of my kit off and bend over his desk (I was beginning to think my button was in jeopardy ooo yaa ) but he gave me six of the best, ooops I will rephrase that,,, he thrashed me six times with the cane on my bare ar--- Jesus Christ it didn't,t half smart !! my eyes that is. Because I had had the cane of fred I had to go and see tommy the headmaster and got 3 on each hand from him!!!. It was quiet strange really because tommy had a glass eye and while he was caning me one eye was on what he was doing and the other was looking out the window! strange. Now maybe I did do wrong but what they did was right over the top. Doc chapman, he was another teacher that didn't take any prisoners. why was it that Elliot house had more teacher bullies than most other houses. more of my sad experiences at fairham comp to cheer you up at a later

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hi all been reading all thee posts about fairham com, fred rydell was an out and out bully, he would cane any boy he did not really need a good excuse, in my opinion he was a sadistic bully !!. when he became chairman of the education authority he was dead against corporal punishment ain,t if marvellous how some people can change their spots, his words aught to have choked him !!!! the 2 faced moron. Has any body had the taste of doc chapmans size 12 slipper, you did not argue with him !!!

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  • 3 months later...

It's been interesting reading this from the other side.My first husband taught at Fairham ,was in Penny House and taught Biology.I agree with some of the staff comments but I saw the other side as well.

We're any of you in The Oh a What A Lovely War production it was brilliant !

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What's even more surprising is that I can recognise most of the locations of those photos, even though I haven't set foot in the place for around 40 years. When I left there were 1,600 pupils; where do they all go now?

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I'd hate for Fairham to just disappear down the list, as if nobody cared. So here's a picture of the lads from 1965,

only 50 years ago.

http://i1301.photobucket.com/albums/ag119/lungbing/Fairham-1965a_zpstfadj85f.jpg

I'm the tall, good looking one, back row, far right. (deluded fool that I am!)

Names I remember: Malc Whitt, Alan Curtis, Kevin Gallagher (Wag), Bob Abdy, Stuart Inger, Pete Griffiths, Bob Griffiths,

Alan Carver, Dave Donoven, Dave Shaw, Chris Shardlow, Bob Dodd, Dave Bingley, Alan Brough, Tony Shuman, ? Kerry (family had grocers at Clifton), Pete Norman, and of course last but most certainly not least, Paul Irons who played for Notts. RFC and became a teacher himself. I recognise so many other faces, but can't put names to them. Sorry, if you're one of them.

Fairham was a very good school. Notice the two different types of tie. If it has the phoenix and crown from the school badge you were a prefect or sub-prefect. The striped ones were in 8 different colours depending which house you were in.

Nostalgia ain't what it used to be.

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  • 1 month later...

I knew a lad called orton, his first name escapes at the moment, he used to be my mate at fairham, he used to live on bridgenorth drive, I think he had a brother, second thoughts my mates name could have been George.

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  • 10 months later...
On 8/26/2015 at 3:06 PM, Bing said:

I'd hate for Fairham to just disappear down the list, as if nobody cared. So here's a picture of the lads from 1965,

only 50 years ago.

http://i1301.photobucket.com/albums/ag119/lungbing/Fairham-1965a_zpstfadj85f.jpg

I'm the tall, good looking one, back row, far right. (deluded fool that I am!)

Names I remember: Malc Whitt, Alan Curtis, Kevin Gallagher (Wag), Bob Abdy, Stuart Inger, Pete Griffiths, Bob Griffiths,

Alan Carver, Dave Donoven, Dave Shaw, Chris Shardlow, Bob Dodd, Dave Bingley, Alan Brough, Tony Shuman, ? Kerry (family had grocers at Clifton), Pete Norman, and of course last but most certainly not least, Paul Irons who played for Notts. RFC and became a teacher himself. I recognise so many other faces, but can't put names to them. Sorry, if you're one of them.

Fairham was a very good school. Notice the two different types of tie. If it has the phoenix and crown from the school badge you were a prefect or sub-prefect. The striped ones were in 8 different colours depending which house you were in.

Nostalgia ain't what it used to be.

Bing my brother is 6th from left on the top row, Bob Parkes,

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...

Our paths must have crossed at some point Norm,I was there 64-68,Fleming house under Mr Hind first then Mr Smart took over

 

Rog

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