DOWN WITH SKOOL!’ read my father with glee. ‘A guide to school life for tiny pupils and their parents.’ I know it was 1965, because he paused for a moment and said in a rather dreamy voice: ‘I was exactly your age [six] when I was first sent to boarding school. After I’d overcome my initial shock, I loved it.’
Which may explain why his favourite reading matter and the only books he ever read aloud to me were novels about boarding-school life: Tom Brown’s School Days and Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School, The Complete Stalky & Co and Mike and Psmith. Nor, as you might expect, was his collection confined to books purchased when he was still a pupil. It included the ‘Jennings’ series, for example, and even Enid Blyton’s The Naughtiest Girl in the School (although, in fairness, this might have been his idea of a joke).
But the book to which my father returned time and again was the first of the Molesworth tetralogy, DOWN WITH SKOOL!, written by Geoffrey Willans and illustrated by Ronald Searle. Before he ever finished reading me the title page (Contanes FULL LOWDOWN ON SKOOLS, SWOTS, SNEKES, CADS, PRIGS BULIES HEADMASTERS CRIKET FOOPBALL, DIRTY ROTERS FUNKS, PARENTS, MASTERS WIZARD WHEEZES, WEEDS APLE PIE BEDS AND VARIOUS OTHER CHIZZES—IN FACT THE LOT) he was holding back his laughter and so, although only dimly understanding why it was funny, was I.
Denne historien er fra August 30, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra August 30, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
