NOW AGED 81, I am sitting here reminiscing about the young, innocent good old days I spent at Newlyn Infants' School with teachers like Miss Harris and Miss Humphries, both from Mousehole; and Miss Harvey, from Penzance, at the Trewarveneth Infants' School around the years of 1936 to 1937. We were mixed classes, boys and girls together.
Some of us, who I hope are still around, will remember Robert Newton, the film star who starred as Bill Sykes in the original film of Oliver Twist and was also, I think, in Treasure Island. His mother lived in the little cottage next to our infants' school. When he visited his mother, he would throw a handful of pennies onto our playground and laugh to see us scramble for them.
We would later go to Miss Weeks' sweetshop on the cliff and buy penny gobstoppers.
Later I moved on to the board school where boys and girls were separated. The boys were then under the teachers Mr Tonkin, Mr Pollard and 'Pa' Wright, the headmaster. After Mr Wright's retirement, Mr Charles from Birmingham became headmaster. He was strict but fair. In those days discipline was ruled by the cane (I will leave you folks to think about that) but good scholars came from it like Charles Jenkin, whose family were neighbours, and who achieved a doctorate at Harvard University, USA.
Others did well too but many families had to move out of Cornwall or go abroad to find work.
Now, looking back, the cane didn't seem to hurt too much and it put me on the right path.
I can also remember the board school and Tolcarne School holding plays on a staged area at Sandy Cove.
1 comment:
Robert Newton - was one of my favourite actors. I particularly loved the film "This Happy Breed" about the everyday life of a London family between the two world wars. Apart from Robert Newton, the cast included Celia Johnson, John Mills and Stanley Holloway. It's one of those films I will always watch if it comes on television. He died in 1956 from a heart attack at the age of 50.
Tony C
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