Bablake Schools

With the subject of King Henry VIII attracting so much interest, what about Bablake. Surely there are Bablake pupils with their memories. For me, the odd thing about Bablake was the pupils wearing a grey three piece suit & attending school on a Saturday morning instead of Thursday afternoon. Come on Bablake, let's hear your memories, please.

Hi Philip, they are probably too busy practising their rugby or getting ready for cricket, I used to be the Old Bablake Boys cricket tea lady

One school friend of mine went to Bablake after completing his five years at KHVIII prep school, Carl Spencer. Never heard any more of him after that.

Small world! I played for the Old Boys in the early 80s & my mum did teas for a couple of seasons at that time.

I went to Bablake between 72 & 80 & enjoyed every minute apart from swimming & Latin. My first headmaster was Burroughs followed by Barker. I was in Wheatley House. We had our share of fearsome teachers but also a complement of good staff who understood what we were about. It certainly made me the person that I am now.

My eldest is at the current Bablake school - pretty sure he'd be glad this School Master is not currently in charge!

I was at Bablake from 1959 to 1966. My first headmaster was Eric Seabourne with a Mr Van Hee as Deputy Head. Seabourne ruled the place with a rod of iron and you were caned for even small misdemeanours, like not wearing your cap whilst out in town! Mr Murray was my first form master, Larry Lanham used to take us for Latin, Gus Garrett taught us French, J. Galsworthy taught Physics and L.C. Philpott taught us Chemistry. Fellow pupils included one M. Tyzack, whose memories also appear on this site. He had a sister who was an excellent actress, and whom regularly appeared on TV. Fellow pupils also included Brian Lord, Pete Weatherall , Dumbleton, Elms and John Lynes. Saturday morning detention was detested and avoided at all costs, including a caning. Pupils also carried a report card on which were entered all one's misdemeanours, and after gaining a few, one had to see the Deputy Head, and accept his punishment, usually detention after school. Uniform was a grey suit, although as we became senior boys, a three piece charcoal grey suit was worn, and occasionally, some brave soul (like James King) would wear a pale coloured trench coat to school. During Winter, we had cross country running which took us up and around Coundon Court Girls School where we all tried to look as if we were really enjoying life! Really we were cold. and wet, especially after running up a stream near Coundon Court, and wanted to go home! Summer time would find us in Naul's Mill Park chatting to the girls at Barr's Hill School at lunch time. Occasionally liaisons were made to meet in the park, but squeezing back late into school, through the railings between school and the park, could cost you a detention! Mrs Malone was the school cook, I think. At morning break time, you could tell if we were having cabbage or not, as the smell would drift into the playground. I remember the food as being quite good and enjoyable. You never left the table hungry! The railway line that ran/runs from Coventry up to Bedworth and Nuneaton, past the school, would turn me into a steam railway fan. It would also take my attention from Mr Galsworthy's Physics class resulting in him slamming the bench in front of me with his metre rule, resulting in all my books flying into the air and returning my attention to the lesson in hand. When eventually Mr Seabourne retired, Burroughs became Head and school was never the same again, i.e. you could get away with all sorts of misdemeanours without punishment. You knew where you were with Seabourne, whereas Mr Burroughs was a "softy" by comparison. I still have my school scarf and, occasionally, wear it. Arthur Hammond made clothes to last!

I'm certain my mum knew the Van Hee family as she was at Ullathorne. Will report back as she's away at the moment.

In 1959 at the time of my 11+ exam my teacher, Miss Ward, entered me for a Governors' Scholarship at Bablake. My memories of the event are vague now but I spent all of one Saturday sitting test after test with several other boys. The pupils seemed to me very sophisticated in their grey three piece suits and the whole institution was pretty intimidating for a council estate kid. I can only recall that the school seemed to this small boy as rather venerable and imposing although that must be a superficial impression because I wasn't shown round, simply ushered into the exam room. I know that I was unprepared for many questions, they were not covered in my primary curriculum. Alas, to paraphrase Daniel I was 'weighed in the balances and found wanting'. I went to Caludon, a decent school nevertheless. Looking back, do I wish I'd been accepted at Bablake? Oh yes!

Van Hee terrified me as a teacher & I'm afraid probably held me back for the 2 years that he taught me maths. Apart from that I loved school

I was at the Butts Stadium on Wednesday evening for the annual Coventry Schools Foundation Rugby clash, Bablake vs. King Henrys. Needless to say the tradition continued of the Juniors (featuring junior NeilsYard/Bablake!) being won by Henrys but Bablake taking the Seniors match

Have just read Steve's memories of Bablake. I was an exact contemporary, though I don't remember him, so he must have been in different classes. I started in Shell Y (I've no idea what that meant) and the following year went into the G stream for German (3G/4G). In sixth form I did sciences (L6M, 6M, U6M) and then did engineering at university. Some of the teachers I had were the same as Steve. Had Galsworthy for physics and later "Bud Bandy" through to sixth form. For chemistry, we had John Lawrence, a very long associate of Bablake who ended up as school archivist until he died a few years ago in his seventies. In sixth form I had L C Philpot and finally John Hamlin. Of the various maths teachers, my "favourite" was "Jock Falla". "Walker, 25 perrrcent boy, pretty pooerrrr stuff boy!". On the whole the science teaching was pretty good and it did fire up my interest which was just as well as I'd been pretty mediocre at primary school and only just managed to scrape into Bablake on the 11 plus by one mark I believe. The stuff they taught there was totally boring. I was only interested in trains and making things. Here are some more recollections of Bablake that I posted earlier on the King Henry's thread. Probably should be here really: It's certainly entertaining to hear how bad the teachers were 40 years ago. Relationships between teachers and pupils, particularly teenage boys, were very polarised. The assumption is that all the problems were with the teachers and the pupils were blameless. I suspect the boys were far from perfect and really wound up some of the teachers who weren't good at controlling things. I can't speak for the ethos at KHS, but as I went to Bablake from 59 to 66, I can confirm it was far from the perfect place Mr D Di has suggested, in the early years at least. I had some good teachers there, but there were others who frightened the living sh** out of us. There was a German teacher who threw the board rubber at us with considerable force, and, if he didn't think the homework was good enough, threw the whole pile of exercise books en-masse at the class. I remember on one occasion trying to give the German for 66 (sechs und sechszig) and got tongue tied. Result: after-school detention. The headmaster in my first three years was Eric Seaborne who operated a report card system. You had to carry it around with you like a driving licence, and your misdemeanours were recorded on the card. Teachers and prefects could do it. After every three endorsements you had to go to the head, and after nine you qualified for Saturday morning detention. Each entry was graded from W (warning) up to "ringed H" which was straight to the head for a good tanning. There didn't seem to be any restriction on hitting pupils and I remember once having my head deliberately banged against a light switch in the corridor for nothing much. I was a bit of cheeky so on so, it has to be said. Incidentally, you could also get C (commendation) though that was a mixed blessing as it branded you as a swot. I did get some commendations from "Lavatory Jack" the music teacher (J Wolseley-Charles), partly because I was the only one who didn't take the p*** out of him! The education in the 1960s at Bablake was OK for mainstream subjects, but there was little choice and very little encouragement to broaden interests. Mine was music, but there was virtually nothing doing. As Mr D Di said, the differences today are like entering a parallel universe. Our children went to the local comprehensive here in Fife and the range of curriculum options, and other things like music and art, were a million miles from Bablake in the 60s. I'm sure it's very good today. Finally here's a photo of speech day in autumn 1964 in the Methodist Central Hall. Ted Burrough is doing his address and Van Hee (Van Flee as we called him as it looked like a puff of wind would blow him away) is at the far end of the row behind. The guys in the front row next to Burrough I think are school governors, and the guy behind Burrough may be Mr Chinn who was in charge of the local education authority. I'm looking extremely youthful at the end of the row, two behind Van Flee. I think this is a press photo from the Coventry Evening Telegraph. Interesting Steve still has his school scarf. Mine fell apart long ago. I do remember Hammonds, in The Burges opposite the old Grammar School, and being measured up for the regulation grey three-piece suit. Amazingly (for Coventry) the building is still there today, but Hammonds are not!

Here's a staff photo from about 1956 or 1957. How many can you identify?

Not doing very well with this "rogues gallery". It was two or three years before I went there, and the photo is slightly fuzzy. The only one I can positively identify is "Gabby" Hayes, second from the right on the middle row. Others I'm not so sure of are possibly J. Wolseley-Charles ("Lavatory Jack" the music teacher), front row almost immediately in front of Gabby, and next to him on the end of the front row, possibly Van Hee. Another possible is "Bud Bandy" third from right on the back row. That will be Eric Seaborne in the middle of the front row.