Newsletter - December 2019

[Rogernoble]

White Star Newsletter
December 2019

Dear All.
We are now at 113 members (30 September- 113). Sadly I have just heard that we have lost Derek Pitt (I have the details of the thanksgiving service and refreshments at the West Surrey Golf Club on 30th December which I can forward to anyone who can make it).  The decision to add letters to the editor / memories of Hillside has certainly livened things up so keep them coming. I would welcome further contributions. In the meantime my best wishers for a merry Christmas and a prosperous new year.
 
The Search.
As I explained last quarter we are now struggling to find the remaining people on the “wanted” list so any help you can provide in finding them would be very helpful.

 The Website and White Star Magazines.
Martin Koranka has revised the web site which should now be much easier to use. You can also pick up the White Stars there as well. I have added all the old newsletters.www.hillsideschool.org.ukPlease support Martin’s efforts by making use of the facility. LunchWe have now arranged the next bi-annual lunch for Saturday 20th June 2020. We have a private room at the West Surrey Golf Club. The plan is to meet at 12 noon for pre-lunch drinks to be followed by a three course lunch at 1 pm. To make the event viable we need at least forty people so, if you have not already done so, please let me know by 15 January if you (and partner) are coming. Some people have expressed some concern, given our ages, that last minute changes might be needed. Do not worry because I will not be giving final numbers until a week or two before the lunch.As I said in the last newsletter 2020 represents the sixtieth anniversary of what was probably the most successful sporting year for Hillside with both the Hockey (played 12, won 11 and drew 1} and football (played 14, won 13 drew 1) sides remaining unbeaten. It would be great to reunite as many of the participants as possible.As I write this I have 26 confirmed attendees so make sure the rest of you let me know if you are coming.

Golf Match.
Jack Fuller is organising a golf tournament, probably at the West Surrey Golf Course in the spring. You will be competing for the Hillside School Junior Relay Cup, last awarded in 1942. 

IMG_2261.JPG

 If you are interested please contact Jackjohnfuller20@gmail.com[RN1] 

Memorable school matches.
Nick Ranson of Reigate suggested this new feature so I leave the floor to him for the first contribution.Hillside Reigate v AberdourThe summer of 1951 in memory was bright and sunny. Yet the prospects for the cricket XI did not look very good, to my way of thinking. Our best bat, Jeremy Norman Tarrant Jones, left at the end of Easter term for Lancing. And I as next senior was appointed captain—see the team photo. 

Hillside School Cricket XI 1951.jpg

  We had the usual fixture list, as I remember—Aberdour, Homefield, Banstead Priory and others I don’t recall—and I didn’t relish presiding over our coming defeats. And so the Saturday came when we went over to Aberdour. Now Aberdour in my experience had a special place: it was the team which had in my first year in the XI a fearsome fast bowler named Southgate. I was an opening bat, and was promptly bowled for a duck by a ball so fast (it seemed) that I never even saw it. The second year we played them was no better; and Southgate made his way through the heart of the batting order—Chapman, Walker, Gubbins, Pegler—and had us all out for some absurd amount. Their batting was more than able to quickly overhaul out total. Aberdour wins again.In 1951, Aberdour had the prettiest cricket oval of any school we played. Surrounded by trees, it was in perfect scale with our skills and determination. This was an away match, and so in no sort of expectation we debussed, changed, lost the toss and were put in to bat. Now, at this point, I don’t exactly remember our score, but it was close to, or at, 100 runs all out, and we broke for tea. Southgate had gone! It wasn’t a bad score at all.Aberdour started well and were soon taking charge of our bowling: our “fast” bowler (Spanton?) was making little impression and they were barely into the middle order when they got towards a score of seventy something with several wickets left. Then suddenly bham! Two wickets fell for nothing much, and with some 30 minutes left to play, we were faced with a couple of tail-enders who had received orders to dig-in and dead-bat anything we bowled. I crowded the batsmen successively with seven fielders within 5-10 yards and took silly mid-off myself. I made what I thought was a good catch at one point, but Mr. Gillard, our accompanying master, denied the appeal. We were now at nearly 90 runs and we had gone through our regular series of bowlers about twice. In desperation I turned to Whitely and gave him the ball for the next over. Whitely was not a recognized bowler. In fact, he wasn’t usually given much opportunity to practice, and though you might have called him a “slow off-spinner”, that would have been stretching it.The sun was setting behind Whitely’s bowling end as he shuffled up to the crease and twirled his arm. At that point, everything seemed to revert to slow motion. All of us turned our heads to watch the flight of the ball. Up, up, it went, high into the light of the setting sun. The batsman stood quite still, staring at what I do not know. Blinded by the sun? Anyway, the ball floated over his clasped hands and landed on the top of the stumps, to all our amazement. We had just witnessed the most famous occasion when the Whitely “dolly drop” was used to potent effect. The shock was tremendous: the last batsman crept in through our mob of surrounding fielders and was quickly dismissed as he shuffled forward to block another Whitely ball, lost his crease and had his wicket smashed with a echoing “Howzat?” by our wicketkeeper Masefield. It was over: we had won by four runs with a few minutes to spare.Going back on the bus, we were quiet: no big celebration and when we drew up outside our main classroom block, I saw Mr. Bannister up on a ladder, sno-ceming one of the outside walls of Tower house. Seeing us return, he slowly climbed down the ladder to hear the bad news. When he gained level ground, I said: “We won by four runs.” There was a moment’s pause as he digested this news and then his face beamed a huge smile, and he led into the Annex on the side of the house which was used both for meals and classes, and asked me tell him the whole story. We sat there for a while as I went over the drama. I think it was a joyful day for him, as for us.The Aberdour jinx was broken. For the rest of the season I have no memory, and certainly no other match had the meaning and importance which that had. I still think from time to time of the Whitely effect and how it gave a decent man some satisfaction one late summer afternoon.Nick Ranson.

Hillside Culinary delights

I am running out of copy here so contributions please for the next newsletter.

Literary Corner.
Nikolai tells me he has now had his biography of his stepfather the author Patrick Obrien recently published. I will look at this in March. Are there any other authors hiding amongst our membership? If there are please let me know.

Letters to the editor
From Nikolai Tolstoy
Dear Roger,I think Mr White must have been romancing about dodging barrage balloons, etc!  All I learned from him of his earlier life was that his much-loved grandfather .was a tough old lancer officer in the French Army (in the war of 1870?).  He would let Michael White and his other grandchildren tug at his hair and moustache without ever moving a muscle.He read marvellous books to us in the dormitory, most of which still remain my favourites: e.g. Conan Doyle’s Adventures of Gerard and Sherlock Holmes, also Rodney Stone.  I don’t find the latter so good today, but it gave me a lifelong fascination with the Regency period.  Our nice Scotch matron (I don’t recall her name) lent me a lace cravat, which despite the remainder of my clothing being grey shorts and green blazer made me imagine I looked like Beau Brummell!I well remember the VE night celebration at Haswell House in Hascombe (I didn’t know where it was, until the newsletter informed me).  We paid a penny each to drive a nail into Hitler’s coffin – a real one, although I don’t think the lamented Fuhrer was inside.  Everyone sang ‘Adolf Hitler lies a-mouldering in the grave’.  There was a body of Canadian troops present, which was the first time I ever saw people drunk.I too recall RHRW’s healthy contempt for ‘helf ‘n’ safety’.  Each term or terms there were different martial activities, with rival teams battling it out: Cavaliers and Roundheads, the Three Musketeers and Cardinal’s Guards, Highlanders and Redcoats, etc.  When it was Robin Hood v. the Sheriff, we made bows and arrows from the bamboos growing at the bottom of the front lawn.  A boy was inevitably injured, and Mr Whicker gravely announced in assembly that bows and arrows were henceforth strictly banned.  However the ban was so lightly enforced as to prove entirely nugatory.  With hindsight, I suspect Mr Whicker was perfectly aware of the secret rearmament, and was content to let it proceed.Incidentally, the craze for Cavaliers did not leave me, and I fell in love at a re-enactment siege of Warwick Castle in 1970.  I found Georgina’s attractive appearance in musketeer uniform completely irresistible!  And today, if I want to treat myself, I betake myself to a deckchair in the walled garden and re-read Cavaliers and Rogues for the umpteenth time (no prize for guessing whose side the author supported!).  Mr Whicker gave me the precious copy when I attended his last sports day.Best wishes,NikolaiEd – This seems to confirm the Mr White at Reigate is not the same as our Mr White.

From Roger Noble.
Dear Nikolai.
Many thanks for your email which I will include in the December newsletter as it is exactly what I am after.Your email seems to have confirmed that Mr White Reigate and Mr White Godalming are not the same person.On the subject of tough old cavalry officers I was also blessed with one as a grandfather. He fought in WW1 in the 12th Lancers, was involved in 1931 in an expedition to drive a Rolls Royce armoured car from Cairo to Siwa (see book “From Cairo to Siwa across the Libyan Desert” by Major Dunn) before transferring to the Tank Regiment for WW2 in 1936. After the war he became a copper miner in Chingola when we were living in Nairobi. I used to spend endless time deep in the bush with him or visiting his friends in the Kenya Highlands. I feel sorry for the kids with ordinary grandads!!Thanks again.Roger.

From Nikolai Tolstoy.
Dear Roger,What a man!  The British Empire brought the best in people like him, whatever the would-be know-alls claim now!  The title of his memoir alone conjures up the glamour of those distant days.I didn’t realise there were two Mr Whites.  Our Mr White was (I believe) Jewish, and I further assume at some time changed his name from e.g. Weiss.  My recollection is that he spoke with a slight foreign accent – perhaps more an intonation.  He certainly spoke excellent French – I was already pretty well bilingual, having had a French governess during the war, so I would have been able to tell.  Perhaps you have heard this already, but another Old Hillside boy (I don’t recall who) once told me he was eventually (after my time) obliged to leave owing to being a bit too matey with a boy or boys.  All I can say is that throughout my four years at the school I never saw or heard of anything to substantiate this.Mr White was very musical, and played the piano to us admirably.  At one of Mr Whicker’s weekly Brains Trusts he was asked what he would like to do were he not at Hillside.  He told us he would like to have a BBC wireless slot, where he chose classical records.  I’m sure he would have been good at it.Mr Whitton taught us history (and Latin?) in early years.  The poor man was very short-sighted, and had to stoop right over each lavatory bowl when destroying germs with his Flit-gun.  This aroused inappropriate mirth among us boys.  Once, when he entered our classroom, George Birch called out: ‘please, sir, what is the Latin for a pine-tree?’  Another time (I think it was Mr Whitton again), George greeted him with the words: ‘please, sir, Mr sir, sir, what’s the time, Mr sir, sir?’  We were very witty in those days.Mr Whicker was a brilliant teacher.  The knowledge of Latin I gained at his hands still stands me in good stead when books I am writing require fluency in classical or medieval Latin.   I can’t even remember who taught me Latin at Wellington!  Although we only did Greek with him for about a year, that too has helped me in my work.I remember Adeley well.  I think it was at his uncle’s that he took me one weekend for an outing.  All I recall of the event is that we were at one point left alone in the dining-room, where we found a bottle of cider on the side table.  We each daringly took a gulp, and then staring hopefully at each other wondered whether we were drunk?Best wishes,Nikolai.
 
From Nelson Grayburn.
Many thanks. Wonderful stories ring true. How about the camps? Nelson.

From Nikolai Tolstoy.
The camps were marvellous.1.       The one around the hollow tree beyond the cricket pitch, beyond which the Labour Guv house was built.  There was constructed the hair-raisingly dangerous tunnel through the sand, dug from the bomb crater where the garrison occasionally boiled chestnuts in an old kettle.  It was briefly defended by outworks constructed from abandoned railway lines laid down by the previous owner of the house.  They were attacked one break by masters armed with garden water-squirts, and then I think swiftly demolished.2.       The small but secure camp in the bamboo clump at the bottom of the front lawn.  It was there that a gallant party sharpened their pen knives in preparation for the German invasion.  An equally heroic attempt to heat it during bitter weather, by spreading around bottles of lukewarm water, proved a technological failure.  Nevertheless the Germans never dared attack the camp.  I think it was there that King Bonar I was proclaimed King in a moving ceremony.3.       Edgehill, which was in the wood beside the road.  It was on a map I compiled at the time, but may have been a battlefield rather than a camp.4.       The bomb crater beyond the games field overlooking the approach from Godalming.   It was perfect for quartering and defending Dinky-toy military vehicles and Britains lead soldiers.  My section boasted a little dungeon for captives, which contained spiders and earwigs.There were one or two other temporary camps, as I recall.  A brief and ultimately unavailing attempt was made to enforce contact between the various settlements by means of a specially-invented language, which we were all supposed to learn.  There was also an equally brief inter-camp currency.Now these once-mighty strongholds are one with Nineveh and Tyre.  Eheu fugaces!Nikolai.

From Simon Hocombe.
Dear Roger.
A further feast of reminiscences! I also recall the termly weighing and measuring. I (and maybe others?) usually lost weight during the term, which we had to attribute to the healthy exercise regime at Hillside in contrast to slacking around at home during the holidays.Robin may have something more to say about Michael White. I have often wondered how he came to be in England and teaching. Maybe he was a refugee from Hitler. I can confirm that his behaviour with us boys was always absolutely correct. I understood that his departure from Hillside was due to events outside the school but which were mentioned in the local paper, giving RHRW no choice but to ask him to leave. Great tragedy in my view: as mentioned, he contributed much to our musical education as well as French. The two strands met when he set avoir to music for us to sing — and what about the School Band? Impossible to get a good tune out of a comb now Bronco bog paper has disappeared!I hope Desmond Adeley will forgive the following anecdote which links eerily to his French oral interview. RHRW was standing one day at the top of the terrace steps with a couple of prospective parents. He used to hold forth in a rather sonorous voice on such occasions. He was pointing out the tennis court and leafy woods beyond when suddenly there was loud clattering stage left. Desmond crashed down the steps from the front drive on a small, rickety bicycle, pedalling furiously and wearing a tin hat. He shot across in front of the spectators, still rattling, and disappeared down the steps right with another deafening crash and vanished into the woods. This explains what Desmond said at his interview — but I wonder whether the couple decided to send their boy to Hillside.Saluti,SimonFrom Robin WhickerDelightful memories - thank you! In those periodical campaigns (Roundheads v Cavaliers, Redcoats v Highlanders, etc), being a somewhat bloody minded child (in both senses) I usually led the unfashionable party I remember the gallant support of 'Stuffer' Lowder (has he turned up?) in my objecting to the arrogance of Charles I and a tactical retreat to an island in the bog at Winckworrh which lured the Highlanders into a very muddy conclusion to their downhill charge. About the only time I remember my father being really angry about our games was over the tunnel in the Elm Field bomb crater. We hadn't shored it and in such sandy soil it could easily have collapsed and buried us. That episode really frightened him.The best place for carving roads for cars, fortresses for Britains soldiers, etc was in the hedged enclosure just east of the terrace. It was past that and through the woods and up the top of the back drive that we held our bicycle speed track races. Michael White was Jewish in origin; his father had been a French consul somewhere. He used to do some marvellously funny monologues at school concerts, about a fictional tailor called Cohen. A wonderful teacher and a lovely man. It was one of my father's saddest moments when as Simon rightly says he had to ask him to go. He always behaved impeccably with us. Later he lived part of his dream by running a record shop in Godalming (Square Records) where my brother Michael and I used to visit him. As ever, Robin.

From Nikolai Tolstoy.
Yes, the sand tunnels still scare me in retrospect.  Even without a (likely enough) collapse, turning round at the end to return was an unnervingly tight squeeze.  I don’t remember your father’s discovering it, and until now assumed it had remained a secret.I remember the exciting Highland charge and its regrettable end in the bog.  Battles in Dr Fox’s woods were always atmospheric and still memorable.I now remember constructing a road in the hedged enclosure beneath the terrace for tanks etc.  I had forgotten that as another exciting venue.  Of course, the terrace itself was a splendid setting for mass manoeuvres.  The grounds seemed ENORMOUS!I remember sitting all one sunlit afternoon in the bamboo camp beside the front lawn, reading Galilee Galloper – the memoirs of a police chief in pre-war Palestine.  The books one read then made such a lasting impact.  So sad that many children today enjoy little or no reading.  However, the other day I was visited by one of the boys featured in my The Founding of Evil Hold School.  He proved to be a retired Colonel in special forces!Nikolai.

From Michael Yalden.
Dear Roger.
What an interesting News Letter – full of memories for me as a day boy.I am not sure when I left Hillside, I think it was either 1949 or 1948.I well remember Dr Foxes with the woods and lake in which I did swim.Peter Herring lived next door to me in the Fairway Busbridge just across the road from the school so I remember  him well and enjoyed his information on Winkworth Arboretum which he and I often visited together outside of school.Who remembers the “notorious gang of three” – Gilmore , Jackson and Brown – who were always in some trouble or other?Remembering   happy prep school daysAgain very well doneBest wishes Michael (Yalden).

Pal’s corner.
Jack Fuller has now located ten of the 1963 hockey team, but he is still anxious to locate Jonathan (?) Weale to get the full team. Can anyone help? A possible clue is that his father owned the bicycle shop in Godalming.Colin & Keith Parsons – I have had reports of their playing golf in Surrey. I think Jack played against them once. They went on to Kings Witley and their brother played cricket for Surrey. Can anyone help? Jack hopes to locate them for the golf match.We have also accounted for nine of the 1960 football team. Can anyone help on Tim Gibbs and P Sutton?This is a regular feature for those looking for old friends so please let me know if there is anyone you would particularly like to trace. 

Roger Noble [RN1]