Role: LGS teacher of languages, initially German and French with some Arabic for beginners as part of the sixth-form general studies course. After a few years I was offered the post of teacher in charge of German and I also began to take Spanish classes increasingly often, as well as year 7 Latin from time to time if there was a need.
Dates: 1990-2021
1. Where was your favourite place on campus, and why?
My favourite place was probably the B-block staffroom but subsequently I grew very fond of my teaching rooms upstairs in the then new languages building.
2. What did you enjoy most about your role?
I always made a point of establishing close and friendly contact with the various German assistants and derived great satisfaction from acquiring the friendships made in the course of running the German exchange, but what I enjoyed most about my role was the overwhelmingly positive and enthusiastic response of so many of my pupils.
3. Is there a standout memory from your time at the school?
My standout memory of my time at school would probably be the quincentenary whole-school trip to London in 1995.
4. Was there a particular class or year group you remember especially fondly?
I have such fond memories of so many classes but those including the likes of Colin Reid, Michael Ashdown, Tom Owen, Alex Bower, Matthew Drury and David Dudeney stand out.
5. What is one thing about your role that most people wouldn’t know?
I am, or used to be a keen philatelist and I was able to revive Stamp Club at LGS for the admittedly decreasing number of pupils interested in that hobby.
6. What was your favourite school lunch?
For the majority of my time at LGS I forewent the possibility of treating myself to the excellent school lunches in the interests of not putting on weight (my late wife’s culture attaches great importance to partaking in a substantial family meal in the evenings). Nevertheless, in the final year or two of my employment at LGS I acquired the habit of feasting myself on the amazing salad bar available.
7. How do you like to spend your time now? What have you been up to since leaving the school??
After the untimely death of my dear wife in early 2021 and my own cancer diagnosis soon afterwards, I was preoccupied with other things for many months, but eventually I returned to teaching part-time at LGS on a strictly voluntary basis, sometimes helping out with specific TEFL/TESL needs and more generally offering fairly high-powered grammar consolidation and extension sessions to motivated sixth-formers, predominantly in German. This activity has continued into the current academic year.
Just under two years ago I returned to learning much more effectively than ever before my wife’s native language; she was Malaysian Chinese and although her first tongue was actually Hakka I concentrate on Mandarin (which along with Cantonese she also spoke), benefiting from the coursebooks that our elder daughter used during her degree course at Nottingham Trent. Tackling the written language is a constant and significant challenge, especially given my advancing years, but one that always gives me academic and personal satisfaction. I do also maintain my exposure to the various other languages I have been interested in and continue to do a fair amount of cooking – two of our four children are still based at their parental house and one is a committed vegan. Neither have I lost my passion for football and cryptic crosswords.
8. Is there anything else you’d like to share about your time here?
Being offered the teaching post at LGS back in 1990 was a pivotal moment in my life and that of my family because of the incredibly friendly and helpful nature of my colleagues and pupils and the opportunity of bringing up our four children in such a welcoming environment and town. Our two elder children did well for themselves in the state sector but the two younger ones benefited considerably from attending LGS and LHS respectively.
