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Erdington Grammar School

the front of the main building

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the Gym

gym.jpg


one of the hockey pitches and the 'banks' and the 3rd tennis courts

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Hi Ladies,
My wife was there from 1953-1958. Then she was Barbara Williams. She remembers other teachers, Miss Bittlestone snd Frauline Notmann (spelling!). Bring back any memories anyone?
 
some more pics
of the blazer and school emblem [or whatever it's called]

eggs-1.jpg

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I remember when I was 11 and we got my blazer [which cost a fortune then], how proud I was, and excited to wear it
by the 3rd form none of us wore them anymore, and adapted our uniform as best as we could to be fashionable :)
 
some more pics
of the blazer and school emblem [or whatever it's called]

eggs-1.jpg

eggs1.jpg


I remember when I was 11 and we got my blazer [which cost a fortune then], how proud I was, and excited to wear it
by the 3rd form none of us wore them anymore, and adapted our uniform as best as we could to be fashionable :)

If you came out of the back of the school onto Erdington Hall road where I lived,Imay have threw snowballs at yer
 
Well hello to all those that went to Erdington girls, well what can i say i had good and bad times there, im now 41 and would love to be able to meet and get in contact with former students that was there at the same time as me
Please get intouch
 
OMG. I was 12. Testosterone in spades. Mavis Hancox, St Saviours Rd, Saltley, Erdington GS. Modern equivalent of Kylie. Will you go to pictures with Den? Yes. First EVER love. Deep joy. Ecstasy....Uh-oh. Gloom and despondency, what are you doing here? Stood up outside Beaufort. Waited 2 hours (as you did them days). Where are you Mavis..??? Still waiting 56 years later...

Den
 
Interestingly my memory tells me that Miss Hill was a Belinda not a Brenda . Initials were certainly B L Hill. She always took a first year class for French every year and apparently the second year when those unfortunates progressed to learn with another teacher there was a lot of catching up to do!
Male teachers were few and far between but I remember a few - obviously "Doc" Brownbridge who was hilarious and also Mr Ingham, Mr Rutter, and Mr Dryden were there in my day ( 1973-1980). Later on there was a Mr Whitlock who took the newly installed "remedial " class, so a new euphemism was born: "you're a Whitlock."

PE department were all terrifying without exception - especially Mrs Cropper who used to be Olympic 800m runner (1968?) Pat Lowe .

Sadly I think the lovely "Quadrangle" garden is no more - looking at an aerial photo it seems to have been converted into a sports block.
 
Re: Erdington as we know it.

Just read your thread on Erdington, Alberta,when were you at Erdington Grammar, I left in 1955. Wasn't it a wonderful school, Miss Hill was head when I was there, oh happy days!
 
Oh so you are slightly younger than me, I was there 1950 to 1955 was in Salamander, the green one. I think Phoenix always did a bit better than us at the time and Dolphin would appear to have been the best.
 
I remember Connie Lucas. She played Centre in the school netball team. Other names from the team were Joan Garfield, Linda Fulford, Gillian Littlejohn, Carol Shepherd, Yvonne McLean. We did quite well!
 
Hi Susan. Looks like we were at Erdington Grammar at the same time. My memories include the only male teacher being an American called Mr Overboe, being in love with the gardener, playing netball for the school, Miss Hill arranging for me to go to Erdington Technical College to take my O Levels because I missed them through illness, having the gas oven explode in my face during cookery (my fault - I turned the gas on then opened the door and put the flame in!), being told by the Needlework teacher that I was a "stupid girl" because I sewed the arm of my blouse on inside out (can't remember her name, but Miss Moffatt was the cookery teacher), swinging on the pipes in the toilets then slipping off straight onto my back (we had an end of term assembly that afternoon and I couldn't get up off the floor, had to be helped out by some teachers), my friend Carol Francis being expelled for smoking in the toilets, Miss Naish the Maths teacher, Mrs Dale the French teacher, skipping in the playground, having a hockey ball knock a tooth through my lip (still got the scar), the netball team members - Linda Fulford, Gillian Littlejohn, Carol Shepherd, Connie Francis, Joan Garfield, Yvonne (?). Can't remember much about the lessons though:-D
 
Hi, I remember Mr Overboe being the only male teacher. He came on a teaching exchange with Miss Hawkins(?) who I think taught Physics - not sure as I dropped science early on. I was at EGGS from 1955-62. I remember Miss Moffatt - she was very rude about my pastry making but I'm happy to say that over the years my pastry has received many compliments. I think it was Miss Willetts who taught dressmaking - I've remained hopeless at that all my life.
I remember Miss Bushrod (we called her Shrubstick and we could hear her coming along the corridor by the squeak of her stockings as they rubbed together on her chubby legs). Also remember Miss Mole (French) [after she retired I think it was Mrs Tomkinson?], Mrs Bird and Mrs Hope-Simpson (Latin), Miss Brown and Miss Rabson (English), Miss Naish (Maths), Miss Worthington (Geography), Miss Bradford and Miss Burley (PE), and headmistress Miss Hill who taught me French in first year. Can't remember if she was a Brenda or a Belinda - I and my friends in the French class referred to her as Bill because of her initials, B.L. Hill.
Such a long time ago but they certainly made an impression!
 
Hi Alberta: I am so glad that you remember Dick's in the High Street. The only other person other than locals of my era who knew about Dick's was a
lady whom I met here in Vancouver when we had a mini Fentham Girls reunion with four of us who had come together through the Internet after our Centenary Reunion at Sutton Town Hall in April 2004 which I was lucky enough to attend. Beryl lived in Reservoir Road across from the Cottage Homes and went to the National School located in the High Street. Beryl's Aunt and Uncle were Manager's of a club located close to the Pavillion Cinema at Wylde Green, called the Anstey Club. The Club used to order all their cakes from Dick's which were served at dinners and dances, etc. The quality was excellent if I remember....Cream Horns and Merangues were my favourite.

The Coffee Bar that you have mentioned was called El Toro and it came
into being after the expresso coffee bars in town got going. They have been mentioned on this site before. It was very close to the Church House and the Dolcis shoe shop. It was always a squeeze to get in there. Basically, it was a residential house that had been converted. The coffee was 9d per cup and was made in the traditional espresso machines.
We all thought it was a very special scene. The music came from
a juke box which played all the hits of the time. There was an upstairs
area as well. One night in l958 I met my first serious boyfriend in there and we went out for four years. Lovely memories Alberta.

Hi Jennyann,

I know this quote is from a while ago but I'm very interested to hear any more you know about the Anstey Club. I live quite close to where the Pavilion used to be and we're getting together all the local history of this area which we tend to call 'Little Boldmere'. I went to the cinema and the bowling alley before they were demolished to make way for housing.

By the way, my husband's Nan worked at Dicks in Erdington, probably in the 1950's.

Also I was at Erdington Grammar 1958-1963. Where you there then? (or am I confusing my quotes and should be asking Alberta?) Do you remember Miss Mole, Miss Gawley, Miss Bushrod? I still see some of my friends and we were saying how old these teachers seemed and yet they must've retired at 60 so were far younger than we are now. How times change!
 
Lady P. I went to Erdington until 1958, I remember Miss mole , Miss Gawley they looked about 80 then, LOL.
I loved going to the Pavilion but by the time it was a bowling alley I had married and moved away from the area,
At the other end of Gravelly Lane was/is Brewers Autospares which was owned by Fred Brewer, his son Brain started the first bowling team at the Pavilion called Brewers Autospare Team, I believe they were very good in the day.
It is a while since I went to the area and was just about to tell you about my friend from Erdington Grammar , Christine Radford,.When she married she lived in a large Victorian semi close to the Pavilion,on Gravelly lane. The last time I saw it there was an entrance to squash courts next door.
I have just been to Streetmap to have a look and the house is gone and what appears to be an office block has replaced it.
I hardly recognise the place, but my sister and I still call the area the Pavilion.
 
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Hi Alberta,

Yes, nearly all the buildings with character have been demolished. Anstey College went long ago and a housing association development was built on the site. The office block is actually an old folks home. I remember some old cottages next to the Pavilion and then two large old semis which is where I think the OFH is now.

I wasn't terribly happy at Erdington Grammar - I started in 1958 just as you left, but made some lifelong friends during my time there. We went back to have a look about 10 years ago and it had really changed. Some of the buildings were the same but lots of chewing gum stuck to the floor! It's a mixed sports college now. I remember the rule for the length of your gym-slip - you had to kneel on the floor and it should've been half an inch above floor level. Things began to change as the 1960's started and we tried to get away with hitching our skirts up. Berets were a nightmare too and we used to clip them on the back of our heads behind the well-backcombed and lacquered beehives. Now those hairstyles are back!
 
Lady P do you remember Helen Lyndon who was at the school about the same time as yourself?.
:strawberry:
 
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