---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Den Duggan
Date: Mon, 3 Aug 2026 at 19:55
Subject: OWT August 2026
To: Brian Screaton , Frank Smith
From: Den Duggan
Date: Mon, 3 Aug 2026 at 19:55
Subject: OWT August 2026
To: Brian Screaton , Frank Smith
OLD WYVES' TALES
THE ONLINE VERSION
AUGUST 2026
EDITED BY DENNIS J DUGGAN
FROM DENNIS BIGGS 1949-56 I was interested to read about the woodwork classes. Mr Cropper was the teacher in 1949, and the first item I made was a stand for a smoothing iron. My mother used it for a number of years. Until the purchase of a folding ironing board many years later, mum used the kitchen table. The skills we learned came in useful in later life.
3 Alpha had art classes instead of woodwork. I can't recall the first master's name, but later we had Mr Kaye.
The House system was very important, especially for sporting activities. We also had house assemblies. I was in Bradgate (red) with Johnny Jeeves, an elderly teacher of French, as house master. Abbey was green, Charnwood yellow, De Montfort blue. In later years the system seemed to wane, and become less important. I am still in contact with a few Old Boys from the 1949 intake, John Hill, Graham Norton, Bob Gregory, John Page but inevitably our numbers are dwindling as we are almost ninety years old! If any others from 1949 see this, please get in touch via the facebook page. See item below!! -Ed
Our contact with the old school via Wyvernians is very important to us. So I thank Dennis, Brian and Frank for their continued efforts to keep things alive and thriving.
FROM ALAN PYKETT 1959-66 August 31st, 2025, marked forty two years attendance at the church where I am still a member. I believe that during that time I was the only Wyvernian, so am delighted to advise that, at a stroke, the number increased to four on September 1st 2025. I have been joined by fellow Wyvernians John King (1950-56) Brian Pearson (1949-55) Stephen Thompson (1966-73) This follows the closure of their former church. Many readers will know that Stephen is the son of Brian Thompson, who was also a local Methodist preacher. Naturally we have good chats about our days at CBS See item above!! - Ed
Editors note: I wore my Wyvernians tee shirt at lunch one day on a cruise ship to Iceland in 2002. Imagine my surprise when a chap across the table announced he was once one of my teachers at CBS. It was Brian Thompson, and we had a lovely chat. He genuinely remembered me, as he was my form master in 1 Alpha, and I caused him a few problems.
FROM PETER DICKMAN 1972-79 I attended Whitehall Junior school, and selected CBS as my first choice for several reasons: it was my father's school (late thirties, early forties) my mother worked there part-time in the office; it was convenient, as we lived nearby - not far from The Dove, where I worked briefly between school and university. Any other choice would have been unthinkable, not to say treasonable, under those circumstances. Most of my friends went on to Wyggeston.
The last two reasons were not necessarily great, especially when some of the teachers came to the house for dinner with my parents. My father subsequently threw himself into PTA activities and continued long after I left for Cambridge. That's a lot of family connections to hide when starting at a new school, not helped by Mr Golding deliberately (gleefully?) revealing my link to the school office during an early music lesson. Fortunately my mother eventually transferred to a full-time job at Judgemeadow, which reduced the pressure a little (But not much)
Initially I was shy and quiet, though finally began to find my feet in the sixth form. Along the way I formed some lifelong friendships, which have stood the test of time. I was utterly unsporty, but strong at maths. With Tony Baxter also running drama activities I eventually became involved in that too. Initially as a prompter in a Shakespeare comedy (can't recall which) then with minor parts. One year I played a soldier in Aykbourn's Ernie's Incredible Illucinations, and Mr Fitch, the Borough Surveyor, in Albert's Bridge. I recall Tony being a huge fan of Tom Stoppard's work. The events following Fitch's flawed transition-planning from old to new paint systems, were even the basis for a couple of real-world discussions related to computer software changes, decades later.
I also tried my hand at drama, briefly, in my first year at university, as an ant in The Insect Play. But my lifetime peak and triumph was at CBS, playing the dead body in The Real Inspector Hound, which was also by Stoppard. It was performed in the round, which meant I had to lie on the hall floor, absolutely still and breathing as shallowly as possible. That was before the audience arrived until after the final bow. Unforgettable - for me at least.
OBITUARIES From John Offord. Those who attended the school between 1958 and 1965 may remember footballer Bob Hastings. Sadly Bob passed away on Easter Sunday. Outside school, Bob was a member of The Heathens five-a-side football team. They reached the final of a competition played at Granby Halls. Team members were Eric Bann, Mel Knight, John Offord, Steve Hunt and Bob Hastings.
From Gary Archer 1971-78 Matthew Biggs passed away July 2026, aged sixty five. He presented BBC Gardeners' Question Time. I'm pretty sure he was in the same year as me, but did not stay on for the sixth form.
Dennis J Duggan (1959-64)
THE ONLINE VERSION
AUGUST 2026
EDITED BY DENNIS J DUGGAN
FROM DENNIS BIGGS 1949-56 I was interested to read about the woodwork classes. Mr Cropper was the teacher in 1949, and the first item I made was a stand for a smoothing iron. My mother used it for a number of years. Until the purchase of a folding ironing board many years later, mum used the kitchen table. The skills we learned came in useful in later life.
3 Alpha had art classes instead of woodwork. I can't recall the first master's name, but later we had Mr Kaye.
The House system was very important, especially for sporting activities. We also had house assemblies. I was in Bradgate (red) with Johnny Jeeves, an elderly teacher of French, as house master. Abbey was green, Charnwood yellow, De Montfort blue. In later years the system seemed to wane, and become less important. I am still in contact with a few Old Boys from the 1949 intake, John Hill, Graham Norton, Bob Gregory, John Page but inevitably our numbers are dwindling as we are almost ninety years old! If any others from 1949 see this, please get in touch via the facebook page. See item below!! -Ed
Our contact with the old school via Wyvernians is very important to us. So I thank Dennis, Brian and Frank for their continued efforts to keep things alive and thriving.
FROM ALAN PYKETT 1959-66 August 31st, 2025, marked forty two years attendance at the church where I am still a member. I believe that during that time I was the only Wyvernian, so am delighted to advise that, at a stroke, the number increased to four on September 1st 2025. I have been joined by fellow Wyvernians John King (1950-56) Brian Pearson (1949-55) Stephen Thompson (1966-73) This follows the closure of their former church. Many readers will know that Stephen is the son of Brian Thompson, who was also a local Methodist preacher. Naturally we have good chats about our days at CBS See item above!! - Ed
Editors note: I wore my Wyvernians tee shirt at lunch one day on a cruise ship to Iceland in 2002. Imagine my surprise when a chap across the table announced he was once one of my teachers at CBS. It was Brian Thompson, and we had a lovely chat. He genuinely remembered me, as he was my form master in 1 Alpha, and I caused him a few problems.
FROM PETER DICKMAN 1972-79 I attended Whitehall Junior school, and selected CBS as my first choice for several reasons: it was my father's school (late thirties, early forties) my mother worked there part-time in the office; it was convenient, as we lived nearby - not far from The Dove, where I worked briefly between school and university. Any other choice would have been unthinkable, not to say treasonable, under those circumstances. Most of my friends went on to Wyggeston.
The last two reasons were not necessarily great, especially when some of the teachers came to the house for dinner with my parents. My father subsequently threw himself into PTA activities and continued long after I left for Cambridge. That's a lot of family connections to hide when starting at a new school, not helped by Mr Golding deliberately (gleefully?) revealing my link to the school office during an early music lesson. Fortunately my mother eventually transferred to a full-time job at Judgemeadow, which reduced the pressure a little (But not much)
Initially I was shy and quiet, though finally began to find my feet in the sixth form. Along the way I formed some lifelong friendships, which have stood the test of time. I was utterly unsporty, but strong at maths. With Tony Baxter also running drama activities I eventually became involved in that too. Initially as a prompter in a Shakespeare comedy (can't recall which) then with minor parts. One year I played a soldier in Aykbourn's Ernie's Incredible Illucinations, and Mr Fitch, the Borough Surveyor, in Albert's Bridge. I recall Tony being a huge fan of Tom Stoppard's work. The events following Fitch's flawed transition-planning from old to new paint systems, were even the basis for a couple of real-world discussions related to computer software changes, decades later.
I also tried my hand at drama, briefly, in my first year at university, as an ant in The Insect Play. But my lifetime peak and triumph was at CBS, playing the dead body in The Real Inspector Hound, which was also by Stoppard. It was performed in the round, which meant I had to lie on the hall floor, absolutely still and breathing as shallowly as possible. That was before the audience arrived until after the final bow. Unforgettable - for me at least.
OBITUARIES From John Offord. Those who attended the school between 1958 and 1965 may remember footballer Bob Hastings. Sadly Bob passed away on Easter Sunday. Outside school, Bob was a member of The Heathens five-a-side football team. They reached the final of a competition played at Granby Halls. Team members were Eric Bann, Mel Knight, John Offord, Steve Hunt and Bob Hastings.
From Gary Archer 1971-78 Matthew Biggs passed away July 2026, aged sixty five. He presented BBC Gardeners' Question Time. I'm pretty sure he was in the same year as me, but did not stay on for the sixth form.
Dennis J Duggan (1959-64)