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Tony Sheridan
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Tony Sheridan
| House: |
Clive |
| Years: |
1949-1954 |
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Memories of School:
Arriving in Kenya from England on a Wednesday in September 1949, and going to PoW the next day as a boarder. The
tallest boy in Junior House and the only one not in uniform.
Jumping off the roof of the Junior dorm with Pongo Brown to show off -- probably contributed to the arthritis in my
knees now.
On the cross-country, taking a short-cut through the coffee for a smoke, then rejoining the last third of the pack
just before the tail prefect came into view.
Encouraging Baldy Lamont to tell WW1 stories — I learned a lot from them --- rather than teach French.
Reading the Hornblower books during rest taught me a lot about how to live life and enjoy reading.
Cutting a trap door in the roof of the prep room [the wooden hut on stilts across from the gym] so we could climb into
the store room next door to smoke. One evening 'Ponsonby' Powles lead a snoop for smokers, he looked under the hut,
sniffed and said; “they've been under here.” The Five of us inside [Rusty Russell, Des Bristow, Titch Faulkner, I and ?]
had a hell of a job trying not to laugh. He never found our hiding place.
Titch Newall coming into prep to tell us the King was dead. Everyone thought he was joking.
Making contact with the girls at the Convent. We had much less success than we boasted about.
At my first house dance, set my sights on the girl I wanted to dance with. When the music started, shot across the gym
floor. She looked up at me in horror, then shook her head and dissolved in giggles. Turned out she was only five feet
and I was 6 ft 6inches. But I did find a taller one later and we had a snog behind the dining room.
Buying a bottle of Cypress sherry [2/50 I think] and cans of baked beans from the duka across the road to party in the
woods below the railway lines.
Liver Sausage [he was a fine teacher] throwing a blackboard duster twenty feet to hit my knuckles for not paying
attention in his class.
Having a fight with Roger Whittaker behind the gym over something insignificant. Neither of us appeared to want to
hurt the other and we finally quit when we were both exhausted, probably from throwing too many wild punches that missed.
Hitch-hiking home on Sundays after the interminably long and, for me, boring Sunday service.
Flakey standing outside his office, tie askew, shirt collar curled up at the points, smoking his pipe and staring
intently at me [and all others] that passed at the end of morning school. Always made me feel guilty, usually for good
reason.
In the CCF, organizing small groups to walk past Mr.Nel [he must have had a nick name, but I don't remember it] because
he seemed so uncomfortable saluting back. But he was a damn good rugby coach. He turned the Clive XV from number 6 to
number 1 by having us run around the fields every morning then teaching us some Springbok moves like wheel and break.
After leaving to join the Kenya Regiment full time, Nel came back to school to give an impassioned speech on the
importance of soldiers acting honourably.
In the photos of School Teams, I am the right marker [tallest cadet] in the
pictures of the CCF in 1953. Used to deliberately stride out to make the little guys
in the middle do the splits.
Slowly moving closer to Dudu Knight when he was talking to me so he had to look up more until his upper plate came
lose and he'd splutter.
Trying to stop my knees from shaking when I had to read the lesson.
Spending a year saying "I can't wait to get out of this dump", then fighting back tears when it came time to leave.
School Friends:
P Wuz
Rusty Russell
Titch Faulkner
Martin Mathias
Mac MacDonald
Niel and Alan Blackie
Hooky Davis
After school:
Went to England in 1954 to attend University, didn't complete the extra A levels I needed to get accepted, but had a
wild time in London where I shared a flat with Alan Blackie. Didn't like the English or England much, so in 1956 decided
to try Canada and have lived in British Columbia ever since
After graduating from UBC with a Master of Social Work, worked for the provincial government for 32 years, the last
twelve in three assistant deputy minister positions for Corrections, Court Services and Aboriginal Affairs, before being
unceremoniously dumped by a new government in 1996.
After six years on the Parole Board, I retired 2003.
Now do some freelance writing and photography on sailing, my main hobby.
Occasionally play golf with Dennis Stevenson (Clive 1948–52).
Have attended a couple of reunions in Vancouver.
Married in 1960, two sons and three grand children.
Living in Victoria, B.C.
(Registered 4th August 2005)
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If anyone wishes to contact Tony, please e-mail him direct
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