Author Topic: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich  (Read 54493 times)

Guyfawkes

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Any one out there attend this school (now St Monica's)
I was one of the first intakes into the school when it opened in 66, ironically i live now in Bury and pass the site quite often and always laugh when i think of the days we went swimming at Heaton Park Boating Lake, tried to get a drink at the Ostrich Pub next door, and tried to board the train into Manchester without paying. The headmaster was a Mr Hermolle (his daughter Sarah was always at the school teasing the hormonal lads), deputy head Mr Walker was incredibly strict, but i hasten to add fair.
Any memories guys?????

"Wake up Maggie, I think I've got something to say to you"

St Chads

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #1 on: 12:01:53, 04/06/12 »
No Guyfawkes...but i do remember the boating lake and the park .. O0 .   
" Life calls the tune , we dance ".

JOHN GALSWORTHY,

flynnt

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #2 on: 16:57:16, 03/07/12 »
Hi Guyfawkes,
 
I attended St Peter's from 1966 - 1969,I certainly remember Mr Walker and Hermolle the headmaster, we arrived from St Anthony's in Moston we had to wait until the 2nd/3rd year to go to St Peters because it was'nt ready.
 
I remember Mr Levaggi the science teacher used to sell ice creamin the summer holidays,when I was there Mr Slade was the RI teacher, Mr sandiford was the Spanish teacher, also we had Miss Walker (Geography) and Miss Cadogan (English).
 
Remember going running in Heaton park and skiving off to the cafe for a cup of coffee and cheese on toast and getting caught by the sports master,(His name escapes me now but his brother taught history ).
 
I have some class photos , i will try and post. Tony Flynn.

Guyfawkes

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #3 on: 17:55:09, 03/07/12 »
Please post the photo's I have never seen any for 40 years and it will be fun to laugh at them.
I don't recall you Tony but a few other names that spring to mind are, Tony Dibley, Victor Snelius, Steven Cawley, Sean McGowan, and Gary Pilkington.
The sports teacher incidentally was Mr Mallilieu who is still there at St Monicas as  a part time " youth employment officer" he is the one who attends paces of work that the pupils go to for work experience to " check out the Health Safety issues".
The reason I know that is I was in charge of a call centre when one of the staff members asked coud their daughter do work experience and 2 weeks later he appeared and once he had met me he knew me and we had a good laugh.
Please do try and post the photos. Thanks Nigel Cole
"Wake up Maggie, I think I've got something to say to you"

flynnt

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #4 on: 15:16:16, 12/07/12 »
Hi Guyfawkes,
 
I am on holiday until 23/07/2012, whe I get back I will look for class pics and post.

Collegiateboy

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #5 on: 13:17:18, 19/10/12 »
I was there in 1966/9. In was in 4S Science, 4T Technical was for the dummies. Most of the boys were from a wide area of Manchester,Moston Wythenshaw, Buxton,Salford not many locals. Despite the uniforms it was rough place with lots of fights and some boys arrested by police.  I was the late prefect taking the names of latecomers. We used to play football in courtyards at breaktime. The dinners were good. While most of the teachers were good some were not too good and rude like Hopkinson, Levaggi and Roach, so I could not wait to get out. The football team always lost.  During history we were China would be the superpower. We did get a school picture taken. There used to be a fun fair in Heaton Park. Ms Walker married the French Teacher from France. Walker gave a caning once for no good reason

Wimmyjully

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #6 on: 20:33:36, 04/11/12 »
Attended st Pete's 71-75, not many good memories but remember levaggi (big nose), mallellue (liked to use the slipper way too much), sandiford (Spanish) and manchado (Spanish and Russian)-  good teachers. Was in Owen (swots) - most of the bad boys were in dalton and Vaughn - was it Nature or nurture? Had the [censored] knocked out of me on the rugby pitch and the schoolyard more than once - good character building stuff. Great party scene in 4th year hooking up with the bury grammar girls - since I was from salford, they were 'posh'. Have lived & worked outside uk since late 80's but still appreciate what the uk education system gave me. Missed all the reunions - anyone from the 'class of 75' ?

endsord

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #7 on: 12:58:30, 22/12/12 »
Hello Guyfawkes, i too was at St peters from 66 onwards and remember Mr walker and Levaggi especially (the blackboard duster as a weapon, cant believe he never actually hurt anyone) I did get into and was served in the pub... a habit i still try to continue.. As for heaton park, loved all the skiving during cross country...
 
Flynnt, i would love to see the photoes, please post
Best regards
Dave
 

geoffjarvis

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #8 on: 11:57:42, 22/02/13 »
I was at St Peters from September 1967 to December 1972, one of the 120 boys in the 2nd intake; it proved to be a good start in life for me and I relish the memories that the guys above have related


What about those Hopkins brothers?  There was the short intense guy who taught history (very well, as I remember) and the taller PE teacher who introduced us to adidas training shoes as an alternative to pumps



I Followed Dick Whittington's footsteps and found the streets of London paved with gold...

Barbarian

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #9 on: 14:52:13, 30/11/13 »
Absolutely amazing, I was there between 1974 & 79.  I remember Levaggi, Hopkins, Stanthorpe (who always tried to teach me how to use a chisel correctly), Hopkins always bemoaning the use of the strap & detention and only did it because it was his duty, Walker who nearly put his back out jumping up when he strapped us and Issiah who always made you dread physics.  I also remember Slade who taught RE and liked using the slipper (I remember he had a pet name for it but I can't remember what it was).  I was one of the nasty pasties in Dalton, I remember spending time being punished for most things but I also remember going for cross country through Heaton Park, where I picked smoking as a nasty habit, during winter I remember volunteering to go to Nazareth House (behind St Petes) during games so I could stay warm (Fr - cant remember his name but he always looked a bit wet to me) thought it was a good idea until he found out that most of us who went there and were smoking with the residents (one or two even got some whiskey off them).

Anybody else out there remember then, give me a line...



2nd Skin

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #10 on: 09:47:16, 07/12/13 »
Class of 74 myself. I remember most of the teachers mentioned above. Hopkins in particular stands out because  he was a snidey little [censored] and made my life a misery.
Terry McGarry.

2nd Skin

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #11 on: 09:53:37, 07/12/13 »
Some more names from memory, Openshaw (history), Lynch (maths), Bradley (history), Cummins (Geography), Mulligan (Art). Does anybody remember the 'Mini Mafia' ?....extortion and violence.
St Peters.....so much to answer for...


Barbarian

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #12 on: 19:42:57, 15/01/14 »
Wow! I thought Lynch did music (mind you he never stopped going on about being on Mastermind - even if he came second! but I have to give it to him he was a clever [censored] all round) Hopkins was a complete git! ('nuff said), I remember the rumours of the mafia because I started the year that most of you left, being the class of '79 (but what a time that was - I was THE FIRST kid to get [censored] for wearing DM's one week and the desert docs the next (just to annoy Hopkins & Isaiah) - sorry I spelt it wrong in my last blog. 
I remember being the king of the forged letter and then one day when my mum actually gave me a letter to excuse me from something, Hopkins gave me the strap because he said it was a forgery.  Sorry to say that Mulligan had a heart attack in school and died (I think it was half way through one of his 'ripping your arms off and beating you to death with the soggy end' speeches), was Bradley the teacher who was preoccupied with accurately showing the defensive positions of both sides during the Somme, or the other pillock who always showed England as a triangle and then gave you detention for 'over simplifying'.  All in all I think I became Hopkins new hobby after you Terry, along with a generous portion of Slade and Isaiah.

Dalton was definately the land of the wrecking crew and Vaughn the land of the snob, Chadwick sort of did nothing but were good at sports generally but Owens were always the ones who thought about things so they deflected blame quickly (a bit like Griffindor!!)

Bill lucas

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #13 on: 20:48:35, 16/01/14 »
I was at St Peters from September 1967 to December 1972, one of the 120 boys in the 2nd intake; it proved to be a good start in life for me and I relish the memories that the guys above have related


What about those Hopkins brothers?  There was the short intense guy who taught history (very well, as I remember) and the taller PE teacher who introduced us to adidas training shoes as an alternative to pumps



I Followed Dick Whittington's footsteps and found the streets of London paved with gold...

Peter Coxhead

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Re: St Peters R/C Grammar school, Bury old Road, Prestwich
« Reply #14 on: 08:03:58, 20/02/14 »
I was there from 69 to 74 and remember vividly the mentors good and bad.

Mr Hopkins - certainly up there with the bad guys, along with Mrs Manchado and others.

The good guys I will remember for ever, particularly Mike Healy the head of the music department and a legend when it came to lunchtime jamming sessions in the music room.

I recall the day we all 'went on strike'.

It lasted for about ten minutes.

I don't think many of the teaching staff held out much hope for me, but I have managed to do alright for myself.

Mr. Hermolle was superseded by 'Joss' McGuire, who bore more than a passing resemblance to Van der Valk.

I remember Isaiah, who I always found amiable enough, and Mr Levaggi, who was eccentric enough!

The biggest scandal during my time was when Miss Heslop had a thing with Rob Eli who was a VI form pupil. I later met a teacher,who was in Sheffield at the time, who had come across the pair, still together!

I read recently that Andrew Boardman, who would have left in 1975, was brutally murdered near Blackpool, where he lived and worked as a baker. He was an OK guy who wouldn't harm a living thing and ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time. God rest his soul.

I escaped Manchester 24 years ago and live in Shropshire. Happily married for 34 years and four fantastic children. We also have a house in Devon, a BMW and a Merc. So, to all the teachers who thought I would come to nothing: Yah Boo Sucks to you.