Pete King continues his correspondence:
“A fellow member of a quiz team that I join once a month turned out to also be an alumnus of Chi High, so we’ve been reminiscing and comparing notes! As a consequence, I’ve been looking quite a bit at your Old Cicestrians’ website. Lots of very interesting anecdotes and information on there. For example, I had no idea that Adrian Noble was an alumnus! Theatre Royalty! A more recent shining alumnus is Tim Peake, of course, who I went to see give a talk at CFT a couple of years ago, which was fascinating.
My wife treated me to a visit to the Planetarium a couple of years ago, and that was the first time I’ve been back on the campus since leaving in 1976. Much of it is now almost unrecognisable, of course!
The year I started was 1971, the first year of the amalgamation of Chi High and the Lancs. I was in form 1W, based in the first classroom on the left as you came in the main gate, opposite the woodworking ‘shed’ if I remember correctly, and our form master was Mr Ayling (Adolf?) There was a complete mixture of abilities in that class, as there were those of us who had got there on merit (I’d passed my 11+ or equivalent, as it might have been by then, at Sidlesham Primary School. Most pupils there were destined for the Selsey Comprehensive, so myself and a small handful of others were lucky to join the amalgamated school.
I remember being a bit put out, though, when Mr Ayling reminded the class that we would have all gone to the Lancastrian School if it hadn’t been for the amalgamation. “Excuse me, Sir, but I got here on merit and would actually have gone to the Grammar School anyway!” I didn’t really say that, of course, but it was how I felt! What a snobby little brat I must have been!”