tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.comments2023-05-07T13:10:45.275+01:00IF NOT DUFFERS...Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-69770880411656205302010-07-31T15:09:08.320+01:002010-07-31T15:09:08.320+01:00OK. I have taken the first steps in creating the H...OK. I have taken the first steps in creating the Huyton Hill blog as discussed above.<br /><br />1) I have set up a blog called simply <a href="http://www.huytonhill.wordpress.com" rel="nofollow"><em>Huyton Hill</em></a> at the following URL: http://www.huytonhill.wordpress.com<br /><br />2) I have created an account for John Mott to allow him to post articles directly. (John I am sending you a Jockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16439014066125609258noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-54640250001981242052010-07-30T09:01:36.487+01:002010-07-30T09:01:36.487+01:00Edward, Thank you so much for your memories. You a...Edward, Thank you so much for your memories. You are that bit younger than me. "GVB" was a fixture in my life and certainly a great influence for good. Looking back, he was possibly the nearest to a role model I had at that time, my own father being posted overseas seemingly endlessly. I must have gone back to the school at the end of the sixties because I came away with a couple of John Motthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14159822725396228376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-12422276285227339802010-07-29T20:09:50.898+01:002010-07-29T20:09:50.898+01:0028/7/2010 Part 2
I remember playing ‘Commandoes’ ...28/7/2010 Part 2<br /><br />I remember playing ‘Commandoes’ in Wray field. I remember ‘Estate work’, and weekly summer bike rides and ‘expeditions’… Can you imagine it: scaling Dollywagon, Helvellyn, many of the Langdale pikes and eventually Scafell Pike itself – at the age of 12 and 13, and wearing only shorts, tee shirt, ‘Lumber jacket’ and plimsolls!!<br /><br />In contrast, an incredible Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-73320875427260399142010-07-29T09:58:07.428+01:002010-07-29T09:58:07.428+01:00I would be willing to help with a separate blog de...I would be willing to help with a separate blog dedicated to Huyton Hill. I can be reached through viaction.com.John Motthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14159822725396228376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-65666838845182068292010-07-29T09:55:42.432+01:002010-07-29T09:55:42.432+01:00Pleased and surprised to receive more comments on ...Pleased and surprised to receive more comments on "If not duffers" and I have to agree with Jock that a separate blog dedicated to Huyton Hill School would be a good idea. I was so naive as a boy that I never connected the Arthur Ransom stories I read with the school itself! I am interested in tracking down people who remember my era and so am willing to help with a blog, bearing in John Motthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14159822725396228376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-38681386009465727152010-07-29T06:42:46.546+01:002010-07-29T06:42:46.546+01:00I'm the moderator of the "If Not Duffers&...I'm the moderator of the "If Not Duffers" blog and I'm really pleased that the "Beckfoot Found" article has provided a place for former Huyton Hill pupils to post reminiscences of their time there.<br /><br />Its probably time to create a separate blog devoted to the school. I would be very happy to set this up if people think this might be a good idea. (It would be Jockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16439014066125609258noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-49094365831277137612010-07-28T23:03:25.176+01:002010-07-28T23:03:25.176+01:00Well, I think it has been a couple of months since...Well, I think it has been a couple of months since I last looked at this page! As I mentioned earlier, I had stumbled across it quite by chance, in a ‘long shot’ of an attempt to find some reference to Huyton Hill School. For a few weeks after making my first contribution, I kept looking to see if there had been any further response – but no! I then really forgot about it until today, 28th July Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-23457908438470173332010-07-16T11:34:21.577+01:002010-07-16T11:34:21.577+01:00From what I can work out, I was at HH before Doug ...From what I can work out, I was at HH before Doug and Edward and I can only assume that my group were more moderate and milder. True, there was bullying - but that was endemic in all these schools in those days, but nothing sinister. I still would really like to catch up with anybody who was there between 1948 and 1953. Meanwhile, I really appreciate the corresponsence. Long may it continue. I John Motthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14159822725396228376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-67672516510102639802010-07-16T09:43:02.982+01:002010-07-16T09:43:02.982+01:00David, it is really very good to have some contact...David, it is really very good to have some contact after so many years. And while I do agree with you that dwelling on past negatives is not healthy it is somehow cathartic to know that some of your fears and mine were the same. I have certainly moved on, and consider myself to be a reasonably well-adjusted person, married with children and I have much joy in my life. So for me, no concerns in Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-78282184615830681172010-07-15T11:10:11.831+01:002010-07-15T11:10:11.831+01:00Douglas, of course you may have a point. What I pr...Douglas, of course you may have a point. What I prefer to think is that rather than a 'rose-coloured glasses' remembrance we can choose to remember the good and put the bad experiences in the same place as our reaction to war, terrorism and other ugly manifestations of humanity.<br />Who could forget Paul's cruelty, and I remember with shame going along with it for a while, in an Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-47320702078659646812010-07-14T14:00:36.456+01:002010-07-14T14:00:36.456+01:00What an extraordinary thing time is - do we really...What an extraordinary thing time is - do we really have increasingly selective memories as we age that somehow leave us with an entirely rose-coloured view of the past? I was at HH 1964-69 - and indeed it is in a spectacular setting and in retrospect the Butler brothers were remarkable. I had good friends there (my earliest "best friends" - Richard Rudkin and Chris Whitehead) and if I Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-61502054917475035802010-07-12T14:28:44.646+01:002010-07-12T14:28:44.646+01:00Isn't it strange? Despite being horribly home...Isn't it strange? Despite being horribly home-sick, such a young boy to be so many thousands of miles from home and from his parents, it is with utter joy that I remember Huyton Hill. I don't think that I have ever since been afforded a richer experience of nature, a more rewarding time of character-building, and better men who sought to guide me to manhood. Brig. Osmaston even came to Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15053647955829440480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-81121445704143039542010-07-12T13:54:23.080+01:002010-07-12T13:54:23.080+01:00I feel very moved by seeing these references to my...I feel very moved by seeing these references to my old school. So long has it seemed to disappear into the mist of times. Edward, I remember you, and I believe we are standing next to each other in a photo that Richard Rudkin has posted on 'FriendsReunited'.<br />http://www.friendsreunited.com/album.page/album?albumKey=378471&albumType=1&member_key=0&<br />If you would like toUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15053647955829440480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-60003280185542178142010-04-18T22:51:02.766+01:002010-04-18T22:51:02.766+01:00I can't believe I've stumbled across this,...I can't believe I've stumbled across this, after all these years - searching for any reference to Huyton Hill School!<br /><br />Set in the most beautiful grounds imaginable and with such spectacular views, it was a very special place indeed. I was at the school from 1962 - 1968. In the winter of 1963 we had the very hard winter. An old petrol powered water pump (fire pump) was cranked upAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-87889409116225236032010-04-03T11:25:04.500+01:002010-04-03T11:25:04.500+01:00I was at Huyton Hill School from 1948 to 1953 and ...I was at Huyton Hill School from 1948 to 1953 and read all the Swallows and Amazons books. I trespassed my way back into the school grounds in 1999 down the back drive and climbed over the gate into the woods. <br /><br />The experience was the closest I have ever come to experiencing ghosts. I could almost hear the voices of boys playing in the woods.<br /><br />I walked down the back drive to John Motthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14159822725396228376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-62675808793300622522010-01-24T13:23:44.069+00:002010-01-24T13:23:44.069+00:00There is no getting away from it, the Fawcett stor...There is no getting away from it, the Fawcett story is fascinating. It's sad in a way that if the expedition returned safely without finding the Lost City of Z, Fawcett may have been forgotten, However, with their disappearance they have in a way, been immortalized, capturing the imagination of many as to what happened to them.<br />The story, if handled correctly, will make a great film, letBen Hammotthttp://www.fawcettadventure.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-27216644626015201892009-07-10T11:32:01.799+01:002009-07-10T11:32:01.799+01:00My trail to this site was via a Radio 4 piece abou...My trail to this site was via a Radio 4 piece about Barbara Pym who went to Huyton College, in Liverpool (no connection, as far as I can gather, with Huyton Hill School, also originally based in Liverpool). I was a contemporary of Nick Aked at the school, and knew John West and Peter Royds, whose account of his experiences there I have read and enjoyed -- despite his fond memories being quite John Hargreavesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-6391807182238243562009-03-27T14:00:00.000+00:002009-03-27T14:00:00.000+00:00I would be interested to know what happened to the...I would be interested to know what happened to the sailing dinghy that the Crossley girls used.<BR/><BR/>By the way Johnathan Cape denies any knowledge of an arrangement between the Crossleys and AR to conseal their identities. <BR/><BR/>If so then why did AR do a drawing of the Swallows outside the Huyton Hill boathouse stepping across to the boathouse landing stage to take the letter from the Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-47700347938294310572009-02-20T12:11:00.000+00:002009-02-20T12:11:00.000+00:00I was also a pupil at Highton Hill with my cousin ...I was also a pupil at Highton Hill with my cousin Charles Stephen. We were there around 1944 / 46. My family lived in Huyton, near Liverpool so was v. Interested to read that this was where the school originated.<BR/>I do not remember much as senile dementia has begun to set in at age 69. What I do recall is that the school was run along military lines and that one of the two brothers who were Michael Lloyd-Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00871039537562746863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-77555809455642643092008-07-19T15:49:00.000+01:002008-07-19T15:49:00.000+01:00To someone who only knows the books and has seen p...To someone who only knows the books and has seen photos of the older Ransome, he so fits into a stereotype of a gentleman writer of improving fiction for young people that most people take its accuracy for granted. Prototypes -e.g., Kipling, Buchan, WE Johns, et al- abound. His appearance, his subject matter and many of his interests are very “establishment” at first glance. He so looks the partDominic Rivronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02618013365521035400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-8693736622149823612008-05-25T14:10:00.000+01:002008-05-25T14:10:00.000+01:00His political leanings and his interest in Russi...His political leanings and his interest in Russia never did sit too well in later decades. however, we love him for all that. I'm a member of TARS in Australia, and armed with the books advertised on this page by Roger Wardale etc am heading off to the Lake District June 1 for a glorious few days in his footsteps. If it interests you, I'm keeping a blog at /amblingaussie.blogspot.com/ of the Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-4620140842735914672008-03-24T10:44:00.000+00:002008-03-24T10:44:00.000+00:00I would probably begin from a starting point of su...I would probably begin from a starting point of suggesting that Ransome was not really trying to 'implant' political lessons in anybody's mind. He wrote stories that he himself would enjoy reading and he had plenty of theories and ideas about story-telling and how to construct a story that he wrote about in some detail. Of course, his stories are absolutely brim full of his own interests and Duncan Hallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16787646693693466048noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-38596474345181796322008-03-21T23:43:00.000+00:002008-03-21T23:43:00.000+00:00Thanks for reproducing the article! I'm going to ...Thanks for reproducing the article! I'm going to go exploring a few of the locations during this week (the beauty of college holidays!) so will be taking lots of photos and blogging any discoveries!<BR/><BR/>PS: I remember either reading or seeing something about Dick Kelsall fishing with AR and seeing a particular view of Ramp Holme (I'm guessing one rather like the photograph in this post) andDuncan Hallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16787646693693466048noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-25002338439831747432008-03-20T01:31:00.000+00:002008-03-20T01:31:00.000+00:00It seems to me that the underlying question isn't ...It seems to me that the underlying question isn't whether AR's sites can always be found as real places (which we now know they cannot). Rather it is whether they are constructs of purely existing elements, or whether AR "went up on his lines" such that there is no real world correspondence to the places.<BR/><BR/>I incline to the former view, not least because it allow for infinite discussion Dave Thewlishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07374432123018522514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28892501.post-69322824905663147992008-02-26T17:49:00.000+00:002008-02-26T17:49:00.000+00:00Contact for Peter Royds"I would be very happy to s...Contact for Peter Royds<BR/><BR/>"I would be very happy to send anyone a copy. Please write to me at 12 Drumcarrow Crescent, Strathkinness, By St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9XT. A contribution of £10 towards production cost postage would be most welcome".<BR/><BR/>Peter RoydsUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00924547590101237579noreply@blogger.com