1983

I was going to The Dukes the week before Christmas for some “work experience”

It was all arranged… except it wasn’t because my mum and myself had not told school I was going.

I’d been to Nicholson’s for a fortnight the previous August and didn’t expect any problems, The Duke had already offered me a job and at the time I had to tell him I’d still got a year left at school.

The only difference was that in August it was the middle of the Summer holidays and I hadn’t need to ask if I could come out of school early (and I never mentioned it to the Educators when I returned either) but at Christmas I wanted the last couple of days off school to go down to Cotswold House Racing Stables.

My mum sent me off to school with the letter saying that I was not going in for the last two days of term because I was going for “work experience” at The Duke’s.

At this time in 1983 I was at Noble Street, the old part of Adams School. My classroom was the one on the ground floor right corner as you look at the old building from the street.

I went to Mr Burrows office, knocked on the door, he answered and I told him what I wanted, that I was going to The Duke’s for “work experience” and my mum was giving me permission to have the last couple of days off term to go down to Gloucestershire.

Mr Burrows was not very pleased saying “You are meant to arrange work experience through school and your Mother can’t just give you time off school”.

Then I told him I’d already been once before for a fortnight, at which point he really was not pleased and the situation was escalated because he fetched Mr Mills who despised all school kids, especially the 5th years.

They got on the phone to my mum and The Duke to find out what my work experience involved and were told things such as mucking out, riding horses, grooming horses, living in the lads hostel but I dare say having nothing to eat and getting bollocked regularly were probably left out.

Actually, on this occasion I didn’t stay in the lads hostel instead I lodged with Mark Pitman at The Coach and Horses Pub in Longborough which was a result because I got an evening meal thrown in.

Anyhow, Mr’s Burrows and Mills eventually agreed I could have the last couple of days off term but it was work experience they had some knowledge of and this time they sent me with a report form The Duke had to fill in to be handed back to the two teachers when I returned in the New Year.

I went to The Duke’s for Christmas and he did my report with a one word answer “Good”.

Moral of this story is this

“If you tell too many people what you are doing you run the risk of nothing getting done… Keep your mouth shut!”