A Coventry Kid's Tale

Chapter 8: 12 years old

Back to school the child went and at the age of twelve he went into his second year. Class 2A. this was Mr. Turners class, or Tubby Turner, the teacher was so rotund. The teacher explained on the first day that everybody must do well. Also that if, and remember the "IF" he canes anybody, it hurts him just as much as it hurts the pupil. Hardly a day went by without him canning somebody, some times the whole class. Tubby must have hurt a lot by the time he went home.

Besides liking maths, the child found he really liked TD, technical drawing. The teacher's name was Mr. Douglas, or Terrible Dougie. Now this teacher was not known for his patience. It was not unknown for him to grab a child by the scruff of his shirt and drag him over the desks until he got to the blackboard. When at the blackboard he would bang the child's head on it every time he said a word. Any child who had this treatment always hoped for a short sentence. Luckily the child who counts in this (me) never got this treatment. I was a goody goody.

While on his way home from school, walking along Raglan Street an old lady stopped him (the old lady, looking back, was about 40). She said "I have a television. I was given but it does not work. Would you like it?". The child who could not resist a bargain said "Yes please". So struggling with his new wide-screen, colour television he managed to get it home. Fighting to get it up the stairs to his bedroom he set the television up by the chimney breast. Plugging it in at first there was no picture, but with the help of his father and an aerial lead the picture came on. The television was huge but the screen was only 9 inches and the picture was "mauve", all different shades, all other televisions were black and white. The telly lasted for months but finally gave up the ghost and had to go. The child was the only one to have a telly in his bedroom, what a first!!