Bob Tame's unofficial web site for:

Wolverhampton Municipal Grammar School- Old Pupils Association

Direct links to other parts of this site:

There is an 'Official' WMGS Old Pupils web site (http://www.muni-grammar.org.uk/), however I will continue to keep information updated on this site, especially for pupils from my era (Late 50's early 60's). I have decided to expand my memories page with memories sent by others, as and when I can find the time.

If you are not already a member, why not consider joining the Old Pupils Association? It only costs £8 per year and more details are given on the official site.
Link to Application form.

News & Recent contacts.

Aug 4th 2010 .... Email from John Mills: Bob. I have just discovered your site(s). Quite a lot of nostalgia. I joined the school in 1959 from Warstones Infants School. I am the very small boy 6 in on the front row (Sect 3 of the 'photo). The boy to the left of me is I think John Holland, the other I cant recall. I left the school in 1965 (resits) and fully retired this year after a long and fairly successful local government career.This involved me moving about a fair bit so I havn't still got many wolves contacts. I remember going to Fox's Lane scrap yard with Mick Brown getting bits for his old MG's whilst I spotted locos on Stafford Road shed. Winter pe at Dunstall Park still brings back chilling memories although I subsequently became a competive club runner including cross country. One of the names on your pages is Brian Bullock who, I think, was in my class. The references to teachers, Douell of course, Nixon and Rachel Heyhoe, who taught me English. She used to tell us jokes in class which I think were quite risque. It is difficult to believe it all finished 45 years ago. The last 7years following redundancy from Staffordshire Moorlands DC in 2003 (a new CE with whom I didn't get on !) has been largely interim and consultancy work, including observing overseas election missions, mostly in the former Yugoslavia. I live in the Staffordshire Moorlands and am an active walker and occasional climber/caver. Other interests include narrow boats and Land Rovers. Please feel free to put this on your site and I would be glad to hear any reflections from people who remember me. Regards, John Mills

December 15th 2009 .... I remember today would have been the 60th Birthday of Elaine Brindley, Elaine Hill as she was when at the Muni, from 1961 to 1968, had she not died in 1998 at the early age of 49 after contracting breast cancer. RIP Elaine, a good friend.

June 2009 .... I received an Email from David Delany, who some of you may know, reproduced below:

Hello Bob, I have to tell you how pleased I am to have discovered your web pages today. You see, I am a railway enthusiast, my father was in REMO, I went to the Muni and I love Llangrannog. I was at the Muni from Sept 1962 (I think) until July 1969. Certainly I am in the 1963 photo on your site, .....thats me, last on the right in the front row (the smallest boy in the school). I have had a fabulous morning reading the comments about the teachers I knew but have not thought about for years. I can still remember the boy's half of our register: Allen, Alton, Beaseley, Bonner, Brittain, Clamp, Dams, Darby, Delany, Gorman, Howell, Hutchisson, Morton, Rogers, Swain. I can't remember many of the girls names sadly, although I recognize Gillian Horton (did I really put a spare cows eye in her satchel during a biology practical or was that another girl?). By the time of A levels, Christine Peters was in my class and a great friend. Looking at the sports photos, I see Roger Williams in the first fifteen, Roger is still in the area and has been my Dentist since he qualified. Memories of freezing on the racecourse are a link to an interest in railways, a few of us would scan the adjacent Oxley shed for anything interesting noted during games so that we could go back later for a closer look.

May 2009....I will not now be organising an official reunion for the 1959 year group as I have not had any contact from any other members of the year group for quite a long while. I also have a number of other committments and now live 200 miles away from Wolverhampton. If any of the 1959 intake ever visit Torbay and want to meet up then email me to see if we can arrange a meeting.

May 2009....I notice there is now a forum on the official WMGS site where users can post articles, check it out if you are interested. by clicking here

Feb 2009....Geoff Cook, my cousin who was at the school from 1956-61 was in a local Pop Group, some details of his pop career are to be found by clicking here

May 2008....Ian Hemsley recently informed me that Yvonne Miles ('A' stream when she was at Muni) has recently passed away. Yvonne sent the picture of the Hockey team on my pictures page and was remembered in reminiscences of Marie Lou Howes.

April 2008....I have now left Northampton, where I have lived for last 20 years and have retired to Paignton, South Devon.

Jan 2008....I have discovered there is now a facebook group for the WMGS at Facebook. I have joined it but not everyone will like facebook so I don't recommend joining unless you are interested in Facebook.

Nov 2007....Bill Griffiths has contacted me recently to see if we can generate any interest in a reunion of the 1959 Intake.. please contact me if you would be interested! I have about 30 contacts so far.

Nov 2007....Here's an email received recently from Wendy (1957 Intake).

Hi

I've only just discovered the website! Whilst at Muni I was Wendy Cashmore (or Aggie 4 eyes thanks to Trevor Creed, who'd carried it over from St Luke's School. - Thanks Mate!)

I now live in Wales and am shortly moving to Crete.

I well remember leaving at the end of year 4, when Mr Douell, wrote on my report, "that I'd be lucky to get a job in Woolworths, if I didn't come back to do O levels. Several years later I was introduced to him at a teachers' meeting, when I was Head of Business Studies at Parkfield School. He bought both Lynne Evans and I a drink and Tony Steele told us that was a first!

Best wishes to everyone. I'm joining OP assn so that I can keep in touch.

Wendy Rees (nee Cashmore)

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As this page is now growing and has been in existence for a while I have moved some of the earlier material to an archive page, which you can get to from the bottom of this section.

June 2006:

I did submit an article for the spring newsletter but as usual I was too late, my personal view was they had enough material and printed it three days early. Still, It might get into the Autumn Newsletter.

Also likely to make it into the Autumn Newsletter will be some correspondence I have had from Clive Pearson, a pupil from 1945-1951, now a retired consultant, living in Australia. He found my web site while doing a search of the internet for DG Outlaw!! and he has added to my memories of the teachers we all knew and loved (or did not get on with!)

February 2006:

After sending the email below, Brian has very kindly written to me with a few more names for the sports teams, some of which he was in during his time at the school, You find them by clicking here or on the Sports pics button above.

Email received from Brian Bullock:

Hi Bob, long time no see. Found your WMGS site the other day, most interesting. I can certainly help out with additional names for the Rugby and Cricket teams,It was really uncanny seeing all those ugly mugs starring at me from a computer screen. I will keep this fairly short as I am not a whizz kid with a key board. Was it really nearly 47 years ago since that Sept. 59 intake. I have a few items that may be of interest for the newsletter relating to our intake. I now live in beautiful South Devon on the edge Dartmoor National Park where I have business interests. I also commute between here and Townsville in tropical North Queensland where my wife has a nursing post.  I have led, to put it mildly, a colourful and adventurous life, and may be of interest to those who remember me. I am afraid that I was not one of the academics of our intake. I think I spent most of my latter school years either playing sport or in detention. However some 10 years later I did manage to end up with 7 GCE O Levels. Anyway this one finger typing is taking me forever so I will get back to you at a later date.

Footnote Oct 2007: Brian advises me he is emigrating to Australia soon.    

Best Wishes to yourself and anyone else out there who remembers me. 

Regards Brian B.   Formerly 1C,2C,3D,4D,5D. Sept. 1959 to July 1964.

August 2005: Keith Barnett (1957-62) was wondering if anyone knew which WMGS ex-pupil lives the furthest away from Wolverhampton. He'd like to nominate Michael Baker who lives near Palmerstone North in the central area of the North Island in New Zealand. It would be interesting to hear of any other ex-pupils living further away. Email to (Keith is in West Auckland [the New Zealand one not the County Durham one] so he is one of the most faraway ex pupils.

May 2005: After 40 years since we last met, I met up with Haydn Jones for a meal and a chat. He is Director of Intellectual Property for a company based near Towcester and lives near Reading. He lent me a few old school magazines and photos, some of which may appear here at a future date.

April 2005: The AGM and annual luncheon was held at Whittington Hotel on 17th April 2005

February 2005: I have learnt that the 1955 intake will be meeting up for a 50th anniversary celebration in the Major Buckley Suite at Molineux on Saturday October 8th 2005.

February 2005: I was rather confused when I received my WMGSOPA newsletter today, to find an article in it that I wrote for the Spring 2002 newsletter. I have no idea how it got into the current newsletter as some of the information in there is now three years out of date.

I was very pleased this morning to get a phone call from Lou Crow (Marie Louise Howes when she was at school). She is really pleased to have re-established contact with Kathryn Jones, as a result of the advert I put on this site and they are planning to meet up later this year.

• November 2004: One of the County sprint relay team (See photo pages) was Alan Jones. I have particular reason to remember him as he was the reason I met my wife, Glynis, when he suggested we go to dance with her and her friend at a dance one Saturday night in 1966. I lost touch with Alan after that as he went away to University and I got involved in other things, but decided I ought to find him again in case he is interested in any future reunions. I have managed to track him down in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, and he would be interested if the '59 group do get together again, so I now have contact details should anyone elso wish to contact him.
  
  
• The 2004 Christmas dinner was held at the Ely House Hotel on Friday 26th November. The Speaker was Trevor Genge with a talk entitled 'Black Country Humour'.  

• August 2004  - John Liptrot contacted me to say he was the unfortunate lad who broke his collarbone on a frozen Rugby pitch at Dunstall Park - See my memories page.

• June 2004  - Gillian Banks (Gillian Horton - 1962-69) is trying to contact members of her year group (1962 intake) especially the girls who are more difficult to locate. To save her from receiving loads of junk Mail, you can contact her throu my email address.

• June 2004  - Around 20 members of the 1959 intake met up for a reunion in W'ton organised by Phil Evans and Mike Body. Although I was not there I hope to be able to add pictures shortly.
  
  It was agreed that if there was enough interest, a further reunion should be held in 2005. A proposed date of October 1st 2005 has been suggested, so If you were in the 1959 intake (Taking 'O' levels in 1964 and 'A 'levels in 1966) please keep this day free.
  Anyone who wants to help organise this should contact me.
  
  Update Nov 2004 - If there is a second reunion of the year group on Oct 1st 2005 I will unfortunately not be able to attend - Despite all my efforts to keep the day clear, my eldest daughter has decided to get married that day and wants me to give her away. I think rushing off to Wolverhampton after the event may not be an option!!

• May 2004  - I am pleased to have another new contact from the 1959 intake this month, at School she was Marie Louise Howes, you'll find her on the hockey picture on my Other Photos page. -She is now Lou Crow and is planning to attend the Re-union in June. She would like to know the whereabouts of Kathryn Jones, who married Adrian Barlow from the 1960 intake, So if anyone can help let me know and I'll pass your message on to her. (Email) Update Nov 2004: Son in Law of Adrian and Kathryn has somehow found this page and Marie and Kathryn have been put back in touch with each other.
  
  John Williams (1960 - 1967) sent me some names for some of the sports pictures and a few more teachers names. John also tells me his twin brother David was at the school from 1960-65.
   
  
• April 2004 - Phil Evans planned a re-union of interested members of the 1959 intake this June.
  The proposed date was June 19th from 1pm onwards and the location was the Great Western Pub, near the junction of Sun Street, Bailey Street and Corn Hill in W'ton. The venue was handy for both railway and bus stations for anyone who wanted to avoid driving. The pub has won several CAMRA awards and has bar snacks and Sandwiches available. Mike Body and Phil did a dry run (in a pub?), and decided the venue was suitable. Unfortunately I couldn't make this event so I am hoping it can be repeated at some time. If you need any more details email me and I'll pass it on to Phil.
  
  
• January 17th 2004 - Thanks to Haydn Jones for a picture of Michael (bogs) Potter at the long jump. which I have put on the other photos page.
  
  

• December 28th 2003 - I'm just recovering the computer from a major crash and the first mail I received is from Mr Cleeton - Maths and Physics teacher at the school from 1959 to 1961. Surprisingly enough he's still teaching, at the age of 69, in Buffalo, New York. He would like to know what happenned to Mr Darby- does anyone know? He used to call us "you fools" according to Phil Smith's article
  
  
  

• December 3rd 2003. I meet up with John Bennett, a colleague from my year at School, after 39 years. I recognised him as well! Realising we lived within 10 miles of each other in Northants, we recently got in touch and arranged to go out for an evening meal at a local hostelry where we reminisced over old times. As well as being in the 'A' stream, John was very good at sport when at School, and was in the school Cricket and Rugby Teams as well as the school athletics team. As a result he has pictures of all these teams which I have borrowed and added to the site. We cannot remember all the names on the pictures, so help from pupils of our era will be appreciated in adding names to faces.  Ian Hemsley has already supplied me with a number of the names from the cricket teams.
  
  
  

• Thanks to Lynda Chugg (Lynda Roper when at school) for passing me contact details for Gill Hartley - Gill is now in New Zealand!  I wanted to know because Gill's pictures are on the Teachers page and she was not aware of this. She is now, as I have written to her and she has given me her permission to keep them there. Thank you, Gillian. I have now found out Gillian's mother lives about ten doors away from my mother in Wolverhampton!
  
  

• 14th June 2003 - Memorabilia day and AGM at the school, and I finally catch up with three other members of my year group. Philip Smith, Bill Griffiths and David McSorley all return to the school, and we are caught on camera by my sister Dorothy.

  
  

  

  From L to R Philip Smith, Bill Griffiths,Bob Tame, David McSorley.
  
  

• More pictures of the Memorabilia Day
  
  

• Archived content

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• Other contacts I have had include Dave (Graham) Barnham,  Howard (Horace) Bampfield, (1961-68, now living in Colorado, USA) , Geoff Dillow, David McSorley (1959-66), Malcolm Grosvenor, (1959-64), now running a PR company in Kingston On Thames but still drawn back to W'ton regularly to watch the Wolves (good man),  Mike Tatem, (1961-68), working in UK for an Austrian Company, Ingrid Ault (1960-65), Lyn Darby (1965-73), Christine Evans (Price) 1951-56 and Steve Williams (now Derry, 1969-74).
  
  
• Dave Barnham used his second name at School where he was known as Graham Barnham. Come to think of it, I called myself Robert at School, but only my mother calls me that nowadays.  Dave reminded me that John Stevenson, being a big lad even at the age of 11, was one of the only two boys who started at the Muni in long trousers (The other was Robert Howes). The rest of us started in short trousers and had to put up with them until second year in most cases. And we all wore our caps all the time, of course, didn't we?
  
  
• Contacts I had last year included Haydn Jones (from my class of '64), Paul Wakefield and Barbara Knight (nee Hockey) . Paul is teaching at a school in Rochdale and sings in Manchester Cathedral Choir (as does David W Solomons (1965-72). Paul was trying to contact John Stubbs and Mike Butler. Barbara is in 'admin' at a school in Wiltshire and likes Scuba Diving - she has been in contact with Des Whitehouse through the guestbook on this site.
  
  
  Haydn sent me a few memories - the fog being so thick that it got in the hall and caused the trolley buses to stop running at 3.00pm, having to walk home to Penn as a result. He remembers the old bus we used to go to Dunstall park for games and being soaking wet when we got back on it to come back to school, (I think we all remember those buses!) Haydn was also involved with Iolanthe, Pirates of Penzance etc... I'll try to fit them in this site somewhere at a later date.
  
  
  
• David Solomons has a website at http://www.dwsolo.com  so visit him there if you want to find out what he's up to now. He sent me a few pictures and cartoons drawn by a classmate which I am gradually adding to the site. (See the teachers page)
  
  

• I have now located twenty one colleagues from the 1959 intake, Alan Jones, Lou Crow (Marie Lou Howes) Mike Body, John Bennett, Dave Barnham, Geoff Dillow, Philip Smith, David McSorley, Gloria Roome (nee Powell) Yvonne Lewis (nee Miles), John Stevenson, Andrew Turner, Mike Potter, Bill Griffiths, Ian Hemsley, Colin Gough, Tony Blake, Kathy White (nee Fowler), Haydn Jones, Malcolm Grosvenor and Ian Gutridge. Yvonne is aware that Lesley Watkins is in Sicily and I'm told John Stubbs is now teaching history in Stafford. If anyone else out there remembers any of us please get in touch. I know John Owen is out there somewhere as Mike Potter brought him to a re-union dinner once.
  
  

• Quite a large number of Ex-Pupils have now registered at the web site: www.friendsreunited.co.uk. Why not pay it a visit. (Don't forget to come back)
  
  

• Do you remember the School Musical Productions - See HMS Pinafore below. A number of pupils also played in the inter-schools orchestra and a picture (1972) may follow later. My Sister was involved with one or two of the G&S productions and is now a member of her local G&S society in Warrington.
  
  
  

• More Pictures
  
  

• My Memories of the Teachers (with help from classmates and other pupils)
  
  

• School Prospectus and Rules (supplied by John Bennett - 1959 intake) - Note this is the unedited 1959 prospectus.
  
  

1963 Picture - Click on a segment for a larger image

If you are not on that picture click here for a look somewhere else.

About Me, and the Old Pupils Association

I was a pupil at WMGS (The Muni) from 1959 (1C) to 1964.(5B).
I was in 'Drake' House (is that why I now play bowls?)  

My three sisters were also there as follows:-

Rosemary Tame 1961-68,  Dorothy Tame 1968-75 and  Mary Tame 1972-77.

When I joined the Old Pupils Association, I was told that I was one of the younger members. This still appears to be the case, although more younger ex-pupils have been showing an interest recently, Why not consider joining if you are not already a member? .

• Membership costs only £5 per year.
  

• Members of the Old Pupils Association receive 2 newsletters a year.
  

• They are also invited to gather for monthly coffee mornings, 10:30 to 12:00 at Quality (Goldthorn) Hotel on first Monday of the month,
  

• They usually have an annual re-union  and year groups have also had re-unions, 1949, 1955 and 1957 intake are three I am aware of. Last year's reunion took the form of a luncheon after the AGM in July, and also a Christmas dinner.
  
  

• Application form to join the WMGS Old Pupils Association
  
  

• If you were at the Muni when I was, then I'd like to hear from you. Please email me at Bob
  
  

• If you have any old photos that you would like to see on this page, please scan them in and email them to above address.
  
  

• I maintain this site in my personal webspace as a hobby. If you want to find out more about me then please visit my Homepage

1964 Production of "HMS Pinafore" (Photo supplied by Roger King)

Howard Bampfield send a story about a funny incident during a performance of this production, (Or was it during Pirates of Penzance?) see my Memories page.

There is a photo of the school on the site at the end of this link, Click here to see it.

Click on the link to read some more Memories of the Muni from Myself and others.

My last School report - Click on it to read it.         

(1959 intake) (if you can help with more names from the 1959 intake please email me)

If names do not match faces, remember it was 43 years ago when I left!

Class 5B 1964 Most of the Boys	Where are they now? Do you know?	The Girls (I can't remember all the girls)	Where are they  now?
Tony Blake	Leicestershire	Brenda Allerton	W'ton
Mike Body	W'ton	Jennifer Annely	Denby (I don't know which Denby, I'm hoping to find out soon)
Bill Griffiths	Coven	Pru Bishton
David Gough	Codsall	Stephanie Collins
Ian Gutridge	Was Solihull now Cornwall	Carol Croyden
Ian Hemsley	Kingswinford	Louise ??
Alan Jones	Berkeley, Gloucestershire	Ruth Davies
Haydn Jones	Reading, Berkshire	Lyn James	W'ton
David McSorley	Near Cannock.	Gail Pritchard
Barry Philips	Left at earliest opportunity to join the Army, could be anywhere, was a good friend at School.	Lesley Simmonds	Mold, Clwyd, Wales
Mike Potter	Nantwich, Cheshire	Gloria Tomlinson
Phil Smith	Beverley, Yorkshire	Lesley Watkins	Sicily
Bob Tame	Paignton, South Devon.	Mary Whittaker	Codsall
Phil Ward	Now near Penzance in Cornwall, previously in Southampton.	Anita Maiden
I'm sure there was one more boy !!		Josie Forrest Susan Forrester Valerie Turner Glennis January	Josie is possiby in Walsall

I also have the full list for Class 5A in 1964 supplied by Gloria Roome (nee Powell) and on that page I have started to add any other names that anyone recalls from the other classes in our year.

Famous ex-muni people:(Very short list at present)

• Ralph Banthorpe (at School circa 1960 to 66) reached the semi finals of the 200 metres at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico.  (Now a dentist in Shropshire I think)

• Rachael Heyhoe Flint (Games mistress around 1963) was an England Ladies Cricket Captain (Now a Wolves F.C. Director)

• Frances Barber (nee.Brookes) - actress (Article in Autumn 2001 Newsletter)

• Lesley Roberts - Has been a singer with the Joe Loss band - her stage name is Vivi Caan

• Billy Crook, went on to play for Wolves F.C in the winning FA Cup team 1949, and still a member of the Old Pupils Association.

• Kevin Darley (Champion flat racing Jockey 2001)
  
  
  Now we're stretching things a bit with:
• Paul Wakefield tells me he sang in Take That's backing group in 1995 (just before they split up)
  
• Rod Arnold - went on to play in goal for Wolves reserves and for many years was Mansfield Town's first choice goalkeeper. Does playing for Mansfield Town make you famous?
  
  

• Send me any others you know !!
  

LINKS to other Sites

• Springdale School (One or two of our pupils came from this school on Warstones Estate)
  
• Friends Reunited (Quite a number of ex-pupils have registered here)
  
• Official Muni Site
  
• Express and Star
  
• Roger Morton's photos from the 1968 trip to Kandresteg.
  
• Wolverhampton Community Radio Station that broadcasts from within the old School Building.
  

Web Sites owned by Ex-Pupil's

• David Solomons web site (Classical Music) or you tube
  
• Mark Lloydbottom (Accountancy)
  
• Mick Boydell (Family History)
  
• Paul Buckless (Was Bonnie the dog - now offline)
  
• Maralyn Shine (nee Windsor) (Loch Ness)
  
• Steve Purchase (Sandy, Bedfordshire)
  
• Clive Pearson (Australia)
  
• Also Clive Pearson (Australia)
  
• Martin Gaskell (Nebraska, USA)
  
• Bob Tame (My Homepage)
  
• ..
• Email to Bob Tame

Page last updated - August 4th, 2010

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