James Coakes - Chairman of the OD Society

	James's 1st day at Durlston

My life at Durlston began in the pre prep, which I remember as a very happy little school.

Our Headmistress was Margaret Vyse and she was always interested and kind whilst being suitably strict. We watched the ‘big school’ from pre prep with a mixture of interest and awe and the older larger pupils whom we occasionally saw marching around the sports fields, seemed very grown up and rather frightening.

One of the challenges of school is that as soon as you reach the heights as a member of the highest year (in which you consider yourself very wise) you are sent on to the next school where you start again in the lowest (where your best hope of survival is to keep your head down). Thus I crossed the field into the big school aged 8 and wondered what would become of me.

I have many memories of Durlston. P.Y.’s shack was the centre of life. Here we would congregate at break times swarming around P.Y. asking for tasks in return for a handful of peanuts or a bottle of Soda Stream fizzy pop. P.Y. had a wide range of different flavours and we were allowed to mix several together to make a unique concoction. It was here that I learned the important life lesson that most flavours will mix well together, but once banana is added the resulting drink will only ever taste of banana. The tasks handed out by P.Y. were to collect 200 daisies or dandelions or a bag of litter and the school grounds were always immaculate, probably more due to Aubrey’s attention than our tasks.

The School Choir

As I write, more memories flood back; the boating lake, the whole school gathering to watch the first Space Shuttle launch, Ascension Day picnic and the library where we played Top Trumps during break and hoped we would not be caught. We were supposed to spend break time outside, even during the winter and wearing those shorts. Luckily we were never caught, the teachers never suspecting that they might find errant pupils in, of all places, a library.

The school was endowed with a variety of interesting trees that made for ideal climbing. The Boom Boom tree was squat and wide and had huge plates of foliage that could be lent upon. The first branch was quite a reach for smaller boys and I remember the feeling of shame when someone correctly accused me of being unable to climb the Boom Boom tree, as well as the feeling of achievement when I first heaved myself onto the lowest branch. It was fairly easy to get to the top from there.

Jacob’s Ladder still exists. It is a fallen tree although still alive and not such an exciting or interesting climb as the Boom Boom. Still, it would occasionally be claimed as a base camp for some gang or other and become a focus of attention.

Between the pre prep and big school there was a line of very tall trees; I think they were firs of some sort. Climbing to the top of these was a real challenge and those who had reached such dizzy heights were talked of in hushed tones.

When I eventually decided to attempt this challenge it was a break time and I went alone. I thought that I might chicken out at some stage and I did not want the ignominy of a witness. I did make it to the top, or nearly at least as the branches became very thin and I was not. The next time I went up I made sure that others were present and it was a great moment of achievement.

Officially boys were not allowed to climb the trees and if one were caught one could expect a beating. However, most of the time our tree climbing antics were overlooked. Young boys should climb trees, it’s important.

James Coakes - Chairman of the OD Society