Recollections of an Old (but young at heart) Oswestrian, circa 1952 - EPISODE 42, A WINTER WONDERLAND... FUN AND GAMES IN THE SNOW

During the early months of 1960 snow fell heavily and often at Oswestry School, and the recent mild flurry of hail and snow reminds me just how severe winters were back in the fifties and sixties when seasons were much more clearly defined than they are today.

In those far off days, winters were long, cold, and very frosty, and it was not unusual for a layer of ice and snow to cover the quadrangle and surrounding area for weeks on end providing us with a whole new playground for physical activities such as snowballing, sliding, and sledging. Plummeting down the top paddock was a far cry from going hell for leather on a more traditional sledge down the steep road that ran alongside our bakery back home, amongst the dark satanic mills of East Lancashire, but it was a thrilling ride as groups of boys descended the hill on corrugated iron sheeting brought into school by day boys, with not everybody making it safely to the bottom.

Our private sledging track at home, with cotton mills at the bottom of the hill

The competition was to see who could get nearest to the tennis courts just beyond the laboratory.

This entailed scaling the bent-over railings that skirted the lower paddock, but eventually Stoker banned us from doing this as he deemed it too dangerous - an early example of health and safety!

The onset of bad weather also presented a challenge to our ancient, rickety heating system which was hard-pressed to supply warmth and sufficient hot water for boarders, particularly at night time, and it was often the case that by the time the seniors arrived in the bathroom at bedtime the system had run out of hot water. I was constantly taking Dai Lewis to task about this as recorded in the clip below.

Hot water at last!

Under the auspices of Tom Liddle, known to us all as 'Piddle', possibly because his duties included taking tender loving care of the dreadful open-air outdoor loos. The boiler room in winter became the focus of his attention and the general factotum certainly had his work cut out trying to keep the old boiler going to the satisfaction of Mr Williamson and boarders alike.

The antiquated pipework was bedevilled daily with airlocks which caused banging and crashing during morning lessons as the system cranked up and tried to cope with its workload. At the mid-morning and lunchtime breaks there would often be scuffles to sit on the, by now, piping hot classroom radiators until one of the Masters came and threw us all out onto the playground.

The large cast iron radiators were perfect for sitting on and frowsting during snowy conditions but, even in the harshest of weather we were unceremoniously bundled outside into the fresh air. 

Old man 'Piddle', a Worzel Gummidge look-alike character, also took care of the two school cows and was in charge of the kitchen gardens. One year he caught me relieving him of some of his prized apples and reported me to the Headmaster who gave me a few choice words accompanied by a couple of whacks with his favorite cane. When I told Stoker about it he asked me why I had done it, to which I replied, "Well Sir, it was a case of either scrumping the apples or stealing Bagwash's goosegogs, so for me it was a bit of a no-brainer!" I must have caught him in a good mood because, to my surprise, he told me to be more careful next time.

Bagwash's goosegogs just over the wall!

The arrival of heavy snowfalls gave impetus to more competition at School House as groups of boys strove to build the biggest and best snowman or giant snowball, and there was constant snowball fighting on the quadrangle.

It was inevitable that one of our Masters would, either accidentally or on purpose, become caught in crossfire, and Purdy (J F Tilley) was an irresistible target as he cycled daily into the firing line on the playground at the end of his morning ride from nearby Whittington.

One day, receiving a direct hit in the face, he tumbled from his bike onto the snow and shook his fist at us angrily. Arriving somewhat flustered in the Masters' common room, he told Stoker that he thought that it was me, or my kid brother Bernard, who was at the other end of the projectile! Possibly he could have been right, but we were both, as usual, immediate suspects and unfairly in the spotlight again It would not be for the last time as I will explain in my next episode.

From time to time Dai Lewis would lead members of School House on Sunday afternoon walks, and my favourite was to nearby Llanforda Wood, especially when snow lay on the ground. A myriad of shallow ponds, frozen in the icy grip of winter, provided the ideal setting for boys to slide and go skating on the frozen surfaces, and occasionally someone would fall through the ice. There was never any danger of loss of life as the ponds were only a few feet deep, but the recipient of this icy shock would have had an uncomfortable time for the rest of the afternoon until he was able to thaw out back at School House, boiler permitting, after a chilly afternoon in the woods.

It truly was a picturesque Winter Wonderland and an adventure playground for us all.