getbracknell - Reading Evening Post

She thought I was boring, I thought she was stuck up.

But slowly,  I melted that icey exterior with my charm and wit (okay I made that up, I can’t remember how we eventually became friends but we were soon best buddies... I had a car, I think she needed a lift, it's been the same ever since.)

Jess, Nat and Sarah.

It got me thinking about the friends you make and school, and the fact that most of my close friends are still those that I hung around with in the sixth  form at Garth Hill School (please note it was still a school back then, we weren’t quite good enough to be a College at that point) .

Garth used to have a pretty bad name, only Brakenhale was a worse place to go, people down my street went as far afield as St Crispins in Wokingham to avoid the trudge to Garth everyday. (I hasten to add,  I believe it is now one of the best schools in the area, with, yes, a waiting list!)But I feel a need to defend the ‘bad’ version . I loved the place and had a fantastic time there, particularly in the sixth form with the big chief Mr Phil Edge, who taught Russian history with such a passion it was like a one man stage show.

Mark, Keeno and Michelle.

He could have taken it on the road. I should email him and suggest it. What I don’t know about Lenin, Trotsky and that scamp Stalin ain’t  worth knowing.

But what was it about sixth form? I had friends before that, different friends, but they didn’t stick, I think it was just a Garth thing?

The thing about sixth form at Garth, was that it had such a vibrant social scene, it was very small, I think in my last year there were only 30 of us, and that dwindled after they introduced AS-levels.

We had a common room and sofas, it was unheard of. I had my first girlfriend in sixth form (I’ll probably save that one for a later blog – it’s not that interesting) and I’d like to think its where a lot of what defines me as I am today happened.

On a Wednesday afternoon there were activities, you could play sport or go bowling or any number of different activities.

Frog and Dean sign the leaving book.

On a Friday night we’d all head down a pre-poncified Bridge in Park Road, it was a proper bikers'  pub then, before it became all expensive and with carpet. It’s where I had my first drunken snog.

And then there were the terrific school trips. No Science Museum, no British Musuem or trips to the Cotswolds. We did it properly, we went to Moscow, and St. Petersburg, and Berlin, and it was brilliant!

I think that’s probably enough. But everything that I am today probably started at Garth Hill School, and it’s probably why I hold such an affection for Bracknell.

So it was great to see everyone together again. Sarah came back from Nottingham, Nat left a wedding early (I’m not sure she knew where she was), Frog avoided going to Preston and Keeno popped in from over the road.

Thanks Garth!