I attended Hookergate from 1954 - 1960 it was then a Grammar School. How I enjoyed the life.
There was a tuck shop at the end of the road which we frequented every morning after getting off the School Bus. We were often late as someone had just put the latest hit on the juke-box which no one wanted to miss. Usually either Miss Rossi the headmistress or a form teacher would be waiting at the gates and everyone got "lines"
We had a good rapour with the staff and I can remember crying like a baby the day I left.
I was in the school choir with Mr. Walton and can still recall singing on speech day.
The drama group performed "the Mikkado" and for art lesson the next week we had to do a painting on the subject for Mr. Bates.
"HAPPY DAYS"

Cheers to you all Celia

i was at Hookergate from 1950-56
the comments from Celia about the tuckshop brought back memories of the annual cross-country
we used to run through the woods near the tuckshop, i can remember some that used to leave the route and cut across the woods and then wait in the tuckshop until the leaders had gone past, when the sports teacher got wise to this he used to wait in the woods and throw logs at us
another memory was when the local foxhunt came into the school yard chasing the fox, it was caught by the dogs and killed, the story was in the national newspapers

regards
Brian

I was there from 1957-1964 and loved every second. The staff were fantastic - "Gaff" Elias, Doc White, Ma White, Biffer and Basher Bates, Miss Rossi, Mr Oyston, Mr Oley, Mr Walton, Mr Soulsby, Miss Lunn, Mr Johnson, Mr Milburn, Mr Penna, Miss Andrews, Mr Miller, Miss Wilson, Miss Gordon, Mr Bramley, Mr Gatoff, Mr Hill, Mr Aitken, "Punk" Errington, Mr Fairbairn, Miss Veitch .... even the head, Mr Fawcett. Most of them gone - but never forgotten as long as we survive.

And the tuck shop with its juke box. Memories of happy lunchtimes listening to Little Richard, Buddy Holly Chuck Berry, Elvis, Big Bopper etc - until Miss Rossi put the place out of bounds. We were devastated.

Outside toilets of course - useful for us smokers, as were the foundations of the never-completed gymnasium at the back of the school.

School meals served in the dining hall which I believe is now the library. I loved those meals, especially the puddings - spotty dick, rice with raisins, tapioca. Yum!

School shows - alternating between Shakespearean comedies and Gilbert & Sullivan operas. Miss Andrews and Mr Walton were the leading lights but several staff got involved.

Oh, the memories! I often take a detour just to have a glance at the old place - huge changes since my day, of course, but it will be terribly sad to see the place closed.

Good luck to everyone, staff and pupils alike. I hope everything turns out well for you.

Brian Pears (Gateshead)

I attended Hookergate from 1955 to 1962. I remember all of the teachers others have mentioned from that era: the tiny, formidable and scary Miss Rossi; Mr Walton the music teacher in the prefab extension which was so cold in the winter he'd send us on a run around the block to warm up; the ancient (it seemed so at the time) W.T.J.E. Elias. I always marvelled at the sheer number of christian name initials but never knew what any of them stood for; Doc. and Mrs White; Mr and Mrs Hassall; Mr Gatoff, who was a terrific but very stern Maths teacher, rumour had it that he'd been a refugee from Nazi Germany; the brothers 'Biffer' and 'Basher' Bates, Biffer taught art which was my forte so I saw a lot of him and he never needed to live up to his nickname, 'Basher' taught biology.
At that time there was a favourite place to explore within the school grounds, the 'foundations' I'm sure it must also have been the haunt of the teenage smokers and a place for secret boy/girl assignations. The 'foundations' had been begun shortly before WW2 and were to become a gymnasium, but had been abandoned at the outbreak of the war, and left to go back to nature in the post-war decade when there were trees growing among the masonry.
I was lucky enough eventually to go on to University, something which almost fifty percent of the population now enjoys. It may be of interest to compare how it was then. I attended a junior school where four of us passed the eleven plus examination to go to grammar school out of a class of thirty six ( I believe the average pass rate was one in four)Of the yearly intake of about ninety maybe one third stayed on into the sixth form and of that group I'd guess that maybe one half went on into higher education, though not necessarily university. The percentage then who would have gone on to higher education would have been under five percent.

Mr Archibald mentions the excessively-initialled Mr W.T.J.E. Elias. The first two names were definitely "William Thomas" and the rest possibly "James Edwin", though I'm far from certain of those. He was born in Haverfordwest on January 24th 1906, taught at Hookergate from 1932 to 1972, and died At Illingworth on March 29th 1977. Despite having four forenames, on the 1911 Census he was simply listed as "Billy".

Surprisingly, Mr Elias wasn't the only member of staff with four initials, there was also Miss V.M.C.A. Rossi. As Miss Rossi is still alive I don't dare say more.

We too heard the rumours that Mr Gatoff was an escapee from Nazi Germany, but it wasn't true - Mr Leslie Gatoff was born in Newcastle in 1920. After teaching at Hookergate he became headmaster of the prestigious Jews Free School in London, a post he held from 1973-1984. Mr Gatoff lives in retirement in London.

I attended Hookergate Grammar School between the years 1965-1970. I had been expected to pass the 11 plus, so the family were not disappointed. At Rowlands Gill Junior and Infant school, I had always shone as being one of the brightest pupils. However, once I had to compete with the brightest pupils from all the surrounding junior schools, I was not so confident!!
I met pupils from Greenside, Ryton, Crawcrook, Chopwell, High Spen and Rowlands Gill. I did not excel on the academic front, so thought I might become the class comedian, which is never a wise move!
I remember often being in trouble with the teaching staff, which is a shame, because I liked them really. I loved Miss Andrews english lessons, and I enjoyed Miss Rossi's sewing and cookery classes, though a lot of people were terrified of her, she had a wicked sense of humour!! I was a little terrified of Dr. White during French lessons but always found Mr. Elias to be quite an austere but gentle soul. Mr Bumstead taught history, Mr Penna taught maths. I remember most of the old staff, including 'Biff' and 'Bash' Bates. They both seemed very sweet too, but maybe in their younger days they had been more terrifying, age and wisdom may have mellowed them, as it has me!
Now I am a full time theatre nurse at the RVI, and at last I have got around to doing my degree. I could have made my life so much easier, if I had stuck in at school,and would probably be retiring by now!
My daughter attended Hookergate Secondary School between1986-1991 and now my grandson is in the first year there.
It seems a shame that this will be the last generation to attend the school. It is such a beautiful setting and I loved the courtyards, looking out at the apple trees, the walk back home from school down through Highfield, stopping off at the shop for a quarter of 'sour apples'! Happy Days!