The House building - internal architecture, ground floor

The atmosphere in the school, and above all in the house, was of something grim, hard, a place where compassion had no place.

I remember it so strongly in those early days: the wooden floor of the front entrance area with its thin, colourless planking, the harsh smell of rugby boots in the boot room next to the main door, the square, hard staircase leading up to the dormitories, the white-painted metal frames of the large rectangular windows of the refectory.

The entrance to the house was north facing and was thus mostly in shadow. On this side came out the smells of the kitchen. And so I was greeted by a grim, grey edifice over three stories rising from the hill, smelling of grease.

The lights in the house were not comforting. I remember no soft light in the house, no soft light to be seen as one approached the building.

Probably the most human (humane?) room of the house was that of the housemaster. It had darker brown wood, many books on its shelves, a large fine work desk, a pleasant coffee table, a mellow lamp on the same desk where the housemaster sat.

However it was not a large room and there were only select times when we were allowed in it (eg just after lunch). Also the sesne of pressure at being in the same room with the housemaster made being there uncomfortable for this reason. After all it was the place where punishments were given out etc.

And there was the ever present boy-culture-peer-pressure which would never have allowed a boy to have spent much of his available time in the room of the housemaster - unless he had a very strong character (this is a general qualification of these memoirs - I hardly ever came across such a person).

The Common room was large and I would say without atmosphere. It was a large rectangle wherein all the boys could fit (for prayers, house meetings etc.). As in the rest of the house the lights were harsh, strong white lights in the ceiling. I remember no lamp. There was a Television in the far corner from the entrance door. The boys were allowed to switch this on and watch it after lunch before games (at c 1.30 pm - 2 pm) and after supper (at c 8.30 pm) until prayers at 9.30 pm.

The room had no attraction as a room. It was not cosy, it was not private. It only made sense to be there for house meetings and to watch television. I remember it as a peculiarly comfortless place

The refectory did not have pleasant architecture. However, after the housemaster's room, it was one the most pleasant room to be in. This was for one reason. It was south facing and had large windows that let in a lot of light. The high emotional pressure of meal times in the first year meant that it was a very unpleasant place at that time. But I remember a few pleasant meals there in my last year. The tables were plain but the top table, where the housemaster and the top year sat was, if I remember rightly, a more noble piece of wood and had some nice ornaments associated with the housemaster.