Issue 2 - December 2012.pdf - KEGS Ambassador Archive

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”
James Dilley: You are a true staple of KEGS,
bringing many a P.E. and cover lesson to life, but
just how long have you been part of the school?
Mr Roberts: I came here 15 years ago; I was head of
department in London for many years at a range of
fairly rough schools in places such as Walthamstow,
Hackney and Chingford. I originally retired at
50 but for some reason decided to get back into
teaching.
David Barker: You’re known to have a great interest
in the First World War amongst other historical
events. What is it about these topics that fascinate
you so much?
Mr Roberts: One of the reasons that I’m so
interested is that mine was one of the first
generations that didn’t have to go to war. I was
born down in Plymouth which suffered heavy
bombing during the Second World War; one of
my first memories is seeing my playground as a
bombsite. My father was a Dunkirk and Normandy
veteran and my grandfather fought in the First
World War so I was brought up around stories of
war. I have been fortunate to go with KEGS to the
Somme and Ypres almost on a yearly basis and
every time you go you learn more and more. Not
only do you learn about the logistics of what went
on but really it’s incredible to think that 750,000
men from this country lost their lives when the
population was only 40 million; every family in the
land was affected by it. You only have to look at the
memorial in the library to see the enormous effect
it had, in particular on young officers of Sixth Form
age who, due to their intelligence and ability, were
selected to lead their men over the top, of course
resulting in their decimation. I find the bravery of
these people fascinating; young men who were
prepared to sacrifice their lives for, let’s face it, the
freedom we have today. I read around the subject
and do a lot of research. I suggest to all of our boys,
even if most of them go to the Somme with our
excellent History department that they have a good
look at the history of the KEGS boys that fought in
the wars.
JD: So, back to the school- tell us about your most
memorable KEGS experience.
Mr Roberts: Haha, well it wasn’t an educational
experience unfortunately; it was probably being
assaulted by a local yobbo (years before your time).
Bearing in mind that I have taught in many
6
Interview with KEGS stalwart, Mr. Roberts
Quick Fires
Ralph Lauren sweater or Nike hoodie? Ralph Lauren
sweater, provided I can find one in the charity shop.
Mercedes or Jaguar? Got to be a Mercedes but I
wouldn’t say no to a Porsche 911.
The Telegraph or The Sun? Definitely the Telegraph.
Guns or flowers? What does that mean?! I think it’d
have to be a gun; I had a shotgun as a boy when out in
the country. Shot hundreds of rabbits.
Javelin or shotput? Javelin, it’s the only REAL throw;
shot put is just a push. The good thing about javelin is
that no matter what body shape you are, if you have a
good throwing arm you can be good at it. It’s a weapon
of war, as Mr Green would say, and throwing one is for
real men.
rough areas and never had any problems of the
sort before, I was quite surprised. I was on the field
on a summer’s day and a Sixth Former brought to
my attention the fact that a 21 year old, piercingcovered
yobbo had jumped over the wall and
gone after one of our boys. I felt that it was my
duty to step in and protect him, but when I told
him to leave the premises on certain terms he
decided to hit me in the eye with his key-filled
fist! I thought he’d blinded me but I picked him up
and smashed him on the floor- despite the fact
that he was struggling I pinned him down, much to
Mr Scammel’s [ex head of Drama] amusement (he
watched all of this out of the window and didn’t
come down to help!). Eventually after about ten
minutes the police arrived and took him away- a
very bizarre experience.
DB: As a boy growing up, which sports did you
enjoy the most?
Mr Roberts: I was a footballer, playing for my
school and captaining the county as a schoolboy.
Football was my real love, but eventually I turned
to athletics. That was because of a really bad
accident which happened when I was playing
football; I smashed my leg up very badly when I
was 22. I hit a rock under the pitch and as I lay in
hospital the surgeon said to me ‘Mr Roberts, what