Academically Challenged

Whilst these eagerly anticipated letters from Hollywood kept me happily cosseted in fantasyland there was an annual visit from the postman that I dreaded, a letter from Mr. Mitchum who was also taking a personal but rapidly dwindling interest in me. It was not the film star Robert Mitchum but a gentleman with the same name, the school principal and his letters always contained sombre looking buff report forms with lots of comments in red ink. These were assessments by his staff on how well I had or had not maintained various levels of competence and endeavour. My favourite teacher was Mr. Beynon who taught mathematics, hardly my favourite subject but quite often he would regale us with his wartime escapades as a Hampden bomber pilot and being captured in a cornfield in Holland. On the academic side the only thing that I can really recall was my final, report at Bridge street school and his succinct comment, "Thomas has the neatest mathematics in his class, unfortunately it is not accompanied by the slightest degree of accuracy". His generously awarded 'CP minus, joined quite a few others on my report form but History and Art were generally in the 'A's. As far as mathematics and physics were concerned, the gap between intent and result would always be irreconcilable.

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