This article was written in March 2014 after former pupils wreaked havoc during an open evening
School rivalries are a big part of growing up. The current Prime Minister was an old Etonion whilst his deputy was an old Westminster lad. There’s the annual Oxford/Cambridge varsity battles and Harry Potter who went to Hogwarts had rivalries with both Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and Durmstrang Institute. Who could forget the famous Grange Hill v Brookdale rivalry of the late 70’s/early 80’s?
In Felixstowe we have the Orwell/Deben rivalry. The two high schools at opposite ends of the town were named after Suffolk rivers and in 2011 merged to become Felixstowe Academy. A bespoke building has been built to house the new academy and will be opened shortly resulting in the closure of the two old schools. Demolition looms for the old Orwell building with the exact future of the Deben building still the subject of much debate and speculation.
The school administration decided to open the schools up to former pupils to have one last look before the doors were closed for ever. This is where the story reaches a new level. Orwell went first. Hundreds of former pupils descended on the school armed with cameras and stories of yonder and spend a couple of hours reminiscing (which ironically was the most miss-spelt word on Facebook over the last two days). Old friendships were resumed and the trip down memory lane was an enjoyable experience. Then it turned sour as pictures began to emerge on Facebook of former pupils having one last fag in the toilets along with graffiti being scrawled over walls. Fire alarms were set off either manually or by reaction to the smoke (depends on whose Facebook status you read!), Emergency services were called and the event was cut short.
Cue the inevitable Chinese whispers. Stories of naked gas taps being turned on and even lit and assaults on staff and children were the topic of much debate and are still all UNCONFIRMED. However, smoking indoors, lewd graffiti and damage to property and current pupils coursework has been proved. Once again the actions of a few morons (see definition below) spoilt what was a great idea for the hundreds that did attend and act like the responsible adults they are. The result of the debacle at Orwell led to the sister event at Deben being cancelled.
Now we look at blame. Some have blamed the school for misjudging the response. Utter tosh. If 1 person attended or 1,000 then they all should have acted like the adults they’re meant to be. It’s being knocked down so what the harm? was many a status. The harm was that the building is still active and houses hundreds of CHILDREN on a daily basis. Why do they have to suffer the stench of stale fags, work with burnt text books and put up with pictures of (badly drawn) cocks all over the walls? The kids of today receive bad press but are they as bad as the people who should be setting an example?
A question many will ask is was I there? The answer is simple. No I wasn’t. Pictures of crowds gathering at locals pubs as early as 2pm had filtered through and I sensed that the evening would end in chaos. A 12 hour shift at work and then home for my tea I didn’t want to rush so I chose not to attend. By the time I’d had my tea any chances of me changing my mind had been ripped from me as the event had come to it’s premature conclusion.
I have not written anything that hasn’t been proved. Any rumours are not part of my article.
On a personal note I enjoyed going to Orwell. 28 years on I still have very close friends from my time spent there. Any failures on my education was not the schools fault. It was my fault. I should have left with numerous O levels and gone to University. I didn’t due to MY choices. I could have fallen into the trap of blaming the teachers or the school but I haven’t. I know where I went wrong.
People are always slagging off Felixstowe. Have you ever wondered it’s not Felixstowe but it’s YOU?
You may read this and think I’m wrong and that is the beauty of life. You are entitled to your opinion. We all are. Just stop acting like a cunt hey?
*moron
mo·ron [mawr-on, mohr-]
noun
1. Informal. a person who is notably stupid or lacking in good judgment:
Psychology . (no longer in technical use; now considered offensive) a person of borderline intelligence in a former and discarded classification of mental retardation, having an intelligence quotient of 50 to 69.