Getting results...

So the long wait is over. This is Holly getting her GCSE results at school on Tuesday. She did really well – eight A’s and an A star. Obviously she was delighted; we all were, particularly with the A in maths.

I remember getting my results; they were ‘O’ levels back then -‘ordinary’ levels. They didn’t seem very ‘ordinary’ at the time, scores of boys crammed into the school gym, individual desks, no talking, no drinks, and one of the hottest summers of the century. God it was hot – and we had to keep our jackets and ties on.

Someone at the front of the room fainted, falling sideways from his chair and thumping to the polished wooden floor. We were ordered to - ‘keep our seats and no talking’, as Paddy Proctor (History and Economics) lifted him up from the floor and dragged him off to Matron.

In those precious few minutes that Paddy was away answers were exchanged, deals were done, money passed hands. It didn’t do me much good, I still only managed a ‘C’, but I didn’t fail - and exams were harder back then - and we weren’t allowed calculators.

Well done Holly, straight A’s – no need to take advantage of a fainting fit for you, you got the result you deserved.