BLUE COAT’S WINDOW ON THE PAST, by the people who were there

Interviewers: Christine Holt and Peter Elson

Transcript

Don Dodkin, born 1946: Don entered Blue Coat School aged 11, as a Macauley House boarder, after his father died and devastating his mother. Blue Coat was comprehensive, with grammar, intermediate and secondary modern streams. Don was initially in the latter but moved to the former. Discipline and the prefect hierarchy was strict, bullying was rife and you had to stand up for yourself. He became a primary school head teacher. Loved being in shows like Britten’s Noye’s Fludde. He made a pact with friends before leaving not remember school with a “rosy reminiscence” but for friendship, pranks and fun.