Moments from our community’s history that were shaped by the royal family
Richard Hoffman (RS 1952-56) emailed in to share this vivid childhood memory of the day the modern Elizabethan era began:
“Although not at Rydal Prep, I do always remember the day of the Queen's accession when I was at Prep school.
"First lesson of the day I was being taught by the Headmaster and, at the end of all lessons he taught, a boy was sent to sound a gong to show it was time to change. On Feb. 6th 1952 I was sent to sound the gong. As I was about to do so one of the kitchen staff came up to me and said 'Hoffman. The King has died. You must tell the Headmaster'.
"Gosh, I remember feeling terribly important as, having banged the gong, I returned to the classroom bearing such shattering news which, no doubt, I relayed to the Headmaster.
"I cannot remember what happened after that but I expect the whole school was summoned to the Chapel and a suitable service was held.”
Penrhos College girls took part in a Coronation Year production that offered an insight into the school, its pupils and the various learning and co-curricular activities that made up their time in Rhos on Sea.
This includes the girls walking two-by-two along the promenade at Rhos, guided by the school motto: always towards the light. The film has been preserved on the BFI’s online archive and is available to view for free here.
In 1977 the Jubilee Garden Fete was an absolute highlight for all the children at Penrhos Junior. Held within the school grounds, it was an incredibly exciting day for all involved as recalled by Julia Vaughan, Brown Owl of the Penrhos Junior Brownie Pack.
“I was responsible for contributing to making items for the dolls boutique and I took both of my daughters in for the day, one of which was still in Junior school and the other had moved up to Senior by this point.
The fete was to mark the Queen’s Silver Jubilee and was a way for the school to say thank you to the Queen for her devoted service to the country by raising funds for the Jubilee appeal. The Prince of Wales launched the appeal and said that ‘The purpose … is to encourage service, adventurous or otherwise, by young people to the community in which they live. The Queen has specifically asked that the money will be used to “help young people help others”.’
The gates opened at 2pm with the official opening by the Marchioness of Anglesey following shortly afterwards. There was a dancing display by the Penrhos Junior girls, along with a ghost train, treasure hunt, doll’s boutique and a white elephant stall.
The programme reflects the culture of the era when it declares:
Thank you to Margaret (Smith) Lambert (PC 1964-70) for sharing this remarkable royal story with us:
"1977 was a particularly memorable year for me. I was born in 1952, the year Her Majesty became Queen so by the time she was celebrating her Silver Jubilee I was also twenty five years old.
"By then I was the Guide Leader at my local church and because of that I was asked to represent Guiding on The Prince’s Trust in Preston. This led to an invitation to a County celebration of the Silver Jubilee, an evening reception at Towneley Hall, near Burnley, a glittering affair with many local dignitaries and celebrities in attendance. Not long afterwards I received a special envelope through the post, heavily embossed, very important looking. It was an invitation to join Her Majesty aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia when she docked in Liverpool on the nationwide tour. Once again I was representing Guiding in the NorthWest and was to go with a Scout representative of the same age. Glen, the Scout Leader invited, turned out to be a boy I had been to primary school with back in the 1950’s and hadn’t seen since!
"This all caused great excitement. Evening wear was to be worn so my mother and I found a beautiful evening gown in shades of blue, (for Guides), and my mother made me a beautiful full length evening cloak in Royal purple. The headmaster of the school where I was then teaching gave me the day off to have my hair done and get ready for my big day and my brother drove me to Liverpool, leaving me with the crowds on the riverside. Britannia was moored there, decked overall with flags but how was I to get through the crowds? Luckily officers from on board were looking out for guests and I was rescued from the crowd and escorted aboard, my cloak was whisked away and Glen and I joined the queue to be presented to Her Majesty and Prince Philip before moving on into the beautiful lounge where drinks and canapés were served and the other guests were assembling. Once again we were surrounded by local dignitaries and celebrities from all walks of life. I remember seeing Ena Sharples, the Coronation Street actress, a programme Her Majesty enjoys watching.
"We were standing in the middle of the room when His Royal Highness Prince Philip was brought across to us, we were introduced and he chatted to us for about five minutes about Scouts and Guides and the work we did with our units, thanking us for doing such important work with the young.
"The rest of the evening sped by but eventually we were escorted up on deck to watch the Band of the Royal Marines perform Nimrod from Enigma Variations as part of the ceremony of lights out on the quayside. That felt very, very special, we were so honoured to be part of it. At the end we were ushered towards the gangplanks and my cloak mysteriously re-appeared as I reached it. I think I floated across the pier to find my brother. What a privilege it had been and how honoured I felt to have represented the Guide Movement at such an important occasion. And all because I was born in 1952."
Just as Penrhos celebrated thirty years’ prior, the Rydal Penrhos community gathered to commemorate the wonderful occasion of Her Majesty’s Golden Jubilee in 2002. The then-Principal Mr Michael James addressed the event in his letter to parents at the end of term:
“I was overwhelmed by the tremendous support that you and your children gave to our Jubilee Celebration. The rain may have spoilt the tea party but the rest of the afternoon was a huge success. I was impressed by the enthusiasm and ingenuity of those children who organised their own stalls and the time and efforts that many of you, mums and dads, put into the making of the crowns. It was certainly a day of celebration and the fact that we raised nearly twelve hundred pounds was a bonus.”
We are incredibly proud of the members of the Rydal Penrhos family that took part in the wonderful celebrations for the Platinum Jubilee. We had at least six dads from school who are pilots from RAF Valley taking part in the Jubilee Fly Past. Mr Simmons, Mr Craig and Mr Jewsbury flew the ‘Hawks’ over Buckingham Palace and the Mall. Mr Ball-Iversen flew a Texan and Mr Payne and Mr Battersby were ‘spares’.
A video, shared by the Ball-Iversen family, of the Texans taking off
Not only did they contribute greatly to the celebrations, they also made their families, school community and nation very proud.
A bird's eye view of the school taken from a Valley jet in 1977. Thank you to Stephen Godber for sharing this with us
