PBHSOB ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER

Dear Old Boy

At an online event for my new memoir in the School Library mid-August I was asked about the photo of me aged 14 years in my Boys High uniform on the front cover.

‘Are you setting a good example with your hands in your pockets, Sir?’ the boy asked to laughter. I hadn’t even noticed that was the case!.’

My favourite teacher was Terry Ashton, and I enjoyed my time there between 1963 and 1966, my father Walter having attended in the 1940s and my uncle William cricket captain in 1937.

My journey from Pretoria childhood to senior British Cabinet Minister took over 50 years, from anti-apartheid protester to Right Honourable Lord using parliamentary privilege in 2017-18 to expose looting and money laundering in the Zuma State.

Aged 16 I was forced into exile to London in 1966 after the apartheid government prohibited my architect father from working. While at Boys High, and before then at Hatfield Primary School, my Mom and Dad were the leading anti-apartheid activists in Pretoria.

On the one hand, my life was a normal white Pretoria schoolboy of sport, fun and hard work; alongside experiences completely abnormal to school friends and cousins: my parents’ arrest, banning, harassment, hiding an escaped political prisoner in our home, and the hanging of a close white family friend.

In London aged 19 I found myself leading militant anti-Springbok demonstrations in 1969-1970, denounced by South African media as ‘ Public Enemy Number One’.

That led to several revenge attacks from the apartheid state. First receiving a letter bomb in June 1972 of the kind which had assassinated anti-apartheid activists across the world, only a fault in the trigger saving me. Then narrowly escaping jail after a South African-financed prosecution in 1972 for conspiracy to disrupt those all-white South African sports tours. Then in 1975 framed for a bank theft committed by an apartheid security agent.

Lord Hain’s new memoir, A Pretoria Boy: ‘South Africa’s Public Enemy Number One’, has recently been published by Jonathan Ball and can be purchased through the following channels:

In SA:
Takealot: https://www.takealot.com/a-pretoria-boy/PLID72866462
Loot: A Pretoria Boy – South Africa’s Public Enemy Number One (Paperback): Peter Hain: 9781776191222 | Books | Buy online in South Africa from Loot.co.za
Exclusive Books: https://www.exclusivebooks.co.za/product/9781776191222 

International:
https://www.bookdepository.com/Pretoria-Boy-Peter-Hain/9781785787638

FAREWELL MRS ALBERS & MISS WROTH

Name: Daniela Albers
Nationality: Boys High Italian
Characteristics: Passionate, Emotional, Gentle and Sociable
Achievements: raised two very successful children Alistair and Patricia, took 19 books out of the library in 1999 which placed her 2nd that year after Mrs Elizabeth Grebe.
Taught Elon Musk the laws of Physics, John Smit and Chilliboy Ralepele the laws of motion, she also taught Oscar Pistorius, Mark Fish (and Greg Hassenkamp) and worked under 4 Headmasters while at Boys High.
Disciplinaries: … pending, for not wearing her gown at work
Talents: Makes a killer tiramisu and great coffee, good listener and amazing teacher, mentor and friend

Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen

It is a great honour to say thank you and to bid farewell to Mrs Daniela Albers tonight.

Mrs Daniela Albers started teaching in 1980 and came to Boys High in 1983 which makes her currently the longest serving staff member at our school! She has devoted 37 years of her life to Pretoria Boys, the last 16 as the HOD of the Science Department. She was one of the first tutors of Armstrong House and a Form I tutor for many many years. She is often fondly called Armstrong Mother bymany Old Boys of our school.

When Mrs Albers arrived in South Africa as a young girl she was hoping to go to a school that had stripy blazers and soft girly hats. But … she attended Johannesburg Girls Prep and then Johannesburg Girls High and in both schools she had to wear a black blazer and a basher-like hat. What she did though was to always turn up the rim and get into endless troubles with teachers, a little bit of rebel in her from early years.

I met Daniela in November 1997 when I started my teaching career at Boys High in the Science Department. I clearly remember the black haired young lady teacher sitting on top of a long wooden table next to the science office with her legs swinging from side to side. She still does it during breaks and at the school’s assemblies.

I remember our passionate discussions about science and how hard she tried to convince me that Chemistry is way superior to Physics.

Little did I know then that we will work together, laugh together, occasionally cry together for almost 25 years.

I wish I was here in the early eighties to see Daniela acting in the staff play Sinderella and later in My Proud Beauty, but I am glad that she has chosen a teaching career rather than acting.

Since Mrs Albers is truly an Italian, it is quite easy to read her mood and her Department knew very well when to scatter fast from the staffroom when she was upset, but they all knew that the fury would not last long and that they could always return and receive a warm welcome and a hug. She was always loyal to every member of her department, supported them 100% and gave them top scores at any staff evaluations. In her eyes her department was as perfect as her Armstrong House.

It was always very entertaining to watch Mrs Albers in her Armstrong House Tshirt at the recording table during the galas and Inter House events, her laughs at Mr Franken’s jokes and comments were truly contagious, the speed at which the recordings were taken when the emotions were running high was quite close to the speed of light. Mrs Albers, we will miss seeing you at that table.

Although Boys High took a major part of Mrs Albers’s life, she has “life outside the school”, her trips home to Italy, trips with friends to Portugal, visits to England were always a highlights of the year for her and for us, her friends as she often brought back great stories, amazing pictures and often special gifts.

Not only does she have a life outside the school but a life outside this galaxy. I am sure that many of you know that Mrs Albers is a big fan of Star Trek.

I hope that some of you are familiar with the movies and would agree with me that Mrs Albers is definitely not a Vulcan (cannot hide the emotions), is hasty like a Klingon warrior and quite a bit like a Borg (when she wants something – you have to comply and your resistance is futile).

Daniela, you have been a teacher to thousands of boys, a mother to hundreds of boys and teachers, a mentor, a leader and a colleague, but most importantly you were a friend to so many of us present here today. We thank you for being part of our lives.

Vivi a lungo ed in prosperità.
(Live long and Prosper my friend)

Joanna Holliday
5 August 2021

An edited version of the address by the school’s Second Master, John Illsley at a farewell function held on 5th August 2021.

This year marks Gil’s 32nd year at this school and that represents, in its own right, a remarkable period of service to Boys High. But before I say more about that, it is worth pointing out that Gil started her teaching career back in 1979 at Townview High School in Krugersdorp, a new school in which she was the only senior maths teacher, so she was thrown in the deep end in her first year. She went on to teach at a school in Auckland Park; a school in the old Bophutatswana and at Iona Convent in Pretoria before she found out that there really is only one school to be at and started at Boys High in 1990. If we put all of that together, Gil has had a career in education that spans 43 years and while we may be gathered here tonight to thank her primarily for her years at this school, I think it is only right to acknowledge her contribution to South African education over more than four decades.

I think Gil arrived at Boys High as a young teacher (and a recent nun) to discover that the social life of the staff at Boys High was rather more lively than at a convent school, to put it mildly, and I well remember some good times in the Green Room after various school functions! I would like to think that the camaraderie at this school was one of the reasons why she chose to make it her work place for all these years.

When Gil started here, she taught both Maths and Latin, the latter with the redoubtable Shirley Nell and so when the subject ceased to be offered at the school, she was one of the last teachers of a classical language. She never lost her love of Latin and I remember her bringing copies of Winnie the Pooh in Latin for Mr Schroder, himself a linguist. I also recall tapping into her knowledge when I wrote the history of the school and wanted a translation of the school motto. Needless to say I was offered every possible interpretation of those three words “Virtute et Labore”! What most of you may not know is that Gil holds a Masters degree in Latin, something which she completed while teaching here.

It has been mainly in the role of a maths and AP maths teacher that Gil has come to help shape the numeracy of scores of boys in her own quiet, professional and most importantly, caring way. Apart from her contribution in the classroom, Gil was involved in a wide variety of extra mural activities.

One of Gil’s earlier MIC roles was in charge of chess, which she ran for ten years. She didn’t even know how to play the game and refused to learn, lest she be forced to coach it. I cannot help but believe that had she done so, she would have become, with her analytical brain, a formidable player. Nevertheless, she organized the teams and coaches so effectively that in 2000 we beat Waterkloof, the chess equivalent of beating Affies in rugby. She and Louis Esterhysen tried to get chess recognised at the school as a sport (indeed Louis was always convinced it was a blood sport), but they didn’t win that one and it remains a club. Upon concluding her time as the chess supremo, she treated herself to a miniature of a chess piece for a bracelet. It was of a pawn, because as she points out, nothing moves on a chess board until the humble pawn has moved first. It seems as if she does know something about chess after all!

For five years Gil ran one of the clubs with the longest history at the school, namely the Society for National and International Affairs. She organized some interesting conferences with local schools and lined up some very interesting guest speakers. It always amused (and worried) her that the boys were most interested in hearing from a police profiler of serial killers and anybody who knew about prison gangs!

She was also involved with doing make up for school productions, in the days when Rita Bigalke ran this on a “production line” approach. So for the Mikado, Gil spent night after night applying yellow base to dozens of boys performing in that operetta. After Rita’s retirement, Gil then inherited the fishing tackle boxes that contained the assorted grease paint and herself became the grande dame of make up for over twenty years.

In one of those “behind the scenes” roles, Gil served on the time table committee for some years and after Peter Kirsten left, she was Head of Studies for a year. More recently she has taken on the job of coordinating all of the group photos for the magazine, which last year involved hundreds of individual photos after Covid made life complicated in terms of doing anything in groups. As with all things, Gil approached the task in her usual meticulous and unflappable fashion.

Of course, all of us spend time serving one or other role within the house system at Boys High. In this regard, I think Gil may have something of a record to her name, as she has been a member of Sunnyside House for 31 ½ years! For most of that time she was a tutor, almost making the Form II group a speciality, but more recently she has been the language advisor. I know that Mr Moodley has already made much of this within his house, but is worth repeating this contribution.

Gil is a very private person, but a few years ago on her sixtieth birthday, she gave us a little glimpse of something which had come to give her much joy in recent years and that was dancing. In one of the most unusual and enjoyable birthdays I’ve attended, a group of her friends met at a dance studio and were not only treated to a display of the birthday girl’s talents, but we were ourselves able to learn a few dance moves ourselves. It was a very special evening.

There are many things that have characterised Gil’s time at Boys High, but in her professional role, the three things that stand out in my mind are her meticulous approach; her attention to detail and her caring nature. I have never worked in the same department as Gil and yet I know all of this to be true from the high regard in which you are held by the boys and staff as well as those aspects of the school on which we have worked together.

So Gil, as we thank you for what you have meant to untold hundreds of boys, this is our chance to also say thank for being a real friend, a gentle soul and a true professional.

In one sense, Gil’s life has gone full circle, because while we may tend to think of her as a person of numbers, in my mind she is perhaps best thought of as a person of letters. I mentioned earlier her association with language and more particularly Latin. In her retirement, which I think is going to be a very active one, she is going to be doing professional proof reading for a large educational publishing house. It will allow her to spend time with her beloved cats and to do a lot more leisure time reading. I hope to be swopping Phillip Kerr, Stephen Leather and Gerald Seymour novels with you for years to come. An amusing aside in that regard is that when handing back some novels the other day, I found a note on the front cover of one that asked what colour suit Winston Churchill was wearing on page 171. Since my memory is not nearly good enough to have remembered a small detail like that, I turned to that page, skimmed it and decided that the answer was pale grey. But, it turns out that the author had Churchill wearing two different colour suits on the same page. All I can say is, beware any future author whose work Gil is proof reading, trying to sneak sloppy writing past her!

Gil, you have more than earned your retirement. As we say farewell, we hope that you won’t lose contact with us or the school. You will be local for the foreseeable future, so don’t be surprised if we contact you to help us (as we have already done in the past few weeks). You take with you our love and best wishes for the years ahead. May they be as fulfilling as the years you have spent here.

Thank you.

John Illsley
5 August 2021

LETTERS

Hi Inge,

We found this photograph in Joan’s school photograph album (Joan Bramley PGHS 1959). Taken at the departure on a school rugby tour, from left to right are Peter Mabbet, Dudley Aylward, Peter James and Buddy Hinds.

Derek Hill (1959

SOARING SENSATIONAL SIX

I stood fast at my crease, rhythmically tapping my bat against the back of my boot, waiting for yet another sizzling delivery. Every alternate ball this over had narrowly missed taking my head off. The continual shower of chin height bumpers became intolerable. I figured the only way to elude this treatment was to give the bowler some punishment of my own. My enemy came thundering down towards me and exploded into action, letting fly with a red round object which advanced towards me with devastating speed and accuracy. Casually I took one step forward and with a mighty swing I felt the piece of solid leather make contact with my bat. A shiver of excitement ran through my body as the ball soared up into the air. I stood glued half-way down the pitch and gazed in bewilderment… “thump!” the ball landed over the picket fence. The umpire lifted his arms as if he was conducting an ecstatic crowd and signal-led a sensational six.

Patrick Young Form VA – The Pretorian 1980

RCL VIRTUAL FUN RUN 2021

Dear Old Boys

The RCL (Representative Council of Learners) is an organisation within Pretoria Boys High School which acts as a network between the boys and the school executive in which boys can express issues, suggestions or concerns. However, another massive part of the RCL is outreach and helping those who need it.

In a normal year, the RCL would have held several different events to raise funds which go to many charities, but due to COVID-19 these events could not happen, and the council is battling to raise enough funds to help those who depend on our donations. As a result, the RCL has decided to organise and facilitate a Virtual Fun Run in partnership with the PHOBIANS running club. This event will take place on Saturday the 18th and Sunday the 19th of September and costs R50 for the 5km or 10km run. You can choose a day to run or walk or participate in both days if you wish.

To enter the walk or run go to: https://www.entryninja.com/events/76999-pbhs-rcl-virtual-fun-run

I appeal to you to participate in this event, wherever you may be, and in the process help hundreds of people who are in desperate need of assistance in these tough times. Should you need any more information or assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me on 082 888 3772 or liam.gillesen(at)eagleford.co.za.

I hope that on the 18th and 19th of September, hundreds of Old Boys will be connected by a single cause and once again show the massive influence that Boys High has as well as put on display the Boys High DNA that all of you have within yourself. Thank you in advance for your support. Yours sincerely

Liam Gillesen
Chairman: Representative Council of Learners
Pretoria Boys High School