The Vale School for Boys, Aylesbury

It is with deep sadness I have to report the passing of another old boy. Paul Rogan who I became good friends with in the last fifteen years, through Facebook, died of a suspected heart attack. He was just 67. Paul had been living in Portugal for the last five years. He lived in peacefully retired bliss as a troubadour. One of the most colourful characters to enter the school, Paul was a big lover of music. He embarked on a career in the textiles industry and later became a hotelier. Paul will be greatly missed by his many friends and family.

Old Boy, Peter Brooks was laid to rest, this afternoon. He couldn't possibly have had a better send off. It was a joint funeral for him and his mother. The weather was hot and sunny, the turnout in the church was impressive. Swanbourne is a charming village in North Bucks and St Swithun's a fine church dating back to 1230. Following the service at the church we all walked about a quarter of a mile down Winslow Road to the cemetery, for the burial. After the funeral we walked back to the church, then along Mursley Road to The Betsey Wynne. It was nice to finally meet the lovely Jennifer. She has had so much to cope with, but has done a fantastic job organising the funeral. To lose both her Mother and Brother just weeks apart must be truly heartbreaking.

Just a last minute 'push' to make everyone aware of the funeral of Peter Brooks, tomorrow. It's at 3pm at St Swithun's Church in Swanbourne. It would be nice to see you, if you can make it. Peter's sister would really appreciate seeing any old boys. If you can't be there in person, give Peter a thought tomorrow.

From the June 21st 1974 edition of a local Aylesbury newspaper, The Bucks Advertiser.

Peter, 15, just wants to draw on experience.

Wanted ... a cartoonist’s job for an Aylesbury 15 year old who saves his pocket money by drawing his own comics.

Cartoon drawing for Vale School pupil Peter Brooks, of Caldicot Close, Aylesbury, isn’t just a hobby. It’s more of a consuming passion. “I take my pens and ink everywhere with me,” he says, “I suppose it uses up just about all my spare time.”

The results are good, as we found out last week when Peter brought some of his work round to show us.

And his qualifications are impeccable. He has an art O level, though art isn’t taught at the Vale. He learned through private tuition, and he’s won a number of poster and drawing competitions.
The Christmas before last, for instance, he found his way into our paper with a winning anti-theft poster in a competition organised by the police.

For any old boys who can make it. The funeral of Peter Brooks will take place at St Swithun's Church, Swanbourne at 3pm on 24th August. The wake is nearby in the Betsey Wynne. Look forward to seeing you there.

A shining light has just gone out. It is with great sadness I am relaying the news that an old boy has passed away. He was not only a good friend of mine, but also my drawing buddy. Peter Brooks died in his mother's home in Cambridgeshire, earlier today. He was an incredibly talented artist and cartoonist who used to lampoon certain teachers at the school, by creating comics.

Unfortunately cancer makes no concession for talent, vile disease that it is. Peter was diagnosed with spine cancer about a year ago. This started by robbing him of the use of his right arm. That put paid to doing anymore drawing. At first it was hoped the meds would win the day and Peter would live to enjoy old age, albeit with limited use of his limb, but recently he became too weak to take anymore treatment.

Peter joined the school in 1969 and left in 1974. My thoughts are with his family and also those of you who knew him.

Has anyone got a copy of the 1971/72 school photograph? This is the only a lot of boys I knew appeared in, and also teachers such as Mrs Hicks and Mr Green featured as well. It would be great to see it again, after such a long time.

Page 5 of my graphic novel detailing how the school used to be when base at Manor Road. The comic has grown page by page. Had I known I was going to go this far with things I would have written a script first then created the panels to match, I will probably re-vamp everything so it has a real flow to it.

I have just finished the second page of my graphic novel, depicting the old school. I am practically having to re-build the place in my mind's eye to bring these panels to you. I hope you enjoy.

I came across this. Look familiar?

Old boy, Tom Robson recently posted an excerpt of the school rules. This is the one that concerns visiting the cinema etc. I have typed it out so it is easier to read. One thing not mentioned in the rule is that boys who lived locally to the school were not allowed to change out of their school uniforms until 5 pm.

General. Cinemas are forbidden during the week (Mondays to Thursday inclusive) and all forms of social activity in the evening falls under that heading. Boys may go twice a term, if they give their name to the appointed prefect, besides at week-ends, and permission may be obtained for going to the theatre. Parents are strongly advised against letting their boys watch T.V. during the week except for programmes of educational value. The grammar school course is hard, and boys must, in addition have good general reading to be successful, which is why we feel most strongly that restraint must be exercised in the above mentioned forms of entertainment. The School cannot control a boy’s behaviour out of school hours, but reserves the right to ask a boy to leave, should his out of school behaviour, habits or mode of life, be such as to bring discredit on the school or a bad example to other boys. Experience has shown that satisfactory G.C.E. results cannot be obtained when a boy does a “job” as well (excl. Xmas postal) as our boys need all their energies and time to concentrate on G.C.E. The money he earns in such work is more than counterbalanced by the opportunities he loses by loss of G.C.E. results.

Old boy, Tom Robson, has sent some very sad news about Michael Andrew Thorne, ( Vale Boy 1968-73) Michael has passed away, from the vile illness known as cancer at the young age of 63.

Michael was a farmer, following in his father's footsteps out at Eaton bray where they first started as a family with 12 acres and a handful of pigs nd worked to build it into a thriving business. His parenst saw both boys and a sister thru school and M was very decent chap indeed. We were a part of the 61 Gang ( bus route).

I am sure we are long forgiven for removing cats eyes from the roads, playin radios loudly, smoking and a few other minor rule infringements which led to our being on the receiving end of the cane a few times.

As with Robert, I too lost touch with M over the years , his obituary reads that he remained in farming to the end, leaving behind a wife, two sons and a daughter.

Ten axes and a fiddle

Rest in Peace

photo credit to his family/obituary