just a little corner

bradley hall

I was thinking today that it's actually a long time since I've been at school. Things have become...nostalgic. It's weird actually, how familiar things can seem at the time but now seem so far away. I left school at 16 to go to college (my choosing state education over private was a lot for some people to take I found out) so it has been a few years. Today I was pondering Bradley Hall. "Bradley" as it was known was the sports hall situated near the junior school. Particularly when I was younger, my sister and I used to arrive at school early (despite living across the road from school) and join in the game of British Bulldog that was going on there.

Part of me was scared of Bradley though. It was relatively new and so called after a previous headmistress. One of our (infamous) PE teachers was loud and Irish (and, incidentally, never actually joined in PE just yelled what we had to do - why are PE teachers always like that?)and was very particular about the care and maintenance of PE equipment and the hall (almost to the point of not letting us use it for fear of it's wear and tear) and so I never failed to feel a momentary panic when a new pair of sports trainers had their virgin walk on Bradley floor.

It was a good size hall though, you could have a couple of classes going on quite comfortably, and there was even the odd assembly held in there - electric keyboard brought in especially for the hymn (There was no point - no one sang in school assemblies nationwide!) But I always remembered the terrible echo which simulaneously was magnified throughout the room but because of the size, never really reached anyone.

I'd like to go back, have a nosy round, see if anything has changed. To see whether they ever actually use the showers, to see whether the carpet has been replaced (horrible horrible carpet), just to well...remember. (and then forget.)

posted by Claire @ 5:09 pm