I recently wrote a Comment is Free piece on the benefits of encouraging chess in schools. And the Turners Court School for Underprivileged Boys does sound rather like Lord Bonkers' Home for Well-Behaved Orphans. So naturally I was drawn to this British Pathe film.
The description on the British Pathé page - follow the link to go there and play the film - describes:
the group of boys as they move on the board, dressed in chessmen costumes of medieval tabards and wearing eye-masks, hats, horses heads and castles made of papier-mâché.But no trousers. Hmm. The overall effect reminds me of one of the strange games in Peter Greenaway's Drowning by Numbers.
Another point of interest is that the Pathé page suggests the film may show the man who produced the pageant, John Wiles. And he is presumably the John Wiles who was the second director of Doctor Who.
I was in the cast of King Arthur at that time we were all teenage lads as for no trousers if you knew who was running the show you would understand why no trousers cant say on here but will leave it to your imagination.
ReplyDeleteI have heard the same from another source.
ReplyDeleteI was in the cast of "Alexander the Great", in 1964. Also similarly small outfits. Same person running the show. To be fair, us youngsters thought nothing of it, and funds were in very short supply. I do'nt who designed the "kit", but it was made on site by female staff, and wives of staff members. Having said that, I empathize extremely with anonymous commenter of 19 Sept.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.facebook.com/Turners-Court-School-Wallingford-286035761815096/
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