The children in this photo went to the Thundersley School, Dark Lane, in about 1938. If your family lived in the Thundersley area before and during the Second World War, then it is likely one (or more) of these children is related to you.
We estimate this picture was taken in 1938 when the children were about nine years old. Many of the names have been recalled in a remarkable feat of memory by Marjorie Iredale (née Horner) and no doubt there are other folk around who can corroborate this information and even help fill in the blanks.
Back Row, from left to right: 1 Elsie Longman; 2 Charlie Longman; 3 ??;
4 Ronald Constable; 5 Desmond Ross or Terry Withers; 6 Cyril Lander; 7 ??;
8 David Pickering; 9 Billy Quantrill; 10 Billy Gates; 11 George Hoare; 12 Peter Hills;
13 June Jarvis; 14 Hilda Dalziel
Middle Row, from left to right: 1 Pat Price; 2 ??; 3 Ivy Stewart; 4 Beryl Cohen;
5 Lucille Pugh; 6 Joyce Warren; 7 Pat Wilson; 8 Margaret Arthur; 9 Betty Blackwell;
10 Eileen Hampshire; 11 Rita Sears; 12 Eileen Marshall; 13 Dorothy Bailey;
14 Marjorie Horner; 15 Josephine Millward
Front Row, from left to right: 1 Joe Edwards; 2 Raymond Johnson; 3 Trevor Lidstone;
4 Alan Mace; 5 Roy Theobald; 6 ??; 7 Howard Mason or Oswald Jones; 8 ??;
9 Peter Castle; 10 Lawrence Russell; 11 ?Smith
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I think my mum went to this school around 1937 – 39. I’ve looked at the 1938 photo here and she is not in it. My mum was Phyllis Florence Flicker and she was born in 1932. If anybody has other school photos around 1937 – 39 or a school register to see if my mum attended the school I would be very grateful (I believe that she moved and attended Hadleigh School afterwards around 1939 – 40). Thank you
My Dad was Terry Withers and was mentioned as a possible for number 5 in the back row.
In fact I believe he is actually number 6 in the front row. I do have a couple of photos of his class at Thundersley School, which I also attended in the 60s, but have never seen this one before.
Hi Glenda
It is indeed a great picture! Marjorie Iredale was christened Marjorie HORNER and is no.14 in the middle row. Her rather grandly named “Collection” is basically her family album, from which she has supplied other images of general Thundersley interest, including the Home Guard group. Lots of families have a similar resource of course, but not everyone understands the historical relevance nor thinks to record what, to them, is obvious – namely who the picture is of and where and when it was taken. This is why so many of these old photographic heirlooms are consigned to the skip during a house clearance.
We’d love to hear your Dad’s story and maybe he could check our list of names too? The Community Archive is soon to be publishing the definitive book about Thundersley & Daws Heath (by Robert Hallmann) and Marjorie’s picture will be included, for sure.
Absolutely thrilled to see my Dad Roy Theobald sitting in the front row. What a great photo and he remembers a lot of the other children. I will see if he can remember the names of the unknowns when I see him next. I live in NZ and Dad lives in Australia. Does anyone know if there are any other Thundersley photos in the Marjorie Iredale collection? What and where is the Marjorie Iredale collection.
Front row L to R no. 8 may be my uncle, Gerald Champion? We’ll check.
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