Memories

A Potpourri Of Hopefully Interesting Stuff - Primarily Nostalgic!

The Strangers

Anyone of our vintage who was at DHS, or who had anything to do with DHS, knew about The Strangers rock and roll band.  Reproduced below, by courtesy of the Natal Mercury (via Don Allaway) is a photograph of the band in 1963:

In case memories have faded, the band members are, from left to right, Don Allaway, Renault Saunders, Howard Carpendale, Don Robertson, and Peter Elstob.  Just like the Beatles looked at the time, the band were a pretty clean cut crew!

Howard's singing career has come a long way since we knew him as the lead singer with The Strangers, and through his and the band's appearances at the Cookie Look and other Durban venues. He has had a very successful career as a singer in Germany, and has sold over 25 million records worldwide. His first hit was a German cover version of the Beatles song Obladi Oblada, in 1969. He has since recorded songs that he wrote himself, acted in movies and TV series, and peformed around the world (including in the United States).

Check out Howard performing by using one of these links - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvX_mPHNWtU- (Stand by Me in English) or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iK_882rGYuU (Laura Jane in German)

(Posted by Stuart "Mossie" Clark)

Crime (?) and Punishment

As a boarder it seemed that most of one's waking hours were focused on ending the day without be flogged for some misdemeanour, real or imagined.  But that experience was not confined to boarders - floggings were also a daily risk outside of the boarding establishment.

One of the areas of the school in which flogging presented a higher risk than others - and generally deservedly so - was in the 1960 Form III LF class of Mr. "Porky" Bennett.  I remember the stories of pupils climbing through the trapdoor under the floor to surprise and intimidate the teacher, and especially the story of the pupil (name witheld to protect the guilty!)  who menacingly approached a terrifed "Porky", penknife in hand, and as the master increasingly anxiously asked what he was doing, then casually started sharpening his pencil into the wastepaper basket when he got inches from Porky's belly! 

Nick Bryant kept documentary evidence of his punishment inflicted at the behest of Bennett - see the note below, which reads "Bryant has been causing a disturbance and been insubordinate in class" and bears the signature of Porky and the headmaster:

(Courtesy of Nick Bryant)

Dramatic Society Presentation of The Knight of The Burning Pestle

 

August, 1970 Panorama Article On DHS (courtesy of Ed Granger)

Class of 1963 25th Anniversary Reunion

Here is a photo of the attendees at the 25th anniversary reunion of the DHS Class of 1963 - followed by the same photo with the names of the attendees indicated (photo courtesy of Tony Daymond)

 

DHS Tuck Shop

Images of the old tuck shop signage revealed when the cladding was removed for renovations (photo courtesy of Mrs. Sang, through Don Allaway).

 

Did You Attend the 1963 Matric Dance?

What is your dance date doing now?

 

Remember what Durban was like in the 1960s?  These photos will help!

Remember the "filthy" for ten cents - pie, chips and curry gravy!

South Beach at the Mermaid Lido when the "Vaalies" were in town - photo courtesy of Gerald Buttegieg

Christmas on West Street in the 1960s - check out the car makes; those were the days when English and American cars still ruled the roads!

Photo Courtey of "Port Natal", by Janie Malherbe

The beloved trolley bus of the kind that would operate on the Vause Road and Musgrave Road routes - there is little doubt that most if not all of us from the Class of 1963 rode in this specific bus at some stage in our school careers!

Photo courtesy of "Port Natal" by Janie Malherbe

Remember the magnificantly dominating Barry Richards and Lee Irvine - for example the 253 for 2 against Hilton: