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Interview with Alex Quail 1962

  • ZA ZAR STDS 202000395
  • Item
  • 2011

Interview with Alex Quail 1962
Alex started at St David’s in 1958, came into the high school straight from the bush –
Carltonville. There were no English high schools in the area at the time and Bishop Wheelan
helped him get into St David’s.
Johannesburg ended at the entrance to the school . A Dairy Den was about 1 kilometre down a
dirt road and Sandton City did not exist, the area was just veldt and the occasional farmhouse.
Alex was a boarder and remembers everyone being very competitive in sport and with each
other. There was a boxing ring and the “Beak” Br Benedict would organise the boys to sort out
their grievances in the boxing ring. The school was tough and there were very real fights
between the boys especially the Lebanese and the Jews. There was iron discipline and boys
were caned for any reasonable misdemeanour, however it did them no harm. The discipline was
fair and not vindictive, some old boys found it unfair and were very bitter about it. It was rather
like being in the army and the boarders became a band of brothers and those that saw it
through became very good friends often for the rest of their lives. On one weekend per term, the
parents were allowed to visit their sons on Sunday and they went home during the school
holidays.
The boys were very cruel to Mr Bishop the only lay teacher, who was tormented by the boys.
There were 60 boys in a class which reduced to 17 by Matric. All the brothers taught,one
brother was Spanish, another Afrikaans, quite a good mixture. Brother Bonaventure, “Bonnie”
was a big tough guy who used to sit on his desk and fall asleep. He was very laid back teacher
and Alex can’t remember what he taught. Br Anthony taught Afrikaans and Maths but he was
always so busy so the clever boys in the class ended up teaching them. Br Edwin became too ill
to run the school in 1958 and Br Benedict “Beak” took over followed by Br Anthony.
In 1962 there were 17 matrics in the class and they beat Observatory in rugby. Those were
harsh days without the rules and regulations that protect the players now. There were 200 boys
in the high school competing against other schools with over 1000 pupils for example, KES,
Jeppe, CBC Boksburg, CBC Pretoria. One of the boys Chris Dempster, lost a kidney after he
was badly tackled and the teachers pumped his legs. Darko cracked his skull in one match. Alex
was too small to make the 1st rugby team but played in the 2nd. He played cricket and was
captain of the 1st hockey team. His father was captain of Transvaal in the late 30’s and got
together with the brothers to help develop hockey.
He could not swim but was dragged into the inter-high gala. The school pool is where the prep
playground is now. He was in Benedict house and was a prefect..
The cycling club was good for them and they were able to bring their bikes to school. The golf
club was formed and the first golf tournament held, Alex was involved and his brother Michael
was a good golf player. Unlike today he well remembers walking out to the cricket pitch without
a hat.
Alex feels strongly that the boys who became Springboks should be honoured with a school
honours board. The first Springbok was Ray Bischoff for swimming and Gavin Webster for
hockey. John Daley was a very good tennis player.
As far as academics went, St David’s was a seven subject school with three languages English,
Afrikaans, Latin, Geography, History, Science and Maths. He was an average pupil who wrote
the JMB matric. The clever boys did Add Maths.
There was an incident in the eary 60’s. NASA had just got going and the boys wanted to
develop a solid fuel rocket. Alex had a recipe and they used the Science lab on the second
floor, brewed some stuff up which then exploded! Br Anthony flew up the stairs to see what
damage had been done, but no-one was injured and Br Anthony was relieved. Eventually a
rocket was built by one of the geniuses of the school – Hawkins who is now Professor of
Applied Maths at Wits. Another pupil Bernard Haakman, seemed dopey, but became a vet.
David Sole, went on to study chemical engineering and worked for the government developing
rocket fuels or something similar.
He recalled an incident during study time in the standard 6 classroom that accommodated 60
boys. There was very little swearing in those days and debating was popular as the boys got to
get out of school occasionally. Doug Wickins stood up to make a speech and asked the
question “How can you call George that name, he is a boy”? (cunt). Br Dennis (Tickey) blushed
a deep purple, but Doug continued with his speech which was honest and full of integrity. He got
a round of applause and was not reprimanded by the brothers.
After matric he went to the Pretoria Technikon and did a National Diploma in Civil Engineering,
Land Surveying and remained mainly in Johannesburg.
He has no memories of his first day at the school but would have had to be there a few days
early as a boarder. On his last day he was so pleased to get out into the big wide world and was
very confident. He remembers walking into Barclays Bank, an uncle was a director, and asked
to open an account.
He says the boys were not prepared for the outside world due to the essentially classic
education they had received (No “life skills taught in those days”) but the fact was that they were
able to cope with whatever was thrown at them. Some did very well and most not too badly.
Once a year a Marist recruiter (crow catcher) used to come along and they all avoided him. He
was aware that Michael Heubeck, an American became a brother, he was with them until
standard 9.
Alex’s brother, Michael (deceased) was a really good cricketer and fast bowler. In those days
the cricketers wore boots. Michael played in a final and took 5 wickets against KES. A nonconformist,
he was presented with a cricket ball at assembly whereupon he promptly threw the
ball at Br Anthony. Needless to say, he was expelled but allowed to write his matric. He went on
to become a doctor.
Alex felt that the boarding was where the spirit of the school lay and that the character of the
school changed once the boarding facility was closed.
JE June 2011

Egenrieder, Julie

Interview with Alf Smith 1962

  • ZA ZAR STDS 202000396
  • Item
  • 2011

Interview Alf Smith – 1962
082 441 7227 011 782 -7376 (Home) alfredsmith@iafrica.com
Boundary Rd was a dirt road next to the golf course and Sandton consisted of small holdings
with lots of fruit trees. The boundary of the school was the old farm. Br Pius who taught his
father at Koch St, resided in a cottage in the school grounds and maintained the beautiful
gardens where the administration block was built. The prep playing fields consisted of sand
fields, an oval with grass and a cinder track for athletics. There were three fields below the
existing swimming pool which comprised a small soccer pitch and rugby fields. The acquisition
of additional grounds for the school was a big moment.
Alf started in grade 2 in 1952 and lived in the Wynberg/Bramley area. His first day at school was
not an easy one as, in grade 1 he had initially gone to St Paul’s, the school attached to
Maryvale Parish. He was very unhappy at St Paul’s and was taken out after 6 months. He then
had private teaching from one of the sisters from Alexander Convent. His first teacher at St
David’s was Miss Brick, grade 1, who was a very kind person. He was in her class for two
weeks and then Br Anthony advised his parents that he should be moved into grade 2. Miss
Martin was his teacher, a very good teacher.
Alf was a day boy and at the time the ratio of day boys to boarders was about 50/50.Because of
the boarding, boys came from far afield. His recollections were phenomenal in that he received
a good education. His father was a Marist old boy who went to Koch St in the late 1920’s and
then onto Observatory until the beginning of WW2.
He had a strong relationship, bond with the brothers themselves. It was a very religious school
but accommodated non-Catholics, although it was predominantly Catholic. Then brothers were
very dedicated and an enormous emphasis was placed on the Catholic faith. The first period on
Mondays was Catholicism and bible study for the non-Catholics. So the boys got a very solid
foundation in the Catholic faith. Retreats were a serious issue lasting a week and during school
work there were dedicated slots in the furtherance of the Catholic faith and teaching. He
remembered the impact Vatican 2, October 1962 had on the boys and the changes in mass
from Latin to the vernacular which was very significant to the pupils at the time. He wanted his
son Paul (matric 1999) to share the same experience but it wasn’t the same, the school was
battling and no longer had the brothers. However he still had a good education, developed a
love for his father’s school and made good friends. He started in grade O with Mrs Kerschoff
and completed 13 years until his matric in 1999. It was a sacrifice to send ones children to
private schools in the beginning and especially now. Not everyone was affluent, but the brothers
accommodated this and must have helped a lot of families. Alf’s family has always had a strong
bond with the Marist movement.
Alf cannot over emphasize the role the brothers played, there were a few gaps as some of the
brothers weren’t up to standard. There were women teachers in the grades including one of the
best, Mrs Kempster, grade 4, then from std 6 onwards only the brothers taught. The brothers
were teachers but more than that, they gave so much extra. The principals were Br Edwin (a
McGurk), who became Br Provincial, Br Benedict followed by Br Anthony for his last five years,
he thought Br Anthony was a wonderful man.
It was truly one school in those days with only 400 pupils. All white children, as segregation was
a big issue. Observatory had a few Chinese children. The brothers wrestled with these problems
and more is expected of children these days.
There was an influx of boys in standard 6 with plus/minus 60 boys, some left in standardd 7 and
by standard 10, matric there were only 17 boys left.
Alf regarded himself as an average pupil, but said the brothers identified potential in a boy and
encouraged that. He was a quiet, reserved pupil but achieved so much as the brothers gave him
every opportunity to blossom.
Alf played 1st team rugby and was a member of the team that beat Obs 8-6 in 1962. The full
school attended that match at Observatory. There was a lot of emphasis on athletics. There
were four terms, during the first they swam, played cricket, second term they played rugby and
the third term was devoted to athletics and the school competed in a lot of inter-school meets.
Debating also played an important role at the school. This was run by Br Gerard the English
teacher. Alf was persuaded to prepare a speech on the family business and he remembers
Doug Wickins being an excellent speaker. This was an important aspect of extra mural
activities. There was theatre and plays with a period of music once a week with MrDrummond-
Bell. They produced many Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. Darko was a very hands on pupil.
Their social life was more focused on the school, with families and parents being more
spontaneous without any expectations of the brothers. The inter-highs were invariably followed
by braais.
The worst thing a boy could probably do was to get caught trying to smoke a cigarette!
Sadly, Alf together with Alec Quail and Brian Austin didn’t get a 3rd scroll and therefore their
colours blazer in their final year.
His last day was a sad day for him; the last term was a panicked, stressful term. He wrote Italian
as his mother was Italian and had to wait another 10 days after all the others had finished their
matric. He had enjoyed his time and on leaving was sad that his school days had ended.
Incidentally, Willy Castle was age under 10 when Alf matriculated.
He then went to Wits University and studied for a BA Economics. Afterwards he went overseas
to England and the south of France working in floriculture. His family business is marketed
under the name E.C. Smith and is located in Hartebeespoort on the Hennops river. They
propagate cuttings and supply the flower markets. They have also supplied flowers to St David’s
and the Catholic church in Rivonia for many years. Neither his son or daughter got involved in
the business,with his daughter at Citibank and Paul at Investec and another company and is
now involved in a cleaning business with his brother-in-law.
Alf’s parents were on the PTA whilst he and his brother were at St David’s, and his mother was
on the original ladies catering committee.
He felt that Br Timothy struggled to fill the gap after Br Anthony left and felt that Paul Edey was
the first principal, after Br Anthony who brought stability, vision and structure to the school.
He remembers a tragic incident when Paul Barrenbrug, who came from a Dutch family and was
in the same class as Alf, grade 2 1952. The boys always used to wait for parents by the junior
block, by the little wall and the fountain. There was an ice cream seller by the main gate and a
car ploughed into the ice cream bicycle and cart, Paul was thrown into the road and killed
outright. It was an enormous shock to the whole school and especially the boys in his class. It
left a mark on Alf and some of the other boys.
Alf still keeps in touch with Darko, Alex and Doug, but married much later than the others, so his
children didn’t really get to know theirs. He did quite a bit of work for the old boys in the early
years. They were driven by the bond they had for each other and the school.
Alf is very interested in the book and the 75th anniversary and would like to be kept informed. He
doesn’t attend evening events because of his location. He did attend the opening of the new
chapel. His brother pupil Robert Smith, from 1956 – 1966,involved with old boys, also had a
son at St David’s, a good sportsman – cricket and rugby – matriculated in 2005? and became a
civil engineer like his father.
JE July 2011

Egenrieder, Julie

Interview with Brian Austin 1962

  • ZA ZAR STDS 202000718
  • Item
  • 2010

Interview with Brian Austin - 1962
St David’s Inanda: some recollections before the Beatles
Brian Austin (1958 – 1962)
In those days it wasn’t called St David’s, though his name was there in the small print.
We all knew it as ‘Inanda’, to distinguish it from ‘Obs’: those other guys who wore the
same funny stripey blazer. But many people around Joburg called both schools ‘Maritz’,
for obviously South African reasons but clearly without much appreciation of who these
Marist Brothers were. And, to distinguish us from them at Obs, ‘Inanda’ was always
regarded as the posh school where you went if you didn’t sound (or want to sound) like
Al Debbo (now there’s a name from the dark ages!).
I went to ‘Inanda’ (I’ll stick with that name) in 1958. My prep school years were spent at
the little Catholic school in Maryvale, St Paul’s Parochial School, that’d been founded by
the remarkable Fr Philip Erasme OMI in 1943. I’d been head boy there but was small fry
when I arrived at Inanda. Most of the guys in standard 6 had been together at the junior
school of Inanda and so they all knew each other and also who was king. New blokes
from other places – and there were a handful of us – had to slot into the established
social order. And Inanda had boarders and the boarders were the really important guys,
not day boys who still lived with their mothers. I was a day boy.
There was only one lay teacher in the whole senior school at that time. He was Mr
Bishop and he taught us English. Mr Bishop stood out for never having a hair out place
and he always wore impeccable suits. He used to read to us occasionally from a book
wrapped in brown paper. It was a war story and some said it was his autobiography,
hence the wrapping. In those days we got ‘lashed’ with the cane for various
misdemeanours usually to do with homework that wasn’t done. Old Bish could lash all
right. So could Br Andrew who was our official class teacher. He was a French Canadian
and always said ‘bon’, when you got something right. He taught us Maths and Latin. And
Br Benedict was the principal (I think that’s what he was called in those days. Later we
had a headmaster, but maybe not). Benedict was tall and gaunt. He was known as Beak
(or maybe Beek) and commanded respect. He could lash too.
The standard 6 classroom was stuck away down below the boarders’ dining room.
Remember that in those days the school didn’t extend north beyond the road that ran
down from the second gate (not the main gate) off Rudd Road. That property northwards
was a farm. And our classroom was alongside that road that ended up in the bicycle
shed. It also went past the swimming bath, which I see is now much bigger (according to
Google Earth) and somewhere else altogether. We had swimming as part of the
morning’s lessons one day a week in the summer, of course. I’d never dived into a pool
before then; I learnt to dive very quickly on the first swimming day. I was also known as
‘milk bottle’ because of my fair skin. Boys’ schools are very gentle and genteel places,
as we all know.
I played cricket because I loved the game. Rugby we all played whether we liked it or
not. In those days the school even had a professional cricket coach (a Mr Bannister)
who came out from England, believe it or not, to coach at various schools around
Joburg. He was a great coach and we didn’t have a bad U13 side as a result. The
captain was Roy Chisholm, a left-hander who bowled good in-swingers. I opened the
batting with Mike Ness who went to England the following year. So did Terry Coughlin,
the wicket-keeper. In those days, apparently, there was much traffic between some
South African ‘Private Schools’ and English ‘Public Schools’, such as Stoneyhurst in
Lancashire run by the Jesuits. In this context private and public meant the same thing
which would confuse anyone today not versed in such details.
2
I remember Chisholm and I once ‘made a stand’ against Athone U13. He got into the
sixties and I made 53, precisely. Br Anthony (much more about him later) was umpiring.
The Athlone captain was a little squat fellow called Sammy. He placed himself at silly
mid-on (it gets technical here), just a few years to my left, and I was facing their offspinner
who bowled a gift of a full toss. I played a mean on-drive in those days and duly
caned the ball. It hit Sammy on the forehead and nearly decapitated him. He certainly
took off backwards and landed on his bum. Br Anthony, standing at the bowler’s wicket,
sauntered up the pitch to see if Sammy was still alive and then said to me: ‘that
should’ve been four”. Exactly what I thought too.
Standard 7 was a tough year. Our class teacher was a very young Irish brother whose
name now escapes me. He clearly felt challenged by pimply-faced, testosterone fuelled
fourteen-year olds with attitude. As a result he didn’t cope well and lashed us often,
clearly his only defence. A fellow called Ralph van Oppen would openly challenge
anyone who so much as dared look at him to a fight – and he always won. He once
organised a strike by terrorising the whole class who, at his say so, didn’t dare return
after lunch break. We just sat on the lawn. Somehow it was resolved (I don’t now
remember how) and we weren’t even lashed but van Oppen disappeared from the
school. A word, no doubt, was dropped into his father’s ear, though if the son was
anything to go by, Van Oppen senior must’ve been quite something. Perhaps he’d got
away before the allies captured Berlin? That was the year we started ‘Science’ as a
subject and I immediately discovered my métier. English too wasn’t far behind.
Standard 8, or ‘J.C.’ (Junior Certificate) in those days, was a nondescript class and an
uninspiring time. It was 1960 and the time of Sharpeville but our pent-up anger
throughout they year had much more to do with yet more testosterone, I’m sure. Girls
now entered our spheres of interest but most seemed totally disdainful of us. Rosebank
Convent provided much that was attractive but it never reciprocated our awkward
posturing. And we produced a lousy rugby team, but smoking on the bottom field
improved markedly as the year went by. Br Walter, our class teacher, seemed older than
Noah by at least a generation. He was the most gentle of men. Seemingly near-blind
behind very thick lenses, and always somewhat befuddled, he taught us Maths and
Christian Doctrine. Sometimes there was so much fervour involved in both that it was
difficult to tell them apart. As a result, if one had any mathematical flair it was likely to be
kindled by Walter and mine certainly was. Others discovered they had ‘vocations’ and
talked of becoming brothers themselves. At the end of the year, having gained a ‘firstclass
J.C.’, I remember writing Br Walter a letter thanking him for making ‘the minutiae of
the subject’ (Maths) so amazingly clear. His flair with figures, equations and abstruse
geometry undoubtedly helped because I’ve used a fair bit of the subject ever since. On
the matter of our execrable rugby performance that year, I remember our being thrashed
by Jeppe 103- nil. How we dared arrive at school the next day remains one of those
mysteries on one’s educational life. The ignominy must’ve been indescribable.
Junior matric followed and another figure - in black (not white then) cassock, white bib,
rope around his waist and swinging crucifix - strode into our lives in very sharp focus.
Brother Anthony was the new principal and his Scots accent became part of our lives.
He was always known as ‘Ornge’ or ‘Ornges’ from the way he said ‘orange’. He also
caused much mirth when he spoke after the annual athletics sports day each
September. After thanking everyone for attending and making the occasion the success
it usually was, he’d then announce, into the microphone, that all were very welcome to
attend the ‘bry flies’ afterwards. Most did, if only to hear Ornge say it again.
Ornge was a phenomenal headmaster. I’d go as far as saying that he really made the
school into what it is now. Every morning at assembly he spoke from the upper balcony,
3
looking down (but only metaphorically) on all of us standing in our rows, per class, in the
‘quad’. The prefects prowled around in between. I still vividly remember hearing one of
them, Martin Funston the nephew of Ken Funston the Springbok cricketer, tell a fellow
who happened to have a shock of red hair, and who was talking, to ‘shut up, copper
knob’. That actually occurred in 1958 but such things happened in 1961 too and just had
to be mentioned because the reaction of all within earshot was excruciatingly funny.
The matric class in ’61 (a year ahead of me) were a brilliant bunch and Ornge was very
proud of them. Dudley Mandy,with much swagger and I suppose what we’d call
charisma these days, was headboy. I think he also subsequently became a brother. The
cleverest bloke was Doug Hawkins, now a professor of Statistics in the states. ‘Dougie’
(but pronounced, as you’d expect, by Ornge as Doogie), was at least 6 foot 3 and gangly
too. Though clearly designed for the second row of the scrum, or at least the line-outs,
he didn’t appear on the rugby field. Having brains helped some escape. He was a
mathematical genius – a fact often mentioned by Ornge – and he also started the
Science club. His plan was that ‘Inanda’ should follow the Americans into the space
race; remember sputnik was launched by the Russians in 1957 and ever since the
Americans had been trying to catch up. Anything we could do to help would no doubt be
appreciated. Doogie wanted to design, build and launch a rocket and Ornge backed him
to the hilt. So, one morning at assembly, after he’d addressed us from the balcony,
Ornge called on Doogie to join him up there and tell us his plans for interplanetary travel
or whatever he had in mind. I was enthralled and when the great man asked for
volunteers to join in I was there.
By then I was rather interested in radio. Not Springbok Radio but making radios and I’d
already made a few. Doogie said we needed radio communications, especially radio
telemetry, on our rocket. It would at least tell us where it was when it came down –
possibly in someone’s swimming pool. We agreed to meet at his house over the
weekend to discuss strategy and try to make a radio small enough to fit inside a (rather
small) tube that would be packed with explosives and after ignition would lift the missile
into space. It sounded fantastic and I was bursting to make my contribution. Doogie and
I, in his father’s garage the following Saturday afternoon, soldered and squashed
electronic bits and pieces together into the tube but never a peep came out of it. His
mother brought us tea and enquired how we were getting on. We said we were at ‘T
minus something and counting’ (that’s what they always said from Cape Canaveral just
before lift-off) but had hit a snag. She said she was sure we’d sort if out and then asked
us to try not to drop solder on the carpet.
I don’t remember the rocket ever being launched. Something about Pretoria and laws
against making missiles, if I remember correctly, but it was great fun and Doogie was
impressively tall. Others in that class who excelled cerebrally were Richard Hartdegan,
later a dermatologist in Joburg, Rodney Leigh (known as ‘Gripper’ for some reason),
another medical doctor, and Steven Fine, a dentist to be. And Emil Iglauer, built like the
proverbial brick toilet, hence he propped the 1st XV scrum with Darko Vidas (in my year),
became an electronics engineer, as I did too a while later.
In 1962 I entered matric. There were only 17 of us in the class and, of course, only one
matric class in those days. Our classroom was right at the end upstairs. Next door were
the junior matrics and next door to them was the Science lab which always stank of H2S,
but then so did some boys even though they never went near the place. I never earned
my colours blazer. You needed three ‘scrolls’ for that and despite being bananas about
cricket I never made enough runs to get that most prized (in my mind) of scrolls. I was a
prefect for which you also needed the ‘merit’ scroll. Presumably it meant what it said but
we didn’t know how they measured that. They just watched us, I suppose. We also
never had a head boy that year. The ‘watchers’ clearly decided that no one really stood
4
out. Roy Chisholm was no longer captain of the 1st cricket XI because Rob Fiore had
arrived from St Henry’s (in Durban) accompanied by accolades about his sporting
prowess. So he captained both the first teams: cricket and rugby. I still opened the
batting and, in fact, had played in the ‘Firsts’ the previous year too.
Before that, in the 2nds, our captain was Bill Oliver (also lavatorially-shaped and so
another ‘Firsts’ prop) opened the bowling. For sheer spirit (if not stunning talent) that
2nds side was fantastic – and Bill was the reason. He was inspirational, not least
because most of the team were in classes below him and were at least 50lbs lighter than
he was. Bill had his own form of ball-tampering long before the term was ever used at
test match level. Before opening the attack with the new ball he would rub part of it
vigorously on the concrete wall alongside the main cricket field – the main rugby field too
– immediately on the right of the driveway into the school from the main gates. This
gouging of the leather near the seam gave Bill the purchase he needed when bowling
his assortment of deliveries, mostly short-pitched that reared up at pace, to all who faced
him from our neighbouring schools. He hated them all – a good sign in a fast bowler –
and he inspired us.
In 1961 I went with the 1st XI to Marist Brothers, Walmer (in P.E.) for the Marist Cricket
Week. Every year each Marist school in the country sent its first team to play against all
the others at one or another school. We didn’t do too well; as you might expect given the
fanfare that surrounded Fiore’s arrival from Durban a while before, St Henry’s walked
over everyone else. But Rob himself was picked to play for ‘S.A. Marists’ – as a bowler.
Until then he’d been a top-order batsman and occasional wicket keeper too. But in P.E.
our captain (Mike McGurk) told him to bowl medium pace, which he did, and he took a
mountain of wickets. Needless to say, this was yet more Fiore sporting magic.
My cricket in matric was obsessional. Alf Smith (who didn’t play at all but was a cricket
nut like me) and I used to ‘talk cricket’ at every break and often in between too. I still
opened the batting, usually with Renzo Brocco of the year below. He was also fullback
for the firsts at rugby (I was fullback for the ‘Thirds’). We had a few decent opening
stands when he scored most of the runs. I was just too dogged and Jackie McGlew-like
in that I stuck out my backside, gripped the bat too low down and lost the on-drive that
had nearly murdered the Athlone boy some years before. In the St David’s Magazine
that year (I think it was, by then, known as St David’s) the matric class had pen pictures
and photos. Alongside were our nicknames and any special idiosyncrasies, foibles etc.
As was seemingly the custom in those days, we were also described by a current pop
tune. Mine was ‘Transistor Sister’ because I was also, by then, a confirmed radio (in the
electronics sense) nut as well. My cricketing prowess was, as I remember it, described in
equally unflattering terms too!
In matric, Br Anthony (‘Ornge’) taught us Maths, and very well too; Br Robert, an
extremely short Australian, taught us Science in a very methodical way, and Br Gerard
taught us English, quite inspirationally. He even made (some of) us appreciate poetry.
Best of all, he spoke impeccable English with much emphasis on correct ‘received’
pronunciation. For example, the list he put on the board included such words as
Wednesdee, ‘vittles’ (food to the rest of us), and ‘contriversey’, with the emphasis on the
first syllable and a delicate ee sounding of the second. And he could lash too, especially
when one hadn’t learnt the complete ‘To be or not to be’ soliloquy from Hamlet, our
setwork of the year. If I remember correctly, Alan’s Paton’s ‘Cry the Beloved Country’
was another, as was Thomas Hardy’s ‘Return of the Native’ which allegedly caused
some consternation within the state censor’s office until it was pointed out that influx
controls were not being breached.
5
Sportswise, the cricket coach of note was little Br Dennis or ‘Tickey’, as we knew him.
He taught Latin and History too. And, on the rugby field there was ‘Bodo’: Brother
Bonaventure, big, dark and almost brooding. He too wielded the cane with precision
while teaching us Afrikaans. Both he and Tickey, evidently, never stayed the course and
left the brotherhood some years later. Now, of course, there are no brothers left and old
Ornge is, so I hear, still doing a fantastic job out in the sticks tending to those whose
needs are far greater than ours, as very privileged white youths, ever were.
I was an active member of the Science club in 1962. I proposed a club project to Ornge,
which he accepted, and the school funded. S.A. Philips, the Dutch electronics company,
had recently published a remarkable book, written by its engineers in Joburg, called
‘Transistors for the Home Constructor’. It contained all sorts of circuits for various
electronic gadgets and I wanted to build the radio transmitter. Ornge forked out the
money and my father bought the bits and pieces. Then, two or three of us, set about
building the transmitter. It took a bit of fiddling but eventually we got it working and we
could walk all around the school grounds transmitting our voices to a good old fashioned
‘wireless’ set up in the science lab. And that was long before cell phones. My mates
thought I’d clearly become what I suppose we’d now call a ‘geek’ or a ‘nerd’. They felt I
needed to spend more time with girls.
I left ‘Inanda’ at the end of 1962 and spent nine months in the army before going to Wits
to do electrical engineering. Graduating, after a few hiccups along the way, with B.Sc
(Eng) degree launched me on a career that became my life, first in Joburg at the
Chamber of Mines Research labs, and then at Wits as an academic in my old
department and for the last twenty years, before I retired five years ago, at the University
of Liverpool. As a side interest, I also wrote the biography of Sir Basil Schonland, a
noted South African scientist who amongst many other things founded the CSIR, was
scientific adviser to Field Marshal Montgomery and ultimately, was director of Harwell,
the atomic energy research establishment in England. It was published in 2001. St
David’s (‘Inanda’) provided me with lots of good guidance, both academic and spiritual,
great company amongst one’s fellow pupils and, especially, a sense of pride in a
wonderful institution that thrived throughout my time there under an inspirational
headmaster always known to us as ‘Ornge’.
B.A. (Brian) Austin
West Kirby
Wirral
UK
(May 2010)

Egenrieder, Julie

Interview with Darko Vidas 1962

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  • Item
  • 2011

Interview with Darko Vidas 1962
Darko joined St David’s in 1960 after living in Namibia. His mother had died and eventually his
father decided to move to Johannesburg hoping for a better life for his children. Darko was a
boarder and found the first year to be very hard; it was difficult to get acquainted with everyone
and everything, plus the fact that he went overseas for two months to Europe and Croatia to
meet his family there.
Darko was quite a rebellious child and initially found the discipline at St David’s to be a difficult
change from life as he knew it. Brother Anthony had just been appointed headmaster and he
began by reading the boys the riot act as he was determined to change the ethos of the school
and behaviour of the boys. Darko thought he would get thrown out of the school!
His first day was quite horrific. Getting organised, classrooms, teachers and books he needed. It
was a very different environment from Namibia where he went to a much poorer, dual medium –
English and Afrikaans school and discipline was a big issue. His English was never very good
as he had been brought up in his mother tongue of Croatian until he went to school and he
battled with the language.
He now speaks Croatian, English, Afrikaans, German and a little Zulu and firmly believes in
introducing other languages to children as it gives them a greater vista and an advantage.
He also remembers serving at mass in Namibia, if you did this the nuns gave you breakfast
which included delicious rye bread and polony.
He really enjoyed his time at St David’s, making good friends, with whom he really bonded.
They shared everything, which was a great experience; he mixed with boys from different walks
of life – richer and poorer than himself – having compassion for one another. The brothers
showed love and compassion even though they were disciplinarians. As far as he was
concerned there were no cons to boarding school life at St David’s, for him it became his home
and haven as he no longer had a mother at home. He also remembered that the food was very
good.
Some of the Old Boys he is still in touch with and some he remembers:
Alec Quail Steven Muller
Doug Wickins Mike von Guilleaume
John Daly Rugani - deceased
Alf Smith Tonetti - deceased
The last day he can’t remember which exam he wrote. He remembers that he wasn’t happy
about leaving and knew he would always be back. It was the end of an era and he was sad
about it.
The boys were made to play sport and he played 1st team rugby and was vice –captain of 1st
rugby team, although he had never played before. He was also a good athlete. His record with
cricket was rather ignominious as, during net practice he disgraced himself and managed to
injure one of the school’s best batsmen. Needless to say he wasn’t encouraged to continue. He
was nicknamed “Bull”, was rugby prop and was injured in a match against KES. Whilst he was
in hospital, Br Anthony told the boys to go to church and pray for Bulls recovery.
His class was the smallest matric class ever, just 17 of them, but they played against all the top
schools and beat Observatory for the first time in 1961 away (3-0) 1962 at home (6-8).
As teachers, he didn’t think the brothers were particularly good but they were certainly always
encouraging and supportive. The brothers at the time were Br Anthony, Br. Gerard, Br Liam, Br
Dennis who coached rugby and Br Ignatius and there were some lay teachers in the junior
school. Br Gerard was kind, compassionate and a dedicated teacher who helped him a lot with
his English and gave him extra lessons at no charge. He put up a stage production of “Hamlet”.
All the boys had to learn the roles and not only learn the words but understand and interpret the
meaning. He was also the senior master for the boarders and used to feed them extra food in
the form of cakes from the brother’s fridge.
The brothers were a family in themselves and motivated all the pupils and taught them to be
innovative and to think laterally. They taught them to understand what they were trying to do
and not just to learn another formula.
He remembers that he and some of the other boys built a stage for a production of “Swan Lake”.
They took Gertie, the school bus to collect wood from some of the boys. However that didn’t
come to anything and eventually the wood was donated. When it was finished it had to be
transported from the wood workshop to the school hall (now the library) and all the boarders
mucked in and helped.
Alex Quail and Darko shared a big trunk in which they kept their books and punishment for
some of the younger boarders was to carry this trunk from their classroom back to the study.
Once, a couple of boys dropped the trunk, which then went sliding down the stairs nearly wiping
out Brother Anthony. The poor boys even got caned, an additional punishment however Brother
Anthony didn’t cane hard as he really didn’t believe in caning.
Another time the boarders went on strike protesting about the food and one boy even sang a
ditty
“Sausage in the morning, sausage in the evening sausage at super time”. Brother Gerard who
was in charge of the boarders had a soft heart and often used to open the brothers fridge and
hand out some food.
An incident, where he got into trouble after complaining about an English test, led him to be
disciplined by Br Anthony. He was not allowed to wear his honours blazer for 3 months. It was
very hard for him but he learnt the true meaning of the school motto “Comfortare esto vir - Take
courage and be a man”. Br Anthony was the cornerstone of his life, always there to listen and
offer advice and was a guest at Darko’s wedding.
Darko was vice captain of Osmond house and a prefect.
Darko’s first girlfriend, who was with him at his matric dance, much to his horror, became a nun,
however they kept in touch until she died.
When he left school he went into the navy. He volunteered together with Doug Wickins.
Afterwards he started an apprenticeship with Eskom as an electrician but he decided this
wouldn’t get him very far and studied electrical engineering at night at the Wits technikon. When
qualified he joined Siemens where he stayed for 41 years until he retired.
He brought his future wife to St David’s and remembers telling her that any sons of his would be
pupils at the school. He continued to be an active member of the school community and served
several terms on the PTA from and on the board of governors as a well as on the old boys
committee and the old boy’s bursary fund, but hastened to add that many of his compatriots did
likewise. Darko was also good friends with the now infamous headmaster John Murphy. Darko
being a boxer had something in common with him. Darko was at that time chairman of MOBS
and was on the board of governors. He was distressed to here of Murphy’s wrestling exploits
but agreed he had to go when his falsification of qualifications also came to light.
JE May 2011

Egenrieder, Julie

Interview with Doug Wickins 1962

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  • Item
  • 2011

Interview with Doug Wickins 1962
Doug started at St David’s in Std 3 in 1955. He originally went to St Peter’s in Merrivale and
moved to Parkhurst where he spent 1 year in Std 2 at the local primary school. His mother was
a devout Catholic with 3 sons, Doug being the eldest. He and Anthony started in 1955 and Barry
a year or two later. Doug was happy at Parkhurst and didn’t want to leave and his introduction to
the school was delayed, as he and his brothers contracted scarlet fever, and were quarantined
for 3 weeks. Br Edmond, the principal introduced him to Alf Smith and Michael Fine (“Savage”)
and took him to Mrs Batten – standard 3. Mrs Batten was a real toughie, told him to sit where
she could see him. She sat on the teaching platform, teachers had a leather strap and he can
remember her whacking all the boys in her class. In spite of this introduction he thoroughly
enjoyed his schooling. At the end of standard 6 his father died, his uncle came to stay in the
house; accommodation was limited so in standard 7 arrangements were made for him to go into
boarding. This he regards as the best thing that ever happened to him. He spent 4 years
boarding and really enjoyed it.
There were 16 brothers then, all quite young, many in their twenties and Br Anthony was about

  1. They played sport together. There were 60 pupils in a class but by matric the number had
    reduced to 17 with other pupils either failing or being expelled. One of the problems was that Br
    John was Spanish and Br Charles, French-Canadian and understanding them was rather
    difficult. The language was an issue and there was insufficient opportunity to interface with the
    brothers individually.
    Doug loved boarding and enjoyed school even more because of it and regards the school as his
    Alma Mater rather than university.
    Doug was in a very spirited class with 8 boarders, the remainder being day boys. Among them
    were Darko Vidas, Alex Quail, Alec Smith, John Dayley. Br Edwin (Jack Bones) was principal
    until 1956 and then Br Benedict (The Beak) until 1959 followed by Br Anthony in 1960. He was
    terrified of Br Edwin who was related to the MCGurk family, but revered and respected him, he
    had arthritis but in spite of this he trained boys in rugby. He was eventually promoted to Brother
    Provincial. Br Benedict loved rugby and cricket. Br Anthony was, in his opinion, the best
    principal the school ever had.
    Br Anthony’s nickname was Aungess – Oranges which he could never pronounce properly. His
    favourite sayings were”nothing without work” and “he who plays hard, works hard”. Initially he
    appeared arrogant because of his demeanour but once everyone got to know him, his popularity
    soared. He had a great sense of Christianity hence Slough, and was a teaching principal,
    teaching Science and Maths. There were 450 boys in the school at the time and, although there
    was a bursar, he ran the entire school.
    Mrs Kempster taught under Br Edwin Standard 4, she used the stick and became the first
    headmistress of the junior school succeeded by Mr Manolios, then Mrs Schaafsma. Mrs
    Janusch, a scot married to a Hungarian was an absolute tyrant. He remembers boys such as
    Congo Brian Roberts who came from the Belgian Congo, Doc Livingstone – Rhodesia, Chicken
    Venter, Brian Emerick. The school’s reputation was well established with 180 boarders with 4
    dormitories.
    Doug once lead a boycott of sausages in the dining room, Br Dennis was on duty that particular
    evening and Br Michael wanted to kick him out but Br Anthony saved him. Four boys were
    expelled. Two brothers Peter and Jeremy Forder, Warrington and Hartman decided to run away.
    They got out and went to Sandton, however they were rounded up and expelled.
    A barber used to come to cut the boys hair, The boarders had lunch 12.45 to 1.15, then again
    out of class 2.45 for tea followed by sports practice, shower, study, 6.30 – 7.15 supper, study
    until 8.15 and lights and radios off by 9.15.
    Doug participated in all sport, played cricket but he preferred swimming, played rugby, hockey,
    and athletics and joined in debating. There was tremendous competition between St David’s
    and Observatory. The cinder track, now prep playing fields was regarded as the best in the
    country for the Catholic inter-high athletics. Doug was also made a prefect. Doug recalled an
    incident during an athletics event when Br Charles was measuring the distance that a javelin
    had been thrown when another landed immediately behind him fortunately just missing him.
    People often used to stop at the side of the road to watch the cricket. A sad incident occurred
    when Paul Barrenbrook was killed, in a freak accident whilst he was standing on the bicycle
    wheel of the ice cream cart which was hit by a passing car.
    The school had a good relationship with Parktown Convent rather than Rosebank and often had
    joint functions.
    He helped build a stage and got the wood. The stage was very, very heavy. Technical drawing
    was a subject and because of this they were allowed to use the workroom. There was very
    nearly a nasty accident when Darko got his tie caught up in the planing machine. It took all, his
    strength to keep his head away until someone could switch the machine off.
    Doug recalled President Kennedy and the Cuban missile crisis in October 1962 and listening to
    a radio that Darko had, as they all waited to find out if the world was going to be plunged into
    the first nuclear war.
    He remembers his last day at St David’s, it was in December and there were 4 or 5 boys left
    writing their last matric exam. His 17th birthday was on 29 November and he wrote his first
    matric paper, English 1. He felt that he never left the school and attended many rugby matches,
    swimming galas and athletics meetings. A number of them went to Wits and kept in touch. They
    always had the idea of forming MOBS. Tonetti, Mike von Guilleaume, Steve Muller, Trevor Blow
    (first chairman MOBS, a lawyer).
    He recalls the appointment of Murphy who was welcomed with open arms and was given a lot
    of support by the old boys. That was until he appeared on TV as a wrestler and then it was
    revealed that his credentials were not based on fact as they were presented. Steve Muller, Br
    Jude and Br Timothy originally interviewed him.
    He remembers Darryl Boswell as a good head and Gary Norton as deputy. He was also fond of
    Br Edwin, Quinas and Tometti.
    He studied for a Bachelor of Commerce at Wits and went into marketing and advertising. He
    was interested in investments and on retirement became more involved and now thoroughly
    enjoys it,
    Both Doug’s sons, Gregory and Michael, were pupils at St David’s and in class with Mike von
    Gulleaume’s children. His grandson Thomas Weedon has just joined the school. Greg’s
    youngest son is registered to come here. Vito Rugani founder member of MOBS had three sons
    here.
    Forming MOBS there was tremendous argument between them over what was then known as a
    federation of Marist old boys. St David’s was seen to be better, with young upstarts and elitist.
    Initially they set up the old boys for St David’s only and refused old boys from other
    Johannesburg Marist schools. Now anyone can join if they have been to a Marist school. There
    was a special badge for the federation emanating from St Charles Durban. A group of them
    went down to a number of conferences.
    Doug was chairman of the old boys, chairman of the PTA and vice-chairman of the board of
    governors. Steve Muller was the first chairman of the board of governors and MOBS was
    formed in 1965.He worked together with Kevin Brewer fighting to get subsidies from the
    government. St David’s was the first independent school to admit blacks.
    He remembers Darryl Boswell as a good head and Gary Norton as deputy.
    JE June 2011

Egenrieder, Julie

Interview with Dr Theo van den Handel 1982

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  • 2011

Interview with Dr Theo van den Handel - 1982
Theo is one of 4 van den Handel brothers – Alan matriculated as deputy head boy in 1974, Rik
matriculated as head boy in 1976, Theo matriculated as head boy in 1982 and Jan Willem matriculated
as a prefect in 1987.
Theo remembers his early years at St David’s as great years, however, he was just an ordinary boy in the
prep taking part in all the sports but never really shining. But he blossomed in the high school and loved
school and being a member of St David’s.
Theo feels that St David’s has always been a good school because it was smaller in numbers and the
boys were treated as individuals. Sport was a huge factor at school as it served to bind the boys together.
St David’s did well on the sports field despite our small numbers and when we were defeated we knew
how to take the defeat. The boys always bounced back. Theo feels that although the school has grown in
numbers today the same still holds today whereby the boys still love their sport and give it their all.
Theo started at St David’s in 1971 in grade 1 and felt at home as his two older brothers were already at
school there. He remembers teachers like Mrs Hildyard, Ms Joseph, Mrs Knezovich, Mrs Anderson and
Mrs Walsh. In standard 7 he and Jan Willem left St David’s to live in Holland with their Mom. After just a
year there they returned to South Africa and the two youngest boys returned to St David’s.
He entered standard 8 on his return and felt as if he had never been away. He enjoyed his sport
especially athletics, swimming, water polo and rugby. Theo still maintains that sport being compulsory at
St David’s is an excellent idea and does give the school a wonderful spirit. Theo was appointed head boy
in 1982. This was a significant year in the school’s history as it was the first year that the school had a
lay headmaster. Mr G Murphy was the first lay headmaster and Theo remembers him well saying that the
boys liked Mr Murphy mainly because he was very into the sporting side of the school and encouraged
the boys especially in rugby. He says he got on well with Mr Murphy and followed his advice.
Theo enjoyed his years in the high school and felt that with teachers like Mrs Elliott, Mr Colia, Mr
McFadden and Mr Boswell the boys were given a good sound education.
As mentioned Theo is one of 4 boys in the van den Handel family. The eldest is Alan who runs his own
construction business in Plettenburg Bay. He is married and his son Nicholas now works with his dad in
the business. Rik lives in Dallas and is an chemical scientist. He is married and has a son Ryan. The
youngest brother is Jan Willem who is married and in the process of moving back to Johannesburg from
Cape Town for business reasons. He has a little daughter.
Theo is still in touch with Graham Muller who is a GP in the UK.
Theo and his wife Sian have moved to Plettenburg Bay where they have set up a practise together, Sian
as a dermatologist and Theo as a medical practioner. Theo has taken a great interest in HIV and while
living in Johannesburg he worked on a regular basis at Baragwanath Hospital. He is now is provincial
programme manager of the Western Cape branch of Right to Care which specialises in HIV and TB.
Theo has 37 doctors working under him and he himself travels to Beaufort West and the surrounding
area for 2 to 3 days each week running clinics and educating the public and also the people working in
this very important programme.
Mrs van den Handel has moved down to Plettenburg Bay to be near the family and they are now able to
spend quality time with their two sons Rhys and Luc, both of whom were at St David’s while living in
Johannesburg. Since the move both boys are enjoying their new school Oakhill in Knysna, but they still
miss their friends at St David’s
Interview: 13 May 2011

Egenrieder, Julie

Interview with John Daly 1962

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  • 2015

Interview with John Daly – 1962
John , having been previously expelled from Dunkeld College, came to St David’s at the age of 5 on the
recommendation of a friend of his father, Eddie Rohan Irwin whose son Richard was a pupil there as he felt
the disciplined environment might help.
In those days Johannesburg ended at Bompass Road with the number 2 bus terminus. There were only a
few houses north of Bompass including the Rondavel’s tea garden, Sandown Farm, now Sandton City,
which belonged to the Edmonds family and Guy Edmond was chairman of Standard Bank. John
remembers playing tennis there in the veld.
Hyde Park was a swamp and the boys used to play cowboys and indians there. Hyde Gate was vacant
land and was used by all the ox wagons as a turning point when delivering their loads of fruit and
vegetables. John’s mother used to go there to buy the family supplies from Moonsammy, the vegetable
man. Manie Fryer eventually bought the land and drained it.
The soccer fields at the school were initially gravel, then came the concrete, tennis courts and the bicycle
shed which was enormous, accommodating the boys’ bicycles as there was no transport. There was
however, a municipal bus which ran once a day with Ben the driver who was a huge man with a handlebar
moustache. The pupils were dropped off at their homes. A swimming pool was built and there were 4
classrooms for the grades, 10 classrooms in all but no chapel. On occasion one of the boys would ring the
school bell as a prank signifying the end of the day and all the boys would knock off early.
John’s gardener used to take him to school on the carrier on his bicycle until one day John took it upon
himself to take the gardener’s bike leaving him behind. His father then bought him his own bicycle and at
the tender age of 5, John rode to school alone. The journey used to take him through the grounds of some
private homes on the way.
John recalls that in the prep school they had lay teachers until standard 5 with Mrs Brick teaching the
grades, Mrs Brophy – standard 1, Mrs King – standard 2, Mrs Batten – standard 3, Miss Brophy – standard
4 and Mrs Kempster, who was an institution, teaching standard 5. John’s cousin, Mrs Schaafsma also
taught at the school.
The Brothers taught in the high school and, although John and many other boys were not Catholic and
included Jews, and Chinese, they were accepted as it was, at that time, the only boys school in the area
with St Stithian’s opening much later in 1951. It was a full day, every day with academics followed by sport,
the boys were never on the streets with all after school activities being compulsory with the Brothers
participating.
John experienced three headmasters whilst at St David’s, initially Br Edwin who was appointed Brother
Provincial and was followed by Br Benedict and then Br Anthony in 1960.
Manners were exceptionally important and the boys were brought up in an environment which
encompassed religion, sport and studying with the non-catholics having Scripture lessons. There were
many non-catholics in John’s class.
Mr Drummond- Bell led the school choir and produced the annual musical which was usually “HMS
Pinafore”. Singing lessons were included in the curriculum.
The Moni’s were the most prominent family in the school at the time and pupils such as Terry Rosenberg,
Richard Hartdegen and many other boys who did very well in their chosen careers. There was a pride in
the school held by the day boys and boarders alike. It was all very primitive and there was a bursary fund to
assist those families in need. School fees were reduced by the number of boys in a family.
John played provincial tennis and was also involved with debating but didn’t play a team sport. He and
Terry Rosenberg played 1st team doubles at the Wanderers. In his last year, the school won the tennis
league and knockout and Ray Bischoff became a Springbok for swimming, the first Springbok for the
school. The school role stood at 600.
A very sad event was when Paul Barrenbrug was killed near the school entrance. His brother subsequently
became a Marist Brother.
John remembers that Mr McGill-Love, who owned the farm next door, didn’t have any children and used to
come to the school in the afternoons to watch the children play sport and in particular cricket. He left the
property to the College when he died and part of the land, now the “Inandas”, was sold in 1980 which
became quite a controversial issue.
John didn’t go into a restaurant until he was 15, in the 60’s and then went to one in the Carlton Centre and
then at the age of 17 to the Golden Spur Steak House which had opened in Rosebank. Hamburgers were 2
shillings and 6 pence. Blairgowrie, Bordeaux and Hurlingham were farmland. John remembers certain
things at the time, like his father flying in a Junker, a trunk call to Durban was a big thing. His grandfather
built the first house in Illovo in 1896 and had the only phone. Cars were all black, Thrupps was the major
shopping centre, Anstey’s was a fashionable place to have tea and Doctors visited you at home. It was too
dangerous to go into town at night as there were highwaymen in Saxonwold!
Life revolved around balance and the Marist Brothers were very involved in the family’s lives.
After he matriculated, John didn’t go to university but worked and studied, eventually becoming an
evaluator and appraiser and recently passed yet another exam. He has always been self employed and
initially worked with his father, originally in property development. He is the father to 3 daughters and has 6
grandchildren with the boys living in Cape Town so none have been pupils of St David’s.
JLE March 2015

Egenrieder, Julie