A few comments on life at Aldenham during my time there.
TV had been invented but there was no public service. As far as I can remember the School did not provide any radios though a number of boys had their own. At that time the transistor had not arrived and even ‘portable’ radios were heavy and bulky, depending on valves instead of transistors and usually a quite large HT battery plus (in the older models) a heavy LT accumulator which needed frequent recharging. The BBC broadcast two programmes ‘National’ and ‘Regional’. There were no commercial UK stations but Radio Luxemburg and Radio Normandy had English language programmes mostly sponsored by advertisers. The only ones to stick in my memory were Horlicks Tea Time Hour at 4.00pm and one in the morning, which advertised a breakfast cereal called ‘Force’. There were occasional film shows in the Hall and, very infrequently we were allowed to go to the cinema in Borehamwood but this meant walking there and back (at least 6 miles). I remember seeing “Gone with the Wind” there. Probably in 1939 or 1940. Some of the boys had their own wind up gramophones (with 78 rpm records of course). Vinyl LP’s did not arrive until well after the end of the Second World War.
Central messing was still many years away and all Houses operated their own Dining Halls for all meals. In School House the Housemaster, George Riding, and his wife presided over lunch each day at the top table with the Praes, who had to take it in turns to make polite conversation. A duty Prae, detailed by the House Captain, had to recite the Latin graces at the start and finish of lunch each day for a week.
The railways (apart from London Transport which was some sort of quango) were owned by public limited companies. Except for parts of the Southern Railway and London Transport, trains were nearly all steam hauled. Punctuality was certainly not 100% but was not bad on the whole. Long distance trains were generally pretty comfortable. The fares structure was delightfully simple – single fares at 1½d per mile and monthly returns 1d per mile. Day returns and excursions were rather cheaper. This was in the days when there were 240 pence to the £. Inflation was non-existent and fares hardly altered during the 1930’s. I suppose that trains would seem very slow by today’s standards but I was a regular passenger on the Mancunian from Manchester (where our family lived from 1933 to the outbreak of the Second World War) to Euston on my way back to School and that train averaged over 61 mph for the 176 (non stop) miles from Wilmslow to Euston and was very seldom more than five minutes late.
Bus services near Aldenham were mainly run by London Transport, as were the Green Line Express coaches which would get you into Marble Arch in about an hour for 2/6d.
Air travel was still in its infancy. Imperial Airways ran a regular service to Paris and when I lived in Kent in the early 1930’s their bi-planes and tri-planes used to come right over our house at about 90mph. Imperial also ran flying boat services from Southampton to Egypt and points further east. However, the mass market in air travel did not rally get under way until the 1950’s.
More on sporting activities. The sailing club started in 1939 and was very much oversubscribed, so I did not get a look in that year. The club had a
12-foot National dinghy. In 1940 I managed to get one sail at the beginning of the summer term but after Dunkirk the reservoir was blocked with floating logs to prevent German float planes landing and the club went into abeyance till the end of the war.
I remember the Corps marching behind the band to a service at Aldenham Parish Church one year and a procession afterwards including Radlett’s very ancient fire engine which rejoiced in the name ‘ Little Bat’. During the war, probably in 1941, after the Blitz on London had died down, I was in a party from the Corps which attended the ceremony at the Cenotaph on Whitehall.
The most striking change from my time at Aldenham is the change from a predominantly Boarding School (95%) to a predominantly Day School. Also notable is the demographic change from 90% WASP to the present broad racial mix.
I cannot recall anything about a visit by Hitler Youth in 1938. Could it have taken place in the School holidays? If it had been during term time, I cannot imagine that it would have met with general approval as Hitler’s Germany was becoming unpopular by 1936, mainly due to its participation (with Mussolini) in the Spanish Civil War. The anschluss (effectively the annexation of Austria by Hitler in March 1938) made us even more suspicious of the Germans.
One other thing I might mention and this is modes of addressing other boys. It was unusual to address another boy by his Christian name unless one knew him very well indeed. On the other hand the use of nicknames was quite common. Especially if they were of a derogatory nature! A master would never dream of addressing a boy except by his surname. Of course, this custom was not confined to School. My father would normally call a contemporary by his surname unless he knew him really well or was a member of the family.