Burnley Grammar School

Our P.E. Master was the first adult I saw with a tattoo when he removed his top joining in with gymnastic exercises.He was also ex military and always had his hair cropped short like a soldier.I think he was a good role model for the boys and was like Action Man come to life!

Comments by John on 19th February 2019   

Replying to Matthew, 17th February.

Yes, Our PE Teacher quite often stripped to the waist to take lessons, to demonstrate the muscle groups in the upper body, and would often join in any team games - if he was stripped to the waist he would join the "skins" team , and if he had his tracksuit top on, then he'd play for the "vests".

He was ex-army (PTI) and a former Police officer , so he was used to it , and a strict disciplinarian.

Angus

How did boys react when they had got used to wearing a nice warm sweatshirt for cross country, then to be made to strip to the waist ?

Andy and NickK, that's pretty much the way it was at my school (all boys) in the early 90s. First two years we wore the full PE kit as set out in the school handbook - vest or t-shirt, shorts, socks and trainers. In fact for cross country there was even the option of adding a sweatshirt! Well, it all changed the following year, when we did PE in sets rather than form groups. My set got a different teacher who was new to the school, so none of us lads knew what to expect. We soon discovered he was old-school and big on discipline. Our first PE lesson of the year was in the gym and straight away he made us strip to the waist and go barefoot. Initially vests (not T-shirts and certainly not sweatshirts!) were still permitted for cross country, as were socks and trainers. However, in the summer term, we had to take our vests off as well. This was the way it stayed right through until I did GCSEs and eventually I got used to it.

Andy, I had two different teachers with different attitude towards footwear. In year 9 we had A more lenient teacher that didn't care what you had on your feet as lo g as they were white and clean. From year 10 onwards we had a stricter teacher that insisted on us being barefoot for all PE in or out.

Our kit was supposed to be a vest, shorts, plimmies too. However we quickly discovered otherwise and were quickly told to strip off. If those lads in the photo had our teacher they'd start to sweat up early on in the session. Being at a mixed school it was a very common sight for girls to see lads stripped off and visibly sweating.

NickK

Did you have the same situation with cross country - different teachers, different kit.

Did your classmates "worry" about stripping to only shorts having been used to full kit ?

Andy

Andy. The PE teacher we had in first form insisted on shorts only in the gym even though socks, plimsolls and vest were on the kit list and bought by all our parents. A different PE teacher in second form expected us to wear the full kit. And when we had the same chap as in first form when we were in fifth form it was back to shorts only!

Matthew,
Sometimes our male PE teachers did conduct lessons stripped to the waist.

I think Mr. Parry should have conducted his lessons stripped to the waist

Did anyone have different kit rules depending on the PE teacher ?

So, were some more strict that others, and thus did different classes wear more kit for PE and cross country than others.

NickK, The photo all looks very staged. Next time they had PE perhaps they would have been a lot more attentive to what Mr.Parry what was instructing them if they all had to sit on the floor as we did, in regular lines with our legs straight out in front and our arms resting behind us. In addition we would have felt the sweat running down. These boys don't look as if they have been worked as hard as we were.

Rob. He does look happy enough doesn't he. Maybe nothing has happened yet as the photographer was expected and everyone needs to look happy and positive. Perhaps when the photographer left to visit other rooms in the school Mr Parry set about restoring normality and the lad was bent over that horse and given a good slippering. It would be interesting to see a picture of the next time that class had PE - I wonder if the shorts were all white!

NickK, he looks happy enough and not crouched down like some of them; maybe he just got a detention.

Steve,I don't recall anyone at our state school being made to strip naked to be caned. At the end of our first PE lesson we were told to go back to the changing rooms and take our shorts off and get in the open communal showers. I stood and hesitated for a few seconds but seeing other boys already naked realised I had no option but to join them. As you say, Steve, that was how life was.

"groans". @ Frank. I too wore those wired glasses at school and endured unending taunts such as "speccy four eyes" and sometimes much worse, so much so that I ditched them and I was 45 until I had another pair for reading only.

Comments by Steve on 9th February 2019   

Thanks for the comments - I'm just very shortsighted, but fine with glasses or contact lenses. If I had been made to take my glasses off for PE at school, everthing would have ben a blur !

At my school if we forget PE kit, we did it in just our pants - white y fronts for almost every boy - and got a detention (first time). If you forget kit again, it was still strip to briefs, but caned as well.

We were never made to strip naked, I'm sure no one was at state school, but if a teacher had told us to strip totally to be caned, there would immediately have been a line of naked boys all hands on heads, that was how life was.

Rob. Well spotted that one of the boys sitting on the floor on the left is in black shorts. If these came out of the spare kit box I wonder if he is sitting on a rather sore bottom after a good slippering for not bring his kit.

Obviously the student with the NHS glasses wasn't afraid of making a spectacle of himself!

Michael, when I was at school at the time of this photo, any boy who wore glasses had to take them off for safety when we did PE and put them on a table just inside the gym door until the end of the lesson. There is another boy on the left of the picture also wearing glasses and and next but one to him on his left a boy is wearing black shorts, Did he forget to bring his kit and did they come out of the spares box? You can't see whether or not he he has bare feet.
Steve, I remember the sort of glasses that you had to wear and I'm sorry that your eyesight was so bad. I hope that you have since been able to get help.

Comments by Steve on 8th February 2019   

I wore glasses at school, like the lad in the picture.

We wore simialr kit, but bare feet, thus all we were allowed was shorts - same applied to cross country, all year around.

It's true my glasses did slip sometimes, but they tended to have wire sides that went right around your ears, so were reasonably secure; anyway I couldn't see at all without them.

If you were lined up, waiting to be caned, hands on head, which we had to, you soon had other things on your mind other than glasses slipping, especially when you heard your surname and "6 strokes lad", get over the horse.

In the header photo a boy wearing glasses can be seen at the back.

I hope he removed them before attempting activities such as the one shown.

He would have been well advised to do so, as back in the day, broken NHS glasses (sometimes unkindly referred to as 'clinic specs'), took quite some time to replace.

Any breakage could also have endangered his eyes and left pieces of broken glass on the floor; a hazard for bare feet.

Stuart,
I think that the lads that got to swim naked at school were lucky. My cousin was made to swim naked at Senior School and enjoyed it and I know that I would have done too.

Paul et all re nude swim at prep school.

Our pool like others didnt relaly have a lot of room for spectators but at the annual swim gala some parnets usually mothers did attend, and i thik porbaby the most embarassing for the older boys was the diving competition as there was high and spring boards from which naked boys would perfrom, everythng on show.

At other tiems there were a few females members of staff who occasionally popped in and I always remember on saturday mornings when I was about 12 (year 8 today)our classwas the last one of the compulsory saturday mroning school.

The head was often showing rouund parents with their offspring who oftne included sisters of the boy who was a prospective pupil. No one batted an eyelid of th naked boys swimming (this was early - mid 1970s)

I remember specifically one instance when ofr soem reason I was standing out of thhe pool and this family of mum dad boy aged about 8 and a sister my age. The parnets wree talking to he Head and the chidlren walked further in and stood next to me and the girl said something like "youll be swimming nude" to her brother, a big grin on her face as she stared at me, he blushed. Im sure though once he started he got used to it.

Ben, How I agree with you, my 13 year old grandson comes to my house from school as its a 10 minute walk or so, until his dad picks him up after work, he is often in his football/rugby kit and thick in mud, I ask him why he doesn't shower after at school and he says he isn't bothered, I do suspect he is shy though about exposing his nude body in the showers to the other boys, and having my place near is a better alternative, though he does moan about having to clean out the shower after though.

Jamie, you are right about the tracksuit bottoms. I can tell which days the kids in my neighbourhood have PE because I see them going to school in the morning and also coming back wearing tracksuit bottoms, so they don't even have to change at school for PE.
I think it is ridiculous making kids and teens wear tracksuit bottoms for PE, a far cry from when we were at school.
It is probably the result of our liberal 'diversity' society.

Ben, We were supervised, the school had 3 PE teachers and 2 were accredited swimming instructors if my memory serves me right, doors were closed and locked so no-one else could get in, my son's old school had a swimming pool and they wore trunks and I remember telling them that I was nude at their age when doing swimming, I got rolled eyes and giggles in response.

So I guess the practice stopped maybe in the 70/80s as they were in junior/senior school early to mid 80s and their PE was done in tee shirt and shorts and now their children do it in tracksuit bottoms mainly, only shorts for football/rugby.

Jamie, were you supervised by teachers during the swim lessons, or just a swim coach giving instructions?

I don't think this would happen today with boys taking swim classes in the nude in a public swimming bath, although this seems to have been not uncommon till the 60s.
I also presume that there are no schools left which mandate boys to be nude during swim classes even in schools that still have pools, or are there?

Ben. It was a closed pool when we were there, like most municipal pools those days the windows were high up and the changing cubicles all around the pool in two tiers, where we stripped off. I was at that school until I was 15, then left to start work in 1963 and all that time the lessons were nude.

Jamie R
Were your nude swimming classes at the local swimming baths reserved just for your classes or were there other people using the pool at the same time?

Also did you have to be naked for these swim classes throughout Secondary school or just in junior classes?

Hi Guys, Reading the posts here about schooldays I thought I would weigh in with mine, I went to a village primary school never more than around 15 to 20 pupils mixed of course, PE was just basic in exercise, a run round the small playground and stretching and bending exercises and running on the spot type of stuff, we only had two teachers and both were women.

My dad was an estate manager, but when I was 11 he left the estate and got a job as a farm manager near Swindon, so we had to move, I went to an all boys C of E secondary school, now to me this was a culture shock from a small village school, I was an overweight boy, not obese but definitely had what my dad called a "tummy" this was pointed out at my first school medical not long after I started there, also having to queue up stripped to the waist waiting to be examined behind a curtained off area in the gym, scared me stiff.

We did PE Like some have said here dressed just in shorts and white plimsolls and showered after. The PE lesson was always the last of the day and I was given extra tuition on the advice of my parents to help me lose weight and instead of catching the bus to school I biked. Twice a month we were bussed to a local swimming baths and we had swimming lessons in the nude. Through all this at first I was mortified but soon got used to it and I think I really benefitted as a teenager with lots of confidence, I have encouraged my boys when they were young to not be ashamed of their bodies and they were always bare chested in the garden and around the house.

TimH & Pipin, My maternal grandmother had rickets in the very early part of the C20th and although I wasn't told this until I was in my teens, I remember when I must have been aged about 7 and my mother asking me when we were outside in the sunshine if I wanted to take my shirt off. She was probably thinking that it would benefit me and help prevent me from getting rickets.I can still remember how good it felt outdoors wearing nothing on top. When I went to grammar school in the mid fifties I had no problem when we had to strip to the waist for P.E.lessons in the gym and outside, including cross country. My parents kept me in short trousers until the January after my 14th birthday, probably so that I could get as much vitamin D. The fashion nowadays, however, is to dress boys in long trousers from a very early age. After I started wearing long trousers to school and my mother saw me wearing them in the garden in the summer she used to tell me to come in and put my shorts on and get the sun and fresh air to my body. So I used to spend a lot of time stripped off soaking up plenty of vitamin D. I do believe that getting us exposed to the sunshine when we were young helped to reduce/eradicate rickets from children and nowadays I try to get out in the sunshine to build up my vitamin D to protect me from winter colds and other ailments.

Replying to Pipin - yes - in the early part of the C20th the state of the 'national health' was not good - there was a conscious move (from all parts of society) to get the country fitter - think of the rambling movement, the start of the YHA, 'Women's League of Health & Beauty', scouting, etc. Rickets was widespread - my father had it in the 1920s - it is caused by a lack of Vitamin D, which you get from an exposure to the sun ... so stripping off on the sun and letting nature do its bit.

Paul - Frank C.
At my school the pool had no space for spectators.Sometimes though the Headmaster's wife and family would be swimming in their costumes whilst we boys were naked. After a short time I became used to not wearing trunks which continued throughout my schooldays.

June,
Much like Anthony I did indoor PE in little more than shorts even by the later eighties, so things hadnt changed much since the 60s/70s many posters refer to.

Hi Paul kindred spirits it seemed!There were the school open days a showcase for prospective pupils and their parents and family members.The best swimmers were selected to display there skills and aptitude in the pool including the twelve to thirteen year olds.Like you we used to the regime and quite enjoyed the free open movement without the restrictive effect of trunks.

I have just watched a television programme showing school days going back in time. The episode was between the wars. There was a sequence which showed an all boys class being taught their normal lessons at their desks in the playground. They had not tops on only grey shows. According to the sound track of the film this was introduced to make sure that they were exposed to plenty of vitamin d from the sun,because rickets was common at that time. So I wonder whether the rules for being stripped to the waist for P.E. and games followed on from that idea.

Robbie,interesting that although your kit listed a vest your teacher(s) made you strip off outside,and in the winter too. A vest isn't much but it's better than nothing. How did you cope with the temperatures, was this commonplace in UK schools?

To Edward, Frank and others who were made to swim naked at school,

At my prep school in the 70s we had the same rule, not allowed to wear anything for swim classes.
It was not such a big deal since we were all boys and actually enjoyed it. But there was some embarrassment during swimming galas when we also had to be naked in front of parents, sisters and other relatives and guests, some of them women and girls our age.
The younger boys up to 10 or 11 didn't seem to mind, but at 12-13 it was somewhat embarrassing.
Did you also have swimming galas at your schools in front of mixed spectators?

Hi Gary Though our outdoor kit comprised of a pale blue vest. In reality we were made to strip off to the waist as we did indoors, and regardless of the weather. We had 2 double and 2 single lessons each week.

Anthony
You mentioned you went to school in the 80s, and, therefore, i am intrigued as to what clothing you wore for outdoor sport. One also hears that today youngsters shower in their underwear or go home to shower! Was that your experience? What sort of school did you atttend etc.?

Yes we did pe indoors in just shorts and barefeet that was in early 1980s
I don't think it did us any arm at all

Hi John

Indoors I was fine with stripped to the waist/bare feet.

Outdoors I think most boys would have liked to have been allowed to wear a top. As you will guess there was no debate, we did as we were told, or came back from the run to face a caning.

Hi Gary,
Your PE kit rule was the same that I had in the 1970s. Would you have preferred to have been able to wear a vest or t shirt for indoor PE and cross country or did you get used to wearing only shorts and come to like it?

My school was normal for the time (early 70's), indoor PE in shorts only, cross country shorts/plimsolls, stripped to the waist. We had 2 PE lessons a week, one inside, one cross country, so we ran all year around.

At the start of the 2nd year we had a lad move to the school, because his parents moved jobs. He was used to wearing much more kit, and was shocked on a frezzing cold day to be told he had to run minus his rugby shirt or vest, and in only his shorts.

Further to earlier comments I recollect swimming without trunks at a boy's private school in the 1950s. I was reticent at first and wore trunks. I was soon ordered to strip off. I never dared wear them again swimming naked thereafter taking only my towel to the pool.

Stuart was bang on the money by stating that our parents were aware of the no trunks rule at the prep school mine from 8 to 13 just a clean towel to pack each week.Agreed the maturing issue could be problematic for some especially if they were self-conscious of their physique .

Toby P, Just as John said, we boys were worked hard and always sweated profusely. I used to enjoy feeling the sweat running down my whole body and glad that I was only wearing PE shorts. We all used to look forward to taking our shorts off and getting under the showers to freshen up afterwards and had no problem about being in the nude together either.

Ben
I agree with all that you have written and as you state about showering at swimming pools, I to notice that youngsters shower in their swimwear. It is the modern society we have to blame. Sadly, the time has now come when I also keep my trunks on when showering at the swimming pool (certainly if there are younger people in the area) for fear of comments from other people about being naked in a male changing area.

Ivor, Pipin,

At my all boys prep school we had an indoor heated pool and we all swam naked from age 9. Most boys were perfectly happy with it certainly early on. Once puberty kicked in for some it was more awkward as they developed ealrier, but I found it probably more embarssing by the fact that I dveleoped late and by the time we left the prep school I was still a "boy" and most of my classmates were not. Havings aid all that back then we never thought of questioning what was a given - you swam naked, you shwoered naked afte pe and games and did as you were told. this was the early to mid 70s in the UK. Our parnets knew and accepted it as they snet us to school with just a towel.
The only times I recall females being present was when the Head was showing prospective parents around and ther annual house swim gala when the very few female members of staff were there.

Toby P,
That never happened to myself or other lads because we always sweated profusely as we were worked hard. Shorts only for PE made total sense and was healthy, such a well thought out PE rule should still be the order of the day. As other people have commented there’s no problem as a lad doing PE shirtless even if PE sessions are mixed sex.