erm...
Well there was the French teacher who used to wear her shiny blue tights and short skirts, the other lady french teacher who used to show us french films with naked ladies in them (to the whole class, obviously EDIT- here www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxI75Dwvltg ) masquerading as 'culture' - oh, and she also called one of the boys in my class a dildo for mis-conjugating a verb, and that was after moderating the starting of the word 'dickhead' because obviously calling someone a dildo is less offensive-
The lady art teacher who used to wear leather trousers and plunging necklines, used to lean over your shoulder to look at what you were doing on your artwork and ooze Chanel scent with her boobs hanging just a foot away.
The lady biology teacher who was tasked with teaching us human reproduction but instead of catholic school austerity started with 'this is about one of the most wonderful experices you will have'.
And the lady RE teacher who encouraged us to ask any questions (anonymously via paper slip) we wanted and she'd answer them truthfully, so therefore 'what's Oral Sex like?' and her straight-faced reply 'well, it's a matter of taste'.

Amongst all these, the answer is actualy Mr Peter Hayden who was in charge of the library, creative writing classes and the school magazine.

While allowing us the freedom to drink coffee in the creative writing lessons and never stifling a ridiculous flight of fancy, encouraging the quiet and deeply troubled loners to express themselves through writing (one of the quieter and glowering girls in the year wrote a piece about being kidnapped and driven away on a throbbing motorcycle, for example).

Coming in on Sundays to help us photocopy the school magazine that we wrote and tabulated (masters were cutouts glued on white card- this was before affordable DTP software)- allowing my anonymous 'Mr X' column in the aforementioned mag without censorship and then when confronted by the headmaster, threw down the gauntlet and insisted that there would be no censorship or they would have to remove him.

Also,a really really nice chap. Organised published authors to come in regularly to give advice, rarely had to raise his voice and eventually left teaching to become a full time children's author.

When, at some point in the future I managed to get an article published in a magazine, rapidly followed by a series of them in another one (T3 mag) and then culminating in some research work for News International during a non-work year in Cornwall and even an article in the Sunday Times, I got back in contact to say thank you for the inspiration and to let him know that his efforts worked well.

Cheers Peter!
( Rotating Wobbly Hat That's not a banana. THIS is a banana., Thu 17 Mar 2011, 20:02, 1 reply)

I like
This and the fact you made the effort to get back in touch to thank Peter personally - most people would have 'just wished...'.
( elgordo, Fri 18 Mar 2011, 9:16, closed)