A dear friend kindly wrote about his memories of Ron from our school days, as well as his thoughts on Remembrance Day.
by Malcolm Parker
I was at St Alban’s School with Neil from 1965 to 1972, where we became good friends and have remained so since then.
Unfortunately he was working in Spain in early 1977 at the time of my marriage to Sue, when he would have been my “go to” Best Man. Sadly it wasn’t feasible, or affordable!, to get him back – he was having too much fun getting tear gassed anyhow it seems.
I was having no such adventures in June 1979 and was very pleased to be Best Man at his marriage to Judith.
Mr and Mrs Chapman were always very welcoming, whatever time I appeared to either pick Neil up or drop him off after an evening out.
As you would expect from a Mother of 3 boys, of whom Neil was the youngest, food was always on offer to the inevitably hungry visitor,
Mr Chapman, or Ron if I may call him, was always ready to chat. Being an aeroplane ‘anorak’, I would have loved to have heard about his flying experiences. That must be nothing compared to how David, Ian and Neil must wish that they could have heard them first hand.
I have been so pleased to hear the Blighty Thank God podcasts and even more impressed with the hours of research that Neil has committed to this magnificent tribute to his Father.
A couple of incidents related in the podcasts, where Ron and his colleagues headed to a bar to talk through events, sounded so much like the Ron I had known. Always interested in what I had been up to, but that needed to be heard with a pint in hand down the road at the Three Hammers (Watford Rd. Chiswell Green, St. Albans). I had a very wistful smile listening to those diary entries being read.
One early piece Neil wrote for Blighty Thank God was about the Remembrance service at St Alban’s School, held on the Friday morning nearest to Armistice Day. This brought back some memories for me which Neil has been kind enough to publish – I feel very honoured
In the first few years looking at the names and dates on the War Memorial I gained some greater insight into what that act of remembrance meant to my parents. They had always treated the day with great reverence and solemnity.
Standing there in the Upper Yard on a cold November morning, with some senior pupils in their Combined Cadet Force (CCF) uniforms, the whole atmosphere and the details of the service made me realise more what it meant to them – the loss of family members, friends, colleagues and acquaintances.
Increasingly from 1967 onwards, the effects of the US involvement in the Vietnam war became more prominent in the news, and with some degree of developing maturity, the impact of events featured more in my thoughts. I realised there were young men, not much older than me, either volunteering or being called up to serve and possibly die.
Luckily the UK didn’t get involved.
Neil has commented about the haunting sound of the Last Post being played on a solo bugle, just off of the Upper Yard where the War memorial stood. It really was a very moving sound.
Even more meaningful in 1970 when it was played by another friend from our year – Stuart Middleton.
Not the first of Stuart’s musical solo exploits – I think it was at the 1966 Carol service in the Abbey, which was absolutely packed full, before his voice broke, that he sang the opening solo to “Once in Royal David’s City”.
He’s probably now an absolute demon on a Karaoke night, particularly if he takes his bugle – sorry Stuart if you read this!
Caption: Student Stuart Middleton could hold a note on the bugle – and sing – as well as a rugby ball. He is front row centre. Also pictured are Malcolm (standing 4 in from right) and myself (standing 2 in from left). Picture ~1966.