Room Ten

Catholic boy

Protestant jacket

Cost a packet

Some racket

Blue coat now

But how?

New field to plough

Crest eight feet tall

In hall

Recall

Lion prancing

Dancing

With a unicorn

Dieu et mons droit

Or some sort of rot

Who gives a jot

Royal arms

Girls charms

Smiles given

Here for livin’

Cheeky chap

Happy chap

Head in cloud

Short tartan skirts

Gorgeous smirks

Boys blazers blazing

Place seemed amazing

Should be nice

Head checked for lice

No place for mice

Teacher’s eyes ice

Off to chapel

Read aloud

Big book

His book

About to get shook

Old place

Old rules

Cold

For bold

Way back then

Black caped men

No lip allowed

Smart-alecks cowed

Six house masters

Six foot men

Bullies all

Not tall

Small

Four foot boy

In a room with no joy

Crushed like a toy

Room ten

And so it began amen

Braced

Graced

Beaten

Battered

Bashed

Bruised

Black eyed

But not broke

Punched

Pummelled

Silence was the game

Would not name

But never forget

That awful lot

No win for them

Out to play ball

But cannot recall

Home

Alone

Dad

Looked bad

Problem lad

Rugby

Rugby?

Yeah rugby

Good?

Yeah good

Eyes disbelief

Left, relief

Head on bed

Waft of mother’s bread

Bloody crest

Covered chest

Latin words once detest

Now the best

In hunc coetum caritas

Love in this community

Blood and bread

Nobody’s dead

Just sore head

Ahh, the smell of childhood