Ian Huntly
18 February, 2025
Retro

Remembering Sunderland Tech

At age 85 I am reminiscing about a very happy time of my life when I attended Sunderland Tech from 1957 to 1959 to study Advanced Physics , Chemistry, Pure and Applied Maths

50 years later

I travelled by bus each day from my home in Chester-le-Street and met many of my co-collegates each morning. including Malcolm Vickers and Irene Barnfather........

I soon learned the ropes and found  myself part of a pleasant group including Coralie Bunker, Astrid Wild and Rob Pearson plus Alan Oliver and Harvey Bergson,,

I was 6 feet six tall in those days and became friendly with the Norwegians who were studying Naval Architecture and a group of Greeks who included Efthimios Makis Mitrpoulos who rose to high level in the Greek Navy

RAG DAY--- me as Caesar
RAG DAY--- me as Caesar Credit: me

We knew the girl from Hylton Castle who ran off with Yanni to Greece. I met Edna Cairns who I met again in 1980s.

We celebrated RAG DAY and I was Caesar on the float

We also went to the Star Inn next to the College and I sat in with Rod Porters Stompers Jazz Band playing my ex-Salvation Army trombone. Someone walked into the bone and it split my lip-- I still have the scar!

We spent a lot of time in LOUIS CAFE 

I passed my exams and went on to hospital life and research in the labs.