Issue 7, June 2003 (Back to Contents)

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Rob Holroyd joined the Common Room at Radley in 1989. He came via Colombia from Oakham with his wife Penny and pre-eminent academic qualifications, to set up Radley's Spanish department and to teach French. In 14 years as teacher, head of department, Tutor, games coach and other roles far too numerous to catalogue here, Rob has touched the lives of hundreds of Radleians who remember him with great fondness and respect.

A couple of Hispanists from 1994...
He was particularly frank when it came to my Oxbridge deliberations ... when we sat down to discuss my possibility of trying for Modern Languages at Oxford I seem to remember a pregnant pause followed by a judicious yanking of the nostrils, an energetic inhalation of air followed by an emphatic 'ah don't think so James' ... short and to the point.

I personally remember being given an essay back and being told that it was a competent undergraduate level essay but useless for A Level.

In spite of the affectionate nickname "Souave" given to Rob by the boys in B on account of the crisp, chilled white wine he would invariably serve at prefects' suppers, his reputation as a no nonsense teacher with a keen sense of discipline was soon established amongst the boys.

There were some pretty hairy moments but he was good at keeping morale up while giving you a bollocking at the same time.

The range of his ability in both the languages he taught was enviable. I remember coming back from a trip to Calahorra with the Vth form and after a week of hearing Rob giving commentary about local history, art and architecture in flawless Spanish and translating mouth watering menus for our coach drivers, who invariably asked for chips and egg, we had a run in with the French customs. Rob switched into French and became French. Subtle differences from the "Spanish" Rob crept into his demeanour, the "r" moved to the back of the throat to allow for authentic grasseyement, certain vowels wandered up to the nose, the gesticulations, the shrug of the shoulders, the intonation all combined to underline his flair not only for languages but also for acting.

In 1992 Rob produced and starred in Molière's l'Avare, half in French and half in English, and his instincts for theatre have certainly not been wasted as B recently had a three year stretch of winning the Haddon Cup.

It is difficult to spend so long in an institution without acquiring a legacy of anecdotes that need to be aired in an article such as this. One day, after period 4, teaching Lorca's Gypsy Ballads with his own brand of erudition and flair, Rob ambled over to Hall for an early lunch. I joined him in the queue and witnessed his easy banter with the ladies behind the counter. Lorca's poetry informed his commentary as he passed judgement on Gardner Merchant's menu del día. Having made his choice of main course, he eyed the puddings with unusual enthusiasm as the redoubtable Janet looked on. "Mmmmm, banana fritters, my favourite, Janet" he said, peering into a stainless steel container, "and, unless I am very much mistaken, this is a delicious coulis of bruised fruits of the forest." Janet, thinly disguising her amused perplexity, said "No Mister Holroyd, it's jam sauce."

In Social, or "Soash" as it's known within the bosom of B, his ways and means were thorough. His innovations in Social allowed boys to blossom and fit in without earning the traditional respect gleaned from success on the games field. Boys were rewarded for academic, musical and dramatic achievements. Encouragement and support from Shells to 6.2 allowed for an atmosphere that fostered tolerance, happiness and friendliness. Get it wrong and you would feel the full force of the Holroyd wrath... "my study...seven thirty".

Over the years he has given up his time to coaching all the major sports but hockey with JC1 and cricket with various teams were his main passions. An unfortunate injury sustained while playing informal association football against the boys on G Social patch has put an untimely end to his career on the field but his interest remains undiminished. Indeed, his enthusiasm for cricket is so ungovernable that it invariably spills over into the academic arena. One OR remembers seeing Rob playing solo cricket in his classroom, first bowling the ball with the Holroyd spin, running in to bat to hit it high above the polystyrene tiles of the ceiling, hovering underneath, hawk-eyed and finally making the catch, muttering "owzat" under his breath as the well-disciplined 6.1 Hispanists filed into his classroom.

He does everything with a touch of flair, nothing is ordinary. His warning about the suitability of an Oxbridge candidate put forward by the department came with the immortal line "I feel his enthusiasm for language and language learning is essentially rhetorical." His cricket playing, according to my sources, although not always suited to the 20 over game is nothing if not classy. His new boys tea address to parents is reassuring, calming, welcoming, his beginning of term Social Prayers homilies are contemplative, thought provoking, his speech about the boys at the prefects' supper is nothing short of brilliant and has all the VI.2s and the sub tutorial body in stitches for a good half an hour. All this combined with a charming family and a well developed sense of humour will allow him to shine as Headmaster of Repton.

Simon Barlass

Taking Over - Richard Greed

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