News

Roger Garrard

1928-2020

Wymondham College 1952-1989

 

Roger Garrard was one of that special group of staff who ensured that the founding of Wymondham College was, in the words of Sir Edward Boyle, Minister of Education in 1963, ‘not only a justifiable experiment but an unqualified success’.

Roger was an English teacher and spent the majority of his career at the College. He once said ‘my memories of those early days are mostly of great fun….. I lived in two rooms in the corridor of a Nissen hut, and another teacher and I looked after 30 boy boarders. In due course Roger became Head of English and for a time served as Housemaster of New Hall, where he recalled that ‘one or two parents had actually been pupils in my dormitory!’

But Roger was much more than an English teacher and spent much of his time producing many wonderful plays and musicals. Asked what performances he looked back on with most satisfaction, he could think of three. The first was the play Sgt Musgraves’s Dance, the other two were musicals namely, The Pirates of Penzance, produced at the time the College was at its peak number of pupils and Oklahoma, because ‘everything clicked into place’. We remember both the latter two productions particularly Michael Brand’s performance as the Major-General, many of the College staff in the policemen’s chorus in Pirates and memorable singing by the principals in Oklahoma.

The Old Wymondhamiams were always very important to Roger who remained involved as long as he could. He always enjoyed reminiscing about his Wymondham College days. His long service at the school made a big impact on generations of its students.

Roger met his wife Brenda when she came to the College as a Mathematics teacher, later becoming a Housemistress. She shared his love of the theatre and literature. We know they enjoyed many wonderful trips to the RSC at Stratford, especially after they had retired.  In the Wymondham community they were very active, for example in the life of the Methodist Church where they played a part in the founding of the marvellous Day Centre which is such an asset to Wymondham people.

Roger’s life has been long and interesting and he has brought pleasure to many others. He will be greatly missed by his family – Brenda, Guy, Jane, Luc and Sara, as a well as his many friends.

 

                                                                                                Anne & Adrian Hoare