Author Topic: Harry Lucas School  (Read 43997 times)

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #121 on: April 22, 2022, 12:11:28 AM »
Did anyone who attended HLS go on to greatness? Yes, at least one, Michael Leddy (a classmate) who became Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Chancellor of Birmingham City University (formerly The University of Central England) and is currently MP for Brandwood and Kingsheath Ward.
Mike, if you are out there, why not post a message to celebrate 30,000 views of this topic?
Link: Michael Leddy MP https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/councillors/78/mike_leddy
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #122 on: April 29, 2022, 02:23:04 PM »
HLS opened as a senior school in 1958 and closed entirely in 1969 - a life span of just 11 years, it must be a contender for the Birmingham school with the shortest life, ever.
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #123 on: April 30, 2022, 06:00:04 PM »
Breaking News - has The Bicycle Thief been found? Watch this space. :D
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #124 on: May 02, 2022, 09:36:18 PM »
Breaking News - has The Bicycle Thief been found? Watch this space. :D
The Bicycle Thief
This is a long account so I'll split it into 3 Parts.

The Bicycle Thief Part 1.
Followers of the HLS Topic may recall I issue an appeal for information, from time to time, on the whereabouts of The Bicycle Thief - An 8mm silent movie made by HLS 4th year pupils (my Form G2) in 1964, which vanished without trace (or so it seemed) when the school closed in 1969. A number of people have, so far without success, tried to find the film, including member Astoness and my wife.
Regretfully I cannot report the movie has been found but I believe I can shed some light on it's fate.
Recently it came to my notice that the teacher who wrote and played the music score for the movie, Mr Keith Cole, although now suffering from Alzheimer's Disease, can throw some light on where the film may reside, Mr Cole (Music Teacher at HLS 1963-65, which spanned a year either side of the movie's production date) recalls that following it's premiere late 1964 the movie ended up in the possession of West Midlands Police who considered it of sufficient quality to show on their visits to city schools presumably to promote the ethos Take care of your bike and the report (so far unconfirmed) goes on to say the police liked the movie so much they kept it.

Part 2 coming soon. 
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #125 on: May 04, 2022, 11:31:39 PM »
The Bicycle Thief
This is a long account so I'll split it into 3 Parts.
The Bicycle Thief Part 2.
Mr Cole was a superb musician on the piano and an even greater maestro on the Spanish classical guitar. The Bicycle Thief was produced and directed by the Art master Mr Jones, I remember he worked closely with Mr Cole on the movie and I also remember Mr Jones immortalising Mr Cole in oils as Mr Cole was playing his guitar. I was Art monitor at the time and was fortunate to witness, during lunch breaks, when the portrait sitting took place, the image of Mr Cole slowly appearing, as if by magic, on the canvas.
I cannot remember the painting style Mr Jones favoured on that occasion but I do remember he was a devotee of the semi-impressionist style, using a pallet knife.
I wonder what happened to that painting?

Third and final part coming soon. 
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #126 on: May 06, 2022, 11:52:52 PM »
The Bicycle Thief
This is a long account so I'll split it into 3 Parts.
The Bicycle Thief - final Part 3.
So, the burning question is, Does the film rest in the drawer of a dusty desk, long forgotten in the bowels of a police station, somewhere in the city, once used by a police constable, now long retired?
Not sure what condition the film would be in even if found, I was camera operator and I edited the film, and in those days it was custom and practice to join spliced sections with a corrosive acid-like gel, which partly melted the film stock as part of the re-jointing process, it's possible the film is now just a mass of melted plastic.
I received the Parent-Teacher Association Award 1964 for my contribution towards the making of the movie when it was premiered at the school Speech Day in November of that year, the prize? - The 1962 edition of Michael Bardwell's book Amateur Cinematography, which still has pride of place in my bookcase.
P.S. Mr Keith Cole and son, I hope you get to see this piece in the jig saw of the saga of The Bicycle Thief. 
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #127 on: May 08, 2022, 07:10:22 PM »
                                                                  The Bicycle Thief - The Movie
                                                                               Introduction

Many who have followed the Harry Lucas School Topic will know that I have tried to keep the memory of the school movie alive for some years now in the hope it would be found. Notwithstanding the fact it doesn't need a rocket scientist to work out the plot from the movie's title I have avoided giving a too detailed account of the film in the belief that to do so would have a detrimental effect on those who might eventually get to see it at sometime in the future, well, if I were a betting man, which I'm not, (my father was, but as a punter his skills would have led him to wager the sun would not rise tomorrow if he was given good enough odd, God rest his soul) I wouldn't lay a wager the movie will ever be found and this leads me to the conclusion now is the time to reveal the plot. Again, because the account is lengthy, I'm splitting it into a number of parts.
CAVEAT: Bear in mind the film was made in 1964 and now I'm 72, so I'm relying on memories that are 58 years old.
Once upon a time........ 
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #128 on: May 10, 2022, 10:37:58 PM »
                                                                                   The Bicycle Thief - The Movie
                                                                                                   Introduction
Many who have followed the Harry Lucas School Topic will know that I have tried to keep the memory of the school movie alive for some years now in the hope it would be found. Notwithstanding the fact it doesn't need a rocket scientist to work out the plot from the movie's title I have avoided giving a too detailed account of the film in the belief that to do so would have a detrimental effect on those who might eventually get to see it at sometime in the future, well, if I were a betting man, which I'm not, (my father was, but as a punter his skills would have led him to wager the sun would not rise tomorrow if he was given good enough odd, God rest his soul) I wouldn't lay a wager the movie will ever be found and this leads me to the conclusion now is the time to reveal the plot. Again, because the account is lengthy, I'm splitting it into a number of parts.
CAVEAT: Bear in mind the film was made in 1964 and now I'm 72, so I'm relying on memories that are 58 years old.
Once upon a time........ 
                                                                    The Bicycle Thief - The Plot
                                                                                    Part 1
Does the movie skilfully portray loyalty, deception, honour, disgrace, achievement, failure, and countless other powerful emotions? No. Actually, the movie does what it says on the tin - The film stars the unnamed leather-jacketed villain (played by a fellow Form G2 4th year classmate) who delivers an Oscar winning performance as a thief who steals a bicycle from the school's bike shed, he believes, without being observed. In reality an eagle-eyed HLS pupil witnesses the crime and reports to a member of staff, (Ideally the cast should have included a constable here, but I don't think the film budget extended to a policeman's uniform.)
Just to remind you it is an 8mm silent movie (in colour) with musical backing (to match the action, classic silent movie-style), anyway, needless to say, the movie is all visual; the pupil who witnessed the crime is interviewed by a teacher when it comes to light the thief has an important distinguishing feature - a giant boil plaster on the back of his neck.
(I haven't seen a good boil for ages, they seem to be a thing of the past, maybe due to improvements in our diet.)

Part 2 soon......... 
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #129 on: May 13, 2022, 04:09:22 PM »
                                                                   The Bicycle Thief - The Plot
                                                                                     Part 2.


The plot continues at a pace showing everyday life at the school, including a jumble sale (to swell school coffers), now, at this point there are no lines of enquiry which might lead to the villain being apprehended, then the thief makes a fatal error of judgement and the plot takes an unexpected turn. So confident that he will never be brought to book the thief attends the jumble sale (which is being held in the Art Room) looking for a bargain to purchase or, as is more likely, to steal.
Whilst the thief is perusing the merchandise on offer, which, it has to be said, is rather sparse (The Props Dept performed very badly in this regard), anyway, an eagle-eyed pupil spots a huge boil plaster on the back neck of a shady looking character and the alarm is raised, the thief, now seeing the jumble sale visit was ill-conceived, exists stage centre with, what appears to be, the entire population of the school, in hot pursuit.
The thief's determined efforts to escape are thwarted when the pursuing posse corners him on a nearby bomb-peck (I bet that's something you've not heard for a while, there were a number of bomb sites still littered around the city, in the 60s (courtesy Adolf Hitler) waiting to be redeveloped.
The posse performs a citizen's arrest, the thief is taken into custody and the stolen bike is recovered.
So, is the movie up there with epics like Gone With The Wind, War and Peace and How The West Was Won? No. But it was well received by the viewing public and representatives of The Parent-Teacher Association when it was premiered on School Speech day November 1964.

Coming soon, Film Production Credits......        
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #130 on: May 14, 2022, 03:31:14 PM »
                                                                                The Bicycle Thief
                                                                                    Film Credits
                                                                                       The Cast
                                                             The Bicycle Thief........Robert McQwerter
                                                            Harry Lucas School Pupils........Themselves
                                                                                Production Team
                                                                      Screen play........anonymous
                                                                  Camera operator........Peg Monkey
                                 Music score........Composed and performed (piano) by Mr Cole, Music Teacher
                                                                       Film editor........Peg Monkey
                                                                  Director........Mr Jones, Art Master
                                                         Producer........Harry Lucas Secondary School
                                                                     Duration.......c20 minutes
                                                                            The Bicycle Thief
                                                  Copyright Harry Lucas Secondary School MCMLXIV
                                                                                    THE END

I do apologise, Robert if I've got your name wrong please feel free to correct.
Who wrote the Screen play? Can't remember, maybe a teacher using content from essays written by pupils.
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: Harry Lucas School
« Reply #131 on: May 16, 2022, 07:05:24 PM »
The Bicycle Thief - Two jobs? How come I got to be camera operator and film editor? It wasn't planned, I pushed myself forward for camera operator as I had had a keen interest in photography since before my teens and the rest of the class seemed content, but how did I get to edit the final film? I had no ambitions in that respect at the beginning of the project but when the movie had finally been shot I think it is fair to say interest generally in the film waned; Mr Jones (Director) was busy with his art classes so the project seemed to run out of steam and I thought, This is no good, the movie will never be finished at this rate, so I stepped into the breach.
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.


 

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