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Post by dave68b on Mar 19, 2016 23:19:22 GMT 10
We were at Minden Barracks from about 1960 to 1962. My dad, Ron Blake, was in 410 Independent Plant Troop based at Butterworth. My brother and I attended the school in the barracks. I still have school photographs and my reports. Hi David, My father, Bill Stevenson, was also in 410 Indp Plant Tp RE at Butterworth. We had quarters in Macalister Road and Jalan Gaja and I attended Minden Barracks School. Wasn't there as long as you were (1960-61) and then moved down to Singapore. Would be interested to see some of your photos. Regards Dave Stevenson
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eric
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Post by eric on Sept 28, 2016 6:49:48 GMT 10
Hi, I liked living in Minden Bks Penang 1960 / 61. We had officers quarters, a very large and spacious house, colonial style built on stilts. The camp was very well laid out. The grass was always kept short to reduce the danger of snakes. Unknowingly, one night a snake shed its skin on my moskito net, a foot away from my head. In the garden I used to fruit-trap Mina birds in the hope of training one to talk. Camp swimming pool was my everyday pasttime, except when lorry loads of Gurkhas came for a dip. Favourite destinations in Georgetown was Cold Storage Creameries and Runnymeade hotel , the only places with air-conditioning of the day. Dad, Maj Burridge was paymaster to 34 LAA Regiment, the unit was split in two. One part in Minden Bks, the other stationed in Singapore. I think they were equipped with Bofors. End of 61 we were all posted to HK on infantry duties. Today I still regret not staying on in Malaya, at a time of school leaving age. Would be glad to contact any contempories John
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Post by jackielouise on Jan 7, 2017 6:58:12 GMT 10
Hi, I didn't live on Minden Barracks as my dad was in the RAF, but I did attend the school from 1964 to 1966. We lived on Green Lane and the Army school bus would pick up myself, my sister, Susan, and all the other RAF children every morning and take us home again later. I have some very fond memories of our time out there and of the school. I've written about them and Cynthia has now added my memories and some of my photos to the website. I would love to hear from anyone who attended the school at the same time. I was 5 years old when we went out there in 1964 and 7 years old when we left. Susan and I had one particular friend while we were there who was called Helen, but I can't remember her surname. Our surname at that time was Claret.
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Post by dave68b on Jun 4, 2017 2:49:54 GMT 10
We were at Minden Barracks from about 1960 to 1962. My dad, Ron Blake, was in 410 Independent Plant Troop based at Butterworth. My brother and I attended the school in the barracks. I still have school photographs and my reports. Hi David, My father, Bill Stevenson, was also a member of 410 Indp. Plant Troop RE based at RAF Butterworth. We lived in Penang 1960-1961 before moving to Singapore. I attended the school in Minden Barracks.
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Post by davidblake on Jun 25, 2017 2:34:25 GMT 10
Hi Dave - assume that's your name. I have quite a lot of photos of our time in Malaya and of 410 related things. I'll try to get them digitised.
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Post by peterekaj on Nov 19, 2017 23:31:32 GMT 10
Hi, Peter Nixon here, was at Minden Barracks School 61,62 and part 63. Dad was RAF we lived somewhere in Air Itam at first, then moved to 8n Jalan Bahaudin for the remainder of the tour.
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ails
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Post by ails on Jul 9, 2018 10:27:00 GMT 10
My name used to be Jacqueline Chamberlain. I attended Minden School from 1967-1971 I beleive I am one the class photos of 1967 on your website. We lived on Jalen Tembaga in Penang. I live in the United States now. My dad Ken Chamberlain who worked on Penang Hill died in 1998. I remember a friend "Dorothy" that went to school with me and green and white checkered uniforms. I went there to..just found a school photo on this site which I am in. My name is Aileen
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marie
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Post by marie on Mar 11, 2019 8:34:55 GMT 10
My name used to be Jacqueline Chamberlain. I attended Minden School from 1967-1971 I beleive I am one the class photos of 1967 on your website. We lived on Jalen Tembaga in Penang. I live in the United States now. My dad Ken Chamberlain who worked on Penang Hill died in 1998. I remember a friend "Dorothy" that went to school with me and green and white checkered uniforms.
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chris
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Post by chris on Nov 17, 2019 23:45:22 GMT 10
I was born in the UK in 1961 and we moved to Penang when I as 3 or 4, my Dad (Peter Sharpless) was in the RAF and was working on the radar station at the time. I started school at Minden Barracks, my teacher was Miss Steel and the headmaster was Mr Beadle, he was a terrifying figure to a small child and to this day I can't watch a film featuring James Robertson Justice without being reminded of him. I remember getting the bus to school, the riots when there were curfews and nobody going anywhere and then the Gurkhas being brought in and restoring order. When we were allowed to go back to school we had a Gurkha on the bus standing by the door with a sub machine gun in case anybody tried to attacked the bus. I also remember lots of Gurkha kids turning up at our school shortly after that. A big day out for us for us was a day trip to Butterworth going over on the ferry. I was very happy when years later when I was in the Royal Marines staying for a short time at Butterworth and reliving some old times and visiting places that still seemed familiar (although it's a lot more built up and crowded now)
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penang68
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Hi, I was at MB from 1967-69. Lisa was my name, in Mr Barnes class.
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Post by penang68 on Jan 7, 2020 13:03:27 GMT 10
Hello fellow Minden Barracks school friends. I was at the school from 1967-69, aged 6 to 8, my name was Lisa Shadbolt. Had a brother Gregory who was older attend also. Here are some memories: I cannot recall my infant teacher's name, she was a bit intimidating, blond bushy hair and wore glasses. Maybe Miss Wittingham or close to that? Moved across the grass to the other building and had Mr Barnes for two year J2 J3 I have just sent Cynthia some class pics so they should get posted up soon My memories are of the walk back to class after assembly and the fabulous aroma of heat and leaf litter. Being terrified of Mr Beadle the headmaster, not because he had a hand missing either, he was just scary as hell, to me anyway. I remember the green and white check dresses ( cannot remember if we had a sport uniform) I remember the School House, Nightingale (blue) Baden Powell (red) Barder (green) and Cook ( yellow) I hope that is correct and I have not been corrupted by my High School house teams? I remember the delicious chilled milk in the morning, strawberry, choc or vanilla and the show of hands first thing after the attendance roll to choose your flavour I remember my hot jam sandwhiches and my warm temperature cordial for every school lunch I remember the 5c, 10c and 20c iceblocks from the van at morning playtime. I seem to remember a bright purple iceblock too. I remember walking up the road one year and having a showing of The Wizard Of Oz...just brilliant...still terrified of those blue monkeys! I remember my best friends, a lovely American girl called Martha Raegan, I think her parents were missionaries? Also an English girl called Sonia Telford I remember swimming lessons at the pool. Lots of memories of the beach, rubber plantations, eating my body weight in rambutan, my friends who had Tang drink The smell of durian, the curfew, Gurkha soldiers I wish my parents had taken photos! Anyway, I hope this post finds you all well:)
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penang68
New Member
Hi, I was at MB from 1967-69. Lisa was my name, in Mr Barnes class.
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Post by penang68 on Jan 7, 2020 14:02:57 GMT 10
My name used to be Jacqueline Chamberlain. I attended Minden School from 1967-1971 I beleive I am one the class photos of 1967 on your website. We lived on Jalen Tembaga in Penang. I live in the United States now. My dad Ken Chamberlain who worked on Penang Hill died in 1998. I remember a friend "Dorothy" that went to school with me and green and white checkered uniforms.
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penang68
New Member
Hi, I was at MB from 1967-69. Lisa was my name, in Mr Barnes class.
Posts: 4
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Post by penang68 on Jan 7, 2020 14:06:29 GMT 10
Hi Jacqui, I am not sure if I sent you a message already, cannot see it...not very good at forums it would appear? I was in J2 and J3 , Mr Barnes class with you. Remember you lovely red hair. I was called Lisa Shadbolt then. I have sent some class pics in to be posted on the website, you are in both. Hope all well Jacqui:)
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Post by carlpenang on Jan 20, 2020 1:37:34 GMT 10
I was born in the UK in 1961 and we moved to Penang when I as 3 or 4, my Dad (Peter Sharpless) was in the RAF and was working on the radar station at the time. I started school at Minden Barracks, my teacher was Miss Steel and the headmaster was Mr Beadle, he was a terrifying figure to a small child and to this day I can't watch a film featuring James Robertson Justice without being reminded of him. I remember getting the bus to school, the riots when there were curfews and nobody going anywhere and then the Gurkhas being brought in and restoring order. When we were allowed to go back to school we had a Gurkha on the bus standing by the door with a sub machine gun in case anybody tried to attacked the bus. I also remember lots of Gurkha kids turning up at our school shortly after that. A big day out for us for us was a day trip to Butterworth going over on the ferry. I was very happy when years later when I was in the Royal Marines staying for a short time at Butterworth and reliving some old times and visiting places that still seemed familiar (although it's a lot more built up and crowded now) Hi Chris, I like you was born in the UK in 1961, and when I was 3 or 4, my Dad (Ronald Jarvis) was in the RAF and I believe he was working on the radar station (finished his service with the RAF based at Staxton (radar base) in the UK. I started school at Minden Barracks, I believe I am in the first of the Infants, School Photos from 1966, think I am 3rd from left (middle row). My sister was born in Penang in 1964, and I believe we were there until 1967. I remember getting the bus to school, and also the flavoured milk we had at school. I have never been back since, but maybe one day. What memories I have, are mostly happy ones of the time spent in Penang.
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penang68
New Member
Hi, I was at MB from 1967-69. Lisa was my name, in Mr Barnes class.
Posts: 4
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Post by penang68 on Jan 23, 2020 10:39:22 GMT 10
I was born in the UK in 1961 and we moved to Penang when I as 3 or 4, my Dad (Peter Sharpless) was in the RAF and was working on the radar station at the time. I started school at Minden Barracks, my teacher was Miss Steel and the headmaster was Mr Beadle, he was a terrifying figure to a small child and to this day I can't watch a film featuring James Robertson Justice without being reminded of him. I remember getting the bus to school, the riots when there were curfews and nobody going anywhere and then the Gurkhas being brought in and restoring order. When we were allowed to go back to school we had a Gurkha on the bus standing by the door with a sub machine gun in case anybody tried to attacked the bus. I also remember lots of Gurkha kids turning up at our school shortly after that. A big day out for us for us was a day trip to Butterworth going over on the ferry. I was very happy when years later when I was in the Royal Marines staying for a short time at Butterworth and reliving some old times and visiting places that still seemed familiar (although it's a lot more built up and crowded now) Mr Beadle...terrifying indeed, I agree with you completely! I was there 1967-69 J1, J2, J3 classes. Do not remember any fun ferry trips, must have been in the boring classes:)
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Post by unitybiket on Dec 2, 2021 18:10:53 GMT 10
High ,just joined. I was born in 62 and attended from 67 to 69. I remember so much. We first lived on a corner house in Jalangada catchapering then moved to messirian bessy,elephant road? My old fellas was ex Cameron highlanders then raoc , wo class one working at SD Pro, a base on the mainland. I remember his driver,a guy called Gadeer and the yellow ferries that churned up the jellyfish. I was too young for school at first .We first lived by the beach with an old we two Jap anti aircraft gun ,painted in hippy colours. We d go down the beach and watch manta rays cruise the bay. I remember the minor birds,chit chats and snakes. As a family we went to the monkey park,up Hiatetum temple,on the cog railway and the snake temple and stinking pagoda temple with the pond of turtles. A favourite was the alligator farm. Our corner house was weird,like a UK council house with fans. Nien the maid and her hubby helped us keep chickens. One of my much older brothers attended school in Singapore. When he came back on holidays he would take me down jalan harder to the beach where we d get in a tiny sampan and then to a rusty coaster moored in the bay. The Chinese would haul me through the coaling door and I d sit and wait while Chinese gambled and chewed nuts that made them red in front of a charcoal fire where they cooked snacks. My much older brother would be scoring marijuana,I was the cover apparently. The Chinese began to show me how to sail the sampan thing.One day just after starting school I was ill so was kept at home ,my younger brother attended a nursery. My mother had the arm chair outside the gate. A car pulled up and a lovley man and woman got out and thought I was my brother. They asked me to get in the car but I refused. In the end they forced me too but I managed to kick the proverbial out of them and escape at the bottom of the road running into the jungle. After an hour I plotted my way through the jungle paths,past the little shrines and knocked on a bungalow. A Malaysian old couple took me inside and rung the camp guardhouse. They were lovley and had their walls covered in stuffed tropical butterflies. I was a space head cum very quiet kid at school. My classroom was ground floor corner,with a big tree and small lawn next to it. I remember the palm tree logo on the text books,just like Rommel Africa corp! The swimming pool was a good place,with a kids pool.One weekend my mam and dad had a break so we were left in the safe hands of a Scottish friend. It was cool until breakfast when we were served porridge and the nutter made us have salt instead of sugar on it . Us kids thought he was a bit looney. I remember being out shopping in our sandals and cotton shirts when the monsoon hit. My mum and maid with all of their combined kids ,about ten,took us straight into a cinema with a corrugated zinc roof. Bambi was showing. We could not hear a thing with rain. Bambi in Malay and Cantonese! I also remember seeing the sound of music in a building on the camp,near the hospital with the long pool. My mum had her bunions done there. One Xmas we had a kids party in the white rectangular building which contained a large internal lawn. We sat there having a great time until....father Xmas came with the presents. We looked up and there was Santa waving at us from a small scout helicopter. Only problem was when he landed our tables of jelly and cake and jungle juice when flying in a hurricane around us,we got splattered as the chopper landed on the internal lawn! My old fellas spent a lot of time at the DD Pri base. He had a big office with his mate....and two fridges full of tiger beer. I genuinely thought that when he went to work all he did was drink beer with his buds and chain-smoke hundreds of tax free senior service cigs all day. The base had its own little railway. We moved to maserian bessy? Elephant Rd. These were new two storey for troops and Malay proffesionals. The builders were still there living in a palm hut in the middle of the road. The locals would burn incense and leave fruit besides pictures of the relatives. I began to understand God before I d heard anything about our blue eyed whitey God . When my parents decided it was time to begin attending Sunday school a minbus would pick us up and take us up the mountain to a building with open sides and the eternal corrugated zinc roof. Local Malay s were busy with a fire pit and wrapping our food in banana leaves. These were then steam cooked in the embers and soil. I have a very vivid memory. Two soldiers,officers I think sat there next to this gory crucifix with Jesus on it,crown of thorns n blood etc. Us kids were spooked. One guy had this monocoled Jeeves puppet on his lap even spookier! After sitting in terror listening to mumbo jumbo we we allowed to ask questions. One kid asked who had killed him ,they replied ...his father. I asked why did he kill him One of the teachers said....because he loved him! We kids looked at each other in horror,confirming the perceived madness but agreed he must of been a very naughty person for his dad to kill him. Phew,then lunch and meet up with parents at the swimming pool. The swimming pool was great,a place to recover for the adults. My old fellas played sax and him and his mates would get in the officers mess at weekends giving it Glen Miller etc.He would wear white jacket and red sash. My parents turned into fattish blobs in Malaysia. On some Sunday mornings the maid would wake my dad up by dangling live fresh crabs over his hungover face. He enjoyed a lot of photography and was a Gardner so loved the culture,and the rare green tree orchids. Sometimes my dad would buy a big bunch of lychees on the branch and wed sit in the back of the land Rover hoping to get home asap as the ants would start crawling... At one point they put him in charge of a company of Princess Mary Ghurkad at Minden. They were superstitious and took it as a good omen that the wife and six kids were there too. It nearly went pear shaped though. We did a formal visit to the Ghirka barracks for a meal. They had no beds and we all sat on the floor. They then brought in the food,they gave us rice with milk and sugar,us kids pulled our faces and they were obviously spooked and upset. My mum came to the rescue and showed them how to make English rice pudding in an oven and everything was cool. I remember my dad going away a few times. He was on five to seven day jungle patrol with the ghurkas. He told me later in life how they looked after him like a baby in the jungle. He couldn't smoke cigs so had to periodically give up tobacco,he also hated anything that smelt of durian. Years later I brought a packet of spangles sweets in the house,I think it set off some pysd stuff. They were banned from the house. One morning before sunrise I went walkabout like I always did . I ended up at the end of elephant road where the road had been cut in the hillside. There was a four to five foot ledge and a small drainage stream as a result of building the houses. The sun was just coming up directly in line with the road. It was a huge red orange fireball that was a third of the horizen . I looked around me and saw lots of bones I knew they were human and knew, without any fear or worry that one day I would be bones. After much rooting I found a skull. The bones still had bits of meat on em. I always wondered why they had no matching heads until later years when it was explained that the Japs would decapitate them and stick the heads on spikes outside George town police station . Seven years ago I met Reverend Rhiannon Jones ,a C of E preists. She is from a evangelical family. One Xmas chatting with her mum and dad it came out that her grandparents were trained in the old school as in the thirties it was a missionary training school, before going to china. When I hear helicopters I sometimes remember the belvedere twin rotor choppers and the Westland Wessex s. Only writing all this coz I ll be in box soon...time. A favourite time was Chinese new years. The dragon would dance the street and fireworks would chase the bad spirits out of the houses. We would get highly inflammable Chinese animal lanterns. Also fireworks in the shape of yank tanks and artillery. My much older brother liked guns etc. My dad used to bring bits and pieces home for him,bullets,gmpg belts,grenades( no fuses in them) etc. Years later after leaving Malaysia we had a visit off the mostly pissed,MP s. My dad had been in a rush when leaving Malaysia so buried the stuff in the garden where some drainworker discovered it years later.Its hard to explain what certian cooking smells do to my brain even over fiftey five years later when passing a Chinese chip shop. I loathe lemongrass and Thai stuff and Indonesian cooking . The spices are wrong. I don't like rice in the west. One smell takes me right back there though....when people cook dried fish... Thanks for your patience. The kids were,in age Susan ,Paul,Phil,Carol Diane and Clifford . The last two went to Singapore for school. Nien the maid used to console my mum when I dissapear on walkabout ,she told her I would always return as I was an orang utan.....a forest spirit revisiting my relatives from a previous life.
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