| Fifteen years is a long time in teaching, with the classroom
a completely different place now to what it was in 1988. But one person
who's seen it all is Grange Hill's headteacher Peter Robson. He's
taught them all from Ziggy Greaves to Leah Stewart. But he was also
Grange Hill's longest serving teacher, clocking up 15 years at the
famous school. That's four more years than Mrs McClusky!
Hang on a minute - "was" the longest serving teacher?
You've guessed it - everyone's favourite headteacher has called
it a day after sixteen series. Will Grange Hill ever be the same?
So, as Mr Robson leaves on a high, let's look back at his meteoric
rise from sportsmaster to headmaster.
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Mr
Robson's first appearance |
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1988 - SPORT'S NEW BROOM
Mr Robson first arrived at Grange Hill in its tenth series, first
shown in 1988. Grange Hill was celebrating its tenth anniversary
and he was one of several new additions that year. He was the new
head of sport, a vacancy unfilled since the departure of "Bullet"
Baxter two years earlier. He was also E4's form tutor. Straight
away, Mr Robson gained a reputation as a no-nonsense, firm-but-fair
type. He wouldn't stand any larking about from the likes of Trevor
Cleaver! But he was anything but the typical, sadistic Sportsmaster
which Grange Hill had seen before - Mr Robson believed P.E. wasn't
about winning. He wanted sport to be for everyone, not just the
champions. And so, he set up lunchtime sports clubs.
Unfortunately, not everyone appreciated Mr Robson's "sport for
all" philosophy. Traditionalist Freddie Mainwaring, the
school sports captain, believed the school teams would suffer and
clashed with Mr Robson throughout the series. "England have got
Bobby Robson, we've got Wally Robson!", Freddie told his
girlfriend Laura Reagan. But despite numerous childish protests, Mr
Robson admired Freddie's resolve and backed down on withdrawing Grange
Hill from the district cup.
As the years progressed, Mr Robson soon rose to become deputy head
following the departure of Mrs McClusky, a job he got permanently
in 1995. But it was the icing on the cake when in 1998, Mr Robson
finally became head teacher after 10 years of service at Grange
Hill.
WHAT'S IN A NAME?
"A PE teacher named Robson?", you might have thought
when he first appeared. Why not - three years earlier there was
a music teacher named - McCartney! Not to mention Brian Capron's
character, the woodwork teacher Mr HopWOOD. There was certainly
a trend in the 1980s for Grange Hill teachers to have names in some
way connected with their subjects. Why this is we don't know. However,
as Mr Robson moved away from the PE department the significance
of his name became less.
PUPILS FIRST
Freddie Mainwaring may not have welcomed Mr Robson's approach to
PE, but his "sport for all" ideology said a lot about
Mr Robson himself. In an age where teacher find themselves flooded
with bureaucracy, Mr Robson always put the pupils first. "I
won't lose contact with the kids", he promised Mrs Monroe once
promoted to deputy head in 1991. And he kept his promise; acting
as personal trainer to athletic ace Mike Bentley and arranging work
experience to boost Calley Donnington's confidence. What's more,
he still taught PE as late as 1995. And he's always enjoyed a good
relationship with his staff; even as headmaster, he remained on
first name terms.
The more caring side of Mr Robson has emerged in recent series. When
Maddie was caught drinking in school in 2002, Mr Robson could have
excluded her. Instead he provided a sympathetic ear and after a heart-to-heart,
visited Maddie's mum urging her to be around more for her daughter.
The following year Mr Robson came to Amy's rescue when the pressure
of exams was too much for her.
LOSER IN LOVE...THEN MISS RIGHT COMES
ALONG
In many ways Mr Robson is a traditional "old style"
Grange Hill character. Like the majority of Grange Hill's teachers
he was single for many years. But not for want of trying. A romance
with visiting American teacher Martha Jordan in 1994 fell apart
and she returned to Texas. The following year, Mr Robson was to
meet his future wife. Jayne Carver started teaching at Grange Hill
as a probationer in 1995, but it wasn't until 2002 they realised
their feelings for each other. After a whirlwind romance, they got
married and the couple have just celebrated the birth of their daughter,
Clara. Congratulations to them both!
LINKING MANY ERAS
When Mr Robson began teaching at Grange Hill, it was a very different
school. With ten years of teaching experience behind him, he was brought
in to become the school's new head of PE since Bullet Baxter. Head
teacher was the formidable Mrs McClusky, with the fearsome Maurice
Bronson her deputy. Little did Peter realise that in the years to
follow he'd be doing both jobs!
As form tutor of E4 - later E5, Mr Robson had in his charge such
Grange Hill icons as Ziggy Greaves, Calley Donnington, Trevor Cleaver
and Danny Kendall. When Danny died in 1989, Peter was a rock to
both Miss Booth and Mrs McClusky who were most affected by the rebel's
passing. As Mr Bronson and eventually Mrs McClusky moved to pastures
new, Mr Robson found himself ascending the career ladder at an astonishing
rate. In 1991 he found himself acting deputy head, despite not being
the most long-standing staff member of the day.
Grange Hill itself was undergoing something of a transition in the
late 1980s. Starting with Zammo's heroin addiction in 1986, the show
was gradually progressing towards the current format of hard issues.
But day-to-day school life would not be ignored - there would still
be the crazy scams, unruly pupils and belly laughs which gained the
programme its reputation. It was less common in 1988 for teachers
to have their own storylines, but soon that would change. Who would
have imagined Grange Hill of 15 years ago doing a storyline about
the effects of a government inspection on the head teacher?
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| 1988 |
New head of PE, replacing Geoff Baxter.
Also E4's form tutor |
| 1992 |
Acting deputy head after Mrs McClusky's departure |
| 1993 |
Sixth Form co-ordinator |
| 1995 |
Deputy Head |
| 1998 |
Head Teacher |
| 2003 |
Mr Robson quits - the end of an era |
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THE MAN IN THE HEADMASTER'S OFFICE
Mr Robson also set another precedent. Before his arrival, Grange
Hill teachers only to stick around for a few years. But Mr Robson
was with the show now for 16 series. What made Stuart Organ, the
actor who played him, stick with the show? "Well, I’m
pleased to say in the business it’s pretty
highly regarded," he said in an interview for Grange
Hill.com. "I mean, I wouldn’t stay with it for so long
if I didn’t believe in the series. I think it’s a terrific
series. And most people I speak to who are actors think the same
(they think it’s one of the best children’s dramas, if
not the best on TV)". Interestingly,
Stuart's parents wouldn't let him watch
GH when he was young;and reacted with dismay when they
discovered their son landed a part in the series. "Now they
won't miss an episode!", Stuart adds.
In recent years, Stuart has appeared in several other shows alongside
his work for Grange Hill. These include Wycliffe, The Bill, Holby
City and London's Burning. His latest role in The Bill was 29 April
2003. Before Grange Hill, Stuart was best known as Brookside's Kevin
Cross, son of grumpy pensioner Harry. He now lives in London, though
once lived in Liverpool, where Grange Hill is now filmed, based at
the Everyman Theatre.
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* As well as PE, Mr Robson teaches
maths and geography.
* At the end of his stint on Grange Hill he'd
been teaching for 25 years (any significance there?)
* A firm believer in sport for all, Mr Robson
tried to block the appointment of the competitive Dai
Hard Jones in 1997
* The pressure of Grange Hill's Ofsted inspection
became too much in 2000, Mr Robson suffered a breakdown
and descent into alcoholism. But he's usually cool in
a crisis and is known for his sympathetic ear.
* Mr Robson was last seen teaching PE in 1995, dealing
with Lucy's bigoted classmates who refused to get in the
swimming pool because they thought she had AIDS.
* Until his final year Mr Robson's first priority was
the welfare of pupils. But the school fire led him to
seek Special Technology status for Grange Hill and,
to fund this, he sanctioned the sale of school playing
fields.
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HOW DID HE GO?
It's certainly an achievement playing Grange Hill's longest serving
teacher. But now Stuart has finally cleared out the headmaster's desk,
apparently unhappy with recent series. There have been many ideas
about Mr Robson's departure - would he become a househusband and look
after his new daughter? Or has Malarkey worked his way to the top
job?
No. Mr Robson was asked to chair the regional committee for special
technology status. Mr Robson will remain an iconic figure of Grange
Hill whose presence linked together the show's evolution.
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