Wigan Album

My, my, my. Old Joe Boz. I recall when he first set eyes on me. My blood ran cold. That picture is exactly as I remember him.

Wow! Wasn't he fearsome looking? I was glad to be a girl at school back in the late fifties in OZ, thus escaping those dreadful canings I saw dished out to the boys.

Old Joe shot from the hip and he didn't miss. I've still got the scars to prove it!

I was caned by Paddy Gore, The Boss (Ashley Smith), Dick Nutt and Old Joe. The Boss used to miss and hit your legs, it didn't hurt, I think now he missed on purpose. Paddy loved it, just laid in there..yarooh! Gerroff you rotter! He loved it. But Old Joe was just a killing machine, nothing personal, bang bang - your dead.

He gave my Dad the cane twice in the mid '50's. For making and using a spud gun and for playing on a drumkit.

Old Joe for me was a hero. Not like Horatio Nelson or Billy Boston. More like Count Dracula or Genghis Khan. There should be some kind of memorial dedicated to Joe Bos. A legend.

I had Joe for a maths teacher in my first term in 1942. He told a joke "once I knew of a parrot that counted 1,2,3,5, dammit I missed out 4" this delivered with a deadpan look. He definitely was a "one off"

Can't imagine Old Joe telling a joke Fred. He never taught me - thank God! In fact until you said I wondered what was his subject. He was assistant head when I was there. If he caught you standing in the corridor, having been sent out of class, it was curtains. You didn't get a second chance.

My dad at the age of 15 used to walk miles underground to the coal face, in the early morning hours. He told me that Wigan Highfield RL called him up, at the pit, at the age of 15 to play against Dewsbury. “they threw me all over the field” he said.
At 16 I used to catch the van at 6.30 on winter mornings and was dropped off in Miles Platting, Manchester to work on a building site.
Those thoughts come back to me now as I gaze on the visage of Joe Boswell.
I wonder how those events above compare with that sinking feeling in my tummy when I encountered Old Joe Boz, like a lift crashing to the basement.
Wack !… “you used to have brains”, said Joe … Wack! … “you think you are spiv or something now”, said Joe …Wack!
Funnily enough I can’t hate Old Joe. He was an icon. An icon of fear maybe. But he was what he was. I guess we were just from different planets.

I'd heard about this old guy when I went to the Grammar School. He might have left by then but he must have given classes in sadism for some of the thugs there who masqueraded as Teachers. There was much of his legacy of organised brutality still prevalent in the 1960's

Hi Dave. I was there in the 50s and early 60s. I remember Joe Boz well. He was certaintly ruthless. On the other hand you knew where you stood with him. There were others who's pomposity I couldn't abide, Paddy Gore and Teddy Johnstone amongst them. And talking of organised thuggery, you must remember Wilf Murphy the games master. Now I will be the first to admit that some of my school mates were no angels. But I witnessed Wilf Murphy use his fists on several occasions. Now when you consider that most of these lads were 7 stones soaking wet, getting a thump from a 14 and half stone rugby player was no joke. We all lived to tell the tale though!

No doubt this chap comes across as a tyrant but all of the contributors seem to have respect for him. Apart from fred foster all these boys seemed to have suffered canings. Maybe these were just the naughtiest of the boys and being an ex-Wigan High school girl I know how naughty some of the WGS lads could be. Surely Mr Boswell's character wasn't one of unremitting gloom. Is there any of the readers, possibly some less naughty ex-WGS boy, who could show a brighter side to his character.

I wasn’t a "naughty" boy Mary. In fact I never did a wrong thing at school but I still got the cane from Joe Boswell. The only punishment of any kind I received as a schoolboy.
He looked through the window of the classroom door when my class mates were "rioting". He came in, pointed at me and said that I was the main culprit. I was shocked speechless. I was sat next to a lad named Bamber and we were the quietest in the class.
The rioters were the usual suspects, Bill Ashurst, Tony Dean, James Holding, Ian Whitaker, Dave Ridout etc. Sanity prevailed to some extent because the teacher, who was a bit soft, and couldn’t control the scallies, knew it wouldn’t be me.
However, Joe, making sure he got all the culprits indicted the whole class. Nearly 20 odd lads had to line up outside the gym and Joe gave us all 2 strokes each. His arm must have been dropping off.

Pykey this chap looks like Peter Cushing and Nosferatu but I think it was Christopher Lee who played Dracula. This must be Van Helsing?

I was twisting a lads arm up his back just before the start of Albert Wrights lesson. Truthfully, I was actually demonstrating a wrestling hold to this lad. True to form Joe took me down to the gym for a caning. It wasnt the caning that got me it was what he wrote in the black book. I was caned for "bullying weaker boys". The lad in question was the self proclaimed "cock of the class". And he was probably the strongest.

I understand that Dave Whelan's best pal, David Fairhurst, is an ex-WGS boy. If Mr Whelan still owns the Grammar School building then I think David should persuade him to put up a statue of Joe Boswell. There should be a statue to commemorate the school. And no one, at least, when I was at the school came anywhere near Joe is terms of presence and character. He should be there, where passers by can see, resplendent in his cloak and mortar board, in an action pose, that gaunt figure, cane in one hand, end of the cane in the other. Come on you WGS boys give me some support on this. A statue for Joe Boswell!

David you have my support. A statue of Joe Boswell by the old Grammar School would look great. It fact it would be a touch of class and lets face it ladies and gentleman, Wigan lacks class.
I'm a Wiganer born and bread but am a firm believer that if you want things to get better you must face the truth about how things are now.
They pulled down "crop" building around the Parish Church and built even "croppier" buildings to replace them. If they had left things so that the Parish Church was the central feature of the town, we could have made the town look great.
Instead we have built a new ugly old shopping precinct when the Gallaries is like a ghost town. And even the Galleries would have best been left as the Market Square.
Money would have been better spent cleaning up Wallgate and King Street.
We needed less not more - I can only think that there is a lot of local officials holidaying in the Bahamas and driving Beamers. P.S. I can’t spell!

Now for readers who were not at WGS when I was there … you probably won’t believe this story but its true. There was a teacher called Price with a daft hair cut and a little Hitler tash. And he was a little Hitler. He was called Price and the lads called him pricker. In fact he was a little ----.
Now we were having a “music” lesson – would you believe. A euphemism if ever there was one.
All the class were sat in the hall and we had to sing this song .. I don’t know the title .. now this is the part you wont believe .. some of the words were ..”who my wife Gertrude dauntless and gay ..” Pricker was playing his joanna or violin .. I forget which…
Well think of 30 crackpot Wigan lads, from Scholes, Pem, Wallgate, Darlinton Street etc. singing that sort of gunge. These were kids who grew up with Elvis amd Little Richard.
Well some “scally” started making loud grunting noises. Pricker didn’t know who was doing it but he picked on me and my mate …as you do!
He summoned up Joe Boz as the hit man and both of us got four of the best. My mate never said a dickky bird and he was totally innocent. I protested kicking and screaming to the torture chamber and all through the ordeal.
But it made no difference to Joe. I didn’t blame him just that little ----, Price.

I remember standing in the corrider having been "sent out" and waiting for that terryfying sound of feet coming round the corner. If it was Joe, you were dead. No second chances. I always used to contemplate doing a runner when I heard them footseps getting ever closer. Its amazing to think now that old Joe must have deliberately done his rounds between his regular lessons just looking for lads who had been sent out.

deggs,,as I recall,each lesson was 40mins long and joe would appear on the 38th,39th min of that 40min period,,,just as you though you had got away with it,,he would litterally drift round the corner,,,
and routh,,yer you right about Murphy he was a thug,,remember him thumping Dixie during one gym period,,his predecessor frank Balmer wasnt much better,,alright if you played ruggers but otherwise,,,,
Lots of these guys ruled by fear which they wouldnt get away with these days but just maybe thats the problem these days cos the teachers are not respected and kids get away with literally murder,,,,didnt seem to do us lot any harm, maybe even helped us along in life,
all depends on your point of view i suppose,,,,,bring back the Joe Boz,s,,,???

Imagine if you were like me and got chucked out at the beginning of a lesson. Waiting there for over half a hour hoping that the footsteps around the corner weren't those of Joe Boz.

I recall being near the gym at break time - it was just inside the outside doors. A lad called Whitaker came tumbling out of the gym door. Apparently he'd he had just had six of the best.
He saw a younger lad with elastic bands tied around his fingers like a catapult, hiding within the outside doors and firing paper pellets at lads outside the doors.
Whitaker took the catapult and pellets off the kid and shot someone behind the head - at the precise moment that Joe Boswell was coming out of the gym.
Mr Boswell took Whitaker back into the gym and gave him another six. It didnt seem to bother Whitaker.

Come on Whelan .. Build a statue to JOE BOZ .. he's a legend.

A statue to Joe Boz?

You must be joking. A rag doll, no doubt. One that pins can be stuck in.!!! He caned me, six of the best, for nothing..!! I never blew up the chemistry lab.....!!

We needed Joe Boz to keep wild red necks like Fred Mason in line.
Yes lets have a statue of the legend that was Joe Boz .. who better!

Trans Gee,

I have been looking for you, boy.

Get down to my office at once, Do you hear me, Boy.?

My cane is long and hard and will meet up with your backside very soon.

Best wishes,

Joe.

Joe, me oud mucker,

You have been rumbled by the lads of 57. You have been targeted. Always look over your shoulder, 'cause you never know just where we are.

Beware the Grubs of 57.

I can only speak as I find, or should I say found. I never noticed a flicker of change in Joe Boz's expression, it was consistently dour, unchanging - basically miserable, and as for telling jokes - well you must be joking. I take exception to the comment that Frank Balmer was in any way physically abusive to any pupil, intimidating yes, frightening perhaps, violent - never. He was an ex-professional Rugby League player and was simply a good actor with full control of his actions.

Can't agree with John more. Frank was an ok bloke, not guilty of hitting pupils- unlike Shepherd and Denning - both small men in every sense of the word.

Jez & John ... you must be getting on if you remember Frankie ........... what are your surnames?
I agree with you that Frankie was an OK guy.
Frankie did hit me once .. cuffed me behind the head but it was very light ..... more a friendly warning.
However, I'm surprised he played League .. I though he was a Union man .. in fact I thought he once played for Orrell!
Lets face it though - he wasn't much of a coach!
Also agree Joe was a monster - rumour had it he doubled for Nosferatu!

Joe Boswell....AKA..The Marquis de Sade...Yes???

Look at him...Whadya fink..??

he caught me on my 2nd day at school !!!! my crime ? I was finishing last nights homework during lunch break in the classroom......NOT ALLOWED.... nobody had told me ...got off with a warning due to being a "new boy" scared the living daylights out of me....my hair still stands on end, just looking at the photo.

happy days

I always considered Frank Balmer to be strict , but fair. He was ok with me. He used to walk us once a week to the old Wigan baths. He walked into the road outside school and stopped traffic, so that we could cross. A car came screaming up and slammed on his brakes just in time. The driver then started to repeatedly press his horn. Frank turned round and slowly walked up to the car. The driver, by this time, was *****ing himself as Frank did look pretty menacing.He shouted to us " Take your time lads, don't rush." The driver was the most relieved man in Wigan when Frank finally followed us up Parsons Walk.