Saturday, May 24, 2008

Dreams of children


Oddly moving and evocative photos by George Plemper, from his time as a teacher in Thamesmead, SE London, in the late 70s. Background story here.


7 comments:

Annie said...

Beautiful. And what a great story. (These days he'd probably be arrested.)

Geoff said...

I'm sure we played them at cricket and football, except then they were known as Riverside School, Erith.

A Clockwork Orange was filmed in Thamesmead, don't you know.

Tim F said...

Yes, Annie. I was wondering how good those shots would look with the faces pixellated.

Wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of some of those fast bowlers, Geoff. There's a mad-eyed Dennis Lillee look about them...

chatterbox said...

Beautiful photos. This was my era exactly, and I went to a similar comp the other side of the river, but the photos on our Friends Reunited site are nowhere near as gorgeous as these.

Tim F said...

But did you have a natty cagoule like that girl, Chatterbox?

chatterbox said...

No, I wasn't quite that stylish. I had a green coat with a fake fur collar and detachable hood, which spoilt the smouldering Debbie Harry look I was aiming for.

Patrick Butler said...

George Plemper is in the Guardian (again) - we've done an audio slideshow, with 'then and now' pics and interviews with some of his original subjects. You can see it here:
www.guardian.co.uk/society/interactive/2008/jun/04/george...
George went back to Thamesmead a couple of weeks ago at the invitation of the school to take pics of some of the current pupils. He's not lost his touch! You can see a gallery of these pics at:
www.guardian.co.uk/society/gallery/2008/jun/04/george.ple...
Patrick Butler