With Summer well and truly here, one can be forgiven for being a little bit sick of Easter chicks and spring lambs. However, I came across a newspaper article recently which reminded me why the noble sheep should never be overlooked, especially when it comes to comedic value.
In a folder of recent donations an article from the Birmingham Gazette had been lovingly cut out and placed in a collection of other KES clippings. The story is told from the point of view of Miss Freda Minshull, Secretary to the Headmaster of King Edwards School and, incidentally, the first woman to join the all-male staff based at New Street. “What would you do” she asks, “if a sheep walked into your school and straight into the Headmaster's Latin class?”
Believe it or not, a sheep had managed to walk off the street, past the Porters Lodge, through the front door of the school, up the corridor and butted its head against the headmaster’s door while he was teaching class. Believing the knock to be from the Porter, the Headmaster, Mr E.T. England (1929-1941) opened the door and in walked the sheep. Pandemonium ensued quickly.
“You can’t come in here” Mr England sternly told the sheep. The sheep naturally disobeyed. The Latin class was mustered into action and all through the lunch hour the sheep was herded through the building, eventually ending up in the prefect’s cloakroom, where it was cornered.
The sheep incident was also mentioned in the memoirs of R. Cary Gilson, England’s predecessor, who was heard to say, “We can't have a sheep here; it will eat all the books”. Thankfully this didn’t happen and after a disgruntled prefect reported the sheep’s location to Miss Minshull, the offending beast was eventually removed from the premises.
Poor Miss Minshull never saw the sheep but spent the best part of two hours on the phone trying to convince both the police and firemen that there actually was a sheep in the headmaster’s room. “You’ve no idea,” she says “how difficult it is to persuade anyone that you really have a sheep in your school. I suppose it did sound a little peculiar”.
Miss Minshull worked at King Edwards for 22 years under four headmasters and was at the centre of affairs throughout the most critical and turbulent period in the school’s history. She was the first female member of staff at the school, brought in by E.T. England in 1930 on a temporary contract. Despite the first initial remarks that the school “must be falling down”, she remained through the schools move, through the second world war, becoming one of the most respected and well-liked members of staff.
Charlotte Gallant, Archivist
