Clitheroe Royal Grammar School

Andrea

I started to show some signs of development and my mother said I was ready for a bra. Of course some of the girls at school started to wear a bra just to be "grown-up," but in my case there was a need! I just felt very conscious about it when in the changing-room with the other girls, and when at home, l didn’t need boys questioning me on how it felt etc.

My younger brother was to put it short a right scamp when it came to teasing his older sister. So yes, he did things like that. Not sure writing about the things he got up to are suitable for this page though!

Declan,I too wore grey shorts at school up to thirteen and older.This was was also imposed by my parents who liked to see me in shorts.
They were difficult to obtain for the older boy,so they were very tight and short,just like my parents liked to see me wearing them.

James I wore the normal grey shorts at secondary school up until about the age of 13 whereas the majority of the others wore long trousers. This was not by my choice but imposed on me by dad. The problem was obtaining grey shorts for the older boy and although I was quite small the shorts were not really made for boys my age and were very tight. Eventually dad relented and I wore longs. Then I felt more grown up. Too much information I know but as much S I liked the string briefs they were very uncomfortable under tight shorts

Jane,
I felt surprised and embarrassed when mum bought me my first bras as an unexpected birthday present. Although my chest had started to show some signs of development, I didn't think it was particularly noticeable under my clothes and it didn't feel uncomfortable at that point.
I had been quite happy a flat chested tomboy, so I suppose I was reluctant to admit that my body was starting change and of course starting to wear a bra would have been an obvious sign of that.
I managed to get away without wearing a one until the end of the summer holidays, wearing baggy T shirts and a vest (or sometimes even my swimsuit top) to help hide my growing boobs, but somehow I didn't feel quite as much at ease with the local boys as I had in previous summers. In part this was probably because we were no longer at the same schools, but some was because I was worried that they would notice my chest and make comments, as I had seen happen to other girls.
By the time I went back to school that autumn, the outline of my breasts were visible under my PE shirt and their movement was noticeable, and a bit painful when I was running, so I had to admit that I needed to wear a bra for PE.
As you say that you were embarrassed about wearing a bra, what was it that prompted to to start wearing one?

Your saying that you though some of your brother's friends may have wanted to try on your bra as a joke reminded me that I once caught my sister (two years younger than me) trying on one of mine. She was still completely flat-chested at that point but, unlike me, she couldn't wait for her boobs to grow!
Do you think that your brother ever did try on one of your bras?

Andrea
I remember my brother, he is 2 years younger than me, started to wear a jockstrap when he entered the senior school at 13. Now he was all of a sudden a man! Or so he thought so! You know all cocksure and that!

Yes, at the beginning they teased me. I think one or two of them had the idea if wanting to try my bra on for laughs. You know boys! Anyway they soon found other distractions but l do remember the embarrassment when l started wearing a bra fir the first time.

What about you? Were you teased?

Jane
My ex said he started to wear jockstraps at secondary school which would have been in the early 1970s too.

Did your brother or his mates ever tease you about wearing a bra? I was at an all-girls secondary school by the time I needed one, but a few girls who started wearing them at Primary school got some 'comments' etc from some of the cheekier boys.

Andrea
my brother had a few jockstraps when he was a schoolboy in early 70s it was. I think they're unfashionable nowadays.

Yes me too, I was very annoyed with my mum hanging out my bras out in the open especially with my brother and his mates about!

Jane
I don't have any brothers and my dad didn't play any sports, so I never saw or even heard of jockstraps when I was a teenager. The first time I came across one was when I was first married and my husband's (now my Ex) turned up in the washing basket.

Talking of washing lines, I remember being annoyed with mum the first time she hung one of my bras on the line when my dad was at home!

Andrea
I remember helping my mum hang out my brother's jockstrap out on the washing line ... oh we had a giggle ... that was then the 1970s ...

I remember hanging my dad's string vests and pants on the washing line when I was helping mum on washdays in the early 1970s.

Declan,I remember those string vests and briefs that some boys wore at school,although I didn't wear them myself.
Did you wear short trousers to school and what age did you go into longs.

Declan, I certainly remember string vests and underpants. I was at school in the late 60s and 1970s - boys grammar school and there was a time when most lads seemed to have string, perhaps it was suddenly fashionable or maybe it was cheap at M&S or BHS or one of the other shops so beloved by my mother.

I was a bit nervous of the underpants at first because while there was a front panel, the back was all string and they felt very strange. Other lads had ones with a back panel too. It wasn't a modesty thing because the only place your mates ever saw you in them was the changing room and you were taking them off anyway there so it didn't matter.

I do remember though having them on one day when my mother decided to buy me a new pair of trousers in C&A and I was sent to try them on. The men's changing room was not cubicles but just a big room with benches around the walls. I was in there when I suddenly realised that I was wearing my string underpants and didn't feel comfortable about taking off my trousers. It was quite busy with men of all ages there.

A man, probably in his twenties came to the place next to me also to try on trousers while I was dithering taking off my coat and wondering how I was going to deal with trying on the trousers. He was way ahead of me in terms of speed and as he undressed, I saw he wasn't wearing underpants so I thought what did I have to be modest about and got on changing and of course no one took any notice of me.

The school changing room had never bothered me but after that day in C&A changing rooms anywhere didn't bother me either - thanks to string underpants.

I haven't had a vest for years but I did like string ones.

Previously I have posted that my clothes were dictated by my nan. I was so pleased when I went to work and "had to buy my own clothes". And in the early 70's I followed the fashion and bought the string singlets and briefs that were popular. Does any one else remember them?zsr7

Andrea - the cardbord tops were replaced with foll tops at some point in my schooldays, but at this distance, I couldn't say exactly when that was.

Chris G,
I'm pretty sure the ones we had had foil tops, but maybe I'm confusing them with the pint milk bottles we had at home.

Andrea, probably showing my age, but when I first encountered school milk, the bottle-tops were made of cardboard and had littel perforaated discs in the middle tht you could push out to lev hole tha you put your straw into.

Chris G,
You're right about the frozen milk bottles.
Also sometimes in summer the birds would get to them first and peck through the foil caps to get at the cream that floated to the top of the bottle.

Andrea

I don't remember Castor Oil or Syrup of Figs either, but I do remember regular teaspoon-sized doses of NHS Orange Juice and Cod Liver Oil, which came in distinctive tall rectangular glass bottles, and also the free school milk in 1/3 pint bottles, which usd to freeze solid when the crates were left at the school gate early on a frosty morning..

TimH - of course you are right about rickets, I knew it existed but I don't remember anyone having it. Maybe the summers really were warmer when we were children and I certainly played outside shirtless for most of the summer holiday and often went skinny dipping with my mates too.

Quite a few years back, as part of another problem, I developed Vitamin D deficiency and all I can say is it was horrible and I'd never want it again and nor would I want any child to get it. Of course the natural way of developing a proper level of Vitamin D is the best instead of all the supplements that seem to be the norm these days. I was so bad that the immediate treatment was several days of very painful injections in my glute, I wouldn't have wished them on anyone

Vitamin D deficiency can lead to rickets which was common in the 1920s & 30s (my father had it in the 1920s).

Sunlight is a source of Vitamin D - so think about shirtless PE, rambling in the country, time on the beach ...

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-d/ & other sites.

I can't remember being given Castor Oil or Syrup of Figs, but I do remember Haliborange (vitamin C tablets) and cod liver oil and or course free school milk in 1/3 pint bottles.

Victor, another interesting post.

I don't think back in the day, when boys did PE in shorts only there was much of an issue of Vitamin D deficiency. I don't ever remember being given such supplements routinely - sometimes a multi-vitamin in winter, a dreaded dose of Castor Oil or a much more dreaded dose of Syrup of Figs. My mother firmly believed that a child who was restless or 'cranky' in any way was constipated and to a point she might have been right. Two tablespoons of Syrup of Figs soon changed that.

As a child, I remember my father talking about how he had suffered from Prickly Heat whilst a soldier in India and suggesting that I did not go bare top for any great length of time in strong sunlight. He said that I could spend as much time outside as I liked bare top from 5pm onwards in the height of summer. My recollection is that none of the schools I attended objected to boys going bare top for sport if they wanted. I get the impression from previous posts that these days boys are discouraged from going bare top both inside and outside by many schools. I wonder whether bare top inside is discouraged because there is concern that sweaty boys doing forward or backward rolls on "mats" would mean that sweat is more likely to be passed from student to student than if they wore tops? I wonder whether this might be viewed as likely to spread bacterial, fungal or viral infections? If so I can see that bare top might also be discouraged outside because activities like piggy backs might also spread infection. I'd be a little surprised if exposure to the sun (thus increasing the chances of Melanoma, Basal Cell Carcinoma and Squamous Cell Carsinoma in the longer term future) would be sufficient reason to discourage it except in very strong sunlight as it is probably still the case that some boys are deficient in vitamin D which might result in them being more prone to disease, breaking bones and rickets. I'd have thought that boys should be encouraged to either eat food high in vitamin D or take vitamin D supplement or cross country run bare top when there is not very strong daylight. Since some students might not follow the first two suggestions, encouraging bare top cross country running seems sensible except in very strong sunlight.

Victor, interesting post.

I'm just a few years younger than you and by the time I was at school - boys grammar school, all the PE teachers had done national service and two were ex-military PTIs.

There was no let up in the rigour of PE sessions, cross country, circuit training, team sports, swimming - in the outdoor pool all year round and athletics in the summer. If something was to be outside come hail, rain and snow in the winter, it went ahead. PE classes were usually for 90 minutes at a time and usually combined two things, the particularly hard sessions were cross country followed by circuit training.

There was no let up in the sixth form either, there were no real options other than staying and some lads from the nearby secondary school joined us as the school was still a good choice results wise and parents in those days liked the strict discipline that was enforced.

PE kit for anything other than team games was white shorts, bare foot indoors and plimsolls outdoors, rugby was shirt, shorts, socks and boots and swimming was naked. Needless to say with that regime there were no underpants but there was an ever ready plimsoll to warm the bottom of any boy wearing them or committing any one of a number of other offences.

I'm don't think things have changed for the better.

I am new to this site. I went to secondary school at 11 in about 1960. Gym kit was white singlet being that worn to school, white shorts, underpants being those worn to school, socks being those worn to school and white plimsols. It was very serious gymnastics. Although I did not realise it at the time one or more gymnastic exercises sometimes caused me serious stomach muscle pain that resulted in my parents taking me to the doctor thus missing school time. Football kit was Football shirt, white shorts, underpants being those worn to school, Football socks and Football boots. Showers were not compulsory (in order I suspect to save money).

At 13 I moved to a different school that played Rugby. Gym kit was white Rugby shirt, white Rugby shorts, underpants being those worn to school, socks being those worn to school and white plimsols. It was not serious gym as in my former school and my stomach muscle pain became less frequent and less severe. Rugby kit was black or white Rugby shirt (two were allowed on cold days - one on top of the other), Rugby shorts, underpants being those worn to school, Rugby socks and Rugby boots. Nobody taught me anything about Rugby so for a few games I came away seriously battered as had no idea what the game was about let alone knowing how to tackle nor what to do if tackled. After a time I worked out where the ball was likely to go and tried to make sure I was somewhere else. Towards the end of the Rugby season I realised the staff were taking too much interest in me so next year opted to do cross country running as had done quite well in the summer athletics. Cross country was a seriously demanding alternative to Rugby due to a huge hill but much to my amazement I soon came to tolerate it and then enjoy it. Often next day one of my big toes hurt so it briefly made walking and running a little painful. Cricket in summer was a problem as I could not throw a cricket ball far due to a dodgy shoulder but I could bat quite well. Occasionally when hot in summer PE and games were done topless. Showers were normally not compulsory (in order I suspect again to save money). When I started the lower sixth the old PE/Games staff started to teach academic subjects and new PE/Games staff replaced them. We got the impression they had both just left military service and they initially seemed to treat us like military recruits. No underpants were allowed and it was a choice between going Commando, jockstrap or swimming costume under shorts. Socks were discouraged but white socks were allowed. Circuit training was introduced. Showers were sometimes compulsory. Swimming ability was assumed but some of us had not been taught. I got the impression somebody (e.g. the headmaster who may have been concerned that next year lots of fifth form boys might decide to opt for a different school for sixth form due to the new PE/Games regime) must have talked to the PE/Games staff as they eased off and after a time they treated us like sixth form boys instead of military recruits. When we got into the upper sixth things improved dramatically as the staff somehow arranged additional options like Golf and Squash. I opted for Squash and was very concerned when I discovered it was to be taught by the senior games master. However, since he assumed we knew nothing about it he started at square one and I thoroughly enjoyed it. As a consequence I played a lot of Squash during my adult life including attending three residential holiday Squash courses. I also did a reasonable amount of adult cross country running. I guess I would have enjoyed swimming and maybe Rugby if I'd been properly taught. It was only after I retired that I enrolled on a course to learn how to swim and really enjoyed it. The key messages I would have for all PE teachers are to recognise that some activities cause some students discomfort and/or pain, to build up very slowly and to recognise that new students joining (particularly mid way through school) may know nothing about certain activities and are taught properly to swim and to play games like Rugby if they would like to learn how to play them. The overriding objective is to result in students partaking in active sport at University and during the rest of their life. My school experience resulted in me doing no sport at University and I only restarting doing it to enable an incomplete football team of colleagues to play and I found that I enjoyed doing so. I then restarted playing Squash as I mentioned to some of the footballers that I used to enjoy it at school and some said they played.

Very surprised to see these lads in vests. Barechested xcountry irrespective of the weather or temperature. No lad ever wore a vest regardless of age.

I don't remember shorts being particularly tight but in the 1960s they were short compared to anything you would see now. My memory is that grey school ones had an inside leg no longer than three inches, white gym shorts and rugby shorts were even shorter.

Wearing underpants with grey shorts was normal and it was usually by then briefs of my mother's choosing but gym shorts and rugby shorts were always worn without underpants at my school so there was always a risk of exposure not that I remember it happening or being bothered by it.

It was only when I went to university and joined the rugby team I first saw a jockstrap and some lads wore them. As a poor student counting my money carefully, I figured that if I hadn't needed on up until now I still didn't and all the years I played rugby - until I was almost forty I didn't wear underpants and nor did most of my team mates.

Things have changed now - you probably wouldn't find a player without his compression shorts on, I don't know how we managed!

I meant to say'like Declan I used to wear my very brief and tight shorts,I suppose to please my parents'.

Chris G,Declan, I did continue to wear shorts when I left primary school and started secondary school.Like Declan I too wore my very tight and brief, I suppose just to please my parents.My shorts were lined so I went without underwear.Due to the brevity of my shorts there were occasional problems in the nether regions,but like with our PE when we went without underwear I had to cope with it.

Declan

It's a very long time ago, and my grey cells are getting a bit rusty, but I have no memory of my grey school shorts being particularly tight. Unlike James, quite a lot of us were still wearing shorts by the time when we started secondary school, and although the numbers of us dwindled with time, there were still two or three boys in them, generally by choice, when I got my first long school trousers.

As for nether-regional "support", I don't remember that ever being a problem, and I suppose my shorts must have been long enough to prevent embarassment! In any case, there wasn't exactly a lot of support in regularly-washed underpants back in those days. In fact I never managed to find underpants that maintained adequate levels of support throughout their working life until I was in my late teens, when briefs without gaping flies appeared.

I spent time at two different secondary schools, and in each case what we wore under our shorts was left to our own choice. At the first school, most of us went commando, but when we were about 13, the PE master advised us that we ought to be wearing some form of support, suggesting jock-straps (which none of us had ever heard of at that point) or tight-fitting underpants. I don't think many of took very much notice. I changed schools when I was 15, and at my new school most boys wore underpants or supportive swimming trunks, while a few had jockstraps. I soon acquired one of the latter items, and to this day, a jockstrap is still my preferred underwear for vigourous activity or under shorts in summer.