School Memories

I boarded from 1961 – 1963 at Loreto Llandudno and have great memories of that time. Long ago. I was so happy then that now being 67 with three daughters 7 grand children and a grear gran boy (3 months old) I am planning to visit Llandud.no next june just to have a look of my beloved college and bring back my old memories while i still have the opportunity to do so

I remember with great affection the years I spent as a boarder at Loreto Convent in St Albans in the 1960s also the wonderful visits and news we had about the nuns and students at Loreto Abbey Road Llandudno. ( as well as other Loreto schools around the world ) I am also in my 60s now and have 3 children and 3 grand children. I also hope to visit the Llandudno centre, one day, hopefully to visit with the nuns and perhaps attend Mass. I heard that the Past Pupils of the Convent of Llandudno have a reunion each year in May with a Mass after and I was hoping to try and get there one year. Perhaps some more Past Pupils will post on here. Also when boarding finished at St Albans in the 60s some of our boarders went to Llandudno for a few terms/years I seem to remember. Hard to remember exact dates and/or names but hoping some may read these pages.

As Kath(Kathleen Perry)said above here “so many fond memories”. Our Head Teachers,/Headmistresses were Mother Joseph Dolours and Mother Madeleine while I was a school child. I also remember a Mother Philomena, Mother Benedict, Mother Francis Xavier, Mother Veronica, Mother Labore,Mother Michael, Mother Angela, Mother Maria Assumpta, Sister Eucharia, Sister Lucy and many other nuns and teachers with great affection and thanks. (Too many wonderful role models, mentors, tutors and excellent teachers to mention and too afraid to try and spell them all correctly!) Loreto Manchester/Llandudno / St Albans …more memories please 🙂 ( – The visits of Mother General and Mother Provincial! -)

Hello,
My Auntie is a Loreto sister, Sr Genevieve, she spent many years In Llandudno and later in alchringham , she has just celebrated her Oak Jubillee. 80yrs, does anyone remember here

I was at Llandudno 1954 1961 there is a reunion 2nd weekend in May usually the Saturday afternoon I have not been able to attend for a couple of years but they are organised by Barbara Adams I remember my years at loreto with fondness certainly it was one of the happiest times as a child however I rember the cold chipping ice off the bowls of water in the mornings to wash baths only once a week per rota. But the wonderful Sunday breakfasts warm fresh soda bread marmalade sneaking into the kitchen for a cake or biscuit mother madaline was my allocated nun firm stern but absolutely wonderful mother Mary of the rosary was head mistress mother Winifred domestic science scary very sister alphonsus us was in the rectory mother celine maths mother Anthony then took over the walks around the lake every morning also up the zig zag path to haulfree gardens on Sundays different world when they were building the new block bedrooms there was a storm and we put pots and pans under the leaks to save everything getting wet opening the new science and domestic science block princess Margaret’s wedding and parents day everyone had tea in the main hall. And we had games on the front lawn the mikado and other shows yep it was in the main fun

Antonia Smith nee Ryan past pupil from Loreto College Llandudno

I attended Loreto college from 1964 to 1967 I remember having to stay till 7PM to do our homework. Sister Margaret Mary not being able to control us she later left the order and got married. Having a lecture in assembly from mother superior about the ‘den of iniquity’ teen beat in the winter gardens oh happy days. Sadly I haven’t kept in touch with any of my classmates, except for Angela Forte now Jones.

I attended Loreto Convent in Manchester from 1947 in the Montessori until 1951. I loved Mother Dolores ( she later became Mother Superior) and Mother Veronica. My classmates were Geraldine van Went (now living in Australia), twins Monica and Phyllis Flanagan, Christine Vanstone among others. They were the happiest school days of my life. We all went up to the grammar school when we passed our 11-plus exam. Unfortunately I have no fond memories of Miss O’Meara as she made my life a misery from day one as form teacher in both Form 2 and Upper Five. Miss Hunter liked me in the summer because I was good at tennis but not in Autumn/winter because I was hopeless at gym! I attended the 150th anniversary with my sister, Patricia, and caught up with Christine, Pauline Myles, Isobel Dougherty and a few others. I remembered being in school during the centenary when Mother General visited. A huge occasion for all of us.

Reading Ms. (Clare) Philps’s posting above, really does stimulate one’s memory reservoir! Erica Endacott’s brother was a day boy at St. Mary’s (Rhos-on-sea) and it’s only just dawned on me that ‘Antonia Ryan’ was known as ‘Toni’ and was a close friend of Gerry Kelly (Ms. Kelly owned a beautiful fawn/camel winter coat and spoke with a diluted Chorlton-Cum-Hardy accent). There was another person who made up a Gerry/Toni trio, but I have forgotten her name. I think she was a girlfriend of one of my St Mary’s compatriots . I recall Gerry occasionally getting in trouble with ‘Soup’ – but can’t recall any of here ‘penances’ :):):)?

I don’t know if any former Loreto girls entered the world of broadcasting, but there’s a radio programme crying out to made about the lives of boarding school girls in North Wales (Lowther, Penrhos, Bridgidine etc). Radio 4’s ‘Archive Hour’ would be the ideal medium or perhaps BBC Radio Wales or BBC World Service would be more appropriate? Always wondered how female boarders coped with home sickness. 2 weeks was always my reference for getting over home sickness……and, of course, ‘big boys don’t cry’.

I’ll get my emails off to Whistledown and Falling Tree productions!

Thanks, as ever, for all these interesting postings.

My mother Joyce Brundrett went to Loretto Altrincham around 1943 , if anyone remembers her I would love to hear from them

I attended Loreto Altringham from 1957? -60 and was in a Form 1 class with Eileen Bather, Pat Mannion, Patricia Cunningham Veronica Salter Moira Masseyand Ethna Moores to name but a few.
I went to Australia with my family in 1960 returning to the UK in 1960 where I I attended Digby Stuart teacher training college 1963-66 and then went to Canada to teach. I currently livein New Zealand where I recently retired from teaching.
I still have regular contact with Ethna but would love to hear from anyone who was in my year.

Sorry, age catching up, it is Marjorie Richardson not Maureen

I was at Loreto Mosside in the prep school with Miss Keogh. I went on to the grammar school 1963 to 1970 in Ball House maiden name Christine Mayers still in touch with Eithne McHugh and Anne Medley and Anne McErlaine. Remember mother victorine and mother Christina ‘ a trip to Spain with mr Pinedo . Domestic science with Miss Sherratt at the top of Ward House.

Hello to everyone, I am so glad to have found this page! I am looking for anyone who knew my mother during her time at Loreto. Her name then was Sandra White, and she attended from 1959 – 1966. Mum was diagnosed with Non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in 2017 and after a hard battle, found out she was in remission last summer. I am trying to surprise her by putting together memories of her time at Loreto, and would love to hear from anyone who knew her back then!

I was at Loreto Llandudno from 1945 – 1950 along with my 2 sisters Eileen and Claire. We were day girls and had been evacuated from London during the blitz in 1940. My father wes a civil servant in the Ministry of Food and the whole of his unit was evacuated to N. Wales. I absolutely loved being at Loreto and certainly cried when I had to leave. The nuns were very good to us as a family and gave us lots of extras. My mother used to send in secret food for the boarders and also typed out reams of revision notes four our class. I kept in touch with Sr Eileen McConon and Sr. Mary Ross, both classmates and also with Mary Lofts who sadly died recently. I have been back several times and will be at the Centenary Reunion. Is there anyone from that period who is still in touch.
Catherine Mallory (now Boocock)

Hello Bernadette! Don’t know if you remember me I was in Kennedy 1967-73. I remember Miss Cave. Mr Goodwin and many others. Have lost touch with most people apart from a couple of Ellis people from Mr Rayneau’s maths class. Hope all is well with you.

I attended Loreto Manchester from 1974-1979, I was in Ball House. Fond memories of Dr Rayneau, Miss McCann, Mother Christina etc. went to a class reunion many years ago with Jane Brooke’s, Catherine Carr, Frances Crumpton, Catherine Reilly, Margaret Shaw. Would love to know how everyone is.

Hi. I was in Ward House, Manchester from 1964 to 1971. Class mates included: Elizabeth McDonough, Mary Kane, Lynda Forest, Mary Connaughton, and Eileen Flanagan. My neighbourhood friend Irene Lowndes was in Kennedy house. Favourite teachers were Mrs Moss, Miss Sherratt and Mr Holland who took us for A level history and also British Constitution. Every Thursday morning we had him for five periods alternating between each subject (two periods of each and a single history) Poor him. Loved the sixth form especially. Never thanked anyone enough for the friendship and experiences. Seems a lifetime away.

Hi Sheila, I was in the same class as you but left in 1969, couldn’t wait to leave but obviously regretted it later in life. Didn’t Irene start off in our class? Mary sadly died a while ago (we shared the same birthdate)

I went to Loreto Manchester from 1973 to 1980, in Carmichael House.
Mother Victorine was the Head and Mother Christina the Deputy.
Lots of comments on here bring back memories -teachers names, romper suits, the old buildings, etc.
It would be great to hear from anyone that remembers me!

looking for St Albans girls 1962 to 1966

Trying to trace the family of my stepsister Ingrid Czyzyk who attended Loreto convent in Manchester possibly late 1940s.
She emigrated to Australia following the break up of her parents marriage and was probably about 9 years old? My father remarried and unfortunately we had no contact at all with her although my late mother did meet her in the 80’s while in Australia. I recall that she passed away in the 1980s/90s and I’m trying to trace her family … my step-nephews. If anyone went to school with ingrid I’d be grateful if when that was ( which years) and if you recall the year she left.
Many thanks
Chris

How lovely to stumble across this website!
I was at Loreto College Manchester from 1972 to 1979 and was in Ball house.
My memories are mostly very happy, and I liked many of the teachers. Physics was my favourite subject, and I was taught by Mrs Hall and Mrs Manson and the rather gorgeous (I thought at the time) Mr Craven. I remember the rather scary Mr Brown who taught chemistry, but later on I was taught by Dr Collard – it was thanks to her encouragement that I got into Cambridge on a second attempt. On the less positive side, I remember Mrs Sherratt, who once smacked me for forgetting my needlework – it probably wasn’t the first time that I had forgotten it, but I think that it was the last! And there was Sister Helen, who taught Domestic Science and once accused me of lying. I still remember how upset I was, because I hadn’t lied! I see that quite a few people remember Mrs Weaver, who taught Maths. She was indeed one of the nicer teachers. Another lovely teacher was Mrs Paleolog, who taught us Latin and had such enthusiasm for her subject.
I remember the school trip to London on the train, in 1976, to celebrate the school’s 125th anniversary. Then in 1977 our cohort took our ‘O’ Levels. After the last exam, some of us went into town to see the Queen, on a visit as part of her silver Jubilee. Later on, a group of us made a day trip to Blackpool. I don’t remember anything special after ‘A’ Levels, though I think we had a leaving dinner….

Hello – it was so lovely to see my dad being remembered – Mr Rayneau. He was an amazing dad and teacher.