Trevor Penn-Berkeley's LaMartiniere

"BHOY P-B": A LA MARTINIERE LEGEND
DR. TREVOR AUSTEN PENN-BERKELEY
(previously Anthony or Penn-Anthony)

My grandfather was born in Allahabad, into the Anglo-Indian community. Like many Anglo-Indians he adored India and was particularly proud of his English and European ancestry. He was renowned for his sportsmanship and was a very keen player of tennis and hockey.

A spiritual man and a devout Anglican, he also respected many other cultures, beliefs and traditions. He was educated at Philander Smith School in Naini Tal, gained his Arts Degree and a Licentiate in Teaching at Allahabad, later receiving a Doctorate in Philosophy. During his career he was a Schoolmaster, Headmaster and Principal.

In WWII he served as a Flight Officer in Squadron 20 of the Royal Air Force on the Burma Front.

He arrived at La Martiniere Boys College, Lucknow in 1955 and remained there until he retired to England in 1966. He taught mainly English and History and became the House Master of Cornwallis House in 1965. He was very proud to have taught at La Martiniere. The Anthony family have a long association with the school dating back to 1858, during which time many ancestors were registered on the student rolls.

The following is a tribute collated from the recollections of his son (my uncle), Trevor Donald Penn-Berkeley and several Old Boys: great tales of the teaching skills of this phenomenal teacher who became a La Martiniere legend.

Dr. Trevor Austen Penn-Berkeley 1955

Mr. Penn-Berkeley was an iconic figure at La Martiniere; mention of him brings many memories crowding in. He was classically in the mould of James Hilton's Mr. Chips—a true gentleman, a genial figure, very debonair, dressed to the nines in his suit, hat and walking stick. He was a jovial person and had a typical way of gently rocking on his heels whilst addressing the boys from the podium, while wearing his gown and cap during special assemblies such as Founders Day, Independence Day and Republic Day or in Chapel, thereby bringing decorum and distinction to the proceedings. He was sprightly for his age and very friendly with the boys, but in a dignified way. There is a mini TV series produced in the 1980’s called “To Serve Them All Our Days” about a boarding school in Britain and one of the teachers there is reminiscent of Mr. Penn-Berkeley, complete with the obligatory cigarette ash!

Mr. Penn-Berkeley lived with his wife, Olive Doreen nee Sherwood, on the lower floor, to the rear of Park House. The Old Boys recall lining up on his veranda to receive their pocket money: he would be seated at a small, single table in his summer suit and a cigar stub protruding from under his neatly trimmed, silvery moustache, an open register with a fountain pen laid on its spine and an old, almost antique, Morton Toffee tin filled crisp Rs 1/- notes. It was like going up for communion. One had to be absolutely silent because any distraction could result in someone being overpaid!

The 1960 floods of Lucknow encompassed the entire school and surrounding lands, cutting them off from the outside world. White sheets were hanging from the windows, appealing for supplies to be dropped by aircraft. Some Old Boys traipsed through the almost waist deep, muddy water with no regard to the many dangers of snakes and the like, towards Park House and the Bachelor Quarters, in order to help clear the Penn-Berkeleys' devastated apartment. The floods inside the apartment had reached a depth of one yard and two inches and numerous books floated amid the upturned tables and stools; Mr. and Mrs. Penn-Berkeley lost 95% of their belongings. Some of the boys caught ringworm, on which Ma’am Sharp applied a very caustic liquid that burned like hell, but it got rid of it!

In March 1962, Mr. Penn-Berkeley fractured his ankle, falling over the precipice of the stairwell into the passage below, near the Vice Principal's house. Within just a few days, leg and ankle in plaster, he was teaching again from his bed, and later from his wheelchair on the veranda of Park House. These steps were then affectionately referred to as“ Berkeley Falls” by the boys.

Mr. Penn-Berkeley was renowned for his expressions—he pronounced "boy" as, “bhoy!” as for instance, “My bhoy" …"Yes my bhoy" … "Come here bhoy!” And so, “Bhoy P-B” is how the Old Boys affectionately referred to him.

But it was his teaching style and passion for the subjects he taught which ignites the Old Boys memories. He did not refer to notes in the class. He rested his back against the table, puffed at his cigar, and told wonderful stories about India in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, whereby the boys were transported in time and actually lived the joys and sorrows, victories and defeats of their ancestors. He would tell stories of his time in the Royal Air Force and ramble on about his royal lineage and descent from the Berkeley’s of Berkeley Castle and London's Berkeley Square.

Flight Officer, Trevor Penn-Berkeley 1942

After setting the usual monthly test, duly completed by the boys, Mr. Penn-Berkeley took them through a detailed analysis of the paper; while correcting their work he commented in red and would work hard to point out each mistake. Shortly before the final ISC board exams in 1964, whilst revising Julius Caesar, they were amazed to see some Shakespearean characters walking past the classroom in glorious period dresses. They were part of the cast of the movie Shakespearwallah, on their way to cannon area for filming. Mr. Penn-Berkeley taught Julius Caesar, Great Expectations, and Churchill’s My Early Life and thanks to him some of the boys have an enduring love of Shakespeare and articulate English—never able to think of any of these books without being reminded of the great teacher who had first brought them to life.

One boy was fortunate to get a text book on Indian History that had been used by Mr. Penn-Berkeley with annotations in the margins and between the lines, which were immensely interesting to read. They also made a lot more sense than the book! His only regret was that he did not hang on to the book, and pay for a lost book instead, as now this book would be priceless. Mr. Penn-Berkeley never used clichéd phrases, and his rambling and frolicking in the English language was to rub off on many of his charges. As an English teacher he always warned the boys about “Americanisms” which he abhorred, and he refused to tolerate expressions such as “phew!”, “guys” etc. He was always quite excited when teaching and added emphasis by heavily aspirating many of his words, but most of all the hallmark “Bhoy!”

Apart from academic teaching Mr. Penn-Berkeley was very keen to help mould his pupils’ characters and personalities. He was always egging them on to higher achievements by telling them not to hold themselves back but to, “Let yourself go!” It was his way of making his students go-getters!

The boys could be a trying bunch, but he never really lost his temper. He had his own ways of expressing disgust. When Tuppy Phillips leaned over sleepily on the lid of his desk, he cuttingly remarked, “A position of repose induces repose!” There was one classmate, who was rather indifferent to class timings and was in the habit of strolling in late. One day, he drifted in just when the class was about to end, and an exasperated Mr. Penn-Berkeley proclaimed sarcastically, “Here comes the late Mr. Khalid! Mr. Khalid still keeps Nawabi time and can often be found at his shop in Hazratgunj”. One day, Mr. Penn-Berkeley launched a duster at Roger Towning for saying someone had “returned back” to some place or other, he ducked, and poor Hines, behind him, got it square in the face! Hearne, surreptitiously, would try to take puffs from Mr. Penn-Berkeley’s smouldering cigar which he would often park on his desk as he strolled down the rows of students.

Around the world there are a myriad of students who have had their memories woken with the legendary anecdotes about Bhoy P-B and his inimitable teaching prowess. So many students of his era were, and are, in awe, feeling a great sense of privilege to have been taught one of legendary teachers of La Martiniere. Their comments about Dr. Penn-Berkeley: "By far the best teacher [we've] ever known", "there was no one better than him", "he was outstanding", "few could match him", "he was simply the best", "no less than a Mr. Chips come alive"! In that sense he lives on much like the legend of Claude Martin.

Susan and her sister Helen with (then) Principal Elton D'Souza on a visit to LaMartiniere in 2009

With grateful thanks to my uncle, Trevor Donald Penn-Berkeley,
and all the Old Boys for their recollections:
Rizwan Ahmed, Warren Anderson, Randhir Behl, Roger Towning, Debashish Chakravarti, Eugene Chand, John Cline, Elton D’ Souza, Rakesh Goel, Geoffrey Hashman, Robert Lawless, Adrian Michael, Syed Khalid Rizvi, Sujit Sanyal, Rajveer Samuel, David Sealey, Yogesh Sharma, George Shepherd, Anil Srivastava and Sanjay Swarup.