| Description | Interview conducted by Ellen Randall.
This recording and transcript have been edited to allow access.
Part One
00:01-01:09: Introduction: Chemistry, Organic Chemistry; Doctorate in Polymer Chemistry at Battersea
01:09-10:28: Choice of Course: mentions national service; Royal Army Educational Corps; Army Emergency Reserve; invited to study by lecturer, chose to finish National Service; posted to Singapore 1952, so missed university interviews; transferred scholarship from Surrey County Council to Battersea College; commuted from Redhill; 30 students on course
10:28-18:05: Impressions of campus: First floor lecture theatre, laboratories on second floor; Edwin Tate Library; common room, offices;
Foreign students, Polish, Vietnamese, Irish, Iraqi, Iranian; nicknames for foreign students
18:05. End
Part Two
00:00-05:47: Course work: Chemistry degree, physics, practicals; played football with staff; trip following co-ordinates; part ownership of car; worked part time over Christmas near Kings Cross
05:47-09:47: Travel costs: Commuted from Redhill; three month season tickets; failed biology practical; part ownership of old taxi cab
09:47-13:22: Extra curricular activities: Old boy's club, rugby; knee injuries
13:22-21:03: Studying: mentions re-sitting tests; one free week, statistics; describes timetable; translating journals from German
21:03-33:55: Facilities: Journals from patents office; describes laboratories; calibrating weights using arm balance; strychnine; health and safety; volatile solvents
33:55-43:25: Career: Technical correspondent; coal, fibre optics; industrial placement; 30 years at same company; research group club
43:25-59:15: Socialising: sports, cricket, football against staff; tennis in Colins Wood; contact with other alumni, wine tasting; charity raffle on campus; buying coffee for other students; tutoring for extra money in Brixton; working with sulphur; re-taking practical examinations
59:15-01:10:44: Battersea Campus: describes Battersea Main Building; lots of building work in area around; trip to pub when finished doctoral degree
01:10:44-01:14:59: Return to Battersea: Never returned, moved to Manchester
01:14:59-01:20:38: Graduation: Undergraduate degree graduation ceremony at Royal Albert Hall, Queen Mother; doctoral degree graduation ceremony at Senate House
01:20:38-01:30:04: Polytechnics: Engineering, rubber industry; degree gave prestige; alumni gathering a friend's house; Vietnamese student fled from Viet Kong to Battersea with diploma
01:30:04-01:40:31: Other comments: Battersea reunion; illness; role in supplying materials for aeroplanes; high school certificates
01:40:34: End |