Vale: Mr John W Curtis

Old scholars who were at St Peter’s College in the period 1962-1990 will remember Mr John Curtis, who taught at our School for 29 years. He was Master-in-charge of Year 8 from 1970 until retirement in 1990 and he took the First XI Cricket Team from 1974 to 1989. His main subjects were Geography and English and he mostly taught in the early years of the Senior School. He also coached Soccer teams.

They will be sad to know that he passed away at the age of 95 on July 21 2025. As his oldest daughter, Gill, has said, this was a wonderful 95 year innings.

Born in Ilford, Essex, England, in February 1930, he was the oldest of two brothers. During the first part of the Second World War he was evacuated with many others from the cities to the countryside. He returned to Romford, Essex, for the rest of the War. He endured extensive bombing, including the Blitz where he often had to shelter in the Anderson bomb shelter (a prefabricated steel structure with corrugated iron panels, designed to be buried in the ground and covered with soil for protection against air raids during World War II) in the garden. The war was an exciting time for a young boy. John and his friends would collect shrapnel on their way to school. Bombs fell on his neighbour’s house, breaking the windows in John’s house and knocking his father over in the kitchen. He was at Lord’s later in the war when a Buzz Bomb flew over and exploded in nearby Regent’s Park. Jack Robertson of Middlesex (and later England) hit a six off the next ball. John visited Lord’s dozens of times when he was a boy. In 1948 when the Australian team captained by Bradman came to England, John was able to carry Bradman’s bag and was rewarded with an autograph. He saw several of Bradman’s centuries and the famous duck at the Oval in his final test innings.

He attended Royal Liberty School near Romford. After finishing school in 1948 he commenced National Service in the RAF and in 1950 attended Kings College, University of London where he opened the batting for the London University Cricket Team. In 1954, he captained the London University Cricket Team and completed an Honours degree in Geography. He also gained a post graduate certificate in Education.

He then taught at Portsmouth Grammar School and Stamford School, Lincolnshire, England. It was during this time while travelling as much as he could around the UK and in Europe that he met his wife, Rosie, in Majorca. They were married in 1959 and had the first of four daughters.

The travel bug was strong for John and Rosie and they decided to emigrate to Australia where John had secured a job at St Peter’s College, starting in 1962. They arrived with Gill, a 9 month old baby and spent several happy years in Palm Place ‘incubator ally’ as the housing provided by Saints was affectionally known. This was ideal for John and Rosie as it was a ready-made community which provided friendship and support. Margaret, the wife of Reverend John Miller the Headmaster also provided a ‘creche’ for the children on Friday mornings in the Headmaster’s House. Gill can still remember curtseying and presenting Mrs Miller with a posy of flowers!

In his first year at St Peter’s College, 1962, John was a tutor in one of the boarding houses – School House.

Three more daughters followed -  Sally, Jo and Jane and the family moved to Third Ave, St Peter’s.

John and Rosie went on to have eleven grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

John had a great passion for cricket. He coached junior sides for a number of years before taking charge of the First XI in 1974. The results of teams under his guidance were outstanding. For a period of thirteen years (1974 to 1986), the First XI was undefeated in Inter-collegiate matches - an outstanding record. His love of the game was evident as he encouraged boys to develop their potential, correct problems of technique, and appreciate the finer details of cricket.

During his time as coach, he successfully organised and led several interstate and four overseas trips. He lead the first St Peter’s College Cricket Tour to England in 1981, and later tours to England in 1986 and 1989. In January 1984 John lead a cricket tour to Sri Lanka. All of these involved a considerable amount of organisation and preparation. Although the main purpose of the tours was to play cricket, boys gained much benefit on these tours from visits to places such as Tower of London, St. Paul’s, H.M.S. Belfast and The ‘Victory’, the Wildlife  Park at Woburn, the Royal Naval College at Greenwich, Canterbury and York Cathedrals, Dover and Windsor Castles, Fishbourne Roman Palace and a hovercraft trip across the Straits of Dover to spend a few hours in Calais.

Photo: England Cricket Tour 1989 - visiting Burghley House. 

Photo: A peaceful moment on a cricket tour, Mr Curtis with Ian Hume. 

School soccer was in its infancy when he became Master-in-Charge of the sport, and he successfully guided the club through its first year of inter-school competitions in 1973. He coached a number of teams, culminating with the Seconds in 1987.

In his 1969 Speech Day address, Headmaster Reverend John Miller said: “Boys in their first year are to be under a master-in-charge, Mr. J. W. Curtis, and more responsibility is to be given to first year form-masters. It is hoped that  this new policy will give confidence to boys as they move from primary to secondary schooling - a transition year in which they will be helped to understand the way of life and conventions of the Senior School and when they will be introduced, under the guidance of their form-masters, to methods of study and homework procedure”. It was no surprise that John Curtis was chosen to lead this successful initiative. He continued in this senior role for his final twenty-one years of teaching.

Photo: Mr Curtis who retired after sixteen years as First XI coach with his frist captain Tom Bowen (1974) and his last, Ben Smith (1989). 

John retired at the end of 1990, but continued to do relief teaching and coach cricket. On several occasions he met up with Saints cricket teams as they toured England. A particular highlight was seeing his grandson Jack Klemich playing during the England tour of 2007. Sadly, Jack died in 2009. John forged great friendships with the teachers and coaches of the teams they played while touring.

John and Rosie travelled extensively in retirement through England and Europe. On several occasions they stayed in the Cotswolds. They would usually go for three months every couple of years and it was a great joy to them. John would often go to Lord’s in London to see a Test match. John also loved his garden and throughout his life created wonderful landscapes wherever he lived. He also spent a huge part of his life watching cricket and soccer and visiting his beloved Adelaide Oval, taking a packed lunch and thermos so he would not have to miss a ball. He had a huge library of cricket books at home.             

Rosie died in 2020 and John continued to live independently until 18 months before he died. In his final months he was at Estia Health, Kensington Gardens, an excellent aged care facility committed to providing exceptional care and support to seniors.

John Curtis will be remembered most of all for the kind of person that he was. He was a gentleman. He was a man of good manners and refined character. He treated others with respect. When he retired from St Peter’s College in 1990, his colleague Ian Hume wrote several comments about him in the 1990 School magazine:

“He upheld the very best traditions of school mastering and won the respect of colleagues and students alike”.

“His enthusiasm for travel and his perceptive understanding of the forces which shape environments made his Geography lessons interesting and stirred the imagination of many a student”.

“The richness and power of language was conveyed with enthusiasm to his English students”.

“Meticulous planning, patience and consideration for each boy were hallmarks of his approach.”

 “A particular interest in the development of students in their first few years of secondary education and a sensitive but firm manner, were qualities recognised by John Curtis’s appointment to the senior position of Master-in-Charge of Year 8 in 1970”.

 “His attention to detail, his thoughtfulness and his enthusiasm characterised John’s involvement”.

Ian Hume concluded: “Thank you, John, for the contributions that you have made to the School community. We wish you a well-deserved period of retirement, safe in the knowledge that your outstanding and loyal service have earned you widespread respect. Your many duties will be capably filled in the years to come, but you will never be replaced”.

Our condolences go to Gill, Sally, Jo, Jane, Oren and Tim.

Researched and written by David Docwra in consultation with the family.

David Docwra retired from St Peter’s College in December 2015 after 37 years’ service and is fondly remembered by many as a dedicated teacher, a committed coach of squash, cricket and soccer, and most especially as a passionate Head of Hawkes House for 21 years. David remains connected to St Peter’s College and regularly provides historical articles for the St Peter’s Old Collegians’ newsletters. In 2023 David was made an Honorary Member of the St Peter’s Old Collegians’ Association.