Hard to believe that anyone attending school in the 60's actually liked school but, consider they came all the way from London to board in Portora Royal School for eight years, it beggars belief.
However, Ian (Bill) Burn is a trustworthy as well as a likeable individual. He now lives with his wife, Philomena and their two boys in Reading where he is librarian at Reading University.
He returned to Enniskillen last week, with his wife, for two reasons: to attend more of the 400th anniversary of the founding of Portora and to be with Helen Mooney, Tempo Road, Enniskillen with whom Philomena taught in Wandsworth. The two women have remained firm friends since.
So, what brought him to Enniskillen in the first place?
Well, his uncle, Alan Stephenson, who was employed with the Council in the borough engineer's office, and who lived in Lisbellaw, had recommended Portora to Bill's parents owing to the fact his own son was there.
So, being a wee lad all the way from London, was he not homesick? - "I was for the first couple of years till I got used to it. It was a lovely place. At half term, I would stay with the Stephensons. You had a lot of freedom in the school, you met a lot of people and I travelled all over Ireland with the school rowing club and cross-country team.", he explained.
Rugby he didn't like ('you were always out on the wing, and it was cold and wet'), but his mentors, people like the late Major jack Wheeler who did gym training for the rowing crews, were happy enough with his choice of sport. Rowing brought him to regattas in Belfast, Galway and Dublin and the beauty about cross-country was it catered for various abilities and ages.
Academically, Bill orientated towards geography and civics (politics and economics), and didn't rate Latin all that much. But, having contributed to a fascinating book on Portora School (1608 until the present), it is obvious he got to know a lot about the school's more famous Old Portorans, people like Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett, going as far back as Henry Francis Lyte (who attended from 1806-1809) and composed the immortal hymns, 'Abide With Me' and 'Praise My Soul The King of Heaven'.
"His parents were in the Army. They were stationed in Enniskillen and his father left them and the Headmaster paid for Lyte to stay on at the school because he recognised he was talented and going through a hard time.", Bill explained.
As for Wilde, (OP 1864-'71), 'he was OK again' to talk about in Bill's time on the hill and, as for Beckett (OP 1920-'23), 'he was just becoming famous'.
There were others, of course, among them the Shakespearean actor, Max Adrian (OP 1918-'21), the Catholic Bishop of Clogher, Dr Edward McKernan, and Fr John Sullivan, a Jesuit, both of whom were taught in Portora. They were among the few Catholics who went there, but then again, girls were barred until 1975.
Of a more recent vintage, Neil Hannon (OP 1982-'89) of The Divine Comedy fame and talking about girls, the actress, Zara Turner (OP 1977-'85).
In many ways, Bill 's alma mater has a fascinating history, not least its close links with the Jesuit College in Dublin, Clongowes, and some of its former staff. Among those featured in the book is the aforementioned Major Jack Wheeler who came to take up a post as a multi-fitness coach.
His enduring claim to fame is having operated with his wife, Kay the Portora Holiday Swimming Club which ran for 32 Summers and enabled over 12,000 youngsters of all ages to learn to swim. What might not be known is that Jack came to Portora in 1948 straight from the British Army, having been the youngest regimental sergeant major in the Army and a marksman with a rifle, having taught various Olympic teams at Bisley.
The Portora book which Bill and his Old Portoran colleagues in the London Branch of the Old Portoran Union are producing runs to 256 pages and contains delightful illustrated pen pictures of all of the above and numerous others. It is due out in November.
"It goes right back to 1608", he explained. "It has just gone to the printers. The London Association which is doing it is a mixture of people living or working in London, or people passing through, who went to Portora. It is quite active. We have an annual dinner that attracts between 60-70 people.".
