Cliff View House And Martello Tower

Ian, came across this website when I googled Cliff view house, I too was 12 when I went here in 1973!
My memory is not the best at the best of times but yes it was really tough being away from home so young, I remember tears & that churning knot you get in your stomach going back after a leave w/e home (v vivid).
I remember the incredibly rough seas in winter going over the houses on the seafront, I remember walking bike up the Downs & speeding back down. Temporarily forgotten the headmasters name but I remember him being very stern. The focus was very much on school work so friendships were hard, also only being there 12 months did not make them enduring, I don't remember your name Ian. Please share any other recollections as it will jog my memory, as it was not the happiest time of my childhood I have probably blocked things out.
I have now lived in Sydney Australia for the past 30 & could not be happier!

Sorry my name is a Simon Staddon

I was at the school from 1964 to 1967. The head master was Mr Lawson.both he and his wife where somewhat scary , he with is volatile temper and she with a fag. In her mouth and alawaysmaking your shoulders were straight at meal times. I can remember dodging the waves between breakwaters and when you got hit by a wave trying to get back to school without getting caught. Enjoyed walks up on the downs and also racing down on bike from Beachy Head . It also seemed foggy a lot and you could hear the fog horn from Newhaven.worked one hard , no sport but got me through the common entrance exam.

Hi Guys,
I was looking at Google Earth of Cliff View House, Seaford - and associated places.
I was there at school from Sept 1972-June 1973.
My elder brother had been there two years before and left (both of us separately studying for the Common Entrance exam.

The previous (initial?) headmaster was Mr ("piggy" Lawson. He and his wife ran the school - Crammer it was described correctly as. He had heart problems and latterly stayed in the 'new' building - one of the 4 houses in a row on College road (that was connected to the 2nd, older house.
This was all before I was there, but when my brother was there.
"piggy" Lawson died before I was there and the new headmaster (who was probably there previously) was Mr Barnard, who was strict and ran the school with his wife and others.
He smoked about 60- cigarettes a day and had a short temper. He was a good but strict teacher and had a high opinion of himself. If you attempted a joke he would say "no, I tell the funnies".
He also would revert (when reading a history story or something in Latin) would read it out in Swahili,, as he had been in South Africa (in the army?) which he never stopped talking about.
There was also the 4th (but not the 3rd) house "The Rockeries" that was both a school-room house and with dormitories (as were houses 1 & 2.
Additionally, across the old Cricket field (that W.D. Grace historically practiced on but now has been partially built on) was another house - on Cricket Field Road. This was a 3 story old building called 'Hiillersdon'. The name has now been transferred to Cliff View House that is now an OAP home. Hillersdon was run by an old matron (think Joan Crawford in Mildred Pierce or Mommie Dearest). There was also a single storey building next door (still there) that was a classroom for chemistry and French with Mr Gould I think. Geography was by a retired army man we called Me "Man" as he always said 'Man and flexed his right arm) There was also Major Berkley, who was like Col. Blimp who taught English and Mr Harry Hill (no really) who taught Maths was Scottish and both a diabetic and psychopathic, never missing an opportunity to report any / all of us for "a Tanning" from the headmaster (Mr Barnard). Mr Roper taught French (in the Rockeries and I believe was in the French Resistance in WWII and I think never got over it. There was a kindly lady who taught art there too.
At Hillersdon, the weather was so bad in the Autumn / Winter 1972 that the plaster wall fell off, exposing the building to the elements. In common with many others locally, tar was sprayed on the roof (separately) to hold it together.
Hillersdon looked out onto a 6th form college or similar with older girls.
However there was a proper girls school called Micklesfield that several Cliff View boys met up with girls from at the WWII air raid shelters on the golf course on Seaford Head.. I didn't but used to smoke there with the others including Mick McQuiston and John Rogers. WE also assisted with an occult-type of ceremony that a boy called Hornby / Hornsby (?) arranged (we stole incense & charcoal from the local church for him to assist with this.
This was possible because we ADDITIONALLY had to serve on the altar at the church for Benediction each week (7+ people in different roles, like 'boat' with the incense and Thurible / Thurifur with burning charcoal) - great for wayward teenagers...

In the winter the seafront was out of bounds as there was a 100 ft+ drop from the promenade (Esplanade) to the beach - against which the waves would crash at full tide and throw stones all over the road and break all the streetlight bulbs & shades & the windows of the Esplanade hotel (which as mentioned is still there but now done up - it was run down).
There was a hard-core crew of workers who used to attempt (failing-ly) to repair the wooden breakwaters on the beach, with a 6-wheel Foden double-cab crane (like the dinky toy one) that used to lower tractors etc onto the beach 100ft+ below at low tide (round the clock). This was crazy work and we used to chat to these guys. Once the tractor got stuck as the tide came in and the crane had to rescue it outstretched like va fishing rod!
WE used to watch the Newhaven ferry at night arriving and departing to / from Dieppe - that was cool and we could see it from Hillersdon.
The Martello tower had a house on top of it and lived in by a cafe owner who had cafes / shops / arcade built around it (facing away from the sea.
More recently, the beach via pumping ships has been built-up so you can walk out onto it (thius the height differential mentioned)
We were not allowed money or even stamps, in case we traded either for cigarettes locally. However "friendly" shops would sell individual cigarettes (No6 / Kadets / Kensitas) to us and packets to older boys at the school who lived in the town. I was also able to buy 10s of cigarettes from a cigarette machine at home in Hastings - and big bars of chocolate from the shops there... One of them also bought me porn mags (what an education!)
WE could get Chits from Mr Barnard (against our parents' lodged money with him) to buy things at 4 local shops including SOMEC (a stationery shop) and Tutts (?) among them.
There was no sport but Mr Gould instituted runs around the local area towards Seaford Head( but we would cheat by taking a short-cut across Martello field behind a bank).
Once a pupil called Albertini was in the Martello cafe (above) and saw us and joined in like they had been there from the start. I remember O'Neil, who I think was Head boy and Sligo-Young (Who Maj. Berkley re-christened "Youngo-sly)" uncharitably (but quite funny). The one pupil who was there with both my brother, and separately I and in between called "Diddy" Denton Hawkes (First names weren't a 'thing' at many schools in those days).
Were were allowed to go up Seaford Head on Saturday afternoons (& Sun)(despite) the cliff edge risk and even though the seafront was out of bounds) but had to come back half-way through the afternoon for a roll-call in case we made it to, say Newhaven... In reality we just went to the WWII shelters (see above).
When I had taken my Common Entrance Exam (CE) I and others had the post-Whitsun time left (whilst bothers were still studying) to do a 'Project'. We chose pollution and spent all day on the beach by the Seven Sisters the other side of Beachy Head listening to the best of Slade on a tape recorder.
There was also a pupil that toyed with suicide who we chatted to on the seafront (daily) and we used to play Focus' Hocus Pocus and other songs with him.
He never did it, but we hung-out having weird conversations...
There was a friend - Baker, who was interested interested in lorries as I was (he gave me the observers book of lorries) and he was also a 'documentor 'of the top 10 every Tues lunchtime, taping it before lunch and writing down the listings as they were announced religiously.
There was another pupil called Sam Heaphey, who was into trains in a big way, but I wasn't...
We used to read the papers a day late) and I could never understand the adverts that said "Beat VAT" that was coming in - I thought it meant beat That...?
I remember the Alan Freeman poetry on the radio ; as well as Donny Osmond's Puppy Love. Once with Mario Periera I went by bus (by arrangement) to Saltdean to a friend of a friend's restaurant - on the 499 'Queen Mary' Southdown double-decker. WE got a lift back in a sports car, with 'Radio North Sea International' blaring out - how cool!
Mr Barnard had 3 sons (we un-charitably called them the 'brats', the eldest of whom was at Worth public School (near Crawley).
Whilst Barnard drove a Vauxhall Viva during the week, he took out his special Zodiak Mk 4, that he had in a garage at Hillersdon to ferry the eldest from / back to Worth at weekends...

We used to go to the Catholic church on Sundays (Barnard was Catholic) and others went to the C. of E. church.
I had to read the lesson and got a copy the night before and had to rehearse it line by line with Barnard in his office.
I was good at this - as was Poland (in my class *& dorm).
WE also went to "Confession every Sat" on our own (minus Barnard) which was great as we never went but frolicked around town on the way to / from the church - the C of E boys had to do 'Prep' while we were away!.

There was a boy on my dining table (Iranian?) called Sadri and also the son of Douglas Hickox, the film director - who used to bring back stills from the filming of Theatre of Blood that was going on at the time, with Robert Morley and Diana Rigg (post Emma Peel) each weekend. Also on the table was Sean Brenninkmeyer - the son of either 'C' or 'A' Brenninkmeyer - of C&A fame. Sean arrived back from weekends away in a massive American station wagon, dressed as if he was about to play a round of golf with Bob Hope! He as a good guy though, if a bit shy
I was lucky that Poland and I were hand-picked to have the daily duty of collecting all the rubbish after lunch and taking it round the back of Cliff View House to burn it.
We had 30 mins to do this while everyone else studied 'prep' - lucky bus.
Poland & I were pyromaniacs and devised ways of making the fire as big as possible with cardboard boxes!
One day, Maj. Berkley had a box of tissues that fell in the bin and we burned them - he moaned at us for the rest of that term about it!
WE used to have sweets allowed on a ration each week, including fake big Monkey nits, full of peanut bits - delicious!
There was also the daily call by Barnard to issue stationery from a cupboard in the new building during said prep period. By turn, the 3 adjoining rooms full of students would be summoned, to request stationery to the call of "CUPBOARD"....
For amusement, we used to play in the ruins of old garages etc in the wasteland all around Cliff View House, throwing large pieces of Asbestos at each other, daily...
WE went to the local cinema once - to watch the 6 Wives of Henry Eighth (we had planned to go to Eastbourne for an educational showing, but it came to the Ritz Cinema. WE all made for the sweets counter and the staff obligingly sold us everything they had (with our illicit money)

It was all a bit crazy but I was sort of happy, surviving the mayhem of the location, the teachers, the run down town, the fellow pupils and most of all the appalling weather in the winter...

Hi Simon? great to hear your memories!! I often think about those times. I do not remember your name, but i remember few names from that time, but the dates are the same so maybe we met. For more information, read the above detailed response from another pupil who was there at the same time. I wish you all the best in Australia !! feel free to chat more .Ian.

Does anyone remember Richard Branson at Cliff View House. He was there before I arrived in 1968-9 but we wound up ordering Virgin records from him in later years at Downside (after Cliff View House that is)
And now he has gone to space on his Virgin Galactic flight---guaranteed first Cliff View House pupil to go to space ! Where are you major Tom ? Come in Major Tom ?

I remember getting the cane from Piggy and the austere Latin teacher--tall and lanky Colonel with a yellow mustache and a dirty yellow rag he would wipe it off with !
I also remember I went around and gathered pet shrews in the bushes out front which didn't bode well with Piggy either. We used to peek through the keyhole at Lawson's daughter or wife as the case may be and had great laughs about it.

Wow ! Cliff View House. So long ago I sometimes wonder if I didn’t dream it all. I was there in 1966.
Strong memories include the crazy French teacher “Roper” - His daily outburst at the start of his lessons - and repeated every time as he swept in “Fermez la bouche ! Ouvrez la fenetre ! Ecrivez la date pour aujordhui ! Excuse my spelling. That guy was a legend between his own ears. For some reason I moved from the main house to Hillersdon and shared a room with a French aristocrat . We loved listening to Nancy Sinatra’s “These boots are made for walking”. Other memories being beaten by psycho Piggy Lawson and watching Doctor Who in the main house on Saturdays. A few names of others are just hidden behind my addled brain. One was Desborough. My finest memory of my time there was being part of the gang who broke into Piggy Lawsons study and stealing a copy of the Latin common entrance paper and I was not good at Latin . We were not rumbled and I achieved 91% in my Latin common entrance paper . Seaford was bleak in winter. However my memories are not unhappy despite it being a weird environment. It could not exist today …. Of that I am sure.
Simon Kenna

I enjoyed reading the recollections of past pupils of Cliff View House. I was there for 4 terms 1966/67. Piggy Lawson was the headmaster, and Basil Mc Shane head of Hillersden. The crammer
certainly worked for me at Common Entrance, getting into Wellington and being put into a scholarship class. I only lasted a couple of weeks in exalted company, before being put back a year.
I enjoyed the freedom of CVH, exploring the old military defences on the Downs, and the stoney beach and breakwaters. I remember the Mods and Rockers facing off on the esplanade in the summer . I don't recall Piggy Lawson beating people, but Roper and Mc Shane were to be avoided. All in all a happy time.

The Headmaster was Mr Bernard when I was at cliff view House. interesting to hear recollections! I now know that the beach front has been changed and the wooden wave breakers have been removed (two, I think remain).I cleaned the geography masters Morris Minor. It took best part of a Saturday afternoon and I was rewarded with a mars bar(3 pence)
Another popular activity at the time was throwing breeze blocks at each other ,on the wasteland behind Cliff View House. We called the blocks "wheatabix".....all the best Ian.

I attended Cliff View House around the 1965-67 period; I remember 1966, as the town was decorated with Guinness posters '1066 Battle of Hastings, 1966 Bottle of Guinness'. Also that year when IRA terrorists blew up Nelson's Pillar in Dublin the master, in the building at the Beachy Head end of the terrace (Mr Bernard I think) placed a newspaper cutting of the event on my desk as if I were responsible. I was irish and as a young boy of eleven and twelve years old made my own way with trunk (unaccompanied) from Dublin to Seaford flying to Heathrow (on an old Viscount) and taking the train from Victoria (changing at Lewis) to Seaford. Piggy Lawson was the headmaster - a short fat guy who had heart problems and a tall skinny wife who was in charge of the cooking. As a Catholic we would attend evening benediction in the church in the town. We used to walk up the slopes of Beachy Head regularly, sometimes as far as the Seven Sisters, and play in the WW2 placement on the hillside, which I assume is still there. Our entertainment indoors was a black and white TV perched up on a bookcase in one of the classrooms - Doctor Who I think was top of the bill. I enjoyed my time there and returned briefly last year and found the place somewhat changed; the old wooden breakwaters below the promenade have gone and instead the sea gravel comes right up to the level of the promenade; also there are now many new developments on the Beachy Head side of the old terrace. Once I got home I dug out old photographs I took when there, thankfully I still have. I never heard what happened to the school subsequently or to Lawson.

Great to read peoples memories, of Cliff View House!!!
I looked on "street view", a couple of years ago and the original two buildings were an old peoples home.
But they no longer stand. The place only exists in our memories now.All the best to everyone who responded to my post. Ian.

"The Rockeries" is still standing ,although i do not remember that name. was it used in 1973/74?

Further to my last post in 2018,i can't remember all the teachers names when I was there 1964 to 1967.
Mr Mcshane taught history and lived in the house on the other side of the field opposite which I syayed in.
The geography teacher, forgot name, he had a temper, and one day his temper got the better of him when his false teeth ew out and landed on the desk.
Another teacher took snuff I recall but can't remember name or what he taught.
Maths teacher, mame forgotten had a medical condition, when I recall when he was having a episode we were told to fetch Mrs Lawson. Possibley was diabetic.
I've only been back to Seaford once.
Happy days😁

Hello gents,
Interesting comments above.
I was at Cliff View House from 1978-1980, Mr & Mrs Bernard were in charge then… and boy were they…. I got the cane for nipping out during break time at 5.15pm one afternoon to watch the fishermen on the beach. Whilst I was away they had a roll call … 6 of the best just for that… how times have changed 😆

Hello all,

I was at Cliff View between 66-67, I think in The Rockeries. I was previously at Sutton Place Preparatory school not far away, but it closed so my parents got me into CVH to do my Common Entrance. I do remember playing around in the dunes, martelllo towers, and trenches.
Piggy Lawson caned me regularly for poor work, although I was one of his best pupils at English, which he taught. I don't look back on my time there with any fond memories.
I passed my CE and went on to Stonyhurst College, which was a holiday camp by comparison