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Angus Dunphy
Thanks to Stan Hill of
The Blackcountryman
for information.
Yampy readers who have visited our History of Ellowes page may have noted
that we acknowledge Angus Dunphy as a reference
source. His book The Ellowes, Its Owners and Times was published by Dudley Teachers' Centre in 1983.Anyone who attended Ellowes Hall School in the 1970's will no doubt remember Angus as a committed and enthusiastic Head of History. However, we are not so sure if you will be aware of how he came to be such a prolific local author, and of his achievements since leaving the Black Country more than fifteen years ago. Angus Walter Dunphy was born in Penn in 1944. His father Hestor was Canadian-Irish and his mother Dorothy came from Bilston. Dorothy's father James Wilkes was printer and publisher of John Freeman's Black Country Stories and Sketches in 1930. Educated at Tettenhall College, Angus chose a career in teaching and qualified in 1965 at Bangor College. There he met future wife Gail, another trainee teacher, from South Wales. They married in 1967 and bought a house back in Penn, Angus having obtained his first teaching post at Springfield Road Boys' School in Wolverhampton. During this period he began to study part-time for an external B.Sc. (Econ.) from London University. He graduated three years later, and in 1971 was appointed Head of History at Ellowes Hall Shool. Angus almost immediately became involved in the Dudley Teachers' Centre, which had been founded two years previously and was based at Himley Hall. Through this organisation he met the late Andrew Barnett, the prominent local artist and historian whose sketches are sprinkled through Angus' work. They became firm friends and began to produce books under the auspices of Dudley Teachers' Centre. As if teaching and writing were not enough to fill anyone's day, Angus spent two years studying for a Post Graduate Diploma in Management Studies, which helped in his next career move when he left Ellowes to become Deputy Head at Earl's High School , Halesowen. Then, in 1986, he accepted the challenging role of Headteacher at Fitzalan High School in Cardiff, a 1500 pupil inner city multicultural school. Despite the wrench of leaving his Black Country roots, Angus felt that this appointment was his destiny; as committed Christians he and Gail believe that we are all here for a purpose. Since then, Angus has presided over a stunning roll of successes at Fitzalan, including DTI Award for Excellence in Languages Teaching, Schools Curriculum Awards, and numerous outstanding contributions to sport and the arts. In June 2000 the school was visited by The Queen, and in the 2001 New Year Honours List Angus was made an O.B.E. The support of wife Gail, herself a teacher, throughout thirty five years of marriage has obviously been a mainstay of his success. Angus wrote dozens of Dudley Teachers Centre books, several of which (including The Ellowes) can be found in Gornal Library - if they are out on loan, Yampy probably has them! We would like to congratulate Angus on his success, thank him for his contribution over the years as a Gornal historian, and wish him well for the future. Do you have any memories of Gornal school days to share? Do you wonder what happened to friends or teachers? Why not drop us a line, we'll be pleased to publish your story - or your appeal for a long lost mate or colleague. admin@yampy.co.uk |
