MEMORIES 184 told the extraordinary tale of Bentley Beetham, who was born in Darlington, became a schoolmaster in Barnard Castle and, amazingly, took part in George Mallory's fateful expedition up Everest in 1924.

After returning from the Himalayas, Beetham resumed his position as a Natural History and biology teacher at Barnard Castle School, which Derrick Lofthouse of Sedgefield attended from 1942-44.

"My first brush with his authority was not at all pleasant," he says. "As a new boy on my very first morning, and suffering from first pangs of homesickness, I had difficulty fixing my new stiff collar and tie despite being helped by a fellow boarder. This meant we were just out of time for breakfast, the result being a booking by Bentley, head of York House, who happened to be overseeing the meal. Fortunately my housemaster, CL Adamson (Northumberland House), was more understanding and no more came of it."

Derrick remembers that Beetham was "feared in the classroom as a strict disciplinarian".

"I was at the school during the very austere war years and we boarders were expected to contribute to the war effort by working on vegetable plots, potato picking at local farmsor collecting rose hips, which would go towards the making of rose hip syrup, a source of Vitamin C," he says. "Typically Bentley wouldn't accept any old hips, only the biggest and best for him, and woe betide anyone bringing him ones of a poorer quality.

"However, my overriding memory of him is perhaps the most pleasant. Once, or possibly twice, during my time at Barney, Bentley gave his Mount Everest slide show and talk in the Lecture Room. To see these slide photographs and hear of the expedition at first hand was quite an event and I'm sure will be remembered by all who were privileged to be present.

"I'm so pleased to hear that these slides are now in safe keeping at Durham University."

  • Lure of the Mountains by Michael D Lowes (Vertebrate, £12.99) is the new book about Bentley Beetham, which is raising money to preserve his slides. It is available from v-publishing.co.uk and Amazon.