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| My life as a bully | My life as a bully |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| A boy at school who studied hard was singled out for abuse from classmates, recalls Laurie Taylor in his weekly column. But who had the last laugh? | |
| "Please sir. Please sir. Please sir. Me, sir. Me. Me sir." | "Please sir. Please sir. Please sir. Me, sir. Me. Me sir." |
| Can clever pupils ever be popular? | Can clever pupils ever be popular? |
| Whenever McNulty got as anxious as this to answer a question in class, whenever he started calling out and waving his arms in the air to attract the teacher's attention, the rest of us in the lower-fifth at St Mary's would do our utmost to thwart him. | Whenever McNulty got as anxious as this to answer a question in class, whenever he started calling out and waving his arms in the air to attract the teacher's attention, the rest of us in the lower-fifth at St Mary's would do our utmost to thwart him. |
| The boys in the front rows would try to obscure his waving hands by raising their desk lids while the rest of us would start up a low moaning noise in an attempt to drown out his voice or would all raise our hands simultaneously so as to suggest that there was nothing at all special about his knowing the answer to this particular question. Look. We all know it. | The boys in the front rows would try to obscure his waving hands by raising their desk lids while the rest of us would start up a low moaning noise in an attempt to drown out his voice or would all raise our hands simultaneously so as to suggest that there was nothing at all special about his knowing the answer to this particular question. Look. We all know it. |
| If McNulty was eventually selected by the teacher to answer the question then he might well find that he had to do so from a desk that as the result of successive toe-punts from the boys who sat alongside him, was now positioned in the middle of the aisle that ran between the other rows. | If McNulty was eventually selected by the teacher to answer the question then he might well find that he had to do so from a desk that as the result of successive toe-punts from the boys who sat alongside him, was now positioned in the middle of the aisle that ran between the other rows. |
| Neither was it unusual for McNulty to find, after he'd briefly stood up to answer the question, that his desk had been moved away from under him as he spoke and had to be retrieved from the clutches of a neighbouring boy. | Neither was it unusual for McNulty to find, after he'd briefly stood up to answer the question, that his desk had been moved away from under him as he spoke and had to be retrieved from the clutches of a neighbouring boy. |
| It was, however, Riley who devised the most subtle means of humiliating McNulty. It was he who organised the mass removal of more than 200 books from the library which a willing group of volunteers then stacked before the first class of the day upon McNulty's desk so that the unhappy boy was compelled to stand beside the monstrous pile and try to explain his predicament. | It was, however, Riley who devised the most subtle means of humiliating McNulty. It was he who organised the mass removal of more than 200 books from the library which a willing group of volunteers then stacked before the first class of the day upon McNulty's desk so that the unhappy boy was compelled to stand beside the monstrous pile and try to explain his predicament. |
| FIND OUT MORE Hear Laurie Taylor's Thinking Allowed on Radio 4 at 1600 on Wednesdays or 0015 on MondaysOr listen to it here on the iPlayer | FIND OUT MORE Hear Laurie Taylor's Thinking Allowed on Radio 4 at 1600 on Wednesdays or 0015 on MondaysOr listen to it here on the iPlayer |
| "He likes reading so much, sir, that he's stolen the whole library," Riley said helpfully to whoops of laughter from the rest of us. | "He likes reading so much, sir, that he's stolen the whole library," Riley said helpfully to whoops of laughter from the rest of us. |
| There were other minor japes, like putting Tizer in his ink-well, plastic dog turds in his pencil drawer, and itching powder in his gym shorts, but nothing quite beat the morning when we were confronted by a brand new English teacher called Mr Hopkins who had been brought in to teach us about Walter Scott's Waverley novels. | There were other minor japes, like putting Tizer in his ink-well, plastic dog turds in his pencil drawer, and itching powder in his gym shorts, but nothing quite beat the morning when we were confronted by a brand new English teacher called Mr Hopkins who had been brought in to teach us about Walter Scott's Waverley novels. |
| Unlike the Christian brothers who dominated the shift, Mr Hopkins was a lay teacher and he had the absurd idea that he might be able to persuade us more readily of the value of Sir Walter Scott's writing if he adopted a less authoritarian style in class than his religious colleagues. | Unlike the Christian brothers who dominated the shift, Mr Hopkins was a lay teacher and he had the absurd idea that he might be able to persuade us more readily of the value of Sir Walter Scott's writing if he adopted a less authoritarian style in class than his religious colleagues. |
| Breaking point | Breaking point |
| We were not slow to take advantage. When Mr Hopkins displayed his new informality by failing to take the register, boys in the class simply assumed any name they chose. And one name was, of course, more popular than most. | We were not slow to take advantage. When Mr Hopkins displayed his new informality by failing to take the register, boys in the class simply assumed any name they chose. And one name was, of course, more popular than most. |
| "Yes", Hopkins would say, "let's hear from that boy in the second row on the left. And your name?" "McNulty, sir" said Riley. | "Yes", Hopkins would say, "let's hear from that boy in the second row on the left. And your name?" "McNulty, sir" said Riley. |
| Dilworth and Rowan followed suit. "McNulty, sir" "McNulty, sir" they responded to the teacher's requests, until McNulty was forced to shout out that he was the only true McNulty and all the rest were imposters. | Dilworth and Rowan followed suit. "McNulty, sir" "McNulty, sir" they responded to the teacher's requests, until McNulty was forced to shout out that he was the only true McNulty and all the rest were imposters. |
| We were all guilty of outrageous, if at times ingenious, bullying | We were all guilty of outrageous, if at times ingenious, bullying |
| It was not quite clear whether or not it was the mounting hysteria in McNulty's voice or the fact that he spoke from a desk positioned in the centre of the aisle, but this certainly proved a breaking point for Mr Hopkins' liberalism. | It was not quite clear whether or not it was the mounting hysteria in McNulty's voice or the fact that he spoke from a desk positioned in the centre of the aisle, but this certainly proved a breaking point for Mr Hopkins' liberalism. |
| He declared he'd had quite enough cheek for one lesson and ordered McNulty to go down the corridor and wait outside the headmaster's office. (The resounding cheers which greeted this decision were about the only sign of approbation that Hopkins was to receive in the rest of his short teaching life at St Mary's.) | He declared he'd had quite enough cheek for one lesson and ordered McNulty to go down the corridor and wait outside the headmaster's office. (The resounding cheers which greeted this decision were about the only sign of approbation that Hopkins was to receive in the rest of his short teaching life at St Mary's.) |
| Of course, we were all guilty of outrageous, if at times ingenious, bullying. And the only reason that McNulty was singled out for such treatment was his commitment to learning his determination to do as well as possible, his unflinching resolution to make the best of his education. It was this which made him a public enemy. | Of course, we were all guilty of outrageous, if at times ingenious, bullying. And the only reason that McNulty was singled out for such treatment was his commitment to learning his determination to do as well as possible, his unflinching resolution to make the best of his education. It was this which made him a public enemy. |
| Later in life, McNulty became an MP and enjoyed a short period as a junior opposition minister. It seemed a good time for me to make amends. | Later in life, McNulty became an MP and enjoyed a short period as a junior opposition minister. It seemed a good time for me to make amends. |
| I sent him a short congratulatory note, mentioning our shared time at St Mary's. It was a good month before his reply arrived on House of Commons paper. | I sent him a short congratulatory note, mentioning our shared time at St Mary's. It was a good month before his reply arrived on House of Commons paper. |
| It was short and to the point and, as I had grudgingly to acknowledge, perfectly judged. "Sorry", wrote McNulty, "But I don't remember anyone of the name of Taylor." | It was short and to the point and, as I had grudgingly to acknowledge, perfectly judged. "Sorry", wrote McNulty, "But I don't remember anyone of the name of Taylor." |
| Add your comments on this story, using the form below. | Add your comments on this story, using the form below. |
| The BBC may edit your comments and not all emails will be published. Your comments may be published on any BBC media worldwide. Terms & Conditions | The BBC may edit your comments and not all emails will be published. Your comments may be published on any BBC media worldwide. Terms & Conditions |