Ex-pupil Phil Hewitt has written a book on Gosport. As he was at Bay House from 1975-82, he has included a section of memories of our old school, plus a couple of images. Phil says," It's the story of a small fishing village in the shadow of Portsmouth which developed to become a major naval and military base in its own right. The story of a town where pressgangs roamed, the ale flowed freely, new holiday resorts were created and railways came and went. And now, as a new century dawns, it’s the story of a town evolving yet again as the naval and military bases disappear. In this book, historic images and current views are juxtaposed to show the ways in which Gosport has sometimes stood still and sometimes altered almost beyond recognition." You can buy Phil's book by clicking here.

A bit of trivia for the next pub quiz - Bay House is mentioned in Moonlight & Lovesongs, written by Lilian Harry and published by Orion Books. The book is set during the war around the Portsmouth and Gosport area. Reference is made to the Royal Engineers being quartered in Bay House. In fact Doris Banks (now Donna Baker) 'served time' at Bay House (as well as the other sites scattered around the town) from 1951 - 1955, the same year as Roy Harris whom she first met at Leesland School when they were both 5 years old. She has lived in Devon, Herefordshire, the Lake District and now back in Devon, and is still writing books, mostly under the name Lilian Harry, many of them set in and around Gosport and Portsmouth during World War 2.
 

If you are interested in the history of the Gosport County Grammar School, then I can highly recommend "The life and times of Gosport County Grammar School" by Lesley Burton, ISBN 0951467417. It costs just £6.50, and I recently bought a copy via W.H. Smith online, so it is still available

Fancy a flight over the school, but your personal jet still having its annual service? Haven't we all been in that situation! Try using Google Earth instead. Download Google Earth from http://earth.google.com/ and type in the postcode of the school which is PO12 2QP . Many thanks to Alain Plockyn for the idea.