http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bpn9SK1z-o

The girl in the video is Christine Tremarco who now plays Davina Shackleton in BBC's Waterloo Road Drama in the UK.

WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST PROFESSIONAL ACTING ROLE CHRISTINE?
It was a two-part Drama, called 'The Leaving of Liverpool' I was fourteen and at a drama group when I was cast. It was a great opportunity and we filmed in Australia. It was about orphans shipped out to Australia in the 1950s and the hardship they went through. It was amazing to have got that opportunity.

Perhaps our Australian friends can shed more light on cp for girls - looks like this was a sort of reformatory ???

SC

Thanks for finding this.

Censorship - dontcha just hate it! We didn’t even get to see her knickers.

Yes good point GMW - about the first ever caning Ive "seen" given where the girl is standing up - the facial expressions and the sounds though I thought were very realistic.

It would be a good film to watch I think as it educates the masses about what really happened to children in those days - plucked from their homes - transported for days (weeks ?) across the other side of the world - all with no mum or dad to cry too - terrible. I think similar things happened to evacuees in this country during the war. Also I saw The Magdalene Sisters - another expose of the things suffered.

SC

It's been a while since I have seen The Leaving of Liverpool, but from memory the girl was not in a reformatory but an orphanage. Many of Australia's orphanages of that period were rather horrible places.

In 2001, the Australian Senate issued a report based on an inquiry into the practice of bringing British child migrants to Australia.

Lost Innocents: Righting the Record - Report on child migration

It can be downloaded at:

http://tinyurl.com/yob7mn

The Leaving of Liverpool, though fictional, matches the facts.

More broadly, when it comes to corporal punishment of girls in Australia, Australia's rules on this were mixed and rather sexist.

In private institutions - which included private schools, and most orphanages, there were more or less no restrictions placed on corporal punishment, except those that had evolved in the courts. Both boys and girls could be physically punished. Most such institutions were single sex. Boys schools, and other insitutions nearly all used corporal punishment. It was less common in girls schools, and girls institutions, but certainly not unheard of.

In state run institutions - mostly state schools, although there were some state orphanages - whether girls could be physically punished differed from state to state.

Victoria and Queensland banned the use of corporal punishment of girls in state institutions altogether - it did happen, but it wasn't supposed to.

Tasmania allowed the use of corporal punishment on girls only in extreme cases, while Western Australia allowed its use in extreme cases on girls under 12.

New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory, and Western Australia banned the use of corporal punishment on girls from the age of 12.

South Australia and the Northern Territory had no special rules referring to girls.

Thanks DR D - A definitive answer - I would have expected no less !

SC

Those of you who saw this series may remember that one of the opening scenes was of a boy being caned, not by, but in front of the headmaster, who is sitting at his desk, and who makes a comment broadly on the lines of 'We must order more canes from the Little Sisters of Mercy.' Maybe someone with better recall abilities can describe this more fully.

I have asked the original poster of the clip if its possible to upload this also.

SC

Has anyone ever come across someone being caned on the bum but standing up before? Or are we supposed to assume that it's her legs which are being thwacked?

Good point that BK - It had crossed my mind too ! Punishment to the legs was (and probably still is) a popular punishment for use on girls. In my Junior School boys were caned and girls had their legs smacked - of course in those days legs were conveniently bare with trousers/skirts and socks. Perhaps someone who has seen the film could say if the girl's uniform included tights or socks - that might give us a clue.

SC

Long time since I’ve seen this film, from memory, maybe mistaken, Lily (Christine Tremarco) was wearing white ankle socks.

More than likely being caned top of the legs, seemed a favoured target area for girls.

Ketta

Ketta,

I have heard of girls being whacked on the calves with a ruler, but have never known of any caned on the tops of the legs. Do you have any examples of where this happened?

I recall a telly program in the 80s that was hosted by a certain female presenter whose name escapes moi for the moment. She used to dress in mortar board and cape complete with cane. I think she hosts a radio programme now?
At one time she was talking to Henry Cooper about schooldays and he went into a diatribe about caning at his school which was carried out on the back of the knees. This was agreed and commented on by the others on the panel including some lady who experienced the same thing. They discussed it at some length and with "knowing" looks. Obviously the East End during the 40s.
I also recall someone once comenting to me that somebody needed their "Knees caned" same generation. Perhaps it was common and enabled a bare painfull punishment without any undressing or sexual overtones. It must have been agony to say the least.
Hope this helps.

I only saw the cane used in class once-at Aylesford County Primary School-summer term 1963.

That was 2 strokes across the back of the legs right behind the knees. Brought tears to the eyes of the tough kid who got it.

He had the scars for at least 10 days after and they WEREN'T hard strokes, either. The kid was Chris Nicholls, the teacher Mr Watters-I know both are dead, which is why I can name names without embarassing people.

I must say, on another matter, anyone who remembers the 1970 FA Cup Final replay between Leeds & Chelsea will remember it as a bloodbath. All started by Ron Harris's lunge that ensured Eddie Gray, scourge of Chelsea in the first game, had a quiet night. Chopper slammed into that very area, behind the knee, and even I, an avid hater of Leeds, winced & still do.

It sure is a painful area to wallop.

Steve M

Given that the Principal tells her to 'Hitch your dress up' before the caning, and given that she is wearing a pinafore dress that would probably have come to just above her knees, the caning would at least have been on the top of her legs. I have heard from young ladies, who in the days of caning in the UK, stood upright whilst the cane was administered to their buttocks. I guess it was just a question of the 'style' of the caner. I know from girls who were leathered at home that some were made to lie face down on the bed, and some were made to bend over a table or chair. As I say, a question of 'style' probably.
I have no idea of the aesthetics of this - I was too young to understand them at the time.

Peter .

I was in a bit of a rush when I posted the following “More than likely being caned top of the legs, seemed a favoured target area for girls.”

My reference was to the caning in the film, bearing in mind she was asked to raise her skirt, but not bend over, and from memory, of the film, wearing ankle socks, suggests being caned on the upper legs, rather than her bottom.


Legs being a target area for girls:-

Form personal experience, recollections. generally more common for girls than boys to be smacked or ruler used on legs.


Primary school

Boys and girls slapped back of legs above the knee or calf.

Senior school . A few misguided creatures, who were allowed to cane on the hand, preferred using those 19inch rulers they were provided with, delivering a few good whacks, skirt raised, to top of the legs.

Head: only caned on the bottom.

Didn’t mean to mislead. should have made it clearer.

The Film Magdelene sister portrays two girls being caned on the legs, Any Irish posters who could confirm for Peter if this was normal practice in schools,


Falling Star

You query of the ordering of more canes, in the scene with the lad being punished,

The cane being used to punish the boy, split after a couple of strokes, and a new cane was requested. There was no spares, so the punishment continued with the split cane, with a request to order a further batch from the unsuitably named Sister’s of Mercy

Steve

Did you have to mention Chelsea, being trying to get tickets all week, refuse to pay tout prices.

From the aussie post, post your lyrics.

Ketta

Ketta,

Thank you for another insight into the mysterious world of the boarding school.

Were the “few misguided creatures, who were allowed to cane on the hand,” prefects or teachers or both?

Did the head allow the other teachers to use the slipper on the bottom but not the cane?

Thanks Ketta.

Your powers of recollection are better than mine, and to be fair, it is many years since I saw the two programmes, but prompted by your reply, the scene now falls into place. A little piece of irony there, perhaps induced by the writer's own experiences!
With regard to girls' legs (always an interesting subject!), I recall that in Primary School, naughty girls were brought out to the front of the class and slapped across the calves, and for the more regular miscreants, the ruler was occasionally used. In Secondary School it was much the same, but the boys were caned. There was only a rumour (never substantiated) of one of the girls being caned.

Peter

“the mysterious world of the boarding school”

Prep school, 4-8 years administered physical punishment but amounted to no more than smacking legs or a ruler across the palm.

Girls 8-12 were allowed to be slippered on the bottom by teachers, head of house, Headmistress.

I didn’t attend Private school until 13, so avoided such.

12years upwards the cane replaced the slipper, administered, by teachers, head of house, the general census, to be used on the hand, although many teachers preferred otherwise, taking preference to the ruler. These implements were 19inch x ¼ inch thick I often wondered if they weren’t supplied as an alternate to the cane just for the purpose of punishment rather than any mathematical value. I have to say the one I liberated has been put to better use over the years, and only for the later.

Given across the top of the legs, I experienced this once, it’s an extremely sensitive area and painful, which was possibly the reason for their choice or maybe considered by some safer than caning on the hand.

The head always caned on the bottom. for more serious breaches of conduct or rules, managed to fall foul of this once, much more humiliating, and greater deterrent than the ruler.

Prefects, Interesting, as I never was honoured with this status, I can’t think why, had no advantages other than being an up the arse snitch or member of the Hitler youth, I never lost any sleep over the decision.

Were they were permitted to use CP, There were the odd, mutterings that some of the younger pupils received the occasional slap by prefects supervising prep or dorm rota. it was acceptable by the head. As for wielding a cane or slipper absolutely Not, although the very same prefects would take no hesitation in reporting any girl to their house head, even if by doing so, resulted in some form of CP.

Boarding schools generally were more traditional with their approach to CP, and tougher discipline, plenty of long Saturday detentions, , grounding, lines etc. Most girls got through there school lives with out any physical punishment or occasional smacked legs, mainly those that went through the system from an early age and accepted it.

Comparison to State school, I don’t think girls were physically punished on a much greater scale, put into context, rule breaking, misbehaving out of school hours, boarders paid a heavier price, punished under the same rules as those of the classroom. 99.9% of those that were caned slippered never misbehaved in the classroom, more unfortunate, getting caught, breaking silly rules, or doing what most state school teenagers got up to once they went home for the day, apart from the lack of opportunity to entertain the opposite sex, that is, very respectable young ladies we were ? more mysteries of the boarding school life.

Hope this solves the mystery, not too boring, reality usually is, anything other belongs to fantasy fiction.

Ketta

“Hope this solves the mystery, not too boring, reality usually is, anything other belongs to fantasy fiction.”

Thank you for such a full explanation. Your writing is sometimes surreal and at other times poetic, occasionally surreal and poetic, but never, ever boring. You are, as I believe they say in East Grinstead and Sc*unthorpe, a “highly valued contributor.”