It’s more than 40 years ago since I was taught by this scary Sunderland fan, but he has come to mind at least once a week since
I was going about my business when my friend Stu, a painter and decorator, texted me out of the blue. The chap whose house he was working on had told him he was once my science teacher. Not Mr Macey, surely? Yes, Mr Macey.
I realised at this moment I couldn’t take the responsibility of being a teacher. I couldn’t bear the sheer weight of being indelibly embedded in the minds of your pupils for the long lives they go on to lead. It was more than 40 years ago that Mr Macey taught me, and I honestly think he’s come to mind, if only fleetingly, at least once a week ever since. Some teachers live in your memory less than others; some are in there for all the wrong reasons. Mr Macey was in there for all the right reasons, but my God he was scary. He was incredibly tall and sported a forbidding jet-black beard. He also had a strong north-eastern accent, which was something of a rarity in my part of the West Midlands and added to the overall don’t-mess-with-me aura. He was never without his Sunderland 1973 FA Cup-winners mug.
