I was very sorry to learn that Greg Schofield had died last month.

I was fortunate to be taught by him at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, in the late 80s and early 90s.

Mr Schofield was a larger than life figure at the school and an inspirational teacher of history.

As head of the first year, he could be an intimidating figure to 11-year-olds but even when telling off a pupil there was always a twinkle in his eye–it’s fair to say his bark was worse than his bite.

As we got older we appreciated him and his teaching more.

He was passionate about his subject and had a great stock of jokes, anecdotes and sayings for all occasions.

‘A plague on all their houses’, he would state when talking about the dangers of political extremism.

During our GCSE history course he showed us the film Cabaret to illustrate the rise of the Nazis in 1930s Germany–not a typical approach for teaching the subject.

He was fervently proud of his West Country roots.

He believed that east/west differences in the UK were more significant than the north/south divide and once proposed - not entirely seriously - that Dorset should be granted independence from the rest of the country.

The field trips he organised annually for the first years revolved around visits to Weymouth beach and Maiden Castle.

Whether in the classroom or on the rugby field, Mr Schofield was a dynamic presence and he won’t be forgotten by anyone who knew him.

My condolences go to his family, and friends.

HENRY SPILBERG

(RGS Guildford, 1986-93)