Mr A F Behmber BSc - from Phoenix 68 [published November 1968]

To the present generation of pupils at Drayton Manor, the retirement of Mr. A. F. Behmber may not appear the landmark that it is. After all, they have known him for, at most, seven years and many for an even shorter time. Yet for 36 years, in good times and bad and for many preceding generations of pupils he has sought to instil understanding of mathematical thought to the bright, the dim and the sloppy-minded, the industrious and the lazy. Very many old pupils can look back not only to the sound mathematical teaching they received, but also with pleasure at having known such a stimulating personality. Indeed, some of his asides and off-the-record comments may well have been remembered more lastingly than some of the mathematical concepts. When he was appointed to the service of the school as far back as 1932, he immediately organised the cross-country running (he was a University cross-country man himself) and began the very successful careers of the Fencing Club and the Chess Club. During the war period he was very active in the establishment and running of the Air Training Corps, based on the school.

Mr. Behmber isa first-class mathematician, delighting in an elegant mathematical process, appreciating aesthetically the beauty of Mathematics. Yet he is always far more than that. He experiences the same fascination with the elegance of great poetry and drama, of great painting and sculpture, while his knowledge and understanding of philosophy, politics and the contemporary world are quite remarkable. He is, indeed, a fine exampleof the broad-minded, cultured scientist, a notable protagonist of the idea of education for leisure.

To those of us who have enjoyed living with “Behm” in the Common Room, he has been a constant source of stimulation and delight. To see and hear him in fullflight after a weekend In Paris is an experience of a life-time. His hearty,fruity laugh, his quiet, almost confidential comment, his disdain and contempt for the petty and the paltry, his earthy humour, his dry wit, his shrewd silences asleep?), his volcanic Indignation, his enthusiastic enjoyment of life - all this and more make up the unforgettable character we know as 'Behm’. Such men are rare.

All of us, pupils and staff alike, wish him well in his retirement to his beloved Isle of Wlght. With so many interests, time is not likely to pass him slowly by.

R. D. W.