Old Mole Being the Surprising Adventures in England of Herbert Jocelyn Beenham, M.A., Sometime Sixth-Form Master at Thrigsby Grammar School in the County of Lancaster

In a quiet English market town, a seasoned sixth‑form master has spent twenty‑five years molding the boys of Thrigsby Grammar School. Called “Old Mole” for his habit of shouting, “Ha! Art thou there, old mole?” whenever a pupil strays, he mixes strict discipline with dry humor. His reputation looms large, both feared and oddly revered by parents and colleagues.

As Speech Day nears, the school plans to honor his service with a special mortar‑board and hood, symbols of a career he wears proudly. The celebration coincides with the triumph of one of his pupils, A. Z. Panoukian, who has earned a coveted Balliol scholarship. Beenham feels a quiet pride, eager to join the boy’s family for an evening out.

Beyond the stern façade, his true passion is literature; he has steered Panoukian through Homer, Goethe and the great philosophers, urging an appetite for wide‑ranging ideas. Their evenings of lively discussion reveal a mentor who values curiosity over conformity. Listeners get a portrait of a demanding yet oddly tender educator.