Russell Sharrock, Head 1966-88

Russell Sharrock, who died on 14 December 2011, was born in Wigan in 1924 [see obituary]. He won a scholarship to Wigan Grammar School and then in 1942 went on to Liverpool University to start a degree in Physics. After one year he left to join the Royal Signals as a commissioned officer but found himself directed to work as a research scientist at the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough until 1946, when he returned to Liverpool to complete his degree course. He graduated in 1947 and after gaining a Diploma of Education he went into teaching, in 1948, at Culcheth Secondary Modern School in Warrington.

During this period he obtained an external London Honours Degree in Mathematics through a correspondence course run by Wolsley Hall in Oxford. This enabled him, in 1950, to move to Lancaster R.G.S., an H.M.C. direct grant school, where he taught Maths and it was there he married his wife Mary, the daughter of a Methodist Minister in the town, who was then teaching at the Lancaster Girls' Grammar School. Five years later they moved to London and Sharrock taught at the John Ruskin G.S. in Croydon before moving to Sir Walter St. John's School, Battersea, as Head of Maths in 1958. During this period he was studying in the evenings for a London University M.Sc. in Maths at Sir John Cass College and after gaining his Master's Degree in 1962 he was offered the Deputy Headship of Malory School, a purpose built comprehensive school in Lewisham. In 1965, although he was offered the post of Headmaster of his previous school in Battersea, he applied for, and was selected to be, the new Headmaster of King Edward VII School and he took up his new post in January 1966.

His interests included Rugby League Football, the theatre and music, whilst after retiring he took up painting and had an exhibition of his geometric abstract paintings shown at a Sheffield gallery in 1993.

[Source: Cornwell, John (2005). King Ted's (1st ed.). King Edward VII School, Sheffield. ISBN 0-9526484-1-5.]