Bangor Grammar School (The Grammar or B.G.S.), is an all-boys, voluntary grammar school situated in Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1856 by the Conservative politician and Bangor man, Col The Hon. Robert Ward PC MP(Eire) who lived at Castle Ward. The school, until June 2011, comprised two parts, Connor House, a preparatory school for pupils aged 4–11 and a secondary school for pupils aged 12–18. Connor House closed at the end of the 2010–11 academic year.
Traditionally, Bangor Grammar has a strong record of educating boys, and pupils perform well in academic examinations. In the 2009/2010 academic year, 96% of boys sitting GCSE examinations gained seven passes at grade C or higher and 70% of boys sitting A2 examinations achieved three passes at grade C or higher.
The Headmaster of the school is a member of The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. Since 2000 the position has been filled by Mr Stephen Connolly, MA
The school has played a central part in the life of the town of Bangor for many years due to its location and influence. Old boys of Bangor Grammar School are known as Grammarians.
Read more about Bangor Grammar School: History, Future Site Plans, Associations With Other Schools, Notable Past Pupils, The School Song
Famous quotes containing the words grammar school, bangor, grammar and/or school:
“I went to a very militantly Republican grammar school and, under its influence, began to revolt against the Establishment, on the simple rule of thumb, highly satisfying to a ten-year-old, that Irish equals good, English equals bad.”
—Bernadette Devlin (b. 1947)
“There were none of the small deer up there; they are more common about the settlements. One ran into the city of Bangor two years before, and jumped through a window of costly plate glass, and then into a mirror, where it thought it recognized one of its kind.... This the inhabitants speak of as the deer that went a-shopping.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Grammar is a tricky, inconsistent thing. Being the backbone of speech and writing, it should, we think, be eminently logical, make perfect sense, like the human skeleton. But, of course, the skeleton is arbitrary, too. Why twelve pairs of ribs rather than eleven or thirteen? Why thirty-two teeth? It has something to do with evolution and functionalism—but only sometimes, not always. So there are aspects of grammar that make good, logical sense, and others that do not.”
—John Simon (b. 1925)
“Bodily offspring I do not leave, but mental offspring I do. Well, my books do not have to be sent to school and college, and then insist on going into the church, or take to drinking, or marry their mother’s maid.”
—Samuel Butler (1835–1902)