Time: March–December 1931
At St. Stephen’s Academy, Yorkshire
Forms: Third, Fourth, Remove, Fifth, Lower Sixth, Upper Sixth
Houses: Grieves’s, Burton-Lee’s, Lockett-Egan’s, Henri’s
Terms: Lent, Trinity, Michaelmas
The Senior Common Room and staff
James Sebastian, Headmaster, Divinity his wife, Marion
John Grieves (Grievous), History
Robert Burton-Lee (The Flea), Latin and Greek, Dean of Upper School
Lockett-Egan (The Eagle), English
Henri (Ennui), French
Kardleigh, choirmaster and school physician
Palford, Mathematics
Lewis, secretary to the Headmaster (Capt. ret.)
Fardley (Fardles), porter
Mrs. Firth, Grieves’s matron
Boys (at start)
The Third: Timothy (Infant) Halton, Malcolm minor, White, Fletcher
The Remove: Thomas Gray (Brains) Riding, Trevor Mainwaring, Leslie, Prout, Ives, Whittaker
The Fifth: Tighe (Legs), McCandless
The Lower Sixth: (Pious) Pearce, Moss, Crighton, MacCready (Mac)
The Upper Sixth: Carter, Swinton
Grieves’s Prefects / Junior Common Room (at start)
Carter, Head of House (Head Boy)
Swinton, Captain of Games
Moss, Prefect of Chapel
Pearce, sub-prefect (replacing Austin, Prefect of Hall)
In Saffron Walden: The Líohts—Cordelia, Owain, Margaret (Meg) neé Drayton; Mrs. Kneesworth
In London: The Woodlings—Alec, Bea (née Ousley), Nicholas, Claire, Tony, Arabella, Rory
Elsewhere in England: Jamie’s father, Bishop Sebastian; Gray’s mother, Elsa Riding (née Ousley); his godfather, Peter Andersen; Morgan Wilberforce; Merewether; the Audsleys
On the Continent: M. Chose, Julia and Randall Vandam, Miss Murgatroyd, Zoltan Zarday
The Dead: Gray’s father, Tom Riding; Peter’s wife, Masha; John’s parents and his wife, Delia