A CROWD of old schools friends held a reunion recently after finding each other through News Shopper and friendsreunited.com Gillian Perkins from Welling wrote to us about her planned reunion, appealing to hear from anyone who went to Abbey Wood School between 1961 and 1968.

Gillian said: "We have had a couple of reunions but at the last one only 12 of us turned up, so we thought perhaps if we advertised it a bit more we would get better results.

"I put notices up in supermarkets, pubs and put adverts in a couple of papers and contacted everyone I knew from school and said to pass the message on.

"We first started planning the reunion in March when I made contact with Michael Kettle through Friends Reunited.

"Michael left Abbey Wood School in 1965 to become a jockey.

"He now lives in Dubai training race horses.

"He said he was coming over in June and would like to meet up with a few of the old crowd."

The turnout was better than Gillian and Michael could hope for.

More than 50 pupils and two teachers turned up.

Gillian said: "It was very exciting and you'd have thought it was a class of noisy eight-year-olds, so much so the landlord had to remind us the club was in a residential area."

One of the teachers who came along was the infamous Mr Peck, who was well-known for throwing pieces of chalk at unruly members of the class.

Gillian had been keen to track him down and tell him about the event.

Luckily another classmate told her they had seen him in Bexleyheath, so the group assumed he lived in the area.

She looked in the phone book and was prepared to phone all the D Pecks. Luckily for her, he was the first one listed.

Gillian said: "Mr Peck didn't bring any chalk but everyone remembered him.

"Michael was surprised at the number of people who turned up to see him, especially his old form tutor Mr Peck, and he went home very happy."

To get involved in future reunions, call Gillian on 07950 221 205 or email gill@perkins76.fsnet.co.uk l Have you found any old classmates using Friends Reunited? Email keustice@london.news quest.co.uk or write to History, News Shopper, Mega House, Crest View Drive, Petts Wood, BR5 1BT.