Some of Greater Manchester's biggest names spent their formative years as pupil's of the regions now vanished schools.
While the old adage that says your schooldays are the best days of your life is debatable, there's no doubt the experience leaves a lasting impression on our lives. In our minds we probably remember our school corridors bustling with energy as pupils change class or head out for a break.
But as time goes by, the classrooms of some of our old schools, holding so many memories, fall silent for good. From De La Salle in Salford to Hollies Convent School in West Didsbury, these schools have all been demolished, closed or completely remodelled and renamed.
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To celebrate some of these lost Greater Manchester schools, we've taken a look back at their history and some of the famous actors, comedians, authors and musicians who once donned the school badge.
The Hollies Convent School, West Didsbury
Hollies began life in Fallowfield in 1900, after being founded by the Faithful Companions of Jesus, an international congregation of religious women. In 1961 it moved to West Didsbury, after its original site was bought by Manchester University for student accommodation.
The school's most notable former pupil is the late Royle Family creator Caroline Aherne, who reportedly got nine As in her O-levels during her time there. It closed in 1985 after the Salford Diocese merged it with St Mark's School and the building was demolished later in the same decade.
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Joseph Eastham High School, Salford
Affectionally known as 'Joey's', this comprehensive school in Salford was built near the end of the 1950s. Serving the areas of Little Hulton, Walkden, Worsley and Boothstown, it was named after a well-respected Little Hulton grocer who had lived on Hilton Lane where the school was sited.
Its most famous pupil was the actor Christopher Eccleston, who famously went on to become the 9th actor to play Doctor Who. By the 1990s, the condition of the building was beginning to show its age; reportedly, buckets were often deployed to collect rain water from its leaking roof.
The school closed in the summer of 2001 following a merger between Joey's and nearby Little Hulton Community School and was demolished in 2008.
St Mary's Secondary Modern, Stretford
Morrissey hated his time at St Mary's Secondary Modern, using his experiences there in the early '70s as the inspiration for the song The Headmaster Ritual. In his 2013 autobiography he described the school as 'Kafka-esque in its nightmare'.
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But the school, which opened in 1955 before closing in the early 90s, does have its fans. A Facebook group for ex-pupils has 600 members with many reminiscing about their time there fondly.
Stand Grammar, Whitefield
The oldest school on this list, Stand Grammar was founded in 1688 and had close links with the local Unitarian Chapel. For almost 250 years it taught only boys until 1937 when a girls school was built on Higher Lane.
Notable former pupils include the band Elbow, who met while studying at Stand College in the early '90s, author Howard Jacobson and Robert Clive, AKA 'Clive of India', one of the most controversial figures in British military history, who in his role with the East India Company helped seize control of much of India.
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The boys school became part of Bury College, before being demolished in 2001, while the girls school is now Philips Park High.
Ducie Technical High School, Greenheys
Inspector Morse star John Thaw and singer Paul Young were both educated at this school in Greenheys in South Manchester. Over the years it went through through several name changes, mergers and locations.
Initially there were separate schools for boys and girls, but after it became a comprehensive in 1967 classes were mixed. In 1982 it merged with the Central High School for Boys to become Ducie Central High School for Boys.
It then moved to a site on Daisy Bank Road near Longsight before moving back to Lloyd Street North in 1995, when a new £5m school was built. The school finally closed in 2002.
Salford Grammar
The alumni roll-call of this long-lost school reads like a who's-who of Salfordians made good. New Order and Joy Division stars Peter Hook and Bernard Sumner, celebrated artist Harold Riley, Oscar nominee Albert Finney and renowned film director Mike Leigh all attended Salford Grammar.
Originally opened in 1904 as Salford Municipal Secondary School for Boys, the grammar school came into being in 1932 when the boys' section of the Central Higher Grade Scholarship School, the male pupil teachers from the Pupil Teachers Centre on Victor Street, and the day school of the Royal Technical Institute were amalgamated.
The school was abolished in 1973 when the comprehensive system was introduced in Salford. The main school became Buile Hill High until, in 2008, a new building was constructed and the 1956 building was demolished.
Worsley Wardley Grammar School, Swinton
Another school with famous former pupils, some of the Happy Mondays, including Bez, are old boys of this now lost educational establishment. It first opened as Worsley Wardley County Grammar School on Mardale Avenue in 1955.
In 1972, the school became a comprehensive school before merging with Pendlebury High School in 1988 to become The Swinton High School. It became a further education college in the 1990s, and the original Mardale Avenue building has since been demolished.
De La Salle Grammar School, Pendleton
Named after the patron saint of teachers, De La Salle was run by the Christian brotherhood of the same name who lived on site. The school had a reputation for academic excellence, but also strict discipline.
Its best known former pupil is Factory Records mogul Tony Wilson. Despite it being a 35 mile round trip from his then home in Marple, Wilson attended the Weaste Lane school from 1960 to 1968, before going on to read English at Cambridge University.
Renowned photographer Kevin Cummins, who would go on to work with several bands Wilson championed, also attended the school. De La Salle was later converted into a sixth form college.
In 1996, after 70 years in existence, it became the first further education institution to close following a shake-up of the system four years earlier. The building was demolished around 2015 and new housing built in its place.
St Augustine's Grammar, Wythenshawe
Not all the Smiths hated their time in school - some of them were indifferent to it. Guitarist Johnny Marr and bass player Andy Rourke met at St Augustine's Grammar in Wythenshawe in the 70s and, after initally bonding over a shared love of Neil Young, became firm pals.
But writing in 2005 Rourke told how he 'never actually grew to like the school', describing the teaching methods as 'antique'. Marr, who reportedly excelled at English, art and music, was slightly more complimentary.
He once told an interviewer the most useful thing about school was that he 'learned to suss out different types of people and they crop up later in life sometimes, especially the loudmouths'.
The school opened in September 1965, and closed just 12 years later. Over the next few years parts of the site were used first by St John Plessington High School and later by St Paul's High School, but by 1987 it stood empty and was demolished the following year.
Do these awaken any memories for you? Let us know in the comments section below.
