E-Paper
British PM beaten with belt for bunking class
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has revealed that he was once beaten at school with a forked leather belt for skipping the class to watch a football match.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has revealed that he was once beaten at school with a forked leather belt for skipping the class to watch a football match.
Brown admitted his beating in an interview with Sir Alan Sugar, the presenter of BBC's 'The Apprentice'.
Brown said he was beaten after the Headmaster of Kirkcaldy High school discovered that some boys planned to sneak off to watch Scotland play in a 1966 World cup qualifier.
Brown said he was punished with the fearsome-looking 'Lochgelly Tawse', a two or three-forked leather belt that was traditionally made in the town of Lochgelly near the Browns' home in Fife.
Until the 1980s it was widely used as a tool for corporal punishment. Though its use in schools has now diminished, it is still popular with sadomasochists.
The incident took place 41 years ago in December 1965, when Brown was just 14.
