Joyce was born in South London in 1932. Her origins were humble, but from an early age she immersed herself in books and reading, a passion which never left her, as too did her love of History, which she went on to study at King’s College, London. As a qualified teacher and having moved to Brighton in 1963, she spent some years as a support teacher at Downs Infant School, before joining what was then the Brighton College Junior School in January 1980 and with which she already had a link as her son Michael was already a pupil there. She was the form mistress of 3A, and there will be many a past pupil who will recall her warmth and motherly concern for the individual pupil. Joyce was very good at lighting the spark in everyone she taught. I believe Joyce really found her vocation at this time. All were captivated by her love of History, and a memorable feature of her teaching was the annual Quiz on a variety of topics. Parents were encouraged to join in and I myself can still recall in the local knowledge section questions such as ‘name three roads in Brighton named after events in the Boer War’ (Baden, Mafeking and Ladysmith) and ‘which street in Brighton can you enter at both ends and leave by neither?’ (Trafalgar Street). For the winner Joyce would present a very nice paperweight as a prize. We still have our own son’s at home. Characteristically, it depicts a scene from the Spanish Armada, a story Joyce loved regaling her pupils with. Joyce was an old fashioned teacher in the best sense, and none of her pupils could escape her lessons without being able to recite that well known mnemonic to remember the chronology of the Kings and Queens of England: Willie, Willie, Harry, Steve……..
Joyce was also a stalwart of the annual musical production in support of John Burdett and must have been involved in about twenty shows. In whatever she did she never sought the limelight, but always lent quiet, reliable and conscientious support. In her retirement, Joyce took on the role of College Archivist for which she was ideally suited. In the not very salubrious Dawson Block attics, which meant a far from easy trudge up several flights of stairs, she laboured away at the reorganizaton of the College Archives. How she would have envied the present day ground floor level accommodation with its moveable racks and modern storage facilities. But these drawbacks did not stop Joyce from publishing in 2007 a compact pictorial History of the College, in which drawing on the previous Histories by Philip Burstow and Martin Jones she produced a thoroughly attractive updating of the story of the College to the arrival of the current headmaster Richard Cairns.
She was a true and loyal servant of the College, who will be remembered for her warmth, dedication and support of the underdog and those on the margins. I personally will miss her forthright character and reluctance to suffer fools gladly. She certainly left her stamp on the College, both in the Junior (now the Prep) School as well as in the Archives. My wife and I treasure our memories and friendship with Joyce, and we send our condolences to Jane and Michael (He. 1979-83), and Danny and Bethany.