我父亲讲述他的人生 [978]

我认为这是一种美好的情绪浪潮，这种情绪也体现在60年代发生的其他事情上，比如色彩斑斓的服装，以及我们父母和他们父母从未真正体验过的那种自由。

And I think it was a kind of wave of good feeling which was reflected by all the other stuff that happened in the 60s, the colourful clothes, and it was a lot of freedom that our parents and their parents could never have experienced really.

所以你爸爸非常支持你和你哥哥喜欢玩音乐，你们开始接触吉他乐队，而你爸爸对此相当支持。

So your dad was really supportive of the fact that you and your older brother liked to play music and you you got into bands that were playing guitar music, and your dad was pretty supportive of that.

是的。

Yes.

他是这样。

He was.

主要是我。

It was mainly me.

我其实很小的时候就迷上了某些乐队，他会把我的鼓装进车里，送我去练习或演出，晚上再接我回家。

I mean, I I got into some bands when I was really quite young, and he would load my drums into his car and take me off to this to practice or to a performance and then come and collect me in the evening.

这真的非常贴心。

I mean, it's very nice of it, really.

你有鼓。

You had drums.

你有一套鼓组。

You had a drum kit.

是的。

Yes.

我有。

I did.

我收集了自己买得起的鼓。

I I collected drums that I could afford.

一开始是一套很破旧的鼓组。

It started off being a real rough old drum kit.

对。

Yeah.

我们用的是大低音鼓，而不是小的。

We've done those big bass drums as opposed to the little ones.

明白了。

Right.

因为我买不起小的。

Because I couldn't afford the little ones.

它们是新的。

They were the new ones.

是的。

Yeah.

还有军鼓、一对踩镲和一些镲片，刚开始就这些。

And the snare drum and a and a couple of the hi hat and a cymbal, and that was it to start off

开始。

with.

但是

But

我开始逐步添置更好的鼓组。

I I started accumulating a better drum kit.

那很好。

Well, that's good.

他很支持，这很好。

That was nice that he was supportive.

是的。

Yeah.

他是的。

He was.

我的父母都很有音乐天赋。

And they I mean, they my parents were both very musical.

我妈妈是一位非常出色的钢琴手，但不是古典钢琴家。

My mom was a very good pianist, not a classical pianist.

我想她大概是自学的，由她母亲教的。

She she just I think she was probably self taught taught by her mother.

是的。

Yeah.

更有可能是这样。

Like, more likely.

她过去常演奏当时流行的歌曲，弹得非常好，充满感情和细腻的触感。

And she used to play popular popular songs at the time and did it really well with a lot of feeling and touch and everything else.

她经常参加各种演出，比如曲棍球俱乐部、妇女协会之类的活动。

She used to perform a lot, you know, with things like the hockey club and the women's institute and things like that.

她叫奥利芙。

She was called Olive.

奥利芙，给我们弹一首曲子吧。

Play us a tune, Olive.

于是她会坐在钢琴前，当红知更鸟唱到某个音符时，她就能准确地弹出来。

And so she'd sit at the piano and go, when the red red Robin goes, a certain note, she could do it.

我记得她坐在客厅里，而我则在另一个房间的钢琴旁。

I remember her being in the living room, and I would be in the other room with the piano.

我会在钢琴上弹一个音，她就能告诉我那是哪个音。

And I'd play a note on the piano, and she could tell me what the what note it was.

没错。

Exactly.

我的意思是，她来自一个非常有音乐天赋的家庭。

I mean, she was came from a very musical family.

她的两个姐妹也很有音乐天赋。

Her two sisters were musical too.

是的。

Yeah.

我觉得家庭里有音乐真好，你知道的，因为你很有音乐天赋，而且你的两个孩子也都喜欢音乐。

And and I think it's great to have music in the family, and you know that because you are very musical, and both your kids like music.

是的。

Yes.

对。

Yes.

没错。

That's right.

我想努力鼓励他们去学习音乐。

I want to try and encourage them to play music.

我和我哥哥小时候一起学钢琴，我们都上钢琴课。

I I learned the piano with my older brother and me both had piano lessons when we were small.

那位钢琴老师真的很糟糕。

And the piano teacher was really horrible.

我的意思是，她简直就像罗尔德·达尔电影里的人物。

I mean, was like something out of a Roald Dahl film.

你知道的吗？

You know?

她鼻子上有疣，长相也不怎么样。

She had sort of warts on her nose, and was not very good looking.

她会来我们家给我们上钢琴课。

And she used to come to the house to give us her piano lessons.

她叫兰伯恩小姐。

She was called Miss Lamborn.

如果你还在世的话，兰伯恩小姐，我从未忘记过你。

If you're out there, Miss Lamborn, I haven't forgotten.

她年轻还是年老？

And Was she was she young, old?

不。

No.

她啊，对我来说感觉非常老。

She was oh, she felt very old to me.

因为，我六岁的时候刚开始学钢琴。

Because, I mean, I I was learning the piano when I was six.

是的。

Yeah.

她总是喝一杯雪利酒。

And she used to always have a glass of sherry.

真的吗？

Really?

我们上钢琴课的时候，是的。

When we were doing our piano lessons, yes.

当然。

Of course.

酒精，这不算数。

Alcohol, that's not valid.

也许是姜酒，但她是用一小杯这种酒招待我的。

Maybe it was ginger wine, but was a little glass of this that was presented to her.

如果你音阶弹错了，她会用尺子打你的手指。

And if you got your scales wrong, she would hit your knuckles with a ruler.

哦，天哪。

Oh, wow.

真是不错的教学方式。

Wonderful way of teaching you.

是的。

Yeah.

不是。

Not.

真正培养了对钢琴演奏的热爱。

Really instilling a love of piano play.

然后我们搬家了。

And we moved.

我们从北方搬到了伦敦，由于之前与兰博小姐的经历，我们俩都拒绝继续上钢琴课。

We moved from up north down to London, and we both refused to continue with our piano lessons because of the experience we'd had with miss Lambo.

不。

No.

我们不再上钢琴课了。

We're not doing piano lessons anymore.

这真是一个遗憾，因为我真的很希望能弹钢琴。

Now that's a regret, really, because I would love to be able to play the piano.

是的。

Yes.

不过，你后来还是继续玩音乐了。

Well, you did continue to play music.

我们稍后再谈这个吧。

We'll we'll maybe talk about that in a moment.

不过，我想问问你父母的事。

Let me just ask you about your mom and dad, though.

他们经历了第二次世界大战。

They lived through World War two.

确实如此。

Indeed.

你父亲参军了。

Your dad was in the army.

对吗？

Is that correct?

没错。

That is correct.

因为我对他了解得很少，真的，因为我从未见过他。

Because I know less about I know less about him, really, because I never met him.

他去世得早，各位。

He died early, folks.

是的。

Yeah.

他去世了

He he died

很早。

early.

1956年。

'56.

是的。

Yes.

是的。

Yeah.

是的。

Yeah.

总之，是的，我父亲基本上就是个白手起家的人。

Anyway, yes, he it was pretty much just a self made man, my dad.

他父亲，也就是我的祖父汤普森，曾经和我们住在一起。

His father, who lived with us for a while, my grandpa Thompson.

弗兰克。

Frank.

弗兰克。

Frank.

弗兰克·巴利·汤普森是个好名字。

Frank Barley Thompson is a good name.

来自利兹，来自里彭。

From Leeds in From Ripon.

里彭，在约克郡。

Ripon in Yorkshire.

北约克郡。

North Yorkshire.

他有着非常浓重的约克郡口音，而且他在里彭开了一家裁缝店。

He had a very strong Yorkshire accent, and and he he had a tailor's shop in Ripon.

在此之前，他做过各种与乡村相关的工作。

And before that, did various things, think connected with the countryside.

我想他曾经在铁匠铺和肉铺都干过一段时间。

I think he worked for a blacksmith for a while and a butcher's for a while.

总之，我爸爸上了文法学校。

Anyway, my dad went to the grammar school.

他掌握了某些技能，最终成为了一名规划官员。

He qualified in certain things and finished up being a planning officer.

他是一名工程师。

He was an engineer.

土木工程师。

Civil engineer.

一名土木工程师。

A civil engineer.

这意味着一个规划道路和城镇的人。

Which means someone who who plans roads and towns.

基础设施。

Infrastructure.

没错。

That's right.

城镇中的基础设施。

Infrastructure in towns.

当然，那时候有很多建设正在进行。

And of course, at the time, there was a lot of building going on.

被炸毁的城市需要新的住宅，他们正在建造公寓和市政住房，而他正忙于这些工作。

The bombed cities needed new homes, and they were building flats and council houses, and he was busy doing that.

首先在约克郡，然后他搬到伦敦，在住房与地方政府部开始工作，先是规划新城镇，后来转入交通部规划高速公路。

First of all, up in Yorkshire, and then he moved down to London to work for the government in in the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, start off with and planning new towns, and then the Ministry of Transport planning motorways.

因为战后有很多重建工作，所以对他来说有很多机会。

Because after the war, was a lot of rebuilding going on, so there would have been work for him.

但战争期间，他的土木工程技能被派上了用场，对吧？

But then during the war, he was he his skills in civil engineering were used, weren't they?

是的。

Yes.

他加入了皇家工兵部队。

He went into the Royal Engineers.

对。

Right.

他被任命为军官。

And he he was commissioned as a as an officer.

嗯哼。

Uh-huh.

战争的大部分时间里，他都是高级军官汤普森。

Most of the war, was a major major major Thompson.

上校，真的。

Major, really.

哇。

Wow.

听起来很不错。

That sounds pretty good.

战争结束时，他加入了国土军，也就是兼职部队，军衔是中校。

Up being at the end of the war, he he went into the territorial army, the part timers, as a lieutenant colonel.

他是汤普森上校。

He was colonel Thompson.

哦，哇。

Oh, wow.

我不知道这件事。

I didn't know that.

是的。

Yeah.

天啊。

Gosh.

总之，和你母亲的父亲不同

Anyway, unlike your mother's father

丹尼斯。

Dennis.

他是一名前线步兵团士兵，参加了诺曼底登陆，并一路战斗到柏林，那是一段可怕的经历。

Who was a frontline infantry regiment, D Day landings and fighting their way towards Berlin, a horrible experience.

我父亲在德国宣战时被派往法国，当德军迅速推进直逼巴黎时，他被撤离了，不是去敦刻尔克，而是向西撤退。

My dad was sent to France when Germany declared war, And when they overwhelmed everything heading for Paris, he was evacuated not to Dunkirk, but westwards.

许多最初前往法国对抗纳粹的英国士兵，后来不得不撤退，确实如此。

A lot of British soldiers who initially went to France to fight against the the Nazis and then had to escape Indeed.

他们被一路逼退到北海岸，直到抵达敦刻尔克。

They got pushed all the way back to the North Coast, until they got to Dunkirk.

是的。

Yeah.

然后他们设法找到了返回

Then they managed to find their way back to

著名的撤离行动中，许多民用小船前往科伦特姆。

Famous evacuation by lots of civilian little boats that went to Colentum.

是的。

Yeah.

后来，几年后，盟军又在诺曼底登陆，再次入侵法国。

And then later, a few years later, the allies then invaded France again on d day.

没错。

That's right.

所以你父亲早年是在法国……

So but your dad was in France in that early

很早的时候。

Early on.

被向西撤离到，我想，圣拉扎尔。

Was evacuated west to, I think, Saint Lazar.

那是西海岸的某个地方吧？他上了军舰，被送了回来。

Is that is that the place on the West Coast somewhere, got onto a warship and was brought home.

好的。

Okay.

但他后来被派去从事与战争相关的重大工程工作，他被派往的第一个地方是冰岛。

But he was then assigned to doing major engineering work connected with the war, and the first place he was sent to was Iceland.

他去了冰岛？

He went to Iceland?

是的。

Yeah.

冰岛这个岛。

The island of Iceland.

是的。

Yeah.

当时对你们能告诉家人自己身在何处有审查制度，他给母亲写信说，是C不是R，因为他以为自己可能会去爱尔兰，甚至可能去冰岛。

And there was censorship on what you could say to your family about where you were, and he sent a letter back to my mother saying, it's C Not R, because he thought he was either going to Ireland or might even go to Iceland.

哦，我明白了。

Oh, I see.

所以要么是爱尔兰，也就是爱尔兰共和国，要么是冰岛，他写了C代表Ice。

So it's either Ireland meaning The Republic Of Ireland or it's Iceland, and he wrote C meaning Ice.

不是R。

Not R.

是的。

Yeah.

不是R代表爱尔兰，但其实是冰岛。

Not R meaning Ireland, but it was Iceland.

好的。

Okay.

他去那里的原因是盟军需要在那里建立一个军事基地，他监督了在首都雷克雅未克建造一座军用机场。

And the reason he went there was that the allies needed to have a military base there, and he supervised the building of a military airstrip at Reykjavik, the capital.

它现在还在。

It's still there.

哇。

Wow.

所以他在冰岛建好了 airstrip，那里的条件肯定非常寒冷，然后他回来了，去做一些我不知道的事情。

So having built the airstrip at Iceland, and the conditions must have been pretty chilly, he came back to, I don't know, do some stuff.

有一段时间，他被借调到皇家炮兵部队。

For a while, he was seconded to the artillery unit, Royal Artillery.

我知道战后他有两条领带：炮兵领带和工程师领带。

And I know he had two ties after the war, the artillery tie and the engineer's tie.

对。

Right.

好的。

Okay.

他根据要去参加的活动，选择佩戴其中一条。

It depended on what function he was going to, which one he would actually wear.

所以他确实有一段时间在炮兵部队工作。

So he he he did work with the artillery for some time.

我不太确定为什么。

I'm not quite sure why.

我不认为他当时在伦敦上空试图击落德国空军的飞机，但他可能在其他地方负责防御阵地。

I don't think he was trying to pop at Luftwaffe planes over London, but he may have been manning defensive positions somewhere else.

是的。

Yeah.

总之，没过多久，他就被派去建造另一条跑道，那条跑道在太平洋。

Anyway, before long, he was sent off to build another airstrip, and that one was in the Pacific.

哇。

Wow.

还有科科斯群岛。

And the Cocos Islands.

那在哪儿？

Where's that?

科科斯群岛。

Cocos Islands.

嗯，这是个好问题。

Well, that's good good question.

位于太平洋中远离任何陆地的地方。

Miles from anywhere in the Pacific.

是的。

Yeah.

这样做的原因是，他们知道必须与日本人作战，因此希望在科科斯群岛建立一个空军基地。

And the reason for that was that they knew they were going to have to fight the Japanese, and they wanted to have an air base on the Cocos Islands.

哇。

Wow.

岛上居民很少。

Not many inhabitants on the islands.

好的。

Okay.

所以我可以告诉你它在哪里。

So I can tell you where it is.

它位于印度尼西亚海岸外很远的地方。

It's kind of off the coast, far off the coast of Indonesia.

是的。

Yeah.

基本上，从雅加达出发，朝西南方向走。

Basically, go from Jakarta and head kinda southwest.

它就像是太平洋正中央的一个小点。

It's a dot in the middle of the Pacific.

直接深入太平洋中央。

Right out into the middle of the Pacific.

是的。

Yeah.

这与冰岛形成了鲜明对比。

So that's quite a contrast with Iceland.

而且你知道，他们睡在吊床里，躺在棕榈树下，天气很热，诸如此类。

And and, you know, he they they slept in hammocks and and under palm trees it was hot and all that.

所以那场战争并不算最艰苦的。

And so that was not the hardest war.

从技术上讲，那是印度洋。

It's the Indian Ocean technically.

是吗？

Is it?

是的。

Yeah.

好吧。

Alright.

总之。

Anyway.

是的，我们大概就只知道这些了。

Yeah, so that's pretty much as much we know.

显然，这远没有朱尔斯父亲的战争那么惨烈。

And obviously it wasn't quite as horrendous as Jules' father's war.

但他离家很久，回家时一定很陌生。

But he was away a long time, and it must have been strange coming home.

是的。

Yeah.

我哥哥是在战争期间出生的。

And my brother was born during the war.

对。

Right.

所以他是在休假期间 conceived 的。

So he was conceived on leave.

显而易见。

Obviously.

没错。

Yes.

很多人都是这样。

Many of them were.

是的。

Yeah.

他出生于1943年，我想当那个穿着军装的人在1948年回家时，一定很奇怪。

He was born in 1943, and it must have been weird when this bloke in uniform came home in 1948, I think it was.

哇哦。

Woah.

真的吗？

Really?

所以当他第一次见到父亲时才五岁，不，等等。

So he was five when he first No.

不。

No.

不。

No.

不是1948年。

Not 48.

是1946年，我想，战争结束后的第二年。

46, I think it was a year after the war frenzy.

所以他第一次见到爸爸的时候才三岁？

So he would have been three years old when he first met his dad?

没错。

That's right.

大概是吧。

Probably.

天哪。

Gosh.

太神奇了。

That's amazing.

我真想问他关于这件事。

So I would have liked to have asked him about that.

我的意思是，你刚才说的，你会问他什么？

I mean, that's what you're saying that what what would you have asked him?

很多问题呢。

Lots of it.

我本想多问问你在冰岛都做了些什么。

I would have liked to have asked him much more about what you did in Iceland.

那是什么感觉？

What was it like?

你是怎么去的？你们是怎么到达那里的？

What did you do in the how did you get there?

你是怎么听说你要去的地方的？

How did you hear about where you were going?

是的。

Yeah.

你看到了什么？

What did you see?

因为那正是

Because that's

你看到了什么？

What did you see?

因为去高加索群岛会是一次非凡的旅程

Because that would have been an extraordinary journey to go out to the Caucasus Islands

是的。

Yes.

在印度洋的中部。

In the middle of the Indian Ocean.

他本会看到各种不可思议的东西，比如动物之类的。

He would have seen all sorts of incredible things, like even just animals and stuff.

岛上曾经有老鼠。

Well, they had rats on the island.

显然是欧洲人带过去的，

Must have been obviously brought in by Europeans,

我想是吧。

I guess.

水手们，是的。

Sailors, yeah.

但他们过去会用步枪朝它们开枪。

But they used to poop off at them with their rifles.

哦，是的。

Oh, yeah.

不管怎样，我不太了解。

Anyway, I don't know much.

他回家时带了一堆异域贝壳，非常漂亮。

He came home with a collection of exotic shells, beautiful shells.

对。

Right.

还有一艘由当地原住民制作的木制帆船。

And a wooden sailing boat made by one of the indigenous people there.

非常精致，显然他是买下来的。

Really nice, which obviously he'd he'd bought.

然后他就回去工作了。

And then he's, you know, went back to work.

我妈妈是一名教师，休姆·帕奇是我在约克郡上小学时的老师，他不仅教其他科目，还教钢琴。

And my my mom was a teacher, and Hume Patchy was a teacher at the primary school I went to in in Yorkshire, teaching piano as well as anything else.

是的。

Yeah.

还有其他一些事，比如担任班主任。

Few other things, being a class teacher.

他们对我和我弟弟非常好。

And they were very, very nice to my brother and me.

我们非常幸运。

We're very fortunate.

你离开学校后，接着去读了A-Level，那是些用于

When you left school, you then went on to do a levels, which are qualifications that

我在上学期间就完成了。

I did it while I was at school.

你顺利完成了。

You did them okay.

你就一直在学校继续，是在学校完成A-Level课程的吗？

You just just continued at school, did your a levels at school?

是的。

Yes.

然后就到了申请大学的时候了。

And then it was time to try and get into university.

对。

Yep.

你对那段时光有什么印象？

What do you remember about that time?

说来奇怪，我哥哥竟然去了牛津大学，那是顶尖的大学。

Well, my older brother had amazingly enough gone to Oxford, top top university.

你为什么说‘说来奇怪’？

Why do you say amazingly enough?

因为他并不是特别学业优秀，A-Level的成绩也不算好。

Because he wasn't particularly academic, and he didn't get very good a level results.

我一直怀疑他们是基于面试录取他的，因为那时候所有申请者都会被面试。

And I've always suspected that they they took him in on the basis of the interview because in those days, they interviewed everybody who'd applied.

他在面试中表现会很好，而且他的青少年生活非常有趣。

And he would have been good in an interview, and he had a very interesting teenage life.

他写剧本，当过高级童子军和小队领队，诸如此类，天生的领导者。

Writing plays and being as a senior scout, as a troop leader, one thing another, all natural leader.

他运动也非常出色。

And he was very good at sport.

所以他为全国最好的中学足球队踢球，篮球也打到了很高水平。

So he he played football for the best school football team in the country, and he played basketball at a very high level.

在那时候，所有这些经历让他的A-Level成绩不佳显得不那么重要了。

And all these things made the fact that his AIDA results weren't very good less important in those days.

这就是牛津大学非常看重个人品格和为人处世的原因。

And that's what, you know, Oxford did put a lot of score on the individual's character, what they were like.

明白了。

Right.

尤其是这所学院。

Particularly this college.

这是圣凯瑟琳学院，由一位名叫艾伦·布洛克的历史学家创立，他也是一位约克郡人。

This was the Saint Catharines College, which was a new college invented by a historian called Alan Bullock, who was also a Yorkshireman.

在那个时期，周围正在兴建丹麦风格设计的新式建筑。

And it was built in that period when Danish design buildings, new type buildings were being built around the place.

直到今天，这栋建筑依然非常出色。

And it's a fantastic building to this day.

它的宗旨是招收更多来自公立学校的学生，而非私立学校，并提供更广泛的课程。

And the principle was that it would take more kids from state schools as opposed to private schools, and it would have a broader curriculum.

事实上，他们还开设了工程学等专业。

And in fact, they did engineering amongst other things.

因此，这是一所会喜欢彼得、希望彼得就读的学院。

So it's the kind of college that would have Peter they they would like to have Peter there.

所以他去了那里，我当年还是个学生时曾去探望过他。

So him having gone there, and I went to visit him as schoolboy.

我还想说，他当然是他们家族中第一个上牛津的人，但上大学呢？

I should say also that he was the first person of his family ever to go into Oxford, of course, but university too?

你爸爸上过大学吗？

Did your dad go to university?

我母亲的姐姐上过大学。

My mother's sister went to university.

是吗。

Right.

她非常聪明。

She was very clever.

而在父亲这边，确实就到此为止了。

And now that was it, certainly on my father's side.

是的，我的家族里，是的，

Yeah, I mean in our family, yeah,

第一个上大学的，在当时并不是什么大事吗？

was Was the first that not a big deal?

是的，这确实是个大事。

Yes, was quite a big deal.

你的父母非常自豪吗？

Were your parents incredibly proud?

是的，他们很自豪。

Yes, they were.

我肯定我爸爸特别高兴。

I'm sure my dad was really pleased.

所以，那

And so Did

你呢？他比你大几岁？

you did you he he how many years older than you was he?

他大三岁半，三岁多一点。

He was three and a three and a half years old, three three and a bit years old.

你有没有感到必须追随他的脚步的巨大压力，还是觉得更容易了？

Did that did you feel like you had a lot of pressure to follow in his footsteps, or did it make it easier?

我把压力加在了自己身上。

I put the pressure on myself.

是的。

Yeah.

你知道，我想，既然他能做到，我也能。

You know, I thought, well, if he can do it, I can

所以你是有竞争心的？

do So you're competitive?

是的。

Yes.

嗯哼。

Mhmm.

对。

Yes.

不过，这有让事情更容易吗？

So did it make it easier, though?

因为你觉得他已经做到了，所以我只是跟着做同样的事情。

Well Because you thought he's already done something, so I just kind of just do the same thing.

他能行，我就也能行？

If he can, I can?

对。

Right.

当时的制度是，你参加A水平考试，如果学校批准，你就会再读一个学期，准备牛津和剑桥的联合入学考试，因为它们是顶尖大学，有自己的入学考试。

So and the system then was that you took your a levels, and then if the school approved, you would stay on for one term and do the joint entrance exam for Oxford and Cambridge, because they were elite universities and they had their own entrance exam.

那当时你必须这么做吗？

This is what you had to do then?

这就是我

This is what I

必须做的。

had to do.

是的。

Yeah.

好的。

Okay.

所以就在圣诞节前，我离开学校之前，参加了那场考试。

So So just before Christmas, before I did leave school, I took that exam.

明白吗？

Okay?

这甚至是在你拿到A-Level成绩之前发生的吧。

This is before you even got your a level results.

没有。

No.

是在我拿到成绩之后。

After I'd got them.

你拿到了你的

You got you got your

我的其他成绩出来后，又留了一段时间参加入学考试。

my other results stay on for a bit to do their entrance exam.

好的。

Right.

我明白了。

I see.

如果他们对你印象不错

If they like the look of you

是的。

Yeah.

而且觉得你写的东西很有趣，就会邀请你去面试。

And they think you've written something interesting, they invite you for an interview.

好的。

Right.

我去参加了面试。

And I went to my interview.

所以为了明确一下，你也去牛津大学参加了面试。

So this is just to be clear, this is you also went for an interview at Oxford University.

是的。

Yeah.

在牛津大学圣凯瑟琳学院。

At Saint Catherine's College, Oxford.

同一个学院。

The same college

去同一个学院。

go to same college.

你哥哥也去的那个学院，他们也给你安排了面试。

Same college your brother went to, and they took you in for an interview.

不过，你的A-Level成绩比你哥哥的好一些。

Your a level results were a bit better than your brother's, though.

确实如此。

They certainly were.

我的成绩差极了。

I mean, his were rotten.

你是什么意思？

What do you mean?

你还记得它们是什么吗？

Do you remember what

它们是什么？

they were?

他只拿了两个A水平成绩。

He got two a levels.

只有两个。

Only two.

通常，人们会拿三个。

Normally, people get three.

或者四个。

Or four.

或者四个。

Or four.

对吧？

Right?

他只拿了两个。

He got two.

他只拿了两个，而且都不是A或B。

He just got two, and neither of them was an a or a b.

等等。

Wait.

他拿了两个，意思是第三个，他有去考第三个但没通过，对吧？

He got two, meaning the third one, he did it did he take a third one and fail Yes.

是的。

Yes.

所以他拿了什么？F？

So he got, what, f?

是的。

Yes.

另外两个呢？

The other two?

我认为它们相当于C和D。

I think they were the equivalent of a c and a d.

好的。

Okay.

令人惊讶的是牛津竟然录取了他。

Well, it's surprising that Oxford took him on.

确实很奇怪，因为

It is rather, isn't because

以今天的标准来看，这是彻底的失败。

that by today's standards, that's a dismal failure.

绝对是彻底的失败。

Definitely a dismal failure.

但不管怎样，事实是他们确实录取了。

But, anyway, the the the fact is they did.

好的。

Okay.

我的成绩比那更好。

And my results are better than that.

你还记得你得了什么吗？

Do you remember what you got?

我觉得我得了 B C D D，我想。

I think I got I think I got b c d d, I think.

所以你选了四门？

So you took four?

是的。

Yes.

你还记得它们分别是什么吗？

Do you remember what they were?

记得。

I do.

英语、法语、地理和艺术。

English, French, geography, and art.

英语、法语、地理和艺术。

English, French, geography, and art.

所以你在法语A水平上得了B之类的分数？

So you got a, like, a b or something at French a level?

是的。

Yeah.

哇。

Wow.

好吧。

Okay.

你能相信吗？

Can you believe?

是的。

Yeah.

我能。

I can.

我知道。

I know.

你什么都忘。

You forget everything.

不管怎样，我去参加了那次面试，那非常奇怪，因为我在一个房间里接受了两位英语教授的面试，他们俩都相当古怪，至少可以说是这样。

Anyway, went off to this interview, which was very bizarre because the I was interviewed in a room with two the English professors, and they were both rather eccentric, to say the least.

是的。

Yeah.

他们是不是

Were they

你知道的，就像那种

You know, like like

他们长什么样？

What do they look like?

他瘫坐在椅子上。

One was slumped in his chair.

那是他的房间，他有一头雪白的头发，一直抽着无过滤嘴的香烟，我记得清清楚楚。

It was in his room, and he had snow white hair and and chain smoked, quencitas untipped, I remember.

香烟。

Cigarettes.

是的。

Yeah.

他有个习惯，让烟灰掉在胸前。

And had a habit of letting the ash drop on his front.

所以他的前襟上积了很多烟灰。

So he had a lot of ash down his front.

他是个非常老的老人吗？

Is he an old really old guy?

是的。

Yeah.

他年纪相当大了。

He was quite old.

是的。

Yeah.

好的。

Okay.

另一个年纪稍轻一些的人身材敦实，头发稀疏，而且从不坐下。

And the other one who was a bit younger was sort of stuccally built, had wispy hair, and didn't sit down.

他一直在房间里走来走去。

He walked about all the time.

来回踱步，不停地走动。

Paced about, paced up and down.

你有没有觉得他们有点吓人，或者令人畏惧？还是说他们很友善？

Did you get any impression they were sort of, what's the word for it, intimidating, frightening characters, or were they friendly?

或者

Or

嗯，我不确定。

Well, I don't know.

有点吓人，因为那个走来走去的人时不时会猛地转过身来向你抛出一个问题。

It was a was a bit intimidating because every now and then, the one who was walking about would spin on his heel and fire a question at you.

你所说的戏剧性是指什么？

What do you mean by melodrama?

你知道的。

You know?

诸如此类的。

And and so on.

总之，我总算熬过了那次经历。

Anyway, I managed to get through that experience.

说实话，我觉得挺有趣的。

I found it quite amusing, really.

我记得出来后心想，他们真是疯了。

I remember coming out and thinking, they're mad.

但他们俩都非常出色。

But they were both very brilliant.

所以我不得不等到第二年九月才能上大学。

And so then I had to wait until the following September to go to university.

所以你花了一整年才申请，只是走完申请流程。

So it took you a year just to apply just to go through the application process.

对吧？

Right?

一个学年。

An academic year.

对吧？

Right?

因为你是在，比如说，

Because you finished your a levels in, let's say

夏天完成A-Level考试的。

In the summer.

那一年的五月、六月，然后你就放暑假了。

May, June of the one year, then you had your summer holiday.

到了九月，你开始为牛津大学的申请做准备，同年晚些时候参加了面试。

Then in September, you started preparing for the application process for Oxford, and then you had your interview later on that year.

然后你得等到第二年的什么时间？

And then you had to wait until the following what?

嗯，学年是从十月或九月开始的，我想是这样。

Well, the the year academic year started in in, I think, October, September.

哦，我明白了。

Oh, I see.

所以你不用等整整一年。

So you didn't have to wait a full year.

不用。

No.

但你是在圣诞节离开学校的，不过你离开了

But you you left school at Christmas, but you left

你圣诞节就离开学校了，因为

school at Christmas because

我考完入学考试之后。

After I'd done the the entrance exam.

对。

Right.

对。

Right.

好的。

Okay.

所以，抱歉一直问这些，但我正在理清时间线。

So, yeah, sorry to bang on about this, but I'm trying to work out the timeline.

你夏天完成A-Level课程，暑假期间拿到成绩，然后同年九月开始准备牛津入学考试以及其他所有事项。

You finish school with your A levels in the summer, you get your results during the summer holidays, then in September that year, you start preparing to take the Oxford entry exam and all the rest of it.

你参加考试是在，

You take that in,

什么时候？

when?

十二月。

December.

那年的十二月。

December that year.

然后你得等到次年九月或十月才能真正开始在牛津学习。

And then you have to wait until the following September, October to actually start Oxford.

那段时间你其他时间做了什么？

So what did you do with the rest of that time?

这正是重点。

Well, that's the point.

我的意思是，首先我决定在本地加油站的加油台上打工赚点钱。

I mean, first of all, I I decided to earn a bit money by serving petrol on the forecourt of the local garage.

好的。

Okay.

那是什么感觉？

What what what was that like?

我好像记得当时的航空燃油是每加仑四先令十一便士。

I don't seem to remember the jet petrol was four and eleven a gallon.

四英镑

£4

先令和十一便士。

shillings and 11p.

那几乎就是五先令，实际上相当于四分之一英镑。

That's just nearly 5 shillings, which is actually a quarter of a pound.

是的。

Yeah.

25便士。

25 p.

所以一先令大约是5便士。

So shilling was about 5 p.

没错。

That's right.

对。

Yeah.

所以每加仑是25便士。

So it's 25 p a gallon.

是加仑，不是升。

A gallon, not a liter.

总之，我后来在展厅清洗汽车，然后开始开他们的陆地巡洋舰去为修理厂取零件。

Anyway, I I then cleaned the cars in the showroom, then I started driving their Land Rover to to collect parts You were for the garage.

17、18、19？

17, eighteen, nineteen?

18。

Eighteen.

18。

Eighteen.

然后我卖了一辆车。

And then I sold a car.

所以这家修理厂在

So they sold cars at this garage at

在展厅里卖车。

the at the showroom.

你是怎么卖出去的？

How did you sell it?

你只是不小心卖了

You just accidentally sold

展厅。

the showroom.

你正在打扫展厅。

You're cleaning the showroom.

该吃午饭了。

Lunchtime.

是的

Yeah.

是的

Yeah.

销售员正在吃午饭。

The salesman was on his lunch break.

嗯哼

Mhmm.

有个家伙进来，围着车转了一圈，开始问我关于这辆车的问题。

And this guy came in and looked around the car, and I started asking me questions about it.

你知道吗？

You know?

所以，你知道的，这车怎么样？

So, you know, what what's this like?

我说，哦，这是一辆挺不错的车。

I said, oh, nice little car.