Gwen Ifill

I learned how to cover race riots by telephone. They didn't pay me enough at my first newspaper job to venture onto the grounds of South Boston High School when bricks were being thrown. Instead, I would telephone the headmaster and ask him to relay to me the number of broken chairs in the cafeteria each day.

American Journalist

Kevin Brownlow

I was sent to boarding school - a grim place. The only good thing the headmaster did for us was every Sunday evening in the winter he would show us films in the chapel. He couldn't afford a sound projector, so we saw silent films, which you could then still rent from photographic shops.

British Historian

Richard J. Roberts

My elementary education was at Christ Church infant school and St. Stephen's junior school. At St. Stephen's, I encountered my first real mentor, the headmaster Mr. Broakes. He must have spotted something unusual in me, for he spent lots of time encouraging my interest in mathematics.

English Scientist

Ian Mckellen

One school invited me down, as two pupils had come out, and the headmaster didn't know what to do about it. I said, 'How many students here are gay?' and he said, 'Just these two.' Clearly not. 'How many gay members of staff have you got?' He had no idea. And this was a concerned man.

English Actor

Olivia Newton-John

My father was a headmaster in England and then the dean of a college in Australia. We moved there when I was about five, so my education was in Australia, and I always felt I was Australian even though my passport was British.

Musician

Richard Branson

On one of my last days at school, the headmaster said I would either end up in prison or become a millionaire. That was quite a startling prediction, but in some respects, he was right on both counts!

British Businessman

David Harewood

I was always the classroom clown, and the teachers allowed me a certain latitude. The assemblies were good, and the headmaster used to tell little stories; I loved the idea of communal storytelling.

James Nesbitt

My mother taught me what it is to have a sense of humour; my dad, who was a headmaster, everything you need to know about hard work. My dad is the most decent man you could come across.

Irish Actor

Derek Walcott

The headmaster asked to read one of my poems at some celebration or other when I was about 10. When I look back, that is phenomenal encouragement.

Poet

Ada Yonath

My kindergarten teacher encouraged me to learn, as did my school headmaster, who gave me a grant to study.

Israeli Scientist

The term is mostly used in the UK, in other places, like the US, 'principal' is more common.

UK Specific

'Headmaster' is gender-specific to males, and 'headmistress' is the female counterpart.

Gendered Title

The headmaster is the highest authority in a school and manages all school affairs.

Authority

 recent they were a fee paying high achieving private school band homework for everyone under the age of 13 and the high achieving parents freaked out and said what do you know our kids our fault the headmaster said no no your children need to slow down at the end of the day and just this last month the exam

Praising slowness - Carl...

 doing very badly but but there prep school I I discovered a a meteorite as I was walking back from the games sadly I didn't put it in my pocket was quite large I was an honest I gave it to the headmaster and it was sort of I don't

Touching a Meteor PIPE...

 you just want to smother them with love and praise and enthusiasm. So I don't think you can mollycoddle your kids too much really. You didn't turn out too bad, I have to say, I'm Your headmaster said to you --

Life at 30,000 feet PIPE...

 grandfather was a headmaster and a translator he was a walking encyclopedia of my culture and he taught me a lot he laid the foundations for the walk that I