When I was at Ballyclare High School, way back in the 'Black & White days', the timing of the bell for the end of each lesson was always 2 or 3 minutes shy of the actual time. So for example, although lunch was at 12:30 and school finished at 15:45, the bells actually went at 12:28 and 15:43. This strange scenario lasted throughout my seven years at the school [And for all I know might still pertain today]. It resulted in the farcical situation whereby one student on asking another "Have you got the time on you?" and being told it, would have to follow up with "Is that Real Time or School Time?"

WTF was that all about?

In all that time did the powers that be remain incapable of adjusting whatever timing apparatus sounded the bell, so it would go off 2 minutes later every time it rang? -or was oul' Mr. CGC Millar, our tyrannical Saddam Hussein moustachio’d headmaster [Who even the teachers referred to as "The Ayatollah"] so dictatorial that he demanded his own timezone?

"Ballyclare Meantime" anyone?