My school had its own computer
We only had the one.
It caused such great excitement
At least it did for some
I couldn't see the point myself
All it could do was sums.

It was a very large machine
And soon a famous one.
There weren't that many computers
And certainly not in schools
So to have a school computer
Was seen by some as cool.

It was so big it occupied
A classroom to itself
It filled the whole of a science lab
Was full of flashing lights.
Something to do with binary maths
Bulbs going on or off.

They let us watch it do its stuff.
Fed big numbers in it
Waited while it flashed and hummed
Spewed reams of paper out
I couldn't see the point myself
All it could do was sums.

Our school had its own computer
It soon attracted fame
It featured on Tomorrow's World
The TV cameras came
It caused a fuss, bought fame to us
But all it could do was sums.

I attended the Forest Grammar School in Winnersh, Berks, 1963-1965. In November 1965, the Nestlé company donated an Elliott 405 computer to the school, which was a first generation valve computer. The BBC science television programme Tomorrow's World broadcast an article on 5 February 1969 about how the school used this computer to teach the pupils. The computer was christened 'Nellie' by the programme. It could do a bit more than multiplication and division as the video shows but not much!

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]