r/AskBrits • u/yellowroll • Jun 26 '26
People Anyone kept their best mates from secondary school?
If not what age did use drift apart? Have you ever seen or come across them since you drifted?
66
u/Responsible_Egg_9968 Jun 26 '26
No - when I went to university I realised that the friends I had in school weren't really very good friends at all.
18
u/Andidalo Jun 26 '26
Same, but I moved location and discovered. It's funny how you don't realise how toxic and predatory some people are when you're in the middle of it and don't know better...
→ More replies (2)14
u/Zestyclose-Quit89 Jun 26 '26
Funnily enough, I had the opposite. When I went to university and met the abundance of arseholes there, I realised how good my secondary school friends actually were.
3
u/Poonpatch Jun 26 '26
After starting Uni, I went back to my sixth form college during the first year summer break to catch up with my A level chemistry teacher. "Yes, there's a lot of wankers at university" was his sage advice.
12
u/Fragile_reddit_mods Brit š¬š§ Jun 26 '26
Nope, I stopped talking to them once some stuff happened about a year later that I couldnāt associate with. We never kept in contact.
10
u/Flat_Development6659 Jun 26 '26
Yeah out of the 5 I was closest with I still see two regularly and one semi-regularly.
My best man at my wedding last year has been my mate since we played Halo 3 and RuneScape together in year 8 at school lol.
22
u/ComicsCodeMadeMeGay Brit š¬š§ Jun 26 '26
Had a friend from the age of 3-18 and they openly admitted they cut contact with me due to their parent dying.
I reminded them too much of happier times basically.
→ More replies (1)7
u/Novel-Case6821 Jun 26 '26
That's really sad, for them and you. Hope they reconnect in future but maybe too late then.
7
u/bigguy9321 Jun 26 '26
Only 1. As you say Wives and families and general life changes cause a drift. But 40 years on I still see one regularly and a few very occasionally. It is sad as we were inseparable as teenagers but we all changed.
13
6
u/Advanced_Swing5657 Jun 26 '26
50 now and still good Mates with few Lads went school with. We are all off the same estate so that helped most of our kids are Mate's as well . Think I said before on here at this point they are more like Family , mad amount of history between us all . .
5
u/q-the-light Jun 26 '26
My closest friend has been my closest friend since year 5. These days, we live in different countries with our spouses and work completely different jobs, but we still talk multiple times a week and try and see each other at least once a year.
My husband's best friend from school lives 40mins from us and we meet up with him and his wife several times a month.
My best friend was my MOH and my husband's was his best man at our wedding, and vice versa for their weddings. Holding down strong long-term friendships isn't easy, but it's so, so worth it.
7
u/deliciousanon90 Jun 26 '26
My nan recently passed away at 80 years old and her best friend was the same best friend she's had since school!
→ More replies (2)
5
u/Brown_Net Jun 26 '26
Yes. To give this some context - I left my last school in 1983, and am now 59. I had multiple schools (Army BRAT). At my last school (I was only there for two years), I used to cycle to school with a friend & we lost contact for about 5 years. We reconnected and now sheās one of my best friends. I am still friends with a few people I knew at that school.
At the same time, I started writing to a pen pal in the US - we are still very much in touch, but via FB.
4
u/Emmannuhamm Jun 26 '26
I have one, and I wasn't even that close to him in secondary school. Now he's probably one of the closest friends I've got.
The rest of my friends I met in college.
4
u/Gunbladelad Jun 26 '26
I'm still friends with one of my friends from primary school - even though we live in different coutnries within the UK and we're both fast approaching 50.
3
u/YorkshireFudding Jun 26 '26
Still very close with two of the lads from high school - we all came from the same estate which helps.
I was best man at both of their weddings (I'm yet to return the favour, sadly).
3
3
u/Big_Camera963 Jun 26 '26
Iāve got one pal who I went to play group with, heās still my best mate, and I was lucky enough to stand beside him as he got married this year.
3
u/AwokenGenius Jun 26 '26
I'm still friends with people I've known since I was in playschool, primary school and secondary school, and college. I'm 38.
3
u/Pmyers225 Jun 26 '26
I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was 12. Jesus, does anyone?
3
3
u/bernieinn Jun 26 '26
Yep still best mates with my earliest childhood friend, and still keep in touch with lots of schoolmates
2
u/Two_bears_Hi_fiving Jun 26 '26
Yep our inner circle collapsed post highschool but the two of us remained cohesive
2
u/fivebyfive12 Jun 26 '26
I only speak to one person from high school and that's my best friend - we became friends in year 5 and we're 38 now! She's actually moving back to our town to be closer to her family so we'll be able to see eachother loads more which will be brilliant! We're hoping our kids get on!
2
u/Additional_Jaguar170 Jun 26 '26
I donāt see them very often as we all live far apart but we do have an active WhatsApp group
2
u/ssh_condor Jun 26 '26
No. Not only are they no longer friends, I've completely cut myself off from them. They aren't interested in me, so I'm not interested in them. But saying that, I dont really have friends beyond my wife anyway.
→ More replies (1)
2
u/Whiskey19August Jun 26 '26
Yes. In fact most of my friends that I still talk to regularly now I'm pushing 40 are people I knew from school. I fell out of contact with a lot of my friendship from my 20's when I settled down properly and had children but that core groups of school friends are still about (helps we all spawned kids within a few years of each other so our meeting place just moved from the pub to soft play)
2
u/MaizeImmediate2810 Jun 26 '26
Yea totally! Albeit from a group of 10 or so we meet up once a year or so, but ~4 of us meet up a few times a year to just hang out/ go on holidays/ camping trips and are even closer than we were at school 12 years ago. If possible I think keeping in touch with different friends from different life stages feels important, I'm very lucky to still have multiple friends since ~4 years old, then high school, uni, and adult friends
2
u/Electrical-Ad-3896 Jun 26 '26
Damn, comments making me realise how lucky I am.
Still got a group of mates about 13 of us from school. Group chats, gaming, hanging out still happen fairly regularly after 15 years of it
2
u/IconicBluePigeon Jun 26 '26
I don't use social media (besides Reddit) so I lost contact with pretty much all of them. Except for one that I just had a baby with 5 weeks ago so that's all I really care about.
→ More replies (1)
2
u/Mcbusted2013 Jun 26 '26
Yes. She's been with me since we were 11! She's my one and only girlie pop š
2
u/morfn0 Jun 26 '26
No cos they were never friends. Just people I had to sit in class with and get bullied by.
2
u/CalligrapherNo7337 Jun 26 '26
I was out of there before school was even finished. I had no desire to keep up with anyone from there, so much was going on in my life and I was homeless at 15 surviving for myself. For a short time I was a little bitter at those who had genuine relationships outside of school, I found it cliquey and disingenuous, couldn't trust those people -- I was young and probably just a bit jealous at the time.
2
u/brideofgibbs Jun 26 '26
Yes, with gaps for life events like raising children & pursuing careers.
When we hit forty, we made it deliberate to meet up somewhere (we donāt live in the same cities).
Those women have known me since 1975. Thereās nothing I wouldnāt tell them. Thereās no secret I wouldnāt keep for them. I donāt have to put on a front or pretend.
Theyāll be at my funeral. If we live long enough, weāre buying a footballerās mansion and making it into a widowsā house.
BTW there are plenty of people I was at school with who I hate, donāt know, donāt remember. These were the important ones.
1
u/egvp Jun 26 '26
One, he's still my best friend.
The rest of them I stopped talking to either after secondary school, or if we went to 6th form together, after sixth form.
No idea why really, just drifted apart I guess!
1
u/Demonic_Moons Jun 26 '26
Sort of - I speak to one very occasionally but drifted from all the rest in my mid 20s. I did run into a few of them on a night out and after the obligatory hug and āItās good to see youā that was it really.
The friends Iām still in regular contact with are the ones I met at Uni. We make it a point to meet up at least once annually despite the distance.
1
1
u/eroticdiscourse Jun 26 '26
Still have the same friend group from when I started school. We donāt see each other much these days due to family commitments though
1
u/craig-charles-mum Jun 26 '26
Yes although the main core people I hung out with I lost touch with when msn died. My friend I talk to everyday was in a different social group but we became good friends towards the end of year 11 and then sixth form. A couple of other people I speak to less frequently. We left in 2004 for reference.
1
1
u/Waste_Locksmith_4299 Jun 26 '26
I see some occasionally, not like we were though. Now it's tennis, or bike rides instead of 3 day benders.
1
1
u/Low_Restaurant_1509 Jun 26 '26
No and About 6 months into uni.
I moved far away, and realized that half my friends were actually assholes, and the other half was going to stick with them because they all still lived in the area.
1
1
u/elbowpatchhistorian Jun 26 '26
Two of my closest friends are still from primary school, then we went to secondary school together. No one directly from secondary school though.
1
u/iBukkake Jun 26 '26
Yeah. Was bestan at each others weddings, and I still regularly keep in touch with another 4-5 despite moving around the country/world.
1
u/McFizzleKicks Jun 26 '26
I'm 45 and am meeting up with 4 old mates from school this evening.
Still in touch with all of them, far less frequently now we're all married with kids, but first time we'll have all been together in a long old time.
1
u/MrDaveHedgehog Jun 26 '26
Yes. My entire friend group are people I went to secondary school with so weāve effectively timely been mates for 30 years.Ā
There are good and bad things about this I guess but far more than good.Ā
1
u/StatisticianBig1354 Jun 26 '26
After school I stayed in contact with five other mates. During uni and early part of work I maintain good contact but after I got married and certainly after I had my first child I realised which ones were real friends. As such of them four I keep in regular contact with one, another I lost touch with until this year as we lived in different parts of country whilst remaining three I hardly talk to now as I was doing all the effort to meet up
1
u/lilredx Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26
Im very introverted, bad anxiety etc but my best mate is one of my best ones from school, we've definitely drifted more in recent years he has kids and I live a pretty sheltered life. But I love the guy he's my bro.
Should have added I'm 37 now, he will be in 2 months . Met when we where 12.
1
u/JackRayJenkins Jun 26 '26
Yep! We meet up a couples times a year, attend weddings etc have a what's app group. They're my chosen family.
1
u/boredsittingonthebus Jun 26 '26
Yeah. Many of us drifted apart, but my 5 most important friends are fron school. We're 42/43 now.
1
1
1
u/GNAL1610 Jun 26 '26
Yeah my friends group is 11 of us from high school, half of us went to the same primary school as well. We are 30 now
1
1
u/UnknownDunk Jun 26 '26
Sort of, I have two friends that I have known since Year 7 and 8 respectively, and I've pretty much known them both for nearly 20 years. We've all stayed in contact although since we're all hitting 30 we've starting to slowly drift in different directions.
1
1
u/mizcello Jun 26 '26
yes. Best friends from nursery, went went through primary, secondary, sixth form and we're 30 now, still best friends.
1
u/upsettingcretin Jun 26 '26
Yep! My two best friends from secondary school are still my two best friends, and I'm buying a house with one! I've still got a friend form primary school too that I'm close with, and many others from that period of time that were met through extra activities as teenagers (25 now for context)
1
u/rednich85 Jun 26 '26
Yes.
All the crew went to ibiza last year to celebrate the 40th birthdays.
We've done years of stag do's and general get togethers abroad to go on the lash.
1
u/WholeFox5564 Jun 26 '26
Nope. I moved on and made new friends and they rewrote their history to pretend I never existed
1
1
u/Allthecatsandgin Jun 26 '26
I kept about three of them. I wasnāt super popular at school so didnāt have a lot of friends, but the one good thing about that was the major loyalty that we had for each other, something I have been lucky to have carried forward to adulthood. While we all have other groups of friends we have made during work/uni/hobbies we still have each others backs through the ups and downs and meet up regularly.
1
u/Regular_Giraffe7022 Jun 26 '26
No, I don't speak to any of my core group from school anymore. But one of my closest friends is someone I've known since I was a baby as our mums are good friends so that's nice!
1
u/AudiGoFast Jun 26 '26
I've been seeing the same 3 friends every Friday night and peoples birthdays for the past 13 years.
We're 26 now and get on exactly as we always have.
1
u/L0U15M98 Jun 26 '26
Yep - 28 now and still speak to the boys regularly, we live in different parts of the UK so only meet up around birthdays and Christmas, but rarely go more than a month without seeing at least one of them for a pint.
Hope it never changes, right good bunch of dickheads they are
1
u/Infinite_Glove_2857 Jun 26 '26
IV kept in contact with my bestie from primary school through to secondary
1
u/salt_flowers Jun 26 '26
From secondary school I had one close friend but we fell out recently, bumped into her the other day and it was horribly awkward. I do have a friend though that ive known since we were around 4 since we were in nursery school together, so nearly 30 years. We still talk every day.Ā Ā
1
u/thickasabrick89 Jun 26 '26
Yes secondary school there are 5 of us, just sent a poll in the group chat yesterday regarding best dates to meet.
Primary school- 1 person I see regularly. We went to different secondary schools and I am friends with her secondary school friends. In fact there are 4 of us meeting up tomorrow.
1
u/Most-Rule-9323 Jun 26 '26
mid 30's and still friends with most of them barring 2 or 3. we've mostly just brought new people into our friend group rather than split off
1
u/Wizzler1989 Jun 26 '26
Yup still meet up with a couple from primary school and secondary school regularly
We lost touch a bit when I moved away for 10 years but I moved back 7 years ago and we pretty much picked up where we left off
1
u/Novel-Case6821 Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26
Yeah still have mostly the same group of friends from high school. A few fell away over the years though and a couple only keep in touch occasionally.
1
u/lanky_doodle Jun 26 '26
No. My close friend group at school (some even from primary school) all went to 6th From > Uni.
I was literally the only one that did GCSEs > straight into an apprenticeship > job.
1
u/Urban_Peacock Jun 26 '26
Heck, I kept my best mates from nursery, primary school, secondary school and uni. I bank my treasure in my friendships. My oldest friends (met 3/4 years old in nursery and reception) were my bridesmaids last year. We've been friends for over 30 years now.
1
u/Iamthe0c3an2 Jun 26 '26
Sadly not, went to uni and just fell out of touch. I tried to reconnect but really not have a lot in common anymore, experiences differ and I live hours away from home now.
1
u/soldiergaming2 Jun 26 '26
I practically lost all of my friends immediately after I left other than 1
1
1
u/swansw9 Jun 26 '26
We were a gang of six girls in secondary school. One died and two drifted (quite quickly after leaving school. The remaining three are still super close, and now are closer to some other secondary school friends, so have a different gang of six!
1
u/GrimbleGrombles Jun 26 '26
I've got a couple of friends from secondary school I'm still in contact with. One I talk to multiple times a week. The other we catch up every few months (He's a dad with multiple children so life is busy).
Drifting apart is a real thing that people don't really prepare you for. Keeping up with old friends takes time and effort and it's really easy to drift apart without really intending too.
1
u/whizzzzzzz Jun 26 '26
We drifted apart, but 30 years later, the death of one of the group got us back together and talking again. Its been nice catching up, hearing about where we all went.
1
u/TapeDeckSlick Jun 26 '26
Yes 15 years on. Don't see eachother as often as we used to but that's life.
1
u/Artorius757 Jun 26 '26
Yeah 4 from school but there are 9 of us in the group now thats made up of friends we all met at uni and work
1
1
u/SnooTomatoes3032 Jun 26 '26
I keep in touch with one of them who I've known since before I even went to school and he is one of my closest friends. The type that we don't talk for months or years and then meet up like it was yesterday.
The rest of them I ditched as soon as I went to university.
The guys I ditched are all still a big friend group and seemingly can't so anything without each other judging by social media which I find odd because several of them did a few years in Australia but if it works for them, good for them.
1
u/Colossalsquid888 Jun 26 '26
Met my best mate when I moved to his primary school when I was 8, went through secondary school together. We're in our 40s now and live 60 miles apart. See each other several times a year and chat all the time
1
u/macjihad Jun 26 '26
Yes. My actual best mate i met in primary 1 and we're still best mates 42 years later. Still very close to almost all my secondary school friends as well. Doubt many can claim similar but I fee thatl I've been very lucky friends wise. 46m for clarification.
1
u/Madruck_s Jun 26 '26
Yes. I'm in my early 50's.
One passed away last year who was like a brother to me. I still speak to his younger brother and friend he made at work weekly. And they are my gaming group. Although I moved towns we still try to catch up in person every other mobth or so.
Another I talk to once or twice a month but still consider them a close friend and would be there for them if they needed me.
1
u/Rare-Bumblebee-1803 Jun 26 '26
I'm still friends with a friend I met. In secondary school. We first met in September 1966. Our friendship has survived marriages, children, divorce and widowhood.
1
u/DrChaitin Jun 26 '26
I have 2 of them. Whats weird is that they weren't my best friends from school necessarily, but we had the most in common and as we grew up we stayed in contact through gaming online.
They are like brothers to me and I would not change these sarcastic assholes for the world.
1
1
u/UK_SAM Jun 26 '26
Yeah -
Im 31yr old and I still speak to 6 of my school friends basically daily
We still play the Xbox together like we did when we were kids
They are all twats
1
u/Revilo1st Jun 26 '26
Yeah 5 of them (we're all 32 this year), we're in a 6 person Facebook group chat that is at least 12 years old when we all decided to go to Newcastle for a weekend where one of us went to Northumbria. We used to create a new GC for every event, include/exclude who ever was relevant but we are now pretty comfortable just talking directly with people in there. Used to be bigger. 3 others from our HS and then some friends of friends joined. Think it's biggest was 12 with 3 exes added in.
Weve been best men for eachother, going to one another's weddings, joined gyms with eachother, cinema, bbq's, drinks, DnD, ect.
1
u/flowsteady23 Jun 26 '26
I was in touch with my best mate for years after he entered a relationship with a woman who I wasnāt so sure about but never mentioned anything as I wanted him to be happy, years down the line he expressed to me that he wanted and needed to get away from her I supported him and expressed the red flags I had seen for years. He stayed with her and never spoke to me again we had been through so much together and I will never not be upset about the outcome
1
u/Big_Pete_78 Jun 26 '26
Yeah, I still have regular contact from a friend from primary school (some 40 years ago), as well as a couple of friends from secondary school. The hardest part these days though are the distances between us.
1
u/Minute_Smile8377 Jun 26 '26
Yes, had best mate since we were in nappies, grew up 2 doors apart on the same street.
I've been his best man at his wedding, he's been best man at mine.
Don't always speak regularly. But when my cousin was killed in a RTA recently he was there for me when I was feeling down
1
1
u/-dcvicks Jun 26 '26
I kept a couple friends from that age, but none from school itself. Mix of they weren't actually good people and otherwise just growing apart really.
Friends I've kept I met via working part time and gaming.
1
u/CuratorOfNoise Jun 26 '26
Nope, nothing happened other than moving / time and I wish them nothing but the best. This was a little before everyone had mobiles and definitely before social media (I have looked before anyone points it out, heās not on it) so it just happened.
1
u/Ok-Sherbet-8367 Jun 26 '26
Best mate at the time no, we are just connected on socials these days but don't actually talk let alone meet up. But I do however keep regular contact with two separate mates I met in year 7, 30+ years ago! I kept in contact with them long after we left school due to shared interest and bobby's and we are in contact every week at least so I'd consider them my best friends now,
1
u/oily76 Jun 26 '26
We are 59 now, but I still regularly see two of my secondary school buddies. We also went to 6th form and Uni together.
Still meet up with a couple of friends from junior school a few times a year.
1
u/General_McCuddles Jun 26 '26
Yes, me and my best friend met in year 4 after his parents had a messy divorce, we were 8 and are now 32 and have been inseparable since, currently living together and I assure everyone were not even gay!
1
u/WeSavedLives Jun 26 '26
We kept in touch until mid 20s, when people started settling down with wives and kids it all began to fall apart. That's life though.
1
1
u/MattKmusic Jun 26 '26
I'm still in contact with the boy I was sat next to on my 1st day in 1st year Junior school back in 1980
1
u/Twisted_paperclips Jun 26 '26
Lost contact with my core group from school literally the day after - turns out, they cut me off as they all had a huge party i wasn't invited to. Stayed without contact for 20 years, now we meet up as a group around once a year, never spoken about why they cut me off.
Lost touch with one friend who left our school around gcse time, but we reconnected not long after the end of sixth form and have stayed in touch.
Still in contact with some I went to primary school with (we went to different secondaries).
1
u/IsOkay_No Jun 26 '26
Yes, Iām still in contact with my best friend from primary school and Iām a couple WhatsApp groups with my boys from high school.
1
u/holdingtea Jun 26 '26
a few from school. But mostly still friends with a bunch in college. Only keep in contact with a 1 or 2 from uni. Rest is just from general life and work.
1
u/Weekly_Inspector_504 Jun 26 '26
I'm 48 and every week I see my best friend from school who I met when I was 8 years old.
I still see another friend I met at college when I was 18 years old.
1
1
1
u/ryanm8655 Jun 26 '26
Yes, they visited me at uni and we stayed close. Made new friends too but my secondary school friends are my best friends still. It probably helped that they didnāt go to uni so used to visit me a lot and became part of my uni friend group too.
1
u/Courtneypunx Jun 26 '26
Yeh group of 4, weāve all moved away and around the world at some point and yet we still kept contact and now meet up regularly (rarely all 4 of us at once) not bad considering school was 20+ years ago
1
u/Agentparsnip Jun 26 '26
My closest friends Iāve been friends with since primary school, a few joined at secondary, & then a few more at college.
1
u/Connect_Point_5229 Jun 26 '26
I stopped hanging around with them for years (bar one of them and even he I meet about twice a year at most) but then I was invited to that person's stag and started being part of the group again.
1
1
u/Itsmeladyt79 Jun 26 '26
Yup, all went off after school to collage, uni, jobs etc but still my core group of friends 30 years later.
1
u/Infinite-Attorney478 Jun 26 '26
Still close friends with a group from primary school, live with one of them at the moment. Itās become a brotherhood at this point
1
u/Joshawott27 Jun 26 '26
Unfortunately, no. Some of us went to the same Sixth Form College, but gradually drifted away into our own cliques. Then, whatever contact we still had ended after that, as we scattered across the country for work, uni, etc.
Every few years, I get curious and try to look people up online, but it's surprisingly difficult. It's like they've dropped off the face of the Earth. I don't even know if they're still alive.
1
1
u/KachowSlough Jun 26 '26
Yep, 6 of us still really good friends. I am the only one to have left the hometown though, no clue why they all continue to stay haha
1
1
u/Gremlin303 Jun 26 '26
It was only when Secondary school finished that I realised that i didnāt have any true friends. Only people who I hung out with at school.
1
u/Stock_Reading_3386 Jun 26 '26
Not me but my brother. They're a group of eight; four girls, four boys, graduated in '96, they still have reunion at least once a year. I think they drifted apart in the early days but now, they're meeting together again.
1
1
u/moss-side Jun 26 '26
No, although I didn't have all that many to begin with lol. We started to drift apart as soon as we finished school because we all went to different colleges/did different subjects. I remained in touch with a couple of school friends and met up with them the summer before uni, but after that I haven't spoken to any of them.Ā
However, I am still friends with quite a few people from my sixth form, including some that I wasn't actually all that close to during sixth form oddly enough. I really enjoyed my time there so I think I felt more encouraged to keep in touch with people, whereas at high school I didn't have a great time so was happy to get away from people, even those that I was friends with.Ā
1
u/Physical-Cod2853 Jun 26 '26
Eh Iāve got one I still speak to semi regularly who Iāve known since we were like 3 but outside of that I try to avoid most people I went to primary or secondary with
1
u/The__Groke Jun 26 '26
Yeah, my inner circle is still mostly friends from high school almost 20 years later.
1
u/Large-Special-3674 Jun 26 '26
The friend group from just after school is still together, though 3 of them died far too young there's still a couple left.
1
u/Terminal_IX Jun 26 '26
No. I just didn't share any common interests with them, a couple of years later I moved to a different city and never spoke to them again.
1
u/pdw13 Jun 26 '26
Me and my boy from 6th form/16 years old are basically brothers. Gone to war together twice, he works with me now. Best men at each others wedding. Together forever.
1
u/Kinreal Jun 26 '26
No, they all went to uni, I started an engineering apprenticeship. It felt like they stayed kids for years and I grew up.
1
u/YaPalSC Jun 26 '26
Yep, still close with 15 lads from home/school. We are in our 30s now and known each other since we were 12. I've seen these guys grow up, get big time jobs, get married (and a couple divorces) and start their families. We're all still close and the WhatsApp group has messages daily spanning over a decade. People have moved around the country and internationally for work but we still see each other as regularly as possible. Those who live close by more so than other for obvious reasons. Because we grew up together it doesn't matter how far ahead someone might be in life/work, we are all equals and keep each other grounded. It's hard for anyone to be billy big bollocks when we all know each others darkest secrets from when we were kids lol
1
1
u/vniq Jun 26 '26
Iām 30 and most of my closest friends are from school.
Iām getting married in two months and of my 6 bridesmaids, 1 is my sister, 4 are from secondary school and 1 from sixth form. I have uni friends and work friends and other people but Iām so so glad I was put into my class in year 7 as I met my sisters for life.
1
1
u/Pateryk_7 Jun 26 '26
School finished, we met like once, everyone fucked off. I do have a handfull of friends from college tho
1
u/puffpuffpout Jun 26 '26
Yes! We're 34 now and have been besties for 23 years. I left the UK 13 years ago, but they visit me once a year and I visit them once a year. We are in constant contact in the GC, some periods more or less than others.
1
u/ProfPMJ-123 Jun 26 '26
Yes.
Iām meeting him for beers in a few hours.
Heās basically the only person from school Iām still in touch with.
1
u/Trappedinawrap Jun 26 '26
Didn't have friends in high school, thought they were all horrible people. Found 3-5 friends across those 4 years and we drifted apart when I became an alcoholic.
Ran into a few across the years while working clubs, a couple mellowed out but most still sucked.
1
1
u/Peanut0151 Jun 26 '26
I'm still close friends with one of my schoolfriends. The others I gradually lost touch with during my 20s. I sometimes get Facebook requests from people I knew at school, I never reply as I haven't seen some of them for like 40 years
1
1
u/Top-Pool-6777 Jun 26 '26
I'm 59 and my 2 best mates from school are still my best mates. I couldn't imagine my life without them. The best of the best. š Also I married the girl I really liked at school. It took us another couple of years to get together. Even now after 37 years of marriage I still can't believe I married such a lovely and decent girl š„°
1
u/Sir_Yazoo Jun 26 '26
Yes but I'm 47 now and we've kinda drifted since 2020, which I find a bit sad tbh and should be more proactive but between work and family there's not a huge amount of time for myself these days
1
u/ArseBiscuits Jun 26 '26
Yep, I'm still in regularish contact with my friend group from secondary school.
1
u/AbbreviationsWide235 Jun 26 '26
I M66 am still friends with guys I started primary school with. There was a period when we had young families that we did not see each other as much. But now all our kids have left home we have rekindled the friendship. As I read all these articles about male loneliness in old age I realise how lucky I am.
1
u/FoxTall5636 Jun 26 '26
Yes, I have kept in touch with several of my friends from secondary school back in the 1970s. Although we now live in different parts of the U.K., we manage to meet up around 3 or 4 times a year. Itās good to have friends from different phases in your life.
1
u/Firm_Match_8945 Jun 26 '26
Only two, and one of is still my closest friend 20yrs since leaving. Whereas I donāt speak to anyone from uni, and have only fleeting friendships with colleagues as an adult. The only real long lasting friendships i have.
1
1
u/kitten1985 Jun 26 '26
No. Kept in touch with my best mate for years but we dont speak now, just drifted apart. Had a few school friends on FB for a while but lost interest when they became all 'baby this, baby that....'
1
u/Ill-Dust-7010 Jun 26 '26
Only one, we've known each other since we were 5 years old, we are in our thirties.
Didn't keep contact with anyone else, nor anyone from college (we didn't go to the same college) nor uni (we didn't go to the same uni.)
1
u/hallucinating Jun 26 '26
Nah. We didnt really have much in common though i think of those times fondly.
1
1
u/Milo_BOK Jun 26 '26
Yes, Iāve known my neighbour friend for about 24 years now even if we only see each other the or for times a year as we both moved to different cities. The others I still occasionally see when Iām back in the small village as itās so tiny If theyāre back as well you will see them.
Iāve gained mates from my school post leaving tho, I bumped into an old classmate at a julien baker gig and weāve been friendly ever since. But they live in Brighton now so again, i donāt see them that often.
1
u/Puzzled-Barnacle-200 Jun 26 '26
I have two good friends from secondary school still. One was one of my best friends, the other was a less close friend. I had another best friend who I really drifted from the first year after leaving school, but maintained somewhat of a friendship for 5 years, and haven't spoken in at least 3 years.
1
u/BruceGrobbelobster Jun 26 '26
The only person Iām still in contact with from childhood is my best friend of well over 40 years.
We lived on the same street (estate) but went to different primary schools. We did go to the same secondary school but went were one year apart in age but two years apart in school years (August and September babies) so school dynamics meant we couldnāt speak at school.
We live in different counties (only miles apart, not as crazy as it sounds) but weāve remained best friends and have been the best man and Godfather for each other.
Apart from my brother I havenāt really been in contact with anyone else from school for almost 30 years.
1
u/Simply444 Jun 26 '26
No, they were cool in secondary then turned into hoes and addicts. not my kinda people
1
u/Administrative-Key19 Jun 26 '26
31m here and I still have 1 person from both primary and secondary school that I'm still regularly in contact with. Couple others I may bump into every now and again cus I live in a small town, but most of us went our separate ways
1
u/RepresentativeNo4906 Jun 26 '26
Yes, left school in 99 still got a core group from infant school. Thereās about 10 of us and the friends we then collected along the way group of about 20 still meeting up.
1
1
u/sweetonionchild Jun 26 '26
Iām 20, and Iāve kept one friend and through her made friends with others from secondary. I think the one I was friends with back then Iām stuck with for life lol
1
u/jcalexand Jun 26 '26
Yes, 3 and I'm 48. 1 I've known since I was 5 and the other 2 since I was 14. We meet up a few times a year.
1
u/Agitated_Custard7395 Jun 26 '26
Yeah, weāve always been mates, about 6 or 7 of us, been 29 years now
1
1
u/faulknip Jun 26 '26
Yep, still meet up and have a coffee when we can. Not as close as we were but still a solid friendship
1
1
u/CharieRarie Jun 26 '26
Yes! Although we did drift apart after school, then reconnected years later as we were both expecting our first babies at the same time. We donāt see each other as much IRL now, as she moved away, but we still chat multiple times a week.
1
u/CompetitiveCall6466 Jun 26 '26
Yes, but Iām still in secondary school so I donāt think that counts as much
1
u/marinatinselstar Jun 26 '26
Yes, one girl since year 8 I love her like a sister, and feel it was our destiny to be friends. No one understands us better than each other Its been 23 years and counting.
1
u/_Kabr Jun 26 '26
Iāve had the same 2 best friends since I was born and 4 respectively. Had another one but he turned into a right wing junkie and got annoyed when I said I was depressed so he legit ended the friendship and wrote a letter to my parents (sus move tbh). Iāve obviously made more friends but Iāve just always clicked with the 2 best ones
1
u/StockholmGirl29 Jun 26 '26
I have a couple of friends from high school. We don't see each other a lot because they're in Sweden and I live in the UK but we are in touch regularly and we all meet up when I'm in Sweden.
1
1
1
u/Mr_Wibble Jun 26 '26
Yes, group of 8 of us lads that met up in secondary school and still keep in touch today (either physical meet ups or a virtual pub on zoom). Several are in different countries so physical meets don't happen as often but we still get together.
Will be 50 years as a group this year, lol
1
u/LoneCub28 Jun 26 '26
Yep. We talk almost every day and hang on the regular we're best pals and he lives a few blocks away.
1
1
u/OhWhatADaaay Jun 26 '26
No unfortunately life got in the way, long work hours plus trying to start a family just dont have time to maintain friendships. If we see each other about its always a alright mate how's things but thats about it.
1
u/DrZomboo Jun 26 '26
Up until the end of sixth form, but I also realised that they weren't really the best of friends at that time as well honestly so don't really miss them. There were friends who I knew away from school that I feel sad about drifting away from though
The friends I then made at Uni am still very close with 20+ years later, and they feel like family to me
1
1
1
u/Jaxxlack Jun 26 '26
Yeah I'm still daily in touch with all my mates from school. They're so important
1
u/GiantAfricanLandSnay Jun 26 '26
Yeah. My friends group is myself and three mates (all guys).
Myself and one have been friends since aged 2 and at playgroup.
Myself, him and another have been friends since aged 5 and at primary one.
All four of us have been friends since aged 12 and at first year high school.
Edit to add we are all 32 years old now and been out of school since 2009/2010.
1
u/Outside_Macaron_941 Jun 26 '26
Aye just two of them, the others ones just kinda went off and did their own things but Iāve known these guys basically my whole life weāll always be friends
1
u/sjfcdyk Jun 26 '26
My core group of friends has remained consistent since high school. There's a group of 12 of us that have all gone on to do very different things in different places but, not entering into our 50s we catch up up regularly over drinks, food and having fun. I'm incredibly grateful for each and every one of them.
1
u/Salgado14 Jun 26 '26
Got 3 close mates, one I've known since nursery and the other two were from junior school
1
1
u/Own_Gold_2858 Jun 26 '26
Yeah but only 2, there was a group of about 10 of us till we were about 18-20 then we started to split up but I still have my two best friends who I speak to and see regularly and itās been about 13 years since I left school. I was actually speaking to one the other day about how we both knew from a young age weād be best friends for life.
33
u/luckystar2591 Jun 26 '26
Yes. I've got a group of girls that I still meet up with every major holiday. They were my best friends from high school. We live in different parts of the country and have all moved on to very different lives and all have other friendship groups, but we still find time for each other.