Rice Square, I left school with dire grade CSEs. No O levels. I took my exams two years before GCSEs came into being (Or it may have been the year before my brain escapes me??)
The reason I say this is because as I said before my grades were poor (between two 2s in office practice and spanish, which equate to about D/Es in GCSEs) right down to level 4s in maths and english which are probably Us in GCSEs. As I said earlier I took GCSEs in maths and english and got a B and A but admit I would have loved it to have been an A*! Me thinks my spelling may have let me down there.
Maybe you are the same as I? I've taken courses at the local university in recent years and will be starting an open university degree this year too. Don't give up on yourself. Remember plenty of people did badly in their orignal exams but went on to become extremely successful.
To those who have achieved high grades, well done. Balderdash to those who say the exams have got easier! To those who have revised and worked hard well done, to those who have not - Oh dear.