Part Two: From T.A. to L.O.A in War Zones

HQ AER & Training Centre at Mill Hill ( again) – Jan 60 to Aug 65

Shortly after I arrived Maj Fancourt left and Maj Don London arrived as our new OC, this heralded a modernisation of the workload of Training the “TA Postmen”, S/Sgt Neil Lamb (Lammy) was replaced by S/Sgt Daryl (Taffy) Lloyd, he in turn again by S/Sgt Reg Grimes. WO 2 Jack Rouse arrived as SSM, one of the PTS training staff had previously covered Regimental Training for the AER “ TA “ Postmen.

L/Cpl John Patience was still the RP at the Guardroom, he received his local weekly newspaper from Nairn, which we all read avidly – together with a food parcel, which was also shared around, as we all did, after all these were still National Service days for most of the lads in our accommodation block, I had turned down a wage of £1.2s 6d (£1.12.5p). Having said that, they were also deferred for Professional / University reasons and certainly no slouches when it came to office work, of which there was plenty and even more to come when TA recruiting began in earnest. Roy Stringer (PIB) was from Brighton and invited Dave Smith (1st two – front right on the Admin photo) home for my Stag Weekend and 21st birthday in August 1960, we toured The Lanes etc and had a great weekend. Ken Smith (PIB) was from Plymouth and we travelled home together a couple of times. So although there was a great sense of frustration from those forced to do their two years of NS, largely they got on with it and certainly from the ones that I served with and lived in with, made the most of it.

Returning to duty in October 1960, I was offered an MQ Hiring at South Harrow and worked out the bus routes to/from Mill Hill Broadway, change for Bittacy Hill / Mill Hill East – these same National Service guys were on the ball with a bit of decorating and moving bits and pieces, so as a house warming evening it was beer and pasties all round and I was no longer “Living-In“. Later when I bought my first car after passing my driving test with WO 1 Jack Bullen in the summer of 1962, I was so glad to have Cpl Les Patterson REME (MT at Mill Hill) as a next-door neighbour, up to that point I had paid half my bus fare for a lift with Sgt Cliff Leach (PIB), I had even tried a moped and then a scooter until I came off that in the wet one morning.

Stoking up the Black Stove daily at Mill Hill, stood me in good stead during the winter of 1962 / 63, it started snowing on Boxing Day, our new daughter Lorrinda was not quite 3 weeks old and Marj and I decided to keep the coal fire going in our sitting room, moving our bed and cot in there for about 3 months, the snow was so bad that we had to fetch our own coal, that certainly gave my little Morris extra grip.

With the increased levels of TA members, we took on a fuller role at HQ AER and began visiting our TA Units at summer camp, such as delivering transport from Ashford, Kent to Lancaster after work one Friday – to be there for training from Saturday onwards, we did our normal Admin and Pay over the weekend and back in the office on Tuesday, we also went to Wyke Regis, Weymouth. In the meantime 14 day camps, based on Mill Hill and then out to support at FPOs at TA Camps across the UK continued, the weeks flew by. HQ AER, with the arrival of HPD RE from Gunsite and the demolishing of our wooden huts, was moved to the red brick building by the Guardroom, Capt Bob Bennett had now become OC, it was here in March 1964 that Cpl Brian Green, L/Cpl Scotland and Spr Robson shared the proceeds of the TA payroll, I feel very lucky that I was in RMH Millbank at the time and not offered a fourth share of the robbery.

As the last of our NS went home, they were replaced by such regulars as Pete Askew, Don Calder, Alan Springett, also WRAC clerks – by the end of my tour we had moved yet again to be above 104 PURE and the camp FPO, right next to the WOs and Sgts Mess.

5 Inf Bde PURE, Tidworth / Borneo – Aug 65 to Dec 67

I was promoted to Sgt on posting, arriving at Jellalabad Bks Tidworth, I was quite surprised at a sense of isolation as the only Postie in the Brigade WOs & Sgts Mess, up until this point I had not served with anyone else. Now I was surrounded by R Signals, RMP, RCT, REME etc – Senior Rank representatives of all the Units that make up a Brigade Headquarters. Our OC was Capt Frank Lea with whom I found a very easy working relationship and babysat at Ludgershall for them on many evenings. I saw Sgt Reg Peacock at the office but he was married and we left him behind, to be replaced on posting by Sgt Bill Skeel, when in November we set off via Singapore for Sibu, Sarawak.

To occupy our time before then, Brigade exercised us to make sure of our role, we knew what ours was – Sigs were OK back in camp, 4 miles down the road, parked in a wood was a very different matter – sorry no coms!. On Wednesdays we just had enough in the Unit for a soccer team, leaving a duty-clerk behind, we enjoyed ourselves, it was certainly team-spirit building, besides that we went on carefully constructed map reading exercises, ensuring there was a pub lunch at the halfway stop.

We were to be called HQ Mid West Brigade once we arrived, being the advance party, Capt Lea and I flew from Changi to Sibu, via Kuching in a wave-hopping “Bristol Frightener” ( I think that’s nearly the right spelling !) With 19 Bde occupying all of the Airfield Camp accommodation until the MV Auby arrived with our main party, one-off / one on – so that we could move in, in the interim we were put into air-conditioned hotels in down-town Sibu! Once the FPO lock stock and the barrels were ours and the Auby was at the dock, the exchange was made, our 12-month unaccompanied tour had begun.
The working day was until 6.30 am to 3.0 pm unless our mail plane was late, it was considered to be too hot after that, at Sibu we felt reasonably safe from the Malaysian / Indonesian war that we were on the fringes of, however, our Unit detachment at Simmangang received his mail via the local bus service as it was too dangerous for military convoys to go up and down on a frequent basis.

In Sibu town, the resident Regiment was a KOSB Regt and on New Year’s Eve, the Bde Mess was invited down for Hogmanay celebrations, as the popular Postie (I hope we all were, wherever we served) I was treated very well. Another social occasion that we enjoyed was a Mess outing to see“ The Sound of Music“, for a small town in the middle of nowhere, it boasted 3 modern hotels, a cinema with air-con, an Olympic sized swimming pool, which we made much use of with transport almost every day.

Christmas morning saw the traditional serving of tea laced with rum by those Mess members, not on duty, we followed this with a Sports Day, our Mess versus The Officers Mess, in the Tug-of-War we managed to tie our end of the rope around the bumper of a strategically placed Land Rover and duly pulled the Officers through the mud hole that was the entrance to the MT lines. Whilst the Brigadier ensured all got ready for the Christmas Lunch, it was my turn to go to the Airport to collect the inward Air Mail, I was allowed to tell the Brig. that the UK connection at Changi had missed that morning, so there was no Mail on Christmas Day, I successfully dodged the flying Tiger beer cans as I beat a retreat!

After Christmas R & R leave was available and once again the Auby put in a regular appearance, 2 days to cross to Singapore – unnerving to watch a Western Movie on the open deck under the starry skies when the ship is rolling along. Onto the night sleeper train to Kuala Lumpur – don`t confuse this with anything you may have been on in the Western World – 40 mph top speed, curtains for privacy for your tiered wooden slatted beds, arranged lengthways down both sides of the rail coach, with newly joining passengers twitching them to see if yours is empty, I don`t think many of us slept much – maybe we had had a drink to calm our nerves and we didn`t know about it anyway! Changing trains at KL we finally reached Georgetown Penang, for the NAAFI`s very own Sandycroft Leave Centre, the bar hours were very well organised – 10.0 am to 3.0 pm, then that one shut and the other opened 3.0 pm to 10.0 pm. When I returned to duty I went to another detachment on Labuan Island so that Bill Skeel could go for his R & R, they had their FPO and accommodation in a private house on the edge of the Military camp.

In August 1966 Malaysia and Indonesia signed a peace treaty, as a result, we were given just 3 few weeks to pack up and get out! What we, as a Brigade could not shift, we buried. The Auby duly arrived and RSM Simpson made me the Orderly Sgt on my birthday, just to keep an eye on me as we sailed downriver, then on towards Singapore, we stayed in Nee Soon Transit camp for 3 weeks whilst Brittania Airways organised some aircraft for us, we waved goodbye to the Brig, his chief of staff, half of the Sigs Sqn and so on, only 2 days later it was our turn to wave to them in Kuwait – they had broken down half-way home. Capt Lea was replaced by Capt Colin Pawson, a rally enthusiast, so as his volunteer navigator, I took on some interesting duties in 1967! Brigade life resumed and we exercised all over the UK, especially remembered is the wettest I have ever been in South Wales and a chance to see Sunderland play Notts Forest when we visited Otterburn Ranges, slipping up over Carter Bar and crossed the border for a cup of Scottish Tea in Jedburgh. The daily mail runs to/from Newcastle were augmented with the collection of freshly baked pies, the pick-up was in Gateshead, duly authorised of course. The Pies were for eating after the evening film show and paid for by the PRI, needless to say, the driver/courier had one each forgoing, as well as a pease-pudding sandwich!

On posting to Hannover, just before Christmas 1967, I took delivery of a left-hand drive Ford Anglia, I had to have white, the only colour available – the reason being that 3 weeks later they unveiled the Ford Escort!

RAF Salalah, Muscat & Oman – Nov 71 to Aug 72

Moving from Celle to the dusty heat of the Persian Gulf was quite a cultural shock, although I had had some dealings with the RAF in Rheindahlen, to join a WOs and Sgts Mess where the SWO was king, despite the presence of a WO1 R.A. – was something else. Built at the end of the M.1 – our name for the Sultans` escape road, should he ever be under threat whilst at his Summer Palace, the only tarmac stretch of road for miles around, the local foothills seemed just outside the station perimeter but in fact, they were 7 miles away. When the Green Archer radar system picked up an aerial threat to our RAF Station, the siren sounded the alarm – if in the open you had to get down one of the many underground bunkers, if inside a concrete building to stay put and sit on the floor against a wall – until the all-clear sounded.

Friday is the local “ Sunday” and so all farewell parties were organised on the 1st Thursday evening in the month. The “Maas Salaam” of July 1972 will long be remembered by me, because it was the first occasion that the Arab Terrorists, secreted in those foothills, actually landed 3 rounds inside the RAF perimeter, injuring several personnel. Their subsequent arrival back in the UK for treatment led to the admission by the MOD, of the true identity of The British Army Training Team, assisting The Sultan in his Dhofar province.

The mail system into Salalah from the UK was via Cyprus, we had a fresh fruit & veg re-supply twice a week by RAF Hercules and that usually brought the Parcel mails, otherwise, we had a scheduled daily link from RAF Masirah. All planes arrived at a designated space between rows of oil drums, on difficult days they never switched their engines off and no one stayed longer than necessary on our blacked-out base, all roads and paths had whitewashed stones at their sides to help show the way at night. RAF Air movement staff answered to the name: Yimkin Airways (Maybe), “Will there be a flight with mail on for me today? Yimki!”

Medical facilities on camp were provided by RAMC personnel on a 4-month stint in the shape of an FST, I got on very well with our Mess Medics and largely did with the 2 Officers – one Lt Col Surgeon was actually a TA Officer and a great guy – except when some re-wrapping had gone on back at Broken Packets section at Mill Hill, I had sorted his monthly magazine in that day’s post and he collared me in the Wobbly Wheel all ranks club that evening, he hit me over the head with his magazine and then threw it at me:

“Where`s my Bloody Playboy, John?” I picked up the Parish News from the floor, “Well Colonel, what do you think the Padre made of opening his wrapper!!”

The mortuary refrigeration plant for the FST was next to our Mess, we all knew what that sound meant.

Joe Brown & the Bruvvers came to entertain us in May, they performed and left again that same afternoon for the safety of RAF Masirah. Cpl Mick Herriven or I went to Masirah weekly for Courier exchanges, they also had an all-ranks club “The Crazy Horse”, S/Sgt Brian Rowney was there, then later Eddie Stuart and Cpl Bob Moonie. Thursday afternoons were quite often spent at The Indian Club, the scrub runway and camp roads were kept tidy by an Engineer Squadron, the Plant was largely operated by men from India and Pakistan, they produced a wonderful assortment of Curries for invited guests, 2 years later Jack Griffiths was also invited to lunch. S/Sgt John Harwood took over from me in August 1972, after leave I was heading for Rheindahlen.

HQ Ghurka Cantonment, Dharan Nepal – Feb 76 to Apr 76

Please read our Posthorn issue 15 of March 2005, for previously described details of this short detachment to BFPO 4.

Part Three (and last): Exercising on Alt for Retirement

Ex FPO – Berlin & Brussels – 1967

L/Cpl Chippy Carpenter and I went from Tidworth, to celebrate The Berlin Tattoo and then British Week Brussels, WO i/c Maurice Timmins and his guys made us welcome and looked after us very well, even Capt Sullivan The Irish Guards Admin Officer for the whole trip was pleased with our service, the tattoo was marred for us on the opening night when the Helicopter lifting a huge Union Jack Flag suspended beneath it high above the Olympic Stadium, got caught in a gust of wind and dropped the flag for safety reasons, killing a peanut vendor, in the otherwise empty end above the entrance gates, as all of the assembled Military personnel were in the centre of the stadium, ready to begin when all of the stadium lights came on.

Moving the Bands, Guardsmen and Admin etc down to Brussels was completed by train and we then moved into Belgian National Service accommodation, consisting of iron bunk beds with straw mattresses, the food was awful but Capt Sullivan was unmoved until we Posties started taking orders for outside food to be brought back to camp when we went on our mail runs! Things were brought to a head when `Tony Armstrong-Jones, representing Princess Margaret became involved – A Guardsman truthfully answered his question about their conditions – he contacted the Breweries involved in the Pub displays “ Down-town ”, very quickly a “ Thank-you buffet-style effort “ was arranged and all the dust settled.

Ex FPO – Mourmilon le Grande, France from Celle – Aug 70

What a slog it was going from Celle to near Reims in convoy – we had a French Police escort for the final few hours, I think that was worse after 30 / 40 mph all day, now in the dark, everything was segregated into speed groups and all our Landrovers were asked to keep up with their motorcycles and off we chased with eyes on matchsticks.

Next morning first things first, we found the local Post Office, when I went in, there were no vehicles around us, I came out and asked my Driver to reverse, he did so over the front wheel of the local policeman’s scooter, which had not been there a moment before – we had the best day of the exercise in his company while we scrounged enough money to pay for his wheel repairs, never moving from the Village Square until after lunch-time, where a licensed Café was very conveniently situated next door to the repair shop. The Postal arrangements and the deliveries France / Hohne worked very well to/from the R.A. Regiments` base.

One excursion was to the nearby Cathedral at Reims followed by a tour and taste of the local Champagne cellar. The day before leaving, there was an international soccer match between our parent RA Regt and the local French garrison, from memory (I have the highlights on silent cine film) I think it was a 3 – 3 draw. The military band, organised for the event, would not have gone down well on Horse Guards Parade!! One would hope that they were recruits that part of my film would still bring plenty of amusement upon viewing. Thankfully I negotiated a “Free run” home, just in time for the August Bank Holiday weekend.

 

All Arms Drill Course, Guards Depot, Pirbright – Jan to Mar 71

With the UK Post Office on strike, the only way to keep in touch with my family back in Celle was by the telephone (no mobiles in those days), so each Saturday morning we had a chance to say hello, except for one – The Commandants Drill Parade. I was a Staff Sgt at the time and The Guards have no equivalent rank, much to the frustration of their training staff.  Apart from the usual: left turn / right turn, arms drill, burial party (that was unusual), etc etc, with words of command lost to the frequent noise of the nearby railway line, surely one of the busiest in England, we had to learn to march to music for this once-a-course Saturday special, the Married Quarters occupants barely twitched a curtain as the familiar music once again filled their homes, as we prepared for The Big One.

Saturday began with flurries of snow, we sheltered in the drill sheds on the side of the square, the Guards Depot trainees fell in and soon it was our turn, sure enough, the snow stopped, just as our Welsh Guards Sgt foretold!! The band was already formed up and drum beat by drumbeat we were all ready for “His nibs”, confident that when the music started – you can only hit that drum just so fast and surely we could keep up with – 2 drummers?, my sympathies went out to the WO1 RA about to become RSM of the Junior Leaders Depot in Scotland, although he was to be a figurehead, with instructors performing all training duties, as RSM he had to have completed this course, at 40+ and a little overweight, his shirt collar gradually changed colour as his sweat began to run – no different this day.

This 6 weeks course took all of us straight back to basic training, some rooms even had curtains folded to 4-inch pleats and ironed to stay that way, never to be pulled by night, best boots placed on top of the clothes chest at the foot of the bed, ashtray upside down in the centre of the bedside table, waste paper basket – immaculate I lost over a stone, plus all the hairs from both legs and never got into that uniform again once I returned to Germany, that`s Guards Depot tailoring for you!

Ex FPO – Exercise Harebell, Jutland Denmark – Apr / May 71

How privileged I was to see the Allies original liberation of 4 May 1945, recreated on the 26^th anniversary in the town of Haderslev. That evening the Allies had liberated this little Danish town, just 54 km from the German border, as they passed by from house to house a lighted candle appeared in a window, this was repeated in 1971, window by window, including all the windows of our host Barracks, from top to bottom, one-by-one, a spectacle that remains long in my memory.

At the briefing session at 3 Royal Anglian Regt in Paderborn, we had been tipped off that Scotch would be a very good Barter in Denmark and so it turned out, Black Label changed hands at around £ 13.00 a bottle, compared to our duty-free allowance price back in Celle.

Our Postal arrangements were simple and straightforward with Spr McNulty at the wheel, mails were exchanged at Haderslev PT, weighing and enclosing our Air Mails at 16.15 each day, via the train to Copenhagen, we collected our inward mails at 8.15 am. In fact, we got on so well with the PO Staff that we were both socially invited out to two staff homes, additionally the Danish host Coy took us to Legoland for a day excursion, now of course sold by the tonne in Toy Shops worldwide.

West Rhine Sqn, Rheindahlen – Oct 72 to Nov 74

With a population of around 23,000 people, it is no wonder that Rheindahlen was known as “Little England”, on camp we had the use of 2 cinemas, a theatre, an Olympic sized swimming pool, 8 primary schools and 2 secondary schools. There were 8 soccer pitches for Army use, plus those for the RAF and other Services stationed there, the biggest NAAFI shop in the World – with a smaller one down in South West Extension. Life was always going to be busy anywhere near The Big House, as HQ BAOR was affectionately known, add to that, HQ RAF Germany was by the garrison church.

My Mess accommodation was at Ayrshire Barracks, there were only about a dozen living in, one daily highlight was assembling in the TV lounge to watch Sesame Street on German W3 at 6.0 pm in English, woe betides if our evening meal was late; such were the demands of a simple mess life – a TV show. Meanwhile, the Garrison Mess strength was such, that all meetings were staggered to get everyone in, socially there were German Bars nearby for well-attended Unit get-togethers.

Capt Bill Whiting handed WRS over to Capt Bernard Miles during my tour, Pat Marshall was WO i/c FPO Rheindahlen with Ted Ottoway as his WO2 in the Sorting Office, Dennis Sweeney ran the FPO in the depths of The Big House – Frank (Tex) Metexas was his Counter Clerk and I was WO i/c the Shopping Centre FPO in Trenchard Road with Bill Popples and Heidi Seeman on the counter, surrounded by Military and German Shops, the Malcolm Club (RAF) and WRVS lounges, opposite our very own Garrison BP Garage – when I eventually moved into a MQ in South West Extension, it was a 40-minute walk to the FPO.

The Christmas rush was so busy that we were allowed to move next door into The Malcolm Club, extra Counter Clerks loaned from Pat, Lady Tuzo was a regular customer, recognisable the first time as being accompanied by her husbands` RAF Sgt Driver, I cannot recall Gen Sir Harry coming in, although we all met him when he opened the new buildings at the main Office. Lady Tuzo was very nice and very complimentary on how well we coped, whilst standing in line, loaded down with her parcels. Another surprise I had whilst on the counter myself, was to take a Deposit into a National Savings account, opened in the village where I went to school, I recognised the name as being a lad at school with me, his wife was as surprised as I was – and so we schoolboys met for the first time since 1948. Maj Dennis (Stroller) Streatfield was in The Big House PCS branch with SSgt Jack Griffiths, a Sunday morning Soccer Team was organised – to be formed from the FPO staff in and around BFPO 40, which we called The Rheindahlen Rejects.  We had to use “Guest players” such as Chris Goodwin and John Peters from time to time, but the usual run-out consisted of these, that I can remember.

1974 The Rheindahlen Rejects 8 Command at Dusseldorf.

l to r: John Peters, Chris Goodwin, Col JW (Joe) Holmes (DDPCS HQ BAOR), Roger Williams, Alan Stanley, Dennis Streatfield, John Jackett  Dixie Dean (Dvr RE att.), Dennis Sweeney,

Fred Toker, Jack Griffiths, Ted Ottoway, Steve Ford.

Jim Brokenbrow, Jack Griffiths, John Jackett, Gerry Maguire, Ted Ottoway, Dennis Streatfield, Dennis Sweeney, Fred Toker, Graham Warden, and Barry Wilding. Capt Tweedie Brown usually reffed for us, Pat Marshall carried a wet sponge and a large hip-flask, his daughter Jane the tray of oranges for half-time. Our fame must have spread, we were challenged by 8 Command at Duss, see photo, also Cpl `Eck Horsborough invited us to a weekend match in Brunsum Belgium.

8 CPCCD RE  Dusseldorf – Jan 77 to Mar 80

No married quarters were available so it was once again into Mess accommodation in HQ Rhine Area, one soon got used to the roar of the Airport next door, very soon our company was much enlivened with the arrival of SSgt Dick Inkpen, I mention him particularly as he Barbara and boys eventually lived a couple of doors away, I was very sad in May 1984 to be told that he had collapsed and died on the COs cross-country run at Mill Hill. The whole family had spent their Easter break with us in Cornwall, just a few days earlier, his photo – probably the last one taken – pasty and pint in each hand – exemplified his attitude to living life to the full, the fact that he died whilst RSM of Mill Hill and at the back of the run encouraging the last man, says it all for me.

 WO1 (RSM) Dick Inkpen – April 1984 in Cornwall, just a week before he died.

HQ Rhine Area was straight in front of you as you came into camp, with the WRAC block and Officers Mess to your left, the Wos & Sgts Mess to your right and then the road turned to the right beside the sports field, looking at the Airport through the trees as you made your way past all the accommodation blocks, the gym and finally the “sharp end “.

Lt Col Len Calcutt was CO, Majors John Cobb and then Andy Murray looked after the Sorting Office end of things, RSMs were Ernie Tomlin and then Bob Davidson, WO1 Len Perkins and myself looked after The Depot and ERS alternately, Lt Nick Wand had just arrived at ERS, WO2 Jack Griffiths was keeping my chair warm and then he went over to HQ to be the Chief Clerk. We dined Ernie out, together with WO2 Brian Lowe and Sgt Alf Manship on 12 Oct 1979. Alt beer seems peculiar to the Rhine areas of Germany, the Old Town area of Dusseldorf, in particular, was a wonderful mishmash of street cafes and bars, often frequented by both ERS and WRS senior ranks, with Pete Cussons and George Nicholson travelling miles to join us on some evening excursions.

ERS – 11 FPOs to Audit, Survey and administrate, ranging from RAF stations to one-man Army camp FPOs, as far down as Emblem Belgium, we dreaded a late afternoon phone call “ We can`t balance! “ Quarterly Postal Surveys were fine, all built into our weekly schedule, for which an early start was understandable – about 4.30 am for a surprise call on WO 2 Fergy Ferguson and his team at Emblem, I don`t know where they came from but their bacon sarnies were second to none, certainly making that early start worthwhile – if it was simply 20 mins up the Autobahn to Krefeld then breakfast was much more civilised. My coldest car drive ever, occurred when our unit Mini windscreen shattered on my way back from Belgium, it was summer, after clearing away all of the glass, I opened the passenger side rear window to allow the air to escape – only those who have had this experience will realise how cold it can be. Account Audits were usually carried out at midday, to save disruption to customers.

“Duss” – being the next smaller to HPD RE in size of workload, took some looking after. The Depot staffing had to supply 18 morning Courier runs, carrying Air Mail and UK Newspapers as well as Classified and Surface mails from 6 containers per week, most times 2 a day in Nov / Dec in the Christmas build-up. Afternoon courier runs were slightly less, add to that 3 night TRS runs – Mails Branch staff, Civilian Sorters, AV 7 and Newspaper Clerks, RLE and FCO offices, random Customs checks by the BFS – you start to get an idea of where the requirement of 83 daily staff came from.

Capt Andy Quinn and Dick Inkpen organised a Unit day at our MT lines at Scotton Barracks, with Volleyball, Darts, Rallying and of course a Bar B Que. It proved to be a great day out and very well attended.

Grobbendonk, Belgium – Now come on, a great many of us must have been down there surely? – I went twice, according to my little red book. Photos were not allowed but almost anything else was, it was a great tribute to Postal that HQ Rhine Area took on board, several of our Training NCOs to add to their Admin Inspection Team. Brig Moore later came to Cornwall on retirement from the Army and he had to handle the considerable public tributes and donations following the Penlee Lifeboat Disaster, working for Penwith District Council at Penzance.

7 Jul 77 – The Queen’s jubilee was celebrated in style by us all, with street parties in Kalkumer Str and other MQ areas, Ernie and a unit working party turned the gym into a fabulous evening occasion and the date was truly celebrated.

1 May 79 – 8 CPCCD RE became 3 PC Regt RE, we put on an even better show again led by Ernie – with fellow committee members Mick Pickard, Paul “Lofty” Brooks, Alec Fensome, Fred Wright and Sgt Di Waddington WRAC, this time we went to The Rhinestern Penta Hotel, coaches were laid on from all the MQs, 3 PC Regt got off to a flying start.

12 Jan 80 – New Year Dance, my last Unit function in BAOR was at the same hotel, this time the comperes were – Mick Buckley, Jimmy Craig, Jim Brady and Pete Golightly. In March, Mick Kimberley and I held a combined farewell party in the Mess, the list is too long of who was there, it was a great night and we have the photos to prove it.

In March 1980 moving back to Mess life at South Cerney UK from Duss meant a joint leaving party with Mick & Lynn Kimberley, pictured at the bar –WO 1 (RSM) 3 PC Regt Bob Davidson, Rhine Area RSM Dave Robinson R.A Mick Kimberley, Len Cook (RE Long service), Terry Hughes, Mick Buckley and Graham Stewart.

A joint leaving party with Mick & Lynn Kimberley, pictured at the bar –WO 1 (RSM) 3 PC Regt Bob Davidson, Rhine Area RSM Dave Robinson R.A., Mick Kimberley, Len Cook (RE Long service), Terry Hughes, Mick Buckley and Graham Stewart

2 PC Regt, South Cerney Glos – Apr 80 to Mar 81

Taking the opportunity to serve my last 12 months in the UK, with interviews and civilian-based courses towards retirement stretching in front of me, I joined Lt Col Peter Westcott and Maj Geoff Manning, with Barry Wilding as SSM. As RSM 2 PC Regt, WO i/c UK Postal Inspections and base accountant for all Ex FPOs worldwide, I was hardly there, on reflection it is not surprising that it was not repeated for another WO to do the same, in fact, The Falklands War was just a few months away.

2 PC was also fragmented in other ways, our Sqns were all over – Hong Kong, Cyprus and Northern Ireland, with nearby Bulford our only UK based men, besides our handful of UK Couriers and Postal Inspection team-based with us at `Cerney.

Barry and I went at the end of May as an advance party to Monmouth, to organise Map Reading through The Forest of Dean, rafting and paddling on the River Wye, Soccer matches – in fact “A week In The Country”. The first week of June was very pleasant weather, ideal to spend under canvas and on the water for our Mill Hill visitors.

June 1980 – Military Training week at Monmouth on Wye, this crew won the water race – Jim Steer and Eddie Smith at the bow

Postal Inspections all over the UK as well as sorting out any Postal problems for UK based Military Units and Organisations, gave me the opportunity to visit Catterick Garrison. Whereas Tidworth had been 11 Barracks, one after each other at the side of a straight road from end to end, Catterick was built around a crossroads, with Barracks in each direction from there, luckily the local GPO was just at the crossroads and I had arranged to make this my first stop and had notes to hand, as I fanned out to those Units / Regts requiring my Pre-Admin report on that visit. My week-long programme was mapped out as, starting from `Cerney, up through Lincolnshire, across The Humber and so up into Yorkshire, usually managing 4-5 inspections per day. The next programme would be – let’s say, to the South and so on, to avoid the inspection staff going over the same ground.

South Cerney was the site of a wartime airfield and was still used by the local RAF Glider club, the perimeter road made an ideal BFT circuit.

The RCT were host Unit and ran The Messes, the old Nissan huts were used as pre-flight check areas before reporting to RAF Lyneham or Brize Norton, both fairly close by, for Units about to go on Overseas Exercise and so on. The lovely Cotswold town of Cirencester was close by and to go north, the option was the Fosse Way across the Cotswolds and up through Stow-on-the-Wold and so on – a lovely area of Central England.

For me, it was the opposite direction, south to the M.4 and on to Bristol and then the M.5 to Exeter and then the A.30 – home to Cornwall.

Acknowledgement

I am very grateful to the following members and wives of the Postal and Courier Section of the Corps of Royal Engineers, for differing amounts of input to these articles and who have very kindly allowed me to include their memories of our overlapping service periods together.

John Corrigan
Derek and Muriel Ewen
Jack Griffiths
John and Betty Jackson
Lou Lister
Geoff Manning
Barbara Stevenson (formerly Mrs RJ Inkpen)
Graham and Rita Warden

By 23664986 Sapper Manning GR

The recent demolition of Inglis Barracks at Mill Hill brought back many memories of my first arrival in Inglis Barracks.

In August 1959 I reported to 1 Training Regiment Royal Engineers, Farnborough, for my basic training. I had originally joined the Sappers, as a 17- year old, to be trained as a welder (my trade before joining up), but it was discovered that I was colour blind and therefore was unable to continue in that trade, so I was ‘sold’ the idea of becoming a ‘Postal Worker’. There were two of us in this category, Jimmy McNicholas being the other.
After our six-weeks basic training, plus two weeks ‘cook house’ duties (annual admin inspection was due), we were duly given our posting order to Home Postal Depot, Gunsite Camp, with a rail warrant to Shepherds Bush, London.

On alighting at Shepherds Bush underground station we were advised by the ticket collector to go back down to the platform and get a train to White City, which we duly did. Our next problem was to find our way to Gunsite Camp!

The underground staff at White City were very helpful with this; ‘turn right out from the station, go 200 yards until you come to Du Cane Road, turn left, walk down this road, past Hammersmith Hospital until you come to Wormwood Scrubs Prison and then follow the little road between the prison and the hospital and you will arrive at the camp’.
Some 30 minutes later, on a boiling hot mid September day, we duly arrived at the camp gates wearing battle dress uniform and FSMO (Field Service Marching Order) and carrying full kit bags!!
(As an aside, this small roadway is where the lorry was parked that George Blake used to aid escape from Wormwood Scrubs).

Upon checking in at the Guard Room we were directed to the orderly room by the RP staff – who somehow neglected to tell us that that it was forbidden to walk along the headquarters veranda to the orderly room!! After a sound ticking off we were duly sent back to the guard room whereupon we were directed to go around the NAAFI Block to reach the orderly room!! When eventually reporting in we were told that we would have to go to Inglis Barracks, Mill Hill for our Trade Training.

Luckily the next day a vehicle was going to the workshops at Mill Hill for repair and we were given space on this. This vehicle was a clapped-out WWII TCV (Troop Carrying Vehicle) driven by Cpl Graham Warwick, (the Silver Fox), which kept breaking down every few miles or so, including whilst crossing the North Circular Road, which blocked the traffic in both directions until we managed to push it to the side and get it started again.

We were due to report to the RE AER (P) (Army Emergency Reserve) (Postal)) Training Centre huts in Inglis Barracks and our driver, in his wisdom, decided to go into the barracks via the back gate off Partingdale Lane but the vehicle finally gave up outside the married quarters in Frith Lane, we were then directed to continue on foot for the remainder of the way carrying our full equipment through the area of the married quarters!!

Eventually Jimmy Mac and I reported into AER HQ, whose responsibilities also included the administration of the training school. Sergeant Neil Lamb was the Chief Clerk and I believe that Major Sidney Fancourt was the OC. We were told that the next course wasn’t due to start for another two weeks and in the meantime we would be put to work in the cookhouse! After a couple of days cleaning cooking utensils in the Tin Bash Room and having already spent two weeks after finishing basic training peeling potatoes we were, to say the least, a little cheesed off, so Jimmy Mac and I asked if we could go on leave for a few days. Much to our surprise this request was granted!!

On reporting back to Mill Hill the remaining Postal Trainees had now arrived and we started our B3 Postal Worker Course. Our instructors were Sergeants Lofty Edwards, Joe Barclay and Len (Wipp- Warp) Goodall – so called because when taking drill he would call the marching time as ‘Wipp, Warp’ instead of calling the normal ‘Left, Right.

B3 PTS Course Mill Hill September 1959
Front Row: 4th from right Sgt Joe Barclay (Instructor), far end George Hume
Back Row L to R: Dave Bowers, Geoff Manning, Derek Watt, 6th Jimmy McNicholas, 7th Derek Swindell

Inglis Barracks in 1959, was in the main, occupied by the Middlesex Regiment with the RE Postal AER HQ, the Postal Training School, and the Brigade Postal Units (PURE), namely, 16 Para PURE, 19 Inf Bde PURE, and 1 Gds Bde PURE sharing the barracks. The bottom, wooden hutted camp, was occupied by10 Command Workshops REME.
Inglis Barracks consisted of three main barrack blocks A, B and C. A and B Blocks were the domain of the Middlesex Regiment with C block occupied by the Royal Engineers. C Block was demolished in 1960/1 to make way for new WRAC accommodation blocks and admin area.

The AER huts where somewhere in the region of the WRAC Sergeants’ Mess. The PTS huts where in the area of the Medical Centre and the Brigade PURE’s were located part-way down the hill from the Training School and overlooking the building which was to become the new HPD Sorting Office.
One of the problems young soldiers encountered at Inglis Barracks was that if we wanted to leave barracks we had to book out via the Middlesex Guard Room. As we had been in the Army for less than 6 months we, in 1959, had to wear uniform both on and outside barracks, therefore, when leaving barracks we were subjected to a rigorous inspection by the Regimental Police staff before being allowed to leave!! If I recall rightly our own Sapper on the RP staff, John Patience, was not much better than the Middlesex RP’s!!

This is nearly the end of my memories of Mill Hill as on finishing our class work we would have to go to do our practical test in the sorting office that was: ‘sorting 1000 letters in one hour with only a permitted 10 mis-sorts’. This entailed a move back to Gunsite Camp. Apart from attending B2 and B1 courses and a few other short visits I did not return to Inglis Barracks until 1974.
The Home Postal Depot Sorting Office was located in an old warehouse in Gorse Lane, Park Royal, North Acton some 15 minutes’ drive away along the A40 from Gunsite Camp. This is where the TCVs, as previously mentioned, came in as they were used to ferry us to and from the camp to our place of work, and back again for meal breaks.

My first impressions of the ‘Sorting Office’ was certainly on eye opener – bags of surface parcel and surface mail destined for all parts of the world, stacked from floor to ceiling. No containerisation in those days. Germany mails were moved to Liverpool Street station on a daily basis to connect with the Troop Train. Other mails were taken to the London Docks for loading onto ships. If you were unfortunate enough to be mail guard on one of these you could wait many hours at the docks to be unloaded!!
This was also the place where I was really introduced to girls! Being a country boy from the North of Essex I had not come across this number of young girls working in one place – quite an eye opener for someone not used to the ways of the world! The girls, members of the Women’s Royal Army Corps, were mainly employed on letter sorting duties. They lived in barracks in Richmond Park and were bussed in daily to work.

Although, as trainees, we were mainly employed in sorting parcels and surface packets during this final period of our training but we all duly passed our sorting test and we became fully fledged B3 Postal Workers and allocated to a permanent section, in my case, SO3. Frank (Ginger) Conlon was the Section Sergeant and Mick Berry was the section Corporal. The three sections worked the Sorting Office on 24/7 shift pattern. 12 weeks on weekly alternative on an early or late shift to be followed by a straight run of six weeks on night shift. The night shifts were fine after the first week when you became attuned to the sleep pattern and it was always the busiest.

New members of the section were usually tasked with Mail Guard duties. This entailed riding in the back of a Bedford RL truck visiting all the main London rail stations and sorting offices to collect mail labelled for Home Postal Depot or HPD. You were in trouble you if you had picked up a bag not addressed as such!! Riding in the back of the truck was to ensure that no mail was ‘lost’ on the way back to the sorting office as the trucks were soft top vehicles and had no rear doors to secure the mail. If you were brave enough you would ride in the front with the driver until just before reaching the sorting office when you would jump out and get into the back for the last mile or so. Before doing this you would check to see who the Orderly Sergeant was as one or two of them would make a point of going out to check the routes!!

After 6 months in the army we were entitled to a Permanent Pass which allowed young soldiers to wear civilian clothes both inside and outside of camp. To be given this it was necessary to parade outside the orderly room to be inspected in our civilian clothes to ensure that they came up to an acceptable standard! Approval was given by RSM John Corrigan and the Pass would be duly signed by the Adjutant, Major Bert Peasley.

Although we were working shift work we still had to do a fair share of Guard Duty at Gunsite. One of the duty points was the Main Gate from where you had a view of the nurse’s quarters at Hammersmith Hospital. You always kept an eye on this in case a careless nurse forgot to close her curtains! I never spotted anything, but one or two said they did, but I am not too sure about that! Another duty was patrolling the parameter fence and the old gun sites, very often you come across a couple that had missed their way to the cookhouse and had ended in the area of the gunsites!!
During my time in Gunsite a few of us were selected to trial the new uniform, (now known as No 2 Dress) to replace the Battle Dress, great: no need to blanco belts and gaiters or to polish brasses. This entailed being measured for a suit, wearing it for duty at all times and parading outside the Quartermaster Stores once a month for the uniforms to be checked to see how they stood up to wear and tear.

During the summer of 1960 I was posted to 19 Inf Bde PURE and that was my last period of working at Home Postal Depot until 1974! Looking back, I realise how lucky I was on being ‘sold’ the idea of joining RE Postal as I had some very good postings and I think a reasonable successful career throughout my service with REPCS.