The Deep Black Shadow

The doorway filled with a deep black shadow, and the great figure of the huge grey stallion entered the small stable, head held high, nostrils flared, sniffing the air, seeking out whatever had invaded his space. In the hayrack above the manger the small boy drew back in fear as the huge animal ambled up, […]

The Army Knows Best

Whilst stationed in Gibraltar, I decided that marching was not really the way my career in the Army should be directed. I would be much better off in the Motor Transport section – riding was preferable to walking. One day a notice appeared stating that corporals were required for transfer to other duties, any one […]

Sandringham Duty

During that beautiful sunny summer in the early days of the War, the Welsh Guards had the pleasant duty of providing the guards for the Royal Family, whilst they enjoyed their summer break at their Sandringham Home, in the county of Norfolk. This provided a pleasant change from the continuous training designed to bring the […]

Reading The River

Lulled to sleep by the pleasant murmur of the river as it prattled and chortled over the shallows, the two boys slept the sleep of the young. Their makeshift camp, just an old scrap of tarpaulin held up by a stick at each corner, enabled them to look out in every direction, for it had […]

Poacher Bill, A Wheel Barrow and a Wedding.

These things seem unconnected yet they sort of happened at about the same time, as always with Bill things sort of happened. Working in my garden one sunny afternoon the old Landrover chugged up, and with what sounded like a big sigh of relief the chugging stopped, and a cheery voice asked ” What you […]

Poacher Bill

Old Bill a Cotswold man, born and bred to country ways, lived in a beautiful little hamlet, not far from Burford the gateway to the Cotswolds. He lived in a little cottage with a charming old world front garden, which his wife tended creating a glorious mix of brilliant coloured flowers. Bill’s domain was the […]

Operation Appendix – Underpass

The Doctor spun his reassuring spiel “Appendix–nothing to it these days, just as simple as pulling a tooth”. Now that was the last thing I wanted to hear, but then how could he have known that his patient, recently discharged from Military service having served throughout the war at Dunkirk, and the Continental invasion, had […]

Leaving The Cup And Saucer Tree

In the middle of all this enjoyable childhood, sudden disaster. My father lost his job on the estate and of course, no job, no house. A move followed and, although it was only about four miles to the adjoining village of Trefeglwys, it seemed another world. The house itself was a station house, Pwll Glas […]

Learning To Be A Soldier

The system of recruits’ training in 1938 meant that individuals, on enlisting, had to wait until sufficient numbers arrived to form into a squad of about twenty. Then the training really got started. The period of waiting was always referred to as being unsquadded’. When asked by an NCO or officer who you were, the […]

Lancing the Whitlow.

Strange how the cold weather always affected the first finger on my right hand, circulation seems to be the problem, the old man mused as he rubbed the finger to get rid of the numbness. Stranger still that it was only now after more than 70 years,that it was causing problems. Gazing down on the […]

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