I went into Swindon to join the Royal Air Force but they didn’t want me! So as the Army Recruiting Centre was next door I ended up in the Royal Corps of Signals. Having had the medical and done the entrance tests, I waited to get my orders to join her majesty’s armed forces.

Finally I was sent to the All Arms Junior Leaders' Regiment at a place called Tonfanau, Wales.

We were met off the train by Sergeants from recruit company, who herded us up to the cookhouse. My thoughts on arriving was, what have I let myself in for. It was the dead of winter January 1962 and the barracks were freezing cold. Heated by potbelly cast iron stoves which burnt coke but gave out no heat until you had broken the fire bricks. An action for which we occasionally had to pay.

First thing was an army style haircut, many a carefully grown fancy DA haircut became a short back and sides with plenty off the top. Then we were given our army number, 23895149 was mine. We had to remember it and were grilled the next day to make sure we had it in our heads, 23895149, it has stayed with me all of my life.

In the evening we were given supper and lashings of hot tea. We were shown a bed space, consisting of a bed and large metal locker. That first night I was put in a small room with three other recruits, very nice I thought, better than being in the main barrack room which had twenty bed spaces, with little privacy. The next morning we were woken early and ordered to get washed, dressed and taken to the cookhouse for breakfast.

Then the usual routine, a talk by our platoon officer Lt Webb Royal Signals. A visit to the stores, an explanation by our Sergeants, Gracie, Royal Signals and Finlay, Worcestershire Regiment on what things were called and why most of them would not fit you! And why Blanco, Brasso and dusters yellow would be such useful thing?

After this time we raw recruits learnt the joys of drill and inspections of kit and barracks. Slowly, sometimes, very slowly we got it together and ended up as a squad.

The sessions of drill were mixed with time in the classroom and I started to get exams behind me, working towards the class one certificate needed to get on the ladder to success and promotion as a soldier.

We passed out of R Company at the end of March 1962. Thirty one recruits in the platoon, twelve Royal Signals, eleven Royal Artillery, two Royal Military Police and six from Infantry Regiments.

Then for me it was on to Dettingen platoon, D Company.

The entertainment event was held one evening a year. Platoons did a variety of acts or demonstrated skills from physical gymnastics to singing or playing musical instruments. Dettingen platoon was finding it hard to put some routine together. So with three others fools we did a sketch based on a talent show of the time, with me as compare pretending to be Harry Worth (comedian of the time), Because I had the horn rimmed glasses. Part of the act I also had to stand in as Shirley Bassey and mime to the song, (She who has nothing), with two balloons stuffed up the dress and with a pin hidden in hand to pop one of the balloons as the number came to where she sang the ‘who has nothing’ part of the song.

I usually enjoyed time on the firing range and became quite a good shot, even when I need to wear glasses. One recruit in our squad was nicknamed Clowney Rowel by the instructors as he got everything wrong. On the range when he moved into position to fire the Sub Machine Gun Clowney had a miss fire and stood up swinging round finger still on the trigger. Bodies went flying in every direction expecting bullets to be sprayed everywhere. The Sergeant instructor took his life in his hands and grabbed the SMG and swung it back in the direction of the targets. He had some very choice words that could not be repeated. This gave all us boys a very important lesson and we all realised what a close call it might have been.

Outward bound training was designed to teach map reading, group working, orienteering over the crags of the Welsh hills and mountains. Cader Idris is the one mountain that all AAJLR boys would come to know well. In those days the boy soldier had a webbing pack on his back, wearing green army denims not very warm clothes and at that time, the first time I made the climb in hob nailed boots, if raining you wore a poncho. First aid and open air cooking skills came into this section of our training.

After leaving recruit company I went to another water based recreation this time Canoeing. The winners of the 1962 inland Birmingham canoe race were; Junior Gunner Ossy Crosier and Junior Signalman Dave Moore. This I might add was by default. We had a crack doubles crew who set off and left us all paddling like mad, they were turbo charged. They left us all behind got to the turnaround point and rocketed back. The problem was they were so fast that one of the marshals did not expect any canoes back and so our team flashed past him and disappeared up the wrong canal. Ossy and me pushed on and after the portage from canal onto the lake where the winning post was we took the chequered flag much to our surprise. To save tears Ossy and I were asked to give the trophy to the crack crew and we got our regimental colours badge as our reward.

After Christmas leave 1962 I was due to return to Tonfanau but this was the year of the big freeze and I could not get out of Lambourn where I was staying with my parents. I got back to camp three days late after a cold train ride across the country. Luckily things worked out and I was soon back to soldiering.

On the Easter leave 1963 I took a mate home with me for the three weeks. Terry Hanson who was an orphan who had no family to go home to so he came home with me. We spent the time roaming the hills around Stanton St. Bernard or would catch a bus and go into Devises. Some evenings were spent in the pub which was a walk along the Kennet and Avon canal as there wasn't a pub in our village.

Trade training was targeted to the type of regiment you would be joining, this mainly being in your last term. Some got to learn to drive, others like us signal boys did Morse code and other things including line laying. I was steered towards special operator which is Morse intercept and radio traffic. I don't know if there was a shortage of Spec Op's but I was not the best candidate for this work, I hated it. I did not do well with Morse but was told it would come to me and things would work out.

1963 passed quickly in the routine of drill, training, outward bound exercises, sport and at the end of the Easter and summer terms the graduation parades. The graduation parade for me was on the 7th December 1963. The next step now was leave and man's service.

I spent my leave at Stanton St. Bernard although I did make a trip to see if I could find a girl who had visited her relations when we lived at Watchfield. Her name was Yvonne Scrivens and all I could remember was she came from a place called Didmarton. I walked into Didmarton and started to ask around to see if anyone knew of Yvonne. I did find her but she was not interested in me. We chatted in the local playing field, I wanted to take her to Bristol for a day out but she was not interested, so I walked back to Tetbury. That was the end of another romance that never got started.

The leave came to an end and I went off to train as a special operator Royal Corps of Signals.