Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 14,118
"that does not matter anyway it is not going down in your records + we some courses you must go on this week ,because you have not done your basic training you have to go on a 7day course in small arms ,Bren machine gun, and a Sterling sub-machine gun and last of all a Rocket launcher course."
"Sir I joined up to play in a band not do all this kind of thing"
"And that will happen when we find a band that need s a member but at this time they are still cutting back on bands so there is no list for new band members in any bands. And till then you will do and go where we put you." I was very unhappy about this and I did feel like doing a runner ,but did not
So have to cut this story very short, I done the course and passed but only just,till it came to the last one the Rocket Launcher ,to do this we done the class room work on it and then taken out to where we was going to fire it
Because there was two of us to fire it I was give the job to press the start to fire it the no2 was to stand behind me to join the two wires up then tap me on the back to say it was already to fire ,we was in area with a wall round us and I was to fire at a old tank .well we done what we was told but when it came to fire it ,the chap behind me hit me in the back but done it to hard on letting off
the Launcher I tip it downwards and it blow up the wall round us sending bricks etc flying every where.TRUE .
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 14,118
sorry to say there seems not a lot of members who want me to carry on with my story so will drop it now till the summer is over then try again.Thank you if you have been reading it.
Guest 1385- Registered: 27 Oct 2014
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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When I rejoined my Regiment at Golchester,I reported to C Company office, I was greeted by the C.S,M , "You are back Matcham and I have seen your report from the small arms school apart from the rocket launcher your marks were not that bad,anyway do not unpack you are off again "Sir I have not been home now for some weeks and I would like to take some time off to go and see them please."
"I can see you are dew some time off, but your new course starts next week, but yes you can have 3days at home then report back here by 2400hrs on Sunday,and you can also have a return railway warret to get you home"Thank you sir "And off I went really happy to be going home at last.
When I got home my dad told me ."Son it is nice to see you and as you have passed your driving test in the army I am going to buy you a car, for your birthday. on hearing that news I was over the moon,at that time there was a car show room on the Folkestone Rd it is now a fuel outlet .So off we went to get it,I did not know till we got there he had already paid for it.And what a great car it was and very good looking one it was second hand but it was a good one ,it was a Vavxhall Velox a green one 3gears fixed to the side of the s/wheel.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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I was given a strong lecture by my dad who was a very big man of 6ft ins tall and about 16 stone.He told me not to drive it fast and mad etc even though I was the only one in the family with a driving licence a red one in the old days still got it today in fact looking at it now this one run out in 1974 and I and still am today licensed to drive vehicles in groups A,B,C.E.F.K AND L IN LIST 1.And it was a clean one ,but that did not last long.
That night I went out down town very please with my self I went down by bus,and was walking home pass where the shops are in Folkstone Rd which was the posh st in Dover at that time not like it is today,and coming out of the shop was a good looking girl with her dog and I got talking to her , yes it was Ok way back then to do that I walked her home in Chuchill st Maxton and I told I was in the army and was going away next week but would like to take her out again, well in the end she was my first wife for 18 years,I can not say much about that because she is still about today but to say she was a very good wife and had a lot to put up with me.
Well it came to Sunday night and time to return to Colchester ,well me and my mum and dad fell out about the car ,they did not want me to take it away with me,but as I told I was the only one that could drive it and it would help me to get around on some courses they going to send me on much better than carrieing all my kit on the train ,at that time I did not even know where and what I was going to do.Any way in the end they said OK take it but be very care full in driving.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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Having rejoined my Regiment at the right time in my car, I as stopped at the gate "Matcham in the morning you must hand in the details of your car and rg/number so it is logged in for getting n and out of the main gate and to get told where you can park it. On doing that in the morning I was called in again by the company s/major.
"Matcham nice car rich dad got it for you."No sir he is not rich just care full with his money:>"Later today you are off on a Medial Orderly course but this kind of course is some what hard with a lot of class room work do not think it is just a first aid course.You will be away some weeks down in Aldershot your training will be in two parts and you must pass the first part to get on to the second part, the first part is the class room and the second will be working on the wards in the St Georges Hospital which is both a Military and a Civilian hospital."And Matcham we DO NOT WANT TO SEE YOU IF YOU ARE SEND BACK before the end of both the course so pass them."But Sir I am not very good at class room work only at music"."Well now is the time to learn".
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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" Go and pk your gear into you car then report to the Orderly room for your cash which is so much per mile if you use your own car,""And remember pass, it is not to late to do your basic training if you do not."
Got to the orderly room picked up my fuel allowance and orders where to report when I get to Aldershot.
Having got some way down the rd,I stopped for a cup of tea and read my orders .
They told me to report to the GUARD room of the Parachute Regiment Bks.Where I would be told the rest etc.Well on getting there I was told at the guard room in fact taken to where I was to stay ,found out there was about 15 of us from all the other Regiments I was the only one from the Buffs.We went had our tea and the orders was to report to the class room after breakfast at 0830hrs in the morning and there was a map where we was to have our meals each day and times.
All this we done and on getting to the class room ,we was given out pens and note book ,and then in came our teacher who was a young good looking officer a lieutenant by rank.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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TO THINK I had been in the army now,already 3years and still only at the age of 19yrs,There will be more on my story later today you might be finding it boring at this time but it does hot up later, but need to tell of the back ground to what happens over the next 3 years or so.Thank you for your nice commits about it so far.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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"All the time you are this course you all will be called students you will have your photo taken and will have that put onto a name card which you will pin on and wear all the time.I am going to be your class room instructor all the time you are here. your lessons will be from 0830hrs till 1700hrs for five fays of the week and Saturday morning 0900 till 1200 hrs I am to be called Mam at all times I am a sister of the Hospital +a instructor. Well the course was like any other course went on for two or 3 weeks at the end we had to take a exam and a practical test ,and must say I done very well in both and got a 100% grade .We were told we all done well and passed to all go on to the second part of the course which was working in A&E then onto the wards at the St Georges Hospital working both day and nights over 7days week for 8hrs each day with one day off a week to go back to the class room.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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Vic Matcham wrote:"All the time you are this course you all will be called students you will have your photo taken and will have that put onto a name card which you will pin on and wear all the time.I am going to be your class room instructor all the time you are here. your lessons will be from 0830hrs till 1700hrs for five days of the week and Saturday morning 0900 till 1200 hrs I am to be called Mam at all times I am a sister of the Hospital +a instructor. Well the course was like any other course went on for two or 3 weeks at the end we had to take a exam and a practical test ,and must say I done very well in both and got a 100% grade .We were told we all done well and passed to all go on to the second part of the course which was working in A&E then onto the wards at the St Georges Hospital working both day and nights over 7days week for 8hrs each day with one day off a week to go back to the class room.
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Guest 1467- Registered: 30 Jan 2015
- Posts: 149
Vic, you really should write a book. It's a colourful story. I did it, it's really easy these days.
Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 14,118
Thank you I do not know how to do it,if some one would do it for me and it can be sold that person ca have half of the money it makes.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 14,118
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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After all that training I was given my own patient to look after and this was a very sad time, he was young but dieing his family would come each day his wife did know he was going to die ,but he did not and we had to lie to him and tell him he was getting better and would go home one day, we had to play act to him.that was a very sad time doing that knowing he was going to die,but this was part of our training and had to do it but found it very hard to keep smiling with him.I got to know him well and wanted to sit with him even when not duty ,but I was not alloud to do that because he would know that things were not going right for him.He died when I was off duty in some ways that was for the best and it helped me to get over it.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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coming over the weekend ,How taking a officer out for the night could have got me 28 days inside ,and how I was lucky to get out of a car after hitting a lorry.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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When working in the Hospital I did get to know a sister of one of the wards I work on,and one day after doing my 8 hours work I was going into the carpark for my car when she came across to me, "Thats a very nice car ,"Yes it is mam my dad got for me before coming to Aldershot" I then went on to say "I am just going out for a run and a pub meal I know I should not aske you but would you like to come?"You know the Army rules Matcham, officers must not go out other ranks, but you do not tell anyone and meet me in the town in 1 hour I will go and get into some thing better to put on and come with you but do not call me mam when we are out"
And that is what we done it was well a way from the camp she told me her real name and we had a nice meal and drive after, and then I dropped her off again in the town and that is all we done no kissing or any thing just a nice time out.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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Well next morning I was walking to my place of work and she came by me and not thinking I said good morning but called her by her first name.All hell let loose and she shouted "Student Matcham you must call me mam at all times And stand to attention when I am talking to you."But Mam""Do not but matcham just do What I said you are lucky no one is about or both of us would be up in front of the CO with you getting 28 days inside and I might have lost my job, do not let it happen again""No mam and I am sorry"and that was the first and last time we talked to each other unless it was about work.
and yes I was in the wrong but still only 19 yrs.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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Well the end of that week we had to take our last test and I was already very please with my self running with a 100% pass mark ,and looking at my Army Certificate of Service the course run from the 23-9-1962 till the 3-11-62 so as you can see it was a long Courses and because I got that high mark it made me Specialist Q ualifications as a Regimental medical orderly ,so this last test was just a test nothing more then that,and it was a aural test so not writing which made it even better, any way one of the Questions I was asked if a person broke their arm how would you relieve the pain? and I said jokingly "I would break his leg because that would put him in so much pain he would forget about the pain in his arm."
Well the panel did not think it as funny in fact one officer really did have a go at me, and thinking about it he was right to do so,but I said it as a joke, but it cost me by saying it,they dropped my over all top marks by one point,making my pass mark 99%and not the 100%
I had.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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But that was still very high .
Most of the lads on the course was now returning to their regiment but with a few days leave first,but that was not for me and 3 others we now had to go on yet another course ,which I was thinking it would be much easy, how wrong I got that,it was hard in fact very hard all book work and writing, it was a course on Malaria and what to do if you came across it when serving over seas in jungles and how would you treat it as a medic.Also if the regiment was camping in tents in a wooded area or jungle what cautions would you take to prevent mosquitoes biting you and if they did what action would you take to help a soldier who had been and was in a bad way.Well the course only run for 5 days so very hard to take it all in,and the test at the end was also very hard.
And must say I did not do so well as I did with the other one.in fact I only just got a pass mark ,but one lad did not pass.It was the short time we had if we had more time we would have done better ,but a pass is a pass so I was happy with that.And that ended my time at Aldershot.I was told to take a few days leave then report back to my Regiment.
Well did that happen in my case?.No read next time on what happen when driving home.
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Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
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Sorry but have one more case before I leave The Hospital ,my last patient in the ward was a retired vicar who was in the army ,sad to say he also was dieing,but he did know that which made it better for us who was nursing him,he was a very nice man, but after he died I had help in his postmortem, and having never done anything like that before I found it upseting.when the Dr came in to cut him up,first thing he said "well lets get on with it so I can get my breakfast"pass me the knife" which I did,he done no more then cut him right up the middle and was looking inside him."Come here have a look inside him "this made me feel sick he then cut out some of the body tubes,"There you are you can see why he died, he was a very heavy smoker and his tubes are all blocked up,"I can tell you if you see that you would never smoke again,At the end of the postmortem the Dr sewed him backup and he did not care about how he done it".Well thats it" he turned to the mortuary attendant,"Ok clean it all up and put the body back in the Fridge till he can be buried"you others can go for your meal if you feel like it,after come back here and the Attendant will show you how to get the body ready to show his family in the chapel of rest."Well I was one that did not eat anything all day.
When we went back ,the attendant cleaned the body up and even dressed him then he even made the vicar face look good.Well there is some more about that case but will end it there.
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We all and the patience,s called her mam even the ones that were in a bad way and ill.If they could they had to sit up in bed.she would look in all the bedside lockers and looking all over for dust.