Arborfield Old Boys Association
AOBA
Arborfield Life
Arborfield anecdotes 1956-
Gerry Hincks 56B
I'm pretty sure that my introduction to the Army Apprentices' School in the summer
of 1956 was much the same as thousands of other young lads, but I promised 'Scouse'
Gripton to 'tell the tale', so here goes!
These are just random thoughts, in no particular
order, so I hope they make sense and that readers will find some amusement in them.
One thing that stands out about my arrival, which happened to be late afternoon,
was my first visit to the Dining Hall -
After passing out from 'HQ' Company after the
first six months, I was sent into 'B' Coy, to share a room with some eighteen other
apprentices, in one room of what was known as a 'spider'. Life passed by in a blur
of academic training, trade training, fitness activities and sports -
All good things pass they say, and upon further promotion to A/Cpl,
back I went to join my own Div in 'B' Coy once more. During this period, I became
a member of the AAS gymnastics display team. The display routine closely followed
the pattern of that seen at the Royal Military Tattoo held at Earls Court in west
London. The team attended many military and civilian events, where we were able to
show off our abilities, agility and fitness.
There were two West African boys in
'B' Coy, one named Sam, who became a great friend of mine, and the other one named
Tutu. I think in fact that they were both from a country called the 'Gold Coast'.
Many years later, when I was attending SEME Bordon on my Artificer course, I bumped
into Sam once again, in the SEME Sgts' Mess -
In
those days, we weren't permitted to own our own transport, except maybe for a bicycle
-
A certain
amount of subterfuge was required and I caught the 'leave coach' to Reading Station,
along with lots of others. From here, I then caught a service bus back to Arborfield
to pick up the car from the barn! This was followed by a drive back to Reading to
pick up Russ, before we were able to head up north. That Sunbeam was a bit of an
oil burner to say the least and, in the end, I had to leave it at home, where my
father eventually sold it for the princely sum of ten shillings and sixpence -
There was a distinct dress code at boys' school, with checks at the
Guardroom to make sure we didn't wear any apparel deemed too outlandish! This led
to many an illegal breakout, via the gate in the perimeter fence just behind Fred
Silver's greenhouse. The object of my affections at the time was the daughter of
S/Sgt Gunner, a permanent staff instructor, who later became a 'civvie' instructor
at Bordon. I think the young lady's name was Valerie -
I later bought another car from the same 'Staff' Gunner. This constituted two illegal
transactions -
I recall taking some other lads with me
in the car, to see the Henley Regatta, just along the Thames a few miles away. I'm
pretty sure that Jock was one passenger, Mick Stevens another, but cannot recall
the third. On the way to Henley, the brakes failed and we had to make a rapid exit
off a roundabout. From then on, I drove it 'on the handbrake', whilst still applying
the brake pedal to make the stoplights come on! Shortly afterwards, Mick Stevens
bought the car from me for the same £34 I'd paid. I know he drove it at times, but
for some reason unknown to me, it was subsequently found abandoned on a grass verge
at the rear of the REME Depot. The first I knew of all this was when approached by
S/Sgt Gunner, asking me what the hell was going on? Unfortunately, the local Bobbies
had traced the car back to him -
Several boys owned motorcycles -
Nights
out were always well attended -
The only other point of contact with the
fairer sex was the dance class each week in the Camp Hall. But during at least one
flu epidemic, we did have some QARANC nurses looking after us in both the Camp Hall
and the hospital. Apart from that, there was only Miss Gunning in the WVS Room!
Cross-
On one occasion we ended up at the lake in Little California, running
up and down the pier to keep warm. Someone decided that it was Hincks' turn to learn
how to swim -
Like
it or not, bullying was a fact of life then, mainly carried out by senior boys on
junior boys, that's just the way things operated. One lad in my intake was noted
for his 'hardness', coming from the East End of London, he'd had a tough upbringing
before landing at Arborfield. I won't name him, but here's one tale I recall. Another
lad had loaned a combination lock to the room NCO, and 'our hero' bullied him into
revealing the lock code. He then went into the NCO's bunk, unlocked the locker, and
proceeded to tie the immaculate white belt into knots and slashed the toecaps of
the previously gleaming best boots. He'd obviously had a run-
Heaven forbid if you were suspected of nicking from your mates. One lad who came
under suspicion was hung upside down from the room rafter; his hands tied behind
his back, and then lowered head first into the fire bucket -
Around
the time I was in 5 Div, I recall that a deserter from the RAF came and 'hid out'
at the School. We learned that he had previously been thrown out of boys' school,
so knew that it was the perfect cover! His cronies thought this was a hoot and he
was soon kitted out in denims and allowed to sleep in an old mate's room in 'A' Coy
lines. It is alleged that he even took a party on fire picket duty, under the very
nose of Fred Silver, the Provost Sergeant. He was certainly not short of money, as
a gang of senior boys would come round every barrack room after pay parade and demand
'any loose change'. It is said that this guy (Paddy Claydon) obtained about £14 a
week in this manner -
There was
more than a fair share of other activities that would provide an episode of 'Porridge'
on TV! We had our very own 'loan sharks', lending money at extortionate interest
rates, to be paid back when 'credits' were dished out at the end of term. Then there
were the 'baccy barons' -
Gerry Hinks 56B
Gerry recalls that the only other point of contact with the fairer sex was the dance class each week in the Camp Hall. But during at least one flu epidemic, we did have some QARANC nurses looking after us in both the Camp Hall and the hospital.
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