Born and raised in Sheffield, Yorkshire, Ann had a practical streak and a good sense of adventure. In the late 1930s, after reading about the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (FANY) in a Territorial Army magazine, she and her close friend Lois Ragg decided to join. The organisation appealed to her — hands-on, disciplined, and useful. She trained in map reading, engine maintenance, and gas attack procedures, and took part in pre-war camps, one memorably inspected by Princess Alice. When war broke out, Ann was called up to Northern Command in York, later serving with the 2nd Air Cavalry Division near Nottingham. When the FANY became part of the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS), she stayed on, completing officer training in Edinburgh and earning her commission. Her wartime service took her across Britain, from northern headquarters to the southern coast, including a key posting in Dorset where she managed transport and logistics for anti-aircraft units, a demanding job she handled with steady efficiency. Later, she transferred to the Education Corps before her discharge in 1945. After the war, Ann’s resourcefulness found a new outlet. She co-founded Decor Studios Limited in London, producing lampshades at a time when the city was rebuilding and reinventing itself. She later married and settled into family life, carrying with her the same calm capability and sense of purpose that had defined her service years. The publication of this previously unseen interview was made possible thanks to a grant from The Gerry Holdsworth Special Forces Charity, to mark 80 years since the closure of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) in January 1946. 

In 1965 15-year-old Rusty wanted to be like Mick Jagger. He was taken by his father to enlist in the army on the notoriously tough Junior Leaders Regiment Royal Artillery in Bramcote, Nuneaton. He joined the 49 Field Regiment Royal Artillery and went to Northern Ireland, where he was shot at. Rusty applied to a Commando course and travelled to Plymouth to join the 29 Commando section. He passed the gruelling selection and was put in 145 Battery, 29 Commando before going to HQ Battery to be a training wing instructor. He spent three years there undertaking parachute jumps. Influenced by a friend, Rusty applied for SAS (Special Air Service) selection, taking courses in paramedics, signals, demolitions and medics language. He trained in the SP (Special Projects) team in jungle and dessert environments. This training prepared him for the 1980 Iranian Embassy Siege in London, where he was third in command of his team as a Lance Corporal. His mission (Operation Nimrod) was to rescue hostages, which took six days of tense negotiation, intelligence gathering and finally storming and securing the building. Rusty’s B squadron was deployed to the Falkland Islands conflict in 1982. He trained in parachuting from C130 aircrafts on the Ascension Islands, perilously jumping into sixteen-foot waves. Rusty later went into the VIP Protection Cell where he trained regiments in body guarding and royalty protection. For his last two years he became a PSI / Quartermaster in the 23^rd SAS. Although Rusty did not initially want to join the army, he became heavily involved in sport and felt it was the making of him, gaining many friends.

Already an accomplished musician, Eddie Pickering joined the 50th Signal Regiment Band of the TA as soon as he left school. After progressing through various short-term roles he joined the 1st Royal Tank Regiment, with whom he spent two years based at Catterick Garrison then four years in Germany. Eddie then enrolled at Kneller Hall as a student bandmaster, and he shares his memories of the privileges and pressures of the course. On successful completion of his studies, Eddie was posted to the Cheshire Regiment, with whom he spent the next 23 years of his career. Eddie shares details of some of the incredible events and diverse venues around the world at which the Cheshires played. He also recalls the devastating bomb blast at the Droppin Well in December 1982 when they were stationed in Ballykelly, Northern Ireland; and talks about the overwhelmingly emotional reception of the band at their first engagement after the blast later that same week. Eddie’s recollections give a wonderful insight into the life and career of a regimental bandmaster, and it’s a privilege to hear him talk about – as he describes it – his dream job: a role he held for more than a quarter of a century.