Hearing what was happening in Europe, Sidney joined the territorials in 1937 ahead of being called up in 1939. He remembers his excitement at being able to walk away from his desk job and there being people out on the streets cheering and waving at the heroes going to war. Sidney joined the Royal Corps of Signals which he admits he knew nothing about and at times struggled with the technical work. There was a lot of training in Morse Code in particular. After a year’s training Sidney was sent to Africa. The Italians had landed in Egypt and their mission was to stop them taking Cairo. It was on a mission in Tobruk that Sidney experienced warfare full on, witnessing the death and devastation caused by previous battles and experiencing the immediate loss of a man when a truck hit a mine, all while guns were continually firing. Sidney remembers coming across the body of an Italian soldier and the futility of war hitting him hard. That said, Sidney thinks his time in the army was ultimately worthwhile, there was no question about having to defeat the Nazis.

Sidney also spent time in Greece attached to the 7^th Armoured Division, aka the Desert Rats, but the German forces were so strong they were forced to evacuate. Sidney recalls in blistering detail their attempted escape on the HMS Carlisle, how they were hit and had to change course for Crete where Sidney ended up in the Battle of Crete which he remembers vividly.