- Contributed by听
- greenhill2
- People in story:听
- Steve Cronin,Sandy Campbell and Ed Thomson
- Location of story:听
- Edinburgh West End.
- Background to story:听
- Army
- Article ID:听
- A3611260
- Contributed on:听
- 02 February 2005
On leaving the Army Cadet Force in 1947 we became elegible to join the Territorial Army and get paid for "playing at soldiers "as my father put it.We were all motor mechanics with the SMT at Fountainbridge Edinburgh and according to our works Shift Pattern we went from the workplace to the Drill Hall dressed in uniform for a Drill night.
As it happened we were with the Royal Artillery AA Unit as Vehicle Mechs.All dressed up and ready to go on parade we were proceeding down Lothian Road when a Military Police town Patrol confronted us.Now being TA's we only had a small red Warrant Card giving us Permission to wear Uniform for "Training Drills"The MP Corporal (a Regular Soldier) had obviously never seen or heard of this Card and the patrol promptly arrested us for "Walking in a Slovenly Manner!!"They noted we had our web belts under our shoulder straps (So the Blanco didnt rub off on the bus upholstery) and insufficient ID He herded us into the Patrol's 15cwt and we were driven out to Redford Barracks and put in the Guard Room pending the arrival of the Garrison Sgt Major.Our bona fides were soon established on his authority we were driven triumphantly to the Drill Hall in the 15cwt. All was resolved but Steve was all fired up an vowed his revenge on one Corporal Leslie Belk RMP !!I never forgot his name.
We agreed to keep our eyes open and found where they parked the truck while on Patrol it was kept "unattended" in Rutland Square beside the now demolished Caledonian Station.So on a following Drill Night we as mechanics decided to remove the vehicle to neighbouring Charlotte Square,being in uniform we didnt look suspicious "hot wiring" a military vehicle and driving it off!!We parked it in the tree lined Square and dispersed.I wonder what Cpl Belk put in his Report for that night.Certainly we never came under suspicion for the incident as it was never mentioned to us and Cpl Belk was never seen on Town Patrol again.
漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.
Recommended story
Story with photo