Fighting Men of Rhodesia ep201 | WO2 John Graham | SAS & Rh. Army Medical Corps
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- čas přidán 3. 06. 2023
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When boys were men. Absolute respect. RIP to the fallen heroes. You kept us safe so we cd live a good life. 😢
Thank you so very much for acknowledging this fine human being. I first met John when i was in the cadets at high school, Falcon College. I was so impressed with him that i told him I wanted to be a medic, and through his assistance, I did become a medic in '78. I owe him a great debt and my eternal gratitude for allowing me to realise my ambition and serve my country as a medic. Good to see him still doing well. Best regards to you both.
Would love to hear your story Simon! Would you be willing to give us a talk?
@fightingmenofrhodesia Greetings John. My story would be of little interest to many. I will put it in words and share some anecdotal stories, if you would like, but I have nothing very interesting militarily to share. Just let me know if you're interested in reading my tale.
@@Simon_Hawkshaw yes please, let's give it a go. My email is bugeisha7@gmail.com
It is great listening to everyones perspective on the war. Looking at everyones personality and how they take a while to start talking and once they get going after mutual brothers in arms are mentioned you realise how war brings you closer than any occurrence in the world ever will.
John, thank you for your stories and to Hannes, thank you once again for a great program.
Wolfgang Huck & Mike Higgins, there are 2 names from my NS. Wolfgang was our Medic in Kariba & another absolute character. Took us to the range when we arrived at Kariba & issued with brand new R1's from SA. Took them out the crate (l think 5 per wooden crate) wrapped in like a wax proof brown paper & covered with a thick honey coloured grease. Cleaned them with paraffin or petrol, l can't remember which, oiled them lightly & then down to the range with Wolfgang to "break them in". Falling plates & probably the only time l fired my weapon on full auto 🤣.
Mike Higgins was a fitness fanatic at Llewellan always training more after rugby practice was over. The next time l saw him in 1st Batt at the drill hall were l was demobbing after a camp he was walking with a stick & limping badly. He told me he was doing a night jump to keep his "wings" pay & had landed with 1 foot on a barbed wire fence in Seke TTL & this had turned him side on to the ground & he took the full force of the landing on his hip. I think if l remember correctly that he had broken his femur + smashed his pelvis. This would have been '74-75. Shit he was a hard bugger & if you ever wanted to see the epitome of an SAS soldier, just look at a pic of Mike Higgins
Just listened to two fantastic Rhodesian gentlemen. Thanks you guys.
I was not certain about placing John’s accent for about the first 22 minutes. I heard a strong kiwi accent. The reference to Auckland and NZ Herald nailed it.
Great interview much respect
Thank you John, John, and Hannes
All these great talks are of great value and interest.
Rhodie medics, the best. Salute.
Incredible stories, amazing memory recall and a true gentleman! Cheers Uncle John!!
Glad you enjoyed it
Thanks John and Hannes
Great to hear the names of places, Cashel, Tandaai (my grandparents farm) etc that had influence on such great people. Thank you to all that have contributed to this series.
Fantastic 👌
To all the participants who were exposed in some way with the war -no story or tale whether it takes place in the battlefield or on the periphery or an experience at civilian level is worth recording,it’s a wonderful way for people to reminisce,and all history and experiences should be recorded no matter how trivial you may deem it , thank you for your service.
Thanks John and Hannes. One remembers doing pokey drill after having the TABT, there was some serious winging going on from us recruits 🙂
A great chat between John and He knew.
Knew Hannes' Dad well in my time at Umtali, Odzi and 5 Indep as a medic. John got me from SAS into medical corps in 1974
Great interview, salute! 🍻
Shafted by the British...... No surprise there!
Shafted by the Brits absolutely
Yet another interesting interview, well done, really enjoyable to hear these stories and take that trip down memory lane again.
Thanks guys for all of these.
Really interesting to hear this stuff.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Hi hannes, quite weird as was looking at site during my lunchtime break and when he mentioned the 3 killed up at chirundo the immediate recollection was there a they're the top 3 on ROLL of honor. How do attached a screenshot? Says an explosive accident loading canoes
I'm surprised you did not mention that the 3 Bde field surgical unit trailer hit a mine on the way to Buhera early 79.
That photo at 27:37 has John Pearson on the extreme right. Our OC during my NS. Also l wonder if Dick Pagett (sp) did our medical training lectures as the guy we had was a fundi on snakes?
By golly that TABT injection and that enormous needle and syringe scarred me for life , to say nothing of the ghouls lurking in the semi dark of the medical premises, with syringes poised one on either side of the doorway awaiting a trembling newby caused a large number of intake 123 to faint and flounder in the hot Bulawayo sun.
Wyt, l lined myself to get it from the qualified female nurse(2 appies in uniform either side of her) & then ran to the rugby field for practice. So my arm didn't feel like it had been kicked by a donkey that evening 😂😂
What John didn't say was we practiced injections on each other before we ever "tormented" live patients. Playing with people's minds became second nature to us as a result - and we were good at it, and enjoyed it too.
Anyone remember Graham Williams?
Really enjoyed the interview John. I have great memories of our MA3 course in mid-78, with midcourse party on your front lawn. There is no question our medic training was outstanding, it amazes medical people what we learned in 3 months, and the way it was taught has affected how I teach and even think to this day. A huge influence on all that was Dick Paget who changed the training to be relevant for a bush war. I was thrilled to spend some time learning from him at Tsanga early in my deployment time. Then there was Wolfgang Hucke - who taught me a most amazing lesson about consequences during the bush trip/exam at the end. Salute to all of you and thanks.
Typo error,correction all tales and experiences should be recorded of our rich history.
My Bulawayo flatmate did his NS in Medics before becoming a doctor. Fair haired ProbationOfficer. Cannot for the life of me remember his surname. First name Alan. Did you ever come across him John ?
Might of been Thistles Rugby Club.
Great Interview....... John, I tried to leave a comment a few days ago...seems to have got lost in posting. I have some information Re. Burma and the Chindits that I'm sure will intrest you... Just not sure how to get it to you ? John might be able to help via this platform, Whatsapp, Facebook or Gmail..... I was in Rhodesia '47 to '80.....
I should have introduced myself, sorry... M.W.Park, ex Churchill, NS Intake 72, Gwebi...8RR ..and,and........
grahamjmrg@gmail.com