pride

[Valo]

When any of you guys passed selection and joined one of the UKSF e.g SAS how did you cope not being allowed to tell anyone. I would want to scream it from the roof tops as I would be really proud of myself!

Can you tell your family?

[Gravityguy]

Probably not the best person to be in the SF then!

[Artist]

When I joined Civvie street in 1990 I moved to Cheshire. After the first few months of living here I was convinced that 90% of ex SF blokes lived within one mile of where I lived!

People would ask me what I did in the Royal Marines to which my reply was normally the same as all Royal Marines reply to such a question, "I served my Country". This would result in being told that such and such had served as say.....A Captain in the SAS (He was in fact a retired leading fireman from the cheshire fire brigade) all I had to do was listen to his tales of daring do's and get free wets out of him.

Another ex "SAS" gentleman I had the displeasure of meeting informed me that he had taken part in the Falklands war. When I pointed out that in that case he was only 13 years old when he went down south he sort of shut up and pissed offt sharpish (he had served in the Army mind, Royal Signals for 4 years so I found out later).

The best by far however was some twonk who told me he was ex SBS (when the SBS were Bootneck only). On me asking him his offical number all I got was a load of numbers.........Pointed out the error only to be told that yes he did once have a RM offcial number but lost it when he went SBS............Once more I pointed out his error. At this he then told me that he was not going to carry on our conversation as he could tell I didn't believe him. "You've got that right! Now thin out and read up on your facts before you tell me another Jackanory tale" was my forthright reply to him.

In my experience 95% of people who were SF don't talk about it even when they are long out and well into another career in civvy street. Save for the odd few who make a bomb from their tales of daring do by putting it in a book so Mr Average Civvy can pay a few quid to read all about it.

Artist

[got1]

I have had lots of mates who were SAS. In our regiment it was quite common for blokes to "disappear" to return at a later date.
You just didn't ask in them days, also have met quite a few on OPs.
It wasn't until the "Embassy" thing that outsiders began to take an interest, we (and many others) had been working with them for years.
So just leave them alone to get on with what they do best.

[wannabe_bootneck]

I always thought that when I pased out I would want to go round gobbing off how woderful I was and what a glamorous panty peeling job I do, truth is 2 things, 1) Have since found levels of glamour in this job are considerably less than first expected! 2) When asked what I do now or asked things by people who know im in the forces I almost get, I don't know kind of embarrassed and don't like talking about it, especially to people i'm not that familiar with. There's no point anyway cause civvies just don't get it and it only leads to bone questions/statements by them ad armchair infantry telling you the 'gen' about your job and that. To counter this I have made a little game that I play when on the piss and stand out a mile away as being a soldier, when asked by a bird what you do, and they obviously expect you to say army/rm/raf whatever, just come up with the funniest crappest job possible to answer with, funniest reaction i got was to roadsweeper, I find it hilarious, but I am a little bit weird and laugh at stupid things.

[Artist]

Once whilst in rig and working in darkest Cornwall near some cliffs I was approached by this member of the public. He looked at me Green Lid, Cdo flashes, Cpls stripes and Para Wings, stood there for a few seconds and then asked me the question that most Bootnecks of my era dreaded............."What Instrument do you play in the band then mate?"

"Triangle" I replied and pulled one triangle plus a 'dinger' thingy from me pocket and proceeded to give him my verison of "A Life on the Ocean Wave" He was not impressed one little bit!

"I only fecking asked mate!" He retorted. I suppose you really had to have been there to understand just what I'm going on about.

Artist

[KJ-Edwards]

To counter this I have made a little game that I play when on the piss and stand out a mile away as being a soldier, when asked by a bird what you do, and they obviously expect you to say army/rm/raf whatever, just come up with the funniest crappest job possible to answer with, funniest reaction i got was to roadsweeper, I find it hilarious, but I am a little bit weird and laugh at stupid things.

Hahaha, i would love to see the reaction.

[AJtothemax]

Next time say "Oh, im a full time hair line mechanic"

See their reaction then...

[sneaky beaky]

When I passed my SBS training, (Joint Selection wasn't even considered in those days). I didn't tell anybody because I didn't think anybody would be interested!!

And I have to ask the question - "Why would any body be interested now?"

The Special Forces have a specific job to do. They do things like Anti-Terrorist Ops. They will do behind the enemy lines type Ops.

What they arnen't is a sort of James Bond!!

They are what they say they are - Special Forces.!

They do not work for MI6. They may well work with them, on certain occasions, but they are not them.

What they are - is very efficient type of Force that can do more than the very capable Para and Commando forces can do.
Because they have been given that training.

All this crap about all SF people having their eyes blacked out - is a load of Bollocks. They are not Supermen.

I think a lot of you guys have a very wrong illusion of Special Forces.

They are Special but not in the way that you think.

Sneaky

[fire_freeq]

"Triangle" I replied and pulled one triangle plus a 'dinger' thingy from me pocket and proceeded to give him my verison of "A Life on the Ocean Wave" He was not impressed one little bit!

Artist

Lol I can picture this so clearly ha ha, nice one!

David