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IN REMEMBRANCE OF THOSE WHO DID NOT MAKE IT THIS FAR AND IN SUPPORT OF THOSE WHO HAVE

CAMPAIGN The Journal of the BNTVA Registered Charity Number 1131134 TM

We’re visiting Gateshead

£2.99 where sold © Michael Conrad

Spring 2017

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Formal Notice: BNTVA Annual General Meeting May 20th 2017 The AGM of the BNTVA will take place at Gateshead Marriott Hotel MetroCentre Marconi Way MetroCentre - Gateshead Tyne & Wear NE11 9XF commencing at 10.30 hrs. Any motions should be submitted in writing to the Secretary Bob Ireland c/o 91 Stonehill, Castle Donington, Derbyshire DE74 2LZ by Monday 1st May 2017. Motions must be proposed and seconded by full members of the BNTVA in writing, fully signed with membership numbers. The proposer should be in attendance at the AGM to present the motion, If the proposer fails to attend the motion will not be considered. (At the discretion of the BNTVA Chair an open forum may be held to discuss relevant matters during the event subject to the established convention that discussions are not binding motions and are remitted to the Board of Trustees for consideration).

See page 23 for Directions

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The Chaplain writes

Truth to tell… There has been much talk lately about ‘post-truth’ and ‘fake facts’. President Trump is fond of such expressions; but in our own country, some years ago, a government representative admitted he had been ‘economical with the truth’. I suppose all of us have faced the question at some time or other, whether bending the truth can be justified – perhaps in self-defence, or to avoid causing embarrassment, or offending somebody we are close to. It did not seem very serious at the time: but such deception can have more serious consequences, especially in the public realm. Our Association is not a stranger to ‘fake facts’. Members will remember the ‘protective suits’ that were stated to have been issued to the servicemen who witnessed the British nuclear tests – they were even shown in an official newsreel; and the sicknesses suffered by Veterans and their descendants which have ‘no causal link’ with radiation. Such misinformation has, to use a well-known expression, added insult to injury. We are approaching Holy Week and Easter in the Christian calendar. If we are attentive to the stories of Jesus Christ’s last days on earth, we shall be

confronted once again with the poignant words of Pontius Pilate, as he sat in judgment on Jesus: ‘What is truth?’ He did not stay for an answer, but instead condemned Jesus to death. On an earlier occasion, Jesus had urged his followers to be faithful to his teaching. Then, he said, ‘you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’ That has been the experience of countless people of faith down the ages. It is because of this faith that I am able to wish all Members of our Association and their families. A very happy Easter!

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Compensation for French Nuclear Tests Veterans Since its inception in June 2001 AVEN has endeavoured to raise awareness for the cause of nuclear tests veterans. This is why we created very strong relationships with the media and politicians. This resulted as soon as 2002 in several television programs followed by a number of press articles devoted to the issue of nuclear tests, showing the plight of the veterans and the local populations, all victims of 210 nuclear tests conducted in the Sahara and French Polynesia. In addition to our efforts, the political parties filed altogether 17 bills. But the government remained deaf and rejected all the bills. Faced with this situation, AVEN organised a demonstration in Paris in 2007

presenting a petition with over 16,000 signatures to the Prime Minister’s Office. However, in the face of the government’s lack of response, AVEN managed to gather all political parties around its struggle. The 17 bills had been presented by different political families and in a disorganised manner. In April 2008 AVEN – and this was a first in the Fifth Republic – succeeded in organising in Parliament a round table that included representatives from all political parties and encouraged them to make common cause in favour of the veterans. Even though it was a first, the event remained virtually unnoticed.

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However, thanks to the pressure put by the media and by some MPs, AVEN could get an appointment with the Ministry of Defence in July. During the discussion, the minister’s Private Secretary told us slightly defiantly: “If you succeed in making all parties agree on one text, the government will have to give in”.

In January 2010 the law was enacted, but while AVEN thought that any sick person having taken part in the nuclear tests and having stayed in the affected zones of the Sahara and/ or Polynesia would be eligible for compensation, the law introduced a so-called “negligible risk”. This negligible risk completely invalidated the spirit of the law and made it ineffective.

Several round tables took place in Parliament and in November 2008 an 18th bill was submitted. After acknowledging that there was a consensus among all political parties, the Minister of Defence announced that a bill on recognition and compensation of nuclear tests veterans would soon be enacted by the government. Over the whole year 2009, AVEN took part in negotiations on the terms of the law with parliamentary committees as well as departments of the Defence Ministry.

Indeed only 0.2% of all applications for compensation were accepted and the claimants were obliged to lodge appeals with the administrative courts. Given this situation, AVEN got a Senate inquiry that resulted in five amendments improving the law in December 2013. Following these amendments that came into effect in December 2014, the compensation part was transferred from the Ministry of Defence to the Ministry of Health, an open debate had to take place before the Compensation Committee (CIVEN) and a medical specialist appointed by the veterans

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Jean-Luc Sans President Aven

associations had to participate in the discussions. These measures were positive and improved the procedure, but they did not alter the method used to assess the risk which could still easily be declared as ‘negligible’. De facto only 15% of the applicants were compensated. The administrative courts and later the Council of State couldn’t be fooled and as soon as the Compensation Committee were not under the Ministry of Defence any more, they required from them to justify why the risk could be considered as negligible. Eventually, following President Hollande’s speech in Papeete (French Polynesia) in February 2016, a draft order was issued and discussed in the Follow-up Commission (which AVEN is a member of) over the whole of July. This decree was to be enacted towards the end of September. It was supposed to set (amongst other things) a threshold above which the risk is not considered as negligible any more.

But the Council of State rejected the text of this decree on the grounds that according to the law the terms of compensation should not be dictated by the government but by the Compensation Committee. The law had therefore to be modified. Thanks to a political trick, this is what happened on February 14th. From March 1st on, the notion of negligible risk has been completely removed and all applications previously rejected will be re-examined. For AVEN, this is the successful culmination of a 16-years struggle. And even if the concrete implementation of this new law shows initial organisation problems, from now on all victims of French nuclear tests will be compensated. J.L.SANS

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Genome Biology: Techniques to study chromosome aberrations. Dr Rhona Anderson, Institute of Environment, Health and Societies, Brunel University London. In the second of our ‘Genome Biology’ series we will look at the key techniques used to examine for chromosome rearrangements in human cells and also, how to make sense of the data which is generated. The starting point for all cytogenetic analysis is to prepare chromosomes for viewing down a microscope. As described in the Summer 2016 edition of the BNTVA magazine all nucleated cells in our bodies contain genetic material, meaning we could sample any cell from our bodies to determine our chromosome constitution. Blood cells are the most easily sampled for this purpose and have the added advantage of being able to enter a ‘growing phase’ in the laboratory by the addition of a stimulant known as a mitogen. Lymphocytes (white blood cells) respond to this mitogen by progressing through their cell cycle toward mitosis which is the phase where a cell begins to divide into two daughter cells and importantly, is the phase where the cellular genetic material is sufficiently condensed to be visible down a microscope as discrete chromosomes.

A mitotic blocking agent can then be added to ‘arrest’ the growing cells before actual division enabling the ‘fixation’ of lymphocytes at a stage where their chromosomes are in this condensed ‘metaphase’ state (Figure 1). The duration of the cell culture and the timing of addition of the arresting agent are optimised to collect an adequate number of predominantly first-division metaphase cells, thereby ensuring any chromosome aberrations subsequently identified are representative of the blood initially sampled.

Figure 1: Cells have distinct stages of growth collectively termed as the cell cycle. Each cell will proceed through a full cell cycle and then divide into two daughter cells. Chromosomes are most visible (and therefore useful for analysis) in the metaphase stage of mitosis.

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Fixed cells are then placed on microscope slides and stained using a variety of techniques each of which can reveal different aspects of the chromosome morphology. For the NCCF-Cytogenetics Study the predominant technique will be fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH), including multiplex (M)-FISH. The principle of FISH relies on the fact that DNA is double stranded (see BNTVA magazine, Summer 2016) and that each strand is complementary in its base-pair sequence. What this means is that under conditions in the laboratory, double stranded DNA can be ‘melted’ or denatured into two single strands and when the conditions are altered, these two strands can come back together again by matching the complementary base pairs to re-form double stranded DNA. If, into this mix, we add a section of single stranded DNA that is also complementary but which has been chemically modified with a fluorescence label or tag, then sometimes this fluorescent probe will ‘hybridise’ rather than the original, resulting in a fluorescently labelled sequence of DNA which we can visualise using a fluorescence microscope (Figure 2A). By preparing probes that span whole chromosomes and by using spectrally different fluorescent colours then we can distinguish multiple different chromosomes by their unique paint colour

(Figure 2B top). We can determine if the structure of each painted chromosome is normal or exchanged in some way by assessing if the coverage of paint is continuous down the whole length of the chromosome (Figure 2B top) or, if there is a colour-switch (Figure 2B bottom). The colours of any rearranged chromosome then determines the origin of chromosomes involved. M-FISH represents the most advanced version of this chromosome painting technique and also requires specialised software to process the multiple different combinations of fluorescence colour and probe combinations.

Figure 2: (A) Principle of the FISH technique. The diagram shows the use of a single probe to label a specific region on one chromosome however probes can also be generated to ‘paint’ whole chromosomes.

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For non-constitutional changes i.e. those which have been acquired throughout our lifetime (see BNTVA magazine, Summer 2016) we can calculate their frequency of occurrence in each individual sampled, provided, a sufficiently large number of cells are analysed.

(B) M-FISH karyotype showing all human homologous chromosome pairs uniquely painted with distinct colours in a normal cell (top). Chromosome exchanges are detected as colour-switches, in this example; chromosomes 2, 3, 13 and 21 are rearranged (bottom).

There are many types of structural aberration visible with whole chromosome FISH techniques including stable exchanges e.g. translocations, insertions and, unstable exchanges e.g. dicentrics, centric rings, acentric fragments. All of these categories can be recorded and an assessment made as to whether the same aberration is present in all cells (constitutional) or in just a fraction of the cells analysed.

For evaluative purposes however we need to repeat this process across a predefined sample population. In the NCCF-Cytogenetic study this population comprises 50 test families, selected based on knowledge that they are veterans (or a family member of a veteran) who participated at a nuclear test site, together with 50 matched control families. It is only by comparing the frequency of aberrations between these two similar, yet distinct populations, that any statistical relevance of the findings can be determined. An example of this would be where the average frequency of chromosome translocations derived from 50 test veterans is compared to the same averaged metric in the control veterans using appropriate statistical methods.

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Recollections of Christmas Island Tony Box In the early spring 1957, having returned to the UK from Malaya after an unwise foray into the world of rubber planting, I start searching for an army recruiting office. I was badly in need of work, I was seriously broke and therefore decided that my past experiences in khaki, warranted my attempting to rejoin the army. I soon found a recruiting office in an anonymous suburban side street in Surbiton. My particulars were noted by a Captain, I was told I would be contacted by RAOC Records, at Glenn Parva Barracks, Leics, and that was that. I was kept waiting for a full month before approval for my re enlistment came through along with a postal order for the rail journey to RAOC Bicester. At Bicester a week past and I had yet to be issued with my uniform and what is worse I had received no pay. I was living in a Nissen hut along with a regular corporal who also seemed to be a forgotten man. Every night in the NAAFI about a hundred of us junior ranks huddled as near as possible to a brand new TV with a minuscule screen. Then things began to pick up, better days or at least hopeful days, came in a rush. I was fortunate enough to met up with CSM Trumphey formerly of C Coy 30 Bn Singapore fame where I had served previously and he told that RAOC Bicester were looking for junior ranks, to volunteer, to take

part in the forthcoming Operation Grapple on Christmas Island and â€˜Was I interested?â€™ Was I interested? I was prepared to go to great lengths to get away from Bicester! My name was the first put forward. In a couple of days there were four other other ranks and they were volunteered!! After leave we reported back to Bicester to be kitted out and have injections etc before moving on to London for onward transportation to Christmas Island! A visit to the Mill Hill library revealed details of Christmas Island in the Pacific were forthcoming. There were ten of us, all junior ranks, who left Bicester railway station bound for RAOC Feltham. A porter, asked where we were going and was told that we had been instructed not to talk about our eventual destination. Our kit bags were boldly stencilled in black - BFPO 170 (British Forces Post

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Office170) and the observant porter, it seems he knew something we didn’t know, said ‘Your going to Christmas Island’. From Feltham we met up at Euston railway station with some Royal Engineers, all junior ranks, who were also going to Christmas Island. We arrived at RAF Transport Command RAF Lyneham. The following day we left Lyneham in a RAF Comet, there were flight stopovers at more than one place but I can only remember RAF Negombo Ceylon. Finally we arrived at RAF Changi where we settled into a typical service transit block and told our flight would continue on the morrow. The following day we were delayed by a week due to a lack of spare parts for the Comet that would have to be shipped over from the UK. Ten days later the Comet finally flew up into the sky and made for Australia. In Australia we stopped at the RAAF base Amberly which is 8 kilometres from Ipswich and in turn 50 kilometres from Brisbane. After Amberly we flew to Nadi airport - Fiji where we stayed over night. Next we flew to Canton Island, administrated by the Americans, and after a short stop here we continued our flight crossing the International Date Line and arriving at Christmas Island.

At Christmas Island we left the Hasting in an orderly, military manner and stacking up our kit bags, looked around taking in our surroundings. A large TCV (Troop Carrying Vehicle) pulled alongside us with a Royal Signals private who proceeded to sling our kit bags on the back. Some of fellow squaddies with me at the beginning of this Christmas Island experience were Brian Claridge, Lance Corporal George Miles and Hancock, Simpson and Jenkins. Also present were two Warrant Officers, ConductorKen Graham and Warrant Officer Class 2 Rooks. Also I remember a young Sgt Gibbons, ‘Gibby’ to his admirers, sadly he is no longer with us. Also in the TCV, along with us new boys, were some of the original 1956 Operation Grapple X RAOC detachment and they had been anxiously waiting our arrival to take over from them. At the Main Camp where we were issued with the necessary for our stay on the island for one year. At the tented QM’s store we were given a Safari bed, and a steel food tray neatly divided into sections for the main meal, meat and two veg etc.

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Main Camp was on the south eastern tip of the island where there was also a coconut estate. On Main Camp there were administration buildings, officers and scientists tented accommodation and the cookhouse. On the other side of the cookhouse were five rows of tents, beside the islands hospital at the opposite end to the hospital. The tent that was to be our home was situated on the furthermost row from the beach and a few yards from the hospital, it was also near the JOC Centre - Joint Operations Centre. At the rear of the tent was a row of wash basins and a large shower unit, beyond this shower facility, sheltered behind bushes, were the nearest toilets ‘Thunder Buckets’. Every few days an RAF bowser truck with two RAF general duties men would drive up. They used a hose to clean out the contents of the buckets. If you happened to be using one at the time then one of the RAF men them would lift you off the bucket you were sitting on and place you on a recently hosed vacated one. The tents we were to sleep in had been in use for three years and were worn out and rotten from the beach up. We settled into our various jobs on the RAOC stores and the mobile laundry location, where Brian Claridge and I were given the job of emptying the washing from the very large washing machine drum.

Up in the tent lines the RAOC junior ranks had four tents that housed the fourteen of us. I was in a tent on the top row, last but one and in my tent was a Corporal Atkinson and a Private Nicholson and one other whose name I have forgotten. Corporal Atkinson was a very quiet and withdrawn individual and slept with his eyes open. Our daily routine started with muster parade at 7am. Sgt Gibbins lined us up and handed us over to Conductor Graham who would walk up and down the ranks making with a cursory inspection. Then our officer, a Captain X, would turn up in the units Land Rover. He knew all our names and his inspection was even more casual, if that was possible, than Conductor Graham’s. At a later date, after work eased off, we wouldplay football and all take part in a shoot in at our goal mouth and when the Captain was not on compassionate leave he would join in along with Conductor Graham. Eventually the Captain’s driver, who was parked up awaiting orders, would drive up to the Captain and that was that. The Captain was off until his next appearance at the next soccer shoot in. When we were not working, in the evenings, there were few choices about what to do with your time. After tea we would return to the tent and lay on our Safari beds and then probably

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go to the first showing of the film at the Main Camp Open Air cinema. Usually there was just the one film on show but sometimes there was a short supporting film. It seems to me that I was always going to the cinema during my time on Christmas Island.

there were observation bunkers but I never went there although this was not forbidden. It was from the southern most point of the island that the H Bombs were to be tested. Two miles off the island and thousands of feet in the sky. This is what we were told!

I do remember going down to the sea shore and gazing up at the big sky and realising there was no exit from the island until I had completed a full year and that would only be so if we were spared an accident with one of the bombs during the tests. It was a fallacy to believe there was no possibility of a disaster, after all they were being tested. At times I envisaged a disaster and for a few minutes I was down in the dumps but this mood soon passed. It was hard to stay miserable for long surrounded by, in the main, jaunty happy go lucky companions. I had learnt during my previous three years service it was acceptable to be bright and breezy, even a miserable git, but not to be opinionated.

Another past time some of us took part in was swimming in the lagoon a short walk from the tent lines. Swimming in the Pacific was banned after two servicemen had drowned. The advise was that if you got into difficult’s, whilst swimming, that you should not have been doing in the first place, you should just tread sea water and the current would carry you around the island. I thought it was wiser by far to obey the ban.

At first the only booze on sale at the NAAFI was Watneys Light Ale. You could buy as much of this as you wanted. It was not popular and you could buy a cardboard box containing either twelve or twenty four tins. Evey day lorries going to and fro from Port London to the south of the island were carrying material connected with the bomb tests. I had heard that at the southernmost point of the army

The weather on the island was reasonable, for instance there was not the humidity of Malaysia.The sun rises at 6 am and sets at 6 pm and the temperature is a constant 70ºf, there is more rain in Jan to June than the other six months. There was never a dull moment on Christmas Island. The Matelot’s marquee, you passed it on the way to the cookhouse, had a reputation. Something to do with who was visiting Navy tent. I was never able to authenticate this rumour.

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My army documents state that we deplaned at Christmas Island on the 14/8/57. This information is written in a childish scrawl no doubt by some bored NS man and I would not have liked to have made a bet on the accuracy but I am confident our advance party arrived on Christmas Island at sometime in August 1957. The back up party was already in situ having travelled by way of San Francisco. And so it was four months plus that Christmas, as is its wont, came around on the usual 25th of December. Time on the island had passed by very quickly and if we were expecting anything out of the ordinary we were in for a disappointment. Christmas dinner was served in two sittings and the RAOC junior ranks were at the second sitting along with the Royal Engineers junior ranks.There was a very nice meal, all the usual trimmings and we were each given a tin of Watneys Red Label Light Ale. There was to be a treat for the RAOC junior ranks. We were to have a few days in Hawaii - Honolulu, a sort of reward for all the boring days we had been on the island. Conductor Ken Graham had come into the junior ranks common room on the stores site at NAAFI break time and had announced the welcome news.

Our names were drawn out of a hat and the first four were shortly off on holiday, I was one the second party. We flew to the United States Air base at Hickham Field Honolulu in an RAF Hastings and at Hickham Field, as we awaited transport to the reception centre, a garrulous American airman asked us where we were from. We did not think this was a secret so I told him that we were taking part in Operation Grapple X Yankee on Christmas Island. The airman was suitably impressed and nodding at the Hastings exclaimed â€˜In that thing - you were lucky to make itâ€™! We were driven in a Bedford TVC (troop carrying vehicle) painted RAF blue to the reception centre where we sat in what seemed like baby chairs for sometime before we had our particulars noted and we then trooped out to the Bedford TCV and were taken on a half an hour ride to the US Army Schofield Barracks barracks. Schofield Barracks was the setting for the 1953 film From Here to Eternity. My memories of this Honolulu break are mostly of drinking in Hotel Street. I was advised by a friendly native that Hotel Street was in a less than salubrious area so naturally that was where I headed. At the time I was age twenty three years old and already enamoured with the army culture of beer drinking, two or three pints and I was anybodies.

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Back at RAOC Services all the buzz was about the forthcoming football tournament. Every unit was to take part and some of them barely had enough players to make up an eleven. The RAOC services was one such unit, take away the two sergeants and the warrant officers there was just fourteen junior ranks including myself and after the first friendly game to start things off, I was out of the reckoning. Somehow, Brian Claridge, who admitted that he had hardly ever played the game, was chosen to be our goal keeper and minus George Miles and one other, a Jock name I have forgotten, that was our eleven The RAF catering department were reputed to have two hundred men available to play but I thought that was an extravagance. I did not believe that the RAF Catering Department had anywhere near that many junior personnel. The Royal Engineers, the Royal Signals had many junior ranks and also it was possible they might have had some senior ranks who were useful. Then there was the RAF Police and the REME ( Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers), possibly there were other Corps or Regiments that I’ve forgotten. Preparation for the tournament started and Conductor Ken Graham appointed himself team manager and coach and any other official post he could think of. An initial five a side game

was arranged and Brian Claridge was clearly the best choice for goal keeper and another private was a clear leader with some experience of competitive play. The competition was keen and despite the odds the RAOC Services made a clean swoop of the games. The pitch was marked out with oil and so stood out against the white coral and there was a regular referee who was an RAF Physical Training corporal. The RAOC’s first game was against a Royal Signal Regiment who had far more people to chose from than the Ordnance and on the day many of their supporters, including a Signals officer complete with a Land Rover, he sat on the roof, to cheer on his side, attended to support their team. I was stationed behind Brian’s goal giving him encouragement and for the first half he had very little to do. Whatever the action came up our end of the pitch he preformed as if he had been playing in goal for years. The pitch was coral and if you went down you would probably have a cut elbow or knee so most of the players used hose tops and worn on their elbows and knees. Gibby, aka Sgt Gibbins, was our trainer and he would run on the pitch if one of our players went down and give first aid where applicable. The match against the Royal Signals, part of the soccer tournament on the island, was won by the RAOC Services and the incident I really recall was

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the ‘Goal That Never Was’. Early on, in the second half, there was a shot by a Royal Signals player that beat Brian Claridge flying past myself and Conductor Graham. I turned to run and retrieve the ball which had gone several yards and disappeared into the palm trees. Conductor Graham told me, as I started after the ball, to ‘TAKE YOUR TIME’!! I disappeared into the palm trees and after a few minutes found the ball. As I went to throw the ball to Brian Conductor Graham called over to him to ‘Put the ball down for a goal kick’! Brian was cannier than I and strolled to the edge of the goal area and placed the football and turning around slowly retraced his steps and ran up and kicked the ball. It was a good goal kick and came back to earth in the Royal Signals area of the pitch. There was much discontent amongst the Royal Signals and their officer called out ‘I say ref that ball was jolly well out’! but the ref took no notice and the game went on. The rank and file of the Signal supporters continued to complain about the ref’s decision but he took no notice. The RAOC Services won the game one nil!!! ‘Fortune favoured the con men!!! And then it was all over after a fortnight of similar victories and I believe, just the one draw,we become football champions of Christmas Island 1958.

I basked in the fame of Brian Claridge who became well known amongst the Royal Signals. A sort of love/ hate thing because of his part in the Royal Signals defeat in ‘that game’. During a drink on the RAOC site, after hours of waiting for the date of our flight, celebrating our pending exit from the island, L/Cpl Hancock a clerk was persuaded to climb a palm tree. After a few wets he had given us an account of his climbing exploits in civvy street and we had persuaded him to have a go at climbing a nearby palm tree. After a few feet of his ascent all of us lay down on the coral hoping to encourage him to continue climbing. Camaraderie!

Tony is looking to contact anyone he served with on Christmas Island. If you think you know Tony and want to contect him, please email editor@bntva.com and we wil pass on your email. Tony is in the process of self publishing a book on his recollections. As soon as we have details of this we will publish them in the magazine.

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Visiting Memorials at the NMA My name is Brian Unthank, in May of 2016 I was at the National Memorium Arboratum at Alrewas Stafforshire. I had gone there with a group of friends with the mind to find three specific memorials. The first was to my father who was one of the last off of the beaches at Dunkirk, the second was to the Mobile Catering Support Unit, of which I was a member, and thirdly to the BNTVA memorial which I found in a lovely position and would like to show two pictures of for those members who are unable to attend in person. I am led to believe that this is the second memorial to be erected in our honour, unfortunately I forgot to ask why it had been replaced. ÂŠ Brian Unthank

ÂŠ Brian Unthank

Brian Unthank at the BNTVA Memorial at Alrewas.

Note from the editor: The old memorial was beginning to crumble both the stone itself and the foundations on which it was constructed, making it unsafe. A new memorial would give the opportunity for the stone to be moved slightly to give the plot a more regular shape due to the trees being replanted as the original ones had died.

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BNTVA Trustees Chairman Jeff Liddiatt

Chairman Designate Alan Owen

Email: chairman@bntva.com Tel: 0208 144 3080

Email: a.owen @bntva.com

Organisation Manager Robert Ireland

Financial Manager Ian Greenhalgh LLB

Email: secretary@bntva.com b.ireland@bntva.com

Email i.greenhalgh@bntva.com

Vice Chair Merchandising Ian Hall

Supporters Group & Branch Communications Doug Hern

Email: i.hall@bntva.com shop@bnva.com

Email: d.hern@bntva.com

Remembrance Co-ordinator Don James

Maralinga Veterans Coordinator Fred Stellard

Email: d.james@bntva.com

Email: f.stallard@bntva.com

Vice Chair Administration Sandie Hern

Association Chaplain The Very Revd Nicholas Frayling BA, LLD

Email: s.hern@bntva.com

Email: n.frayling@bntva.com

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For BNTVA office contact details please see page 35. Fallout Descendents Group Shelly Grigg Email: s.grigg@bntva.com

Legal Advisor to the Board Tony Jeffrey Email: t.jeffery@bntva.com

Trustee Susan Musselwhite

Appointed Persons and Honourables Parliamentary Patron John Baron Member of Parliament Email: baronj@parliament.uk

Honorary Editor Steve Bexon Email: editor@bntva.com

Email: s.musselwhite@bntva.com

Specialist Advisor Nigel Heaps MBE Trustee Alison Walker Email: a.walker@bntva.com

Trustee Ron Watson Email: r.watson@bntva.com

Email: n.heaps@bhassociates-llp.com

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One Day in My Life Céline Houdoin, daughter of a French nuclear veteran, now leading the French Fallout group for NTV offspring attended a press conference on 16th January 2017. This is her story: Difficult waking after a long night: I am already looking forward to the evening so that I can slip under my duvet. Well, people being tired is not uncommon … I need at least ten minutes stretching before I can properly get out of bed, my muscles and joints ache fiercely. I go down and take my medicine in order to reduce the shooting pain. As the doctor puts it: “It is better to endure a few side effects than to be in permanent pain, isn’t it?” Actually I am not quite sure: I feel like I have the brain of an elderly woman. Well, people having muscle and joint pain is not uncommon … My little one is again severely coughing this morning and she also has fever. I hope I won’t have to reschedule my day in order to take her to the doctor’s. She easily develops complications when she is sick. Since she contracted a hepatitis and developed an acute respiratory disease, I worry about her almost all the time. Well, young children always catching infections is not uncommon …

Alright, don’t panic, the day is only starting, the weather is fine, let’s be positive! I make myself a nice breakfast and am careful to drink enough so that my kidneys don’t bother me. I have to take special care of them after an operation to correct a congenital defect in my right kidney, the same defect suffered by my elder brother. Never mind, I can live quite normally, just have to be more careful. So after all, identical congential defects in families are not uncommon… When I eat, things get more complicated: the many ulcers in my mouth plague me. No problems, just solutions: I blithely dip my rusks into the black coffee. It is less tasty, but at least I don’t grimace in pain at each mouthful. Well, having mouth ulcers, even lots of mouth ulcers is not uncommon … A nice shower helps me to completely wake up and then I proceed to work cream into my skin. A fairly timeconsuming but necessary activity to stop my drying out completely and developing patches of eczema.

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Well, having an extremely dry skin is not uncommon … Clear weather … I’d like to put on this nice summer dress. After a quick inspection of my legs, I opt for super opaque tights. I wouldn’t like people to draw the wrong conclusions and suspect my husband after noticing the large bruises that cover my legs. Well, a rare blood clotting disorder is actually uncommon, but it’s not very serious, so after all it’s not too bad … The day goes on with its batch of suffering, feelings of tiredness and various differing problems. As long as I don’t catch a common cold or the latest bout of flu, all is well in the world. However, I have to remain vigilant with my idiotic immune system that chooses to attack rather than protect me. Well, autoimmune diseases are not so uncommon … I’ve got to pick up my son from school and take him to hospital. He’s got his last appointment for a follow-up after a purpura outburst last summer. Now everything is under control, I haven’t see the smallest red spot in months. But how shocked I was when I heard the doctor say we must rule out leukaemia as he delivered examined him! It was just a virus that had caused a diminution of blood platelets, after all, it was not too bad …

End of the afternoon, peaceful time, all three children are at home. Here is my eldest one kneeling on the floor, she is as red as a lobster and urgently needs to do a wee. She was too shy to go to the toilet at her college. She is afraid of the taunts she gets as she needs a lot of time to urinate. At least she doesn’t still suffer the urinary tract infections and constipation problems like she did when she was a little girl. All those years of rehabilitation have been successful: she can almost live like a normal teenager in spite of the absence of feeling in her bladder and rectum. Having a congenital defect of the spinal cord, she could have been more heavily handicapped, after all, it’s not too bad … It is evening at last, I am exhausted, I can look forward to a well-deserved rest and hope that the pain in my legs will stop plaguing me and I can get a good nights sleep unless I keep brooding over this nasty story that I now share with you. Céline

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The Fight of French Offspring It’s about all those people who, like me, had a father or a mother who was exposed to ionizing radiation during nuclear tests. They suffer both small and large health problems that, taken separately may seem insignificant, but when we look at these accumulated disorders, the whole picture is much more serious. When we read the, all too rare studies on this issue, they are truly chilling, documenting a rise in the probability of suffering cancers, miscarriages, infertility, rare diseases, genetic defects. It goes on and on. My father is not to blame, he knew nothing about the cross-generational impact of the radiation he was subjected to in French nuclear tests. Unfortunately it is only recently I have come to learn of the connection to all these problems and the tests. Had I known when I was younger I would have chosen not to have children. What really keeps me awake at night is the lack of support for myself and for my children. Living with the sword of Damocles over our heads is oppressive. I don’t know what I am going to die of, but I know that I will die too early. I’d rather I wasn’t aware of that but it has become my reality. The State is overcautious when it’s about recognizing their mistakes. Just look at the small number of French nuclear veterans that have been compensated after years and years of struggle.

The day will come when I have to tell my children that their life expectancy might be limited and that it would be better for them to adopt children as their health issues have a tendency to be passed on to the next generation. I wish with all my heart that things will go smoothly and that a doctor will take the responsibility to tell the children. I don’t want to have to tell them myself it is such a heartrending thing to have to do as a mother. If we want things to change, the facts have to be known to the veterans and their offspring, they have to unite. This is why I presented the account of one of my days, to the people of France. My final message is: “You might tell me: what do these outpourings have to do with me? Imagine for one moment that one of my kids meets one of yours, that they get together and decide to start a family … Here we are, I think you feel a little bit more concerned now: If we get more consideration from the State, they give us research and medical support so that all nuclear test veterans’ offspring are aware of the risks they could inherit from their parents. This major public health issue can start to be addressed.”

CAMPAIGN Spring 2017 | 23

Gateshead Marriott Hotel MetroCentre Directions 



From the south: Take the slip road off the A1 towards the Metro Centre. Turn right onto Hollinside Road and follow the road round. At the crossroads, go straight on onto Pinetree Way. Then turn left into the hotel. From the north: Take the slip road off the A1 towards the Metro Centre. Turn left onto Hollinside Road. Follow the road round. At the crossroads, go straight on onto Pinetree Way. Then turn left into the hotel.



By bus or Train: The MetroCentre Bus and Train Stations are situated with 0.1 Miles of the hotel.



By Air: Newcastle International Airport - NCL Airport Phone: +44 191 2144422 Hotel direction: 8 miles NW Durham Tees Valley Airport - MME Airport Phone: +44 871 2242426 Hotel direction: 36 miles S



Address: Gateshead Marriott Hotel MetroCentre, Marconi Way, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear NE11 9XF

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Telephone: 0191 493 2233

Annual Gala Dinner Raffle Tickets will be on sale throughout Saturday for the Annual BNTVA Raffle. The raffle will be drawn by the Chairman at the Gala Dinner. Any members wishing to donate prizes to the raffle please contact: Sandy Hern - s.hern@bntva.com or Shelly Grigg - s.grigg@bntva.com

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The Monte Bello Story An ordinary seaman’s adventure In May 1955 at the age of 17 ½ I was conscripted for National Service in the Royal Navy, Ordinary Seaman R Grace C/J 950835. In August of that year after initial training I was drafted to a Chatham based ship Tank Landing Ship 3044, HMS Narvik, to bring her out of mothballs and to take her to Australia. What an adventure! About, I think November, the ship’s crew, the majority of which were National Servicemen, were mustered in Chatham Barracks cinema and told, `Well, Yes, you will be going to Australia but you’ll be on the Monte Bello Islands off the North west coast, testing two atomic bombs.`We were then shown film of a test that had been carried out on the islands when a bomb was detonation in a frigate, HMS Plym in 1952. On arrival in March 1956, the islands, which are coral outcrops, some 8 miles by 4, many working hours were spent unloading equipment from the ship and setting up a shore base and lido for swimming about 4 miles from the beach where HMS Plym had been moored before she was annihilated by the atom bomb detonated in her. We were told that some areas in that vicinity were still radioactive but

although there was no danger we should not go near. There were no signs designating the area to avoid, and , we were working, relaxing, swimming eating drinking fresh water made from the sea and eating fish caught all within an area some 4 miles from this radioactive area all the time we were on the Islands. The Test series was codenamed Operation Mosaic and on 16 May the first detonation G1 was carried out on Trimouille Island at the top of a tower some 100 feet in height. This location was about 2 - 3 miles from the base camp and recreation area. HMS Narvik was located, so we were informed, 6 miles away to the South West, with the crew mustered on the upper deck. No protective clothing was issued.

CAMPAIGN Spring 2017 | 25

Top Left Ordinary Seaman Roger Grace 1956 Right Roger Grace today

The ship returned to its anchorage and we continued to work at base camp and on Alpha Island, some 2 miles away from both the site of G1 and the site of the 1952 test, in preparation for G2 the second detonation of the test series. On 19 June G2 was detonated, HMS Narvik, again we were told, was 12 miles away to the South West, with the crew mustered on the upper deck. The ship again returned to its anchorage and we continued working ashore. In fact, as boats crew I took scientist and landed them on a beach within about Â˝ mile of the site of G2. So, close in fact, that I recall seeing the saucer shaped depression in the ground caused by the explosion and up draught. We eventually left the Islands in, I believe, July. I do not recall ever receiving any briefing about the dangers of radiation, but we were all issued with a film badge which was supposed to record our exposure to radiation. These were attached to our clothing by a simple safety pin. I lost 4 of these due to my work as boats crew climbing in and out of boats.

When on the upper deck to witness the detonations, we were dressed in shirt and trousers with sleeves rolled down and had our backs to the point of detonation, but no protective clothing. I can recall little of G1 but remember vividly G2, with eyes shut and hands over my eyes, as instructed, the flash was so bright I could see the bones in my hands, like an Xray. The heat was if a 2-bar electric fire was being held close to my neck and the blast whipped my clothing away from my body like a flag in a gale. After a few seconds we were instructed to turn and look at the fire ball, it was stupendous, bright red, orange and white with dark clouds between. A stupendous sight. What an adventure for an 18-year-old but some 6o years later and having suffered some illnesses one wonders what we were exposed to. Some years ago, with the advent of the internet I started researching Operation Mosaic. The yield of a nuclear explosion is measured in Kilotonâ€™s and one kiloton is the equivalent of one thousand tons of TNT and yield can only be estimated prior to detonation, the true yield only be measured after the event.

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The 1952 Test Operation Hurricane produced a yield of 25kt and was the first major test carried out by the UK. Minor tests had been carried out at Maralinga prior to this and were also carried out after, leading up to Operation Mosaic in 1956. G1 of Operation Mosaic was detonated on a 100ft high tower and produced a yield of 15kt according to UK records, however the Australian. records give a yield of between 13.5 and 16kt. It had been agreed by the Prime Minister of the UK that neither test would be greater than 2.5 times that of Operation Hurricane and by this assurance the Australian Prime Minister gave permission for the tests to go ahead. G2 of Operation Mosaic was again on a 100ft high tower and was seen and felt by witnesses to be very much greater that G1. The Australian Government, in their Royal Commission to investigate all UK tests carried out in Australia, record the yield as between 56 and 98kt. However, the UK maintain that the yield was 60kt, just under their maximum estimate, but this was not officially agreed until 1993. An unanswered question â€œIf the yield was as high as 98kt were the safety measures in force sufficient? I have requested information from the MOD by way of Special Subject Access Request but this has raised more questions than answers. The main one being the distance HMS Narvik was from G1 and G2.

SSAR states G1 distance 16km whereas at the time we were told 6 miles. I imagine that this would have been Nautical miles and 6nm equate to 11.10 km. G2 distance 29km we were told 12miles; 12 nm equates to 22.2km Question why the disparity??? Highest recorded dose of radiation for Naval personnel was 1.60R approx. 16.0mSv; as my film badge was lost I requested information as to my recorded dose and was informed I was given an average dose of 1.0mSv. I wonder what I and others were exposed to and what effect it has had on our health? I have had somewhere near 20 Basal Cell Carcinomas removed from my body since the 1970`s and am always informed that these are due to sun damage, this has been accepted by the Veterans agency as attributed to my Naval Service and I have received gratuities but could it not have been Nuclear Radiation? I have yet to come across anyone who served on Narvik for Operation Mosaic.

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An amusing letter from Dr David Read I thought your readers may find this amusing. I suspect it was fairly unusual the as the Doctor on board (HMS Narvik) observing the Christmas Island tests 1958 to be allowed to keep watch! Yes I really DID watch keep on a number of occasions and thankfully without drama! All in a dayâ€™s work Best regards D. Read

Albert (Bert) Sharp - looking for pals Hello to all exGrapple buddies.I served my national service in the RAF Regiment on Christmas Island in 1958/59. Our small unit was involved in the decontamination of the AWRE personel after their visits into contaminated areas after the bomb was dropped. I am one of the lucky ones and have not suffered any health problems and am now 80 years old and still operating my motor cycle business. I feel sorry for those who have suffered over the years. I would be pleased to hear if any of my pals are still around. I live in Aberdeenshire in Scotland. My best regards to everybody. Bert Sharp If anybody wants to get in touch with Burt please email editor@bntva.com and we will pass on his details.

28 | CAMPAIGN Spring 2017

BNTVA Coffin Drape Comissioned Nigel and Steve from BH Associates, our PR & Services organisation, have commissioned a coffin drape depicting the BNTVA Crest and Union Flag on the association blue background. This fitting tribute to our fallen comrades is available for use at any nuclear community funeral. The drape will be sent to the funeral directors free of charge on the proviso that it is returned in good order.

A flat view of the 8â€™ x 5â€™ drape

Our thanks go to Kinton & Daughter Funeral Services who kindly helped us take photographs of the drape at their premises. www.kintonanddaughter.com

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Nigel said: â€œFor some time we have been looking for a way to honour those people from the nuclear community we have come to know and the opportunity to provide a funeral drape service is a meaningful tribute at such a difficult time.â€? Within two days of the drapes being produced one was sent to the funeral of member who had recently passed. The family were very moved and grateful for the service. If you would like to use the coffin drape please ask the funeral directors to contact BH Associates at: Email: office@bhassociates.ltd Call: 0115 8883442 Write: BH Associates PO Box 8244 Castle Donington DE74 2BY

In memoriam Richard Smyth Its with sadness we have been informed that Richard Smyth passed away on the 10th of February 2017. Richard passed away in the Bantry General Hospital, Co. Cork. Ricard returned to Ireland living in Leap, Co. Cork for the past twenty years, after returning from thirty years in Canada. Richard Smyth Leap, Co Cork Member No: 4043

30 | CAMPAIGN Spring 2017

SHOP

ONLIN

BNTVA Shop

Forget Me Not Lapel Badge £3.00

Blazer Badge £12.00 Post Band 1

Post Band 1

E NOW

BNTVA .COM/ SHOP-F UNDRA ISING/ STORE -FRONT /SHOP/

BNTVA Lapel Badge £2.50

BNTVA Bookmark £3.00

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Grapple Tie £9.50

BNTVA Woven Tie £10.00

Baseball Cap £9.50

Polo Shirt £10.00

Post Band 1

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Available in Red, Black, White, Navy, Light Blue and Red. S - 4XL Post Band 2

Pilot Shirt £35.00

Scarf £10.00

BNTVA Fleece £22.00

BNTVA Mug £6.50

Made to order, please state collar size.

Post Band 2

S - 3XL

Post Band 3

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Band 1 items - ADD £1 Postage and Packaging, Band 2 Items - ADD £3 Postage and Packaging Band 3 Item - ADD £4 Postage and Packaging

CAMPAIGN Spring 2017 | 31

Ways to pay your annual BNTVA membership subscription Set out below are the methods you can use to pay your membership subscription, due 1st of April each year. There are 3 ways to pay your BNTVA membership: Cheque, Online and Direct Debit. Cheque Payment: Make cheque payable to BNTVA, write your 4 digit membership number on the rear of the cheque and return to: BNTVA PO Box 8244 Castle Donington DE74 2BY Online Payment: By using your own Internet Banking account make the payment using the details below: HSBC Bank plc 13 Parliament Street York YO1 8XS Sort code: 40-47-31 Account number: 64259351 Account name: British Nuclear Test Veterans Association

Online Payment / Direct Debit: Enter goo.gl/wipfVe into your browser. This takes you to our GoCardless secure Payment system where you can set up a Direct Debit payment. All you do is tick the membership type and online payment boxes. Once you are registered we do the rest. Join the BNTVA To join the BNTVA contact us for a membership application form which contains all the details on paying your membership. Types of membership UK Membership - UK Single Member £20, UK Family (partner & dependent children) £30, Overseas Single Member £30, Overseas Family (partner & dependent children) £40

IMPORTANT If you have been paying by Standing Order YOU MUST CANCEL with your bank. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE STANDING ORDER. If you have been paying by PayPal please cancel your payment and use the online payment instead.

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Membership Validation Exercise All UK based members will have recently received or soon receive a Membership Validation package through the post. This is the first time we have run an exercise like this since becoming a charity and your participation is essential. The Exercise will bring us right up to date in three key areas: • In law we need to let you know all the data we hold on you and to ensure that data is correct. • We are also moving from Standing Order payments to Direct Debit. The reason for this is that we will make a considerable saving on operating costs and at the same time provide more protection should anything go wrong with the payments as Direct Debits are subject to a guarantee under the banking system where Standing Orders are not. We found a number of members had created their standing orders wrongly and some were even paying us every month! Because Standing Orders are the responsibility of the individual we found it difficult to rectify the situation.

• Gift Aid - We need a gift aid form collecting to cover every member who pays UK tax. These forms must be available for scrutiny by HMRC and more importantly, they allow us to claim back the tax on your membership and any other monies you donate to us. This is worth 25p in the £1 or around £4000 a year which is like having an extra 200+ members. Getting this information back to us is so important that BH Associates, who are running the exercise for us, have made £200 available as prize money to be drawn from the returns. Jeff Liddiatt, BNTVA Chairman, will draw the four lucky winners who will share in this during the Conference in May.

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IMPORTANT NOTES: If you pay by Standing Order you should use the form in the Membership Validation pack to cancel the Standing Order with your bank. The BNTVA can not do this and will not be liable for any monies lost as a result of non-cancellation of Standing Orders. If you pay by PayPal you will notice this years monies have been refunded and all repeat payment options have been cancelled. Please use the information in the pack to start paying through the

GoCardless system, type goo.gl/wipfVe into your browser to access GoCardless. If you have misplaced your pack please contact the BNTVA on the central number as a matter of urgency.

GoCardless is our new secure Payment system where you can set up a Direct Debit payment.

The chance to WIN ÂŁ200

in prizes

All you have to do is complete and return the Freepost form in the Membership Validation Package and send to the BNTVA to be in the draw. If you take the electronic version of the magazine, then the forms will be available online for download, so either way you will be able to enter.

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NewsDesk Mail Service The NewsDesk publishes articles of interest to BNTVA members and supporters from a wide field of sources, The Recognition Campaign NewsDesk covers all key developments and media coverage of our campaign. You can access these regularly updated features on the BNTVA website at www.bntva.com News by Email â€“ We now bring you a great new way of keeping up to date with everything that is happening, the News Email Service â€“ You can sign up for free updates of the latest stories from our NewsDesks delivered straight to your email.

The chance to

Never miss an interesting story or important announcement again. To receive this new free service simply go to the BNTVA website and look for the subscribe form at the bottom of any news article. You can unsubscribe or change your preferences at any time.

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By Post BNTVA PO Box 8244, Castle Donington DE74 2BY By Telephone 24 Hour Call Back Service 0208 144 3080

By Email info@bntva.com Website www.bntva.com