60s Life Malta

Life in Malta in 40 Commando

The previous page was: "40 Commando Termoli"

60s-Life-Malta; in the summer of 1961 I joined 40 Commando Royal Marines, at St. Andrews Barracks, Malta G.C. As I went towards the guardroom I met a couple of friends doing boxing training. We chatted for a while and after, I joined the Unit Boxing Team as a novice boxer.

I had been told a boxer's life was a cushy-number. After-all a boxer only had to spend a quarter of an hour in the boxing ring, boxing three, three-minute rounds and a bit of time going through the formalities. For that you had extra rations and after the boxing match you had a large steak meal.

To me that sounded really good. In those days we only received 1 rasher of bacon, sausage, egg or a portion of beans dished out by a cook who had to make the food go round.

The boxing team trained early in the morning finishing with a five mile run. After showering we went to breakfast while everybody else was on the Parade Ground, unless they were out on an 'Exercise' somewhere. We received two of everything on our plate instead of one. It was great.

40 Commando Termoli

The day of the big match arrived

We were being challenged by the H.M.S. Centaur, (an aircraft carrier) Boxing Team. I drew Mechanical Engineer Dust, he was six-feet three and a half-inches tall, he was exceptionally good looking without a mark on his face, and he had very broad shoulders. He looked every part like he was a good boxer.

He was seven and a half-inches taller than me; I was a little concerned about how I was going to tackle him, because of his height, long reach and his advertised confidence.

When my name was called, any doubts I had were replaced with determination, which proved to be the wisest option open to me. I won. I had two black eyes and a broken nose, but I won the fight. It was a fight because I could not out-box him.

Weeks later I met Dusty in a pub, he came over and offered his hand in friendship, I shook hands with him and then he bought me a pint. I was starting to like the guy.

He went on to tell me that I should never have beaten him because he was Chatham-Command's unbeaten light heavy-weight Open Champion.

He and a couple of others had been put in as ringers but they still lost the match. I had guessed all along that Dusty was a good boxer, it was just as well I had judged him accurately.

The Royal Highland Fusiliers

In the barracks next to us, they challenged us to to a boxing match.

That was after we had humiliated them in a swimming contest.

Some people never know when they are truly out of their depth.

The Boxing Match was a huge success; we won ten of the eleven bouts. They won the first bout, fair and square; we did not have anybody in the unit small enough to box at Bantam-weight.

With the boxing season over we returned

To our Companies, and I had to do normal trained soldiers work and Commando training etc.

I arrived back with One Section in 'A' Troop. They were brushing up on explosives, we used plastic explosive with detonators and slow, medium and quick timed fuse wire.

Very early on each Sunday morning the church across the way rang its bell and the annoying noise went on for ages. We nearly always went out on a Saturday night and enjoyed ourselves; if it wasn't for the bell everything would have been perfect.

Needless to say one night there was a loud explosion with a dull clang. It was the last time that bell rang while we were in Malta.

We had to check security at H.M.S. Falcon

A Fleet Air Arm Base, they had a medium sized harbour, airfield, aircraft hangers and a large barracks, plus everything that goes with such a large base.

Corporal Johnson and I, were assigned to try and plant wooden bombs where they would blow up the underground fuel storage tanks and fuel supply equipment.

Clothed in black with make-up to suit, we reached the parameter of our target unseen. We were outside a wire compound that had bright lights at either end, lighting-up the compound as if it were daylight.

We could see that we needed to be on the other side of the wire which went down into the earth. We dug a hole big enough for a slim person to get through, I was the slimmest.

Without making any noise I squeezed through, Johnson passed the bombs and I crawled towards the centre very slowly dragging the bag with the wooden blocks with bomb written on them.

I had the lights blazing away on me and there were two sentries who were looking directly at me but could not see me in the compound.

I watched the sentries who were marching backwards and forwards, all of the time they were keeping a watchful eye on the compound.

They didn't speak when they passed each other but I guessed at some stage they would. I took a chance when they closed, and rolled over the edge of the steps dropping down into the stairwell, landing quietly on my toes.

I placed my bombs where I though best and edged my way up the stairs and peered over the top to see where the sentries were. When they closed together again, I slipped over the top step and laid flat on the ground.

Relieved, that I had not been noticed, I cautiously edged my way to where Johnson was waiting. We filled the hole up in case someone came around inspecting.

Having completed our first task

Our next task was to cause a diversion so others could complete theirs. We climbed the fence of the airfield and jumped onto the ground, guards shouted for us to stop where we were. We legged it as fast as we could go, they let the dogs go and they all came chasing after us.

We reached the next boundary fence and jumped up to safety just before the dogs reached us, as we climbed higher the dogs got more annoyed and barked louder.

Very flares came flying in our direction close to us, they were firing them at us. There was pandemonium, lots of people were shouting orders, dogs were barking, vehicles were driving round everything was total chaos.

We jumped down over the fence, careful not to get snagged on the barbed wire around the top, and made off in the dark Commando style.

Next we crept outside the guardroom and sat in the bushes and wrote down the conversation between the Officer of the Watch and the Guard-Commander.

At midnight the end of the Exercise we went and sat on a wall.

All of us had infuriated the matelots so much they continued with the Exercise. We were put into a Landrover and closely guarded by the Shore Patrol.

When we realised our situation, Johnson and I glanced at each other, we didn't say anything or give any indication our minds were as one. Inside the barracks I put my arm around the driver's throat and pulled his head back. All of the guards went for me while Johnson got away.

I was very closely escorted into the guardroom and ordered to remove all of my clothes. Which I did. When asked what we had been up to, I told them. They did not believe me, they sent someone to check out the bombs. When he returned with them, they believed me. Cpl Johson had the notes with him. I was told to get dressed and the Exercise was over.

All objectives were reached even planting bombs in the officers' beds, planes and helicopters. One Marine was sitting in the bar closest to the base wearing the Captain's cap, before he was taken in.

The radio operator, who was supposed to report everything he saw, kept quiet. The two who had been given the task of silencing him, crept up took him by surprise they held him over the edge of the hanger roof (a drop of about forty-feet). He asked not to be dropped over the edge because he had the very latest wireless set.

On Christmas day it is the custom

Of the Troop Sergeant to bring a cup of tea round to his men, while they are in bed, and in our case a tot of whiskey. After that we would drink the beers we had by our lockers. At dinner time for a laugh we put on our pyjamas and went to the dinning hall. The response was immediate laughter-nobody in the Marines wore their pyjamas-they kept them neatly folded for kit musters.

Another custom is the Officer's serve the Christmas dinner. To-day was no different, the officer's were serving and the Commanding Officer was giving every man a can of beer. All eyes were on us when we reached the C.O. He gave us two cans of beer and everybody in the dinning hall cheered.

After dinner one of the guys said: "let's all go ashore." I replied; "I can't go ashore, I'm on stoppage of leave." Someone said: "ask the C.O." I looked at him as if he was mad. A retort came: "you're scared to ask the C.O." "no I'm not." I replied.

"Dare you to go in your pyjamas and ask the C.O." It was a challenge. McPhee said: "I'll come with you I have got to see this."

Off we went to the Commanding Officer's private residence in our pyjamas. I knocked on the door; the maid opened it, saw us in our pyjamas and started screaming. Colonel Hunter came to see what was occurring, when he saw us he invited us in.

McPhee said: "I think we should tell you why we are here first."

He nodded to me, I said: "we are having a good time and would all like to go ashore together." "What's stopping you?" he asked.

I told him I was on seven days stoppage of leave for missing his Parade. He replied: "Will you promise not to miss another of my Parades."

I instantly agreed, he then invited us in and gave us a beer each; he then phoned the guardroom and cancelled my seven days stoppage of leave.

Modern-day Pages Fast Boats Pages Joe Wezley Pages

We had to sail for Singapore,

We were going from desert warfare to learn jungle warfare in Malaya.

But before we sailed we had to do an Exercise with the United States Marines at Derna, Libya. The amount of equipment they were using was amazing, compared to that which we had.

When we started embarking in the Landing Vehicles Track, the American's wouldn't allow us leave, until our beach had been cleared ready for us to land. When it was pointed out that we'd had clearance from our SBS who were waiting for us on the shore. They were more than a little surprised.

These Americans did not know about the SBS or what they did, permission to go ashore was granted and we landed three hours before our American cousins were put ashore.

The desert of Derna is rough and rocky in lots of places, we set off inland and set up our camouflage nets and waited for the Americans to come and find us. They sent out their special forces and we captured all of them. Their spy planes were flying over us but they still could not find where we were.

There were over five-hundred Commandos hiding under the camouflage nets. Their planes could not see us so they asked for clues; we stripped their men of their clothing and staked their naked men out like a row of XXX's. Then they found where we were.

We carried out the Exercise and discovered that in desert conditions usually the side with the largest number of soldiers would win most battles if carried out by the book. We knew that and that is why we were Commandos. They had ten times our number of men in the field.

All in all we had a great time and they looked after us well.

The next Link below will be: "Lieutenant Colonel Manners"

My 1960s-Life Malta Lieutenant Colonel Manners

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