The final ceremony at Wootton Bassett to mark the end of repatriations through the town.

…if you’re in the Forces, that is. Ah, it’s not like the good old days when joining Labour cost you £1million…but at least they gave you a seat in the House of Lords along with your membership card. It’s their new gimmick to attract a group of the population that […]

“….Flossie felt trapped. The Royal Regiment of Wales were in Afghanistan.   And they were homesick” It’s not much different to the ‘treatment’ that the sheep will be familiar with from the locals though. Who’d want to eat mutton stew out there when the animal’s probably ‘used’ and slightly salty? […]

For years Labour and the MoD have been battling to outspend each other on big budget shiny defence projects at the expense of effective purchasing. They were at their finest when the spending was mutually beneficial – Labour buying votes in shipyard towns with MoD brass also auditioning for retirement […]

A year ago today I produced and posted a video, to express how I felt about the pointless war in Afghanistan following the 200th death of one of our armed forces. A year on and nothing has changed …. apart from the ever increasing loss of life which, as of […]

…I, that on my familiar hillSaw with uncomprehending eyesA hundred of Thy sunsets spillTheir fresh and sanguine sacrifice,Ere the sun swings his noonday swordMust say good-bye to all of this;-By all delights that I shall miss,Help me to die, O Lord. (The last poem of William Noel Hodgson, written just […]

Back in September this blog, Subrosa and others highlighted the stealth closure of crucial parts of the 200 year old British Forces Post Office – the on-base Postal Service for our servicemen. The initial measure is to save £1.76M by withdrawing BFPO services to NATO HQs.  As part of Planning […]

For those who haven’t heard of him Jimmy Carr is a ‘comedian’. Not really to TheEye’s tastes, but it takes all sorts to make a world and the default attitude is: if you don’t like it, don’t buy tickets. Up to a point, but not this time. Five minutes from […]

David Davies is the MP for Monmouth and on the Home Affairs Select Committee. He’s a thoroughly sensible chap who is cursed by having to write back to thousands of invitations for speaking engagements to delicately check if he’s been mistaken (again) for THE David Davis, one time Shadow Home […]

People talk of “barriers” or “milestones” or “tipping points” or “marks” and assign them a significance far beyond their actual worth. Hitting a century at Lord’s. Getting that telegram from the Queen. Watching the FTSE top 6000. This is not one of those moments. Every one of those 201 servicemen […]