Ken Wharton - BULLETS, BOMBS AND CUPS OF TEA: Further Voices of the British Army in Northern Ireland 1969-98

What the veterans said praise for A Long Long War

A superb job. This story had to be told. What's so important is that he galvanised the many of us to tell our stories before we got too old and forgot the details in the memory of our lost comrades and those permantently affected by that long forgotten war. I doubt if any of our politicans will read this book but they ought to. Ken thanks from the active and silent voices from A Long Long War.

When Ken contacted me to ask me to publicise what was then a project only little did I know what an excellent read the book would be. One of the few books to tell of the troubles from the soldiers point of view, remarkably frank, a compelling read, politicians should read this before committing soldiers to the front line anywhere.

Over the years the voices of the main protagonists of The Troubles were very often heard. The voice perhaps heard least of all was that of the ordinary British soldier, the guy sent over there to try and keep the peace, in what at times was an almost impossible situation. A thankless task for scant reward. What Ken has achieved is a testimony to those who walked the streets and more importantly to those who never came back. Essential Reading !!!!

Awesome a stunning read. I was one of the 300,000 that served in N.I. and this book is long overdue. If you are going to read one book on the troubles in N.I. then it has to be this one, you will feel the fear, the pain, the worry, the heartache, the joy and the bond of brotherhood felt by of all who served their friends and families.

An excellent and weighty book with stories well worth telling how it really was for and from those on the ground. Long overdue as memories are already beginning to blur and fade and those that were left behind deserve better. Thanks Ken.

My Dad was a soldier in Ulster and I bought the book for him. He says that it was so real that it brought back the smells and fears of Belfast. He says that it is, without doubt, the best book on the troubles and he has read a few. Good stuff.

Excellent piece of work from a true gentleman. Conveys the professionalism and courage of soldiers working in impossible conditions. Down to earth stories compiled in a practical and interesting manner. First class read.

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Published by Helion & Company 2009
eBook edition 2011
Designed and typeset by Farr out Publications, Wokingham, Berkshire
Cover designed by Farr out Publications, Wokingham, Berkshire
Printed by Cromwell Press Ltd, Trowbridge, Wiltshire

Text Ken M. Wharton
Maps of Belfast and Londonderry originally appeared in The British Army in Northern Ireland by Michael Dewar (1985) and are Weidenfeld & Nicolson, a division of The Orion Publishing Group (London).
Photographs as individually credited within the book.

Front cover images: (top) Down the Sights Paul Crispin; (bottom) Nowhere to Shop Paul Crispin.
Rear cover image: Poverty the Noose Paul Crispin.
All cover photographs taken in Belfast 1986.

The opinions expressed in the book are those of the individuals quoted and do not necessarily accord with views held by the author or publisher.

ISBN 978-1906033-34-7
eBook ISBN 978-1907677-89-2

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

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This book is dedicated to Nell Webster, Mo Norton, Carol Richards, Doreen Gilchrist, Patsy Hurst, Annie Bowman, Marie Hale, Tracey Butcher, Kathleen Gillespie and to Karen and Stevie Rumble. They are eleven remarkable ladies who shared the pain and grief of the soldiers who served in Northern Ireland

To Anne-Marie, Anna-Martina, Jonathan, Jenny, Robbie, Alex and Nathan, my seven wonderful children

To Sherriden, Kelsey and William; my three incredible grandchildren

To my lovely lady, Helen, the Navy brat who turned my life around

To my Jacket mates, Dave Hallam & Darren Ware

To all my many mates in the Jackets

To Colour Sergeant Ken Ambrose from the best Regiment in the British Army

To my Kings mate, George Prosser who did so much and still continues to give himself to help others

To all those who mastered the art of walking backwards on the streets and lanes of Northern Ireland and especially to those who did it with such style and bravery

To every bullet catcher and tail end Charlie

To every Regiment but a special dedication to
the men and women of the U.D.R.

The people at NIVA who do so much for every Northern Ireland veteran

To the memory of Lieutenant Commander Joseph Geraghty, R.N. (Who would have been my Father-in-Law)

and
To my late mother, Irene Wharton (192999)
and my father, Mark Clifford Wharton (19272009)

The Death of Robert Curtis

Ask the family not to hate the Irish; neither I nor my daughter chose to be born there; we just were. This is the baby I crawled with, up Hillman Street with the bullets flying; this was the baby born from love; her mum and dad fed Robert Curtis (officially the first British soldier to die in N.I.) his last meal, fish and chips from the Silver Key Chip shop on Duncairn Gardens; with fun, laughter, love and total respect. This was before the IRA took him from this world, so unfairly before he could see his own daughter Jasmine born, 6 months after he was murdered.

Please let the family know we care, and there were others who did, and held her son as a hero in our hearts. He was there to protect us, he made the world a better place for our daughter to be born in, and may God hold him in the Palm of His Hands.

Thank you to all you wonderful boys, who we depended on for some sort of freedom and safety. Your sacrifices were never taken for granted; I know; I have two beautiful grandchildren to prove it.

Doreen Gilchrist, Belfast Resident

Although it is clear that the politicians and policy makers were clueless it is evident that the people on the frontline knew the situation. It's a pity they were not listened to at the time; a lot of hurt could have been avoided.

James Henderson, Ulster Defence Regiment

I loved the man I sent to Belfast; I didn't much like the man who came back.

Ruby Hill, former wife of a soldier

The author gratefully acknowledges and endorses the words of the following contributors:

To our Members of Parliament, who, through their mismanagement and failure to understand the problems of Northern Ireland, by not allowing the security forces to fight the war, in the way soldiers were trained to do. They gave us yellow cards, bad equipment, disgusting accommodation, long eighteen hour days for four months, with a mere four days R&R; also to insult us by giving us fifty pence danger money, per day (which was taxable). Thank you, you weak, sniffling, desk-ridden rodents.