The Sandbag Times Issue No: 51

SBT Book Review
By Andrew Hope-Hall
Fighting For The French Foreign Legion
(Memoirs of a Scottish Legionnaire)
Author: Alex Lochrie
Publisher: Pen & Sword Military (www.penand-sword.co.uk)
RRP: £12.99 (Paperback)
ISBN 178337615-5
Not enough books in this genre in my view.
Growing up as a dyslexic (in a world that had
yet to discover dyslexia) according to even
his parents Alex Lochrie would never succeed
at anything he did. Discovering a talent
for drawing and art he had a varied life
including time spent as a sketch artist for the
Police, then at the impossible age of 38 he
joined the French Foreign Legion. The
legion, naturally, made some adjustments as
to his age and he was accepted. It was a
refreshing story, given the recent sway
towards the use of expletives every five words
by certain writers of their military memoires,
as if this shows the world how tough they are.
I find a real toughness in people who can and
are able to restrain putting this sort of thing
into print. So apart from the odd one or two
re-arranged words Alex gives a stirring tail of
his life in the Legion where he not only flowered
but flourished. He visited many parts of
the world during his time in the REP
(Parachute battalion in the Legion) and
served in many conflicts and wars. His reaction
as a man of more mature years was interesting
to see. Such was his selflessness and
love of the Legion that towards the end of his
time there he said “I felt that as I was
approaching fifty, it was getting harder to
keep up with the standard of fitness expected
within the REP. Although I was still very fit I
did not want to keep going to the point where
I could not keep up with the eighteen years
olds”. Those two sentences, really show the
measure of the man.
One other thing that was brought out was the
loyalty not just by the men to the Legion but
by the Legion to its men of all ranks and of
the retired. Alex considers this as one reason
why PTSDS is not such a big problem within
the ranks of the Legion, both serving and
retired. It is like one big family. He gave
some examples of this great concern and is
something that I think is peculiarly lacking in
British regiments when one reads the memoirs
of even the most recent conflicts. Where
essentially once you are out – that’s it.
BOOK REVIEW
Coming Down in the Drink
The Survival of Bomber “Goldfish’ John
Brennan DFC
Autobiography written by Sean Feast
Publisher: Pen & Sword Military
(www.pen-and-sword.co.uk)
RRP: £19.99 (hardback)
ISBN 1473891531
John Brennan led a very tough life growing
up in the Republic of Ireland. Before moving
to London and working as a chef. With the
invasion of Poland he joined the RAF
Volunteer Reserve. It was to be some weeks
before he could go into flight training.
Selected as radio operator and bombardier
he completed both types of training in a time
when new equipment was coming off the
development lines at an enormous rate.
Eventually, a Flight Sergeant, he was posted
to North Africa and joined the Goldfish club
(for anyone coming down at sea). In 1943 he
was back flying missions from the UK in
Halifax bombers.
The one thing that struck me so starkly in this
account was the amount of crew who were
killed in flying accidents or faulty aircraft. The
numbers, if the truth be told would come
close to the number actually killed in action.
More credit to the chaps who kept flying
these aircraft mission after mission.
John Brennan was promoted to officer rank in
1943 and was awarded the Distinguished
Flying Cross in 1945.
A really fascinating read of life in the bomber
command during the Second World War.
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