Intake 131

In the spring of 1973, young Sandy Sanderson reported to the School of Infantry at Gwelo in what was then central Rhodesia for officer training. He kept a daily diary. Now, more than 40 years on, he has published it. As a raw young greenhorn with no service experience, young Sandy found himself well and truly in at the deep end and at the mercy of some of the toughest - and crudest - military instructors in the world. As he put it, "Any Rhodesian drill instructor could string a sentence together consisting entirely of expletives, apart from the odd indefinite article, and make perfect sense". At least was food was good, some great friendships were forged, and once in a while there was a chance to meet the local girls. The course was vital preparation for Sandy's role as an officer in the savage Bush War which was beginning to sweep the country, heralding the end of white rule in Rhodesia.