Royal Air Force Greatworth

Late in 1973 the unions were depriving the country of energy in some way and that nice Mr Callaghan put the country on a three day week. Well - we couldn't have the armed forces on a 3 day week could we? What with the cold war and everything. So it was decided that RAF Greatworth could save energy by switching off the heating in the transmitter hall. In order to keep the watch area warm for the shift the DoE guys built hardboard trunking to carry the exhaust heast from the nearby transmitters to the watch area.

Does anybody else remember this?

I was in civvie street during that 3 day week, I was lucky enough to keep working. Wilson and Callaghan did more damage to Britain than WW2 did! We were a bit cold in winter sixtythree, but the SWB's kept us from freezing, particularly the two running robertson lamps. wot!

I remember driving through London during those times.  No street lights, shop lights or lit up signs of any sort.  A very odd experience.  They were selling candles (imported from Poland) at £1 each !!  And £1 was a lot of money then for a candle.  (There are always spivs and sharks who will capitalise on other peoples misfortunes.)  It was as if we were at war in the blackout.

Also very odd were the London fogs in the 1950's.  You couldn't see more than a yard in front of you at times.  The danger was bumping into other people and very hard objects, like telegraph poles, walls etc.  Let alone all the tripping up over the kerbstones.  It was always a great relief to get home.  Nightmare !!

Ahh! Those pea soupers! So called because of their visual likeness, from victorian times untill the fifties, when London went smokeless, proloific use of coal in huge quantities, produced a heavy smoke that regularly mixed with the Thames estorial fogs and mists, causing a `smog' that was inpenetrable to the eye and fatal for the frail and elderly. Thankfully long gone.

No 3 day week for us at MSL Cal. We had a generator and we were working 7 days a week 8am-7pm. 8-12 on Sundays.

You got a GENERATOR Rob? You lucky so and so! We had a torch AND we had to buy our own batteriees!! Good ole Wilson, New Labour's no different!