Old Bradfieldian mafia
Sir: I note from Vicki Woods's Diary of 13 March that Bradfield College is teeming with candidates for my job as Brigade Major of the British forces deployed in Bosnia and Croatia.
You are quite right to assume that such an opportunity is a rare and wonderful thing, even given that aspirants would have to be a bit flexible about their `natty hair- cuts'. Those that proved successful would be in good company: both Brigadier Andrew Cumming, Commander British Forces, and Captain Jeremy Blackham, Commander of the Naval Task Group in the Adriatic, are Old Bradfieldians. So, incidentally, is Lord Owen.
On the other hand, we estimate that there are around 130 brigades scattered through the indigenous forces in Bosnia, offering openings to work with Serbs, Mus- lims and Croats according to taste. Unless Bradfield offers Serbo-Croat in its curricu- lum there would be a (not insurmountable) hurdle to overcome during the interview. Language aside, we have still to establish whether the blend of common sense, vision and conscience one might expect of a Brad- field sixth-former would be regarded as an asset or a liability by the protagonists in this ruthless and troubled land.
Major R.L. Barrons
Headquarters, British Forces, Operation Grapple, BFPO 544
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