S5 #071 Veterans

The Unconventional Soldier

CONTENT

The guest today is Ben Skipper a freelance feature writer and author with books and articles published on art, military and field sports subjects. He is an Associate Member of Royal Aeronautical Society and the Pen and Sword Club for military journalists and writers. His interest in British armour was cemented by a visit to the King’s Royal Hussars in the early 1990s as an undergraduate in the Territorial Army. He joined the RAF in 1997, and served in conflict zones including Kosovo and Sierra Leone. He also played rugby for the RAF.

A Former Force Protection NCO Ben, suffered increasingly with a range of balance, muscular and co-ordination issues to the extent doctors thought he might have onset dementia. It was during tests, that an MRI scan picked up bright spots of damage in Ben's brain and it was found that Ben had experienced a traumatic brain injury during his days in the RAF.

Symptoms of his brain injury started to impact on his life and became progressively worse after leaving the Service in 2002.

Ben is also a freelance consultant academic specialising in Veteran social culture. He has written various papers regarding the symptomatic presentation and effects of combat-related PTSD, not only upon the individual but also on the family and community. This input has been sought and included in Lord Ashcroft's "The Veterans' Transition Review" (2014) and "The Value of Participation in University Armed Services Unit's" by Newcastle University. Other projects include a visual campaign promoting positive Veteran representation and an exhibition of contemporary Veteran Art.

He also finds time to be a County Member East Midlands Reserve Forces and Cadets Association who work to support the growth of the Reserves and Cadet Forces in Nottinghamshire.

On this podcast we discuss his forces background and work with Fallout which is a new collaborative historical studies enterprise featuring the work of Dr Philip W. Blood, Dustin Du Cane all working on the fringe of contemporary thought. Links to Fallout can be found in the show notes.

The main focus is on veterans however. We cover a variety of issues including public perception, politicisation, charities, armed forces covenant, do we need a vetterans minister and much more.

Ben's book choice on Desert Islands Dits is "The Darling Buds Of May" by H E Bates. My choice is "Schimitar into Stanley - One Soldier's Falklands War " by Roger Field.

Ben's webpage "I...am a Veteran" can be found at https://www.iamaveteran.co.uk/

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This episode brought to you in association with ISARR a veteran owned company.

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