Owen Sheers: The Two Worlds of Charlie F

As Darren marches the recruits around the stage, the Training Song begins.

TRAINING SONG

You will not call me mate,

I am not your friend.

You will not call me sir,

I am not your friend,

You will call me Bombardier,

You will look at me with fear,

For no matter how sweet I may appear,

I am not your friend!

When I say ‘Sit up’, you do. (Yes, we do!)

When I say ‘Brace up’, you do. (Yes, we do!)

When I say ‘Stand to’, stand to. (Yes, we do!)

You will never ask me why.

And when I say ‘Jump!’,

You will ask ‘How high?’

Polish boots is what you do. (Yes, we do!)

You love starch and Brasso too. (Yes, we do!)

Thinking you can leave to me.

Uniform is your ID.

In your sleep, you’ll dream PT. (Yes, we do!)

Just one way to survive;

You all work as a team.

To make it out alive,

You all work as a team.

Close as twins inside the womb,

Close as corpses in a tomb,

Like a bride astride a groom,

You all work as a team.

Feel the burn, enjoy the pain. (Feel the burn!)

Pain is pleasure, tell your brain. (Feel the burn!)

You’re alive, so pain is gain! (Feel the burn!)

Feeling pain you won’t succumb,

And you won’t feel fear till you’re feeling numb.

Clean your rifle, then yourself. (My weapon, myself!)

Think of your rifle, then yourself. (My weapon, myself!)

When your rifle’s really clean,

And by clean I mean pristine,

You can load your magazine.

(My weapon, myself!)

The recruits are marched offstage.

SCENE SIX — BRIEFING 1

Daniel enters with a white screen. A map of Afghanistan is projected on to it. He addresses the audience as if at a military briefing.

DanielBritish forces first entered Afghanistan in 1839 with the aim of conquering and controlling the country to prevent further expansion of the Russian empire. This first Afghan War resulted in British withdrawal.

The Second Afghan War was fought in 1878, again resulting in British withdrawal.

We entered Afghanistan for a third time in 1919 and withdrew the same year, celebrated annually on Afghan Independence Day on 19th August. These three Afghan wars are sometimes referred to as ‘The Great Game’.

A communist-backed coup precipitated an invasion by the Soviet Union in 1979. This invasion was resisted by the Mujahaddin, who fought a guerrilla war resulting in Soviet withdrawal ten years later in ’89.

Between ’92 and 2001 the Taliban gained control of the country. They imposed strict Shari’a law and provided a safe haven for Al Qa’eda.

The Taliban were overthrown by the Northern Alliance and US/UK forces in 2001. They still remain active in southern parts of the country including Helmand Province, where British forces have had locations in Sangin, Kajaki, Musa Qala, Nad Ali, Gereshk, Lashkar Gah, Garmsir and many more.

The territory ranges from fertile farmland along the Helmand river, running north to south, to desert and semi-desert beyond. In the summer Afghanistan is one of the hottest countries in the world with temperatures regularly above 40° centigrade. Winter temperatures are often well below freezing.

Helmand Province covers a total area of 59,000 square kilometres, larger than Wales and Northern Ireland put together. In 2002 the British had three hundred troops on the ground. In 2005 we had three thousand, and now we have nine thousand, five hundred servicemen and women in the country.

Afghanistan has always been a strategic crossroads for the region, and in today’s operating environment its neighbours Pakistan and Iran both have significant interests in the country. Some of the players have changed, but the playing field remains the same.

The Great Game, ladies and gentleman, continues.

Daniel exits

SCENE SEVEN — FIELD MEDIC COURSE

The call to evening prayer from a minaret. ‘Chasing Cars’ by Snow Patrol plays faintly in the background.

Marc, Richard, Young Simi, Frank, Darren sit in a semicircle, their backs to the audience. Roger and Angus march in with John, who wears full combat uniform, Osprey, helmet.

AngusRight, forget what you learnt on your FA1S, BCTD, CFX or whatever. For the next six months this is the only course you need to remember. If you listen up it’ll either save your life or one of your oppos, so listen up good. John! Now, John here has kindly agreed to be our puppet today. Say hello, John.

JohnHello.

AngusAs you can see John’s all kitted out to take on the Tali. Helmet, Osprey, weapon system. Combined weight of 70 to 80 kilos. It’s hot today, isn’t it? Well, get used to it, because it’s always fucking hot. Except when it’s cold, and then it’s fucking cold. Either way, whatever the weather, you’re going to be spending a lot of your time out here carrying this load. Want to know what that feels like?

He points to Marc. Then to Frank.

Jump on his back.

MarcCorporal?

RogerHe said jump on his fucking back. You never had a piggy-back before?

MarcYes, Corporal!

Marc jumps up on to Frank’s back.

AngusThank you. Now that, ladies and gentlemen, is what carrying full kit is like. Like having Anderson on your back. All day. Bear that in mind at all times. When taking on fluid, when going on patrol, but most importantly when you or one of your mates steps on some massive device that blows you, him, or both of you sky high. Thank you, gents, that’ll do.

RogerEverything you need to protect yourself, to survive or to save your mucka, is carried here, on your person.

Roger begins going through John’s pouches and pockets, pulling out the kit.

Ammunition, bayonet, pistol, PRR, morphine — lose that and you will not be fucking popular! Field dressings, compression bandages. Celox gauze — remember every hole’s a goal! Asherman seal for those sucking chest wounds. Tourniquet! High and tight! Tight is right! And always check the back of the fucking wound too!

AngusSo much for the kit. Now let’s get to the stuff that really matters. ( To John. ) Strip down, John.

John hesitates.

RogerYou heard him. Down to your blast pants.

As John removes his uniform.

AngusKit changes. Always has, always will. But human anatomy doesn’t change. And that’s why you’d better listen up good because this could make the difference between your mate going home on a stretcher or in a body bag.

He takes out a red marker pen. As he talks he draws on John’s body.

AngusLet’s start with the basics shall we?

He takes a bottle of water from one of the soldiers.

This is a litre of water. John’s got five litres of blood in his body. He can lose a litre of that, no problem. Two litres, getting tricky. More than that, he should start to worry. His heart, about the size of a fist, is here. When he starts oozing, this is pumping out the juice through his arteries. Going south through his thoracic aorta, out here, along his arms, and down here, along his thighs. And up here, supplying his tiny mind, his carotid artery. Right, so things have gone wrong for John and he’s stepped on an IED.

What injuries is he likely to sustain? Probably lose a leg, if he’s lucky amputated here, or unlucky, here. So that’s gone, off in someone else’s compound. What else? He’ll be fragged here on his face, and here along the side of his neck. It’s a conical blast wave, remember, so here under his arms too. Some big chunks out of his legs from the stones and crap on the ground. Probably a chunk out of the arm, here. Fragged along side of the chest.