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Troops On Fire Fighting Duty At Simpson Barracks Visited By Father Christmas

1977 , Wootton (Northamptonshire)

Cat no. 109692

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Anglia TV news footage from Simpson Barracks in Northamptonshire where Father Christmas presents fire fighting soldiers with mince pies and champagne.

At Simpson Barracks in Wootton, soldiers on fire fighting duty climb down from a Green Goddess fire engine and are greeted by a man wearing a Santa Claus costume. The Father Christmas figure presents the soldiers with a tray of mince pies. Father Christmas opens a bottle of champagne and pours the soldiers drinks. Father Christmas pours champagne into a soldier’s helmet. The servicemen and Green Goddess engines were providing emergency cover during the fire service strike.

Keywords

Army; Christmas; Fire Service; Santa Claus; Soldiers; Strike; Industrial relations

Background Information

Almost 30,000 firefighters were involved in the fire service national strike November 1977 - January 1978 and over 1.25 million working days were lost. Emergency cover was provided by 10,000 servicemen using a fleet of 'Green Goddess' engines. Firemen earned £3700 p.a. for a 48 hours week and there was widespread public support for the strikers. The Fire Brigades Union demand for a 30% increase was outside the government 10% limit on wage increases.

Manifestations

Troops On Fire Fighting Duty At Simpson Barracks Visited By Father Christmas

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