SAS’s first openly gay recruit

THE SAS has recruited its first openly gay soldier in its 75-year history, it was reported yesterday.

Described as a ‘top bloke and a brilliant soldier’, he was said to be a 27year-old sergeant veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan. He joined the Army at 18 and is now training to be a sniper.

Away from the military, the soldier, who cannot be named for security reasons, lives with his male partner in Herefordshire. According to the Daily Star Sunday, the soldier, originally from the North of England, was formerly in the Guards regiment.

A defence source told the newspaper that the soldier, who is said to be a mountaineering expert, did not ‘make a big deal’ about being gay.

The source said: ‘Some of the “old and bold” have been complaining it wouldn’t have happened in their day. But the world has moved on. For the vast majority of the regiment his sexuality is not an issue. How you cope on the battlefield is far more important.’