Corporal’s pen was mightier than sword

Born in Bradford in a home for unmarried mothers, my childhood was pretty tough. At school I was good at writing in pen and ink and when I left at 14, I was top at art, but abysmal in all the other subjects. In 1951, I was a corporal in the rifle Brigade training national Service intakes in the Peninsula Barracks, Winchester. Accommodation was sparse — 30 beds and a pot-belly stove that was hardly ever lit. I had a bunk in a small room at the end and my door was always open to help the recruits. one Sunday, I was sitting in my room, bored stiff. I had put my muddy boots in the corner on an old copy of the Daily Mail. I looked at the paper and was intrigued by the Gothic typeface heading. I obtained some pen nibs, black ink, a rubber and ruler, and set about copying the font. After a month, the recruits could get a weekend pass, but had to write an application. I ended up writing it for them. on handing them into the office, one officer asked if their granddad had written them!

My next task was to write out a bravery award for the Military Medal as one of the sergeants had lost his. I created my own script and got hooked on calligraphy. Seventeen years later, I ended up as a warrant officer on the staff of u.S. four-star general Alexander Haig. I was house manager with a staff of 12. When the general saw my handwriting, he asked if I would write all the name cards for lunches and dinners. Some of the guests were four and five-star officers from the three services, senior officers from nato, ministers and even members of European royalty. I spent 36 years in the Army and my love of handwriting led to many interesting experiences. It didn’t make me rich, but the look in the eyes of those who admired my work was payment enough. And it all started with a pair of muddy boots on a page of the Daily Mail!

Cliff Pollard, Bradford, W. Yorks.