Would you like to become a P e r s o n a l Trainer? Read how Who was Pandora and one former what did she actually p r i s o n e r have inside that box? loves his new career. Inside this edition of:

04 - It’s all Greek to me! Much of our language and phraseology has its origin in Greek language. Here we look at how figures from Greek history and Myth have given their names to the problems, conditions and situations that we regularly refer to. 07 - Great Explorers & Unsung Heroes. 26 - The Conspiracy Theorist’s Moon Landing. While many of us know that Christopher How do you prove or disprove the Moon Columbus discovered America, very few landings? This feature includes some of will ever consider the men that worked the evidence that has been gathered by behind the scenes. These unsung heroes Andy Thomas. Even 50 years later there made the discoveries that made early are questions that NASA can’t answer. exploration possible. 12 - Walking on the Moon. The 21st July 2019 will mark the 50th anniversary of the first lunar landing. But the work to reach the moon had begun at the end of World War II when American

soldiers discovered the Nazi V2 rocket factories. This in-depth feature explores the various stages of rocket development, the space race between and the high price that was paid in man’s ultimate quest to explore.

30 - Become a Personal Trainer. Planning for a life after prison can be a very daunting prospect - but there is no 24 - Whitey’s on the Moon. doubt that being employable is critical. Modern history focuses on the ticker-tape This feature explains how you can achieve parades while selling an image of all the qualifications you will need to forge a Americans united in celebrating the career in the ever-growing Health and Moon landings. In this feature you can Fitness industry. Read first hand how a read about the vast numbers who viewed former Erlestoke resident continues to space exploration as a rich man’s pursuit, achieve great success and how you can in a nation that was bitterly divided by do the same by preparing now. poverty and segregation. This sentiment is beautifully expressed in Gill Scott-Heron’s spoken word lyrics. Dear Readers, 30 - Become a Personal Trainer. While we were producing this magazine Planning for a life after prison can be a we heard the news that the Chinese had very daunting prospect - but there is no managed to land craft on the Dark Side doubt that being employable is critical. of the Moon. Even a small nation like Israel This feature explains how you can achieve have come close to landing an ROV the qualifications you will need to forge a career in the ever-growing Health and (Remotely Operated Vehicle) on the moon. Fitness industry. Read first hand how a Giant tech companies like Space-ex are former Erlestoke resident continues to working to break beyond the moon and achieve great success and how you can put colonists on Mars. do the same by preparing now. But these remarkable achievements are so 33 - Life in Prison Objects - A Book. often met with a shrug of the shoulders. We continue our feature exploring how everyday items have such an impact on We have become so used to technological our lives in prison. advances that we often fail to see the huge achievements that are being made around us everyday. All too quickly we can become complacent. In this edition we look back in some detail

at the technological achievements that led to the first Lunar landing. Not bad when we consider that the first successful manned flight across the English Channel only took place in 1909. It is incredible to think that less than 50 years after that

flight, Yuri Gagarin was in space. In those terms, there are a great number of things that any of us can achieve - if only we put our minds to it.

As ever, we worked hard to produce this

magazine and we hope that you find an article that you enjoy - we welcome your 34 - The Good German. feedback and suggestions. War is usually associated with so many stories of hatred and cruelty that we must We are always looking for feature writers celebrate the few occasions when mercy to help produce The Manor. All you need won out. Here we look at one occasion when a pilot chose to do what was right is a hobby, interest or idea. We will work instead of blindly following his sense of with you to help turn your concept into a duty. finished article. We are based in Room 5 40 - The Kitchen Debate. of the education building. It was a fake kitchen in an exhibition, a public relations exercise and a Cold War Written & Edited by photo opportunity, but when Khrushchev met Nixon the gloves came off and the Jailhouse Moose heated debate they had was very real. 42 - Origami Fridays We check in with the Origami team and the amazing work they do each week. So far they have raised more than £10,000 for the Friends of Erlestoke. It’s all Greek to me! There are countless legends and legendary characters that we know from Greek history. We examine just a few on these pages.

Castor and Pollux Sphinx The twin sons of Jupiter, sailed with Jason to The Greek Sphinx was a monster with the head and torso find the Golden Fleece among their many of a woman, the body of a dog or lion, the wings of a adventures. They were worshipped as Gods bird, a serpent’s tail and lion’s paws. She killed herself and finally ascended into the heavens when Oedipus solved this riddle: “What goes on four feet, where they now reside as ’Gemini’. on two feet, and three, but the more feet it goes on the weaker it be?” Charon Oedipus identified that the answer was a man. He crawls The old man who ferried the dead across on all fours when he is born, learns to walk upright, but the river Styx into the afterlife for the fare needs a walking stick as he gets old. of an obulus - a small coin of little worth. Oedipus Circe He was the son of King Laius and Queen Jocasta. His birth The sorceress that turned Odysseus and his coincided with a prophecy that he would murder his father crew into pigs. They only escaped Circe’s and marry his mother. Fearing this prophecy, his parents island, Aeaea, when Odyssues ate a root abandoned him to die on a mountainside - but he was given to him by the god, Mercury. saved and raised by a shepherd. When he reached manhood he unwittingly slew his father Colossus which left the crown of Thebes vacant. Having slain the The bronze colossus of Rhodes was one of king, Oedipus secured the throne when he answered the the original 7 wonders of the world. Said to Sphinx's riddle. As king, Oedipus won the right to the hand be 100ft tall, this bronze statue of the sun of Jocasta in marriage. But after their wedding night, when god, Helios, was made from the melted the facts finally came to light, Jocasta hanged herself and down weapons after the defence of Rhodes Oedipus tore out his own eyes. from Demetrius. It was said to have been destroyed by an earthquake in 224 BCE. Narcissus The son of Cephisus, Narcissus was a beautiful youth. He Cynic saw his reflection in a fountain and became convinced that The Cynics were a group of philosophers it was the presiding Nymph of that place. He became ob- who loathed the Athenian tendency towards sessed with the Nymph and strained repeatedly to reach ease, luxury and wealth. The movement was it, but all his attempts failed. Eventually Narcissus pined founded by Antisthenes and made famous away, wasted and died. When the nymphs arose to take by his pupil Diogenes. his body away for funeral honours all they could find was a flower which they named in his honour. Plutarch says that the plant is called Narcissus from he Greek narkě, meaning ’numbness’. Find out how you can study ‘The Classics’ in the Education Department.

Prometheus & Pandora Sisyphus The earliest men spent their days hunting and fighting, The king Sisyphus raped Anticlea, the eldest followed by night’s feasting, with the fat and bones of daughter of Autolycus. But before he died, King their prey being burned as offerings to the gods. The Sisyphus persuaded his wife to forego any funeral Titan, Prometheus, angered Zeus by cheating him of his honours for him. When he arrived in Hades for his portion of meat from sacrifices. Zeus’ punishment was to judgement the devious Sisyphus sought leave to take back fire from men, but Prometheus sneaked into return to Earth for vengeance against his disloyal Olympus and stole it back. Zeus ordered, Hephaistos, his spouse. But rather than return as promised, when smith, to fashion a creature out of clay. The goddess he left the underworld, he lived to a great old Athena then draped this creature, the first woman, age. On his eventual death, when he returned to named Pandora, in flowers and silks, but she gave her a the underworld, special care was taken to prevent deceitful nature. Zeus’ gift to men was to be both a another escape. Sisyphus was given what he blessing and curse, the god intended that man would be thought was a simple task - to roll a boulder to the satisfied neither with her or without her. The final twist top of a hill. However, every time that he reached was in a box given to Pandora. When she opened it, the summit, the boulder would roll down the other 10,000 woes were released upon men, with only hope side. A Sisyphean task is a task that can never be left behind in the box. completed. Achilles Plato Legend has it that Achilles mother Thetis, took her The philosopher and storyteller was also known as son by the heel and dipped him int the waters of the ‘Bee of Athens’. According to legend, when a the river Styx to make him invulnerable, but the swarm of bees rested on the mouth of the infant heel that she held remained dry. At the siege of Plato in his cradle, they ensured that the words Troy, Achilles was killed when an arrow struck this that came from that mouth would be ‘as sweet as heel. The phrase Achilles’ Heel refers to a small but honey’ to all who heard them. potentially fatal weakness. Atlas Aegus Zeus punished Atlas for his part in the War of the The mythical king sent his son Thesus to Crete to Titans by condemning him to bear the heavens on deliver 7 boys and 7 girls as a tribute to appease his shoulders from his home in the mountains of Minos. On his return, Thesus was to replace his North Africa which still bear his name. black sails with white sails if the tribute had been accepted. When Thesus forgot to swap the sails, Belomancy Aegus, thinking his son was lost, threw himself into When there were arguments about the best course the sea - giving rise to the sea’s name, Aegean. of action to take in any situation, the ancient Greeks would attach labels to a number of arrows Arachne and fire them off. They would then adopt the idea This young Lydian girl challenged goddess Athene that had been fired furthest. to a weaving contest. Arachne lost when Athene destroyed what she had woven, and was so upset Calchas she killed herself in despair. Yet Athene’s revenge Before the siege of Troy, the soothsayer told the was not over, she turned Arachne into a spider, Greeks that they needed Achilles to have any which is why creatures that spin silk are classified chance of victory. When the fleet were stranded as being Arachnids. prior to the siege, Calchus went on to convince King Agamemnon that he should sacrifice his daughter Cassandra Iphigenia to secure suitable weather. He predicted The daughter of Priam, King of Troy, she was ad- that the siege of Troy would last ten years. It is mired by the god Apollo. He granted her the gift said he died of disappointment, pity he didn’t see of prophecy to seduce her, but when she refused that coming. his advances he left her with the gift but vowed that nobody would ever believe her. She is said to Minos have seen the fall of Troy but was driven insane as The legendary king and law-giver of Crete. When she was powerless to do anything about it. he died he judged all in the lower world upon their death, deciding if their deeds in life entitled them to reward in the afterlife.

We are so quick to take things for granted. Each new generation is born with new technologies that have “always been there” but how often do we stop to consider how those tools and gadgets came into existence?

Christopher Columbus led an expedition of three ships, the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria from the coast of Spain on 3rd August 1492. His mission was to find a Western sea route to India. Traders had been profiting through importing expensive silks and spices into Europe, but the journey overland Those of us of a certain age will remember having was long and perilous. Seasonal weather saw the to rely on an “A-Z” book of maps to find our way trade routes, like the Silk Road, cut off for months around cities. Nowadays there are mapping apps at a time. built into Smart Phones. Similarly it wasn’t long ago that London cab drivers had to acquire “The Knowledge” - now you can buy a car, a Sat-Nav and you’re an Uber. It seems alien for us to set out on a journey without knowing exactly how to get there - yet what would we do if we faced a journey when we didn’t know where our destination was? Furthermore, if we did reach our new destination - would we even be able to find our way back?

The existing sea route involved sailing around the southern tip of Africa, a place called The Cape of Good Hope because you had to hope that you might survive the journey. But when Columbus set out he was not sailing blind Eratosthenes reasoned that Alexandria’s location, - he employed navigation techniques that had been 500 miles further north than Syrene, must have developed by a little known Greek mathematician been the cause for the difference in shadow length. more than 1,500 years earlier. Enter Eratosthenes.

500 miles

Eratosthenes (Era-toss-ta-knees) was visiting the city Armed with that knowledge he calculated that the of Syrene, Egypt in June 240 BCE. While he was angle of the shadow in Alexandria was 7.2 which there he went to a well to get a drink and as he ° looked down he noticed that there was no shadow compared to 0° in Syrene. being cast on the sides of the well. He reasoned He further calculated that if that the lack of shadow was due to the fact that the angle of 7.2° were to be this was the Summer Solstice. He made a note of multiplied by 50, the answer the fact, finished his visit and returned to his home would equal a perfect circle city of Alexandria. of 360°. The following year, Eratosthenes prepared as the Summer Solstice approached. He waited by a tall monument in the main square, but at midday on the day of the solstice he was surprised to see that the monument was casting a shadow. He had expected that there would be no shadow - as with the well. Eratosthenes measured the length of the shadow and set about trying to explain events.

He realised that if multiplying 7.2 x 50 gave us the 360° needed to make a circle that multiplying the 500 miles (between Alexandria and Syrene) by 50 would give us the circumference of that circle. i.e. the Earth’s circumference. His calculation of 25,000 miles was surprisingly accurate - according to our best estimates today the Earth’s circumference is around 24,812 miles. Perhaps the most significant part of Eratosthenes’ discovery was that it made it possible to safely identify our location relative to the equator. In other words, we could finally figure out how far North or South we were. However this system had its limitations. It could only be used at midday when the sun was at its highest point in the sky, if the weather was overcast or the sea too rough you could miss your opportunity to fix your location. Perhaps more significant was that sailors still had no way to identify how far East or West they had travelled - a point that was proven when Columbus found the ‘New World’.

Columbus Set off from Spain and headed west - The dotted line shows how Columbus believed that finally landing on San Salvador in the Bahamas he had actually arrived in Western India.

Columbus set out to discover a new sea route from But Columbus initially believed that he had achieved Europe to India. He would have known where India his goal - he was convinced that he had sailed was in relation to the Equator. He left the coast of around the world and landed at a group of islands Spain and sailed West. In October of 1492 he off the coast of India. This is why the islands off the spotted what we know today as The Bahamas, and coast of the Americas are still called the West Indies named the first island he arrived at San Salvador. and also why Native American people that Columbus He also visited Cuba and Hispaniola. met were called Indians for so long. The problem of how to calculate how far East or But finally, after 51 years of work, John Harrison West a ship had travelled would continue to delivered the H4 (Harrison #4) to King George III plague navigators for centuries. In the 1600’s it in 1765. was established that using ‘time’ might provide the key, but the clock makers lacked the technological ability to fashion a timepiece accurate enough to be used. Furthermore, the watches and clocks of the day were fragile and required delicate handling. They did not fare well aboard ships where changes in temperature and humidity played havoc on their accuracy. The salt water alone would cause most clocks to rust and seize. It took a declaration by King George I to invigorate efforts to solve this problem.

Over the 5 decades Harrison was paid £23,653 which equates to around £3M, however, he spent most of the money he was paid on his watches. At the subsequent sea-trials, Harrison’s watch proved its worth and proved to be one of the most significant navigational leaps in human history.

When sailors left Greenwich docks in London they ensured that their ship’s watch was set to match Greenwich Meridian Time (GMT). After a declaration by King George I, the Board of The sailors would calculate the angle of the sun at Longitude was created after an Act of Parliament their location when the ship’s watch read noon. By in 1714. There were a series of rewards set out for calculating the angle of the sun they could work out anybody that could create a timepiece that could how far East or West they were from Greenwich accurately measure time at sea. The rewards were London by using the principals that were introduced scaled from £10,000 - £20,000 (which is roughly by Eratosthenes. The globe above is divided into equivalent to £1.3M to £2.6M today). 15° lines of longitude or meridians. Each meridian Despite many takers and international efforts there represents one hour of time ahead of or behind was no immediate progress in achieving this goal. Greenwich Meridian Time. This was despite the involvement of the greatest British Sailors could now plot their positions on two minds of the day, like Sir Isaac Newton. axis, how far North or South they were from the It took until 1736, more than 20 years before the Equator and how far East or West they were from first watches were given sea-trials, but none was London. It is incredible to look back and realise just able to deliver the level of accuracy needed. King how significant a development this was and how George I never actually saw the watch that would great an advantage that British Sailors held over fill the brief he had commissioned, nor did his son, the ships of other nations. Harrison’s watch was a King George II. huge factor in the expansion of the British Empire. While the rest of the world’s sailors were still forced to rely on navigating by the sun while depending on trade winds, the British were able to develop the quickest and most efficient sea routes. Furthermore, they lost fewer ships at sea - before Harrison’s watch just getting back to a safe port was almost as dangerous as finding new land!

One final note to this article is a lesson from history on the importance of Equality and Diversity.

John Harrison was a normal chap. He had no titles, he was not an aristocrat - no blue blood. But when the King announced the challenge to create a watch, Harrison opted to try his luck.

In Britain there was an eagerness for new ideas and new thinking - this was what fuelled the Industrial Revolution. Ideas were judged on their merits and if they worked their inventors could achieve life changing rewards. Even the lowliest born of men could rise through the ranks of society on merit.

At the same time that Harrison was developing his watch in Britain, the French had a polar opposite view to new ideas. If a peasant had an idea it stood to reason that it must be a bad idea. As far as the French Aristocracy were concerned, it was only men of noble blood that could ever conceive of good ideas. Their Universities and Academies were filled with the sons of lords and kings. If you were born poor you invariably died poor.

After Harrison's watch was adopted by the British Navy in the late 1700’s, the British would become the dominant maritime force of the day and the British Empire expanded to become the largest that These new techniques were employed by sailors like the world had ever seen. James Cook who would go on to map huge swathes of the southern oceans. Cook is also credited with While the British were expanding their empire and discovering Australia, Tasmania and much of the growing through the Industrial Revolution, the French Antipodean nations - but perhaps he was merely were engaged in a revolution of their own. Fed up the first man to make it back and tell the tale! at the treatment they were receiving at the hands The two axis grid reference system for navigation is of the aristocracy, the French rose up and overthrew still critical to our everyday lives. It was only with the monarchy. Heads rolled and the French Republic the advent of submarines and aeroplanes during was born under the motto, “Liberte, Fraternitie, the 20th Century that we began to need a third Egalite” or “Freedom, Fraternity and Equality”. axis to account for depth / height. If people are denied equal opportunity they may be left with no choice but to rise up. There are countless examples running throughout history, from the Jews in Egypt right through to the civil rights marches of the 60’s. We have seen numerous major landmarks including the 1975 Sex Discrimination act and the Equalities Act of 2010 but for some reason the lesson still isn’t being learned by all.

The Saturn V rocket, Apollo 11 broke free of its launch pad on the morning of 16th July 1969. As it lifted clear of its own exhaust flames and slipped the chains of gravity, the world held its breath.

On board the rocket were three men: Mission Commander Neil Armstrong Command Module Pilot Michael Collins Lunar Module Pilot Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin

On 17th July Michael Collins used the stars to navigate and initiated a three second engine burn to ensure that the Command Module was on course. On 18th July the crew gave a guided tour of their spacecraft to a live global TV audience. On 19th July Apollo 11 entered orbit around the moon. On 20th July Lunar Module ‘Eagle’ separates from the Command Module and heads for the surface of the moon, touching down on the Sea of Tranquillity.

While Neil Armstrong’s name and “Small Step” quote have since entered into folklore, this soundbite is often as much as people know about the decades long programme to land a man on the moon. The next few pages will explore the Space Race of the 1950’s and 1960’s and the rapid evolution of Rocket Science. The majority of the scientific community believe Konstantin Tsiolkovski is the father of rocket power. He was born in Russia in 1857, and while he had spent many years working on the theory of rocket propulsion he would never actually launch a rocket himself. It was only after the Russian Revolution in 1917 that the world began to take serious notice of Tsiolkovski’s theories. But while the technology was intriguing to scientists, there was little will to invest the resources needed to develop a working rocket.

After World War I in 1918, the world’s focus was more on developing faster and more efficient means of travel from the technologies that already existed, e.g. car, rail, sea and air travel. As has so often happened throughout history, it would take a war and another Arms Race to inspire the next significant step forward in rocket technology - the missile technology developed by Nazi Germany during World War II. The first A4 rocket (example pictured above) was launched in June 1942 but crashed soon afterwards. However another rocket launched in October of 1942 travelled 119 miles having been equipped with the first gyroscopes for guidance. The missile was rebranded as the infamous V2 which was introduced into active service shortly after D-Day in 1944. Although too late to turn the tide of the war, the 3,000 V2 attacks had proven the viability of rocket propulsion. After the fall of Nazi Germany, the allies scrambled to gather the technology and the scientists who had created these rockets. Solid Fuel Vs Liquid Fuel

Rocket Travel relies on the Liquid fuelled rockets have principles of Conservation Solid Fuel one critical advantage over of Momentum - that the Liquid Fuel solid fuelled alternatives - momentum of a system will Reaction the ability to control the rate stay the same unless an c a u s e s of burn and therefore the external force is applied. rocket to speed of the rocket, Where move in opposite solid fuel rockets burned out When the combustible fuel direction at a fixed rate after they inside a typical rocket of the Liquid had been ignited. burns it creates a build up exhaust. Oxidant The drawback to liquid fuel of gas. By controlling the rockets were the inherent exhaust of this gas, (in this Combustion Combustion risks of carrying dangerous case forcing it downwards) Chamber and unstable chemicals inside the body of the actual pressurised compartments on rocket is forced to move in Particles the rockets. These chemicals the opposite direction. But ejected at were often corrosive and velocity E x h a u s t because the rocket has Gases any fault in the pipework more mass than the gas it that fed the liquids into the takes time for the rocket to combustion chamber could accelerate. lead to disaster.

After World War II, while global governments were determined to stay ahead in the new missile Stage 3: arms race, scientists began to look towards the The Command stars and space exploration. Module’s boosters The first significant leap forward took place when are used to change Chuck Yeager piloted the X-1 rocket plane named course. They need ‘Glamorous Glennis’ on a test flight. Chuck Yeager very little fuel with became the first man to break the sound barrier. no air resistance to work against the While scientists from rival nations continued to engines. push and develop planes that flew faster and higher, they knew that their quest to enter space Stage 2: would require a new approach. The main problem The Secondary that they faced was fuelling a rocket for long Boosters are fired. enough to break Earth’s orbit. Secondly, solid fuels The mass (weight) would not be suitable for use outside of the Earth’s of the rocket has atmosphere - without Oxygen there was no way been reduced and that they could combust. While liquid using rockets the craft breaks already carried an Oxygen source this did not clear of Earth’s solve the problem of breaking orbit. Carrying atmosphere. enough fuel meant building bigger rockets with bigger tanks - this in turn created a need for even more fuel, bigger tanks etc. Stage 1: The Primary Rocket The solution was to design multiple-staged rockets. Boosters are fired By compartmentalising different areas of fuel and at the initial launch rocket boosters, rocket engineers could design and stage. Once they build new craft that would improve efficiency by have depleted their extending the distance a rocket could travel for fuel resources, the the same amounts of fuel. This multi-staged rocket entire section is technology is still in use today. jettisoned. Designing rockets that could break free from the Laika had been chosen from Earth’s atmosphere was the start of the space race ten candidates for the mission. between Russia and the USA. But the Russians would All of the dogs were bitches go on to score a huge victory on 4th October 1957 because the nappies were when Sputnik 1, the first ever man made satellite more straight-forward to was launched into orbit around the Earth. Though design. All of the dogs were Sputnik’s batteries ran down on 25th October 1957, mongrels because they before it burned up in Earth’s atmosphere it had were deemed to be more transmitted a stream of radio signals back to Earth - hardy, and all of the dogs a series of rhythmic bleeps that were celebrated in were of lighter colours so Russia. they would show up on the black & white camera footage.

Laika had been a stray dog on the streets of Moscow and was trained for months to become accustomed to spending time in enclosed spaces. When Sputnik 2 had been launched it included food and water for 10 days but the Russians had installed a system to put Laika to sleep painlessly before her food ran out. When the radio signal was lost the public assumed that Laika had simply drifted off to sleep. It was only on 1992 after the collapse of the Soviet Union that the true story of Laika’s fate was revealed. While the launch had But the prospect of the Russians dominating space been a success and Laika’s heartrate had indeed struck terror into the hearts of Americans. This led to settled once Sputnik 2 reached orbit, the final increasing pressure on American scientists to take separation had torn part of the heat shield from action. This pressure would lead to disaster as the Laika’s capsule. Temperatures quickly rose to in Army and Navy competed for the right to launch the excess of 40°C. Laika died 6 hours into the American fightback. But the Russians did not wait for flight. the American response and on 3rd November 1957 But she became an early icon of the space age the larger Sputnik 2 was launched into orbit - but and the Soviet propaganda machine was quick to this time with a passenger on board. A dog named capitalise. Every global news report was seen as Laika (literally meaning ‘Barker’) became the first a victory for Communist Russia and another slap creature in space. in the face for America. On 6th December 1957 the world’s focus switched With the Russians having won the race to launch a to Cape Canaveral and the USA’s response. The satellite into orbit, and having been first to launch US Navy had won the honours and their Vanguard and return a living creature safely to Earth the rocket had been chosen over the Army’s Redstone Russians secured a devastating hat-trick on 12th machine to carry their satellite into orbit. While April 1961 when cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became Sputnik 1 had weighed 83 KG and Sputnik 2 the first man to travel into space on Vostok 1. 508KG, the US response was to launch a tiny 1.8 In less than 90 minutes Gagarin had completed KG machine, but the pressure o respond to Russia one entire orbit of the Earth, during his flight he had led to corners being cut and the launch was a went out of radio contact with ground control as disaster. Two seconds after the launch the rocket he passed around the curvature of the Earth. exploded less than 10 feet into the air - the news headline was simple - “Flopnik’. American pride was finally restored in January 1958 when Explorer 1 finally became the first American satellite to orbit the Earth. The 1950’s and early 1960’s went by in a series of tit-for-tat satellite launches before progressing onto craft that could be used to send a man into space. The Russian’s developed their ’Vostok’ programme while the Americans turned their focus to their Gagarin returned safely to Earth having been own Mercury craft. In August 1960, the Russian’s ejected form the Vostok’s command module and Sputnik 5 was launched with two dogs, Belka and parachuting to Earth, both he and his craft landed Strelka on board, but this time after 24 hours the in rural Kazakhstan at around 11 AM local time. In craft and the animals returned safely to Earth. one of the most low-tech moments of the entire space race the first man in space bunched up his parachute and set off to find a farmhouse with a phone so he could contact mission control. He would later describe how his first encounter with a farmer and his daughter went, “When they saw me in my spacesuit and the parachute dragging alongside as I walked, they started to back away in fear. I told them don’t be afraid. I am a soviet like you, who has descended from space, and I must find a telephone to call Moscow!” Gagarin was thrust into the Global spotlight as he was proudly paraded by the Soviet regime - but he struggled to come to terms with the celebrity status. He was a simple engineer and pilot from humble beginnings and had little interest in media. Gagarin fell into a deep depression and faded out of the public eye. He died during a test flight for the later Soyuz missions.

On 31st January 1961 the Mercury-Redstone 2a set off with the first American hero on board, a chimpanzee named ‘Ham’. The chimp had been trained to pull a series of levers - if he got it right he got a treat; if he got it wrong he got an electric shock. Ham performed his job brilliantly and his survival meant that Mercury was deemed suitable for human travel. Ham would live out his retirement in Washington zoo until his death in 1983. Finally, in May of 1961 US Astronaut Alan The rest of 1962 and early 1963 saw both sides Shephard became the first American in space. push each other into further advances with crafts However, his trip is a sub-orbital hop - a direct up spending longer in space but arguably it was still & down trip without actually completing a circuit the Russians that held the lead. of the world. In August of the same year Russia regained the initiative when the Vostok II piloted by Gherman Titov spent 24 hours in orbit. Perhaps having learned by the ‘Flopnik’ incident America took a more measured approach and sent another chimp, Enos, into space in November 1961. During its 3hr 20 min mission, the Mercury capsule completes two full orbits of the planet it carried Enos safely back to Earth. Finally on 20th February1962, the Americans had cause for celebration when Astronaut John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth. Once in space Glenn completed his first lap of Earth in 45 minutes leading him to describe the experience as ’The shortest day I ever ran On 16th June 1963, Vostok VI saw the Russian into.” But not Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, become the first everything woman in space. Her craft was launched two days was going to plan, there were concerns that the after Vostok V with the two craft meeting up and retro boosters and parachute were faulty. Then orbiting the Earth in tandem. When both craft Glenn noticed that the crafts trajectory was no returned safely to Earth the Vostok V had set a longer optimal. Glenn had to manually guide the new record, having spent 4 days and 23 hours in craft as it completed the three orbits during a 4hr orbit. 55min mission before guiding the craft back to Perhaps the next leap earth where the parachute deployed perfectly. forwards came on 18th March 1965 when the Russian Vokshod II craft carried Pavel Belyayev and Alexei Leonov into orbit. Aside from the craft carrying two men into space, it was also fitted with a complex airlock. Once inflated, the airlock would allow one of the men to leave the capsule and enter space. The honour fell to Leonov who became the first man to walk in space. Although his suit provided up to 45 minutes of air he returned to the craft after 12 minutes. He experienced difficulty gaining entry and had to release some pressure from his suit - a very risky operation. However he managed to get back on board safely before the crew jettisoned the air lock. They returned to Earth safely after their 24 hour mission in cramped conditions having also completed 17 orbits . As the Russians were developing their Vokshod rockets, the Americans were working on their next generation craft at Cape Canaveral. The Gemini craft were designed to carry two astronauts - a mission commander and a craft pilot. Upon re-entry, the command module would crash land into the ocean before being picked up by support craft. The craft would release green dye on impact with the water to help guide the rescue efforts. NASA were emboldened by John F Kennedy’s 1961 pledge to send a man to the moon by the end of the decade. There were huge advances in the Gemini programme over the two years of 1965 and 1966. These advances included numerous astronaut EVA’s (Extra Vehicular Activities) or spacewalks before leading onto ever more complex missions. One of the critical tasks would involve docking two separate craft together in space. By the time that the 12 Gemini missions had been completed in November 1966, Nasa had been able to complete all of the individual tasks that would have to be achieved in order to safely complete a Lunar landing and a safe return. Thus work began on the Saturn V rocket and the Apollo capsules that would take men to the moon. These capsules would have to be large enough to carry three astronauts, the Mission Commander, the Command Module pilot and the Lunar Module pilot. The crew of Apollo I were Mission Commander Gus Grissom (centre), CM pilot Ed White (right) and LM pilot Roger Chaffee. As far as NASA were concerned, this trio would be the first men to visit the moon but tragedy was to strike in the first simulated test. On 27th January 1967, Grissom and his crew were sealed into the capsule for a After the tragedy Nasa conducted a full review of its safety mission simulation, but six hours into the mission an procedures. There was never any serious consideration that electrical spark ignited the high oxygen air in the the Apollo programme would be cancelled. Instead it was capsule. The crew died of smoke inhalation before decided that there should be a series of unmanned missions the capsule could be opened. and if all went well, Apollo 7 would be the next manned mission. While the Soviet Union were developing their Soyuz craft, NASA maintained the advantage for the first time in the space race as Apollo 8 completed the first manned orbit of the moon in 1968. A feat achieved in under 7 days. The subsequent Apollo 9 & 10 carried out tests of the Lunar Module and Command Module with the craft being docked and undocked before returning safely to Earth. Finally, with all of the checks and tests having been safely completed, NASA announced that the Apollo 11 mission would be the first manned mission to the moon. The crew were (left to right) Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin. 20th July 1969: The ‘Eagle’ separates from the Command Module of Apollo 11. The ’Eagle’ Lunar Module, is crewed by Neil Armstrong and Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin. The moment is captured by CM pilot Michael Collins. The CM pilot never travelled to the surface of the moon.

Neil Armstrong described the fine, powdery dust that covered everything before he finally stepped down from the craft uttering the now immortal line, “That’s one small step for (a) man; one giant leap for mankind.” Buzz Aldrin followed Armstrong onto the surface of the moon and the two men spent their two hour visit conducting experiments, gathering rocks and It is difficult to imagine what the two men aboard planting the US flag. One significant problem they Eagle would have thought while waiting to leave highlighted was the difficulty in judging distances. the craft. Would the ground collapse under the The horizon was much closer than on Earth and weight of the craft ? Was the surface of the moon there was no heat-haze to offer a clue to distance. acidic - would it dissolve the craft? Were there All too soon the men returned to the LM with their alien bacteria attacking the craft? But finally the cargo of samples and the LM blasted off to return order came through for the men to exit Eagle. to the CM. The entire Lunar mission had lasted just When the Lunar Module touches down in the Sea 12 hours. The return flight was uneventful and the of Tranquillity, cameras on the craft’s legs capture Apollo 11 landed in the pacific on 24th July the moment that Neil Armstrong leaves the craft 1969. and begins his descent from the Eagle. After 3 weeks in quarantine (in case the men had contracted a deadly space virus) the crew were taken on a tour of ticker-tape parades that lasted 45 days in 25 nations. The Americans had won the ultimate prize against their Soviet rivals. In the missions after Apollo 11 the astronauts stayed longer and travelled further. Subsequent missions revealed more of the Moon’s secrets as the technology NASA developed improved. Over the next three years there were colour broadcasts, games of golf and the launch of the lunar buggy.

While there had been plans for Apollo (s) 18 & 19 respectively, there was a sea change in the attitude of Washington. If all that was to be achieved was to gather a few rocks and samples it was decided that this could be achieved using remotely piloted unmanned craft. NASA had been funded to explore - now the onus was on NASA to exploit the knowledge they had developed - ba- sically, they had to make money.

The crew of the Apollo 17 included a scientist for the first time, a geologist named Harrison Schmitt There were a total of 7 Apollo missions that were piloted the Lunar Module - he is the only civilian to intended to reach the moon, however, Apollo 13 have walked on the moon - and 1 of only 12 men had to abort their mission after a catastrophic that ever visited the lunar surface. While there failure during their flight. But this time tragedy were three crew members on each of the Apollo was avoided as the crew returned safely. missions, the Command Module pilot never left orbit - only two men descended to the surface of the moon.

On 14th December 1972 the Mission Commander Eugene Cernan was the last man to walk on the moon, as he saluted the flag he said, “I believe that history will record that America’s challenge of today has forged man’s destiny of tomorrow.” As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first But Kennedy’s administration soon faced an even moon landing, it is perhaps natural to picture bigger domestic crisis through the growing Civil America as a nation united behind this brave and Rights Movement. The campaign to overturn the noble quest. However, in reality this was very segregationist laws that had denied equal rights to much a story of division and resentment. African American citizens had been gathering steady momentum during the 50’s and 60’s. While In January 1961 John F Kennedy declared that NASA was developing the Gemini and Apollo craft, an American man would walk on the moon by the activists like Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X and the end of the decade. It can be argued that the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr were building their main motivation for this declaration was less influence and their campaigns received national about science and discovery, but more about the and even international support and recognition. Cold War between the USA and Soviet Union. After the Cuban missile crisis, tensions between On 23rd march 1965 The Gemini 3 completed an the world’s superpowers were at breaking point orbit of the Earth with two astronauts, Grissom and and the Soviet Union had beaten the Americans Young on board. The launch followed one month to reach key landmarks in the race to the moon. after the assassination of Malcolm X.

Gallup polls seem to indicate how nostalgia has altered public support for the Moon landings. In 1979 only 47% of Americans surveyed felt that the lunar landings had been worthwhile. Yet a similar poll in 1989 showed that 77% felt that the landings represented value for money.

Throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s a majority of the American population were opposed to the lunar mission. At one point fewer than 40% of those polled supported NASA’s endeavours. The launch of the first Saturn V rocket in November There were two brief surges in support for the 1967 occurred at the end of a year of race riots lunar missions. The first occurred after JFK was that claimed the lives of thousands of mainly black assassinated in 1963 which inspired a collective civilians throughout Florida, Minneapolis, Detroit, wish to fulfil his dreams and send a man to the New Jersey, New York, Milwaukee, Arlington and moon. Second, public opinion did briefly swing in Washington DC. Many of these riots occurred after favour of the lunar missions when Apollo 11 peaceful protests were met with violent resistance reached the moon - but this support soon faded. by the police.

But this sentiment was not exclusive to the general When the Apollo 6 mission blasted off on 4th April public - many scientists expressed concerns at the 1968 it was the first time the Command Module level of funding that was being dedicated to the had been manned in space. Astronauts McDivitt and space race. According to a survey in 1963 of White spent 10 hours and 56 minutes floating every $3 spent on research and development in above the Earth. While NASA was watching the the United States, $1 was spent on defence, $1 sky, the world was watching the news as word was spent on NASA and only $1 was spent on spread of the assassination of Martin Luther King. every other field of science combined - including public infrastructure, energy, private industry and The anger and resentment that was felt by the poor medical research. and disenfranchised of American society is largely forgotten by today’s historians whose narrative portrays a collective will to succeed. This sentiment is perhaps best expressed in the work of Gil Scott-Heron who released an album of spoken word songs in 1970. Gil was an outspoken activist and his album titled “Small talk at 125th and Lenox” a name derived from one of the poorest New York neighbourhoods were mainly immigrant and African American families lived in squalid conditions.

Tracks including “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” and “Whitey’s on the Moon” were representative of the frustration, despair and anger that was shared among millions of Americans living in abject poverty while the government spent billions of dollars chasing a dream. A dream that was being funded at the expense of so many.

Whitey’s On The Moon By Gil Scott-Heron

A rat done bit my sister Nell With whitey on the moon Her face and arms began to swell And whitey’s on the moon I can’t pay no doctor bills But whitey’s on the moon Ten years from now I’ll be payin’ still While whitey’s on the moon The man just upped my rent last night Cause whitey’s on the moon No hot water, no toilets, no lights But whitey’s on the moon I wonder why he’s upping me? Cause whitey’s on the moon? Well I was already giving him fifty a week With whitey on the moon Taxes take my whole damn check Junkies make me a nervous wreck The price of food is going up And as if all that shit wasn’t enough: A rat done bit my sister Nell With whitey on the moon Her face and arm began to swell And whitey’s on the moon Was all that money I made last year For whitey on the moon? How come I ain’t got no money here? Hmm! Whitey’s on the moon Y’know I just ‘bout had my fill Of whitey on the moon I think I’ll send these doctor bills Airmail special To whitey on the moon. ? NASA often defends its ‘achievements’ through One way or another, the lunar landings are one of challenging weaker arguments and ignoring the the human races’ greatest achievements. Either strongest challenges. For example, one question man walked on the moon - as we have been told that is often raised is why can’t we see the stars in for 50 years - or a small group of men successfully the photographs from the moon’s surface? In this convinced the world that man had walked on the case there is a logical explanation. The reduced moon - a theory that is not going away. exposure needed to capture the detail on the The ‘Establishment’ often chuckle and make snide Moon’s brighter surface would make it impossible comments at anybody who suggest that the moon for the comparatively faint stars to show up. But landings did not occur as described, yet the doubt NASA seem to focus on the things that they can felt by many has not diminished over the years. In explain and use these arguments to cast doubt on fact levels of doubt appear to be growing under the validity of every claim. increased scrutiny. In his book, “The Truth Agenda”, the author Andy Thomas presents a logical and As far as NASA are concerned, there are three clear case that certainly raises concerns about the critical evidentiary branches that prove their reported achievements of the Apollo missions. claims. The testimony of the astronauts, the moon rocks or physical evidence and the photographs. Even in 1969, surveys showed that a surprisingly large proportion of the global viewing audience While some of the astronauts have spoken of the had reported seeing Coke bottles on the Moon’s profound nature of their experience, others have surface or catching glimpses of wiring and lighting appeared to have been decidedly underwhelmed. rigs - claims dismissed as the psychological denial It seems strange that a man could stand on another of simple folk that couldn’t process the scale of surface in space, look back at Earth and NOT be technological achievement. overawed by their situation. Furthermore, all of the NASA astronauts of the 1960’s came from military On the fortieth anniversary of the Lunar landings, backgrounds. They had faced the most intense a poll carried out in the UK by the Engineering psychological screenings through their selection and Technology journal revealed that 25% of the process. They knew that the core mission was to British people no longer believed that man had get to the moon before the Russians. Is it really been to the moon. that far-fetched to think that these men couldn’t be persuaded to ’play-along’ if they believed that There are further doubts raised by the seeming the prestige and welfare of their country was on reluctance of NASA to use increasingly powerful the line? telescopes, cameras and lunar orbiters for so long. It took until 2009 before any aerial photographs The moon rocks should perhaps provide the most were made available for scrutiny. Even then, while compelling evidence. However NASA jealously the satellites did produce photographs of the guard the rocks and access is only granted to a landing sites, the questionable smudges purporting restricted group of approved partners under very to be the original craft and artefacts that were strict conditions. Those rocks that have actually supposedly deposited by the astronauts have not been examined are remarkably similar to rocks settled the matter. Those who question the images that are found abundantly on Earth. According to often attribute the delay in obtaining them to the NASA this proves the theory that the Earth and the need to develop photo editing software that was Moon were one and the same and only torn apart sophisticated enough to perpetuate the hoax. It after a cataclysmic event during the formation of would appear that the only realistic way to satisfy the planets. But does these moon rocks prove the the doubters is to put independent investigators on theory OR has the theory been created in order to the moon to examine the landing sites. support the moon rocks? The photographic evidence of the lunar landings arguably raises more questions than it answers. When it comes to explaining why these images might have been staged there are two schools of thought. Some be- lieve that the landings never happened, while others believe that the landings did happen - but that the original images were lost. The latter school have suggested a number of issues such as damaged cameras or the film being exposed to excessive radiation. Either way, there have been a number of issues raised with images, particularly this image of Buzz Aldrin.

The two light sources that would be needed.

The shadow that is being cast from Buzz Aldrin’s feet would indicate that the sun is somewhere behind and over his left shoulder. (ABOVE)

In and of itself that is not a problem, however by simply adjusting the contrast of the image we can see that Aldrin is standing on the edge of a clear pool of light - as if a spotlight were being shone from directly overhead. (RIGHT)

One might deduce that there are two suns orbiting the moon in order to achieve this effect or another light source is being used to create the image - as you might find on a movie set where ‘back-lighting’ is often employed. NASA have always maintained that the images they published were completely original. They assure the public that the photos had never been edited, altered or touched up at any stage. Yet there is an obvious problem. All of the photographs taken are marked with cross-hatchings on the camera lens. These hatchings can be used to divide the image into sections. The original image to the right has highlights to show how the horizontal marks are in the middle of the image - the distance from the top to the bottom of the image is the same. Yet on the image below the hatchings are off centre. It has been argued that the longer black section was to enhance the overall appearance of the photo - but if this photo was ‘enhanced’, who is to say that other images weren’t altered too? There are numerous images were the hatchings are off their true alignment.

Another cause for concern is the angle from which the image was taken. Neil Armstrong must have captured the image from a vantage point higher than Buzz Aldrin, the camera must have been above and pointing at a downward angle when the image was taken. Some explain this by pointing out there is a slight bank or rise in front of Aldrin's left boot.

However, the reflection in Aldrin’s visor seems to illustrates that Neil Armstrong was quite a distance away - it is unlikely he could achieve the angle that would be required. That is without taking into consideration that the cameras that the astronauts used were strapped to their chests - not hand held. The photo would not have been from Armstrong’s eye line but some 18” lower If we re-examine the shadow being cast by Aldrin we see yet another lighting anomaly. The shadow being cast is very dense, the sun is shining from above and behind Aldrin’s left shoulder. But if that is the case, why is the front of Aldrin’s suit so well lit? Common sense would say that the Aldrin’s chest and right hand side would be in complete darkness, yet all of the components and details are plainly visible. NASA maintain that the there is a simple explanation - the front of the suit is being illuminated by the sunlight that is reflected It is almost impossible to prove a negative - e.g. one cannot from the surface of the moon. absolutely prove that there weren’t multiple gunmen involved in the assassination of JFK. Just as NASA cannot prove that But if this were to be the case, surely the there was no conspiracy to fake the moon landings. Even if a same phenomenon would occur in every group of independent scientists went to the moon in order to photograph? If we examine the image on carry out a detailed investigation, would they be able to the right we can see the shadow being prove categorically that the moon landings did take place as cast by the astronaut and Lunar Module, NASA claimed? It is likely there would, at the very least, be we can deduce that the astronaut is facing accusations of items being deposited at later dates as a cover the sun - the front of his suit shines brightly. up. Could NASA’s apparent reluctance to address the queries But why is it that the back of his suit is in of doubters actually be the frustration of explaining something dense shadow? to an audience determined not to believe? Did Neil Armstrong take that ‘Small Step’ or was the plan to bankrupt Russia in a NASA seems to be a employing a rather fake race to the moon? Will we ever know the absolute truth? selective method of interpreting light and The opinions and observations quoted in this article have been shadow, depending on each photo. extracted from Andy Thomas’s book, ‘The Truth Agenda’. BECOME A PERSONAL TRAINER

Although you are in prison you can still earn all of Graphic Design Level 2 - Create Your brand the qualifications you will need to forge a career in the Fitness & Leisure industry.

Although achieving these qualifications will not be easy - the rewards are well worth the effort. Being a Personal Trainer involves far more than simply working out with a client. You will be responsible for helping that client to achieve their goals.

As well as the Level 3 Personal Training Diploma, you can study:

Functional Skills in English - Level 2

You will need to be able to communicate with your client, both face-to-face and through the written word whether that is by email or letter. It is likely that you will be expected to design exercise & diet plans at the outset and maintain up-to-date records throughout your time training a client.

Functional Skills in Maths - Level 2 While there are always opportunities for Personal Part of your role as a personal trainer will be to Trainers, you will need to create a brand that is interpret and collate information in a variety of clear and appealing. You will need to be able to formats. You will need to understand calorific stand out from the crowd in order to maximise your breakdowns and convert weights from the Imperial exposure and ensure you are reaching your target to Metric systems. You will have to be able to both market. understand and communicate information as ratios, fractions and percentages. If you study Graphic Design you can develop the skills that you will need to create a professional Functional Skills in IT - Level 2 image or brand for your business.

The world is run on computers. You will have to be You can learn about colour schemes, palettes and able to understand and maintain spreadsheets. It is psychology. You could design your logo, create likely that you will need to communicate with your mock-ups of adverts and even work on a livery for clients and other team members through emails. If your car or van. you want to grow your business you will need to be familiar with various software packages in order to build an online presence and exploit social media in order to promote your services.

Use your time! Learn the skills now - To earn the cash tomorrow.

Find out more in the Education Department. The following account was provided by a former Erlestoke prisoner. Facing the outside world was difficult to begin That agency lady hit me hard. It had felt like all was with. I felt a little paranoid - like everybody knew going to be OK then it was just ripped away. It was that I had been in prison! But I got over it with a lot hard work for me, which I know sounds selfish. I had of support from family. As my weekly probation my Mum to support me which a lot of lads wont appointments passed my PO didn't really press or have. But I could feel myself slipping into the bad threaten me about not having a job. I guess he was routines I had sworn off, like playing X-Box until 3 in better prepared for the reality of how difficult the morning and sleeping in all day. Then one day finding work as an ex-con would be. It was my my brother suggested we hit the gym. I saw an ad mum that suggested I go to one of the recruitment looking for qualified fitness trainers. It only took me agencies and at least get some sort of work. five minutes to find out the minimum qualifications So I went to an agency and was surprised by how that they would need. I flew through the session and warm a welcome that I received! I was given a cup could have run home to get on line and find out of coffee and even though I had no appointment I about the course. I tracked down the company that was ushered into an interview. My interviewer was provided the Level 3 Diploma in Personal Training warm and friendly. She asked me what type of and Fitness Instruction and was lucky again that my work I would consider and I replied (honestly) that I mum was willing to loan me the fee. I had to attend would do ANYTHING in order to keep busy. She the course fulltime for 6 weeks. beamed at me and said an articulate, presentable chap like myself would be in great demand! On day one I was nervous as hell, but the rest of the Wow! At last some good news. We began to fill in group were too. But I dived into the programme. the registration forms; Yes I can read and write; no There was a lot of paperwork to be completed I don't have allergies; no disabilities. Then the alongside the physical exercises. By the way, don't smiles dropped as my new friend dropped the 'C' be fooled that you can skate by without English & word on me. Maths, both risk assessments and calculations are a CRIMINAL RECORD critical part of the job! But I was determined and after 6 weeks of hard work I received my certificate! Well it felt like a silent alarm had been tripped and an invisible shutter had slammed down. I was genuinely shocked at the change in tone as she handed me a sheet of paper and dismissed me from her presence like a bad smell.

So qualification in hand I went back to the gym. I was bricking it in case he asked me about prison but it never came up! I am starting to build a network of regular clients and they are following my accounts on twitter. I have also started a blog to promote my services - and that is critical lads! You have to be able to write about and sell yourself! It took me four months and a lot of emotional and financial support from my family before I finally got a start in the gym, I really don't know what I would have done without them. If I could change one thing looking back, I would have taken advantage of the opportunity for Distance Learning and the grants available. I could have used my time in prison to better educate myself and prepare for my release. I could have saved myself a lot of time and a big lump of money had I made prison work for me. Take my word for it lads, you need to work hard to He started me off as a freelance personal trainer, make a success out here and that starts by you but he also let me shadow the class instructors. As working your sentence - don't let your sentence work each day went by I gained in confidence until I was you! asked to cover a spin class. When it was over one of the group came over and asked, "When are the rest of your spin classes?" I took the lady over to the desk and showed her the timetables and couldn't believe it when she said, "No when are YOU doing the spin classes - I enjoyed your class!" I left the gym that day feeling ten feet tall! Over the next few weeks I started teaching more classes and working with more clients. One day the manager called me into the office and I thought my luck had run out - has he found out about my prison record? You can imagine my surprise when he asked me to apply for the position of Assistant Manager! But my story doesn’t end there, 6 months later I was approached by a company that were opening a brand new gym in the area - they wanted me to be the manager. I only had to think about it for three seconds before I jumped at the chance. Not only do I get my salary as a manager, but I can supplement my wages with Personal Training sessions - and I can pick and chose which clients I work with. Life through Prison Objects - Books

It was my first time in prison. I had no glasses. I was waiting for an appointment with an optician (in the meantime I was prescribed paracetamol). I had been waiting for a TV for three days. I was spending way too much time in over thinking.

I felt frustrated. I remembered myself as a kid being brought clothes shopping by mum on a rainy day. As I am led along the endless racks and displays I am tortured. When I am inside shops I’m sweating in the big coat that protected me on the outside. My head is starting to spin from the smell of perfumes and cosmetics. I am on the verge of hitting the floor and going limp in protest so mum will have to drag me across the floor. I feel similar emotions now. I am helpless, powerless - being led along at somebody else’s whim.

“If your bored, you should read a book lad!” My neighbour suggested helpfully.

“I can’t! Don’t have any glasses.” I answered him.

“That’s a pisser!” he replied, and off he went. I was about to resume my journey of introspective self pity when my cheerful neighbour re-appeared offering a book.

“Get on this!” He returned, adding “It’s large print!”

I took the heavy hard-backed book, “JAWS”, and opened it to the first page. With only the very bare minimum of squinting I could read it! The first line of that book sits with me still.

“The great fish moved silently through the water, propelled by short sweeps of its crescent tail.”

I devoured the book as ruthlessly as the protagonist devoured residents from the town of Amity. I read it a second time despite having being issued with a TV. For the next few weeks I prowled the library, stalking my quarry down the aisles, large print was my prey.

When I finally got my glasses it was like a whole new world had been opened up to me. It felt like the velvet rope of the VIP section had been unhooked and the bouncer was waving me through.

By this time I had started to wean off the self-pity buzz and I decided that I should use my time to read ‘The Classics’; to educate myself - to make a better version of me.

Hello Mr Dickens. What have you got for me today?

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” Nah, bollocks to that.

What’s that you say Stormy Daniels? Donald Trump has a dick like a mushroom? Read on.

War often brings out the very worst of people and there are countless harrowing examples of man’s inhumanity to his fellow man. However, on very rare occasions we hear of an event that restores hope in mankind and shows that some people can rise above the brutality of war.

When American pilot Lt Charlie Brown and German flier Lt Franz Stigler flew into the same patch of sky over occupied Europe, the outcome was far from predictable. Their story shows that even in conflict, we don’t have to forego our sense of right and wrong. The American B-17 was called ‘The Flying Fortress’ Aside from the damage to the plane itself, the crew and when their pilots flew in their tight formations had also suffered injuries. The tail-gunner had been their combined firepower provided protection very seriously injured. against all but the most determined attackers. Protocol told Brown that he should still order the craft While British bombers carried out night raids that to be abandoned. His job was to protect the crew, blanket bombed German targets, the B-17s flew even if that meant sacrificing one man in order to their missions in daylight. The Americans were trying ensure that the rest could survive. Brown’s standing to focus their attacks on high value military targets orders would have been to parachute out with the which couldn’t be easily identified at night. remaining able-bodied men and hope that they would run into allies on the ground before German While it is true that the Americans achieved more soldiers could track them down. But Lt Brown simply accurate or effective results from their attacks, flying would not leave an unconscious crewman to die in daylight was not without its risks. American losses alone. His crew agreed that if one man stayed, all were far in excess of those suffered by their British would stay. Brown and his crew fought to stay in the allies, both in terms of men and machines. air.

In December 1943 a squadron of US B-17 Flying Given the planes condition, and travelling at a slow Fortresses were headed home after a daylight 135mph, they were barely above the plane’s stalling bombing raid over Bremen in Germany. During the speed. The men must have counted their blessings attack they had come under heavy fire. when they saw the German coastline ahead. They knew that the North sea and a route back to England Lt Charlie Brown was then just twenty years old and were within reach. his plane had been ambushed by a pack of deadly Messerschmitt fighters and taken heavy fire.

Despite the extensive damage, the young pilot somehow slipped the ambush and managed to level the stricken plane out. But he was forced to fly at a precariously low 2,000ft.

Soon afterwards the flight engineer delivered his damage report which included bleeding hydraulics, broken and missing flaps and holes in the fuselage that were big enough to climb through. It is almost impossible to imagine what the crew must On this day, Stigler had already been involved in have been thinking, the tension they must have felt. aerial combat. He had landed and was reloading Every creak in the fuselage must have terrified and refuelling on the ground when he and his crew them, every new sound grating in their frayed noticed the injured B-17 lumbering slowly overhead. nerves. Of all the imagined and dreaded images that filled their nightmares surely their hearts would Within minutes he was in the air giving chase. Even have skipped a beat when they saw a dark shape Stigler must have been surprised by how quickly he appear in the distance behind them. caught up to the stricken bomber and he must have thought about the precious Knight’s Cross— only a One can only imagine the anxiety they must have leather gloved trigger-finger away. felt as the shape closed in and revealed itself to be another plane. Did their anxiety become terror or But for some reason Stigler fought back his instinct to simply resignation when they saw that their pursuer attack as he approached the bomber. Perhaps he was an enemy fighter? They would have been more was shocked by the condition of the plane. As he than familiar with the German sharks of the sky, the closed in he might have seen the slumped body of the Messerschmitt ME109. tail-gunner. Perhaps he was intrigued when the B17 didn’t open fire on him. Did this give Stigler an op- Their German pursuer was Lieutenant Franz Stigler portunity to check out the plane in more detail? and at 29 years old he was an experienced and Would he have been able to see the men inside the highly decorated veteran pilot. plane through the large holes in the fuselage.

Stigler was a flying Whatever his reasons, the German did not pull the Ace and had flown trigger. Those that knew Lt Stigler described him as dozens of successful being a man of indomitable courage and bravery, missions. but also as a man of honour, not an assassin.

He had already While he fought for his country, he did so out of a been credited with sense of patriotic duty. He had never bought into the 29 kills — if he Nazi philosophy or joined the Party, and he prided could only achieve himself in fighting by his own code. The Knights Cross one more kill he could go hang. Stigler said, ‘I will not have this on my would secure the conscience for the rest of my life.’ Knight’s Cross. This award was among But rather than feeling relieved, the men aboard the Germany’s highest American bomber must have been cursing this cruel honours for bravery. German. Surely he was toying with the anxious and bewildered men as they stared at the Messerschmitt. Their German enemy was now flying just above their By now Brown had enough of the Messerschmitt right wing tip as if it was in formation. They could flying on his wing as he was still convinced that the clearly see the pilots face. What’s the bastard up to? German was toying with them. There had been He must be toying with us? Why doesn’t he just get it many accounts of cruel acts on both sides, there over with? were stories of fighters circling men who had bailed out of their planes, waiting until they almost The crew must have been doubly confused when the made it to safety before shooting them dead. enemy pilot was waving frantically at them, almost as if he was trying to give them a message. Brown ordered the one remaining operational gun turret to be aimed at the enemy fighter. When By his own account Stigler was now struggling with a Stigler saw the barrels turning he got the message. dilemma. While he had decided against attacking the He had done all that he could, he wished them plane he now became concerned for the crew. If he 'good luck', saluted the Americans and then peeled just let them fly off it was likely that another fighter away. would spot them and that the American crew might not enjoy the same luck twice. Stigler was determined to Brown and his men struggled on. As the plane save the B-17 and knew that the course they were on slipped to 1,000ft they jettisoned everything that would take them over German anti-aircraft guns. WIth was weighty: radio, guns, even the spent cartridge the B-17 flying at such a low altitude they would have casings on the floor had to go. As they got closer to little chance of survival. Stigler’s waving had been an England they were joined by American P-47 pilots effort to get the bomber to change course and head guiding them home. At last they cleared the coast eastwards to the neutral Sweden. of England, just 250ft off the ground. Lt Brown headed straight for the first air strip in sight and Even in there stricken state, Sweden was a mere 30 landed the plane successfully. minutes away and they could crash-land there. But despite Stigler’s best efforts, his words were getting After the initial shock of the situation had worn off lost due to the sound of the engines, so Brown clung Brown and his crew recounted their experience onto the controls for dear life and carried on. Stigler and reflected on their mission. As their minds then decide to take a big gamble. He reasoned that if cleared they soon realised that the real hero of the the gunners on the ground saw his Messerschmitt side mission was the unknown Messerschmitt pilot. by side with the enemy, they would hold their fire. Stigler put his own life on the line, but it worked and That is what Brown told intelligence officers at the not one shot was fired at the plane. de-briefing. He and his crew were convinced that they owed there lives to a good German. But this But Stigler went from the frying pan into the fire as he was perhaps the last thing that his superiors would realised he now faced a different danger. There was ever want to hear. The last thing that the military little doubt that people on the ground would have command wanted was for Allied airmen to believe seen his fighter escorting an enemy plane. If word got there were merciful German pilots out there. back he did he could face a court martial and a firing squad for treason. In the B-17 the crew were confused Would the crew on future missions hesitate or even as the Messerschmitt continued alongside them. The hold back on there trigger only to lose their lives as 'crazy' German pilot was gesturing them again but a consequence. Brown and his crew were ordered again the message could not be heard. not to tell a soul. After his encounter with the B-17, Franz Stigler had returned to his base expecting the Gestapo to be waiting. The Luftwaffe was always suspect in the eyes of the Nazis.

Incredibly his good deed seemed to have paid off and there was no Gestapo waiting committee. But this encounter led Stigler to question everything that his beloved country had become under Adolf Hitler. He lost his appetite for the Knight's Cross. Despite his completing over 500 combat missions he never actually registered any further ‘kills’, therefore he never achieved the thirtieth victory which would have earned him The Kinight’s Cross, an award he now saw as a worthless piece of metal.

In the aftermath of the war, Stigler ironically ended up working in a Messerschmitt factory - this time making sewing machines under U.S. direction rather then warplanes. In 1953 he emigrated to Canada to work as a mechanical engineer in a logging camp. Stigler bought his own Messerschmitt and whenever possible he appeared in air shows as the Nazi villain being pursued by vintage American fighters. But the memory of the B-17 all those years In a perfect Hollywood twist, Lt Franz Stigler had ago stayed with him. been living in Vancouver, Canada for almost 40 years. Vancouver where he had lived for 37 years, Brown survived the war and for the next 40 years Franz Stigler opened his regular newsletter, and he kept the secret, but he never forgot. He retired could not believe his eyes. Here out of the blue, to Florida and finally told the story of the lone was the missing piece of the jigsaw in his life. Messerschmitt at a veterans’ reunion in 1985 to He had always wondered if the crew had survived mark the 40th anniversary of the end of the war. although he would probably never get an answer. Until by chance he saw Charlie Brown's story in the After all those years of bottling up his secret he newsletter. The two old men spoke on the phone was finally determined to find out who the mystery and then met up in an emotional reunion. They wept German pilot had been and why he had helped as the hugged each other and each man recounted them. He made enquiries as best he could and their version of what happened on that day back in might have been persuaded to give up his quest, 1943. but after long and fruitless years he was made The men became dear friends and they travelled aware of a newsletter that was produced for the across the US to take there unique story to veterans association of German fighter pilots. He wrote his clubs and air museums. Franz Stigler sadly passed story, sent it to the magazine’s editors and waited away in March 2008, and Charlie Brown died 8 for the remotest possibility of a response. months later. The Cold War that was being waged over decades between America and the Soviet Union took many forms. There were space races, arms races and there was fierce competition to secure global allies in order to secure strategic advantages. But perhaps the most surprising conflict of the cold war took place in a mocked up kitchen.

In late 1958 and after much negotiation, the US and the USSR agreed to host cultural exchange events in each others’ countries. These exhibitions were being But the centrepiece of the exhibition turned out to be described as a critical step in understanding each a kitchen. The display formed part of an average others’ ideals and aspirations. The first exhibition of house, but the kitchen was specially designed and the Soviet Cultural Agreement opened in New York included every conceivable labour saving device. In in June 1959, with the second event taking place in a crude propaganda exercise, the whole house was Moscow the following month. advertised as being unremarkable. According to the exhibition the lifestyle that this house promised was The American National Exhibition was installed in a being enjoyed by every ’Average Joe’. 30,000 square foot centre at Sokolniki Park outside On the 24th July 1959 the Soviet First Secretary, Moscow. There were a wide range of products by Nikita Khrushchev, was being given a guided tour of almost 500 American companies on display. Many the exhibition by the then Vice President, Richard companies like Pepsi had flown in teams of models Nixon. When Nixon began to describe the various to hand out free drinks to the Russian visitors who labour saving devices Khrushchev is reported to were amazed by the rows of shiny cars and the have sarcastically asked which was the machine that mock-up of a typical American ranch house. ’puts food into the mouth and pushes it down.’ What had started as a cultural exchange would soon escalate into a heated debate as each man praised their own way of life and government. When Nixon began to demonstrate other gadgets like colour televisions he claimed that America was quick to adapt and to take advantage of emerging techniques. Khrushchev responded that the Soviet Union was more concerned with building for future generations. On American technology, Khrushchev stated, “This is what America is capable of, and how long has she existed? 300 years? 150 years of in- dependence and this is her level. We haven’t quite reached 42 years, and in another 7 years, we’ll be at the level of America, and after that we will go farther.” The world’s press were taken aback as the debate became increasingly heated, with neither leader afraid to speak their mind. Khrushchev also went on to criticise a recent US Congress resolution which had declared that Russia was exerting control over its ‘captive’ population and the people across the bulk of Eastern Europe.

The debate continued through interpreters at a TV studio the following day but both men moderated their tone and there was no mention made of their nuclear arsenals. When Nixon suggested that the Russian shouldn’t be ‘afraid of new ideas. After all While there was no outright winner of the debate you don’t know everything’, Khrushchev replied, ‘and itself, Nixon won many new admirers throughout the you know nothing about communism - except fear of USA and the debate certainly helped him to secure it.’ Coverage of the debate spread across the the Republican Party’s nomination for the Presidency world, and while journalists regarded it as a blatant in 1960 - however, another debate against JFK was publicity stunt, the public lapped it up. arguably to be his downfall. OPEN TO EVERYBODY - EVERY FRIDAY MORNING IN EDUCATION. I am a life sentenced prisoner coming to Soon enough I was doing it, I was on my way to the end now having been given parole. My creating something out of paper. [sic] He told me I was building a Teddy Bear - I thought I’m glad journey before I found origami was bumpy you can see this - HA HA! I persevered you know and I found myself getting into trouble what I found the Teddy it amazed me how this which led me to the segregation / block / came together. I was even more shocked at how I choky and a whole number of other names picked this up. I now knew I could do this on my this is called. Anyway I found myself given own which I did I have made hundreds of Teddy segregation time where I had a book and Bears. [sic] radio for company until another prisoner came to my door and asked if I wanted to learn origami.

At first I was sceptical but I thought I might as well give it a go if only for the chance at some conversation. In segregation you can’t have another prisoner in the cell with you so we had to do this through the glass observation panel - a little letterbox shaped window in the door.

My mate taught me that there were three basic stages. Step one - rip an A4 piece of paper into 16 pieces. Step two - learn the actual fold. Step three - connect the folded pieces into a ring form, the start of which holds them together. I have now started to make swans which I donate or give to other prisoners for their families. I am now at Erlestoke prison where I am involved in helping others and they are helping me. In fact i regard this class as my family. [sic] Each one of these guys has helped me grow within the class and the teacher Helen, she is amazing she takes the time for each of us which helps the class to bond. [sic] I would urge all to give this a go, you might surprise yourself. Well I am now about to leave prison for good I will take this with me and I will show others outside. Take care I have enjoyed this journey in origami class, in fact I call it Helen’s Origami Army!

Jason wrote this article just before he achieved his parole. During his time in Erlestoke he was part of the origami team that produced 1,000 doves that were displayed in the nave of Salisbury Cathedral. To date the origami group have raised in excess of £10,000 through sales of their range of bespoke, hand made greeting cards. You too can join the team and give something back - make your time count! You’ve got time - use it!

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