You Lad! 'Aircut!

[sisemen]

I just finished paying the Oz equivalent to almost 10 quid for a fairly run of the mill trim. It seems a far cry from popping down to the Station Barbers for the same service which only cost a quid.

I came across quite a few characters during my service; the bloke and his horny missus and Alsatian dog at Finningley back in the late 60s; and who could ever forget the overpowering pungency of the chain smoker at Honington! Most of the Station Barber's had operated from their little cupboard for decades.

Is the Station Barber still operating? And how much does he/she charge nowadays?

[oldpinger]

Sure is,

The lady at Nowra has been there 20+ years, and usually knows your next posting before you do :ooh:

Last time I was there- about $15 oz (about 20p!!):E

[Shack37]

If the station barber had charged me a quid back then I would have :{. Only got seven guineas a week you know. Might have been worth it for the gen he passed on though!:eek:

s37

[tropicalfridge]

I remember the guy at Akrotiri who barely spoke english and gave you a very short haircut regardless of what you asked for.

[Blacksheep]

Fagash Flo' at Halton would give you a "special" non-reg haircut for a two-bob tip. That was a fair wack of your thirty bob pay, and reserved for "48s", when we were let loose on London for the weekend. Otherwise it was the standard five strokes of the shears and a scissor job on top. The strange thing is, Fagash Flo's handiwork would be the height of fashion these days. :rolleyes:

[Skycop]

I just finished paying the Oz equivalent to almost 10 quid for a fairly run of the mill trim.

Outrageous..... that's nearly a quid a hair unless they included the eyebrows....

[sisemen]

You've some need to talk Skycop :E How's things?? Back to the painting fer you my lad!

[goudie]

£7.50 for a trim round the sides and back and thats on pensioners day when it's half price!
The barbershops in Limassol gave an excellent service and the closest shave ever. They too knew the destination of your next, highly secret, detachment.
The most modern Station barbershop I ever experienced was at Brize.

[Pontius Navigator]

I remember the guy at Akrotiri who barely spoke english and gave you a very short haircut regardless of what you asked for.

Quite. Had a distinct falling out with him as I was growing a nice gozome cut prior to a month long drive home. He had a deal with the SWO :(

He also had a copy of the DCI detailing how a barber's shop was to be run, hair brushed from the floor etc. It was pinned on his wall and it was RESTRICTED.

Of course I had not alternative but to report his security violation to the Feds, after all who knew what the baddies might have gained from our nit picking secrets.:}

Laarbruch72 would have been proud of me.

[teeteringhead]

Best deal ever was the "Chogi Shop" at Aldergrove in the early 80s.

NAAFI would barely touch NI then, so the whole Province worked on Chogi Shops (can I say that these days?), even at the Mill at BBK - where you could get a burger and buy toothpaste 24/7. There was so much competition for the (very lucrative) monopoly concession, that good deals were brokered. At Aldergrove, one of the deals was free haircuts for all uniformed personnel! And not too bad ones either IIRC.

Also (allegedly!!), OC Admin was asked by the Chief Chogi what colour he wanted his Mini (car, not skirt), as that was the going rate for the "thank you gift" from the successful bidder. I'm sure OC A made his excuses and left.............:rolleyes:

[Airborne Aircrew]

Ahhh yes, "Cheebugger" at the Chogi shop at Aldergrove...

[Adam Nams]

Guy the Spy at Finningley

"Anyone got Guy's 'phone number?"
"Yes he's in the Yellow Pages - under 'Spy, Guy the' "

[Wensleydale]

Reminds me of Joe the Barber's shop in the NATO Air Base at Geilenkirchen a good few years ago.....

The girls were not recruited for their hair dressing prowess, but in summer when they wore sleeveless T-shirts and little else and asked the question... "How much should I take off?" or "How long would you like it?", there were many bitten lips.

If you were unlucky though, you got Joe complete with cigarette. I wonder if they are still there?

[Wader2]

Now there was one barbers where there was no pressure whatever to get the guys to go. Haircut every week, $5 Singapore at Vincent's at Raffle's Square, head massage and glass of whiskey too.

Or at Ascension Island where she did your ears and then blew in them :}

[taxydual]

Oh yes, and the two girls who 'operated' the hair cutting 'salon' at MPA in the mid 80's.
They offered more than pure Tonsorial Services! Until, that is, someone grassed them up and they were sent back to UK.

Word was, they made a fair bit of dosh out of their 'enterprises'.

It made the term "Anything for the Weekend, sir" a whole new meaning.

[Tankertrashnav]

"NAAFI would barely touch NI then, so the whole Province worked on Chogi Shops (can I say that these days?)" (see Teeteringhead, above)

Interesting that the word chogi has survived, even though it seems to have lost its racial (racist?) connotations. In most overseas theatres east of Suez the term referred to the local civilians, who would invariably be non-white. It was certainly a slightly offensive term, if not downright derogatory. I was told it was a shortening from the Indian "chowkidar", a sweeper, or cleaner, thus someone in a low-grade job. Presumably the "chogis" in NI were mainly fair skinned, so it seems the term has moved on somewhat.

[Airborne Aircrew]

Presumably the "chogis" in NI were mainly fair skinned, so it seems the term has moved on somewhat.

Nope... They wuz Chogis... Hence the purchase of "Cheebugger"... :}

[Geezers of Nazareth]

For some of us the cost is listed under "search fee" rather than "haircut" ...

[Pontius Navigator]

And how about the sandpit? Any delicious barbers there or do they have the hump?:}

[spheroid]

I tried to reclaim my annual haircut allowance of £200 with the taxman,..........and won...thank you Lord...please may I have another

[akula]

And how about the sandpit? Any delicious barbers there or do they have the hump?

The barber at Thumrait(2002) would certainly have given you the hump:eek::eek:
We had to operate the 2 man rule in case he got a bit frisky!

ALWAYS assume NEVER check

[Mr C Hinecap]

He certainly was as camp as a row of pink chiffon tents wasn't he? That chap got more pleasure from his job than should be allowed.

[Skycop]

You've some need to talk Skycop How's things?? Back to the painting fer you my lad!

I don't think you know me, btw, but you did know I was painting! Nice one, now that is clever. :ok:

[Ogre]

At Al Kharj at the end of the 90's you had two options, go to the resident REME SM who gave you a once over with some Argos hairclippers for 5 Riyals, or go down to the Yank compound and have the locals do a neater job for 8 Riyals. Only trouble was, the locals used to throw in a neck massage for free, and if you weren't quick enough you found yourself being slapped and pummeled by this little bloke who looked like Bin Ladens grand dad. Maybe it really was a neck massage, or he was taking his aggression out of us, but you were always scared he'd fracture something.

[johno617tonka]

they did a similar thing at Incirlik...

a couple of us went outside the gates onto the 'strip' and had one of the locals do it...

same scenario, but included a cut-throat shave too! then the obligatory neck 'snap' and a most novel way of getting rid of unwanted nasal and ear lobe hairs..

over sized cotton buds dipped in meths (or summat similar!!)

lit with a lighter and shoved into said orrifices...

the smell of burnt hair stuck around for days!!!

[N Joe]

If the Halton barber is still in the porta-cabin behind the guardroom, make sure you get the chair by the window. Otherwise, be prepared for a shock when you catch sight of your new hair-style as you emerge from the semi-darkness.

N Joe