The Savage Report

The World of Staff Officer Band Service OR: Bahamian Rhapsody
A true story by Steve Savage (aged 38 1/6)

After receiving many comments about my last article, one or two of them actually being complimentary, the Editor thought that I might like another go. Oh, Joy of Joys! Oh, Glory be! Would this be yet another morning spent without my caffeine "comfort blanket"? That aside, the next problem was the choice of subject matter. Who was going to get the benefit of my gloriously eloquent turn of phrase and my NAMET 5 in English. It needed to be someone in authority, someone of interest to the readers and someone with a kettle. And so it was decreed that this issue's willing victim would be the man they call SOBS, the Staff Officer Band Service.

My journey took me to the hallowed halls of HQ Band Service - the far left hand corner actually - and to the office of the aforementioned interviewee. Having reported my presence to SOBS, imagine my sheer elation when his first words were that we should get a coffee before we started! My caffeine level on full, I was now ready for the affray! Fair leaping around like a young gazelle I was, although any one who knows me would be quick to point out that it wouldn't have been quite as graceful or as quick, and as for leaping, well, limping would probably be more apt.

And so to the task in hand. I was to ask SOBS, one Captain Nick Cunningham Royal Marines, to give me a brief resume on his life and career so far prior to dealing with the role of SOBS. Having been born in Freeport, Grand Bahama - now do you get the title? - he was to move to England at the age of four, giving him dual nationality. At least this way he has twice the possibility of having a passport photo that actually resembles him - which is nice. Having eventually settled in Malvern, Worcs, he went on to study History, Politics, Economics and Spanish at College. From there, University beckoned were he undertook a degree in Spanish and Sports Studies, a useful combination if ever you need to buy some training shoes whilst in Madrid. My next question received a quite astonishing response. I asked SOBS why it was that he joined the Corps, to which he replied that he did it for a bet! During a 'year out' SOBS was working as a barman in Malvern and was pretty disillusioned with life as it was. A customer remarked that he should join the Royal Marines if he wanted a challenge and bet him a pint that if he did join, he wouldn't pass the training. The following day saw a trip to the careers office and the rest is history, as they say. There is a sting in this 'tale' however, SOBS has never seen the customer again and so is one pint down on the deal!

Having passed out of training in Sept 94, SOBS served in various appointments including Troop Commander with Cdo Log Regt, and 2 years as the Assault Engineers OC with 45 Cdo. I got the impression that the idea of flying around the globe blowing things to pieces and getting paid for it really appealed to the Captain. At this point he is also keen to point out his sporting prowess as he was selected to appear in the Corps Rugby Team. Digging into the subject a little further, I found out that he actually made the Corps Team once. Not only just the once, but for only 10 minutes too as he had to be retired due to an injury. During this heavily one-sided sports based conversation, SOBS asked me about my sporting interests and inquired as to whether I had ever represented the Corps! In his defence, SOBS only really met me for the first time that morning and didn't realise that I would have had more chance of knitting fog than playing in a Corps side - unless you can receive Corps Colours for darts that is!

All this talk of fuzz… (I'm sorry - irritable vowel syndrome)… All this talk of fizz was beginning to leave me quite breathless and it was at that point that I decided to resume my long overdue quest for the elusive laminated chit.

During his appointment with 45 Cdo, he was to be heavily involved in the post-Hurricane Mitch humanitarian effort in Nicaragua, for which he was awarded the Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service. Attendance at the Junior Command Staff College followed and it was here that the first whispers of the SOBS appointment came to light. There were eight RM candidates on the Course and eight appointments, one of which was that of SOBS. Oh, how the others cheered as Capt Cunningham was chosen from the cast of thousands to appear in the role of SOBS! But it transpired that this appointment was actually his second preference and so he was far from disappointed that he didn't get one of the more 'Gung Ho' appointments.

Capt Cunningham took over as SOBS in May this year, a position that he stresses he is very proud and privileged to hold. The hard work and diligence of his predecessor, Major Peter Manson RM has meant that the transition into the Band Service environment has been both enjoyable and enlightening - with the possible exception of this interview of course. The idea of a RM Commando Officer working alongside the Band Service in one role or another is certainly not new and this particular post evolved from the old Adjutant's role, at Deal, given that PDM is also the Commandant of the RMSM.

I then broached the subject of the actual role of SOBS and all that it entailed. In a nutshell, SOBS is the PDM/Comdt's advisor on policy, military matters - particularly with regard to the RM Command, administration and discipline. The benefits of having a Commando Officer in this post are obvious as the PDM/Comdt is heavily committed to undertaking many important engagements and time is of a premium. SOBS is able to deal with the administration and staffing of all Band Service issues in PDM's absence enabling the smooth running of both HQ Band Service and RMSM.

It doesn't stop there however, as he is also a point of contact for the entire Band Service on military issues and the co-ordinator of the Band Service military training packages. This involves a lot of liaison with SO3 Band to ensure that the correct balance is maintained. Many of the issues involving the Band deploying to Kosovo have also been dealt with through this office. SOBS stresses that he has been supported wholeheartedly by the RMSM Military Training Team under the expert leadership of CSgt Paul Basford RM, whose assistance and hard work has meant that the Band's Training has been concise, apt and as painless but as professional as possible. SOBS and the Training team are also responsible for the New Entry Troop Training package, which again has been fine tuned over the years to give our future Trained Ranks the necessary skills to perform in all aspects of the Band Service.

SOBS is also at pains to point out that in accordance with the 1st Sea Lord's Personal Functional Standards, every Royal Marine is entitled to one week's adventure training. The reason this is pointed out is that SOBS holds the adventure training budget purse strings. Each Rank is entitled to £75 per annum from this budget to help subsidise these activities; however, there are certain criteria that must be met to be eligible. For example, mountain biking and surfing are not fundable, but diving and mountaineering are. A quick look at BR 4024 will give you all the answers, but if you are still unsure, give CSgt Fulthorpe or SOBS a bell and they will gladly put you on the right track.

So there we have it. A brief but hopefully informative look at the role of SOBS, who he is and what he does. There is no doubt that Capt Cunningham is a very keen and dedicated man who wants the best to befall a Band Service for which he has the highest regard and respect. He sees this role as a challenge and considers it to be "a little gem" of an appointment. The interview was all but over and having known that SOBS' predecessor had a musical bent and was in fact a talented pianist, I inquired by way of a finale, whether Capt Cunningham had any musical talents. His head lowered through slight embarrassment, as he admitted to have undertaken piano lessons for two years but failed to achieve grade 1! This was a bit of a blow for me as I was going to ask if he fancied being a spare for RMT 2000.
Oh well, back to the drawing board…