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Post by ngatimozart on Jun 6, 2012 13:01:49 GMT 12
Where was the Cpls Club at Hobsonville? I'm trying to recall. I remember the Officers Mess, W/O and S/NCO's Mess and the Airmans Club.... From memory, Dave, the Cpls Club was in the top floor of the barrack block next the the baggies club but it wasnt well patronised so sometime around mid 80's they closed it and made the "Baggies" a combined "Aimans Club". I remember one of the last "Oktoberfests" held at the Hobby Airmans Club.... It started at 12pm on a Saturday afternoon (although we were there by 10am as usual) and didnt finish til midnight. We brought in four bands ... The Blow Monkeys, The Exponents, The Mockers, and some other band whose name eludes me. It was a screaming success. The first 150 or so that bought a ticket got an etched beer mug (I still have mine). About 400 people turned up. The committee organised for a DB Export Mini-tanker to come in and the beer was administered directly from the tanker ..... oh the memories! There was almost a riot as about 5pm or 6pm we had drunk the mini-tanker dry!!! Another load was hastily delivered and the party continued. Brilliant! Great days... great times. ;D I was there late 81 and 82 and the Hobby Cpls club was still mostly Air Force. Remember the army Cpl who rode a trail bike over the roof of the barracks & earned himself a ban. We also had the Navy detachment that worked with 3 Sqn. Meat raffles every Friday night. One techie who shall remain nameless lived onboard at WP and worked on 3 Sqn. After happy hour and long session at HB Cpls he rode his motorbike back to WP with a bottle of Gin tucked down front of jacket. Fell off said bike between Herald Island turnoff and end of runway. As he was picking himself up and shaking the broken glass from the gin out of his jacket, the head cop for the Waitakere Ministry of Transport turns up on his way home to Herald Island. Said Cpl gets done for DIC so says to MOT that he was off to the Sinai in a couple of weeks and could tyhey bring his case forward which they did. Six months loss of licence and a $500.00 which suited him because Sinai TOD was six months and location and foreign allowances paid his fine
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 6, 2012 13:29:32 GMT 12
Late '80s were an epic time for bands though....remember the Mockers, Exponents etc at the opening of the WP JRC. And the comedy nights....can't remember the guys names, but they were on the telly at the time. That tall bloke with the big ears, and his short mate. And the guy who played the piano and took the piss outta people if they went for a leak.... We had Andrew Fagan and his band (not the Mockers this time round) come to Wigram to play in the Institute around 1992. He was two hours late and his poor band were very embarrassed. They eventually found him shitfaced, sobered him as best they could and put him on stage. He played a very good gig. He was singing yesterday on Good Morning and looked equally the worse for wear, only his singing was pretty dreadful. Time he gave up I think. Were the comedians you refer to Willy de Wit and his tall mate with the ears from Funny Business? I recently watched a little of that show on www.nzonscreen.co.nz and it was as good as ever. "lived onboard at WP" Is that one of those strange Navy terms creeping in here?
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Post by ngatimozart on Jun 6, 2012 19:40:43 GMT 12
That's one of the more normal ones. There was a couple of us ex Air Force types in my division and we used to confuse them with Air Force terms.
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Post by mumbles on Jun 6, 2012 21:47:55 GMT 12
Were the comedians you refer to Willy de Wit and his tall mate with the ears from Funny Business? Ian Harcourt IIRC
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Post by mumbles on Jun 6, 2012 22:14:30 GMT 12
We had Andrew Fagan and his band (not the Mockers this time round) come to Wigram to play in the Institute around 1992. He was two hours late and his poor band were very embarrassed. They eventually found him shitfaced, sobered him as best they could and put him on stage. He played a very good gig. He was singing yesterday on Good Morning and looked equally the worse for wear, only his singing was pretty dreadful. When interests collide As it happens I have a couple of books in my 'collection' pertaining to this ;D To be completely fair, I don't think Fagan ever actually claimed to be a good singer. He is quoted in David Eggleton's book "Ready To Fly: The Story of New Zealand Rock Music" (Craig Potton publishing 2003, ISBN1-87333-06-09) as saying "I see myself as a victory for the mediocre singer" for what it's worth ;D. As well as a musician Fagan is a reasonably accomplished sailor (including a solo Tasman crossing in an 18ft yacht), and in 2001 published a memoir of his sailing experiences ("Swirly World: The Solo Voyages", Harper Collins ISBN 1-86950-402-X). It is a sailing memoir cum autobiography, and includes the following account of a gig at Whenuapai in 1985 or so (has to be 1985 or later by the song titles mentioned). He didn't seem too enamoured of it "The weekend I chose to sail her down the harbour from Herald Island to a deep-water mooring in Little Shoal Bay coincided with a gig the band played at Whenuapai Air Force Base, about a mile from where the boat was moored. I slept on board that night, and the following afternoon I lowered myself into the coracle and paddled down with the outgoing tide to a clay bank just under the Upper Harbour Bridge. I folded up the dinghy to its suitcase size and hid it in the trees then moved up the path just a few hundred yards to where the stage had been erected. Most convenient. That evening we played while the sun went down and a large amount of semi-barbecued sausages came up out of booze-sloshing Air Force bellies. They wanted to hear the songs we had played on radio and TV. 'Cleopatra', 'Swear it's true', 'Forever Tuesday Morning' 'One Black Friday'. The only ones they knew. The rest they didn't really know at all. It started well. The whole gathering in high spirits, as you would expect, our Armed Forces in between battles. After a short time the heavily subsidised grog seemed to ba having an adverse effect. Perhaps some of them had noticed my black nail polish. I was doing my version of Polynesian dancing, all hips and innuendo. The females never had a problem with it, blokes were always suitably uncomfortable. Missiles started landing sporadically on stage. Stones and things . . . they were trying to soften us up with artillery fire. The bright stage lights and a few free brown bottles did nothing for my direction finding on my way back to the hidden dinghy. Half an hour was spent blindly fumbling through the undergrowth. It was my escape route. Some of the audience had ended up not really liking me. It might have been mutual but I didn't have the opportunity to find out. I paused frequently on my way to the water's edge, making sure no disgruntled Air Force personnel were trying to track me down . . ."
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Post by bobajob on Jun 6, 2012 22:29:26 GMT 12
During my time at ARS Woodbourne 79 80 81 the christmas happy hour was the best entertainment of the year. Each squadron had thier own themed booze up. The most memorable one was the year ARS theme was "It Ain't Half Hot Mum". The skinny knobbly kneed chorus line ended the show showing their bums to the audience displaying knickers with the words " The sun shines out of my ARS". They took out first place. I think it was judged by Sldr Donaldson, The ex A$4 pilot who lost an eye in the USA if I recall. Best times ever. How did I ever get home.
Bobajob
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 6, 2012 22:31:51 GMT 12
I doubt he would have rememebred the night at Wigram well enough to put into his memoirs. He was completed wasted. The band were the ones carrying him (literally and musicly). Funny thing was by the time they actually finished he'd seemingly come back to the world of the living. My workmate Vaughn was a MAJOR fan of the Mockers, maybe the only one left by then. He reallywanted to meet Fagan, he'd talked about nothing else all week, and he worked up the bottle to approach he changing room and know on the door, so I hung around to see how it panned out, as I thought it might be quite amusing. We were welcomed into the side room where the band was and they were all having a beer so offered us one which was nice. Vaughn was suitably star struck but we ended up having quite a good conversation and a beer with Andrew Fagan. He was quite a laugh. And his band were great people. A bit of a different impression then I'd formed a few hours earlier when people were shouting "Why are we waiting" and then he was carried in staggering, haha.
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Post by shorty on Jun 6, 2012 22:54:19 GMT 12
I played "Gunner Sugden" in that ARS It Aint Half Hot Mum, posted some photos here somewhere
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Post by bobajob on Jun 7, 2012 9:59:45 GMT 12
I did say I had meet you at some time Shorty. That must have been then. Magic time had by all.
Bobajob
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zolteg
Flight Lieutenant
Posts: 82
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Post by zolteg on Jun 7, 2012 19:24:13 GMT 12
Late '80s were an epic time for bands though....remember the Mockers, Exponents etc at the opening of the WP JRC. And the comedy nights....can't remember the guys names, but they were on the telly at the time. That tall bloke with the big ears, and his short mate. And the guy who played the piano and took the piss outta people if they went for a leak.... We had Andrew Fagan and his band (not the Mockers this time round) come to Wigram to play in the Institute around 1992. He was two hours late and his poor band were very embarrassed. They eventually found him shitfaced, sobered him as best they could and put him on stage. He played a very good gig. He was singing yesterday on Good Morning and looked equally the worse for wear, only his singing was pretty dreadful. Time he gave up I think. Were the comedians you refer to Willy de Wit and his tall mate with the ears from Funny Business? I recently watched a little of that show on www.nzonscreen.co.nz and it was as good as ever. Yeah, that was the bunch. And the canadian feller who played piano as well (and from memory got nicked a while back for kiddy fiddling...)
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zolteg
Flight Lieutenant
Posts: 82
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Post by zolteg on Jun 7, 2012 19:26:26 GMT 12
That's one of the more normal ones. There was a couple of us ex Air Force types in my division and we used to confuse them with Air Force terms. We had an ex navy feller on my CQC.... first command on the drill exam... 'SQUAD HO'.... Fortunately he was the sixth one up - we were all on autopilot by then. he could've said anything and we would've still trotted around the hangar in the right order....
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Post by baronbeeza on Jun 7, 2012 20:28:56 GMT 12
Entertainer Dwayne Franks was great at the Provincial ? in ChCh in the late 80's.
Enjoyed mention of DB Alley again with some of the characters... Woof and Igor. Did some of those guys really work on aircraft ?
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junior
Flight Lieutenant
Wibble
Posts: 95
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Post by junior on Jun 7, 2012 22:19:23 GMT 12
This would have been the '85 Bierfest at Hobby JRs Club I mentioned earlier that he played at and as I recall Andrew partook well of the liquid amber that day so Im not surprised that his nav skills back to the Hobby apron were failing.
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Post by ngatimozart on Jun 8, 2012 13:04:45 GMT 12
Entertainer Dwayne Franks was great at the Provincial ? in ChCh in the late 80's. I remember him in Perry's Occidental in 1989 - 90. Pub has been demo'd since quake.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 8, 2012 13:29:45 GMT 12
He did a concert at Whenuapai when I was there too, approx 1990.
Is that the Occidental that became a hostel and was on Latimer Square? I stayed there a couple of times in recent years, great place and superb dinners. I'm sad to hear it may be gone, a very historic old building.
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Post by baronbeeza on Jun 8, 2012 17:22:05 GMT 12
oh yes, the Occidental. Thanks for the correction. I was thinking the Provincial was on a corner over near Tuam St somewhere.
Yes, he used to get a good crowd into the Occidental and he must have played there for several years. 1988 to 90 at least it appears.
Ohakea.. As for Woof, I remember a little more of some of the events now. He was on 42 Sqdn, makes sense,- and he got himself into a little trouble in the 'new' Airmen's Club after the 1980 raft race.
He was near enough naked on the bar as he tried to retrieve his trousers from the rotating ceiling fan. At the hearing of the charge the facts were being read out when one of the junior officers present realised it was all sounding a little deja vu. I believe Woof was sentenced to a term at Ardmore and it would have been over the Xmas break.
A couple of the Officers that had been in attendance during the aftermatch did the right thing and came forward with a report to the Base Adj. Their version was a little kinder than the Provost's report, mainly in the manner he lost his pants etc.. They were rewarded with the right to attend further functions at the Airmans' Club over the Xmas period legally !
One week's Orderly Officer each !!!!!
At least Woof and his mate got to miss Xmas in Ardmore. Was it Bristles ?
I understand Woof wrote himself off in Aussie some years later. - a motorbike ?
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E.T.
Flight Lieutenant
Posts: 78
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Post by E.T. on Jun 8, 2012 20:34:50 GMT 12
Enjoyed mention of DB Alley again with some of the characters... Woof and Igor. Did some of those guys really work on aircraft ? I forget if Woof was Black-hander or what. I think he "worked" in the area of SEM's. He became a civvy soon after I got there and I mostly remember him with full face hair. Igor/Egor was Avionics, and I think he worked between 75 & Electrical Bay. The early 80's were the good old bad old days indeed and sucked many of us poor young impressionable lads (!!) into it's snare of good times. Chook, Wah, Barf, Bubbles and many many more were the crowd of "my" era but many of the Sgt/FSgt & Wo's above them were also equally notorious. I got there too late to really "know" the old baggies club but certainly heard some of the stories. The Raft race, Xmas pissups at Ohakea, and Village Greens at Wigram later for me were some of the most "dangerous" events of the year! Too many good times but no way I could handle them now!
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Post by shorty on Jun 8, 2012 21:47:17 GMT 12
I played "Gunner Sugden" in that ARS It Aint Half Hot Mum, posted some photos here somewhere Here are a couple of photos. me in the middle, Uff (W/O Uffindale) as the punkah walla, Randy Ransfield (then a Corporal)on the right
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Post by Tony on Jun 8, 2012 21:47:45 GMT 12
From memory, Dave, the Cpls Club was in the top floor of the barrack block next the the baggies club but it wasnt well patronised I went there during a visit up from OH. Once! There was more activity in a morgue...... Snuck down the the baggies where it was all on
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Post by ngatimozart on Jun 8, 2012 22:07:32 GMT 12
Yes Dave it's Perry's Occidental & has been demolished. It was a really neat old uilding and unfortunately like so many has gone. Shorty I remember Randy Ransfiled when he was a baggie. He and some other OH terrors earned the ire of Wigram base Adj (then) Flt LT B G Anderson (Nav) when they were photographed and appeared in the Press, allegedly inebriated in the Cathedral Square (probably outside the Doghouse) repainting a Landrover green and yellow with house paint. Entertaining as hell Powers that be had no sense of humour about that.
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