Unidentified (field hospital?) photo WWI Bob Dancer

[chrisscales]

Out of interest, is anybody able to identify what the following photograph might be of?

The reverse is a postcard signed 'Bob' so I think one of the boys in it must be James Robert Dancer, who was a friend of my grandparents (although much older than them). I do have another photo of him but it is when he was aged 85 so quite hard to compare. He was born 10 July 1900 in Camberwell to James & Charlotte Dancer and their address in 1911 was 56 Stanton Street, Peckham. From electoral rolls by 1914 they may have been living at 2 Upper Hall Street, Commercial Road, Peckham though his service/pension records haven't survived so there is no way of figuring out the photo that way.

In the photo they all look very young and there are nurses present, at least one boy has an arm in a sling, and they are wearing those funny (blue?) uniforms that I believe indicates a field hospital though please correct me if I'm wrong. Perhaps the cap badges can tell which regiment etc?

Thanks in advance for any help. It doesn't matter too much as he and his wife are long gone and they didn't have children, but I always think it's nice to get these photos out in the public domain in case anybody else in them tracks them down.

Best wishes

[chrisscales]

Also, not sure if it is relevant but we also have a poster of his commemorating 25 years service at the South Metropolitan Gas Company, which was awarded in May 1940, so he would have started there in 1915 (but presumably have gone off to war after starting there).

[DeeBoneham]

Think its more likely a UK based rather field based Hospital  Hopefully someone might recognise one of the other lads or the nurses.
Dee

[apwright]

The cap badges all look to be King's Royal Rifle Corps, except for the shiny one, which I think is the Rifle Brigade.

Adrian

[chrisscales]

Thanks both. Is there any way this could be of the King's Royal Rifles Corps Cadet battallion?

I could be barking up the wrong tree with the Bob reference - my great grandfather George Edward Wright was in the KRRC Cadets I think around 1904-1907, is there any way this could be a photo of them, or is it definitely taken during WWI? Their headquarters would have been at 42 Sun Street, Finsbury, London so perhaps it's taken there...

What makes me think it may be a cadet battalion is also that they all look so young. To be in the KRRC Cadets at that time you had to be age 14-17.

Thanks

[chrisscales]

Here are the youngest photos I have of him (aged 29 and 44) but I'm stumped trying to spot a younger him

[John915]

Good evening,

I doubt they are cadets, they are all old enough to serve in the front line and receive wounds. They are wearing hospital blues which as far as I know were only used in UK based hospitals.

Definitely KRRC and one Rifle brigade.

John915

[chrisscales]

Thanks John. I did read that "The Hospital Blues uniform was available for convalescing troops in Britain; some were issued for France, but the emphasis on issue was on the Home Front" so I'm sure you're right its likely to be a UK based photo.

Is it odd that they're all from the same regiment? Seems like a hospital of this sort during WWI would have a mixture of men from all regiments, unusual that they would all be in the same hospital at the same time...

[ainslie]

Not many 'battle-scarred veterans' among the group who all look very young and fresh-faced.  How about a new intake of recruits who happened to catch measles or some such?  [I caught chicken pox during National Service and was quarantined, but not in hospital blue!]
A