Hi Greyhound,
Couldn't even hazard a guess as to how many personnel were stationed there during my time there. It isn't information that you can easily come by and I don't ever remember it being discussed.
Don't know about the female members of staff either. Although they were there when I arrived in September 1964. By that time the tape relay system had been replaced by a system which was very similar to the Telex system of the day. That meant that fewer bodies were required and a few months after my arrival all WRAF personnel left the camp. We were never told why, but I suspect it was the beginning of the end for the camp. Shame really as I loved my time there.
I can confirm the story regarding the roller skates though, as that was discussed on a number of occasions.
In the Tape Relay days I would suspect that there was around 20 to 30 on each of four shifts, could be out on those figures as its mere speculation on my part, whereas in my day there was a Warrant Officer, Corporal and two airmen on each shift.
The net was replaced by a wall on three sides which had earth banked up against it and was then turfed, so that, from the road, you couldn't see anything. The other side was shielded by the slag heap which frequently burst in to flame and had to be damped down by the fire brigade.
Have you heard of the ghost in the working area? Apparently he walked down the corridor regularly. Think he was a miner who was killed in the pit.
I was on night shift when the phone rang in the early hours. It was the two girls in the telephone exchange at the end of the corridor from us. They were in blind panic....."Theres a ghost waking down the corridor!" they kept screaming at me.
I told them to stay on the line and I went to look down the corridor. Of course I didn't see a thing and went back to the phone, by which time the girls had calmed down and said that it had gone.
I never did see the ghost during my two stints there, but I will never forget the panic and absolute terror in the voices of those two girls.
Jimbo.
