Joshua Levine

And, you know, like I said, there is this idea you were always there, stand two, and you're always ready to go over the top.

Of course, that's not true.

The support trench, which would be, I don't know, about 100 yards behind, you'd have been a kind of reserve troop and there'd be supplies in there, there'd be soldiers ready to move forward if necessary.

You'd have a reserve trench quite a lot further back, 500 yards further back, and there you might have a regimental aid post, you know, the first of the medical posts.

You might have a command post, you might have a...

I don't know, some kind of... Bit of a bigger kitchen perhaps?

Yeah, absolutely.

Start punching out some hot food.

And then you have communication trenches leading all the way back.

You know, it was a proper maze.

If you were arriving in the trenches, you would hopefully have a guide to bring you forward because, you know, it was very complicated to know exactly where.

Trenches had names, you know, communication trenches had names, the junctions had names, you know, from wherever the local troops were from.

If they were Scottish, they'd be Glasgow names, London might be Piccadilly Circus.

And so it was a complicated business.

You would go back to the reserve trench.

You would go behind the lines.

Whereas you say you would have some, you know, you'd have a bath for one thing.

You'd be able to clean up.

You'd be able to go and see a concert party.

You could, you know, there were things you could do.