Transcription: Tom Collis Chisolm

Content warning: mentions racism, military conflict.

[0:00] Hello, my name is Tom Collis. I'm, er, I was born in Ipswich in 1970 and er for most of my youth, I grew up around Suffolk and Norfolk, often within vicinity of the US air bases, and particularly the formative years that I remember particularly being affected by um living in the East of England and being near the bases was when I lived in Mildenhall, which is approximately when I was in sort of late primary school. I moved all around Suffolk and Norfolk as a child. I had, I think I had five different primary schools growing up, um and the most sort of memorable point was when I, I, attended a small primary school in Mildenhall, Suffolk, next to the Mildenhall Air Force base. By the way, I now live in Birmingham, and I'm a mental health professional and kind of musician artist as well.

[1:07] So looking back at my formative years in Mildenhall, Suffolk, I attended a small church of England primary school, and that was quite near the base, and back then in, would have been 1974 maybe to 1976 or seven. I… the children of the airmen, attended the sort of British mainstream schools, erm which was where I first encountered, you know, American children, particularly Black American children, and was the same age as me, obviously, culturally, very different, definitely very different. And this friendship was quite significant to me.

[1:54] I don't know, I… you know, like all British children of the 70s, I was exposed to US culture, er The Dukes of Hazard, programmes like that. Dallas, was it Dallas back then? But I don't know, yes, but you know, I suppose we had an image of America, of as a land of plenty. Every house had a swimming pool, you know, big, massive garage doors that opened electronically. And I guess some of that might have been informed by some of the other contact we had with Americans at the time. They seem to have a better, generally, a better lifestyle than, than us Brits, certainly in terms of sort of food choices. They were incredibly exotic, grape Fanta, exotic marshmallow cereals. These were all sort of, you know, traded in a sort of black-market economy in Suffolk in the 70s. And we all were kind of, you know, trying to get hold of this US stuff.

[2:50] I guess, what was funny about Reggie that maybe I only learned and understood sort of later on, was that his life experience was very different. I mean, it's not like I believe that he told me as such, but I was aware he wasn't from, you know, a wealthy background, and he certainly didn't have a swimming pool back home in the States. I'd love to know exactly where he was from in the States, in my imagination, maybe I've constructed his New York. It was certainly would have been a big US city. I understood that he lived in a big city, and I know also his dad was a load master on C-130 Hercules aircraft.

[3:35] Growing up at the time in Mildenhall, I was fascinated with the machinery, the might of the US Air Force, Strategic Air Command. It awed me, you know, the same time, it was a little bit scary as well. We learned about the nuclear threat and the fact that we had a big target on us. But anyway, yeah, so Reggie, I don't know, he gave me my first insight into, you know, how things could be different, and the perhaps, what I'd seen on TV in the media about America, there was a different America. I don't know. What else can I say?

[4:14] I think one interesting thing, I suppose, would be kind of questions about sort of racism. And I think basically being a six or seven year old that really didn't figure in. I don't remember him being bullied or singled out. I think I would have, would have been aware even at that young age, because tangentially, I remember at the same time, there was a TV program called Blue Peter in which there was a disabled [person] and he was kind of used in the playground as his name was used as a slur to sort of denote that you were, you know, had special needs. And I got very upset about that. I remember getting to fights about it. So I think if my friend Reggie was a victim of racism, I'd have, I'd have, kind of remembered that, and that would have been significant. So, yeah, I'm quite pleased to say I don't think that was an issue. But at the same time, I think I don't know. I don't really remember many friendships in my childhood. Again, it was very disjointed. I moved around loads of different schools growing up, but I definitely remember Reggie. I hope he remembers me, I mean, if he's out there and he sees this somehow, it would be fascinating. I don't know, do you remember little Tommy with, you know, in the primary school in Mildenhall? It would be lovely to, to know what, what he's doing now.

[5:37] So, yeah, that that's, that's, that's kind of, you know, my own personal story and a personal connection to the sort of Black US Airmen experience in Suffolk. So I can't remember meeting Reggie's family. Ahh, we played together, but I don't have any clear memories. I just, just, you know, kind of aware of what Reggie told me about his background and what I took note of, and like I say, definitely took note of the fact that he didn't seem to have the experience that I recognised from TV programmes. I don't know whether Reggie was any way responsible for my latter sort of involvement in sort of anti-racism, and I suppose normally, the career I've chosen to do, which has been involved with working with refugee groups, working with the marginalized and the excluded, that has been a sort of a significant part in my career. I'm not I'm not so sure, it's interesting, nonetheless, that he was a friendship that I remembered.

[6:45] So what was probably of a bigger impact to me, as you know, a white Suffolk boy was attending the Mildenhall Air Show. Now that was a mind-blowing experience. I think for many of us around at that time, it, you know, you had felt like almost complete access to the base. You know, you had these incredible aircraft and technology, the food, the barbecues, you know, the burgers, the Budweiser, the great Fanta. It was all just, I used to look forward to the Mildenhall Air Show genuinely more than Christmas. I've never been a big fan of Christmas, particularly, but Mildenhall Air Show was, was my Christmas, was my birthday. The smell of aviation fuel in the air, just everything about it intoxicated me. I was obsessed, and I would get deliriously excited in the run up to the air show

[7:46] Again, I guess, sort of being a, an aircraft spotter, you know, kind of noticing these, these aircraft, you couldn't really avoid it. And as I said, there was a sense of it that was very threatening and very scary. I remember a nightmare I had as a child of, of bombers, sort of flying over, sort of, you know, kind of a ominous feeling of, of imminent doom and destruction. And of course, you know, we, there was occasionally alarms that went off at the base. Everything would take off. Didn't happen often, but I remember at least two occasions when we heard sirens, and every, every plane seemed to take off from the base. And then subsequently we learned that it was a, we came to DEFCON 2, or DEFCON 1. You know, we were, we were close to nuclear Armageddon. And one particular very formative was seeing the SR 71 Black, which was a spy aircraft operated by the CIA, actually unbelievably futuristic aircraft. I mean, I think it'd been developed in the 1950s but, you know, I think even if they don't fly today, but it was, it was a spacecraft. It was incredible, you know, looking thing. It was absolutely amazing. And once it flew over my house and err just whooping for joy, clapping my hands, I think there must be something a bit neurodivergent about me, perhaps, but, but I was so excited. And this black, flaky substance fell from the sky, err which I believe was the kind of result of the afterburner of the huge Pratt and Whitney jets in there. Well, they were RAM jets in the SR 71 a really kind of quite a futuristic, you know, form of propulsion. And that that really was that that was very seared into my memory.

[9:46] So, so you had, you had the aircraft, you had the fact that you would see Americans, including a lot of Black Americans, you know, Hispanic [Latinx is more frequently used nowadays] Americans, again, in Suffolk, being majority white. It, you know, these people were unbelievably exotic to us, not only because of their uniforms and the cars they drew the drove, you know, huge, great big Cadillacs and, you know, big old Ford trucks. We were just amazed. We just thought they were, they're incredible.

[10:19] So what's kind of interesting is then, as I became a teenager and kind of got into the punk rock scene, I was really influenced by, by kind of anarcho punk bands like Crass and Conflict that were very, very political and very much against the US presence. And I was kind of drawn to that. I was also, I knew I had friends whose mothers were, were in the Greenham peace camp and that was a, active demonstration that lasted for years outside the Greenham Common base. I can't remember that was, I think it was a Buckinghamshire or somewhere that wasn't in Suffolk, but, but, you know, it was against the presence of cruise missiles. So I remember being kind of a bit torn, really, you know, I loved the Americans, I loved the bases, I loved the culture. I mean, again, growing up, you know, all of my key influences culturally, either Afro American, Hispanic American or Jewish American, you know, in terms of writers, music, you know, it's had such a massive impact on me. And then, you know, subsequently, gosh, my brain's gone Geno Washington, you know, you know, actually lived in Ipswich. You know that the Jimi Hendrix was, was a paratrooper. I don't know that also kind of, you know, created this a little bit of a conflict within me of, no, I didn't like the fact that this was a, effectively a military occupying power that put a great, big target on my, on my country, and again, be very against, I suppose, things like McDonald's. Well, we love McDonald's as a kid, it was, it was just starting, but I quite liked Wimpy, but, but, you know, kind of the sort of very, very rampant consumerism, hyper capitalism of America, I was kind of, didn't, didn't really like that, but at the same time, was still in love with, you know, the fact that we could wander onto those bases, and a little bit of America was here in the UK, and it's just what made growing up in East Anglia special. It made it different.

[12:35] And it's, yeah, it's still something I kind of, I wrestle with in my head, you know, should, should, should I have been supporting the Mildenhall Air Show, you know, probably it was involved in sort of selling arms some of the pilots I spoke to, because you could wander up to the static displays of aircraft, and there'd be pilots there, and I'd go up, there's a picture of me, actually, with a SR 71 pilot getting an autograph, I'll try and find it and send it. But um, you know, I kind of hero worship these guys, but they're probably involved in, you know, bombing communities and, and people. And you know, part of me would view that as kind of a form of terrorism, of murder, of colonialism, you know, very against my values. But yeah, same time I was I was kind of thrilled with it all.

[13:29] The other the other thing I'm quite proud about in terms of Suffolk's association with the USAF Air Force is also intermingled with the sort of history I've learned about the Second World War and those Black GIs who were welcomed into sort of small, rural communities and embraced, and you know, those communities were horrified by the segregation they faced. And you know those so, I mean, I don't know, there may be some romanticism there, but certainly I've read a lot about how the military police would um stop Black US Airmen from fraternizing with UK citizens, and would enforce segregation amongst troops. And that not going down well with British people, which I feel quite proud about. I feel like that's exactly the values of diversity and inclusion that I stand for. And I think even in the 70s and 80s, again, the US presence culturally, like I say, the fact that I think err you know bad you know, US touring bands, particularly Black US touring bands, would, you know, come to this country and play on the bases, but they'd also do a show in Soho, in the jazz club, you know. Erm so you know, again, having slightly older friends from Ipswich who remember the 60s and the music scene around Ipswich, which are really vibrant, from what I could tell back in the 60s, you know, most of the big bands did tour and, and visit Ipswich.

[15:16] And perhaps that was maybe also something to do with the fact that you know rock and roll, but also, you know jazz, funk kind of styles, you know, you know DNA of that music actually in the Black American experience. And you know some of those, some of those individuals were stationed here in the UK, and they needed to be entertained. And you know, their artists came over here, some of them were artists themselves, like Geno Washington, and actually decided, “You know what, I'm going to hang around. I'm going to stick around. I'm going to live in Ipswich”. And of course, ultimately, as well, this is the other interesting thing for me, as someone involved in youth work, social work and the NHS, I'm aware of a lot of, you know, individuals of mixed parentage, of dual heritage, whose, whose, whose parents were Black airmen, and then, you know, sort of lived in the UK that had a, you know, I think a definite impact, you know, on us all.

[16:23] I remember, you know, a someone quite close to me who dated Black Airmen, that was, you know, again, quite an interesting experience. I think she remembers sort of animosity within the community because she was a, you know, white Suffolk girl dating Black airman. Erm, but yeah, certainly, I think she saw it as a very enriching experience culturally, you know, that that, that she, you know, had access to a whole different culture and world, and was sort of part of that. And, you know, we all, were we all, we all, kind of, like, went on to the bases, you know, might have a, you know, visit their bowling alleys, or their their bars. And you know that that was, like, I say, quite, quite an awesome thing to experience in a very gray, very kind of quite a boring [laughs], you know, 1970s Britain. It certainly, like, I say, just, just had an incredibly lasting impact on me.

[17:36] I got quite into the rave scene in the 90s, where I became sort of very active in the music scene, and that was up north, that was in Bradford, occasionally, occasionally, but, but, but I do have stories from my own family, from my from my mother, rest in peace, Jen. She regularly went to The Manor Ballroom, The Gaumont, err, erm, The Baths, she saw Rolling Stones, Beatles, you know, everybody there. I would have loved to ask her about this particular issue around the sort of Black American experience in Suffolk. I'm not sure if she remembers, you know, any sort of that presence, you know, what her experience of that was, because she was very much part of the kind of jazz and rock and roll scene in the 60s Ipswich.

[18:30] I would definitely like to mention somebody here, Dickie Moles, who was a really good friend of mine when I lived in Ipswich. Many people in Ipswich will remember Dickie. He was larger than life character, and he was part of kind of many quite well-known Ipswich bands, particularly in the 60s. I think he supported various big-name acts when they played in Ipswich. There's a mention of him and his band in the Ipswich Museum. But he used to tell great stories about going to the jazz club in Soho. Erm and you know, that was where the US Airmen used to go, you know, to see their acts and their artists, and he was very much part of that scene. Again, massively influenced by that. He must have known Geno, I think he did used to sort of tell stories about Geno in Ipswich, but, yeah, you know, God, rest his soul. Dickie, he'd have loved this project. He'd have been massively supportive of it. I'm sure.

[19:41] I'm really glad that you mentioned Rod Stewart Elma because one of my mum's sort of you know stories she'd always tell was knowing Rod Stewart, and Rod Stewart asking her out on dates before she met my dad, because he was a, he used to come to the jazz club. I don't know if that was a The Baths or err Manor Ballrooms, but there used to be, like a, you know, where the Beatnik kids, this would have been maybe a bit before Beatles and Rolling Stones maybe. Anyway, Rod Stewart wasn't an established artist that point, but he was a session man apparently. There's a story that he played harmonica on ‘My Girl Lollipop’. I don't know if that's true, but yeah, he was like a session guy, and my mum was very tall and blonde. So there was a little thought in the back of my head. I wonder if a [laughs], no, no, no, no, He would have definitely gone for my mum.

[20:39] My mum's wedding picture is a, is hilarious. She's in a bright pink Mary Quant mini skirt. She looks absolutely incredible [laughs]. So, I could have been Rod, I could have been Rod Stewart's son. But also, there's, you know, Ipswich Art School, that's, a you know, again, was, was a, you know, had its history. That's where my friend Dickie Moles went to but also, gosh, the famous artist who did the clamshell thing, I can't remember her name, yeah, yeah, didn't she? I think she was student of Ipswich Art School, yeah. So there is, there is a sort of, yeah, strong creative, artistic link there as well. I talking about Pink, Pink Floyd, I'm just thinking about um particularly Roger Waters, who's a hero of mine for his political, very brave political stance, I, I love him for that. But there's that famous bit in ‘The Wall’ where isn't, oh gosh. Well, there's, there's kind of echoes of militarism, fascism, you know, throughout that film. And again, I'd be interested, I would love to ask them, you know, did their exposure to the fact that this was, you know, the US, US's biggest aircraft carrier in the world. That's, that's kind of, I think, how we used to refer to, you know, East Anglia, whether that had any kind of influence on, on the wall.

[22:08] Finish