Herbert Potter was a carpenter by trade; but with an ambition for the stage and some talent as an entertainer. Until he was called up for the army in 1940, he had never seen a gun in his life. On the Anti-Aircraft guns in London, he was soon to become all too familiar with them. Then came the chance to join the Forces Entertainment Unit in which his combined abilities as a carpenter taking care of the stage sets and his rendering of the popular songs of the period to the accompaniment of his ukulele made him quite a success -- that was until the unit ran out of money and was disbanded. Back in the ranks, he spent the rest of the war as a carpenter in. the Maintenance Unit of a large Army Training camp in North England. Here he gained, some knowledge of country pursuits to do with wildlife and how an army can live off the country!