Viewing 39 posts - 1 through 39 (of 39 total)
  • So, who has actually been in a riot? What do you remember?
  • Northwind
    Full Member

    Just idly thinking about the whole rioting thing while in the garage, and I started to think back to what it was actually like being in one… And I remember being scared, and angry at times, and awed, but mainly what I remember is the feeling of unreality- what you could call suspension of disbelief. Watching the riot squad retreating didn’t feel like being on the edge of chaos, it just felt surreal and unworldly. And walking through the aftermath of burned out shops etc, was much the same- very dreamlike.

    I did things I’d never have done normally- nothing actually illegal I might add, without getting into detail. And I never kicked that feeling of unreality, it was more like I was a spectator of what I was doing. I saw people get their property destroyed then join in, which doesn’t make any sense at all. I saw security guards take off their yellow jackets and join the mob. I saw a guy punch someone, then immediately as soon as he’d done it snap out of it and start helping the guy he’d just punched, that was weird (they were having a chat when I moved on)

    The only normal-life equivalent I can come up with, is when you wake up and it’s properly snowed- everyone’s acting differently, the world looks different, the familiar’s totally turned upside down. it’s not the same at all, but it’s got a bit of the same feel. And all ridiculously vivid.

    So that got me thinking about how I’d have reacted if I was caught up in the london riots, and what it might say about people who do things that seem totally out of character. You know that expression, that a mob’s as smart as the stupidest person in the mob?

    I have no idea if any of this is interesting to anyone or if anyone else’ll have any thoughts on it, but you never know.

    thegreatape
    Free Member

    The thing I remember about the last one I went to was that I didn’t get a lunch break for ages, and when I did there were only egg sandwiches left, which I hate, so I got very hungry.

    Northwind
    Full Member

    Mayonaisse on the eggs? I hate when they do that, plain egg sandwiches are great. Though they don’t travel well.

    Though, I suspect you were less in the riot than immediately outside it?

    J-R
    Full Member

    I was in the Glasto crowd for the Kaiser Chiefs, and they predicted a riot. Not sure if it happened or not, but it was fun.

    Klunk
    Free Member

    yep, horses are big and heavy

    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    Where, oh where is STW’s very own Citizen Smith? *

    *Conspicuous by his absence of late, non?

    toys19
    Free Member

    Criminal justice bill demos in 1993 or 4 or 5?
    Turned into a massive punch up, I headed for the bus and watched from there, was scary, iw as most scared for and awed by the police horses, the air would be black with missiles and they ploughed in. So amazing.
    Most of the missiles were made with that split wood fencing stuff, essentially spears..

    This stuff

    bullheart
    Free Member

    Criminal justice bill demos in 1993 or 4 or 5?

    Same here. Scary and exhilarating all in one.

    TijuanaTaxi
    Free Member

    Went to Luxemburg to watch England play a world cup qualifier back in the dark days of footie hoolies

    Everywhere was shut and after the looting of the ferry duty free it was on to the main event fighting the french old bill and then their riot squad

    Tear gas does a bit more than sting the eyes and being in a full scale riot with burning cars etc is a very frightening experience

    We only went for a look round a foreign country and the chance to have a beer or two with the locals, some real loonies about that day.

    How do you get there and back with a few quid in your shoe, no passport and dressed in just a flag and underpants

    rossi46
    Free Member

    I remember a bit, first the trainers i nicked are a bit tight, that scaffold pole dont half send a shock up your arms, my mate who videoed me on his new Blackberry forgot to put a memory card in it so we’ve got nothing ‘cool’ to share on You tube, that face mask didnt half restrict my breathing and the wheelie bin i used made all my new Adidas clothes smell bad….

    thegreatape
    Free Member

    I only went for the lunch Northwind, that’s why it was so heartbreaking.

    Northwind
    Full Member

    That’s abuse, you should probably sue someone

    ernie_lynch
    Free Member

    You really need to take a packed lunch with you in future thegreatape.

    I would avoid crisps and biscuits though.

    Northwind
    Full Member

    Also, remember to take your own bottled water.

    sc-xc
    Full Member

    Never been in one, but that’s a great take on it Northwind.

    slowjo
    Free Member

    I remember coming out of a pub in Hounslow (Poll Tax Riot iirc) and walking straight into the middle of it. A swift about turn and we legged it to safety.

    What was it like? Frightening actually……

    postierich
    Free Member

    Faced several riots in Belfast in the 80’s shot at petrol/acid/paint/blast bombed as an 18 yr old it was pretty frightning but exhilarating did some bad stuff with rubber bullets in the heat of the moment.

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    A student demo in London in 1988. Moaning about Fatcher or Poll Tax or something. It was OK until the professional arse holes in the crowd tried to stir up a bit of trouble with the Police. They got it!

    Lots of pushing and shouting.

    I ran away, round a corner and straight into Willie Whitelaw. Me and my mate Dave knocked him and his body guard over! We all picked ourselves up. Said sorry and buggered off as fast as our little legs could carry us.

    donsimon
    Free Member

    Westminster Bridge as the horses came through on the student loans demo.
    Across the road from the Spanish riot police, they don’t look menacing, no, no they don’t, nothing to worry about with their big sticks and guns and things, nothing to worry about, it’s a democracy innit?

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    Westminster Bridge as the horses came through on the student loans demo

    1988?

    tang
    Free Member

    anti bnp/nazi league one in early 90s that kicked off outside a skinhead pub, i got stuck in the middle of burning cars etc not nice; police, skins, anarchists and massive black guys all hard at each other. glaston when it descended into a riot of sorts with the travs, again caught in the middle. i can see if thats your type of buzz you would love it, some were clearly hyped and up for it. not for me. my old man was in the student anti vietnam riots in london in the 60s which got a bit messy, my mum always opted for cnd rallies when i was a kid, miles of walking and loads of boring speeches in hyde park….

    muppetWrangler
    Free Member

    I got caught up in a riot in Athens, triggered by a G7 summit of world leaders.

    I spent the day sat in one of the sunken courtyards reading and generally watching folk going about their business, then around 4 in the afternoon I decided to make my way back to the hotel. Coming back up to street level things looked a bit different than I remembered from just a few hours previous. A large group of protesters facing off a large group of Police. Not seeing any obvious way to get out of the way I climbed up on top of a department store canopy where about half a dozen of us mostly tourists watched the riot unfold for the next few hours.

    Greek Police make those filmed in Manchester the other night look like social workers, they were literally beating seven shades out of anyone they could get hold of. After about 45 minutes of baton charges and scuffles the police started firing tear gas into the crowds who responded with petrol bombs and whatever they could find lying around. It was fairly intense but was pretty much over with in about 5 or 6 hours.

    When I did eventually make my way back to the hotel there were a lot of burnt out cars and I distinctly remember a burnt out bus but I don’t recall much damage to shops or offices.

    Also trying to get a good nights sleep after being tear gassed is a bit tricky.

    lateo
    Free Member

    Basra in 2005… never been so scared in quite the same way, ever again.

    Very visceral – people up close with knives and machetes… no guns, just ripping and tearing. Landies getting rolled over and people on fire


    Not me btw… I was about 50feet on the Post Office roof

    donsimon
    Free Member

    1988?

    I’d have to check my CV…….. Probably as a quick Wiki tells me that Kenneth Baker was still Secretary of State for Education and Science. All fun and games until just after 3pm, then BANG! I got threatened with arrest for trying to protect a friend. Coppers eh?

    tang
    Free Member

    lateo- how do you get over something like that? I mean that is really really scary compared europe style face off/riot/demo.

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    All fun and games until just after 3pm, then BANG!

    Sounds like the one I was in. We climbed over the bridge parapet and dropped onto some steps below then legged it behind the Police… straight into The Right Honorable Mr Whitelaw and his minders. 😳

    donsimon
    Free Member

    There was a line of white transits across the bridge and just after 3pm the two in the middle pulled away leaving a gap and the horses came charging through, I was about 50m away from the front which was packed and the horses came straight through. Bastids!

    @lateo
    , wow!

    meehaja
    Free Member

    Getting hit with a baton and being told very politely to stay down or i’d get hit again.

    trailmonkey
    Full Member

    Smethwick and Birmingham, summer 1981. For me and the people I was with, it was political. Didn’t do any looting but it was going on for sure.

    On the Saturday in B’ham city centre, 3 of us got led into an alleyway by a group of spg thugs. I honestly thought I’d wake up in hospital. Luckily a call came through for urgent assistance and a truncheon in the kidneys was all I got.

    Been on demos where the police have turned on us. Funny how the police always seemed to attack the left wing elements of demos and protect the nf/bm. I wouldn’t count those as riots though.

    yunki
    Free Member

    no riots for me.. only a few violent scuffles..

    I was friendly with an anarchist guy for a while who had attended the poll tax riots among others.. during the riot he sat on a high concrete pillar at the end of downing street overlooking the crowd and shot off 11 rolls of film..

    he described it as unreal in much the same way that northwind does.. I was young and impressionable at the time and started spouting off about my revolutionary ideologies..

    he gave me a quizzical look.. and then asked who I thought was going to be in charge when the revolution was over.. I think I grew up a little bit that day..

    MrGFisher
    Free Member

    Lateo, you were with 3 Mercian (Staffords)?

    thegreatape
    Free Member

    I do now ernie. Lesson learnt.

    ferrit32
    Free Member

    Not been invovled in any riots but plenty of police raids at warehouse parites in the late 80s/early 90s. I mainly remember lines of riot coppers with the full length shields marching towards us banging their sticks on their shields and shouting runaway at us ( I did). These guys were battle hardened from the miners stikes and other early mid 80s riots, not sure if coppers nowadays have that.

    BigDummy
    Free Member

    This has been instructive gentlemen, thanks for sharing.

    lateo
    Free Member

    @MrGFisher:

    Nah mate, 5RA with 20 Armoured.

    It was all about ram-raiding the local Police Station looking for naughty boys who should have known better 😉

    IIRC we had Staffs, Dukes and Light Inf …in Baz and Al-Amara

    …………..

    @Tang:

    The brigade were trying to rescue some people and the local populous kicked off… mostly agitated by some subversive groups from Iran (and dick-heads wanting a ruck).

    The photos show some of our tankies getting mobbed and eventually set on fire.

    It was all a bit dream-like to be honest… I mostly remember the heat and smell of people up-close. Easily more scary than gun battles imho… machetes are vicious things!

    MrGFisher
    Free Member

    Lateo, i was Staffords. I actually know the guy in the photo leaping from the warrior. Small world.

    mmb
    Free Member

    1981 handsworth riots birmingham, i was 11 and somehow managed to find myself in the thick of it! wasn’t sure what to do but instinct took over and i picked up a piece of wood tried to look as hard as i could and made my way out of there as quick as my then tiny little legs could move.

    Xylene
    Free Member

    I was in a few in Korea.

    Really well organised, regimented on both sides, bit strange but overall good fun.

    Nothing like sitting drinking a coffee, eyes burning from teargas as the orderly lines of protesters charge the police, then the police charge them etc.

    lateo
    Free Member

    @MrGFisher

    Small world mate. Some of my Squadron actually grabbed your mate and took him back to the Palace. Quite deep burns iirc and the Warrior was stacked. We saw trophies from it for weeks!

    Not quite sure what happened but their bergans and netting caught fire before the choggies got some of the tracks off. Became a bit of a mess for all. You weren’t anywhere near the post office where you?

    My patrol got rescued by Staffs later that day once our OP got compromised on the post office roof. Never been more thankful to see a dozen Warriors in my whole life!

Viewing 39 posts - 1 through 39 (of 39 total)

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