Playing in bands over the years has meant that both Kath and myself have frequently come across several members of the old band at various contests.

Graeme and Margaret at a Milton Keynes contest in the early 90s. Graeme, Margaret again and Paul Vickers in the changing rooms at Dundee for the National finals in 2002. Both our Band and Horden were allocated the same changing room. Also met up with Wilf Beddell who did several jobs with the youth band when it was AMOCO.

Graham Vickers in the bar at Watford Town Hall when he was playing with John Laing Hendon,...as 1st Assistant Principal Tenor horn he kept telling me! Steven Grant in various places, Harrogate National Finals in '99 amongst others. Pauline Nicholl, as was, at an Oxford contest, she was playing for Wantage, myself for Brackley.

One of the most strange was in 2002, I was doing a recording, for Reader's Digest oddly enough, with Redbridge. Two whole days of playing marches!!
The sound engineer/producer was very good at relaxing the band and getting things done with a curious turn of phrase ("deep joy" was a particular catch phrase of his) and a faintly detectable northern accent.
Nothing surprising there, there are lots of Northerners in music in the South East.
First clue, he was called John.
At a mid morning break, Melvin (the MD) was asking him about his origins.
He used to be a miner from Durham he said, my ears pricked up. He was fairly short, no hair, but recogniseable?
I looked at him hard and a thought occurred to me.
"Did you play in Blackhall Youth Band" I said, "yes", "who are you?" was the reply.
So I went for it..."you're John Thirkell, aren't you" ..........."I'm Stuart Cockerill".
Expletives, handshaking and laughing from everybody listening followed.
I've seen John since, went up and listened to him play with Lisa Stansfield at the Cambridge Corn Exchange. Took my daughter Georgie along, a budding cornet, trumpet player. John thought she looked like her mother!
John gave a cracking performance that night, a lesson in trumpet playing.
How we remember the old times!