Birdie - More Than 'Soul of Anzac'

Richard Farrimond firstly served with the Royal Signals in Germany, England, Northern Ireland and Canada. Between commanding an independent signal squadron in Londonderry and a regiment in Germany, he trained as a back-up NASA Payload Specialist to launch a Skynet 4 military communications satellite from the Space Shuttle - cancelled following the 1986 Challenger disaster. This led him, in 1990, to the British space industry, and defence and security programmes together with much time in Australia. Following final retirement, he undertook a Master's degree in World History and Cultures at King's College London and completed his PhD at King's in December 2021.