A Cold Night in June

By Rob Lofthouse

Young British Paratrooper Archie is embroiled in the freezing, brutal night assault on the Argentine strong point of Mount Longdon, 11th June 1982. It is during the bitter close quarter fighting, and the subsequent shellfire from Argentine artillery, that sees both sides take grievous losses in one of the last low-tech battles of the twentieth century, where the bayonet had not been used in such abundance since 1945.

Inspired by the author’s own experiences as a combat infantryman, this is a poignant, immediate portrayal of the individual British soldier’s fight, which often seems worlds away from the national fight for sovereignty.

Robert Lofthouse was born in Twickenham and joined his local county infantry regiment (1 PWRR) straight after finishing school at the age of sixteen. After serving for twenty years, having served in Poland, Germany, Kenya, Canada, Falkland Islands, Iraq, Northern Ireland and Kosovo, he retired in the rank of Sergeant. He now works as a defence consultant and lives in Eastbourne with his wife and three children.