In June 1973 myself and two pals decided we would have a four centre holiday in Russia. So we flew to Leningrad, or St Petersburg as it is now, and had a lovely time looking around there. Then flew on to Moscow where we went to the Space Exhibition and saw the Moon Rover and very interesting satellites and things. We spent a few days there and went to the ballet. On the last morning we set off from the hotel at seven o’clock in the morning to go to the airport. We were sat on the back seat of this coach. There were 29 people on this tour. We didn’t know any of them but we got to know everybody. It was a really diverse group of people from all over the world. Including an old lady from Canada who had lost her husband and who was, I think, 75 and she was travelling on her own. So she did very well.

Well anyway, we were on this coach on the way to the airport and it stopped. And the driver indicated that we’d got a puncture. So we’d stopped by a park entrance and it was a beautiful sunny morning so I got off and had a little wander in the park. Came back only about 5 minutes or so later and found that the bus had gone!

(Apparently the driver had suddenly said can everyone stand up and stand to one side of the bus away from the burst tyre. And they limped on like that! And because everyone was stood up and my pals were at the back of the bus they couldn’t see that I wasn’t on. When they did realise, one chap, from Sunderland, who thought he was the reincarnation of Tsar Nicholas, he did Ouija boards and everything, said he’d go back and look for me. He spoke really good Russian. He got a taxi back to the park but by then I’d headed off.)

So I thought ‘What on earth am I going to do?!’ So I waited around and thought well they’ll come back. They’ll realise I’m not on the bus and they’ll come back. But they didn’t!

So after about half an hour I thought well I’ve got to do something about this. So I started asking people if they spoke English. Nobody did. And I thought well surely someone will be watching me. It was the height of the Cold War after all at that time. But no. Nobody seemed to realise.

I found somebody who indicated for me to go to some kind of office across the street and somebody would be arriving there who could speak English. So I went and waited outside this office. But nobody had turned up by about ten to nine and I thought well, you know, this is crazy. I’d been here since, well, setting off at seven o’clock.

So anyway I saw a young man walking along the street and I asked him and he spoke really good English. So he said catch the bus with me and I’ll tell you where to get off to change to another bus. So I did. Fortunately I had a few roubles with me. But I didn’t have my passport. I didn’t have anything really. Because the courier kept everything. So anyway I went on this bus and as I was getting off a taxi was just discharging its passengers so I thought right I’ll ask this taxi driver to take me to the airport. So he did. Or I thought he was but then I realised we were going back into the centre of Moscow. (Turns out there are two airports and he was taking me to the wrong one). We were actually passing the hotel where I’d left earlier this morning so I asked him to drop me there and went in and explained at reception what had happened and she said oh yes! The courier, the young lady Ludmilla who was looking after us, had been ringing up and they’d found out that I was missing. So they managed to get hold of her and put her on the phone. She’d been in tears because it was the very first time she’d been on her own taking a party round. So she felt terrible.

So anyway, she explained to me to get a taxi out to the airport and she’d have my passport waiting for me. And that when I got there, I’d have to catch a later flight, but to get some breakfast and they’d pay for it. So I got to the airport and went to see the Intourist office who looked after everything. And they said yes, listen out for the next flight which is going to Sochi, which is on the Black Sea coast. So I was hanging around a bit and, because it was all in Russian, I hadn’t picked out Sochi and I thought time’s going on here. I’d better enquire. So I went back to the Intourist office and they said oh yeah that flight’s been called!

So they got one of these big, elongated airport buses, just for me, and headed out to the plane. And there were all these people queuing to get on the aircraft but they took me right to head of the queue. So I was the first on the plane and they said sit anywhere you like. So I did. And then this young woman and a child came and sat next to me and I said does he want to look out of the window? And it turned out she spoke really good English so the hour’s flight was passed really nicely.

It turned out that her husband worked for Moscvich, the car manufacturer, and they all had an annual holiday, all the wives and children, and we passed a very entertaining hour. Anyway, when we landed in Sochi, everybody else went that way and I went the other way. And they told me to wait and that they’d get my baggage and take me to the hotel, which they did.

They got me a taxi. And where we were staying was up this long windy hill. And the taxi was going mad up this hill. Mad taxi driver. Anyway I got to the top and of course I had no money so I had to go in to the hotel and explain to them and they settled up with the taxi driver. Told me to go into this room to get washed and brushed up and then I came down in the lift. And I came out onto this big balcony overlooking this big banqueting hall. And there were all these long tables set out. I could see our party in the middle. And there was a big winding staircase down into the banqueting area and I started coming down there and someone spotted me and waved so I did this kind of Alan Clarke type salute and the whole place erupted! I don’t know who they thought I was but they all applauded. They must have thought I was some dignitary or something.

Well I got down to our table and this old lady, who I mentioned earlier, well apparently she’d just said I wonder what’s happened to Brian. I hope he’s all right. And I’d suddenly appeared at that moment. Fantastic really. So, yeah. I survived!