Hi there to all old Bougainville hands! I worked as an electrician on the shovels from Aug'73 to Oct'74. It's fantastic to come across this site as it brings back a lot of memories. I arrived at Panguna from Scotland after working in the copper mines in Zambia and worked on the shovels with 'Liquid' Les Stobbart and Mick White, I had some drinking sessions there with me mates (I will add pics later). Here are some of the peeps I can remember-- Kevin Ryan, Tommy Johnson, Morrie Dealy, Laurie Fahey, Peter Budda, 'John the Pom' Bartlett, two donga mates Dennis O'Flaherty and Tony Eglin (moanin git he was), Ian McNeil (we worked in Zambia and South Africa together), Trevor Whitten, Billy Tain and loads of others whose names have been eroded by time. If I shut my eyes, I am back there in an instant. Oh, and before I go, one more I just remembered, a guy called 'Nifty' who was a hell of a gambler and another wee sparky called 'Mopsy'. If anybody out there remembers me, you can contact me at mrjim@blueyonder.co.uk. I am on top of the world having found this site. Hope I hear from somebody. Barry
