21°C

Today is 21°C. Yesterday was 21°C. Tomorrow will be the same. The island has one of the most boring climates in the world. Georgetown is the administrative centre, too small to be a capital. Besides it's actually part of the British Overseas Territory of St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha and it's the biggest part of the overseas territory that has the capital, St. Helena, 800 miles southeast. Since it is part of a British Overseas Territory, there is of course an airstrip. A useful thing if ever a country is at war with another somewhat inconveniently placed on the other side of the world. Naturally, this useful strategic asset, called Wideawake Airfield, is a 'Joint US-British Facility.' That doesn't upset me too much, I can get a Long Island Iced Tea in the bar since I have made acquaintance of one of the civilian contractors. One of the antennae for the GPS system is on Ascension Island. There are five in total, dotted around the world. One of the others is on Diego Garcia. 'Nuff said? The only other thing of note on the island is
the BBC World Service Atlantic Relay Station and that's where I work. Or at least that's what I tell people.

I used to live in Gloucestershire and you might be able to guess where I worked. Anyway, the island's a peaceful place. So peaceful that I drive on the wrong side of the road everywhere I go on it. Since there is only Georgetown, Wideawake, The BBC and, get this, Two Boats Village to drive to, it doesn't raise the excitement level much. Still, you do what you can. I've been here over ten years, ever since I lost the Balkan desk and got transferred here. There isn't much to stop the HF radio wave in the middle of the South Atlantic. The whole of West Africa is there to listen to if you want to – or if that's your job.

Anyway, shortly after I got transferred, boy soldiers began cutting limbs off other boy soldiers, young girls - and pretty much anybody they cared to - in Sierra Leone. It got exciting for a few months, while people panicked about the flow of diamonds out of the country, whether it would stop, I mean. A guy came over from Gloucestershire even; an aeroplane stayed for over a month, flying every day from Wideawake, and coming back the same evening. About 70 RAF personnel drank themselves silly or got themselves an unseasonal tan on the Government's shilling, depending on whether they flew in the plane, or just fixed it. Some FCO drone arrived half-way through; dinner at the Governor's, the RAF Officer commanding was like some mediaeval toady. Guess who was the jester.

Suddenly, when it became clear it was only a case of a little bloodshed and lost limbs and that the diamonds would still arrive in richer countries, everyone left. And it was 21°C the next day.