Jason Statham’s body double? Series 1 Episode 4 | Fancy a Brew?
By: Ministry Of Defence
Tags: Cyprus, Military, Peacekeeping, United Nations, Podcast

Take a look at some highlights from the episode:👇

What is it like being an Army Reservist?

Private Giles: “I think the opportunities that the Army Reserves offers you are incredible, I have been skiing, I’ve got to do some incredible courses, and some other crazy things as well.

Sergeant Wood: “What the Reserves does give you is awesome, an amazing opportunity. All over the world I have been doing amazing experiences, like skiing in Norway. I have also been to Belize, Kenya, all over the world doing different exercises, gaining different experiences.

“It is a fantastic way of life, and I wouldn’t do anything else now.” — Private Giles Maythan

What is it like inside the Buffer Zone?

Private Giles: “I’ve got to say, patrolling the Buffer Zone is really cool, I really like it. The Buffer Zone itself is a very strange and fascinating place. There’s lots to look at in there and I remember being quite young and seeing the UN on TV and I remember seeing the trucks and I’ve got a very clear memory of it. So to be here now is quite special for me.

Captain Roberts: “There definitely are these peculiar little occurrences. I think one of the weird surreal moments for me was when I went to the very far West, and came across a village.

“It’s a Greek Cypriot village that is well and truly square in the Buffer Zone. We spend a lot of our time trying to maintain security and prevent illegal movement and trafficking across the Buffer Zone, and here is this fully functioning village with hundreds if not thousands of individuals, and they’re just living in the middle of what is sometimes referred to as the dead zone or what we call the Buffer Zone. It’s quite surreal.

The Buffer Zone, which is also called ‘the Green Line’, extends approximately 180km across the island.

Were you really Jason Statham’s body double?

Private Giles: “I don’t like to talk about it much, but I was once Jason Statham’s body double, many years ago now, just the body double, obviously standing in for films.

“I’ve done bits and bobs in the past but I think that was one of the reasons why I joined the Army because I spent a lot of time playing soldiers in various bits and bobs and it just got to the point where I was like, actually I think I want to do this for real as opposed to just playing it.

What is the food situation like?

Private Giles: “What’s really interesting is that Cypriot food is incredible, even little things like the takeaways, it just feels like they really take pride in their food.

Captain Roberts: “There’s been some very good days, and hopefully if the weather keeps improving, we can get some socially distanced barbecues going. I wouldn’t mind if we could get out once or twice more to experience a few more places. There is fantastic restaurants on both sides of the border.

Private Giles: “I had chicken wings from a big pizza store, and they were the best chicken wings I’ve ever tasted, I couldn’t believe it! I was incredibly happy with them. In the UK, chicken wings are like dry little bits of cardboard but here they’re how chicken wings should be.