A witty collection that celebrates the strength to find humor even in the most challenging circumstances—with proceeds benefiting veterans. Britain’s armed forces have a legendary sense of humor, dating back over generations of servicemen and women. The Laughing Soldier, aiding the veterans’ charity Project 65, is a collection of jokes, along with messages of support for the troops, sent in by people all over the world. Contributors include serving personnel, veterans and their families, the general public, celebrities such as Alan Titchmarsh, comedian Milton Jones, and public officials including George Osborne, all inspired by the Armed Forces’ strength and capacity for finding humor in the toughest of situations. With forewords by satirist Al Murray, a.k.a. the Pub Landlord, and ex-marine Mark Ormrod, the Afghanistan hero who lost three limbs to a landmine and bestselling author of Man Down, and illustrated with cartoons by The Comic Stripper, The Laughing Soldier’s collection of jokes will lift the spirits of servicemembers and their families—and those who care about them. A donation is made to Project 65 from the sale of every book.

Bien Hoa airbase, outside Saigon, wasn't a very funny place, but Barney's job had one advantage: he always played to a packed house. The soldiers flocked to his shows, and the war-zone comedian coaxed his battle-weary audiences first into chuckles and then into guffaws of healing laughter with material drawn from the lunacy around them: the little old VC with the single-shot rifle taking potshots at the jets, the international "peace-keeping" mission, the Vietnamese "car wash" racket, the numbering routine of army life, the officers One officer in particular: Colonel Isaacs, the blood-and-guts commander of the base, a driven man whose soldiers pay the price of his obsessions. Barney often ridiculed his authority from in front of the footlights, and after hours he wooed the colonel's woman, Donna, a beautiful singer with a secret. So far, he had gone unpunished But the colonel had included Barney in his plan for a jungle showdown with the enemy, a battle that would turn an abandoned firebase into a bloody killing ground and the scene of Barney's greatest performance. LAUGHING WAR does for Vietnam what Catch-22 did for World War II, laying bare the absurdity of war with a taut, fast-moving, darkly humorous tale of romance and suspense in a combat zone.

Representative samples of jokes, stories, and tall tales told by both sides to keep spirits up under the horrifying conditions of war. Demonstrates similarity between men from North and South.

"An army may march on its stomach but it leans on its funny bone." So says Brigadier Charles Ritchie, and he should know. Postings to the Yemen, Northern Ireland, Bosnia, and other far-away trouble spots gave him many opportunities to demonstrate that the ability to laugh - and make others laugh - is an invaluable skill in an officer's kitbag.In Laughter is the Best Weapon - the Remarkable Adventures of an Unconventional Soldier, Charles abandons the popular trend for military heroism and angst-ridden confessions. Instead he leads the reader on a forthright yet light-hearted and self-deprecating journey through his 38 years' service as a Royal Scot. In the process we witness his sometimes significant, but often comedic, participation in a wide range of recent British military operations.If you prefer your military history more entertainingly honest than earnestly intellectual and your soldiers hilariously slapstick rather than heroically stoic, then this is the book for you. Liberally sprinkled with career-limiting cock-ups, bizarre near-death experiences, and the clatter not of gunfire but shameless name-dropping, these delightfully varied anecdotes deliver a hugely entertaining glimpse into the extraordinary life of one of the British Army's most spirited and loveable characters.