A MAN who racked up an impressive 57 years of service is finally calling it a day.
Physical training instructor (PTI) Barry Atkins has bid farewell to the Army Headquarters community in Andover having been one of its longest-standing colleagues.
His impending retirement didn’t mean he took it easy on recruits however, as Barry made sure to sign off his final circuit training session, putting soldiers, some a quarter of his age, through their paces.
Barry, who lives in Perham Down puts his longevity of service down to two things – his love of the job and love for his mother, who saved him from an infant death.
He said: “I have stayed in because I have enjoyed the job so much.”
Barry said his drive and determination are down to his mother.
This is because as he was born with gastrointestinal complications shortly after the end of the Second World War in the pre-National Health Service era, Barry was sent home with his mother to die.
His mum nursed and fed him with watered-down cow’s milk and, somehow, he managed to survive.
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“I owed it to her to keep going because she gave me that chance,” he said.
It was back in 1964, the year The Beatles took the USA by storm and BBC 2 was launched, that an 18-year-old Barry signed up to join the Royal Signals as a radio relay operator.
At the end of the training session Barry’s wife was presented with a bouquet of flowers and Colonel John Dagless, Army HQ Picture: Crown Copyright 2025
Unable to pursue his chosen trade, he decided to go into the gym to train as a PTI where he stayed for a further five years.
Using his newfound skills, Barry then left the Army and worked for a few years in a women’s mental health hospital.
But it was not long before Barry was back in uniform and this time it was Royal Air Force blue.
Coming across an advert offering opportunities for physical training instructors, he successfully applied and spent the next 17 years as a Royal Air Force PTI.
During his time in the RAF, Barry transferred to adventurous training and, having led and been part of expeditions in Wales, Scotland, Austria, Switzerland, Norway and Italy’s Dolomites, he became an instructor at the RAF’s adventurous training centre of excellence at Llanrwst in north Wales.
Barry finally hung up his uniform in 1990, but that was not the end of his gym life.
He moved from the military to become a civilian PTI at RAF Halton in Buckinghamshire before his passion for physical fitness and his ability to inspire others led to his appointment in 2000 as gym manager at the Defence Logistics Organisation in Andover which later became the Army’s Headquarters.
In the recent King’s Birthday Honours List 2025, Barry received a Chief of the General Staff Commendation Picture: Crown Copyright 2025
Over the years, Barry has organised numerous functions, established regular fitness sessions, and developed innovative training programmes that have had a lasting impact on thousands of military and civilian staff.
He received a Commendation from the Chief of the General Staff of the British Army in the recent King’s Birthday Honours List earlier this year.
Barry’s final circuit training session was emotionally charged as many friends and colleagues from down the years came for one last press-up.
At the end of the session, colonel John Dagless, Army HQ, addressed Barry and his wife, Janet, while the class looked on.
Colonel Dagless said: “Barry, over the last decade, I have observed you to be the epitome of a servant leader. A leader who shares power, puts the needs of others first, and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.
“One of the things we often say so many times is, ‘I hope I’m half as active and as fit as Barry is at 79.’
“As we thank you for your decades of delivery, I would also like to thank Janet, for your support to Barry, and wish you all the very best as you start your next chapter together.”
Barry was presented with a framed Army Headquarters flag, while his wife, Janet, received a huge bouquet of flowers.
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