Date: 20/11/99 11:30 am

Hi Bill,

Having a wonderful time out here in Thailand. We are waiting to fly from Bangkok to Phuket, 5 days in Bangkok was one day too many. The traffic is horrendous, and the pollution is the worst we have ever come across, it makes London look like a sleepy village. !!! In Bangkok we used the Tuk-Tuk's to get around these are 3 wheeled vehicles that charge around the street's at a terrifying speed, very exciting but knocks year's off your life. Getting stuck in traffic is equivalent to smoking 40 fag's a day so you can imagine how Mary was enjoying herself !!!

On Wednesday we went to see Mounsey in Bangkwang, the trip took almost the full day and in the end we only had about 25 minutes with him, still it was worth all the hardship. We left the hotel in Bangkok by Tuk-Tuk to the river, it was like a scene out of James Bond's "The man with the Golden Gun" only we didn't have any extras playing our parts, we caught the express river boat which took 1 hour 15 minutes to get to Bangkwang, a very pleasant journey along a very wide river with a different view of the city. Lots of greenery floating along in the water it reminded us of Monet's painting of the Lily ponds.

We got talking to a Dane, named Lars, well he would be wouldn't he !!. He was touring the country with his Swiss wife and two children 5 or 6 years of age. 2 months on the road and they were enjoying themselves, an indication to how safe it is to travel in this country.

As the end of the journey approached we saw the Clock Tower on the horizon. I knew from Sheila's description that we were approaching Nonthaburi. All the tourist remained on board only we got off with the Thais.

We walked towards the clock and asked a local where the prison was, it didn't take us long to find it, we were very surprised to find it in the middle of a small town. We stuck out like sore thumbs in the crowds of Thai's. We viewed the notorious anati-palace with apprehension. The walls of the exterior are coloured bluey grey, not very tall maybe 8 - 10 ft. with barbed wire to give an extra 2 ft height.

As we entered the building one of the guards who seemed to be in charge pointed towards my knees and began prattling away in Thai, he seemed very agitated, which didn't help Mary or me, the way we were feeling. It appeared that naked knees are not allowed on male visitor's. Mary obviously acceptable in her short cropped skirt, showing miles of thigh. The guard took us to another room, where an official in a white suit gave us some papers to fill in, then told us to go outside the prison across the road to another 'office' to where a female official gave us more forms to fill in and checked our passport's. Then in Thai which even we could understand we were told to go back to town to buy some long trousers for me to wear. By this time we were both running at break neck speed through the streets trying to find a shop that would sell trousers to fit me.

In England I appear to be a standard size but it Thailand the standard size for a man appears to be a 20 inch waist!!! We literally ran from shop to shop, Mary kept shouting "Big, Big, size" and I ran in her wake feeling worse than useless. Then when we thought no more shops where available, Mary saw our last hope, a small shop with just one pair of baggy trousers that we thought might just do. No time for bargaining the shopkeeper knew he was on to a winner. That old pair of trousers he had bought for a laugh had just turned into a goldmine. Back we ran to the prison sweat soaking our clothes looking like two drowned rats. The guards smiled at our predicament, at least we managed to cheer up there dull and dreary day. I felt like Coco the clown, but still we had made it, I had my entry visa, a baggy pair of ill fitting trousers!!! By now we were both so wet we felt like we had been in the monsoon. So far so good, no worse than when I went to see Barry at Risley.

We entered the gate to find a very long rectangular narrow courtyard with white washed walls. In the centre of each side wall was a full length window, with no glass only bars, which on closer examination were reinforced with closely netted chicken wire. The guard told us to keep to the left, nothing else, just keep to the left. We started to walk slowly looking at the line of degraded faces, looking for some sign of a face we recognised, remember that it is 10 years since we last spied Brian's smiling cheeky face and I had no idea what to expect.

You remember that Christmas in Wigton when we met many old friends and failed to recognise any, only voices. Time alters the best of men, even those who keep in good health.

Anyway back to the search, on closer examination, the scene was far worst than previously described. Between the seated visitors behind the facing bars was a large gap of about 5ft, then another set of bars and netting. We knew then it was going to be a difficult visit. As we walked, or to be more precise crawled through the serried ranks we viewed the world through blurred eyeballs. All we could hear was a rising din like the kind you hear in a crowded pub when the shouting gets louder and louder. Eventually we reached the other end to no avail, still clutching the official paper, we had signed, we approached a waiting guard and waved the white paper. What do we do? Where do we go? But all to no avail, it was as if we were invisible as the guards ignored us. Eventually one man took notice took hold of the crumpled paper and after striking it with an official stamp, he signalled for us to take a seat at a long bench facing the bars. After we had waited a further five minutes, a visiting Englishman asked who we were waiting for, time was running out, Brian Mounsey we told him, at which point his interned friend began to shout across the void. His name was John Wheeler, a 30 plus man originally from Southampton. He had served 5.5 years of a 55 year sentence. John shared a cell with Brian and obviously knew him well. At this point his visitor stood up and ran to check that the guards had processed the written instructions. I sought the conditions of Brian's health and felt relieved at the answer, although Sheila had informed me that he was fine, I still felt a great deal of intrepidation. Eight years is a very long time to spend in any hell hole. I stood with my cheek pressed through the bars and tried to hold a conversation with John. Then out of the corner of my eye I heard the opening of a door, and heard the sound of clinking chains, as a man from Nigeria shuffled by. He stopped close by and a female visitor burst into tears unable to control her emotion's every minute turned into an hour as we waited for Brian to show. The door reopened and the clinking sound reappeared as a second man shuffled by. Then Brian appeared, wearing a Workington Reds football shirt and matching shorts, he caught me unaware, he walked straight with no chains. He was obviously shocked to see me, and took several seconds to regain his composure. He had aged but not 10 years, as he grinned through the netted bars. "What's thu dooing here?" he exclaimed, "Are you on business"? I replied "We are on holiday", within seconds it felt like we had never been apart, as we quickly slipped into our normal "Cumbrian" way of communication. I had expected to find signs of wretchedness and Mary heard my sigh's of relieve. He looks almost the same, a little browner, a little fatter, with the same round smiling face, clean shaven, and with short black hair. We talked and talked about all kinds of things but mainly about his impending appeal for a Kings pardon. He seems very hopeful and was full of praise for a letter of support received from Dale Campbell Savors. (Our local M.E.P.) He feels this letter will do the trick and asked me to write a thank-you note which I shall on my return. I will go into more detail later. Then we heard the alarm of a bell, signalling the end of the Thai's visit. We talked faster and louder, incessantly. Then a guard walked behind Brian towards the far end of the building whielding a huge truncheon and one could sense the intimidation. Shortly after came another alarm and Brian jumped to his feet, continuously talking and signalling as if to draw the last breath from his panting chest, and within seconds we were shouting our goodbyes, as he disappeared into another void, another world, another hell hole which I hope I never see. So there we were, Mary and I looking at each other with tear soaked eyes, there was so much that went unsaid it seemed so very unfair. Had we not told them how far we had travelled, no one seemed to care, I had received 25 pounds from Sams on the day of our departure, we doubled the sum and bought Brian 2000 cig's. Brian had informed us these were worth more to him than the money, which he may or may not receive. So as we had taken some chocolate and books we had to give these to the guards. Mary took the food to a counter where it was duly searched, prodded, ruffled and opened before it was accepted. I took the books to a separate place and after processing we left that miserably depressing place, hopefully never to return, as we came through the final screening a small sparrow flew by and squeezed through the grill into the outside free world. It was very moving and Mary burst into tears.

So there it is, we returned getting back to Bangkok by riverboat around 6 oclock a full day for a 25 minute visit. But even if it had only been 5 minutes it would have been worth more than the effort. I have so much admiration for Brian, to see a man totally dehumanised and degraded and yet still retain his dignity, his sense of humour and optimism, it is a rare quality and I feel proud to know such a man. I hope he is not disappointed by the amnesty in December, and when the results of his pardon comes through.

Tell Sheila that she can inform everyone, that Brian is in good health, good spirit, and has all his marbles and faculties completely intact. Tell them, Terry Carrick says so!!

Can you forward this on to, Malc and Sheila tell them I will give them a call on our return to England.

We now have 11 nights left on Phuket, white beaches, warm sea and cold beer, excellent food, a million miles away from the resort that Brian is in.

Talk to you on our return.