Another survivor of that dreadful 1st July 1916, but in less traumatic circumstances was Cyril Mackworth-Praed, the father of my late friend Philip Mackworth-Praed of the British Sporting Rifle Club.
Due to go over the top that day, Cyril was laid up when an Army dentist managed to break off a hypodermic needle in the angle of his jaw, almost certainly saving his life.
When his Scots Guards Battalion re-mustered at the end of the day, Cyril was the sole Subaltern remaining on the strength.
Distinguishing himself as a Sniper, he went on to win Olympic Gold in the Running Deer Doubles in 1924, and was the main author of a standard work on the Birds of Africa.
Seeking to sign on for the Second World War he was initially rejected as being too old, but was hastily called back when an Officer who had overheard the conversation and knew his history asked if they knew who they had just turned down?
He later taught sniping at the Commando Training School in Scotland.
