John Senior

John Senior
John Senior attending The Buckingham Palace Garden Party June 2011
Birth name	John Wilson Senior
Born	Scarborough, United Kingdom
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Territorial Army
Rank	Major
Unit	2 Bn Yorkshire Volunteers, 4/5 Green Howards, 16 UK Air Assault Brigade(HQ)
Battles/wars	Operation Fingali
Awards	Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) and Territorial Decoration (TD)

Major (Ret) John Wilson Senior, MBE, TD, mobilised on 27 December 2001, Senior was the first member of the British Territorial Army to be deployed on operational service to Afghanistan (post 11 September 2001). He is also the founder of Heroes Welcome UK, a national scheme to encourage local communities to show their open support to British and other UK-based military personnel.

Senior was born in 1960 in Scarborough, North Yorkshire and educated at Bilton Grange, Millfield and Menlo College, San Francisco.

In 1963 the Senior family survived the Lakonia disaster, on the evening of 22 December, the Greek cruise liner TSMS Lakonia (formerly the Johan Van Oldenbarnevelt) caught fire and was abandoned in mid Atlantic (later sinking under tow to Gibraltar), of the 1022 souls on board, 95 passengers and 33 crew members lost their lives, many due to the swamping of the ships life boats. At the subsequent Board of Inquiry the Lakonia's seaworthiness and the behaviour of the Captain and crew were severely criticised, leading to criminal charges being brought. As a result of the disaster a thorough review of maritime safety law was undertaken leading to significant changes in the rules allowing ships to sail from port, if deemed unfit for sea.

During his early school career Senior was better known for challenging authority rather than academic achievement, a rugby player and horseman, Senior was more often found on the polo, hunting and sports fields rather than in the classroom. In June 1977 the Daily Mail reported on the scandal of a streaking incident at Millfield School, Somerset. Senior and a group of friends had been intercepted by elements of the local constabulary whilst streaking back to their boarding house after a late night visit to a local pub. Senior was caught and arrested holding down a barbed wire fence whilst in a state of undress, his compatriots successfully escaped but were later identified when they reported to the Matron's office requiring first aid to lacerations of their abdomen and upper thigh areas. The incident led to Senior and one other pupil being expelled.