Army twins retire after 100 years

The brothers were 15 when they joined the Royal Armoured Corps

Identical twins from Aberdeenshire are retiring from the Army after notching up a century of service between them - in nearly identical careers.

Majors Jimmie and Ron James, 65, both joined the Army on the same day in 1959 and were promoted on the same day for almost every rank in their careers.

It culminated in the Buchan brothers serving as Regimental Sergeants Major and being commissioned as officers.

The pair are due to retire on Thursday, after serving 50 years each.

The brothers, from New Pitsligo, were 15 when they joined the Army at the same time, after seeing an advert.

"We saw an advert in a comic, asking if we'd like to learn a trade in the Army," Jimmie said.

"We're from a little village in the north east and we thought there's nothing here to do so we sent off the paperwork."