It is the mid 1980s and this soldier is taking part in an NBC exercise as part of the British Army’s training to prepare for a possible Soviet nuclear attack. For this exercise he has donned the olive green Mk III NBC suit, with overboots and rubber gloves. He wears the standard S6 respirator and its haversack is worn around the waist so it hangs in front of him (please note that my reconstruction is actually incorrect and rather than being worn on a 58 pattern belt, it would have actually been supported by its shoulder strap, worn around the waist). In his hand he carries the venerable Radiac Survey Meter No2, a handheld radiation detector that had been in use since the 1950s:

For the kit layout, I have elected to only show the NBC suit, rather than also including his standard uniform and boots which are worn beneath:

1. Mk III Olive Green NBC smock
2. S6 Respirator
3. Mk III Olive Green NBC trousers
4. Rubber NBC Gloves
5. NBC Overboots
6. Respirator haversack
7. Radiac Survey Meter

This is a fairly cheap and easy impression to put together. The S6 mask has gotten harder to find over the last few years, but is still available although prices have risen. The survey meter is also a little trickier to find, but they are still out there. All the other elements of the uniform can be got for under a tenner each and although not pleasant to wear for very long, they come together to make an intriguing impression that still has the power to make one uneasy of the prospect of Cold War mass destruction, even now.