Mike Jackson - Early Life

Early Life

Jackson's father, George, served as a soldier in the Household Cavalry before being commissioned into the Royal Army Service Corps. On D-Day, George Jackson assumed command of a squadron of amphibious landing vehicles after his commanding officer was killed in action, and he was later awarded the Belgian Croix de Guerre and mentioned in despatches for his actions. Mike was born at his mother's home in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, in 1944. After the Second World War, George Jackson was eventually posted to Tripoli, Libya, where the family lived for two years, during which time Jackson's younger sister was born. After suffering a heart attack, George Jackson retired with the rank of major after 40 years in the Army. Jackson's mother, Ivy (née Bower),, was a curator at a museum in Sheffield.

Jackson was educated at various primary schools as the family moved with his father's postings before being sent to Stamford School, an independent boarding school in south Lincolnshire, where he became a house prefect. He joined the school's Combined Cadet Force along with John Drewienkiewicz, who eventually became a major general. By the age of 15 Jackson had decided that he wanted to be a soldier.