Reply to post: I visited Dounreay in 1979 and nearly got a job there

I visited Dounreay in 1979 and nearly got a job there

I visited Dounreay whilst touring Scotland in 1979. Young and recently graduated, and still recovering from a serious road accident, I'd just had to abandon my PhD due to funding problems, so I was looking around for my first proper job, Driving past, I stopped to take a look and was invited on a tour of the facility. Apparently there was an organised tour about to start and I'd just turned up at the right time.

For me, the most memorable moment was when the lady running the tour stopped us at a particular spot and invited us to look down."You are now standing on top of the main reactor. Beneath your feet there is 3.9 tons of plutonium.". She then explained that, at that moment, the reactor was only idling at a few megawatts while some maintenance work was being done.

A few months later, I was offered the chance of a job there. I turned it down, largely because I didn't was to live on the North coast of Scotland. I sometimes wonder how different my life would have been if I had taken up that offer.