Ms Hort told ITV News she would advise women against joining the Army, saying that if people were shown what it was really like, “they’d have no one”
A friend and former colleague of teenage soldier Jaysley Beck has described being a woman in the force as the same as being a “goldfish or a piece of meat in a tank of sharks”.
Royal Artillery Gunner Beck was found dead in her room at Larkhill Camp in Wiltshire on December 15, 2021.
In an interview with ITV News, Tamzin Hort – who has since left the Army – said it was a “man’s world” where women are the target of misogynistic and inappropriate behaviour.
She claims abuse is ongoing and called for the civilian police to have oversight over issues reported by service personnel, rather than the military police, in order to improve the complaints process and encourage people to come forward.
Ms Hort, who joined the Army when she was 17, told ITV News of the misogyny and inappropriate behaviour she and other women experienced, adding that this type of behaviour was happening in plain sight.
“They see girls either as you sleep with everyone or you’re a lesbian, or if you’re in between you’re a challenge – they’ll terrorise you until you can get somewhere.
“You’d get comments like, ‘oh you’re good looking’ and ‘come to my room, come to my room'”.
Ms Hort said when she said no, she would be called “disgusting” and a “slag”, comments which she said start “getting in your head”.
She added that “people just get sexually assaulted left, right and centre and nothing’s done about it” and claimed “the men are all misogynists” in the Army.
When asked if she thought this behaviour was happening in plain sight, Ms Hort said: “Yeah. I’ve been in situations where I’ve been downstairs with everyone while they’re all socialising and someone’s just happily just smacked my bum.”
Despite loving her job, Ms Hort said she left the Army because of “the people, the constant putting you down, the constant name calls, the constant unwanted attention”.
“If I’ve said no, it means no,” she continued.
“Outside in the civilian life if someone says no, they mean no – and that’s what it should mean in the army.
“I don’t think the military police do the job properly. I think the military need the civilian police to deal with things like that.”
Ms Hort says she would advise women against joining the Army, saying that if people were shown what it was really like, “they’d have no one”.
Despite not being aware of what Gunner Beck was going through, Ms Hort said if she had spoken out, “no one could have helped her” because reporting behaviour meant “she’d be known as a grass” or “an attention seeker.”
Ms Hort’s comments came as an inquest concluded that “on the balance of probabilities”, the Army’s handling of a sexual assault complaint made by Gunner Beck “played more than a minimal contributory part in her death”.
The inquest heard that in July 2021 she complained that she had been sexually assaulted by a senior colleague during a stay at Thorney Island.
Battery Sergeant Major Michael Webber, now of Warrant Officer 2 rank, was given a “minor sanction” for his actions.
The coroner said this incident “should have been reported to police and the failure to do so breached Army policy”.
The inquest also heard the 19-year-old had complained to her family about the “possessive and psychotic” behaviour of her boss, Ryan Mason, a bombardier at the time.
The hearing was told the senior soldier, who had mental health issues and had previously self-harmed, had sent Gunner Beck more than 1,000 messages in October 2021 and 3,600 in November, and had spoken of his love for her.
Gunner Beck’s mother said her daughter “did not feel safe” as Mr Mason’s behaviour intensified, and the teenager feared he had hacked her phone and was watching her.
Mr Mason denied this and the coroner found it “unlikely” that he was tracking her.
An Army service inquiry report published in October 2023 described this as “an intense period of unwelcome behaviour”, and said it was “almost certain this was a causal factor” in her death.
After Gunner Beck died, Ms Hort said “nothing changed” and that abuse was still happening.
“The way I got told that’d she had died was by the lads in the block, and they made comments like ‘she was well fit’, meaning she was physically attractive.”
Last week, a letter from the military’s Chief of Staff was sent to Army’s chain of command, which said it was “disgusted” by a number of allegations on social media of “appalling” and “shameful” behaviour still ongoing in the Army.
Handwritten at the bottom of the letter is: “I’m counting on you. I don’t want to write to you about this again.”
Ms Hort described the letter as a “load of rubbish” and said the Army was only speaking out now “because it’s in the media” and “there’s only so much we can brush under the carpet”.
She said: “If people thought that all this behaviour is unacceptable, why has nothing been done about it now until now?”
Ms Hort said this behaviour will not stop unless there is change the way issues are reported.
She said: “It’s never going to stop unless there’s an outside network of people to report things like this to so where they feel comfortable.”
“The more people that come forward and report it, that’s when it’s going to make a change.
“I will fight until I possibly have nothing left in me. And that takes a lot. To get justice for my friend, her family and to stop this from happening to any other girl.”
ITV News has contacted the Ministry of Defence for comment.
How to get help if you have been affected by the issues mentioned in this article:
- CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) – Helpline: 0800 58 58 58
- Salute Her UK is a charity focusing on the physical, emotional and social lives of women who have served in the Armed Forces and of women at sea – 07931 948 196
- MIND provides advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem. Information line: 0300 123 3393
- Samaritans is an organisation offering confidential support for people experiencing feelings of distress or despair. Phone 116 123 (a free 24 hour helpline).
- Shout is a 24/7 text service, free on all major mobile networks, for anyone struggling to cope and in need of immediate help. Text SHOUT to 85258
- National Rape and Sexual Abuse Helpline: 0808 802 9999
- Survivors UK: 0203 598 3898
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