'A woman will be a Royal Marine, it's just when'

Six years after the Royal Marines opened its elite ranks to women, it is still searching for its first female. New figures show that more than 900 women have applied but none have reached the finish line.

Now two women who have experienced gruelling training with the Royal Marines say it is only a matter of time before a woman completes the ultimate military test.

"It was knackering and exhausting. It was such an intense period with a lot of physical training and very little sleep. I don't think anyone can prepare for the sleep deprivation other than just turning up and surviving."

Pippa Birch, from Henley, Oxfordshire, was 25 when she first attempted the Royal Marines course in Lympstone, Devon - one of the world's toughest basic military training programmes.

But 10 weeks in she broke her leg. Not willing to give up, she returned a year later but had to bow out after 24 weeks.

"I had put so many years into it and I felt like I was proving a lot of people right by leaving, but it felt like the right thing to do," she said.

The Royal Marines is an elite unit, renowned for its ability to operate in extreme environments - going "where others can't or won't".

To become a Royal Marine Ms Birch would have had to go through 32 weeks of training and complete four commando tests.

This includes a nine-mile speed march, an aerial assault course, a time limited cross country obstacle run and a 30-mile march over Dartmoor - all while carrying 21lb (9.5kg) plus a rifle for the tests.

The BBC understands there is at least one woman currently in training.

"It is just a matter of time before a woman wants to join who can pass," Ms Birch said.

While no woman has done this yet, seven women have succeeded at the shorter 13-week All Arms Commando Course – available to serving members of the British military - including Royal Navy officer Lt Lily-Mae Fisher.

She is now considered one of the toughest women in the UK armed forces and said: "It was so much harder than I expected it to be because there's so many more factors to it, sleep deprivation, self-induced pressure, doubt."

In June 2022, Lt Fisher, who is based in Yeovil, Somerset, proudly put on her green beret, which is worn exclusively by those who pass the commando course, sealing her position as the only current serving female Royal Navy Commando.

"It was the best day of my career, if not my life... it's something I am extremely proud of," she said.

Lt Fisher echoed Ms Birch when she said "it is not an impossible task" for a woman to pass the Royal Marines training.

"It will just take the right woman with the right mindset. I don't think it matters about size or shape... it is if you've got the right mental resilience, perseverance, determination, stubbornness," she said.

Royal Marines training was historically only open to men, but in 2016 a ban on women serving in close combat units in the British military was lifted.

Two years later, the final hurdle was removed, opening all combat roles to women, including the Royal Marines.

At the time it was made clear, that this was about equal opportunities. Large numbers of women were not expected to apply.

Figures obtained by the BBC show that since 2019, 38,229 applications to start Royal Marines training were submitted by men, compared with 924 from women.

In the same time period, 4,630 men and just seven women actually started the 32-week training course.

A spokesperson for the Royal Marines said preparing women for its arduous course was a "priority", but no concessions would be made - and the standards, timings and weight-carrying expectations would not be changed for a woman.

"The criteria have to be the same for everyone because the frontline doesn't discriminate," said former Royal Marine David Coleman, who now trains people who are interested in joining.

Lt Fisher and Ms Birch agreed they do not want to see any concessions made for women.

"Standards 100% have to stay the same across the board," Lt Fisher said.

Figures seen by the BBC suggest that in recent years roughly 40% of men who started the training did not complete it.

As such, Mr Coleman believes it is just "a numbers game" and as more women sign up, they will succeed.

"There are a lot more men going for training than women. So, until the numbers rise, I think the pass rate will stay low," he said.

"Once the first woman does it and everyone realises they could do it too... the flood gates will open."

Ms Birch, a club-level rower who now works in security, was the first woman to arrive at the training centre in Lympstone in January 2019.

"It sounded amazing," she said.

"I told my mum I was joining the marines and shaving my hair off.

"I thought there was going to be floods of women wanting to join... and I was the only one. I thought this is a bit more intense than I expected."

She said the experience felt "isolating" at times, but the Royal Marines did "everything they could" to alleviate that, including providing her with a female mentor.

She also struggled to deal with the media attention that came with being the first woman to go through the training.

"I had a load of articles written about me, so my face was plastered in these papers getting spread round," she said.

"It was like living in a goldfish bowl."

Ms Birch said the men in her unit "didn't care" that she was a woman – but that "there's very few women that want that job".

For others with their eyes set on working alongside the Royal Marines, members of the Army, Royal Navy or RAF can choose to do the 13-week All Arms Commando Course (AACC).

Those who are successful earn the green beret and the right to wear "commando" insignia but they remain in their respective service – this was the route chosen by Lt Fisher.

She is one of seven women to have successfully completed the AACC, with 17 having attempted it.

To earn her green beret, Lt Fisher needed to complete the AACC training with the Royal Marines, finishing with the four Commando Tests.

"For me it was more mentally demanding than physically because of the pressure I put on myself," Lt Fisher said.

"My mum had a phone call from me every night usually because I was so worried about the next day.

"She just reassured me that what I was doing was so much more than just another military course and that I was paving the way for other girls to come and do this in the future."

In 2021 the Ministry of Defence announced plans to increase the number of women recruits in the military to 30% by 2030.

In a statement the Royal Marines said the "preparation of women" prior to them joining either the Royal Marines training or the All Arms Commando Course "remains a priority".

"We have invested heavily to ensure that information and training is delivered to women before they attend," it said.

It added it recognised the additional challenges on women and provided tailored support to "ensure everyone has the best opportunity to pass".

Lt Fisher has this advice for anyone keen to try: "Don't be shy, don't hold back and basically just be willing to fail and if you fail then you try again, and again, and again."

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