大象传媒

This story is taken from an interview with John Luke, and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions. The interviewer was Mark Jeffers, and the transcription was by Bruce Logan.
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V.E Day is really hard to describe. Ballymena was completely crammed with people, milling around, dancing on the street, impromptu parades, street parties for the children (most of which were organised just by the local residents). These went on for several days. Everybody wanted to be out. I don鈥檛 think anybody went to bed that night. Personally, I was sitting in an ice-cream parlour at 3 o鈥檆lock in the morning having a party with friends. Then of course there were services of thanksgiving in all the churches. Church bells rang out for the first time since 1940.

Shortly after, the 2/6 Heavy Artillery Anti Aircraft Battery which was all made up of local men who had been called up in 1939 arrived home for the first time in 5 years. Local men who had been P.O.Ws came home. All of them to a great reception. Things gradually settled down. The war wasn鈥檛 yet over. Japan had still to surrender, which it did in August 1945 after the atomic bombs. Rationing of all commodities went on for a long time after the war finished.

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