大象传媒

I was born in Stockton on Tees in 1919 and was called up into the Army at the outbreak of WWII.

I went into the Royal Corps of Signals and did my basic training in Glasgow. This consisted of, among other things, learning how to march (without weapons) drill, salute and take part in exercises.

At 6.00 a.m. one day we were assembled and told we were going to take part in an exercise. The RSM got us all together in a field and gave us our orders. Our job was to defend our camp, play the part of repelling troops, against an invasion force. I asked him what we were going to use for weapons, since we had none. 鈥淛ust go through the motions鈥� was the basis of his comeback.

We managed to scrape up one rifle between six, with the rest of us armed with pitchforks, broom handles and such like. We hadn鈥檛 the gear at all! If he鈥檇 seen us, Hitler would have laughed his head off.

We took station in a ditch and waited. I don鈥檛 know whether we expected the 鈥榠nvaders鈥� to be similarly armed, but suddenly, out of the mist, we heard a fearful cry. Then we saw a line of troops, fully armed with fixed bayonets coming right at us. They were a Canadian outfit intent on taking no prisoners. In the circumstances we adopted what is called in polite military circles, 鈥淎 rearguard position.鈥� In other words, we scarpered!

After basic training, we remained in Glasgow and I went on a course with the GPO (General Post Office). There I was in the middle of that terrible winter (the worst for 50 years) climbing 60鈥� high telegraph poles to string cable, and all for the princely sum of two shillings (10p) a day. And I had to send half of that home to my mother!

I celebrated my 21st birthday in March 1940. I had seven shillings in my pocket to take one or two of the lads out for a drink. I think we got a pint and a half of beer each at the 鈥淧unchbowl鈥� hotel in Maryhill in Glasgow.

I liked it in Glasgow. I was always very keen on football and used to go to the local matches. I鈥檒l bet I鈥檓 one of the few people still living who saw Stanley Matthews play for Glasgow Rangers. (All the professional players who were in the forces could play anywhere. I believe Stanley Matthews was in the RAF.)

Another famous footballer of that era was Wilf Mannion, who played for Middlesbrough. I met him on one occasion at Darlington Bus Station. We were both going on a weekend leave. He was 鈥榖atman鈥� to Hedley Verity, the famous Yorkshire cricketer (who was later killed in action).

It was time for a move, and the unit was billeted in an old hotel in Melrose in readiness to go further south to England. One night 鈥楾he Laird of the Music Hall鈥� Sir Harry Lauder paid us a visit and gave us a concert. Afterwards the troops were packed off to bed. Outside the hotel a pipe band was playing in anticipation of Sir Harry coming out. They intended to give him a rousing send off. Unfortunately for them Sir Harry had retired to the officers鈥� mess and, consequently, they were obliged to continue playing for the next three or four hours. When Sir Harry finally DID emerge, it was with considerably less dignity than his arrival. He had to be, shall we say, 鈥榓ssisted鈥� to his car.

The officers carried on drinking and all of a sudden they started to blow whistles. Now we had been told that whistles would be sounded in the event of an air raid. We assembled outside and they marched us down the back of the hotel on a route leading to the River Tweed. We were strung along the banks and the officers were telling US to settle down while they 鈥� drunk as they were 鈥� were going around firing pistols.

The C/O of the unit, Lt. Col. Warren, was an ex-Baillie (Lord Mayor) of Glasgow. He took us out one day for a forty-mile route march鈥n NEW boots. He was marching with us but was much less heavily laden. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a wagon behind, but don鈥檛 let me see anyone getting on it,鈥� he barked. I had blisters on blisters that day.

From there we went to a camp near Barnard Castle, County Durham, close by the Bowes Museum. It was just about the time the Germans were sending over bombers en masse. One day I saw a German 鈥榩lane come overhead being chased by one of our fighters. The RAF fighter brought the German down and he crashed in the next field. That was the end of him.

As I mentioned I used to play a lot of football. I think if the war hadn鈥檛 come along I might have made it into the lower divisions. I played a lot of games during my time in the Army, but while I was at Barnard Castle the cartilages went in my right leg. I was taken to Catterick Military Hospital and had them taken out. While I was there, the Queen Mother (who was then Queen) paid us a visit. Of course I was in among men who had been badly injured in some cases.

I recovered and rejoined my unit, which by this time had moved to Suffolk. We were on an exercise one day and I was laying telephone lines in the hedge backs. Proceeding along this country road, I rounded a bend when I saw a line of fully armed LDV鈥檚 [Local Defence Volunteers, subsequently renamed the Home Guard]. They shouted, 鈥楬alt! You are our prisoners!鈥� I had no option but to obey. They said they鈥檇 take me to the HQ. As I hadn鈥檛 eaten for several hours I asked where their HQ was. Their reply was, "Typical of the Army 鈥� always dry and hungry." So they took me to their HQ, which was very handily placed in the nearby Pig and Whistle public house. What followed beats exercising any day!

In addition to exercises, we patrolled a nearby airfield from dusk 鈥榯il dawn. At 6.00 a.m. each day we reported to our unit for normal training. It was a bit of a rough do.

We moved on from there to Newmarket, which, as a racing fan that suited me. The time came for the running of the Derby, which was held at Newmarket during the war years [Epsom at all other times]. I was all set to try and get to it, but at the last minute the Army arranged a big parade of all local troops. I鈥檓 sure that was done to keep the troops away from the course. There was a slight consolation, however. As I was walking back to my billet after the parade, a horse came past me with a lad on its back. "That鈥檚 a lovely horse," I said. "It should be" replied the lad, "It鈥檚 just won the Derby." It was 1942 and the horse was called 'Watling Street'.

I was selected to go alone to join some other signalmen at Thirsk. So I went from one racing town to another. As soon as I got there they rigged us out with tropical kit. One morning they took us to Liverpool and put us aboard a troopship and off went. The convoy was huge. When we got down to Gibraltar half of it headed towards the Mediterranean (this was part of the force that invaded North Africa in Operation Torch.) The remainder headed south. My troopship dropped anchor in Freetown, Sierra Leone and we disembarked. From there I went to Gambia, where I was to spend the next four years.

The lads I went out with were all 鈥榗lean bloods鈥� i.e. we鈥檇 all had our jabs. Thus the first week there we were asked to give blood to try and help a lad who was dying of Blackwater Fever. Welcome to the Gambia!

The basic purpose of going to Gambia was to train troops. We trained a lot to go to Burma. I thought myself lucky not to be posted there, too. Myself and another chap were stationed at an aerodrome. We dealt with telephone equipment, landlines and overhead lines.

The Africans regularly used to dig up our cable and pinch the copper. We used to call those fault jobs. I went to one such job with a native signalman, who knew the bush. He and I came to a hut where we could sleep. It was full dark by this time. I opened the door and took a step inside when the African soldier pulled me back. 鈥楧on鈥檛 go in there!鈥� he said, and shone his torch. Inside were deadly Black Mamba snakes. That lad saved my life.

I played football a lot out there. One day I met up with an RAF sergeant to arrange a match between his mob and mine. He turned out to be none other than the Manchester City and England international full back, Sam Barkas. I had seen him when he'd captained England at Ayresome Park, Middlesbrough as they defeated Wales 2-1 in November 1937. (That was also the score between our service teams, with his lads on the winning side. He played, but didn鈥檛 really have to extend himself.)

Sam thanked us for the match and offered to fix us up with some decent football gear, of which we were very short. 鈥楯ust get yourself a truck鈥�, he said, 鈥榓nd come down to see me.鈥� I thought that was very good of him.

And that was just about my war. When it got to 1946 and we were still there I began to think I鈥檇 been abandoned. But in February I was flown to Freetown and put aboard a troopship bound for Blighty.

From leaving Gibraltar, I was down with Malaria. I contracted it in Gambia and had recurring attacks. At first we were given raw Quinine, but when the Japanese overran Burma, the source of supply for it was cut off, so they gave out Mepacrine tablets. They were yellow鈥nd WE were yellow before long!

Of all times to have an attack it was on my way back home. When we docked in Glasgow I made the silly mistake of making straight for the station in an effort to get home. I should really have gone off to hospital.

I was always very critical of how the lads were treated by the Army in terms of pay and compensation.

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