大象传媒

I enrolled on 24.11.39 and first served as a driver in the 1st London Motor company, F. A. N. Y, during 'The Blitz', them eventually as an A.T.S Signals Officer, commissioned 21.08.42, with various postings in England, Scotland and Belguim, the last one as 'The signals Master' at Brussels Garrison H.Q.
I have picked out two of the more memorable events and one minor episode. The latter occurred when I had parked my car underground in the Lex garage, Kensington and had gone to collect it. As I came up onto the road, I was aware of two planes engaged in a dog fight overhead, wheeling about against a very blue sky. i suddenly felt nervous for no apparent reason, I told myself, 'Pull yourself together!' and so donned my tin hat and set off.
Another time, I was attached to The Kings Own Scottish Borders at Ulverston, Cumbria, The Gateway to the Lakes. One job I had, involved driving German Officers, who were Prisoners of War at Grizedale Hall, to the dentist at Ulverston. One day, we were returning in the ambulance driving up a narrow lane when one of the prisoners managed to escape from one of the very small windows even though there were two armed guards in with them. I was left with the remaining prisoners while the English interpreter and the two guards went off to look for the escaping officer. I stood in the road alone with the securely locked vechile while the wind blew through the telegraph lines making an eerie sound. I grasped the long starting handle, though whether I would have been brave enough to use it is debatable!
The escapee eluded capture so we returned to Camp, first reporting our 'loss' by telephone and then meeting a lorry load of armed guards who continued the search. Afterwards there was a Court Martial because I was carrying armed guards in an ambulance and the Geneva Convention had been broken. I was not blamed but I'm afraid the Camp Commander was!
At one stage I worked from Wormwood Scrubs Prison alternating on day or night duty carrying dispatches to places in The City of London, mostly to the offices of Cable and Wireless. It was lonely sitting in my upstairs cell alone at night waiting to go out at 11pm I would go down in the rather dim light and then outside across to a stable type door. The upper half would open for me and I would collect a large padlocked sack from a policeman. I do not know what was inside. I never asked questions.
one night I remember driving across one of the London parks with my car roof open. It was a lovely moonlit evening, a good one for aeroplanes intent on a raid.
After the war my mother told me that she had often looked towards London at night where the sky showed blood red.

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