大象传媒

My father was a curate at St James, Oldham and he was a chaplain to the pioneer core and used to go away with them on exercises at the beginning of the war. He got to drive a tank but he got it stuck on the tram lines, and then it veered off the lines and went through the green grocers shop. The tank went right through the shop. He came out the other side totally unscathed. I'd like to know what happened after that.

In 1940 when my father was just sent to St James he had to conduct a funeral 6 weeks late, as the hearse got stuck in a snowdrift. They had to leave the hearse, together with coffin until the snow melted away.

I was born in 1942 and remember the sirens, teh floodlights, and barrage balloons. In 1944 I moved to Coventry, we lived in Daventry Road and the Whittly bomber works were at the bottom of the road. I remember they were bombed.

Dad was chaplain to a POW house at the back of our house. They were German bomber pilots. I remember them being marched on an exercise round my house. I remember their 'Heil Hitler.'

Not long after having put the windows and roof back on, my father shouted 'Get Down' - all the houses were machine gunned - luckily no-one got killed.

I remember all the unexploded bombs being brought on the low loaders to the Whitley Common - there was a big crater and they exploded them. One bomb I remember it ticking as it passed by, and a fellow shouting 'It's ticking, it's ticking'- on its own that made a heck of a bang!

My father was tiny. After a raid, chimney stacks were the only thing standing. I remember a woman with a young baby was petrified with fear. The ladders couldn't be rested on the chimney stack - it would have toppled over. Men had to hold the ladder unsupported and my father who only weighed about 8 stone went up and persuaded the woman to give him the baby, which she did. They both came down OK.

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