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We had an old valve radio which Dad and I listened to for all the war reports. I was older and more interested than my sister and brother and I was allowed to stay up sometimes right through the night to listen to the reports.

I can still remember some of those stories. There was the Royal Oak a ship in the Scarper Flow off Scotland.

One evening in particular I remember very clearly. There was a report about operation 鈥楳arket garden鈥� from Arnham. It was amazing broadcast. As we listened to the war correspondent we realised he was actually there watching the battle in the thick of it as it happened which today seems quite incredible. I think Stanley Maxted was a Canadian reporter and I remember him reporting 鈥淏ehind these trees in an orchard men are fighting for their lives 鈥� the sergeant standing by me has just died.鈥� I was shocked but thought it meant we would win the war.

I was also interested in some of the Navy battles. I remember seeing a news reel about the Battle of the River Plate in the South Atlantic. HMS Ajax, HMS Exeter and HMS Achilles were our light cruisers and HMS Cumberland a heavy cruiser. The Graf Spee was a superior German pocket battleship on it鈥檚 maiden voyage I think. It was a surface raider and gave our ships a real pounding shelling them continuously from about 15 miles away. I remember seeing them after the battle, they were just hulls, everything else has been blown to bits.

The Graf Spee took refuge in Montevideo to make repairs get the injured cared for.. Our boats were waiting for him to come out but instead of facing them he took a skeleton crew with him onto the ship and scuttled it in the estuary but not before he shot himself.

The RAF pilots were also my heroes. There was Screwball Beurling who was a Canadian crack ace fighter pilot flying Spitfires 鈥� he was good. There was Paddy Finucane, Johnnie Johnson, Mongo Park (he was a New Zealander), and 鈥楽ailor鈥� Malan who I think was related to a prominent South African.

I used to follow how they got on not just on the radio but in War Weekly and on the Pathe News

I鈥檝e never forgotten 鈥� it was all very exciting and amazing to think now that I heard it all as it happened.

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by Sue Broome of the CSV Action Desk at 大象传媒 Hereford and Worcester on behalf of Ron Jennings and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site鈥檚 terms and conditions.

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