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The situation was back to normal — abnormal! In November I was 18 and I went back to see Dr Crisp about the operation on my legs. The tendons on my legs were constantly catching the hook bone, football was out, but I help to coach a young ATC side. Early March 1942, I went into the Infirmary and was put into a ward with three older men. One was a Mill Dam policeman who I knew. Another was a ship pilot a member of the Purvis family (they were all pilots, through generations, well known in South Shields). He was also a champion swimmer. The third man I didn’t know. He left next morning. The following day Dr Crisp came to see me. He told me what the operation entailed. It would take several hours and he was going to operate on my left leg and a young doctor who had just graduated from Edinburgh Medical School was going to operate on my right leg. The young doctor was called Pinkerton and it was his first operation. Many years later I saw him again at Harton Hospital and, he was a well known and respected senior consultant.

Next morning I was taken to theatre. They placed a mask on my face to give me ether and oxygen to put me to sleep. As I was getting drowsy I heard Doctor Crisp shouting and the mask was pulled off my face. There was a problem with the oxygen input. Dr Crisp told me later I was lucky to be alive. Two weeks earlier a woman having a minor operation had died with the same incident. His alertness and prompt action had saved my life. After the operation I found my legs were bound together with bandages. They stayed like that for 12 days. Difficulty with toilet functions got me a lot of ribbing from the two older men. I could only wear a pyjama top and the nurse who helped me was a young good looking blonde, the daughter of the Vicar of St Michael’s Church, near to the infirmary. The food was poor, even for war time. My mother’s home cooking and some sandwiches from the Mill Dam Bobby helped me out. I was in hospital three weeks and came out walking on painful legs with a stick in each hand.

It was April 1942 and when I got home my father handed me my call up papers telling me to go in May to the Jubliee School, Newcastle for my medical, prior to joining the RAF. Before I went I saw Dr Crisp who gave me a letter detailing my operation and present condition. Hw told me that when I went in front of the medical board to keep the letter in my pocket. He said let those old fogies delve into the medical books (there were six) because they will not have a clue about your condition. After a few minutes, hand them my letter and put them out their ignorance. My call up was delayed until later in the year.

Finally I got my papers and I had to report to RAF Padgate for kitting out then onto Blackpool for square bashing. My first billet in Edward Street was hopeless, the accommodation and food was extremely poor. After many complaints the RAF closed the lodgings and we were transferred to a hotel in Albert Road. From Blackpool I went to Melksham for my Instrument Mechanic’s Course. On completion I went to RAF Cranage for my practical work. From there I went to Morecambe to be kitted out for overseas. First I was put on a Far East draft, then transferred (six of us we, we had been together since Blackpool and were good pals) to the middle East for the invasion of Sicily. Montgomery decided to let the Americans take Palmermo. We then went to Iraq. After an operation on my eye, I left my pals and went into the Met Office. I further served in Egypt and Palestine and arrived home in October 1946. I had never seen home since I was called up. I was stationed at RAF Ouston in Northumberland during the snow and ice winter of 1946/47 and demobbed on March 13th 1947. The details of my service career overseas is another eventful tale. Not to be told here.

By the way, I forgot to tell you, through all this time I had asbestos in my lungs. This was from my time with A E Evans. I was diagnosed with Asbestosis in 1982 and at the age of 81 I am still suffering with my lungs.

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