大象传媒

Saturday 6th December 1941
1.00 am Gunfire and planes overhead. Father goes to Kota Bahru airfield to find out what is happening. Phones home to say that Japanese have invaded, must evacuate.
2.00 am Mother (8 months pregnant), myself (aged 4陆), brother David (aged 13 months), two Amahs and some luggage arrive at the pre planned evacuation point in Kota Bahru. Have an early breakfast and then have a short bus ride to Kuala Krai across the river. Take train to Kuala Lipis and stay there overnight. Mother, myself , David, 2 Amahs, Mrs Farrington and her 5 year old daughter and another pregnant woman, all stayed overnight at the home of Mr Davies.

Sunday 7th December 1941
Driven in a single deck red bus to Fraser's Hill. Stayed overnight at the Gap Rest House.

Monday 8th December 1941
Driven in same bus over the hills and forest to Raub and then on to Kuala Lumpur. Bus overheated during journey and driver had to get out and find a jungle stream from which to fill up the radiator. Father joined us in the evening with some more luggage, which included some of our clothes and a canteen of cutlery but not Mother鈥檚 jewellery. This was all packed into two blue cases which had been wedding presents in 1935. one was a hat case and the other an attach茅 case. The attach茅 case had rotted slightly during its time in the tropics as it was made of canvas and not leather and it fell apart and oozed cutlery onto the station at Kuala Lumpur in the blackout. Travelled overnight by train to Singapore, but left Father behind.

Tuesday 9th December 1941
Train stopped outside Singapore to let the engine be used for some shunting.

Wednesday 10th December 1941 to Wednesday 28th January 1942
In Singapore, we heard of the bombing of Pearl Harbour and of the sinking of the Prince of Wales. We stayed, first, with the Nissen鈥檚 who were colleagues of my Father. Father joined us after a few days. We moved to 5th Avenue, Bukit Temah Road just before Christmas. This was a Chinese house, one wing of which was occupied by us, another wing was occupied by three bachelor Meteorologists, including Ieion John and Arthur Grimes. The top flat of the building was occupied by a nurse. We ate all our meals together. Father was seconded to the RAF as Flight Lieutenant. My brother Richard was born in Singapore General Hospital on Sunday 11th January 1942. Mother and baby in hospital for 7 days. Patients had to lie under their beds during the Japanese air raids.

Monday 29th December 1941 - Telegram from Mother in Singapore received in Tonbridge to say her and family were all well in Singapore.

Wednesday 28th January 1942
Mother, myself, David and Richard left Singapore on the Free French boat SS Cap St Jacques. Sailed south across the equator around Sumatra and then north west across the equator again to Bombay. Father was transferred to Sumatra (for a rest!) and had to get away in a hurry. He ended up in Colombo and spent the rest of the war in Galle forecasting weather for the RAF.

Sunday 15th February 1942 - Singapore surrendered to the Japanese at 6.10 pm.

Tuesday 17th February 1942
In Bombay. Censored letter sent to Tonbridge, which arrived on 27th March 1942. Later travelled by train to Pachmari whilst waiting for another boat to take us on to England.

Monday 9th March 1942
In Pachmari. Another censored letter sent to Tonbridge, which arrived on 10th April 1942. Richard was christened at the hill station and a had a stand-in Godfather from the local Pathan Regiment. The Officers mess gave him a beer mug with a glass bottom as a christening present, which was sent away to be engraved. We were sent back to Bombay before the mug was returned. Perhaps the Pathan Regiment still has it.

Wednesday 18th March 1942 - Telegram sent by my Father from Ceylon to Tonbridge asking for news of his wife and children.

Friday 20th March 1942 to Monday 23rd April 1942
Left Bombay on P and O ship the SS Strathmore bound for Cape Town. Crossed the equator. Stayed Cape Town for 4 days. Bought UNRATIONED 5lb tin of butter, 5lbs of Demerara sugar and 5lbs of dried fruit and almonds. Equivalent to 5 months adult rations in England. Also bought some warm clothing.
Left for Freetown on SS Strathmore. Crossed the equator. Engines failed as we entered Freetown and stayed here for 4 days while engines were repaired. Whilst watching the loading of stores, I climbed through the railings on the top deck to get a better view! Mother had to be very careful to get me back behind the railings before I fell overboard.
When the engines had been repaired we did a couple of circuits of the harbour before setting off for Liverpool, but NOT in convoy as SS Strathmore was a fast ship.
On the way north we met a convoy of troopships going South. Sailed round the top of Ireland and arrived in Liverpool on Sunday 22nd April 1942 and stayed there the night.

Monday 23rd April 1942
Travelled by train to London. Met at Euston by Grandmother, Uncle Lin and Aunt Jeannie.
Took taxi to Charing Cross and Richard was bottle fed on the way!!!!
Travelled by train to Tonbridge in Kent. Met by Great Aunt Edith and took another taxi to Grandparents' home at 13 Dry Hill Road, Tonbridge.

Tuesday 24th April 1942
Mother and Great Aunt Edith and I went to the local Food Office and Labour Exchange to register the family and to get our ration books. Officials were not interested in seeing the children and were really only worried about why we had not registered 6 months earlier with all the other L's!!!! They were somewhat bemused when told that we had only just arrived in England from Singapore.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.