大象传媒

This story was submitted to the Peoples' War site by Morwenna Nadar of CSV on bhalf of Mrs. Jane Wallbridge and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

During WW2, my father, HENRY CUMMINGS F.R.A.M., was a professional singer who gave recitals and concerts all over the country. These included the very first Sunday Promenade Concert at the Albert Hall on July 11th, 1943. A photo taken from the 大象传媒's 56th Season of the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts, 22nd July - 16th Sept 1950, entitled "Wartime", shows Sir Heny Wood listening to this concert from his box in the Albert Hall, with myself, my sister and my grandparents in the box next to him. My father broadcast for the 大象传媒 many times, but also broadcast on Radio Luxembourg.

The broadcasts on Radio Luxembourg were coded messages sung by my father to help the Resistance movement in Europe. These broadcasts were usually made in the middle of the night. A car would arrive to collect my father from our home in Watford, Hertfordshire and take him to broadcast from what is now Haberdasher Aske's Boys School in Elstree, Hertfordshire. Of course, he had no idea what messages the songs contained and he sung them in a foreign language. I have several of these Luxembourg songs on manuscript paper. They are hand-written, and I also have a flimsy type-written programme of songs he had to sing for the broadcast. A "Mrs. Clasen" is also on the programme which appears to have been recorded. The words of the songs are written in a foreign language I do not recognise, but I think is maybe Flemish or Dutch, but most likely the language of Luxembourg.

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