大象传媒

My father, George Storey Atkinson, was born near Whitby. My mother was born in Ayr as Pearl McNair. Her sister Kate married Jack Watson, whose birthplace I never learned.
George Atkinson, as he was normally known, served in the Home Guard. He was conscripted from there to serve in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. He trained in motor maintenance and repair, and after a spell in the south of England was posted to the Fort William/Inverness area in Scotland. He attained the rank of Staff-Sergeant. He recalled years after the war how the giant rail-borne anti-aircraft gun (Big Bertha) would click quietly up behind his billet in London during the night, then fire a thunderous salvo which far outdid the ongoing din caused by the enemy! When a bomb fell close by, the room would seem to squeeze itself together briefly, then return to it's normal proportions.
Pearl McNair volunteered as an ambulance driver at the beginning of the war. Her conscription had been deferred by six months while her employers trained a replacement, as was usual practice with 'key personnel'. She also kept up her civilian duties in doing 'firewatch' in the insurance offices where she worked, in Ayr.
She was conscripted into the ATS, and trained along much the same lines as my father, (and later, Princess Elizabeth!).
Her postings during this process took her to Wales and North-East England. She was eventually to find herself in the same region as my father, which is how they met. She ran a transport unit from the Alexandra Hotel in Fort William, and attained the rank of Sergeant. She would recall, later, how she briefly met Alan Bristow, later to set up a helicopter service in the North Sea. She also was very proud to have dined in the presence of Locheil, the Clan Cameron Chief.
Her commanding officer was instrumental in having a theatre built for the entertainment of the forces. Sadly, he lost his house to an enemy bomb, but bravely laughed at the fact that his wife escaped with only his set of golf clubs as luggage!
Jack Watson played for Ayr Cricket Team. He joined the Royal Artillery as an officer, sadly I never learned his rank. He spent some time in the coastal regions of South-East England before being sent to Scotland for further combat training.
My mother was in Fort William on the fateful day when a motor torpedo boat, one of three normally stationed in Loch Linnhe, exploded.A number of crew members and one civilian lost their lives in the incident.
Jack Watson was on a maneuvre when a truck carrying ammunition overturned. It caught fire and my uncle noticed that the driver was still stuck in his cab. Despite desperate entreaties from his men, he raced towards the stricken vehicle to attempt a rescue. At this moment it exploded, injuring him very seriously.
He was taken to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness, where he was considered to be on the point of death. He had sustained several shrapnel wounds and had lost one eye. My mother got compassionate leave from her duties in Fort William to visit him and to comfort her sister.
Jack Watson was slipping gently from life when one of Raigmore's nurses got the idea of giving him grapes. She must have been inspired, for not only did he recover from then on, against all predictions he returned after the war to play for Ayr Cricket Team.
Staff-Segeant Atkinson was injured while testing an Army motorcycle. A collision occurred between the bike and a milk van, my father sustaining a broken arm in the process.

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