大象传媒

Francis Williams was a driver for the RAF for 10 years:

In 1942 20 of us were told

You鈥檙e posted,

Where are we going chief?

To Honily in Warwickshire.

It was a night fighter squadron we were joining. We were joining the American First Army to invaded North Africa

We arrived at Liverpool and we got aboard the ship. I didn鈥檛 fancy a hammock so I slept on the table.

After 2 days we moved out. It was a huge flotilla. We didn鈥檛 know where we were going.

I left Stella a list of names 鈥� I said if I say were sent to America I'll say I鈥檝e met Harry, If I say I鈥檝e met Fred it means we were going somewhere else.

I saw flying fish. I thought they were sparrows coming out of the sea!

We were still about 10 miles off shore and we saw lights coming towards us. They were the sardine fishers.

We pulled into Gibraltar for a bit. Then we went off

It amused us because we pulled the chain in the toilet and it sparkled. It was phosphorous.

We carried on. We passed Algiers and got off at Bone.

As we passed the entrance of the tobacco factory we saw an orchard and the oranges were huge. We said we鈥檇 go scrumping that night. They were Seville oranges! Be sure your sins will find you out!

Jerry knew we were there and he tried to bomb us at night. So when it got dusk we went up the road to sleep in the church.

2 days later out transport arrived and we had to learn to drive on the right side of the road. We had to go up into Tunis and try to find all these places.

There were big signs on the side of the road.
Famous last words are 鈥渋t鈥檚 one of ours鈥�

We had night fighters ands one day I said why are you taking all those empty bottles with no corks. He said when we get over the Italian aerodromes and when new see an Italian aircraft coming in to land we drop the bottles out. They sound like bombs and no matter what鈥檚 coming in to land they switch the lights off and the aircraft piles up!

We moved to a place called Satif. We used to have latrines outside and they had a green canvas roof. One day the roof went missing. The officers looked round the village and said there they are! All the lads were wearing green canvas trousers. The Gendarmes rounded them all up and took them to prison and took them to prison.

We were bombed one night 鈥� we could hear this one coming and we dived on the floor

鈥淭hat was close Harry鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檇 got our name on it.鈥�

鈥淵es 鈥� but it wasn鈥檛 spelt right!鈥�

We did see one of our aircraft shot down overhead. It was a very skilful German pilot who did it. He went into a little cloud and instead of going through it he did a complete loop and when the English pilot went through he was looking round and the German came in behind him. Poor soul he was finished.

We used to swap bully beef and margarine for meals. Sometimes they鈥檇 cook a pig. One day they said 鈥斺�渋t鈥檚 special for you tonight. Sheep鈥檚 brains in egg yolk.鈥� How can you refuse when they鈥檝e gone to that trouble? It took some eating 鈥� but we got through it!

Have you tried Absinthe? Looks like milk. Harry said 鈥� 鈥淚鈥檒l have 2 or 3 of them鈥� It鈥檚 very potent. I woke up in the night and I heard someone coughing in the barnyard. We thought it was a German. Although we were miles behind the lines.
Turned out to be a sheep!

Each morning the pilots would say 鈥� 鈥渨hat鈥檚 it like?鈥� we鈥檇 say 鈥渨e鈥檝e done the engine sir. Take it up for a test鈥� 鈥淵ou going up?鈥� 鈥淵es鈥� 鈥淐an I come?鈥�
鈥淕et yourself a parachute and come.鈥�

We bought some chickens. Harry said 鈥渓et鈥檚 start an egg place - we can sell 'em for 5 Francs each 鈥� we鈥檒l make a bomb!鈥�
We found a store and some boxes and started selling them off till one day the armament officer came in and said 鈥淔or god sake get them out of there.鈥� 鈥渨hy Chiefy?鈥� 鈥淭hey鈥檙e sitting on boxes of detonators鈥�
鈥淭he chickens don鈥檛 mind!鈥�
鈥淲ell I do 鈥� and so do the rest of the camp!鈥�
We had a thriving business - we were getting about a 100 (about 10 shilling)francs a week.

The African campaign came to an end. The squadron moved to Sicily,
I had to take a motorbike 400 miles. It was a matchless. I go 300 odd miles and I got to a bridge that had been partially repaired and there was a concrete step on it. And I hit it. I put my hand out to stop myself and I broke my arm. I thought it was sprained but it was broken.

To cut a story short I was taken for an X-ray. Broken.

I was kept 12 months with it broken. They wouldn鈥檛 operate because the skin wasn鈥檛 broken and there was a high risk of infection if they operated. So they kept it broken for 12 months. I was then invalided home.

When I was taken home I saw a Canadian surgeon and he said there鈥檚 bad news 鈥� it鈥檚 been broken for so long all I can do now is take slivers of bone from your left knee and graft them on. It will be very painful. I can鈥檛 bend it. I went before a disablement board and they put me down as 40% disabled after a lot of bickering.

Terry Murphy 鈥� he was my armed escort 鈥� he could sing play the piano鈥o if we went anywhere at night he鈥檚 say come to the pub 鈥� I鈥檇 say: 鈥淏ut I don鈥檛 drink鈥� and he鈥檇 say: 鈥淏ut I do!鈥� and he鈥檇 play the piano. He was an Adonis and all the women used to flock round him.

He was a good lad but he hadn鈥檛 got a trade so he was Terry Murphy ACHGD (Aircraft hand, general duties) so he was like a spare bod He was my armed escort. Of course when you get in a cab which isn鈥檛 very big with a rifle you couldn鈥檛 get it out anyway!

We did thousands of miles together. He was a good lad

I lost track of him when I was posted aboard and he got into touch with me again and he said he was now in Germany and could I send some tins of coffee? And he explained in his letter that coffee there was worth more than a gold ring and if you had a tin coffee you could barter for anything you wanted. So I sent him 3 or 4 tins in a parcel and I never heard from him again. I wonder if he鈥檚 still on this earth? Anyway 鈥� that was Terry 鈥� with a Ronald Coleman moustache and film star appearance.

This story was submitted to the people's War site by Genevieve Tudor of the 大象传媒 Radio Shropshire CSV Desk on behalf of Francis Williams and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

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