大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War site by volunteer from The Chepstow Society on behalf of Fred Roberts and has been added to the site with his permission. Fred Roberts fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

Fred Roberts, lived at Edinburgh at the beginning of the war

Work life and war involvement.
Started work as a motor engineer at a garage in Edinburgh, joined the Navy soon after the outbreak of war and eventually became a Chief Petty Officer, 4th class.
In November 1942 Fred was sent with two other navy personnel to Chepstow. Arrived at Chepstow railway station very late at night and succeeded in getting the attention of two fire watchers at the shipyard, they let them in and they then did a swop with the shift, the firewatchers going home and the Navy men staying on site and getting paid the 4 shillings and 6 pence ! The follow morning one of the workers, another Scotsman, took them to his home for breakfast. Later in the day they went to the address of the digs that the Navy had given them - - 21 Bridge Street, and the door was opened by the daughter of the landlady, Thelma Davies. In June 1943 Fred and Thelma were married.
Fred stayed for about 6 weeks in Chepstow, longer than planned because of problems arising from the launch of the LCT they had come to collect, something to do with the 鈥渨rong sort of grease鈥�. They eventually set sail with LCT 589 to Cardiff, Swansea, Bideford, Milford Haven and finally on to the Sicily landings. This particular LCT is featured in the book 鈥� Popski鈥檚 Private Army鈥� by Vladimir Peniakoff.
Fred returned several times to Chepstow during the war to visit his wife who continued living in Bridge Street until Fred was demobbed.

Further information from his wife Thelma.
She said that it was not love at first sight but rather 鈥渟omething that bloomed somehow鈥�
Thelma had been working at the Bristol Aircraft Company when she first met Fred, staying at Bristol during the week and travelling home at the weekend. Soon after her marriage she obtained a post cooking and cleaning for a local schoolteacher; when the children came along she stayed at home.
During the war, her mother wrote to a son living in America telling him that some bombs had fallen near Chepstow, this letter was censored and returned to her mother.

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