大象传媒

George Chandler was my father. In the 1920's he emigrated to Canada and settled in Winnepeg. At the outbreak of WW2 he returned to London as he was concerned about his aged father who was disabled as a result of being gassed in WW1. My father had two surviving older brothers at that time (his eldest brother, Edward, having been killed by the I.R.A. whilst serving as a soldier in Ireland). Both of these brothers had physical disabilities which meant that they would not be able to carry their father into the air-raid shelter.
My father had played soccer as an amateur for Canada and briefly on his return to England was a player for Leyton Orient until he sustained a knee injury. (Although a London lad in the local press he was referred to as 'The big Canadian'due to his accent).
He then went to work for the drug company 'Potter and Clark'. My father was a tall man and when his call up came he was pleased to see that he had been assigned to the Grenadier guards. At the appointed time he reported for duty only to me told that he could not join up as his firm had claimed him, the making of medecines being a reserved occupation.
This meant that after work he was able to carry his father into the air-raid shelter before spending the night as a fire-watcher in the city of London.
In later life whenever he heard the march of the Grenadier guards played he would say 'That's my mob'.

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