大象传媒

On September 3rd I returned from holiday on my uncles farm and was sent to Blackpool as an evacuee. I returned to Manchester the following next March and life seemed fairly normal, going to school, taking part in Boys Brigade activities (7th at Central Hall), attending church, riding round Cheshire on a bike and playing at being a messenger in the Civil Defence. As a messenger I was given an oversize tin hat, which seemed a lot bigger than a Tommy's tin hat. The war seemed to be a bit of fun!

Then Adolf etc took a hand with their blitzkrieg. The war got exciting, Belgium had been over run, the Maginot line had been turned, the Germans were in France, but praise be, our army was still there and they would sort it out until the French pulled their socks up. Only it didn't happen like that, did it? The little ships joined in and we were pulling our army out with talks of invasion. Churchill took over and made his speeches. However, the weather was still nice and all the excitement was in the south of England, too far away to worry a young lad like me.

Sunday morning came so off to church I went as usual. My church was the Central Hall in Oldham St, Manchester, just off Piccadilly Gardens, quite a nice grassy plot in those days surrounded by a low wall.

Something seemed to be happening in the Gardens so my friend Ken and myself went across for a look. Hundreds of men were walking down the approach of London Road station towards the Gardens. Most were in khaki but a sprinkling of other uniforms was there. I was used to smart looking soldiers, these were anything but smart, most didn't even have a complete uniform, boots seemed to be at a premium. They were dirty and unshaven, hungry and tired, so tired that some just lay down on the approach, others reached the grass and sank down to sleep. One, near the little wall was fast asleep clutching his Lea Enfield. It had no sling, no bolt and it was dirty but he had brought it back. There was no chatter, just an eerie silence. Their faces looked terrible to me, drawn and haunted.

They'd come across the Channel after leaving the beaches, to London and put on trains to anywhere just to make room for others who were being brought across. What happened to them I just don't know. We went back to church and there was talk of tea urns and sandwiches. We were told to clear off home and were pleased to go. This was war as I'd never imagined it although it was a lesson that was to repeated often enough before VE and VJ days.

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