大象传媒

Italy.

After the Division had been rested and re-equipped with amongst other things new Sherman tanks. Italy had surrendered but the Germans had not. On 9th September 1943 Fred sailed with his unit on a troopship past the smoking volcanic peak of Mount Etna through the Straits of Messina and landed at Salerno. It was difficult terrain with fierce rivers flowing through mountainous valleys. Shortly after landing Fred and his friend Charlie Parker decide to move foreword in their scout car on a small reconnaissance mission. After 3 or 4 miles they passed over a bridge when there was a loud dull thud in an earth bank 20ft ahead. They were being shelled from across the valley but the round had failed to explode. Needless to say a very hasty retreat was made before any more shells were sent their way. The unit continued up the coast past Pompeii, Vesuvius and Naples up to the Volturno River near Capua shortly after 5th October. All the bridges had been blown and the enemy strongly established on the far bank. Here the Division stopped and re-grouped for a week or so. The river was declared out of bounds due to the presence of enemy on the far bank but one of the men decided he could not resist the temptation to sneak off for a swim and sadly was never seen again. It was assumed that he was a victim of German sharpshooters. The next day the whole Division withdrew to Sorrento for around 3 months during which time the local attractions were visited and a couple of trips were made to the island of Capri. The 鈥楧esert Rats鈥� as one of the most experienced formations in the British Army, had been chosen to take part in the coming allied invasion of Normandy. After boarding a troopship in Naples Fred reached the UK on 7th January 1944.

13.
Back To Blighty.

Back to see Doris for the first time in two and a half years, Fred was billeted at Thetford Forest near Brandon, Norfolk. There was no weekend leave to go home but he was determined to see Doris so he slipped out of camp a number of times on 鈥榰nofficial leave鈥�. One such occasion he was thumbing a lift about a mile from camp when an officer in a staff car pulled over. 鈥淎re you on leave?鈥� he asked. 鈥淵es鈥� said Fred, so the officer gave him a lift all the way to London.
One moonlit night in camp Fred remembers looking up to see at great altitude hundreds of aircraft with vapour trails passing over. He learned in the morning that the city of Coventry had been virtually obliterated by bombers. The scout car troop were subsequently sent to nearby the docks in East London to prepare for the imminent invasion of France by waterproofing vehicles at the Greyhound Stadium at West Ham. Fred was still determined to see Doris but the stadium was subject to strict security. Nevertheless, he used to climb on top of a three-ton truck, drop over the fence in to neighbouring gardens and into the houses of sympathetic local people who used to keep a lookout for the redcap (army police) patrols. Fred spent many nights with Doris on the platform of Oxford Circus underground station to avoid the Blitz.

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