Dec 4, 2016
"Champagne and scrambled eggs for supper!"
The personal war diary and letters home from Major Petch offer a unique glimpse into the lives of the British soldiers during Dunkirk in 1940 WW2.
"It'll all be over when it gets hotter" was the prevailing opinion.
This changed in a matter of days as the weather did get...
Oct 15, 2016
"We're having a marvellous time!"
When Company Sergeant Major Gray wasn't fighting for the Green Howards, sometime in 1944 he found time to compose some war poetry. Six linked poems paint a picture of the journey across the English Channel and onwards through Normandy, ending with a letter home to Doug's mum and dad,...
Oct 9, 2016
War memoirs of a WW2 military medal hero.
"Cognac, Calvados and kisses!".
The previous episode of the diary ended with Company Sergeant Major Gray winning the Military Medal. His battalion, the 7 Green Howards, had landed on Gold Beach on D-Day 6 June and advanced some distance into the dangerous French countryside.
Oct 7, 2016
Doug Gray was there on D-Day and beyond. He wrote his diary and fascinating it is too. He even wrote a diary entry on the day he won his military medal, before he knew he'd won it!
The diary’s been supplied by Doug’s family. The entries start just before D-Day and finish several weeks after, so it’s quite a rare...
Jul 20, 2016
Lancaster Flight Sergeant Claude Reynolds' WW2 memories.
Claude was rear gunner in a Lancaster during the 2nd world war and flew many sorties all over Europe. He experienced no end of scary moments during his time as a member of 49 Squadron in the much-regaled No 5 Group Bomber Command. So he’s got plenty of...