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SORN
by OldSkrote - 31/07/25 02:07 PM
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by Rex_tulips - 30/07/25 07:59 PM
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Aug 24th, 2023
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Thank you for a very interesting post Giles.
I probably have to thank Admiral Ramsay, and a completely unknown truck driver together with a few others, for my very existence.
My father, a keen motorcyclist, was a despatch rider up to and during the retreat. He had been without sleep for several days and never knew if he had simply crashed, perhaps even avoiding a straffing, or had collapsed from sheer exhaustion. The driver of the last truck of the last convoy along a section of road stopped and sent some men into the paddock where he and his motorcycle had gone off the road to see if he was still alive. All the others had passed thinking he was dead. They picked him up and got him on a boat. He regained conciousness to find himself mid Channel.
He did not return to France for the invasion but finished up in South East Asia with the Engineers on the Burma end of the Burma Road into China. That is an amazing story !!
Geneva 2016 plus 8' The Green Godess' 4 side exits .
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Just back from a long drive down to the alps and back (6 hours each way) to collect our personal stuff from our ski flat which is in the process of being sold (furnished). Exhausting day.
Thanks for the kind comments chaps, and thank you Simon for your own family account of Dunkirk, and Peter for that amazing story. I guess pretty much every man who was involved, rescuers and troops alike, must have had extraordinary experiences to relate. You're quite right Bruce, the Imperial War Museum's archive is a brilliant resource; they've been very good at recording not just the accounts of the Generals and Admirals, but of participants at every level. In answer to your yes, the IWM have had the originals to scan for their archive.
Giles. Mogless in Paris.
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0074mbh/war-walks-series-2-5-dunkirkExcellent analysis by Richard Holmes (unfortunately no longer with us ) on the massive task of evacuation from Dunkirk .
Last edited by madmax; 28/05/20 08:40 PM.
Geneva 2016 plus 8' The Green Godess' 4 side exits .
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It was an excellent programme. Ramsay's participation was well covered.
Didn't know the Professor had passed on Steve.
Graham (G4FUJ)
Sold L44FOR 4/4 Giallo Fly
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I recorded this the other night, and got around to watching it this evening. Excellent analysis by Prof Holmes. I wasn't aware either that he was no longer with us. What a sad loss; I find so many TV historians patronizing and simplistic.
Giles. Mogless in Paris.
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