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A walk of surprises!


mozart

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Thanks boys, we need a bit of cheer spreading! :P

 

Bill Chorley has added the following extra details:

 

Returning to your observations, Max Williams has 'posted' a photograph showing the grave in Marnhull churchyard of Squadron Leader Rupert Parkhouse who died at the age of 98 on the 17th of October 2019. Max adds that Rupert was shot down on 13th June 1940, in Fairey Battle L5580 while attacking Panzers and with his crew spent the rest of the war 'behind the wire'. Referring to my RAFBCL 1939-1940 revision the 13th of June 1940, witnessed the last large-scale attacks by the Battle squadrons of the Advanced Air Striking Force. Twelve aircraft were lost; three from 12 Squadron which included Rupert's. For those who may not have my revision, he took off from Sougé at 1750 and was brought down by a combination of ground-fire and fighter attack, forced-landing with wheels retracted at Château de la Noue [Castle of the valley] to the north of Sézanne in the Department of Marne. Like numerous officers, he eventually went to Sagan [his prisoner of war number was 469]. On release he remained in the postwar Air Force, eventually retiring at his own request on the last day of August 1973. His crew, Sergeant A R Morris and Aircraftman D A MacDonald finished up in Heydekrug and Hohnstein respectively.

Edited by mozart
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6 minutes ago, John1 said:

Gorgeous.   I would love to be able to have a day to wander with my Chocolate Lab.

 

We had two dogs in our group John, one was a "honey-coloured" retriever.....beautiful looking dog but after 5 miles she was a "muddy-coloured" retriever!! 

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6 minutes ago, denders said:

I've a question, Rupert's POW number was 469 while his crew were 371 and 372. Does that mean he evaded for a short time or was it just a result of him being an officer?

 

The latter Dave, sent to a different officers only prison camp.

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Further adventures of Rupert Parkhouse!  These are (my) selected transcripts from his audio record with the IWM, interesting reading:

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Training on the Battle, ready for war!!

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In France, just nineteen and a half years old!

 

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The Fateful Day:

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Roaming about in France:

 

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There's a lot more, but these are the salient bits I feel......the British attempts at war in the early years was really very amateurish it seems!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, Dpgsbody55 said:

Lovely photos, but it does look cold.  It reminds me of my childhood in the Cotswold Hills back in the '60's. :D

 

 

Cheers,

Michael

Yes Michael, it was cold. The thing about cold v hot is that when it’s cold you can wear layers of clothes to keep yourself warm, but if it’s hot there’s very little you can do to keep cool. As a friend in NZ said yesterday: hot, high humidity, very uncomfortable! Give me cold weather any day.......as long as it’s not arctic! :speak_cool:

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21 hours ago, mozart said:

Yes Michael, it was cold. The thing about cold v hot is that when it’s cold you can wear layers of clothes to keep yourself warm, but if it’s hot there’s very little you can do to keep cool. As a friend in NZ said yesterday: hot, high humidity, very uncomfortable! Give me cold weather any day.......as long as it’s not arctic! :speak_cool:

 

It certainly felt very arctic getting cut in half by the wind, waiting at a bus stop in January 1967 waiting for the bus to take me to school down in Stroud.  I lived in a village on the top of a hill about 3 miles from Stroud back then, and we got snow and ice every year.  When that bus finally arrived, it was colder inside than outside, with a layer of ice on the inside of the roof.  The engine wouldn't warm up and being a cold diesel, it struggled up the hills, and because of the icy roads, it was even slower going down hill.  I distinctly remember thinking "thank the Lord I'm going to Australia". :lol:  I won't mention the 1962/63 freeze when we were cut off for a number of days.

 

Yes, NZ can be very humid, though it's not as hot as Australia.  My son lives there and it also gets very cold in winter, depending on where you are.  Much of the east coast of Australia is hot and humid, more so as you go north.  However, here in Perth, it's very Mediterranean as well as windy, so while we get hot 40 degree days, it's a dry heat which is much easier to deal with.  Plus I live in an air conditioned house and drive air conditioned cars which makes it easier still to live with. :speak_cool:  The downside is that winters are cold in comparison and we're exposed with prevailing south westerly winds coming off a vast expanse of ocean.  As you say, you dress for the occasion and I'd rather live here.

 

That said, there's an awful lot I still miss about England, especially the countryside.  I was hoping to visit this year, but the less said about this year, the better.  It's a wonderful place to be on a sunny summer's day.  Pity you don't get enough of them... 

 

 

Cheers,

Michael

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