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Dunkirk

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My uncle was at Dunkirk with the 11th Field Company Royal Engineers who were some of the last off the beaches because their job was to destroy equipment that might be of use to the enemy.

He then went on to serve with the Bomb Disposal Unit during the Bitz and having survived that he was posted to Northern Ireland for what they though would be a bit of a "holiday". He was killed aged 23 while on duty in Belfast in May 1941 following an air raid on the city.

He served with the engineers because being a devout Methodist he would no bare arms. He thought that destroying weapons was more in keeping with faith. As he was killed in the UK he was brought home to Sunderland and laid to rest in war grave in Sunderland Cemetery
 
Grandad became POW at Dunkirk, force marched to Poland to build railways....5 stone when he got back, feet it tatters and had to wear surgical boots for the rest of his life. Going to watch the film on Friday night, looking forward to the film as love the genre, not looking forward to seeing what he and so many other young blokes had to go through.
 
Lord Potts said:
My uncle was at Dunkirk with the 11th Field Company Royal Engineers who were some of the last off the beaches because their job was to destroy equipment that might be of use to the enemy.

He then went on to serve with the Bomb Disposal Unit during the Bitz and having survived that he was posted to Northern Ireland for what they though would be a bit of a "holiday". He was killed aged 23 while on duty in Belfast in May 1941 following an air raid on the city.

He served with the engineers because being a devout Methodist he would no bare arms. He thought that destroying weapons was more in keeping with faith. As he was killed in the UK he was brought home to Sunderland and laid to rest in war grave in Sunderland Cemetery
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Fair play to the lad, man of principle and brave with it . RIP .
 
Billy Fish said:
One of my Uncles was in the territorial DLI and came back from Dunkirk.
They reckon he was at the point of physical and mental exhaustion and never fully recovered from it. Didn't rejoin the Army as far as I can make out as he was a miner and in a reserved occupation. I seem to recall talk that he was put on a charge for throwing his rifle away on the beach to be able to swim out to a boat.
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I've vague recollections of the rifle story. For some reason I thought he was just bollocked for getting it wet, which seemed a bit harsh in the circumstances, so this account is probably closer to the truth.
 
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Hulkster said:
From the very same article you just linked!

The trio of timelines can be jarring as you figure out how they all fit, and the fact that there are only a couple of women and no lead actors of color may rub some the wrong way
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"May rub some the wrong way"?

I would love for someone to step forward and admit that a film like this has 'rubbed them the wrong way' for this reason. Jesus Christ all bloody mighty.
 
Billy Rocket said:
Same here. I remember hating the ITV "World at War" WW2 documentary series on Sunday afternoons when I was a kid. Me parents were glued to it, but it was BORING.

Then about 5 years ago I downloaded the whole series and binged it in a day. Bloody marvellous programming.
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That must have took some doing. I got the box set and it took me days to get through it.

Like you said, great series, some fascinating footage, we are very lucky to have it all recorded.
 
Flared Hicks said:
That must have took some doing. I got the box set and it took me days to get through it.

Like you said, great series, some fascinating footage, we are very lucky to have it all recorded.
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Aye spot on. Compulsory viewing after Sunday dinner in our house when aa were a lad. Darling Larry doing the dramatic voice over. They'll never do better than that cos they were able to round up a whole load of the key players from both sides who were still alive. It was also my first eye opening about the holocaust. Strong stuff for an eight year old.
 
My grandad landed on D Day after surviving Dunkirk. Promised my mam and Nana he'd never touch the sea again. Dying of terminal cancer in September 1980 while my mam was pregnant with me, he told her he'd do anything she wanted. She asked him to paddle in the sea. My mam, my Nana and me Grandad went to benidorm the next January and he swam in the med, initially frightened, by the end of the week they couldn't get him out of the water. He told my mam "tell him it's the little things. Tell him to have no fear. Tell him to get back on the horse. Tell him I love him."

My mam never told me that until she saw Saving Private Ryan around 2005. It fucked me up. But ever since then I've followed that speech.

I know that sounds bullshit, but who am I to question me ma? Never got to meet the bloke, but heard he was f***ing rock, and obviously lived through Dunkirk, D Day, and all of WW2, so I'll never question it.

Henry McCowliff was his name if anyone is wanting to look it up.

Makes our generation look like the cowards we are.
 
Gravyb0y said:
My grandad landed on D Day after surviving Dunkirk. Promised my mam and Nana he'd never touch the sea again. Dying of terminal cancer in September 1980 while my mam was pregnant with me, he told her he'd do anything she wanted. She asked him to paddle in the sea. My mam, my Nana and me Grandad went to benidorm the next January and he swam in the med, initially frightened, by the end of the week they couldn't get him out of the water. He told my mam "tell him it's the little things. Tell him to have no fear. Tell him to get back on the horse. Tell him I love him."

My mam never told me that until she saw Saving Private Ryan around 2005. It fucked me up. But ever since then I've followed that speech.

I know that sounds bullshit, but who am I to question me ma? Never got to meet the bloke, but heard he was f***ing rock, and obviously lived through Dunkirk, D Day, and all of WW2, so I'll never question it.

Henry McCowliff was his name if anyone is wanting to look it up.

Makes our generation look like the cowards we are.
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RIP Henry the Hero
 
Fuck me. Some of the stories you folk have from your great- relatives humbles me, those blokes were different gravy compared to us now- but I guess that's what 70ish years of peace does to mankind
Gutted I won't see this for another fortnight due to work
 
Tex said:
Aye spot on. Compulsory viewing after Sunday dinner in our house when aa were a lad. Darling Larry doing the dramatic voice over. They'll never do better than that cos they were able to round up a whole load of the key players from both sides who were still alive. It was also my first eye opening about the holocaust. Strong stuff for an eight year old.
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It was after the woody woodpecker show IIRC.
 
Stevie Freestein II said:
There were troops left behind who had to be a rear guard.
I'm not knocking the troops in any way, just the leadership and strategists.

We celebrate an escape.
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Excellent post.
British military history is littered with so many similar tales.
Brave men put in intolerable situations by toffee nosed thickheads and egotists.

RokerLegend said:
I wouldn't say we celebrate it like. As you say it was a defeat and a major retreat but there were amazing acts of bravery/heroism during the evacuation and surely that is worth remembering including the poor soldiers who were left behind.
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Of course we should honour the sacrifices of the ordinary military servicemen and women who sacrificed so much time and time again.
At the same time there needs to be more scrutiny and where necessary censure of the idiots who made so many bad indeed fundamental errors that cost the lives of so many of these brave people.
It's a disgrace when you seem of these wankers getting the plaudits for doing nothing other than going to the right school and knowing the right people
 
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Gravyb0y said:
My grandad landed on D Day after surviving Dunkirk. Promised my mam and Nana he'd never touch the sea again. Dying of terminal cancer in September 1980 while my mam was pregnant with me, he told her he'd do anything she wanted. She asked him to paddle in the sea. My mam, my Nana and me Grandad went to benidorm the next January and he swam in the med, initially frightened, by the end of the week they couldn't get him out of the water. He told my mam "tell him it's the little things. Tell him to have no fear. Tell him to get back on the horse. Tell him I love him."

My mam never told me that until she saw Saving Private Ryan around 2005. It fucked me up. But ever since then I've followed that speech.

I know that sounds bullshit, but who am I to question me ma? Never got to meet the bloke, but heard he was f***ing rock, and obviously lived through Dunkirk, D Day, and all of WW2, so I'll never question it.

Henry McCowliff was his name if anyone is wanting to look it up.

Makes our generation look like the cowards we are.
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There's free access to military records on Ancestry.co.uk this weekend, It's normally only got WW1 stuff but it looks like they are starting to release some from WW2
 
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