Poole, Stan (Oral history)

British civilian messenger with Auxiliary Fire Service and served with Home Guard in London, 1940-1942; served with Royal Army Ordnance Corps in North West Europe, 1944; served with 1/5th Bn, Royal West Surrey Regt in North West Europe, 1945

REEL 1 Recollections of background in Finsbury Park and Tufnall Park, London, 1926-1939: family circumstances; education; football activities; Boys Brigade and Boy Scouts activities; communal holiday arrangements; outbreak of war and reactions to air raid warning, 3/9/1939; military training with 8/1st Bn, (City of London) Royal Fusilier Cadet Force at Clarence Way Drill Hall, 1938-1939; story of failed attempt to join Royal Navy, 9/1938; mother's service with Ambulance Service. Period evacuated to Great Billington and Dunstable, 9/1939-12/1939: billets; working on farm; story of visiting dentist; school; ban on visiting home; return to London. Recollections of period living in Tufnall Park, 12/1939-6/1940: leaving school; work in shops and for engineering firm. Recollections of service with Home Guard in 10th Bn, King's Own Rifle Corps, Caledonian Market area, 6/1940-5/1942, REEL 2 Continues: uniform; nature of recruits and officers; story of officer and his makeshift pike; training and street fighting exercise in Camden Town; signals post at cigarette factory in Mornington Crescent; street patrols and guard post; question of black market. Recollections of period as messenger runner with Auxiliary Fire Service based in basement on Warren Street, 1940-1941: acting as volunteer with Blue Cross; nature of duties and unofficial role assisting firemen during alarms; story of entering burning factory and clearing incendiaries off roof; story of call out to Broadcasting House, Portland Street, 12/1940; story of being lowered into cellar of burnt out house to look for survivors; story of rescuing naked woman; German oil drum bomb dropped on Gooch Street. REEL 3 Continues: story of assisting in cleaning blood from ambulances during visits to mother's ambulance station on Holloway Road; mother's loss of nerve and subsequent work at Tuffnal Park Underground Station; blackout; sheltering in Tufnall Park Underground Station; question of rationing; background to enlistment under age with East Surrey Regt at Artist's Rifles Drill Hall, Euston, 5/1942. Recollections of training at Cavalry Barracks, Canterbury and Shorncliffe Camp, Folkestone, 6/1942-12/1942: reception; kitting out and uniform; barracks room accommodation; kit inspections; origins of recruits; food rations; drill; PT; tactical and field training; opinion of instructors; story of protest after being called in by Military Police for identification parade; German air raid on Canterbury; transfer to MT Section; learning to drive Bren carrier. REEL 4 Continues: learning to drive Bren carrier; presence of Danish troops; move to Shorncliffe Camp; German air attacks on Bren carrier; role of Bren carrier; informal nature of training to drive lorries; visit to friend; use of Bren carriers for rescue work after German air raid on Canterbury; practical joke played on NCO; routine maintenance on MT; Bren carrier accidents; story of meeting old teacher; relationship with recruits and story of fight; story of dispute with NCO; friend's military career. Period with MT Section, Headquarters Coy, 2nd Bn, East Surrey Regt at Totenhoe Barracks, Exeter, 12/1942: close escape from German air attack during parade; nature of unit. Recollections of period at Londonderry, Coleraine and Temple Patrick, Belfast, Northern Ireland, ca 1942-1943: journey out to Londonderry, ca 12/1942 story of being caught with WREN; wanted posters for IRA fugitives. REEL 5 Continues: hut accommodation; whisky distillery billets at Coleraine; Bren carrier and combined operations training on sand dunes; armed guard necessary during church parade; swimming across river to get back to camp; move to C Coy; organisation of East and West Surrey Regts; issue of bicycles and learning to ride; use of bayonet in detecting mines; tactical exercises and use of explosive charges in dealing with armoured cars; sabotage and infiltration exercise; Wings for Victory parade; story of picking up deserter on Falls Road; story of accidentally disrupting funeral in Belfast; canteens; view of riot; story of being followed; stories of visits to dance halls and question of fights with soldiers from other units. REEL 2 Continues: story of visit to cinema interrupted by armed IRA commemorating 1916; story of waking up in police station after night drinking; story of eccentric Irish civilians; story illustrating unofficial use of explosive charges; opinion of Bren gun; rescues of crew from aircraft crash; story of practical joke on friend; case of VD; story illustrating poor state of equipment handed on by previous unit; draft to North Africa; failure of attempts to get on draft and volunteering for Parachute Regt. Period with Royal West Surrey Regt at Hunstanton, ca 1943. Period with Royal Army Ordnance Corps at Hinton Hall, Brentwood, 1944: closed nature of camp; lorry convoy to Tilbury. Aspects of Channel crossing and landing at Normandy, France, 6/6/1944: boarding cargo boat. REEL 7 Continues: boarding cargo boat; formation of escorted convoy; long range German shell fire; loading lorries onto Landing Ship Tank; following Winnepeg Rifles ashore; view of Sven sunk by E Boats; landing; noise of naval bombardment; recovery tanks clearing beach; parking in field; German air attack; fears of German snipers and lack of ammunition issued; move inland. Recollections of period at Tailleville Chateau, 6/1944: former use as German headquarters; Canadian troops massacre of Germans trapped in bunkers; establishment of MT delivery centre; German outpost in wireless station; digging slit trenches; sleeping in chateau; role delivering vehicles and equipment to units; story illustrating problems with towing vehicles; story of asking directions from military policeman and subsequent question of him being German spy; mistaken notification as missing; loss of kit and story of wearing German helmet. REEL 8 Continues: view of capture of German wireless station; story of German sniper in haystack; disposal of tin cans; story of close escape from German 88mm gun; story of French civilian failing to warn of position of German machine gun post; story of being shot at whilst riding motorbike at night; question of German mines and booby traps; guard duty; minor shrapnel wound; story of conducting successful defence against charge of having left post while on guard duty; vehicle park; organising patrol to try to catch intruders; compo rations; story of bullet deflected by soldier's tin of cigarettes; German use of wooden bullets. REEL 9 Continues: background to requesting transfer, 7/1944. Period with Holding Unit near Bayeux, 7/1944. Period with 1/5th Bn, Royal West Surrey Regt at Villers Bocage, ca 7/1944-8/1944: situation in wooded sector; sniper problem an activities of British sniper; story of British motorcyclist riding in full view of German positions; slit trenches; laying hand grenade booby traps; story of close escape from detonation of recently cleared mine; situation; story of soldier shot in bottom; personal weapons; story of being sniped at on latrine; relief by US unit; infected hand wound and evacuation by motorbike. Evacuation to GB, ca 8/1944: story of attacking German patient in tented hospital at Arromanches; period in Canadian Hospital, Surrey. Period in Royal Infirmary and Convalescent Homes, Dundee area, ca 8/1944-9/1944: reception; medical treatment; recreations. REEL 10 Continues: relationship with civilians. Period at Pennycooke Barracks, Edinburgh, ca 9/1944: light training; arrival of Polish troops. Various aspects of period serving in Northern Ireland, ca 1944-1945: requesting return to unit; story of escorting deserter; training role of unit; story of being arrested for fight; stories of exercises in Mountains of Mourne. Demobilisation, 1947. Post-war career: question of classification as disabled; work as electrician with BBC; duties as Special Constable and amusing story of frightening violent drunken prisoner into good behaviour.