Messages posted by: Phil Eyden

You can now watch the episode on YouTube. It's the first 15 minutes only. I hope you find it interesting.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=N_ZHBrYVTxQ&feature=share&fbclid=IwAR2Pv3oHGQRr1_QIXKV6Hxx2XXjQT1d9brmjFS87IXrTyN70oEtBEEDEng0

Hi all.

You may like to watch Abandoned Engineering this Monday 5th June, 9pm, Yesterday Channel. The episode is called 'Fake News Fortress' (Season 11, ep. 4).

We filmed it last August at the Drop Redoubt fort in Dover and it will cover 4 Commando's Operation Abercrombie 'Boulogne Raid' in April 1942.

Thank you.

Just a quick reminder thst this is on tomorrow night on BBC1 at 19.30 in the South East region. If you live elsewhere you will be able to catch it on iPlayer, Sky 963 and Freesat 959. I hope you enjoy it and find it interesting.

Some readers may be aware that I have been researching the 'Operation Abercrombie' Hardelot raid by 4 Commando and a section of attached Canadians for a number of years. My particular connection to the raid is not through family, in fact I have no commando relatives, but because I am a member of a group of volunteers who look after an old Napoleonic fort in Dover and discovered way back in 2011 half a dozen sets of graffiti that I traced back to the raid.

The CVA was of great help in putting me in contact with relatives and even two men who served on the raid, though sadly neither are still with us. (I have to mention Nick here - cheers Nick!). I spent the next couple of years researching war diaries, operational reports, taking trips to the IWM and even trawling through community Facebook pages in Canada to try and track down relatives of the graffiti artists. This culminated in a book I wrote called 'Dover's Forgotten Commando Raid' to raise money for our Society just over two years ago.

In the middle of summer of this year I was amazed to suddenly receive an email from a BBC producer to state that he had proposed turning the book into a documentary! The programme was green-lit and at the end of July the BBC came to Dover for several days filming. This included in some of the old tunnels, interviewing at home, at the library and elsewhere. About a dozen families were tracked down and an amazing day was then held at the fort in which everyone was gathered to be interviewed about their fathers, grandfathers and uncles and all were given a very special presentation.

'The Lost Commando Raid' telling the story of 'Operation Abercrombie' will be televised on BBC1 South East at 7.30 on Friday 14th December, and then available to watch on BBC iPlayer for a month. It will also be available on Sky Channel 963 and Freesat 959.

I hope you enjoy it.

The word from the powers that be at the BBC have told me that it will probably be on in January. As soon as I get a confirmed date I will let everyone know here.

Mid seventies and superb!

Hi Peter.

I have found the graffiti of your uncle in the Drop Redoubt Fort in Dover. Here it is for you along with his photo taken within a day or two of his graffiti.

I am afraid I do not have a great deal on him, other than he came from Great Yarmouth, was a volunteer from the Royal Armoured Corps and participated in the 'Boulogne' and Dieppe raids.

I regularly show our fort tour groups his graffiti. If you can ever make it to Dover I would be more than happy to show you in person.

Just to let you know most of the filming has been completed and the documentary should be on sometime in later November. It will be on BBC1. I will update you when I know more.

Good afternoon,

I recently received the fantastic news that the BBC1 will be making a 30 documentary about Operation Abercrombie, 4 Commando's raid on Hardelot near Boulogne in April 1942. It is to be filmed around July and broadcast late this year.

The producer would very much like to find any surviving participants of 4 Commando who were there, or at Dieppe four months later. He would also like to speak to any relatives of those men.

If anyone can help in any way, please can you drop me a message.

Many thanks,

Phil

When I wrote the first post here about six years ago - goodness - I was still gathering information. After speaking to his relatives, I now know that the photo above is not that of Lt. James Ennis, it is actually of Capt. Patrick A.T. 'Doc' Wood (Royal Army Medical Corps). He landed at Hardelot and remained with Lord Lovat at the beachhead as the fighting patrols went about their business. He had a stretcher and battlefield medical equipment to deal with any returning injured soldiers. I apologise for making the mistake and confusing the two men back then.

Attached is a correct photo of Ennis. He was nicknamed 'Carpet Slippers' as he did the whole raid wearing slippers as he had left his gym shoes onboard the Prins Albert by accident. The press picked up on this and used it in the papers and newsreels. Jimmy Dunning, who was there, told me he received a 'roasting' from his commanding officers after the incident. It is explained in the first post here.

Was this Hardtack 11 Wolgang?

A summary I have: Christmas Eve 1943, seven Free French commandos of 10 (Inter-Allied) Commando and led by WO Waller to the beaches at Gravelines between Calais and Dunkirk ended disastrously. The dory that should have transferred the party back to the MTB suffered engine failure and then sank. The party failed to make a successful swim back to the boat before dawn light and it was forced to return to Dover. One man may have drowned in the attempt to reach it, but the others were forced to melt away into the countryside and join the French Resistance. A rescue mission despatched from Dover the following night failed to find any of the party.

Having had a good look at the photo, this is my conclusion as to the names:

Walters 2620747 Gdsm. John Robert Walters, Grenadier Guards ? KIA D-Day or
873129 L/Bdr F.J. Walters

Ennis: (Probable error) ? Could it be Pte. A. Ellis?

Furlow: (No Trace, probable spelling error)

Larment: 884501 L/Bdr. Henry Larment, Royal Artillery. Also served in 3 Cdo.

Jackson: 5111228 L/Cpl. J.R. Jackson, Warwickshire Rgt
L/Cpl. Ernest Jackson
1871992 L/Cpl. A.J. Jackson, Royal Engineers

Fairless: Pte. T. Fairless

Cook: 206488 Fus. G. Cook, Royal Welch Fusiliers

Overbury 5111978 Pte. T. Overbury, Royal Warwickshire Rgt.

Middleton: 7902963 L/Cpl. Frank Leonard Middleton, Royal Armoured Corps

Rose: Sgt. Frederick Joseph Rose (?)

Veasey: 149347 Lieut. Arthur Francis Sherand "Fairy" Veasey, Worcestershire Rgt.

Bend: 7901939 Sgt. Frank William Bend, Royal Armoured Corps

Unfortunately just the surname for Walters and Jackson is not enough to go on as there are alternatives for both. The only way of narrowing it would be to find out when they joined if those records exist.

As for Middleton coming from Sheffield, hands in the air, I may have made a mistake. That information came from a sale of medals belonging to a Cpl. Frank Middleton I found on a online auction site. However, I found out last night that they probably belonged to another man of the same name who served with the Sherwood Forresters in North Africa and Italy. Great Yarmouth sounds more realistic - I had difficulty fitting in North Africa to his role in the Commandos, but I had so little to go on and in my enthusiasm, thought I 'had my man'. So apologies for any confusion.

Lord Lovat in 'March Past' devotes a whole page to Arthur Veasey, recanting how he once ate 33 pork pies in a sitting, joined 3 Commando and escaped from a prison train after being captured in Sicily. He wandered into Switzerland, found a pretty girl who he married, and then posted postcards to his comrades back in England. He sounds an absolute character.

Guy - we have sold about 400 I think. We still have not broken even on them, so every sale counts. It's all for the Dover Western Heights Preservation Society as you know.

Thanks Pete - I've just changed my graffiti match photo. I will revise my Abercrombie Lists and post a revised version here in a day or so with the new men. I now have names for two-thirds of 4 Commando and all of the Canadians.

Wow - I was really excited to see this image. Having spent years researching the raid resulting in a book (for charity) two years ago, I never thought I would see a 'new' photo of the raid.

What this shows is No.1 Patrol comprised from B Troop of No.4 Commando and commanded by Lt. Veasey (not Sergeant as stated). They advanced to the right of the beachhead along the Hardelot beach to engage any enemy patrols, record beach defences and cut communication lines when discovered.

Please note that this photo was not taken at Dover Castle. It was taken at the Napoleonic Drop Redoubt fort a mile or so away from the Castle on the hill on the opposite side of the valley. The 100 Commandos, 60 Canadians, 20 Royal Engineers and others were locked into the fort for five days from the 18th April 1942. The grass bank behind them is an 1861 Sidearms store, rather like a grass covered shed, but you can't see either end in the photo. I know it very well indeed from taking tour groups around in the summer.

I am not convinced all the names are correct. That is definitely not Lt. James 'Carpet Slippers' Ennis in the centre at the top - he had a moustache, but could there have been two men with the same surname? Similarly, I think the order on the bottom row may not be correct, Sergeant Benn and Medical Orderly Rose may be back to front from the Sergeant's stripes on the chap on the right's uniform.

I was really pleased to finally see a photo of Frank Middleton. Over the years I managed to identity eight sets of graffiti belonging to soldiers participating in the raid in the fort and obtained photos of seven of them. 7902963 L/Cpl. Frank Middleton was the missing one, so you have plugged the gap! I don't have an awful lot on him, but I can tell you he came from Sheffield and was a volunteer from the Royal Armoured Corps. He took part at Dieppe was promoted to Sergeant and also spent some time with the British 8th Army, earning the Africa Star. He went on to serve in France and Germany.

If it's alright with you I would love a really clear copy to show our tour groups in summer. I always describe the raid and show some of the traces these men left in the fort.

Thanks Richard!

Hello Elizabeth,

According to his regimental roll (East Surrey Rgt), he attested on 15th November 1939 and was transferred to the Pioneer Corps on the 24th December 1941.

Not much to go on, admittedly...

Phil