Side A of the fourth audio cassette in a collection of eight which records Ron A. W. Perry’s memoirs entitled ‘The Way It Was’.
Side A is 00:47:08 long and has loud static noise interference throughout the recording. Ron has noted on the cassette case that this is due to a machine defect. Ron’s voice breaks in, mid-sentence at 00:00:01. At 00:16:15 dance hall music plays in the background whilst Ron recalls asking a girl to dance and Ron’s voice cuts out mid-sentence at 00:47:02 and the rest of the tape is blank.
The themes explored include: talk of the Bath Blitz and Ron’s pal Ken Chapman’s experience of the death of his wife and brother when the air raid shelter outside the Scala Cinema was destroyed [00:05:59]; being billeted to Worthing as part of the newly formed regiment the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers [00:07:25], with talk of the church parades [00:13:35]; Christmas 1942 celebrated at a Professor’s house in Worthing [00:18:43]; being billeted at Goodnestone Park in Kent [00:21:16]; details of the models and designs of the vehicles used by the engineers [00:26:20]; very detailed description of the Mark 1 Churchill tank [00:27:19]; and his experience of training at the REME Battle School in Sandwich [00:38:56].
Existence and Location of Copies
A digitised MP3 version is available on Preservica via internal access at Bath Record Office.
