When WWII ended Tom felt joining the army was a waste of time, but started his military service in 1946 nonetheless. He spent the bitter winter of 1946-47 training in Cornwall and later stationed in Germany. Tom reflects upon the dangers faced by British servicemen who went out alone at night in postwar Germany, as well as the prevalence of venereal disease within his company. He was bemused by the extensive security and secrecy surrounding the distribution of the Deutsche Mark. Tom enjoyed his role as a platoon fitter working on wartime wagons, as he didn’t have to go on parade or do any guards. Work during the Berlin Airlift was more strenuous, but servicemen maintained good spirits, determined to stand up to the Russians. He recalls the camaraderie within the army, a near miss when an RAF sergeant taught him to fly a plane, and organising an army football game against Polish displaced persons. Tom is proud of his work in the airlift and believes British actions and discipline broke down barriers with the Germans.

Bill begins the interview by reminiscing his early life in the East End of London in 1920s and the shaping this had on him as a young man, who had interest in joining the army. Bill learned many lessons from First World War Heroes and heard harrowing stories from other veterans as he recalls the journey of his career starting in Cheshire Regiment at Dale Barracks in Chester, to Gordon Highlanders as his Regiment, and his first command is protecting Portsmouth harbour. This is until he is deployed to India, in which he tells tales of horror, humour and honour that happened during the Battle of Kohima; all whilst his career progressed from Captain to the Brigade Intelligence Officer. He finally returned home in April 1946.

Basil Chambers recounts his experiences stationed in volatile post-war Berlin. The severe winter of 1947 motivated Basil to enlist in the Royal Norfolk Regiment. He joined the Signals Corps where he trained to become an instructor, and on passing his exams was sent to post-war Berlin. Taken to barracks in the suburb of Spandau, Basil recalls open land, and a lack of building, that is except for Spandau Prison, which housed convicted Nazi war criminals. Basil recounts the surreal experience of watching Rudolf Hess take his daily walk. Identified as a sportsman, Basil tells of his eagerness to run in the 5,000 metres, despite not having ‘a clue what that was’! His desire to succeed means he can boast the rare accolade of victory at the Berlin Olympic Stadium! The souring of Western Allies and Soviet Union relations resulted in road, rail and water blockades by Soviet forces. The airlifts that followed, taking food and fuel into Berlin, introduced Basil to flying, albeit sitting on crates of cheese! Basil and his colleagues gained a rare insight into life in post-war Berlin. He describes a community dealing with power outages and food shortages, but his overriding memory is that of resilient hardworking people ‘really making an effort to get back on their feet’.