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A veteran interview with

Frank Ashleigh

Frank Ashleigh was born in Stepney, London on 23rd of December, 1924.

After the war he admits to being very anti-German and now puts this down to PTSD. He was a popular and active member of the Association of Jewish Ex-Servicemen.

This interview was one of several filmed in partnership with the Airborne Assault Museum.

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About Frank Ashleigh

Frank Ashleigh was born in Stepney, London on the 23rd of December, 1924.

In this interview he provides a detailed account of his service as a Horsa glider pilot with A Squadron. Following extensive training and some great stories, Frank talks about the 18th September and his role in Operation Market Garden. It’s a thrilling account and the start of an amazing chapter of his life. Eventually, he is taken POW and although he admits to being Jewish, says he was treated impeccably. That’s despite the long march!

After the war he admits to being very anti-german and now puts this down to PTSD. He was a popular and active member of the Association of Jewish Ex-Servicemen.

This interview was one of several filmed in partnership with the Airborne Assault museum.

Credits

Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker
Reviewed by:
Martin B

Copyright:
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Home | Veterans | Frank Ashleigh

A veteran interview with

Frank Ashleigh

Frank-Ashleigh-film-frame

Frank Ashleigh was born in Stepney, London on 23rd of December, 1924.

After the war he admits to being very anti-German and now puts this down to PTSD. He was a popular and active member of the Association of Jewish Ex-Servicemen.

This interview was one of several filmed in partnership with the Airborne Assault Museum.

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https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/frank-ashleigh/

Cite this interview:

MLA Style:
Ashleigh, Frank. A Veteran Interview with Frank Ashleigh. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, 14 Apr. 2020 https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/frank-ashleigh/. Accessed 17 May. 2025.
APA Style:
Ashleigh, F. (2020, April 14). A Veteran Interview with Frank Ashleigh [Interview by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee. Retrieved May 17, 2025, from https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/frank-ashleigh/
Chicago Style:
Ashleigh, Frank. 2020. A Veteran Interview with Frank Ashleigh. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, April 14. Accessed May 17, 2025. https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/frank-ashleigh/
Harvard Style:
Ashleigh, F. (2020). A Veteran Interview with Frank Ashleigh. [Interviewed by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee, 14 April. Available at https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/frank-ashleigh/ (Accessed: 17 May 2025)
Vancouver Style:
Ashleigh, F. A Veteran Interview with Frank Ashleigh [Internet]. Interview by M. Bisiker. Legasee; 2020 Apr 14 [cited 2025 May 17]. Available from: https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/frank-ashleigh/
An interview with

Stan Hope

Stan Hope was captured in 1942 and, despite attempts to escape, was not liberated until May 1945

Stan joined the RAF in July 1940 and was assigned to a reconnaissance unit and returning from a mission his aircraft had engine failure, and he baled out over occupied Belgium. After walking for two days he was able to board a train to Brussels where his ability to speak French helped him. Here he met the Resistance who used the Comète Line to smuggle him to a village near the Spanish border. Here his group was discovered by German troops. Despite being in civilian clothes with false papers he, and his comrades, avoided being shot. They were interrogated quite roughly and he spent four months in solitary confinement. Eventually he was taken to a Gestapo prison and later to a POW camp where he faced further interrogation. Near the end of the war he and his comrades were moved to several different camps before eventually being freed in May 1945.
Service:
Interviewed by:
Martyn Cox
An interview with

Kate Boe

Kate shares the details of her husband’s PTSD and their difficult journey for treatment.

Content warning// This interview contains discussions of sensitive topics such as PTSD, suicidal thoughts and vivid flashback description which some viewers may find distressing. If you are affected by these topics, please consider seeking support from a trusted person or organisation.   Kate was training to be a nurse with the RAF when she met her husband-to-be, John, an RAF Police Officer. They both completed tours of Iraq and John went on to complete one more and also two tours of Afghanistan. Each time John returned, Kate started to notice slight differences in his character, such as an increase in drinking and frequent nightmares. She was grateful of both her RAF and medical training as it helped her understand the mental shift between home and work that John was having to manage. John sought help but was told there was nothing medically wrong and he was to carry on as usual, which he did. It was the birth of their son that Kate thinks caused John’s nightmares and flashbacks to intensify. He sought help again and this time was diagnosed with severe PTSD and signed off work, but without his job to provide a sense of purpose John struggled to function. John tried both CBT and EMDR therapies but Kate feels they both made the situation worse. John is now on a medication pathway. Kate describes this as an incredibly isolating time as no one knew what she was going through. She felt she could hardly leave John alone, especially when he started having suicidal thoughts. However, when she joined Band of Sisters she found a supportive group of women with shared experiences. She even managed to attend a weekend away which really helped her realise how stressed she was. She describes finding Band of Sisters as a real turning point which helped her realise she needed to take care of herself too. John has also found help through Help for Heroes and has attended a few courses and is now a qualified bushcraft and survival instructor. John has recently had a cancer diagnosis and Kate reflects that, sadly, the cancer process has been much smoother than the PTSD. Kate feels it is incredibly important for others to hear their story so they know they are not alone. She is even compiling a book.
Service:
Project:
Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker
An interview with

John Cumming

An RAF veteran based in Iwakuni, Japan, who served in the Korean War and aided with the airborne evacuation of injured troops.

John Cumming shares a wonderful account of his time serving with the RAF in the Korean War from January 1951 to September 1952. Born in Glasgow, John welcomed the freedom offered by conscription and completed his training as a movement officer. Upon receiving his subsequent overseas posting to Iwakuni, the Australian Air Force Base in Japan, he admits he had never heard of the place, nor even Korea! At just 20 years old, John describes his initial work in Iwakuni, which mostly involved aircraft loading and movement. Soon enough, however, John undertook a role which transpired to be the defining work of his time in the Korean War: casualty evacuation. He shares some interactions he had with the plethora of injured troops, often a range of nationalities, that he helped to evacuate from Pusan. He also gives his impression of the American, Australian, and Canadian troops, including Australian female nurses, that he worked alongside. John also dives into tales of some close calls aboard Hastings and Dakotas, as well as stories of days spent partying in Korea, and meeting William Speakman-Pitt, VC. John concludes his account by sharing some insightful comments regarding the popular memory of the Korean War as the ‘forgotten war’, and contends with the repercussions of humanity’s disposition for conflict. John’s story reflects his determination and courageousness as he partook in casualty evacuation of the Korean War: a task far beyond what was expected of him when the RAF sent him to Japan.
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Service:
Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker