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A veteran interview with

Leslie Fernandez

Leslie Fernandez was a fit man when he was young. He loved sports and was good at them. Exactly the sort of chap that would catch the eye of SOE!

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About Leslie Fernandez

For the first few years of the war, Leslie Fernandez was an Army Physical Training Corps instructor who trained SOE candidates in Hertfordshire and Manchester (parachuting). He was then invited by Colonel Munn to become an operative, deploying to SE France in July 1944; when the American landed there in August 1944, his group moved to Italy to help the partisans prevent the Germans in Italy from interfering with American operations.

He provides a hugely detailed and modestly understated account of SOE operations (he does not mention his Military Medal or Croix de Guerre), starting with selection for different roles and his insertion by parachute, weighed down by weapons and equipment. He focuses heavily on little-known operations in the mountains between France and Italy, gathering explosives from his cache in a bakery, blowing up roads and negotiating the surrender of 80 Germans to 5 SOE. He also talks about the challenges of communication and receiving resupplies in harsh conditions where they were often isolated, as well as the psychological pressure of warfare and seeing people executed. He has fond memories and recalls the bravery of those involved, especially as he married a woman from the region, who was a courier.

Credits

Interviewed by:
Martyn Cox
Reviewed by:
Andy Voase

Transcripts:
Please note that transcripts and closed captions in the video player are automatically generated by Vimeo.

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Home | Veterans | Leslie Fernandez

A veteran interview with

Leslie Fernandez

Leslie-Fernandez-Still

Leslie Fernandez was a fit man when he was young. He loved sports and was good at them. Exactly the sort of chap that would catch the eye of SOE!

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Cite this interview:

MLA Style:
Fernandez, Leslie. A Veteran Interview with Leslie Fernandez. Interview by Martyn Cox. Legasee, n.d. https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/leslie-fernandez/. Accessed 21 Jul. 2026.
APA Style:
Fernandez, L. (n.d.). A Veteran Interview with Leslie Fernandez [Interview by Martyn Cox]. Legasee. Retrieved July 21, 2026, from https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/leslie-fernandez/
Chicago Style:
Fernandez, Leslie. n.d.. A Veteran Interview with Leslie Fernandez. Interview by Martyn Cox. Legasee. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/leslie-fernandez/
Harvard Style:
Fernandez, L. (n.d.). A Veteran Interview with Leslie Fernandez. [Interviewed by Martyn Cox]. Legasee. Available at https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/leslie-fernandez/ (Accessed: 21 July 2026)
Vancouver Style:
Fernandez, L. A Veteran Interview with Leslie Fernandez [Internet]. Interview by M. Cox. Legasee; n.d. [cited 2026 Jul 21]. Available from: https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/leslie-fernandez/
An interview with

Arthur Brown

Arthur Brown talks about his WWII service in the SOE as a radio operator including his adventures in occupied rural France following D Day

Arthur Brown joined the army in 1943 as a radio operator in the Tank Regiment but soon became fed up with the training and volunteered for the Special Operations Executive (SOE). He joined Operation Jedburgh, which involved three-man teams—an allied commanding officer, a radio operator, and a local officer—being parachuted behind enemy lines around D-Day to work with resistance fighters in France and the Low Countries. There were around 100 ‘Jedburgh’ teams deployed in the European theatre mainly between June and September 1944. On the 9th of June, Brown, now a Sergeant, his team leader, the highly decorated Scottish officer, Major Tommy MacPherson and a French officer, Michel ‘Bourbon’ were dropped into central France to assist the Maquis. The ‘Jedburgh’s were dressed in military uniform to avoid being executed as spies, if captured. Brown’s role was to send coded radio messages back to the UK updating their operations but he became ill and had to be hidden by the Maquis, being moved around to avoid detection. After France was liberated, he and MacPherson continued similar operations in Italy until the German surrender. When faced with a possible posting to Germany, Brown volunteered to go to Burma and served there with other former ‘Jedburghs’ until the war's end. 
Service:
Interviewed by:
Martyn Cox