George Bayliss shares his experiences serving in the Territorial Army with the 2nd Battalion Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire regiment. Having worked with explosives in a firework factory he was assigned to the pioneer platoon, working in a close-knit battalion to clear mines. George recalls his training clearing mines, how dangerous this work was, and describes experiences of shelling whilst living close to the Germans. He recounts his preparation for the Battle of Cassino, marching across the river whilst being shelled, and then being in front making a safe passage through the minefield for the rest of his company and shares personal anecdotes of singing hymns and writing letters to his wife. He details horrific injuries he saw inflicted on his young colleagues and how lucky he was to escape serious injury. As the war comes to an end George explains how he was posted to a REME (Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers) unit and waited for demob to be sent back to England and his happy reunion with his wife.

Conscripted into the Army, Peter Matthews completed his basic training at Shorncliffe Barracks before being posted to Berlin as part of Operation Plainfare, the British element of the Berlin Airlift. A bout of illness delayed his journey; by the time he recovered, the Russians had closed the roads, railways and rivers, so Peter had to be flown in — a dramatic introduction to a divided city.

In his interview, Peter recalls the Queen’s Royal Regiment’s role in maintaining order and containing the Russian threat during the blockade. He shares vivid memories of a riot at the German Chancellery, of seeing former concentration camp prisoners working alongside SS men, and of being billeted at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium — a poignant billet for a sports lover.

Peter talks candidly about joint guard duties at Spandau Prison, the danger of infection from bodies still buried in the rubble, and the stark contrasts between British and American rations. His reflections on Russian behaviour at the end of the war underline why so much effort was poured into keeping Berlin’s people fed and fuelled — and why this story remains so important to tell.