V E Day

[RONNIE PHILLIPS]

2 hours ago, leigh white said:

W/Houghton.☺️

Hope you enjoyed my limerick dedicated to you? 😁

[little whitt]

1 hour ago, Spider said:

Just been out for my daily exercise on the bike.

Heard a racket from a nearby estate.

Some cunt had got a bouncy castle on the street. Kids all over it.

Unreal.

just bean for a drive looking for some hayfever tabs 

few posh estates loads of garden partys all apart chatting drinking keeping there distance

went on Hag Fold  fuck me was a free for all

like a England away game wife beating tops cans of wife beater

plastic patio furniture everywhere

[leigh white]

21 minutes ago, RONNIE PHILLIPS said:

Hope you enjoyed my limerick dedicated to you? 😁

I did, very comical.😄

[Rudy]

19 minutes ago, little whitt said:

just bean for a drive looking for some hayfever tabs 

few posh estates loads of garden partys all apart chatting drinking keeping there distance

went on Hag Fold  fuck me was a free for all

like a England away game wife beating tops cans of wife beater

plastic patio furniture everywhere

Standard Friday night that pal

[leigh white]

7 minutes ago, Rudy’s Message said:

Standard Friday night that pal

Hag Fold WM Club on the estate in 72 was brill on a Monday night, alway's packed with talent.

[tomski]

12 hours ago, Boby Brno said:

The most decisive victory of WW11 was the Battle of Britain. The Yanks hadn’t even entered the war. Hitler gave up his invasion plans of the U.K. and his ability to push further east stalled due to the Luftwaffe being decimated giving the Russians the advantage. 
Mainly British pilots of course but also pilots from other commonwealth countries as well as exiled Czechs and Poles. After returning to Czechoslovakia some of the pilots were imprisoned or forced into hard labour by the communists because of their exposure to western values.

Aye. Complete bollocks that we didn’t play a huge part. If we hadn’t of held them in the Battle of Britain they’d of gone full throttle east and likely won but more importantly we wouldn’t of convinced the yanks to go in. 

[tomski]

Anyway......... super day enjoying the festivities and a chance to reflect.

[Sweep]

Just now, tomski said:

Anyway......... super day enjoying the festivities and a chance to reflect.

Indeed, a lovely time today with our neighbours, socially distancing of course

[tomski]

Just now, Sweep said:

Indeed, a lovely time today with our neighbours, socially distancing of course

Yeah been spot on. We’ve done the same with neighbours. Went to the shop and loads of social distancing parties. Saw some wallies ignoring it (a lot older) but hey ho

[jeep]

I saw some cunts had set up a table tennis table on the front lawn on Captain Lees Rd, Howfen........

[Tonge moor green jacket]

3 hours ago, boltondiver said:

Indeed, Enola Gay should have been held back for VJ Day

💣

Said as much to the lad 

[Steejay]

Ah, Queen’s speech. 

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, Steejay said:

Ah, Queen’s speech. 

Nails it. Again.

[kent_white]

14 minutes ago, Steejay said:

Ah, Queen’s speech. 

Two belters from Liz in as many months. GSTQ and all that!

[kent_white]

Right I usually hate it when people do this but I'm going to do it anyway. 

A quote from a bloke I like watching on YouTube.

'

If we commemorate one thing, then that should presumably be the biggest human event that affects us today.

The biggest event in human history was World War Two. It was the biggest war, the deadliest war, the most widespread war and the event that changed the world the most.

At the start of the war, Russia was a sleeping bear, Britain was the most powerful nation on the planet, and Germany was a brutal dictatorship. At the end of the war, The USSR was a superpower that rivalled its arch enemy the USA, and the USA was tremendously wealthy. In the 1930s, the USA was in economic crisis. In the 1950s, the Russian and British precious metal reserves were in Fort Knox, and American teenagers had cars. The British economy was wrecked, and India was well along the road to independence. The political situation of the world had changed. Germany was a peace-loving democracy.

Worldwide, there has been peace since WW2. Yes, there have been many localised wars, but nothing like the wars of old. When the people fought, they fought (in the main) for peace. That was the stated aim of the Allies. The British population consented to conscription. It was understood that this was a peace worth fighting for. Sixty million people died, and many more were wounded, bereaved, made homeless, but it was understood that there was some purpose behind the struggle. The war achieved a lasting peace. NATO was formed. For the first time, trials were held for 'crimes against humanity'. A war like this was not to happen again. So far, it hasn't. I grew up never fearing that the French were about to invade. Wars were things that happened far away. What has kept the peace for the last 75 years in Europe? Not nuclear weapons, not treaties, they may have helped, but in the main it was World War Two.

At the start of the war, the RAF had Gloster Gladiator biplanes. At the end, it had Glostor Meteor jet fighters. The leap in technology was stupendous - greater than in any other period of the same length.

If you want to understand the world as it is today, you have to know about World War Two. It explains the borders of nations, the technology, the political relationships. If you want people to understand the world, they have to remember what created it, and so it is important to remember World War Two.

It is a little bit of a pity that VE Day is the day to do it, since VJ Day was still to come. One day to cover the whole war better would be ideal, but a day had to be picked, and it is VE Day, which is understandable. For the British, it was closer to home.  Today, we have a one-day holiday to mark VE Day. 

And why should the British in particular remember this day? Because Britain risked it all, and damn near lost it all. In 1940, France fell in a couple of weeks, and the French surrendered and swapped sides. The French navy refused to carry on the fight and join the British, and went to war with Britain. The Germans held massive victory parades because the war was over and they had won. Russia was allied to Germany - one brutal dictatorship hand-in-hand with another. Britain was surrounded. To the east, France was ruled from Vichy with an Axis government, and the Netherlands and Belgium were conquered. To the north, Norway and Denmark were conquered too, with Quisling ruling Norway on the Axis side, and German battleships pouncing from the fjords, and airbases in range of Blighty. To the south was Spain, ruled by Franco and his Axis dictatorship. To the west was the wide cold Atlantic across which the Americans refused to join the war, completely convinced that if the British fought on, they would last but a few days. A US Gallop poll showed that the American public was evenly split over which side in the war was in the right.

It was over. The world had lost, and even Britain had for a while thrown in the towel. But then the nation changed direction, and made a decision that the whole world, including much of Britain at the time, thought was completely bonkers. Britain would honour her treaty with Poland and fight on, alone if need be, and at that time, she was completely alone. So be it. Fuck Hitler, and fuck everybody else who was doing nothing.

For the next two years, Britain limped from one defeat to the next, but kept going. Commonwealth nations answered the call and joined in. The British Indian army eventually became the biggest volunteer army of all time. Troops gathered, to fight against fascists and Nazis, from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the Caribbean, and beyond. The tiny fortresses of Gibraltar (expected to last two days) and Malta held out for the entire war, despite horrendous suffering.

All this effort was worth it, right? Tell me it wasn't for nothing. Tell me that the young women parachuted into France at night to organise the French resistance, many of whom were caught and shot but never betrayed their contacts - tell me that they weren't just silly girls having an adventure. Tell me that the stupendous loss of life in Stalingrad had some purpose to it. If not, then think about what this means - that you presumably don't think it important whether we are ruled by Nazis or not, or that perhaps you prefer non-Nazi regimes on the whole, but are unwilling to show the tiniest bit of gratitude for the astounding generation that fought World War Two and against the odds and all expectations managed to win it for us.

We are rich because of World War Two, we are safe because of World War Two, we are free and British because of World War Two. I get to be a YouTuber because of World War Two (I doubt the Nazi Party would have approved of user-generated content).

Why am I writing this? Not because it is VE Day, but because I last week heard actual British adults saying that commemorating VE Day was a stupid waste of time, since everyone who fought in the war is now dead. Well, some of them are not dead, actually, but even if they were, that is no excuse.'

[Spider]

Love our Queen, I do.

❤️

[tomski]

Spot on that @kent_white 

[L/H White]

Serious question, do we usually celebrate ve day or is this one more popular because we're in lockdown and nothing else to do?

I don't remember this much publicity for a previous one?

 

[tomski]

Just now, L/H White said:

Serious question, do we usually celebrate ve day or is this one more popular because we're in lockdown and nothing else to do?

I don't remember this much publicity for a previous one?

 

VE Day celebrated each year but not normally a bank holiday. This one is due to the close proximity of May Day bank holiday and 75th anniversary being a landmark year.

[Guest]

8 minutes ago, tomski said:

VE Day celebrated each year but not normally a bank holiday. This one is due to the close proximity of May Day bank holiday and 75th anniversary being a landmark year.

And that there are fewer left for future big anniversaries 

 

[leigh white]

I can remember the D Day landing anniversary in 1994, the turn out was brilliant in our local pub and BBQ, everyone dressed in 40s garb, i suppose it was just a normal day really.

[bolty58]

Watched all of the coverage with pride and emotion. Brought up by my maternal grandparents, stories of the war, both horrific and smile inducing in equal measure, were regular features of daily life and days like this bring back fond memories for me of that wonderful generation.

The younger generation who recite mindless shite about the so called 'evils' of patriotism are to be pitied. They just don't understand nor are they ever likely to. Not convinced Covid 19 inconveniences will be enough to get them there.

One thing I always have faith in. That little dot on the globe will always produce the right leaders to face any crisis. GSTQ.

[Good Knee]

Lest we forget! My dad did his bit with Bomber Command flew with the Canadian airforce as a flight engineer based at Linton on Ouse did 34 ops towards the end of the conflict,then flew on Liberators repatriating the troops from Libya he never spoke much about it and as I was doing my own thing as a teenager we weren't all that close and then the big C got him at 52 ,my old mums way of dealing with her grief was to sling everything of my dads away medals and his possessions from the war the lot,luckily I salvaged his flight log book and have been able to trace his wartime career through it.It was weird going into the memorial room at RAF Linton and seeing a photo of him with his squadron in front of an Halifax bomber makes me very proud. 

[Benny The Ball]

On 07/05/2020 at 20:14, MancWanderer said:

A bit deep maybe but for me this is to remember the end of families losing folk

My dad survived in the RAF in Gibraltar and the youngest brother survived being a marine commando. The middle brother set off on a bombing mission and plane and crew have never been found.

In his 70’s my dad decided to do a history degree at Salford Uni. His thesis was about the bombing of Dresden. The first Mrs Manc typed it out and I proof read it. It made very uncomfortable reading about what we did to the folk of Dresden. They should be remembered as well. No doubt at all that a lot of Germans were happy to see the end of the war 

Its funny how even on a relatively small messageboard like this , parts of different peoples posts resonate with others individual circumstances 

As soon as I read one line in your post it got me thinking of a family situation 

My wifes aunt who turned 99 in March was in the WAAF as a Wireless operator 

Whilst there she met an RAF crew member and she fell head over heels. 

Sadly he too set off on a mission and never returned. 

After the war she returned home and had a successful career in what was the GPO

Despite several offers in the intervening years she never married 

She remains in good health and like so many of that generation has a very positive outlook 

Yesterday she was more bothered about making sure the "Old People" ( who are all 15-20 years her junior but in failing health  ) up the road are coping with lockdown rather than celebrating 

On a brighter note for her 87th birthday I managed to get her to come up to Bolton for her first and only football match (v Arsenal ) - she loved it 

Something special about that generation 

 

 

[MancWanderer]

2 hours ago, Good Knee said:

Lest we forget! My dad did his bit with Bomber Command flew with the Canadian airforce as a flight engineer based at Linton on Ouse did 34 ops towards the end of the conflict,then flew on Liberators repatriating the troops from Libya he never spoke much about it and as I was doing my own thing as a teenager we weren't all that close and then the big C got him at 52 ,my old mums way of dealing with her grief was to sling everything of my dads away medals and his possessions from the war the lot,luckily I salvaged his flight log book and have been able to trace his wartime career through it.It was weird going into the memorial room at RAF Linton and seeing a photo of him with his squadron in front of an Halifax bomber makes me very proud. 

Times like this I browse through the photos of my Dad. He was with the RAF in Gibraltar that were dropping depth charges from Hudson Bombers on to the U-Boats in the Bay of Biscay. Attached photos are after they had their undercarriage shot away by a German fighter and they had to bellyflop the plane in the North African desert. The camels are the rescue party. 

10 years gone this year. A true Wanderer who followed them since his first game in the late 1920s