D Day Dodgers my father in law was one from Tunisia right through to Greece in 46 he said there was hell to pay when they heard what had been said , an probably an urban myth that it was one of our boys that wrote it (Recces) We took dad to a WW2 event and Paul Harper had just finished performing DDay Dodgers on stage as he was walking out of the marquee I said to dad you just missed your song PH overheard what I had just said , stopped took out his banjo and sung it again just for dad it brought tears to dads eyes my eyes my wife's eyes and Paul Harper's eyes and now that dad has passed away every time we hear it it still does in remember acne of Sgt A V Studley. 10600826 13 Assault troop 4th Recce Shanks
4 Recce Regt. That would place your Dad squarely at the Fourth Battle of Cassino in May 44. Regards FdeP
Since offering to give an illustrated talk to my local U3A entitled "I was a D-Day Dodger" I have had to refresh my memory by doing a bit of further research on the subject. With the advantage of plenty of time before I actually give the talk, my opening comments are changing every day, but it will certainly include the following: The use of the term “D-Day Dodgers” is a classic example of a legend based on a misconception. The term came into being after the Normandy Landings (June 1944) when an unnamed soldier in Italy wrote a letter to Lady Astor. Not wishing to give his real name, he used the nom-de-plume of “A D-Day Dodger”. In her reply, and not knowing his real name, she began her letter with “Dear D-Day Dodger” and so the legend began. Lady Astor always firmly denied using the term before that date and there is no evidence that she ever did so, certainly not in Parliament and so not recorded in Hansard. Once the term was established, it immediately had a life of its own and became the title of a popular song within the Forces in Italy, the original version being credited to a Captain Hamish Henderson, who hailed from Edinburgh. There were numerous versions, the lyrics forever changing, but always sung to the tune of Lili Marlene, written by Hans Liep and sung by cabaret star Lale Anderson. This song was played by German radio, every night, to the German troops in Egypt and subsequently “adopted” by the British “Desert Rats” The term D Day Dodgers will always remain strictly sarcastic, as, in contrast to the implication that the troops in Italy were actually “dodging” D Days they had survived at least three D-Days of their own, namely, in North Africa, Sicily & Italy and had incurred thousands of casualties. In addition troops and supplies had been taken away or diverted from the CMF to strengthen the Normandy Front. What originally started off as a possible “put-down” of the British Forces in Italy is nowadays regarded as a badge of honour and one that I am still proud to share Ron
Thinking about Lady Astor........ There is a famous quote regarding her & Churchill that goes as follows: Lady Astor to Churchill: "If you were my husband I'd put poison in your drink !" Churchill: "Madam, if you were my wife I'd probably drink it !" Ron
My father was a 'D-Day dodger', an RE with the 8th Army in Egypt, North Africa and Italy. He always said that the only people he was truly frightened of were the Australians!
Roy. Do you know which Field Company he served in. His comment about the Australians must been early in the war because after the Japanese entered the conflict Australian ground forces were withdrawn back to their mother country. Only the RAAF remained and served in Italy. Regards Frank
Hello Frank, I have no idea, as far as I can work out he went to Egypt late in 1940 - that could be where he met the Australian troops before their February 1942 withdrawl. The only ship that fits his description is the Nea Hellas. I haven't obtained his service record. I know that after VE day he was in Austria supervising a unit building pre-fabricated homes for refugees. Regards, Roy
Spotted my Dad's convoy (the Duchess of York sailing along with the Nea Hellas) - departing on Nov 14th 1942 from the Clyde to Algiers, my Dad said they boarded the ship on 11/11.. the DoY was sunk in July 1943.
Roy. Getting a copy of your father's Service Record will pin down which Fd Coy RE he was in and open up a whole new world of information for you. Info on how to contact APC Glasgow is on this site. Regards Frank
Gary Lineker documentary Gary Lineker tries to discover why his grandfather and other WW2 troops were dubbed 'D-Day Dodgers' | Daily Mail Online
I think that Wall to Wall - the makers of Who do you think you are are behind this. If I am right then Lineker's grandfather was a medical orderly in 185 Field Ambulance in 128 Infantry Brigade, 46 Infantry Division. Regards Frank
Airing this Monday at 9pm on BBC1 I believe. It should certainly be worth a look and I, for one, will have a personal interest in perhaps seeing where grandad saw action.
Presenter Gary Lineker follows in the footsteps of his late grandad, Stanley Abbs, to explore a brutal but often overlooked chapter of the Second World War. "...Gary knows that Stanley served in Italy in the Royal Army Medical Corps, but knows little more because, although they were close, his grandad never talked to him about that time. To discover the true story behind his grandfather’s war experiences and to better understand why the British were fighting there, Gary travels to Italy. Using the official war diary kept by Stanley’s unit as a guide, Gary revisits the places where his grandad was stationed and meets experts who help him piece together what happened to his grandfather during the Italian campaign. Along his journey Gary also meets veterans who share poignant first-hand testimony and help him to understand the unremitting reality of combat in Italy. Gary has also heard that despite their heroism the soldiers in Italy came to be called the ‘D-Day Dodgers’ and he wants to know why. As Gary finds out about the huge sacrifices made and how much the veterans endured, he is determined to make sure that they, as well as his grandfather, receive the recognition they deserve and that their huge contribution is never forgotten..."
A cautionary word. Hansard was not a verbatim record and because something is not quoted in it doesn't mean that it wasn't said in Parliament. Back in the late 1970's a member of CCTA's C6 was seconded to the Palace of Westminster to do a report for a select committee on Parliament's future computer needs. That was me. Computerisation of Hansard was one thing I was asked to look at. I discovered that Hansard reported the general gist of what was said and there was editing. Foot in mouths and unparliamentary expressions often got left out as sometimes were quite memorable turns of phrase. There are quite well known Churchillian quotes which cannot be found in Hansard but are present in the notes for his speech and recorded in other politicians memoires. Amongst these are the one insulting Chamberlain about choosing dishonour rather than war and getting war. I suspect that the writers of the Hansard records could be a little over deferential and concerned with parliamentary dignity. That said I have been unable to find any other record of Astor having used the phrase in contemporary accounts.She was very outspoken and not afraid to take ownership of what she said so her denials are believable.
I wonder if the D Day Dodgers sobriquet was a reworking of a WW1 trope. The "sideshows" including Italy were often, incorrectly, regarded as "cushy" numbers compared to the Western Front. "Mesopolonika" was the slang for these - soldiers who found themselves there took a different view - hence the comment "When God first made Hell He decided that it was too easy on the damned so He added flies and called it Mesopotamia"
