My Dad told me years ago that a photographer wanted them to stage a photo of a wounded soldier, Dad said he was angry and told him that if he went down the road a few miles he could get the real thing. Dad said that the journalists were staying in hotels miles behind the lines. I always thought that the photos was never taken, Then in 1994 on the anniversary of D Day this photo was in the Daily Mail. Dad cut it out and showed it to me, Dad said it was in the Picture Post. He refused to take part in it, The only name i know of the men in the photo is Sgt "Jumbo" Wicks.
Very interesting. So do you know if they are Queensmen in the picture? It seems journalists didn't really understand what was going on and very few pictures were frontline.
Hi Nick, from what Dad said they were all Queen's men. Dad was a good friend of Jumbo. they always met at the reunions.
I'm not a journalist, although I've worked with lots ; the good, the bad and the ugly. There may be many reasons why very few pictures were 'frontline' - wherever that was, but I think the notion of journalists in hotels miles behind the lines is tired, while possessed of a grain of truth, like most myths. In WW1, Kitchener promised to shoot any journalist he found in France but Basil Clarke lived like a fugitive to get news out from the front. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2540229/Basil-Clarke-Daily-Mail-man-went-trenches-bowler-hat.html I'm not sure if Tim Hetherington or Robert Capa or James Foley or any of the other hundreds and thousands of journalists who died reporting from war zones would agree that they didn't understand what was going on. Given a choice between getting our heads shot or blown off and finding a slightly less dangerous place to get a photograph which attempted to tell what life might be like in a war zone, I think most of us would choose the latter. I think the modern hatred of journalists - and some of them richly deserve it, tends to blind us to all examples of the type. And wearing a uniform doesn't mean the man in it is a hero - plenty of soldiers ran away or hid from their duties and responsibilities. Very few photographs of, 'the front line' exist, mostly because they show us very little - out of focus, taken from far too far away, grainy and blurred. A great deal of the photographs we consider as battle photographs were reconstructed in some shape or form - and that doesn't mean 'faked'. As soon as you ask someone to stay still a minute or move out of the way, you're constructing reality. Reality is messy and unframeable. My dad said the bravest man he ever saw was a War Correspondent in a hedge in Normandy on or just after D-Day. Dad thought he was listening to the gramophone, but he was making a recording on a so-called midget recorder' - actually a disc cutter weighing over 40lbs. Just because reporters weren't embedded with troops like the German PK doesn't mean they weren't in the front line. I quote from http://www.orbem.co.uk/repwar/wr_prep.htm - a history of the BBC in WW2 "The idea of forming a War Reporting Unit took shape in January 1943. It was responsible for selecting and deploying correspondents, engineers and equipment, and providing material to all programmes which included war news. Staff were seconded from their normal departments. Those new to war reporting went through a special training course. They were taught all manner of military skills, went on assault courses and learned to live rough. Some were attached to regular army units and shared their training. When the moment for action came, these men had already earned the army's respect."
Whilst it is fair to say that there was a lot of Propoganda staged photographs, some which I believe have been posted on this Forum, many were taken at the risk of life and limb by the cameramen. I have seen reports and have a DVD regarding American WW2 Cameramen with the Marines and many paid the ultimate price for taking Combat Footage. Some actually had to pick up arms to defend themselves and the soldiers around them. I would say that they were a brave bunch of men. Regards Tom
I'm with Tom - even staging a photograph might have been incredibly risky - 65 journalists have been killed in Syria alone since the civil war began.
I am sure that there were many brave journalists during the war i don't doubt that at all. All i am trying to do is to go through my Dads things and add the stories that he told me. im sure he wasn't in a good mood when the photo was taken. Part of me wishes that Dad was in the photo. I would love to know where to find the other photos that were on that roll of film. i just thought that it made an interesting post of an unknown photo. i notice that all the badges have been blanked out. Here is a photo from his note book about not wearing the Africa Star until the ship sailed for Normandy on D Day + 2
That is interesting. I don't remember reading anything about this in the War Diaries. I can't make out all of what the note says sadly. Maybe it was to do with when it was awarded to the men?
Here is a closer photo of it ,it says " Africa Star, Not to be worn until Ship sails (Or Landed) no mention in letters about it"
Clive - as you know what newspaper the clipping was from, it may well be possible to track down the journalist/photographer. Picture Post employed lots of them and also used material shot by the Army Film and Photographic Unit. I'm not a Picture Post expert and it's more difficult to search the archive now Getty Images have taken over as the online search seems completely a-historical and designed to help advertisers primarily. The photo reminds me of the work of Leonard McCombe who was in Normandy for Picture Post at the time, but I'm guessing. The Daily Mail should have credited the agency who own the picture now.
Now that is interesting it is almost as if it was to be kept secret that they had them. All I can think it was some sort of per-embarkation security I will ask some of my friends their opinions.
Do these picture credits help in narrowing things down ? We now know who the Padre is - E.C. Castle - It's a clearer image, at least.
Hi, The War diary of 1/5 Queens (WO171/1366) records the padre as being V.C. Castle, R.A.Ch.D. and notes that he had joined the Bn on 20 January 1943. I have him still with the Bn on 3 September 1944, not sure after that. Cheers Tom
Well done, Tom. That's why I couldn't find him. There are some more photos of him here - http://www.unithistories.com/officers/army_officers_c01.html
WOW Hi Rich, and many many thanks for this photo . it makes doing a post so worthwhile. And thank you too Tom. Do to know the name of the Padre who was in Africa? as i have a very funny story of Dads about how Dad broke the Padres arm on a German Motor Cycle and side car.
