Although not a Notification of a Recent Death of a member of 10 Squadron, which would then be in the Obituaries section, the following brief mention nevertheless of the passing of a former Squadron crew member has recently come to light and may be of interest to our viewers.
It follows a recent enquiry which put our Historian Ian Macmillan in touch with a member of the Newmarket Archives who then revealed the following to us:
EDWARD CHARLES JAMES GARDNER, DFM (24 August 1924 – 3 May 2010)
Born in Newmarket, Suffolk, James Gardner was a 10 Sqn Halifax Sergeant Air Gunner during WW2 and later became an English actor of some renown.
Having been posted to 10 Sqn at RAF Melbourne from No 1658 Conversion Unit based at RAF Ricall near Selby, Yorks in November 1943, he and his crew, captained by Sgt L. Fenny completed some 30 operational sorties before being screened in July 1944. Gardner was then posted to Abingdon where he joined No 10 OTU (Operational Training Unit) in an instructional role. (Readers are reminded that there was no direct link between that OTU and No 10 Squadron.)
Whilst there Gardner was awarded the DFM in October 1944 for his earlier 10 Squadron activities.
His first cinematic appearance was in 1964 in The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb and he subsequently appeared in numerous other films and TV shows as well as in stage performances. His talents ranged from Shakespearian appearances in the theatre, to roles in block-buster movies such as Harry Potter when he played Knight Bus driver Ernie Prang in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the third film in the series of them.
Those interested in further reading might wish to follow these links.
Jimmy Gardner (actor) - Wikipedia
Gardner, Edward Charles James - TracesOfWar.com
LOOK HERE ....... HAVE YOU ONE OF THESE ?
A Defence Discount Service Privilege Card entitles all serving AND past members of the Services and their family relatives to obtain substantial discounts on shop and on-line purchases ranging from cars and holidays to smaller domestic items and services. The card costs £4.99 and is valid for 5 years. See below for further details. It seems churlish not to get one for just an outlay of only £4.99.
For further information and for a Card Application which may be made on-line, visit: www.defencediscountservice.co.uk or by telephone 01509 - 233446
After filling in the Application Form via their website, proofs of ID and past service are required. These may be Service Pension Payment Advice statements (with any private financial information suitably redacted), pages from your Record of Service, or other ID documents listed on their website.
Note: Please do not contact the Association if you have any questions about the above: ask the Defence Discount Service direct.
Shown below is Chairman Mike Westwood presenting 98 year-old Roy Maddock-Lyon with his 10 Squadron Association Honorary Life Membership Certificate at Roy’s home in Stoke Orchard, Glos. on 5 December 2022. The Association had been notified of Roy's whereabouts by the son-in-law of the late captain of a WW2 Halifax, lost over Denmark after a mine-laying mission in the Baltic.
Roy is the last surviving member of the crew of the 10 Sqn Halifax MZ 793, which was shot down over Denmark on the night of 14/15 February 1945. Two of the crew, Fg Off John Grayshan (capt) and FS Albert Berry (nav) were killed in the incident and they are buried about 35 miles west of Copenhagen at Holbaek, Zealand. Two others crew members (Plt Off Chaderton the air-bomber and Sgt Andrews the WOp) were taken as PoWs. whilst the rest, including former Halifax flight engineer Roy managed to evade capture.
Sadly, we said ‘Farewell’ to another member of that crew only recently, at a funeral service held on 1 December 2022 for Peter (Andy) Andrews, who died on the 8th November.
10 SQUADRON 'RIBBON OF REMEMBRANCE' STONE – IBCC LINCOLN
OUR STONE'S NOW IN PLACE
The 10 Squadron Ribbon Stone was laid during the first week of April 2022 in the IBCC Lincoln, Path Of Remembrance leading from the Chadwick Centre to the IBCC Spire.
The cost of the stone was raised by a crowd-funding appeal and the money was raised by both Squadron personnel and Association members. Those who contributed should feel proud that thanks to their kind donations, the memory of all who have ever served on No 10 Squadron will never be forgotten.
See: Plan Your Visit - International Bomber Command Centre (internationalbcc.co.uk)
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For those keen to see the Stone, the IBCC is situated on the south side of Lincoln in the area of Canwick. The Centre is on the B 1188 Sleaford road, going south-east from Lincoln towards Branston.
International Bomber Command Centre,
Canwick Avenue
LINCOLN LN4 2HQ
Tel: 01522 514755
Open: Tue - Sun 09:30 – 16:00 Closed Mondays except Bank Holidays. Last entry to the exhibition 15:00