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VE Day celebration was a quiet affair, with a meal at the Fleece Hotel in Richmond, North Yorkshire, before returning to his barracks at Catterick and drinking the Officers鈥� Mess dry.

Peter Royle was Lieutenant when the war started, fought along the Maginot Line in France in 1940, before being evacuated to the UK before the fall of France. From there it was to North Africa, then Sicily and Italy where he was wounded, and he returned to the UK in 1944 when his father died.

鈥淎fter compassionate leave, I got a posting as an instructor at a training regiment (in Catterick) teaching young recruits.鈥�

He was still there in May 1945, and remembers hearing the announcement that the war was over, with a sense of relief.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we had any sort of, apart from going to the pub and having a drink, we didn鈥檛 have any sort of mad dancing in the streets. Being on a course, in an army unit, we had to make as much of a celebration with our own fellow friends.

鈥淚 never thought that I would be posted to Japan, because there were lots of younger soldiers and younger airmen who would be more eligible than I was.鈥�

But despite being an instructor at Catterick, Peter still managed to end up with a sore head the day after the German surrender.

鈥淲e went in to Richmond and expected it to be a madly gay party, but the town appeared to be completely dead. We had a meal and a drink at one of the pubs (The Fleece in Victoria Road), then we came back to the (Officers) Mess in Catterick, where we were just in time to hear the King鈥檚 speech at 9 o鈥檆lock.

鈥淎nd then we all retired into the Mess and drank beer until midnight when the beer gave out. We then went to bed.鈥�

And Peter remembers that despite hearing the news of the war鈥檚 end from the King, there were no major celebrations, even after the broadcast.

鈥淗e was rather an uninspiring little man, but we heard Churchill鈥檚 speech earlier in the day, that was the sort of speech that inspired one, especially in 1940.

鈥淪o it was the King鈥檚 spoken, here鈥檚 a toast; let鈥檚 drink some more beer.鈥�

Image: Peter Royle

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