Bayonets and Blue Flames

Tom Barker's life began in a small town in Lincolnshire, England in 1921. He went from chasing rabbits and digging ditches to taking part in some of the British Army's most iconic battles of the first years of the Second World War. His life, and his part in these battles are detailed here. After leaving school and working as a labourer, Tom decided the only way up was to join the British Navy. Walking into the nearest recruitment office, Tom was soon enlisted in the 1st Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (the British Army). Little did he know that he would soon be swapping the Scottish mud, snow and freezing cold, for the heat of Palestine, Egypt, Crete, burning sand and lots of flies! He would take part in one of the British Army's longest bayonet charges of World War Two when the Argylls attacked the coastal fort of Sidi Barrani during "Operation Compass" in Egypt. In May 1941 the Argylls were sent to Crete just as the Germans carried out the largest airborne invasion up to that time which the Germans named "Operation Mercury" (The Battle of Crete). Acting as a sniper on Crete, Tom was wounded and taken prisoner. For the next four years he was placed in various prisoner of war (POW) camps in Germany, attempting to escape on a number of occasions. In the second half of the book Tom provides great detail of the daily life of a POW, sharing the humour, the absurd and at times the macabre. Told in his own voice, Tom takes the reader on a real-life journey mixed with humour, action, turmoil and lots of sand. His son James has edited Tom's original memoirs, and written chapters including background information on Palestine, the Italian invasion of Egypt and the Argylls' involvement in the Battle of Crete.