Eleven years ago, this story started its journey and unveiled a missing chapter in our family history. From the moment that Henry Horscroft wrote to my mother in 2012, on a quest to search out relatives of Lancaster ED305, this missing chapter has gone from a blank page to the unveiling of events that were unknown.
 
In 2013, members of the family visited Denmark to see for the first time the magnificent granite commemorative stone erected in memory of the crew of ED305, lost back in 1943. As reported in an earlier newsletter, the unveiling of the monument on 10th of March 2013 gave the seven young men their final resting place and those who were once lost to us were lost no more.

Fast forward to the present day and the story opens up another chapter – a much happier one.

The scene: a family are sitting having dinner, on a day like any other, when suddenly their mother makes a statement: “I don’t suppose you know, but your father was not my first love.” We can only imagine the looks of interest, plus surprise, around the table.

Similarly, on another day like most days, Philip Leckenby was checking emails and was intrigued by the following post. On 17 Feb 2023, at 01:36, Noel Owens wrote:

“Looking for any information on a Lancaster shot down I think 10th of March 1943 in the Denmark area. I think the bombing operation was laying mines and the Lancaster in question was shot down by a fighter and a ship. The reason why is I'm looking for information on a crew member. I think he was a sergeant and his name is Charles Victor Brown from Northamptonshire. Hope you can help. Thanks in advance.” 

This is where the  start of the happier and very touching part of the story begins. In 1940 Charles Victor Brown is posted to Cheshire to undertake bomber crew training. During this time he fell in love with a local girl, Ethel. As with all young men of the time, any pass issued for leave saw them at a dance hall, possibly to stand around the walls watching the dancing. Then on a special night in the dance hall the dynamic very much went askew. Charles is now compelled to move away from the wall and pitch his best chat up line: “Hello – You have just stepped out of my dream.” Ethel remembered those exact words. That was the start of three happy and romantic years for Charles and Ethel. They met on that wonderful  night in Crewe, Ethel was 18 and Charles 19.

This was the story that Ethel had started to reveal  to her family as they were seated having dinner that night. From their first night, each meeting only went to strengthen the relationship and love blossomed. As Charles progressed with his training, Thursdays and Saturdays became the highlights of his week. On Thursdays Charles  would meet up with Ethel in Crewe and they would go to the pictures to watch the latest blockbuster film - possibly more than once! Saturday was dance night and they would meet up to dance the night away. This inevitably led to Charles being introduced to Ethels’ family, and later he would stay with them on his visits to see Ethel when issued with an overnight pass. It was then Charles’s turn to show off Ethel to his mother and father and all his friends and family in Irchester, Northamptonshire.

The romance had now grown into true love and Charles plucked up the courage to go down on one  knee and ask Ethel if she would marry him. As with all good romances (… pause for dramatic effect…) and then the answer, of course, was yes. This was a time of great joy for both families, especially for  Ethel , as it turned into a double engagement alongside her sister Violet. Violet had also fallen in love - with a South African flyer - which led to both couples planning to have a joint wedding. This double wedding was sadly never to be. As we now know Charles, on that fateful night of 10th March 1943, did not return from the ‘Gardening’ mission to lay mines in the Baltic. This was, mysteriously, also the very night Ethel’s aircrew sweetheart brooch that Charles had given to her as sign of his devotion, went missing. I can only imagine the heartbreak that  the news Charles was missing brought. The only comfort is that they did however have 3 wonderful years together. When the news came that Charles was missing, Ethel came to Irchester to stay with Charles’s parents, Gus and Alice.

This story touched our family in so many ways. In the short life of so many in this period, the feeling of delight in finding out the joy Charles and Ethel found together was priceless. To add to the joy that Charles and Ethel had together, Ethel later married, which brings us back to the family dinner that night - and the start of this story.

Ethal today with her daughter and son