ARmy Rumour SErvice

I bet those REMFs in Italy are on a right bluff. Someone should bubble them.

THE "D" DODGERS.
THERE IS A SONG EIGHT ARMY USED TO SING
MARCHING THRO THE DESERT, MARCHING WITH A SWING
BUT NOW THEY'RE ON A DIFFERENT GAME.
ALTHOUGH THE TUNE IS THE SAME
THE WORDS HAVE ALL BEEN ALTERED -THE WORDS WE'RE SINGING STILL
WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS HERE IN ITALY
DRINKING ALL THE VINO, ALWAYS ON THE SPREE,
WE DIDN'T LAND WITH EISIENHOWER
AND SO THEY THINK WE'RE JUST A SHOWER
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
HERE'S TO LADY ASTOR, OUR PIN UP GIRL OUT HERE
SHE'S THE DEAR OLD LADY, WHO SENDS US SUCH GOOD BEER
AND WHEN WE GET OUR ASTOR BAND
WE'LL BE THE PROUDEST IN THE LAND
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
SALERNO AND CASSINO WE'RE TAKIN IN OUR STRIDE
WE DIDN'T GO TO FIGHT THERE, WE WENT THERE FOR THE RIDE
ANZIO AND SANZIO WE'RE O. K.
JUST ANOTHER HOLIDAY
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
AROUND LAKE TRASIMANO WE HAD A LOVELY TIME
BAGS OF WINE AND WOMAN THERE, THEY DIDN'T COST A DIME
BASE WALLAHS, AMGOT AND THE YANKS
ALL STAYED IN ROME , TO DODGE THE TANKS
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
WE STAYED A WEEK IN FLORENCE POLISHED OF THE VINO
THEN THUMBED OUR WAY TO RIMINI THRO THE GOTHIC LINE
SOON TO BOLOGNA WE WILL GO
WHEN JERRYS GONE ACROSS THE PO
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
SOON THE BOYS IN FRANCE, WILL BE GETTING LEAVE
AFTER SIX MONTHS SERVICE ITS A SHAME THERE NOT RELIEVED
BUT WE CON CARRY ON OUT HERE
FOR WHAT MAY BE A FEW MORE YEARS
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
ONCE WE HEARD A RUMOUR WE WERE GOING HOME
BACK TO DEAR OLD BLIGHTY NEVER MORE TO ROAM
THEN SOME ONE SAID IN FRANCE YOU'LL FIGHT
WE ANSWERED "NO WE'LL JUST SIT TIGHT"
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
wHEN THE WAR IS OVER AND WE'VE DONE OUR BIT
CLIMBING OVER MOUNTAINS, THRO' MUD AND SLEET
THEN WE WILL ALL BE SENT OUT EAST
TILL B.L.A. HAVE BEEN RELEASED
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
FORGOTTEN BY THE MANY REMEMBERED BY THE FEW
WE HAD OUR ARMISTICE WHEN AN ARMESTICE WAS NEW
ONE MILLION GERMANS GAVE UP TO US
WE FINISHED OUR WAR WITHOUT MUCH FUSS
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY
IF YOU LOOK AROUND THE MOUNTAINS IN THE WIND AND RAIN

YOU'LL FIND THE SCATTERED CROSSES SOME WHICH BEAR NO NAME
HEART BREAK AND TOIL AND SUFFERING GONE
THE BOYS BENEATH THEM SLUMBER ON
FOR WE'RE THE "D" DAY DODGERS OUT HERE IN ITALY


Major Hamish Henderson
51st Highland Division

Originally Posted by tiger stacker

THE "D DAY DODGERS".

Major Hamish Henderson
51st Highland Division

Well, that Lady Astor must be stone deaf. The Jocks were marching to this two years before the same Maj Henderson penned D Day Dodgers

51st ( Highland ) Division's Farewell To Sicily

The pipie is dozie, the pipie is fey
He wullnae come roun for his vino the day
The sky owre Messina is unco an gray
An aa the bricht chaumers are eerie

Fareweill ye banks o Sicily
Fare ye weill ye valley an shaw
There's nae Jock will murn the kyles o ye
Aa the bricht chaumers are eerie
[Puir bliddy swaddies are wearie]
Fareweill ye banks o Sicily
Fare ye weill ye valley an shaw
There's nae hame can smour the wiles o ye
Aa the bricht chaumers are eerie
[Puir bliddy swaddies are wearie]

Then doun the stair an line the watterside
Wait yer turn the ferry's awa
Then doun the stair an line the watterside
Aa the bricht chaumers are eerie

The drummie is polisht, the drummie is braw
He cannae be seen for his wabbin ava
He's beezed himsell up for a photie an aa
Tae leave wi his Lola, his dearie

Fareweill ye banks o Sicily
Fare ye weill ye sheilin an haa
We'll aa mind shebeens an bothies
Whaur kind signorinas were cheerie
Fareweill ye banks o Sicily
Fare ye weill ye sheilin an haa
We'll aa mind shebeens an bothies
Whaur Jock made a date wi his dearie

Then tune the pipes an drub the tenor drum
Leave yer kit this side o the waa
Then tune the pipes an drub the tenor drum
Puir bluidy swaddies are wearie
[Aa the bricht chaumers are eerie]

by Hamish Henderson to the tune "Farewell To The Creeks", composed by Pipe-Major James Robertson

HEAR IT, and about it

Never fails to make the hair stand up on the back of my (Norman/English) neck.

After a recent re-ocurrence of the "old trouble", I was an in-patient at the RNH Haslar, in Gosport. what a great institution that is! A model of health professionalism, and a better basis for this mooted "National Health Service" there has yet to be found. Military Hospitals are wonderful- a place where you have common ground with ones fellow patients, a tonic in itself; only a fool would do away with such places.

Originally Posted by sfub

After a recent re-ocurrence of the "old trouble", I was an in-patient at the RNH Haslar, in Gosport. what a great institution that is! A model of health professionalism, and a better basis for this mooted "National Health Service" there has yet to be found. Military Hospitals are wonderful- a place where you have common ground with nes fellow patients, a tonic in itself; only a fool would do away with such places.

A bit prone to bombing but wrth it for some of the lovely QUARRNS- helped down to the cellars!

Just one bad part of my stay- there's always someone who thinks he is funny!

That Pertwee character was taken in to the wardroom fridge area (temporary mortuary), because they thought he had been killed by shrapnel. He woke up later when a body fell on him and didn't half give the watchman a fright!

Jon Pertwee seemed to think it was funny and kept on about going into comedy on the wireless when all this is over. Still I suppose he was ill, poor man and we shouldn't mock the afflicted.

Mind you, he was't the only one, there was a lad in the mob came in off an Atlantic Escort and he was talking about a young officer on his destroyer there who was going to become the biggest fishmonger in the country after the war! He goes on all the time apparently about starting a business on the East Coast, got the name planned and all that, "Young's Fish" he is going to be... dreaming, still if it gets him through the day, he'll probably end up on half pay at a hotel in Eastbourne!

3.11.1942 Our small but brilliant General Montgomery and his Desert Rats have smashed up Rommel at some place no one had heard of called El Alamein. Rodney says Rupert is involved there somehow as he shook sand out of Rupert’s last letter.

Originally Posted by tom_dkg

Mind you, he was't the only one, there was a lad in the mob came in off an Atlantic Escort and he was talking about a young officer on his destroyer there who was going to become the biggest fishmonger in the country after the war!

We've got a lunatic in our Regiment who keeps banging on about buying up bombsites in London and turning them into "National Car Parks" after the war. We humour him - he's completely mad! After all, why would anyone pay him to park on his bombsite when you can park right outside the place you are visiting? And how many cars does he think there will be? I mean, it's not as if everyone is going to be able to buy one!

Originally Posted by seaweed

3.11.1942 Our small but brilliant General Montgomery and his Desert Rats have smashed up Rommel at some place no one had heard of called El Alamein. Rodney says Rupert is involved there somehow as he shook sand out of Rupert’s last letter.

Monty was my cousin's CO before the war.

On one parade, Monty was on horseback and 'missed his mark' as they say in the theatre - he halted his horse off-centre to the rest of the battalion.

When the adjutant (sotto voce) pointed this out, instead of shuffling himself into position - Monty had the whole Battalion do "5 Paces - Left Close - March!"

I think the GOC was inspecting at the time. Quite a character - but you wouldn't want to get on his wrong side.

Still, now our country cousins from America are getting involved, I expect he'll be able to teach them a thing or two, eh?