Clevedon's Pathfinder (1943)

Some time ago, I was privileged to spend time with 103 year old RAF Bomber Command veteran Arthur Spencer, who lives just a few hundred metres from my home. Brought up in Southampton, where his father - a veteran of the Great War - supplemented his disability pension by working as a postman, Arthur joined the RAF as soon as he left school in 1940 aged 19 years. I asked him why he had joined up, and his answer couldn't have been clearer.

There was a madman marching his armies all over Europe and something needed to be done to stop him.

Apparently so many young men had applied to join the Royal Air Force in the aftermath of the Battle of Britain, that there was a delay in the start of Arthur's training. The gap was filled through service as an Air Raid Precautions Warden (ARP) in his home town. At that point Southampton hadn't experienced what Arthur describes as 'the big raids' but it had been hit quite hard.

A flyer for Arthur Spencer's autobiography

In November 1940 Arthur put on a blue RAF uniform for the first time, and started on an accelerated training schedule that was to take him to various locations around the UK and to North America. Along with fellow cadets he spent time manning air defences at RAF Watton in Norfolk in between 8 week training courses which had been collapsed down to 5 weeks in order to feed the demand for fully trained flyers more quickly. After a difficult journey to Halifax in Canada via Iceland Arthur trained on Stearman PT-13s down at Lakeland in Florida before progressing to monoplanes. After being 'washed out' in Florida, Arthur trained as a Navigator back in Canada and subsequently returned to the UK where he completed advanced training, was allocated to Bomber Command and underwent 'conversion' to Lancasters at RAF Swinderby. In December 1942 Arthur was allocated to 97 Squadron based at RAF Woodhall Spa (coincidentally the town where I grew up, indeed my first job was as a waiter at the Petwood Hotel which served as the Officer's Mess during the war years).

One of the buildings which still stands at RAF Woodhall Spa

After teaming up with his new crew, which included pilot Jimmy Mullen, Arthur begun his operational career at the start of the new year (Sadly, Jimmy was killed on active service during his third Tour of Operations and is commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial). On Arthur's second operation over Dusseldorf in January 1943, the reality of war was writ large.

By the time we got to the target, the navigator's job was done. We would sit behind the pilot in a space blacked out with dividers and curtains so the route could be plotted in decent light. After my job was done, I pushed the curtain back and climbed through to the pilot. I was amazed to see the sky illuminated with searchlights and flak. I thought to myself 'can we really fly through that!'. I was scared at the time, but we all got used to it.

 After about 20 Operations from Woodhall Spa, 97 Squadron was chosen to join the Pathfinder Force. 3 crews were allocated to 617 Squadron (The Dambusters), several were stood down, and the rest of the men were posted with 97 Squadron to RAF Bourn where they undertook new training on the use of more sophisticated radar and bomb aiming. Their job would be to light up and mark targets. The former by using Target Indicators which were flares that ignited at 3,000 feet.

Avro Lancaster at RIAT in 2014

Arthur Spencer's life in medals and badges

In all Arthur would complete two Tours, one of 30 Operations and One of 15. just under half of these were with the Pathfinders. Many of the Operations that Arthur was involved with, are recounted in his book. Having visited Peenemunde in Germany a few years ago, I was particularly interested in hearing about Operation Hydra (17/18 August 1943). Peenemunde, near Rugen Island on the Baltic Coast was a special weapons establishment where V1 and V2 rockets were being developed under a cloak of secrecy.

At the briefing we were told that a new type of radar was being developed at Peenemunde. We were to hit the target in the following sequence: The living quarters of the scientists, the development works and the factory. We were also warned about a nearby Polish PoW Camp. It was the first raid to be conducted with a Master of Ceremonies (A Master Bomber who would oversee the target marking in real time). We were told that if we weren't successful, then we would need to go every night until it was!

 Eight mosquitoes were sent over Berlin to mark targets as a decoy, so as to keep the German night fighters busy. It worked, we got back safely. However, once the Luftwaffe knew was happening the night fighters tracked north and 40 Lancs were lost in subsequent waves. We did see one shot down 20 miles or so away over Flensburg, They must have gone off course and we watched as the aircraft was 'coned' by searchlight beams.

Peenemunde - now a 'dark' tourist attraction

Arthur Spencer's log-book showing Operation Hydra

Another memorable Operation was the bombing of Frederikshaven which was so far into Axis territory that the Lancasters flew on and landed in North Africa. On the way back to their home base at Bourn the Lancs dropped bombs on the Italian naval base at La Spezia. Arthur recalls the Lancaster pilots competing to get back to their bacon and egg breakfast at Bourn, with some encouragement from the CO.

I didn't want to outstay my welcome, so I will wait for the book to hear more, but to complete the wartime story, Arthur unsurprisingly turned down the opportunity to fly a third Tour and moved down to Foggia in Southern Italy as an instructor. Following the war he settled down to civilian life with his wife of 79 years Eva, and two daughters. Arthur worked for BOAC for a while before undertaking a successful career in education. 

The image below shows Arthur Spencer with members of the Bristol 'Independent Company' and various young relatives. Arthur delivered a fascinating Q&A style talk in June 2025.

Copyright: Phil Curme

Sadly, since writing this article, Arthur Spencer passed away. Yesterday (12 Feb, 2026), on what would have been Arthur's 105th birthday I, along with many other people who had known this remarkable man, joined the extended Spencer family for a memorial event at Somerset County Cricket Club. It was a tremendously moving occasion - a celebration of a life, well lived.

Arthur Spencer Memorial, Somerset County Cricket Ground

Details of Flight Lieutenant Arthur Spencer's book can be found here: A Pathfinder in the Peenemunde Raid

An account of my visit to Peenemunde is here: A Visit to Peenemunde

My portfolio of photos taken at the old RAF Woodhall Spa airfield in 2007 here: RAF Woodhall Spa

Shepton Mallet Military Prison (1939 -1966)

Shepton Mallet Prison, formally known as HMP Shepton Mallet, occupies a distinctive place in British military history, not only because of its well-known use by the United States Army during the Second World War, but also due to its earlier and later roles as a British military prison (a 'Glasshouse'). Constructed in 1625 as a house of correction, it became England’s oldest continuously operating prison until its closure in 2013, at which point it carried a Category C designation. The prison is now open to the public and my wife and I recently spent a fascinating afternoon there, exploring the cavernous buildings with the help of a truly excellent guide.

The Exercise Yard at HMP Shepton Mallet

Before American involvement, Shepton Mallet was already being used by the British military authorities. During the First World War, the prison was taken over by the War Office and used as a military detention facility for British servicemen. It held soldiers convicted by court martial, including deserters, those guilty of insubordination, and men who had committed criminal offences while in uniform. As with many wartime military prisons, its purpose was both punitive and corrective, reinforcing discipline within a mass citizen army under unprecedented strain. The prison’s isolation and severe conditions made it well suited to this role.

C Wing with escape room 'guard'

Shepton Mallet’s most famous military phase came during the Second World War. In 1942 the facility, having operated as a British military prison since 1939 (for the second time), was transferred to the control of the United States Army, becoming the only US-run military prison on British soil. Officially designated the 2903rd United States Army Disciplinary Training Center, it housed American servicemen convicted of serious crimes under US military law. Between 1942 and 1945, the prison held over 700 US soldiers and was the site of eighteen wartime executions, including sixteen hangings undertaken carried out by the renowned executioner Thomas Pierrepoint under American authority. The remaining executions were carried out by firing squad as the prisoners involved had committed crimes against service personnel rather than civilians. 

The execution wall at Shepton Mallet

The execution wall is a sombre place, made more so when one realises that on the right hand side there are seven unmarked civilian graves. Apparently in some instances a sentence would apply after death insofar as a burial place had to remain unmarked for one hundred years. The last civilian burial of this type (one of the seven) was in 1926 so at the end of this year the seven graves can be named or the bodies reinterred (the seven names are known, but not the order in which they were buried - they are in date sequence but it is not known whether the sequence runs left to right or visa versa). The two servicemen shot at the wall were Private Alex Miranda (30 May 1944) and Benjamin Pygate (18 November 1944). The presence of the graves and the fact that they could not be moved, almost certainly saved the site from redvelopment.

Previously, on Saturday, 14th December 1940, three British servicemen were killed at the prison in a tragic accident. The three - Frank Girvan, Glen Williams and Harold Smith were paying cards with one other having been put in 'Room 142' for what our guide said was for a relatively trivial disciplinary offence. It was a cold night and the men were playing cards around a gas lamp. To stop a draught a towel was placed under the door and sadly the four were found asphyxiated - one survived. The location of Room 142 is unknown but a plaque in the Second World War era gatehouse records the incident. 

Plaque to three British Army prisoners 

The American period did not mark a complete break from British military use. After the end of the war in Europe, Shepton Mallet was returned to British control and once again used, briefly, to hold British military prisoners. In the immediate post-war years, it housed members of the British armed forces convicted of offences under military law, including desertion and violent crime, reflecting the ongoing need for military detention facilities even after active hostilities had ended. Post war the Kray Twins and Charlie Richardson spent time in the Shepton Mallet Glasshouse - the former for refusing National Service.

Today, Shepton Mallet Prison stands as a rare physical reminder of military incarceration on British soil. Its history as both a British and American military prison illustrates the often-overlooked role of military justice in wartime and underscores how global conflict reshaped even long-established local institutions.

Link corridor between the wings

C Wing - home of the National Archive during WW2

During the Second World War one part of the prison sat outside US Army jurisdiction. This was C Wing which is used as safe, bomb proof storage for government and national archive material. Public Record Office (PRO) documents, legal and administrative records considered essential for the post war state and some historically important papers were stored in the cells which extended over three floors. A custodian and his family lived on the first floor and the wall of the block was breeched to allow quick access to the exterior. Our guide told us that one of the children had returned recently, and told how he used to run a toy train along the walkways on the second level. 

Should you visit? 

Well, this what I said in my five star Trip Advisor Review: We were absolutely blown away by our experience. The guided tour provided fascinating insights into the prison over the years. Our guide was exceptional - knowledgeable, passionate and with an obvious pride in making the visitor experience as good as it could possibly be. She succeeded. In the afternoon we had a similarly brilliant experience in one of the escape rooms. Every member of staff was totally attuned to excellent service. As for the prison itself - authentic and awesome!