Simon Buckley

Simon Buckley left school at the age of 14 in 1969, and spent the next 20 years working with merchant ships, salvage tugs and cranes on the Manchester Ship Canal. Many of the teenager's colleagues had served in the Royal and Merchant Navies in the Second World War. The decline of shipping in the 1980s led Simon to take a number of construction jobs which coincided with his diagnosis of dyslexia at the age of 35. Nevertheless, he embarked upon a Batchelors followed by a Masters Degrees in Construction Engineering, and Simon worked in this field for the next 20 years.

Since retirement, Simon has been involved in the restoration of military vehicles, the manufacturing of parts for wartime vehicles, motorcycles and bicycles, and he actively supports a number of military vehicle events around the country. With more time on his hands, Simon started to delve into the contents of his family's archive, and began to piece together the achievements of a man who had featured in Simon's childhood although at the time he did not have any real understanding of what his great uncle had been through.  

Uncovering these remarkable events led Simon on a voyage of discovery, both in research and travelling in Bob's footsteps, to bring his fascinating story to life.

Major Challoner, Haven't You Done Enough?

Bob Challoner knew that war was on its way in 1937. Aged 45, small in stature with only one eye, and still suffering from wounds sustained twenty years earlier, he applied to rejoin the army.

His was a distinguished First World War record, being Mentioned in Dispatches and awarded a Military Cross. Despite this, his first encounter with the army recruiters was less than positive. They tried to let him down gently, asking whether he really wanted to engage in active service again? Not so easily deterred, Bob enquired through other channels and managed to rejoin the Army.

At the outbreak of war, he was appointed Commanding Officer of 111 Company of the Pioneer Corps. Major Challoner had accepted that his days of front-line action were over and instead focused on moulding his new recruits into an effective dock labour company to maintain the Allies’ supply lines. Little did he know that he and his men would be called upon to defend against Rommel’s tanks and he would receive a second Military Cross and again be Mentioned in Dispatches for his actions. After being captured by the Germans and imprisoned in Bavaria and France, Bob, determined to rejoin the fight, led an audacious 13 man escape attempt with the help of the French Resistance.