Author Sinclair McKay will visit Halifax to share his ground-breaking research into one of World War Two’s key events, the battle of Dunkirk.
McKay will discuss his eagerly-awaited new book The Moments of Dunkirk which draws on fresh interviews with veterans to paint a vivid picture of the battle and the spirit of the time.
McKay, who will give a talk at the Victoria Theatre, said: “With Dunkirk and the Second World War, there is an added urgency. There’s a sense of history being just at the edge of living memory.
“The Dunkirk veterans I interviewed were all in their mid-90s and there is that sense that you want to capture every single word, every last story, every close-up detail.”
McKay is passionate about sharing the veterans’ unique and touching stories.
He added: “There were some veterans who – having spent nightmarish days under heavy bombing, with slaughter all around them – recalled the dazzling oddness of getting back to England and seeing cricket being played under the very same blue skies that – just 30 miles away – Stukas were screaming down from.
“Audiences will be familiar with the images of little boats rescuing soldiers at Dunkirk, however they probably won’t know that some of these still chug up and down the Thames as disco boats.
“Nor will they know how it felt to be an RAF signalsman who spent the whole time disguised in a great coat and wellies to avoid a beating from British soldiers who were convinced the RAF was not doing enough.”
McKay’s Spirit of Dunkirk: Ordinary Lives in Extraordinary Times is at the Victoria Theatre on September 28. For details ring 01422 351158.
