Frank Walsh
Away so long, Frank’s own daughter didn’t recognise him
Wartime stories from the Royal Exhibition Building
During World War II, the Royal Exhibition Building (or Exhibition Buildings, as the complex was known then) was occupied by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), as a barracks and training base.
Thousands of Women's Auxiliary Air Force and RAAF personnel passed through its great hall in those war years, making the best of cramped conditions in the once-grand buildings.
When the war ended, some left behind personal belongings, while others carried their memories with them—passing them on to the next generation.
These are some of their stories.
Dot Quinn and Reg Hubbard
Only war could keep them apart
Dick Thompson
‘You could see the bombs falling out of the aircraft’
Norma Hornby
First to receive the news the war was over
Royce Phillips
Fleeting war-time love: Royce & Roma
Alan Walton
‘We would have been better off in tents!’
Lindsay Walter
‘The longest four hours I can remember’
Norm White
Driven by duty
Jack Van Emden
Joined the RAAF with a bicycle and fishing tackle
Howard Baskerville
‘Pure torture for a north Queenslander’
Dick Colbert
An unlucky charmer who found his feet
Howard Kellehear
From camp cook to Pacific campaigner
Dennis Varigos
From digger to druggist
