ALL ranks of D Company of the 2/6th Battalion of the Duke of Wellington's West Riding Regiment are seen here at Belle Vue Barracks, Bradford, in October 1939, soon after the outbreak of the Second World War. The fact that the photographer was W Bruce Johnston, of Keighley, suggests that a significant number of local men were included.
Territorial soldiers from this Battalion were stationed in Keighley early in the war. The Keighley News, subject to censorship, was unable to report details, but dances advertising cheap admission for "members of HM Forces (in uniform)" dropped hints.
During the early so-called 'phoney war', Keighley servicemen gave concerts in the Municipal Hall, featuring such turns as a brass quartet and accordion solos, two crooners and a comic wrestling match between the 'Lawkholme Kid' and the 'Demon Barber'.
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