Lancastria: Bill Hughes

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Summary

Interview about the sinking of the Lancastria on 17.6.1940 with Bill Hughes, a baker on the ship, at his home on 12 May 1998.

Year:

1998

Duration:

3:30:00

Film type:

Colour / Sound

Genre:

Oral History

Master format:

DVD

Description

Single shot interview with Bill Hughes who was a baker on the Lancastria when it was sunk by German aircraft off Saint Nazaire, France during the Second World War.


Credits

No credits specified


Notes

The Lancastria was a Cunard liner that was anchored five miles off the French coastal town of Saint Nazaire on 17 June 1940 to help in the evacuation of soldiers from the British Expeditionary Force as well as civilians fleeing the advancing German armies in the first summer of the Second World War. With approximately 7,000 people on board, the exact number is not known, the ship was bombed and sunk by German aircraft. Less than 3,000 survived. This was the largest single loss for the British during World War Two and Churchill, the prime minister at the time, decided to suppress the information believing that its release would damage the nation's morale too severely.