Book released by Northampton resident to share her father’s truth of being captured at war

A Northampton resident has released a book to share her father’s truth of being a Far Eastern prisoner of war during World War Two.

Captured at Singapore, released on June 30, was written by Jill Robertson and based on a small, faded address book secretly penned by her father - Stanley Moore - and his 1990s tape recordings.

Jill said: “My dad would be chuffed and proud to have had his story told at last. It would be a relief to get it out there.

“I know he wouldn’t have entertained the idea of telling the story himself, so I’m glad I got to do it.

“I wish I had asked my father more questions while I had the chance.”

Jill’s interest in uncovering and sharing the truth of her father’s time as a ‘prisoner’ was sparked when she met Fergus Anckorn in 2012 - a Far East prisoner of war who was captured in Japan aged 23.

Fergus was Jill’s point of contact for any questions she would have liked to ask her father and he had artefacts that confirmed what Stanley had written and recorded.

Jill, who describes herself as a “walking library” after all the research she has done for the book, said: “War stories aren’t told enough these days, and people don’t want to listen and understand.

“The 150,000 men who were taken prisoner were brave and courageous - and they all had unique experiences.”

In 1940, Stanley and his fellow soldiers in the Royal Army Service Corps believed they were being trained to fight against Hitler and fascism in the Middle East.

However, they were set off on a secret overseas mission to the other side of the world as the Imperial Japanese Army rampaged across Asia.

After an unexpected attack on Pearl Harbour, Jill’s father, among thousands of others, was sent to fight the Japanese.

The story tells of Stanley’s journey and arrival under shellfire, the “horrific” 17-day battle to defend the island, and the “harrowing forced labour conditions after capitulation”.

Only a small percentage of the 85,000 British troops returned after the war, and Jill’s book aims to educate future generations on the conditions they faced and how the lucky survived.

Jill recently attended a book signing in Weston Favell Shopping Centre and said: “Having the opportunity to talk to others about their family members and learning they were friends with my dad is the joyful side of such a bad time for them.”

She met a couple who were interested to find out more about the man’s father, and Jill’s book helped them understand what he may have experienced.

A significant part of Captured at Singapore is the reference to the address book, which played a big role in piecing the story together, and Jill hopes this will be the focus of her next book with Pen and Sword.

She hopes to tell the stories of the 38 people who were listed in the address book, and shed light on their family lives, and what they did before, during and after the war.

Alongside being an author, Jill is the West Sussex area coordinator of Children of Far Eastern Prisoners of War (CoFEPOW).