Lance-Corporal Harry Pexton

Unit : "X" Troop, 11th Special Air Service Battalion

Harry Pexton was interviewed for the Channel 4 television programme, Commandos, broadcast in February 2002. The fourth episode, A Leap in the Dark, described the formation of No.2 Commando / 11th SAS, and Operations Colossus and Biting; the Bruneval Raid. The following is a transcript of his contributions:

When he was recruited as a Commando: "I asked the officer what it consisted of, and he said "well you're either going to be a seaborne commando, or an airborne commando." So I said "Well, what does an airborne commando do?" and he said "You'll be jumping out of aeroplanes". Well I didn't think a great lot to that at the time."

Regarding parachute training, and in the first instance of jumping through the rear turret of a Whitley: "You'd pull the rip-chord, and when it developed you let go of a bar and you were pulled off. And a few guys I'd spoke to who had done it and took a very dim view of it because it could have pulled your arms out if you'd not let go at the appropriate time. Your arms would have been left behind and you'd have been out there. I've never been so frightened in my life. I didn't sleep the night before, wondering what was going to happen - because there was nobody to tell us. But you went and you just shut your eyes and hoped for the best. Most started singing, whistling, shouting, as a nervous reaction. It was great to hit the floor in one piece. Over there [on the drop zone] was a shed with two ladies in it, you signed a book to say that you were still in one piece and quite happy. Then you went on your way rejoicing."

Of volunteering for Operation Colossus and what it might involve: "We all stepped forward because we were getting edgy. Time we did something. You know we'd trained hard enough for six months or more and it was time something was happening. We knew that we were going to blow a bridge up. We didn't know where it was - there was Ethiopia, Abbysinia, and you name it, all sorts of rumours, which is usual in the army."

Regarding the final inspection by Admiral Sir Roger Keyes on the 7th February 1941, shortly before "X" Troop left for Malta: "He talked to each one of us, and then my mate and I heard him say "It's a pity, it's a pity", and he said "What do you think he meant?", I said I'd no idea."

Describing his landing in Italy: "It was a beautiful moonlit night. And I landed in this tree, only about three foot from the ground, I was sat in my harness and I'm thinking "what am I doing here?", it's beautiful the moon over there, and it didn't seem right that we were there to commit an act of war."

Of the march to the coast with the group led by Captain Lea: "They gave us a week. Well if they'd have given us a month under the conditions we were in we wouldn't have got back to the coast."

When they were ambushed by a mixed group of civilians and Carabinieri on a bridge: "I said to Christopher Lea "what we going to do then?", well we can't shoot civilians so we had no alternative but to surrender." Lea, interviewed on the same programme, said: "I can seldom remember a more ghastly moment in my life. I had recruited these people, there we were, we were making for a rendezvous. We had failed. These two lance corporals came up, and Harry Pexton was one of them, and they sat each side of me and Harry Pexton said "We think you made the right decision sir" and then they sat beside me a bit longer and then made some excuse to go back, and that made a lot of difference. I've always remembered that."

Regarding their initial treatment as prisoners: "For three weeks they were going to see us off. They used to come at night and say "tomorrow morning", and for three weeks that went on, which was a bit unnerving when you went to sleep wondering if it was going to be your last sleep."

Summarising Operation Colossus: "With hindsight, our operation was a psychological operation. Until then the world didn't know we had airborne troops. Up to then we didn't know if the RAF could pinpoint drop. So it was an exercise of learning, getting back or not was another matter."

After the war Harry Pexton was employed as a painter and decorator.

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