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While hundreds of thousands of people joined street parties and dances in the UK to mark VE Day, Warrant Officer Raymond Tailby from Churchover near Rugby, was sending people to hospital in Italy.

He was a Warrant Officer with the Royal Air Force stationed in Italy and was on duty in the signals section when hostilities ceased.

鈥淥ur Yugoslav friends who were now guards came running across 鈥榪uick, quick鈥� friend shot in stomach鈥�. How (I asked); 鈥楥leaning gun鈥�. I thought that鈥檚 rather an unlikely story. So I got on to the ambulance people; we were actually sending a couple of people to hospital with malaria.

鈥淚 rang the hospital and said we鈥檝e got a couple of malaria cases coming to you and we鈥檝e got someone else coming who鈥檚 been shot in the stomach. 鈥極h jolly good! Send them in! Any more?鈥� So off they went, and that was my VE Day.鈥�

So that was Ray Tailby鈥檚 VE Day, a day much like any other after German Forces in Italy had surrendered, at the end of April 1945.

And for men like Ray, thoughts turned to what might happen to them next, because the war against Japan in the Pacific was still being fought.

鈥淭hat was on offer. If I鈥檇 been prepared to go back to the UK and gain a commission, then I would be transferred to the RAF Regiment. Then I discovered all this was ready for the invasion of Japan, so I thought very carefully about that. Fortunately, Japan surrendered, so that wasn鈥檛 necessary.鈥�

And with VJ Day (victory in Japan) on 15 August 1945, the party really began for Ray Tailby.

鈥淲e were a fairly isolated camp and one of my responsibilities at the time was to see that food got in and out of the camp. Supplies used to come in once a fortnight; beer, spirits, cigarettes. But rather than dish it out, a bottle of beer for a man for a fortnight, we used to group everything together for an all-ranks party.

鈥淭hings were much more relaxed out there. We did salute the officers, but everyone was more or less almost on first-name terms. So we did have a pretty good party on VJ Day. And yes, there were a few sore heads the next morning.鈥�

Image: Raymond Tailby

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