'I was evacuated in WW2 and met Agatha Christie'
When Barry Yeagers turned 12 years old, he never expected to leave Guernsey for any reason, let alone the start of World War Two.
But when it became clear Nazi Germany forces had their sights set on the island, children were offered the chance to be evacuated from the island with their schools.
He said: "My brother and I used to go swimming after school. One night a woman came down to the pool screaming: 'Get back home,' telling us we had to sign up at school to leave.
"We realised everybody was going, so we did the same and ran home, and mother took us to St Joseph's."
It was June 1940 and Guernsey's plans to evacuate the island's children to England had begun.
It is believed an estimated 6,000 children, along with their teachers, were shipped out initially to Weymouth, Dorset, for their protection, and Mr Yeagers was one of them.
Now 97, Mr Yeagers has been sharing his story as part of the Island Memories Project, a collaboration between BBC Guernsey and Guernsey Museums.
'A lot of crying'
Barry's boat arrived in Weymouth at about 15:30, when he eventually had a chance to eat a bit of food.
He said: "There was a lot of crying.
"Some of the youngsters were only six and seven-year olds, and there was a few mothers on there, but it was more teachers than anything else.
"We all had a medical at the Weymouth Pavilion and got through by 16:45.
"Next, we went across the road to a hotel and had a sandwich and a cup of tea, before boarding the train at 17:30."
Barry and his sister Patricia were able to live together again in Devon [BBC]
The journey was not a short one either, taking the group all the way to Glasgow, Scotland, and keeping them onboard for 22 hours.
"I don't know how many were on the train, but there there was at least 10 to a carriage. And there was only one stop, at Crewe, and that was at four in the morning."
The children from Barry's school, St Joseph's, were housed in a day care centre Dixon Halls.
After another move, he contracted chicken pox and was hospitalised before eventually relocating to an area in the south of Glasgow, Pollokshaws.
"That's where I started school, and I think I only went for about four days. We did nothing but drawing," he said.
And then Barry got the best news he could have asked for: "All of a sudden we were told that we were going to meet up with our family."
Agatha Christie's shilling
Barry and his brother met his mum and younger sister Patricia in Watford, and his dad was evacuated from Guernsey on a yacht from Brecqhou to Dartmouth in Devon.
The family moved to a cottage near Dittisham, on the River Dart in the county.
During his time there, Barry remembers seeing three German Stuka aircraft drop bombs on the village.
He said: "We stayed a distance from the other side of the river for about three months [after the bombing].
"During that time, there was a boy called Sam used to row the ferry across the Greenway Quay on the other bank of the river."
Sam asked Barry if he might be able to row the ferry when Sam was unable to do it. It gave Barry a way of earning some money.
He said: "It just so happened a couple of days later I was asked to ride across and pick up this lady.
"I brought her over to the other side and she give me a shilling [five pence] instead of a tuppence [two pence]. So I split it with Sam."
He said that, in the years which followed, he found a book which contained a photo of exactly the same woman he ended up ferrying across the River Dart three times.
"It was Agatha Christie, and I didn't know. It took me two years to find out."
Barry Yeagers, aged 17, celebrating VE Day in May 1945 [BBC]
Barry and his family later moved into a cottage in South Milton in Devon, where they stayed until 1944.
He was removed from school to make space for more evacuees and began working on a farm.
His father was also called up to fight in Egypt, where he was injured in a bomb blast and sent home in 1942.
They then moved to Watford as a family and Barry began working at the Navy, Army, and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI), which provides services to the armed forces.
Guernsey was liberated from German Occupation forces on 9 May 1945, almost 80 years ago.
Barry Yeagers was 17 years old on VE Day.
Follow BBC Guernsey on X and Facebook. Send your story ideas to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk.
More on this story
Related internet links
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Opinion - Traveling in the Trump era: No, you don't have to apologize for being American
President Trump's return to the White House has revived a familiar media genre — columns lamenting how 'ashamed' Americans supposedly feel when traveling abroad. USA Today's recent headline blared, ''I didn't vote for him': How American tourists are navigating global perceptions.' It tells the story of how a couple actually canceled their overseas vacation out of fear they'd be mistaken for Trump supporters. The BBC followed with, ''People might treat us differently': Trump era leaves U.S. tourists in Paris feeling shame.' A Boston Globe columnist also chimed in: 'Trump's behavior makes me embarrassed to be an American.' To quantify the hand-wringing, a recent survey found that 72 percent of 'experienced' U.S. travelers worry they might feel unwelcome abroad. The underlying assumption is clear: Foreign distaste for Trump taints every U.S. passport holder. But that anxiety reveals more about the worldview of those making the claim — usually progressive, elite, Western — than it does about how Americans are actually received overseas. It also reveals how media narratives shape public expectations. Of course Americans fear being unwelcome — after all, the media keep telling them they will or should be. In the time since Trump won last November, I have spent significant time in Greenland, Vietnam, England, Panama and Mexico — countries that have all been in Trump's crosshairs in some way. Not once did I experience hostility. After traveling through dozens of countries on five continents under both Republican and Democratic presidents, I have found the fretting about being American abroad to be wildly overstated — a projection of domestic political angst, not a reflection of global reality. Yes, most foreigners know who our president is, especially when he is as headline-grabbing as Trump. And yes, they often have opinions — don't we all? But the idea that everyday Americans are routinely shunned, judged, or made to feel unwelcome abroad because of Trump is a fantasy born of our own political obsessions. In truth, Americans are generally welcomed abroad. And when we aren't, it has less to do with politics than with other things — for example, our cultural obliviousness, our sheer numbers traveling, or the pressure that affluent travelers inevitably place on their local housing markets. Sure, some people abroad dislike Trump and may judge Americans accordingly. But most are preoccupied with their own politics, lives, and problems and understand that a president doesn't define his entire population. Yes, Trump is a globally recognized figure — so are Lebron James and Taylor Swift. Recognition is not reverence, nor is it revulsion. If you include the entire population, about 23 percent of American citizens voted for Trump. The odds are good that any American you meet abroad did not. And more to the point, most foreigners — like most Americans and even most Trump supporters — hold nuanced views about Trump. Last month in Nuuk, Greenland, I met an EU bureaucrat who said she had been alarmed by Trump's 2016 election, since his 'rocket man' tweets about North Korea initially had her fearing nuclear war. But after watching his unexpectedly cordial summit with Kim Jong Un, she reconsidered. 'Don't just look to where Trump is hitting the ball,' she said of Trump's approach to foreign affairs. 'It will ricochet a couple of times and then perhaps fall in the pocket.' She, like others I have met abroad, holds a view of Trump that is simultaneously skeptical and strangely admiring — a nuance absent from the editorial pages of most American newspapers. In Greenland, I met some who despised Trump and some who genuinely admired him. Most responded to Trump's talk of purchasing Greenland with wry amusement. Some even gave a grinning, shrugging acknowledgment that at least he'd put their country on the map. All the while, a thousand think-pieces back home were insisting that everyone in Greenland loathed him. In Hanoi, a woman told me she initially admired Trump's unconventional approach to adversaries. She said she has grown more skeptical as his tariffs have hurt her country. That's not blind praise or a knee-jerk rejection — it's nuance, the kind many reporters fail to register even among Americans. Just as often, the response is indifference. When I asked a Peruvian friend in Lima what she thought of Trump voters, she replied flatly: 'I don't.' When I visited Peru, I didn't know the name of its president — why should she be consumed with ours? The U.S. wields outsized global influence, but it is narcissism to assume the world is constantly thinking about us. Maybe we should get over ourselves. Many liberals feel compelled to grovel, to disavow Trump the moment they leave U.S. soil. I never have, any more than I expected praise during earlier travels because global media darling Barack Obama was our president. I don't buy into reflected glory any more than I do reflected shame. Americans reluctant to travel while Trump is president should not let pundits and alarmists talk them out of seeing the world. A U.S. passport is one of the greatest privileges of being American, opening nearly every border, often visa-free. Yes, being American might at times make you a target. Far more often, though, you will find respect, curiosity, and kindness. Most people abroad aren't interested in judging strangers for their country's politics. They are more likely to judge you for how you behave. So, to my fellow Americans: Use that passport proudly. Be ambassadors for the best of American values: our openness, our generosity, our eagerness to learn. That is what people abroad will remember most — not our president, but us. Daniel Allott, the former opinion editor at The Hill, is the author of 'On the Road in Trump's America: A Journey into the Heart of a Divided Country.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
German long-distance train halted after deemed too dirty to continue
Passengers on a German long-distance train were told to get off prematurely after train crew determined that the carriages were too dirty to continue the journey. The high-speed train operated by national railway company Deutsche Bahn was en route from Munich to Hamburg on Tuesday, when train crew found that it was no longer viable to continue, a spokeswoman told dpa on Thursday. Passengers were told to disembark in the Bavarian city of Nuremberg, some 155 kilometres north of Munich. She said the operator regretted the incident, adding: "We expect long-distance trains travelling throughout Germany to meet high quality standards. Unfortunately, this was not the case on this journey." The spokeswoman did not provide further details on the state of the carriages, nor did she say how many people had been aboard the train. One hour after they were told to leave the train, passengers were offered an alternative connection, and they were eligible to apply for compensation, according to the spokeswoman.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
'Race Across the World's final pulled on my heartstrings'
This was the moving moment that Caroline and Tom won Race Across the World for me. Spoiler alert: it wasn't when the mother and son were running to the empty book that was waiting for them at the southernmost tip of India, at Kanniyakumari. Or when they were celebrating with their glasses of champagne. Just 15 minutes into the final, the pair are blissfully unaware their lead has slipped in Udupi while waiting for their overnight bus they had pre-booked to Kochi. Taking time to slow down, Tom and Caroline had the time to reminisce on the race as it nears the end. Wearing her heart on her sleeve, Caroline told Tom: "Travelling with you has, probably, been the best experience of my life." And Tom has the most beautiful response. He got his personal journal and he shared a passage with his mum — and with the millions of us tuning into watch the final. It's easy to forget as a viewer how hard it must be for the contestants to be vulnerable in front of the cameras. Those taking part in RATW are not your typical reality TV stars, chasing the bright lights of fame like you tend to find bursting through the doors of the Love Island villa. These are ordinary people who have let us into their lives while they go on the adventure of a lifetime. Sharing that special moment with us, Tom told his mum he felt like like he had already won the race. He told her: "This was a note to self when we were on leg six at the carpet place. I keep having a feeling that me and mum will win but I think we already have. "Just remember how lucky you are to be travelling the world, seeing the best things you can even dream of with your mother and having the best time ever. Remember how me and mum got on, how fun she is, and just how much you love her. "Appreciate these times and memories because there will be a time that I can't. This to me is winning. No amount of money can make me realise all of this." Caroline wiped away her tears — I must admit I was close to being teary myself — and responded: "That was absolutely lovely. Thank you." It played on my heartstrings and the Race Across the World final delivered. There was a lot to love about this final leg of Race Across the World. Brothers Brian and Melvyn were impressive. Hats off to the competitive duo who managed to close much of the 17 hour gap, leaving just two hours between them and the winners. It was just short of a miracle but the siblings couldn't have done any better in the final. The BBC final was edited brilliantly. Immersed in it, I felt the winning title was within Melvyn and Brian's grasp when they spent £172 on an overnight taxi. It would have made Race Across the World history if they had done it. They weren't the only ones to get taxis this episode either which was fun to see. With so little budget spent in India, the teams had healthy budgets to splash out on those all expensive last minute taxis. Immediately I was reminded of taxi-loving father and daughter Kevin and Claudia who ran out of money after getting taxis just about everywhere in Canada. The final was so close, especially between Caroline and Tom, Letitia and Elizabeth and Sioned and Fin. Only 45 minutes separated the three teams. There was just 19 minutes between the mother and son and their closest rivals. With all the drama, it would be easy to forget that it wasn't the closest final there has ever been. Cast your mind back to series two where Emon and Jamiul Choudhury won Race Across the World by just 20 seconds. Caroline and Tom are worthy winners. And I would have happily seen all the teams win. That's the thing about the race; it's not about the winning. Sure, the £20,000 would be nice but it's all about the journey and the memories they have made along the way. Even though none of the teams changed positions from the penultimate leg, the final was an exciting adventure. Race Across the World could easily be longer than eight one-hour episodes. If watching the series five final doesn't persuade you to pack your bags and immediately book your own adventures, nothing will. I'm already dreaming of my next holiday. Race Across the World is streaming on BBC iPlayer. The Reunion episode airs on 9pm on BBC One on Wednesday.
