Evergreen

104 EVERGREEN Autumn
(continued)
tried to emulate the great star of the day,
Bing Crosby. Our section became very
popular and we did a lot of shows, the
proceeds going towards parcels for the
troops and the Red Cross.
On 1st July 1943, I was 18 1 ⁄2-years-old
and invited to join the army — as were
thousands more. That autumn I was
posted to Norton Barracks in Worcester.
One day a huge notice was put up which
read: “I want to discover YOU. Signed:
Carroll Levis.”
I put my name down and hoped I’d
be discovered. We were taken by army
lorry to what looked like a dance hall. It
had a big dance floor, a stage and a bar.
Carroll Levis and our entertainment
officer stood just inside the bar. There
were about 10 to 15 of us and many of
the acts were good. Two ATS girls who
played banjos and sang a selection of
songs were chosen.
They only wanted one act, but as we
were leaving Mr. Levis came to the exit,
shook our hands and thanked us for
taking part. His assistant gave us all a
ticket for the show that was broadcast a
few days later.
I’ve often mentioned to friends about
this but, of course, none have ever heard
of Carroll Levis and His Discoveries,
so you can imagine how thrilled I was
to see him mentioned in Evergreen.
— MR. R.W. COX, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE,
NORTHUMBERLAND.
TRYING TO FIND
MADAM: I have been trying to find an
RAF friend from long ago. He was
Corporal William (Bill) Roche (or
Roache), stationed for his National
Service in 1956/57 with the RAF
regiment at Wroughton, near Swindon,
Wiltshire. The photograph (left) shows
him at St. James’s Park, London.
We lost touch during his various
postings, but I found some information
that he was sent to Oldenburg, in
Germany, in 1956. It seems that the last
A reader is trying to trace an RAF friend,
William Roache (or Roche). See letter
above.