John Emanuel Borg was the oldest son of Elizabeth and Emanuel Borg. Elizabeth was from Edinburgh and Emanuel was from Malta. The marriage sadly broke down, Emanuel worked as a ship's cook and was away for long periods. When John was a youth he was sent to a home in Tranent in Scotland as he apparently had no male model at home to keep him right, at least, that was what the authorities said.

Like so many men, he gave a false date of birth in order to enlist and joined up in 1935 having just turned 17, and although his family home was in the Grassmarket area of Edinburgh, he joined from St Joseph's Boys Home in Edinburgh. Although he hated being in that home, he learnt skills that would help him survive Hong Kong, the Lisbon Maru and as a POW in Japan. He learnt how to make do with meagre rations, to sew and tailor, to look after himself and toughen up and to play drums in a pipe band.

John was sent to India in March 1937 where he remained for just under a year. Like many others, he was transferred to Hong Kong in January 1938. Because of the surname Borg, some of the men thought he was German, turned out not to be the case, however he was still nicknamed Gerry. Whilst in Hong Kong he wrote a letter to his brother Paul back in Scotland. He said "Well Paul, we are just waiting for the Japs to start on us and they will get it hot when they do start. We had some experience of them when we first came here and camped at the Frontier, 9 planes came over and started to bomb the Chinese, we were glad when they hopped off."

As we know, Japan occupied Hong Kong and John became a POW in December 1941. John was shipped to Japan on the tragic Lisbon Maru and survived a Japanese attempt to send all 1816 POWs to a watery grave. So many 'planets aligned' that day to allow John and others to escape: a) He was in Hold 2 and not Hold 3 from where few men escaped; b) The weather was mild and the sea was calm; c) Quingbang Island was close; d) Villagers assembled to help them ashore; e) Food and clothing and shelter was provided by the villagers.

During those few days, before being recaptured by the Japanese, John forged a lasting friendship with another survivor of the Lisbon Maru, Duncan (Eddie) Cameron, a fellow Royal Scot, whose family also lived in Edinburgh. John and Eddie became friends in Hong Kong, but the friendship grew as they both made it to Qingbang and subsequently became POWs in Kobe House. That close friendship would lead to a wonderful love story, which resulted in my and my siblings' births.

The prize for surviving Lisbon Maru was Kobe House POW Camp where they suffered unimaginable starvation and ill-treatment. As young children we were never allowed to use the expression 'I’m starving', my father would remind us we never had, and hopefully never would know what real starvation felt like.

John was the camp tailor and told of the times he would sew pockets on the inside of the men’s trousers, so they could hide contraband from the docks.

After freedom, both John and Eddie were shipped home on the Empress Australia. On the way home they were both interviewed by a newspaper covering the sinking of Lisbon Maru and their treatment at the hands of the Japanese. The headline was 'A Far Cry from Auld Reekie'.

After returning to Liverpool, John and Eddie, along with others travelling to Scotland, were transported to Edinburgh Waverley Station by train. The families were made aware of this and converged on the station to welcome their loved ones home. John's mother Elizabeth contacted Eddie's sister Jeanie, so the two families could go together and meet the men off the train. John's mother was actually a bit concerned she wouldn’t recognise John as it had been many years since she last saw him and he had lost his hair!

When the two men arrived home in late October 1945, both their families were there to welcome them home. Two of Eddie's sisters, Jeanie and the oldest Margaret were part of the welcoming party and John met Margaret for the first time.

John was immediately smitten with Margaret and in the next few months John asked Margaret out on a date to the Tivoli Cinema located in Edinburgh. John and Margaret were married in Edinburgh on 24th December 1946 and had four children, James in 1947, Jeanie in 1949, John in 1951 and Gerald (Gerry) in 1957.

John and Margaret moved to Broomhouse in West Edinburgh and he worked in a garage and as a Head Barman at the Silver Wing Pub. Sadly he suffered from ill health and eventually had to give up working. That very poor health existed for most of the 20 or so years from his release until his death in 1967, illnesses that were attributed to treatment he encountered in the hands of the Japanese. Large parts of our early lives were spent touring the many hospitals in and around Edinburgh as John was a constant patient.

John sadly passed away on 21st February 1967 at 48 years of age.