Alfred Henry Bright was born on 24th June 1917 at 27 Elswick Road, Lewisham, London. His mother died in March 1922 when he was 5 years old, so he did not know his mother's name until he was in his 80s, when I obtained copy of his birth certificate. Her name was Lillian Ion. He lived with uncles and aunts for most of his childhood years.

Alfred joined the British Army when he was sixteen years old on 12th July 1933. From his account, the Army was his family. He served abroad in Cairo, Palestine, Singapore and Hong Kong with 1st Middlesex Regiment.

Alfred was a Bandsman and was known as 'Gimpa' as he was the smartest on parade. He also played football for the British Army England Team, touring across Asia, including Haiphong in 1939 and Macau in 1940.

Corporal A.H. Bright arrived in Hong Kong in 1937 and was based in Sham Shui Po Army Camp, Lai Chi Kok Road, Lai Chi Kok, Kowloon, Hong Kong pre war and after war broke out.

He was involved in the Battle for Hong Kong, 8th Dec 1941 - 25th Dec 1941, based in and around the Happy Valley Racecourse, Leighton Hill, Hong Kong Island, which was used as a field hospital, where he drove ambulances to collect the injured and dead. I believe he was captured in the Stanley Peninsula area.

As a Prisoner of War, Alfred was kept in camps at Murray Barracks from 25th Dec 1941 to 3rd Jan 1942 and then the old British barracks in Sham Shui Po from 3rd Jan 1942 - 26th Sep 1942.

He was being transferred to a camp in Japan but the ship, the Lisbon Maru, was struck by a torpedo from USS Grouper (SS-214) on 1st October 1942 and the ship sank on 2nd October 1942. All POWs were locked into the hold of the ship after it was torpedoed.

The Lisbon Maru was towed into shallower waters before it sank off the Zhoushan Islands, Zheijiang Province, China. Local Chinese fishermen from Qingbang Island helped save the POWs. Later all surviving POWs were recaptured by the Japanese and taken to Wushan, Shanghai, China. Alfred was transported to Japan on board the Shinsei Maru, departing Shanghai on 6th October 1942 and arriving at Kobe House Osaka POW Camp on 11th October 1942.

Alfred remembered the 3 diamonds logo (possibly of the Mitsubishi company). He was often unloading at the docks. When the Kobe camp was destroyed by US incendiary bombs on 5th Jun 1945, he was moved to Maruyama Camp from 6th Jun 1945 to 22nd Jun 1945) and then to Wakinohama Camp from 22nd Jun 1945 to 6th Sep 1945.

Following liberation, I believe he was flown from Japan to Manila, Philippines to the large US camp where he was from 13th Sep to 20th Sep 1945. Then I believe he took the RMS Empress of Australia via Singapore, Colombo, Aden and Suez to Liverpool, finally arriving on 27th Oct 1945.

Alfred married Lilian Alice Queenie Blanden on 17th August 1946 and they had 2 children, Lynda Ann (1947) and Graham John (1954). His son Graham was named after Corporal Graham Lewis Ruck, a great Army friend, also in the Middlesex and a survivor of the sinking of the Lisbon Maru.

He played football for Fulham and Wimbledon and tried out for Charlton, circa 1947.

Alfred worked as a blind maker, postal worker, bill-board erector (helped erect the famous Dunlop tyre at Silverstone circuit), TV aerial erector, groundsman, London buses 1966-1972 and for the GLC as a painter and decorator from 1972 until his retirement in 1979.

Alfred lived in Hither Green Lane from 1952 to 1959, then Pond Road, Blackheath from 1959 to 2002 and finally Ryculf Square, Blackheath from 2002 to 2009. He passed away on 19th March 2009 at the age of 91 and was buried on 7th April 2009 at Greenwich, London.