Dennis K (Johnny) Egan, GW4XKE, 10 February 2018

Dennis Kanaar Egan was born in Chiswick London W4 on the 25th January 1925. He had a happy childhood in the 1920’s with his parents, Jack and Muriel Egan. They went to live in a bungalow called “Isola Bella” at Send near Woking with his younger sister Barbara Muriel Egan born 1st July 1926 being cared for by the grandparents.

After a period, they moved from Send to a small basement flat at “Isis Court” Chiswick so joining his younger sister who remained to be being cared for by the grandparents nearby. Sometime later the flat was vacated so went to live with grandparents Gerard J & Stella A N Kanaar who lived in a large house called “The Moorings” 37 Grove Park Chiswick London W4 for some time on the 3rd floor. Sometime about 1930 or 1931 the marriage was in difficulty and resulted in separation thought contact was made by his father from time to time with both his children up to 1939.

In the 1930’s the early days of wireless Dennis became very interested, starting to experiment with wireless building crystals sets and TRF (Tuned Radio Frequency) valve receivers from parts obtained from a second-hand shop in Chiswick High Road near Gunnersbury Station.

Later in that decade his interest also turned with a friends Fred Hollyer and Sandy Ritchie to cycling then to motorcycles and ran a small repair shop in the cellar of “The Moorings” with cards printed as “EHR Engineering”.

When the war started on September 3rd, 1939 Dennis was nearly 16 years old and had great hopes to attend a Maritime Radio Operators College in Riverside Road just around the corner, however, this was not to be as the College closed due to the start of the war.

Boyhood friends Fred Hollyer went into the RAF and Sandy Richie into the Navy whilst Dennis went into the Army and used their motorbikes at old sand & gravel pits on the Great Chertsey Road. The lads had a great time “on the rough” so by the time were 16 were filled in were expert riders.

Dennis was keen to join up too at not yet 18 as had Fred and Sandy so he filled in a form in the Magazine “The Motorcycling” known as the “Green Un” the Editor being Graham Walker to join the Royal Corps of Signals as a Don R (Despatch Rider). At this time, he was working at Hudson Motors who were on war work making bulkheads for Motor Torpedo Boat (MTB)s, desert water containers, these were round and could be rolled along, reconditioning Army vehicles etc of all types and Hudson cars as well.  As part of the duties Dennis had to do Fire Watching once every month under the control of the AFS (Auxiliary Fire Service), stay all night at the factory and only allowed home early morning to wash and change starting back at 0800 hrs for a normal day’s work.

Towards the end of 1942 Dennis realised that if he was not careful he would be stuck in a reserved occupation or may have even been the 1 in 10 who were directed into the mines as “Bevin Boys”. ‘Not me said I, no way’ said he and as had already sent in the form to Graham Walker resigned!

Dennis made various excuses to his mother Muriel as to why he was out of a job then had a letter from the MOD to report to the Labour Exchange Horn Lane Acton W3 for the medical etc and take the “Kings Shilling”. He said, ‘yes I did get a shilling and spent it!’

He signed on into “The Regular Army for the Period of the Present Emergency” and his AB64 page 2 states 14419017 and it may be of interest to know all 144 numbers were given to Volunteers.

14419017 Sigmn Dennis K Egan

• Joined up North Acton TA Centre Horn Lane Acton London W3 November 1942 (Boys Service) then Class W (T) TA Reserve 26/01/1943 to 03/03/1943.
• Posted to No 6 PTC 04/03/1943. G S Corps Prestatyn. Posted Royal Signals No 2 OTB 01/05/1943 Huddersfield.
• Posted Royal Signals No 4 TTB 08/05/1943 Catterick. Posted 15th Air Formation Signals Regiment 17/07/1943 Crumlin N.I. then France & N W Europe.
• Posted 18^th Air Formation Signals Regiment Germany 02/06/1945. then Middle East Land Forced 1945 to release 15^th September 1947.
• Transferred to Territorial Army Reserve Z (T). Recalled to Z (T) Reserve 11 AA Signal Regiment (TA) 1952.

The above was written by Dennis K Egan in advance of his passing and is continued by his only child, daughter Amanda Egan.

After demob, Dennis returned to ‘Civvy Street’ and was employed again at Hudson Motors and other similar garages. He told me in Dec 2017 that he wished he had re-joined the army and had a military career instead.

He met Ella Plumridge as her father Bill was selling a push bike to ride to work on. He courted her until their marriage 3 weeks after her 21st birthday at Turnham Green Church Chiswick.  Their only child Amanda finally arrived in 1960 and they lived in a council maisonette overlooking the Chiswick flyover with sister Barbara, his mother, husband Gerald and her 3 girls living not far away in Sunbury. Ella’s parents and her sister Dorothy lived in St Dunstan’s Road Fulham.

Dennis joined the Prudential Assurance Company as a staff assessor in 1964 and part of that employment was to up sticks and relocate to Cardiff and leave all their family behind.  This meant Dennis could finally get a mortgage thanks to the ‘Pru’ and life changed for the better with the house in Dinas Powys.

In 1970 Ella’s parents Bill and Tilly decided to leave the Staines Rd Hounslow house due to expansion of Heathrow and the noise and moved to join the Dinas Powys family with a 2-bed bungalow a few minutes walk away.

Holidays were spent each year in the caravan and of course Dennis made this bespoke with all extras such as power and TV.

Cars continued to be rebuilt and he tinkered in the late 70’s with CB radio when it was illegal and he and Amanda used to set up the ‘twig’ in the upstairs hall, much to Ella’s annoyance.  At this point he decided to obtain his Class A Amateur radio license. By the time he retired early from the Pru in 1988 due to ill health he threw himself into his loft radio shack.

When Ella’s parents died in 1989 and 1990, Amanda already had left home and retirement beckoned, they decided to rebuild the bungalow and moved up there after 2 years of building. This was done by Dennis digging footings, extending the garage and building his now famous radio shack and installing numerous aerials again much to Ella’s horror as her new back garden had a monstrous metal aerial installation. Dennis then lent himself to hours in the Shack organising war time reunions and writing numerous memoirs of his war time adventures of which some were published in war and radio magazines.

He was diagnosed luckily quickly due to regular monitoring from his previous ill health with bowel cancer in his mid-70’s and after an operation, subsequent chemo was not affected again.

He lost Ella on the 23rd July 2016 from an undiagnosed bowel tumour that she had kept hidden for some time and he was lonely for the first time in his life since they married in 1952.  They had also lost Oscar their black and white cat in March 2016, so he felt very alone.

He continued to drive and mow the lawn in 2017 and was indeed trimming branches the day before his slip in the back garden whilst getting the bin bags ready at 8am on the 4th December 2017. He broke his hip and knowing this dragged himself through the bungalow to get help, he tried to call for help for hours and on realising his was fruitless dragged himself to the phone to call neighbour Reg. An ambulance finally came at 8pm and he had his op a few days later. He struggled with a chest infection on and off whilst in the hospital however was soon on his feet and tidying up the ward.

I last saw him fit and well, standing at the ward door at 8.30pm on the 6th January 2018 as he was due home that week wearing his new Christmas clothes and new slippers I had put on his feet that evening. Little did he know that the bungalow had been going through a total revamp in readiness of his return.

Sadly, the next morning he woke up slurring his speech and after an emergency CT scan soon started to lose the movement in his right arm and leg.  The next month was a struggle as he saw no hope for him with the loss of speech and swallowing and wanted to be with Ella.  However due to the lack of mental capacity at this early stage of stroke his wishes were not able to be understood. He was moved to the dedicated stroke unit at Llandough Hospital and once again the non-cleared original chest infection came back again with a vengeance.  His 93rd birthday was celebrated on the 25th January however it was clear he wasn’t interested. He overcame the chest infection again and at this point he made it clear to the consultant he had had enough as his speech had improved a lot.   He asked for what he wanted before the end and that was ‘ginger beer’ so he was allowed this even though his swallowing wasn’t good enough.

I fed him ginger beer, ice cream and custard and he said he was going and rattled off his military number and family names over and over then fell asleep with morphine to dull the great pain he was in for the last few days and he drifted off not to wake for 4 hours and then he was shocked he hadn’t passed away. I asked him ‘Did you have an appointment Daddy?’ He rolled his eyes and groaned with annoyance then fell asleep not to wake again despite another day sitting at his bed waiting for his last breath.

He finally passed between 9.00 and 9.12 on the 10th February alone on the ward at Llandough.

His funeral was on 19 March 2018, St Andrew’s Church, St Andrews Major, St Andrew’s Rd, Dinas Powys CF64 4HD Vale of Glamorgan, and he was interred at the cemetery opposite with Ella.

 

 

THE EXHORTATION

THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLD AS WE WHO ARE LEFT GROW OLD.

AGE SHALL NOT WEARY THEM, NOR THE YEARS CONDEMN.

AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN AND IN THE MORNING, WE SHALL REMEMBER THEM.

 

Category: Silent Keys