A Bold Theatrical Experiment
On 14th May 1940, the British Government broadcast a message asking for volunteers to join the Local Defence Volunteers.
Image: Home guard marching down Croydon Street.
Two months later Winston Churchill changed the name of the volunteers to the Home Guard.
The Home Guard was formed when there was a real risk of invasion. Most men who could fight were already in the forces.
Those that were left were either too young, too old, or in reserved occupations doing jobs vital to the war effort.
Jack, 87, now lives in East Sussex, but has never forgotten his days serving in the Ace and Tab's Home Guard, largely thanks to his extensive collection of photographs taken during his time in Dad's Army.
He said: "I was first introduced to the Ace and Tab in 1936 when an open day was arranged. Mr Foster, our next door neighbour at the time, invited me.
"After my tour I said to my parents I would never like to work there with all that thunderous noise in the machine shop. I decided to give it a go and ended up staying there for 36 years.
Image: The Mobile Unit in 1940. Assembled at the Acc & Tab in Aurella Road.
"I served in the 32nd Surrey Home Guard, formed by employees of the company. At the time of the Blitz we formed a mobile unit with several vans to go to the bad incidents to assist the civil defence, who were under great pressure."
The men who volunteered to join the Home Guard at this time were expected to fight an invasion of German troops with nothing more than a collection of old shotguns and pieces of gas pipe with bayonets welded on the end.
The Government was expecting 150,000 men to volunteer for the Home Guard.
Within the first month, 750,000 men had volunteered. By the end of June 1940, the total number of volunteers was over a million.
The number of men in the Home Guard did not fall below one million until they were stood down in December 1944. The Home Guard was disbanded on 31st December 1945.